13)The Long Night (Tick)

Master Sargent Blake, the man nicknamed as Igor by Captain Cooper, calmly continued to tap out his message to Sargent Major Ukala Ukahn while the street thug continued to walk over to him. Master Sargent Mike Blake was retired from the U. S. Army where he had seen many harrowing things. He acquired his hump courtesy of his torturous captors at the Hanoi Hilton. Now he has been here in this world, where he found out he was immortal, for thirty some years. Needless to say, he was not a man easily intimidated.

​“I said, Old man tell me what you and the good Captain Cooper were talking about.”

​“Oh, just the price of tea in China that’s all.” As he finished out his message to the Sargent Major.

​The stranger casually slipped a foot and a half long rod with a rubber handle on one end and a U-shaped fork on the other end out of his coat with his right hand as he reached into his coat’s inner pocket.

​Master Sargent Blake knew this rod was a contemporary “taser” and he could only guess what the other object was. Immediately after he finished his message and sent the “end message” code he began to slip on a pair of glossy black woven gloves which appeared to be made of some exotic synthetic material.

​“Where the hell is China?!” the stranger said, his voice rising in irritation while thrusting the “taser” at the hunched back Master Sargent.

​By looking at the deformed man you wouldn’t think he could move as quickly as he did. His left hand shot out and grabbed the rod by the fork. Simultaneously his right hand was clasping the menacing stranger by his throat with his index finger and thumb which were expertly placed over the pressure points just below the hinge of the jaw where the carotid arteries flowed to the brain.

​The stranger’s eyes flew open wide in surprise at the precision and strength of the hunchback’s grip. His left hand let go of the “needler gun” which he was drawing out of his pocket. His right hand let go of his taser rod and both his hands grabbed at the hand clutching his throat. The gun fell to the floor as the stranger already began to feel the blood flow to his brain being constricted.

​“You’re going to sleep now, but I’ll be happy to give you a geography lesson as soon as you wake up.” Blake said as the stranger’s eyes rolled up and he desperately grasped at Blake’s vice like grip trying to extricate himself.

​After a couple of desperate minutes, the stranger’s body went limp and Blake let his body fall to the floor. He looked over his shoulder at Cooper who was leaning on the door frame which led to the back area of his shop and said, “You didn’t need to come back. I have everything in control.”

​“Yeah, I know but, I am curious about what information you can extricate from him.”

​“Probably not much. Like you said Alexander has a good grasp on his people and probably a great deal of compartmentalization in his organization.”

​“You got a point there. Well send up a flare if you need any help old friend.”

​“Will do Coop. Now get ye gone.” he said as he rounded the counter and reached down at the now limp stranger. ​

​As an afterthought Blake said, “Here!” as he tossed the ‘Taser’ to Cooper, “You might need this. It looks well made.”

​Cooper deftly caught the rod by the rubber handle and said, “Thanks, I can probably put this to use.” He then pumped the slide rod charging the rod a couple of times and tested the ‘taser’ on the metal of the door latch. He pursed his lips and nodded approvingly as the yellow arc put a black smudge on the copper latch.

​Coop then turned and left.

​Batty was unceremoniously deposited on the floor of the room next to the four others which were lying unconscious. As the door closed plunging the room into darkness, Batty opened her eyes and sat up. She had come to at some point during her transit toward the place where she guessed she was to be tortured and questioned. She was awake enough to know exactly where she was.

​There were three reasons why she was named ‘Batty’. The two main reasons were, first, because of her amazing night vision the second was her incredible hearing. She felt the binders on her wrists and ankles which must have been placed when she was unconscious and shrugged. She waited the moment for her eyes to adjust to the gloom of the sparsely lit room. While she waited for her eyes to adjust, she deftly slipped out of her restraints. After losing the restraints she took a moment to examine the room she was in.

​The door and walls were lined with some sort of metal, probably iron or steel. What little light which was coming into the room was coming from around the door and through a vent of some kind opposite of the door about six feet up on the wall. The room appeared to be ten by ten feet square but only about seven feet high.

​She listened carefully and heard her captors walking away chatting about how they plan to extricate information from the children. While listening she slipped her manacles which had been her binders into her sash and she then fished out a hidden knife and a file which she had tucked in her leggings at her ankles.

​Once she had assessed there were no captors nearby, she stood quietly and slipped over to the door and by touch examined the lock. No help there. The lock was only able to be accessed from the outside. She then made her way over to the vent and examined it. It was just high enough for her to fit her head in and wide enough to accommodate her shoulders so she knew she could escape this way. But what about her friends?

​She looked at who else was in the room. She saw Yoyo, Chuckles, Midge and finally Bubbles. All members of her covey. The only one which could even get close to fitting in the vent would be Midge. Yoyo would be able to fit but tightly, but she wasn’t known for her ability to fit in tight spaces. Besides, Yoyo once confessed to her she was claustrophobic so this wouldn’t work as well.

​While she was thinking this through, she heard two people’s heavy footsteps coming her way, so she quickly made her way to the vent, pried it open and slithered in backwards and pulled the vent shut behind her.

​Two men, one big hulking man and one smaller man opened the door and dragged in one of the orphans, a big boy by the name of Simi. The men dropped Simi on the floor and started to turn and leave. The large man looked around the room quickly and said, “Oi, wasn’t there one more o em?”

​“Beeves, how many times do I have to tell you to leave the counting to those of us who know how to?! Move your big ass, I ain’t got any dinner yet!”

​The group of eight, including Victoria II, pulled themselves into a tight circle positioning her in the center. This sort of just happened, as opposed to any deliberate directive by Victoria II.

​The sentinels automatically positioned themselves between the Empress and the two shadow sentinels. Johann decided he should intercede on the side with the larger number of Shadowmen.

​The lead Shadowman, wearing a top hat and carrying a cane,lifted his cane to signal his men to stand by then he signaled the shadow sentinels to move in. Then Tophat said, “Your Eminence, if you surrender peaceably the children with you won’t get hurt. You have my word on this.” Meanwhile the shadow sentinels continued to approach the group.

​Empress Victoria II Arkanti, ruler of The Civilization, stepped forward and said, “I put as much value in your word as I do rat dung. Actually, quite a bit less. Shadowmen do not take prisoners unless ordered to do so and they certainly do not leave witnesses. No,these children are far braver and certainly more valuable to the future of The Civilization than all of your organization put together.”

​In the blink of an eye, Johann’s hand shot out in front of the Empress and intercepted the needle gun’s poison tipped needlewhich came flying in from one of the Shadowmen in the group to the left where the larger number of Shadowmen were. Simultaneously Ouihan stepped out of the group and said to the shadow sentinels, “You will cease this folly immediately and follow my command!”

​The two shadow sentinels froze then snapped to attention. At the same time Brother grabbed Victoria II by her shoulders and pulled her off to the side behind a mailbox while several other needles came flying in from both sides.

​Ouihan said, “You will now turn on those which are attacking the Empress. When this is over, Empress Victoria II will pardon you for your crimes!”

​The two shadow sentinels turned and started toward the Shadowmen. Johann also ran toward the larger group of Shadowmen alongside him was one of the two sentinels whichalways served the Empress.

​Ouihan felt several needles hit him but he didn’t seem to feel any affect from the quick acting poison which coated the needles. All he felt was the sting as the finned needle pierced his skin. Needle guns were no more than miniature bolt guns with needle sized bolts instead of the larger kind which Captain Cooper used.

​Sister aimed her wrist rocket sling shot and fired a red ball at the smaller party of Shadowmen. The red ball hit the ground in front of the group and exploded into a shower of hot sparks which doused the group.

​Tophat looked on with mild annoyance thinking this was just a distraction device, but he realized quickly the sparks were so hot they started to catch the coats and other exposed clothing, and skin on fire. He smelled the scent of white phosphorous. He then held up his hand and then deliberately flailed out his fingers in a, “Disperse” signal. Both groups dispersed dropping smoke pellets and flash bangs to try to distract any onlookers.

​Brother held out a crossbow pistol and shot one of the Shadowmen in the head before he could dodge out of the way. Victoria II reached behind her back and withdrew two metal handles and pointed them out toward either side. She then depressed a button on each handle and a set of long blades telescoped out of the handles and she took a ready guard position.

​Ouihan finally took cover after seeing the two shadow sentinels were indeed following his commands and taking on the Shadowmen. One of which was now standing still having been hit by an Arc Light. One of the reasons why the Arc Lights are used so extensively by the Shadowmen is because they temporarily freeze up and in cases of weaker kinds, sometimes permanently disable automatons. Ouihan looked down at his multiple wounds which any one of could of or should have been fatal but were not. He remembered about what Victoria II had said to him about his immortality. He thought, “Immortality still doesn’t stop the pain.”

​Sister wrist rocketed another Shadowman when she looked over at Ouihan who was just staring at his wounds. She was shocked by the fact he was still upright. She reached into her jacket pocket and took out a small first aid kit and scooted over to Ouihan and began to minister to his wounds. While doing this she was flooded by emotions which she had never let herself feel for several years. So,through tear filled eyes she worked feverishly on Ouihan’s wounds.

​Around one of the many trashcans which lined the streets the group were taking cover by a Shadowman rolled out of cover and leveled his Scorcher on Empress Victoria II. In a moment of clarity and reflex, Major Gladly saw what was happening. He could have just let it happen. He had been in this betrayal for a penny so why not a pound? However, years of conditioning as well as generations of family duty outweighed a moment of avarice. So Major Gladly jumped forward and hooked his shackled hands around the back of the neck of the Shadowman and pinned the Arclight between them setting it off and discharging the power equally into both of them. The Shadowman’s armor was useless to save him.

​ Within seconds a group of three Shadowmen bounded over a group of trashcans in an attempt to engage Empress Victoria II. Two of them were stunned by the alacrity and skill of Victoria II with her short swords. This surprise was short lived as she decapitated them. The third found himself pinned to a telegraph pole by a bolt through the notch in his neck which had flew out of a device which was wrapped around Ouihan’s wrist which he was now holding out over Sister’s shoulder.

​Immediately after firing his bolt Ouihan grabbed and spun Sister around and blocked the incoming Arclight strike which would have hit her in the back. Ouihan had always had an innate skill when involved in school yard fights which always let him always come out on top of the battle. This is why usually the bullies of the schools, both State School and Halinar's, eventually left him alone. He didn’t know, consciously, the Arclight strike was coming in, but his body knew and was able to react saving Sister from an almost certain death.

​Tophat saw his men were losing their initiative, so he reached into his pocket and pulled out a tube with a string hanging out of one end. He pointed the tube into the air and reached up with his other hand and jerked the string sending up a bright orange flare.

​Victoria II saw this and said, “We are about to be over run. Let us get out of here!”

​Brother yelled, “This way!” and he rolled over and pulled up a heavy manhole cover with one hand while he shot his crossbow at the lead Shadowman.

​The top hatted lead Shadowman deftly deflected the crossbow bolt to the side with his cane. The drifting smoke from the different pyrotechnics briefly blocked his view of the Empress’ group long enough to not allow him to see them disappearing underground.

​Johann from his vantage saw Victoria II and her group were streaming into the manhole so he left off disassembling the Shadowman in his hands and called the other automatons to retreat.

​One of the sentinels grabbed the frozen shadow sentinel and pulled it along toward the manhole. Johann was the last to head underground, but as an afterthought he grabbed Major Gladly’s body and handed him down the manhole to another sentinel and then retreated pulling the manhole cover shut.

​Tophat saw the targets had disappeared once the smoke had cleared and he looked left and right up and down Black Street to see where his quarry went to no avail. Within moments he was joined by his two remaining Shadowmen, one brushing off his smoldering coat, the other limping badly. With Shadowman hand signals he signaled them to search. He then looked up the street to see a dozen enforcers running to answer the flare. He shrugged and waited for them to show.

​Leading the group of enforcers was an Enforcer Corporal named Solomon, Henry Solomon. He pulled up short by Tophat and looked around at the Shadowman wreckage in the street and said, “Ye had a bit of a tussle here had ye?” looking Tophat up and down.

​Tophat nodded and said, “Right good man. Now if you’ll please, we need to search this street for a group of hooligans who attacked my men.”

​Solomon looked around at the bodies on the street and said, “You’s Shadowmen ain’t ye?” he felt some of his men bristle around him and her remembered 7 of the 12 he had with him were augmenters from Lord Calador and the Council. Their bristling confirmed a suspicion he had so he amended, “Not that tha’s an issue mind ya.”

​Tophat looked at Solomon appraisingly and said, “No it doesn’t matter. Now get after those hooligans!”

​

​ Lieutenant Nefertiti Arkanti, an intelligence officer in the First Amazonian Legion as well as first cousin to Empress Victoria II Arkanti, was walking briskly down the long corridor in the Legion HQ building. She had a message slip in her hand and a code book in her other hand. Her dark brows were furled as she was trying to puzzle out what needed to happen. She had worked with Captain Cooper before and so she knew the majority of his codes, however, this one was new to her. Since the message was addressed directly to the Legion Sargent Major, she figured she would know the meaning of this code. Meanwhile, she had been running multiple scenarios in her head as to what was happening. Her best sources agreed the Ugalla had nothing to do with this assassination. She even had some information sift in her reports her cousin, Empress Victoria II was still alive. If this were true, then this was nothing but an outright coup. Unfortunately, she hadn’t been able to explore this further because the Council had assigned liaison officers to every section and command. They were very quick to dissuade her from following up on these reports.

​She entered the HQ situation room and saw a flurry of activity as the legion prepared to march. Her expert eyes sorted out the faces and found Sargent Major Ukala Ukahn and marched over to her.

​The Sargent Major stood and saluted Lieutenant Arkanti, then accepted the message slip. She took one look at the message body and her face went ashen.

​Lieutenant Arkanti asked, “What’s this mean?”

​The Sargent Major opened her mouth to answer the question when the council’s man came over and asked, “Yes, Sargent Major what’s the meaning of this?” and he took the message slip away from her.

​“Mr. Grey, this is a report in from the field our, um, intelligence assets are ready to be withdrawn in order for the, um, march.” She said quickly regaining her composer.

​Mr. ‘Grey’ looked at Lieutenant Arkanti and asked, “Why are you not aware of this code?”

​Sargent Major Ukahn gave her a meaningful look and she her quick mind realized she had to think fast. So, she said, “Mr. Grey, I was aware of the meaning, but I was confused as to why it was addressed to the Legion Sargent Major and not myself.”

​“Oh?”

​Sargent Major Ukahn said, “Yes sir. I am afraid it probably is a communication error that’s all. It has been a long time since we have had to mobilize the legion.”

​Mr. Grey looked from the lieutenant and the Sargent Major then nodded, turned and returned to his usual place over by Major General Ukahn.

​When she was sure Mr. Grey’s back was turned, Sargent Major Ukahn mouthed the word, “Coup” to Lieutenant Arkanti.

​The Lieutenant nodded and got a thoughtful look on her face saluted turned and left.

​Batty followed the ventilation shaft she was in until she made her way down into a furnace room. She was able to pop open a dust hatch before the shaft went into the hot furnace. She was covered with dust and soot and she wasn’t happy about the state of her haram outfit but there was nothing to be done about it at the time. She saw an old black jacket and galoshes over by a stairway which led up to a door.

​She attuned her keen hearing and determined there was someone walking toward the door. She looked around and saw she could hide among the cogs and gears of the self-feeding coal furnace, hide under the stairs or climb up into the coal shoot to her left. She grabbed the jacket and galoshes and quickly and deftly clamored up the coal chute. She got halfway up when she heard the door open in the room below her.

​As she paused, she heard a man humming as he walked down the stairs. From the sounds of the man’s steps she could tell the man had a slight limp. She also noticed there was a thickness to his voice which was usually an indication of someone slow of mind. Of course, she knew this wasn’t always the case. Brother had thick and slow speech and poor articulation, but she knew he was secretly just as smart as his sister in many ways. She wedged herself up against the side of the chute and waited.

​The humming man sounded like he grabbed a shovel and then he broke out into all out singing. She heard him come closer to the shoot and then he started shoveling coal into a hopper which fed the furnace mechanism.

​Batty saw the coal fall away from the shoot below her and she could see flashes of the silver shovel passing quickly by the shoot opening.

​A cloud of coal dust billowed up into the shaft and choked off the air around her. She tried her best, but she couldn’t stifle her cough. She coughed then sneezed and lost her grip on one of the galoshes. The galoshes fell down the shaft into the bin down below.

​“Hey now who dat!?” the man said. He then stooped down and looked up the shaft.

​Batty didn’t think he could see her because it was literally pitch black in the chute, but he said, “I see ya dere. Come out now, I nae hurt ye.”

​Batty didn’t believe him so she quickly scurried up the rest of the shaft and grabbed the small door on the top. However, instead of escaping she was hit by an avalanche of coal which flushed her down into the bin. She laid stunned in the bin half buried in coal, coughing and sneezing.

​“Ello, ello ello, what ave we ere, looks like a street rat trying to stay warm from the night air?” and he reached out and grabbed her by her vest and pulled her up out of the bin.

​

​Elsie sat in her customary seat at the Steam and Whistle. She was on the corner of the bar which had a clear view of both the front and back doors. This was why she was able to see when Captain Cooper slipped into the back door and move up to the bar next to her.

“What be ye pleasure Coop?” she said without looking up.

Despite the uncertainty in the streets and all the hassers running about, the bar was fairly crowded. It seems the after-work crowd paid little mind to the broader disasters of royalty.

Cooper smiled and said, “I’ll be needing my steamer trunk.”

“Things that bolloxed?” she asked with genuine concern in her voice.

“I’m afraid so. My lady is still out in the wind and the blood shed isn’t finished for the night.”

“I figured as much. If the news were true, then you’d be in here drowning your sorrows.”

“No, I’d be out there reaping retribution by sheaf and bale.” Cal said flatly.

​Elsie looked at him and nodded. She had heard men talk tough before and she seldom paid much attention to the bleating of sheep pretending to be lions. She knew Coop was not one of those. He was a wolf in wolf’s clothing. She knew if anyone ever hurt anyone or anything he cared for, there’d be nothing on Zahn which would stop his retribution. With this thought she also wondered if she could ever be one of those Coop cared about like that. She supposed he counted her as a friend. She sighed and reached for the key ring on her belt. She then fished out a single, smaller key than the rest. “I don’t suppose you’ll be needing or wanting any help?”

“Not unless you have a death wish. I plan on going into the shadow’s lair.”

She shuddered reflexively and said, “No, I don’t. But I don’t think you do either.”

“No, no I don’t. But I thought you knew me better than that. You know I always end up standing in the end?”

“Yes, but ye never went into the shadow’s lair before either. No one has gone against them in their lair and lived to tell about it.”

“That’s because I haven’t done it yet. Besides, they had a weakness. They were afraid of dying.”​He paused, staring at her concerned face, waiting for her next comment. She didn’t speak, so he finally asked, “Is it in the same place?”

“Yes.” She said flatly. She then stood up and said, “You best be taking the whole trunk this time. I can nae stomach your coming and goings anymore. I’ll no watch you die again, I’ve done it too often and I can’t take it anymore.” She then turned her back to him and walked over to the stairway in the back corner of the bar. However, instead of going up the stairs she walked to the door on the far wall just adjacent to the foot of the stairs and slowly, silently went inside, her head bowed.

Cal shrugged, and followed her, his head ever on a swivel. Thiswas when he noticed the two darkly dressed men sitting in the far corner on the opposite side of the bar. They appeared too intent on not looking like they were watching him. Which in fact he knew they were.

She had opened the door using the key which she sorted out from the ring. She led him into an office which looked rather lavish compared to the bar in general. She then pointed into the corner where a three foot by one-and-a-half-foot brass bound steamer trunk sat standing on one end.

Cooper closed the door behind him and locked it. He then went over to the trunk and began to work the combination lock on the latch. Once he opened the lock, he swung the chest open and began taking out an assortment of weapons and other accoutrements of war. He laid them on the plush red velvet couch immediately to the right of the trunk. The last thing he took out of the trunk was an elaborate harness of some kind. He took off his coat and began to shrug on the harness.

Elsie silently went over and helped him put the harness on. After a few wiggles and tugs, it settled into place like a glove, intermeshing with his torso like a set of gears. She could feel the transformation in Cooper as soon as it slid into place. He was a little taller, straighter and a bit more deliberate. She then began to assist him in putting the tools of his true trade in place on the harness. The throwing spikes, the fighting knives, the tomahawk on its hook, they all settled into well-oiled sheaths. Next were the pouches for other tools of war; the needle launchers, the blast balls, the reloads for the larger projectile launchers. Finally, the major weapons in their holsters or the hooks and lanyards. As she was assisting him, she could feel the change with each added piece. Some men would get heavier, more menacing as they kept adding to their impressive weaponry, each layer making them more aggressive and blustering. That wasn’t Coop. Coop was the reverse. With each weapon and implement added, something seemed to leave him, fall away. He became less and less a person, more a tool of war. The emotion didn’t build, it faded away. Silent tears were coursing down her cheeks as she finished. She loved Coop and hated this “Thing!” which emerged whenever he did this. She has always deluded herself though. She had realized the Coop she loved was the phony, and this was the real Cooper.

Cooper double checked to ensure the magazine which was in his primary weapon was fully loaded. He then grabbed a long, brown leather coat leaving his black dress coat draped on the coach. He then reached into the trunk and took out a brown leather pouch and try to hand it to Elsie, “Here for your troubles. There’s twenty sovereigns in there.”

She looked at him through narrowed eyes flaring with rage and said, “And ere I thought you knew me better than that.” She shook her head and turned her back to him and walked over to her desk and poured herself a drink.

“Best you stay here in the office Elsie. Two of your customers and I are about to have words. I don’t want you to get hurt.” He said tossing the pouch of gold onto the desk next to where she was standing. “It’s for the damages then.”

She said nothing but looked toward her drink of fine scotch, her sight blurred by her tears.

Cooper looked at her back and said, “I guess I’ll see you around kid.” He turned and walked to the door, unlocked it and started to go out, paused and said, “Take care of yourself.” He then left closing the door behind him.

Out in the bar Cal walked directly to the corner table where the two spies sat. They tried to keep up appearances until he stopped in front of them and said, “Evening gents. Y’all are going to answer some questions for me.”

Then a lively time was had by all...

​Victoria II and her party finally found a safe place to stop in the underground. It was another valve room, not far from South Station.

​They had been running for some time, trying to stay ahead of any possible pursuers. The entire party were out of breath except for Johann and the other sentinels.

​Johann finally set down Major Gladly’s body and straightened up. He said, “I’m sorry but he’s dead.” to Victoria II.

​She looked down at her former bodyguard, traitor and finally fallen hero. She shook her head and said, “He died bravely. He…he redeemed himself in the end.” her voice broke as she kneeled down and closed his eyes. Her own eyes full of tears. “He had finally earned his family’s name and honor back.”

​Brother, carrying Ouihan who had been still shaken up by the scorcher hit, set him down and said, “I saw how ya save Sister. Thank ya.”

​“It was nothing.” Ouihan said shakily as he worked out another of the poisonous needles from his flesh.

​Sister, who had been quiet and not herself since she heard the news of Scrapper’s death, smiled meekly and said to Ouihan, “Yes, thank you. Let me help you with that.” and she reached into her pouch and took out a first aid kit with salves and bandages. She also fished a pair of needle nosed plyers out of her tool belt so she could expedite the removal of the tiny bolts.

​For a time, the room was quiet save for the occupant’s heavy breathing. Ouihan winced from the pain as the needles were being removed while Brother went over to the entry hatch and looked out. Ouihan finally looked Sister in the eyes and said, “I’m sorry about Scrapper’s death.”

​“I knew that that punk would get hisself killed one day, but…” Sister seemed to be at a loss of words.

​“But you hate losing someone you’re responsible for.” This was Victoria II who walked over and rubbed Sister’s back.

​Sister straightened up, having removed the last needle fromOuihan’s leg and said, “Yes, ever since they voted me as leader, we haven’t lost one of us. Until today that is.” She said turning her back to the others as her eyes filled with tears.

​Victoria stood behind Sister and gave her a hug from behind, “Yes I had thought as much. I have sent many of my soldiers to fight and die. I have gone to the front on regular occasions to see their faces and encourage them on. No matter how many I’ve sent to die in battle each one weighs heavy on my conscience.” She looked up towards the ceiling and blinked away tears, “I tried to just reduce them to numbers but no use.”

​Sister turned around and looked up at Victoria II and felt less alone. She gave Victoria II a hug and buried her face into her chestand cried fiercely.

​Victoria II felt herself flood with emotions herself. She was not a mother, but it would seem this young crying girl touched her motherly instincts. “There, there. It’s ok. Let the tears come.”

​Brother said, “Quiet! Someone’s coming.”

​The room’s occupants brandished their various weapons and prepared for battle.

​After Mousy left Yoyo behind she spent quite a bit of time trying to make sure no one was following her. She, like the majority of the Orphan Clan, knew the underground of Grandeur City like the back of her hand. She kept hoping Yoyo would make her getaway and find a way to meet up with Mousy.

​After a while she realized her best friend and sometime protector wouldn’t make a showing. Once she made that realization,she spent time calling in information from the network of eyes and ears on the street. She wanted to know the true extent of the Shadowmen attack on the orphans. How many of her brothers and sisters were taken? Once she came to a reasonable accounting, she then made her way to the South Station Hidey Hole to put out warnings their hiding place may be compromised.

​She was very near the Hidey Hole when she noticed shadows which were not supposed to be there. She took out a yellow piece of chalk from her pocket and she put a broken sideways figure eight sign on the pipe. She then turned and ran as she sensed the shadows come to life. She was in full run when she heard three distinct individuals in full pursuit of her. She was nearing the end of her endurance and she felt and heard the three Shadowmen gaining on her. She sensed, in near panic, they were no more than 50 feet behind her.

​She was near a valve room which she knew about and she saw Brother’s marker on the pipe and knew at least he was there. As she ran past the valve room hatch, she made the hand sign which meant, “Three are following me.”

​

​Before Mousy had shown, Brother had rolled out across the tunnel and made his way into another valve alcove. Johann also stepped out into the tunnel and took cover in a large pile of refuge. The two sentinels and the two turned shadow sentinels positioned themselves by the hatch ready to go out into the tunnel to support their fellows as well as to protect their Lady and her remaining companions.

​Brother let Mousy run by him, and he stood ready, like a steely bear trap, waiting for its quarry. Johann on the other hand reached out and, surprisingly gently grabbed Mousy and swung her behind him and the pile of refuge which he was hiding behind. Simultaneously he stood up to block the passage.

​The three Shadowmen screeched to a stop at the sight of the huge figure now blocking the tunnel. Since they were ordered to capture and not kill the orphans, they had stun rods out and not their scorchers or other deadly implements out and ready. So out of reflex the three of them, with rehearsed coordination stabbed their stun rods forward hitting Johann at three different points.

​A normal person would have fallen dead from the combined electrical jolts. Even an abnormally resilient person would have at the very least fallen unconscious from the combined volts. Johann, being a sentinel with the will of a very angry man did neither.

​The combined electrical jolt did have effect of disrupting a good amount of Johann’s control on his automaton body. But not all. His right hand reached out and grabbed one of the Shadowmen’s throats.

​The other two, quite by reflex, took a step back and readied themselves for the next action. Both of them very surprised by Johann’s ability to remain vertical to the ground.

​Johann had only intended to capture the Shadowman he had in his grip, however, because of the residual electrical jolts going through his system he simply crushed the man’s throat. Once he realized what had happened, he, with considerable focus, willed his hand to release the now dead body.

​The two remaining Shadowmen were preparing their follow up attack, now with scorchers when the two unseen attackers hit them from each side. Brother, whose normal affect was of a lovable and simple minded looking large boy, took on a cold continence whichwas the polar opposite of what everyone knew him to be. Sister was the only living person who had seen this look before in his face. The look which he had many years ago when he fought to protect Sister from four slavers. The slavers didn’t live to tell of this event. Neither did the Shadowman which stood right across from him in the tunnel. The Shadowman only caught a glimpse of the rage filled face as Brother’s powerful hands closed on his throat and effectively crushed his spine and windpipe. The remaining Shadowman turned to see this fellow being attacked and prepared to react when the valve room hatch swung out hitting him square in his face knocking him to the ground unconscious.

​The shadow sentinel who swung open the door stepped out looked down at the unconscious Shadowman. He, like Johann, was a soul of a condemned man who was imprisoned in an automaton body. His anger made him reach down to kill the remaining Shadowman but Ouihan called out, “Stop! We need to interrogate him.” The shadow sentinel, despite himself, had to obey.

​Mousy quickly jumped up and embraced Johann crying in terror.

​Johann had, by this point, regained a good measure of control over his body. He reached down and gently rubbed Mousy’s back and his incongruently mechanical voice said, “It’s okay now. You’re safe here my little mouse.”

​Three AM, the witching hour, was when the soldiers of the Legions were being roused out of their bunks. A full two hours before they were supposed to. In the night of planning and preparations the Council’s watchdogs had finally decided all was in hand, so they collectively went to bed to get some rest for the morning march. They were also under the assumption the officers and senior NCOs of the Legions were going to sleep as well. However, because of Captain Cooper’s warning message as well as a couple of follow up messages, the officers and NCOs had quietly spread the word there was indeed a coup underway and the Empress was still alive and desperately trying to get back to the palace. At three the soldiers were being quietly roused and whispered instructions were being passed. The Legions quietly coiled for action like some deadly leviathans readying to spring to the surface on some hapless ship.

​A military unit’s discipline is perhaps the muscle which keeps a unit in fighting readiness but it’s the trust from soldier to soldier and soldier to officer which is its backbone. With the understanding they were, collectively, committing mutiny against the Council’s appointed commanders, the officers and the enlisted of the Legions moved to secure these watchdogs.

​While the bulk of the Legion’s forces prepared to take the city back, specialty soldiers and officers moved in on the barracks whichwere set aside for these watchdogs. With military precision the khakidressed soldiers swooped into the barracks rooms with weapons ready. There were enough soldiers for this “cleanup” for two soldiers for each watchdog. Once everyone was in positions the Lieutenant in charge yelled, “Get up! You are under arrest by order of the Empress and her duly appointed officers!”

​The watchdogs were each jolted awake and each reacted in their own way with belligerent surprise. The head watchdog sat up quickly but apparently unperturbed. He looked around the room and said, “Kill them!”

​Out of each corner of the room stepped out a shadow sentinel which began to wade into the soldiers.