The Wind Merchant (45 page)

Dixie raised an eyebrow. “You feel like telling him that in person?”

“What are your credentials? I am not familiar with you,” Lupava said, looking her over.

“I led you into The Wild,” she said, pressing the elevator button for the bridge. “What floor should I drop you off on?”

Dr. Lupava pressed another button as the elevator doors closed. “A little caution goes a long way, young miss.”

“Dixie, never thought I’d—” Ras began.

“Shut up.” Dixie looked over to Ras. Her eyes didn’t hold hatred, but instead a melancholic resolve. “You know, only an idiot would try to pull eight plugs, one at a time,” she said. “I can see you trying to take down three at once, especially with a speed advantage.” Her eyes flitted to one of the guards, then narrowed. “But even then you have a small window of opportunity.” She lifted a small pistol and fired, dropping Dr. Lupava and throwing the elevator into chaos.

Ras flung himself at one of the guards before the man could raise his rifle. Connecting his elbow to the guard’s temple, Ras shouted to distract the other two armed men.

Dixie sprang into action, dipping and sweeping the legs out from a second guard, then wrested the rifle away and slammed it against the man’s forehead, silencing his surprised cry.

A shot rang out toward Ras before Elias could throw his shoulder into the third guard, slamming him against the elevator wall. The musket ball moved slowly enough for Ras to spin his guard into its path, then ripped into the man’s back as it entered Ras’ sphere of influence.

The guard in Ras’ grasp collapsed to the floor as Dixie ran over, silencing the pinned guard with a twist of the neck before he could get a call out.

Dixie threw her arms around a motionless Callie. “I thought I lost you guys.”

“I’m sorry, I’m confused. What changed?” Callie asked.

“India Bravo flying into battle with The Collective, that’s what changed,” Dixie said as she pulled herself back to face Callie. “The next ship coming through the pass was crewed by a mix of sky pirates and men in Collective uniforms. We had a bit of a disagreement,” she said, pointing to her black eye. “I’ve been going after the wrong target. Well, not the wrong target, but my scope has been too limited.”

“What are you saying?” Ras asked.

“I’m saying Foster Helios has to die, and you all are my ticket to the bridge,” Dixie said. “Oh, and I’m sorry about the whole betrayal thing. I’ll make it up to you somehow.”

“Hold on, killing Foster won’t take down
The Winnower
,” Ras said.

“No, but there are plenty of lovely controls on the bridge that we can smash to make that happen after Foster is dead,” Dixie said with a smile.

Ras offered his cuffed wrists, but Dixie pushed them away. “No, you have to stay like that. Foster will think something’s wrong if you’re not cuffed.” She stepped over to the body of one of the guards, dragging him into the side of the circular elevator. “Are you just going to watch me work?”

Ras stepped over and helped her drag the second guard.

The elevator chimed. Dixie picked up a musket before stepping behind the trio and aiming it at Ras’ back. “Just play along.”

The doors swept open, revealing a far more ornately decorated part of the ship and a path opening up to the command center of
The Winnower
. Dozens of crew sat at their positions around the large room, monitoring their stations. Nobody looked up to address the newcomers.

 
On the other side of the room stood a figure swathed in a tailored, gray uniform, staring out the massive window, with his hands clasped behind his back.

“Sir?” one of the officers said.

Foster turned, spotting Ras, Callie, and Elias walking forward, cuffed.

“Guards!”

“Got it covered!” said Dixie, stepping out from behind Ras, showing her rifle was aimed at the wind merchant.

Foster flattened his hand, motioning for the guards to hold. He stepped down from his platform to the main level of the room. “I see you’ve finally reeled in the Knack and the Lack. And who might I ask is the bonus piece? Are we working for extra credit to return to my good graces?”

“His father,” Dixie said.

Foster took a couple of cautious steps forward to inspect Elias from a distance. “Very interesting.”

“He spent a while in a Time bubble,” said Dixie. “Might be worth studying the long term effects of being frozen.”

Waving a hand dismissively to Dixie, Foster addressed Elias. “Someone’s been well preserved, hasn’t he? You spoke with my father, if I recall.”

Elias nodded.

“He was a difficult man with which to obtain an audience, let alone strike a bargain,” Foster said. “What did he offer you?”

“Does it matter?” Elias asked. “I’m not expecting you to fulfill his obligation.”

“Obligation? Oh, yes. You were supposed to give us the location of the Origin.” Foster looked back out the window at the purple hued sky. “Looks like we did quite all right on our own.”

“You wouldn’t have found it if I didn’t make it here first,” Elias said.

“Appealing to my sense of honor now?” Foster asked.

“Just stating a fact.”

“Tell me what he offered, and don’t be difficult,” Foster said, sliding his hand down to an ornately designed silver pistol hanging at his side.

“He promised to stop harvesting the Convergences around
Verdant
.”

Foster laughed. “Now that’s a promise I can most certainly keep. Isn’t that right, Ras?”

Ras’ eyes flitted about, trying not to focus on Dixie moving to casually flank Foster. “You run this place with Knacks,” Ras said in an attempt to get Foster to focus on him.

“Given yourself the tour, it seems,” said Foster. “Very impolite.”

“I can see why you wouldn’t allow people to know how you make fuel,” Ras said.

“There is a penalty for trespassing, you know,” Foster said, pulling the pistol from his holster and remorselessly aiming it at Callie. “And you, you should be grateful.”

Callie glared at him. “Why?”

“I cut your tether to your idiot Lack,” Foster said. “You don’t have to stand two inches away from him. Then again, the serum essentially made you a Lack yourself, so I’m not sure which is worse.” After a moment, he dropped it to his side. “Oh, Lupava would go on and on if I shot you,” Foster said, then turned to Ras. “You’re annoyingly difficult to dispatch, did you know that?”

Foster leveled the pistol at Ras and squeezed the trigger. The end of the barrel glowed green, and Ras felt a sharp shift in momentum throwing him to his right.

Callie had shoved him out of the way.

The beam emitted from the barrel struck her midsection, throwing her back as she cried out in pain. She struggled to put out a small fire from her shirt, but her hands came up covered with blood in the attempt.

“No!” Ras shouted, scrambling to pick himself up. He lunged at Foster, who easily shifted targets to Ras’ chest. The beam stopped just before striking him. However, the force from the blast knocked him backwards. He slid on the polished metal floor until he stopped next to Callie.

“See? Not perfect, but better than our first test subjects,” Foster said, inspecting his toy. “That should have put a hole straight through both of you.”

Ras inched over to Callie. “Callie! Are you all right?” He looked at the pain in her eyes, then down at the blood escaping to the floor from her hands clenching her stomach.

“Any other volunteers?” Foster asked, pointing the gun at Elias.

“I’ll have a go,” Dixie said.

Foster turned and saw the musket pointed at him. Dixie fired and his uniform blew open over his heart. He crumpled to the floor.

In moments, bodyguards moved to tackle Dixie and knock loose the rifle.

“Do you have any idea how long it’ll take to get a replacement suit sent from
Derailleur
, especially out here?” Foster asked, pained. He stuck two fingers in the hole in his gray uniform, ripping at it and revealing a black mesh layer of clothing. “I’ll have to thank Lupava.” Foster righted himself and aimed the gun at Dixie. “You mentioned wanting a turn.”

Elias launched himself at Foster’s back, getting his cuffed arms around Foster’s neck as guards rushed to stop the loose prisoner.

Foster’s gun fired.

The struggle stopped.

“Dad!”

Foster ducked out of the other man’s embrace and Elias fell to the ground, reaching for his absent leg, eyes glowing green.

“He’s a Knack!” Foster shouted, then looked at Ras. “Stop this!” He dashed out of the room as crew members ran away from their stations in a panic. Lights fluctuated and screens flickered. Winds howled as Energy began pooling in from everywhere to join Elias.

Even if the explosion of an overload wouldn’t destroy
The Winnower
’s bridge, having the loose mini-Convergence of his father bouncing around the control center would surely do it.

Ras couldn’t watch his father die. He scrambled to be alongside Elias, sliding in next to him. “Dad!”

“Let me go!” Elias said, pained.

“I can’t!” Ras placed his hands on his father, watching for the green glow of his eyes to subside. It didn’t. “Why isn’t this working?” He shouted, fearing his father was at the point of no return.

“Callie! Help me!”

She looked at Ras, then back to the pool of blood. She mouthed something Ras couldn’t make out. He needed another Lack strong enough to repel his father’s overload, but she wasn’t moving.

Ras began dragging his father’s body over to her. The room rattled violently. Ras had never seen the formation of a Convergence and he was determined not to find out how the process went quite yet. Callie gasped as Ras slid Elias next to her and her blue eyes turned black. Ras placed a hand on Callie, the other on Elias.

“You are not leaving me!” Ras shouted. “I won’t let you!”

The beginnings of a Convergence glowed about Elias, dancing along his skin, emanating from where his leg used to be.

Dixie crawled away from the epicenter of Elias, backing up against the wall.

The Energy danced over to Callie, swirling around her. She screamed, throwing the Energy away in a one-foot radius from her body, then further, scrubbing away the Energy that had pooled into Elias' skin.

Sparks showered throughout the bridge. The room filled with a vortex as the Void fought the Energy. With one more scream, the Energy blasted away to the far corners of the bridge, shattering every window.

Elias exhaled sharply as his eyes returned to their hazel hue.

Callie’s blue eyes remained black as
The Winnower
lurched and canted slightly at an angle. They were dropping. Warning klaxons went wild inside the nearly empty command center and green lights flipped to red all over the room.
 

“The Convergences!” Ras said. “I think you just took down eight Convergences at once!”

“What just happened?” Dixie asked, trying to find her footing.

“
The Winnower
ran out of fuel,” Ras said.
 

Shouts erupted from the corridors outside the bridge as loud crashing noises filled the room.

Callie’s eyes returned to blue, looking down at her bloody stomach.

“You’re going to be all right,” Ras said. He gently lifted her and looked up to see three mechanical giants clomp into the room.

“Ras!” said the Elder leader. Through the filter Ras was fairly certain it was Carter. “Napier is about to sever the last balloon.”

One Elder scooped up Elias while another reached out to take Callie. Ras shook his head. He had promised to protect her, broken ribs or not.

“She with us?” one of the Elders asked, pointing at Dixie.

“They talk?” Dixie asked.

“Don’t let her fall behind,” Ras said.

The group left the bridge and joined the flow of men and women in Collective uniforms through the corridors. Carter and the other unencumbered Elder cleared a swath through the hallway with their swinging metal arms until they found the stairs.

Carter turned to Ras. “Hand me Callie, or I’m picking you both up.”

Ras obliged and was hefted by the third Elder along with Dixie. The mechanical legs pumped their way up the spiral stairs faster than Ras could have ever managed on a good day.

Before he knew it, daylight shone in his face as they returned to the top of
The Winnower
.
The Kingfisher
hovered nearby, and down twenty yards along the deck a Collective shuttle was loading up with scientists and Foster Helios III.

Foster finished securing his grapple gun and looked up at Ras’ party. He pulled out his Energy pistol and lined up a shot when
The Winnower
rocked. The beam went wide, missing everyone. On the opposite side of
The Winnower
’s balloon rig, Illorian ships were severing the last cables, leaving only the ones by
The Kingfisher
.

The structure pivoted into a swinging fall. The Collective shuttle sitting on top suddenly began sliding and plummeting, taking the scientists with it. Foster fired his grapple gun, connecting with the edge of the deck as up became sideways.

The Elders climbed up the side of
The Winnower
’s newly oriented top
to the hovering
Kingfisher
. Once over the edge, Carter walked Callie inside the ship. The Elder carrying Ras and Dixie dropped them just before being obliterated by a green blast.
 

Foster finished clambering his way up to the top of the sideways
Winnower
. The only option for his survival was
The Kingfisher
, and he held the means to force his way aboard.

“No!” Ras shouted as he ran toward Foster to close the gap. It would be too easy for Foster to shoot down
The Kingfisher
if Ras climbed aboard to escape.

Foster fired another shot, striking Ras’ outstretched hands. The force snapped his cuffs apart, and he barely held his footing. The fact that the Energy dissipated didn’t erase the sting from the blast, but he kept moving forward. Foster fired once more, this time toward Elias and Carter, but the shot went wide.