Hammerstar

Updated the list.

I decided to post up a listing of the arcs that I could see posted that were submissions for this contest (from what I could read on the forums). If you know of an arc that was submitted that isn't on this list, post a reply and I'll try to update it (note this list takes a backseat to any official list that comes out).

Please do not post an arc that was -not- submitted for this challenge as the intent is to give players a listing of the entries for their own enjoyment, and not a place to slip in an advertisement for an arc that was not part of this challenge. Note the arcs are in alphabetical order, and this order is in no way meant to imply any ranking between them.



DR. AEON'S ARCHITECT CHALLENGE ARCS:
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'A Clockwork Romance' ID# 344816

'A Penny For Your Thoughts' ID# 348691

'A Tangle in Time' ID# 2622

'Broken April' ID# 350577

'Clan Destiny' ID# 349053

'Cloudy With a Chance of Zombies' ID# 352369

'Curing the Castaways ID# 352723

'Diversionary Tactics' ID# 347791

'Evil By Inches' ID# 349967

'For All the Wrong Reasons' ID# 351572

'Grey Dawn' ID# 352133

'Judge, Jury and Crimson' ID# 352363

'Nevermore' ID# 352030

'One Too Many Lines Crossed' ID# 347205

'Operation: Charybdis' ID# 346845

'Out of Place' ID# 350577

'Rusted Tin' ID# 352851

'Task Force Mutternacht' ID# 349522

'The Better Part of Valor' ID# 349298

'The Destroyer of Worlds' ID# 352820

'The Greater Good' ID# 350877

'The Rogue Raider' ID# 346852

'The Union of the Mask' ID# 352400

'Turg Fiction: IX' ID# 351787

'When the Bough Breaks' ID# 345863

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I personally think a character isn't worth rolling up if you don't intend to RP him/her at least a little. When I have RPed, it actually caught people by surprise (my mechanical villian speaking in computerspeak seemed to tickle people when I did it). Unfortunately, many players of ORPGs have no experience or understanding of what RP is or how to do it.

For myself, I prefer to RP. I think it brings depth to what are otherwise cardboard digital characters.

Heh...I rolled up a villian to help out a few days ago, a MM patterned on a Malta Gunslinger who was betrayed by that group. I may move over one of my Heroes as well, as I have at least one that isn't being used much on Victory.

Hope to be able to get on more this weekend!

Congrats Minimalist!

I haven't been able to get to that mission yet (I'm willing to bet everyone who entered an arc have been just as busy debugging their own monsters up till the deadline), and hope to be able to go through it very soon!

I agree it's disheartening to have the impression that your submission was never even looked at, especially one you have spent a great deal of time and effort on (welcome to the world of game developers, where a 6-month project can get dropped without notice or a 'thank you for your efforts'). However, ultimately these arcs are for the enjoyment of the players themselves, and how many players played -every- arc?



Thanks to everyone who participated, and hope to keep running through these excellent arcs!

One thing I have noticed is that it is very easy to go an edit your -local- version, thinking you are editting the published one, and getting confused as to why the changes either never show up, or are missing in play.

I don't know if that's the case here, but you might double check which one you are looking at.

Thanks to Zamuel and everyone who helped run through my arc last night. Final adjustments to the arc are in (after hours of fighting to get the file to actually save the changes instead of ignoring them), and I hope anyone who chooses to run or rerun the arc will find it enjoyable. Had to make some triage decisions due to memory space, but I think the final result will be mostly seamless and better for it.

Hope to see you all ingame soon!

Thanks much, PW. I look forward to trying out some of your arcs!

I managed to get some feedback last night and one day prior which has helped me streamline and tweek the arc into what I can consider a finished product in time for the deadline, so if you should still decide to look at it later, it should be a better experience now.

Thanks again!

Thanks for your cirtique, Zamuel! You touched on several points I have heard from the other reviewer who gave me feedback, and amplified alot of other points. Based on these, I can tweek the arc to be better for everyone.

Brigadier Chaos was actually not supposed to be so villianous as I portrayed him in his bio for the mission, but text space was limited, and I think I pushed that angle too far. I'll be rewriting it to make it a bit more clear that, while some people consider him a villian, his actions were for everyone else's good in his own eyes. In particular, I'll be resetting how he died back to my original idea, which should help people understand him slightly better.

I'll have to take a serious look at the use of MMs, as they seem to have a serious amplification effect in group play. Initially, I wanted the enemy group to be mostly unpowered normal people with non-power abilities, and the MM came to mind. However, based on what I have heard, I think I'll be changing out that ability for something that doesn't cause a Horde of Doom.

The limitation on text is a pretty serious one for this arc. The point you stressed about there being no other source for help but Arachnos was indeed one I wanted to portray more strongly, but ran out of space. I'll have to see if I can do some corrective surgery on the intro text for that mission.

I generally don't like reusing established character types in a custom group to avoid crossover ('oh look, we're fighting Banished Pantheon....again!'), and try to give players something original when I do one. Also, one of the more important aspects of the arc was that I wanted it to be playable by any character that wanted to try it, which limited which groups could be viable to those with a full level range (1-54).

I very much appreciate your detailed feedback and taking the time to run what was really an unknown arc. I'm glad people had a few jokes with it, as having a good time with any arc is what AM is about. I hope that, should you ever go through the arc after it is editted, you'll have a better time with it.

Thanks again!

Well, I know people are busy, and there might not be time to review my arc for the Challenge in time for the deadline, but I have been unable to get any feedback for it in the time it has been out, and I would very much like to have any constructive feedback at all. The arc is about as tested as I can do alone, and it seems to be what I want, but no author can see all the holes in their own work.

Arc Name: Diversionary Tactics
Arc ID: # 347791
Levels: Any (1-50)
Morality: Heroic
Enemy Groups: 5th Column, Arachnos, Longbow, Custom Group
Length: Very Long ( 5 missions, medium maps)

Summary:

The word 'Hero' carries a burden of responsibility and trust, and these will be tested when the ghost of an old Villian comes to you and asks for your help in recovering a device that once belonged to him, help that may force you to cross the line between Hero and Villian.


Notes:

I've seen some editing errors with corrections not taking after I save them. These should be all ironed out now, but please let me know if you see any glaring problems with spelling or double text. While I believe it is quite soloable, let me know if you find any problems with that (too easy, too hard, ect.).

Thanks for any assistance with this!

I have to say that the arcs I've tried out for this contest have been pretty interesting. I think the challenge of putting the hero in a position of doing something they wouldn't normally do is uncomfortable to many in COH, and the authors who took on this challenge really had their work cut out for them. My own arc is lengthy because I couldn't see how a hero would act in such a way without enough reason behind it that he/she could look in the mirror the next day and still see a hero there. That, I think is the real challenge...to make a story where the hero is still able to put on the cape afterwards, despite what was done in the story.

Oh, and as far as the time travel converstation? I think the recent remake of the Time Machine (2002) is one of the best I've seen in motion pictures depicting time travel and attempting to change things. The scientist wants to know why he can't change the past, and he gets three different answers throughout the story, from three different viewpoints. I recommend this to anyone who thinks time travel is cop-out, as it is well integrated into a very good action story about why time travel is ultimately a futile goal (or is it? Recluse seems to think not, so maybe there's something to it.... )

Looking forward to running through more entries in the contest, and the best of luck to all submitting authors. May the best arc win!

Arc Name: Diversionary Tactics
Arc ID: # 347791
Levels: Any (1-50)
Morality: Heroic
Enemy Groups: 5th Column, Arachnos, Longbow, Custom Group
Length: Very Long ( 5 missions, medium maps)

Summary:

The word 'Hero' carries a burden of responsibility and trust, and these will be tested when the ghost of an old Villian comes to you and asks for your help in recovering a device that once belonged to him, help that may force you to cross the line between Hero and Villian.


Author's notes:

This is an arc I've spent about a week troubleshooting and running solo, and I'm hoping to get some feedback from solo and group play. Let me know what you think, please.

Well, since the last three weeks, this hasn't gone off, I take it the weekly Ship Raids are done?

I apologize for not being able to post to this story in a few weeks, but I have been sick and involved in unforseen comittments. I should be able to post the next installment in a day or so, and get back up to speed shortly after.

Another option: The blockage happens inside one of the tunnels throughout the city. The obvious strength to this idea is there is -no- place else to push the disabled vehicle to. This works especially well if the vehicle is wedged in between the support columns and has caused another accident in the opposite lanes, blocking them as well.

Really depends on what setting you like better for the scene.

I can understand how a game can become boring to gamers who only see the game aspect of it, as opposed to also being a place for people to meet, interact, talk, and meet old friends they can't meet physically due to distance, ect. As an old-school RPGer, it's always sad to see people claim 'this game is boring'.

That is why the AM system is possibly one of the most important additions to CoX. This allows players who have ideas for new content never seen before to introduce new scenerios and challenges to those who have 'seen it all', and keep the game constantly injected with something new to try.

I generally don't think the 'Rumble House' scenerios will hold your attention long (they resemble 'grind' too much), but if you also find the scenerios that have the spark of creativity that AM allows, I think you'll keep playing quite a while. I think that's why you see so many people in the AE Corp buildings at the moment...alot of them are veteran gamers who have something new to see.

It's not always about min-maxing your character...sometimes, it's also about finding out the story and how it turns out today, and tomorrow.

Hope you'll find enough to keep you in the game!

Another classic of hero stories is the idea that the hero's arch-nemesis finally manages to trap the hero, but leary of actually killing him/her (the hero possesses knowledge the villian might need later, the two are linked magically by a prophesy, the villian respects the hero, the villian wants the hero to live with the knowledge that he/she was beaten, ect), instead sends them into an alternate world as a form of banishment/exile.

Another possibility is that the hero got caught in a scientific accident that did the same thing.

Last one is that each server is another world in the vast universe, each in a duplicate star system engineered by a super-advanced race known as The First Ones for some hidden purpose. The hero is transported to one of these other worlds and is now trying to discover who these First Ones are and what their plans are.

Just a few suggestions.

8.

Sonya blinked, forcing sleep to move away from her thoughts and concentrating on the weight of the assault rifle in her hands. She knew it had been an act of desperation for Vigilantess to trust her with the weapon, and she was determined not to give the heroine reason to regret that decision.

In the darkness, she felt the selector switch with her thumb, making sure again that it was set to single-fire, and then took a quick glance out of the open doorway of the shipping container they had claimed as their hiding place. A pair of police officers had come through the refuse-strewn area an hour ago, returning to their squad car only after a shouted exchange with someone else and a single gunshot. Their laughter had been all Sonya had needed to hear to make her grateful for Vigilantess' quick lesson in gunmanship, but they had driven off without checking any more containers.

Seeing nothing outside, she turned and regarded Vigilantess as she fitfully slept on the plastic sheet they had found rolled up inside the container. The heroine's breathing was labored, and it seemed likely more than one rib had been broken by Frostheart before they had escaped hours before. That Vigilantess hadn't slept for almost two days had made the situation even more complicated, and when it seemed they would have to remain hidden at least until daybreak, Sonya had been forced to accept the job of watching over Vigilantess as the other all but collapsed into rest.

While she watched, she heard Vigilantess voice murmur in the dark. Concerned that she might be trying to ask Sonya for something, the girl knelt near her, and used her free hand to balance as she leaned forward. Unexpectedly, her hand brushed one of the pouches on Vigilantess' utility belt, and a red-hued light suddenly sprang from it to blind her in impossible brilliance. At the same time, the ground under her feet became liquid, and she fell backwards in surprise and into a light-filled infinity.

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When she could see again, Sonya gasped as she saw that she was hovering over a huge, shadowed city that seemed to have been built inside a massive underground cavern. The stone buildings sported glassless windows and open doors that gaped only darkness, and a silence that seemed like a thing itself hung over every street and archway.

Or rather, she tried to gasp at the sight, but found she could not. It was as if she no longer had lungs, and when she brought up her hand to feel her face, she saw that the hand which came to her face was as insubstantial as mist. A thought came into her mind that this was not wrong, that she was merely a ghost now, a spectator to what was happening around her, and the calm acceptance of this would have seen strange to her, were she entirely herself. Yet here, she sensed she was not altogether herself, and that, too did not cause her to panic as it should have. Instead, she turned her gaze back to the city below her, and placidly forgot that anything else was wrong as she did so.

Across many of the buildings and streets were symbols and markings she could not identify, but that disoriented her when she looked at them too hard. Crystals and pedestals seemed to have been erected in places of importance, and as she floated to drift only a few yards above one vacant street, Sonya saw that these, too, were dark and lifeless. All seemed quiet and unmoving, a cityscape of places once holding people, now abandoned and only dimly lit by subterranean mosses.

Then sound did reach her. Voices. The voices of two men echoed in the vast space, coming closer as she looked in that direction. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but the tone of one seemed in awe, while the other was cold and grim. As she floated above the buildings, she heard a cry from one of the men, and the sounds of a struggle. Before she could move closer, the light came again and she fell downwards out of sight and sound.

When she stopped, it was above the front of a house in Kings Row, in the open night. By the light of the porch light, she saw a woman holding a man who had collapsed in her arms, the trail of blood in the street only reinforcing the sudden knowledge that this was the man who had cried out in the underground city.

As the woman cradled the still form in her hands, Sonya saw that she had been crying for a very long time, but no one had come out of the surrounding homes to comfort her. No police officers had been called by those who heard the woman, and Sonya knew enough about her own part of the city to recognize the signs that this was a gang-ruled part of the City. Now, the woman seemed to have no more tears to shed, and simply rocked with the body of the dead man clutched in a grip that spoke of deep love, now just as deep a sorrow.

Then a person did come. The man wore a business suit and seemed as out of place in the street as Sonya would have been in City Hall. He walked with no apparent fear of attack, however, and stepped up to the porch. Wordlessly, he held up a sealed envelope towards the grieving woman, who seemed oblivious to the world around her. When the businessman dropped the envelope onto the porch and walked away, the other woman finally seemed to understand that someone was there and looked up. Sonya gasped in shock as she realized she was looking at Vigilantess, much younger and with an expression of sorrow that she could never have imagined on the stern heroine she knew.

After another blaze of red light and falling, Sonya saw she was now in a circular room made of stone. Blazing torches lit the hallways leading into it, and several statues and pillars filled various recesses in the curving walls. In the center of the room stood an altar with a sash of red cloth placed upon it, and Sonya saw Vigilantess, robed as the other dozen figures in the room, standing with her back to that stone table, facing the lone man who approached her. The old man's eyes blazed with eldritch light, and he held a silk-wrapped object on a cushion of velvet.

Reaching Vigilantess, he threw back the wrapping and revealed a knife-shaped shard of blackened wood sitting upon the cushion. Vigilantess took this from the man, her eyes seeming vacant and without emotion as she turned the sharpened end towards herself and took it in both hands. Before Sonya could cry out, or rush forwards to stop what she saw happening, the light blazed again, and the world spun away.

Her vision cleared to see the Vigilantess she knew, but not as she knew her. There was a coldness even beyond that she had come to accept as the heroine's face to the world, a set expression of ice-cold determination. When she raised the large revolver and pointed it at a man just coming out of a New Ages To Come bookstore, her face was as blank as a storefront mannequin. The gunshot was immediately followed by another glaring of the red light, and another dislocation in time.

In succession, Sonya witnessed the heroine as she strode through one scene after another, each one an act of assassination targeting a single man or woman. Sometimes, there would be others in the way, and Vigilantess cut them down without remorse or hesitation, the determination and coldness evident on her face as she strode past the falling bodies.

Then the light came again, sweeping her away into a different world altogether.

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Sonya was standing in the same forest that she remembered from her reoccurring dream. She was no longer floating, and for the first time, Sonya realized she felt herself breathing. Staring around, she saw that the forest was not in night, as in her dreams, but in full daylight. Birds flew from branch to branch, and a squirrel hopped into the path before her to briefly scrutinize her before leaping on its way. If she hadn't been here so many times before, she might have mistaken it for a vision of Eden.

The change in the dream was so great that she did not, at first, register that she was not alone. The stone gazebo had not been part of her dream before, and it was not until the woman seated within it stood up that Sonya realized it and the woman were there.

Clothed in flowing green robes trimmed with intertwining symbols of leaves, the woman gazed at Sonya with a smile of affection as she said "Welcome, Sonya Rabinowitz. I've been expecting you to find your way here sooner or later."

Gulping back her surprise and confusion, Sonya tried to keep her equilibrium and realized abruptly that she did not have the rifle. Either she had dropped it during her travel to this place, or...

"Yes, this is not your 'real world', child." the woman said with an accent Sonya could not place, "This is more of a meeting of minds. A sharing of spirits, if you will."

"Um....then....I'm not really here?" Sonya asked tentatively, "If that's true, then where did you come from? You're, like, my conscience or something?"

The other woman laughed lightly, a sound that almost made Sonya relax because it sounded like her mother's laugh. Then she said "Oh, no! Not even close to that! I'm as real as you, just a tad more experienced in this sort of thing. Don't worry...you'll get better at it as we go."

"Wait a minute!" Sonya exclaimed, waving her hands in front of her "Time out! Who are you anyway, and why should I even keep talking to you instead of lighting out of here with whatever these feet here can give me?"

The woman tilted her head as she thought. Then a moment later, she said "I suppose that's a fair question. Very well. I am Anamoris, former Lady of Oranbega and Sorceress of the Glade. And you will continue to converse with me because if you leave here without my help, you will be back to swimming through Vigilantess' spirit like I found you until either you happen to find your way out, or you drown like the very bad swimmer you are, in her memories."


<To Be Continued>

One idea that you might toss about is the idea of either Arena sports teams, or use of the new AE Corp AM system for virtual sports competitions using sports impossible in the normal world (Cube Soccer, Wonderland Marathons, and Wormhole Flyfishing are all possible sports in an AM system simulation).

As far normal sports, I agree the previous posters. All the normal sports exist in the world of CoX that do here, with the additional rules excluding supers or making special leagues for them. After all, being selected to receive the opening pitch from Statesman at the beginning of Baseball season would probably be considered a punishment rather than an honor, given the hospital bills afterwards

My Grav/Kin is still my favorite character, mainly for thematic reasons. It's an old combo, I know, but I find the two go well together. Grav is still one of the strongest single-target control sets in the game, and as my Grav/Kin is based on a teleporter theme, the Grav set is a must.

Of course, knowing your character could destroy the world (or even the solar system) if he/she gets carried away can make some people hesitant about playing the powerset

From a game standpoint, Kinetics is a great team-support companion to Grav's single-target emphasis, and Singularity is probably the single most effective companion pet to a player character in the game, effectively more than doubling his/her capabilities.

My best advice, as I give to everyone who asks, is to play what appeals to you. Don't grab Grav expecting the 'I-win' powerset, or because it will dazzle everyone around you...it won't. Grav is for players who -want- to throw things around without touching them, and take down one opponent at a time. If you want bling powers or shock-and-awe firepower, you'll probably be happier with another powerset or archtype.

7.

The sun was beginning to reach the horizon as the armored van ran down the roads, the red-tinged light casting luminescent shafts throughout the city and across its path. Within, a silent Vigilantess grimly kept her attention on the road and the discreet sensor that she had had installed years before to look for the kind of pursuit she feared was all too possible.

In the passenger seat next to her, Sonya Rabinowitz was a soul in turmoil. In less than twenty four hours, her world had completely upturned and, of the two people she trusted most in the world, one was now far away in another part of the huge city, and the other had been exposed as a man who wanted her captured or killed. Her mind flew from disbelief at what she had seen and its implications to anguish at how he had betrayed her trust, to questioning of how long he had misled her, to denial that he could do such a thing, and then back again to disbelief of the image of the disguised Frostheart standing beside him, acting as his assistant.

Wrapped within her wildly oscillating emotions, Sonya did not react to the passing streets, or even to a quick near-collision with The Iron Wall as the super-tough crimefighter pursued a group of small-time gangers trying to escape on their Freakshow-enhanced motorcycles. After the group had disappeared down an intersecting street and she had finished uttering a curse, Vigilantess gave a brief look towards the girl, and concern briefly passed across her face before she turned back to navigating the increasingly-darkening street ahead. She knew it had been a risk coming so close to the rally, but there had been no other choice. The special item she had gone there to pick up would only be potent for another two hours unless mated to a matching shell casing Vigilantess would be receiving from a courier when they returned to their motel room.

By the time she pulled into the parking lot of the Toffet EZ-Rest Motel and stopped in the middle of the wide area, the sun was down and the streetlamps were coming on around them. Setting the parking brake, Vigilantess turned to Sonya and gauged the way the girl continued to stare straight ahead. With an audible sigh, she said "Sonya, I've never been good with people. I knew Rockage was the man hunting you, and that he was your...confidant. Leader...whatever. I just didn't know...how to tell you. No real time to figure it out either.

"I didn't want you to get anywhere near that crowd, but I had to go. This was too important. I thought you'd be okay in the van, but I was wrong. I didn't count on...well, do you understand? I didn't set this up. And...I was afraid he'd see you back there."

When Sonya didn't react, Vigilantess gave another sigh and opened her door. She was about to step out when Sonya said in a small voice "He said he loved me. He...how...how could he...lie like that? I..."

Vigilantess reached a hand over to give the girl's hands a reassuring squeeze, but stopped short when she noticed Sonya was tracing the outline of a small object in her hands as she spoke. With the light of the lot not falling directly on it, she could not make out what it was and said "What is that?"

Sonya's hands lifted in a disinterested way, exposing the small wooden replica of an African tribal mask. "Spirit-key. Reverend Rockage gives them out to everyone in the Church to remind us that.."

Before she could finish or Vigilantess' shock abate enough for her act, the sensor in the console began a shrill pulsing tone that rose quickly in pitch. Vigilantess quickly punched Sonya's door open and cried "Jump!!!" as she dove out the opposite door.

Impelled by the urgency in the superheroine's voice, Sonya's daze gave way to instant action and she leapt from the van just before there was a loud crunching sound immediately behind her. Sonya was thrown forward by a blast of hot air, and saw a brief lick of flame shoot past her before she landed hard on the asphalt ground, skidding a few feet before ending up on her side. The pain of the slide across the ground banished the last of her confusion as she saw that the van had been crushed under a massive chunk of ice.

Stunned by the blast of the impact, Sonya could only watch as the robed figure of Frostheart descended from the sky and softly landed on a parked tractor-trailer yards away. Briefly regarding her before turning to where Vigilantess was getting to her feet, the white-robed woman said in a cold voice "You will not come between my prey and I again, gunslinger. This is your end. "

"She isn't for you, and I'm not about to let you get away this time." Vigilantess said, her hands a quick series of blurs as she plucked a pair of grenades from her belt and threw them at the other woman. Sonya watched them arc in, knowing they were too slow as Frostheart gave a throwing motion and a jagged volley of ice sped at unbelievable speed towards Vigilantess.

She blinked when she saw what happened next. The ice-blast reached the heroine...and simply disappeared, leaving Vigilantess unaffected. The twin grenades reached their target a split-second later and burst, flinging a dozen net-like filaments across Frostheart and imprisoning her.

While Frostheart struggled to break free and Sonya managed to sit up, Vigilantess dove into the wreckage of the van and came free with her assault rifle. Before she could do anything more, a streak of blue rammed into Frostheart, rocking her back in her restraining fibers. The blur resolved into the caped form of Speedray, who turned to Sonya and said with a broad grin, "Hi there! Don't worry, this won't take long. Why don't you just sit there and watch how superheroes do this?"

Behind the blue-costumed hero, Frostheart turned back towards Speedray with a face twisted by rage and Vigilantess shouted "Stan! No! Get out of here!"

Frostheart suddenly gave an inhuman howl of anger, her form expanding and changing in an instant as it shredded the binding webs. Where a white-robed woman had stood now towered a frost-covered thing with icicle wings and huge taloned hands. The face was now a thing from the deepest depths of the underworld and Speedray's face registered complete shock as he turned and saw what had appeared behind him. He had no chance to escape before one of the huge claws came down and crushed him into the ground with a bone-crushing impact that actually lifted Sonya and flung her back down painfully. The hero did not rise again when the winged horror turned back to her old nemesis.

As Vigilantess unleashed a burst of rifle shells into Frostheart, the huge daemon leapt high into the air, the bullets either chipping off flakes of ice or missing altogether. Landing next to the riflewoman, Frostheart gave Vigilantess a backhanded blow that knocked her sprawling into a nearby car, the rifle crashing into the window and disappearing inside. "I have been fooled long enough!" the ice-thing said as it advanced on the rising woman "I will simply rend you limb from limb! Nothing will save you from that!"

Then a wail of sirens and flashing lights appeared around the corner of the lot, and Sonya saw a trio of Police squadcars speed into the lot. Pinning Vigilantess to the ground with one hand, Frostheart turned to look at the arriving vehicles with what seemed a curious expression. That look changed when the vehicles stopped and men began positioning themselves behind opening doors with sidearms leveled at her.

Sonya looked around, desperate to find something that she could do to either help or escape with. She saw then that a single object lay nearby, a gold box that appeared to have been thrown out of the vehicle with her. Scrambling on her hands and knees, she grabbed it up and opened it, seeing a large golden bullet with odd markings around its outside. She was so transfixed by it that she missed what had to have been the Police demanding Frostheart to surrender, and only looked away from the box when the daemon gave another roar, and a long cone of ice swept out of her fanged mouth to engulf the line of Police vehicles and officers, freezing them in place as their weapons fired.

Then Frostheart turned back to the woman under her claws and the mouth turned up in a grin of pure malice as her hand flexed downward, bringing a cry of pain from Vigilantess. "Now I repay all the failures by your hand, with mine. Die, insolent mortal!!"

As Frostheart brought the fist holding Vigilantess up and brought back her other to deliver a killing strike of talons, Sonya acted. Without thinking about what she was doing, only knowing she was about to lose the last person she might trust, she grabbed the golden bullet from its box and, with a cry of denial and anguish, threw it at the hulking ice-behemoth. The shell, the symbols on its outer covering glowing a pale blue, struck the creature on the right leg just as it began to turn towards her.

With a flash of brilliant orange flame, the shell exploded in a globe of hot fire that instantly consumed the being it had struck, leaving only an after-image on Sonya's eyes as it and Frostheart vanished from sight, leaving Vigilantess to drop in a limp fall to the ground below.

Hurrying over to her, Sonya shouted "Vigilantess!". Unsteady as her legs were, she reached the heroine as the other was rolling onto her knees. When Vigilantess groaned in a pain-filled voice "Rifle!", Sonya quickly reached into the smashed car and pulled the gun out of the vehicle.

She began turning towards the motel, but Vigilantess gasped and said "No time! Get...away! Before...Police...." and Sonya understood. She didn't know how she understood, but she did. She knew Vigilantess had selected this motel because it was close to the Astoria Police Headquarters building, believing that, corrupt as they were, the Police would still protect their own territory from an overt attack, as had happened. Now, though, she also knew that same proximity meant they had only minutes before they were swarmed by officers who would want to put them someplace impossible to escape. Someplace Reverend Rockage would have no trouble finding them in.

Grabbing Vigilantess under one arm, Sonya staggered with the other woman out of the parking lot and into the night-cloaked streets as the sounds of sirens seemed to come from everywhere. Carrying the rifle in her other hand, she guided the half-conscious woman as they fled down an alley directly behind the Police building, the many windows just above their heads giving the only light as they stepped over trash that hadn't been removed for weeks.

Coming to the end of the passage, Sonya saw a single patrol car rush past without stopping, its siren shrieking and lights blazing. Behind them, other vehicles with flashing lights were arriving where the frozen line of their comrades still stood, and Sonya knew they had to move away or be caught. Taking a quick breath, she gripped both the rifle and the arm she held and rushed across the street, seeing the headlights of approaching cars but knowing they were still too far to see her clearly.

For another minute, they ran, Vigilantess' breathing sounding ragged and pained, Sonya's mind discovering more knowledge she could not explain having. Then they crashed through a chain fence gate and into a concrete space under an overpass road that was filled with debris and a number of old shipping containers. The few lights she saw told her that at least one or two were inhabited, but the one Vigilantess angled them into remained dark as they stumbled within.

Collapsing against the far wall, Vigilantess accepted the rifle from Sonya and aimed it out the doorway they had entered from. Unable to do more than sit on her knees, waiting to see if they had been followed, Sonya closed her eyes and listened to the sirens continue to sound outside.

<To be continued>

6.

The daylight and shadows flickered onto Sonya as the heavy van rode between the high buildings that made up much of Astoria, making her glad she had decided to wear dark sunglasses along with the black tee shirt and khaki pants she had pulled from the bag Vigilantess had given her. The open window let in some air, and she relaxed to enjoy it while she could, allowing her memory to call up all the times her mother had taken her down this same road when they had moved from Brickstown, carrying all of their worldly possessions in the back seat in a series of trips made necessary by the lack of money for movers who would operate in this part of the city.

That thought brought the memory of how her mother was now miles away, and that she was now alone apart from the woman who had appointed herself her guardian. Knowing such a display would not sit well with driver of the van, Sonya bit back tears and kept her voice as steady as possible as she turned to her and asked "So this guy we're going to see is a friend of yours?"

"I didn't say he was a friend." Vigilantess kept her eyes on the road in front of them as it turned to the left, her hands easily moving the vehicle into the merging traffic with a proficiency that spoke of years in more desperate driving conditions "He and I have mutual interests, though, so he helps me out with things I need."

"Oh. So he's a storekeeper?" Sonya shivered slightly as they passed Moth Cemetery, not wanting to remember the previous night. "I didn't know Heroines went shopping."

"Not exactly. It's complicated." Vigilantess decelerated as they left the expressway and Sonya saw there was some sort of rally going on near the far end of the road ahead. Police had erected barricades and blocked off the street, and she could see a crowd of people beyond moving towards a point out of sight.

Turning off into a parking lot next to a row of stores, Vigilantess parked the van and turned the engine off before looking at Sonya and saying "Stay here. I'll only be a few minutes, so don't touch anything in here while I'm gone. Just look out the window or something."

As the woman closed the van door, walked around the corner and out of her sight, Sonya crossed her arms and sat back in the seat. Knowing the park behind the van blocked her view of the cemetery, she nonetheless resolutely decided to look anywhere else and to let the breeze coming through the half-open window be the only thing on her mind. She could hear some of the rally going on somewhere beyond the row of shops, but wasn't interested in whatever was going on there. She was disappointed Vigilantess hadn't taken her with her, and couldn't help feeling ambivalent that her dependence on the heroine made doing anything but sitting in the vehicle unthinkable.

Then the wind shifted for a moment, and Sonya heard a voice carried on it from the rally that she recognized. Sitting up straight, she strained to listen, but did not hear the voice again until a few minutes more.

It's him!! she thought excitedly as she opened the door and lept out. With only the thought that this was the one person other than Vigilantess who could help her, she began to walk quickly through the back alleyway between the shops, towards the sounds of the crowd and voices raised in solidarity.

_____________________________

"Here it dis." the small man said as he placed the golden box onto the store counter and looked up at Vigilantess, his heavy accent almost hiding the traces of his unease. "Dis is wat youze wanted, eh?"

Taking the box in her hands, Vigilantess opened the top and saw a single golden rifle shell sitting in the silk interior. Glancing at the man, she said "You sure, Ralphie? This isn't another 'budget deal' like the Congo jig?"

"Nah, Nah...dis is special!" Ralphie scratched his black beard as he lowered his voice and said "From da tomb o' Tutan Munhattun. I gots it on good authoridy it's legit!"

"Tutan who?" the woman shook her head "Nevermind. I don't want to know."

Turning the box to examine the intricate symbols on the bullet, she raised one eyebrow as she glanced over at him "I don't suppose you've tried to probe it?"

Ralphie looked shocked and a bit frightened as he said "Whadda youze think I am...stupid? I saids it was special! I don't wanna blow my place ta da moon try'n ta poke it!"

Nodding in satisfaction, Vigilantess closed the box and slid it into her pocket as she slid a small card across the counter to him. "This should cover the bill. Don't bother with change."

"Lady, dats not even funny." Ralphie took the card and examined it before he looked back at her and said sadly "So dis is it?"

The woman looked out at the street before saying "It could be. I want to be ready in case. I have a job right now, but once that's done..."

The silence stretched for a few moments before Ralphie looked down at his feet and said "I guess youze godda do whatze youze godda do. Just thought youze might wanna think abouts wad I said last time."

"I have." Vigilantess turned and strode to the door, saying as she opened it "And you're right. I have to do what I have to."

______________________________________

The crowd gathered in the large courtyard in front of the WTDX radio station office building was large, and Sonya could see that the police were not attempting to do more than contain the mob as it continued to grow. She saw at least half a dozen faces she knew, but hoped the sunglasses would keep her own identity from being as obvious as she watched the event from the mouth of the alleyway.

There, on the top of the steps leading up to the entrance to the building, a small podium had been set up, along with a pair of microphones. Draped over the front of the podium was a white cloth with the emblem of the Church of the Unified Creed, the church Sonya had joined a little over two years ago. Flanking the podium were men in impeccible business suits and identical sunglasses that made each seem only a variation of the one to either side.

Standing at the podium was Reverend Judas Rockage, the leader of the Church in Astoria and the man who had rescued Sonya from the lonely existence of being the new child in the school's social strata. She remembered his encouragement and patient explanations of how drug use was not the amazing experience her friends at the time had told her, and how he had shown her the darkness of the world around her. His love for her was what had given Sonya the strength to refuse the calls of her classmates when they tried to mix a new drug in the girls restroom of the school, and that had ended up causing an explosion that crippled all of them for life.

In the year since that, she had grown closer to him than to anyone else besides her mother, and as she listened to him speak before the crowd, her hand reached into her pocket to touch the small object he had given all of the Faithful to remember their special understanding.

"This land was made to be the land of Free Men, the Land of Equality, where all Men were treated equally under the Law." the Reverand's voice cried out over the crowd "Here, in Astoria, we have seen what happens when that guiding rule is broken. Corruption. Murder. Gangs. Crime and injustice on such a scale that no one is truly safe anywhere! Injustice, most of all!

"Our forefathers laid down a system whose foundations were that all Men were equal, and injustice would be punished equally among all men because of this. Yet, how can all men be equal when one man walks through the refuse on the streets, and another flies across the skies, above it all? When one man falls from a third story window to his death, and another leaps from the top of Toffet Tower knowing he cannot be hurt by such an insignificant fall?

"Metahumans were never meant to be part of the American Dream, and continue to be beyond its safeguards! When was Statesman ever made an officer of the Law? Yet, he and the other Metas continue to operate in our City, in our Nation, as no police officer could dream of doing, and the American system is impotent to call them to task for it! How can it, when its most sacred foundations were built without considerations that one day, one man could kill another simply by thinking it? How can an ordinary man think he will be treated equally by a system that allows such a man to walk freely because it cannot be proved that he did anything physically to cause that murder?

"Many Americans trust these 'Superheroes' more than their own law enforcement, and continue to look to them to solve their problems rather than working to solve them themselves! When the Rikti came and burned our City, our military was all but helpless, our leaders unable to decide what to do. Our dependence on Metas had left us unprepared for such a massive disaster, unable to do anything but pray that the Metas would save us again! Our spiritual decline had gone so far that our fragmented Humanity could only pray, not to God, but to our superpowered kin to save us.

"How long then, can it be before we set aside that which God has said in favor of what our Superheroes decree? How long before we surrender our destiny and spiritual strength to those who are not Human?"

The Reverend paused as he looked over the crowd, the cries of agreement and an occasional shout of "Amen!" punctuating the angry voices of those before him. Then he continued in a calm voice "Man was created in God's image. All men were created Equal. Yet, if men are not equal to Meta-men, in whose image were...?"

Before Sonya could hear more of the Reverend's speech, she was spun around by an arm grasping her shoulder. Pushed back the way she had come, she half-stumbled past trashcans and dumpsters at a run, barely keeping her feet until she was thrown up against the side of the wall near the van. Vigilantess pressed close, her eyes burning with anger and rage " What in the name of Thunder did you think you were doing?? I told you to stay in the van!!"

"That's Reverend Rockage!" Sonya half-screamed, twisting to get free of the heroine and return to the crowd "He knows me! He'll help us! He can make it stop!!"

"Make it stop?" Vigilantess savagely gripped Sonya's head and twisted it to stare around the corner and back towards the crowd and the podium. Reaching down, she unclipped a pair of miniature binoculars from her belt and forced them onto Sonya's eyes. " Make it stop?? Look to his left, girl! Look real good!"

Sonya tried to steady the bioculars before seeing that they were computer-stabilized, and saw Reverend Rockage standing, continuing to speak. To his left, almost hidden behind one of the men, she saw...

"No." her voice was small, and she went still as her mind reeled with what she was seeing "No, it's..."

It was a woman, dressed in business attire like the men, and holding a small clipboard. She was not wearing sunglasses, however, and despite the normal skin and hair, Sonya couldn't deny who she was seeing.

It was Frostheart.

"It's Rockage who sent Frostheart after you!" Vigilantess hissed as she continued to force Sonya to see what she did not want to see "He's the one who wants you dead!"


< to be continued >

5.

"Feeling better?"

Vigilantess' calm voice cut through the mind-numbing fear that had gripped Sonya on seeing the looming nightmare-castle and hearing the ghostly voice that called from within it. She had only wanted to run then, to do whatever was possible to get away from the apparition before her. She vaguely remembered Vigilantess guiding her headlong flight with an iron grip on Sonya’s arm, but could not recall the terrain they had passed through before she collapsed from exhaustion.

Looking up from where she lay, Sonya saw a roof above her that seemed like natural rock. Around her, block walls and stone doors seemed to emerge from the rock around where she sat, on a perfectly smooth floor of tiled stonework. The only light was cast by a pair of fluorescent hand lanterns set on opposite sides of the passageway they were in, and she could see by that light the shadows of several statues, all thankfully human.

“Are you feeling better, Sonya Rabinowitz?” Vigilantess asked again, sounding out each word as though talking to someone hard of hearing.

“Yes,” Sonya answered, feeling the weakness in her body as she tried to sit up and failed. “Where are we?”

“The Crypt of Heroes. You didn’t seem in much shape to go far, and this where I wanted to come anyway.” the warrior woman raised an eyebrow as she saw a look of fear come back into Sonya’s face “What?”

“ A crypt ??” Sonya tried to get up again, fright lending her strength enough to prop herself on one arm “You brought me to a tomb to get away from…from…”

When Sonya could not finish, Vigilantess gave a small smile as she said “If you’re worried about disturbing the dead, I wouldn’t. Those in here devoted their lives and ultimately gave them up for those exactly like you. They would no more turn their backs on your need in death than in life.”

Startled and comforted by the confidence in the heroine’s voice, Sonya positioned herself so she was propped up against one wall. Glancing around, she finally said “I guess.”

Bending to squat beside the girl, Vigilantess looked into her eyes and said “What happened? Why did you start running like that? What did you see?”

“The castle!” Sonya’s voice climbed in pitch as the image of it came back to her mind, “It’s there! It’s real !”

“Castle?” the woman seemed confused, and then understanding settled on her face. “You mean the Crypt of the Unforgotten, don’t you?”

Sonya frowned. “Unforgotten?”

Vigilantess nodded as she said “It’s where the Seventy-First New York were buried after the First World War. American volunteer soldiers who went to fight in World War One before the U.S. got involved, back in 1915. During the Second Battle of Ypres, all five thousand were caught by a gas attack, and died because their commander hadn’t bothered to order gas masks for his men. Rumor has it the Crypt was built on an old burial mound that was used during the Revolutionary War, but that all the markers were lost before they went to work on it. To honor both of the fallen armies buried there, they named it the Crypt of the Unforgotten.”

Sonya blinked as she fought down the fear and swallowed “I remember…hearing about them in school. But I’ve never been that far into Moth before.” She paused a moment before saying in a quiet voice “I thought…when I saw it…that it spoke to me.”

The other woman grasped her arms tightly in both hands and looked directly at her. “Spoke to you?”

At her nod, the gunwoman turned to one side, as though she could see the huge construct through the rock between them. Sonya asked “That was just my imagination…right? Just…nerves?”

Instead of answering, the other woman released her and went to the small backpack she had brought with them. Rummaging inside, Vigilantess said “Back during the Long Night, a lot of people got it into their heads that the trouble was coming from the Crypt. It got so bad that, by the time Vambrace and his crew closed the real gateway, vandals had caused a lot of damage to it. The foundation that maintains the Crypt built walls and a reflection moat around it after that to keep that from happening again.

“The interesting thing is that the walls are built like they were intended as much to keep things inside from getting out as anything outside getting in. I’ve never given it much thought, but…”

As her voice trailed off, Vigilantess turned back to Sonya and seemed to come to some sort of decision. Before the girl even knew what was happening, the heroine slapped something soft on her arm. Jumping slightly at the lightning-quick move, Sonya half-jumped away and gave a small cry of surprise. “What are you doing ?!”

“Sorry about that.” The woman stood in the semi-darkness and gathered up one of the lanterns. “But I need to go back into the city to make some arrangements, and I can’t take you with me. You need to stay here, and I don’t want you getting into any more trouble. Besides, you need sleep.”

Sonya realized that she was very, very tired. Her strength was draining away like water on a street grate, and she had no time to think why before she dropped into a dreamless sleep. While she slept, Vigilantess reached to the second lamp and switched it off, giving the unmoving form of the girl a last look before she left the underground crypt

___________________________________


Sonya awoke in a strange bed, its covers tangled about her feet. Squinting in the daylight sifting through the blinds of the large window that took up part of the opposite wall, she saw Vigilantess sitting at the table next to the window, one finger parting the blinds enough to peer outside.

Sitting up, Sonya could not stop a wide yawn from escaping her, and Vigilantess let the blind fall back into place as she looked over at her. “Good to see you up. I was afraid I’d overdone it.”

Blinking in confusion, Sonya remembered the slap Vigilantess had given her, and rubbing that arm asked “You drugged me?”

“Dermal sedative.” The woman said in a matter-of-fact tone. “I keep a few in case I need them. Last night, I thought it would be easier if you got some rest while I was finding this place for us. You didn’t seem ready to sleep, so I gave you a little help.”

“What makes you think…” Sonya said in anger before half-tumbling from the bed as she fought to escape the blankets. Before she could continue, Vigilantess picked up a shopping bag half-filled with clothes and threw it at her. She barely caught the bag and fumbled it twice before gripping it firmly to her chest.

“Let’s get something straight right now.” Vigilantess’ voice was a low menace, the kind Sonya could imagine a villain might hear from her right before she took them down “I am the one who knows what kind of things are trying to find you, and what they will do to you if they succeed. I am also the only one in this room who has any experience in avoiding them or, if it comes to it, fighting them.

“That means, as long as I am guarding you, - I - make the decisions for both of us. I won’t have you making a mistake that will likely get us both killed because you didn’t know better, so when I tell you to do something, you need to do it right away and without question. Your life depends on it. Understood?”

Intimidated by the determination in Vigilantess’ eyes and the suggestion that this was not an issue open for discussion, Sonya nodded.

“Good.” The woman waved at the bag “Find some different clothes in there, and get changed. We need to go meet someone, and I don’t want you recognizable to people you know if we happen to pass them.”

Walking into the small bathroom, Sonya asked “Where are we going?”

“There’s a guy I know up on First Street that keeps things for me. We’ll only be about an hour or so. Oh yes.” Vigilantess sought out the pocket of her combat pants and pulled something from them. She tossed it into the bag from across the room, something Sonya would have found unbelievable if she wasn’t familiar with the heroine’s uncanny aim. “Put that on as well.”

Fishing the small object from the bag, Sonya saw it was a small, teardrop-shaped emerald on a silver chain. Fingering the gleaming gem, she looked back at the woman “It’s beautiful.”

Vigilantess smiled grimly as she said “It’s not for show. That will keep you from being tracked once we leave here. It’s something I got when I was in Africa once, and you’ll be wise not to take it off anywhere else if you don’t want something very nasty and very bad showing up.”

Looking at the small necklace in a new light, Sonya knew she had little doubt that Vigilantess was right about how little she knew about the danger she was in. She had never heard of a gem keeping people from finding you, or ice ladies who froze entire schools and disappeared into thin air, so how could she know what was safe and what would likely be her last mistake?

Then she remembered Vigilantess hadn’t said people would find her. She had only said some thing .

Deciding she really didn’t like the sound of that, she started selecting clothing from the bag, and refused to think what else might be looking for her.

<To be Continued>

4.

The man sat in darkness, lit by a single candle on the floor in front of him. That he wore only a loincloth and a wooden mask did not bother him in the least, despite the chill that filled the room. That chill, in the beginning of June, was in fact what pleased him most. That they were closer to their goal than ever before could no longer be denied, even by those who doubted his methods. Pulling in a long breath, he closed his eyes and smiled as the cold penetrated his lungs, causing a tremor of shivering to shake his frame.

Then the temperature dropped fractionally lower, and he knew he was no longer alone. He quickly opened his eyes and focused on the flame. The only door to the room had not opened, but that did not surprise him. He knew the one who stood behind him did not like to use them, and that she would as soon have touched the symbol he had painted on that particular door as grasped a red hot coal.

Her words, however were not what he had expected.

"She has escaped."

Only the concentration he held on the flame before him kept the man from turning to face the woman. This was as much to his own benefit as hers, as he knew there were limits to how far an ungifted human like himself could push such beings, and he didn't trust his voice would have remained as calm without it.

"Explain." he said with only a slight tightening of his eyes betraying the anger that surged at her words.

"The girl managed to evade me. I could not find her." The face of the pale woman was without expression as she added "She had assistance. Of one you know."

The woman reached past his shoulder and opened her hand. A silver rifle shell fell from it to emit a clear, ringing tone as it struck the floor, its sides flashing as it caught the light of the candle. The man knew this was as much another attempt to make him look away from the flame as to provide information, but he had no need to look at the shell. He was very familiar with these particular bullets.

"Vigilantess was there?"

"Yesss." There was no mistaking the hate in the woman's voice now, and he understood why. She and Vigilantess had met twice before, and this had been the third time the heroine had come out of their confrontations the victor.

"Frostheart, you are going to have to accept that she is simply too well equipped to deal with you." he didn't add his own suspicions that his agent had let her disdain for Humans undermine the plan. Instead, he said "You should have called in the Police to distract her once you knew she was involved. They were there precisely to provide you with additional support should unexpected events occur."

Frostheart did not answer, but remained motionless behind him. Sighing, he continued "So you do not know where the girl is?"

"She is not where I may see." she answered "And the World does not speak of her."

He grunted before he said "This world probably wouldn't speak to your kind anyway, even if it did know something. Very well. I have no further need of you this night. Return to your realm until the sun rises again. I will have need of you then."

Frostheart sketched a small bow before her shape blurred into a million ice flakes, and then vanished completely. The man did not immediately look away from the candle, knowing the games these creatures loved to play on those who dared to command them, hoping to turn the tables through laziness on the part of the summoner. However, when three minutes had passed without further sign, he carefully closed his eyes and let out a long breath of relief as the mental barriers he had been keeping in place fell away at last.

It was too bad Frostheart hadn't managed to eliminate the girl this first time, but there would be another chance once she entered a part of the City where the iceling could find her, and the protection of Vigilantess would be stripped away soon enough, if the news he was receiving from his other agents was true.

Vigilantess... he thought as he extended his arms to either side in a stretch that painfully unknotted muscles that had been locked in position for hours. What an interesting twist of fate that she, of all the 'heroes' of this City, has ended up in my affairs again. I'll have to make sure this is the last time.

He bent and, lifting the mask slightly, blew out the candle.


------------------------------------------------


Sonya watched the silent statues of lions as she walked nervously between them. The entrance to Moth Cemetery was far more sinister in the quickly-falling darkness of evening than it had been on her school trip here two years ago, in the daylight, and she could not help but expect them to come alive at any moment and leap upon her.

Given the last few hours, she supposed that wasn't so far-fetched. When Vigilantess had found her curled up on the steam grate half an hour after Frostheart had left, the older woman hadn't given Sonya time to even ask what had happened back in the school. She had all but picked her up by her shirt collar and pushed her towards one of the back arches in the school ground's wall.

Barely keeping her feet moving ahead of the insistent hand on her back, Sonya had led both of them out onto Gabriel Avenue, and into the Municipal Building parking lot. There, she had been guided to a dull grey minivan that was clearly more military vehicle than recreation tool, and had been pushed inside when Vigilantess had opened the side door.

For almost two hours, they had sat in the high-tech van, with the only conversation being the cell phone call Vigilantess had reluctantly allowed Sonya to make to her mother assuring her that Sonya was unhurt and being looked after by the heroine. She had just gotten her mother to agree to stay with their relatives in Atlas Park for a week or so when Vigilantess had abruptly grabbed the phone from Sonya and smashed it with the shoulder brace of her rifle. Outside, a Police vehicle had passed by without slowing, and Vigilantess had signaled Sonya to keep quiet.

When the sun had begun to set, and most of the vehicles had left the lot, the gunwoman had led her out of the van again and out onto the street. The walk to the entrance of the cemetery hadn't been a long one, but enough of the woman's obvious caution had infected Sonya that she didn't dare to question where they were going until they had crossed the stone bridge and double-row of stone lions that marked the way into the graveyard.

“Moth Cemetery?” Sonya finally asked in a half-whisper. Vigilantess’ stride didn’t slow, but she did glance backwards at the words.

“This place is protected. They can’t find you as long as we’re in here” was all she said as they passed into a long stone tunnel and into the cemetery grounds.

As they passed the quiet and still monuments on either side, Sonya found the stillness odd, given the noise of the City she had grown used to over time. Now muted to near-silence, it was as if she had stepped from the City into another world. She also discovered the increasing darkness was lit somewhat by the nearby office buildings that overlooked the huge graveyard, providing enough light that she had little trouble seeing around her as they walked the stone path that wound ahead of them. One building in the distance towered over all of them, a massive construction that seemed to climb into the sky, but one without many windows at all to illuminate its surfaces. The dark shape loomed over the graveyard like a guard, or a huge giant looking over the results of his handiwork.

“Barca Correctional Facility” Vigilantess said as she saw what Sonya was staring at. “Half the reasons Moth has a regular influx of new residents are in there.”

“I thought it was a rehabilitation center.” Sonya couldn’t help feeling a little resentful that the other woman seemed to know more about this part of the City than she did, and her voice carried a small note of indignation as she said “Reverend Rockage says it’s a place where real help is being given to criminals in reforming…”

“Girl, if there is a black heart to Astoria, I’d lay even money it’s there.” Vigilantess said with a snarl “You stay away from there if ever you can! That place is a disaster waiting to happen, and you don’t want to be anywhere near it when it goes!”

They walked on in silence for a time after that. Sonya was confused about Vigilantess’ reaction to the prison and angry that the heroine kept acting as though she had some authority over Sonya. She was also quickly loosing what little infatuation remained from her old adulation of the warrior, and a simmering resentment was quickly replacing it. Thoughts of simply walking away from the heroine began to quickly sweep away the memory of Frostheart, and her distraction was so great that she failed to notice the terrain and crypts around her.

Until she saw the huge shape to her right, and stopped cold, all thoughts of asserting herself or turning back fleeing like pigeons before a hungry cat. All she could do was stare at the shadow-shape she knew so well, its silhouette against the hazy sky as unmistakable as any photograph. Even when Vigilantess called her name and started back towards her, she could only look at the man-made mountain of stone and walls that lay a short distance away.

The great, haunted castle from her dreams now stood before her, and in her shocked, tired mind, Sonya thought she heard a very quiet, sinister voice say the words she had feared hearing each time the dream had reached this terrible fortress.

“We’ve been expecting you. Come inside and rest. Forever.”

<To Be Continued>