In The Shadow of Asora

18. Clockwork Guards

Jongho tried out his grappling hook for the first time on their way to see Yeosang. With Mingi's supervision, he aimed at the steep canyon wall that gradually blended into abyssal darkness. The hook shot from the sleeve that wrapped around his left arm and embedded itself deep in the stone just how it would for Mingi's weapon. The rope held strong to Jongho's body, but with a small mechanism, he could unhook it and fasten it around the hook on Mingi's door.

"It's good for a prototype. You have to be careful if you ever use it to pull your whole weight, though. The pressure might rip your shoulder out."

Jongho nodded as he tested the rope's stability. It could carry their weight, but he should exchange it for a thicker version.

"Not as if I should try that around Zey anyway. I would kiss a wall within two seconds." Jongho chuckled as he reached up to wrap his fingers around the string. As he climbed his way over, Mingi secured the hook with his fist so that Jongho wouldn't shake in the process. He still paid great attention to avoiding a glance down the eternal darkness to the best of his ability. With secure movements, he transgressed.

The last fear of height that Jongho might still have carried had by now diminished with how often they had crossed the Chasm by now. With how easy the process was, Jongho even found himself slack at the reminder just how precarious their actions were. With Mingi's hideout down in the blind spot of the automatons, they nearly didn't have to regard any rules of safety at all.

Several minutes later, Jongho pulled himself over the edge that led to Asora. Unsurprisingly, the city seemed more diluted today. Rather than the usual indifferent and serene atmosphere, death had found its way to every person's house. The city was wrapped in a silence that was so thick and solemn that it nearly swallowed all usual calm. Instead, fear and anxiety stretched over the streets like solid carpets.

Neither Jongho nor Mingi uttered a single word as they dashed through the streets. As predicted, winter clung to Asora and rushed under the men's clothes at any given chance. Under shivers and grumbles, the two arrived at the palace walls a while after.

Asora had always been empty at night when they had been here. Now, it felt entirely ghostly. They didn't have to search for the path that had no lit windows and night owls milling about. Even if they went down the main lane in a straight path, Asora stayed dark with grief and loss.

"Remember that security has maxed out. Mind your gauges and let's try to leave as soon as possible." Mingi's deep voice drawled from underneath his hood. Jongho wordlessly put his fingers on the palace wall to climb it. As soon as his head poked over the edge, he could see the first developments in the gardens. The last three times they came here, duos of human guards had walked the wall at regular intervals. They had chatted and laughed on their way and displayed a general loose and casual concern in the safety they were meant to uphold.

Those guards were gone now. In their stead automatons that seemed unlike the ones that supervised Zey greeted them.

Jongho regarded them with narrow eyes in the dark.

Their brass bodies were robust and armoured like the automatons in Zey were. However, they had humanoid shapes thicker and elongated to give them more superiority over regular humans. He couldn't discern their faces well, but their eerily blue glowing eyes hinted at the use of nethicite energy.

Whatever weapons those robots carried, they more powerful than anything Jongho could imagine.

"They secure every entrance. We have to go in another way."

Mingi hung flattened against the fence next to Jongho. They stuck their heads together to muffle their whispers.

"Do you think they might be stationed inside the facilities, too?"