Deathstalker 08 - Deathstalker Coda

shrieked with delight, and did her happy dance right there in the street. “Yes! Yes! An exclusive for the new news site!”

    Back in their room, sitting around the table with their masks off, Douglas and Stuart and Nina plotted revolution. They all spoke loudly, interrupting and cutting each other off, their faces flushed with excitement and anticipation. They all felt more alive than they had in months.
    “So,” said Stuart. “How exactly does the rebellion start here ?”
    “I thought I’d take all the people here in the Rookery and raise them up into an army I can set at Finn’s throat,” said Douglas. “Not the best material, I’ll admit, but you work with what’s available. So, I’ll talk to them, inspire them, fire up a sense of grievance and injustice, and then whip them into a fury and—”
    “Never work,” Nina said flatly. “In the whole history of the Rookery, no one’s ever been able to get all of them to agree on anything. That’s why most of them came here in the first place; because they couldn’t get on with anyone else.”
    “She may be loud and irritating, but she has a point,” said Stuart. “Nothing less than a full-scale invasion of the Rookery by Finn’s army would ever unite these people into a common cause, and Finn’s far too smart to do that. He knows all he has to do is wait, and they’ll turn on each other.”
    “An invasion . . .” said Douglas. “That’s what we need, right enough. And Finn just might do it, if we scare him enough. But first, we need to get the people here on our side, and under our command. I think . . . I’ll start with Random’s Bastards. They’re the celebrities of this appalling place. They’re fashion setters, trendsetters; where they lead, others will follow.”
    “Yes, they’re celebrities,” said Stuart. “And that’s why they’re never going to follow two masked bravos from nowhere. We’re good fighters, and perhaps even local heroes now, but so are most of the Bastards. All they care about is fame and money, and we can’t offer them either.”
    “They care about who they are,” Douglas said slowly. “More importantly, they care about who their ancestor was. Give them a chance to be heroes and legends like the glorious Jack Random, give them a chance to follow an outlawed King into battle against a corrupt Emperor . . . to live the lives they’ve only dreamed about . . .”
    “Douglas, you can’t!” said Nina. “Trust me, dear, this is a really bad idea. You show the Bastards your real face, and they’ll be lining up to betray you to Finn for the reward!”
    “Damn right,” said Stuart. “They may be Random’s spawn, but they know nothing of honor. And if there’s anything they hate worse than an ex-King, it’s an ex-Paragon. Or have you forgotten you spent most of your earlier career putting these scumbags behind bars?”
    “The enemy of my enemy is my ally, if not my friend,” Douglas said calmly. “We just have to demonstrate to the Bastards that Finn is much more of a threat to them than they realize, and that we’re the only people who can lead a rebellion against him. I’ve always found inspired self-interest to be a great motivator.”
    “You’ll be a dead motivator the moment you take your mask off,” growled Stuart.
    “We are going to see the Bastards,” Douglas said firmly. “Have faith, my children.”
    “I’m taking my really big gun,” said Nina. “And my best pair of running shoes.”

    So, a few days later, Douglas and Stuart and Nina—two masked bravos and a demon girl reporter—attended the next scheduled meeting of Random’s Bastards. It wasn’t difficult to track them down. This wide selection of men, women, and not a few alien hybrids, who claimed to be descendants of the legendary professional rebel Jack Random, always came together once a month to boast and brag about all the marvelous things they’d done, and argue fiercely over their various claims to lines of descent from Jack Random. Their favored rendezvous was a squalid little tavern down on Hell Street, the Three Cripples. An appalling place in practically every way, but the drink was cheap and the owner was prepared to overlook the inevitable bad behavior in return for the regular booking.
    Douglas and Stuart and Nina looked distastefully at the stained walls, slumping roof, and windows that were blacked out for extra privacy, and stepped carefully over the bubbling open sewer to get to the main entrance.