29

An Arsenal

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“I want to know where my uncle went!” Gracie screamed at the top of her lungs.

Lilu’s eyes widened as she watched from afar. Gracie was bent over a secretary’s desk, unleashing the wrath of thunder on a poor young lady who was probably nothing more than an intern. An older lady stepped out of an office down an adjacent hall, her gaze stern and arms crossed.

“Ms. Jugtah,” the woman said in a clipped manner.

Gracie whirled, mirroring the woman’s stature to perfection. Lilu smirked as she caught shades of her sister whenever she’d square off with their dad.

“Mrs. Foster,” Gracie mocked.

“In my office, now.” And with that, the woman disappeared back into her room.

“I’m not coming in there if you don’t have answers!”

Mrs. Foster stepped outside once more. “He was summoned by the Intelian royal family. That is all anybody knows. Now get out of this building.”

Gracie’s head snapped around, her glare landing on Lilu. But even Lilu was surprised by the reveal ... and kind of angry. Why hadn’t she received a letter by falcon from her father or Ophala?

Gracie’s scowl softened into something equally as terrifying: disappointment. She was on the verge of tears, but she stormed past Lilu before such vulnerability slipped through.

“I’m equally as upset as you,” Lilu said, giving chase down the hall.

“Save it,” Gracie said. “I’ve seen the falcons you receive on a biweekly basis, and I know they’re from your family.”

Lilu followed her down the stairs. “They never mentioned Professor Jugtah. I promise, Gracie.”

From that point forward, Gracie fell silent. From IWA to the dorms, all Lilu could do was chase after her. When they entered their dorm, Gracie headed straight for her room, slamming the door in Lilu’s face.

Lilu stood there for a moment, dragging her hand down her face. She looked down at the carpet in frustration, vowing to send her father a strongly worded letter the next time the falcon visited. An idea popped into her head.

“Gracie, I’m willing to let you read all of my letters if that’ll make you feel better. I’ve been storing them in my room to go back and read through them when I feel lonely.”

Lilu lingered for a moment longer before accepting defeat and turning away. But just as she did this, the door jarred open. Gracie walked past and headed for Lilu’s room. Lilu half expected her to stop, but no, she continued straight through the door. Rolling her eyes, Lilu followed Gracie in.

Gracie was already seated on Lilu’s bed. “Let’s see them.”

Lilu huffed and opened the second drawer of her dresser, where she kept her pajamas. She lifted a layer of silk trousers and retrieved a stack of parchment from underneath. She then tossed them on the sheets next to Gracie.

“This is how serious I am,” Lilu said, lying down next to her. “There is a lot of confidential information in there that I’m trusting you with ... all to prove that I’m not lying.” As Gracie began scanning through the letters, Lilu added, “I’m enraged with my father.”

Gracie blew through each parcel, tossing parchment to the side with mounting frustration. After ten minutes or so, she sighed and plopped back into the bed, lying next to her friend as they stared at the ceiling. “That was insufferably boring.”

Lilu frowned; that wasn’t exactly the reaction she had expected. After some thought, however, it made sense. Gracie wasn’t like most.

“I believe you,” Gracie said. “But what would your father want with my uncle?”

Lilu shrugged. “I don’t know, but I intend to find out.” Knowing her father, it was probably something that involved Jugtah risking his life. Of course, she wouldn’t share that with Gracie.

Gracie sat up. “I suppose I can stop worrying. What’s safer than being with the royal family?”

Many places, Lilu thought.

The two ladies dwelled in their thoughts until Gracie turned and stared at Lilu. “Who is Bryson, and why did you never mention your sister’s pregnant? Based off your father’s tone in his letters, he sounded excited about it, but at the same time he seemed delicate with his word choice ... as if he was worried about how you’d react.”

Lilu’s eyes narrowed. “Will you stop dissecting my personal business?”

Gracie’s lips puckered, her eyes widening as she looked off to the side. “Sorry.”

Sitting up and snatching the letters, Lilu said, “I regret showing you these.”

“I don’t blame you,” Gracie said, snickering to herself.

Lilu got up and returned the stack to its home in the drawer. “Just make sure you’re ready for tonight.”

Gracie coughed forcefully, grabbing her chest. “I can’t. I’m sick.”

“Shut up,” Lilu said. “You’re my partner in crime, whether you like it or not.”

With a slow nod, Gracie’s eyes grew lazy. “Living life on the edge.”

Lilu laughed. “You’re not cool. Now go get ready.”

* * *

Lilu frowned as she peered over the stone ledge on the roof of her apartment that overlooked Brilliance’s main intersection. Frederick did the same next to her. Gracie and Limone, meanwhile, giggled quietly, as they sat with their back to the ledge.

Lilu glanced down at them. “Do you two even care about this?”

“Can we not have a tickle fight to help calm our nerves?” Gracie asked.

Lilu rolled her eyes and turned back toward the edge.

“I don’t know about this,” Frederick whispered. “There is no way we can access that secret latch with the amount of patrolmen surrounding it.”

“Don’t you lose hope on me, too,” Lilu said.

“It’s better than losing sense and getting locked up because of it.”

Growing more annoyed by the second, Lilu exhaled forcefully. This could have been so much easier had she been accompanied by the Jestivan. Himitsu’s abilities as a Passion Assassin would have made infiltration a piece of cake.

Half an hour had passed by the time Frederick finally said, “Nobody’s coming out.”

Lilu narrowed her eyes. This could not be. Ever since she and Frederick first witnessed a figure climbing out of the stone block months ago, they scouted the intersection every night. And through their detective work, they had recognized a pattern. Every four nights, someone would exit the stone between two to three o’clock in the morning. This was the fourth night following the previous occurrence, but it was now approaching five o’clock. The city was beginning to wake. Horse-drawn carriages took to the streets while pedestrians spilled out of buildings and onto sidewalks.

“Dammit,” Lilu said, spinning around and sitting on the cold stone of the roof. She stared at the volters resting a few paces away. They were going to be part of a diversion, so Lilu could get into the hideout, but now it was too late. They’d have to wait another four days.

Gracie shrugged. “I’m kind of relieved. I wasn’t too fond of being bait.” She poked at Limone’s chubby rolls, making the young man giggle in a high pitch. Of course, that made Gracie laugh equally as high.

Lilu gazed at Frederick. Her expression must have been pitiful because he chuckled and pat her thigh. “Don’t worry, Lilu.”

“Ew,” Gracie said. “Can you two not be awkward for once in your lives?”

Limone laughed, but a stern glare from Lilu silenced him in a second. The sound of a door opening nearby made Lilu’s body tense. It sounded like the door to the stairwell, but since it faced the opposite way, she couldn’t tell if her mind was simply playing tricks on her.

“Did you hear that?” Limone asked, his flushed cheeks draining to a pasty white.

They each stared in the direction of the structure that jutted from the roof. A man rounded the corner, wearing a white-striped blue vest against a white button-up. A gold chain hung from his chest pocket, as well as from his wrist. He wore blue slacks and white boots that were pointed at the toes. It was the attire of a wealthy man, one of the richest in the world: Wendel LeAnce.

Lilu and her friends sat speechless. How did Wendel know? Clearly, that’d be the only reason why a man of his status would be on the roof of an apartment building at this hour.

Despite what should have been a strange scene, Wendel smiled. “Conducting a bit of mischief?” he asked.

Realizing nobody else would talk, Lilu said, “Enjoying the view, Commissioner. This is our hangout spot.”

Wendel glanced down at his wristwatch—a dazzling gold just like the rest of his jewelry. “You’re telling me a group of twenty-something year-olds wakes up before the crack of dawn, an extra hour early before they’d have to wake up to go to class at IWA ... to enjoy a view?”

Lilu’s mind blanked, her mouth hanging open slightly. Of course, Frederick, Gracie, and Limone were no help.

“You know what?” Wendel said, approaching the stone ledge and taking a seat. “I actually believe you to a degree. A view captivates you, but not something as ordinary as the rising sun or the city’s skyline.” He gazed down at the intersection. “But that.”

As Lilu’s posture sunk, Wendel said, “Yes, I know what you and Frederick have been up to for a while now, and I’ve been waiting for you to act.”

“Excuse me, Commissioner?” Lilu asked.

“I will put you out of your misery, Lilu. You and your team have proven more than competent in the lab for over a year now.” Wendel got up and walked toward the stairwell. “Come with me ... all of you. I’d say it’s time.”

* * *

The guards split to make way for the commissioner, Lilu, Frederick, Gracie, and Limone. “Now, this isn’t the intended entrance—not since Mendac was around at least. I’m the only who uses it, but only when I’m forced to.” Wendel paused and then gazed at the guards. “Someone get us the ladder.”

A guard ran off in the direction of a nearby alley, only to return moments later with a wooden ladder. “Sorry, sir,” the woman said, placing it against the stone’s side.

Wendel climbed the ladder, then waited for the rest of them to follow. As Lilu pulled herself up, she gazed around. A few early-rising pedestrians gave them perplexed stares.

“Should we be doing this in public eye?” Lilu asked.

“It doesn’t matter,” Wendel said, reaching for a small indention in the stone. “There are plenty of precautions to keep people from entering.” He pulled up, revealing a passageway and releasing a putrid scent. The passage likely led to the sewers.

Now that Lilu was this close, standing directly atop the structure, she noticed something that she hadn’t while at a distance. “Is this Permanence?”

As Wendel waved them down the hole, he smiled. “Yes, it is.”

“Duh,” Lilu muttered. “That’d explain why a perfect cube remained intact.”

They climbed down the rungs, each of them dropping onto wet stone. Wendel landed last. As he straightened up and dusted his vest with both hands, he said, “I’m a little surprised that slipped past you for so long.”

Wendel weaved a few Intelights, and they began walking down a tunnel. “I’ve never seen Permanence used in such a way,” Lilu said.

“You mean as a defensive wall, acting as a stronghold?” Wendel asked.

“Yea. Was it built in the street?”

“No, we don’t have time to wait for the sun to harden provod. We used a kilning pit in a secret area of Brilliance, then transported the structure to the intersection.”

“How’d you manage to do that?” Gracie asked. She was the only other person comfortable with speaking to the commissioner. Frederick and Limone had a habit of shriveling up when in his company.

“We had to shut down the city for the day,” Wendel said, pushing his Intelight farther ahead. “And we used a lot of horses.”

But that wasn’t what struck Lilu as peculiar; something else had thrown up a red flag. “Secret area?” Lilu asked.

“I suppose it’s not a secret to you guys anymore, but yes.”

“I haven’t heard of this ‘secret area,’” Lilu said. “Does my dad know?”

“Of course. Him, along with the League of Weavineers and those who live there.” Wendel paused, then said, “The men and women stationed there don’t leave—not unless something catastrophic were to occur.”

Wendel’s Intelight veered right down an adjacent passage, one absent of sewage and much narrower than the main tunnel. As he followed it, Lilu paused and stared into the darkness of the bigger tunnel.

“Let’s go, Lilu,” Wendel called back. “I don’t want you getting lost down here.”

Lilu hovered there for a moment before turning down the new passageway, jogging to make up lost ground.

“At least the stench is dissipating,” Gracie said, her fingers still pinching her nose. “Glad I didn’t wear any of my good clothes.”

Lilu shot her a sideways glance. “You mean my good clothes.”

“Not anymore.”

For what felt like an hour, they followed winding passages and even squeezed through narrow gaps, some of which Limone struggled to fit through.

“This is quite a journey,” Lilu said, exhaustion from staying up the night before setting in.

“Brilliance is a big city,” Wendel replied. “And traveling across it becomes even more difficult when confined to a pre-constructed maze.” Light became visible ahead. “But we’re just about there.”

“Where’s Gracie?” Frederick asked.

Lilu turned. Gracie had been third in line behind Lilu. Now Limone and Frederick had taken her place.

“That’s not good,” Wendel noted.

“How did you lose her?!” Lilu shrieked.

Frederick’s eyes widened. “I didn’t know that was my job. She’s not a puppy.”

Wendel pushed his Intelight behind the group. Once it reached an intersection of tunnels, Gracie stepped out from a corner, pulling at the string of her trousers and tightening the waistband. “Sorry, guys,” she said.

“Are you kidding me?” Lilu asked incredulously.

“Can a woman not open the floodgates?” As Gracie approached, she turned up her nose, eyeing their surroundings. “Besides, it is a sewer. It would have ended up here anyway.”

Wendel looked amused. “You are nothing like your uncle.”

“It’s not like he’s my dad,” Gracie said, marching past. “What’s the hold up? We’re almost there ... whatever ‘there’ is.”

They followed the final stretch for another few minutes before stepping onto a marble balcony. Spacious and magnificent, it sat hundreds of meters in the air, jutting out of the cavern’s wall. Lilu ran to the ivory rails and gazed below.

Below them was a town blanketed in silver and black. The buildings—while nowhere near as tall as those above ground—were constructed of steel and the roads were paved in tar. Soldiers marched through the streets of certain areas, while others seemed to stroll leisurely through more distant sectors. In the distance, what seemed to be miles of open pavement stretched beyond the town’s farthest reaches before a gigantic steel gate blocked what might have been the cavern’s exit. Somehow, the early morning sun streamed into the cavern through a sizeable hole in the rugged ceiling above.

More balconies jutted from the cavern’s walls. While they were scattered at different elevations and distances, they were all lower and smaller than the one they presently occupied. Most of them were empty save a few, which held a couple faces that Lilu recognized and others she’d never seen before. They all seemed to be enjoying themselves, relaxing in luxurious chairs, a glass of fine wine on nearby tables.

The commissioner’s hands clasped onto the ivory rail as he smiled at the town below him. “Welcome to the Bastion of Intel.”