by David Petrie
“It basically sucks in anything in front of it when you open it and spits it all back out when opened again. I’ve filled it with ten thousand worth of hard from Lucem’s treasury, so if you run out of money in my account, you may use that as well. Just don’t open it until you need it, lest you end up spraying plates of hard everywhere. It can’t be stowed in your inventory because of the cap on how much hard you can store, so keep it hidden in your item bag and don’t tell anyone you have it.”
Seven stared at the box in her hands, hardly able to believe what it held. Ten thousand would be enough to keep her head above water for a few months. A bead of sweat rolled down the back of her neck as she realized how easy it would be to lose the item. She closed her eyes and took a breath before dropping the box into her pouch. What choice did she have?
“Okay, I will do my best.”
“Fantastic!” Leftwitch clapped her hands, startling Ruby so that he dug his claws in a bit harder.
“I should try to learn everything I can about Noctem before attending.” Seven looked down at the invitation to check the date of the event, but found that the page had returned to being blank. “I’m sorry, when is the auction?”
Cassius smirked as the Lady of the Silver Tongues shoved her hands behind her back.
“Tonight.” Leftwitch checked the time on her stat-sleeve. “In about an hour, actually.”
“What?” Seven felt her eyes nearly pop out of her head.
Leftwitch gestured to a door. “Cassius, would you mind showing Seven to the transport ship we have waiting?”
“It would be my pleasure.” He turned to Seven. “Just follow me and we’ll get you on board one of our royal shuttles.”
“But what about getting prepared? What about–”
“You’ll be fine.” Leftwitch slapped her on the back. “Just keep to yourself and bid aggressively.” She pushed Seven toward the door.
Seven’s feet obeyed her new boss, only letting her turn back for a second to see the woman wave and turn away as if she had something else to do. It was clear there wouldn’t be any further arguments. Seven heard herself utter one last, “but…” just as Cassius beckoned her through the door to where a stairway waited.
She found herself climbing each step, unable to speak despite the worry rattling through her skull. Auto-pilot took over, carrying her the rest of the way up to where Cassius threw open another doorway.
Wind blew Seven’s blue hair across her vision as the open sky filled her view. A strange craft waited for her, its stubby wings angled upward with a vertical engine attached to each. Ruby, still perched on her shoulder, flapped his wings in the breeze, giving Seven a face-full of feathers. She shielded her head and waited for the large bird to settle down. Finally, the damn thing took flight and soared into the shuttle’s open door to wait for Seven.
“This transport will take you straight to the Auction of Souls. It’s a royal ship, so it’s nice and comfortable. Just relax and enjoy the ride.” Cassius stood aside to let Seven board the craft.
“Okay,” was all she could get out as her shoulders fell.
Seven crept across the surface of the Grand Archway, surrounded by the city of Lucem on all sides, with no railing for safety. She practically ran the last few feet to the craft, just wanting to feel like she had something solid around her again.
Entering the transport, Seven turned around just in time for Cassius to slide the door shut. She pressed her hands against a small porthole window to watch the airship dock fall away from her. Cassius was gone. He hadn’t even waited to see her off or wave.
Seven let herself fall back into the plush leather seats, almost sitting on Ruby who had nested into the space before her. The bird flapped and cawed at her as she leapt back up and toppled to the floor.
“Settle down back there.” A man turned around from the cockpit, eying her through a narrow door.
“Sorry.” She pulled herself back up to sit opposite the large bird.
The pilot turned back to the horizon. The word ‘noob’ was said again, just loud enough for her to hear.
Seven took a moment to glare at the back of the pilot’s head. Then she remembered her player journal, pulling it out without another thought. At least she could read up on Noctem in the time she had left before reaching her destination. She put everything else out of her mind and focused on the task at hand. The message boards would be able to tell her something about the other houses that might be at the auction.
She wasn’t about to let herself be blindsided again.
Suddenly, in what seemed like only minutes, the man in the cockpit rapped on the divider wall. “We’re approaching the auction, get your things ready. I won’t be able to land for long; they’ll need the dock for the next ship.”
Seven’s heart nearly exploded from her chest as she checked the time, realizing that forty minutes had already flown by while she’d studied the message boards. She didn’t feel anywhere near prepared enough for what she had to do. There was still so much to learn.
She wasn’t ready.
That was when she noticed that the craft wasn’t descending toward land. She leaned closer to the window to get a look at the auction house. Then she pressed her face against the glass in shock.
There was no auction house, nor was there any ground to land on. Instead, a massive airship floated through the empty night sky with nothing below but ocean.
Seven couldn’t believe her eyes. The vessel had to be at least three thousand feet long; practically a flying city. It looked like a fantasy version of a cruise ship, with four enormous wings reaching out from its sides. They angled up like a bird in flight, their edges shaped to suggest feathers. Some sort of wheel cut through the vessel’s sides, rotating horizontally like part of some kind of enormous engine.
“That’s the Night Queen.” The pilot banked toward the vessel. “You’re lucky. It’s the largest luxury airship in all of Noctem. I took the wife once. She’d always wanted to take a cruise, but they’re too expensive in the real world.”
“Yeaahhh.” Seven shoved her journal back into her item bag as her craft dipped below the ship and flew close to one side as if the pilot wanted to give her a better look. She watched as they passed an observation deck near the bottom, in awe of the fantastical sight. Eventually the transport slowed, just before her pilot decided to bring the craft back up to land on the ship’s platform.
Ruby flapped to the seat beside her, pecking at her wrist until she held her arm out to give the heavy bird somewhere to perch. The now familiar feeling of talons on her skin reminded her of how lucky she was.
She blew out a sigh.
“Lucky me.”
Chapter Three
“I’m starting to feel like we get stuck with all the crappy jobs!” Kegan shouted, having trouble breathing with the wind whipping by his face as the Cloudbreaker approached the Night Queen.
“It can’t be helped, we’re better at stealth than Max and Farn.” Corvin shielded his face, holding tight with his other hand to the leather strap they’d tied to the small ship’s roof.
“I don’t know, Mom is pretty sneaky and I don’t see her up here beside us, strapped to the top of a moving aircraft.” Piper slapped her free hand on the metal surface the three of them clung to side by side.
“Ginger is Lady of the House; she has to stay front and center.” Corvin huddled next to Kegan. “Can’t have our leader sneaking aboard an airship under the cover of darkness with us.”
“Whatever.” Piper elbowed Kegan in the side as if trying to jab the Blade on his other side. “Kegan, can you tell Corvin to move his ass over so I can have more room?”
Corvin let out a sigh and scooted over without argument. “There, happy?”
“I don’t know, am I? You know what’s best for me, right?” Sarcasm dripped from her tongue.
Kegan closed his eyes and rolled his forehead back and forth on the back of his hand. Piper had been going at Corvin since they’d taken off. Kegan
was beginning to question his decision to stay between the pair of younger players.
“Anyway, we have to time this right.” Kegan ignored the conflict. “Drake won’t be able to slow the Cloudbreaker much without raising suspicion. We’re going to have to jump all at once.”
The craft dipped down to pass under the Night Queen before heading up to drop off the rest of House Lockheart riding in the cabin below.
“Get ready up there,” Drakenstein announced over the house line. “I’m going to bank to the side as we pass the observation deck. Be ready to jump and, maybe, don’t fall off, okay?”
“Make sure to get us close. And keep it steady!” Piper jabbed back at her brother.
“Yeah, yeah, I have flown the Cloudbreaker before,” he added before angling the ship for an approach run.
Kegan shifted his weight and pulled his knees under him in a crouch, ready to leap with everything he had. The observation deck ran along the bottom of the Night Queen’s bow. There would only be one chance to make it. If anyone fell, that was the end of the line. There was no going back to try again when they respawned.
“Here it comes.” Kegan took charge as the deck sped into view alongside them, the railing whizzing by at breakneck speed. Suddenly, the Cloudbreaker slowed and tiled to the side. Kegan released the leather strap that he’d been clinging to for dear life and kicked off.
For an instant, he was airborne. The nothingness below threatened to claim him just before he flew over the railing of the observation deck. His foot caught the rail, sending him into a spiral as he slammed into the deck.
“Ow, shit, damn, crap!” He tumbled end over end. The world blurred but the sound of a second body hitting the deck told him that at least one of them had made the leap. A second sound followed, more hollow than the last, as if hitting the side of the railing.
It was accompanied with a loud, “Omphf!”
Finally, Kegan rolled to a stop, taking a second to let the spinning in his head subside. He checked his health. A third empty from the fall damage. To his left, Piper staggered to her feet, looking like she’d been spinning in an office chair. No one was behind her.
“Damn!” Kegan checked Corvin’s health, finding it down seventy percent. “Corv, buddy, you make it?”
“Little help.” A grunting voice answered as a hand reached up over the rail.
Kegan glared at Piper, who was closer.
“I might be too young to help.” She just stared at Corvin’s hand and shrugged, feigning a vapid expression.
Kegan launched himself to the rail, catching his friend’s wrist as he struggled to get his leg up and over the side. As soon as the Blade was safe on deck, Kegan turned back to Piper. She was gone, strolling down the deck toward a hatch at the end.
Kegan turned his attention back to Corvin, who was twitching one ear that had been flipped inside out by the wind. Then he gave the reynard’s fluffy ear a solid flick with his finger to fix it.
“Ow.” Corvin rubbed at his head.
Kegan just shook his and checked over his shoulder to make sure Piper was out of earshot. “Okay, spill it man, what happened with you and the angry one over there?”
“Pretty much what you thought was going to happen.” Corvin let out a sigh, his body deflating along with it. “About ten minutes before we boarded the Cloudbreaker tonight, she told me she liked me.”
“Ah.” Kegan nodded and offered him a health vial. “And?”
“And what do you think?” Corvin pulled the vial’s stopper with his teeth. “She’s underage. I told her no, flat out.”
“She didn’t take that well, huh?”
“No, no she did not.”
“For what it’s worth, you did the right thing.” Kegan gave the Blade a supportive pat on the back.
“I know.” Corvin downed the health vial. “I don’t blame her for being mad. It’s not easy being rejected, but hopefully she can move on and start looking at guys her own age.”
“Heh, you’ll just have to be the punching bag for the time being then.”
“I can live with that.” Corvin shrugged. “I’m not anything that special; it shouldn’t take her that long to get over it.”
“Hey!” Piper called from the far side of the empty observation deck. “If you guys are done whispering about me, we have a job to do.”
“Damn,” Kegan cringed as she hit the nail on the head. “Did she hear us?”
“No,” Corvin shook his head. “She’s smart. Probably guessed.”
Piper threw herself against the wall to lean with her arms crossed, like a model in a clothing ad, not caring what anyone thought.
“Great,” Kegan sighed. “Now I’m in the doghouse too. Thanks a lot.”
“Sorry, but she’s right.” Corvin started walking. “We need to get topside so we can watch everyone else’s backs.”
Kegan adjusted his bow, slinging it across his chest before making his way to the door where Piper waited as impatiently as possible.
“It’s locked. I already tried it.”
“Not for me, it’s not.” Kegan pulled out his journal and scrawled a quick message onto a page, sending it off with a messy checkmark. A minute later the door opened, revealing a tall reynard woman dressed in a skirt and blouse that suggested a naval uniform. A crest sat upon her sleeve with the words ‘Night Queen’ embroidered beneath it.
“Oh, Kegan, it’s you.” She almost seemed surprised.
“Damn, Kenzie, who else would it be?”
“Sorry, never mind.” She held out one hand. “You got my money?”
“That was quick.” Kegan reached into his pocket for a plate of hard worth a couple hundred real world dollars. The crest of Reliqua was embossed onto its surface, a leftover from the heist six months ago that they hadn’t exchanged for cash yet. It had seemed wise to keep some of the rare currency in game just in case they needed some off the books services.
He slapped the shining plate in her hand and she bounced with excitement before dropping it into her inventory. Her tail wagged happily.
“Pleasure doing business with you.”
“I take it you two know each other?” Piper eyed the tall reynard woman from where she pouted against the wall.
“Yeah, Kenzie is a friend from my PVP days back in Tartarus. She used to announce the cage fights.” Kegan gave her a warm smile. “She’s mostly trustworthy, if you don’t count that time she tried to get me to throw a fight so she could bet on the outcome.”
“We could have made a killing, you know.” Kenzie shifted her weight and put her hands on her hips. “I had to work something out with that MurderStorm guy instead, and let’s just say his elevator doesn’t go all the way to the top. I got caught and ended up having to take a real job. I host the stand-up acts that run on the Night Queen’s forward deck every other day. It’s nothing fancy, but it helps with my student loans and my skirt covers my butt more than the one I wore for the cage fights.” She gestured to her rear as if to demonstrate.
“That’s good.” Kegan ignored the display. “Just don’t get caught this time. I assume taking bribes and sneaking us aboard the ship is frowned upon by the management.”
“I’ll be fine. There’s always another job in Noctem.” She waved a hand at his warning. “Anyway, let’s get you three smuggled topside, shall we?” She spun and headed off down the corridor. Kegan gestured for Piper to take the lead.
Corvin followed behind her. “How come there aren’t any other passengers down on the observation deck?”
“Normally there would be, but that auction thing that’s going on upstairs has some sections closed off for security.” Kenzie turned to walk backward. “I guess the event is a big deal. There’s a pair of weird guys running the show. They’ve taken over the main theater and blocked it off from the rest of the guests.”
“What do you mean by weird guys?” Kegan raised an eyebrow.
“I mean they’re weird. They’re using identical avatars so none of us can tell them apart.
I’ve only seen them from a distance, though. I’ve just been calling them the twins.”
“That’s creepy,” Piper chimed in.
Kenzie led them down another few hallways, each lined with rich mahogany panels and brass detailing. The corridors were lit by glowing crystal inlays that flowed through the ceiling in intricate patterns of filigree. They reminded Kegan of the delicate design that wove around Kira’s wrist to form her stat-sleeve. He hadn’t seen it in a while, since Echo didn’t have one.
Eventually, they reached a storage area where a platform of solid stone hovered within an empty lift shaft. It must have led to the upper floors, like some kind of elevator. The room was full of wooden crates and barrels stacked in an organized manner. Kenzie hefted the lid off one of the larger creates that sat on a cart. It was empty.
“This is your ride upstairs.” She gave Kegan a sly smile. “Hop in.”
“And where will our chariot here take us?” Piper kicked at one of the cart’s wheels.
“The Night Queen is a fully-functional cruise ship that provides the very best for its guests. Each of these crates are full of food items to be plated up on the service floors before being served topside. There’s no need to refrigerate anything since it’s all virtual, so we just store it all down here. One of my guys will be down in a few minutes to bring this crate up. They’ll take you to a secluded space where you can quietly sneak out. Finding your way up to the main deck won’t be hard from there.”
“Not a lot of room in there.” Kegan flicked his eyes back and forth between the crate and Kenzie.
“Eh, you’re all friends.” She shrugged. “Won’t kill you to get cozy for a few minutes.”
Actually, it might. Kegan glanced back at Piper. To his surprise, she hopped into the crate without hesitation.
“No sense standing around talking about it.” The reynard girl scooted to one side and tugged on her gun belt so that her pistol shifted to her front, making more room beside her.
“True enough.” Kegan stowed his bow in his inventory and swung his leg over the side. “I guess I’m in the middle again.”
