Later that day… August 1860
Lunch, as Werner so called it, had turned to dinner, for Dr. Melody Vilente said she had wished to freshen up after their latest excursion in biology. The two Council members agreed. To make up for the spare time left between then and the dinner meeting, Melody suggested they find an inn to stay at. And thus they did. Werner and Duran came to an inn known as the "Honey of Roses", which also served as a tavern. The company was not exactly welcoming, and the mood far from friendly, but what choice did they have?
"She did say that this restaurant was of the upper class kind, didn't she?" Werner asked as he walked in through their inn room door, arms full of bags and a stick of jerkey in his teeth.
Duran turned to Werner. Duran was forced to wear something less dignifying then he wore earlier, which was defined as a simple brown coat with matching pants over a button up white shirt. "Where the devil have you been man? We're supposed to meet Ms. Melody in half an hour!"
Werner looked to the clock to his right, jerky hanging from his lip. "Seven thirty… yea, it's getting close to that time. Say Duran, give me a hand with these, will you?"
Duran shook his head at his friend's lack of responsibility and walked over, taking a few bags from Werner's grip. He was surprised to find that not all of the bags contained food, but some odd merchandise. Chiefly, a small doll. "For Your Daughter, right?"
Werner put the groceries down and took a look at the little Baskar doll. "Yea, it's from a line of plushies called "From Baskar with Love" or something like that. A woman was rather extravagant about selling them to me. She said she had the entire collection herself."
Duran chuckled at this. "Well, one can't blame you for not thinking of others. But still, you must get dressed for dinner."
"What's the place called again?" Werner asked as he stepped into the other room and began getting undressed.
"I believe it was "Gwenevere's"…" Duran called as he set to doing his own things in front of a mirror.
"Gweneviere? Like that old myth of the dragon slayer's lover in the archaic wars?" Werner asked from the other room.
"That would be the woman." Duran replied.
"Say Duran, how exactly are we going to pull this off?"
"What off?"
"Yggdrassil. I'm still not sure as how it will work, if it ever worked at all. What did the previous Councils do?"
Duran thought for a moments as he rubbed water on his face. "The previous Councils efforts lead to the activating and study of the machinery at Yggdrassil, as well as wearing down the Hyades code."
"So, we won't be in the dark…"
"Just in a very dim spot."
Werner then stepped back into the main room, wearing his standard government tuxedo. Duran frowned for a moment, as he realized that his good tuxedo was destroyed in the animal shelter this morning. Werner turned about, smiling. "Well?"
Duran put a finger to his chin in analysis. The old man squinted and titled his head. "It works fine."
"Huh, it's strange she'd want to eat dinner at a classy place when she hardly knows us." Werner thought.
"We are government officials and Council members. We are an upper-class, Werner, so it doesn't come as a surprise to dine out." Duran explained.
** *
Melody sat in a chair, looking at her self in a mirror. She was still at the clinic, finishing up her "tidying". She was dressed in a long slender dark purple dress that started just below her shoulders and ended above her toes. The woman took a long stare at herself through her white bangs, looking into her own purple eyes. A frown formed upon her lips and her fists clenched. She turned away from the mirror, an angry look upon her face. Yet, from the corner of her eye, she could see herself in the mirror. She slumped down in the chair and let out a frustrated sigh.
"What's the use? I-I can't do this." Melody sniffed.
"Can't do what?" Came the unmistakable raspy voice that only belonged to Margy. The large woman was carrying a hamper in her hands. All of the lights were out in the clinic; save the small lamp set upon the counter before this mirror and chair. Margy placed the hamper down and leaned against the door frame, taking the cigarette out of her mouth. "Melody…"
Melody turned to her companion, who was still dressed in her nurse uniform, and sighed. "Margy, all my life, I've always been the smart one…"
"Well there ain't nothing wrong with being smart, hon. It gets you a great job…" Margy tried to explain.
"Jobs sure, but-but not men. All of the pretty women get the boys. I've never had the chance. I'm the smart girl, not the pretty one…" Melody turned away from Margy, wiping a tear from her eye and looking into the mirror.
Margy dropped her cigarette and snuffed it out under her white shoe. She walked into the small, dark room and placed her hands on Melody's small shoulder. "Is that what this is all about?" Margy was silent for a bit as Melody nodded silently. "Look, hon, you don't have to be pretty to get the men. I've known you for years, since grade school, and you've never let that get you down. Screw all the other girls, and damn all the men who go walking blind into their trap. You want a man that sees you for you are. Take a look at me, I've got a husband and a kid and you know it!"
Melody sighed and wiped her eyes. "But still. I'm not pretty, everyone knows it. All my life I've been ignored due to this. What makes you think this will be any different?"
"Wha, you have a thing for one of the Council men?!" Margy asked. She then took Melody's face in her hands and pointed Melody's face to the mirror, so she saw herself. "Look. Right there is a beautiful woman. Others can saw whatever the hell they want, but you know, and I know, that you are a beautiful lady that could get any man's heart she desired."
Melody smiled a little smile and touched Margy's hand with her own. "Thank you."
"Hey, no problem." Margy smiled and patted Melody's shoulder before returning to the hamper she had left in the hallway. "You go get hi, tiger."
"I'll-I'll try." Melody smiled a bit wider.
"Good. Then you can have kids and know what it's like to have little Janus running around all over the place." Margy laughed.
Melody blushed a bit and looked back to the mirror once Margy left. She looked back into those purple eyes of hers and began to whisper. "I am beautiful. I am beautiful…"
** *
The restaurant titled "Gwenervere's" was busy that night. Filled with what the locals called "Carpet Baggers" and "Yanks". People with generally enough wealth to dine out once in a while were welcome, whereas the poor farmer or the veteran of the war was not. Thus the restaurant had extra protection from the stationed soldiers, who patrolled regularly. It was it the upper-class part of town, far from main street. Tables were polished dark wood and the chairs soft and comfortable. A violinist and a pianist were playing a song together as the people chatted amongst themselves. Werner sighed.
"What's wrong now Werner?" Duran asked as the two waited at a table set near the dark wall. The entire place was dark; light only came from candles set atop the walls and tables.
"Just thinking of Ekatrina. Wonder what she'd say to this kind of place…" Werner looked upwards.
"If she's anything like most women, than she'd absolutely adore it." Duran answered. "But you have to stay focus, Werner. Start getting homesick and the whole thing's over."
"You're right when you're right, Duran." Werner turned his attention back to the table. "I wonder what is taking her so long."
"In my many years I've come to know one thing, and that is that women will never appear on time."
Werner leaned back in his chair and tapped his fingers along the table. "So how are we paying for tonight?"
"What do you mean?"
"Well, I'm sure whatever we purchase here will be of some considerable cost. Are we splitting the cost between the three of us, or…?"
"Relax. Such things are paid by the government." Duran flipped open his wallet and showcased a card.
"Can I see that?" Werner asked.
"Go ahead." Duran handed the card over to Werner. It was yellow and it read in large print 'Filgaian Government Official. The Federal Treasury shall reimburse all costs made through this official.'
"Did this work for your train ticket?" Werner raised an eyebrow.
"Yes. It works anywhere, but you must wield it with responsibility. The last thing you want is the Treasury Department on your back about misused money."
"Was making me pay for my train ticket considered "misuse of money", too Duran?"
Duran swallowed and chuckled. "It… It must have slipped my mind."
"Yes, we all know how old senile minds can be." Werner grinned.
"Touché Werner. That hurt my pride just now." Duran smiled.
"You bet it did." Werner then looked over his shoulder, and whom should he see but none other than Dr. Melody Vilente greet the doorman. The doorman nodded with a smile as she thanked him, walking towards the table, her eyes trying to stay on his.
"Ah, I see she's arrived." Duran clasped his hands together. "Now we can begin."
"Yes. Yes indeed." Werner stated as Melody walked up.
Melody sat herself down, despite the protests from the local waiter. She wore an orange sash over her arms, which was added to her purple gown. She flashed a brief smile and an inaudible hello to the gentlemen as she sat. Oh, how she tried to look Werner in his soft brown eyes. Melody's own eyes quickly glanced to the silverware wrapped in the white linen napkin set before them, her hands nervously clasping each other in her lap.
Werner immediately set himself in correct posture. "Good Evening Melody."
"Yes, good evening." Duran echoed, though a bit more outspoken then Werner. "I see you look quite ravishing."
Melody instantly blushed, hiding a secret smile, and focused her gaze on Duran's bow tie. "R-really?" (Boy, did that sound dumb.) She inwardly cursed herself for sounding like a school aged country girl. "I mean, thank you Dr. Feld."
"Please Melody." Werner smiled. "We should focus on calling each other by our first names. I'd go mad if someone called me Mr. Maxwell for three years."
"DR. Maxwell!" Duran gave Werner a quick glare. "You forget your title so much Werner. Heh heh."
"Ah, yes, my title." Werner nervously chuckeled.
"Well, um, Werner. What do you have a doctorate in? …if you don't mind me asking?" Melody asked.
"Well, um…" Werner rubbed the back of his neck, looking to the right.
"Stenography." Duran interrupted. "Oh Werner. You get so forgetful in front of the charming ladies. Heh heh."
"Stenography it is! Thanks Duran." Werner secretly sighed. "Yes, my doctorate is in stenography and cryptics. Coding and the like."
"Yes, you're the one who cracked the Hyades code, wasn't it?" Melody asked.
"Well, I didn't know my reputation went as far as Slayheim." Werner blushed a bit. "But that was me all right."
"My what humility you posses Werner." Duran chuckled.
"Well, after you sent the letter, I went through the trouble of researching you, I mean it was no trouble at all, I mean." Melody bit her lip. How could she sound so stupid.
"Really?! Well, that's being on the ball, eh Duran?" Werner was impressed.
"Quite. It would help us a great deal if every candidate was as prepared." Duran smiled.
Melody averted her gaze, bashfulness becoming her. "Well, I… I wanted to know if you were the real thing. …Your records don't say anything about a title, Werner."
"I, uh, acquired it recently. You know how long it takes for the Department to update their files." Werner stated.
"He'll most likely be dead before they ever do." Duran laughed.
A waiter walked by at this point. He smiled and looked over the three. "Ah, wait an astonishing group of gentlemen and women!" The lie was as phony as his accent. "And what will the monsieur's and madam have for dinner?"
Werner looked to Duran. "How much is that card good for?"
"Responsibility is the key Werner." Duran crossed his arms.
"Well, um, what are you going to have Melody?" Werner looked over to Melody.
Melody stirred in her seat, her eyes darting over the menu. Why'd he pick her to go first?! Did it mean anything? Oh what to choose! It couldn't be simple or cheap, then he'd see her as a simple bumpkin. But it couldn't be too expensive or sophisticated either. No body likes a stuck up aristocrat. If she ordered too little, she could be seen as being picky, but if she ordered too much, they'd get the idea she was a pig. Why?! Why?!
"Melody?" Werner asked the fidgeting doctor.
"I, um, I… I'll have what your having, Werner." Melody gave a fake smile. By Abram, nothing cornier could have passed her lips.
"Um, well, then I'll have the Angus sirloin." Werner looked to the waiter, who jotted it down, and then back to Melody. "I hope you like that."
"It-it sounds just fine." Melody gave a nervous laugh.
"Waiter, a trilobite tail covered in butter, with a steak of hodak, medium rare." Duran gave his order.
The waiter frowned as he jotted down Duran's order. "Ah, such a magnificent choice. The food will be ready in a short while." And thus, the waiter left.
Werner shook his head with a sly smile at Duran. "Responsibility is the key, Duran?"
"I didn't say starve like a pauper, Werner." Duran then looked to Melody. "I'm so sorry. You'll end up starving on such small amounts of vittles."
"It's really nothing to worry about. I'm happy with it." Melody said as meekly as ever.
"Well, um, Melody, could you tell us a little about yourself?" Werner asked, trying to push the meeting towards a productive goal.
Melody was a bit stirred by the question, but then recalled that this was also partly an interview. She had forgotten the business aspect entirely. "My name is Dr. Melody Vilente, and my licensed profession is virology." (Telling them something they already know? That was smart, Melody.) "I, um, I'm Twenty-six years old, and I was born November Eleventh, 1834." (Oh, go ahead. You're sounding like a telegram here.) "I was born in Twister City, Slayheim, and attended several prestige schools during my youth, graduating valedictorian from Jackson University. I work under the Filgaian Department of Health and Welfare, and my research is beneficial to the ailing economy and people of Slayheim's war torn areas." She sighed.
Werner glanced at her resume he had pulled from his own pocket. The paragraph was almost worded the exact same way. Either she had a one track mind or had an uncanny ability to memorize things. Honestly, Werner had no idea what his resume said. "Jackson University. How long ago did you graduate?"
"… A year and a half ago…" Melody uttered. She was so ashamed of being such a greenhorn in the professional field.
"A year and a half in the real world and you've already developed the genetic agent process. That's quite a feat." Duran said.
"Well, Margy helped a bit…" Melody gave a small smile.
"At that age, I think I was still following covered wagons as a cheap escort out in the frontier…" Werner whistled. "You've accomplished something all right."
"Th-thank you." Melody blushed.
"Oh that wasn't that long ago for you Werner. You're in your mid-thirties. That was a while for me." Duran eyed Werner with a playful eye. "Speaking of accomplishments, Ms. Melody, Dr. Enduro has said you dabble in nanootechnology…"
"That's NANOtechnology." Duran chuckled.
"Well, I know a bit about it. It's a bit of a hobby of mine." Melody stated. "It's not exactly a widely known practice."
"How true it is." Werner sighed. "Yet Yggdrassil relies heavily on the notion."
Melody was a bit surprised. "Yggdrassil uses nanotechnology?"
"Well, I think it does…" Werner thought.
"Can you describe nanotechnology to us, Ms. Melody? I hate to say it, but we're with the rest of the scientific community on the knowledge of this subject."
"Hmmm. Nanotechnology the use and development of machines that are small enough to fit and work within the body. Nanomachines don't operate as conventional machinery would, for example, a voting machine or a steam ship. Instead, they use the laws of the body in order to work." Melody began to explain.
"Laws of the body, Melody?" Werner raised an eyebrow in question.
"Things such as osmotic pressure, hormonal balance, synapses and electrical impulses, electrolytes, plasma movement, lymph paths, things like that. The type of nanotechnology really depends on what part of the body you wish to effect. For instance, you wish to correct a kidney stone. Well, we'd inject a nanomachine into the patient's ureter, above the stone. The machine would be designed specifically for use only with removing kidney stones, so it would be designed as a kind of microscopic jackhammer. When the nanomachine came into contact with the kidney stone, the machine would begin to vibrate so wildly that the stone would dissolve. When the job was done, the machine would simply pass through the ureter and out of the body. Nanotechnology is a very specific field." Melody explained.
"So what you're saying, Werner, is that Yggdrassil would launch a machine into Filgaia's ureter and help get rid of any planetary kidney stones?" Duran asked.
Werner laughed. "No, not at all. The coding of Yggdrassil mentions a launch protocol for several thousands of machines into the Leyline paths in Filgaia, deep underground. It sounded a bit to me like nanotechnology, if you apply the Filgaia Theory."
"Dr. Leehalt Alcestes' Filgaia Theory has an application with Yggdrassil?" Melody asked. "It would be an honor to work with him as a Council Member."
"Well, erm, Dr. Alceste isn't on the Council as of yet." Duran mentioned.
"Well I wouldn't call it 'his Filgaia Theory' anyhow. Obviously, the original designers of Yggdrassil knew it." Werner mumbled.
"… I'm sorry. I got excited." Melody apologized. How could she make her self look so stupid at the mere mention of a celebrity?
"It's no problem. It actually wouldn't be a bad idea to enlist Dr. Alceste as a member…" Duran forgave.
"Ixnay Duran. Ixnay." Werner mumbled. "Anyhow, would you know how nanotechnology could repair an overall injury?"
"Injury? What kind?" Melody replied.
"Pfft. I dunno." Werner sighed and looked up. "Overall fatigue, wearing down the body till near death."
Melody nodded and thought a moment before replying. "Well… I would have to say that in that case, a hormonal agent would be a more plausible choice. A pituitary exciting hormone would be recommended, so those extra amounts of adrenaline and epinephrine would stimulate the body. If it were a wound, I'd recommend a red bone cell hormone, in order to stimulate a faster production of platelets to seal off the wound. However, such a thing would be dangerous, as it could easily block off a vein and cause heart failure."
Werner looked to Duran, who shrugged. "Does Filgaia have a heart, or wounds at all?"
"The Den of Miasma and the gemstone caverns or two such sites." Duran answered. "From what I've read in Dr. Alceste's papers, the crystals there are scabs."
"Crystal scabs…" Melody wondered.
"Well, Elliot did say it was a silicon life form. I don't see why not." Werner shrugged.
"Scabs would indicate the presence of scar tissue and platelets." Melody spoke. "What kind of hormone would a planet use to recover?"
"Not one clue." Werner sighed.
"I think that a hormone inducing agent is out of the question." Melody spoke up. "Though a nanomachine answer could be possible. However, on a planetary scale, nano is hardly the adjective I'd use. You think there could be a physical ailment and not a chemical one?"
"I seriously have not a clue." Duran said. "My forte is conventional machinery and physics."
The waiter arrived, carrying the food upon a tray. He smiled a false smile as he set the food down.
"Well, let's eat!" Werner grinned.
"…Yes, let's!" Melody looked to Werner and smiled.
** *