by Mari Dietz
“We need a main line!” Ivy shouted.
Freddie ran in front of them to ward off any frontal attacks. They left Ivy in the middle. He took a sharp turn, and they followed. Vic hoped he had a better sense of direction than she did. The sounds of running and breathing filled her head as she kept pace with Ivy and Freddie. She didn’t need to look back at the group; she heard them getting louder.
They still weren’t in a main line.
“Split up?” Vic called out.
“Don’t even think about it,” Ivy answered.
The masked figures were after her. She didn’t understand why, but if she left Ivy and Freddie, they would be okay. She didn’t think about it. When the sewer tunnel forked ahead of them, she silently veered left while Ivy and Freddie went right.
Vic swallowed as the masked figures pounded behind her. In front of her, the tunnel dropped off. She skidded to a stop. Dirt and pebbles fell over the edge, and after a moment, she heard them plop into liquid. The rush of water sounded louder here. It might be a main sewage line. The light didn’t reach the bottom.
She pulled out her scythe and turned to face the group of masked figures, the large bone in her other hand. She couldn’t count how many there were.
The sewage behind her roared in her ears. She whimpered slightly. “My life repeats itself.”
They didn’t answer. Vic closed her mouth and pretended that she was about to jump into water and not sewage. The thought made her gag. As her legs bent, a masked figure reached out to grab her, but they were too slow. Her stomach leaped as she fell down the tunnel. She wanted to scream, but her mouth stayed shut as her body slammed into the water. Cocooned by water, she floundered, then her head broke the surface. She pushed down her mask and gasped for air.
The smell overwhelmed her, and it got harder to breathe.
It’s only water. It’s only water, Vic repeated to herself as she swam in the liquid. The current dragged her along, and she couldn’t make out much in the light. Her vision wasn’t adjusting fast enough. Her scythe stayed warm in her hand. There could be mogs in this river. Her teeth chattered as she tried to clamp them shut.
Eventually, the current slowed, and she found herself in a larger pool. A bank appeared in the darkness, and she frantically swam to it. Her feet touched stone, and she ran out of the sewage. Finally on dry ground, she fell to her knees and pulled off her black hood and jacket, dropping them to the ground. Then she tore off her soaked mask from around her neck.
She gasped in the putrid air and gagged.
“I will not think about what’s covering my body,” she muttered to herself. Her clothing clung to her, and she rose while holding her arms away from her body. Somehow, she still hung on to the bone and the scythe. With a clunk, Vic dropped the bone to the stone floor and squelched forward. Liquid leaked out of the tops of her boots, leaving a trail of liquid behind her.
Vic shivered when a cool breeze hit her. “This is gross. Gross, gross, gross.”
Her little chant echoed in the stone room. The smooth walls arched overhead into an enormous dome. Unlike the gray and green walls of the normal sewers, these gleamed an inky black. Vic stood dripping in the middle of the room with multiple gloomy tunnels ahead of her. The sewage water lapped on the shore behind her.
“I guess I pick a path?”
Was there another sewer under the original? Would that make this the original one? These walls looked nicer than the ones she patrolled every night. She reached out and touched the cold stone. She could hardly see a seam where the stones connected. Either it was extremely well built, or there were people managing it. She didn’t know what the other factories managed. She should ask Maddox if her family had gotten hired to smooth out a line of the sewer, but why bring down different rock than the main lines?
“Ugh, does it matter?” Was this what her father was looking for?
Vic picked a path. They all looked the same, so she took her chances with the first door on the right. Unlike the normal sewer paths, this had a curved ceiling like the walkway. No trickle of sewage appeared. The lights were dimmer down here, and she couldn’t see very far ahead. The breeze she’d felt earlier disappeared, and the only sound came from her breaths, steps, and pounding heart.
When she thought the tunnel wouldn’t end, it widened into another large dome. This time, instead of a sewage lake, junk was piled all over it. She frowned. Twisted lumps of metal, shattered pieces of wood, and strange stones lay in the room. She bent over and grabbed a stone. The cut reminded her of the stones attached to wands. It didn’t glow; it was a dull and empty color, like someone had used the magic and it needed to recharge.
She put one in her pocket and navigated around the piles of trash. The sound of water echoed in the domed room. She did not want to get back into a feces river. On the other side of the room, she spotted a passageway. Once she reached it, darkness fell around her. She froze, and her hand shot out to touch the tunnel wall. The darkness consumed the space. She held up her hand but couldn’t see anything. She let out a shuddering gasp. How am I going to get out of here?
9
William
William hoped that Vic would stop by before his job testing. She’d been coming by after every shift before passing out on the sofa or going back to the Order to sleep. He pulled on his sleeves and combed his darker brown hair back. His shoulders shifted under the weight of the harness. He still couldn’t get used to the feel.
The table, already set, contained the morning’s meal. Only Sam ate, and William frowned. Had Bomrosy come and taken Xiona again? She didn’t listen to him or Vic. Vic had mentioned that Bomrosy sometimes kept her in her room connected to the workshop, but she worried about the reapers finding out about Xiona.
Maybe they needed to change the locks on Kai’s home. He would ask Vic the next time he saw her. It would be harsh to lock Bomrosy out, but it was a matter of their safety. He swallowed down the breakfast, tasting nothing.
“I’m going to the job testing. Stay here, Sam.”
“Do what you must.”
William left the house but locked Sam in behind him. The blight swirled a cheery yellow in the daylight. He took it as a good sign. He’d practiced his control over draining the stone every night, but he still ran out too fast. His only progress was that it took longer to drain his relic.
He hired a water taxi, and it took him past the center of town. The job testing took place at GicCorp. Few people knew him in the city, but Tristan might recognize him, which would end their plan before it even started.
Luck stayed on his side. A sea of hopefuls all moved in the same direction as him, and he blended in with the crowd.
“My father finally passed down the relic last week. I’m hoping to work with stone. They pay the highest for side jobs,” a young woman stated.
“Really? Where did you hear that? The mines always need workers, and they sometimes let you make your own metal items.”
The young woman scoffed. “Yeah, if you survive a cave-in.”
The couple passed William. As he eavesdropped on the other hopefuls, no one mentioned applying to GicCorp. Tables appeared, and they all separated into lines according to which factory they wanted to join. The shortest line was GicCorp’s. He assumed it was so hard to get in or nobody wanted to work for them.
A scrawny man with a hooked nose pinned a number onto William’s blue shirt. “Go behind the black door, and we’ll give you your task.”
“Thanks.”
The man waved him away.
William went to the door and opened it. A musty smell permeated the inside. Multiple doors were built into the wall. None of them stuck out from the other. A tall woman stood in front of the doors and didn’t make eye contact with any of the people wearing numbers. Her clothing fit her tightly, and she tapped her foot and sighed every few seconds. Everyone remained apart and didn’t talk. He kept to the side. The person closest to him stepped away, even though they had plenty of space.
What
was with the atmosphere? He shifted and held his hands to his sides so he wouldn’t mess with his sleeves. A few more entered, then at the top of the hour, the woman spoke.
“Thank you for your interest in joining the GicCorp family.” Her voice was monotone, and she still didn’t look at them. “As you know, we value many traits, so the test will contain various materials. You have until midnight.”
Midnight? Nice of them to keep them here after dark.
She continued in her bored tone. “You are to build a small one-room structure in the middle of the swamp. Use what materials you want. You’re encouraged to use them all. Make sure it’s a functioning living area. Pick a room.”
Everyone separated to the different doors, and William turned to the one nearest him. He opened it, and the musty smell grew. In the middle of the floor was a large pool of swamp water. To the side was a pile of materials, and a clock glared down the time at him. Sand, rough stone, metal ore, and various woods waited for him, but no instructions on how to build a structure. Did people assume they could hold anything together with magic?
William grabbed some larger stones. A firm foundation was key before he could build the room. He took off his shoes and clothing to avoid getting them full of mud. Nothing like doing a job interview while in his underwear. Mud squelched around his feet and calves as he got into the swamp. As a neat person, he didn’t enjoy this task of mucking around in the dirty imitation swamp.
After an hour, sweat dripped down his face and into the swamp mud. The makeshift swamp only rose to his knees, but slogging in and out of the murky water had tired him quickly. Warmth spread through him as he imbued the stone. He didn’t want to waste too much magic at the start. The longer he worked, the more he could tell the difference between the stone. The marble made him push harder, as though he’d gotten stuck in thick porridge. The granite molded well underneath his wand. As he drove the iron in the stone, a metallic taste filled his mouth.
William wasn’t familiar with making a foundation, but he created nine main pillars and thought they seemed solid enough. They just needed to hold until midnight.
He imbued more stone to lay flat across the pillars. The biggest problem he had was tracking mud all over his project. Couldn’t they have given them a towel to clean with? How would he wipe down his body before getting dressed again? Those clothes would be filthy. He glanced at the time. Four hours had passed, and he only had a platform.
“I still have twelve hours.” He sighed. If he didn’t get hired after all this effort, Vic would be disappointed. She needed his help, and he wanted to show her how thankful he was for all her support.
The stone in his wand only had half the power left. He took wood for the flooring. He decided to only shape it, then he used tools to install the floor. He knew how to build a house without magic. It would take too long for him to do the entire structure, but he could conserve magic this way.
The hours passed, and William used up the last of the magic. He dragged more stone over, his fingers slipping more than once. With a loud crash, he dropped one over a grate. He grimaced and pushed the heavy stone away. The latch broke away under the stone. He eyed the door, and no one came in. He would tell them after they’d hired him that he’d broken the grate. They must use it to drain the swamp after the tests.
With only an hour left, his one-room structure didn’t look that great. It was supposed to be functional. William glanced at the sand. Was he supposed to make lights?
His heart sank. He’d made a radiant home.
No running water or magic-running lamps. His wand gem produced the dull gleam of being used up.
“Blight.”
How could he have overlooked this? William sank to the floor. He didn’t belong in this world of magic, and he’d let Vic down.
The door opened, and he jumped.
“Naked building. That’s new.” The instructor tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and held a clipboard in her hand. Her cheeks turned pink.
“Ah, sorry. I didn’t want to be covered in mud at the end.” He ran to the side and pulled his shirt over his head.
Her eyes traveled slowly up and down his body. “By all means, don’t get dressed on my behalf.”
William paused in reaching for his pants. “Um, I didn’t want you to feel uncomfortable.”
She leaned on the wall and licked her lips. “I’m here to check your progress. For you, there’s only an hour left.”
William shifted. She didn’t look away. “The room is over there.” He pointed. Under her focused gaze, he still felt like he wasn’t wearing a shirt.
The lady laughed and came closer. “You’re funny.”
He pulled at his sleeve, and when he reached for his pants, her hand stopped him.
William fidgeted. Her grasp made him uncomfortable. “I should get dressed. This is a bit—”
“I’m fine.” She bit her full lips.
William cleared his throat. “What do you think of my room, then?”
She hadn’t even looked at it once.
She let go of his hand and sighed. Then the bored expression came over her face again. “Not functional. Decent build, but you didn’t use every material.” She faced him. “You’ll need extra points to make it past the interview.” The corner of her mouth turned up, and her eyes traced his lips.
Was she flirting with him? Women didn’t flirt with him. They found him off-putting. He stepped back. Did he need to seduce this woman to get a job? She stepped closer, and his gaze flitted from the radiant structure to her. He held his pants tightly. He didn’t want to do anything with this woman. Vic’s sad expression, in her desperation to find her sister, came to mind.
He swallowed thickly. “What extra help do I need?”
The woman was mere inches from him, and her finger traced his chest. The shirt had molded to his body from all the sweat. “You seem like a smart man. What do you think you can do to improve your grade?”
“I-I don’t think this is the right way to get a job.” Did his voice have to come out a whole octave higher?
She wrote furiously on a piece of paper. “Fine.” She tore it off and handed it to him. “You’re out of magic, and the structure isn’t functional. Fail.”
William’s hand shot out to stop her from handing him the paper. “Wait, I still have time!”
“How will you make lights without magic?”
A sick feeling filled him as he assessed his radiant room. He clenched his hands and stepped toward her. Her eyes widened and held up her clipboard as if to protect herself from him hitting her. Instead, he gripped her upper arms and pulled her to him. He slanted his mouth over the woman’s. Her lips were dry, and he moved his mouth mechanically. She let out a soft moan, so maybe she thought he was enjoying this or doing a good job. As she wrapped her hands around his neck dropping the clipboard, he pulled her closer. In his head, he imagined that her hands belonged to someone else. The woman tugged at his hair, making it messier. He gritted his teeth and pushed his hands between them to unbutton her shirt.
A clank echoed in the room. The woman shoved William away, and their gaze zeroed in on the person standing in the room with them.
Vic’s mouth dropped open. She was wet, and a horrible odor entered the room as she eyed them. “What in the blight is going on here?”
“She made me kiss her!” William wanted to sink into the ground. He didn’t know why Vic had popped out of the ground like a mog, but he wanted to dive into the grate she’d come out of.
The woman huffed and folded her arms.
Vic’s eyes narrowed. “Who are you?”
“I’m Ginny, and I’m conducting a test for Gic Corporation.” She quickly bent over to pick up the discarded clipboard.
Vic put her hands on her hips. “Kissing is part of the test?”
Ginny hugged her clipboard as if using it as a shield. “He wanted help since his grade was bad.”
Vic glanced at the house and at William. “What was the task?�
��
“We had to build a functional room.”
Vic stepped forward, and the stench coming off her grew stronger. William didn’t think this was the time for him to cover his nose.
“Ginny, I think he passed, don’t you?” Even though it wasn’t directed at him, William got chills from her dark tone. Covered in who knew what, Vic still commanded the room.
Ginny opened her mouth, then shut it. She nodded and handed William a piece of paper that contained a day and report time.
“Now Ginny, I think you need to leave before I tell the head of GicCorp that his employee is sexually harassing others.”
Ginny ran out of the room and slammed the door behind her. Vic’s glare shifted to him, and William shoved his pants on despite the dried mud on his legs.
“How far were you going to go with her for this job?” Vic rubbed her forehead. “Blight, you already had your pants off. If I’d been a few minutes later, I’d really have seen a show.”
“My pants were already off,” William blurted.
Her brows shot up. “You were already half naked?”
“I put my shirt on when she came in,” he mumbled. He faced any direction but where Vic stood.
“You built this naked?”
“I had my underwear on.” His face burned. He’d wanted to stay clean. He should have ruined his clothing.
They paused, then burst into laughter. William’s eyes filled with tears as he gasped for air between fits of laughter. Vic doubled over and used her scythe to hold herself up.
“Will … Blight … Why would you?” Vic gasped.
He took a deep breath to calm down. “She would have failed me, and I didn’t want to disappoint you. I know you’re doing so much, and this is the only way I can help.”
“I wouldn’t want you to sleep with someone to help me, Will.” She shook her head, but her eyes were still bright.
“I know, but …” He plucked at his clothing. “Can we not tell anyone about this?” He shivered as he remembered the woman’s dry mouth on his.
