Time Weaver

by Jacinta Maree

  At her approach, Catherine’s demeanour changed. She straightened her back, forcibly concealing her vulnerable side. She reached out and gently touched Elizabeth’s white locks, smiling fondly at a memory they didn’t share. “Miss Elizabeth Wicker, it’s a pleasure to finally meet you.”

  Elizabeth smiled back. “You too, Miss Rose.”

  “Catherine Rose-Wicker but please just call me Catherine. My mother informed me yesterday to my Uncle’s passing. It breaks my heart I couldn’t be here to say goodbye. It’s not until they’re taken away that you realize the importance of family.”

  “I couldn’t agree more.”

  “Uncle William did speak fondly of you. I’m sorry we have to meet under such awful circumstances.”

  “He spoke to you of me?” Elizabeth stepped back. It was a strange thought, in her household the topic of William being her biological father was strictly taboo.

  “On the rare occasions that we did chat, yes. Couldn’t believe you were legitimate, but now that I’ve seen you with my own eyes, all of my doubts have been put at ease.”

  “Are you okay?” Elizabeth asked.

  “Family burials are old scars reopening. It is always hard, but does not cut so deeply anymore. Wicker blood carries short lives, weak hearts. Uncle William carried the disease, as did his father and grandmother. It was a truth he accepted many years ago, one we’ve all grown familiar with.” Something shifted behind Elizabeth’s back, catching Catherine’s attention. Catherine quickly glanced at Hudson who nodded, acknowledging her concern. “I see you’ve gotten my mother’s letter, so you must be aware of why we are here. How much did Uncle William share with you, exactly?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “In regards to his problems.”

  Elizabeth stilled. Is she talking about the Collectors? “Enough to understand the dangers they impose.”

  “I see. Are those dangers still present?” Elizabeth wasn’t sure which one she was talking about, Klaus or Nikolas, and her hesitancy to reply was mistaken for fear. “You can trust us, it’s what we do. We destroy the supernatural. Witches and Bactes mostly.”

  “Bactes?”

  “Short for Bacterial Infested Creatures. They are monsters who enjoy spreading disease wherever they nest. Nasty things, have caused thirteen plagues so fair.”

  “And you hunt them?”

  Hudson stepped closer. “Yes, tracking down Bactes and witches are easy enough but Collectors, Collectors are nearly impossible to find. That is, of course, unless they are silly enough to show themselves. Speaking of which.” He swivelled and fired one of his guns over Elizabeth’s head, causing Elizabeth’s shoulders to snap up to her ears in shock. She spun around to see his target just as Klaus stepped out from behind a nearby tree. The bullet skimmed the bark, missing Klaus by a hair. “Are you enjoying the show, Time Collector?”

  Klaus’ attention didn’t shift from Hudson’s face or the gun. He barely flinched. Elizabeth looked between them, startled at Klaus’ presence and scared Hudson would try to shoot him again. She reached out and gently tried to lower Hudson’s aim. “Please don’t.”

  “Which one are you?” Hudson demanded without dropping his arm.

  “Dietrich, Klaus Dietrich.” Klaus stepped closer. “I am, was, Sir Wicker’s apprentice.”

  “And Collector Nikolas Vorx?” Catherine asked. “Where is he?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “You know of Nikolas?” Elizabeth turned back around. “How?”

  “All Guardians know of Nikolas Vorx. He’s an infamous legend.”

  “More like an infamous idiot,” Klaus muttered under his breath.

  “Guardians?” Elizabeth questioned.

  “It’s what we are called, this entire organisation we are a part of. Uncle William and I shared a common interest in hunting down the supernatural. He had special interests in Collectors though, and was understandably interested in learning how we managed to trap them.”

  “Trap them?” Klaus repeated, his voice sceptical. “That’s not possible.”

  Catherine’s grin spread up to her eyes. “We’ve got our secrets, as I’m sure you have yours.”

  “So you hunt all kinds of Collectors? Not just the corrupted?” Elizabeth asked, breaking up the stare down between Hudson and Klaus.

  “Collectors are an unnatural balance to our world. They are beings without a soul, just weapons of mass destruction. They are incredibly dangerous tools and are threats we cannot ignore.”

  The muscle in Klaus’ jaw clenched. “Sounds like the humans are the ones you should be hunting.”

  “An army of humans can’t do nearly as much damage as a single Collector.”

  “History begs to differ.”

  Catherine smiled at Klaus’ comment, before reaching over and lowering Hudson’s gun. He obeyed without hesitation. “I believe we are about to make history ourselves.”

  “Am I to be exterminated?” said Klaus.

  “Not at all. In fact, I was hoping for a truce. With your help, Klaus, we can finally stop Time Collector Nikolas Vorx. There are three other members in our group. I would like you to meet them.”

  “As thrilling as that sounds, it isn’t exactly wise to invite a Time Collector to a Guardian’s party.”

  “You will not be known as a Time Collector to them. Only Hudson and myself know of your true nature. Come by the Raps Rips tomorrow, I’ll get the rest of the group caught up.” As Catherine and Hudson turned to leave, she quickly turned back, giving Klaus one last look. “I’ll be interested in seeing exactly what you can do, Time Collector.”

  Chapter Twenty-Nine:

  Klaus drummed his fingers across the table top. Elizabeth sat beside him, her hands squeezed between her knees.

  “Are you sure about this?” she asked him again.

  Klaus didn’t look away from the elevator door. His fingers continued to tap. “Right now, it’s me versus Nikolas. Having experienced Guardians on my side could do me some good.” Catherine’s words bounced inside his head since yesterday. He had special interests in Collectors though, and was understandably interested in learning how we managed to trap them. Klaus shifted in his seat. Trap them. But how?

  Since the destruction of the Beaumont estate, Nikolas hadn’t made another peep. His silence fuelled Klaus’ unease. He needed to figure out a way to attack and kill Nikolas first.

  “Does Nikolas have any other contacts other than Lady Claudia?” Elizabeth asked, reading Klaus’ body language.

  “I’m not sure.” He answered bluntly, his focus not moving from the door. Wide entrance. Fast escape, if he needed one. He kept his attention carefully on all possible routes, watching the overhead vents for snipers. Listening carefully to every whispered conversation passing them by.

  “You and Nikolas,” Elizabeth started but hesitated when Klaus’ jawline tightened, “what happened between you two that could cause such hatred?” Klaus’ focus didn’t shift. He stopped tapping the table. “I didn’t realize Nikolas had such a reputation. Catherine spoke as if he is a prize to be won.” Elizabeth continued speaking, causing Klaus to sigh with frustration.

  “Apparently so.”

  “Do you think they can stop him?”

  As soon as he looked away, Catherine approached from the elevator lift. She walked alone, her attire entirely different from the long blue dress she wore yesterday. She walked in large boots and wore tight pants where hidden in her interior jacket, she revealed two pistols. “Morning. How good is your aim?”

  Elizabeth stood uncomfortably. “Not great.”

  Klaus quickly stood as well, his expression clearly annoyed. “What are we doing here?”

  “Proving to the others you’re worth bringing with us. Especially Dennis, he seemed the most upset about your involvement. Said he didn’t have time to babysit snobby rich girls and her father’s pet.”

  “Snobby rich girl?” Elizabeth scoffed at the remark.

  “Pet?” Klaus repeated as well, j
ust as offended.

  “There’s a bufo Bact close by, or commonly known as the toad, and we’ve been hired to exterminate her. She’s a type of fungus, gotten herself the nickname Mural and has taken up residence over by the mines. She has been contaminating the water, making a lot of people sick.”

  “Wait a moment, are you talking about killing someone?” Elizabeth asked.

  “Not someone, something.” Catherine corrected then turned back to Klaus. “Should be easy for a creature like yourself.”

  Klaus snorted. “Obviously.”

  “But you want me there too?” Elizabeth asked, feeling slowly pressed out of the conversation.

  “Of course.” Catherine said. “To my understanding, you’ve stood your ground against Nikolas, so a bufo Bact will be easy.”

  “Where have you heard that?”

  “Uncle William of course. He didn’t go into much details, only that you and a Collector named Klaus were involved. He wanted us to look out for you.”

  Elizabeth was surprised by the comment. “To me, he had made it very clear I wasn’t to be involved with Time Collectors.”

  “And yet, here you are.”

  #

  They had travelled down the town’s borderline, sticking close to the forest hemming the edges. The residential areas were less congested and the roads were paved with hard, yellow sand. The buildings appeared older, or perhaps it was the natural decay of nature taking back the land. Most of poorer families lived in this district that clung to the boarders of the mines. Elizabeth glanced upward at the rocky walls facing the residents. The site of the avalanche was still uncleared, but had police tape sealing off the entrance to the crumbled houses. Bouquets of flowers remained against the boulders in remembrance of the families lost. There was an old paper mill with holes poked throughout the bricks and crows nests taking up residence. On the other side of the paper mill, Hudson waited with two other men and one female, all of whom appeared ready for combat.

  Catherine approached the group. “Elizabeth, Klaus, I’d like to introduce you to Benjamin Kyneton, Dennis Moore and Leah French.”

  Dennis Moore quickly made his disapproval known. He stepped forward before either Klaus or Elizabeth could get a word out and balanced his shotgun over his shoulder.

  “Did you snatch this one out of a crib?” His attention focused on Elizabeth, who was clearly the youngest person among the group. His trained eyes moved to her grip on the gun, immediately recognising her uncertain tremor. “She looks way too inexperienced.”

  Elizabeth looked to Klaus for help, but it was Hudson who stepped in. “We already spoke about this.”

  “Yes, and I said we don’t accept charity cases. We’re here to solve a Time Collector problem, not babysit some wannabe adventurers.”

  “They are not inexperienced wannabes—” Catherine argued, but Dennis cut her off with a mocking laugh.

  “Oh, yes of course not. They’ve had dealings with Nikolas Vorx, isn’t that right?” He laughed. Dennis used his larger frame to size himself up against Klaus. Not surprised, Klaus’s expression didn’t shift, giving nothing away except for unending boredom. “And this one, the doctor’s apprentice, right? What could you do against Nikolas Vorx? Check him for measles?”

  Klaus didn’t speak, instead stared Dennis down, challenging his courage. The blonde female, Leah, stepped forward to brush Dennis aside. Her blue eyes sparkled as she looked at Elizabeth. “Nothing wrong with expanding our group, Dennis. Welcome, Elizabeth Wicker. I’m Leah French. I heard you were inside the Beaumont estate when it collapsed.” Elizabeth nodded. “Was Nikolas Vorx truly the reason it went down?”

  Again, Elizabeth nodded and Dennis scoffed loudly. “Don’t believe them, Leah. It’s all rubbish.”

  “How did you get out?” Leah asked, intrigued.

  “I, err…leapt through the second storey window.” Elizabeth was surprised to hear her voice shake. “Nearly broke my arm.” She glanced at Klaus as he shifted and cleared his throat.

  “Fascinating.” Leah beamed.

  “Ludacris,” Dennis argued.

  The remaining man of the group sighed from the back, clearly annoyed by the whole conversation. “Enough, isn’t this the point of bringing them here. Let them prove they can handle the life of a hunter. Send them into the Bufo Bact.”

  “Benjamin is right,” Catherine agreed. “If they can do this, then they are welcomed. Now, no more arguments. Into your positions, everyone.”

  Hudson took to the neighbouring tower. He had his goggles back on, adjusting the lens so he could use them as binoculars. Dennis and Benjamin kept close to the front door as back up. Leah and Catherine took their position to the back of the property in case the Bact tried to escape through the windows.

  Catherine pulled Elizabeth and Klaus aside. “First thing first, with bufo toads is to watch out for their acidic spit. She will go for your eyes, so you must wear these.” She passed over goggles. “The best way to beat her is with heat. First, throw in these two canisters. It erupts with steam that will overheat the room. She’ll go for the windows. That’s where Leah and I will have her blocked off. It’s your job to incapacitate her. Try and steer her away from the walls. If she gets to the rafters, you’re going to have a problem. We call it raining acid, if you know what I mean.”

  Elizabeth laughed nervously. “This sounds like fun.”

  Klaus motioned to his hand-held pistol. “I don’t need a gun to protect myself.”

  “A Collector won’t, but a human does.” Catherine pointed out. “Be careful in there. She may only be a class five Bact, but that doesn’t mean she’s not feisty.”

  “Class five?”

  Catherine clicked the barrel of her gun back into place. “Low rank. Don’t worry, you’ll be fine. Just remember what I told you.” She retreated to her post by the side of the house.

  Both Klaus and Elizabeth fit on their goggles and adjusted the straps so the band didn’t droop. The front door was jammed against the frame and Klaus barged his shoulder through to force it open. Dust thickened around the beams, shifting into the air at Klaus’ intrusion. Around them, dimness settled in the corners, covering the corpses of headless rats left behind. Rotten wood planks boarded the windows, allowing splinters of light to squeeze through the slits. Cautiously, Elizabeth eased in first. Klaus followed. His gun remained clipped in his hip holster.

  As instructed, they rolled the two smoking canisters in, quickly filling the room with steam. Through the mist, an old woman scampered quickly to the back of the room, shielding herself behind a woollen shawl. Elizabeth lifted her gun. The woman cocked her head sharply left and right, her nostrils flaring, but appeared unthreatened by the heat.

  “Mural?” Elizabeth called out. The figure cowered behind her hands, crouching into a ball to appear as small as possible. Her inexperience with Bactes made her hesitate. Exactly what were these things capable of? Can they speak? Do they have thoughts? Could they be reasoned with? The weight of a gun felt unnatural to her. Elizabeth lowered her aim. “Excuse me, are you Mural?”

  As she glanced at Klaus, the creature lunged forward and slapped the pistol away, throwing Elizabeth to the ground. The creature’s scaly grip grabbed her wrist, pinning her hand and the gun to the floor. Her smile reached from ear to ear, curling the creature’s mouth into a stretched, long slit. Its eyes budged white, revealing her blindness. Her senses must’ve come from her large nostrils and bulb ears. The Bact unhinged its jaw and spat a projectile clot of tar, the shot only missing thanks to Klaus’ swift upwards kick, knocking the Bact’s chin to the side and hitting the back wall. The Bact leapt off Elizabeth, and on all fours, fled down a trapdoor beneath the floorboards. Klaus helped Elizabeth stand.

  “Are you okay?”

  Elizabeth’s clock heart raced. She grabbed at her chest, feeling herself wobble. The smell from the acidic spit drenched the room in fumes. When she glanced at it, the black goo melted through the bricks. “Yeah, I’m fine.” They both glanc
ed at the trapdoor. “At least we have the right person. For an old woman, she sure moves quickly.”

  “It’s an illusion.” Klaus corrected. “She’ll be twice as strong as you, and three times as fast.”

  “Why didn’t you shoot her?” Elizabeth asked.

  “She was too close. I didn’t want any backlash.”

  “Worried about ruining your outfit, huh?”

  Klaus turned, speaking in an equally snarky tone. “Getting hit by the hot tar will be the equivalent of having boiling water poured over you. But sure, I didn’t want my outfit to be ruined.”

  #

  Hudson observed the brief exchange, but wasn’t alarmed. It appeared normal. The bufo Bact defended itself with tar and a sense of disorientated blindness. The Bact was fast, but clumsy. It was difficult to keep track as most of the windows were boarded up, giving him a limited view. The Bact disappeared from sight after Klaus kicked her head, throwing her aim off. He was fast, obviously a trained fighter with quick reflexes. Elizabeth, on the other hand, would probably kill herself tripping over her own laces.

  Unfazed, Hudson kept his attention on Klaus and Elizabeth. It wasn’t until they disappeared from the room that he felt his pulse accelerate. He sent out a distress flare to warn the others. Catherine pressed against the window and tried peeking through one of the holes. Darkness made it impossible to see, so she signalled to Benjamin and Dennis to move. Both boys rushed into the dwelling with their guns held high. On his shoulder pad, Benjamin turned on his torch to illuminate the empty area. It took them ten minutes to finally notice the trapdoor.

  Benjamin turned around as Catherine and Leah stepped inside with their weapons drawn. “I think they went down here.”

  “Christ!” Catherine dropped to her knees by the trapdoor and lowered her head down the long descent. “It’s pitch black down there. Elizabeth? Klaus? Can you hear me?” she called with no response. “Leah, go and get Hudson. Benjamin and Dennis follow me.”