The main consolation of these sewers was that they had been built for elves.
Raka was much shorter than most humans, so she didn't have to worry about hitting her head like everyone else. As Nagos fitted another pipe segment into place, she watched the drained canal be worked on. You could see a dozen men scraping at it with tools. They were looking to get centuries of waste off the walls and floor of the stone.
It was bitterly slow work, and the stench was horrible. She much preferred the slowly dying patients or the fury of battle. But this was where she could best serve for the moment, and she was learning a great deal that could be useful. Thus far, she had taken notes on how all this functioned and planned to send experts back.
When the Iron City was rebuilt, which it would be, all this would be very useful.
How much had been wasted and destroyed in that stupid God War that happened ages ago?
"And switch out the pipe..." said Nagos, fitting it in personally. Why was he so insistent on getting his hands dirty? "Good work."
"I can't believe how many lead pipes they have down here. Are these people insane?" murmured Raka. "They have serious health issues."
"It's fine, Raka," said Nagos. He had that sunny disposition you usually didn't see from humans underground. "See, these pipes and tunnels are all slanted from the mountain springs they come from. It took me a while, but I realized they have a specific incline. Just enough to keep it moving quickly, but not enough so it erodes the stone.
"The water moves so quickly, it sheds the lead dust. It isn't as much of a problem."
"It will still be a problem," said Raka. "Lead can affect the mind and cause all kinds of problems."
"It's a good building material, okay," said Narcissa, leaning against a wall. Her leather-gloved arms were crossed and still shiny. How did she avoid getting dirty at all and keep looking stunning here? "You can get it cheap, hammer it out, and change it quickly, and it works perfectly. And they didn't have the copper mines we have access to.
"Normally, it would be far too expensive to set up.
"If House Gabriel hadn't given the High King such a good price on their mine, it'd all have to come from the Borderlands. That or Sorn, and they'd hold us up for a lot."
"They should never have used such shoddy materials," said Raka firmly.
Lead piping.
Unacceptable.
"Do you have any idea how much it costs to replace these? And it's a lot harder to change the shape of and work with," said Nagos. "We have a lot of ground to cover and little time to do it in.
"It was better for people to have water this way than not have it at all. And we're cleaning it all by swapping it out. Besides, I don't think this was designed for drinking anyway. These pipes go out to bathhouses and such."
"Because bathing in the lead is preferable to drinking it," said Raka.
"Why are they giving all this away?" asked Narcissa. "They're hardly being paid enough to cover costs."
"I think Vanion is trying to be helpful," said Nagos. "And nobody wants to bathe in lead water anyway, so he benefits too. If you do a full-scale renovation of the sewers, you could do it properly.
"Besides, this should buy him points with the High King and the people of Antion."
"I don't think it will," said Narcissa, putting two long nails to her chin. "Nobody is going to see any of this. Does anyone care if Lord Arthur provides the copper for some sewer piping?"
"Well, whether they care or not, it will be there," said Nagos. "Lord Tarsus made some donations of material, too, you know. I think I will have to set something like all this up in Chaminus when I return. Our old systems don't work anymore. Maybe I can use what I learned here to get it up and running again."
Narcissa sighed. "How much more do we have to do on this tunnel?"
"Well, we're in the cleaning stage," said Nagos. "We're setting up barriers to halt the water flow in the canal for a bit. Once that happens, we should be able to start scrubbing it down. We must set up makeshift dams at various points to stop the flow. And we must ensure we do it at the right point so there isn't an overflow or a worse blockage."
"And we're going to have to do this for the entire system?" asked Ajax, looking around.
"There are centuries of filth in this water, Ajax," said Raka. "We clear out one canal so water flows cleanly, and it gets filthy going over another.
"This isn't a cesspit; it's a sewer. A wonder of engineering falling into ruin.
"It's dangerous. And there is no point in doing this operation if we can't do the whole job."
"Nagos is right," said Narcissa. "It is a wonder these elven ruins have lasted as long as they have."
"I wish Anoa the Bright had done more to adapt their techniques," said Nagos sadly. "It's sad we're only now learning all this. Anoa the Builder could have learned a lot here."
"He never came to Antion," said Raka, remembering some histories William had told her. He knew vast amounts. "Anoa the Builder spent most of his life around Gel Carn and Escor. As well as consolidating the Haldrenian colonies. A lot of road building and fortress construction. The place was a ruin for a long time before anyone adapted it."
Silence.
"Narcissa, do you think Sahshir is alright?" asked Nagos suddenly, frowning.
"Well, he saved William and me when facing Diabolus," noted Narcissa.
"Excuse me?" asked Raka. "I was there too. And for your information, Sahshir hijacked my ritual and sent us deeper into danger."
"And we won," said Narcissa with a smile. "Good job participating, Raka. Maybe I should get you a trophy."
Raka shuddered. "Why you stuck up...
"Blonde..." She searched for the words to describe it and came up with something she'd heard directed at Rubia. "Supermodel!!"
Narcissa blinked. "Is that supposed to be an insult?"
"I don't know," said Ajax. "It sounds like an offworlder word. Where did you hear it?"
"Somewhere around the Iron Kingdom," said Raka. "The Iron Council often met with individuals who were from far away. They did not tell others of them unless they needed to know."
This was dull.
"Well, as fun as this is, I'm getting out of the sewers for a bit," said Narcissa, standing straight.
"Me as well," said Raka.
There had been no serious rat attacks in some time.
Whatever had driven them mad with bloodlust died down a bit. Narcissa moved and began to scale up the nearby ladder, with Raka following behind. Only to get caught by a high heel on the ladder, hooking it on a rung. It took a moment for Narcissa to get free of it. Was there a reason she even bothered with clothes, given her outfit?
Up they went, and the air of the city was comparatively heavenly. Though it was imperfect, at least they had a clear street.
"Are you sure Sahshir isn't dead?" asked Nagos doubtfully. "I feel like he would have contacted us by now. He was favored enough by the gods to get a message through."
"You can't kill Sahshir," said Narcissa. "It's not possible."
"I almost believe you," admitted Nagos. "But I'm not sure he will be showing up here anytime soon, Narcissa. And you've been ousted as Queen for your sister.
"What are you going to do?"
Who was this Sahshir that everyone was so fixated on? The King of Kalthak was obviously highly respected.
"I'm sure Zigildrazia has a plan," said Narcissa.
"Isn't that a problem, though?" asked Raka. "You weren't really part of her plan, not in the way it happened. What if she is working against what Sahshir would have wanted?"
Narcissa had the most deplorable reliance on her Goddess imaginable.
Elranor seemed to provide some services at least. At least some basic moral guidelines and a justification for the rule. Raka could concede his worship did provide the benefits of a system of government. But Zigildrazia had called down a legion of demons in her city. She'd nearly killed everyone in it.
And the Zigildrazians were alright about this.
They seemed to hold no grudge against her. Narcissa just accepted the abuse in stride as they did whatever they wanted.
"Alkela is smart," said Narcissa with a shrug. "She isn't going to pick a fight with Asim. And Asim knows we're valuable now. Especially since he needs us against Belosh and Dinis."
"What about Rammas?" asked Raka, remembering the accounts of Relma's expedition to Calisha. Aside from slowing down King Asim, it had been insignificant. However, it boosted her popularity immensely. "High King Relma released her, and you said Asim worshipped him?"
"I don't know," said Narcissa, who might have been in Asim's army in other circumstances. "But Rammas isn't going to be working for Tuor anyway-" She stopped short, and her eyes widened at something she saw.
Raka followed the gaze and saw a man in green emerge, with dark skin, who screamed shady looking. It was like he'd gone down a list of things that made him as shady and evil-looking as possible. Then he'd checked each one off as he went through them.
"Narcissa?" asked Nagos.
"Dakan," said Narcissa before smiling. "One moment, Nagos, I need to take care of something." And she unslung her axe.
"Wait, wait, wait, are you going to murder that guy?" asked Nagos, stepping before her.
"He betrayed Zigilus," said Narcissa. "He got the woman who raised me turned into a slave succubus for a crime he forced her into. He let the armies of Dinis in. He dies."
Belora considered saying something but decided she did not care. And weighing in one way or another would only make her responsible. So, do nothing and watch the fight.
"Are you sure?" asked Nagos.
"He even admitted to it," said Nagos.
"Can you take them?" asked Raka, reflecting she might have seen that man before.
'Narcissa, go ahead and kill him,' said Belora.
Yes, he'd come in secretly and met with the Iron Council once or twice. One of his aides had said the word Raka used before. Why had it come to mind then?
Divine providence?
"I took Dakan a while ago. I'm a lot stronger now than I was," said Narcissa.
"...Well, it'd be pretty presumptuous of me to stop you then, wouldn't it?" said Nagos. "Go ahead."
Narcissa moved forward toward them. Raka put a hand to her sword and followed behind, curious how this would turn out. Dakan and another blonde woman were speaking, and Raka had also seen her. She had a Zigildrazian appearance, though she looked older than Narcissa. They had just come out of the Swan's Rest.
"Honestly, there's no reasoning with Tef when she gets like this," said Lazula. "You just have to let her pout and figure things out another way."
"Well, in any case, we have other sources," said Dakan. He threw the white tube onto the street and crushed it. "Perhaps-"
At that moment, Narcissa stepped around the corner and unslung her axe while Raka drew her sword. Dakan looked up. "Narcissa. How good to see you again. I take it this is no social call."
"Dakan, you bastard!" roared Narcissa.
And she leaped into the air, swinging her battleaxe down. Dakan spun away, dodging her axe blow and drawing out what looked like a crossbow without the bow. Raising it, Raka came at him from the side. Forced to lower his hand, he was forced on the defensive right before Narcissa nearly took his head.
Only then was Lazula there raising a hand. A shield of light cracked and shattered as Narcissa hit it over her wrist instead. "Hands off, dominatrix girl.
"This is an official delegation and doesn't have time for autographs."
Lazula turned around with an open palm, and a surge of blue light slammed into Narcissa, throwing her back. However, Narcissa spun in midair and landed as Raka circled from behind. Dakan raised the crossbow. Seeing him pulling the trigger, Raka leaped aside. Something blasted a piece off the masonry as sparks flew. A stone tore through her robe but missed the flesh. Raka could feel the heat of it on her shoulder blades.
Narcissa was at Lazula now, and the two were fighting. Hand and axe met in a clash.
"So what exactly are you supposed to be?" said Narcissa. "A private doll in his collection he calls out to fight his battles for him?"
"For your information, I dress myself in designer dresses because I like how I look," said Lazula. "Someone who lives out here would never understand fashion's appeal. Your clothes are so last decade."
"What are you babbling about, you idiot?" said Narcissa. "Black leather is the foundation of demonic beauty." She ducked lower and swept one leg under Lazula, only for her to spin into the land and land with her feet on the wall. There she stayed as two open palms unleashed waves of energy.
"You show way too much off," said Lazula as Narcissa stepped away from the blasts. Where did she get the spirit to use such power if she was from off-world? "It just gives off a vibe of desperation, frankly.
"There's no style or personality to it."
"This outfit is a uniform," said Narcissa.
Dakan fired again, and Raka moved aside before rushing him. Slashing at his ankle, he stepped over it. He drew a long metal rod from some coat compartment that surged with lightning. Sword and rod met, and there was a flash as Raka focused the power of her ice spirit.
She was shocked and heard herself cry out from the move. However, the rod fractured and exploded as the lightning followed the ice. Dakan recoiled, clutching a hand, and Raka leaped at him again.
"And what happens to your personality when I do this!" said Narcissa, drawing her chain from one side. It surged forward to wrap around Lazula's slim waist, and the blue-clad blonde was pulled off. Thrown toward the street, she narrowly turned midair to make a rolling landing.
As she got up, Narcissa surged toward her.
Lazula spun away, only for her vest to be slashed to pieces. "My vest!
"You wrecked my vest! Do you have any idea how hard it is to replace these? I can't get others out here!
"You'll pay for that!"
"No, I won't," said Narcissa.
Dakan and Raka circled one another as he drew out two knives. Her hands were tender from the lightning, but his hands were chilled.
This would be a difficult match.
"Ahem," said a voice.
Silence.
Everyone looked up to see William nearby.
"William?" asked Narcissa. "What is going on here?"
"I believe that is the question I should be asking you, Narcissa," said William.
"This is a personal vendetta," said Narcissa. "And a matter of national interest. This man is a traitor to my nation and my people."
"...That may be so, Queen Narcissa," said William, emphasizing the term Queen. "However, this is not your nation. You do not have the authority to pass judgment here. And this man is an official representative of the Demoration.
"I cannot in good conscience allow him to be murdered in the street."
"Yes, well, I can't in good conscience allow this bastard to keep breathing," said Narcissa. "I already had to put him down once, and I don't intend to let him repeat his actions. Zigildrazia has people here too, and he might have them butchered."
"I find that unlikely, Narcissa," said William. "Nevertheless, if you want him executed, there is a proper time and place. You will have to take your case to the proper authorities.
"High King Relma, I imagine.
"Though I don't think she will be keen to listen." He halted. "Tef Lock is waiting for you inside with many reports. She has asked me to provide security. If harm is done to anyone within the Swan's Rest, there will be serious repurcussions."
"Oh I've no doubt," said Dakan. "No doubt at all."
Then he tipped his hat and entered.
Silence.
Raka sheathed her sword. Oh well, they'd gotten the fight out of the way. So now it was time for one or more of these two to become their best friends.
That was the way it worked.