“Not at all,” I replied, and we walked forward, the carpet of insects which blanketed the floor flowing out of our path like living oil. We stopped about nine feet from the gigantic insect huddled against the basement wall. He leaned back like a humanoid, though his body wasn’t really built for it: he looked as if he might topple over any second. I wondered, as I had before, whether this was a natural position for him, or if he assumed it to seem more humanlike. If the latter, the attempt was a dismal failure.
Gregor was a gigantic version of the far smaller insects which served as his spies throughout the city. Somewhat like a roach, but his head was too large, his legs too many, and his eyes…they didn’t resemble a human’s, but then they didn’t look all that much like an insect’s, either. They looked more like obsidian gems set into the hard shell of his carapace.
A constant stream of the smaller Gregors ran up his body, over his head, and touched their antennae to the tips of his far larger feelers. They then scuttled back down as another took their place, and then another, and another. The flow of information from his spies never stopped, even when he was involved in a conversation.
“You’ll have to excuse me if I seem a bit distracted today,” Gregor said. “But the Descension celebration is the busiest time of the year for us-so much happens around the city-and the sheer tidal wave of information my children bring me can be a bit overwhelming at times. Please bear with me.”
“No problem,” I said. “So I don’t waste your time or ours, Gregor, why don’t you tell us how much you know about why we’ve come? I assume you at least know a little. After all, I did see one of your children in my apartment when I first spoke with Ms. Kanti, and I saw another in the alley where we found Varma’s body.”
Gregor made a high-pitched chittering sound which I took for laughter. “Very observant, Matthew. Suffice it say I have a fair grasp of your basic situation.”
I knew that was all we would get out of him on the subject. Gregor never gave away more information than he had to.
“I’d like to ask you a few questions.”
“Of course you do. Why else would you be here?” More chittering. Then he folded his legs across his abdomen-a sign he was preparing to listen closely.
“First off, do you know who stole the Dawnstone?”
“Regrettably, no. My children have a very difficult time penetrating the Darklords’ strongholds. Their protections are too strong, too intricate.”
“Are you aware of anyone trying to fence the Dawnstone?”
“Again, no.”
I was certain Gregor’s children had every fence in town “bugged.” If he didn’t know of anyone trying to sell the Dawnstone, then no one had.
“Do you know who killed Varma?”
“My child happened late upon the scene, but arrived in time to see three members of the Red Tide departing.”
The Red Tide. And three of them. When it came to believing in coincidences, I was an atheist. “Are you aware we had a run-in with some Red Tiders?”
“I am.”
“Were the three who left the alley the same three who attacked us?”
“As I said, my child only saw them leave the alley, but I believe it was them, yes.”
It was beginning to look like our encounter with the gang members in Gothtown hadn’t been just random bad luck after all.
“Do you know where they went?”
“Alas, no. My children lost them in the confusion of the festival.”
“What do you know about veinburn?”
“It’s a relatively new drug, very powerful, created by a fusion of magic and science. It’s effective on all of Nekropolis’s species, with the exception of the completely dead, such as zombies and ghosts.” He paused. “Since you’re the city’s only self-willed zombie, I have no idea whether it would affect you or not. It would be interesting to find out, wouldn’t it?”
“After what happened to Varma, I think I’ll just say no, if you don’t mind. Who’s making the stuff?”
“The Dominari is distributing veinburn. But the drug itself is made by the Arcane.”
Arcane? That meant: “Talaith.”
Gregor’s head bobbled, his version of a nod, I suspect. “And the plants which are used to make veinburn are cultivated in Glamere.”
“That’s surprising,” Devona said. “I wouldn’t expect Talaith to use technology, not after what Matt told me about how she demands her people practice pure, natural magic-and especially with what happened with the Overmind.”
“Times change,” I said. “And the Darklords will do anything to gain an advantage over each other-including abandoning their principles. Assuming they ever had any in the first place.” I suddenly recalled who Devona’s father was. “Sorry.”
“Don’t be, you’re right; even Father might be persuaded to set aside his hatred of technology if he thought it was to his advantage.” She thought a moment. “Could the Hidden Light be mixed up in this somehow? After all, they manage to smuggle holy items into Nekropolis. Perhaps they also bring in technology.”
I answered before Gregor could. “Doubtful. The members of the Hidden Light are capable of a lot of things, but working closely with Darkfolk isn’t one of them. They have a deep aversion to associating with those of a supernatural persuasion.”
“Then why do they deal with you?” she asked.
“Because I was killed while foiling one of Talaith’s plots. They view me not as a monster so much as a victim of a Darklord’s evil.” I turned to Gregor. “What do you think? Could the Hidden Light be in on this?”
“I must concur with your assessment, Matthew,” he said. “The Hidden Light has always worked alone in the past.”
That settled, I returned to my original line of questioning. “Do you know where The Dominari have their lab set up?”
“Somewhere in the Sprawl, I believe, but the exact location is unknown to me.” Gregor’s mandibles clicked together once, twice, an action I think was intended to substitute for a smile. “The Dominari may not be Darklords, but their protective spells are still quite formidable.”
“I don’t suppose you know who Varma’s veinburn connection was.”
“Actually, I do, or at least, I have a suspicion. The only veinburn dealer I’m aware of is a demon named Morfran who works out of the Sprawl.”
I frowned. “Only one dealer? That doesn’t make any sense. It’s not like the Dominari to work on so small a scale.”
“I have the impression they’ve been field-testing veinburn,” Gregor said, “trying to get the formula just right.”
“I suppose.” Still, it didn’t sound like the Dominari’s style. Like the criminal organizations back on Earth, they always went for the money, and they weren’t exactly known for their patience. “Can you think of anyone in particular who would gain from stealing the Dawnstone?”
“You’re asking me to theorize. You know how much I dislike doing so in the absence of facts. But if I were to hazard a guess, I would say someone who wished to harm Lord Galm-or perhaps even Father Dis. And in all likelihood, that would be another Darklord.”
“Talaith,” Devona said. “Relations between my father and Talaith might be cordial at the moment, but they haven’t always been so. And if Talaith is behind the creation of veinburn-”
“She could have gotten Varma hooked on the stuff, and used his addiction as leverage to get him to steal the Dawnstone for her,” I finished. “It certainly seems to fit. No wonder she was ready for us when we tried to cross her domain. Augury, my dead ass. One of her people probably saw us asking around about Varma in the Sprawl and alerted her that we were investigating the Dawnstone’s theft and figured there was a good chance we’d consult Gregor.”
“And the Red Tide?” Devona asked. “They came after us after we’d visited Waldemar-long before anyone could’ve been aware of what we were doing.”
“Maybe Talaith’s got an informant in the Cathedral, someone who saw us there.”
“Why the Red Tide, then? They hardly seem like the type to work for Talaith.”
“Darkgems are darkgems, no matter who pays them to you. And the Red Tide’s tech can’t come cheap, not when it has to be imported from Earth.”