Bennie stood at the helm of the ship, staring out at the endless ash as they cruised towards the drop off point. The Iron Maiden, along with their Wilkes-Vines contacts were already there waiting for them. All things considered, the op had gone off fairly well. Most of the Maidens were still green, or at the very least not used to working with one another. At the end of the day only one of their own had been injured while two of Talbot's crew had died. Vanco was unavoidable, but the engineer Ruffles was forced to kill? Bennie had to take responsibility for that one.
Talbot and his staff were dropped off with some crawlers half-a-day's drive from the nearest settlement. They took the two bodies of their crew with them.
Gale, Jesse, Ruffles and Tallahassee were on the bridge with him. He already heard about what had happened. "You two did good today," he said to Jesse and Gale, keeping his eyes on the horizon. "Under different circumstances I'd be pissed at you for lying Jesse, but you had your reasons. You saved Axel, so I'd say you know where you belong. Just... in the future, come to me with stuff like this. I'm your captain, but I can also be your friend if you need one."
Sprout was sitting by Amy's bedside holding her uninjured hand. He'd been told not to fuss over her, but was quick to ignore such orders. Tal had ordered her to sit tight for a bit, though it was clear she wanted to get moving. "Sorry I wasn' there sooner, Amy," Sprout told her with a half-frown. "Though, I reckon it's fittin' we were the only two Maidens he roughed up. S'pose we're meant ta' be after all!"
"Though, I reckon it's fittin' we were the only two Maidens he roughed up. S'pose we're meant ta' be after all!"
Amy smiled, and nuzzled up against Axel's shoulder.
"It's alright. I've been hurt much worse before..." she said,lifting her hand to stroke Axel's shirt right above where she knew the scars of his bullet wounds were. "And so have you. We're not children, no matter what other people might think. We're strong enough to handle each-other, and I'm sorry it's taken this for me to figure it out."
She sighed, as she lifted her head up and looked him in the eye.
"When we get back, I need to tell you about where I came from. It's... not going to be an easy story to tell, so I'm going to need you to be patient, and not ask questions of me until I'm finished, but you need to know. This isn't going to work if I'm always holding back because I don't know how you could love who I really am. That's just another way of saying I don't trust you, but I think... I think I do now, so It's time for me to start showing it."
"Under different circumstances I'd be pissed at you for lying Jesse, but you had your reasons. You saved Axel, so I'd say you know where you belong. Just... in the future, come to me with stuff like this. I'm your captain, but I can also be your friend if you need one."
"Aye captain." Jesse said as he shifted a bit in his spot. He could still spot the buildings of that settlement they'd left his father at, just specks in the distance. Sure, the kid supposedly had the balls to kill but saying goodbye to an estranged father? That was too much. Or was that one last act of defiance towards his old man? Jesse wasn't sure. Though it was certain whatever ties the boy had with his family had been cut forever. No more prestige, no more status from a surname. Still, the feeling of freedom was exhilarating. Reminded him of the escaping from Lord Ivan's drunken supervision. Broke out of Calico Tower, might as well as break away from the entire fucking family, that's how Jesse saw it. Nevertheless, whether he'd made the right choice had yet to be seen...
Sandra turned up on the bridge just in time to catch Jesse. Seeing Bennie up here made her even more embarrassed. At the first sign of trouble she'd lost her cool, and she knew she'd have to apologise for it later.
"So... Amy told me what you did." she said to Jesse, finding it difficult to look him in the eye. "Sorry if I was too hard on you before. You did good."
Blushing slightly, she hugged him and gave him a swift kiss on the cheek.
The hug was exactly what Jesse needed, the kiss a little cherry on top. Far from what he'd expected to him after the secret got out. Afterwards, Jesse took a bow, "Apology accepted, milady."
Ruffles stood watching all the making up and cuddly reunions for a while before it occurred to him he had one waiting somewhere. Stubbing out a half smoked cigarette and necking what remained of a bottle of miscellaneous blue soda, he got up from the seat he'd been occupying at the communications console.
"Real heart warming as always, Bennie," he said. "But how long are we sticking around here for? I got someone to get back to, man!"
===========================================
Bryan looked at the gun in his hand for a moment, the smell of burnt gunpowder sharp in his nostrils. The blood was smoking faintly from the hole in Cranston's temple. His eyes flicked to that for a moment, taking it in. Then back to the gun.
Sighing, he dropped it back into its holster. He wondered what flak he'd get for flagrantly ignoring orders. Then he wondered if Dapper was still on the frequency. Maybe Dio was, but he didn't much care. Getting to his feet, he adjusted the swords across his back and leaned over Cranston long enough to close the old man's eyes. He'd managed not to eviscerate Cranston's face when he'd killed him.
Turning, he headed for the door and thumbed his radio.
"Dapper, you still on the line?" He tried to say 'lord' again, and couldn't get it out. "Anyone else hearing me? Reckon if I don't get killed fighting my way outta here, that's me clocked off fer the night, 'less anyone objects."
The old priest arrived and set to work with Florian at his side, the two of them only sharing a few words as they made Vasa's body ready for the flames. Lilith had given them their privacy and took to patrolling the front of the building. Nothing major had happened yet, nothing that had reached their ears anyway. It seemed that the combined forces of Bejic rebels and Boykov remnants were doing a good job of keeping what order they could. Still, the chance of further chaos hung heavy in the air. Or maybe that was just the leftovers of what had passed.
The time passed and Father Jameson came out of the prep room, washing his hands clean. "He has a job for me." He looked to Lilith, shivering a little from the cold and possibly whatever nerves were rattling around his frail frame. "He wants me to... gather some certain people and tell them all about all about this an- and bring even more people to the cathedral. I-i-i-it's all very political. I'm sorry, I'm not very used to this kind of thing. What do you suppose he's up to?"
==================================================
His father's body had been wrapped up in white. Florian Stood before him, arms held tight across his chest as he held one hand out, the letter that had been left to him. The closest thing to Vasa's last will and testament. Florian let out a hefty sigh as he finished his third read through of it, lowering the paper for the last time and running a hand through his hair yet again. He didn't have much time, not enough to mourn in the truly traditional way, but he'd stretch it out as long as he could. For his own sake.
'Well you won, didn't you? In your own twisted way you did it.
They were never close. No matter how hard he tried to fool himself into thinking it Florian could never believe the lie. There were moments of warmth there, scattered among his memories, moments when Vasa had been more a father than a leader but the more he looked the further between they got. Reading these words penned by his drunken hand, it seemed to speak of a time that didn't exist. Or did he just not remember? It couldn't have left that big an impression if he didn't. In the end it was always the same, they were always moving, always looking forward to the next thing, never stopping to breathe.
'What were we to each other, you and I?' He thought he knew but the the more Florian thought about it the less certain he was. Given all this, history might soon write its own interpretation. But Florian would have time to find his own answer later. Just like Vasa, he had too much to do now to dwell on matters of the heart.
He'd need some of that coldness to do what he had to, to show an old face to the world again and maybe even wear the name of the Red Wolf he'd left behind so long ago. But it wouldn't be like last time, he'd come too far and done too much to fall back into old ways. Besides, that anger and hatred wasn't in him anymore, however much he raved and roared at the dead in his heart Florian knew he couldn't. The old cruelty had faded, and he'd keep it that way.
'I'll use what you've taught me, but I'll use it my way. Bite if I have to... so that others don't. And I will banish the barbarity we spread from this city and when this storm passes, I will fill this dome with light again.'
He laid the letter onto Vasa's chest, brushed his covered brow one final time before sealing the door shut and turning the dial. The muffled sound of flames began to build up and Florian waited in silence. 'From the last ashes of our old ways I will build a new one, a better Frostfall.'
"My word to God."
He waited as long as he could and did what had to be done. He wouldn't leave him here alone. Hours had passed and the suns were beginning to peak their heads over the horizon. He found Lilith nearby. "You should have gone with Erik, gotten some rest." He smiled to her weakly, brushing a strand of hair from her face. It might have been more touching if it weren't for the urn Florian was carrying under his arm. "We better get going, it's a big day ahead."
==================================================
Gale didn't have anything to say to the chief's words. Didn't feel like she'd done much to help matters along. Though it had left her with a lot to think about. With where she stood with this setup and all.
And to top it all off Jesse wasn't even Jesse anymore! What the shit was that about? Son of a *****, tryin' ta make her think his daddy had gotten killed back in the Austen attack. He was gunna get it for that. not here, but he'd get it. Already movin' onto his next try, and she thought Traveler boys had no shame. Looked like the stories about nobles were shaping up to be true. Whatever, Gale had bigger stuff to focus on right now. Once they were back she'd snag up any free time and shifts on lookout she could get, she needed some quiet after all this.
Lilith had spent hours outside the crematorium, she'd like to say it was because she was guarding the place, letting Florian have his this time to himself, but the increasingly large amount of cigarette butts in the immediate area betrayed her anxiousness. She was freezing, accidentally left her coat back in the building, but she wasn't able to go back inside, she couldn't face the man again, not right now, she felt so guilty, so this was her punishment to herself, smoking herself to death in the cold, unsure whether the man she loved felt the same way about her any more.
'You do know there's other rooms in the building where Florian isn't tending to his dead father, you know?'
No, this was fine, it would have to do for now.
Father Jameson had come looking for her, his breath showing immediately as he left the building to greet her.
"He has a job for me. "He wants me to... gather some certain people and tell them all about all about this an- and bring even more people to the cathedral. I-i-i-it's all very political. I'm sorry, I'm not very used to this kind of thing. What do you suppose he's up to?"
Lilith smiled weakly, it almost looked as if the cold didn't bother her.
Stiff upper lip and all that.
"I could hazard a guess." She took a long drag of her current cigarette. "A proper send off maybe? People tend to put grievances aside long enough to respect the dead." She shrugged her shoulders, the old priest returning in kind as he shuffled off to do whatever it was that Florian had told him to do.
-------
After a few hours, the suns began to raise, bringing what little warmth they offered. Lilith was thankful for it, regardless. Thankfully the sweater she wore was just enough that the cold was merely horribly uncomfortable, rather than lethal. There were more cigarette butts on the ground now. For the first time in a while, she was actually low on smokes. That was usually a bad sign. Chuckling to herself in self pity, her body tensed as she heard the door behind her close. It was Florian.
"You should have gone with Erik, gotten some rest."
Lilith shook her head silently, genuinely smiling as the man brushed a lock of hair from her eyes.
"We better get going, it's a big day ahead." Purposefully keeping her gaze from the urn Florian was carrying, she walked beside her man, hoping things would soon get better. They had to get better.
"... This isn't going to work if I'm always holding back because I don't know how you could love who I really am. That's just another way of saying I don't trust you, but I think... I think I do now, so It's time for me to start showing it."
Sprout nodded firmly. "Whatever you need, Amy," he told her. "If I'm anythin' at all it's a good listener. How else you reckon I survived all those years with Ma'?" He chuckled. "I reckon I 'ave a thin' or two I aughtta share too."
He pecked her on the lips. "Yer lookin' more n' more like a Maiden everyday. Thanks fer givin' it a proper shot," he said with a grin.
"Real heart warming as always, Bennie. But how long are we sticking around here for? I got someone to get back to, man!"
Bennie rolled his eyes. "Does everyone around here have a woman these days but me?" he groaned. "I s'pose stranger things have happened." His thoughts suddenly found their way to Whiskey. After a brief silence, Bennie glanced at Ruffles over his shoulder and sighed. "Be straight with me Jake, think there's anythin' there between me and the cowgirl? I'd like to say there's not, but I can't stop thinking about her..."
"Anyone else hearing me? Reckon if I don't get killed fighting my way outta here, that's me clocked off fer the night, 'less anyone objects."
Bryan didn't get an answer. After checking some other frequencies he managed to pick up chatter about the first few floors being secured. Activating Masakado seemed to have done the trick.
In the moment Pixie and Tsubaki locked eyes, time seemed to stand still. The chaos surrounding them no longer mattered. It was just two friends on different ends of a gun. Tsubaki's battle hardened instincts were culled by crippling grief, freezing her on the spot. Had she the will, she'd have ended it the moment she identified Merry.
Why...?
Merry had betrayed her in every sense of the word. Was there ever a moment in their conversations that she'd been legitimate?! Had everything she shared been a lie?! Was she just using her?!
Like everyone else...
"W-what is this?!" Tsubaki croaked. "Who are you?!"
Pixie's mind was a haze. She recognized Tsubaki, sure, but it didn't really mean anything. What was she yelling now? Why hadn't she opened fire yet? Pixie spotted Dio's dagger in her periphery. It was close. She could snatch it up and close the gap in the blink of an eye, but her success would depend on Tsubaki's state-of-mind. If she couldn't muster the courage to put her down Pixie's gamble might just work.
"ANSWER ME!" Tsubaki shouted.
The woman she'd thought was her friend did not answer. She offered only a cruel, deranged glare. Did she even recognize her? Had she just snapped? Gone mad?
Or was this just who Merry really was?
Just as it looked like Pixie was about to answer her, she instead reached out for the knife and sprung to her feet. Tsubaki's gasp was muffled by the knot in her throat. She opened fire too late, only managing to graze Pixie's shoulder before the bandit was upon her. She swung wide, severing the rifle strap. Then, she grabbed the stock of the rifle with her free hand and elbowed Tsubaki in the face with her knife-arm. The soldier crashed onto her back, knocking the wind out of her. While she was dazed Pixie leaped atop her. Before she could bring Dio's cruel knife down on her face, Tsubaki caught Pixie's wrist.
Tears streaming down her face, Tsubaki struggled against Pixie's superior strength. Despite her injuries, the bandit queen was still far stronger. The blade was closer now, almost licking her forehead. As she struggled her gaze found its way to Pixie's eyes.
This was not the woman she'd befriended.
The hungry rage burning there was enough to give life to Pixie's dead eye. It told Tsubaki without words that Pixie would take her life.
It told her who God was.
Tsubaki's fear weakened her resolve and moments later, Pixie drew blood. The smaller woman cried out in agony as she continued fighting against Pixie's rage--the blade drawing a jagged line from Tsubaki's right eyebrow to her left cheek. The flesh split open, covering her face in blood, intensifying her screams.
Was this how she'd die?
Not like this... NOT LIKE THIS!
Once adrenaline took over, Tsubaki's resolved strengthened. The tip of the dagger had left her cheek now and was hovering over her throat. She couldn't hope to turn the blade on time, but if she could get her sidearm out...
As the young soldier squirmed and cried under her power, Pixie's fury only grew. Why did this lamb struggle so? Didn't she understand at all? Didn't she know that it was her turn?
The Bandit Queen drank in her pain and suffering. It was intoxicating.
Then something strange happened.
Tsubaki's screams, her tears... everything... they'd been replaced. Instead of the soldier she'd met at Dio's ball, the woman before her was not a woman at all. It was a girl. A stupid, stupid girl.
She was screaming about a dead friend. Cursing the man who'd killed her. The man who'd butchered her; who'd taken everything from her. She cursed him as he took even more; as he carved her up, grinning like a spoiled child all the while.
She saw herself there, and in the mirror's of Tsubaki's eyes she saw someone else. Something alien. Something vile and ugly.
Something evil.
Pixie's rage drained out of her like a severed artery. The strength behind her knife had left her.
Oh God, Cherry... what have I---
Two gun shots drowned out Tsubaki's screams. Pixie's entire body suddenly went cold. She touched her abdomen. There was blood. Too shocked to form words, Pixie simply looked at Tsubaki.
Holding her bloody wound with one hand, the petrified soldier kept her pistol trained on the her attacker. Pixie said nothing before doubling over, unconscious. Tsubaki got to her feet and watched as the bandit's blood pooled around her, soiling the marble floor below.
What happened next was a blur in Tsubaki's mind. At some point she had taken Dio to an infirmary. Where on the tower, she wasn't sure. She wasn't even sure if the fighting was completely over, though it was much quieter in general now. The doctors had so much on their hands at the moment that they didn't even have time to look at her wound.
Everyone had arrived, claiming their places among the pews. Grown men who'd been fighting side by side just a few hours ago were now carving a holy place up like kids in the cafeteria. Even the Bejic men weren't immune to it as each crew made it's own space as they talked among themselves as they turned away from the rest of the world. When they weren't throwing abuse at whoever had looked at them the wrong way. There was a lot of that going around as they each got more restless from waiting, meanwhile the civilians the priest had gathered were caught up in the middle of it all, looking lost and fearful. Filling this room were representatives of every major group left standing in Frostfall and Florian was walking right into the middle of them.
"You sure about this?" Erik asked him, looking uneasily at the urn Florian had placed tenderly in his care.
"I have to be."
The cathedral floor went quiet as Florian strode out like he owned the place, meeting the eye of every man that looked his way. The crowd went quiet. "It was nice of you all come. I hope no one will take offence from my choice of language... but I'm aware we have a multicultural audience with us today and I plan to be understood by everyone." His tone made it clear he didn't care even if the old guard were annoyed by this. There was the small number of press he'd called for writing down in their notepads and already starting to take pictures. Good, with luck this would reach every dome on the rock soon. Florian only hoped it would go as planned.
"Why'd you call us out here, Bejic? We've been kept waiting long enough." An old bandit heckled.
Florian seemed unphased. "Yes, I called and you answered." He didn't elaborate on that, just let it hang in the air and stared the man down. The same way he'd seen his father do in the past. He dragged it out just enough before turning away and getting back on point.
"You're here because you've suffered, because you've fought and bled for this city, for its people and for the chance that our dome could still have a future." That got a few mumbles from them but no one rose to cheer or clap. "Or maybe I'm talking out of my ass." Florian sneered. "Maybe you stood among those that set these streets on fire and filled them with corpses, pissing everything the people who built Frostfall made just for your own short term gain. Then, after it didn't go your way, you turned on your old masters and gave it a second try. That sums up most of you here, doesn't it? Those of you that weren't on the losing side, who were left cowering like animals waiting for help to come!"
That got a reaction. from them as men from every group leaped to their feet, yelling about how they didn't have to take this.
"Oh that touched a nerve didn't it?!" Florian yelled back, drinking it all in and letting them run out of steam as his voice rose above them. "But that is all the world sees when they look at Frostfall, at us. Savages, finally given the keys to the kingdom, who squandered it on petty greed and infighting! I look around this room and I see men who I was once proud to stand beside, to call my brothers in arms... even men I felt pride in calling my enemy. Now look at you. Look at what you've become. Faded shells of your former selves. Dogs clamouring over the legacy of wolves, simply because you can howl at the moon!"
"Dogs that saved your ass." One of them spat back.
"Yes! Yes you did!" Florian pointed at him, advancing with fresh energy and taking his heckler aback. No one, no matter how tough they were, liked surprise audience participation. "You stormed a tower, some you twice! How many people living can claim that? Not many I'd wager, and most that can are sitting in this room. Meanwhile... what did the rest of you do? Those that didn't fight, survived. Held on to what they could." He was talking to the community leaders now, the ones the priest had gathered. "Helping the countless injured and homeless. Feeding folks while they themselves go hungry. Showing folks... in a city filled with fighting, that brutality does not mean strength, that compassion does not mean weakness." He looked to all those gathered before him. "This is what I see, when I look to home. Damn what the rest of the world says, I see a place that was once full of beauty and can be again! If we stand together."
"And you want to stand with us now, Wolf? After disappearing to God knows where!"
"You know damn well I do! What's more you know I can. Who was it that raided the southern cartel lines? Who was the first through the gate when we stormed away the Maximov Bratva? But perhaps these stories are too old for you, it's not as if I came back from the dead an my name was used to rally you as an army." Florian shrugged, all showy for his crowd. "No, that all happened too fast, all the shadows. How could a man even do that?" The crowd murmured to one another, they could tell he was going somewhere with this and Florian's rises and falls had gotten some of them going. Some on nostalgia and others on the patriotic pictures he was painting them. "Why he does it just by putting on a mask."
Some of them clocked it just then. Others needed it explained to them as Florian gave them all the candid details of how he had run the bickering crews around each other, playing their systems against them and claiming their supplies and spoils as his own and giving them to his collared contact to pass out among those that needed it. He hadn't been one for bragging over the last few years but right now it was a necessity. He played every card he could. Florian shoved it in the face of the doctor present that it was him they owed the medicine and supplies they'd gotten just a few nights ago. How the local shelter had gotten that generous donation from a drug dealer that Florian had brought down with his bare hands and that was how they afforded the clean clothes and fresh food they'd used to help the families in their neighborhood. All in a classy kind of way of course, he didn't want them to feel shamed, just grateful. He even threw it in the face of some of the bandits present, after all it was their men he'd outdone. He only did it to the ones he knew would be responsive though. Ones that respected strength over logic. It all sounded like the heroic speech, as if he was rising to the occasion and being the noble leader, returned from his exile in the wastes to reclaim his home, it all sounded wonderfully storybook and by the end people were going for it. Some were excited, maybe even downright loving it.
And inside Florian was playing them all, knowing his audience well enough to see which buttons to push. One thing they taught him growing up, not just Vasa but his mother, Anna too was how to play the game. His speech went on, questions were answered and promises offered until Florian reached the end. They still didn't know where he disappeared too, he doubted they wanted to know. The mystery held more power than the priest did.
"So this is where we all make our choice, where we decide what future we make together. Who will help me make it a reality?"
"And you'll lead us?" Someone asked. "What makes you good for it? There are other noble families, relatives of our old ones out there, some of them might come calling."
"Because he is not just the son of Vasa Bejic!" Erik interjected. he stepped forward and people parted ways for him to make his way forward. The white haired bandit held up some papers as if they were a weapon and spoke to the crowd like the experienced orator he once was. "He is also the first and only child of Anna of the family Pajari, Lady of the Hussars and heiress to the Pajari legacy." He shot a sideways look to Lilith, some distance across the room. There were bigger things to dwell on now but still he wondered how she'd take all this.
"That makes me the closest thing to your old masters left standing in this city." Florian said sternly to any loyalists that may have been left. "I was bred, not to be a bridge between the classes. I was made to rule you." He let a beat pass. "I do not wish to. Instead... I beg to serve you. I offer myself up as sacrifice for what has happened here, my will will become mine, my life will become yours. I do not ask you to kneel or bow. I ask, who will stand with me?"
"Erik Ablev stands with Florian Bejic!" The old man roared.
"Irena Ellet stands with Florian Bejic came a woman's voice from nearby.
One by one others joined their chorus. Florian's old pack were first, conrad, Hansel and the madman they just called Bleach, even Alexie was there to lend his voice and as each one did others followed them. Even the elderly priest lent his voice to the choir. Until the whole hall was joining in. Eventually they calmed down and the priest stepped forward, Erik had pulled him aside and let him know what to do if this worked.
Florian bent down on one knee as water was applied to his brow, repeating the words of the oath of the coronation as they were given to him. Offering his blood, his life and his soul for Frostfall. And so the priest spoke the words. "Then rise, Florian Bejic, first of your line. High lord of Frostfall and protector of the northern domes." And Florian rose to his feet and the hall erupted into the chant.
"LORD OF THE NORTH! LORD OF THE NORTH! LORD OF THE NORTH!"
"Be straight with me Jake, think there's anythin' there between me and the cowgirl? I'd like to say there's not, but I can't stop thinking about her..."
Ruffles tried to give Bennie a serious look, but couldn't quite manage it. Grinning, he got up and crossed over to a ventilation grill mounted low on the wall.
"See these? They're running through the entire vessel, like veins. And when you make veins outta sheet metal and concrete, then put 'em in something powered by explosions, shit's gonna wear out."
Turning, Ruffles put his back to the wall and slid down it. "So I honestly spend half my time crawling around the vents back on the Maiden, because it's also the easiest way to access some of the other stuff like plumbing, and the auxiliary cooling tanks. And you know what I learned being inside the veins of a ship? Veins and vents get a lot of acoustic backwash. I don't go listening, and I don't exactly hear everything, but there's a reason I've kept Allie mostly outta there since she's been here, man. My point being, if Whiskey had a problem with what you've been doing a half assed job of pedaling at her, you'd have woken up in Maria's infirmary by now."
Bennie chuckled. "I knew she was a tough girl, but I never took her for a 'Pixie'," he said. "Thanks, Jake. She has some things to work out on her end, but if she's interested later... well, you won't see me complaining." The big man turned away and looked out towards the horizon. "We're almost to the rendezvous. Go ahead and get the ship prepped for landing."
"Sure thing, Captain," Ruffles replied. Jumping to his feet, he grabbed his bag and left.
Were it not for the armored crawlers parked in formation around it, the hatch on the hill would have been undetected.
Payton was down the hatch, under the hill. He was sitting on a small hard backed chair in the hill's bunker, sipping scotch. The only other man in the room with him stood silently at the door. The only splash of colour on Fargo's black combat gear was the red komodo dragon bandana tied around one arm. The man was bristling with weapons, and those were just the ones Payton could see. Four pistols, two on his hips, two under his arms. A semi-automatic carbine was slung across his back, and there were numerous long handled knives across his body, along with who knew how many concealed weapons. The top half of the man's face was completely obscured by an ever present pair of heavy tactical goggles. What was left exposed still gave away nothing.
"Our guests?" Payton asked.
"Inbound," Fargo replied. "I saw them take the ship. Clean job, despite a few minor altercations. Seems they're breaking in the new blood."
"What about the one in Talbot's employ? The one you told me about; Vanco, I believe?"
"Dead."
"I see, I see. And who saw to that, then? Did the good Captain deal with that one personally?"
"Nope," Fargo replied. "The Bandit Queen's son went after him."
"And walked away? How impressive. Perhaps we've underestimated his progress. Vanco was formidable, wasn't he?"
"I believe the exact words I used were 'he's alright,' sir. Still, it wasn't the Monroe boy that finished him. He simply engaged the target. Talbot's own son intervened before Vanco could overcome the boy."
"The one who went missing?"
"Yes sir."
"Interesting." Payton took a sip of scotch. "This is why I always respected the Carmines, you know. They know how to bring the steel out in a man."
Fargo didn't exactly smile, but his lips became taut. "Didn't you have them destroyed?"
"Yes, but really, that I felt the need to do that is the highest respect I could pay them, Fargo."
"I understand, sir. They must have been an admirable threat."
Bennie hadn't set foot in New Haven in a long, long time. Not since the Wilkes-Vines family butchered his own.
Not since Payton drove Bennie's father to suicide.
He'd have to put all that behind him. Today was about settling a debt and had nothing to do with the Carmine family. They were dead and gone, never to return to the Rock. Despite how often Bennie reminded himself of this fact, it never became any easier to accept.
Once they had landed, Bennie dismissed the crew so Payton's men could get to work. Tallahassee and Ruffles were to accompany him during the meeting and no one else. The rookies needed a rest, after all, and after their last run-in with Wilkes-Vines, Bennie couldn't trust Sprout in their presence. Whiskey would stay aboard the Maiden as well. At one time she'd have made an ideal liaison, but considering the situation with her lover, Bennie couldn't risk taking her along. She would be way to vulnerable to emotional manipulation.
"Payton?!" Bennie blurted. "He's here?!"
The lieutenant he was speaking to nodded his head and signaled to the hallway behind him. "Yep, the man himself," he explained. "He figured he owed you some face time--or that's what he told me, anyway. You know how he is."
"Unfortunately."
"He's waiting for you down the hall," the bandit reminded the big man.
Bennie regained his composure and nodded. The trio of Maidens continued down the hall. "Be ready for anything," Bennie instructed. "Payton doesn't play by anyone's rules but his own."
Tallahassee nodded in compliance, but kept his thoughts to himself.
"LORD OF THE NORTH! LORD OF THE NORTH! LORD OF THE NORTH!"
Behind Lilith's smile was the sense of impending loss, everything was moving so fast, she barely registered the fact Florian was of noble blood, not that it would surprise her, most of the old families could trace their lineage back to one line or another. As proud as she was of this moment, and what they achieved, a stark reality was closing in around her.
She'd be leaving Frostfall alone.
Lilith couldn't expect Florian to go back to the Maiden with her, pick up where they had left off and pretend this was nothing more than another job. This was greater than her now, more important than her feelings, more important than her love.
As the crowd cheered Florian began moving through the throng of people, shaking hands, and was slowly swallowed up by his people.
Lilith suddenly felt very alone, and very tired. Laughing through her nose slightly, the girl ran a hand through her hair and turned on her heel, lighting a cigarette as she began moving away from the crowd. This was where he deserved to be, this was where he was needed and where he could do the most good. She couldn't indulge the selfish part of her who wanted to whisk him away back to the Maiden, but she could smile at the thought.
"Where is that radio tower?" She asked her self, sighing as she stuffed her hands in her pockets and began walking into the quieter part of town.
Jun leaned back slightly, tilting the chair he was sat upon. Through the window he saw the smoke was still billowing from Basilio Tower. However, the radio was silent. Had been for a while. The bratatat of machine guns and booms of explosions had slowly stopped. It was over. The bloody battle which never should've happened was over. He got out of the chair, switched the radio equipment, gave the pub's landlord a silent nod off and headed back to base.
There was always a quiet tension after a big battle, the question of whether it was really the end hung in the air. As Jun got nearer to the Tower, there were signs of cleaning up. Worned faced soldiers stood guard at posts where their predecessors had been shot down. Others were assessing the damage. Naturally, Jun had seen carnage before but the quiet aftermaths always reminded him of stories of the '79 bombing back in Mugunghwa-i. Hell, he'd seen the fifty year old wreckage left in its wake up close. The site of the destroyed state building had been turned into a training ground, complete with shock collar fitted prisoners to practice upon; an instrument of revenge against the Kumiho; the site of Jun's first kill.
Nevertheless, he reached the Tower and leant against a wall, hearing the chatter of the other soldiers present. It wasn't exactly easy to ignore the words of a particularly excited one.
"So, there were a few bouts of returning fire and then a motherfuckin' cyborg shows up and cuts the enemy down his sword. He was so fast!" The soldier said as he made cutting motions.
"Bullshit!" Another spat.
"Hey, we all saw 'im. Ain't my fault you decided to crawl inna hole somewhere." A third countered.
Before any more of the sillyness continued, Jun interruped. "Any news of O'Lafferty or Saburo?"
"N-none of O'Lafferty, Major." The formerly excited one replied, "Saburo, on the other had, saved our Lord from the Bandit Queen. She apparently threw herself into the frag when she saw our Lord in danger and survived to boot."
As the wheel on the large iron door spun, Payton looked up.
Bennie Carmine filled the door briefly, filing quickly inside, followed by two men whose faces Payton recognised well. It was good to see he was taking this seriously. But then, Payton had expected nothing else.
"Captain Carmine, good to see you." He nodded to Ruffles. "Mr. Miller, I do hope you've thought about my proposal."
"Yeah, I have," Ruffles replied.
"Good, in due time." Payton turned his attention to Tallahassee. "Ah yes. Well, my boy, if you ever need good money quickly." Payton smiled as he said this. There was no laughter, but his tone held a certain amusement to it. They all knew Tallahassee wouldn't be caught dead working for Payton outside of obligation.
"Allow me to introduce my associate. I could tell you his name, but as I understand, he isn't fond of that. He prefers Fargo."
Tallahassee simply rolled his eyes. "Fuckin' knob jockey," the cowboy muttered under his breath.
"It's a pleasure," Bennie said, his disinterest apparent. He turned his attention back to Wilkes-Vines boss. "There's no need to drag this out, Payton. We delivered the package as instructed. I trust we're square?"
"I imagine so," Payton replied. "That leaves the issue of Mr. Miller, but after that, I'd like to have a word alone with you, Captain."
Bennie glanced over to Jake and frowned. "You sure about this, Jake?" he asked.
Ruffles sighed. "Yeah, pretty sure. Guess I'm staying behind after you guys leave, huh?"
"Oh, that won't be necessary," Payton said. "I expect you have proper goodbyes to make. A last celebration or something. I'll see you in New Haven, two days from now. The guards on the dome entrances, and on the gates to my estate will have your name and picture. You shouldn't have any trouble getting through."
"Can I expect any compensation for you poaching my most valuable man?" the big man asked.
"Of course," Payton replied. Turning, he motioned to Fargo, who produced a very large suitcase with a noticeable amount of heft to it, and planted it on the table.
"According to my calculations," Payton said. "That is thirty five percent of the Iron Maiden's selling price when it would have been new out of the shipyard. I hope that's satisfactory."
Bennie chuckled nervously. "You're too kind, Payton," he said. "I'd say Jake's worth three Maidens at least. Consider that an endorsement, not a complaint."
"Of course," Payton replied with a smile. "But if I spend the cost of a number of ships thoughtlessly, I'll find myself with no job for Mr. Miller here to perform."
"I don't know, he makes for a half-decent brewer."
"And horticulturist, if my sources are accurate," Payton agreed. "Now to our final piece of business, and then you can take our leave. If you'd be so kind as to dismiss your men, Captain."
With that, he turned and looked at Fargo, who, after a moment of hesitation, stood up, turned and left.
Tallahassee and Ruffles followed after Fargo. It was just Bennie and Payton now.
If the Maidens weren't in a vulnerable position, Bennie would have his hands around Payton's throat the moment they were left alone.
We can't all get what we want.
"What's this about?" Bennie asked in an unamused tone.
"Like it or not, Captain, you and I go back quite some way," Payton replied. Calmly and slowly, so as not to alarm his guest, he produced a revolver and put it on the table so he could get a look at it. It was ancient, dark metal, with an esoterically large hammer. The cylinder was smooth, and the barrel was engraved with the words, 'Non Timebo Mala'. There was a pentagram cut roughly into each side of the grip.
Eddie would have recognised the weapon on sight. It was the gun carried by his mentor.
It was followed by a box of bullets, from which Payton loaded it with a practiced hand. Flipping his grip on the weapon, he offered it to Bennie, with the barrel planted squarely on his own forehead.
"Let it not be said I never offered you exactly what you wanted," he said.
"You have a death wish, old man?"
"No. But I wouldn't be where I am if the idea bothered me, either. I'm still waiting. What will it be?" There was a pause, and Payton smiled again. "What will it be, old friend?"
"Fuck you!" Bennie hissed between his teeth, struggling to keep calm. This was all just posturing. Payton was just trying to get under his skin. "You think I'm gonna put my whole crew at risk for some petty revenge? You and my father had a lot in common, but don't think for a second that I intend to inherit your pissing contest. If and when I kill you it will be for one reason and one reason only..."
Payton straightened up, flipped the gun back into a proper grip, and dropped it in its holster.
"And why will that be?"
"Business."
"And that is why I respect you. But now with that necessity out of the way, I can ask you the real question."
Bennie rolled his eyes. "Knock yourself out," he said.
"I imagine you'll be sorely tempted to do that yourself," Payton replied. "It's been at the back of my mind for some time. Your answer will be wrong, but that's sort of the point."
Arching his fingers, he looked Bennie in the eye. "Why do you think I killed your family?"
"Payton," Bennie began with a sigh, "why waste my fuckin' time like this? You honestly think I give a damn? The Carmines are dead and gone. The Iron Maiden is my family now. Let the dead rest."
"And after this, they can. Believe it or not, this is important to me. We all need our closure. Answer the question."
"You're a coward?" Bennie guessed. "They were a threat so you had them eliminated."
"No," Payton replied. "I could have moved out to other territories. Your father's shadow wouldn't have stretched far enough to shade me."
Opening a drawer, he produced a picture in a gilted silver frame. The picture inside was covered in creases, as though it had been savagely balled up and thrown away at one point. It showed two men holding each other close. One, despite black hair and a clean shave, was recognisable as Payton. The other had thick hair in dirty blonde ringlets, and a classically handsome face. Payton slid the picture wordlessly across the desk.
Bennie cocked an eyebrow. "You haven't aged well, sorry to say," he said. "Haven't seen the other guy before."
"A shame you don't recognise him," Payton said. "He worked for your father."
"Well he's clearly not a family member. Must have been a contractor or something. If I ever met him I don't recall it."
"Oh, he was low ranking, to be sure," Payton said. "Before I had any real standing, and before I found the place I would one day make my own, I cut my teeth on mercenary work for a few different families, including yours. As parts of larger operations, of course, so my name didn't really come up."
Reaching into a gilded box on the desk, he produced a cigar, cut the end, and lit it. "His name was Damien. We stayed in contact long after I'd concluded my work for your father. Fast forward a few years, and I'm making a name for myself in a different family, the one I'd go on to usurp. They were coming to blows with the Carmines over a few territorial issues."
He took a drag on the cigarette. "By then, your father knew my name well. When I took control of my family and rebranded it under my own name, I tried to get Damien to join me. He refused. He loved me, but your father had afforded him certain opportunities, and he held a level of loyalty for him. He tried to convince me there would be a peaceful solution. I listened because he was saying it, of course."
Another drag on the cigar. "Your father wanted to shake me. The last I'd heard of Damien, he was going on some kind of secret mission. It wasn't until after some digging that I found out what it was. A textbook suicide run, with no backup. He was never meant to come back."
Bennie clenched his jaw. He allowed the silence to hang in the air for awhile before replying. "I never took you for someone who holds a grudge," he said.
"Just the one was enough for my taste," Payton replied. "So I deigned to take everything that man loved, just as he'd done to me. I never intended for him to take his own life, though. He had to survive to feel as I feel. When the news came through, I recall it was down to a margin of seconds to call off the operative I'd assigned to snipe you in the street. Not so you'd live with it, but... with your father gone, it was pointless. Contrary to popular belief, I do have a line."
"Am I supposed to be grateful?"
"No," Payton replied. "But I don't tell such a story inaccurately. I know you hate me, and I know you always will. But the point of my story is this:
"In the recent months we've been working together, I don't doubt there have been mutterings and discussions as to how I might snake oil you at the last second. How I'm going to inevitably betray you and condemn you and yours to a horrible death, or something equally melodramatic."
He stubbed out the cigar butt. "I wish to dash these concerns. Despite our history, Carmine, I do have respect for you. I quite like Miss Monroe, as a matter of fact. But the moniker of 'Bandit Queen' aside, you are one small crew on one small ship in a very large world. You think I'm going to stab you in the back when you're no longer useful to me? You are worth neither the time, nor the potential damage to my reputation. You are too small to be in any danger from me. So drop the goddamn arrogant assumptions, Bennie."
"Arrogant?" Bennie laughed. "If I were arrogant there wouldn't be any whispers at all. You're right, I will always hate you, but more importantly--I'll never trust you. You're a bad man with more power than you deserve. You can make all the promises you want, but we both know you'd sell us out if the pros out-weighed the cons. And it's not because you have beef with my family, or have any particular hatred for the Iron Maiden itself. No, no, you're far more simple than that."
Bennie sneered. "You're a business man," he said. "You're all about the bottom line. All about your rep. You take your vanity so far you're even willing to threaten the life of your surrogate granddaughter to make a fuckin' point, so excuse me if I don't take you at your word. Our working relationship ends the moment the Iron Maiden leaves this dome."
Payton sat through the tirade without reacting. When Bennie finished, he said, "exactly my point. But the pros will never outweigh the cons, because you are too insignificant for there to be any benefit in doing it. By all means, you could turn and start causing me trouble, but then you'd be the ones betraying me. But until that happens... well, the only crew member you've got who's particularly worth taking just agreed to work for me. So again, what have I to gain from lashing out at you in any way?"
The days following the hijacking went by quickly. After leaving New Haven the Maidens stopped by Crow's Nest, a small bandit-controlled dome not far from Frostfall. Lilith had contacted them the day before and told them all about what had happened there. Sprout was only mildly surprised when he realized they'd already been harboring an ex-noble before Jesse ever came around. Florian the priest, head of both a bandit and noble family? Casino was doing pretty well for herself, it seemed.
Then again, she was returning home now. Had anything actually happened between the two of them?
Then there was Cam and Aesop. The two Maidens had found their way back to the Maiden two days ago. Apparently Pixie had sent them back, saying the mission to kill Dio was hers and hers alone.
What 'appened out there Ma'?
Two towers on opposite sides of the continent were set aflame in the span of an hour. Towers belonging to the most powerful people on the Rock.
And the Gentleman was to blame?
Yeah fucking right.
Dio and Contessa had both survived their wounds, though neither were to make a public appearance until they had fully recovered. It seemed far too convenient. Had Dio foreseen Contessa's gambit and responded in kind? Were both attacks staged as part of some elaborate con? And what had happened to the Gentleman? His network went dark the moment Lombardi tower fell, and Amy was coming up empty everywhere she looked.
Everything about it reeked of conspiracy. And honestly, if not for his mother's involvement Sprout couldn't care less. Sure, he felt bad for Amy considering her... "connection" to Gents, but Sprout had never known the man to be anything other than a snake.
Who knows, maybe he was behind everything after all.
Look on the bright side, Lily'll be here soon an' you get ta' gloat about yer knew girlfriend to 'er.
Considering all that had happened in Frostfall it was a small miracle Lilith was returning unscathed.
Still gonna make 'er pay fer leavin' me behind. That fuckhead!
"Hey buddy, can I come in?" a voice suddenly called out from the hall. It was Bennie.
Sprout hopped out of bed and opened the door. "How's the negotiatin' goin' out there?" Axel asked.
"It's goin' pretty well, though I don't really feel comfortable packing so much carbon around here," Bennie admitted. "We've got protection in Crow's Nest thanks to Cranston's old contacts, but that doesn't always prevent up-starts from getting wise. I just finished going over our inventory. We just bought out half the town. We have enough weapons to arm a small army now. Word gets around, you know?"
"Yeah, well everyone in town also knows you pulled a job fer Payton," Sprout pointed out. "I reckon the punks out there shit their pants if ya' so much as mention Wilkes-Vines."
Bennie laughed. "I believe it," he said. The two of them sat down on the edge of the bed and shot the shit for awhile before Bennie shifted gears to something more serious. "Hey, look... I just wanted to say..."
"Don' say anythin' you'll regret, Bennie," Sprout warned him. "You know some of the younger recruits ar' shippin' us already."
"Don't remind me," Bennie said with a sigh. "Anyway... I wanted to say that, despite how I've treated you, I'm proud of you. You're coming into your own."
Sprout rolled his eyes and shoved the big man. "What'd I say 'bout the homo talk! Come on, Bennie!" Sprout whined before sharing a laugh with him. "You ain't doin' a bad job yerself. As Captain, I mean."
"Thanks kid," Bennie said. "I mean, Sprout."
Sprout simply grinned at that.
"Hey Captain, Sprout," Tallahassee's voice suddenly boomed over the ship's intercom. "We have a call incoming from Paradiso. Man on the line says Contessa wants to speak to the kid."
Sprout and Bennie exchanged a harrowing look.
This couldn't be good.
A short time later...
"Hello, is this Axel?" a woman's voice asked over the radio. She sounded weak.
"Lady Lombardi?" Sprout asked. "Yeah, this is Axel. Any news about Ma'?"
There was a long silence on the other end before Contessa finally replied. "I-I wanted to be the one to tell you this. I... I'm so sorry, son. She's gone..."
The bridge fell silent. Bennie bowed his head, attempting to contain his despair. It was only a matter of time until he snapped.
As for Sprout? That time was now.
The boy nearly broke his hand when he suddenly and violently punched the radio, totaling it after the third strike--and he didn't stop until his fist was a bloody mess.
Once he found his way back to his room he wouldn't leave it again for days. Not for Bennie. Not for Amy.
Ruffles stood on the open tarmac of Payton's huge shipyard, watching his crew, taking in the details of their work up on the web of scaffolding. He wanted to be able to get in there and help physically put his inventions together, even if it would only be for a small amount of the time. But the work crew given to him by Payton weren't ready for that, yet. For now, he needed to watch for errors. They were all accomplished engineers, but these were his designs. Now he had the freedom and finance to do as he wanted with them, the product was going to be cutting edge. The nobles in their glorified yachts could eat their fucking hearts out.
Hours later, when the twin suns were setting, he drove a dome car through the streets, leaving the main city behind entirely, until he came to a small, quiet district of villas. seven of the hugest on one side of the street had had the walls separating their yards smashed through by the occupants. He hadn't expected anything else from his family. Only one had the lights on, and there was a lot of noise coming from it. Some of it music, most of it cheering and conversation.
Ruffles was just a bit too tired for that. Maybe next time. He turned and got back into the dome car.
Back at his apartment, he cracked a can of blue soda, sat in an armchair by a coffee table, and started rolling a joint. When it was done, he lit it, and reclined back adjusting the chair low. It had been a good day, but he was exhausted.
He wondered what the others were doing right now.
He hoped Sprout, Allie, Maria and Bennie had liked their presents. They'd all reacted well, he thought. Ruffles smiled as he remembered giving them each their gifts in private.
For Sprout, he'd forged a new combat knife, and had even managed to get some stag horn off of the black market for the handle. For Allie, he'd made a portable, compact version of the ADS cannon he'd built. It was powered by a small plasma cell. He'd been young and dumb and in her position once. Maybe a bit older, but still. Young enough that he hadn't thought hard enough about taking a life before he'd had to do it. He wanted her to have other options.
He'd stolen Bennie's shoes one night, long enough to take measurements. He'd gotten some cash from Payton up front, so it hadn't been hard to have a good pair of boots made in an afternoon by a very handsomely paid cobbler. He'd always noticed Bennie went all in on his shoes. They always looked so fancy and easy to ruin. The boots he'd had made were handsome, but simplistic. Most importantly, they could have the shit kicked out of them and buff spotless.
Maria's gift was the one he was proudest of. He vaguely remembered the scooter she'd apparently lost before she'd come aboard the Maiden. So he'd built her a new one from the ground up. Concealing that had been hard. He'd taken to disassembling it partially and hiding it in the walls. The entire ship was rigged with wall compartments for the purposes of smuggling that he'd modified into the ship's design. It was times like this he was glad nobody knew about the ones in his lab. Hell, it was how he'd hidden his weed garden.
As he thought of Maria, his eyes drifted to the radio in the corner. He decided he'd call her tomorrow. Despite the fact he'd left the ship for a number of months, he wasn't totally ignorant of the fact that he had something pretty damn wonderful going with her.
The last few days had been a blur for the survivors of Frostfall's latest war. The period of it's turbulent history that had earned itself the name 'The Long Night'. It worked nicely, Erik was pushing it to everybody. Not only was it full of dark deeds but it was ending just as storm season was passing. The days were going to get longer, people's hopes were daring to rise, whole days had gone by without shootings.
The long night had passed.
And for Florian, a manic day was dawning. He spent his time being pulled to and from meetings, to planning sessions to being coached in the finer points of rule. People were leaping on the change and to their credit, no one was going to let this chance fail.
Orders were given to reopen schools and bandits that once laid wast to the streets escorted children to safely attend their classes. Military personnel gave their supplies and manpower to emergency rebuilding schemes as hospitals and shelters were flooded with fresh staff and volunteers. Not the greatest of deeds maybe but the city was making its first steps towards a peacful future.
What little personal time they had was visiting Irena in recovery. Things were tense between her and Erik but the old brute took everything she threw at him without complaint and went back everyday. Florian had gotten his own chiding from Lilith for going ahead and claiming his 'birthright' without running it by her first. He was loving it though, however rough the job ahead got, he kept going. He was helping people, in a far bigger way than he ever could as a priest. There was still a pain from Vasa's death... but he was working through that with the help of those around him. Diving into such demanding work helped.
And today they were working on a very big project. The renovation of the tower and their new base of operations. Right now they'd worked their onto the living quarters.
"I told you I'll have these rooms." Florian said, surveying the scorched penthouse.
"It's the smallest one though." Erik mused.
"It's cosy, I like cosy. Gunna snuggle up in here at night, put some tartan around the place."
"Why do you keep going back to tartan?!"
"Have you ever slept in tartan blankets, Erik? I have, they are ten times more comfy than any other form of blanket or sheet!" Florian said in the lordly tone he'd been practising.
"... You're enjoying decorating far too much." Erik rolled his eyes.
"It's great! I'm playing house for realsies." Flroian beamed like a child.
"You should have seen the kitchen back on the Maiden." Lilith chimed in, hands across her chest as she looked at the pair. "I think there are hospitals that are dirtier and less organised than that place when Florian was in charge."
Lilith had quietly resigned herself to what was happening. Florian was... well, not happy, not yet, it was far too soon, but he was keeping busy, doing good things, the atmosphere of the entire dome was already changing for the better, and that sense of accomplishment was having an effect on the man.
"And I will bring that to all of Frostfall and we shall have the prettiest dome in the world! I'm going collar some street kids painting graffiti but instead of arresting them, I'll get them to paint beautiful murals around their neighbourhood. They shall go through a heartwarming journey and believe in themselves for the first time." Florian went on, letting himself indulge in some wimsy while he could.
Not that Erik would let him. "That's stupid."
"Your face is stupid."
"Come on lads." Lilith chuckled. "Let's all agree that both your faces are stupid in equal measure."
"Turning on both of us like this." Florian sniggered. "And the old ladies at the women's institute thought you were such a nice girl."
"Satch a nice vyung gal!" Erik joined in, broadening his accent even further and putting on his best old lady voice. "I has grandsoon, is doktor, he give you good-" He didn't get a chance to get to whatever filthy punchline he was working up to as the radio clipped to his vest crackled up. "We need real phones around here, damnit." He grumbled.
"Shared a few words with the person on the other end, their voice was difficult to understand through the static. Erik nodded along before his brow furrowed. "It's for you." He said quizzically and offered the radio to Lilith.
Raising a brow curiously, Lilith pursed her lips, shrugging her shoulders as she took the radio. "Gimme a minute." The girl said quietly, winking at Florian as she took a few steps away from the two men.
"Hello?... Oh hey Bennie, yeah it's me, what's up?" The other two resumed their conversation, Lilith's voice fading into the backdrop as she walked away from the pair.
With Lilith wandering off Erik and Florian got back to their bickering.
"It's going to cost an arm and a leg to get all these buildings fixed, you know. How are we paying for half of this?" Florian asked. He was still learning the ropes when it came to balancing books on this scale.
"Dead noble estates." Erik said simply. "They owned most of these things and since nobody wants to step forward to collect... well except you."
"I guess between that and all the drugs and gun money we swiped we should be covered huh?" He smiled a little at the thought of all these gun runners seeing their loot going towards something like a sunshine daycare building.
"Plus when it's done we can rent out your new place to film a porn." Erik nudged him with a smirk.
"It's porno, or porn movie, you don't have a porn."
"Okay...yeah... I-I'll... yeah." Lilith lowered the radio from her ear, her arms going limp at her sides for a few moments before the device fell from her fingers, clattering on the ground.
Florian and Erik's argument over porn based grammar came to a stuttering halt as they turned towards the noise. Florian raised a hand quietly for Erik to stay as he followed after Lilith. It was clear to see something was wrong.
"Hey, what's up?" He asked her tentatively.
Lilith barely registered Florian's question as slowly began walking towards the exit of the building. "I h-have... to go." Her voice was shaking, her eyes wide and glassy as all the colour drained from her face. "A-Axel... I need to..." She trailed off as words began to fail her.
Florian was only taken aback for a second as what little she said clicked. He cut her off as she tried to get by, looking like a wreck, the same kind he'd looked like a few days ago. "What's happened, Lil?" He held her, his hands on her shoulders.
Lilith froze as Florian grabbed her, slowly her body began to shake. "S-she's de..." She couldn't bring herself to say the words, as if refusing to acknowledge their meaning would somehow change things. Turning around slowly, she looked up at Florian. "S-she's..." her bottom lip began to quiver as tears welled in her eyes. "I-I..."
He didn't say anything more, Florian just pulled her closer into a tight embrace and let Lilith pour it all out. While this went on Erik quietly retrieved the radio and spoke to the person who'd contacted her. The look he gave Florian confirmed it.
He couldn't think of anything he could say that would possibly comfort Lil at a time like this. He just held her tighter, just as she'd done for him when he'd needed it.
"I... Flori-" She couldn't even speak, the sobs that wracked her chest were too much. The feeling of loss was instant, like something had reached into her and ripped away a part of her soul. It was like Axel in Feroxi all over again.
'Axel'
Squeezing her eyes shut as hot tears streamed down her cheeks, Lilith gripped Florian tight, tighter than she'd ever held anyone, terrified that the world might swallow her right now if given the chance.
"You do what you have to." Florian said softly. "I'm here for whatever you need... you just do what you have to." He knew her well enough to know where her mind was going and that he couldn't stop her.
After a few more minutes, Lilith's sobs had quietened slightly, and then after a few more moments, as she tried to calm herself, one sentence kept echoing in her mind, something to focus on, something that she made stand out above everything else.
'Axel needs you.'
For everything she was feeling, Axel was going through worse, and knowing him, he was doing it alone. He needed her, he needed her now more than ever, more than he'd ever need her ever again.
Through sheer force of will, Lilith calmed her breathing, sniffling as she pushed away from Florian, running her coat sleeve across her face. "I'm going." She said simply, wincing as she demanded the tears to stop. Turning on her heel, the girl quickly made for the exit, hands balled into fists, purpose in her step.
"Wait- what, now?" Florian headed after her. "You can't go now, you're in no state to travel out there!" He carried on, warning her about brewing storms and travel conditions, just trying to get Lilith to pause and take a breath. All to no avail it seemed. Erik followed at a distance, calling someone to get some emergency travel supplies.
Bursting out of the doors of the tower, Lilith didn't register the stares of several guards as she walked across the courtyard, the cold air stinging her eyes and cheeks as she maintained her pace. Florian was quick on her heels, begging her to see reason, but it didn't matter, nothing mattered, only getting back to Axel. She need to get to her bike, near the outskirts of town, a crawler, she needed a crawler, right now.
"She's going to leave all her stuff behind too." Erik added, leaning up to Florian and sounding like this whole thing was just a little bit boring. The exact kind of old man calmness that really got on Florian's nerves.
He shot Erik a look and immediately got back to chasing after Lilith, rounding on her as she got to the closest group of parked crawlers. "Please, Lil, just take a moment!" He pleaded. "There are fresh storms brewing out there that'll bury you if you rush off now. We have special crawlers, we can get some guides. You don't need to rush this alone."
"Now." Lilith mumbled as she tried the doors on the first parked crawler she saw. Locked. "I need to go now." She stated, getting more frustrated as the doors on the second crawler she tried were also locked. "I need..." the girl started breathlessly as the doors on the third crawler also failed to open. "I NEED TO GO NOW!" She cried, smashing her fist against the glass.
Florian took a deep breath and composed himself, he wouldn't look at her with pity. She had given him that same courtesy. He reached out slowly, placing a hand over her clenched fist. He wanted to comfort her, to help her somehow, but he had to stand his ground here as well.
"You can't help Axel if you get yourself killed out in the ash." He locked eyes with her, forcing her to take a moment in the quiet. "You aren't alone." However much she felt it, he had to make sure she knew otherwise. "Let me help you."
"Fuck you!" For a moment she fought against him, trying to pull herself from his grip. Locking eyes with Florian, her gaze was a both one of fury and despair. "FUCK OFF!" With her free hand she lashed out at the man, it was a hard punch, but fortunately didn't entirely connect.
She'd clipped his jaw. Florian didn't say anything. His grip on her hadn't been firm, though her hit hadn't been strong enough to stagger him back properly. Still, he let go. He knew from the start he couldn't stop her, he just hoped it would go better than this.
["Keys. Who's got the keys for this?"] He called out to the nearby staff who were trying desperately to look like they weren't watching. After some hesitation someone stepped forward and handed him the keys to one of the nearby crawlers.
Florian wordlessly gave them to Lilith.
The girl snatched the keys from Florian's hand, panting angrily as she glared at him.
Then over the span of a few moments her breath went ragged as her eyes softened and glistened again. "I didn't mea..." she winced as she hesitantly raised her hands.
"You do what you have to do." He said softly, reaching out just enough to brush the tips of her fingers with his before quickly pulling away. "You know where I am." He stepped back and gave her space to drive away.
Lilith sobbed slightly, quickly stepping foward, she hugged Florian briefly before pushing away, fumbling with the keys in the crawler door before crawling into the driver's seat and firing up the engine on the crawler. He met her eyes as she looked at him through the windscreen, a part of her begging her to stay, to do this properly, like he'd said, but she couldn't, this was the only thing stopping her from completely breaking down.
'Axel needs you.'
Tearing her eyes away from the man she loved, Lilith kicked the crawler into reverse, tyres screeching as she quickly backed up and spun the vehicle around before heading to the outskirts of town to retrieve her bike from Irena's apartment.
Florian watched her go, managing to hide most of the hurt in his eyes. A punch and an embrace seemed to be the natural way of things for them. Things never got to stay simple for long... if they ever managed to get there.
["What happened? I went away for a second."] Erik knocked him from his thought, suddenly appearing by Florian's side.
["She'd gone."] Florian sighed.
["Couldn't wait, huh?"]
["Nope."]
["Sucks, right?"]
["Yep!"] Florian blew air threw his nose and turned back to the tower. ["I have work to do."] He called behind him, shoving his hands in his pockets. Part wondering if Lilith would ever be back.
Erik hung back, knowing when to give the boy his space. He watched the crawler speed off through the narrow streets, taking a moment to enjoy the strong breeze across his face. This could make things interesting. ["The queen is dead. Long live the queen."]
Lilith stumbled around Irena's apartment, grabbing as many thick jumpers and blankets as she could fit into her pack. The Maiden was docked at the Crow's nest, that was less than day away, even less if she gunned it and drove through the night. The fact that this didn't register as remotely dangerous in her head was an indication of just how unclear she was thinking.
Kick starting the bike, Lilith wrapped herself in as many layers as it was feasibly possible, climbing onto the bike, she headed for the exit to the dome, grabbing a couple of tanks of gas on the way.
The cold hit her instantly, clawing away at her as she made the bike give her everything it had. She didn't think of the rapidly declining temperature as she hurtled through the ash, she didn't think of what would happen if the bike broke down, how getting stuck this far away from the dome was a death sentence, she barely acknowledged the thundering storm bellowing above her.
Nothing in the world could stop her right now, not the cold, not the weather, not her grief. Not even Florian. That all paled in comparison to what she needed to do right now, where she needed to be.
As darkness fell, the storm lulled as she travelled further and further from Frostfall, Lilith's hands were completely numb, even in two pairs of thick gloves, what little moisture there was exposed on her skin and hair had frozen, forming crystals on her eyelashes. She had never felt cold like it, and yet she immediately quelled the voice of reason in the back of her mind.
'Get to shelter!' 'No.' 'Turn back!' 'No.' 'Go back to Florian! You can wait a day!'
The answer was always the same. Pixie would be proud of her stubbornness.
Would have been.
Several unbearable hours passed, and not once did Lilith slow down, if this was any other day, she'd have been convinced she'd travelled faster than anyone had ever travelled by land between Frostfall and the Crow's Nest. Any other day.
As the dome finally peaked over the horizon, Lilith's gaze was drawn to a smaller speck miles West, she'd recognise that tiny silohouette anywhere.
'I'm coming, Axel'
---
"Cap'n!" Allie called out over the intercom to the bridge. "Cap'n I got somethin' incoming on the sensors, a wee thing, it's fast, might be a crawler? Do you have a visual?"
Bennie was busy nursing a whiskey bottle when the call came in. "One sec," he replied before making his way over to the bridge's main window. Brock handed him a pair of binoculars so he could get a better view. "That was fast."
"It's Lilith," the big man said into the mic. "Let 'er in."
"Aye Capn'" Allie quickly flicked off the intercom and rushed down to the hangar.
Pulling a breather off the wall next to the control panel, Allie locked down the hangar as she initiated the opening procedure, visibly shivering as the colder Northern air hit her. Blondie was coming in hot, for a moment it didn't look like she was going to slow down as she hit the ramp. Barely travelling more than a few feet into the hangar, Lilith dismounted the bike before it had even come to a complete stop. Without even acknowledging Allie, she stumbled forward clumsily, as if she had forgotten how to walk. How long had she been driving that thing? Allie glanced at the bike, it had certainly seen better days.
"Bennie'll want ta see you." Allie called after Lilith, closing the ramp and taking the hangar off lockdown. Blondie ignored her as she moved down the hangar, quickly regaining the proper use of her legs, and began peeling off what looked like blankets and a sweater or two, leaving them behind her on the floor, along with her breather.
Bennie was halfway down the hall towards Sprout's room when he spotted Lilith marching towards him. "Hey Lilith," Bennie called out, his voice weary. "Sprout, uh... he hasn't spoken to anyone in days."
"I know." Lilith mumbled, the first words she had uttered in almost a day. Barely looking up at Bennie, her determined, almost panicked expression told him everything he needed to know. She brushed past him quickly as she moved further down the corridor.
"We'll catch up later," Bennie whispered mostly to himself as she passed by.
If anyone could get through to the boy, it was her.
Standing in front of the door to Axel's room, Lilith gently tapped on the door, ignoring the painful chill that still lingered in her fingers.
No answer came.
Resting her forehead against the door, Lilith closed her eyes for a moment, her body screaming at her to sleep. "It's me, Axel." She said softly, placing her palm on the cold metal.
A full minute went by before the door finally opened. The man Sprout had grown into over the past few months was gone, replaced by the frail, broken boy that stood before her now. He looked directly into Lilith's eyes.
She couldn't stand what she saw behind them.
Lilith's fatigue was instantly replaced as she searched the boy's face. His eyes were bloodshot, his cheeks were raw from where he'd been wiping away the tears. She wanted nothing more than to break down with him, just the two of them crawl into a corner somewhere and never leave.
But that's not why she came back.
Exhaling slowly, Lilith fought back the rising at the back of her throat.
'Be strong for him.'
Forcing a sad smile, her eyes glistened as she held open her arms.
"I know, sweetheart."
He collapsed into her embraced and simply... existed there. He had no tears left to shed, but even still, the pain persisted. He was grateful for her, even if he couldn't find the words to tell her.
Lilith closed her eyes, cradling the back of the boy's head as she held him close. "I know." She said again, her voice cracking as the threat of tears closed her eyes.
Amy maintained her silent vigil, sat against the wall outside the door to the Captain's Quarters... Pixie's room. This was where she spent her free time now, not that there had been a lot of that lately. With no particular speciality to speak of when the Maiden was docked like this, she tried to help out wherever an extra pair of hands was needed (or rather, where a thin excuse for one could be found for one). Through her contacts, she'd managed to requisition such a surplus of medical supplies for Maria that finding a place to put it all became its own logistical problem, and she must have cleaned every gun in the ship's now ample armoury by now. Between that, training, helping Whiskey look after Millie, and begrudging pauses for food and sleep, she'd been trying to find ways to divide her time down to nothing...
And still she felt so useless.
Axel still wouldn't come out of his room, and Amy hadn't tried to force him. She understood enough about grief by now to know that it just had to run its course. When he needed her, he would come. Until then, she would wait. As for her own feelings? Right now, it was all white noise. So much sorrow and anger fighting for attention inside her head that she couldn't focus on any one piece of it. What first? Her mourning for Pixie? Her guilt at how they had left things? She didn't even know what to feel about The Gentleman. She'd never really thought of him as a friend. The man didn't have friends, and until recently neither did she; and yet, he was the first man to have ever treated her fairly, the first to ever put the power in her hands. Even now, she couldn't think of anyone among those she loved the most who understood her like he did. And now this silence? That could only mean one of two things: Either that the network was critically compromised, or that The Gentleman himself had ordered it to go dark, in anticipation of a storm he'd seen coming. The one thing she was sure of, was that Contessa Lombardi was lying through her teeth. Blowing up an Ivory Tower was not his style, and if he'd wanted Contessa dead, she would be.
There was no sign of Claire either, after the attack on Feroxi. The original mission Amy had sent her on with a simple nod of the head, that night at the heist, was long past void by now. Perhaps she was laying low as well? However, the dull pit in Amy's stomach begged to differ.
On the outside of all of this, Amy was a picture of calm. Well, that's what she was good at. Savouring the pain, cataloguing it, keeping it safe and contained until she could find its rightful owner, and return it to them in kind. This time, however, where was she even supposed to start?!
"How much more?"
Amy was pulled out of her tangled train of thought by Sandra coming to sit beside her.
"What do you mean?" Amy replied faintly.
"Just the last few days, I've been thinking..." Sandra said bitterly "How much more of this shit are we going to have to take, before we get to wherever we're going? First Georgia, now this. I can't stop myself from trying to second guess who's next."
"Lets not start placing bets." Amy told her, continuing to stare straight ahead.
Sandra looked a little embarrassed with herself.
"I'm sorry." She said, putting her head on Amy's shoulder "I didn't know her as well as you did. To be honest, she scared the crap out of me."
"That's fine. I'm not certain I really knew her at all."
"Still," Sandra continued "I know this must be hard for you. Kinda makes you wish you could go back to being stone-cold and independent, huh? Just bow out and go your own way, you know, before anyone has to cry over you too. Not that I'm planning to, or anything. I go where you go."
"Sandy," Amy cut in "I brought you on board because I wanted to keep you safe, but I don't know where the hell passes for safe anymore. I only narrowly escaped a broken neck just a few days ago, remember? If you want to leave, I'll set you up wherever."
"Well, on balance, I'd rather be somewhere with a lot of guns." Sandra replied firmly. "I'm staying."
For the first time in days, a small smile crept onto Amy's lips.
"To answer your question, no it doesn't." she said, after a few moments of silence. "A month ago, I'd have been right there with you. Cut and run while nobodies paying attention. Stay in control. Never bet anything you can't afford to lose, and never win something you really want. Worked out pretty well for me for a long time. At least, it never led to me sitting staring at a fucking door like she's waiting right behind it... waiting to jump out the moment I give up and say she won."
Amy's good hand balled into a fist, and she hung her head.
"I'm not saying you'll find it on this ship Sandra. You'll find it where you find it, but some day life is going to hand something to you that's gonna hold on to you tight. When that happens, don't you dare let it go, cause every day there are a few less good people in the world. From now on, we find the ones we can call our own...
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