addition to looking for your friend, is check to make sure everyone has a badge. You’d be surprised what kind of people try to sneak into the con without paying. They’ll pay you back for your membership, and instead of your friends having to bring you drinks, we get powerups delivered.”
“Powerups?” Hjalmar said, tilting his head.
“Sandwich, PowerAde bottle, vitamins and a PowerBar,” Ryan said. “All you gotta do is go up to Room two- twenty-two-that’s con-ops and security-explain the situation, and you’re in. If they’ve got questions, tell ’em to call me.”
“Hmmm…” Hjalmar said. “I may have to take off in a hurry.”
“Go to room two-twenty-two.”
“I’ll wait ’til I get relieved then go,” Hjalmar said. “We’re serious about finding this friend of ours. Two- twenty-two.”
“Two-twenty-two.”
Edmund’s demonstration was a solid hour. The first thirty minutes covered, in brief, each of the weapons and their common forms of employment. Then fifteen minutes were a demonstration of axe, war hammer and long sword against various forms of armor. Pig shoulders, mail, and plate were expertly chopped and diced. He may have used a cane, normally, but put a sword in his hand and he came alive. The last fifteen were questions and answers.
Doris’s part was to be the pretty assistant. She was initially surprised that when Edmund began discussing a particular weapon she could pick it out immediately. But just as Edmund seemed to change with a sword in his hand, so did she. It was more than “the pointy end goes at the bad guy.” The feel of a sword awakened something in her that she hadn’t known was there.
When the demonstration was finished, she and Fig started collecting up the weapons while Edmund answered still more questions. She lifted one of the swords and sighted along the blade. It wasn’t a period weapon; Edmund referred to it as a “fantasy sword” based on a falchion, but it was the most perfect weapon she could imagine. At least for cutting flesh. Long and curved with the blade thickened towards the end, the balance was beautiful. She waved it slightly then flipped it in her hand, a motion that Edmund had demonstrated, but also demonstrated was difficult for a beginner.
“You look as if you were made for that sword,” Fig said, smiling.
“It’s beautiful,” Doris exclaimed. “I don’t care if he says it’s a fantasy sword. If there wasn’t someone, somewhere, who used one like this in battle, there should have been.”
“You seem familiar with the pieces,” Fig said.
“I guess,” Doris said. “I certainly like them.”
“Could you give us a hand getting these up to the room?” Fig asked.
“Absolutely.”
The collection was a huge mass, but between the three of them and a baggage cart, they managed to get them all up to a room in the Marriott in one load.
“Thank God that’s over,” Edmund said, settling into a chair.
“Are you okay?” Fig asked.
“Just short of breath,” Edmund said. “I’m getting old, honey.”
“You’re never going to get old,” Fig said. “You just get better.”
“I get better with young lovelies around, that’s for sure,” Edmund said, winking at Doris. “Thank you for helping out. It was more help than you realize. I owe you.”
“You don’t owe me anything,” Doris said, still holding the falchion. She flipped it again and shook her head. “Someday I’ll be able to afford a sword like this.”
“Well, you can borrow it if you need to,” Fig said. “But for the time being, try this.”
She pulled out what was almost the sketch of the same sword made from sections of wood bound together at both ends but slightly separated in the middle.
“Those are my new training swords,” Edmund said. “They have the same heft and balance as a live blade, but you don’t have to worry about leaving your arm lying on the ground.”
“Why not rattan?” Doris asked, doing a sweep. He was right, it was the identical balance.
“Hand it over,” Edmund said. When he had it in his hand he popped her, hard, on the butt. “That’s why.”
“That barely hurt,” Doris said, taking the sword back. Not nearly as much as a hickory switch, she thought.
“Rattan would have left a bruise,” Fig said. “With these, all you need for live fighting is a face mask and helmet. They’re even better than wrapped rattan or PVC. You can hit somebody on an unprotected joint and it won’t cause any damage.”
“Since you like the falchion so much, take that one with you,” Edmund said. “I have others. There’s a scabbard.”
“Thank you,” Doris said as Fig loaded her with a scabbard and baldric. “I can’t thank you enough.”
“I’m sure you will find a way to use it well,” Fig said.
Barbara felt bad that she hadn’t been able to stop by the safe house before. But she’d been busy. Now she laid a hand on her friend’s shoulder.
“Come on, Janea,” she said, drawing on the power of God and channeling it to her friend. The fact that an Asatru worshipper of a fertility goddess was one of God’s children in His eyes was proven simply because she could send her friend power. “I need some backup. This FBI guy is getting freaked by invisible demons. I need somebody to take his mind off of them. You’d be perfect.”
There was not a flicker on the monitors, but Barbara hoped the power would help out.
When Hjalmar got back from his break, Sharice raised an eyebrow at his new badge and lanyard.
“Security?” she said.
“I’m here, anyway,” Hjalmar said. “All I have to do is check badges.”
“Hjalmar,” Sharice said, pulling him to the side. “Try to remember this is the astral plane.”
“I do,” Hjalmar said.
“You’re joining security for a sector of the astral plane,” Sharice said. “I know the whole ‘maintaining’ thing is ritual for you, but…this could be a serious complication.”
“I told them what’s going on, that we’re looking for a friend. And that I have to leave by midnight, and that I may have to leave in a hurry. They didn’t have any problems with it.”
“Try your silver cord,” Sharice said.
Hjalmar closed his eyes, then yawned.
“Thanks,” he said. “Now I’m tired. It’ll be fine. And if one of you guys can cover for me here from time to time, I’ve got access to all sorts of areas now that we didn’t have before. I doubt Janea is in any of them, but if we get a sniff I can look.”
“Okay,” Sharice said, doubtfully. “I’m going to go check out the Hyatt. Good luck. Hopefully, wherever Janea is, she’s not getting into too much trouble.”
“Bran, I need to apologize,” Doris said.
“I can’t imagine what for,” the director said as people shuffled out of the panel.
“I need to pay you back for the materials I used,” Doris said. “I feel like such a fool. I knew there was no way I was coming to a con with no money.”
“And you remembered…” Bran said, smiling.
“I put it in my backpack,” Doris said, ducking her head. “I had plenty of money with me. What a ditz!”
“You didn’t use hardly anything in materials,” Bran said. “Seriously, don’t worry about it. Are you going to costume tonight?”
“Yes,” Doris said. “I knew what I wanted to do but I just couldn’t figure out how to make it. Not in time, and the materials would have been expensive. I’m going to do the belly-dancer thing.”
“Good for you,” Bran said. “That’s a nice step up.”
“And I get to wear a veil,” Doris said. “Now, where do I look?”
