Cass hadn't felt this helpless since the bombardment of the outpost. He couldn't even leave his apartment to check on the girls just next door.
"What a joke!"
The table cracked under his grip. Daniella looked out the window.
"That was probably Tindra."
"Yeah, Dani. I would imagine so."
Cass was curt. The minutes ticked by. He heard sirens in the distance. The Old Ward was basically the slum of the slums. Dhall ruled that area with an iron fist. The fire must be huge to get the attention of the fire department. An expected knock on Cass's door brought Hilda barrelling into the room, talking a mile a minute. Cass did his best to calm her. His annoyance with Tindra, the constant pleading and unhelpful comments, along with the excruciating pain were wearing on his patience.
"Wait here. I'll go see if I can find her."
An empty promise. Cass wasn't sure if he could even leave yet. He'd already tried a half dozen times.
It probably looked pretty strange to Daniella…me opening the door and trying to fling myself out.
The door was ajar…He readied himself and pushed through the threshold. To his surprise, he easily passed through. Stumbling slightly, he caught himself and dashed down the hall. Before he even reached the stairs, a wave of relief washed over him. He stumbled again, but didn't stop. He ran out into the cold night air and scanned the streets of the red light district. Not long after, her recognizable figure came into view. Even in the gloom, her wild red hair swaying in the breeze was a dead giveaway. She walked up to Cass and looked him in the eyes; her body still smoldering.
"Shut up…"
She collapsed into Cass's arms. Cass helped her to her apartment where he and the girls got her cleaned, treated, and put to bed. She slept well into the morning of the following day, waking only for a brief moment to grab Cass and pull him into a bear hug. The collective "Aww~" from the girls caused Cass to turn beet red. Luckily, his face was buried in her chest at the time, so he doubted anyone saw. By the evening, she was awake and scarfing down anything edible brought into her vicinity.
"Went to Dhall's usual HQ and no one was there. I looked around, thinking they were just out partyin' or causin' trouble. That's when I noticed there were tiny little etchings in the walls, the floors…all over the place. They started glowing and I instantly knew it was bad news. So I shot outta there, but before I could get all the way clear, the explosion went off."
"Didn't I tell you it was a trap?"
She cackled.
"I knew that much. Dhall's traps have always been to start a brawl. Thought for sure he'd want to test his new abilities one on one. Ah well, ya learn somethin' new everyday. Guess Dhall finally got a brain cell!"
Cass frowned.
"Fighting him with those runes might've been worse."
She cackled.
"Now then, let's finish cleanin' up downstairs. We can at least do that much. Fixin' her up…now that'll be a bit tricky. The Doxy'll hafta wait until the girls are all healed. Some of y'all need to stay up here and take care of the seriously injured ones."
Cass went back to his apartment to check on Daniella. He opened the door and saw her and Rudy sitting on the couch.
"Hey, buddy! What's up!"
"I'm guessing Hilda came back to fill you in, Daniella?"
"Yes."
"Outside of that, nothing much. We're gonna clean up the mess in the Doxy as best as we can."
"Sounds like a chore. I don't mind helpin' out a bit."
Daniella frowned.
"You don't have to do that, Rudy."
"Ahhh, it's no trouble, Dani! Can't let my girl's home stay wrecked."
She bit her lip.
"And ol' Cass here is probably racking up a bill in his head, knowin' him. Rent, utilities…who knows what fees he'll come up with for ya!"
He laughed. She smiled.
"You're so sweet, Rudy. I'm sorry, I forget how considerate some guys can be."
Cass's eye twitched.
Wait…did these two…?
Cass quickly opened his bedroom door and looked around.
Nothing seems amiss…
"C'mon, Cass! Let's get a move on! Doxy isn't gonna fix itself!"
Cass sighed and they left the apartment. Arriving at the Doxy, their faces grew serious.
"Get the hell out! I ain't interested in your gloatin'!"
Tindra's voice sounded shaky. She was standing face to face with Linas Rampone.
"Gloat?"
He laughed.
"I came to check on you, my dear."
Her face twisted and her teeth were bared. His eyes darted around the Doxy.
"I wish you had called me. I'm more than happy to help you out."
His hand rested on her cheek. Cass could see the disgust on her face, but she didn't pull away.
"This building is unfit to live in as it is. Let me handle the repairs and give you and your girls a place to stay. It'll be no trouble, I promise you that."
His smile rivaled even the sleaziest used car salesmen.
"If people are trying to blow you and your girls up, it might be good to disappear for a while, don't you think?"
"Tindra!"
She turned towards Cass.
"I brought a helper. What do you need us to do?"
Linas brought his hand back and put it in his pocket.
"The offer's always open. Just keep it in mind."
With that, he left. Early next morning, the Doxy was clean and patched up to the best of their ability. Tindra put up a good front, but he could tell she was less than pleased with the results. The rest of the day was uneventful. They decided to let the girls rest for the night, so they turned in early. Cass was sitting by the window of his apartment looking out at the busy night street of the red light district. He twirled a small stone cube between his fingers.
I'm usually sitting in the Doxy during this time. Never knew how lively it got down there.
He set the cube down on the stack that had accumulated in the window sill. A nice little pyramid had formed. Cass smiled at his handiwork. Forming cubes had become second nature at this point. Still no use for the things, but still…progressing at something…it felt nice. He pulled out the note he removed from the bomber's chest and set it on the table. The fact that it survived the explosion intrigued Cass enough to take it with him.
They must've used some sort of sorcery on this.
Cass had dismissed the idea of a Blessed mage enchanting it. He should be able to sense residual energy on it in that case.
Unless they were very powerful or had a unique advantage…Chances are very slim.
He studied the note for a while. No matter how hard he looked he couldn't find any indications of runes being applied.
Damn it! If only I had better reference material.
Reference material for sorcery was very rare. It was frowned upon to even have such things and illegal in many places, never mind trying to actually use it. Most of the stuff Cass learned he pieced together from a chapter in a book about tracking demons. That and any random article or passage he could find warning about the dangers of sorcery. He sighed.
I have no idea what to even look for on this thing.
Cass picked up the package for delivery and knocked on his room door. A soft voice responded.
"I'm getting ready to shower."
"I'm heading out. I'll be back in an hour or so."
No answer. Cass didn't bother to say anything else.
The Old Ward was a place Cass never wanted to go to. The slums, especially the red light district, had some semblance of living and a quality of life that one could expect. However, the Old Ward was nothing but human misery in all its glory. Virtually no power to the ramshackle buildings; people laying in the streets, oftentimes dying of hunger. The Fog was an ever present threat here, which meant Cass had to be on guard and avoid any sizable pockets that may have formed. The few times he'd been here was with Tindra. This time he had to suffer through his whole body aching on top of everything else.
I finished the delivery…Might as well check out Dhall's old HQ while I'm here.
Cass sat on a large piece of concrete from the old HQ to catch his breath. He had about 15 minutes to look and still make it back comfortably. Even though the building sat away from the rest of the Old Ward, he could see that chunks of rubble had peppered the nearby buildings. Cavernous holes decorated their dismal surfaces and one building had even collapsed.
It's a good thing she noticed when she did. If I can get something this powerful…
It wouldn't hurt Cadeyrn, but it'd be a step in the right direction. Cass unfurled his large bag and began his search, placing anything of interest inside. About 30 minutes later, a filthy and profusely sweating facsimile of Santa Claus was seen cresting the hill towards the Doxy.