"The Mirrors of Chij"
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dochermes"The Mirrors of Chij"
5/18/2008
I.
A few minutes before noon, Megan Salenger suddenly rebelled. In front of her on the worktable, a laptop sat disassembled with its parts neatly laid out on sheets of white paper. She had made such extensive modifications that it essentially had a new OS its manufacturers would not recognize. It would be capable of sliding through firewalls and security protocols on everything from DMV drivers' licenses in all 50 states to Pentagon payroll records to the 'Echo Web' where international drug deals and banned weapons sales really went on. All without leaving the slightest trace of its presence. The Trom systems she used were beyond what Human knowledge would catch up to for decades.
She had spent the complete working day yesterday performing this operation on Sable's personal laptop. For the past five hours, she had been modifying this one that was used in the KDF conference room. Hunched over the brightly illuminated table, peering through magnifying goggles and painstakingly holding tiny tools in a standing frame which in turn manipulated ridiculously tinier tools, without warning she snapped. The Trom Girl yanked off her goggles and stepped back quickly from the worktable, breathing heavily and surprised at herself.
Just under thirty, Megan remained a slim gamin of a woman a few inches above five feet in height. Her thick short black hair was tousled as usual. Her sharp-nosed inquisitive face was tight with uncharacteristic anger. Megan made an exasperated noise and folded her arms as she began to pace across the white-tiled lab. She was bundled in a beige coverall smeared with old oil stains and worn at the elbows from long use, and she tugged the front zipper down so hard that it jammed. This did not improve her mood.
Perched on a stool by the open door to the hallway, Ashley Whitaker glanced up from an ancient hardbound book that was musty with age, HUMAN BEASTS OF PRAGUE. She had been refreshing her knowledge of Midnight War history while keeping Megan company until lunch. The little blonde hopped to her feet and left the book behind her on the stool. As usual, she was wearing mostly white... boots, snug jeans and a long-sleeved jersey with baby blue trim on collar and cuffs. With her long platinum-blonde mane and perfect little face, Ashley would have been naturally gorgeous even without her intense hair and skin care regimen.
"Hey, science nerd!" she called cheerfully. "Having a meltdown?"
The Trom Girl snapped her head around and bit off a sharp reply. She forced herself to breathe more slowly, deeply, calming herself. In another second, she said, "I am sorry, Ashley."
Walking over to her teammate, Unicorn placed a hand on each shoulder and shook her gently. "Nothing to be sorry about, buddy. Everybody needs a break. Come on, that 'puter can wait. It's a spectacular day outside, let's go make it ours."
Megan started wrestling with the zipper again, couldn't get it loose and finally wriggled out of the coveralls with a stamp of her feet. Underneath, she was wearing blue jeans and an oversized maroon sweatshirt. Ashley snatched the garment, wadded it up and went over to toss it in a hamper in one corner. She slapped her little hands together as if dusting them while returning.
"What is wrong with me today?" asked Megan, examining her open hands as though they belonged to someone else. "I must concentrate. Discipline. Duty. Scheduling."
"Aw, ditch that stuff," Unicorn said blithely. "Come on, there's Korean food on 32nd Street calling our names." She grabbed Megan by one arm and towed the unresisting Trom Girl behind her as she headed for the door. Pausing to press a button on the intercom, Unicorn crooned, "Oh, capppp-tain? If you don't need us right now, Megan and I are going for hot spicy kimchi that makes your nose run and your butt burn. Over."
The calm measured tones of Lauren Sable Reilly answered, "You two report to the front office first."
"Uh-oh, did you find out what I did Saturday night?" Ashley blurted.
"Wait, what did you do Saturday night? No. Skip that for now. I think I have a new case I would like to have you two investigate," Sable said as she broke the connection.
Megan had calmed down and she gave Unicorn a wry smile. "Maybe this is what I needed without consciously knowing it."
"Heck yeah, you haven't been on one of your 'Trom Girl Mysteries' in a while. I suppose you'd rather take your darling Archie with you, though."
As they stepped out into the hall and headed down the main staircase, Megan placed an arm across Ashley's narrow shoulders and squeezed. "I worry my manners are never going to be adequate. I was reared by the Trom after all. But you should know how much I enjoy your company, Ashley. Archie says I can still learn a lot from your attitude toward life."
They reached the ground floor and the front hall, with the emergency ward to their left and the office to their right. Directly ahead was the door to East 38th Street. "Me? Aw, that's sweet. Boy, ever since you hooked up with Archie, your Human side has sure blossomed. We never thought you would fall in love like this but you really dove into it head-first..." Unicorn broke off as they entered the office where Sable awaited.
Under a huge hand-painted map of the world as it had been in 1937, Lauren Sable Reilly tapped a stack of papers together and put them to one side of her desk. A little bit older than her teammates, Sable's orderly mind and quick decision-making had made her the choice to head this new team of Tel Shai knights. Dressed a bit more formally than her partners in a Navy blue pantsuit with a cream-colored blouse, Sable smiled at the abrupt entrance of Unicorn and Trom Girl.
"Hi, Sable! Whazzup?" Ashley blurted as she hurried over to grab a chair in front of the desk.
"Reporting, captain." Although her voice was more restrained and her actions more deliberate, there was still undertones of excitement and anticipation in her manner. Megan enjoyed the challenge and tension of KDF cases just as much as Unicorn did.
"Good to see you guys," Sable said. "Sheng is working in Florida and Josef is at Tel Shai being tested. You two will be teamed up today. There's a report from Fenneman's Museum of Oriental Antiquities that worries me. I'm told an attempted break-in seemed to be trying to get at one of the Mirrors of Chij."
II.
After a second, Unicorn said, "That would have a wee bit more drama if I'd ever heard of the Mirrors of Chij."
"Not really surprising you haven't," Sable answered tolerantly. Half black Cuban and half Irish, she had an intriguing face with dark thoughtful eyes, a snub upturned nose and full lips, all under a mane of glossy straight black hair brushed straight back. Sable seldom gave her looks a second thought and was sometimes amused to notice the effect she had on both men and women. "I can't find much information on them either."
"Two hundred thousand old books about the occult in this house," mused Ashley. "Kenneth Dred spent his life building the collection, spending zillions, and there's nothing about the subject? Wow."
"I remember one reference." Both women turned toward Megan hopefully. They knew she had a highly retentive memory and had heard her repeat lengthy conversations word for word years afterward. "In FORBIDDEN KNOWLEDGE. I have memorized that book."
That got a blink of awe from Unicorn. "Really? I mean, that's an absolutely gigantic loose-leaf book of handwritten notes that Dred compiled himself. That's like saying you memorized the Queens phone book." Seeing the irritated expression she was receiving, Ashley continued smoothly, "But of course, if anyone could do it..."
"There is a single phrase without explanation," Megan went on. "Mr Dred was in fact quoting another authority, the Alchemist Dr Vitarius. Quote, 'To be facing such enemies is as perilous as standing between all three Mirrors of Chij.'" Unquote. That's all. I don't know what deductions can be made from that."
Sable nodded. "Good work, Megan. Although that's a little too ambiguous to be much help. It might even be only a metaphoric phrase, like 'between Scylla and Charybdis,' rather than indicating three actual mirrors. Still, the director has contacted us and he seems agitated. I want you two to head down there and investigate. It's right opposite Washington Square."
"Anything else, captain?" Unicorn asked. Something in her tone indicated she was suspecting bad news.
"Yes. A well-known European thief and retrieval expert has been spotted in Manhattan for a few weeks, along with four bruisers in his employ. He calls himself Sam Rye, first name Sam and last name Rye."
"You're pulling my leg," Unicorn said.
"No. Of course, that's not his real name. He's not even Japanese. The authorities believe he's from Northern England, around Manchester. His last name may be Fletcher. He's been active for twenty years stealing arcane artifacts, valuable paintings and statuary, rare coins and stamps, that sort of thing." Sable gave her teammates a sobering look. "Now, Sam Rye himself is no threat. From all reports, he doesn't carry a gun and is a meek little man hitting sixty years old."
"Great," Unicorn grinned. "Finally an enemy who isn't seven feet tall and covered with fangs or tentacles and stuff."
"However," Sable continued as if not interrupted, "Rye makes up for this by hiring a group of thugs. Usual four or five big hardened bruisers with prison records, carrying sidearms and not timid about using them."
"Back to the usual," Ashley sighed. "Okay, captain, we hear and obey. Megs, you ready?"
The Trom Girl shot to her feet and rushed out the door. "I need to change."
As they heard Megan running full-tilt up the staircase to the private quarters on the fourth floor, Sable picked up the stack of papers on her desk again and regarded it sourly. "Oh, I hate this. Ashley, how would you feel about being assigned as our bookkeeper?"
"Hah! You're funny."
"I guess," she said. "But anyway, be cautious on this assignment. I have a feeling there's something dangerous involved. And I know, no matter how giddy and airheaded you act for your amusement, there's a shrewd experienced intelligence ticking away behind that adorable face."
Ashley raised two fingers to her temple in a sort of salute. "My mother raised me from the cradle to be the new Unicorn. I had more horrifying experiences and desperate close calls before I was fifteen than my teammates have had since they joined the KDF. You can't judge a blonde by her hair."
In the doorway, Megan Salenger burst back in. She had changed to white sneakers, the same blue jeans and a long-sleeved red blouse. An heavy denim vest had its bottom button closed. "Trom armor on, usual devices and weapons in designated pockets," she announced. "I'm ready for duty."
"Same here," Unicorn added. "My Horn is locked in a cabinet near the front door so I can grab it on the way out."
"Take a dart gun," Sable ordered firmly. She slid open the bottom drawer of her desk and brought up a needle-barreled air pistol in a clip-holster. Alongside it, the team leader placed a flat plastic case. "And two more clips of the anesthetic darts."
Grudgingly, Ashley Whitaker clipped the holster to her belt in the small of her back. "Now I have to wear my windbreaker to cover this. The sacrifices I make."
"Captain, we will report as soon as there are developments," Trom Girl said, exiting. Pausing in the doorway, Unicorn gave a wink, "And this 'shrewd experienced intelligence' will keep an eye on her." Then they were both gone.
Sable sighed without realizing it. She wanted very much to go with them but she had to appear at their Taylor Worth law firm later that afternoon to sign a few statements from an earlier case. It wasn't that she didn't have faith in Megan and Ashley, she thought, it was just the babysitter urge she couldn't shake.
Sable picked up the china cup from its saucer to her right and sipped the last of the Tagra tea. Its sharp minty aroma always cleared her head. It was the Tagra tea, only available from the Order, that gave Tel Shai knights their enhanced healing abilities and resistance to disease or poisons. Sable regarded the empty cup wryly. This was one reason why being accepted by Tel Shai was so highly prized. If only the Tagra tea would give her patience to keep working on these bills, she thought.
III.
Almost running over to the IMPERIAL GARAGE at 40th Street and Third Avenue, they claimed Megan's joy, the cherry-red Jeep Cherokee from its assigned slot. Clipped to the driver's sunvisor, security lights blinked steadily blue and green and they climbed in eagerly. Megan was behind the wheel, wearing a pair of wire-rimmed aviator sunglasses she took from the door pocket.
Sitting in the passenger seat, Ashley unclipped the Link from her belt and patched quite illegally into the Verizon phone system. "Watch this, buddy. You know how Jeremy gets so many cases solved because he gets tips from his army of reporters?"
"Yes," said Megan simply. She knew that the founder of the KDF, Jeremy Bane, had over the decades built up a network of people who owed him big favors, usually their lives which he had saved. In exchange, he asked only that they keep an eye open for any weird or unexplainable events around them and to inform him. It was indeed a big help in his mission.
"Well, he's not the only one," Ashley chuckled. "Hello? Uncle Bleak? Hiiiii, this is Unicorn. You got a minute? Good. Listen, I know I can always go to you for the straight dope on anything Midnight War. Am I right, of course I'm right. What can you tell me about the Three Mirrors of Chij?" She listened politely for a minute, asked for more details and then said, "Oh you are a treasure. Thank you ever so much. If there's any way I could repay you.. what? Wait, what? He does? Oh. Okay, thanks all the same, it's much appreciated."
Ashley's face was so crestfallen that Megan fought to suppress a laugh. "What- what was that all about?"
"That was Bleak. He told me that Jeremy expected I would try to use his network of informers and told him to co-operate. He said, he said that every time he gave me tips on a Midnight War affair, Jeremy paid him a bonus and never mentioned it to us!"
The forlorn little-girl voice broke Megan's will power and she started laughing outright. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry," she managed to say.
After a second, Ashley could not help smiling herself. "Teach me to try and be clever. Oh well. Anyway, Bleak only knows a little about these Mirrors. There are three of them and they are meant to be placed in a circle so you can see yourself from different angles. But no matter what, you mustn't do this?"
"Why is that?" asked Megan, circling the block for the second time in search of a parking spot. They were within sight of Washington Square Park and the streets were packed with tourists. She waited as an SYV pulled out and snagged the vacated slot to the disappointment of the car behind her.
"No one knows. No one knows who Chij was, either," said Unicorn. "That's all Bleak could tell me. I guess it's a little step in the right direction."
"Yes, but now you have to reimburse Jeremy for the information," Megan got out onto the sidewalk before starting to laugh again.
"Be that way. You are obviously releasing all the tension and strain that made you so unhappy earlier," Ashley muttered as she reached in the back and retrieved her talisman. Wrapped in a white leather cylinder, the Horn had belonged to an actual Unicorn from Okali, ensorcelled by the Eldarin so that it could disrupt spells, protect against attacks and remove gralic powers from enemies. The Horn was one of the most potent sigils in the Midnight War, it was what qualified Ashley to be a knight of Tel Shai as she had no unusual powers of her own.
They stood across the street from a two-story white stone building with a wrought iron railing across its front. A simple brass plaque on a post read "Fenneman's Museum of Oriental Antiquities, by Appointment Only." Down low by the sidewalk, a concrete stone set in the wall said "Est. 1879."
"Manhattan is crammed to the gills with funny little places like this," Ashley said. Standing next to the Jeep, she fastened the Horn to her back and buckled the straps across her chest. "When I was little, Mom took me to dozens of them. The Whalers' Museum. The Society For Preservation of Street Trolleys. Home For Ventriloquist Dummies-- now, THAT place would make you freak the freak out."
"That sounds fascinating," Trom Girl said as she waited for a truck to pass.
"Also, Mom used to dress me in rags and have me dance on street corners for pennies."
"Very interest- wait, what?" Megan swung her head around with eyes wide in alarm.
"Nah, just seeing if you were listening," Ashley scoffed. "I can tell you're already following ten trains of thought at the same time. Let's run right NOW!" She loped across the street with Megan right behind her. They stepped up to the massive oaken door of the museum and pressed the doorbell.
After thirty seconds, Unicorn said, "I think I can squeeze in though that window over there."
"Patience, Ashley." Just as Megan was about to try the bell again, the door swung outward and an older man not more than five feet tall peered out. He was wearing a formal suit, complete with vest and French cuffs with gold links and matched his tiepin. Small and wrinkled as he was, he still boasted a full head of shiny white hair.
"Yes?"
The Trom Girl held up her leather ID fold and displayed the black and silver KDF card, as well as the PI license her Trom superiors had wrangled for her.
"We were asked to come look around," she said. "Reportedly, you had a break-in."
"Please come in, young ladies," the old man said, turning aside to admit then. "I'm Carmine Altieri. This institution passed hands from the Fenneman family long ago. We have one of the world's finest collection of Bronze Age artifacts." He led them from the foyer past two closed office doors into a huge high-ceilinged room which held dozens of shields, helmets, urns and vases, as well as reconstructed pottery and statuary under the illumination of a skylight. Every piece had a label giving extensive information on the history and meaning. He walked slowly in any case, keeping close to objects or walls in case he might need support and this gave Megan and Ashley time to study the exhibits.
As they crossed the display room, the Trom Girl spoke in a voice more hushed than she had intended. "One aspect interests me, Mr Altieri. This is an impressive collection but I notice there is nothing of the occult or the esoteric about it. I see nothing related to the Midnight War."
"As a rule, we don't deal with such items," Altieri said. "This institution specializes in the Mycenean cultures. Ah. See that window? That's where the burglars managed to get in last night. They did pry it open, which set off a silent alarm."
Megan went over and scrutinized the window as well as its sill. She was silent for a long moment. "The scratch patterns are unexpected," the Trom Girl said finally. "They are mostly from outside, as might be expected, but there are a few on the inside frame as well. It's as if someone had been inside helping." She turned dark inquisitive eyes on Altieri. "Do you have any suspicions about your staff?"
"What? Heavens, no. Our people have impeccable credentials. Come, let me show you what we believe they were really after." The old man unlocked an unmarked door in one corner and flicked on overhead fluorescent lights to reveal a storeroom. Under the steady cool illumination, they saw open shelves holding various artifacts, bundles of notes tied together with cord, as well some detritus such a few broken chairs. Propped up against a plain stone wall was one of the Mirrors of Chij.
IV.
Seven feet from base to top, the Mirror was a narrow sheet of tinted glass which was bordered by a frame of a reddish metal that looked like heated copper. Elaborate symbols were etched deeply into the frame, and the top of that frame rose into two sharp outward-curving points. At the base of the Mirror, either side held a short lever on a hinge ending in a globe capped with a faceted green gem.
"This is what we believe the thieves were really after," Altieri told the two Tel Shai knights. "The Fenneman Museum has been seeking a buyer for this artifact. It's not within our area of interest at all."
Megan Salenger had dropped easily to her knees in front of the Mirror, leaning close to scrutinize it. "I don't recognize the symbols," she said after a moment, "But this is definitely a Darthan relic. This metal is gremthom, that is, iron infused with a gralic charge. These two gems are Darthan, as well." She began examining the twin posts at the base of the Mirror. Ashley lowered herself to one knee to watch in fascination.
"So, there really was a Darthan Age?" asked Altieri. "Astonishing. Archeologists and historians have generally dismissed the Darthan Age as just some folk tale without foundation."
"Oh, it was very real," Unicorn said distractedly. She was watching Megan locate hidden latches that clicked so that suddenly the globes at the base of the Mirror were free to rotate on their pivot points. As the Trom Girl manipulated the globes, the surface of the Mirror grew clouded and foggy.
"Amazing," Altieri said behind them. His voice sounded as if he had stepped back a few paces, but both the Tel Shai knights were too preoccupied to notice. "Just what is going on now?"
"My theory is that this is a scrying glass," Megan replied in an absent voice. "Darthan spells enable this Mirror to show whatever location the person moving these gems concentrates on. There. See, the image is clearing." As she spoke, the mistiness of the glass swirled and cleared away to reveal a large three-story redwood house deep in the woods. Pine trees crowded close to the building, and a white Explorer was parked by the front door.
"That's Raymond Hoetger's house in New Jersey," the Trom Girl said. "I was there several times on the Sanguinarians case. He has written several books and articles on Midnight War."
"Why is the Mirror showing us his house?" asked Altieri, now leaning over behind the two women to look over their shoulders.
"It's conjecture that needs evidence, but I suspect another of the Three Mirrors is there. This one is showing us where the other two are hidden."
"Good to know," Altieri said in a dramatically different voice. Hearing his tone change, Ashley Whitaker stood up just as he hammered the butt of a Browning automatic against the back of her head with murderous force. The impact sounded solid as a rock hitting a coconut. The little blonde did not even moan but just collapsed limply as Megan leaped up to catch her.
Altieri held the Browning at Trom Girl from just out of reach. Behind him, three big intimidating men in ill-fitting suits menacing her with an assortment of handguns including a Glock 19 and a Ruger LCP. The brutal, angry faces showed no sympathy at all. Those men looked as if they were aching for an excuse to shoot both women dead right there and then.
"Listen to me closely, my dear," said Altieri. "Your lives are hanging by a thread. Take your friend over in that corner. Yes, that's good. Stay there. Do not move. Horst, Bruno... cover the Mirror with that canvas and carry it out back to our truck."
As two of the men hurried to follow orders, Megan gently lowered Ashley to the floor and took her pulse to find it steady and strong. The blonde was breathing easily but did not respond to being moved. Megan glared up at the gunmen with unprecedented cold rage.
"Where is the real Altieri?" she demanded.
"Ah, the light dawns a bit too late?" smirked the old man. He had his automatic aimed directly at her exposed head, as did the remaining thug behind him. "I regret to say his remains are wrapped in a sheet in the basement. We resembled each other enough in a general way that a brief description would match both of us. As you must realize by now, I am in fact Sam Rye."
The Trom Girl felt Ashley stir a little in her arms. She hoped the blonde's enhanced healing would allow her to soon recover from that brutal blow to the head. A concussion like that would probably cause permanent damage or death to a normal Human. "You called us because you wanted someone with Midnight War experience to examine the Mirror."
"You are too late wise, as they say," answered Sam Rye. "Yes. We already had one of the Three Mirrors in our possession and now we have two. And you have shown us the location of the third. Thank you ever so much." The international thief stepped back a few more inches. He would not make the mistake of getting too close.
"Why do you even want them? You have no occult knowledge."
"As I understand it, all three Mirrors facing each other reveal where treasure is concealed. Buried cash from drug deals gone wrong. Gold bars hidden by the Germans at the end of World War Two and long forgotten. That sort of thing. I merely wish to ensure a comfortable retirement." He broke off as the two men returned.
"Everything loaded and ready to go, boss," said one thug who wore a cloth cap to cover a receding hairline even though he would never be presentable no matter what he did.
"Excellent. Well, Miss Salenger. Prudences dictates that I dispose of you and your friend and get it over with. I am already wanted in several countries on murder charges anyway. But, call me old-fashioned if you will, the prospect of killing attractive young women does not appeal to me."
"I'll do it, boss," offered the man with the cap. "It don't bother me at all."
"Thank you but no, Bruno. Young lady, I want you to slowly and carefully get your friend's cell phone and your own. Slide them across the floor to us. That's good. Yes, that's it. At least you won't be able to call anyone for help."
Megan did not show it on her face, she had too much restraint to give anything away, but she was gleeful that he had fallen for this trick. KDF members carried a disposable burner phone and a fake wallet with bogus credit cards and fake IDS. These were in pockets where they would be quickly found in a search. Their real wallets and the Links were better hidden.
Still aiming unerringly at Megan's face with his gun, Sam Rye bent from the knees and scooped up the two phones which the Trom Girl had slid toward him. He pocketed them and rose up with a noticeable wince. "Ow. My joints will never be thirty years old again."
Cradled in Megan's arms, Ashley groaned faintly and her legs straightened out. The Trom Girl stared angrily at the infamous thief who was backing toward the door with his men, still covering her with his gun.
"Today is Sunday," Sam Rye said. "I expect no one will be at this museum at least until tomorrow morning when the staff arrive. Even then, they may not need to enter this storeroom immediately. You are in for a boring afternoon and night, my dear, but at least we are leaving you with your life."
"I'll remember that," Megan replied flatly.
Sam Rye closed the heavy door and the lock clicked. The Trom Girl did not move Unicorn but allowed her to rest undisturbed. Almost a decade on the Tagra diet allowed them to recover quickly from trauma that would be fatal or crippling to a normal Human but of course the effect had its limits. Most Tel Shai knights died in action. She watched with grave concern as Ashley gradually came back to awareness.
"Head hurts," Unicorn mumbled, then her eyes squeezed open. "Megs? Did someone hit me?"
"Yes. Hold still. Let your body repair the damage." As Unicorn closed her eyes again and wiggled to get more comfortable, Megan waited patiently. Finally, after what seemed like hours but which was only twenty minutes, the blonde sighed and came back to full awareness.
"My poor head. Do I have a lump, Megan? Is my part straight?"
"You're lucky you don't have a skull fracture and a fatal concussion," the Trom Girl said. "Do you feel nausea? Is there a ringing in your ears?"
"No. No, to both. Today is Sunday, May the 18th, we're at the Fenneman Museum of Oriental Antiquities." Ashley struggled and sat up, taking deep breaths. "That geezer sucker punched me from behind. Dammit. Why would he do that?"
"Because he was really Sam Rye, the criminal we are looking for. Ashley, look at my hand. How many fingers am I holding up?"
"Two."
"And now?"
"Still two. Don't worry about me, Megs, I'm fine except for a headache. I've been slugged before. Are we locked in this storeroom? Did he take the Mirror of Chij?"
"Yes to both questions." The Trom Girl answered. She allowed Unicorn to sit up without support, still watching her closely. "They didn't take your Horn, I don't think they even recognized what it is."
"Well, that's good news. Just give me a second, I'll be ready to roll." She got over on her hands and knees, then slowly stood up without swaying or being unsteady. "No dizziness. Let's get out of here, Megan."
"We are fortunate in that they did not search us," Trom Girl said. "We even still have our Links and you have your dart gun. I believe Sam Rye hesitated to allow his men to get too close to us. The KDF has a certain reputation in the underworld for being dangerous."
Massaging the back of her skull very tentatively, Unicorn grimaced. "Ouch. I didn't hear anything he said, Megan. I was so knocked out I didn't even dream. Even with our healing, this isn't fun."
"I will fill you in on the way," she said. Bending over the door, she took a Trom-designed gadget the size of a cigarette lighter and pressed it against the keyhole. Flexible metal tendrils extruded themselves, shaped to fit the inside of the lock and then rotated. There was a click and Megan returned the device to its slit in her jacket as she opened the door. "We must hurry. Sam Rye has a general idea where the final Mirror is, but he also has a half hour headstart on us. It's a race now to stop him."
As they drove through the Lincoln Tunnel toward the New Jersey side of the river, Unicorn announced she felt back to normal. Megan had recounted the events which had occurred while the blonde was stunned.
"You know, shouldn't we go to base and get the CORBY? No way that Sam Rye could find this house before we're there in a MACH-plus jetcopter."
"It's not practical," Megan told as they emerged into sunlight behind the slowly-moving column of cars and trucks. "In daylight, in full sight of the public, using a CORBY would draw attention to us which Sable would never approve. We have to remain as secret as possible. Also, I do not know if there is any suitable place to land near Hoetger's house."
"I guess," Unicorn said grudgingly. "What about the poor guy stuck in the museum basement? The real Altieri? Shouldn't we report his death to the cops, Megan?"
"Not yet. Let's see how this investigation proceeds." The Trom Girl turned her dark eyes on her partner. "He's already dead, Ashley. He is beyond further harm and we need to pursue the gang without being hindered by the authorities."
"That makes sense," Unicorn admitted. "You always make sense. But I feel sorry for him just lying there with no one even knowing he's dead." She straightened up and sighed. "On the other hand, if we catch his murderers and bring them in, maybe he'll rest in peace."
VI.
Out in the wilderness of New Jersey, where the ground was still swampy and cities had given way to villages, Megan pulled over on a back road. Up on a hill, half hidden by elms, was a three-story house of redwood planks. From where they sat, the two KDF members could see a wraparound deck with parasols shielding chairs and a picnic table. The front end of a black car could just be seen peeking around one corner of the house.
"That's Raymond Hoetger's residence," Megan declared.
Leaning over into the back of the Jeep, Unicorn unsnapped something and straightened up with a pair of futuristic-looking binoculars that had its own battery pack and a short stubby antenna. "Let me use your superscience googlers," she said eagerly. "I always wanted to play with this thing." The lenses glowed a faint green and a series of clicks sounded. "Okay, let's see. Light enhancers on. Magnification, oh say 10X. Image clarity. Dum dum dum... That car is a brand new BMW 7 Series, New York plates. Tinted windows. Nice ride if you've got maybe $75,000 to blow. How successful is this Hoetger guy anyway?"
"That is absolutely not his vehicle," the Trom Girl said, demanding the powered binoculars with an outstretched hand and taking a look herself.
"So Sam Rye and his gang got here first?" complained Unicorn. "They would, those rats."
"That seems clear. Put these back, please." Megan handed Ashley the binoculars and put the Jeep in gear again. They went further up the road and pulled over on a deserted stretch. As she got out, the Trom Girl pulled a flat metal oblong from a inner pouch in her denim vest and clicked a rectangular cartridge into place. "I am using the neural shock beam," she explained while adjusting a few dials.
Unicorn hopped down from the passenger seat. She examined her dart gun, then thought twice and holstered it again. Instead, she unslung the sheath across her back and drew out the Horn. In the slanting afternoon sunlight, the talisman was a beautiful ivory spiral just over three feet in length. The flat end was covered with an ornate silver cap and the other extreme tapered to a point sharp enough to thread a needle.
"In a way, I kinda hope I don't have to use this...." Ashley muttered. "That always means something real bad is about to happen."
"We'll circle through the woods and come up on the blind side of the house from where Sam Rye's car is parked." Holding the beam projector in one hand, Megan took off at an easy lope in between the trees with Unicorn right behind her.
The little blonde quickly got in front and took the lead. From childhood, she had been taught by her mother, the first Unicorn, all about woodcraft and stealth. Ashley weighed just under a hundred pounds and she glided through the forest in uncanny silence. She didn't even seem to be trying to be quiet, but that was an illusion created by many hundreds of hours of practice. In a few minutes, she crouched down on all fours and crept up behind a cluster of three elms. Seeing the Trom Girl approach using more effort to be quiet, Ashley raised an index finger to her lips and motioned her friend to join her.
From their hiding place, they could see the back yard behind the house. Three Mirrors, all identical, stood in an inward facing circle at the 10 o'clock, 2 o'clock and 6 o'clock positions. Enough space had been left between them to allow several people to stand comfortably but there was no one in that space now. Instead, five corpses were sprawled where they had fallen outside the array of Mirrors of Chij.
For a long moment, neither woman moved. Then Megan said, "I don't observe any signs of life in those bodies. Notice the angle their heads rest in relation to their bodies?"
"Ewwwww..." Unicorn replied. "Twisted all the way around!"
The Trom Girl headed down the slope, even more alert than usual. The body of Raymond Hoetger was stretched out farthest from the Mirrors. He had been a tall beefy man in his late forties, wearing a loud Hawaiian shirt loose over a beer belly and cargo shorts. Like the others, his body was lying front side down on the lawn but his face was staring straight up at the sky with a horrified expression frozen on the dead features.
"Another civilian killed," Megan said. "If I had called the police before we even left the museum, maybe he would have been protected."
"I don't think so. My Horn is growing warm. It means there's dangerous gralic energy in the area. If the cops had come here, most likely they would have just been killed as well."
"I suppose," the Trom Girl replied in an unconvinced tone. "Here's the body of Sam Rye. I had hoped to have an opportunity to take him alive since he spared us, but that's irrelevant now. These are the three men he had with him at the museum but I don't recognize this body over here."
Unicorn came over and stared down at the final corpse. "He's older, lots of grey in his stubble. I bet he was a driver or look-out and not a bruiser."
"Yes. You have a point." The Trom Girl started approaching the circle of gremthom-framed Mirrors. "Exactly what happened here?"
"Whoa, pull up a second!" Ashley hopped around to get in front of her teammate. "We don't want to end up like these guys, looking down at our own backs! I vote we pick up some rocks and smash those mirrors into little tiny pieces and then smash them some more. Okay?"
Megan Salenger did not reply immediately. Finally, she gave her friend a serious glance. "The Kenneth Dred Foundation is fundamentally a research organization. Also, the main agenda of the Trom is the gathering and analysis of data. I feel it is important to investigate these artifacts before destroying them. What if there are more in the world? We need information."
Placing herself directly in the way, Unicorn raised her voice. "Megan! I don't often flatly contradict you but I think you're wrong this time. Look what happened to those big strong goons. They're lying there with their necks twisted like licorice Twizzlers. I don't wanna see that happen to you."
"Please stand off to one side and be ready to intervene."
"Like hell! You do NOT outrank me, missy. We joined the KDF together and were accepted at Tel Shai at the same time."
Megan considered this, studying her friend's angry face, then smiled. "Ashley, I appreciate your concern. I am glad that you are worried about my safety. But this is my duty as a Trom. I will be counting on you to keep me safe."
The little blonde responded to that with a phrase so coarse and anatomically unworkable that Megan gave a start. She almost gasped, "I have never heard you curse like that before. You must be unusually upset."
"Of course I'm upset," Unicorn barked. "Goddam it, Megan, I thought you were beginning to understand Human feelings." She exhaled slowly and backed off. "But it's anyone's guess who is more stubborn, you or me. I give in. I'll be right outside the group of Mirrors."
In fact, Ashley ended up leaning forward, one foot just within the imagined line between the three artifacts. She grasped the Horn in her left hand and had the dart gun in her right, set to full automatic fire. At the last second, she had taken one of the dazzler grenades from its pouch at the inner rear of her windbreaker and stowed it in the right front pocket for quick access. She braced herself in a slight crouch, balanced with feet well apart.
Megan looked at her friend and was struck at the change in her. Most civilians who met Unicorn casually took her to be a bubbly airhhead. Now, the shiny white hair and crystal blue eyes, the delicate features and slim curvy body, all were belied by the cold determination in the mind behind them. Unicorn was very dangerous. Knowing this was a great reassurance to Megan. She gave Ashley a confident smile and stepped into the area directly between the three Mirrors.
The images she saw were immediately confusing. There were reflections within reflections, receding into infinity. All her life, like everyone else, she had grown used to seeing her own image in mirrors reversed. Her hair's natural part was on the opposite side, and the slight asymmetry of her face was reversed. She had come to consider this the way she looked. But now, one of the reflections was a reversal of the usual and it showed her actual appearance... the way she would look to others or in photographs. The difference interested her.
Megan stepped closer. Because of the conflicting angles, the true reflection she was staring at did not return her gaze directly but looked back at her as if from the corner of its eye. It was a curious effect. She stepped closer and stared in fascination.
"Megan? You okay?" came Unicorn's voice from a vast distance, faint and almost unheard.
The Trom Girl did not reply. She was trying to see the reflections in the other two Mirrors at the same time and it was tricky. She positioned herself a bit more to one side and thought she had found the correct spot to stand. So odd...
Her true reflection turned its head and grinned wickedly at her. Megan froze in unresoning alarm. Leaping out from the mirror surface as if passing through fog, the reflection was a solid being that tackled her and brought her down heavily to the ground. The creature wrapped rubbery arms and legs that bent as if nearly boneless around her. Even taken by surprise like that, the Trom Girl reacted instantly and seized by the wrists the two hands that were trying to grasp her head. The reflection was unnaturally strong. She not only could not stop its attack, she was barely slowing it. Powerful fingers seized the top of her head and she knew with a jolt of fear that this being intended to twist her head around to break her neck.
Megan had dropped her beam projector when she had grabbed the clutching hands. Pinned down on her back, she tried to bring her left leg up and over the creature's body to pry it loose but she couldn't quite manage it. The bony fingers dug painfully into her skull as the reflection struggled to hold her body still so it could kill her.
Miles away, faint as an echo, she caught Unicorn's voice intoning, "With this Horn I remove thy power!" The Horn's effect produced immediate relief as her reflection convulsed and fell back off of her. Steam rose from its skin. Megan rolled over and hopped up onto her feet. The being which looked exactly like her was wriggling on its back and feebly trying to rise. The Trom Girl dropped to straddle it. With the full power of the Kumundu technique, Megan blasted alternating left-right hooking punches to any vulnerable spot that presented itself. She pounded away on the creature like a blacksmith striking iron on an anvil.
With a shrill crackle, the reflection broke into a thousand brittle shards and fell into scattered pieces on the grass. There was no blood, no sign of any internal organs. Kneeling over nothing, chest heaving, Megan Salenger stopped her fists in mid-swing and tried to get control of herself. She took deeper, slower breaths and forced herself to stand up again.
Behind her was the crash of breaking glass. Suddenly weary and sore, she turned her head to see Ashley drawing back a thick tree branch for another swing. Jagged slivers of glass were all over the ground, leaving the gremthom frame of one Mirror empty. Unicorn wheeled around and swung the branch with both hands as hard as she possibly could into the second Mirror. The reflection within that surface seemed to react with alarm just before the glass was shattered.
Seeing Megan watching her, Ashley said, "Come on, buddy. What are you waiting for?"
The Trom Girl picked up a softball-sized rock from the ground and immediately slammed it into the remaining mirror. As the final glass surface broke into a hundred shards, she felt an oppressive weight lift from her shoulders. Like Unicorn, she spent the next few minutes crushing the bits of broken glass into smaller and smaller pieces until only powder remained which glittered like diamond dust in the late afternoon sunlight.
"The gems, too," she said. The two Tel Shai knights unscrewed the green jewels from their posts at the bottom of the Mirrors and smashed them as well. On a roll, Megan and Ashley dragged the empty gremthom frames together into a stack and beat away on them, bending and denting the artifacts until their arms ached.
"I have to stop for a while," Unicorn gasped, dropping down to sit on the grass. "That was kinda fun, though."
Megan went over to Sam Rye's BMW and pried open the gas cap. She found a half-empty water bottle in the back seat and then opened the hood to yank out a coolant hose. The Trom Girl emptied the water bottle out, cut the hose to a shorter length with her folding multi-tool and crouched over the open gas cap. As Unicorn watched, Megan inserted one end of the hose into the gas tank and sucked on the other end for just a second until gasoline poured into the empty water bottle.
"Hey, I didn't think you knew how to do that," Ashley said with admiration. "That's how I fueled up my scooter when I was thirteen."
"At least I managed not to get any gasoline in my mouth," the Trom Girl replied. She went to pour the gasoline over the stack of bent metal frames and layer of broken glass mixed with crushed gems, then repeated the process.
"I've got one of our thermite flares," offered Ashley, holding up a metal rod the size of a Magic marker.
"Let's get this over with, then." Megan stepped back. Ashley twisted the cap on the flare, triggering a spurt of intensely bright steel-melting flame. She tossed the flare onto the gasoline-soaked pile of debris from as far away as she could manage. The whoosh and the rising fireball were immensely satisfying.
As the flames crackled and black smoke rolled, Unicorn pointed to the dead bodies still lying just beyond where the Mirrors had stood. "I don't feel too sorry for Sam Rye and his goons," she said. "They were killers for profit. But that guy, the writer..."
"Raymond Hoetger."
"Yeah, him. I don't like just leaving him like that. Does he have a girlfriend or kids or any family? What are they gonna be told?"
Megan went over to stand beside her teammate. "Not to mention Mr Altieri, still lying in the museum basement. Here's my proposal. No one knews we were involved with this incident. I suggest we head back to Manhattan. Along the way, we will make anonymous calls to 911 and to the New Jersey police reporting some dead bodies. Let them make of this what they will. Our Link signals cannot be identified."
"I guess that's the best way," Unicorn said. She had slid the Horn back into its sheath which she strapped across her back again. "What a day. Remember this morning when you were getting all jumpy and irritated because you needed a break?"
Megan gave one of her rare genuine laughs, a deep chuckle that escaped her innate reserve. "Yes. Yes, it seems so long ago."
"We might as well get back in your Jeep," Ashley said. "Let's go. I do have to say, I really really enjoy seeing you lose your cool like that. When you were whalin' on that reflection like it owed you money, it was only the second time I've seen you get all physical. You ought to do it more often."
4/10/2017
5/18/2008
I.
A few minutes before noon, Megan Salenger suddenly rebelled. In front of her on the worktable, a laptop sat disassembled with its parts neatly laid out on sheets of white paper. She had made such extensive modifications that it essentially had a new OS its manufacturers would not recognize. It would be capable of sliding through firewalls and security protocols on everything from DMV drivers' licenses in all 50 states to Pentagon payroll records to the 'Echo Web' where international drug deals and banned weapons sales really went on. All without leaving the slightest trace of its presence. The Trom systems she used were beyond what Human knowledge would catch up to for decades.
She had spent the complete working day yesterday performing this operation on Sable's personal laptop. For the past five hours, she had been modifying this one that was used in the KDF conference room. Hunched over the brightly illuminated table, peering through magnifying goggles and painstakingly holding tiny tools in a standing frame which in turn manipulated ridiculously tinier tools, without warning she snapped. The Trom Girl yanked off her goggles and stepped back quickly from the worktable, breathing heavily and surprised at herself.
Just under thirty, Megan remained a slim gamin of a woman a few inches above five feet in height. Her thick short black hair was tousled as usual. Her sharp-nosed inquisitive face was tight with uncharacteristic anger. Megan made an exasperated noise and folded her arms as she began to pace across the white-tiled lab. She was bundled in a beige coverall smeared with old oil stains and worn at the elbows from long use, and she tugged the front zipper down so hard that it jammed. This did not improve her mood.
Perched on a stool by the open door to the hallway, Ashley Whitaker glanced up from an ancient hardbound book that was musty with age, HUMAN BEASTS OF PRAGUE. She had been refreshing her knowledge of Midnight War history while keeping Megan company until lunch. The little blonde hopped to her feet and left the book behind her on the stool. As usual, she was wearing mostly white... boots, snug jeans and a long-sleeved jersey with baby blue trim on collar and cuffs. With her long platinum-blonde mane and perfect little face, Ashley would have been naturally gorgeous even without her intense hair and skin care regimen.
"Hey, science nerd!" she called cheerfully. "Having a meltdown?"
The Trom Girl snapped her head around and bit off a sharp reply. She forced herself to breathe more slowly, deeply, calming herself. In another second, she said, "I am sorry, Ashley."
Walking over to her teammate, Unicorn placed a hand on each shoulder and shook her gently. "Nothing to be sorry about, buddy. Everybody needs a break. Come on, that 'puter can wait. It's a spectacular day outside, let's go make it ours."
Megan started wrestling with the zipper again, couldn't get it loose and finally wriggled out of the coveralls with a stamp of her feet. Underneath, she was wearing blue jeans and an oversized maroon sweatshirt. Ashley snatched the garment, wadded it up and went over to toss it in a hamper in one corner. She slapped her little hands together as if dusting them while returning.
"What is wrong with me today?" asked Megan, examining her open hands as though they belonged to someone else. "I must concentrate. Discipline. Duty. Scheduling."
"Aw, ditch that stuff," Unicorn said blithely. "Come on, there's Korean food on 32nd Street calling our names." She grabbed Megan by one arm and towed the unresisting Trom Girl behind her as she headed for the door. Pausing to press a button on the intercom, Unicorn crooned, "Oh, capppp-tain? If you don't need us right now, Megan and I are going for hot spicy kimchi that makes your nose run and your butt burn. Over."
The calm measured tones of Lauren Sable Reilly answered, "You two report to the front office first."
"Uh-oh, did you find out what I did Saturday night?" Ashley blurted.
"Wait, what did you do Saturday night? No. Skip that for now. I think I have a new case I would like to have you two investigate," Sable said as she broke the connection.
Megan had calmed down and she gave Unicorn a wry smile. "Maybe this is what I needed without consciously knowing it."
"Heck yeah, you haven't been on one of your 'Trom Girl Mysteries' in a while. I suppose you'd rather take your darling Archie with you, though."
As they stepped out into the hall and headed down the main staircase, Megan placed an arm across Ashley's narrow shoulders and squeezed. "I worry my manners are never going to be adequate. I was reared by the Trom after all. But you should know how much I enjoy your company, Ashley. Archie says I can still learn a lot from your attitude toward life."
They reached the ground floor and the front hall, with the emergency ward to their left and the office to their right. Directly ahead was the door to East 38th Street. "Me? Aw, that's sweet. Boy, ever since you hooked up with Archie, your Human side has sure blossomed. We never thought you would fall in love like this but you really dove into it head-first..." Unicorn broke off as they entered the office where Sable awaited.
Under a huge hand-painted map of the world as it had been in 1937, Lauren Sable Reilly tapped a stack of papers together and put them to one side of her desk. A little bit older than her teammates, Sable's orderly mind and quick decision-making had made her the choice to head this new team of Tel Shai knights. Dressed a bit more formally than her partners in a Navy blue pantsuit with a cream-colored blouse, Sable smiled at the abrupt entrance of Unicorn and Trom Girl.
"Hi, Sable! Whazzup?" Ashley blurted as she hurried over to grab a chair in front of the desk.
"Reporting, captain." Although her voice was more restrained and her actions more deliberate, there was still undertones of excitement and anticipation in her manner. Megan enjoyed the challenge and tension of KDF cases just as much as Unicorn did.
"Good to see you guys," Sable said. "Sheng is working in Florida and Josef is at Tel Shai being tested. You two will be teamed up today. There's a report from Fenneman's Museum of Oriental Antiquities that worries me. I'm told an attempted break-in seemed to be trying to get at one of the Mirrors of Chij."
II.
After a second, Unicorn said, "That would have a wee bit more drama if I'd ever heard of the Mirrors of Chij."
"Not really surprising you haven't," Sable answered tolerantly. Half black Cuban and half Irish, she had an intriguing face with dark thoughtful eyes, a snub upturned nose and full lips, all under a mane of glossy straight black hair brushed straight back. Sable seldom gave her looks a second thought and was sometimes amused to notice the effect she had on both men and women. "I can't find much information on them either."
"Two hundred thousand old books about the occult in this house," mused Ashley. "Kenneth Dred spent his life building the collection, spending zillions, and there's nothing about the subject? Wow."
"I remember one reference." Both women turned toward Megan hopefully. They knew she had a highly retentive memory and had heard her repeat lengthy conversations word for word years afterward. "In FORBIDDEN KNOWLEDGE. I have memorized that book."
That got a blink of awe from Unicorn. "Really? I mean, that's an absolutely gigantic loose-leaf book of handwritten notes that Dred compiled himself. That's like saying you memorized the Queens phone book." Seeing the irritated expression she was receiving, Ashley continued smoothly, "But of course, if anyone could do it..."
"There is a single phrase without explanation," Megan went on. "Mr Dred was in fact quoting another authority, the Alchemist Dr Vitarius. Quote, 'To be facing such enemies is as perilous as standing between all three Mirrors of Chij.'" Unquote. That's all. I don't know what deductions can be made from that."
Sable nodded. "Good work, Megan. Although that's a little too ambiguous to be much help. It might even be only a metaphoric phrase, like 'between Scylla and Charybdis,' rather than indicating three actual mirrors. Still, the director has contacted us and he seems agitated. I want you two to head down there and investigate. It's right opposite Washington Square."
"Anything else, captain?" Unicorn asked. Something in her tone indicated she was suspecting bad news.
"Yes. A well-known European thief and retrieval expert has been spotted in Manhattan for a few weeks, along with four bruisers in his employ. He calls himself Sam Rye, first name Sam and last name Rye."
"You're pulling my leg," Unicorn said.
"No. Of course, that's not his real name. He's not even Japanese. The authorities believe he's from Northern England, around Manchester. His last name may be Fletcher. He's been active for twenty years stealing arcane artifacts, valuable paintings and statuary, rare coins and stamps, that sort of thing." Sable gave her teammates a sobering look. "Now, Sam Rye himself is no threat. From all reports, he doesn't carry a gun and is a meek little man hitting sixty years old."
"Great," Unicorn grinned. "Finally an enemy who isn't seven feet tall and covered with fangs or tentacles and stuff."
"However," Sable continued as if not interrupted, "Rye makes up for this by hiring a group of thugs. Usual four or five big hardened bruisers with prison records, carrying sidearms and not timid about using them."
"Back to the usual," Ashley sighed. "Okay, captain, we hear and obey. Megs, you ready?"
The Trom Girl shot to her feet and rushed out the door. "I need to change."
As they heard Megan running full-tilt up the staircase to the private quarters on the fourth floor, Sable picked up the stack of papers on her desk again and regarded it sourly. "Oh, I hate this. Ashley, how would you feel about being assigned as our bookkeeper?"
"Hah! You're funny."
"I guess," she said. "But anyway, be cautious on this assignment. I have a feeling there's something dangerous involved. And I know, no matter how giddy and airheaded you act for your amusement, there's a shrewd experienced intelligence ticking away behind that adorable face."
Ashley raised two fingers to her temple in a sort of salute. "My mother raised me from the cradle to be the new Unicorn. I had more horrifying experiences and desperate close calls before I was fifteen than my teammates have had since they joined the KDF. You can't judge a blonde by her hair."
In the doorway, Megan Salenger burst back in. She had changed to white sneakers, the same blue jeans and a long-sleeved red blouse. An heavy denim vest had its bottom button closed. "Trom armor on, usual devices and weapons in designated pockets," she announced. "I'm ready for duty."
"Same here," Unicorn added. "My Horn is locked in a cabinet near the front door so I can grab it on the way out."
"Take a dart gun," Sable ordered firmly. She slid open the bottom drawer of her desk and brought up a needle-barreled air pistol in a clip-holster. Alongside it, the team leader placed a flat plastic case. "And two more clips of the anesthetic darts."
Grudgingly, Ashley Whitaker clipped the holster to her belt in the small of her back. "Now I have to wear my windbreaker to cover this. The sacrifices I make."
"Captain, we will report as soon as there are developments," Trom Girl said, exiting. Pausing in the doorway, Unicorn gave a wink, "And this 'shrewd experienced intelligence' will keep an eye on her." Then they were both gone.
Sable sighed without realizing it. She wanted very much to go with them but she had to appear at their Taylor Worth law firm later that afternoon to sign a few statements from an earlier case. It wasn't that she didn't have faith in Megan and Ashley, she thought, it was just the babysitter urge she couldn't shake.
Sable picked up the china cup from its saucer to her right and sipped the last of the Tagra tea. Its sharp minty aroma always cleared her head. It was the Tagra tea, only available from the Order, that gave Tel Shai knights their enhanced healing abilities and resistance to disease or poisons. Sable regarded the empty cup wryly. This was one reason why being accepted by Tel Shai was so highly prized. If only the Tagra tea would give her patience to keep working on these bills, she thought.
III.
Almost running over to the IMPERIAL GARAGE at 40th Street and Third Avenue, they claimed Megan's joy, the cherry-red Jeep Cherokee from its assigned slot. Clipped to the driver's sunvisor, security lights blinked steadily blue and green and they climbed in eagerly. Megan was behind the wheel, wearing a pair of wire-rimmed aviator sunglasses she took from the door pocket.
Sitting in the passenger seat, Ashley unclipped the Link from her belt and patched quite illegally into the Verizon phone system. "Watch this, buddy. You know how Jeremy gets so many cases solved because he gets tips from his army of reporters?"
"Yes," said Megan simply. She knew that the founder of the KDF, Jeremy Bane, had over the decades built up a network of people who owed him big favors, usually their lives which he had saved. In exchange, he asked only that they keep an eye open for any weird or unexplainable events around them and to inform him. It was indeed a big help in his mission.
"Well, he's not the only one," Ashley chuckled. "Hello? Uncle Bleak? Hiiiii, this is Unicorn. You got a minute? Good. Listen, I know I can always go to you for the straight dope on anything Midnight War. Am I right, of course I'm right. What can you tell me about the Three Mirrors of Chij?" She listened politely for a minute, asked for more details and then said, "Oh you are a treasure. Thank you ever so much. If there's any way I could repay you.. what? Wait, what? He does? Oh. Okay, thanks all the same, it's much appreciated."
Ashley's face was so crestfallen that Megan fought to suppress a laugh. "What- what was that all about?"
"That was Bleak. He told me that Jeremy expected I would try to use his network of informers and told him to co-operate. He said, he said that every time he gave me tips on a Midnight War affair, Jeremy paid him a bonus and never mentioned it to us!"
The forlorn little-girl voice broke Megan's will power and she started laughing outright. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry," she managed to say.
After a second, Ashley could not help smiling herself. "Teach me to try and be clever. Oh well. Anyway, Bleak only knows a little about these Mirrors. There are three of them and they are meant to be placed in a circle so you can see yourself from different angles. But no matter what, you mustn't do this?"
"Why is that?" asked Megan, circling the block for the second time in search of a parking spot. They were within sight of Washington Square Park and the streets were packed with tourists. She waited as an SYV pulled out and snagged the vacated slot to the disappointment of the car behind her.
"No one knows. No one knows who Chij was, either," said Unicorn. "That's all Bleak could tell me. I guess it's a little step in the right direction."
"Yes, but now you have to reimburse Jeremy for the information," Megan got out onto the sidewalk before starting to laugh again.
"Be that way. You are obviously releasing all the tension and strain that made you so unhappy earlier," Ashley muttered as she reached in the back and retrieved her talisman. Wrapped in a white leather cylinder, the Horn had belonged to an actual Unicorn from Okali, ensorcelled by the Eldarin so that it could disrupt spells, protect against attacks and remove gralic powers from enemies. The Horn was one of the most potent sigils in the Midnight War, it was what qualified Ashley to be a knight of Tel Shai as she had no unusual powers of her own.
They stood across the street from a two-story white stone building with a wrought iron railing across its front. A simple brass plaque on a post read "Fenneman's Museum of Oriental Antiquities, by Appointment Only." Down low by the sidewalk, a concrete stone set in the wall said "Est. 1879."
"Manhattan is crammed to the gills with funny little places like this," Ashley said. Standing next to the Jeep, she fastened the Horn to her back and buckled the straps across her chest. "When I was little, Mom took me to dozens of them. The Whalers' Museum. The Society For Preservation of Street Trolleys. Home For Ventriloquist Dummies-- now, THAT place would make you freak the freak out."
"That sounds fascinating," Trom Girl said as she waited for a truck to pass.
"Also, Mom used to dress me in rags and have me dance on street corners for pennies."
"Very interest- wait, what?" Megan swung her head around with eyes wide in alarm.
"Nah, just seeing if you were listening," Ashley scoffed. "I can tell you're already following ten trains of thought at the same time. Let's run right NOW!" She loped across the street with Megan right behind her. They stepped up to the massive oaken door of the museum and pressed the doorbell.
After thirty seconds, Unicorn said, "I think I can squeeze in though that window over there."
"Patience, Ashley." Just as Megan was about to try the bell again, the door swung outward and an older man not more than five feet tall peered out. He was wearing a formal suit, complete with vest and French cuffs with gold links and matched his tiepin. Small and wrinkled as he was, he still boasted a full head of shiny white hair.
"Yes?"
The Trom Girl held up her leather ID fold and displayed the black and silver KDF card, as well as the PI license her Trom superiors had wrangled for her.
"We were asked to come look around," she said. "Reportedly, you had a break-in."
"Please come in, young ladies," the old man said, turning aside to admit then. "I'm Carmine Altieri. This institution passed hands from the Fenneman family long ago. We have one of the world's finest collection of Bronze Age artifacts." He led them from the foyer past two closed office doors into a huge high-ceilinged room which held dozens of shields, helmets, urns and vases, as well as reconstructed pottery and statuary under the illumination of a skylight. Every piece had a label giving extensive information on the history and meaning. He walked slowly in any case, keeping close to objects or walls in case he might need support and this gave Megan and Ashley time to study the exhibits.
As they crossed the display room, the Trom Girl spoke in a voice more hushed than she had intended. "One aspect interests me, Mr Altieri. This is an impressive collection but I notice there is nothing of the occult or the esoteric about it. I see nothing related to the Midnight War."
"As a rule, we don't deal with such items," Altieri said. "This institution specializes in the Mycenean cultures. Ah. See that window? That's where the burglars managed to get in last night. They did pry it open, which set off a silent alarm."
Megan went over and scrutinized the window as well as its sill. She was silent for a long moment. "The scratch patterns are unexpected," the Trom Girl said finally. "They are mostly from outside, as might be expected, but there are a few on the inside frame as well. It's as if someone had been inside helping." She turned dark inquisitive eyes on Altieri. "Do you have any suspicions about your staff?"
"What? Heavens, no. Our people have impeccable credentials. Come, let me show you what we believe they were really after." The old man unlocked an unmarked door in one corner and flicked on overhead fluorescent lights to reveal a storeroom. Under the steady cool illumination, they saw open shelves holding various artifacts, bundles of notes tied together with cord, as well some detritus such a few broken chairs. Propped up against a plain stone wall was one of the Mirrors of Chij.
IV.
Seven feet from base to top, the Mirror was a narrow sheet of tinted glass which was bordered by a frame of a reddish metal that looked like heated copper. Elaborate symbols were etched deeply into the frame, and the top of that frame rose into two sharp outward-curving points. At the base of the Mirror, either side held a short lever on a hinge ending in a globe capped with a faceted green gem.
"This is what we believe the thieves were really after," Altieri told the two Tel Shai knights. "The Fenneman Museum has been seeking a buyer for this artifact. It's not within our area of interest at all."
Megan Salenger had dropped easily to her knees in front of the Mirror, leaning close to scrutinize it. "I don't recognize the symbols," she said after a moment, "But this is definitely a Darthan relic. This metal is gremthom, that is, iron infused with a gralic charge. These two gems are Darthan, as well." She began examining the twin posts at the base of the Mirror. Ashley lowered herself to one knee to watch in fascination.
"So, there really was a Darthan Age?" asked Altieri. "Astonishing. Archeologists and historians have generally dismissed the Darthan Age as just some folk tale without foundation."
"Oh, it was very real," Unicorn said distractedly. She was watching Megan locate hidden latches that clicked so that suddenly the globes at the base of the Mirror were free to rotate on their pivot points. As the Trom Girl manipulated the globes, the surface of the Mirror grew clouded and foggy.
"Amazing," Altieri said behind them. His voice sounded as if he had stepped back a few paces, but both the Tel Shai knights were too preoccupied to notice. "Just what is going on now?"
"My theory is that this is a scrying glass," Megan replied in an absent voice. "Darthan spells enable this Mirror to show whatever location the person moving these gems concentrates on. There. See, the image is clearing." As she spoke, the mistiness of the glass swirled and cleared away to reveal a large three-story redwood house deep in the woods. Pine trees crowded close to the building, and a white Explorer was parked by the front door.
"That's Raymond Hoetger's house in New Jersey," the Trom Girl said. "I was there several times on the Sanguinarians case. He has written several books and articles on Midnight War."
"Why is the Mirror showing us his house?" asked Altieri, now leaning over behind the two women to look over their shoulders.
"It's conjecture that needs evidence, but I suspect another of the Three Mirrors is there. This one is showing us where the other two are hidden."
"Good to know," Altieri said in a dramatically different voice. Hearing his tone change, Ashley Whitaker stood up just as he hammered the butt of a Browning automatic against the back of her head with murderous force. The impact sounded solid as a rock hitting a coconut. The little blonde did not even moan but just collapsed limply as Megan leaped up to catch her.
Altieri held the Browning at Trom Girl from just out of reach. Behind him, three big intimidating men in ill-fitting suits menacing her with an assortment of handguns including a Glock 19 and a Ruger LCP. The brutal, angry faces showed no sympathy at all. Those men looked as if they were aching for an excuse to shoot both women dead right there and then.
"Listen to me closely, my dear," said Altieri. "Your lives are hanging by a thread. Take your friend over in that corner. Yes, that's good. Stay there. Do not move. Horst, Bruno... cover the Mirror with that canvas and carry it out back to our truck."
As two of the men hurried to follow orders, Megan gently lowered Ashley to the floor and took her pulse to find it steady and strong. The blonde was breathing easily but did not respond to being moved. Megan glared up at the gunmen with unprecedented cold rage.
"Where is the real Altieri?" she demanded.
"Ah, the light dawns a bit too late?" smirked the old man. He had his automatic aimed directly at her exposed head, as did the remaining thug behind him. "I regret to say his remains are wrapped in a sheet in the basement. We resembled each other enough in a general way that a brief description would match both of us. As you must realize by now, I am in fact Sam Rye."
The Trom Girl felt Ashley stir a little in her arms. She hoped the blonde's enhanced healing would allow her to soon recover from that brutal blow to the head. A concussion like that would probably cause permanent damage or death to a normal Human. "You called us because you wanted someone with Midnight War experience to examine the Mirror."
"You are too late wise, as they say," answered Sam Rye. "Yes. We already had one of the Three Mirrors in our possession and now we have two. And you have shown us the location of the third. Thank you ever so much." The international thief stepped back a few more inches. He would not make the mistake of getting too close.
"Why do you even want them? You have no occult knowledge."
"As I understand it, all three Mirrors facing each other reveal where treasure is concealed. Buried cash from drug deals gone wrong. Gold bars hidden by the Germans at the end of World War Two and long forgotten. That sort of thing. I merely wish to ensure a comfortable retirement." He broke off as the two men returned.
"Everything loaded and ready to go, boss," said one thug who wore a cloth cap to cover a receding hairline even though he would never be presentable no matter what he did.
"Excellent. Well, Miss Salenger. Prudences dictates that I dispose of you and your friend and get it over with. I am already wanted in several countries on murder charges anyway. But, call me old-fashioned if you will, the prospect of killing attractive young women does not appeal to me."
"I'll do it, boss," offered the man with the cap. "It don't bother me at all."
"Thank you but no, Bruno. Young lady, I want you to slowly and carefully get your friend's cell phone and your own. Slide them across the floor to us. That's good. Yes, that's it. At least you won't be able to call anyone for help."
Megan did not show it on her face, she had too much restraint to give anything away, but she was gleeful that he had fallen for this trick. KDF members carried a disposable burner phone and a fake wallet with bogus credit cards and fake IDS. These were in pockets where they would be quickly found in a search. Their real wallets and the Links were better hidden.
Still aiming unerringly at Megan's face with his gun, Sam Rye bent from the knees and scooped up the two phones which the Trom Girl had slid toward him. He pocketed them and rose up with a noticeable wince. "Ow. My joints will never be thirty years old again."
Cradled in Megan's arms, Ashley groaned faintly and her legs straightened out. The Trom Girl stared angrily at the infamous thief who was backing toward the door with his men, still covering her with his gun.
"Today is Sunday," Sam Rye said. "I expect no one will be at this museum at least until tomorrow morning when the staff arrive. Even then, they may not need to enter this storeroom immediately. You are in for a boring afternoon and night, my dear, but at least we are leaving you with your life."
"I'll remember that," Megan replied flatly.
Sam Rye closed the heavy door and the lock clicked. The Trom Girl did not move Unicorn but allowed her to rest undisturbed. Almost a decade on the Tagra diet allowed them to recover quickly from trauma that would be fatal or crippling to a normal Human but of course the effect had its limits. Most Tel Shai knights died in action. She watched with grave concern as Ashley gradually came back to awareness.
"Head hurts," Unicorn mumbled, then her eyes squeezed open. "Megs? Did someone hit me?"
"Yes. Hold still. Let your body repair the damage." As Unicorn closed her eyes again and wiggled to get more comfortable, Megan waited patiently. Finally, after what seemed like hours but which was only twenty minutes, the blonde sighed and came back to full awareness.
"My poor head. Do I have a lump, Megan? Is my part straight?"
"You're lucky you don't have a skull fracture and a fatal concussion," the Trom Girl said. "Do you feel nausea? Is there a ringing in your ears?"
"No. No, to both. Today is Sunday, May the 18th, we're at the Fenneman Museum of Oriental Antiquities." Ashley struggled and sat up, taking deep breaths. "That geezer sucker punched me from behind. Dammit. Why would he do that?"
"Because he was really Sam Rye, the criminal we are looking for. Ashley, look at my hand. How many fingers am I holding up?"
"Two."
"And now?"
"Still two. Don't worry about me, Megs, I'm fine except for a headache. I've been slugged before. Are we locked in this storeroom? Did he take the Mirror of Chij?"
"Yes to both questions." The Trom Girl answered. She allowed Unicorn to sit up without support, still watching her closely. "They didn't take your Horn, I don't think they even recognized what it is."
"Well, that's good news. Just give me a second, I'll be ready to roll." She got over on her hands and knees, then slowly stood up without swaying or being unsteady. "No dizziness. Let's get out of here, Megan."
"We are fortunate in that they did not search us," Trom Girl said. "We even still have our Links and you have your dart gun. I believe Sam Rye hesitated to allow his men to get too close to us. The KDF has a certain reputation in the underworld for being dangerous."
Massaging the back of her skull very tentatively, Unicorn grimaced. "Ouch. I didn't hear anything he said, Megan. I was so knocked out I didn't even dream. Even with our healing, this isn't fun."
"I will fill you in on the way," she said. Bending over the door, she took a Trom-designed gadget the size of a cigarette lighter and pressed it against the keyhole. Flexible metal tendrils extruded themselves, shaped to fit the inside of the lock and then rotated. There was a click and Megan returned the device to its slit in her jacket as she opened the door. "We must hurry. Sam Rye has a general idea where the final Mirror is, but he also has a half hour headstart on us. It's a race now to stop him."
As they drove through the Lincoln Tunnel toward the New Jersey side of the river, Unicorn announced she felt back to normal. Megan had recounted the events which had occurred while the blonde was stunned.
"You know, shouldn't we go to base and get the CORBY? No way that Sam Rye could find this house before we're there in a MACH-plus jetcopter."
"It's not practical," Megan told as they emerged into sunlight behind the slowly-moving column of cars and trucks. "In daylight, in full sight of the public, using a CORBY would draw attention to us which Sable would never approve. We have to remain as secret as possible. Also, I do not know if there is any suitable place to land near Hoetger's house."
"I guess," Unicorn said grudgingly. "What about the poor guy stuck in the museum basement? The real Altieri? Shouldn't we report his death to the cops, Megan?"
"Not yet. Let's see how this investigation proceeds." The Trom Girl turned her dark eyes on her partner. "He's already dead, Ashley. He is beyond further harm and we need to pursue the gang without being hindered by the authorities."
"That makes sense," Unicorn admitted. "You always make sense. But I feel sorry for him just lying there with no one even knowing he's dead." She straightened up and sighed. "On the other hand, if we catch his murderers and bring them in, maybe he'll rest in peace."
VI.
Out in the wilderness of New Jersey, where the ground was still swampy and cities had given way to villages, Megan pulled over on a back road. Up on a hill, half hidden by elms, was a three-story house of redwood planks. From where they sat, the two KDF members could see a wraparound deck with parasols shielding chairs and a picnic table. The front end of a black car could just be seen peeking around one corner of the house.
"That's Raymond Hoetger's residence," Megan declared.
Leaning over into the back of the Jeep, Unicorn unsnapped something and straightened up with a pair of futuristic-looking binoculars that had its own battery pack and a short stubby antenna. "Let me use your superscience googlers," she said eagerly. "I always wanted to play with this thing." The lenses glowed a faint green and a series of clicks sounded. "Okay, let's see. Light enhancers on. Magnification, oh say 10X. Image clarity. Dum dum dum... That car is a brand new BMW 7 Series, New York plates. Tinted windows. Nice ride if you've got maybe $75,000 to blow. How successful is this Hoetger guy anyway?"
"That is absolutely not his vehicle," the Trom Girl said, demanding the powered binoculars with an outstretched hand and taking a look herself.
"So Sam Rye and his gang got here first?" complained Unicorn. "They would, those rats."
"That seems clear. Put these back, please." Megan handed Ashley the binoculars and put the Jeep in gear again. They went further up the road and pulled over on a deserted stretch. As she got out, the Trom Girl pulled a flat metal oblong from a inner pouch in her denim vest and clicked a rectangular cartridge into place. "I am using the neural shock beam," she explained while adjusting a few dials.
Unicorn hopped down from the passenger seat. She examined her dart gun, then thought twice and holstered it again. Instead, she unslung the sheath across her back and drew out the Horn. In the slanting afternoon sunlight, the talisman was a beautiful ivory spiral just over three feet in length. The flat end was covered with an ornate silver cap and the other extreme tapered to a point sharp enough to thread a needle.
"In a way, I kinda hope I don't have to use this...." Ashley muttered. "That always means something real bad is about to happen."
"We'll circle through the woods and come up on the blind side of the house from where Sam Rye's car is parked." Holding the beam projector in one hand, Megan took off at an easy lope in between the trees with Unicorn right behind her.
The little blonde quickly got in front and took the lead. From childhood, she had been taught by her mother, the first Unicorn, all about woodcraft and stealth. Ashley weighed just under a hundred pounds and she glided through the forest in uncanny silence. She didn't even seem to be trying to be quiet, but that was an illusion created by many hundreds of hours of practice. In a few minutes, she crouched down on all fours and crept up behind a cluster of three elms. Seeing the Trom Girl approach using more effort to be quiet, Ashley raised an index finger to her lips and motioned her friend to join her.
From their hiding place, they could see the back yard behind the house. Three Mirrors, all identical, stood in an inward facing circle at the 10 o'clock, 2 o'clock and 6 o'clock positions. Enough space had been left between them to allow several people to stand comfortably but there was no one in that space now. Instead, five corpses were sprawled where they had fallen outside the array of Mirrors of Chij.
For a long moment, neither woman moved. Then Megan said, "I don't observe any signs of life in those bodies. Notice the angle their heads rest in relation to their bodies?"
"Ewwwww..." Unicorn replied. "Twisted all the way around!"
The Trom Girl headed down the slope, even more alert than usual. The body of Raymond Hoetger was stretched out farthest from the Mirrors. He had been a tall beefy man in his late forties, wearing a loud Hawaiian shirt loose over a beer belly and cargo shorts. Like the others, his body was lying front side down on the lawn but his face was staring straight up at the sky with a horrified expression frozen on the dead features.
"Another civilian killed," Megan said. "If I had called the police before we even left the museum, maybe he would have been protected."
"I don't think so. My Horn is growing warm. It means there's dangerous gralic energy in the area. If the cops had come here, most likely they would have just been killed as well."
"I suppose," the Trom Girl replied in an unconvinced tone. "Here's the body of Sam Rye. I had hoped to have an opportunity to take him alive since he spared us, but that's irrelevant now. These are the three men he had with him at the museum but I don't recognize this body over here."
Unicorn came over and stared down at the final corpse. "He's older, lots of grey in his stubble. I bet he was a driver or look-out and not a bruiser."
"Yes. You have a point." The Trom Girl started approaching the circle of gremthom-framed Mirrors. "Exactly what happened here?"
"Whoa, pull up a second!" Ashley hopped around to get in front of her teammate. "We don't want to end up like these guys, looking down at our own backs! I vote we pick up some rocks and smash those mirrors into little tiny pieces and then smash them some more. Okay?"
Megan Salenger did not reply immediately. Finally, she gave her friend a serious glance. "The Kenneth Dred Foundation is fundamentally a research organization. Also, the main agenda of the Trom is the gathering and analysis of data. I feel it is important to investigate these artifacts before destroying them. What if there are more in the world? We need information."
Placing herself directly in the way, Unicorn raised her voice. "Megan! I don't often flatly contradict you but I think you're wrong this time. Look what happened to those big strong goons. They're lying there with their necks twisted like licorice Twizzlers. I don't wanna see that happen to you."
"Please stand off to one side and be ready to intervene."
"Like hell! You do NOT outrank me, missy. We joined the KDF together and were accepted at Tel Shai at the same time."
Megan considered this, studying her friend's angry face, then smiled. "Ashley, I appreciate your concern. I am glad that you are worried about my safety. But this is my duty as a Trom. I will be counting on you to keep me safe."
The little blonde responded to that with a phrase so coarse and anatomically unworkable that Megan gave a start. She almost gasped, "I have never heard you curse like that before. You must be unusually upset."
"Of course I'm upset," Unicorn barked. "Goddam it, Megan, I thought you were beginning to understand Human feelings." She exhaled slowly and backed off. "But it's anyone's guess who is more stubborn, you or me. I give in. I'll be right outside the group of Mirrors."
In fact, Ashley ended up leaning forward, one foot just within the imagined line between the three artifacts. She grasped the Horn in her left hand and had the dart gun in her right, set to full automatic fire. At the last second, she had taken one of the dazzler grenades from its pouch at the inner rear of her windbreaker and stowed it in the right front pocket for quick access. She braced herself in a slight crouch, balanced with feet well apart.
Megan looked at her friend and was struck at the change in her. Most civilians who met Unicorn casually took her to be a bubbly airhhead. Now, the shiny white hair and crystal blue eyes, the delicate features and slim curvy body, all were belied by the cold determination in the mind behind them. Unicorn was very dangerous. Knowing this was a great reassurance to Megan. She gave Ashley a confident smile and stepped into the area directly between the three Mirrors.
The images she saw were immediately confusing. There were reflections within reflections, receding into infinity. All her life, like everyone else, she had grown used to seeing her own image in mirrors reversed. Her hair's natural part was on the opposite side, and the slight asymmetry of her face was reversed. She had come to consider this the way she looked. But now, one of the reflections was a reversal of the usual and it showed her actual appearance... the way she would look to others or in photographs. The difference interested her.
Megan stepped closer. Because of the conflicting angles, the true reflection she was staring at did not return her gaze directly but looked back at her as if from the corner of its eye. It was a curious effect. She stepped closer and stared in fascination.
"Megan? You okay?" came Unicorn's voice from a vast distance, faint and almost unheard.
The Trom Girl did not reply. She was trying to see the reflections in the other two Mirrors at the same time and it was tricky. She positioned herself a bit more to one side and thought she had found the correct spot to stand. So odd...
Her true reflection turned its head and grinned wickedly at her. Megan froze in unresoning alarm. Leaping out from the mirror surface as if passing through fog, the reflection was a solid being that tackled her and brought her down heavily to the ground. The creature wrapped rubbery arms and legs that bent as if nearly boneless around her. Even taken by surprise like that, the Trom Girl reacted instantly and seized by the wrists the two hands that were trying to grasp her head. The reflection was unnaturally strong. She not only could not stop its attack, she was barely slowing it. Powerful fingers seized the top of her head and she knew with a jolt of fear that this being intended to twist her head around to break her neck.
Megan had dropped her beam projector when she had grabbed the clutching hands. Pinned down on her back, she tried to bring her left leg up and over the creature's body to pry it loose but she couldn't quite manage it. The bony fingers dug painfully into her skull as the reflection struggled to hold her body still so it could kill her.
Miles away, faint as an echo, she caught Unicorn's voice intoning, "With this Horn I remove thy power!" The Horn's effect produced immediate relief as her reflection convulsed and fell back off of her. Steam rose from its skin. Megan rolled over and hopped up onto her feet. The being which looked exactly like her was wriggling on its back and feebly trying to rise. The Trom Girl dropped to straddle it. With the full power of the Kumundu technique, Megan blasted alternating left-right hooking punches to any vulnerable spot that presented itself. She pounded away on the creature like a blacksmith striking iron on an anvil.
With a shrill crackle, the reflection broke into a thousand brittle shards and fell into scattered pieces on the grass. There was no blood, no sign of any internal organs. Kneeling over nothing, chest heaving, Megan Salenger stopped her fists in mid-swing and tried to get control of herself. She took deeper, slower breaths and forced herself to stand up again.
Behind her was the crash of breaking glass. Suddenly weary and sore, she turned her head to see Ashley drawing back a thick tree branch for another swing. Jagged slivers of glass were all over the ground, leaving the gremthom frame of one Mirror empty. Unicorn wheeled around and swung the branch with both hands as hard as she possibly could into the second Mirror. The reflection within that surface seemed to react with alarm just before the glass was shattered.
Seeing Megan watching her, Ashley said, "Come on, buddy. What are you waiting for?"
The Trom Girl picked up a softball-sized rock from the ground and immediately slammed it into the remaining mirror. As the final glass surface broke into a hundred shards, she felt an oppressive weight lift from her shoulders. Like Unicorn, she spent the next few minutes crushing the bits of broken glass into smaller and smaller pieces until only powder remained which glittered like diamond dust in the late afternoon sunlight.
"The gems, too," she said. The two Tel Shai knights unscrewed the green jewels from their posts at the bottom of the Mirrors and smashed them as well. On a roll, Megan and Ashley dragged the empty gremthom frames together into a stack and beat away on them, bending and denting the artifacts until their arms ached.
"I have to stop for a while," Unicorn gasped, dropping down to sit on the grass. "That was kinda fun, though."
Megan went over to Sam Rye's BMW and pried open the gas cap. She found a half-empty water bottle in the back seat and then opened the hood to yank out a coolant hose. The Trom Girl emptied the water bottle out, cut the hose to a shorter length with her folding multi-tool and crouched over the open gas cap. As Unicorn watched, Megan inserted one end of the hose into the gas tank and sucked on the other end for just a second until gasoline poured into the empty water bottle.
"Hey, I didn't think you knew how to do that," Ashley said with admiration. "That's how I fueled up my scooter when I was thirteen."
"At least I managed not to get any gasoline in my mouth," the Trom Girl replied. She went to pour the gasoline over the stack of bent metal frames and layer of broken glass mixed with crushed gems, then repeated the process.
"I've got one of our thermite flares," offered Ashley, holding up a metal rod the size of a Magic marker.
"Let's get this over with, then." Megan stepped back. Ashley twisted the cap on the flare, triggering a spurt of intensely bright steel-melting flame. She tossed the flare onto the gasoline-soaked pile of debris from as far away as she could manage. The whoosh and the rising fireball were immensely satisfying.
As the flames crackled and black smoke rolled, Unicorn pointed to the dead bodies still lying just beyond where the Mirrors had stood. "I don't feel too sorry for Sam Rye and his goons," she said. "They were killers for profit. But that guy, the writer..."
"Raymond Hoetger."
"Yeah, him. I don't like just leaving him like that. Does he have a girlfriend or kids or any family? What are they gonna be told?"
Megan went over to stand beside her teammate. "Not to mention Mr Altieri, still lying in the museum basement. Here's my proposal. No one knews we were involved with this incident. I suggest we head back to Manhattan. Along the way, we will make anonymous calls to 911 and to the New Jersey police reporting some dead bodies. Let them make of this what they will. Our Link signals cannot be identified."
"I guess that's the best way," Unicorn said. She had slid the Horn back into its sheath which she strapped across her back again. "What a day. Remember this morning when you were getting all jumpy and irritated because you needed a break?"
Megan gave one of her rare genuine laughs, a deep chuckle that escaped her innate reserve. "Yes. Yes, it seems so long ago."
"We might as well get back in your Jeep," Ashley said. "Let's go. I do have to say, I really really enjoy seeing you lose your cool like that. When you were whalin' on that reflection like it owed you money, it was only the second time I've seen you get all physical. You ought to do it more often."
4/10/2017
