Start the story here.
* * *
When I arrived in the Iron Range, finally reaching my destination, obtaining the supplies I needed proved to be surprisingly easy.
Gunpowder and dynamite both were in no short supply, and in these areas, a little extra money could ensure no questions about the purchase. I still made certain to buy from several different vendors, not allowing any of them to know the true amounts of explosive I obtained, but the extra caution didn't seem necessary.
Some of the detonators and other equipment proved harder, if only slightly. I needed some specific equipment for delayed reaction, and that meant clockwork. I had many talents, but figuring out how to re-jigger a little bit of clockwork for a new purpose wasn't one of them. I was instead forced to rely upon visits at night to little old men with a shop full of tiny tools, paying in cash and hoping that I could afford their silence.
It took a while, but eventually I had all the parts. It was a series of heart-pounding trips to get them all assembled and properly stored, ready to travel, but eventually I had it all complete. Everything on my shopping list had been crossed off.
And then I once again climbed aboard a train.
This time, it was easier to move without attracting too much notice. I still made sure to take every possible precaution, but the Organization was looking for a man and a young woman, traveling together.
I no longer fit that description.
A week later, after several back-tracking trips (like I said, it never hurt to be cautious), I arrived at my destination. As soon as I climbed off of the train onto the platform, I felt the bustle of Philadelphia hit me like an ocean wave.
The city! For so long, now, I had been out of the urban environment. For a moment, I felt overwhelmed as I stared around at the thousands of people, all rushing off on their own errands. I felt like a million eyes were on me, too many to track.
I took a deep breath, using those techniques I'd learned so long ago to force down the fear, the emotion. I carefully threw away each emotion, pushing it down and out until only determination and an inner void remained.
And then I retrieved my precious trunk, filled with its explosive cargo, and headed into the city.
I got a cheap room, but it wouldn't matter much. I had many trips to make, and I wasn't planning on returning to pay my bill at the room afterward. I just needed a place of safety, somewhere I could duck back to between trips.
It took three days to put everything into place.
The whole time, I felt uncomfortably aware of those eyes on me, watching. I had done my best to alter my description to make sure I no longer looked like the Jasper that the Organization knew and remembered. My long beard itched, and I'd lost weight in some places and gained it in others. I had long since discarded my black coat for prospector's brown, and my flat-brimmed hat had been replaced with a shapeless lump of leather. It shaded my eyes, but it was anything but fashionable.
I didn't care about my looks. The bulky brown coat hid the two revolvers - mine and Danni's - that I carried beneath it. The hat kept the sun out of my eyes as I prowled through the streets of Philadelphia, and helped to keep me from looking up.
Whenever my gaze did wander upwards, however, I couldn't help but hiss and suck in my lips against my teeth. There it stood, a black tower, rising up into the sky like a middle finger raised against the Lord.
The tower of the Organization.
Inside, I knew, were files, desks, records, and more. An armory with weapons for the Priests inside. A vault, built into the basement, containing the most secure information. The building was an armored bastion against the forces of chaos in the world, a heavy hand of order on this new and growing nation.
My fingers itched as I stared up at the tower. Unbidden, my mouth twisted into a scowl.
They had done this to me, had put me up against Danni, and then wrenched her away. I didn't waste any time grieving.
Not when there was work to be done.
After those three days, after I'd carefully slid the last little brown oilskin-wrapped package into place, I spent one last night in the hotel room, sitting with my legs crossed on the floor. I had taken apart both revolvers - I'd pulled Danni's from the wreckage, had carefully rebuilt and restored it - and put them back together, fully oiled and gleaming. I'd checked every bullet on both belts that crossed my chest.
I knew that I wouldn't get any sleep tonight.
Instead, I passed the long night's vigil, staring at the bed in front of me and letting my mind go blank. I embraced that blankness, the void.
It would serve me well tomorrow, until I could do no more.
To be continued . . .
Gunpowder and dynamite both were in no short supply, and in these areas, a little extra money could ensure no questions about the purchase. I still made certain to buy from several different vendors, not allowing any of them to know the true amounts of explosive I obtained, but the extra caution didn't seem necessary.
Some of the detonators and other equipment proved harder, if only slightly. I needed some specific equipment for delayed reaction, and that meant clockwork. I had many talents, but figuring out how to re-jigger a little bit of clockwork for a new purpose wasn't one of them. I was instead forced to rely upon visits at night to little old men with a shop full of tiny tools, paying in cash and hoping that I could afford their silence.
It took a while, but eventually I had all the parts. It was a series of heart-pounding trips to get them all assembled and properly stored, ready to travel, but eventually I had it all complete. Everything on my shopping list had been crossed off.
And then I once again climbed aboard a train.
This time, it was easier to move without attracting too much notice. I still made sure to take every possible precaution, but the Organization was looking for a man and a young woman, traveling together.
I no longer fit that description.
A week later, after several back-tracking trips (like I said, it never hurt to be cautious), I arrived at my destination. As soon as I climbed off of the train onto the platform, I felt the bustle of Philadelphia hit me like an ocean wave.
The city! For so long, now, I had been out of the urban environment. For a moment, I felt overwhelmed as I stared around at the thousands of people, all rushing off on their own errands. I felt like a million eyes were on me, too many to track.
I took a deep breath, using those techniques I'd learned so long ago to force down the fear, the emotion. I carefully threw away each emotion, pushing it down and out until only determination and an inner void remained.
And then I retrieved my precious trunk, filled with its explosive cargo, and headed into the city.
I got a cheap room, but it wouldn't matter much. I had many trips to make, and I wasn't planning on returning to pay my bill at the room afterward. I just needed a place of safety, somewhere I could duck back to between trips.
It took three days to put everything into place.
The whole time, I felt uncomfortably aware of those eyes on me, watching. I had done my best to alter my description to make sure I no longer looked like the Jasper that the Organization knew and remembered. My long beard itched, and I'd lost weight in some places and gained it in others. I had long since discarded my black coat for prospector's brown, and my flat-brimmed hat had been replaced with a shapeless lump of leather. It shaded my eyes, but it was anything but fashionable.
I didn't care about my looks. The bulky brown coat hid the two revolvers - mine and Danni's - that I carried beneath it. The hat kept the sun out of my eyes as I prowled through the streets of Philadelphia, and helped to keep me from looking up.
Whenever my gaze did wander upwards, however, I couldn't help but hiss and suck in my lips against my teeth. There it stood, a black tower, rising up into the sky like a middle finger raised against the Lord.
The tower of the Organization.
Inside, I knew, were files, desks, records, and more. An armory with weapons for the Priests inside. A vault, built into the basement, containing the most secure information. The building was an armored bastion against the forces of chaos in the world, a heavy hand of order on this new and growing nation.
My fingers itched as I stared up at the tower. Unbidden, my mouth twisted into a scowl.
They had done this to me, had put me up against Danni, and then wrenched her away. I didn't waste any time grieving.
Not when there was work to be done.
After those three days, after I'd carefully slid the last little brown oilskin-wrapped package into place, I spent one last night in the hotel room, sitting with my legs crossed on the floor. I had taken apart both revolvers - I'd pulled Danni's from the wreckage, had carefully rebuilt and restored it - and put them back together, fully oiled and gleaming. I'd checked every bullet on both belts that crossed my chest.
I knew that I wouldn't get any sleep tonight.
Instead, I passed the long night's vigil, staring at the bed in front of me and letting my mind go blank. I embraced that blankness, the void.
It would serve me well tomorrow, until I could do no more.
To be continued . . .
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