Empire State (41 page)

  "Whose side are you on, Rad?" Kane spat, his voice a low, harsh growl. "We're trying to save the city. I thought you wanted that."

  Rad croaked a little, but Kane clearly had no intention of loosening his grip. Rad felt his back being dragged up the wall of the room as he was lifted off his feet. His chest caught fire as the cracked rib within flexed around the fracture.

  Rad huffed, trying to get a breath. "You're not saving anyone but yourself, Kane," he managed. Another breath, and then: "You're right. The city needs to be saved. Both cities."

  At that, the Skyguard released Rad. Rad slid back down the wall, jarring his injured leg against the floor, but he ignored it. The pain was keeping him awake, alert, and was making him angry. Rad knew he could use this to his own advantage, directing his anger and pain towards fulfilling their mission, at any cost.

  "They've locked the bridge." The Science Pirate came back down the corridor. Kane turned to Jones and Grieves, just in time for Jones leap towards him, pulling the armoured man away from Rad. Rad rolled against the wall and into Grieves. Face to face with the agent, he saw the broken lens in his mask was now missing altogether. The agent blinked at Rad, his breathing laboured.

  "You OK?"

  Grieves nodded. "I'll manage," he said, before pushing off the wall and locking both arms around Kane's neck. But in the Skyguard's suit Kane was twice the size of Grieves, who just clung uselessly to his back.

  The Science Pirate aimed a mechanically augmented punch at Grieves, but Rad got there first. He ran as fast as he could up the sloping floor, shouldering the rocketeer square in the chest. Rad connected with hard armour, but he felt it give underneath, and he heard the violent, metallic wheeze behind the helmet as he winded his opponent. The action distracted Kane, who finally succumbed to Grieves's efforts and, with the help of a piston kick to the stomach from Jones, toppled backwards to the deck. Grieves rolled free.

  "Carson!" Rad bellowed.

  Jones looked down the corridor, which was now dark.

  "Door's closed."

  On the floor, the Science Pirate began to get up, but was stopped by Rad slamming the heel of his shoe into the Pirate's wrist. Something sparked and there was an oily, burnt smell.

  "Rad!"

  The detective turned at Jones's warning, diving out of the way as Kane powered down the corridor to the bridge. Jones and Grieves shot after him; Rad made to follow, but his ankle was caught by the Science Pirate and he tripped. Rad managed to twist himself before he hit the floor, avoiding a broken nose. He swore, kicked at the Pirate, and scrambled forward on his hands and knees. Once out of reach of the prone Pirate, Rad pushed himself to his feet with his palms and ran down the corridor. He made it just a few yards before a heavy hand grabbed his shoulder, pulling viciously. Rad cried out in surprise and fell, raising his arms over his face instinctively for protection, but no hit came. Instead he bounced on the decking as the Science Pirate ran past in his heavy metal boots.

  Rad sat up. The door to the bridge ahead was still closed. Rad expected the Skyguard and Science Pirate to be fighting at the door to get it open, but Rad found himself alone in the corridor. He stopped to get his bearings, and saw in the red darkness an open hatch immediately to his left. Through it he heard multiple pairs of feet pounding on the metal decking. He followed the sound.

  Two more turns and he was assaulted by a blast of frigid air. It blew at him with enough force to turn him against the corridor wall. Carried on it he heard shouting and more scuffling. The corridor had a rail running down the opposite side to where Rad leaned, so against the wind, Rad reached and grabbed the rail, and used it to help pull himself forward.

  The hatchway was larger than those he had already been through, taller and wider, with a fat, reinforced rim. Rad grabbed the thick edge and pulled himself through.

  He was standing on a walkway that ran around the edge of a large open space – a hold of some sort. Steep, angled stairs led down from the walkway at intervals along each wall, and in the centre of the ledge Rad found himself on, just ahead, a large ramp led down.

  On the floor below, Grieves and Jones were fighting Kane and the Science Pirate. The two armoured combatants were relying on augmented strength, but Nimrod's agents were obviously highly trained and extremely agile. For every powerhouse punch thrown by Kane, the agents would duck and weave, and land short, sharp taps to vulnerable areas on the armour. Kane and the Science Pirate had strength on their side, but they were slow and awkward, trailing the huge cloaks that tangled and threatened to trip constantly.

  Rad guessed it before he saw it, and started to run down the ramp. The Skyguard and the Science Pirate
knew
they were slow and that the two agents had the advantage. They knew it, because they'd managed to turn the fight and started to force Grieves and Jones back towards the gaping chasm of the open hold door.

  The door was a floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall shutter, the size of half a football pitch, and it was open. The wind howled in, dragging mist and engine exhaust into the ship in spiralling grey eddies. The air was cold enough to take Rad's breath away, the wind strong enough to buffet him in surprising ways as he ran towards the fray. The hat he'd borrowed from his double lifted off his head and sailed out into the night outside the ship

  The Science Pirate saw Rad, and pushing Grieves towards Kane, ran towards the detective, fighting against the billowing cloak that threatened to pull him out of the hold. Kane turned to look, the movement distracting Grieves and Jones. It was enough. Kane turned back and pushed the two agents backwards. Their feet lifted from the ground as they were thrown backwards and vanished over the lip of the open hold door.

  Rad shouted something, he wasn't sure what, but his voice was snatched by the wind. He saw Kane fire his rocket boots and launch into the black night beyond the hold door, just as the Science Pirate collided with Rad's chest. The pair fell, but the Science Pirate was surprisingly light despite the armour and Rad managed to push him off – enough to get his feet on his attacker's chest, just as his back hit the deck. A blinding pain shot through Rad as the edge of a vertebrae cracked on the metal grille, then with a yell he forced his legs straight. The Science Pirate was thrown backwards towards the hold door. His cloak twisted in the wind and he slid backwards as he tried to stand. The cloak inflated like a spinnaker and dragged him back again even as he got to his feet, bent double against the pull.

  Rad stayed on the ground, trying to get both breath and strength back. He watched the Science Pirate for a moment, expecting him to disappear into the night like Kane had. The Science Pirate continued to pull forward, but made no headway. Then Rad realised he was reaching out for help.

  When the Science Pirate spoke, shouting against the wind, it wasn't the metallic ringing basso, altered and amplified by the helmet. It was quiet and dull, like someone shouting in another room. Rad didn't even register it at first. It was a woman's voice, far away.

  Rad jumped up, hesitated, then ran towards the Science Pirate, steadily sliding closer to the door. He – she? – was still shouting. Rad stretched and grabbed her gauntlet with both hands. He winced as the hard metal edges of her glove bit into his flesh, but he squeezed his jaw shut and pulled as hard as he could. After a second, he let go with one hand and pointed furiously somewhere behind the Science Pirate.

  "The cape!" he shouted, hoping his gesture would be understood. "Lose the damn cape!"

  The Science Pirate nodded briefly, then fumbled with something under her chin with her free hand. Her faceplate drooped forward a little, then her helmet, cloak attached, was yanked off her head as the cloak caught the wind again and pulled it into the void. Suddenly free of resistance, Rad fell backwards, taking the Science Pirate with him. For the second time his back hit the decking, and the Science Pirate landed on top of him. Rad yelled as the weight of her suit compressed his cracked ribs painfully. Face to face, Rad blinked and spat as her long brown hair swirled around them and into his mouth.

  "What in the hell?"

  The Science Pirate rolled off before Rad could grab her. She hit the wall and stood, then sliding along reached a panel of levers and glowing buttons. She jabbed one button and threw one of the levers up, and with a rocky grinding that drilled into Rad's skull, the hold door began to close. The clang as the two edges met was deafening, and was followed by near total silence, as far as Rad could tell with the tinnitus in his ears.

  Rad opened his eyes, and pulled himself to his feet. He shook his head and instinctively pressed his hands against his ears, trying to judge whether there was any permanent hearing damage. He could hear the squishy sound of his palms as he pushed them against the side of head, which was enough to satisfy him that the partial deafness was at least temporary.

  The Science Pirate was slumped over the control panel, her back heaving as she panted for breath.

  Rad walked towards her, then stopped. Call him old-fashioned, but he hated it when the bad guys were bad girls. He frowned. Whoever she was, she was not only a co-conspirator in the Skyguard's plan to destroy the city, but was responsible for the death of Grieves and Jones. Rad wondered whether Nimrod had been able to watch, up here in the clouds.

  He reached out to her shoulder, but she turned before he touched her. Rad jerked back a little then, when she brushed the hair out of her face, he took another step back, and swore.

  "That's nice," said the woman. She wasn't smiling.

  Rad lifted an eyebrow, then stepped closer to her as he felt his temper ignite. Without the helmet, he could see how the armour inflated her bulk and height. Out of it, she would have been a very petite thing.

  He said, "You're awfully alive for a dead girl."

  "Nice
and
charming. Are all men like this in your grey excuse for a city?"

  Rad frowned.

  "Don't tell me, you like to call New York your home?"

  The woman looked Rad up and down, an expression of sour distaste on her otherwise handsome features.

  "I don't like to call New York anything, but it's a darned sight better than this wet shithole."

  "Got a smart mouth too, lady."

  "Lady?" A smile appeared. "Oh my!" she said, sarcastically fanning her face with one hand.

  Rad grabbed her arm at the elbow. She pulled away, but without power the dead armour was heavy and she couldn't struggle much. After a few seconds she stopped pulling, and her arm went limp in Rad's grip.

  He said, "New York or the Empire State, take your pick, you can be tried in either place, or in both places. I imagine we can work out an extradition treaty."

  "What are you, some kind of cop?"

  Rad nodded. Now it was his turn to smile. "I'm a licensed private investigator, so that means yes. And apart from terrorism, conspiracy to commit genocide, and a dozen other crimes I'm sure I can think up, I'm holding you responsible for the death of those two agents."

  The woman smiled again. It was an unpleasant expression. Rad's eyes narrowed. His leg was hurting, and he knew he was in danger of blowing his stack the longer he stood here pissing in the wind with the Science Pirate. He thought of Grieves and Jones and wondered how long it would have taken to hit the ground. He wondered again if Nimrod had been watching.

  The floor tipped, throwing Rad onto the woman. She yelped and punched him weakly in the chest, but Rad righted himself quickly and yanked her arm again.

  "Come with me. Carson will want to see this."

 

The door was open. Carson and Byron were at the bridge controls, gazing out into the darkness. Rad entered, dragging his prisoner behind him, then he stopped, and stared.

  The entire city was laid out in front of them as they hovered, apparently stationary, just under the cloud deck. It was bright and surprisingly symmetrical, the spire of the Empire State Building forming the tall central spoke from which the illuminated city blocks radiated out into the characteristic oblong island. Rad watched as bright white spots moved around the city's heart like flies. Police blimps orbiting the damaged onehundred-and-first floor of the Empire State Building.

  "We safe?" he asked.

  "In all practical aspects, yes." Carson didn't turn around. Rad noticed that neither he nor Byron were moving. The detective stepped up behind the Captain, who turned at the sound of a second pair of heavy footsteps clattering awkwardly on the metal grille decking.

  Carson continued: "Sam Saturn, I presume? Or rather, her New York equivalent."

  The Science Pirate jerked her arm free from Rad's grip.

  "Lisa Saturn. Ms Saturn to you. I kinda guessed you'd be here."

  The Captain turned fully towards Rad and Lisa. His moustache bristled as he grinned widely and clapped his hands like he was trying to keep warm.

  "Actually, I don't think we've met. My name is Captain Carson. I believe you have me confused with someone else."

  Lisa Saturn shrugged like she didn't care and looked Carson up and down with an expression of distaste.

  Rad tapped his knuckles on the bulkhead impatiently. He nodded at the spectacular city view out of the main window.

  "We safe?" he repeated.

  Carson's smile tightened, and he wrung his hands together. He then pursed his lips, and glanced over his shoulder at Byron.

  "Status?"

  Motionless at the controls, Rad saw that one of Byron's arms was up to the elbow in an open panel underneath the main control deck. Rad swore he saw something flash inside Byron's helmet, but it must have been a reflection of something outside.