The felin jerked one way, then the other, clawing at the ground and snarling before its midsection jerked up, producing a loud snap. The infestation gathered itself up into a single tower, spiraling skyward again before curling and expanding once more. Feelers soared over their heads before taking a sharp curve down. Cherry’s horse leapt away from the incoming darkness, but she swore with the movement.
“It’s pulling us in!” she shouted.
It took a moment for Laura to catch on. The feelers formed a cage, each one a thick black bar to seal them in. The bars began to rotate, gouging though the ground at their base as they swung clockwise. The motion grew steadily faster, and as it did the circling tendrils slid closer. The sun winked out of sight, eclipsed by a shroud of dripping tarlike ooze. Laura moved out of one bar’s way, but her horse wasn’t so lucky. Sludge splattered its hindquarters and immediately began to smoke. The horse shrieked. It leapt forward, bucking and twisting, but the sludge couldn’t be dislodged so easily as a rider. It smoked all the more, producing an acrid smell as blood slid down the horse’s leg. After a few more hops the beast crashed, writhing, to the ground. Cherry’s own horse pranced beside it, eyes rolling.
Laura pulled out another Egg and rapped it against her amulet. Even without a shake, the kin flared bright in the gathering dark. The infestation shuddered. More tendrils shot down from the tarry ceiling. One plunged past Laura’s side while another swooped overhead. She dodged the first, but lost her balance and dropped to the ground to escape the second. The Egg slipped from her hand and rolled downhill. She swore and made a grab for it. To her surprise, it came to a slow stop before wobbling back toward her. For a moment she wondered how messed up their kin had become, but then she noticed the ground. The infestation was lifting chunks of it, peeling up the earth to create a shield for itself and sending her own attack back at her. This was another of the things monsters knew from their link with the hive mind but rarely bothered with: the fact that Sweepers could be hurt with kin just as easily.
More tendrils heaved up slabs of earth and rock around her, sweeping in to make a cocoon, trapping her and the Egg together. She scrambled to right herself, make a bid for freedom, but the earth was already too close for her to squeeze through. Without warning, light flashed before her. The crack of a gun echoed outside, almost muffled. A kin bullet had landed barely an inch from the Egg. The resulting blast sent the Egg spinning into the air. Another crash from another gun, and the glass shattered. Kin seared outward. Laura dropped onto her rear to avoid it. The slabs collided just in time to block it out; the second shot had hit it just far enough away that only a wink of light remained in the makeshift cocoon. Outside, the infestation squealed. The walls shuddered under the blast. Laura kicked at the opposite side. The infestation might be hurt now, but it would lash out for revenge next, and she couldn’t dodge it here. Dirt gushed in as another kick came from outside. A hand shoved its way in. Laura caught it and between the two of them she forced her way out. Cherry caught her as she staggered. Light danced over them, highlighting Cherry’s face in stark flashes. Kin crackled and snapped, raining sparks and ash as it seared across the monster. Tendrils quaked under the force; entire portions snapped apart from the main mass to crash, splattering, against the ground.
“Come on,” Cherry hissed, tugging her along.
Once Laura regained her feet they dashed through one of the new gaps. A tendril snapped after them, leaving smoke in its wake while gold spat in its flaking form. Another kin bullet landed with a bang to their left. The tendril flinched but didn’t slow.
“Grim! For god’s sake, will you just aim?” Cherry yelled.
In response, a flare whistled past her head. It smashed into the tendril, causing it to snap apart and sending the flare clattering away, spewing green smoke. The infestation attacked it, flailing graying tendrils to smother the smoke.
Laura scanned the area as they passed an outcropping of rock. Grim and Okane perched on a tall spire of stone patterned with a marred water symbol. Okane held the kin gun in shaky hands while Grim reloaded the flare gun, his rifle set nearby while he muttered shooting tips.
“Watch where you’re shooting that thing!” Cherry snarled.
“- - - did say to aim,” Okane pointed out.
“Not at my head!”
“I am a headhunter,” Grim replied, swapping out the guns. “Okane, watch your grip.”
“Right.” He frowned at the infestation. “I don’t remember kin lasting this long.”
The kaibutsu had curled in on itself to create a crumpled black ball, hiding the felin completely. The remnants of fallen tendrils smoked and spat in the scarred landscape, curling black clouds tinted slightly green. Kin glinted in every piece, pulsing like embers in charred logs. Before their eyes it spread, cracking the black shell and spitting sparks through the gaps. The main mass smoked worse than a damp fire. The ball rose and fell, crackling, in motions like the breath of an animal.
Laura’s stomach churned in nervousness and disgust. “Okane, toss me an Egg.”
Cherry stepped up to the rocks, eyeing the infestation. “Grim, what do you think it’ll do next?”
“I’m not experienced with infestations.”
“Make an educated guess.”
A pause. “The amount of magic there worries me. The felin might start moving again. On foot we can’t outrun it.”
“How could it run? It’s been eaten,” said Okane.
“It wasn’t dead before. I doubt it’s dead now that the infestation’s targeting you.”
The infestation shifted, heavier on the left and then heavier on the right. More feelers sprouted, but these collapsed under the strain of kin.
“I think one more hit should do it.” Laura passed her new Egg (still hot, seething; Okane’s supply had been tainted too) from hand to hand to hide her nervousness.
“It still looks pretty nasty,” said Cherry.
“They’re always nasty. I’ve got this.”
She glanced up at Okane, who exhaled slowly and aimed the gun again. Her backup was ready.
She took a step forward. When the infestation failed to notice, she went faster, swinging her arm. How close did she need to be? After the scare and tumble earlier she felt bruised and sore; her heart hammered, and she could feel herself tremble with every step. Was her throwing arm still good?
While she worried, the infestation moved. It shuddered, working its way into a bubble with golden froth before flinging out more legs to heave itself forward like an enormous spider. Refuse flung from its limbs, more like watery ink than the tar of earlier. It bulled toward her.
Laura clacked the Egg against her amulet and squinted, gauging the distance. Thirty feet. Twenty feet. Ten. The Egg grew hot enough to burn through the glove when she threw it. Glass smashed against the monster, five feet away. Kin surged out, expanding to crash like a wave. It curled and coiled, severing limbs as it roared. The infestation wailed. Laura would’ve fled, but something appeared in the burning mass. The felin’s head sprouted from the shower of light and swirling smoke. Its eyes flashed red, its jaws open in a snarl. Laura heard a distant shout before diving to the side. The felin’s teeth plowed into the ground. It struggled to its feet and rounded on her, colors pulsing as magic crackled on its back. The crushing pressure returned. It hurt to breathe. Laura beat her fist against the amulet on her belt, arm shaking.
“Get me out of here!” she hissed. Her eyes started to blur. The amulet remained dormant, either uncomprehending or sapped as much as she was. What other orders could she try? Run? Protect me?
The amulet burned under her fist. The felin lunged again, but inches away it ground to a halt. Laura cringed as its breath puffed over her. It snapped its jaws, strained, but went no further. Kin sparked madly in its joints, intertwined with infestation. The more it moved, the brighter the light became. Every twitch produced a sound like a jackhammer, accompanied by showers of sparks. It grew louder, the light brighter, until it was almost wh
ite and the noise was like a train whistle. The felin’s armor snapped under pressure. A foreleg popped from its socket. An ugly crevice opened on its snout. Purple and pink swirled discordant under its skin. The felin screeched. The infestation squalled. Kin trilled. All together the mass creaked, a container ready to burst.
Laura crawled out of its shadow just in time. A kin bullet glanced off the felin’s crown, but a moment later another hit the crack in its face. The dam broke. Kin went off like a series of fireworks. The blast shook the ground. Sections of grass singed and caught fire as sparks skipped over them. Pieces of infestation flew to spatter among them, accompanied by billowing, noxious smoke. The felin collapsed. Its eyes flickered, red, yellowish, then faintly brown before fading entirely. Laura heaved a sigh and pressed her bandana over her face. The usual dark wave spread over her in a cloud. This smelled worse than any she’d smelled before, and didn’t dissipate. If anything, it grew darker with every moment; the felin’s shape faded to a hazy shadow.
“Get out of there! Laura, get out!”
She stumbled, tripping over rocks before breaking into a run. The smoke became thicker, almost viscous against her skin. She blinked furiously and tried not to vomit. It stank. It stung. It felt slimy.
After an eternity she blundered out, coughing hard and eyes streaming. Everything was too bright and blurry to make out, so she screeched when she was grabbed from behind.
“Stay still,” Cherry’s voice ordered from somewhere around her ear. “You’ve got some of that slop on you. It’ll burn through you as fast as that horse.”
Horrified, Laura froze. Hands wrenched her coat away; she heard it being flipped around as her head was forced back.
“Eyes open,” Cherry commanded, and no sooner had Laura obeyed than water cascaded into her face. She gasped. “Clearing out your eyes. We don’t want you going blind.”
“You should’ve worn those goggles,” said Grim, from the vicinity of the flapping coat. “Both of you, actually.”
“I’ll remember that next time,” Laura croaked.
As she blinked, Cherry’s face came into focus. Okane stood just behind her, looking over the Ranger’s shoulder anxiously. Laura slapped on a watery grin and gave him a thumbs-up.
“Nice shot.”
His lips twitched. “Sorry. I thought I’d be better at this decoy thing.”
“You were fine. I just didn’t expect that reaction at the end.”
“City infestations are different from the wilds.” Cherry scowled. “From what I hear, city ones stick to smarts and keep lower profiles, but out here, they know they’re predators. They’ll go after anything, and they’ll go with a lot of power. This little disappearing act is a poison cloud. Even when they know about it, ERA Sweepers die in it all the time. You should see the death counts in Canis.”
Laura shuddered but tried to pass it off as cold and good humor. “I’m glad to be in the cities, then! If they poisoned everyone, they wouldn’t have much hunting.”
“Their entire existence is a way to go down with teeth in the enemy’s throat,” said Cherry.
“Pleasant,” said Okane.
“Wars aren’t pleasant.”
Grim held up the coat to inspect before shaking his head. “This isn’t worth keeping. It’s started dissolving already. Good quality, though. It slowed the eating process considerably.”
“That’s because it’s saturated with magic,” said Laura, giving it a sad look. She’d liked that coat. “Sweeper fare. I guess it does its job.”
“We’ll have to get Zavodsky to make - - - a new one,” said Okane. He paused, then fumbled with the buttons of his own coat. Cherry swatted at his hands.
“Don’t try to be a hero. I’ve got an extra jacket in my pack.” She gave a sharp whistle.
Her horse galloped from the left, giving the cloud a wide berth. It slowed and stopped so Cherry could dig through the saddlebags. While she grumbled and sorted whatever items she’d stowed, the cloud began to fade. The breeze picked up, rolling the poison slowly westward. As it dispersed, the damage in its wake became more pronounced. The grass, already brittle, had shriveled and blackened. Where there had been patches of green, craters and cracked, bare earth remained. The felin sprawled in the middle of a great black stain. Its body was contorted, spine clearly broken and armor shattered. Not far beyond it lay Laura’s horse. The tarlike substance had eaten its flesh right down to the bone. Spots and boils swelled on its still form; one of these burst with a hiss and released rancid smoke. The sight made Laura’s stomach turn.
“Here.” Grim walked over. He deposited a clutter of small items into her hands: hair ties, a bundle of folded papers, Bijou, a single Sinker. These had been stuffed in the pockets of her coat. “I suppose you need that amulet too?”
“If we leave it, it’ll just host another infestation in the future. How long do we have to wait before it’s safe to go down there?”
In reply, Grim strode into the war zone. Cherry threw the spare coat over Laura’s shoulders and shook her head.
“Don’t bother with him. He’s like the anti-felin. Whatever effects are still there, he knows how to avoid it.”
Grim approached the fallen creature, slow but confident. When he came within three feet, it shifted. Its eyes flickered. Kin sparks shot from the felin’s rent back, lurid and jarring. Grim retreated quickly, but the light died out fast.
Okane shook his head slowly. “I don’t know how our kin got so mean. It even attacks people now.”
“It’s got to be Clae’s fault. That magnificent angry bastard,” said Laura.
“But he was only in—” He paused, then pulled open his bag. He juggled three different Eggs in his hands, stared at them a moment before giving her a look of horrified realization.
After some circling, Grim crept close enough to seize the amulet. With that in hand, he grabbed one of the felin’s headspikes, leaned his weight against it, and snapped it from the corpse. He carried these prizes back to the group.
“Good thinking,” said Cherry, eyes fixed on the spike. “That’s what, three thousand argents?”
Laura was more interested in the amulet. She’d only noticed that it was metallic, but now she could clearly see part of a sword. The blade only partially remained, a fractured piece sticking out of an intact hilt, its leather grip rotted but pommel and cross guard shining in the sunlight.
“That’s an amulet?” Okane leaned closer to marvel at it.
“The Old Zyran crusaders used magic in their weapons and dumped empty amulets along the way when they ran out of power,” said Laura. This was a high-magical piece. How old was it exactly? Five hundred years? Eight hundred years? “The magic must’ve been stored in the hilt. That’s why it’s in such good condition. I bet a museum would pay big money for it.”
“You think?” said Cherry, genuinely interested.
“It’s been contaminated,” Grim pointed out. “Best leave it with these two. They know what to do with it.”
“At least we’re up one headhunting job.” She turned back to her horse and gestured for them to follow. “Come on. The other horses are around here somewhere. If we shift the baggage, Laura can take the packhorse. Let’s get going before any scavengers show up.”
15
SELLOUT
A few days later, with the walls of Amicae towering ahead again, something white-hot seared through Laura’s finger.
“Ow!”
Laura shook her hand with a snarl of pain. She felt as if she’d touched a hot stove. She had half a mind to pull off her ring, but already the feeling had died down to smarting.
“Anything wrong?” Cherry looked back while her horse continued its slow, steady pace.
“Nothing. Just this stupid ring.” Laura twisted it ruefully. “Maybe it caught on something.”
“I think that was magic,” said Okane. He rubbed his own hand, as if he’d been zapped too. “The rings are amulets, right? All Sweeper amulets are rigged for something. Like the ones
on our belts affect the ones in our shoes. I think something else affects these.”
Few spells can actually be utilized. A flicker of memory: Clae striding through a train, carpetbag held fast. I put one on the Eggs, sends an SOS to my amulets.
“An SOS,” she muttered.
Cherry frowned. “Is someone in trouble?”
“The armory. Okane, Amelia said the armory sends a signal to Sweeper rings.”
Okane looked horrified, and he had every right to be. The armory had Clae and Anselm inside it.
“You’re not going to that place, are you?” Cherry said suspiciously. “You told us you were going straight to your investigator, before any other bullshit comes up. If you’re right about who’s involved, you need help immediately. Don’t make any stops.”
“The armory has all of the Amicae Sweepers’ magic equipment inside it,” said Laura. “If something happens to it, we’re not the only ones sunk. The entire city could be in danger.”
Cherry crossed her arms in a huff. “In that case, we’re going with you. Your boss can wave a gun around all she wants, but I’m faster on the draw. She’ll have to think twice before threatening you.”
“- - -’d do that?” said Okane, surprised.
“I’m taking this escort job seriously.” Cherry sat straighter in the saddle, eyes narrowed. “Now what is that?”
It looked like the entirety of the Ranger district awaited them in the city’s doorway. Rangers and horses milled around in an angry cloud. One of the closest Rangers sat on a scruffy pony, her face marred by burn scars. Cherry obviously knew this one; she trotted up beside her and asked, “What’s going on?”
“I’m not coming back to Amicae anytime soon, that’s what’s happening,” said the woman. “They’re kicking us all out. No Rangers allowed for the foreseeable future.”
“Can they do that?” Laura gasped.
“Sure can. We’re technically only satellite citizens,” said the woman.
“That’s never been an issue before,” said Cherry. “What’s started this?”
The Monstrous Citadel Page 23
