Doctors and nurses, many of whom were volunteers, rushed back and forth along the narrow street in front of the pharmacy, distributing bandages and painkillers amongst the victims as best as they could. Men and women alike were casualties, moaning and crying in pain as they waited their turn to be looked at by a medical professional. The hundreds of injured cries echoed down the winding streets and reverberated between the ground and the tall ceiling of the cave. Fear and panic was in the air.
Tian Yi hastily but firmly secured the splint to the miner's arm, trying her best to make do with what little bandage she had. The Undercity was running out of supplies and it showed. Half the splints being used were random pieces of wood wrangled off of someone’s house, while people were tearing apart their clothes to use as bandages.
Tian Yi gave the miner some water to drink and wiped the sweat off her brow. She looked around her, trying to spot anyone else in need of first-aid and saw a dozen pale and panic-stricken faces looking right back at her. Tian Yi pulled her sleeves up and went right back to work. The meeting with Yue Ran was moot now. Even he was likely busy dealing with the aftermath of this incident.
Three dozen gunny sacks were laid in a row at the very end of the street. The street was packed to the brim with the injured and the first responders. Perhaps it was respect for the dead, or just simple superstition, but no one tried to move closer to the sacks, where there was more space and air to be had.
The Northcloud Mine, a major mine north of the Undercity producing over 30% of the city’s iron, had just collapsed. No one was quite sure why or how, but rumors in the streets were that a newly excavated tunnel ended up opening a passageway for a horde of Abyss creatures, which swiftly swarmed the mines and overwhelmed the unprepared guards. The rest was no more than a slaughter.
The three dozen bodies lying in the street were largely casualties of the stampede that came after, most of whom died of their injuries shortly after being carried back to the Undercity. Close to a hundred workers were still unaccounted for, but there was little doubt as to their fates.
Survivors whispered in hushed, trembling voices, of hellrats pouncing in droves onto any worker that tripped over, of bane wolves stripping the flesh off of their prey while they were alive, of horrifying, giant beasts that wore their flesh on the inside and their bones on the outside. These were the lucky ones.
Some of the workers had witnessed their own families and friends being eaten alive right before their eyes, torn from limb to limb like a frail doll. After all, many of the miners worked with their families; husbands and wives, brothers and sisters, uncles and nephews. The income of a single individual was not enough to feed an entire family in the Undercity.
Several survivors broke down in hysterics and caused a lot of trouble. They would scream nonsensically, or grab the closest enforcer they could find, yelling all sorts of abuse and insults at them. They would tear at other survivors' hair or abruptly break down into fits of crying in the middle of their rampage. It was a frightful and tragic scene to behold. No one knew what to do about them until several enforcers came in and forcibly subdued them.
Tian Yi wiped a tear from her eye as she fastened a bandage around a young boy's head. The boy asked her where his father was. She told him to go to sleep.
It wasn't until close to midnight that things finally started settling down. Members of the city guard brought over old sheets and canvases for the injured survivors and eventually, fatigue swept over everyone as they fell asleep one after another.
“Go home, ma'am, there’s not much else you can help with. What they need is time and rest. And so do you. Leave the rest to us,” said the doctor as he gently took the medical supplies from Tian Yi's hand.
His tired voice didn’t go unnoticed, but Tian Yi had no objections. The only survivors that still needed care were those in critical condition, and care for those patients was best left to the experts. Reluctantly, Tian Yi nodded and turned away.
The loss of Song Teng seemed to have been revivified by this sudden, senseless tragedy. Watching the dead bodies and wailing survivors made Tian Yi think of her own husband and conjured horrible images in her mind. What had Song Teng's last moments been like? The question haunted Tian Yi for the entire day. Working had been her only refuge. She would have helped the other enforcers if they allowed her to, but most of them were combat ready and had already been summoned over to the Northcloud Mine. As a provisional enforcer, she had been made to stay in the city and help with more mundane tasks.
The walk home was quiet. The lights had been put out in most of the houses. Even the entertainment district, which always managed to have at least three establishments running well into the night, was pitch-black. The Undercity was in a dire mood.
Tian Yi saw her home in the distance, illuminated by a small paper lantern marking its entrance. She was about to walk towards the gates, when a large, shadowy figure grabbed her on the shoulder. Tian Yi almost leaped in surprise, but was reassured by the familiar voice of the unknown man, “It's me.”
Tian Yi turned around and was greeted with the stern and round face of the captain, though he seemed considerably less plump than the last time she saw him.
“Captain Yue, it’s you.”
“Yea, it's me,” the large man said with a sigh, "Finally finished up along the northern corridor. Had to evacuate two smaller mines next to Northcloud. The defensive perimeter has completely gone to shit. The preparations we made ahead of time didn't account for a horde emerging from inside our lines. It’s been a hell of a day.”
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The two of them stood there in silence for a brief moment, both feeling the weight of today's events on their shoulders.
Finally, Tian Yi managed a meager smile as she said, "Would you like to come in?”
“If it’s not too much of a bother.”
The rest of the house had gone to sleep, so Tian Yi sat Captain Yue down at the stone table in the tiny courtyard. She poured him a cup of tea and asked, “Would you like anything to eat?”
Captain Yue chuckled weakly and said, "Yes please. I haven't had a single bite the entire day.”
Tian Yi walked away into the kitchen and came back ten minutes later with a simple bowl of hot soup noodles. The captain ravished the meal and swallowed every last drop in a matter of minutes.
“So, what brings you here this late at night?”
The captain downed the entire content of his teacup in a single gulp and let out a sigh of satisfaction.
“Well, we did have an appointment for today, didn't we?” he said.
"You're taking this very seriously.”
“As I should. You’ve seen what the Darktide is like this year. What do you think is going to happen if there is a traitor in our ranks? You asked to meet me. So tell me, what have you uncovered?”
“Enough. I have a good idea of what the mayor is planning. No, I know it,” said Tian Yi.
Captain Yue looked at her expectantly, as if challenging her to give him the answer.
“I went back and checked the records of the victims of the case. I singled out the mines in which they worked. Iron, coal, copper, clay, limestone, manganese and zinc. Seems unrelated, until I looked at the secondary deposits at all of the mines. Nitrate and sulfur.”
Captain Yue grinned and said, "What else?”
Tian Yi paused for a moment, before deciding to spill the beans, “I found Song Teng's notes. There's not much information in there, but he does give us a main suspect.”
She went into the room and came out with the diary entries, which she handed over to the captain.
The captain looked them over, his face slowly turning back to its usual stern expression. Finally, he said, “If what is said here is true, it's really concerning. Then again, if Song Teng didn't take action for an entire year, surely that clears Lin Zheng Yao of any suspicion, right?”
His tone almost made it seem like he was pleading. No one would want to believe that their friend was a traitor after all.
Tian Yi nodded hesitantly and said, "It might not be him, but we can't rule him out either. In fact, Wong Kar Wai’s appointment to coroner's assistant was somewhat suspicious, granted his unremarkable background. But if someone had pulled some strings, someone in a position to make employment decisions…”
“It could have been someone under Lin Zheng Yao as well.”
“That is true, which is why I wanted to consult you before moving on with the investigation. Presumably, we want to do it in a way that doesn't draw any attention either. I don't think the mayor would like us snooping around like this.”
Captain Yue rubbed his chin and sighed, "I think the mayor has the same suspicions as we do. If Song Teng has brought this matter up to him, it makes sense that he would be cautious of Lin Zheng Yao. More importantly, take a look at this.”
The captain took out a folder and handed it to Tian Yi.
It was a long spreadsheet, filled with numbers and names, some sort of report regarding workers and their employment positions.
"What is this?" asked Tian Yi.
“Take a look at the parts I've circled.”
Tian Yi took a closer look and noticed the oddity he was pointing out. The report recorded several things, including the reassignment of workers from one factory to another. Strangely enough, there was a large amount of workers being reassigned from one specific factory. The way the data was entered and organised obfuscated this fact sufficiently that it wasn't obvious at first glance. Another document within the folder showed a large amount of unspecified cargo being moved from that same factory. Furthermore, all of these reassignments were noted to have been done under request of the Worker's Association.
“This is…the mayor moving his secret base of operations?” Tian Yi gasped in surprise, “Anyone who has access to these documents and has a keen eye could spot this. He cant—”
“Exactly. Anyone who has access to these documents. That’s limited to the inner circle and a few other individuals close to us. The mayor's not as stupid as he seems, Tian Yi. I know he looks like a belligerent old man half the time, but a fool wouldn't have been able to become one of the most powerful sorcerers in Malaysia. It’s a trap.”
“Meaning?”
"The date of these reassignments coincides with a planned excursion to eliminate an Abyss locus. Anyone who's tracking the mayor would know that he would be absent from the city at that time. That means Peng Li Yan, his secret workers on this project and the project itself are vulnerable. It's the perfect bait.”
“You mean the mayor intentionally created a situation to lure out the traitor?”
“Exactly."
"Will they fall for it?"
“It's hard to tell. Even if they know it's a trap, the temptation to kill Peng Li Yan and destroy this project is far too hard to pass up. It's possible that whoever is behind the scenes will try and make a move without exposing themselves. Nevertheless, that's an opportunity for us to latch onto his tail and pull them out of the shadows.”
“Us? The mayor didn't involve you in this plan, did he?"
"Of course not. He suspects me as well, did you forget? But it doesn't mean we can't capitalize on this chance he's created.”
"How would we do that?”
"Follow the cargo. Peng Li Yan is likely going to be overseeing its transport personally. If there is a traitor, it's likely that they or their forces are going to show up nearby. I will be tracking Lin Zheng Yao in the mean time, and I will send someone else I trust to watch Kharak.”
Tian Yi was a little hesitant. After the incident with Mrs.Shaffi, she wasn't sure if she was capable of a job like this. Her thoughts drifted to Ru Yi. She was lucky once, but what if she got injured again? Or worse? She couldn't leave her daughter to fend for herself.
“I know it's a lot to ask, Tian Yi,” said Captain Yue. He took something out of his pocket and handed it to Tian Yi.
“Here. I spent some time to make these for you. They are for protective and defensive measures only. And that one's a signal flare. You’re going to need them,” he said.
It was a stack of assorted talismans. He carefully went over and explained the effect of each talisman. Tian Yi accepted it without any fuss. He was right. These talismans would be helpful in what was to come. She said her thanks. She did not know magic all that well, but she knew making talismans like these, prepackaged magic that anyone could use, was an expensive and time-consuming task.
“The plan is not for another week’s time. You can carry on with your investigation in the meanwhile, Tian Yi, but I doubt you're going to find much. Spend some time with your daughter and stay safe. I expect things to get a lot more turbulent from now on.”
Tian Yi looked at the talismans in her hand, back at Captain Yue and nodded.