The Morningstar Brigade

Chapter 42

XXXXII

URIEL

After the "Date"

Transport Test Chamber, Morningstar Keep

Uriel had left Kat's room with a spring in his step, the brief respite in the Deep taking his mind from thoughts of battle. He thought, briefly, about simply carrying this feeling back to his own bed. He considered pushing aside thoughts of Faust, of even Eli, and simply nestling himself into a warm cocoon of sheets as he drifted off into slumber. But he thump of his heart and the insistent heat along his spine wouldn't let him rest. Instead, some steady, insistent, near-ethereal magnetism drew him back towards the forbidden doors of Solomon's laboratory.

"Hello? Anyone in here?" Uriel called out as he walked through the onyx doors of the transportation room.

The strange little chamber looked drastically different than it had when Daken had first shown it to Uriel what felt like ages ago. Instead of bare concrete floors, the ground was now completely covered with a network of white tarps reaching from wall to wall. Where scattered wires had once snaked haphazardly along the ground, industrial piping now glowed with the amber light of Vita. Novo's containment unit still stood at the center of the room with the dog snoring dreamily inside, but it was dwarfed by a massive silverwood-spattered arch that stood just in front of the back wall.

"Uriel? Is that you?" a thin figure answered as he walked out into view wearing a welding mask and carrying a blowtorch in hand.

Uriel cocked his head in confusion. "Do we know each other?" he asked.

"Well, I should hope so," the welder replied with a grin, lifting up his mask, "After all, it's my equipment that's kept you alive this long."

"Solomon?" Uriel said, barely able to identify the face with so much thick soot obscuring it.

The gaunt boy took a dramatic bow. "The one and only," he said, rising back upright and wiping his filthy hands off on a nearly filthier pair of overalls.

Spotting a worn sleeping bag tossed in the corner of the room with a few sets of dirty dishes strewn around it, Uriel studied Solomon curiously. "Solomon, are you... are you sleeping here?"

Solomon's bloodshot eyes went wide. "What? No. Absolutely not. Why would you-" He stopped as he spotted the incriminating bedspread and began wringing his hands nervously. "Ok, so you remember when I said no? What I meant was yes," he admitted. "But I mean, is that really that weird?" He studied Uriel's horrified expression for a moment and then sighed. "Ok, so it's pretty weird. Please don't tell Lady Vigilant," he pleaded. "She says I'll drive myself crazy if I keep working all of the time." He glanced back at the archway. "But this? And when I'm this close? I'll go crazy if I stop."

Uriel laughed sympathetically. "Of course, Solomon. Your secret is safe with me," he reassured the terrified boy. "That is, as long as you don't tell Vigilant that I've been visiting Novo without approval," he added, peeking around Solomon and smiling at the gently sleeping dog.

"It's a deal," Solomon agreed with a nod, extending his pitch-black foot expectantly to seal the deal with a shake.

"How about we just keep it a verbal agreement?" Uriel suggested, glancing down at the soot-stained toes uncomfortably.

Solomon shrugged. "Very well." He turned to face Novo and rubbed his chin thoughtfully, covering it with black contaminants as well. "You know, I must say, the canine is actually quite clever," Solomon observed, studying the dog. "Sometimes when I'm running diagnostic tests on it, I'll begin babbling to myself and I could swear that the dog has actually started to pick up on some of my phrases," he explained, clearly impressed. "My food and the word 'walk' seem to be its two favorite topics," the researcher added.