Grigory's Gadget

by E. A. Hennessy

  The title was stamped into the cover of the book: Powerful Items of Myths and Legends. Zoya frowned, skeptical.

  “I don't know,” she said. “Doesn't the fact that it exists automatically make it not a myth?”

  “Not necessarily,” Nikolai said. “Most myths are based on something real, just exaggerated or misinterpreted over time.”

  “You look through that,” Anya suggested, “and we'll start looking through newspapers.”

  Nodding in agreement, Nikolai and Demyan opened the leather book and began reading. Lilia, Anya, and Zoya began to sift through the files on the shelf labeled Morozhia. The task was even more daunting than they initially realized. The better part of a day passed before Nikolai called to his friends.

  “Ah-ha!” he announced. “I told you! Look at this.” Nikolai turned the book around so the girls could see. Before Lilia could read very far, Nikolai began to explain with great enthusiasm.

  “A ball of metal in its inert form,” he said, “but actually disguised armor. When it's triggered, it becomes magical armor that defends against any weapon, as well as giving the wearer magical powers.” Nikolai shrugged and gave a slight laugh. “I don't know about magic, but that sounds a lot like your gadget.”

  “The Bronnerush,” Zoya read aloud. She continued reading down the page. “Invented and forged over three hundred years ago by…” Zoya trailed off, furrowing her brow. She looked up at her friends. “Grigory Orlov. Do you think he's a distant relative?” Zoya kept reading.

  “Wait,” she said a moment later. “He was from Vernulaia! Er, I mean, it wasn't Vernulaia back then. It says he eventually fled to a remote location in the frozen tundra of the north because he was afraid of the Bronnerush's power.”

  “Lodninsk, I'm guessing?” Demyan asked. Zoya nodded.

  “Well, did I tell you, or did I tell you?” Nikolai gloated. “I knew that book would have some useful information!”

  “Purple hair,” Zoya gasped. “It even explains the purple hair. After the forging of the Bronnerush, Grigory Orlov's hair began to grow bright purple, a result of his exposure to the device's power.”

  “So I guess that would make you a direct descendant,” Anya said. Zoya collapsed into a nearby chair. Demyan rushed over to her and started massaging her shoulders.

  “My head hurts,” she said. She sat silently for a moment, letting the flood of information sink in. Lilia and Anya returned to examining microfilm.

  “Hey, look at this,” Lilia told her friends, pointing to the article projected on the reader. The article she gestured to was titled “Pirates Invading Lodninsk” and had an engraving of Snezhana.

  “What?” Zoya gasped as she walked toward the device. She leaned over and started to read the article.

  “What was Snezhana doing in Lodninsk?” Lilia wondered.

  “What's the date of the paper?” Demyan asked. Zoya looked up at the corner of the page.

  “It's from ten years ago,” she said. She continued reading.

  “Do you think she was looking for the gadget back then?” Anya whispered. “Do you think she knew it was in Lodninsk?”

  Zoya's hands tightened into fists, pushing into the surface of the table. She began breathing heavily as tears welled up in her eyes.

  “Zoya, what is it?” Demyan asked gently. He placed a hand on her shoulder. Zoya slammed her fists on the table and backed toward the wall, covering her face with her hands. Lilia glanced at her friends with concern.

  “She—” Zoya started, her voice cracking. “She's the one. She's the one that killed my mother.”

  Anya leaned over to read the article.

  “Pirates ran amok in the mining city of Lodninsk,” Anya read aloud. “Leading a series of assaults and muggings, which have resulted in several injuries and murders.”

  “It doesn't say anything about your mother,” Lilia noted.

  “The timing works out,” Zoya replied. “And I remember that her murder was not an isolated incident.”

  “Why didn't our newspaper say it was pirates?” Nikolai asked. “I don't remember hearing anything about pirates.”

  “They probably buried that detail,” Anya suggested. “Seems like they bury a lot of details.”

  “It's a good thing we escaped,” Demyan said. Lilia wondered if he meant escaping from Lodninsk or the pirates. Both, she decided.

  Zoya stared blankly into the distance.

  “We need to go,” she stated after a moment. “We should get out of Valoselo.” Without waiting for her friends to reply, Zoya exited the room and climbed the spiral stairs.

  As the group ran through the buildings toward the edge of town, Nikolai could see spotlights shining up into the evening sky. A large crowd had gathered around a huge zeppelin sitting by the beach. Nikolai and his friends stood behind them.

  Two magnificently dressed people stood on a platform in front of the crowd. The man had bright blue hair shaped such that it resembled an ocean wave, while the woman beside him sported short pastel pink hair poking out around her aviator goggles. Both wore brocade suits of red, orange, and gold.

  “And the view is just spectacular, folks, I'll tell ya!” the man declared. “Yes sir, the airship is by far the best mode of transportation! Whether you want to go over land or sea, you can rely on our airships!”

  In front of the couple, people were signing a piece of paper and handing money up to the woman.

  “Thank you very much,” she said as each customer paid.

  “We'll be making stops in all the major cities in Chereplazh then we'll set off to Mirgorod, Vernulaia!”

  “Scammers. I've heard of these two. They take all of the money then claim the weather isn't cooperating.” Nikolai spun around to see Yeremiy walking out from the shadows between the buildings. Startled, Nikolai and his friends backed away from Yeremiy while searching for a way out.

  “Sorry,” Gotfrid said, stepping out of the crowd. “There's no escaping now. Let's not make a scene. You don't want any of these innocent people killed, do you?”

  “You can't do anything here,” Zoya said. “If you harm anyone, you'll be arrested!”

  “Sounds like a risk I'm willing to take,” Gotfrid said, looking at the other members of Snezhana's crew as they appeared and surrounded the captives. “Are you willing to bet your friends' lives on that?”

  The pirates drew their pistols and pointed them at Zoya's friends.

  “Fine,” Zoya said. “Let's not make a scene, though, like you said. We'll go without any trouble.” Already the pirates' pistols had drawn the attention of some people in the crowd. They glanced about nervously.

  “I have a quick draw,” Gotfrid stated as he put his pistol in its holster. “In case you're thinking of trying anything.”

  As soon as the pirates' put their guns away, Anya charged forward and knocked Gotfrid on to his back. The group of friends sprinted away, into the crowd. Nikolai heard a gunshot and turned to see an old man fall to the ground with blood spreading across his abdomen. The crowd began to scream and yell, dispersing in every direction.

  “No, wait!” the airship man shouted. “It's alright! Don't go!” The woman grabbed his arm, and their bag of cash, and pulled him with her as she ran into the airship.

  Members of the panicking crowd pushed Lilia to the ground as they ran by. Nikolai stopped to help her up and came face to face with Adam. Adam grabbed Lilia, only to be promptly punched in the face by Nikolai. The pirate let out a yelp of pain then reached for his pistol. Lilia wrestled out of his grip as he lifted the pistol and shot Nikolai. Nikolai stumbled backward as sharp pain spread through his shoulder. He squeezed the wound. With a growl of pain, he charged toward Adam.

  “I don’t think so,” Igor said. Nikolai turned to see that he had grabbed Lilia and held a pistol to her head. “That's enough of that.” Zoya, Demyan, and Anya had been apprehended by the other pirates.

  “Give up,” Gotfrid said. “You can't get away from us, we'll just find you again. Besides, I
thought you all wanted to go to Mirgorod? See, we all have the same goal in mind.”

  “How are you going to get to Mirgorod without your navigator?” Nikolai growled. Yeremiy was nowhere to be seen.

  “We'll make due,” Gotfrid replied. “Mr. Robertov took notes on his maps, which we still have.”

  The pirates pushed their captives toward the edge of the city as the last remnants of the panicked crowd fled. Nikolai heard the distant shouts of police he and his friends disappeared into the trees.

  Zoya's gaze was fixed intensely on the lights of the Hell's Jewel as they approached it on the dinghy. The thought of Snezhana murdering her mother pushed all other thoughts out of her mind.

  “Are you ok?” Demyan asked her.

  “Absolutely,” she replied, still looking at the ship before them.

  Nikolai let out a painful cry, still gripping his shoulder. Lilia helped him to apply pressure to his wound.

  “He needs your doctor,” she told Gotfrid. “As soon as we get on the ship, he needs his wound cleaned.”

  “You're not in any position to make demands,” Gotfrid replied coolly. Tears welled in Lilia's eyes as she glared at the pirates.

  Snezhana stood by the edge of the ship as the dinghy was lifted. Zoya sprang out of the little boat and ran toward Snezhana. Before the pirates could stop Zoya, she had slapped the pirate captain across the face. Igor and Adam rushed to restrain her, grabbing her by the arms and dragging her back. Snezhana laughed.

  “You know who I am,” Zoya accused.

  “Of course,” Snezhana replied. “We have met before, dear. You're Zoya.” Snezhana turned to her crew. “Did she hit her head or something?” The crew laughed.

  “No,” Zoya went on. “I mean you know exactly who I am. I'm the daughter of the woman you slaughtered mercilessly in the streets of Lodninsk!”

  Snezhana's expression turned dark. “Do not presume to accuse me of crimes I did not commit, especially not on my own ship.”

  “You're a liar and a thief,” Zoya told her. “And you are a murderer. You should still be rotting in prison. Or better yet, you should be hanged.”

  Snezhana grabbed Zoya her by the chin and peering into her eyes.

  “I did not kill your mother,” she stated. “But I did rot in that prison in Lodninsk for nine years nonetheless. You want to know who killed your mother? Who framed me and sent me to that prison? My weaselly little brother. Your Captain Edmund Sokoll.” Snezhana stepped back and regarded her other prisoners.

  “Send them all down to the brig,” she commanded. “And make sure Zoya is not in the same cell as my brother. I don't want him dead just yet.”

  Before the group disappeared below deck, Snezhana shouted, “Wait.” She walked over to the prisoners with a smirk.

  “Take their bags,” she told her crew. “I know Alexi gave the gadget to one of you. I think it should be kept safe with me now.”

  In the brig of the ship, Captain Sokoll was fast asleep on the floor of his own cell. Fresh bandages covered the wound on his abdomen. Alexi, in a separate cell, smiled as the other captives were brought in.

  “Well this is much better company,” he said. Anya, Lilia, and Zoya were thrown into the empty cell, Demyan and Nikolai in with Alexi.

  “Don't I get to see your doctor?” Nikolai asked, still holding his shoulder. Ignoring him, the pirates left the room.

  Zoya walked over to the side of the cell and glared at Alexi.

  “You knew, didn't you?” she said. “You knew your aunt killed my mother?” Alexi tilted his head, glancing at his father.

  “Did she tell you that?” he asked. Zoya shook her head.

  “She denied it,” Zoya said. “But—”

  “She didn't do it,” Alexi said.

  “But I saw the old newspaper article,” Zoya replied. “She went to prison for it.”

  Alexi pointed to Captain Sokoll.

  “My father shows affection in strange ways. He framed her to get rid of the competition.”

  “Competition?” Zoya asked.

  “For the gadget,” Alexi replied. “For years they searched for it together, but as they got close to finding it, my father decided he didn't like the idea of sharing power.”

  Zoya collapsed onto the floor and leaned against the wall.

  “So he killed my mother because…”

  “Because she shared your purple hair,” Alexi said. “So he knew she had the gadget, or at least knew where it was.”

  Zoya looked Alexi over for a moment. “Were you there?”

  Alexi shook his head. “I hadn't joined my father's crew yet. I was too young. I still lived with my mother.” He cleared his throat and turned away. Captain Sokoll started to stir from his sleep.

  “Oh, good,” he mumbled when he saw the others in the room. “They brought me my crew.”

  “We're not your crew,” Anya told him. Captain Sokoll chuckled as he lifted himself to a sitting position propped against the wall.

  “Well, we are between ships at the moment,” Captain Sokoll said. “I'll admit that's not ideal. But don't worry, your captain is resourceful.”

  “We're not your crew, and you're not our captain, Edmund,” Lilia said.

  Captain Sokoll bristled when Lilia said his name. “Alexi, what's gotten into them?”

  “They don't like the taste of betrayal.” Alexi shrugged.

  “Well neither do I,” Captain Sokoll said. His face turned red. “This seems like betrayal alright, betrayal of your captain.”

  “You killed my mother,” Zoya said, rising again to her feet. Captain Sokoll looked at her, expressionless and silent. Zoya laughed sadly.

  “You won't even deny it,” she said. “You don't even have the decency to deny it.”

  “I have the decency not to lie to my crew,” Captain Sokoll replied.

  “That's a load of crap,” Anya said. “You had plenty of opportunities to tell us the truth.”

  “I didn't say I told you the truth,” Captain Sokoll replied. “I said I don't lie. Sometimes omissions must be made for the good of the crew.”

  “Don't try to argue with him,” Alexi said. “He's got an answer for everything.”

  “Nikolai?” Demyan said suddenly. He leaned over Nikolai, who had collapsed onto the floor. Nikolai was breathing heavily, his skin soaked in sweat.

  “Nikolai?” Lilia called.

  “Come on Nikolai,” Demyan said. “Stay with us.” He patted Nikolai's face then shook his unwounded shoulder. Nikolai didn't respond.

  “Snezhana!” Lilia yelled. “Snezhana! We need a doctor!” The friends listened for a moment, but heard no one coming.

  “They're all busy preparing this god-awful ship,” Captain Sokoll said. “I told her this ship is too big. On my ship, you'd be able to hear yelling from down here.”

  “That's because your ship has no walls left,” Alexi mocked.

  “You've got a brave tongue, boy, when there're bars between us,” Captain Sokoll replied, his tone dark. “We'll see how brave you are when we get out of here.”

  A moment later, the engines of the ship grew louder, and the Hell's Jewel jerked into motion.

  “Something doesn't sound right,” Zoya said. She put her ear to the wall and listened to the sounds of the boiler room. Then she backed away until her back pressed into the bars of her cell.

  “Snezhana!” She yelled as loudly as she could. “Snezhana!”

  “Zoya, what's wrong?” Lilia asked.

  “I've already been in one boiler explosion too many,” Zoya replied. “Snezhana!”

  “She can't hear you,” Captain Sokoll told her. Zoya felt inside her pockets and glanced around the room.

  “We need to get out of here,” she said. “Right now. Do we have anything to pick the locks?”

  “My aunt and her crew were extra cautious this time,” Alexi told her.

  Zoya smiled. “Give me your belt.”

  “Excuse me?” he asked.

  “Not the one keeping your p
ants up,” Zoya said, rolling her eyes. “The one over your shoulder, with the big buckle.” Still puzzled, Alexi obliged and handed over his belt. Zoya lifted the prong of the buckle and stuck it into the lock on her cell.

  “You can't just jam something into a lock and expect it to open,” Alexi told her. “You got lucky with that knife before, but lock picking is a skill.”

  The lock on Zoya's cell clicked open.

  “A skill I thought everyone had,” Zoya said, swinging her door open. “Or is that just a Lodninski thing?”

  She quickly unlocked Demyan, Nikolai’ and Alexi’s cell then stared at Captain Sokoll. Zoya stood motionless, the belt still in her hand, as Demyan and Alexi carried Nikolai out.

  “Zoya,” Alexi said, glancing between her and his father.

  Zoya turned to Alexi then dropped his belt on the floor. Without a word, she turned and ran out of the room.

  Before they reached the main deck, Pyotr and Igor intercepted them.

  “Can't you just sit still for a little bit?” Pyotr asked.

  “You just love being a pain, don't you?” Igor asked, moving toward them.

  “There's something wrong with the boilers,” Zoya explained. “You need to warn your captain that there's too much pressure—”

  “Enough with these tricks,” Igor interrupted. “Now get back to your cells.”

  Before Igor and Pyotr could pull out their pistols, Zoya and her friends rushed past them, heading to the main deck.

  Just as they reached the top of the stairs, the Hell's Jewel's boilers exploded.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  Zoya gasped for air as she reached the surface of the water. The force of the explosion had knocked her over the ship’s railing. She looked around for her friends. One by one, Lilia, Anya, and Demyan surfaced. Demyan hoisted Nikolai up to keep him above water as well.

  “Are you ok?” Zoya shouted to her friends.

  “Nikolai isn't looking good,” Demyan replied.

  “We need to get to land!” Anya shouted.

  They swam away from the sinking ship as Snezhana's crew dove into the water. Before long, they were clambering up the beach. Demyan brought Nikolai out of the water and laid him down on dry sand. Nikolai was still barely conscious. The wound on his shoulder was swollen and red.