Skulduggery Pleasant: Raising Cain

Chapter 5 - One step forward, two steps back

Skulduggery – Crow

Anton – Bear

Ghastly – Panda

Dexter – Wolf

Saracen – Weasel

Erskine – Snake

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Chapter 5

Bear, Weasel and Snake went to the mansion while Crow, Wolf and Stephanie waited for Panda to finish the protective clothes for her. She had already switched her thick jacket for a vest and her trousers for the protective ones. Panda had already started the shoes, which were curing while he worked on the coat. He had allowed Stephanie to help him make it, and she had picked out a deep blue lining and black matt buttons, as well as how many pockets she'd have which was greatly influenced by Wolf as he told her all the pockets he found himself needing when in combat and wishing he had packed this object or that. She had four pockets on the inside and as many on the outside – one on the inside was specifically for money and Panda had decided to make a little pocket on the inside of her trousers for Crow to put some folded cash in so if she needed it in an emergency so she'd never have to worry.

She had smiled at them all, thankful for them looking out for her and also for helping her get into all the adventures she wanted. She'd be the most prepared adventurer ever at this rate.

When she slipped the coat on and looked in the mirror she couldn't help but admire herself. It felt like she'd been wearing it for months, tight where she needed it to be and loose where she would be moving, like her elbows. It was beautiful.

"Panda, this is incredible," she said. "I love it."

"It's alright. I put it on Skulduggery's tab."

She laughed and jumped into her boots. They were just as incredible. "Have you heard from the others?"

"No," Crow said, sounding annoyed. "I've tried calling them too."

Panda looked up from where he was clearing up scraps. "You know what that probably means, don't you?"

"Serpine is there."

They set off immediately – the others had taken the van, so Panda and Wolf sat in the back of Crows Bentley – and raced to the mansion. The metal gates were still open, and Stephanie didn't see any vehicles other than Gordon's old one and the van, but the door had been ripped off its hinges.

There were no sounds from inside.

Crow put a finger to his teeth and they quietly followed him into the house, sticking to the walls and sliding through the bottom floor without incident. They also failed to find any signs of entry to the cave system. Finally, they moved to the bottom of the stairs and Panda used his elemental magic to check if there was anyone there. They didn't wanted to accidently alert anyone to their presence. He held up eight fingers to the left and the pointed to the right and indicated six. They had to split up.

Wolf and Stephanie went to the right to find the six. They went quietly, tiptoeing towards to people. Stephanie couldn't stop her heart from pounding so loudly. But with Wolf, she wasn't exactly scared. Or rather, she wasn't scared for herself. She felt nervous for the others that weren't with her, worried they'd be hurt.

Wolf seemed to have homed in on them with a sixth sense Stephanie had every intention of developing and there were gentle voices coming from within the room he'd taken her to. She didn't recognise any voices behind the thick doors.

Wolf pressed himself against the other side of the door and got a gun out from she didn't know were. Stephanie looked at him. He held up three fingers...

Two...

One...

She reached out and burst into the room, Wolf backing her up with the gun over her head. She darted forwards and tackled a man to the floor with no particular thought to what she was doing and it somehow worked. She managed to punch him once in the nose, and he grunted in pain, but gripped her arms far too tight and lifted her off him, into the air and got up just to slam her onto the table. She was dazed and it took her a moment to realise she'd been dropped in favour of Wolf who was covered in a purple mist and straining not to scream.

Stephanie's eyes widened. They were in the presence of Serpine himself.

She tried not to get distracted and tried to get through the other guards – Wolf had already taken out two and Serpine was distracted by Wolf. But on second look, she realised they weren't men. They were nasty, papery looking creatures. She ran at the closest, feeling his body cave in when she pushed into it but then its balled up hands came crashing into her back and she choked as the air rushed from her lungs. She stumbled, holding onto its papery skin, and when she finally fell she accidently ripped its skin. Unfortunately, whilst she learnt how to kill it, she also learnt it was made of toxic, disgusting gas that hit her in the face just when she started sucking in lungsful of air.

Her eyes watered awfully and she coughed so much she thought she might throw up. When the other paper thing finally got to her from around the table, she was able to wrap her arms around it and claw open its back before it had time to do more damage.

She finally turned back to Wolf, who was still screaming in pain and clenching his eyes shut, and the two men hurting him. She didn't know what to do about Serpine. The other man, however, she could deal with even as he consulted his master on what weapon to use to hurt her brother more as the mist continued to torture him. She felt rage pass through her like nothing else. She got her breathing stable and slowly picked up the long dagger, or perhaps short sword, or whatever it was, and got a firm grip. Serpine was looking at Wolf with glee, not quite able to see her but any closer and she was a goner. The other man had his back to her but only for a moment. She licked her lips.

Wolf opened his eyes and stared at her. She glanced at him.

The man started to turn.

She launched forwards and swung her arm far above her head and brought it down before the man knew what she was holding.

The blade went almost fully into his flesh and he looked down at it with something between horror and shock.

She pulled it on and he fell to the floor.

Serpine started to laugh and she looked at him. Wolf had fallen to the floor and wasn't moving and panic flashed through her as she hoped he wasn't dead. Serpine started to clap with his two weird hands – one was normal, albeit very vain-y, whilst the other looked skinned but didn't bleed. That hand she understood. It had been modified, somehow, to have a second magic that's sole purpose, and ability, was to torture others.

Her heart jumped when he took a step towards her. She had her knife and held it in front of her with both hands.

"Stand where you are!" She shouted at the War Lord.

He laughed in her face but stayed still. "Oh no, a little girly has a little knife! Whatever shall I do?" He grinned at her and she finally understood what Gordon meant when he had talked about evil smiles. "You know, your friend Skulduggery Pleasant had a knife just like that once. He tried to kill me with it. Did he tell you? About how he wouldn't stop getting in my way and I was forced to kill his wife and child? It wouldn't be so bad if he wasn't using you. You know that he'll drop you the moment something better comes along, right? He's a very selfish man."

There was a bang from somewhere and the whole house shook. She heard footsteps banging towards them and she gave him a watery grin. "You won't get away. They're going to kill you and then this will be over. You shouldn't have killed my Uncle."

He chuckled. "You're right. Because I don't know where the Sceptre is. But I bet I know who does."

He used his red hand again and Stephanie was covered in that purple mist, screaming, before she could do anything with the knife. It clattered to the ground. The door was thrown open and she didn't know who it was but he looked harassed.

She groaned suddenly as the pain got too much and her head hit the ground. She passed out.