Ashelin led the way down a staircase at the end of the hall. Her boot steps echoed in the landings; Tess padded silently behind her, admiring the old mosaics on the walls. They were scratched, and near the lights flickering on every floor, the tiny, precious stones had been dug out.
"Keep your nose up," Ashelin said. "I had Daxter wire some threads through the HQ. He should've started at the front door and unwound them as they approached the room. Mar knows how he hid them, but if one of Rayn's men had found them by now, they would've been disabled." Ashelin poked at one of the electronic devices at her belt. It flashed some numbers and she nodded. "The threads give off a faint scent. I can't smell it, but Daxter could. I think you probably can, too."
"Okay," said Tess. She sniffed the air. "I think a bunch of sweaty guys went through here."
Ashelin paused at the door leading to the third floor. She put her ear against it and listened. "Three guys," she whispered. "We're going to go with the element of surprise. Hyah!" She kicked the door open and decked the first guy standing outside it, just as he was turning, eyes wide. Ashelin dove into a head stand, twisted in the air and smashed another guy in the face with her boot.
Tess scurried over the groaning henchmen and clawed her way up the third guy's back. "What the hell?" He turned in circles, trying to see what was happening behind him. Tess giggled and bit his ear. "Augh!" He threw down his gun and grabbed for her. Tess wiggled out of his reach, jumped to the ground, and tripped him. He fell onto his comrades.
Tess pulled the gun away from him. As she turned, he pushed himself up. "You little rat!" he screamed, grabbing her shoulder.
"Ow!" Tess scratched at his hand, but he dug his thumb in deeper.
"I don't think so." Ashelin jumped and landed on the guy's back, knees first. The air in his lungs wooshed out and his eyes rolled. Tess staggered as his fingers went limp. Blood leaked from the corner of his mouth. Ashelin raised her arm up and smashed her pistol into the back of his head. He slumped.
Tess rubbed her shoulder.
"You okay?" asked Ashelin. She kicked at the pile of unconscious bodies.
"Yeah."
"Everyone's out cold." Ashelin scooped up the guys' weapons and nodded to another door across the hall. "Open that."
Tess ran over and pulled the lever. Car exhaust and bulletin board light streamed in from the city outside. Ashelin strode through and to the edge of the covered pedestrian walkway. Bulletproof glass lined it to about waist-height, then curled into a metal guardrail. Braided cords ran from the guardrail to the tarp above, pulling it taut over a series of thin metal arches. The effect was of a half-tunnel boring into the building across the street. Ashelin threw the guns over the guardrail. They smashed onto the traffic below, pouring out parts, springs, and flashes of energy.
Cars swerved and honked. Ashelin took a deep breath and wiped her hands on her thighs. She got down and crawled across the shadowed side of the walkway. Tess strode beside her, trailing her fingertips along the cool glass, leaving little smudges.
As they neared the end of the walkway, thunder rolled overhead. The henchmen guarding the entrance to Rayn's headquarters all looked up, and Ashelin took that opportunity to blast them with a pulse from her secondary weapon.
Tess tiptoed around their bodies, twisting her head away from the smell of burned flesh and cloth. "Ew," she said.
Ashelin glanced down. "Better them than us," she said. "Typical gun specialist. Builds the weapons but can't deal with their aftermath."
"No!" Tess straightened. "I'm just… not used to seeing it so close."
"Hrm." Ashelin opened the door. "Get used to it."
Short chapter! Two more to go. :) Thanks for reading!