Ragnarock by Stephen Kenson Read Free Book Online

made contact with the underworld in Germany, in the Rhine-Ruhr megaplex."
    "Right in the midst of Lofwyr's domain."
    "Yes, so you can see why this matter could not be put to the Council, and why discretion is required.
    You will leave for Germany at once and secure the artifact. When you have done so, you will return it to me. I've had all the necessary files and information prepared for you. You can review them on the way to the German Alliance. The travel arrangements are already made."
    Nothing further needed to be said. Speren crossed his right arm over his chest and executed a precise bow.
    "I will go at once, my Prince, and I will return when I am successful." He turned on his heel and walked to the door.
    Jenna's voice called after him. "Speren?"
    "Yes, my Prince?"
    "Be careful."
    "I am always careful, my Prince."
    When he came out into the corridor again, he found Jenna's assistant waiting to give him the mission briefing and other information. Speren wondered about Lofwyr's interest in this lost piece of elven history. Anything that drew the attention of a great dragon had to be far more than a mere historical curiosity. Speren knew the legends and tales of elven might and power in ages past as well as anyone. Whatever this artifact was, it was enough to draw the attention of the most powerful being on Earth.

4
    It was early evening when Talon pulled up in front of the Avalon on
Landsdown Street
. The street was only starting to get busy, and the place wasn't open for business yet. The restaurants were filling up for dinner, and soon the clubs would be full too. He pulled around to the side of the building complex and dismounted, Aracos' motorcycle form fading as the spirit returned to his intangible astral form.
    Talon took the concrete steps up to the side door two at a time and went inside. The bouncers and other employees recognized him and gave him no more than a passing glance as he continued on past, up the stairs to the second-floor office. As he came to the landing, Aracos spoke in his mind.
    "All clear, boss. Everyone's waiting." the spirit said.
    Talon was glad to hear it, but felt a slight twinge at having Aracos check up on his chummers. It wasn't that he didn't trust them, but shadowrunning was a dangerous business, and Talon hadn't lived this long by not being careful. He went to the office door and knocked twice.
    "It's me." he said, opening the door.
    "About bloody time." Boom grumbled in his deep bass.
    Inside the office sat the rest of his team: Boom, Trouble, Val, and Hammer. They looked up expectantly as he entered.
    "So what's up, Tal?" Boom asked. "Everything go all right with the Johnson?" The troll was wearing an amazingly loud Hawai'ian shirt that barely covered his huge frame. He sat behind a wide desk that looked like a child's compared to Boom's nearly three meters in height. Boom owned the Avalon, one of the hottest nightclubs in Boston, thanks to a bequest from Dunkelzahn's will. He was also one of the most skilled fixers in the plex and an old friend of Talon's. Ever since Talon had returned to Boston, Boom had become active as a shadowrunner again, in addition to handling the team's financial affairs.
    "Everything went fine." Talon said. He took the credstick from his jacket pocket and tossed it onto the desk. "As a matter of fact, Mr. Brackhaus was so impressed with our work that he offered us another job. And this one pays a hundred grand."
    Boom let out a low whistle and picked up the credstick, slotting it into a hand-held reader to check the balance.
    "A hundred thousand?" Trouble said. "That's not bad. Who does he want killed?" She was a decker, the team's Matrix specialist, a ghost in the machine, able to work wonders with computers and communications.
    "Nobody." Talon said. "That's the good part. All he wants is to get back some artifact from an archeological dig."
    "If that's the good part, what's the bad part?" Hammer asked. The ork had been to a lot of places and gotten