Zeetha nodded. “Yeah, you can handle the spark stuff.” She turned to Professor Mezzasalma. “Can the rest of you get this thing running?”
The professor gave an offended snort. “Of course!” He then paused. “If those wind-up mice will let us.”
Zeetha nodded, then strode up and confronted the queen clank. “Hey! Agatha needs this cat monster thing up and running as soon as possible! Help these guys make that happen, got it?” The diminutive ruler reared up, clearly offended. It then considered the warrior princess who stood before it and gave a clear nod of acquiescence.
Zeetha turned, caught sight of Mezzasalma’s smirk of triumph and buttonholed him before he could move. “And I’ll be checking to make sure that’s all you had them do, so no bright ideas. No extras, no deviation from what’s already here. I know how sparks think.”
The professor looked into her pitiless eyes and swallowed. “That’s . . . quite a reasonable demand, considering the circumstances.” He swiveled his eyes back. “Don’t you agree, my dear fellows?” Both Diaz and Mittelmind looked like they were sucking on persimmons, but they gave stiff nods nonetheless.
Fortunately, Doctor Mittelmind’s natural ebullience could not be contained for long, and with a sigh, he shrugged and declared, “To work everyone!” He leaned towards Fräulein Snaug. “Prepare a list!”
Hexalina shuffled her feet. “Um, actually, Herr Doktor, I’d like to go help find the Lady Heterodyne.” Her master turned towards her, astonishment writ large upon his face. She continued, “Please, sir?”
Mittelmind glanced over at the security clank and its busy repair team. It was a fascinating sight. “But why?”
Moloch stepped up to her and touched her shoulder. “Hey, are you coming? I’d feel better having someone at my back who wasn’t completely nuts.”
Snaug glanced at Mittelmind. “Maybe. In a minute.”
The mechanic nodded, grabbed a toolbox, and legged it back to the group assembling around Airman Higgs. Snaug watched him go, a look of longing on her face. The doctor observed this and a knowing smile softened his features. Fräulein Snaug looked back up at him hopefully. “Ah. Yes, of course.” Mittelmind awkwardly patted her head. “Off you go, girl.” He then snapped out a hand and prevented her from darting off. Once he had her attention, he raised an admonishing finger. “But no permanent damage. He belongs to the Lady, now.” A quick pout crossed Hexalina’s face and her hands clenched in frustration—but Mittelmind was adamant. She gave a small huff and nodded. “Yes, Doctor.” Mittelmind smiled and released her. Snaug caught sight of Moloch and repressed a small thrill of anticipation. Permanent was such a delightfully high bar.
Violetta closed the fastening with a satisfying snap. “There!”
Everyone gave a sigh of relief. Once Lucrezia had retreated, Agatha had scooped up her locket, holding it close to her with one hand as, with her other hand, she rushed to release the others from their glass prisons. Zola had damaged the necklace when she yanked it away, so Violetta repaired the clasp while Agatha held it in place.
Now, the locket was, once again, firmly held at Agatha’s throat. “Thank you, Violetta.” Agatha gave it an experimental tug and frowned. “Maybe I’d better just weld the thing onto an iron ring.”
Violetta rolled her eyes. “Don’t be overly dramatic. A good solid lock will work fine.” She cast a scornful eye towards Gil and Tarvek, who were busy seeing to Von Pinn. “Whose adolescent slave-girl fantasies are we indulging here?”
Agatha quickly changed the subject as they joined Gil and Tarvek beside one of the lab’s operating tables. “How is Madame Von Pinn doing?”
“I’m amazed she’s still alive, actually,” Tarvek confessed.
Gil shrugged. “Constructs of this type are notoriously tough, and we’ve managed to stabilize her for now.”
Tarvek shook his head, “But her body is definitely on its way out.” He began ticking items off on his fingers. “We need to extract the Castle entity from the body of the Muse, Otilia. Then we need to transfer Otilia’s mind out of the body we know as Von Pinn and into a suitable clank body until the Muse can be repaired. Then we have to transfer the Castle entity back into the Castle system.”
Gil nodded. “It’s like a sliding puzzle in that we can’t do anything until we do the first step, and we can’t do that until the others get back with that watchdog clank.”
“No.” They turned at the firmness in Agatha’s voice. “We can’t wait. We have to leave as soon as we can.” Agatha strode over to a bench and grabbed a brass tube and began stringing wires through it. “Zola now has access to all of my mother’s—Lucrezia’s—memories, right?”
Tarvek waggled his hand. “Yes, for the most part . . . ”
Agatha turned to Gil. “And your father is probably still planning on destroying the Castle.”
Gil nodded. “I’m sort of counting on him not doing so while I’m inside . . . but, yes.”
Agatha selected a coil of copper tubing, snipped off a length, and began bending it into a fanciful hook. “That’s two very powerful enemies, one inside the Castle and the other outside.” She laced wiring about the base of the coil and began attaching it to the tube. “Nobody here—” the wave of her hand indicated the room, the Castle, and probably Mechanicsburg as a whole “—is safe until I get the Castle running again.” She glanced down at the construct on the slab. “That includes Madame Von Pinn here.”
She stared intently at a small electronic device that was sitting on the bench before her. She selected a large monkey wrench and, with a fluid movement, smashed the device sharply and precisely, causing the case to disintegrate without damaging the components inside. With a satisfied nod, she picked them up and began inserting them into the end of the brass tube. “We’ll have to leave notes for the others. They’re smart, and Theo and Sleipnir care about Von Pinn too, I imagine. Once they find their way back here, they should be able to get started on her without us.”
Agatha turned to face them. Idly, she swung the copper and brass wand through the air, testing its weight. “Our first priority is repairing the Castle.” She pointed to a small collection of equipment piled up on a bench. “I’ve gathered what I think I’ll need to transfer the part of its consciousness that’s in Otilia’s body back into its main system.” She looked over to the shattered hulk of the Muse. “That’s assuming we can find a place to hook you up . . . ”
The clank jerked its head up. “I-I can show/guide you. But even with the four of you, you have t-t-too many/much equipment. I am too large and heavy. To transport this/me/me/me alone will require—”
As the Muse was talking, Agatha snapped a switch on the wand. It sparked to life and a crackling bolt of energy burned between the points of the hook. With a deft swing, Agatha sliced the Muse’s head cleanly off and caught it before it hit the ground. She turned to the others. “I have that covered. Any other problems?”
In the shocked silence there was a burst of static and then the head tucked underneath her arm spoke. “N-n-no. We are good.”