Down in the Underworld

Chapter 36 - Stranger things have happened

Spectra sighed. Was this really what she wanted? Then she smiled, just a tiny bit so Phoenix wouldn’t see her. Afterall, if this didn’t work out the way she wanted, she could always just kill Phoenix. But now, it was time to jump in with both feet.

‘Well,’ Spectra began with a sigh, ‘the piece of machinery in that bag over there, the one that’s caused so much trouble, is actually 1 of 3pieces, and once they are put together, they form a powerful terraforming device, the Mellion had brought it with them when they invaded as they knew they would need to make some subtle changes to our planet’s atmosphere and climate in order for it to be permanently habitable for them, but of course it never got that far so the machine was never used. Anyway, theoretically it could be used to fix our waters, as well as cleaning up the Barrens and bringing life to the West.’

‘No shit!’ breathed our Phoenix. She didn’t know what else to say.

‘Yep, we have a piece, that Lady woman has a piece of it, and Demise has the final part. In all truth I don’t know what he and the Overworlders want with the device, but I can’t see it helping you lot and the other outcasts.’

‘But why are you telling me this?’ asked Phoenix, genuinely confused.

‘Well, I never met someone else from the Underworld before, and I’d been told you were all brutal freaks who regularly stole from us Overworld and brought unnecessary violence with you, Demise even confirmed this rumour and made out like his crew were the only civilised ones out there, but meeting you, it’s starting to feel like I’ve just been fed another bunch of lies, like what we were told would happen after we won the war against the Mellion, none of that happened,’ Spectra explained, ‘I mean I beat the shit out of you and you’ve still been nothing but nice and helpful.’

‘Yeah, well I have drunk a lot of that mezcal,’ Phoenix smiled, ‘but tell me, what were you promised would happen after the Battle?’ 

‘Oh that,’ Spectra sighed again, ‘I don’t know why we ever believed it, I mean it was so obviously a crock, but we were told we would be given full military honours, a lifelong pension to live off and luxury apartments in our own building, in a private part of the city. I guess they knew that we’d never be fully accepted by the rest of the people, but we were OK with that, there were enough of us to create our own little community, and I’m sure we would have been happy enough, but they never kept their promise and instead tried to liquidate us as soon as victory was declared.’

‘Damn, that’s cold,’ said Phoenix sadly.

‘Yeah, and so as I said some of us followed our Commander, and escaped to who knows where, while the ones who stayed moved into the tunnels and catacombs under the city, eventually some were caught and I guess disposed of, but those of us who survived made use of our talents to get by.’

‘Sounds very similar to how we survived,’ Phoenix observed.

‘Yeah, well that’s what I mean, we have more in common than I ever thought, and I feel bad for all the shit I’ve done to you, so if there’s a way for me to wipe the slate, perhaps not clean, but to give you something back, then this might be it,’ offered Spectra.

‘well, if you’re right, then it’s definitely worth a shot getting our hot little hands on that device, plus anything’s better than letting those bastards get their hands on it.’ 

‘Yeah, well that’s only the what, now we have to figure out the how …’ Spectra trailed off.

‘Yeah right,’ Phoenix said quietly, lost in thought before something struck her, ‘hey did you let Demise know you were on your way back yet with this thing?’ she gestured to the bag on the floor.

‘No, but I guess I should eh? And let him know Lady is following us, we have a couple of hours to go, but at the moment he’ll be assuming I have both pieces of equipment, I’ve been putting off giving him the bad news, but he’d want time to prepare to face her in battle I guess.'

‘So, he knows the Anhinga isn’t at the bottom of the Mariana?’ asked Phoenix.

‘Yeah, I radio’d him after I saw you guys come to Royale, but he thinks I will have taken you out inside the city.

‘Right, well I think the first thing to do is let him know you are on your way with me as a bargaining chip to get the other piece of the machine from Lady, the next thing we need to do is make a replica of this machine – it doesn’t have to work, just has to look like it will, after all I assume no one has seen this thing so no one will know what the pieces really look like.’

‘I guess,’ started Spectra, ‘but how will be make a copy of it?’

‘Leave that to me,’ offered Phoenix, ‘after all I’m not a mechanerd for nothing! You got a work tool room or anything on this crate?’

‘Not really, but you can use the galley, and anything you need from the sub as long as you don’t break it,’ smiled Spectra.

‘Cool, of course,’ laughed Phoenix, who was starting to feel good about this plan coming together, ‘the other thing we need to do is tell Lady what the story is, otherwise they’ll be all over our ass too in about an hour.’

‘And how would they know where we are?’ asked Spectra, frowning.

‘OK, I’ll come clean, I set off your sub’s tracking device … I’m sorry,’ Phoenix tried to look sad and innocent at the same time, but couldn’t pull it off.

‘Well I guess that’s on me for leaving you alone, you would have been great in the military,’ Spectra sighed again. She just couldn’t be mad at this girl.

‘Phew, OK I thought you were going to whoop my ass there for a moment.’

‘It’s nothing I wouldn’t have done in your shoes,’ said Spectra, ‘now I’ll contact Demise, you get started on that replica.’