Storm of Shadows (Lumineers 1)

CHAPTER 3: THANKLESS WORK

A light fog rolled in off the Taewae, gathering around the gas lamps, scattering their glow into halos. The autumn air was chilly. Each exhale came out in a cloudy puff. Tabitha Grey left Catterford's district far behind. A coach would have been faster, but this gave her time to think as Steiner's words replayed in her mind.

Her pace didn't slow until she reached Lixton's district, nestled in an overlooked part of Chroma. In ideal location for a safe house. She kept to the foot path at the side of the street, ready to draw a dagger should she need. A reverberation of thunder growled beneath her feet, rattling her to the bone. The passing of an omnibus. It was stuffed with late-night revelers. The bustle on the street continued well past Brixby Theater.

Her busy eyes darted ahead into the shadows. She strained for the slightest out-of-place sound against the city's drone. From the sky, Nit spotted all the things she couldn't. This was Saphire Wolves territory. They lurked in twos and threes, hands posed over hidden weapons, watching, waiting, shrinking into the shadows as she passed with a warning glare.

Across the street, a gathering crowd caught her attention. The tall hats of three constables rose above the others. She focused in on their words, trying to tune out everything else. "...do you mean, you lost it?" A voice drawled. The constable's bravado was unmistakable.

"I...I had it," came the high-pitched answer. "I must've...must've left it home." Through the gathered bodies, a man cowered in the middle. At his feet, a mechanimal cat clicked its tail and yowled. It had no winding key, and when it next moved, a glint of orange showed through its metal plates. The telltale sign of its glassy heart. A prism.

"All prism tech requires proper permitting, no exceptions." The constable spoke loud enough for the crowd. "You know the consequences. Let this be a lesson. Boys?"

Tabby clenched her teeth and rushed onward, but she couldn't shield her ears.

"No! Please!"

She flinched against the sound of grating metal, briefly squeezing her eyes shut, trying not to picture the constables smashing the mechanimal to pieces. The screech of aluminum and brass set her hairs on end. When she next glanced over her shoulder, the orange prism had come loose. It rolled out on to the street and into the gutter. She didn't turn around again, thinking of Nit, glad that her creation was safe.

Things of this nature happened more and more frequently as prism tech infiltrated Chroma's city. The common people were fighting back. Hoping to flood the country with it until it was too difficult to sanction, until the crown threw up its hands and said, "Fine! It's yours!" As it should be. The technology belonged to the people. Moreover, it belonged to those who had invented it. To the Lumineers. To people like Elias Newton.

She increased her pace, putting distance between herself and the spectacle, until the crowd on the streets thinned—a single passerby here and there. A few Saphire Wolves in the darkest alleys. And then nothing for three blocks.

Another commotion gave her pause. She slowed to listen. The clattering of a breaking crate paired with a muffled cry. It came from an alley ahead. A man's voice drifted to her. "...No, please. I don't have much. Fine, take it. Take it." A gruff laugh answered. Then a frightened squeak.

Nit swooped low in front of her with a warning. "Trouble ahead." The white flash of Nit's prism was a beacon in the darkness. But they were safe. There was no sign of the city's constables. No sign of Lixton's evening watchman.

She quickened her pace and passed the entrance of the alley, glancing into the darkness. Shadows moved within. No one appeared at the mouth to warn her away. She could stop, but this was Sapphire Wolves territory. Things like this happened all the time. She didn't have the time or patience for it tonight. There was still Steiner to deal with. And truth was, she simply couldn't muster enough feeling to care.