Crosstime Caper 11: In the Belly of the Beast

Valerie Miller, Agent Exit of the Bureau of Superheroes, looked at her latest experimental failure with distaste. “That’s it. I’ve tried several different formulations - black powder, corned powder, even prismatic powder, but it looks like they’re going to have to make the jump from archery straight to nitrocellulose propellants. Gunpowder simply doesn’t seem to work here.”

Sally Yaeger, Cadet Agent Ferric, frowned from her vantage point near the door of the testing chamber. “I don’t get it, though. It burns. Why won’t it explode?”

The mink shrugged. “Technically, gunpowder doesn’t explode at home, either, Sally. It burns very fast, but not fast enough to produce an internal shockwave, just one in air. And… air doesn’t seem to work the same way here. Maxine’s been having the same trouble with steam expansion.”

The metallic raccoon nodded. “Tell me about it. It’s why she went nuts on the farm machinery instead. Gunpowder doesn’t work, steam engines won’t work. A reaping machine, though, works just fine.” She sighed, staring into infinity as she remembered the skirmish they’d been involved in shortly after their arrival in this world. “Just as well. I won’t feel guilty if we teach them about the McCormick reaper.”

Exit snorted to get her attention back. “It was not your fault, chica. We helped defend ourselves from an attack by furs working for that necromancer. They tried to attack a cavalry squad to get at us. Besides, I don’t think you actually killed any of them yourself.”

“Might as well have. I doubt any of them got proper medical attention.”

“Maybe, maybe not. If they had a healer around... you’ve seen what they can pull off here. Magic works in this world, much better than it does at home. Or at least, more furs can use it, which is the same thing, I suppose.” Exit started cleaning up her mess. “Did the alchemists ever figure out how to duplicate your supplements?”

“Meh. Kinda. They don’t taste the same. I think something got left out. Probably the manganese, I don’t think they’d ever heard of it. But it’s not like I’m going to drop over from a deficiency disease the moment I run out. I’m more concerned about them figuring out how to duplicate the powder that Maxine needs for her Serum 214. That didn’t translate properly either, although she thinks it’s because they didn’t realize there’s different kinds of feldspar.”

“Well, we’re done here for today. Might as well trot up to the forge and see if Maxie needs you to do any heavy lifting.”

“Gotcha. Seeya at dinner.”

*  *  *  *

“This is everything we’ve been able to find.” The badger spread out maps and diagrams and had brought along documents which none of the outworlders could read. Exit was busy taking notes for their own reference, punctuated by swearing at the feather-quill pen she was trying to use. “The area is in the heart of the Great Taiga Forest. We obviously can’t start asking questions about it now, it’d attract attention. We’ve checked every record we can find, though, to see if anything turned up by accident. And there’s two things that might be related. First is a set of references over four centuries old about the construction of a summer palace for the mouse in the area, that he has apparently never used. And the second is his ongoing habit of occasionally rewarding a slave or serf who’s given loyal service by granting them and their family manumission, promotion, and a stipend.”

Endopossum shrugged. “Not a bad idea, really. Keeps the rank and file content, and doesn’t cost much in the grand scheme of things. How’s that relevant, Kyrios?”

“Maybe it isn’t. But it usually happens on a rather random basis most of the time. A few years apart, perhaps a decade or more.” She paused. “There have been -three- such reward promotions in the past two weeks.”

“Since we arrived.” The opossum glanced at Ferric. “And Sally tried to break his neck.”

“Exactly.” The badger looked at them. “He may have needed to replenish himself, if this is related to how he keeps himself alive. Pity that none of you are mages, it would have been -very- interesting to see what was happening in the Weave when she did that.”

Exit nodded. “And assuming this Eris can be trusted...”

Samantha nodded. “If so... Then we have a location important to this whole business.” She stood up and stretched. “When can you be ready to go? We should start while he is still recovering from his defeat.”

Endopossum frowned. “Day after tomorrow? I’m almost done with the reaping machine prototype, and I’d like to get it completed before we head out.”  

“We have some final preparations to finish as well. I think that’ll work.”

Exit grinned. “Make it so.”

Ferric snickered. “Do you -always- quote movies?”

“Only about half the time. Sometimes it’s songs.”

Samantha just stared at them. “What, may I ask, is a [movie]?”

Exit just looked at the raccoon. “You mentioned it, chica, -you- explain it this time.”

*  *  *  *

There were seven furs present as the final plans were drawn up. Exit, Ferric, and Endopossum represented the Bureau of Superheroes, dragged across the dimensions in the aftermath of defeating the ancient sorcerer who’d come to their Earth in search of a hidden Artifact. Fritjof and his companion Leon Dupres, better known locally as the Gray Shadow, were to accompany them and act as guides. Kyrios Samantha Bauer represented the scryers of the Alithea, and the Hesperian spymaster Heyland Carter, Earl Palisades on formal occasions, was present to arrange supplies and provide any assistance that the secular authorities could manage.

“This distance ought to take three days of overland travel, so we should pack supplies for a week in case of delays.” The gray-furred cat traced a finger along the route they were hoping to use. “We arrive here, come down the valley from where the outpost is, and see what is to be seen. We’ll want to avoid habitations and major roadways, so we won’t know until we get there whether we can travel along the river valley or if we’ll have to stick to the rougher terrain. If it -is- important to the Necromancer, there will probably be zombie patrols at least, possibly nastier things, which brings up the question of whether to travel by night or day.”

Exit nodded. “Undead would tend to be more active at night, correct?”

Fritjof, a wolverine nearly as tall as the iron raccoon, nodded. “Aye. It’s a roll of the dice. You travel at night, you can spot them and at least not be taken by surprise in camp. But it’s slower going. If you travel in daylight, you still tend to have patrols to deal with and you have to sleep when the undead are active.”

Exit grinned. “Definitely night. I have a few surprises for anyone who thinks they can sneak up on us just because it’s dark.”

The wolverine nodded again. “We try it that way first, then. Should we take a pack mule?”

Ferric chuckled. “No need. You have me.”

“You can carry as much as a mule?”

“I could carry the pack -and- the mule, and it wouldn’t slow me down.”

The wolverine looked sceptical until Endopossum snickered. “If anythin’, she’s downplayin’ it, partner. Our first day here, she carried a loaded farm wagon back to its village so I could do some repairs. She really -is- that strong.”

Fritjof looked back and forth between the pair, and finally nodded. “Very well. Some basic travel gear, sleeping rolls and such, a week’s travel food for five furs -”

“Ten.”

Fritjof glared at Ferric for the interruption and gestured toward the mink. “I thought we had a limited number that -she- can bring home.”

“We do. But I eat for six. I can carry a pack mule, but I have to eat for that level of effort as well.”

The wolverine shook his head. “As long as you carry it.”

“Can do.”

“Then we need our weapons, armor, and things for dealing with undead, traps, all the little hassles of dealing with -his- minions. We can leave as soon as we’re packed.”

The Kyrios nodded. “And along those lines, we have gifts for the three of you. The translation spells we’ve been using need to be renewed regularly, and no one capable of it will be with you. So…” The badger reached into a satchel she’d brought, and handed out three bracelets. “These are magicked with permanent translation spells. They’re limited - to and from our Common speech - but they’ll serve well enough for now.” She reached into it again and pulled out one of Exit’s pistol magazines. “For you - you’ve been trying to reproduce your [ammunition], but our artisans have not been able to work out how to make it yet. What alchemy cannot make, however, magic can. Within limits, at least. We adapted the spells used to make Faery gold. This will now produce whatever type you seed it with, though each will last only a few minutes after it leaves this casing.”

Exit grinned. “That’ll be plenty of time. And if the bullet fades out after causing damage, that’s not a problem.”

The badger grinned back. “We thought so, too.” She turned to Ferric. “For you, a solution to your worst weakness. You will not drown as long as you wear this necklace. It will provide the air you need, no matter what happens.”

The raccoon nodded solemnly. “That… will be a major relief if I have to cross any more rivers while I‘m here. Thank you.”

Bauer nodded. “You are most welcome.” She turned to the third of the outworld trio. “We were unsure what would be best for you, but considering your talent for smithwork, we decided on this.” The pack was made of fine leather, but decorated simply. “A tool bag.”

Endopossum looked dubious. “It’s nice, but I don’t think it will hold too many.”

Bauer chuckled. “It’s bigger on the inside. We’ve already packed it with most every tool a blacksmith might need. Check.”

Endopossum reached inside, and her expression went blank as her arm slipped in up to her shoulder. “Tongs, a selection of hammers… you put an -anvil- in there?”

The badger was grinning now. “A small one. Don’t leave anything alive inside it for long, but it will carry most anything that will fit through the opening. You might also consider putting anything your team might need for this trip inside there. It’ll make it much easier to carry.”

*  *  *  *

The underground chamber was lit by a brief flash for the first time in ages, and faded into darkness again almost immediately. This time the long silence was broken by shuffling feet and voices, and then a flashlight flicked on and did a quick survey of the surroundings. The ancient delvings were musty and damp, but still sound even after five centuries of neglect. The six furs who had arrived out of thin air straightened up once they were certain there was sufficient room to do so, and the old otter with a wizard’s staff smiled at the others. “So far, so good. It certainly looks like it was never found. I’ll leave you to your mission.” He shook hands, Earth style, with the three outworld superheroes and clasped forearms with the two local heroes. “Good luck, all of you. We’ll be waiting in Hartsdale.” His return teleport spell was much less complex than the one that had brought them all into the Empire, since he was only taking himself home.  

When he’d vanished into the Weave, Exit aimed her flashlight at one of the tunnels leading out of the room. “That’s the direction we eventually want. What does the map say?”

The map was in the custody of the cat sometimes known as Gray Shadow. “Seems to want us to head north. That matches with the old description we had of this base. The entrance is hidden on the south wall of a valley, and we obviously need to get out before we can find our way to this supposed palace.”

The flashlight beam moved to a different wall and doorway. “This one, then. Let’s go. We want to be ready to go by dusk, and that gives us an hour to find our way to the entrance.”   

*  *  *  *

In the event, it didn’t take long to find the route out, but the entrance was clogged by centuries of debris and dripstone. It took nearly two hours to of digging to clear the way, and Ferric had to move a few multi-ton chunks of rock in the process. When they finally broke through, they discovered a feral bear and her cub living in the cave that concealed the outpost entrance.

The mother bear reared up on her back legs and growled at the interlopers who were too close to her cub. Fritjof and Dupres immediately prepared to kill her, the wolverine drawing his sword while the cat strung his bow, but were interrupted when Ferric walked right up to the animal.

The cat sputtered. ”Wh... what are you -doing-?”

“Persuading her to leave us alone. Go on, I’ll catch up with you outside.” The outraged she-bear took a swipe at the raccoon, only to grunt in surprise as her paw hit unyielding metal instead of soft flesh. She tried again with the same result, before roaring ferociously.

Ferric just chuckled, careful not to show her own fangs as she acknowledged the bluff. “There, there. No one wants to eat your cub. We’re just on our way through, all right?” She cleared her throat. “That means you four, already!” Behind her, the rest of the party started to move toward the cave entrance, Fritjof and Dupres still astonished at the tableau.  

A third slap resulted in a return slap by the raccoon, which generated a pained grunt from the she-bear. This was followed by a shake of her shaggy head and another outraged bellow, but the bear was beginning to realize that she was outclassed, and allowed Ferric to back away without any more attempts to injure the raccoon. “There, see? All good. Take care of your little one. We’ll be out of your territory soon.”

Outside, the Orterrans were still trying to make sense of her actions. Fritjof waved his hands in exasperation, gesturing back to the cave. “But it’s a dangerous animal! Why would she -protect- it?”

Exit chuckled. “Well, it’s obviously not dangerous to -her-. But at home? We’ve pushed nature out of the way so badly that there isn’t much of it left. We try to preserve what still remains. I don’t think she gets that it’s different here.  And…”

Endopossum nodded. “And that was a -mother- bear. I don’t think our Iron Maiden can bring herself to hurt a family if she can help it.”

The cat shook his head. “You people are crazy.”

Endopossum grinned. “Better believe it.” She looked upslope. “And there’s our girl now.”

Ferric made her way down the side of the hill. “All set. Let’s go do whatever it is we’re supposed to do.”

*  *  *  *

The valley, inevitably, had a stream running along the bottom, and an hour’s hike brought them out to the main river valley. A road ran alongside the river, staying to the north side even when a ford would have been easier. Dupres nodded at the first such instance. “A clear sign that undead are among the traffic intended for it, ladies. Many of them have trouble crossing running water.” They’d followed the road for the first night, and made over half of their intended distance. At the first hint of dawn in the east, they left the road and crossed the river to find a campsite on the southern bank.

“A very good roadway, and yet it is empty. Rarely used, but maintained as though it were a busy highway.” Exit nibbled a bit of cold sausage and bread while she considered the conundrum. “Rarely used, but when it -is- used, they need to make good time?”

Dupres nodded. “That would make sense.” Fritjof merely grunted agreement.

Ferric was working her way through a half-wheel of cheese. “We certainly didn’t run across any villages last night. You’d think that a good road would attract settlements.”

“Only if they were allowed, though.” Endopossum said. “If what’s-his-name forbids it, I suspect there aren’t too many Northlanders who’d argue the point.”

“True.” Dupres shrugged. “We’ll find out tonight, I suspect. Who’s on first watch? Ferric, you think you can handle that?”

“Don’t see why not. How long, and who do I wake up?”

The cat swept his arm in an arc of forty-five degrees. “When the sun reaches that point. Fritjof, you want to take second?”

The wolverine nodded. “Aye. Exit, you take the third? And Shadow and Endopossum can share the fourth watch. That’s the most likely danger point.”

Glances were exchanged and then everyone nodded. Ferric took Exit’s binoculars and headed uphill from the campsite to a spot that offered cover and a view of the road, while the rest took shelter in the undergrowth and got some rest.

*  *  *  *

They reached the first zone of defense early the next night. The valley was interrupted by a field of sand across its entire width and beyond, while the river they had followed up to this point flowed down an obviously artificial channel until it was back in its real bed on the other side of the dune field. Exit had climbed partway up the side of the valley to get a better look at it through her field glasses. “Just sand, as far as I can tell. Trouble is, there’s a guard post smack in the middle of the viaduct, so we’ll have to go through the sand, or around it. It seems too obvious, though.”

“Oh, it’s a trap all right.” The wolverine was scowling, even more than he habitually did. “That sand barrier shows every sign of being an [Eisvurm] run.”

“And what are eyes-verms?” Endopossum asked. “That didn’t translate, so it’s something we don’t have at home.”

“They’re not actually worms,” said Dupres. “Giant snakes of some sort. But they burrow in sand and come up under anything they feel walking across their runs.” He turned to look at Ferric. “I doubt they could miss you.”

“Probably not. Authorized traffic uses the bridge, of course. But that’s not really an option for us, is it? Can we go around?”

Exit shrugged. “Possibly not. The sand patch spreads out to either side across several ridges, and this is the only narrow point I saw. We can try - we’d need to get out of sight of the checkpoint in any event - but we may end up having to cross it at some point or step into another trap. And the longer we take...”

Ferric nodded. “The more chance that something will give us away.”

Dupres nodded. “Exactly. So… get out of sight of the checkpoint guards and then take our chances crossing it?”

“Best we can do.” The wolverine looked at the outworlders. “Now pay attention. You want to walk as lightly and as unrhythmically as possible so that you don’t sound like a meal. A steady pace -will- attract its attention. If we -do- attract them, stop moving. They’re blind, and they hunt by tracking you as you move. And if one of them manages to find you anyway? Run for it. It probably won’t do you any good, but it’ll distract it from the rest of us.”

“How big -are- they?”

Dupres shook his head. “Ferric… a full grown one could swallow -you- whole. And the young ones are still about ten feet long - and -they- hunt in -packs-.”

*  *  *  *

Exit peered through the night-vision setting on her binoculars. “This is as good a spot as any, I guess. The other side’s as close as we’ve seen since we’ve been out of sight of that bridge. I make it a bit over a kilometer... that’s a thousand yards for you guys.”

Fritjof nodded. “Aye. Remember what I said. Spread out, and move unsteadily. If we had time, I’d say cross one by one, but we’ll still be here by dawn if we try that. Shadow, you lead off - I’ll bring up the rear. The three of you - watch how he does it.”

The feline took his boots off, and then started off across the expanse of sand, his feet light against the ground as he went. He would pause for two, or three, or four beats in between each step, or sometimes take two in quick succession, never the same twice in a row, sometimes pausing for longer periods. Exit nodded and slung her boots over her shoulder before following. Unlike the cat, though, she carried her rifle at the ready, safety on but a flick of her thumb from having it ready to fire. Endopossum went third. Fritjof waited until she was ten yards out and grunted, “Your turn.”

“You sure? I’m the heaviest, if any of us attract this thing it’ll be me.”

“Go. We won’t be far enough apart to make a difference, and if I’m last I can watch you and warn you if you start getting too steady.”

Ferric shrugged. “Okay…” She headed out into the sand, trying for random footsteps.

*  *  *  *

They were halfway across when the -real- trap activated. Endopossum was the first to notice it, her blood resonating with the magic. “Yo, Shadow,” she hissed. “You’ve set somethin’ off. I can feel it, pulsing in the... whatcha call it here? The Weave?”

The cat froze. “Pulsing?”

“Steady like a heartbeat. Ya think there was a magic tripwire at the halfway point?”

“I’m very much afraid there was -”

Fritjof interrupted. “Don’t stand there yapping! Run!”

*  *  *  *

Two hyena guards watched the road at their post. One of them perked his ears up, and turned to watch the sand shifting in a bow wave as a huge iceworm passed under the viaduct. “Looks like Tiny’s in a hurry. You think another elk got careless?”
His partner chuckled nastily. “Could be. Maybe we’ll find enough in the morning to tell.”

The duty sergeant, a new arrival who’d only been on the station for a few days, overheard them and came over to where they were standing. “Tiny?”

“Oh, hey, Sarge. Yeah, Tiny’s the biggest iceworm in the run. He doesn’t usually move that fast unless he hears somethin’ big movin’ around. I’d hate to be whatever it is if they don’t get clear before he arrives.”

*  *  *  *

The sand started to bulge and slide before they’d gotten another hundred yards. Exit growled. “Of course they had a lair here. Narrow crossing point, after all. I’m seeing at least a half-dozen, Fritjof. Fight or keep running?”

“There’s going to be a few we can’t see on the surface. They’re not stupid beasts, they’ll try to herd us to where the rest are waiting. Run, and run -toward- the ones we can see. Weapons ready, but try not to use those noisemakers of yours unless we don’t have a choice. We’re not far enough from the bridge for those things.”

The mink nodded. “Right. Don’t want to announce ourselves -that- way. Mouse gets word that his minions have been hearing thunderclaps, we’re gonna have his whole army on top of us.”

“When the surface trails stop, they’ve gone deep and will be trying to come up underneath you. Start dodging when that happens.” Behind them, sand started shifting as the rest of the pack decided they weren’t going to be fooled into stampeding in their direction.

The first one to attack didn’t bother going deep first. It erupted out of the sand in front of Dupres, who dodged its strike easily and kept going. Soon the entire pack had caught up, and the group spent more time dodging and trying to counterstrike than they did moving toward the safety of solid ground.

Ferric edged to the left to stay out of range of one as she passed. It really did look like a huge, fat-bodied blindsnake, the eyeless head depressed in front like a gigantic shovel. The colors were hard to make out in faint moonlight, but they were dark, and mottled in a camouflage pattern of some kind. It opened its mouth to strike again, showing teeth that were rather more like a shark’s than a snake’s, serrated triangular blades suitable for slicing away chunks of flesh rather than forcing a whole victim down a throat, and Exit jinked right to avoid them. Fritjof was catching up to her as they ran. “Move it, girl! Drop the pack if you have to!”

The raccoon grinned back at him over her shoulder for a second. “I’m not even close to flat out. Just making sure you’re all gonna make it.”

The wolverine growled. “You’re the entire reason for this trip. It doesn’t -matter- if any of the rest of us make it. Move!”

“It matters to -me-. I--” She was cut off by the crackle of command presence in Exit’s voice.

“-Run-, chica. He’s right. Doesn’t matter if you’re the only survivor, as long as the mission gets through. We didn’t sign on to live through this.”

Ferric shut her mouth and went to full speed, accelerating slowly in the loose footing. Endopossum shifted into a sprint to stay with her, the pair - one tireless, and the other with nearly mechanical endurance - pulling ahead of the rest. Endopossum was the first to notice that the worms were trying to stay with them. “Hah. They’re tracking by vibration, kid. And you’re the only thing they can hear right now.”

“Works for me. If we can draw them away... and then outrun them... it’s a win-win. Hey…” The billows of sand around them suddenly vanished as the pack dove down. “Where’d they all go?”

The answer came in a rush of displaced sand and a surface wake that dwarfed the previous ones. Endopossum blanched. “I think Mama’s come to the party, kid. They weren’t joking about those being babies.”

“Keep going! It’s gonna... track me anyway... you know...” Ferric pulled one of her titanium javelins out of her quiver and changed course, angling away from Endopossum and from the oncoming creature, parallel to the forest edge. The rest watched in helpless horror as the wake swept by them and focused on the pounding footsteps of the young raccoon. Endopossum was half-buried in the sand as it passed her by, her plasma sword only managing to score a scratch on the quartz-hard scales as it breached the surface. It reared up, a maw large enough to engulf a full grown bull moose opening to expose twenty-centimeter bladed teeth, and then crashed down. Ferric vanished with it as it dove back into the sand.

*  *  *  *

“NOOOOwhaaa?” Exit’s scream of denial faded into confusion as the worm surfaced again, thrashing in what was unmistakably pain. Endopossum finished picking herself out of the sandpile the monstrous creature had left behind and raced toward it, brandishing her sword and screeching an inarticulate battle-cry.

Fritjof figured it out first. “She’s still alive, somehow! She’s trying to cut her way out!” He ran up to the writhing giant, intent on doing what he could to help and nearly getting crushed by an oblivious coil for his efforts. He staggered aside as it brushed him and moved in again, somewhat more cautiously, brandishing an axe.

The worm’s side bulged, tenting out before finally giving way around a bloody spearpoint. The point pulled back inside before the worm’s skin bulged again, tenting out in a slightly different location as Ferric made desperate repeated thrusts. Endopossum wedged her sword into the hole left behind by the first thrust, the plasma blade buzzing as it slowly cut through the thing’s armored hide from that weak point. The worm screeched as it reared back from this new source of agony, venting a shrieking hiss that sounded vaguely like a steam whistle to the Americans. And then, unexpectedly suddenly, it collapsed to the sand, its body still while the neck continued to thrash weakly. The latest bulge in its side grew and then burst open, allowing a blood-soaked and gasping raccoon to fall out onto the ground.

“Never… want… to do… that… again…”

“Get up, get up!” Fritjof tried to pull her to her feet, only to be stymied by her weight. “By the Gods, how heavy ARE you? We can’t wait here, the little ones will be back as soon as they realize it’s dead.”

“Not to mention the guards at the bridge. I think furs could hear that shriek all the way back to Hesperos. C’mon, Ferric, he’s right. And you know we can’t carry you. Just another two hundred yards and we’re out of the danger zone.”

“Right.” The raccoon shook her head, still dazed but regaining her bearings. “Right. Damn. Lost a boot. Lead the way.” She staggered to her feet and let Endopossum guide her as they made for the edge of the sandpit. “I need a -bath-.”

“First pond we find, young one.” Fritjof was the one who agreed, which surprised both Exit and Endopossum until he explained. “She needs to wash the worm’s stomach juices off of her as soon as possible. And while she does that, the rest of us have to see what’s salvageable of the supplies she was carrying.”

*  *  *  *

“Sorry to wake you, sir. But something’s happened.”

The soldier was only half-surprised to find his superior already half-dressed. “I can imagine, Corporal. Whatever it was, it woke me up, too. Came from the north, correct?”

“Aye, sir. Something set off the alarms and got Tiny all excited, and he’d passed under the viaduct heading that way about fifteen minutes before there was this... shriek. Sounded like half the souls in all the Nineteen Hells were screaming at once. Sergeant Mahk sent me to get you while he woke up Sergeant Kasha and started putting a scout party together.”

“Tifa’s in charge of that, I assume?”

“Didn’t ask, sir. But Tifa’s one of the ones being rousted out of bed.”

The bear huffed to himself as he finished dressing. “All right. Tell Kasha to send the scouts out as soon as they’re ready. I’ll lead a backup party half an hour behind them - I’m going to have to give a report on this, I’ll bet, whether we find anything or not, and I’ll need to see it first-hand. Put the station on full alert until we sort out what’s happened. And we’ll be sending out messengers once we -do- find out, so make sure they’re ready to go when we get back.”

“Yes, sir!” He repeated back the message. “Scouts sent as soon as they’re ready, you’ll lead the backup in a half hour, station on full alert, and messengers prepped.”

The bear nodded. “See to it.”

*  *  *  *

Captain Karu reflected on his posting as he tramped through the forest with a picked squad. <Lac D’ete is important enough to warrant guarding, but for some reason the Master doesn’t post a full battalion up here. And every now and then, there’s a test. This doesn’t smell like one, though. This... this smells real. At least I have good people to work with. He doesn’t assign slackers here.> He perked his ears as the sounds of iceworms squabbling over a kill made themselves known. “That’s hopeful. Let’s hope they got whatever it was.”

“They didn’t.” Karu suppressed the urge to jump as the hyena scout seemed to materialize out of the night. “That’s one of the brood-packs, and they’re busy wit’ Tiny’s carcass. That shriek we all heard was Tiny gettin’ killed.”

The bear stared at his underling. “Something got Tiny?? Any idea what it was?”

“Not what. Who. Couldn’t get out t’ inspect the scene, o’ course - the pack was here before we was, and they was already busy. Whoever did it is pretty good with woodscraft, and did their best to erase their tracks, but…” She led him over to the edge of the sand and pointed. “They didn’t try t’ stand around in the run and cover their traces there. And since the brood-pack was busy, I was able to get out there briefly and check ‘em out. Five of ‘em, I think. Sand’s lousy for holdin’ the shape of tracks, but there are five distinct trails. Somehow they killed Tiny and got away.”

“And they’re heading -toward- Lac d’Ete, not away from it, I assume?”

“Yep. I’d send messages up an’ down the line, Cap’n. I won’t be able to track ‘em too well before dawn, but you might get lucky with patrols... if havin’ a small group o’ us catch up t’ the furs who took out a full-grown iceworm is lucky.” The hyena-femme shifted her current wad of leaf and spat on the ground. “I wouldn’t wanna blunder into ‘em, meself.”  

Karu nodded. “I don’t blame you. Do what you can, and let me know immediately when you find out anything more definite.”

*  *  *  *

“Th-th-that w-was c-c-cold….” Ferric had been unceremoniously ordered into the first beaver pond they’d come across, clothing and all. She’d scrubbed down and then rinsed out her jumpsuit while the rest first emptied out, then rinsed and repacked, her knapsacks. The quintet was on the move again as quickly as possible, and the raccoon hadn’t had a chance to dry off properly. She’d lost one boot to the iceworm, and the second had started to come apart almost immediately afterwards, the local materials not being resistant to immersion in acid. Being barefoot didn’t bother her - rocks and thorns merely crushed under her weight, and her paw-pads were essentially armor plate - but it didn’t help her warm up.

“We can’t stop and build a fire right now, chica. That snake-thing made a lot of noise when you killed it, and I’m certain it attracted attention. We need to get our mission finished before they catch up with us.”

The wolverine nodded agreement. “Aye. They know someone’s around now, and they’ll likely even be able to track us. It’s very hard to conceal your tracks, girl. You’ve got some woodscraft skill, but you could leave footprints in bare rock.”

Exit nodded. “So what’s the new plan? Go straight through? No more stops?”

Fritjof nodded. ”I’m thinking so. We may want to wait for the right moment when we get there, but yes. We need to be there as soon as we can, before they can be sure what’s going on.”

“So… do we head back to the road, or continue going cross-country?” The mink ducked under a low branch. “We can make much better time on that road, and they already know we’re around. And if we’re still ahead of their decision loop, we can intercept any messengers they try to send if we’re on the road to make sure it stays that way.”

The feline chuckled at that turn of phrase. “Ahead of their decision loop? That sounds like an interesting concept. You’ll have to explain it in more detail.”

“Well, we call it OODA. Stands for Observe, Orient, Decide, and Act--”

“-After- the mission. For now, I’ll trust that you know what you’re talking about. Back to the highway it is.”  

*  *  *  *

“They’ve done -what-?!”

Tifa hawked and spat again. “Y’heard me, sir. We tracked ‘em to where they’d cleaned up after killing Tiny, and from there they headed back t' the road. Heading for Lac d’Ete, o’ course. I don’t think they care about bein’ spotted any more. They’re only an hour ahead of us, they lost time doing the clean-up.”

“Captain?”

Karu turned to his newest subordinate. “You have something to add, Sergeant?”

“Something to ask, sir. If I may?” The bear nodded and gestured to him to continue. Mahk turned to the scout. “Did you have a chance t’ find out what kind of furs any of ‘em are? Is there a very big raccoon with ‘em?”

Tifa raised an eyebrow at the second question. “Actually, yeah. The only one of them who ain’t wearin’ boots. How’d ya know that?”

Mahk winced. “I fought her before. The incidents that got me promoted and sent here to learn how to be a sergeant. I can’t talk about what happened, but she’s one of the trio that the Master wants dead or alive.”

“That hunnerd pounds o’ gold offer? That’s -them-?”

“Aye. Captain, you’ve -got- to get messages through, somehow. I don’t know what we’re guarding up here, but it’s important to the Master. And if -they- are here, it’s in grave danger.”

“You’re sure of this, Mahk?”

“Near as I can be without laying eyes on that raccoon personally, Captain. She’s extremely dangerous, so strong you can’t parry her strikes, and the opossum with her is no slouch either. And the mink... I don’t know how it works, but she’s got a weapon that can kill any fur she can -see-. It’s loud, makes a thunderclap when she uses it. Lord Heikio said it doesn’t use magic, but it might as well as far as we’re concerned.”.

“You’ve spoken to Lord Heikio?”

“More like listened, sir. He was talking to the Master at the time.”

“You were... if you’re spinning a tale for us, Sergeant, I’ll feed you to the ghouls personally. But if you’re serious... ”

Mahk nodded. “Swear by my ancestors, sir, I’m tellin’ the truth.”

The bear peered into his eyes, and nodded. “Right. Kasha, get everyone ready. I’m going to leave a skeleton crew here, our slowest four on watch-and-watch until we get back. Send Lucius down the line to Pont Brochet with the warning, and the rest of the flyers ahead to Lac d’Ete. Mahk, that’s your job. Tell them what you just told me, and I want them to travel separately, fly low and avoid the road. Everyone else, we’re going on a forced march to Lac d’Ete, and we need to be moving already! Hustle, people!”

*  *  *  *

Etienne grumbled to himself as he flew north. <I -hate- flying before dawn. Can’t see to land if I need to. Sky is starting to lighten now, at least.> The swallow had decided that orders or no, he’d try for the fastest route, and risk crossing the road as it followed the river rather than skirting it wide to west or east. It was not his best decision, and he never even heard the shot that killed him.

*  *  *  *

Exit lowered her rifle. “Got ‘im. But unless he was the only bird they had available, we have to assume that one of them will get through.”

“And that thing is -loud-. If they did have any other messengers en route, they’ll have heard it.” Fritjof looked only mildly annoyed, mainly because they’d had plenty of warning to protect their ears before the mink took the shot. “Time to pick up the pace. Still a bit more than two leagues to go according to that map.”

Endopossum grinned. “No problem for me.”

Ferric nodded agreement. “I’m good. Someone need a ride?”

Exit shook her head. “Not yet. Maybe in a bit, so we’re rested when we get there.”

“Got it. Let’s go, then.”

*  *  *  *

They’d left the road just before the last turn would have brought them into view of their destination, and were currently concealed within the edge of the forest while Exit examined it through her field glasses. “All right. A small but apparently wealthy village by local standards. Maybe fifty, sixty homes, the usual ancillary buildings and storehouses, and the palace/fort. Judging by the towers, it’s got six wings, probably a snowflake pattern if he keeps to his usual aesthetics. And we’ll have to cross a kilometer of open ground just to get to the bridge. Unless we want to try sneaking across the river, or moat, or whatever it is, without using the bridge.”

“None of us are otters.” Dupres’s tone was unenthusiastic in the extreme. “I doubt we could do that without being seen.”

“Not in daylight, no. But if we wait for dusk?”

Endopossum shook her head. “That’s still hours away. By then, they’ll likely have gotten word that we’re on the way, if they haven’t already, and may be able to summon reinforcements. I’m sure that the old Archon isn’t the only one around here capable of teleportation.”

Ferric nodded. “The hawk could do it between worlds. I’d be surprised if he couldn’t do it here. We don’t want to allow time for the mouse to arrive with his top henchmen again. We had enough trouble at Arlington, after all, and that was with more of us and only a few of his people.”  

The wolverine grunted. “Better tell ‘em, Leon. They’re right about the time. We don’t want to let ‘em be reinforced by the Master or any of his heavies if we’re going to have a chance at pulling this off.”

Exit swiveled her ears. “Tell us what?”

Dupres sighed. “Of all times for Friji to get talkative… What he’s hinting at is that I can take us all there, if you’re willing to walk through the shadows with me.”

“Sounds interestin’.” Endopossum grinned at the cat. “We’ll keep yer secret, if that’s what yer worried about. Superheroes are good at keepin’ secrets.”

Dupres nodded, looking a little more cheerful. “That whole ‘secret identity’ thing, right? And you’ll be gone soon if we pull this off, too. It is -not- pleasant for the uninitiated, I’m afraid, but I can take you by those pathways if you want to risk it.” He paused, thinking. “And we may have to fight on that side. The shadow plane is close to the realms of the undead, and he may have taken precautions. There are shadow-walkers working for him.”

Endopossum nodded. “Yeah. We met one when he visited our world.”

“May I borrow your device, Exit? I need to see where the best shadows are at our destination.”

“Be my guest. Your shadows are gonna have to be pretty rough to be worse than crossing that plain in the face of an arrow storm.”

TO BE CONTINUED

A Colmaton Universe fanfic.
The Colmaton Universe is the intellectual property of Train.
The Bureau of Superheroes is the intellectual property of Mojorover
Endopossum/Maxine Clark property of arvanas_sorrat
All other major characters original to me.