Masters of the Sky

Chapter 23 The Knife

Trigger warning: violence, blood, death, crude language

15 years ago

Celia took Lin's suggestion to heart. Theo agreed that they could survive, bringing slightly less loot but still just enough to keep Lin off their backs so that Celia could be more cautious on her escapades. When she recovered enough to get back on the streets by herself, she took her time to learn as much as possible about the lowest tier of Iron Shore.

She still had bruises all over her body. Most of them turned sickly green and grey, but they reminded her that she couldn't afford to be stupid again. And so she took time to keep an eye on the bullies' movements and ensured she was always steering far from them. She scoured the narrow pathways between the houses and factories, searing a map in her brain, providing every time she entered the street, she could come up with at least three different escape routes if things got dangerous.

For some time, the new approach worked. A few weeks passed, and with every successful attempt of slipping just through bullies' clumsy fingers, Celia grew cockier. She loved seeing Pockmarks flustered and angry when he failed to catch her again and again. Playing with fire gave her a particular sort of thrill. Not many happy or blissful moments remained, so she took her entertainment where she could.

The game's rules were simple, even though no one said them out loud. There was no fighting in the base. If you got caught making trouble, there were all sorts of nasty punishments waiting for you. But out on the Iron Shore musty platforms? No one cared what was happening out there as long as little rats brought loot when they got back.

Today Celia felt like teasing her enemies again, so she made sure they followed her as she ran through the drizzle, her boots hitting the metal platform with a wet splash. She headed to the western side of the level, where the law enforces had their little outpost. She hoped that Pockmarks and his goons would make enough racket to get the guards' attention and annoy them enough to get a beating or maybe even a night in prison. Law enforcers hated when kids like her loitered around, knowing they could be up to no good.

When she reached her destination, a small alleyway just a few streets away from the outpost, she stopped for a moment, listening. Soon enough, she could hear heavy stomps and angry shouts. The bullies acted like a herd of bulls charging blindly whenever rage led them. Celia had never seen a bull, but her father used to tell her stories that in the old days, before the floods, brave people were fighting the enraged animals in the arenas for entertainment.

People from the past surely were weird.

Celia shook her head to focus again and dashed to the side of the factory wall, grabbing the rails of the rickety maintenance ladder. As the shouts drew nearer, she quickly climbed up, though the rain flooded her face. The metal creaked under her weight in protest.

"She's here! Get her!"

Momentarily distracted, Celia looked down as Pockmarks and three of his goons rushed into the alleyway. She was halfway up the wall, around the second-floor height, and her body moved upward on reflex, but her hand was a bit off trying to grip the next rail, and her fingers slid off the slippery wet metal.

Before she uttered a surprised gasp, her body fell back to the lower rail, but a sudden uncontrollable bodyweight broke the step with an earsplitting crack.

Celia plunged, trying to grab and hold on to something, but the rain made the ladder slippery, and the rusted rails kept breaking under her weight. Somehow, she managed to stop her fall a few steps over the ground, but before pulling herself up again, strong hands grabbed her legs and wrenched her away, throwing her at the floor grate.