tunnel wasn’t quite tall enough for them
to stand up in. It was also dry. No sewage.
“It’s not being used anymore,” he said.
“It’s probably been upgraded.” Ria’s face
looked different in the shadows. Less like Vik’s. “Let’s just hope
they haven’t blocked the system off.” She glanced at the map on her
wrist. “This way.”
They started down the twists and turns. They
moved to the end of the tunnel and saw it blocked by a vertical
metal grate.
“Shit.” Zayn tested the bars. They were
welded on.
“No problem.” Ria pulled a slim device off
her belt and fired up a small laser torch. It took her a few
minutes to remove two bars. Enough for them to slide through.
In the next tunnel, a small river of sludge
moved through the tunnel. It had a vague fluorescent green tinge to
it.
Zayn frowned. “Doesn’t look good.”
Ria was frowning too. “It doesn’t smell
though.” She crouched and snatched up a tiny bit of dislodged
concrete. She tossed it into the sludge.
The fragment hissed and sizzled as it hit.
It slowly dissolved away.
“Shit. Pun intended,” Zayn said.
“Will the suits hold up?”
“Yeah. For a while as least.”
“Then we’d better be fast, flyboy.”
“I like to go fast. Let me go first.” Zayn
waded out, waiting to see if he was about to lose a limb. “Come on
in, water’s fine.”
She grinned, her teeth white in the
darkness. “Let’s go steal some blueprints.”
They made their way through the tunnels,
wading through sludge that was, at times, waist deep. Zayn wondered
if he imagined the heat growing on his suit.
“I think this is it.” Ria pointed.
A small arched doorway was set into the
wall. They climbed out of the sewage and flanked the door. When
Zayn turned the handle, he was shocked to find it unlocked.
“Finally, some good luck.”
Ria took one step forward. “I don’t believe
in good luck. Usually when things are too good to be true,
something’s about to bite you in the ass.”
He eyed her face. Vik’s face. “Yeah.”
They waited the few seconds it took for
their enviro suits to self-clean, then they entered the Tekton
base.
They were in a plush hallway lined with what
looked like real wood—a rare commodity in this part of the
quadrant.
Ria scanned the map. “Let’s find the
library. We need to go right.”
They headed down the hall. Zayn was
impressed. The woman moved without a sound, with a liquid grace
that was damned sexy and, he knew, harder than it looked. Vik had
moved with a brisk stride, like she was always in a rush.
Ria paused at a corner, checking before she
waved him on. Along the hall, she stopped. “You sound like a herd
of Tambaa beasts tramping down to the river.”
He frowned. He thought he was pretty darn
quiet.
“Loosen your muscles. Let your knees absorb
your steps. Think light.”
He followed her advice. After a few steps,
she nodded and kept going. Damned if his steps weren’t quieter.
Soon they passed through another door into a
magnificent room.
“Holy hell,” he whispered.
Shelves filled with Old World books and
folders rose up to the double-height ceiling. The domed roof was
lit with a warm glow and coated in some orange-hued metal.
“Incredible.” Ria turned in a slow circle.
She ran a hand over one of the shelves. Fingering the documents.
“We’ll never find the plans just by searching.”
He agreed. “It’d take months.”
“We need to find their catalogue system and
find the Assassin’s Guild record.”
“There’s some sort of console in the
center.” Zayn approached a small domed pedestal that stood
waist-high. Inside, it swirled with what looked like smoke. “At
least I think it’s a console. I’ve never seen anything like
it.”
“Me neither.”
“All right then.” Zayn held his palms over
the console. “Let me see what I can do. What if it trips an
alarm?”
“A risk we have to take.”
He touched the dome.
Nothing.
He swirled his hands around, looked
to stand up in. It was also dry. No sewage.
“It’s not being used anymore,” he said.
“It’s probably been upgraded.” Ria’s face
looked different in the shadows. Less like Vik’s. “Let’s just hope
they haven’t blocked the system off.” She glanced at the map on her
wrist. “This way.”
They started down the twists and turns. They
moved to the end of the tunnel and saw it blocked by a vertical
metal grate.
“Shit.” Zayn tested the bars. They were
welded on.
“No problem.” Ria pulled a slim device off
her belt and fired up a small laser torch. It took her a few
minutes to remove two bars. Enough for them to slide through.
In the next tunnel, a small river of sludge
moved through the tunnel. It had a vague fluorescent green tinge to
it.
Zayn frowned. “Doesn’t look good.”
Ria was frowning too. “It doesn’t smell
though.” She crouched and snatched up a tiny bit of dislodged
concrete. She tossed it into the sludge.
The fragment hissed and sizzled as it hit.
It slowly dissolved away.
“Shit. Pun intended,” Zayn said.
“Will the suits hold up?”
“Yeah. For a while as least.”
“Then we’d better be fast, flyboy.”
“I like to go fast. Let me go first.” Zayn
waded out, waiting to see if he was about to lose a limb. “Come on
in, water’s fine.”
She grinned, her teeth white in the
darkness. “Let’s go steal some blueprints.”
They made their way through the tunnels,
wading through sludge that was, at times, waist deep. Zayn wondered
if he imagined the heat growing on his suit.
“I think this is it.” Ria pointed.
A small arched doorway was set into the
wall. They climbed out of the sewage and flanked the door. When
Zayn turned the handle, he was shocked to find it unlocked.
“Finally, some good luck.”
Ria took one step forward. “I don’t believe
in good luck. Usually when things are too good to be true,
something’s about to bite you in the ass.”
He eyed her face. Vik’s face. “Yeah.”
They waited the few seconds it took for
their enviro suits to self-clean, then they entered the Tekton
base.
They were in a plush hallway lined with what
looked like real wood—a rare commodity in this part of the
quadrant.
Ria scanned the map. “Let’s find the
library. We need to go right.”
They headed down the hall. Zayn was
impressed. The woman moved without a sound, with a liquid grace
that was damned sexy and, he knew, harder than it looked. Vik had
moved with a brisk stride, like she was always in a rush.
Ria paused at a corner, checking before she
waved him on. Along the hall, she stopped. “You sound like a herd
of Tambaa beasts tramping down to the river.”
He frowned. He thought he was pretty darn
quiet.
“Loosen your muscles. Let your knees absorb
your steps. Think light.”
He followed her advice. After a few steps,
she nodded and kept going. Damned if his steps weren’t quieter.
Soon they passed through another door into a
magnificent room.
“Holy hell,” he whispered.
Shelves filled with Old World books and
folders rose up to the double-height ceiling. The domed roof was
lit with a warm glow and coated in some orange-hued metal.
“Incredible.” Ria turned in a slow circle.
She ran a hand over one of the shelves. Fingering the documents.
“We’ll never find the plans just by searching.”
He agreed. “It’d take months.”
“We need to find their catalogue system and
find the Assassin’s Guild record.”
“There’s some sort of console in the
center.” Zayn approached a small domed pedestal that stood
waist-high. Inside, it swirled with what looked like smoke. “At
least I think it’s a console. I’ve never seen anything like
it.”
“Me neither.”
“All right then.” Zayn held his palms over
the console. “Let me see what I can do. What if it trips an
alarm?”
“A risk we have to take.”
He touched the dome.
Nothing.
He swirled his hands around, looked
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