The Waystation Ch.42 (Patreon)

Chapter 42

The City of the Sun II

The steel spike bit deeply into the stone, and the Hudson Express’ treads bit into the roadway as it strained. Groaning noises came from the giant stone pillar holding up the gate, but it refused to fall.

“Bloody hell. This thing just won’t give way!” Bert growled in frustration as he drummed his fingers on the wide dash.

“I know, right?” Wendy said. “It’s almost like they designed it not to.” She giggled.

“Any ideas?” Bert asked.

“Yeah, give me a minute!” She went out the door and climbed onto the roof. He could hear her clambering around up there. He noticed that she was spending a lot of time in her human form. He was worried it was because of the way Bell was treating her.

They were getting along better, but there was still tension there.

“Hey, Scruff!” Wendy yelled, her voice amplified loud enough to make Bert wince. “Dad said we could do it!”

“I said what now?” Bert asked when she climbed back inside.

“We have a plan!” Wendy beamed at him.

“You and Scruff?” Bert asked.

“Yeah, we were hanging out last night, and just kind of came up with it.” She shrugged. “Mom had given her hell all day, so we kinda bonded over shared trauma,” Wendy grinned. “She’s quite a cool chick, if a little weird about plants.”

“And this plan is?” Bert asked.

“Just wait. I don’t want to spoil the surprise.” Wendy grinned in a very Bell way.

Bert swallowed nervously as a huge ball of vines sped over the ground, opening to reveal Scruff in the center, laughing.

“I never thought he’d let us!” Scruff beamed at Wendy.

“I told you, Dad’s cool,” Wendy said, climbing up onto the roof.

Bert drummed his fingers nervously on the dash. Your kid saying you were cool was a great thing, except it wasn’t. It translated into you letting them do something no one else would.

There was normally a good reason other people wouldn’t let them do–

The Express shuddered as three more spikes were fired in quick succession. Each one had a thick vine where it would normally have steel wire.

Another of the vines was snaking its way up the cable to the first one.

Bert sighed and opened his door, planning to ask what they were planning, when he heard the creaking noise.

Looking back over at the gate, he saw the vines wrap themselves around the massive pillars, diving into any crack, join, or imperfection they found.

Green light started to float from above him and into the vines.

A light blue light followed.

Bert cautiously stuck his head out the window, looking over the cab's roof.

Scruff stood tall; her hands outstretched to either side, green energy pouring out of herself and into the vines. Wendy stood behind her, eyes closed in concentration as the same light blue mana he recognized from his own crafting flowed up her body, down her arm, and into Scruff.

A loud crack came from the gates; Bert turned. Hanging half out the cab window of the Express, Bert J Hudson watched as the vines tore the pillars apart. They pushed into those little cracks and grew, forcing the stones apart even as the main body squeezed the giant stones.

Another crack, followed by a toppling stone thudding into the ground.

Bert looked up at the towering metal gate looming high above them.

“Stop!” He yelled, but they ignored him.

Ducking back inside, he slammed the controls into full reverse. The Express lurched backward, sending Wendy and Scruff tumbling off balance. He thumbed the release on the wire holding the spike in place, but it didn’t move.

With no other options, he drove the express toward the gate as it slowly began to topple. As soon as he had the slack, he turned.

Pushing both sticks as far forward as he could, Bert prayed to the Gods for a miracle as the gate’s collapse accelerated.

He heard screams from on top of the cab but could only focus on getting clear.

In the end, it was a matter of inches. The ridiculously tall, thick metal doors slammed down less than three inches from the back of the Express.

Bert brought the mighty vehicle to a stop, scrambling out the window and on top of the Express.

Wendy and Scruff were lying flat on their backs, looking shell-shocked.

“Everyone okay?” Bert asked. “Did either of you get hit?”

The two girls looked at each other and… packed out laughing.

“That was soo close!” Wendy gasped.

“Right?” Scruff wiped a tear from her eye. “We were almost squished.”

“Uh-oh,” Wendy pointed as a glowing blur shot from the Waystation and towards them.

“What happened?” The blur shouted as Bell orbited both girls. “Are you okay? Are you hurt?”  Finally satisfied no one was dead, she came to a sudden stop. “Who’s stupid idea was this?” She glowered down at the girls. They looked at each other, and then both pointed at Bert.

“Hey!” Bert yelled, affronted as Wendy and Scruff scrambled inside the Express and away from the pixie.

“Bert?”

“Bell, I had nothing to do with this!” Bert tried to say, but she was in one of her ‘not listening’ type of moods.

“Bert?” She said again.

“Yes, Bell?” Bert wondered how fast he could summon his shield.

“Did you know what they were planning?” She asked sweetly.

“No, Bell. I swear-” He started, but she held up a hand.

“Did you let them do it anyway?” She asked with a brittle smile.

“Well, yes….” He sighed. “I did, Bell.”

“Will you make that mistake again?” Bell said.

“No, Bell,” Bert confirmed.

“Girls! Get out here right now.” Bell said sternly.

Suddenly, a pair of very contrite-looking young women stood on top of the Express.

“Sorry, Bell.”

“Sorry, Mum.”

“Do you two know what your punishment will be?” She asked tartly.

“No,” They chorused.

“Good,” Bell grinned evilly. “I do so like surprises!” She buzzed off toward the Waystation.

“Dad!” Wendy tried.

Bert just held up a hand and walked away.

===========

“No!” Bell said sternly. “The rest of you are too young; that is the last word!” She crossed her arms.

Sal’ali opened her mouth to argue but paled and backed down.

Wendy and Scruff sat at the back and tried to be invisible.

“The rest of us are going to check the place out first,” Bert took over. “You lot will be responsible for looking after the Waystation while we are gone, but don’t get too excited about it, as a Multi-Bell will also be around.”

A tentative hand went up, “Dad, can I borrow the car?”

“Ha. Ha. No.” Bert deadpanned.

“You’re grounded, Missy!” Bell snapped.

“The Express is my room!” Wendy complained.

“Grounded or buried, your choice!” Bell growled.

“Yes, Mum.” Wendy sighed in that heavy, theatrical way designed to infuriate parents.

“Time to go!” Bert clapped his hands together as Bell’s eyes narrowed.

They almost got to the door before Bell stopped and turned back, “You can borrow the Express,” She looked back at Wendy, “Because you will need it to clean up the mess you made.”

“Mess?” Wendy asked, confused.

“The door you dropped. I want it cleaned up by the time I get back.” Bell grinned. “All of it.”

Scruff laughed at Wendy and pointed.

Mistake…

“You’ll be helping,” Bell snapped at her. “And no cheating with plants!” Bell looked happily at the two horrified faces and flew out the door.

Bert, Bell, Bud, Reed, and Lowes walked along the giant door as their party approached the former gate. It was not a pleasant sight. When they got close enough to see clearly, they all winced.

Bodies were stacked on top of each other; people had been climbing over those underneath, trying to get at the gate. The lower layers were simply dead, crushed beneath the weight above them. They were the lucky ones. Those higher up hadn’t fared as well. Whatever hit them did not burn or blacken their flesh. Instead, it had melted it. And not just their flesh; they could see fused bones poking through in a few places.

“No one touches anything,” Bert said.

“No shit,” Lowes said, his voice shaky.

Some of the pile had been crushed by falling chunks of masonry, but it was mostly intact. What they could see was a tableau of frantic terror. Of desperation to escape.

“What could make them so desperate to escape?” Reed wondered aloud.

“Something melted them,” Bud offered. “That’d do it for me.”

Lowes chuckled softly.

“Good point,” Reed said. “Would anyone mind if Lowes and I went to check the other gate to see if it is the same?”

“Be careful,” Bert said. “We assume whatever did this is gone, but still….”

“Careful is my middle name,” Lowes assured him.

“Not it’s not; it’s Augustine,” Reed corrected him, grinning.

The two assassins vanished into the shadows, still chuckling to themselves.

“Weird couple,” Bell commented happily.

“Says the pixie with a half-human-half-clone daughter,” Bud grinned up at her.

“And a skeletal son,” Bell commented drily, “And don’t be rude to your mother!”

Bud chuckled as they worked their way around the piled dead.

An hour later, they had managed to get about three blocks into the overgrown city. Bert was hacking away with his hand turned into an axe as he cut a path for them while Bell sat on his shoulder. Bud was keeping an eye on the surroundings, looking for threats.

They could not relax; it was just too quiet.

“No bugs,” Bert said. “That’s why it seems so quiet.”

“Good,” Bud shivered. “If I never see another bug….”

“Me too,” Bert agreed, “but it worries me.” He was thinking about the melted bodies again. “If anyone starts to feel sick, we pull out.”

“What’s on your mind?” Bell asked, bored.

“Nuclear energy,” Bert said. “They used it on earth, and it could melt people.” He looked around. “The plants would come back, but insects and animals avoided the place. The area would kill people for hundreds of years after.”

“You think this backward world could split the atom?” Bell giggled. “They haven’t even figured out toilet paper.”

“You know about nuclear technology?” He asked, shocked.

“Yeah, of course. Fae are born with knowledge from the whole Fae race!” She laughed. “Somewhere out there is a pixie that can build a spaceship from scratch, and she’s running a Waystation in a cave with some prelanguage moron for a caretaker!” She giggled again. “Poor cow.”

“So not nukes then?” Bert asked, still trying to process all of that.

“Hang on, stop!” Bell said, suddenly serious. “How can I remember that?”

“You just said,” Bert started, but she slapped a tiny hand over his mouth.

“The information is locked away unless… a very large group of Fae are nearby.”

Bert froze. His eyes scanned the surroundings.

“Not that close, idiot.” Bell rolled her eyes. “But closer than they have been since I was born.” She took off and hovered in front of Bert. “What are they doing, you think?”

“How would I know?” Bert asked. “You were the first Fae I ever met.”

“Hmm.” She looked distracted for a minute, then shook her head. “So, this is boring.” With that, she took off, flying back to the Waystation.

“Any idea what that was about?” Bert asked Bud.

Bud just shrugged.

“Want to speed up a bit?” Bert asked, shrugging his shield onto his arm as he summoned it. He changed his hand into his crossbow as well. There was no way to do this slowly unless they took all year.

“You got it, Bert,” Bud said.

The two dashed off into the overgrowth, moving through the streets and alleyways as they searched. There was not much left anywhere. After about an hour, they came to a large open patch on the ground. It was clear of plants, debris, bodies… everything. It disappeared into the distance on each side of them, curving slightly.

Bert reached down and ran his hand over the bubbled, smooth surface. It was glass. Something had happened here that melted the stones into glass.

“This place is unsettling,” said Bud. Bert agreed.

When a talking skeleton tells you a place is creepy, you can believe it.

“And still no noise,” Bert sighed. “Did you notice the buildings all look exactly the same as the City of the Dead?”

“Boss?”

“The houses, the streets, have the same design and materials.” Bert shook his head. “These were one people at one time.”

“You think?” Bud asked.

“Yeah,” Bert nodded. “I’m almost sure.” He had been keeping an eye out. “There are certain things that everyone does the same,” He explained, “but they all have their own way of doing things. You see the way the houses all have a line of large square bricks at the floor level? Or how they all have a little wooden awning over the windows? There is also the fact that they line their streets with exactly the same trees.” Bert pointed to a nearby overgrown area. “That is the same type of tree they had in the City of the Dead, and I haven’t seen anywhere else but here.”

“Wow, yeah. I didn’t even notice it.” Bud sounded upset about not noticing.

“I wouldn’t either, but I built that city for those cult people and used a similar design.”

They both froze; a rumbling in the distance was approaching quickly.

Bud leaped for the nearest tree, climbing it in seconds to get a look over the nearby buildings. “You’re not going to like this, Boss.” He called down.

Bert opened his mouth to ask what, only to dive for cover as the nearest house exploded into chunks of flying masonry.

He rolled away, looking for a place to fire from, when he heard a familiar laugh.

“Wendy!” He yelled as he brushed the stone dust from his clothes.

“Hi, Dad!” She waved out the window. “Mum said I should come help!”

“And you thought flattening me would be a good start?” He said sarcastically.

“Yup!” she giggled. “I honestly didn’t think you would be this far in!” She was still grinning when Bud popped up behind her and tapped her on the shoulder. She screamed and popped into a pixie before glowering at him as Bert and Bud chuckled.

“Hello!” Bud said happily.

Bert drove along the wide streets, the mandibles on the Express chomping their way through the overgrowth as they went.

“My way was quicker,” Wendy pointed out.

“This way, there is still a city when we leave,” Bert said. Sometimes she really did remind him of her mother. “And evidence of what happened.”

“City go poof,” Wendy said, “Who cares why?”

“I do,” Bert said.

“Okay, so where are we headed now?” She asked.

“Right there,” Bert pointed to a huge, open-roofed building at the end of the road they were on. It looked almost like a scaled-down coliseum. The main difference was the huge bronze sun taking up most of the frontage. “I want to get a good look at their church.”

“Why?” Bud asked from his spot in the back.

“I have a bad feeling, is all.” He said.

“Like what?” Wendy asked. She was back in human form, complete with jeans, a t-shirt, and a ball cap.

“Well, this was a city that had a single religion, from what I’ve been told.” He said. “Back on Earth, places like that often had a fanatical devotion to their Deity. To the point that they took offense to anyone who lived differently. That never ended well.”

“Okay, so?” Wendy asked.

“So, they had even more fanatical members who acted on that offense. And that sometimes caused retaliation.”

“And you think that might have happened here?” Bud asked. “In which case, whoever did it might be out there still.”

“That’s what I’m thinking, yeah. But it doesn’t all quite fit.” Bert frowned as he brought the Express to a stop. “If they were attacked from outside, how did they seal the gates to stop people getting out? And why were people trying to get out if that is where the attackers were?”

Wendy sat in the open door of the express, watching the two as they went in. Bert turned back just before they went into the huge arch, “If you see anything coming, blast the horn twice.” He hesitated. “Three times if we need to run.”

“Okay,” She sighed.

The entrance to the church was immaculate, the floors dusty but untouched. White stone curved up into ornate patterns as they walked through a tunnel and out into a large, open auditorium. A complex series of designs, complete with large crystals, sat untouched in the center.

Bert was willing to bet each crystal would be hit by the rising or setting sun on certain days of the year.

“Fuck,” Bert sighed. “So much for that theory.”

“What?” Bud asked.

“They would have destroyed the church if it was a religious enemy.” He sighed and waved for them to head back.

“Are you sure?” Bud asked. “Maybe they wanted to avoid angering the God or Goddess?”

“More than slaughtering a whole city of their faithful?” Bert asked.

“Good point,” Bud fingered his bow. “So what now?”

“Now? We head for the tower.” Bert said with determination.

“Think there will be answers?” Bud asked as they climbed back into the Express.

“I hope so,” Bert said. “Or we may never know what happened here.”

“How come?” Wendy asked. “Couldn’t you, like, dig through the houses for information?”

“It would have rotted away with all this overgrowth,” Bert told her, “Any paper records will be gone. And we have already discounted three things that could have happened here.” He held up a hand and counted them off. “First, it wasn’t an attack from outside; second, it wasn’t a plague; and third, it wasn’t a religious war.”

“You’re sure?” Wendy asked. “How come?”

“Well, if it was an attack from outside, there would be more damage to the walls and areas around them from siege weapons and spells.” She nodded. “If it was a plague, then we would likely see people in houses and churches more than all at the gates. They don’t tend to just let the sick congregate at the exits if they don’t get overrun, which didn’t happen here.”

“Because the gates were still closed,” Wendy said.

“Right, and if this was a religious war, they would have hit the churches worst of all.”

“Which they didn’t,” Bud said, pointing to another intact church as they drove by.

“So what’s left?” Wendy asked.

“That’s what we are trying to find out,” Bert said as they pulled up to the base of the huge tower. It stretched into the heavens, over fifty stories if Bert was any judge. He and Bud jumped down from the Cab and headed for the wide stone doors standing open at the base.

“Good Luck!” Wendy called.

Bert gave a final wave before they entered the tower, stepping into the dark.