This was the storm all over again. My plan was flawless, shutting those bells off should've been easy, just how did it go so wrong?
Remorse Of An Adventurer II
Tangled Paths
By DaringDanger
VIII: The Old Bells of Trolberg
"-With growing reports of people spotting mysterious girls in the woods, ghosts streaking across the sky, and more and more bodies drained of their blood, one has to ask, are they related? Is Trolberg haunted? What's going on in the Huldrawood? And why hasn't the Safety Patrol done anything?" With a shudder I clicked the radio on my tape-deck off. I should've stuck to my lite rock.
"Come on Sparrows it's time to get off the bus!" Raven Leader had impeccable timing. I stowed my headphones in my bag and joined Hilda and Frida in getting off the bus, which had stopped at the foot of the Trolberg wall. "Keep an eye out for Woffs! Bonus points if you can tell the males from the females!" I pulled out my guidebook as the girls watched the sky.
"I don't get what the big deal is, I've seen the Woffs migrate a bunch of times." Hilda scoffed.
"Come on Hilda, we're helping woffologists figure out their migration patterns. It's one of the world's greatest mysteries. Also let me know if you spot a rare white woff, it's a sign that magic is especially powerful this lunar cycle." Frida held out a magic book with an intricate picture of a white woff and the moon as if I should understand what that means.
"Are you doing witch homework too?" Hilda smiled.
"More like low level fortune telling."
"Look! Woffs!" One of the other sparrows yelled and pointed frantically. The round puffballs filled the sky to the sounds of sparrows in awe.
The bells started ringing. The woffs scattered and everyone quickly covered their ears.
"It's a troll attack!" I yelled in panic.
"Can't be! The sun is up!" Hilda retorted.
"Everyone stay calm!" Raven Leader yelled before dodging to the side as a woff came crashing down. "And dodge the woffs!" As woffs rained down like hail I fell to my side and rolled clear of one. Frida extended a hand and pulled me up just in time for me to see Hilda push a woff back into the air.
"We need to help them back into the air!" She commanded. I ran with Frida to the closest woff, spinning like a top on the ground.
"Lift!" I ordered as we both put our hand under it and propelled it off the ground. Woffs were really light, actually. Around us the other Sparrows finished helping the woffs.
"Great job Sparrows! Now did anyone get a count?" All of us nodded no to her, too much chaos to even think about counting.
"Why on Earth did the Bellkeeper ring that bell?" Hilda muttered.
***Hilda***
As night fell David and I returned home and toed off our boots. His head was down as he entered his room, I felt the same way, honestly. I pushed into mine and flopped onto my bed. My room felt much more homey with all my things unpacked, even if I was lacking the shelf space I had in the old flat.
"Hilda?" Alfur stuck his head out of his little house on the dresser. It used to be made of cardboard, but the lost clan came and built him an actual elf house a while back.
"Yes Alfur?"
"We have a visitor." Bartell stuck his head out of the window.
"Bartell!" I cheered.
"He rode in on a pigeon." Alfur said quietly as a saddled pigeon poked its head out behind him.
"There is much to discuss." Bartell said grimly. "Every hour the bell tolls its terrible ring. Livestock have stopped producing and we don't even have time to finish a good braid!" He removed his helmet to reveal a head of unkempt hair..
"It's messing with the woffs too." I noted. "We should do something."
"Haha!" He puffed out his chest. "I knew you'd be ready for battle! We ride at sunup!" The elf climbed up onto my bed heroically.
"Battle?" I questioned.
"Yes, with the bell tower! We'll tear it down brick by brick, or die trying!"
"Woah, slow down. I know the Bellkeeper, we'll just go talk to him."
"Fine. But if diplomacy fails, Combat!" The elf jumped down and onto the pigeon. "Fly Cedric! Fly!" The bird took off and slammed into the glass once, before flying out. I grabbed my binoculars from my bag and looked out at the closest bell, the figure of the Bellkeeper ringing it in the night.
"Enough is enough, let's go Alfur."
"Are you sure? I thought you didn't sneak out in the night anymore." I thought back to the book, the graveyard, the necromancy spell, and the Draugen and a whimper escaped my mouth.
"Let's get David." I relented and headed into his room.
"Hilda?"
"We're going to see the Bellkeeper."
"We're sneaking out again?" He moaned.
"I don't want to, but the dang bells are bothering the elves, woffs, and us."
"And you think talking to the Bellkeeper will help?"
"Someone has to do something or the lost clan is going to tear down the bell-tower brick by brick."
"They'll die trying you mean." David corrected and exhaled, knowing he was going to go along with this. "Fine."
I began climbing out of the window with Alfur in tow.
"Do we have to sneak out of the window?" Alfur moaned.
"It's not sneaking out if we use the front door." I said. I shimmied down from the sill and landed next to the bikes, David landing clumsily next to me.
"Let's make this quick." He moaned as we took off into the night.
"I'm actually getting the hang of this!" I said to David as we slid the bikes to a stop at the foot of the bell tower. I ran up to the door and knocked, but received no answer. I placed my ear against the door and was again met with silence.
"Well I guess no one's home, we should head-"
I cut Alfur off as I pushed the door open. "Mr. Bellkeeper!" I yelled up the spiral stairs.
"Come on now Hilda, we can't just break into places like this." David protested as he followed. I continued onto the stairs and climbed up to the hatch in the ceiling and cracked it open, the figure of something holding the rope for the bell stood before me in the dark.
"Mr. Bellkeeper?" No response. I opened the hatch and found the light switch.
With a buzz the tower illuminated, but what stood before me was not the Bellkeeper.
"What is that?" David asked, joining us at the top. It appeared as a little metal person, with spinning gears inside.
"Who's there!?" The Bellkeeper came up behind us, sandwich in hand. "Oh, the girl from the inspection."
"Why do you keep ringing that bell?" I asked.
"I'm not the one ringing it." He approached the edge and threw his sandwich down, against the head of a Troll and her baby below "Get out of here!"
"Why are you doing that?" I protested.
"For their own good. Both of you take these." He handed two sets of noise canceling headphones to me before placing one on his own head.
Then the bell rang, shaking the whole tower and sending bats flying everywhere.
"Can't you stop it!?" I yelled.
"The bell is completely automated now!" As he spoke the bell stopped. He pointed to the machine again. 'Automated Bellkeeper'. "Courtesy of the Safety Patrol. Guess I can take my break a few minutes early."
The man led us back down to the shed below the tower, where he put on some tea.
"What are these?" David pointed at a complex chart on the wall.
"Woff migration patterns." Bellkeeper explained.
"You figured them out?" I asked, a bit amazed.
"Partly. They kept hitting my clothesline." The four of us laughed a bit. "There used to be an army of bell keepers, now it's just me. Been doing this for years too, never once had to ring the bell! It's a big wall, no Troll's climbing over it!"
` "Why ring them now then?" I asked.
"Ahlberg. He thinks more bells will make the city safer." The man rolled his eyes noticeably.
"It's not helping though, it's causing chaos." David nodded in agreement with me.
"It's about to get worse. This one's just a test, he's got these things in every bell in the city. The whole system goes live in a few days at some big ceremony."
"That's crazy!" David yelled. "Tell him off!"
"Nothing I can do." The man moved and slumped near a window. "It's all controlled from a central tower, I'm keeping an eye on it for a few weeks and then being phased out. Maybe they'll hire me for bell maintenance. I need to go back to work." He gestured us to the door.
As David and I mounted our bikes once more Alfur climbed onto my handles. "Bartell will be pleased. Combat might be the only option."
"We can't let him turn this system on, can we?" David groaned.
"No." I agreed. "We'll gather everyone tomorrow, including the Lost Clan."
The sun beat down on David and I's hastily drawn map as Bartell and Cedric landed at the fold up table.
"This is the location of the main tower that we saw on the Bellkeeper's map last night." David tapped the area circled in red crayon.
"What's the plan? All out attack!?" Bartell cheered.
"Please tell me it's not." Frida groaned.
"Not quite." I said.
"The automated Bellkeeper will be activated at a ceremony tomorrow." Alfur explained. "Once it is, every bell in the city will ring every hour, on the hour. However this also makes the central bell-tower the weak-point."
"How do you propose we get past safety patrol to get into the bell-tower?" Frida asked.
"Ahlberg will likely pull most of the safety patrol away during his speech. Bartell, can you and the Lost Clan distract any remaining guards?"
"Aye, our pigeon riders can attack from the air!"
"David will keep watch." Alfur continued.
"I'm great at looking at stuff." As he spoke a ladybug fell from his hair onto the picture.
"I'm going to lift Frida up to the fire escape-" I started.
"And I'll get in with an unlocking spell." Frida finished my sentence. "How do I actually stop the bells, though?"
"You're on your own for that one, I'm afraid. We don't have any intel on the inside." Alfur explained.
"Well, I do know a finding spell or two." Frida shrugged.
"Alright now this operation just needs a name!" David looked serious. "Operation Deerfox Thunder Team!"
"Alright, on three." I put my hand over the paper and everyone followed suit. Well, the elves didn't have hands, but they tried.
"Operation Deerfox Thunder Team!" Everyone cheered as their hands reached to the sky.
***Frida***
Hilda pushed through a hole in the fence and joined me. We stood a block or so from the tower.
"Bugman, this is Badges and Blue, are the elves in position?" I radioed to David from my walkie.
"The pigeons are in the coop, but Alfur does not look ready."
"Are you ready Hilda?" She nodded back at me with a smile. "Give the signal bugman."
Several pigeons flew overhead, giving us our signal. We ran forward into the street, passing the main entrance to the bell-tower on our left, safety patrol in chaos as the elves carried out their invisible battle.
I pulled Hilda into the shadow of the building and under the fire escape quickly, our backs pressing against the cold stone.
"Let's go." Hilda stepped out under the ladder to the escape, her hands extended for my feet. As I stepped on I could feel her straining.
"You sure you can still lift me?" I asked.
"Of course." Hilda was obviously posturing but I decided not to press. She let out a grunt and I shot upward, my hands closing around the lowest rusty, cold rung of the ladder.
I really did hate pull-ups. I groaned as I pulled myself up and over, and moved my hands up another rung, and again until my feet were on the lowest one. From there the ladder was trivial. I gave Hilda a thumbs up from the landing and she nodded before running off.
My backpack hit the metal as I flipped it off my back and pulled out my spell book. I haven't had much luck with the unlocking spell admittedly. With most spells, saying the words with vigor was what made them work, but with this one, if you said it too intensely it just broke things. I suppose that technically does make them unlocked.
I leaned into the window, trying to use the voice level I'd use when calming David down, and whispered the spell. Something gave a satisfying click and I mouthed a cheer silently.
Then a crack shot across the glass. Close enough I guess. I lifted the window and quickly dove behind a plant as a patrol officer ran past me.
Running forward I spotted a large set of double doors just as two guards ran away from it. I pushed through and found myself in front of a large series of computers and other machines that I couldn't identify. The room was full of clicks, whirs, and beeps. Sort of annoying actually.
Also there were a lot more wires than I was expecting. I could hide in the mound of wires probably. They really should hire someone to organize these.
The more pressing matter of course, I wasn't sure I'd be able to find one wire in this mess with my finding spell.
"Bugman, how's it looking?" I asked through the walkie.
"The Big Cheese is still talking." David exhaled, annoyed. "You definitely still have time."
"Come on Frida, you can do it." I whispered to myself. I just had to focus on finding whatever wire connected all the towers, and this time, say the spell with all the vigor I had.
The magic words passed through my lips with power, the strength of my conviction passing through me as a single wire began to glow.
"System is coming down Blue" I reported before pulling the wire, grabbing my utility knife from my pocket, and snipping it.
An alarm began blaring and what appeared to be the main system reported 'offline' in red letters. It was done.
The alarm stopped, and the message changed.
"Backup system online?"
"Blue, Bugman, there's a backup system of some sort. The bells are still online!"
"I'm not sure what to tell you Badges. Maybe try the panel at the top of the tower, connected to the bell itself?" Hilda suggested. I didn't have a better idea.
I slipped into the hallway again and stealthily moved to the stairs and began ascending.
"Badges, Big Cheese seems like he's almost done talking. Hurry!" David whined.
I reached the top and could see the panel through the window of its security door. I pulled and found it locked.
"Alright unlocking spell, let's hope I can manage two in one day." I rubbed my palms together and leaned near the lock.
This time however, the words did nothing. I'd said them too quietly.
"Hey!" The voice made me jump out of my boots. "What are you kids up to now?" An older man in yellow stood over me, the Bellkeeper.
"This isn't what it looks like!" I begged. The man reached into his pockets and produced a key ring.
"Quickly now, and quiet!" He instructed.
"What?" I was baffled.
"Ahlberg is a windbag but no one can talk forever, come on!" He ran into the room.
"You're helping!?" I realized.
"Damn! It's already primed!"
"What's that mean?" I asked.
"We can't stop the bells now!" He yelled. I looked at the panel and my eyes settled on the volume controls.
"Then the bells will have to ring louder than ever before." I said as I turned the knob as far as it would go.
"And the volume will fry the system!" He realized. We covered our ears as the mechanical bellkeeper pulled the drawstring, striking the bell. The rings intensified and the tower began shaking. As I tried to protect my ears, bits of metal began falling from above.
We weren't just frying the system, we'd broken the bell.
The man tackled me from behind and everything turned into a blur of bell rings, crashing, and falling glass.
As I regained my senses, everything had fallen unnaturally silent. The bell was gone, as was the side of the room, and the man as well. I approached the hole and looked down, the bell now lay in the debris of one of the buildings below. Still no man in yellow.
This was Victoria all over again. The storm all over again. I covered my eyes and ran to the stairs in panic.
To Be Continued in: The Yule Lads