Heart of Dorkness

Terror Forty - Pipes

Terror Forty - Pipes

Ah, I say as I lean back into my seat. I set my drink down on the table before me. Theres still some juice left at the bottom, enough to make the remaining ice cubes clink against the sides. We cant leave the square with the cups; theyre glass and belong to the stall selling the drinks nearby.

I glance over to Felix, whos munching her way through Esmes leftovers with a happy grin on.

We should get ready to head out, I say.

Yeah, Esme agrees. Shes patting her tummy, eyes half-lidded and lost.

Mhmmhm, Felix mumbles past a mouthful of bean balls. She drowns them down with a swig from her glass. Ahh, I like this city.

I bet, I say. I yawn, but its less the tired of being sleepy and more the tired of having eaten too much. I push myself up to sit properly, even if I really dont want to. Were taking up space, and the other tables around us are filling. I think if we dont move on soon, someone will come along to kick us out. Come on, getting ready will give us a boost of energy.

I suppose, Esme says.

I climb to my feet, feeling a million years older, then I gather everything on the table to dispose of it.

Felix helps by lightening the load and snatching up anything edible and tossing it down her interminable gullet, and Esme collects the cups.

It only takes a moment to bring things to a trash box, then give the cups back to the stall we took them from and get a few coins in return. Felix walks next to me, both hands cradling her sides while her face works through a few strange expressions.

Are you alright? I ask.

Im okay. I wasnt very hungry when I started, and I ate a weeks worth of food in one go. Its not all fitting.

Maybe eat less? I try.

She gives me a strange look. I guess? I think the concept is hard to wrap her head around.

If you eat too much, youll get fat, I warn.

That would be nice.

I shake my head. Were supposed to be moving along. Esme, do you know where the entrance is?

Esme nods, wiggling her shoulders to make sure shes carrying her bag properly. I do. Follow me!

With Esme leading the way, I dont think itll take too long to get to the entrance. The first part of our plan is the part I like the least, but its also probably needed. The academy has some guards, and three girls sneaking ineven if theyre wearing the uniformwould get caught, so were not going to sneak in through any traditional means.

Esme came up with this part. Shes probably so used to the smells in Montele she doesnt understand how awful an idea it is. Its down this alley, she says as she points to a shadowy passage between two homes.

Felix raises a hand, the universal sign to pause. Let me.... Its clear, she says.

Nodding, I enter the passageway, then recoil at the smell. Somehow, the alley is keeping the stench locked up in one place, which, while great for the people around here, is terrible for us.

Oh, thats stinky, Esme says.

Cant we scale the walls? I ask.

No, wed get caught. Besides, were not going in via the sewers or anything. Well be fine.

The end of the alley has two big grates on the ground. Ones for the sewers, the other for the water. Not all of Montele has water piped through it, but some of the richer temples and homes do have something like running water. From what I can tell, they have a complex system with cisterns and buckets.

Esme leans over the grate for the water pipes, then yanks them back. Oh, this is heavy, she says.

Let me try, I say. I wrap my hands around the grate, then tug. Nothing happens, even as I groan and pull as hard as I can. Then I try to lift with my knees and that also does nothing. Maybe with all three of us?

Felix settles in by my side and grabs one end of the grate, and Esme the other. On three, she says. Three, two

Wait, on three means that we pull when you hit three, but you started from three, I say.

Oh, right, in that case, on one?

Sure.

Right! She wiggles to the side, and we all check our grips. One, two

Esme, youre doing it again, I say.

Well, how about you count us off, then, Esme says.

I nod. Sure. On go. Three, two, one... go!

All three of us grunt, and the metal grating shifts with a metallic screech, then my hands slip and I tumble back onto my bum and the grate slams back down with a bang.

That didnt work, Felix says.

I wipe my hands on my cloak and glare at the grating. Let me try some magic, then, I say.

Ohh, what sort? Esme asks.

I can pretty much only do Disgust magic. Ive been training to do Light, Earth, and Spark, but Im not able to do those reliably yet.

Four disciplines! Esme says. Whoa! Thats neat. I want to do Contempt, but Im terrible at it. Everyone says Im a natural at Spark magic though. Maybe we can practice together?

Maybe later, I say.

There are only so many dark magic spells that can help here. Mom could Void magic the grate away, but I dont have that option, not for a while at least. Disgust is good for endurance and defensive spells, which is really not what I need right now.

Not unless... Okay, I have an idea.

Didnt you already have one? Felix asks.

Anyway, Im going to pull really hard, and with your help, well lift the grate up.

Wait, how is that different? Esme asks.

Because magic.

Thats apparently a good enough response for my friends.

I lean down, grab the grating, then take a deep breath of stinky sewer air. I almost retch, which is great. It only takes a stray thought to plunge disgust into my core, and I can feel the dark magic coursing through me. Its vile and sickly, and it makes me want to puke even more.

I channel the raw disgust into a spell, one Ive practiced before and Im pretty proficient at. Its a staple spell of dark magic, flooding my body with mana that hardens and toughens it. Im not any stronger now than I was a minute ago, but I am a lot tougher.

On go, I say. Esme, countdown. Need to focus.

Got it, Esme says. She settles her grip and nods in time with her count. One, two, three. Go!

We pull. Im not stronger, but I am more enduring. So when I pull as hard as I can, my hands dont hurt, my back doesnt strain, and I can put every ounce of my strength to work without having to worry that Ill hurt myself.

The grate lifts, and then slides back with the grinding sound of metal on metal.

We keep on tugging and tugging until the hole is uncovered, and on some unknown signal, all three of us let go, the grate clanging on the ground while we pant out our exhaustion.

That was something, Felix says. She leans over the hole. Dark in there.

I can make some light, Esme reassures us. We need to head, uh... that way. She points. Im pretty sure the academy is in that direction. I should have brought that map, she mutters.

Im sure well be fine. Okay, down we go, I say as I drop the dark magic spell. A light haze of blackish smoke wafts off of my skin, especially my arms, where the spell was most concentrated.

Felix is the first to descend the ladder next to the hole. I hear the distinct sound of splashing as she hits the bottom. Its clear! she calls out.

Esme goes next, and I follow right after her.

The tunnel isnt all that wide, and theres water up to our shins. Cold water. Wh-why is this s-so cold? I stutter.

Esme shrugs next to me. She doesnt look all that happy about it, at least from what I can tell in the light coming in from the hole above. Its water f-from the mountains.

Oh, I say.

At least well be clean, Felix says. Where are we going now?

We need light, I say.

I dont.

I pout at Felix. Well, Esme and I do.

Ive got it, Esme says. I have a whole bunch of surprise saved up. She raises her hand and, after scrunching her nose at it, a spark appears, then another and another, until theres a small spinning ball of electric-blue light hovering over her hand.

Well done! Now, lets start phase one of our operation!

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