The next couple of days were filled to the brim with preparations for what those involved were referring to as 'O Day'. The Times had agreed not to make any mention of the plan until after its successful implementation* to avoid another Violet event. The Watch were going to allow the market to be set up, then evacuate so that the scene looked as normal as it could under the circumstances and Dulling wouldn't then materialise elsewhere.
*To be fair, no-one was going to be reporting much if it were unsuccessful.
At Unseen University the Wizards were hard at work creating the enlarged filters. They looked like stained-glass windows* on wheels but the Wizards had added a plethora of incantations that fortified the glass to be at almost as strong as Retribushium. The likelihood of them shattering was lower than a Dwarf's basement.
*Albeit very dull, what with the one colour.
The Watch had been busy polishing shields to the highest shine to act as further protection against the light. It had given them something to focus their grief on. Constable Lumwinkle was due to be laid to rest on the Friday morning.
Lily and the goblins had been packing up the salamanders into jars, then into crates. The water filled tuns housing the spawn were now empty and the second generation of babies were almost fully-grown. 'Salamanderotica' didn't just induce 'proper procreation' but seemed to boost the lifecycle in general. Some of the first set of babies to hatch were double the size of their parents.
Otto was in the dark room developing images from the Mark 2 to get as much information as possible about 'O Day'. He had walked the length and breadth of Sator Square taking pictures but something wasn't quite right. The first thirty or so of them were much the same as those the goblins had taken first time round, but then the images got darker and more indistinct until they were entirely black. Much as vampires favour black as a wardrobe choice, Otto was not at all happy with what he was seeing, or not seeing, in the iconographs. Checking and changing the imps, filters, even if he'd accidentally left the lens cap on, none of it made a difference. The future was dark and whilst a spike of optimism told him it might simply mean the future was unwritten, it was otherwise surrounded by a deep sense of foreboding.
###
There was a rattling at the shop door late Thursday evening. Otto emerged from the dark room quick as a flash to discover another Flach: Neville. He unlocked the bolts but remained standing in the doorway, not about to let Lily's brother in.
"Vot do you vant?" Otto asked darkly, then his nose wrinkled, "Ugh! Garlic!" His eyes began to water and he recoiled. Neville took advantage and stepped inside.
"I'm not here to cause trouble," he began, "the garlic wasn't for your benefit. I just need to speak to Lilith. Lily?!" He called out walking into the shop. Otto shot out a hand and prevented Neville from moving any further.
"Garlic or no garlic," Otto said thickly as if beset with allergies, "you are not gettink past me. You tried to kill us both and funnily enough zat does not put you on my good side."
Lily came out from the side room. "Neville!" She gasped, turning to 'Petals and Sawdust Scattered', "Call the Watch!" The goblin zipped out the open door and into the night.
"It wasn't me that tried to kill you!" Neville exclaimed. He looked down at the deceptively strong hand planted on his chest. "Do you mind?"
"Not at all." Otto did not move it.
"If it wasn't you Neville, then who was it then eh?" Lily stood behind the shop counter, the other goblins surrounding her like a snaggle-toothed wall of protection.
"My Father!" He replied.
"But…but Daddy's dead." Lily looked both confused and hurt.
"Not Daddy, my Father. I'm," his voice faltered as he shamefully admitted, "I was, illegitimate."
"Yes, vell I for one am not surprised you are a bastard," Otto began, before Lily shushed him. She came out from behind the counter and asked Otto let go of her brother, which he begrudgingly did. "Why did you come here Neville?" Lily asked softly with a touch of resignation.
"To warn you. To warn you both! It's why I've got the garlic. He killed Larry, he sent that vampire to get him and now he's sent three more. He's been blackmailing me ever since Daddy died and I…" He genuinely appeared to be upset. "I couldn't let it continue. I might not have been the best family to you but blood is thicker than water."
"Half bluh…b-vord," Otto muttered not convinced that Neville was entirely innocent. "Vhere are zese vampires now zen?"
"They could be in Ankh-Morpork right now, I don't know, I don't know!" Neville looked plaintively at his sister, "I am sorry Lilith. I am truly sorry."
"So you should be," she replied, "but maybe there's a chance for you yet. You have to tell the Watch everything, Neville. Absolutely everything."
"Well now Lilith, I don't know about that," Neville disagreed.
"You said yourself, you're a bastard. So, if you'd like to keep a share of the Flach fortune then you'd best know about it. Do the right thing and I will do the right thing by you, brother."
When the Watch arrived Neville went quietly, blackmailed again but at least this time it was all in a good cause.
###
The following morning Constable Pinky Lumwinkle was given a tearful send-off by her gnome family and her Watch family. Her parents were particularly grateful to Commander Vimes.
"Pinky never stopped talking about the Watch, " they told him proudly, "It was her dream to come to Ankh-Morpork and she did it. She died doing the thing that she loved. But please, make sure her passing isn't in vain. It must mean something."
Her partner, Constable Percy Forrest, was determined that it would mean something. He was almost unable to read his dedication, but Captain Carrot stood beside him for moral support.
"We joined the Watch the same day, me 'n' Pinky. Went through our training together, made our first arrest together but now I have to go on without her. I keep thinking, 'what would Pinky do?' because she always knew. She was the better of the two of us. She was a real copper. I loved walking the beat with her, especially when someone joked about us being 'little and large'. Funny how many twisted ankles we saw on our patch."
There was tense laughter, grateful to be let out, the kind one only heard at funerals.
"I can't get her back but I can still watch her back and make sure that no-one else dies at the hands of the Colour Killer. I might just be a rookie, but Pinky was never a novice. She was born to wear the badge. I am proud to have met her and to have served with her. My little friend who was big on everything." He laid a hand on her tiny coffin before breaking down.
Yes, it was quite the goodbye but her passing cemented the resolve of each and every member of the Watch.