Chapter IV: The Stables (Cont. II)
“Do you have any more of those flame balls?”
The hooded assassin’s eyes arched in surprise as he and Adelia turned towards the voice.
Blackheart stood, dusty, but unhurt, leaning on his sword. Kiki panted, angry that she had to exert herself. “Kiki here may be cowardly, but she has a wonderful sense of the dire,” Blackheart laughed petting her.
The hooded assassin’s eyes narrowed as he reached into his cloak for his crossbow. He thought better of this and drew out another glass ball. “One more,” he said sulkily.
“Good, we’ll need it.” Blackheart plucked up the lantern and wandered on down into the darkness as if nothing had happened. Adelia raced after him.
The assassin stood for a moment cursing his bad luck. He cocked his head up for a moment. He muttered a second curse and raced on after the two.
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Half an hour passed before the four had reached the disposal tank. Blackheart marched on in the lead, following the waste canals. The stables had been built so that water would be poured down into the feralite cells and the waste would be washed out into canals which would lead into a great disposal tank, which would be opened every so often to release the waste into the desert. The rank smell of long unreleased waste filled the air as Kiki tried vainly to breathe only out and grumbled with disgust. “Don’t whine to me, that’s what you smell like all the time,” Blackheart replied.
The hooded assassin thrust his wrist daggers into a garm that was trying to look inconspicous. “They’re getting brave again,” the assassin said.
“Yes,” Blackheart conceded. “They’ve given enough time to prepare for another attack.” Blackheart hefted his sword into a ready position as he adjusted the beam ahead of him. Up ahead he could make out the entry into the disposal tank. The tank was completely concealed by thick webbing, though in a few small spots, the rusted metal tank could still be seen. “I think we may be able to knock out a hole big enough for us to have a good leap,” Blackheart said.
Adelia looked over at the assassin, “Leap?”
The assassin sighed, “The canals running into the disposal tank aren’t directly connected to the canal running out. For speed reasons, the architect decided that the ground was too hard in the roof of the canyon to build the disposal tank’s base level with the stable floor, so they dug down into the ground, so the outgoing waste canal is about three feet lower then the floor here where the entry canal is,” the assassin said with an heir of superiority.
Adelia rolled her eyes, “Like I was supposed to know that.”
Blackheart kicked an advancing garm, sending it bouncing off the wall and away. He tapped the tank with his sword thoughtfully, a resounding echo filled the inside for some time. “Hm, that’s an odd amount of time it took for the echo to come back,” Blackheart whispered.
Adelia watched Blackheart as he continued his tapping, a question entering her mind. “How big of an outgoing canal is it?”
The assassin turned around, a growing sound behind them catching his attention. “Big enough for Kiki, there, to walk through a bit hunched down. We’ll have to crawl through it,” he said preoccupied.
“In the sewage?” Adelia coughed with disgust.
“Yes,” Blackheart said. “Though I suspect there won’t be much in the canal anymore,” he added before kicking in the side of the tank. The wall caved in and fell, a half-splash, half-thud resounding a few moments later. Blackheart, very surprised, looked into the tank. “Well shit,” he muttered, “literally.”
Adelia walked towards the tank, “What?”
Blackheart continued to peer down, trying to ignore the putrid stench. “There was still waste in the tank, and it ate through the ground so the ground is a bit, further down,” he said cautiously.
Adelia stopped, the sound was growing louder still, but she wasn’t paying attention, “How much further?”
Blackheart laughed awkwardly, “Another four or five feet.” Adelia groaned in unison with Kiki’s whimper. “But I’m sure we can get hold of the canal across the way, it’s got a small outcropping,” he said hopefully.
“I hate to interrupt,” the assassin said, “But their are garms behind us and they’re moving very fast.” The assassin clapped his hands and his wrist blades extended further.
Blackheart focused the lamp behind them. “My God,” he said. A wall of garms was moving towards them rapidly. Kiki growled deeply as Blackheart readied his sword. “Adelia, jump first,” Blackheart commanded, ignoring Kiki.
.