I glanced over my shoulder to look at the owner of the voice, and stared in quiet shock.
Standing in the doorway before me was a short, lithe, beautiful cat beastkin woman. Her fur covered body was silver white with jagged streaks of grey across her forehead, neck and cheeks under her eyes. Her triangular pink nose and small, human mouth and lips blended together while being surrounded by pure white fur, framing her face. Her ears were a surprise, looking more like fur covered elfin ears rather than the various types of feline breed ears, and they were on the side of her head, rather than further up towards the top.
That happened occasionally in some beastkin breeds, though it was rare.
She also had silver and grey streaked hair coming down almost like a long river mane down to the base of her back.
However, it was her deep, bright blue eyes framed by the fur on her face and the slanted look of a cat from the triangular nose, that demanded the most attention.
Below her transfixing, bewitching face, her bright white and grey fur covered neck ended in a V neck blouse of blue and black, making her fur seem even brighter. Glancing down I saw that she wore blue and black trousers and leather sandal-boots that let her furry claw-toes out, and behind her I saw a silvery, grey streaked tail moving back and forth in a excited manner.
I noticed several knives and a hammer on her belt, and a chatelaine with an assortment of tools hanging down from her waist to the top of her knee.
This was a practical woman, and a dangerous one.
I didn’t need to see her adorable, pale white and grey fur streaked hands with claws poking out, or the bright white fangs behind her small, plump mouth as she grinned toothily to know that.
And she had a lot of teeth in the excited grin she was showing me.
“Hell Cat Maggie, I presume?” I asked, grinning back at her despite myself.
“The Wild Ranger, by the name of Jake, I presume?” She asked back with a raised eyebrow, her sharp toothed smile never wavering.
“The very same, I fear I’m forever doomed to say.” I sighed dramatically, earring a surprised giggle from her. “And you?”
“Maggie, or Mags to a select few.” She replied with an amused shrug.
“Everyone else just loves to call me Hell Cat Maggie, and nothing else.” She sighed in exasperated annoyance. “I swear, you rip out one little throat in the middle of a massive riot, and suddenly you’re not a cat beastkin, you’re a hell cat.”
“Oh I feel your pain!” I laughed, even as I kept an eye on the growing pool of people across the street. “Lead one little charge in the middle of a war, against a few overly tall people, and suddenly you’re a folk hero, whom everyone likes to dump all their problems on.”
“Well, I suppose it could be worse.” Maggie half giggled, half purred as she looked over my shoulder, utterly ignoring everyone else around us as she did so, to focus on the growing group of rough folks across the street. “I could have challenged and humiliated a slum lord coppersmith guild maser in front of half the city. Then brazenly strolled into his territory with the woman who got him humiliated, and stands to wreck his entire business.”
“How’s that?” I asked, confused. “How does Orna threaten his business? Apart from outdoing his people at the exhibition.”
She opened her mouth to reply, only to be cut off from the bastard across the street.
“Oui! Maggie!” He called out, drawing everyone’s attention back to him. “This don’t concern you! Just slink off and don’t look back. No harm done!”
“Like that pack of idiots that were trying to set fire to this place last night?” Maggie called back in a clear and sharp voice. “That collection of morons stumbling around in the dark with cans of kerosine? If I hadn’t stepped in those idiots would’ve likely burned the entire neighborhood down!”
“Just some drunk, enthusiastic locals.” Rat face replied, shrugging. “Who don’t want the visiting world to laugh at them by having a half trained little girl represent them on stage.”
“A girl so pathetic at her craft you had to send people to sabotage her booth.” I called back, tired of dealing with this guy. “Or did you think I didn’t know about that?”
“You’ve got a nasty habit of inserting yourself where you don’t belong, stranger!” Rat face snapped back. “What, do you think cause you’re some high and mighty war hero that you can get up in other peoples business? This is New York! Not the frontier! We got our own way of doing things here!”
His collection of armed thugs all cheered at that, and I sighed in utter annoyance. It was clear to me that this situation was going to end in blood.
Though I was both stunned at the brazenness of the small army assembling to do it, and at a loss as to why this little lunatic was putting in so much effort to stamp out one bit of competition.
“What is this guys problem?” I muttered to myself. “The real one I mean. Why is he so hung up on Orna, as opposed to anyone else?”
“Aye, this is New York!” Maggie called back, gracefully sliding up next to me as we eyed the small army across the street. “But this is Five Points! You want to stop us from moving out and crushing you in the Exhibition, you step up and do it!”
“There’s no need to have blood on the streets.” He replied, glancing around at his small army of gangster thugs. “Especially since most of it would be your blood. Just withdraw from the whole affair, or bring out the little Galway brat and we can fix this whole mess!”
“Who the hell does this joker think he is?” I asked, a bit stunned by his brazenness, or stupidity, I honestly couldn’t tell which it was yet. “He struts around like he’s a king, or some damn conquering general.”
“That’s Kirby Berwick.” Orna’s voice came from the doorway behind us. She sounded both angry, and nervous. “He’s the guild master for several lower end Coppersmith Guild Halls. And he’s always been an up jumped king of a sad little hill. Looks like you getting me into the Exhibition has finally sent him over the edge.”
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
“Well now, if it isn’t the eye of this trouble making storm herself!” Rat face, or Berwick, as that was apparently his actual name, called out, putting on a big grin and even bigger act for the crowd. “The reason all of us are here on this muddy street on this fine morning! All cause she won’t behave like a proper apprentice goggle-head!”
“Goggle-head?” I asked, now truly lost. I knew a few of the reasons he was here with his impromptu army, and that I was the cause for most of them. But this was starting to feel deeper, and more personal, which, when combined with money, ego and guns, never really ended well in my experience.
The Civil War against the Coalition of Independent States had long been over, and yet here I was, about to be in the midst of a full on battle once again. And this time, I wasn’t even fully sure why it was even being fought!
However, I could get lucky, and everyone would suddenly come to their senses!
But I kind of doubted it.
“Most Coppersmith’s wear goggles, especially the apprentices.” Orna explained as she stepped up us and stared Berwick down. “However, I don’t need them.”
“Why not?” I asked, my eyes roving over the collected force, and not liking the weight of numbers he had on his side.
“Because she’s a freak!” Berwick shouted at us, apparently overhearing us. “She’s talented, but without the proper training, and the proper treatments, she’s a danger to everyone! No Coppersmith works without the training and the treatments! It gives us all a bad name when anything you make and sell blows up or fails to work! Coppersmiths have to have the treatments!”
“My parents trained me!” She snapped back, her nervousness vanishing in the face of her fire. “And I don’t need treatments! I can build and create just fine without them!”
“That’s not how this works love!” Berwick snapped back, looking half gleeful, half livid. Somehow. “All Coppersmiths have to have the treatments! It’s a guarantee of service quality! Even if you are a freak!”
“This jokers strumming on my last nerve.” I muttered coldly, fast losing patience with this whole mess. “This comes to blows, he’s my first target. I don’t care what’s coming at us.”
“You’re new here Ranger.” Maggie purred next to me, seemingly excited by my comment. “He’s been a pain in my side, and Orna’s, for years. If anyone is going to kill him, it’s going to be me! You’re just gonna have to wait in line.”
“First come, first serve, darling.” I replied, grinning a toothy grin of my own at her remark.
“Wait!” Orna whispered frantically, looking frightened. “I don’t want anyone to fight just because of me!”
“Orna…” Maggie sighed, half pleased, half exasperated, but Orna just talked right past her.
“He’s only here because of me! I can try to chase him off, or something.” She insisted, her lack of confidence was both strangely endearing, but also utterly unconvincing.
“He’s here because he’s afraid to lose, and he wants to cheat around that, rather than try to simply win in any fair way.” I replied firmly, drawing the attention of everyone present in our little barricade. “And I’m not inclined to bow down to a bully for any reason, ever.”
I shrugged with a small grin on my face, despite everything, and shugged. “It’s a firm personal rule of mine. It sticks in my craw to damn much.”
“I agree.” Maggie said with a predatory smile that showed off her sharp fangs.
“Besides, I’ve been looking for an excuse to end that insufferable worm years!”
“When I fight, I usually like to know why, if only so I can figure out how to win better.” I muttered as I glanced between the two forces, who were glaring at one another in now very dangerous ways. “This seems a little too obsessed, a little too personal, all over an inventor coppersmith girl who happens to be independent of any guild.”
“Oh, you really don’t actually know?” Maggie asked, her blue eyes widening in surprise. “It’s because…”
“Come on out here Galway girl!” Berwick called out loudly, cutting Maggie off. “Take yer Cog Juice like all the other good little goggle-heads, and join up with a guild. Do that, and we can all go home!”
I blinked in surprise, confused at the odd turn this had suddenly taken.
“I got a fresh bottle, just for you, right here!” He said, pulling out a small bottle of glowing green liquid out of his jacket to show off. “I got why you need. What all proper coppersmiths need! So come on over and take it! Then everyone can go on about their day!”
“Sod off you up jumped sewer rat!” A woman suddenly yelled out from behind us. I blinked in shock and turned to look around behind us.
Dozens of people, including several women, all armed, were all but pouring out of the building, glaring at Berwick and his gang.
“This don’t concern you, Needle Stabbers!” Berwick shouted, looking instantly furious as these newcomers swelled into our ranks around the barricade.
“Like as hell it don’t!” Another woman shouted right back. “You Skinned Cat bastard! You nearly burned our entire block down last night!”
“A few enthusiastic boys who got ahead of themselves and made a bad judgment call!” Berwick replied, making a dusting off motion. “I can’t be held responsible for what every idiot does in the Five Points at night.”
“Except I followed them back after I ran them off, and saw who they reported their failure to.” Maggie shouted back, laughing at him. “So save it, you would be arsonist ringleader bastard!”
Berwick actually blinked at that, paused, then glared pure murder at us, and I knew we were not far from the coming blows.
“Last chance girly!” He snapped, focusing on Orna, who glared back at him furiously. “Come on out here and take your medicine, and this can all be over!”
“Don’t need it, don’t want it!” Orna snapped back, pulling out a coppersmith pistol similar to the one I’d seen Lillianne use. “Now get lost you damn squeaking mouse! You’re not even a rat! Just a mouse with delusions of grandeur!”
I snorted in amusement, though more at her very bad insult than at the actual insult itself, even if it was more or less true in my opinion. Maggie chuckled while glancing at her friend in an exasperated way.
“Really?” She giggled while shaking her head. “A mouse?”
“I saw some inside when I moved some stuff around, and it just stuck.” Orna replied defensively, ducking her head and blushing in embarrassment. Several other people in our little barricade chuckled as well.
However, when I glanced across the street, the reaction from Berwick instantly concerned me. He was smiling. Smugly. Even standing tall and puffing his chest out while gripping his suits front, as though he was so very proud of himself.
That instantly put my guard up!
“A mouse, was it?” He called back, laughing cruelly along with his gang. “Funny you mention that!”
Suddenly, above him on the second floor of the tenement building he was standing in front of, I saw movement at the window, and a sudden purple glow inside the dark room! Oh hell! I thought, my eyes widening. Sniper!
And I knew who the likely target would be.
“Down!” I shouted, whirling and grabbing Orna before throwing both her and myself down to the muddy ground. A split second later, a purple beam of light passed over us and bathed one of the angry Needle Stabber women in its light!
Everyone blinked in shock! Then blinked again when nothing happed. Orna and I peered up from the muddy ground while everyone else ducked, or stood around in a stupor, staring. Nothing was happening on the other side as well, but I also didn’t hear any cursing or shouting about some kind of misfire.
The hell? I thought, confused.
“Oh no!” Halona whispered in horrified shock, staring at the woman, and then the window.
“Was that some kind of joke?” The woman in question shouted at the street, seemingly suddenly emboldened by the fact that she was okay.
“Give it time darling.” Berwick called back, laughing. Time was not something I was inclined to give anyone, however.
“Open fire!” I shouted, pushing myself up from the muddy ground, snatching my rifle and aiming at the window where the strange light had come from. I was officially done humoring these bastards.
Shots rang out from our side, and there were shouts of surprise and pain from their side. Then there was suddenly a primal, terrified, horrified primal scream from behind us, which caught us all off guard with just how visceral it sounded!
We all ducked down and looked back behind wondering what was going on, since the other side still hadn’t shot back yet for some reason.
Looking back at the woman who’d been hit by the light, we could all suddenly see why.
They wanted us to see this.
“God in heaven.” I whispered, shocked at what I was suddenly watching happen.