Deathstalker 06 - Deathstalker Legacy

right with you?"
    "Of course," said Rose. "You understand about these things. Leaving Logres is the only sensible thing to
    do. This world belongs to Finn now, even if a few people haven't worked that out yet. I never liked the Durandal. He's weird. I know you think I'm strange, Brett, and maybe I am, but trust me; Finn is crazier than I will ever be. I at least care about a few things, and a few people. Finn doesn't care about anything.
    Possibly not even himself. And that's what makes him really dangerous. He will be King, and then the whole Empire will be his, to do with as he pleases. Then where will we run? I think we need to join up with Lewis Deathstalker. Also on the run, in case you hadn't heard. He is possibly the only man who fights as well as I do, and he has even more reasons than we do to bring about the Durandal's downfall.
    We will be stronger and safer together."
    "If we can find him, sure," said Brett. "That's ... good thinking, Rose. But we can't afford the time to go looking for him."
    "We won't have to. He will be looking to leave Logres too, which means he'll be looking for a ship, just like us. I wouldn't be surprised if we fell over each other at the starport. Where were you thinking of going, after we leave Logres?"
    "Hadn't thought that far ahead," Brett admitted. "Rim worlds, I suppose, Terror or no. Not very civilized, and definitely short on the comforts, but the farther we get from Finn, the better."
    "I could always stay," Rose said wistfully. "Kill Finn myself. I'd enjoy killing Finn."
    "No, Rose!" Brett said immediately. "You can bet he's got plans in place, to protect himself from you.
    He doesn't trust you anymore; if he ever did. His security people would shoot you down from a safe distance before you got anywhere near him. He sent you after me to see what you'd do. Damn! He probably had you followed!"
    "Of course he did," said Rose. "I killed the fellow, right outside Finn's apartment, and stuck his head on a parking meter. No one else tried to follow me. I'd know. You mustn't worry so, Brett. We were meant to be together, you and I. Nothing is ever going to part us."
    If I had any sense, I'd kill myself right now and get it over with, Brett thought miserably.
    Lewis Deathstalker and Jesamine Flowers went to visit the Dust Plains of Memory. To learn the truth at last, the history from which legends derived. Lewis wasn't sure he wanted that, after so many disappointments and heartbreaks, but he needed to know, so he hardened his heart and went anyway.
    The two of them traveled across the city hidden behind holo disguises, using public transport where possible, sticking to the most-traveled routes, hiding in plain sight. Samuel Chevron had smuggled them out of the Bloody Tower by an old hidden route that only he seemed to know about, and the moment they were outside he gave Lewis a notebook containing directions and access codes, written personally on paper, just like in all the old spy shows, so that the contents couldn't be scanned by remote security checks. The hand-writing was clear and old-fashioned. Chevron and Vaughn disappeared while Lewis and Jesamine were still studying it.
    The instructions led them down into the labyrinth of ancient tunnels that still existed under the Parade of the Endless from before Lionstone's day. The service and maintenance tunnels, tucked away out of sight so the city's populace wouldn't have to see the hard grubby work that kept the city gleaming and perfect.
    Most of this work was done by robots these days, of course, run by Shub on sub-routines. None of them paid Lewis and Jesamine any attention as they made their way deeper and deeper into the labyrinth.
    Chevron's access codes opened most of the closed doors that blocked their way, and Lewis's skeleton key took care of the rest.
    Lewis worried about Jesamine. She was being very quiet. It occurred to him that she'd lost even more than he had, so he did his best to just take care of business, and not bother her. There would be time for talks, and discussions, later; when they were both safely offplanet. Time then, to decide what they were going to do with their lives.
    They came at last to the old elevators Chevron described in his notebook; elevators Lewis was surprised to find he recognized from the Quality vid soap. In Lionstone's day they led down to the private tube stations that were the only way of approaching Lionstone's old Court. The stations and the elevators were supposed to have