Aether Engineering

Chapter 45

Hydrabridge

The Voidlands North of Maston

When the morning came, Kate noticed an edge in the air. The soldiers were very displeased. When Lira told her that someone had apparently knocked out one of the soldiers, Kate tried not to look too guilty.

Once again, Kate made the long journey into the chasms. Most of the new miners looked dead to the world, exhausted. Kate played up he down exhaustion to match.

The day began and Kate was assigned as runner first. It was the perfect time to slip away and find the rest of her squad. Before she could ever do that though, Kate saw someone walking through the mines that she didn’t expect. Paulo, the old man that had been assigned to the depths with Myles and Silas.

From everything Kate had heard, no one was allowed to leave the depths without specific permission from Rolance. Something seemed off here.

Kate followed behind at a safe distance. The older man made his way around the chasm, seemingly wandering aimlessly. Kate saw him stop multiple times, seemingly stopping to stare at guards. Kate’s suspicion only increased.

Eventually, Paulo did make his way to the entrance to the depths, giving some kind of note to the soldier who stood guard.

Kate readied herself to sneak past the guard. Myles and Silas had been down there alone for too long. It was time to find them.

…

“You dare take me for a fool! We’re releasing that monster now. It’s the perfect time.”

“Don’t you think that it would be better to wait. In time, I can guarantee you control of Hydrabridge. If you strike now, you’ll accomplish nothing.”

Silas watched quietly from a crack in the ceiling. He and Myles had walked through the night before finding this place. It was a tight squeeze, but the well-lit room below them had been a beacon considering they had little more light than the root fragments they had taken.

Now, those same roots were obscured from sight with pure mana. The light they produced would have been a dead giveaway to their presence.

Below them were Samuel, his pseudo-arcaners, and inexplicably Paulo. It was hard to say who Paulo was anymore. For all intents and purposes, he seemed to be helping Samuel with his revolution. He wasn’t with Samuel though. He seemed to have just met them.

Silas considered that Paulo could be one of Rufus’ agents, but that seemed unlikely. It seemed if anything as if Paulo was here representing an entirely different agenda, one that Silas found to seem more calculated.

For all the destruction Samuel might cause by releasing his monster—and Silas did believe the monster would cause destruction in the mines if the noises coming from behind the heap of boulders in the back of the room were any indication—ultimately, there was too strong of a blue band presence for him to realistically wipe out them all.

“Your guarantees mean nothing. Already, I fear Rolance may be on to my plans. Waiting is not an option.”

Paulo eased his neck to the side and gave a slight smile. “You speak of the two arcaners who came in with me no?”

Samuel nodded uncertainly. “They’ve evaded my search all night. I suspect that they may have used some arcane trick.”

Paulo raised his hands. “Now, now, based on your description I think we can assume these children are relatively new to the business of the aether space.” Paulo grinned to himself. “Much like yourself.”

The reminder was a subtle threat and it worked, especially when Paulo evoked a spiked stone that spiraled ominously around him. The speed that the evoked stone moved at was terrible. Silas realized that not even his commuted armor would be able to stand up to it.

“Speaking of those two arcaners though, I believe I have a present that you may find interesting.” Paulo snapped his fingers.

A distortion appeared in the air behind him. Suddenly, a girl appeared, from the look of her clothes, a miner. Silas had a hard time making out any details from this far. They had moved into position well outside of range of any wind mana use. They weren’t cautious about Samuel or his half-trained goons sensing them with such a trick. Paulo though, Silas had no trouble believing he could use wind mana.

It was only a second later that Silas realized who the girl was.

“This girl was with the other two when we entered the city. I believe her name was Kate.”

Samuel took a greedy step forward. “We can use the girl as bait. The other two will be sure to come.”

Once more, Paulo held up his hand. “I would not be so sure of that. I happen to be familiar with the man who leads those camped outside this town you love so much. His subordinates will prioritize their mission above all else.”

“Then you think these three were all sent by those outsiders?”

“I am certain of it.” Paulo leaned down towards Kate, producing something from a pouch on his side. Whatever was in the pouch, it woke Kate up as soon as she got a whiff of it.

“Where am I?”

Kate stood up shakily, casting her eyes around the room. It was then that Silas got an idea. He stuffed his blood-covered shirt in his mouth, grabbed his spear from his back and prepared himself, waiting for the right moment.

Paulo steadied Kate before she could fall, seeming an instant just like the reliable kindly man they had first been introduced to. That feeling was belied by the cold, professional look that held constant on his face.

That look was what made Silas’ idea shrivel and die. He had intended to cut himself. Kate’s affliction would have alerted her to their presence through the sharp pain. Now though, Silas was certain that Paulo would catch any stray glances Kate made. The man was clearly no fool.

That left the question though. How could they save Kate. No plan came to Silas’ mind no matter how much he thought on the matter. He had to think of something though.

“If you wish to set your monster loose, I will not stop you.” Paulo tapped his foot on the ground. A moment later, a chair seemed to rise up from the ground.

The old man eased back into the chair as confident as could be. “To tell the truth, I infiltrated this mine for other purposes. Your little scheme just may prove useful to me.” Paulo let his hand drop onto the armrest, tapping a beat with his fingers. “You can consider it as something along the lines of a pleasant find.”

“Your arrogance astonishes me.” Samuel looked at the man in his chair. “To me, I see you as little better than the overseers. If I give in to your demands, you’ll just stab me in the back later.”

Paulo nodded. “You’re probably right. My actions aren’t entirely my own you see. I have employers that I have to answer to. If they were to ask me to kill you, that is what I would do.”

Samuel looked down at the ground. “If you are truly giving me an opportunity to choose, then I must ask you to leave at once.”

Paulo gave a weary sigh. “I had hoped I could bring you around, but I suppose I should have seen your stubbornness. One parting piece of advice. Sometimes in life it’s better to count your blessings and just keep plodding on. Leave talk of revolution to others.”

“I’ve spent my entire life under the heel of one oppressor or another. I will not sit by like a cow and…” Samuel growled his words in anger, his expression spoke of how impertinent he thought this man before him really was.

“I’m no sage,” Paulo interrupted, “my advice is just what it is. You can ignore it as you please.”

Without another word, Paulo stood up from his chair and left everything behind, casually strolling out of the massive chamber.

There was nothing but silence for some time after. Eventually, Samuel turned to the men behind him. “Let’s start moving these boulders.” Right as he said that a massive force hit the other side of the piled boulders. Several of them were actually knocked back.

The men looked at the boulders grimly. For a moment, Silas hoped that they would give up on the idea of moving them. After all, doing so would likely spell their own deaths. Silas had underestimated their will though. These men truly thought they were doing good. It disgusted Silas.

Here, the residents of Hydrabridge may have been worked hard, but it wasn’t truly done in an unfair way. They were able to leave if they wanted to. Why they would though was beyond Silas. One could live with their family in relative safety here protected by a small army of blue bands. To Silas, that safety seemed like a boon that was worth the hard labor. Better to be worked hard and be safe then live a softer life in constant fear, never knowing when you might lose someone.