The icarus changeling, p.15
The Icarus Changeling, page 15
part #4 of The Icarus Series Series
We’d been traveling about an hour, and had passed the jeep trail Selene and I had used to get to the river, when Braun turned off onto another rough trail, this one heading to the right and continuing upslope. We bumped along for about half a kilometer, the top of the van scraping against the low overhang of tree branches, until we came to a small L-shaped clearing.
And there, towering over us, was Seven Strands.
I’d never gotten around to researching what exactly the Strands were, but I’d sort of vaguely assumed they were part of an odd rock formation, or maybe some distinctive plant with seven tendrils or fronds or something. Instead, it was a series of suspension footbridges, seven of them, radiating outward from a platform five meters above the ground built around a thick tree at the edge of the clearing.
The bridges were about as simple as such things could get. The framework was a rope mesh holding wooden planks that served as the walkway’s floor. Chest-high ropes connected to the support mesh on either side of the walkway provided stability and a token effort at keeping travelers from falling. The bridges headed off in different directions: four toward various points farther up the mountain, one north toward the river, one south in the direction of a lush valley, and one to the west in the general direction of Bilswift.
No. Not toward the city itself, I saw now, but angling a little north of it. Specifically, straight toward the area the Patth had cordoned off with their fence.
The area where our hypothetical portal was supposed to be.
And if the bridge remained five or more meters above the ground its entire length, it might just get us over the Patth fence without triggering the sensor buds.
“Who the hell is that?” Braun growled as he rolled the van to a halt near the base of the Strands’ tree.
I lowered my gaze, pushing back the flurry of possibilities tumbling over themselves in my mind. At the far end of the clearing, unseen from the spot where we’d entered, was our rental car.
Leaning against its side, her arms folded casually across her chest in the embodiment of casual nonchalance, was Selene.
I let out a silent sigh of relief. Gimmicking my phone so that the indicator light showed it to be on when it was off and vice versa had been easy enough, and Braun had played into the gambit exactly as I’d anticipated. But there had been no guarantee that Selene would be listening in when the phone went active in the Black Rose’s back room, and there’d been even poorer odds that she could come up with something on the fly in the next few hours that didn’t involve calling in the badgemen for what could easily have degenerated into a bloodbath.
I still didn’t have a clue as to what she had planned. But in her stance, and in her pupils, I could see the anxiety-edged confidence that she had things as much under control as she could.
Of course, as my father used to say, Thinking you have a situation under control simply means you haven’t yet figured out all the ways it could go sideways.
In the meantime, Braun had asked a question. “That’s my partner, Selene,” I called to him. “She’s here to help.”
“Since when do we need help?” Braun retorted. “And since when did we add another person? You said Lukki hired you as backup. You, not we.”
“You, we—what’s the difference?” I countered. “It’s a pronoun, not an ancient prophecy carved in stone.”
“Whatever,” Braun bit out. “So what do we need a Kadolian for?”
“What is a Kadolian?” Scarf demanded. “I do not know this species.”
“She’s a tracker,” I told him. “Lukki used to use a local Kadolian named Tirano to dig up some of her other packages. He’s not available right now, so Selene will work for us in his place.”
“What do we need a tracker for?” Braun asked, his eyes on Selene as she walked toward us, his hand resting on the grip of his Blackman. “You said you knew where the package was.”
“I knew where it was as of a couple of days ago,” I corrected. “But packages can be moved.” I looked at Selene, caught her microscopic upward nod. “And we’re wasting time,” I added, gesturing toward the platform and its radiating footbridges. “Shall we?”
Braun turned to Scarf. “Your call,” he said. “We believe him and we go, or we decide he’s lying, kill both of them, and go back and start searching the city.”
Scarf looked back and forth between Selene and me. “We believe him a little,” he decided. “We trust him not at all.”
“Works for me.” Braun drew his Blackman and gestured to a rough-hewn and rickety-looking ladder leading up to the platform. “Ladies first?”
“Ladies first,” I agreed. “Selene?”
She nodded her thanks and climbed to the platform. There she waited until we were all assembled with her. “As Mr. Braun knows, these bridges can be treacherous,” she warned. “I’ll lead; perhaps Mr. Braun should take the rear position.”
“Sure,” Braun said. “Roarke, you’re in front of me. The rest of you fill in wherever you want.”
A moment later we set off, Selene in front, Scarf and his companion behind her, the two Ylp guards behind them, and Braun and me bringing up the rear.
The bridge was actually less nerve-racking than I’d expected. It swayed back and forth pretty seriously as we started our walk, but once we left the clearing and were back into the forest proper the movement lessened considerably. I wondered about that until I spotted the guy lines from the underside of the rope mesh anchoring us to some of the tree trunks on both sides.
It was an impressive bit of engineering, I had to admit. But I couldn’t help wondering what would happen if there was a windstorm strong enough to affect even the bigger trees the bridge was connected to. I hadn’t noticed any wind during Bilswift’s evening rainstorms, but higher up the mountain the weather patterns could be different.
“The ropes stretch,” Braun said from behind me.
“Come again?” I asked.
“I said the ropes stretch,” he repeated. “When they’re wet. When the big winds come they always bring rain with them. The trees sway, the ropes stretch, and nothing breaks or comes apart.”
“Ah.” I frowned over my shoulder at him. “And you brought this up why?”
“Saw you looking at the guy lines,” he said smugly. “Figured you were wondering about that.”
“Actually, I was,” I confirmed. “You’ve got a good eye.”
“Lukki didn’t keep me around for my looks,” he said, his voice going dark. “So if you didn’t kill her, who did?”
“I don’t know yet,” I said. “One of her competitors, maybe.”
“She doesn’t have any,” Braun said flatly. “Not here. Not for this particular kind of package. No one but Tirano could find that for us.” Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him gesture toward Selene. “And your Kadolian. We hope.”
“Yes we do,” I murmured, a small piece of this mystery suddenly solidifying. This was apparently the route Lukki and the others had used to get to whatever this package was that everyone wanted, with Tirano leading the way. Even since we’d climbed up to the Strands I’d wondered how Selene knew the route or how she even knew what the package smelled like.
The answer, I realized now, was that she didn’t. She wasn’t following the package.
She was following Tirano.
“Well, if it wasn’t a competitor, maybe a dissatisfied customer,” I suggested. “Was all your work local, or did you just stage from Alainn and get most of your acquisitions from off-world?”
There was a short pause. “Yeah,” he said slowly. “Don’t think this is a subject we ought to get into.”
“Suit yourself,” I said with a shrug. “Personally, I’d like to know why she and Willie were killed, if only to make sure Selene and I don’t meet whatever criteria the killer is using to pick his targets. How many times have you been up here?”
Braun snorted. “None of your business.”
“Fine,” I said offhandedly. “I was just looking for patterns. That was always the first step in a hunt: Find the target’s patterns and try to anticipate their next move.”
He was silent another few steps. I watched the Ylps in front of me, making a private bet as to when one of the branches we were passing under would snag the tall Ylp’s scarf. “Eight other times,” Braun said. “You wondering if Galfvi might come here?”
“He will if he wants the package,” I said.
Which was a complete lie, of course. There was no way Lukki would have left the package up here, especially if this was where she’d picked it up in the first place.
No, the package was somewhere in Bilswift, and Galfvi was probably making plans right now to grab it and get it off Alainn. Our only chance to stop him was to get this little side trip out of the way and get back to town.
I could only hope Selene had gotten Tirano to tell her what the package was and had figured out how to put together a replacement that was close enough to fool Braun and the Ylps. If not, there was a good chance Galfvi would get away with his scheme.
And an equally good chance that Selene and I wouldn’t leave here alive.
CHAPTER TWELVE
We’d been walking for about fifteen minutes when the footbridge dead-ended at a wide ledge jutting out from the side of a curved cliff face. Selene led us along the ledge, all of us ducking or brushing past the nearby trees and the small bushes and grasses that always somehow managed to hang onto sheer rock this way. Fifty meters later we arrived at a tunnel in the rock with a clearly artificial rain-guard overhang. She looked back to make sure we were all still following, then ducked under the overhang and disappeared inside.
Behind me, Braun muttered something under his breath. “Trouble?” I asked quietly.
“This isn’t where we usually went in,” he said, his voice heavy with suspicion. “We always went to the next tunnel. Where is she taking us?”
“I don’t know,” I said. Only Selene wasn’t taking us anywhere, at least not directly. The real question was where was Tirano taking us? “Maybe Lukki wanted to shake things up a bit. If she thought someone was watching her, she might have put the package where they wouldn’t think to look.”
“Yeah. Maybe.”
The tunnel’s walls and ceiling were bare rock, with no padding of any sort, but there was enough light seeping in from behind us to warn us of the various protrusions in time to keep from whacking heads or shoulders. But that light was fading steadily as we continued into the darkness. Ten or fifteen more meters, I decided, and I’d need to pull out my flashlight.
“Why are you here?” Braun asked. “Not here here. Here in Bilswift.”
“I was hired by Lukki,” I said. “Remember?”
“Bull,” he said flatly. “I know a con story when I hear it. Plus you weren’t checking in with her about some private job when you barged in on her at Panza’s. You were trying to get Tirano out of his indenture.”
“How do you know?” I countered. “You weren’t close enough to hear anything. Whatever Lukki told you afterward—”
“You think Lukki was stupid?” Braun interrupted. “You think I’m stupid? We had that booth bugged so we could keep tabs and records on everyone who talked to her. Willie and I were listening in the whole time.”
I winced. With my thoughts fully focused on Tirano’s situation, that obvious security arrangement hadn’t even occurred to me. “It’s not what you think,” I said carefully, my back tingling unpleasantly. Braun probably already had his Blackman out and pointed at the internal organ of his choice.
“No, I think it’s exactly what I think.” He was silent a few steps. “Okay, here’s the deal. I told you I know a con story when I hear it. I also know what it sounds like when someone’s stepped off the deep end and is just trying to claw his way back to the surface. I’ll give you one chance to tell me the truth.”
There was no way I could tell him everything, of course. The portals were a deep, dark secret, and the admiral would have my hide if I said anything about them.
But walking down a narrow tunnel with my back to my opponent, there was no chance of dodging or fighting my way out of this. I didn’t know if part of the truth would be acceptable, but right now it was all I had. “Selene and I are in Bilswift on a completely unrelated job,” I told him. “Nothing to do with you or Lukki.”
“What job?” he pressed. “You on a hunt?”
“We got a tip there were some artifacts hidden in the area,” I said. “We had some time on our hands, and Alainn was close, so we thought we’d drop in and poke around a little.”
Braun grunted. “If you’re talking about the village near Seven Strands, that was picked clean years ago. So why did you follow me to the Black Rose? No, back up a step. Tell me why you were at Lukki’s apartment.”
“Tirano had disappeared,” I said. “We were hunting him, and thought he might have gone to the apartment to hide.” I frowned, peering ahead down the tunnel. As the morning sunlight from behind us was fading, a new and fainter glow was now coming from in front of us. The tunnel was evidently coming to an end. “Or maybe not to hide but to look for the same paper you came there looking for.”
“The one Galfvi already made off with?”
“That’s the one.”
He digested that for a couple more steps. “So the package isn’t really here?”
“I really don’t know,” I had to admit. “But you had a gun on me, and your friends didn’t seem the sort to believe I just happened to stumble into your meeting. I had to say something.”
“Yeah,” Braun said. “Figured as much. So why are we here? What’s your woman looking for?”
“You know how Kadolian senses work,” I said obliquely. “You saw it often enough with Tirano. Selene’s using the same technique.”
“Even though she’s never been here before?” Braun asked. “Tirano said he had to have smelled something to find it again.”
“Tirano is young and inexperienced,” I said as confidently as I could. If Tirano didn’t come through, we were going to be in deep trouble. “Selene will get there.”
“Maybe.” Braun hissed out a breath. “Not that it matters. If the package isn’t here, we’ll just grab a different one. It’s not like the Ylps will know the difference.”
“Not at all,” I agreed, wishing I knew what exactly I was agreeing to.
We’d gone two more steps when something hard prodded against my right side. “Here,” Braun said. “Take it.”
“What?” I asked, frowning as I reached a hand up to the object.
And found myself holding the muzzle of my plasmic. “You sure?” I asked, taking it from him.
“Not really,” Braun said frankly. “But this place can be dangerous, and something doesn’t feel right. I think we’re being set up.”
“I’m starting to get that feeling myself,” I said, my throat tightening as I shifted my grip on the weapon and slid it back into its holster. “For the record, if we have been set up Selene isn’t part of the game.”
“I guess we’ll find out.” He touched my shoulder. “Everyone?” he called, raising his voice to a stage whisper. “Hold up here. We need to talk.”
Selene and the Ylps stopped and turned to face us. “Are these words necessary?” Scarf asked impatiently.
“Yeah, they are,” Braun said. “Up ahead we’re going to come to some caverns, more tunnels, and more caverns. Maybe some ladders leading up or down. There are people living here called the Loporri. Whatever you do, don’t touch them. Got it?”
“Why not?” Scarf asked.
“Because touching a Loporr releases a chemical scent into the air that alerts all the other Loporri in sniffing range,” Braun said. “Different touches make them give off different scents.”
“Such as?” I asked.
“Such as touches from other Loporri don’t bother them,” Braun said. “Touches from moss or game animals tell them someone’s tending the plants or that it’ll be meal time soon.” I saw his throat work. “Touches from intruders like us . . . let’s just say it’ll draw more attention than we want. Got it?”
“Got it,” I said. I looked past the Ylps and saw the sudden apprehension in Selene’s pupils. Apparently, Tirano had forgotten to mention that part to her.
Or maybe had skipped the warning on purpose. He knew she would be leading our little expedition, after all. If he wanted to ditch us, or worse, this was a perfect way to do it. Especially since Selene still couldn’t tell if and when he was lying.
Crime. Sociopathy.
Changeling.
“What about the package?” Scarf asked.
“Don’t worry about the package,” Braun said. “I’ve got that covered. Just don’t touch anyone else along the way.” He gestured to Selene. “All right, let’s go.”
She nodded and continued down the corridor into the ever-increasing light. The tunnel curved, revealing an opening into a larger space.
And as we all filed through onto another ledge I saw we were inside a large cavern, probably a hundred meters across and thirty high.
A cavern, and an entirely new world.
The tunnel behind us had been bare rock. Here, there was no such thing. The walls and floor were covered in a wild patchwork of vividly colored plants. Some were green, especially those near the two openings across the cavern and to our left where the midmorning sunlight was spilling in. Most of those plants looked familiar, matching the grasses and shrubs Selene and I had seen earlier during our drive around the Patth enclosure. But the majority of the plant life was decked out in shades of red and purple, or in the dirty white of mushrooms and other fungi. The ceiling had its own color pattern, mostly consisting of mosses or lichens, and there were strands that seemed to be luminous. Nightlights, possibly, for the long hours of darkness.
Moving unhurriedly around the cavern, picking the plants or ladling water on them, were the Loporri.
My first impression of them was that someone had stacked patterned gray-and-white car tires of varying sizes on top of each other, added spindly arms, short thick legs, and a head and called it a day. Their widest region was at their midsection, with their bulk tapering somewhat in both directions. Their heads were flat on top, maintaining my reflexive tire-stack image, with long hairlike tendrils flowing back from their foreheads to the midsection bulge. Their four splayfooted toes were surprisingly thin, given the rest of their bulk, and appeared to be somewhat prehensile. Size was always hard to judge without a known frame of reference, but I guessed their average height to be about a meter and a half or a bit more.
