Above him, from every side, strange creatures loomed menacingly, breaking out of the very walls of the buildings. A rhino was frozen, mid-charge, his horn lowered to do battle, semi-absorbed by the stone. Opposite was a white unicorn, horn of polished pearl, white wings spread to embrace the darkness. She seemed about to spring into the air and ride the thermals up to heaven. But this was the Deep, and heaven was a thick layer of cement.
Clouds of incense wafted above the crowd, forming a thick layer of smog that blocked the fluorescent lights but did nothing to disguise the all-pervading stench. It billowed out from market stalls and the open doors of shops, curling and twisting, a madman’s dance; it caressed those who walked the streets and gently played across their clothes - the incense cloud welcomed him with open arms.
Above the shops, and through the haze of smoke, were delicate arches, formed of finest marble, Greek style, that seemed to support the roof of the tunnel. But the paint was peeling, and revealed the pillars as a mere façade. The real roof supports were hard and straight, of red iron and blackened steel, criss-crossing at random junctures. The smoke embraced everything, sharp lines were swallowed in a vague fog.
All around him half-seen faces lurched out of the mist, laughing madly or making obscene remarks, never quite looking in his direction. A man with a stud through his eyebrow and several across his head staggered along the road, barely keeping his feet - a low weeping sound trickling from his open mouth. A woman in black leather smoked a rolled cigarette slowly, staring into the trail of smoke as if divining the future in its strange formations.
And above it all was a low murmur, a hum of conversation drifting through the incense cloud like wine through water, broken by hoarse shouts or stuttering laughter. And somewhere there was a shop playing music, just below the level of conscious hearing.
Josiah swam through the crowd with Amber close behind. Camden always made him uneasy, and it was worse today than usual. With the temperature below freezing, it seemed that all the Deep had gathered to keep warm. He dodged a few drunkards and neatly side-stepped someone on a skateboard. He hoped that they would soon find their informer.
They reached a clearing, a large cavern lit by burning braziers. A crowd had gathered and were toasting bread over the ethereal flames.
“The end!” a voice shouted, loud and clear, breaking over the hum of conversation and silencing it in an instant.
“The end is coming! It is already here!”
Josiah moved to see who was speaking. Then he saw him - a man, standing on a raised platform at one end of the square, red hair streaming in a frenzy around his face, blue eyes burning with certain fury, gesturing wildly at the gathered crowd. His clothes flapped in an unfelt storm, whipping around him like scorpion tails.
“I know,” he shouted, “I have seen it - seen it in my mind. I know that the end is close. Repent! Repent! Sinners, your time is close at hand! When the end comes, the wicked will face their eternal judgment! Repent now! Cease your abominations! Cease your foul thieving, your dirty lies, your sickening vices! You are but dust and ashes before the God of Steel!”
People had begun to get bored - they had heard it all before - always the same crazies predicting the end of the world. Conversations were resumed all around. But despite himself, Josiah was fascinated - he had never seen religion like this before. In the Circle, devotion to the Steel God was measured and intellectual, forged and hammered from reason. Of course, he knew that such people existed, but to see a man of such passionate faith... It was as fascinating as it was alien. He moved to better hear what the man was saying.
“The end is nigh, can you not feel it? Does it not burn like a spark in your mind? Does it not consume your soul in its hunger? It burns, it burns! The end is coming, it is already here! Earth, Heaven and Hell - three shall become as one, intertwined and inseparable. At the stroke of five and the tolling of six. Metal and blood, stars and sky, shadow and smoke! The end of time shall begin and end. Why do you not listen? When the end comes you shall suffer the wrath of Steel! His servant comes, the blessed one, the techno-messiah. He walks among us even now.”
The man paused in his ravings. The crowd hushed, shaken more by the sudden silence than they had been by the shouted words. He lowered a trembling finger at Josiah and locked his eyes in a vice-like grip.
“There he is! He walks among you! See! See for yourself!”
Suddenly, the man became seized with panic. His body trembled and silent tears trickled down his face. “No! Not yet! Do not approach me!” he shouted wildly at Josiah, “I am not yet done! I need more time! More time! No, not yet!”
He turned, shrieking, black clothes streaming behind him. Swiftly, the all-consuming fog enveloped him and he disappeared from view. Soon, even his shouts had faded.
“Come on,” whispered Amber, “let’s find our man.”
“Sure,” muttered Josiah, still watching the place where the prophet had vanished. He shouldn’t let the ravings affect him. It was this place, it ate away at his nerves. He had to focus, find out about the ring.
Amber waded into the swarms of humans swarming around the braziers. Steeling himself, Josiah followed her, moving with surprising ease through the crowds.
A stooping figure stumbled towards them, an ashen look to his hair, with a rat-like visage and eyes that glistened with feral cunning.
“Ah yes! It is them, it is,” he said in his peculiar voice, more to himself than anyone else, “the great scientists walk among us. An honour, a great honour - a great honour for such great scientists.”
By this point the man was next to them, speaking fervently as if the words were all clamouring to get out his mouth at once.
“Are you looking for your humble servant? I have been looking for you. I have it, yes, I have what you want, what you were looking for.”
“You have a plasma inducer?” asked Josiah excitedly, forgetting for a moment the reason for them being in the Deep.
“Well,” muttered the man, “not exactly, not exactly, but I know where to find one, yes I do. And I can tell you, if the price is right.”
“How much?”
“Merlin,” whispered Amber, “we have more pressing concerns.”
Josiah suddenly remembered and was brought back to reality. “I suppose so,” he muttered.
“Do you have information to trade?” Amber asked the rat-like man.
“Could be, could be - it depends on what it is you want to know,” he beamed, ever-delighted by his own craftiness.
“This ring, for example,” said Josiah, showing it to him but keeping a firm hold at the same time, “what do you know about it?”
“Let me see, let me see… Ah, yes!” The man grinned yellow teeth. “I know what this is, and to whom it belongs. What a coincidence it is!”
“Who?” asked Josiah.
“Life is not cheap, and nor am I. For a hundred dollars I tell you who has rings like these.”
Josiah looked at Amber who shook her head.
“I could always go elsewhere, you know,” said Amber, “many people would know a thing like that.”
“I think not, I know more than most,” replied the man, “but you have a pretty face on you. I’ll tell you for seventy.”
“Fifty or nothing.”
“Sixty, or I do not eat.”
“Done,” said Amber, who was about to shake the man’s hand but then thought better of it. She reached into a hidden pocket and produced the money.
The ash-man looked at the money hungrily as it was counted out before him. He grabbed it and stuffed it into a pouch, licking his lips.
“They call themselves the Nightmares, they do. A Piranha gang - new arrivals, not been here long. But getting big and powerful, soon they will be the power in the Deep. Leader calls himself the Archangel, so I’ve heard. I would not upset him. It is their symbol you hold in your hand. Not a cheap trinket, but then they have plenty of money, lots of guns as well, yes.”
“Where can we find them?” asked Josiah.
The rat-man, who had been staring at Amber turned to Josiah with a look of disgust.
“I don’t know,” he said.
“You don’t know?” Amber retorted, eyebrow raised.
“For sixty I don’t know,” he said with a smile and a wink especially for her.
Amber began to search for some more change when Josiah put a hand on her arm.
“Stop!” he whispered urgently, “don’t look up!”
“What is it?” Amber whispered back, pretending that nothing was amiss.
“We’re being watched. I think she’s been following us for some time.”
“Who?” asked Amber, beginning to search a different pocket.
“The woman in the black coat and sunglasses. Behind you.”
The rat-man was beginning to get agitated that he had not received his money. He started hopping from foot to foot and whistling tunelessly through the gaps in his rotting teeth.
Amber dropped something from her pocket, leant down to pick it up and snatched a glimpse of the woman Josiah had mentioned. She was ten metres away but there were at least a dozen people between them.
“What do you think?” she asked.
“Circle,” answered Josiah.
“You sure?”
“Pretty sure. No one else would wear a black coat so awkwardly.”
“What’s the plan?”
“Too late,” said Josiah, “she knows we’ve seen her.”
Amber turned to see the woman begin to thread her way through the crowd, moving away from them. Josiah drew his gun and followed. He had to know why she was watching him, who she worked for.
“We’ll be back,” Amber told the rat-man, who swore beneath his breath.
The woman was picking up speed, pushing her way through the crowd, shoving people out of her way.
“Everyone get down!” shouted Josiah, hoping to get a clear shot but he was totally ignored - no one seemed concerned by either the chase or the gun he was waving. Cursing loudly, Josiah pushed onwards.
In his hurry, a brazier was overturned and burning charcoal flew everywhere. Someone shrieked in pain over to Josiah’s left. He ignored it, focused on the woman he was pursuing. He had to reach her before she was lost to the Deep. She reached the edge of the crowd and paused, as if unsure where to go. The people in the square were still talking amongst themselves, oblivious to the screams of a man whose clothes were on fire, and to Josiah shoving his way past.
He was gaining ground. She took a left, running nervously, as if unsure of where she was going. He reached the edge of the crowd, turned, and quickly accelerated, his breath coming fast and hard. Where had she gone? There! Turning into the market! He followed without thinking. The woman threw a stall to the ground behind her as she ran - flick knives and cigarette lighters went flying - Josiah leapt over them, not dropping a step. She ducked and dived through the crush of people - Josiah could only just see her retreating figure through the thick smoke. Darting forward, she lunged into an abandoned shop, disappearing into the darkness.
Josiah stopped at the door, his heart hammering in his chest and every breath sending shards of pain through his lungs. He fell to his knees, gasping, as if he were about to throw-up. He hadn’t run like that for far too long, he thought between haggard breaths. He’d been so stupid, acting like an athlete. Who did he think he was?
In a few minutes, though, he had managed to steady his breathing and calm his heart down to a tolerable rhythm. He stood up, his hands still shaking from exhaustion. He had probably lost her but there was no point stopping now. Where was Amber? It struck him that he had not seen her since he began the chase. He wondered where she had got to but could not wait. He levelled his gun and stepped through the doorway, angry at the way his hands shook, and closed the rotting door behind him.
His eyes adjusted to the relative darkness of the shop and he could make out the shapes of at least a dozen figures nearby, more towards the back. They were totally still. His breath steamed in the cold air, colder here than outside. Josiah advanced cautiously, keeping his gun aimed at the figure nearest him. The shop was totally silent.
He almost laughed when he got close enough - mannequins! The shop was full of old dummies, blank-eyed and soulless.
A small sound broke the still air, like creaking wood or rusty metal. There was someone here! Moving as silently as possible, Josiah wove his way past the discarded displays and moth-eaten clothing, watching, listening. He could see nothing. Maybe he had imagined the sound - maybe it was all in his head.
“Got you!” whispered a chilling voice behind him, as he felt the cold muzzle of a gun press into the back of his head. He had missed her!
“And now I’ll finish what we should have done years ago!”
Josiah heard a soft click as she pulled back the safety catch.
The flash of a gun lit the room; the sound reverberated like dying thunder.
Josiah was surprised to find that he was still standing. He turned and saw the woman lying on the floor in a growing pool of blood.
Amber stepped out from the shadows.
“I thought I would use the back way,” she said.
Too shaken to speak for a moment, Josiah could only mumble a thank you.
“She was pretending to be one of the dummies,” Amber explained, “you must have missed her in the dark. I couldn’t get a clear shot until she stood up.”
Amber knelt to examine the woman. Josiah saw she had been shot in the stomach and would probably bleed to death before long.
“Who sent you?” asked Amber, her usually smooth voice as hard as rock.
The woman spat at her.
“He’s dead anyway,” she managed to snarl, “sooner or later.” She looked at Josiah with hatred in her eyes. “And he doesn’t even know what it’s about.” The woman began laughing and ended up coughing violently.
“Who sent you?” Amber demanded.
“There are more of us, you know,” she said, “some on our side, some on theirs. I thought I could get to you first… no matter… we are in the right… and your time will come!” Her eyes still staring at them accusingly, she breathed her last and was still.
The overpowering smell of the blood, the shock of the last few moments and his overexertion finally got the better of Josiah. He plunged to his knees and was violently sick.
* * *
They walked back together, taking their time, Josiah still a little unsteady on his feet. His hand was clenched tightly around a small metal object on a chain - an iron fist and a full moon. It didn’t prove anything - these symbols were worn by many believers - but Josiah knew she was from the Circle. It didn’t make any sense. Why did they want him dead? What did it have to do with the Nightmares?
The clearing was much the same as when they had left it, with the same buzz of conversation that sounded like a swarm of bees. Whatever fires had begun due to the upturned brazier seemed to have been put out. The two of them passed through the hordes of grey-clothed bodies, searching for the rat-man they had spoken to earlier.
“You came back, yes?” came a voice from just behind them. “I knew you would - I know too much to be left behind.” He grinned craftily. “You were about to give me money, yes?”
Amber handed over another hundred and the rat-faced man grabbed it greedily, stuffing it somewhere in his moth-eaten clothes.
“I remember now,” he beamed, “the Nightmares are in King’s Cross, moved into the railway tunnels. They’re hard to miss, if anyone was to go looking. What a coincidence it is.”
“Coincidence?” asked Josiah raising an eyebrow quizzically.
“Yes,” replied the man, “coincidence that you seek those I was going to tell you about. They have the plasma inducer, you see? I hear they’ll sell it, for a price - everything has a price - but I will give you some advice for free. Be careful of the one they call the Archangel. He does not take no for an answer.”
Winking at Amber, the rat-man turned to leave, “Maybe we can meet up later, for more than just business?”
Amber smiled sweetly and sarcastically. “Only if one of us is dead,” she replied.
The man laughed in a shrieking voice. “One of us may be,” he said as he melted into the crowd, “if she goes hunting nightmares.”
“Jerk,” spat Amber. “Well, what do you think?”
“I think he’s telling the truth,” replied Josiah. “I think we need backup and some serious weapon-tech before we start fishing for Piranhas. I think that it is very unlikely to be pure coincidence that the same gang who ransacked my room happen to have the piece of equipment I’m searching for and most of all, I think you’re right.”
“About what?”
“He is a jerk.”
Amber laughed but then grew serious. “Are you sure about this? They sound dangerous - you can’t just stroll in and say hello.”
“At least they aren’t trying to kill me, which is more than can be said for the Circle right now. But we have to go - they’re the only lead we have.”
He didn’t mention the other reason, though it loomed large in his own mind. Regardless of any other considerations, they had a plasma inducer, and Josiah would not give up on it. To power his time machine was worth almost any risk.
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