When The Petal Fell

21-1

21

It would be pointless to attempt a stealthy entrance. Dūr knew they were there, hiding in the shadows of the crates, barrels and animals transporting within the lift to the Lower Docks below. The Kannai dropped into the large box of the lift first. Sora gripped Pirizd's arms, lowering him down as gentle as she could in order to save further damage to his ankle, Klaron catching him below. Then, dropping her spear into the gap, Sora dropped, landing in a crouch, reaching for the spear and scanning the area with narrowed eyes.

The lowering of the lift gained speed as it passed the thick structure of the bridge, upon reaching the first buildings of the Underside, it would slow down once again and then drop at some speed once past the flimsy habitations of the dangling buildings beneath the bridge.

Klaron, drawing her sword once more, the sword that almost separated Sora's head from her neck, turned in a circle, keeping Pirizd behind her. Neither she, nor Sora, found anything beyond the normal contents of the cargo lift. Much movement between the Lower Docks and the neighbourhoods of the bridge occurred at night, where normal citizens could not cause problems. This lift appeared almost full, with crates almost reaching the roof of the lift, barrels stacked high and tied secure against sudden gusts of high winds. Animals in small pens with high fence surrounds to stop nervous individuals from jumping out and affecting the delicate balance worked out through centuries of lift travel.

"Dūr!" Klaron called into the darkness of the lift, her Kannai eyes seeing in the dark far better than Sora's human ones. "You can still end this with some dignity."

"Dignity?" The voice appeared in their minds, not allowing them the ability to work out where the Ascendent could be. "The only dignity I crave is to leave. You've ruined everything else. There is no dignity left for me here."

"We've ruined it?" Sora, despite the circumstances, laughed, a scathing, scoffing laugh that echoed within the confines of the lift. "You kill people because of some insane unrequited love and we're the ones who ruined it? You're out of your tiny mind."

Sora side-stepped towards one corner of the lift, crouching as she moved, spear sweeping towards each dark corner, every slip of space between the cargo. Goats chewed upon dried grass in a pen by her side. They didn't appear disturbed, but then, no-one knew if Dūr's powers affected animals as it did humanoids.

She looked back and saw Pirizd sat upon the floor, pale moonlight from the open hatch highlighting his soft, unfastened hair, falling over his shoulders. His hand raised before him, eyes closed as he mentally searched the cargo lift for their quarry. Klaron had disappeared. Damn that Kannai!

"You have wrought your own doom, child." The Sender pushed the words into her head. She felt more violated by that than by the illusions he had attacked them with earlier. "With a thought, I can make you kill your friends. A passing idea and I could make you believe you walk to safety, yet find yourself tumbling to your death below."

"I don't think so." A noise, like a shuffle of worried feet, caused her to dive around a corner, only to find rats chewing into the edge of a bale of some kind of fodder. "I think you're weakening. I think you've pushed yourself too hard, for too long."

"Lies! I have more than enough strength left to put you, the dog and your pet Thought Mage through miseries you couldn't begin to break out of!" In Sora's head, the Ascendent yelled in fury. Good. She knew now her words affected him. "I am the strongest Thought Mage for generations! Even now I feel the fear in 'Chief' Pirizd."

A movement caught her eye. She drew back her hand, ready to loose the spear, only to see Klaron moving at the other side of the lift, slipping between crates and barrels. The Kannai caught sight of her and shook her head, the light from the four moons outside filtering flickering lines upon Klaron's face. Sora shook her head, also. Dūr must be in there, somewhere, they only had to find the one thing that seemed out of place. Await the itch in their heads to tell them they were under attack. Something to show how close they were.