Broker

Chapter 230

Halloway hit the wall with a grunt, more surprised than anything. He hadn’t expected the man who had confronted him to be so quick on his feet, Or this strong. He thought as he met the man’s eyes. Craftsman was not a large man, he was thin, built like a desk jockey. He wore a pair of no-nonsense glasses and his hair cut neatly. To all the world he would look like just a humble office worker. But now Halloway was hanging, pressed up against a wall with one hand as Craftsman’s glowing orange eyes literally set the air around them ablaze. Tufts of flame flickering out and into the air on either side of his head. The lackadaisical, sardonic man of the past months was gone.

“Release your net!” Craftsman demanded as the building shook, “Now!”

Halloway frowned as he was jostled but didn’t give the man so much as a word of response. Craftsman growled and shook him again, “I SAID-”

“No.”

Liberty’s ‘guest’ and the only outsider allowed in Round Table meetings tilted his head in confusion, his pupils shrinking with barely contained fury, “Excuse me?”

“I said no,” Halloway growled, “Our lady-”

“Your lady,” Craftsman snarled, “I’m just working for her.”

“All the more reason to follow her orders, not yours,” Halloway said with a dismissive jerk of his chin, “Now let me go, I need to get back into the safe room and you need to get back to work.”

Craftsman’s eyes bulged, “You asinine little, I can’t get into my workshop! Your stupid net is blocking me!” he bellowed and Halloway noticed something in the way his voice rose near the end. Was that panic? He allowed himself to get thrown to the ground, there was no reason to struggle with this man. A few bumps meant nothing if he could continue focusing on his duty even if the heroes had managed to poke a few holes in his net momentarily. Gravitic. 

Craftsman heaved out a breath, turning away to adjust his coat and straighten his tie, “She’s coming for me, I know it, she said she would,” he rambled, turning away and crossing his arms behind his back, “Maybe I’ve stayed here too long. Yes. Yes. Times up, I think…”

Is he really? Halloway shifted and got to his feet, he patted his waist and checked the pouch there. Still intact, he thought with relief before focusing on the man before him,“What are you saying?”

Craftsman rounded on him and the temperature in the hallway rose feverishly, the wire-thin engineer held out a hand and a gauntlet slid out of his sleeve, wrapping around his fingers before clicking into place. Red-orange light began to bloom on his fingertips and the temperature grew higher. Halloway raised his own hand and a ripple of warped red space formed in front of it. He searched the man’s face. There was fear there, something else too. Halloway couldn’t quite place it but his experience as a spy told him it was important, “What has you so rattled?” he asked.

Craftsman’s nostrils flared, “Ishtar is coming and I need to be ready!” he said and clicked his tongue, suddenly looking thoughtful, “It could already be too far along, even so, if I could just get my hands on that helmet…” he muttered and Halloway got the feeling that the man had already forgotten he was even there. 

Halloway lowered his hand, “What’s this about her helmet?”

The thin man blinked and whipped his head up, his glowing eyes focusing on him for several seconds in confusion before the anger returned. “Not your business, just get me back into my lab-”

The lights dimmed, just faintly, and just in their part of the hallway. It was such a small change, but it made Halloway’s skin crawl. 

Both men froze.

The sound of a single footstep carried in the brief silence that was shattered by another boom from outside. Halloway’s eyes turned in that direction on reflex, something that he immediately regretted. That was a distraction! He thought and immediately turned around only to see a flat wall behind him. His heart rate increased. He looked up, nothing on the ceiling. Where? Someone’s- A chill spread across his feet. He looked down, a gasp catching in his throat. He was ankle deep in a black pool of something inky and dark.

A ripple.

A movement within his net.

Someone was cheating his carefully laid protection against teleportation, a loophole. It wasn’t until he was touching this stuff that he could feel it. He threw his head back as a knife flew across his field of view, a violet blade glinting in the faint light before disappearing into the hallway beyond. He pivoted to the right and pulled himself free of the murky stuff, his feet coming free easily. He whipped his hand out and released an arc of red rift energy that slammed into that flat wall. 

“What the hell are you doing?” Craftsman shouted.

“We're under attack!” Halloway shouted back and rounded on him, “Make yourself useful and- oh no.”

Craftsman scowled at him but Halloway’s mind had just stopped working. Focused on the pale face just past Craftsman’s shoulder. An icy lump formed in his gut. Animal terror bounding about in his head as he scrambled backwards, pressing himself against the nearest wall. His lips twitched up into a nervous, near hysterical smile. Blackrazor stared back at him with flat black eyes, a frown on his face. No words. Just cold malice.

He couldn’t move. He couldn’t think. He couldn’t even react.

It happened so fast.

A long violet blade exploded from the center of Craftsman’s chest. The thin man coughed up a gout of blood and looked down in confusion, his head tilting slightly to the right as he slid off the weapon and onto the ground with a slick thud. Blackrazor did not stop there, he stepped past the body and held out a fingertip, a black mass forming over it that lanced out in the form of an arrow. It drove down through the man’s skull, pinning him unceremoniously to the floor.

FUCK!

Halloway ran.

He could feel the presence sliding across the ground now that he was aware of it. A slithering between the holes in his net. Like Blackrazor wasn’t using the Backrooms for whatever form of teleportation he was using. Halloway whipped his hand out and launched a red crescent towards the nearest source of the sensation, trying to drive the man out as he rounded a corner in the hallway.

I need to get away. Get to safety. The safe room isn’t far. I could teleport there if I drop the net, but Liberty-

Dark eyes.

Halloway threw up his arms and blocked, releasing a burst of rift energy as the knife snapped out towards his throat. It clattered away with a flash of reddish light as fresh pain seared up his back. Halloway gasped, stumbling as pain spread from the wound. It turned into a burn that itched at his flesh. Shit, shit, shit, poison! His fingers twitched and he almost reached back for the pouch when he felt the pain fade a few seconds later. Sear toxin? No. He doesn’t play with his food.

SNKT

He stumbled as fresh pain ran up his leg. Another wave of heat and itching pain that faded a few seconds later. Sear toxin again? Does he want to torture me? 

SNKT

The pain exploded in his shoulder blade. He gasped and stumbled, the heat from the sear toxin burning across his flesh. He tried to take a breath of air and the pain only intensified. 

FUCK FUCK FUCK!

He pumped his legs, whipping his arm back and sending a barrage of red crescents bounding down the hallway. He didn’t care if he didn’t hit anything, as long as it caused a bit of mayhem and confusion. Anything to distr-

SNKT SNKT

He cried out in pain, stumbling again and tripping over his own feet. He hit the ground hard, a jolt going through his shoulder. He dragged himself back up only for more cuts, more burning, more pain to cross his body. Blackrazor was a ghost. Invisible in the dark. Silent. No warning. No hint at where the blades were coming from. Each blow ate at him, burning against his stamina. He kept running and rounded a corner. Ahead he saw a mighty steel door with a control panel next to it. There! The safe room! Just a little further.

His vision swam and he felt his legs wobble a bit.

Huh?

He shook his head and blinked. Blackrazor was there, standing in front of the door. His cold eyes unblinking as violet liquid poured down his wrist and into his hand, taking the form of a new knife. He flipped it over in his hand and stabbed it into the door control panel to a shower of sparks. Halloway felt his stomach drop and he slowly reached back for the pouch on his hip. His swimming vision blacked out for just a moment as he blinked. But it was long enough. Blackrazor was next to him, the pouch in his hand.

My antitoxin!

Blackrazor crushed it with his bare hands. 

Halloway took a step back, then another, and another. This bastard was toying with him. Torturing him. Why? What kind of professional played with his food like this? It didn’t make any sense! “S-stop m-messing with me. Just do it if you’re going to do it!” he snarled.

Blackrazor tilted his head to the right and raised an eyebrow in confusion. Halloway felt it then, something gurgling up his throat. He coughed and felt heat burn through his nostrils and down his lip. It splattered onto the floor. He looked down at the blood pooling at his feet and coughed again, a piercing ache spreading through his lungs. The first stages of fever came next.

“...you already did, didn’t you?”

“Yes.”

“He speaks!” Halloway laughed hoarsely, “Why drag it out?”

“You know why,” he said and vanished again, falling into the ground as the room grew darker and darker. Halloway could make out the outlines of shapes forming against the walls, they looked like arrows. He coughed again and wiped his lips. This fucker. First Gravitic humiliates me. Then Liberty stomps all over my pride. Now you, Headmaster. You bastard. You’re just toying with me while I die! Is this my punishment? Fuck you!

He dropped the net.

“I’LL KILL YOU FIRST!” he screamed and with a flex of will tore the hallway asunder. Red crescents flew in all directions, pulverizing stonework, masonry, steel, and glass. He felt Blackrazor move nearby, space distorting and snarled, pointing at it and ripping a rift open in the midst of his enemy’s path. Blackrazor’s presence moved again, sliding up the wall before a volley of arrows erupted from the spot. Halloway growled and swirled his hands, creating a rift in front of him that caught the arrows, sending them flying back at their sender.

I’ll teleport out of here as soon as he-

SNKT

The knife drove into his achilles tendon, severing it and sending a fresh wave of scalding pain through his body. “Fu-” he started to shout only for a violet spear to catch him from behind, straight through his side. It pinned him to the spot. Halloway coughed up a rivulet of blood as the terror came back. I can’t touch him. Why do I always run into these people?! God damn it! He raged as a hand grabbed him by the hair. His head wrenched up to look into those cold eyes.

He looked down at the floor slowly sliding up towards him as his body slid along the spear shaft. He looked back up again and smirked. Now you want to execute me? He thought as the headmaster drew a knife. He concentrated, Fuck this. I’ve still got some antitoxin in my boot. Just gotta get away. I don’t care anymore! Joining Liberty has gotten me nothing but grief! 

He opened a rift and let himself slide down.

He landed in a copse of trees with a thud, his world spinning as the pain spread. His body was still dying stil–

THUMP

The kick sent him into a tree. His world span as he tried to make sense of what just happened. He blinked and looked up into Blackrazor’s eyes, “...how?” he wheezed.

Blackrazor just looked down at the shadow at Halloway’s feet. Oh. Blackrazor grabbed him by the throat and lifted him off the ground, pressing him up against the tree. He looked into his eyes.

“A fitting end for a traitor,” Blackrazor said, “Die as pathetically as you lived, Halloway,” 

Halloway felt the first thrust of the knife. He shuddered as it dug into his chest, through his back, and into the tree behind him. Mounted. Halloway coughed up another rivulet of blood and felt his arms go weak. An execution blow and a time release poison in case I heal myself… he thought miserably as he hung there.

Blackrazor stepped back to watch Halloway die.

The last conscious thought he had was a promise, that if he had one more chance. One more opportunity, he’d become powerful enough to face the headmaster without fear and wipe him and the Night Society off the face of the earth.

—

A ripple of heat washed over the room of flat black stone. The smooth surface shined with drops of humidity, water dripping down the side before bursting into tiny clouds of steam against the floor. The solitary door in the room remained still as the structure within changed shape. A single casket rose from the ground, a long wedge of gleaming off-white metal. Carvings glowed along the sides, humming with a rising flood of mana. The opaque glass on top of the wedge of stone trembled, something inside moved, and the glass shattered.

A woman rose from within, water pouring across the floor and rising up in a thick cloud of steam. She clutched at her head, coughing and gasping for air. “Fuck!” she swore, “God damn it!”

She staggered to her feet and swayed, kicking away a large chunk of glass near her foot with a snarl of irritation, “Barbaric!” she snarled and stepped out of the tank, her skin not even reacting to the searing floor beneath her feet. “These damn things are so expensive to make, the resources, the time! I’ve only got one more spare! I hope that idiot Halloway suffered!” she ranted, throwing her hands into the air before letting out a sigh and looking back at the tank before down at herself, “Ah, right, the experimental body,” she muttered and flexed her fingers, “Not bad, I’m surprised my soul fits so well,” she rubbed her shoulder and walked over to the door that opened with a hiss.

“Forge!” she called out, “Cut off Liberty’s portal.”

A S  Y O U  W I S H  C R A F T S M A N

She huffed, “Oh well, not all is lost. I got a lot done on Liberty’s dime,” she said mildly as she strode into the large living chamber, the smooth scalding floor covering every inch. She ran her fingers along the back of a couch set up near a television and wandered over to where a robe hung on a coat rack. She threw it on and glanced back, “All that’s left to do is wait to see if Ito accepts my offer, I could use a drink…”