Rough Draft Tunnel Rat Chapter 87 (Patreon)

(Very rough, just finished knocking it out, about 3000 words. )

A pale, thin man wearing a silver and black kilt sat upon a throne made of broken promises, a pencil and account book in his hands. His torn black t-shirt proclaimed him to be a patron of the troubadours known as Motorhead. As he oversaw the work of his hundred best warrior-accountants, the strains of The Ace of Spades shook the room. Everyone worked faster when the music was loud.

He was interrupt by a chime and a familiar voice:
"I stand at the gates of your domain, brother, and beseech you for an audience."

Hades, God of Death and Taxes sighed heavily. They had been looking over the account books of three corporations who were selling their inventories to each other at a loss in an attempt to lower their tax burden. Everyone in the room was having a good time of it and looking foreward to when they sent out the corrected assessments. He stood and waved his warriros to continue their party. "Carry on folks, I have to go take a meeting."

A visitor stood before an ornate garden gate made of silver set into a wall of basalt. A key grated in the lock and it slowly opened. The watchman put the key made from the bones of an honest politician back into his pocket, and ushered in his guest.

"Lord Hades asks that you make your way to his study, where he will grant your request for an audience, Lord Wallace. Will you require a guide?"

Wally nodded to the skull-faced guard. "Thank you. It has been quite some time, but I remember the way."

Hades was waiting for him. He poured two glasses of ambrosia, handed one to Wally, and gestured him to a chair by the fire. "To what do we the visit, little brother? Here to check up on our work? Everyone is in high spirits. They hope you let a few thousand more corporations into the world."

"No, I have a problem. I will need the help of someone who understands the old language and it's relationship to the system. I know she said she was done with it all, but I really need the best."

Hades took a sip of his glass and considered the question. "It's serious?"

Wally nodded. "Mortals trapped and unable to leave the world, use of Machine Code, hidden players and strange code. Very serious."

The Lord of Death stood. "Yes, that's serious. Go home, I'll find her and ask her to work her magic once again."

=*=

A woman wearing a long white gown stood at a cross-roads, leaning upon her staff. Grey hair cascaded down her back, held in place by a leather thong. Her belt also was plain leather, but the silver althame that hung from it was anything but plain. Intricate runes chased each other across the blade making complex patterns. Her the robe was a shimmering white silk, slightly faded with time. Two large wolf hounds, one black and one grey, were by her side. One putting its head under her hand for some ear scratching, the other laying at her feet.

She was deciding which path she would travel. Decisions like this were not taking lightly. To the west was the mining town of Thunderhead, where dead men were gathering in deep tunnels to wage a war on the living. And to the north was the village of Sedgewick, where any number of interesting things were happening. She had almost made her decision to head north, when she saw the man walking his dog.

A man with a dog was not uncommon, and as she was fond of dogs, she would always pause in her travels to talk with the dogs and their owners. So she wasn't unhappy to see the dog, but the pale man walking his three-headed hound meant that her brief retirement was coming to an end. She knelt down and spent time petting each of the three heads and giving them treats. Her own two whined, even though they had gotten a snack just a few minutes ago. She fed hers as well, then slipped the leash from Cerebus and let him run and play with Hekabe and Argos.

"A strange meeting brother. Did your puppy need a romp, or were you looking for me for a reason? I'm hoping this is only about the dog."

"No, I needed to talk. But he does need to get out more. I was asked to seek you and beseech your aid. The Outsider needs your help."

"Does he? Is it something that would interest me? Or is he just needing some attention?" She produced several large bones and tossed them in four different directions, causing the canines to race after them.

"He has a problem that requires the best magician he can get. And you were always the best, 'Kate. Do it for me, if not for him, and I'll owe you a favor."

The woman considered his words as the dogs played. "Very well. You have me curious now. I'll give him some assistance. As to the favor, I'll leave my puppies with you so they can have some playtime. I'm sure they won't cause any trouble." The woman of the crossroads walked away from the Lord of Death in four directions at once, and was gone.

Hades looked at where she disappeared, trying to discern which had been the real one. This was a tactical error, as he was bowled over by three playful puppies and five tongues began licking his face.

=*=

"Hey folks, can I get your attention for a minute? Thanks." Heads turned as Steven got their attention. "I know your all hard at work, and we have a deadline. To help with that, I brought in an expert. She'll be working remotely from us, but all of you should feel free to contact her if you need help with the tricky parts of unraveling Brians's little mess."

A screen came to life, and an older woman with grey hair appeared. Behind her was a lovely apartment that looked out over a harbor. "Hi folks, I'm Kate. I know we don't have much time, so give me anything you can't figure out. Sidney, I need to talk to you, especially. Find a quiet corner and lets get to work."