Gunn had seen sketches of the Mountain before. Small pencil drawings of the massive structure did the real thing little justice. A man-made marvel of engineering rising out of the otherwise flat landscape. The lowest four floors were solid metal, rotating gears and cogs, steam vents and faint lights. The progressively smaller floors above had iron and steel bars, from this distance, he can't make out the individual cells or inmates, but he knows they are there.
"The Mountain," Ag elbows him and raises an eyebrow, "Fitting."
"Did you expect it to look any different?" Gunn asks, tilting his head.
Agnes frowns out the front window again and studies the Mountain. "I don't know what I expected. Here, move."
"What? Ag, no." Agnes scrambles over his brother, despite his protests. Before Gunn- or Polloyora- can stop him, Agnes is climbing out of the window.
"What is he doing!?" Polly stops the automobile fast enough to pitch Agnes forward and off of Gunn's lap.
Gunn shrugs, "I dunno. He's his own person."
"Why'd you stop?" Ag shimmies back into the cab, "I think I can make it to the roof."
Polly studies the Twins again. Gunn knows she's asking herself if they could possibly be serious. If they are actually as crazy as crawling on top of a moving vehicle.
"He tried to do it on the train too," Gunn simply looks back out the window and towards the Mountain.
"On the-" Polly takes a deep breath in, "Please remain in your seat."
"But I-"
The Half-Orc grabs Agnes by the arm and slams him into his own seat.
"Ahh, yes. This is okay."
"Good." She starts the car moving again.
Gunn passes a sidelong look between his brother and Polly. The potential friendship between the two of them was important. Agnes hadn't been around anyone that could match him in strength, but here was this female Half-Orc that could easily throw him across the room if she wanted. Gunn can't help but laugh at the slight panic on his brother's face.
"Something funny?" Agnes glares at him.
He smiles and shrugs, "I don't think you'd understand."
Agnes pouts.
Pollyora stops the automobile in front of the doors. Three other matching vehicles are beside it. Boxes on wheels with chairs in the front. "When you arrive in the morning you'll come through these doors."
Gunn slides to the ground first, pulling his bag after him, "We're staying here," he says softly. "Harrow said so."
Polly blinks a few times and sighs, "Of course. Then I can show you up to our floor."
"Our floor?" Ag lands on the ground beside Gunn, "You mean you stay here too?"
She nods.
"I thought only the hardened vetrans and orphans stayed here." Agnes shifts his bag to his shoulder.
Gunn sharply elbows him and shakes his head. It's too late and Polly already looks annoyed.
"Right," Pollyora did not hide her emotions well. She was clearly annoyed with Agnes already and Gunn kind of felt bad about that. She marches towards the door.
"What did I say?" Ag whispers to Gunn.
Gunn shakes his head, "You can't just assume everyone is cool with being an orphan."
"We're not orphans."
"But she might be," Gunn flicks him in the forehead, "Use your brain every once in a while."
"I am."
"I can hear you, you know." Polly stops at the door and faces them.
Gunn passes his brother another glance. Ag is intently staring at Polly.
"So what is it? Plague? That killed your parents?"
"Agnes-" Gunn struggles to shut him up, "Polly, I'm sorry, please ignore him, he's stupid."
Polly observes Agnes for a moment longer before opening the door, "Harrow will get you both keys made. Don't lose them, don't give them to inmates. Use a miniscle amount of common sense."
"Plague." Agnes winks at Gunn and jogs after Polly.
Gunn follows after them, listening to Agnes ask question after question and Polly answer them in one word or less. Gunn is paying attention to the signs and memorizing the route they take. Straight, left, second right, stop at the lift, to the third floor, right off the lift, immediate left. Polly stops outside of the third door on the left.
"This is Harrow's office, he's not in right now-"
"Where is he then?"
Polly narrows her eyes and turns to Gunn, "Is he always like this?"
Gunn nods, "You'll get used to it. Really he's only continuing to ask questions because you keep gratifying him with an answer."
"That's not true," Agnes tries to look offended. "It's because she gets so mad."
A disheaveled girl carrying too many scrolls crashes into Gunn. She drops everything she's carrying and yelps loudly, "I am so sorry, I-" she tilts her head and looks over the three of them.
"Twins, this is Ivy. Our resident alchemical inventor." Polly introduces them as one unit.
"Agnes," Ag quickly shoves Gunn aside to stand in front of the small girl, "This adorable little scamp is Gunn."
Ivy blinks quickly and throws down the scrolls she's already picked up. She wipes her hands on her leather apron. Gunn isn't sure if it actually accomplished anything or not. She's covered in black ash and grease. "Ivy Blake. Wow, is it true one of you is a Fae from the courts? Faery royalty inside the Mountain. Well, we have the Vamp, but he only thinks he's royalty. I'd love to show you around the shop sometime, maybe you could even show me a thing or two about tinkering and-"
"You're doing it again." Polly whispers, coming to stand between the Twins, "A tour is needed, but Harrow has to meet them first."
"Oh right," Ivy begins to pick up her scrolls again, "He's where he's been all morning."
Gunn stoops to help Ivy pick up the papers. Easily less actual scrolls and more like scraps of papers twisted together and rolled up into neat bundles. "Trying to get the Vampire to talk."
Ivy looks up at him suddenly and nods, "Well, yeah, but the Vampire keeps Compelling him and telling him… Explicit things."
Agnes snickers and Polly glares at him. The twin falls silent.
"We should be going then," Gunn hands her the scrolls he's picked up.
Ivy blinks a few more times and nods, "Yeah, uhm, thank you, Gunn." She tucks a tangled lock of black hair behind her ear and smiles brightly, "Well, stop by sometime soon. I'll make tea. Do you like tea? Or coffee? Uhm. Okay. You should go." She scrambles back down the hallway the way she came from. She's out of sight before she comes scurrying back through, "Wrong way."
Ivy doesn't return this time.
Agnes elbows Polly, "I think she likes me."
Polly raises an eyebrow and looks Agnes up and down. "Right. Harrow is waiting."
The Twins follow her again. Down the hall, past where Ivy turned, to the next right. This is a short hall that ends in a double door with frosted glass. Two shadows can be seen on the other side of it.
This room is a control room with a glass front. Two humans in lab coats are watching through the window as a dark complected man circles another figure in the seperate room.
"Anything?" Polly asks when both technicians jump up and acknowledge her.
"Not yet. He's stopped answering questions." the blonde tech responds and presses a button. Harrow looks up from the man in the reclining chair and exits the room. Once the door is closed, he addresses them.
"Spearod Twins?"
Polly nods.
Harrow is just as tall as Polly, over six feet tall. His brown eyes are the same shade as his skin. The sides of his head are shaved, but the top is carefully tangled together and collected into a ponytail at the base of his neck. "Harrow, I'm in charge of the Mountain."
"The Lion's Mouth," Gunn states. "You speak for the Mountain and control the forces."
"That's right," Harrow slightly grins, the scars on his mouth moving slightly. "You must be Gunn, the brains."
Agnes tenses up beside Gunn, ready to defend himself or his brother.
"And you're Agnes," Harrow studies the other twin, "I hear that you can do anything."
"If it's a good explanation."
POlly frowns slightly and looks at the twins and Harrow. "Sir, you asked to see them here. May I ask why?"
Harrow walks back to the window, "One of the brothers is Fae. Although we don't know which, and no one seems keen on finding the truth. I believe that they can weasel the answers out of this Vampire."