Industry & Intrigue

by Ryan McCall

  “I should have known it would be you,” he said as he embraced his friend in a brief hug.

  Robert was much smaller than himself and he kept the hug light. If Victor wanted, he could do real damage to someone with his muscular frame, though he had never harmed anyone his entire life. One issue where the two of them had strongly disagreed.

  Victor was a first and foremost, a man of peace. He advocated for worker’s rights and he formulated the first theories that formed the Laborers Revolution Collective. Victor came from a noble background. His family owned estates in Tatha province and were highly placed members of society in plutocratic Silund.

  He had turned against his family and his background when he had seen the ill-treatment of workers everywhere. The slave-markets of Ze Feros, the debt servitude and plutonomy of Silund and the huge factories and plants of the Alkon Empire.

  He had written several books which had been hugely popular with workers across the empire, the most famous of which was his Workers Manifesto. Many of his theories relied on working within to reform the system and make it better for all.

  Which was why he had moved to Alkos, it had the framework of a political system needed to work within. In Silund, his group would have been declared enemies of the state, then hunted down and killed by the dogs of the rich overlords.

  Robert on the other hand advocated a more confrontational approach. He felt that a full blown workers revolution was required to overthrow the hierarchy and liberate the people. He believed that it was inevitable, though he preferred to see it happen within his own lifetime. Victor had been able to curb his more aggressive suggestions, but Robert still had a core of loyal followers that were growing impatient. They wanted to take more drastic measures and Victor was concerned that one day they would not hold back.

  The two of them discussed matters as they walked towards the LRC meeting house. Who was still imprisoned, who had escaped and what the consequences would be.

  “They’ll give us a slap on the wrist, that’s all Robert,” said Victor.

  “You’re certain? Despite what you may think about us having sympathizers in the government, the reactionaries maintain control. If we do not act soon, they will crush us beneath their steel boots.” Robert coughed and spat towards the gutter.

  “They learned their lesson about creating martyrs after the Railroad Strike, they won’t do it again.” Robert was still trying to convince him to take a more hardline approach, but he wouldn’t go there. A violent revolution could cause more harm than good and he had no desire to see the chaos it would create.

  “Don’t be so certain. Minister Kao has been in the government since before then and I have no doubt he would love to see a return to those times. Someone should show him what we workers are truly capable of.” If Robert had his way, he would be organizing assassinations of people like Kao.

  Victor sighed. He was in no mood to have this argument with Robert again, yet it always came up. He decided not to say anything in response for now, in the hopes that Robert would let it lie for now.

  As they came arrived at the house, something did not look right. Victor noticed there were no lights on. In addition there was normally a member at the door to check everyone; but no one stood there. There was only a darkened doorway, the door left slightly ajar.

  “Robert…” said Victor.

  “Something ‘aint right.” Robert stepped towards the door. “Shit,” he said.

  Victor stepped forward to see why his friend had reacted. There was a small patch of blood on the wooden wall of the doorway. Robert put his hand on the door and looked back at Victor. He nodded, indicating for his friend to enter.

  Robert pushed the door open and it squeaked. He moved inside and Victor followed him. As his eyes adjusted to the dark, Victor could make out more bloodstains on the walls and a thin trial leading down the hall. He kept following Robert until they came to the door of the main room. Robert pushed it open.

  It was too dark to see much, but the smell assaulted Victor’s nostrils. It was the copper scent of blood, mixed with piss and shit.

  “Hold on. I’ll get the light” said Robert. With the smell of death heavy in the air, Victor was afraid to see what was in the room.

  There was a click as Robert flipped the switch. The lights flickered once and then came on. A grisly sight was revealed. It was so horrible, he had to blink several times to make certain he was not imagining what his eyes were showing him.

  “By all the hells,” Robert said in low voice.

  All across the room were bodies of their fellow revolutionaries. There was a half a dozen piled in the center. Each of them appeared to have been gunned down. Scattered throughout the rest of the room were hacked–up pieces-heads, limbs and torsos. Victor felt his stomach lurch and he fought to keep himself from vomiting.

  Then a moan sounded out from the pile. They both ran over, careful to avoid slipping in blood. A hand was moving beneath a body. Robert pulled the corpse off the survivor. It was Iver Weir, the collective’s secretary. He had lost one of his feet and had a nasty stomach wound, which was still bleeding.

  Victor leaned down, no longer caring about getting blood over himself. He held the man’s head and gently lifted it up. “Iver, it’s Victor. Can you hear me?”

  The man moaned again, “Victor? You aren’t dead?”

  “No my friend. I am fine. Can you tell me what happened? Who did this?”

  Iver nodded slowly. “We were gathered, waiting for Robert to return with you. There was the sound of arguing at the door and before we could react, he was inside. He was dragging Daniel into the room, impaled him on a scythe. Then he came after the rest of us.”

  “Fuck,” said Robert.

  Victor put his hand up and said, “Let him finish.”

  “He was insanely strong and fast. I think he killed everyone. Only reason I’m alive is he hit me over the head and knocked me out. I guess he figured he I was dead.” Iver looked down at his stomach wound.

  “Who?” asked Victor “Who was it?”

  Iver coughed a spray of blood up. “I don’t know. He looked like death.” He coughed again, he wasn’t going to last much longer.

  “Death?” asked Victor.

  “He wore a mask. A skull mask. He used a shotgun and a scythe. Never thought death would use a shotgun,” Iver coughed again and his voice was growing weak.

  “Relax Iver. We’ll get you help, don’t worry,” said Victor in a reassuring tone.

  “Too late for me…don’t let them get away with...Robert was right Victor…we need to show…strength. We…” his voice trailed off and his body convulsed. A few seconds later, he was gone. Victor closed Iver’s still open eyes.

  Robert was looking around, his face a hardened with rage.

  “I know what you’re thinking Robert. But we need to discuss this. We need to report this to the authorities.”

  Robert shook his head. “You have a brilliant mind Victor, but you don’t have the will to take the next step. You keep on with your writing to inspire us. I’ll going to take the fight directly to the economic dictators.”

  Robert stomped out of the room, not looking back. Victor lowered his head, he felt that he would not be able to reconcile with him, not after this. He stood up and slowly made his way out of the room. He would go to the nearest watch station. He laughed at the irony. He had been released from the cells and now he was going straight back there.

  Chapter 28

  Lucina hated waiting. The day of her mission was here. The target had finally arrived and she was waiting for Ral. He would provide her with the weapon she needed. She was sitting in a small office of the administration building at the University of Alkos. The occupant of the office was lying dead on the floor. Lucina had slit her throat when she opened the door.

  The office was nice enough. The woman had been the deputy admin of records. Lucina imagined it was a mind-numbing paper pushing role. The only profession she had ever known was that of murder. The room
was crowded with filing cabinets, full of records on the students and staff.

  She stretched. She kept herself in top physical shape with a disciplined training regimen. Her role as an assassin demanded it. Ral had not informed her of the location of her shot, but she wanted to be certain she was ready for wherever she needed to be.

  She pulled her lean, muscular arms over her head, out to the sides and behind her back. She flexed her right hand, the one she would be using to take the shot.

  Her skill with long distance rifles had first been noticed by the firearms instructor in the Arm’s secretive training base. He had her practice with larger rifles and she continued to display an aptitude with them; even the heavy safari guns. Most people strained to even lift those guns to take an accurate shot, but Lucina had hit the targets the first time.

  There was a series of light knocks on the door. It was Ral, he used the his code to identify himself. She walked over and let him in. He briefly glanced at the body of the admin officer. He was carrying a long case and set it down on the desk. Lucina closed the door and walked over as he unclasped the case and showed her the contents.

  Inside was the most powerful and accurate rifle in existence, a Huntington A10. A long barreled sniper rifle. The smooth wood of its butt and grip shined, it was brand new. There was something different about it though. “Modified?” she asked.

  “Yes,” replied Ral. “Its scope has been enhanced. You should have a crystal clear view of your target. The shot range has also been improved. You will have an extra hundred meters before the bullet is significantly affected by wind and gravity.” That was the downside to making long-range kills. The bullets dipped after a long enough distance, reducing the accuracy.

  Lucina picked it up and tested the weight. She looked through the scope. It was the clearest sight she had ever seen on a rifle. She looked up at Ral, waiting to hear the remaining details.

  “The target will arrive in the university courtyard at twelve o’clock. That gives you twenty minutes to get into position and be ready,” he said. “There is one location far enough away that will give you the shot without raising instant suspicion; the clock tower on top of the southern block. I will take care of the guards and wait until you are done to ensure no one else enters.”

  “No Portal?” asked Lucina. Portal was the name of a mage the Arm used to get their assassin’s into and out of locations without leaving traces. He was well-practiced in aeromancy and could whisk himself and others through air portals. Lucina didn’t even know his real name.

  “No,” replied Ral. “The Scepters are also on security. We could risk detection if we used Portal. Once you take the shot you will have to make your way down from the tower on the outside. Leave the gun, it doesn’t matter. They won’t be able to trace it. Once you are on the ground I will meet you outside the southern gate.”

  Lucina nodded, memorizing all the details.

  “Remember, no one must be able to identify you with the shot. If anyone sees you while making your way down you will have to kill them,” Ral reminded her.

  “Of course,” she replied. It wouldn’t be the first time she had to take care of witnesses.

  “Good. Bring the rifle and follow me to the south block,” he said.

  Lucina put the rifle back into its case and closed it up. She lifted it in one hand and followed Ral. She locked the door behind her. The whole plan would go awry if someone discovered the admin’s body before she had took her shot.

  The admin building was normally busy, but with the delegation visiting, most of the staff were elsewhere. The few workers around were too preoccupied to notice the two assassins.

  The south block was part of the science department. However since classes were not on today, it too was deserted. Ral led Lucina through several arched corridors, eventually stopping at a corner. He slowly peered around to look, then leaned back.

  “One guard. Wait here,” he said. He walked around the corner and Lucina poked her head around to watch.

  Ral approached the guard and the man said, “Sir, this area is off limits while the delegation is on campus. Could you please turn around?”

  “Are you certain?” said Ral, in realistic surprise. “I could have sworn Professor Cuthbert asked me to meet him here. Ral was a good actor.

  “I haven’t seen anyone else here. You must have misheard him,” said the guard.

  Ral nodded. “Hmm, never mind, I’ll have to meet him elsewhere.”

  The guard relaxed. Then Ral stepped forward and drew his long daggers. The guard went for his gun but he was too slow. His hand was still on his holster when the two blades slammed into his chest. Ral pulled them out as quickly as he had put them in and the guard slumped to the ground.

  Ral gave a low whistle and Lucina walked around the corner herself. Ral opened the door the man had been protecting and dragged the body in. When Lucina was inside, he closed it.

  “Get into position. I’ll stay here and keep watch until I hear the shot.” He wiped the blood off his daggers on the guard’s clothing.

  Lucina climbed the stairs with the heavy, sniper rifle. She was soon sweating from the exertion, but did not slow down. She needed to be in position before the target was in place. She had five minutes left.

  When she finally reached the top, she shoved open the metal door. There was a small balcony below the large clock face. She set the case down and looked down each side of the balcony. She tied rope to the back section and let it fall. The end touched the rooftop of the building below.

  She returned to the front of the balcony and opened the case. She checked the ammunition, it was loaded and ready. She lifted the gun up to the edge of the balcony and placed the butt against her shoulder. She placed her finger near the trigger and her left hand held the forward section with complete steadiness.

  She looked down the scope. She had an excellent view of the courtyard, a large crowd was gathering. She moved the rifle slightly and saw the pavilion. It looked like university officials were seated, but her target had yet to arrive.

  She kept the rifle in position and focused her breathing to a steady and even manner. It didn’t take long, she saw one of the officials walk up to the podium and start speaking. The audience then clapped and several more people walked onto the pavilion. There were over a dozen newcomers.

  They took their seats, but none were her target. Then he stepped into view. The Galrian Foreign Minister, Atoli Rossiv. She had his face memorized from her assignment file. He shook hands with the woman who had introduced him. She then gave the podium over to him.

  It was time. He stepped up to the podium and started to speak. Lucina took in several deep breaths and a single drop of sweat ran off her forehead and trailed down the scar on her cheek. She held her finger over the trigger and lined up the crosshairs with Rossiv’s face. She breathed in once more and pulled the trigger.

  Chapter 29

  “Why are you still watching that?” asked Michael. Reese lowered the telescope and turned away from the window. They were situated in a chemistry lab on the upper level of the science block. It was a good distance from the university courtyard, but with Michael’s telescope he was able to see the foreign delegation.

  Michael was uninterested in the event. “Nothing but politicians puffing themselves into importance,” he said.

  He agreed to let Reese watch from the lab windows, only because he had work he wanted to complete. He had a key to the labs; many of the chemistry students required access at odd hours.

  “What else is there to do? Classes are off for today, I have all my work done. You look too preoccupied in your-, what are making anyway?” asked Reese.

  “Not all of us are naturally gifted like you. We have to keep practicing on our chosen field in order to become the best,” said Michael. He had a pair of leather gloves on and was slowly pouring a clear liquid into a large beaker. The beaker had another liquid inside that was giving off white fumes. It was surrounded by an ice-bath, whatever his frien
d was doing was temperature sensitive.

  “It’s a new explosive. Nitroglycerin,” explained Michael.

  “Explosive?” Reese was concerned now. “Why in the hells would your professor get you to make an explosive?”

  “He didn’t. This is a personal project.”

  Reese wasn’t surprised. “Oh, and the chemistry department has no problem with a first year student making explosives in one of their labs unsupervised?”

  “Obviously they don’t know and they don’t need to,” replied Michael. “Once I’ve made it, I’ll safely test it and write up a report which I’ll keep to myself until I go to work for Southwest Rail.”

  “You’re so damn obsessed with the flare rock companies. I don’t get it.” Southwest Rail Incorporated was the largest rail company in Alkos and they had also gained a market share of the flare-rock mines in Naikos. This had led to massive growth and expansion as the company made a fortune off the energy rich minerals.

  Michael stopped pouring and set down his still half full beaker. ‘Flare-rock is the future. It’s going to replace coal. It already has in Southwest’s latest engines. Think where it’ll lead, engine powered ships, faster and smaller carriages, more powerful machinery to do work for us. If I can find a way of mining it faster with explosives, I’ll be set for life.” He picked up the beaker and continued pouring.

  Reese looked back out the telescope towards the ceremony. He saw the Galrian foreign minister step up towards the podium. A loud crack suddenly rang out. It was the sound of a high-caliber gunshot.

  Reese gasped as he saw the Galrian official fall down, his blood covering the pavilion. One woman ran over to check, but he was dead. The bullet hit him in the head. People were screaming and running away in a panic and the Imperial Guards tried to keep control of the courtyard.

  “Fuck,” swore Michael. Reese looked away from the chaotic scene. The gunshot had startled his friend and he had accidently poured the remaining liquid into the larger beaker all at once. From his friend’s reaction, Reese guessed that it was not good for that to happen. He couldn’t see a change in the mixture though, it could be fine.