Chapter Text
* * *
Powder laid on her bed in the basement of the Last Drop, sick with worry. Vi had given her a stuffed rabbit -the stuffed rabbit- and said she had to do something important. Something that would save them. It sounded an awful lot like a goodbye . . .
But it wasn’t.
She wouldn’t leave me.
Would she?
No!
There was a pressure in her head, and in the corners of her eyes she saw . . . something. Like scribbles of white lines -but when she looked right at them, they were gone like they were never there.
What Powder knew was there, though, were Mylo and Claggor. They were standing in front of a table, having just dropped a load of stuff there -weapons?
“Well, if the enforcers hit tonight, we’ll be ready . . .” Mylo said, and Powder could tell by his tone that he had that infuriating smirk on his face. “I think.”
“Dibs on the bat,” Claggor called.
“No, no, no, no,” Mylo interjected. “I found it!”
Is this just a game to them?
“But I called it,” Claggor pointed out.
Vi’s still out there, and Vander left too, and neither of them have come back!
“But I found it,” Mylo argued.
Mylo always acted like it was a joke. Like it was a fun adventure, but it wasn’t. Powder could almost see the bodies on the streets and the haze of smoke in the air. The smell of ash and blood . . . it wasn’t a game.
“Respect the dibs,” Claggor said. “I called it already!”
Don’t they know how bad this is? When Mom and Dad went out and didn’t come back, they never came back! Because of the enforcers!
“Respect the-” Mylo rolled his eyes. “Stop being such a big baby!”
And other things are more important! Like Vander, and-
The door opened, and Powder’s eyes shot to it.
Vi was there.
She descended shakily, fear and worry stark on her face in a way that Powder hadn’t seen since that horrible day. And behind her was the white shock of hair that only meant Ekko . . . but his face was torn with grief and terror!
But that could wait.
Vi!
“Vi?” Claggor asked.
Vi reached the bottom of the stairs. “Where’s the-”
Powder slammed into her like a blue-haired bullet, hugging her fiercely.
“You’re back!” Powder said, with every ounce of love that she was feeling.
It was like all her fear vanished, and was replaced with joy! She was back, she was safe! Powder’s headache eased, and the white scribbles danced with delight!
Then Powder looked up . . . and Vi’s expression was unchanged. There were tears in her eyes, her breathing was shaky, and that scared Powder more than almost anything else.
Vi chases the monsters away . . . but if she’s like this . . . it’s really bad!
Vi didn’t say a word, but just turned away from Powder. She strode toward the table, extending a hand to one of the big, cast-iron gauntlets on the table-
Then Mylo caught her wrist, and faced her.
“Hey, those are Vander’s,” Mylo pointed out. “Slow down. What’s going on?”
Vi turned, looking to Ekko -he’d come to the base of the stairs, standing next to Powder.
“Benzo . . .” Ekko said, then trailed off and shook his head. “He’s dead.”
There were tears in his eyes, too. With an instinct that had only really triggered for Vi before, Powder engulfed him in a big hug.
“I’m sorry,” Powder murmured.
And Ekko started to cry. He tried to stop it, but he couldn’t -and Powder didn’t care. Mylo always made fun of her whenever she cried, but Mylo was a stupid butt-head.
“Dead?” Claggor asked, as if shocked it was even possible.
“They took Vander,” Vi shared, her voice heavy and a little panicked.
“Who took Vander?” Mylo asked.
“A monster,” Ekko hissed into the hug, anger mixing in with his grief.
“I need to help him,” Vi said firmly.
“We’re going with you,” Mylo promised.
But Vi looked away.
“Whatever killed Benzo . . . was like nothing I’ve ever seen,” Vi shared shakily, her hands clenching into fists. “It tore him apart!”
She was struggling against her tears, breathing roughly and heavily as she leaned on the table.
“You’re not doing this alone, Vi,” Claggor promised, putting an arm around her shoulders.
Mylo matched Claggor’s motion from the other side. “He’s our father too.”
Powder wanted desperately to go to her and hug her too, but her arms were already full with Ekko. And Benzo -the closest thing Ekko had to a father- wasn’t just taken, but torn apart!
So she stayed where she was, as Ekko still cried.
“Do we know where they took him?” Mylo asked.
“Ekko followed them,” Vi shared, her voice calmer. “The old cannery next to the docks.”
Ekko tensed in Powder’s arms.
Vi had loaded up a backpack, and now she turned. “He said-”
“No!”
The word seemed to explode out of Ekko as he ripped free of Powder’s arms, and blocked Vi’s way to the stairs.
And Vi froze, legitimately shocked.
“You can’t go there!” Ekko insisted. “You can’t.”
“They have Vander!” Claggor protested.
“The monster,” Ekko said, his voice cracking. “It’s . . . Benzo couldn’t beat it, a buncha enforcers couldn’t beat it!”
“Vi can beat anything!” Powder retorted.
“Vander tried to fight it,” Ekko shared, sobbing. “And it beat him like a drunk father!”
The raw fear in his voice sent a shiver down everyone’s spine . . .
“Please, Vi,” Ekko begged, tears still flowing down his cheeks. “You’ll all die.”
There was a moment of sheer tension in the room, everyone silent . . .
“Nah, we’ll be fine,” Mylo said, breaking the tension. “The enforcers are just weak Pilties, and Vander and Benzo were past their prime anyways. If we find that monster, I bet Vi’ll show it a thing or two.”
But when he turned to Vi with his usual smirk, he didn’t see confidence on her face. Instead, she was torn . . . because when she looked at Mylo and Claggor, she saw the same things Powder did. They hadn’t been on the bridge -they hadn’t seen what it was like.
“When you lead people, you don’t get to be selfish,” Vi whispered to herself.
“Huh?” Claggor asked.
Vi took a deep breath, and made the hardest decision of her life so far. One that hurt to make, knowing what she did.
She closed her eyes.
“I’m sorry, Vander,” Vi murmured.
When she opened them again, they were filled with new resolve.
“Ekko’s right,” Vi said firmly. “We won’t win. Even if we could sneak in there . . . there’s too much that can go wrong. I’m guessin’ this guy has a gang behind him, and who knows what else? Can I really fight a buncha adults? And the monster . . . I’d have no chance against it. So we’re not going.”
“What?” Claggor asked incredulously. “Don’t you want Vander back?!”
“Of course I do!” Vi retorted, anger in her voice. “If it was just me, I’d go in, but it isn’t just me.”
“We all wanna go,” Mylo pointed out. “I’m willin’ to take the risk!”
“You don’t even know what that risk is!” Vi exclaimed. “Neither of you were there! Neither of you saw the Massacre!”
“We’ve lived here all our lives,” Claggor replied. “We know what death is.”
“Do you?” Vi asked. “You grew up in the Lanes. And Mylo, you grew up in the Promenade. The two richest places around down here! Then Vander took you in, and we’ve all been safe with him. No gangs would touch us, and the enforcers? They threw bolos, swung batons -but they have bullets! And they’ll use ‘em!”
“We’ll dodge them!” Mylo insisted.
“You can’t even dodge Powder’s pellet gun,” Vi retorted.
“You can beat them,” Powder said to Vi, eyes full of blind faith. “You can beat anything.”
“I wish I could, Pow,” Vi replied heavily. “But I can’t. We need to keep each other safe, and that means not getting into fights we can’t win. We need to run.”
“Run?” Claggor gasped. “Leave the Last Drop?”
“Every leader of the undercity takes the Last Drop,” Vi said. “Zerali took it from Orgimar or whoever, and Vander took it from Zerali. Whoever took Vander, they’ll take the Last Drop, too.”
“His name is Silco,” Ekko said softly. “I . . . I heard Vander yell it . . .”
“Silco,” Vi whispered, the hatred in her voice now having a name to attach itself to.
Still, Vi shook her head and refocused.
“We need to take everything we can, then leave,” Vi shared. “I know where the safe is, and I know the combination for it -we won’t leave anything useful for ‘em. I need you all to grab clothes, food, water . . . blankets, pillows, anything.”
“Then what?” Mylo asked. “We just run away like Powder always does?”
“Has it ever occurred to you that she’s smart to?” Vi challenged. “That the assholes we fight are always bigger and stronger than her? That I gave her the loot, and the best way for her to protect it was to run? All that’s in the past now, anyways. We’ve gotta protect each other and work together -no more snipping!”
Silence fell after that.
But it was broken by a soft and fearful voice . . .
“Where will we go?” Powder asked plaintively.
“Vander always said that if we couldn’t go to him and couldn’t go to Benzo, we should go to Babette,” Vi shared, and grinned grimly at Claggor. “Looks like you’ll get to see your lady love soon.”
Claggor blushed. “Stop it! You know she just likes to embarrass me!”
“Mmm-hmm, sure,” Vi said with faux-disbelief. “Anyways . . . if it’s too dangerous there, we’ll head to me and Powder’s old home.”
“Outside the tent city?” Mylo asked incredulously. “We’d live there?”
“No one even thinks about that place,” Vi replied. “We’ll be safe there. Now, get to work.”
“Wait,” Ekko said.
Everyone looked at him.
“Benzo . . . he’s gone,” Ekko shared. “But he left a lotta stuff behind. An’ I don’t want Silco to have any of it. I know where his safe is, too!”
“That’s the opposite way,” Claggor pointed out. “A bit far, too.”
“We need anything we can get,” Vi replied. “We’ll go by Benzo’s first. Now, get to it!”
The children all split up. They didn’t know how much time they had, and they wouldn’t waste a moment of it.
Preparing to leave their home felt surreal . . . but frankly, the full weight of it hadn’t hit any of them yet.
It would.
* * *
There was something in the air, and it wasn’t the smog.
No, it was the start of something.
Good or bad, few knew . . . but people were starting to get the sense that they had to prepare. There were undercitizens on the streets as Vi pushed a wheelbarrow, Claggor pulled a handtruck with a barrel tied to it, and Mylo, Ekko, and Powder pulled a large handcart between them. All of it was partially loaded with stuff from the Last Drop -but they saved space for things from Benzo’s. The handcart itself was mostly empty.
They reached Benzo’s shop unmolested. If they’d taken much longer in the Last Drop, they might’ve been attacked by a gang that they’d stolen from in the past, who wanted revenge now that Vander was weak. But they got out in time, and though there was more people on the street than usual, they weren’t bothered -they certainly attracted the eye, though.
Once they entered Benzo’s, they burst into activity once more. The five children spread all around the shop, from the round front window to behind the large counter to the back with it’s bunch of mechanisms.
“Powder, you know where the tools are,” Ekko said.
Vi nodded. “Those’ll be worth their weight in gold. Mylo, Claggor . . . uh, Ekko, where’s the safe?”
“It’s under the counter,” Ekko replied, grabbing a socket wrench.
Mylo, who was behind the counter and looking at the shelves under it, shook his head. “I ain’t seein’ it. The til, yeah, but not the safe.”
“It’s under the counter,” Ekko emphasized. “Like this!”
He got on his knees and brought the socket wrench to bear. A handful of bolts later, Ekko stood and braced himself against a wall as he pushed against the counter with all his might!
It didn’t budge.
“Damn, it looked really easy when he did it,” Ekko murmured. “Uh, Vi, could you pull it here?”
Vi braced herself, grabbed it as best she could, and pulled with all her strength. The counter slowly swung outward, toward the middle of the shop, scraping against the ground the whole way. And once it was gone, a solid steel box was revealed, embedded in the floor . . .
Ekko crouched next to it, furrowing his brow as he did the combination and pulled it open with a grunt.
The inside were pouches upon pouches of coin! They were color-coded, much like the ones in the Last Drop had been. Undyed brown for bronze washers, gray for silver cogs, and yellow for golden hexes. At the top were two yellow pouches, both stuffed full . . .
Mylo picked them up, feeling the weight in his palms, and whistled.
“That’s what the Piltie paid,” Ekko said proudly. “It’s not as much as the Last Drop, I know, but-”
“It’s still a lotta money, Little Man!” Claggor encouraged.
“Vander not only ran the biggest pub down here, but he also had his gang,” Vi said. “Protection rackets, smuggling . . . he was doin’ a lot. One of the richer people down here -richer than Benzo. Not many could afford to have dead weight like us . . .”
“We weren’t dead weight,” Mylo protested. “We were makin’ money!”
“How much of it ever found its way to Vander?” Vi asked bitterly. “We spent it on Jericho’s, new clothes, parts for Powder’s bombs, those goggles . . . doesn’t matter now. Let’s keep goin’.”
Benzo’s shop had two more handtrucks, so they left the handcart behind in favor of securing a pair of large trunks to them for Mylo and Ekko to pull. They’d also found a small wagon, one that was really more of a toy for children but more than capable of actually holding a good amount of stuff, and Powder could tug it along.
Now loaded up, they struck out onto the streets once more.
Vi’s eyes widened as she looked around. She thought there were more people out than usual before . . . and that had only gotten more so.
“Keep together,” Vi ordered. “And keep moving. Powder, look out behind us -Mylo, Ekko, make sure she stays with us.”
All of them scanned their surroundings, seeing chempunks and thugs on every corner. They all eyed the small party, but for the moment, none of them moved forward. The entire place felt like a powder keg . . . they could only hope they weren’t the spark.
It was still the middle of the night, but that didn’t really matter. The sunlight didn’t reach the Lanes regardless, so instead, harsh illumination was cast through the haze of smog from chemlights all around. Deep shadows gathered in the many alleyways, and occasionally, there was movement within them . . . or eyes staring out.
“Umm . . . we’re fine, right?” Claggor asked nervously.
“Vander made peace in the Lanes,” Vi replied with fake confidence. “As long as we stick to the main streets, they should know better than to start anything.”
Such were the rules Vander imposed -though none of them knew it was Silco’s suggestion. But with the Lanes deemed safe territories, trade and business thrived and people could walk without fear.
At least, they used to.
Now Vander was gone.
Very few people knew that fact, though, which was what Vi was counting on. That, and the desire of various people not to be the ones to start something, and thus have a target on their backs. Because once the peace was broken, it would break hard.
“Ekko!” a voice hissed from the shadows of an alleyway.
Ekko hesitated, and turned. “Scar?”
A young man, about Vi’s age, stepped out. He was tall and thin, packed with wire muscle. But most noticeable about him was his gray skin, and large tapered ears -where the gray faded into pink. His nose was also a bit different from a normal human’s, and pink as well. He was a Vastaya, one of the race of animal-human hybrids, and his animal side was a bat.
“What’s going on?” Scar asked, a bit panicked.
“Who is this guy?” Vi questioned.
“He and his partner helped me with Benzo’s body,” Ekko shared. “I trust him.”
“D’you know what all this is about?” Scar questioned, gesturing around.
“Kinda,” Ekko answered. “Just lay low.”
Scar nodded. “Looks like you need to more than me. You’re gettin’ a lotta looks.”
“They’ll calm down when we get to Babette’s,” Vi replied. “You know it?”
“The whorehouse?” Scar questioned, furrowing his brow. “Uhh, yeah. Good spot to scavenge cloth from. How good are your shoes? I figure you don’t wanna stay on this level.”
“Why do we need good shoes?” Ekko asked.
“There’s a heat vent pipe thing -ramps up ‘fore levelin’ out,” Scar supplied. “But it’ll burn your feet if you ain’t careful.”
“Think that’s safe?” Claggor asked Vi.
“No, but I’m pretty sure it’s safer than this,” Vi muttered, then turned to Scar. “I’ll find some way to reward you if you can get us there safely.”
Scar nodded. “Do my best. This way.”
The Vastaya led them deeper into the alleyway, and Ekko followed without hesitation. After a moment, Vi did as well.
Soon, they were all swallowed by the twisting, turning spaces between the groundscrapers. Step by step, they moved away from the streets that gave the Lanes it’s name, and into the warren between them. It was much darker there, but hopefully safer as well . . .
“Where’s Swift?” Ekko asked Scar.
“With the kids,” Scar said. “We figured one of us should stay behind and protect ‘em, and she’s a better fighter than me. Also, I’m better at runnin’, so . . . yeah.”
“Wait, she’s named Swift, but you’re better at running?” Mylo asked.
“Yeah, well, see a scar on me?” Scar pointed out. “This way.”
They came to a large rectangular pipe -or in this case, duct- coming out of the ground and slanting upward. It was smooth metal, and as they approached, the air got warmer -uncomfortably so.
Scar took a deep breath, then took off his jacket and shirt. His body was much like it appeared -lean muscle. It was clear he wasn’t eating enough. Regardless, he wrapped his jacket around one foot, and his shirt around the other -and most of the fabric was under his feet.
Then he took the first step, and another, before turning back to them.
“Well?” Scar asked. “This is the safest way I can think of.”
With trepidation in their steps, they followed.
The climb was hot, and steep. Every step became harder than the last, but no one complained. Compared to most other children, who were already working in the mines or factories, they’d lived a rather soft life . . . but they were still trenchers. They wouldn’t complain at hard work, for fear of seeming like Pilties.
“How delicate is any of your stuff?” Scar called out. “We’ll have to drop down a ledge.”
“Not really delicate,” Claggor said. “Right?”
Powder put a hand on her little pouch of hexcrystals. But despite their volatility, they’d made it all the way through the chase with enforcers -and later, Deckard’s goons- without so much as a spark. They’d be fine . . . right?
“Yeah,” Vi grunted.
“Good,” Scar said. “We’ll be passin’ over a Lane soon. Don’t fall.”
Their duct had straightened out, but gotten no cooler. Every step was uncomfortably hot. Not enough to burn, and certainly not enough to melt their shoes, but still a constant pressure.
Then the groundscrapers that they had wended between just disappeared. They’d stepped out over one of the broad streets that made up the Lanes . . . and Scar cursed.
Vi tensed as she realized that everyone on the street was looking up at them -they made a strange sight, after all. Six people, ranging from of age to not even teenagers, were laden with stuff and walking in single file across a duct . . . they looked like easy prey.
Even better, they were heading back into the mass of backalleys. The main streets were places of nonviolence, and even if they weren’t, the people to start anything could easily be preyed upon by those more strong -those who’d take advantage of the opportunity they created. But off the main street? Well, there were far fewer eyes there . . .
* * *
Powder felt the familiar pressure in her head. Vander called it a stress headache, and it popped up whenever Powder was scared, or worried, or . . . basically anything. Right now, well, a lot of things were stressful. And one thing in particular she really got the feeling of.
It was like there were whispers just beyond her hearing, warning her of what she couldn’t see . . .
“Someone’s watching us,” Powder shared. “Followin’ us.”
“Damn,” Scar cursed. “How many?”
“I dunno,” Powder admitted. “Just . . . got a feeling.”
Mylo rolled his eyes. “Great, another one of her feelings.”
“They’re right more than they’re wrong,” Vi replied.
“Well, I’m sorry,” Scar apologized. “Thought this way would be safer, up where they’d have trouble gettin’ to us.”
“You did your best,” Ekko comforted.
“It was my choice,” Vi replied. “Whatever happens, it’s on me.”
“C’mon, you’re talkin’ like we’re already dead!” Mylo protested. “We can’t be that far from Babette’s, can we?”
Scar shook his head. “Not that far. Next Lane’ll be it, and here’s our stop.”
The duct passed over a small building, lost amongst the forest of groundscrapers but fortunately close enough to jump down to. And hanging off the side of it was what could generously be called an elevator -it was really a large plank with a chain on either end, operated manually.
Vi nodded firmly, then set down her wheelbarrow and hopped down with ease -it was a short jump.
“Try and pass down the barrow,” Vi said.
At a stretch, she could reach up and support it a bit from below . . . but as Claggor and Scar tried to lower it from above, all they could really do was slow the fall a bit. It landed heavily, with a thump, but by no means was it a crash.
“Mylo, come down here,” Vi ordered. “You’ll help me lower things. Powder, Ekko, you’re loading it onto the elevator and takin’ it down.”
They all hopped to it. Fortunately, though the elevator was manually powered, a couple of pullies gave Ekko all the leverage he needed while Powder kept anything from falling off. It might’ve taken a few trips -and more importantly, a quarter of an hour- to get all the luggage down, but it wasn’t very hard.
Once everything heavy was down, the six of them just roofran to the ground -a jump to a balcony, a drop to a pipe, then a hop down to an awning that deposited them right next to their luggage. It was child’s play.
Unfortunately, that wouldn’t continue.
“What do we have here?” a chemthug asked, dressed in rough leather and with a pipe in her right hand.
More stepped in, blocking the alleyway on either side.
Vi narrowed her eyes, and slipped her hands into Vander’s gauntlets.
“Which way?” Vi asked Scar, and he pointed -there were four chemthugs in the way.
“Now, give up all of that, and we’ll let you go on your way,” the one with the pipe growled.
“Powder, throw a bomb at her,” Vi ordered. “Give it a long timer, so they can run.”
The chemthug’s eyes widened. “A bomb?”
Clank-ca-clank!
It hit the ground and rolled a little, coming to a rest at her feet . . . and suddenly, she had a decision to make. She was used to fighting with clubs, knives, and bar daggers . . . but a bomb?
A snap decision led her to the conclusion that discretion was the better part of valor, and she dived away as the timer ticked down!
On the other side, Vi roared!
She charged the four chemthugs between her family and Babette’s, Vander’s gauntlets on her arms. The thugs all looked a few years older than her, so she was sure she’d need Mylo’s and Claggor’s help . . . then the first punch landed.
Crack!
It didn’t break the man’s nose. No, it made a crater in the middle of his face! His skull cracked under the bone-shattering force of it, and he fell back screaming! Before any of his companions could react, Vi shot a cross into the woman right next to her, getting her square in the sternum-
Snap!
And it split in half! The woman’s eyes widened as she gasped and screamed all at once, the shock setting in before the agony as she was pushed back a step from the sheer force of the blow!
The last two backed up, glanced at each other . . . then turned and ran. Fuck whatever loot these kids had -it wasn’t worth their lives!
“C’mon!” Vi roared.
Scar grabbed Vi’s wheelbarrow, and took the lead! They sprinted through the alleyways as fast as they could, barely rounding the corner before-
Pff!
Powder’s bomb went off harmlessly, a puff of blue smoke being the only evidence that anything happened at all.
But the mere threat of it had forced the chemthugs behind them to back up, buying valuable time. Even still, they regrouped and pushed forward . . . and they weren’t weighed down.
Despite all the efforts of Vi, Scar, Mylo, Claggor, Ekko, and Powder, they were simply too burdened. The footsteps and shouts behind them got closer and closer.
“How far?” Vi demanded.
“At least another ten minutes!” Scar replied.
Vi cursed -going to Benzo’s had taken up too much time. If they’d gone straight to Babette’s, they’d already be there! But she made the decisions -it was on her. And now she’d have to bear the consequences.
“Keep goin’,” Vi ordered. “I’ll buy you time.”
“No!” Powder protested, panting. “Don’t leave me!”
“Look!” Ekko gasped, pointing.
There was a large grate in the side of the street. Large enough for each person and what they were hauling.
“Sewer!” Ekko guessed. “We can hide.”
Vi had a split second to weigh the options. That could be a sewer entrance . . . or it could be something much worse. They could find their way out of the sewers easily enough, and the alternative was rare regardless -what were the chances?
Besides, Vi could only really hold one alleyway. There were plenty more -they’d just bypass her and keep chasing her family.
Those were the thoughts running through Vi’s head, and the decision was made.
She slipped her hands out of Vander’s gauntlets, leaving them on the wheelbarrow, then sprinted ahead. The grate was dry in her hands, and surprisingly not too much rust. When she pulled, it came free with a clang!
“Luggage first, then us!” Vi ordered.
Scar caught up to her and shoved the wheelbarrow in. The pipe was almost too small for it, but it just fit in and slid out of sight! Then Mylo, Claggor, and Ekko came with their handcarts, and Powder with her wagon -one by one, they crashed their way down! The sounds echoed loudly, but there was no time to think about how ominous it was -no time at all.
“Claggor, Mylo, Scar, Ekko, Powder,” Vi listed off as she urged them inside, half-pushing them to get them in just a little faster.
Last of all, Vi grabbed the grate and backed into the pipe, pulling the grate into place behind her.
Then she let go!
The darkness swallowed her like it had swallowed them all.
And it was then, when she felt no piss or shit on her pants as she slid down the pipe, that she realized the problem.
She’d gambled . . . and they all lost.
This wasn’t the sewers.
And they might never find their way out.