Chapter Four: View from High Places
Prince Avery woke up just before the sun broke over the horizon. This was unusual for him, but he wasn't going to miss his first morning council meeting. He quickly washed and dressed, thankful for the plumbing of Odyssey Palace. Verifor Castle and Castromepor Villa, the other two royal residences lacked plumbing in the private washrooms. Then he hurried toward the Map Room stairs.
On his way, he encountered Lord Harlan. The Minister of Intelligence was carrying several covered clip boards and appeared to be disturbed and tired. "Morning, your highness," Harlan said.
"Good Morning, Lord Harland," Avery said. "You look like you haven't slept."
"You'll find out why, soon," Harlan said, as they reached the Level 6 entrance to the Map Room stairs. The King's usual guard stood at attention there. "Good Morning, Roland."
"Morning, sir."
"Good man, Roland," Harlan said, as they began to climb the stairs "His mother was one of my officers, before she married a merchant and started having babies. I think Roland has four little brothers and seven sisters. Ah, her we go."
The door to the Map Room was already open. Inside were the King and the rest of his advisors. They seemed to be having bread and jam, waiting for everyone. "Good Morning Harland, have some bread and jam," the King said. "It's yellowberry this morning. You too, Avery. We're waiting for Toshio."
"Well pardon me if I can't run up the stairs like the rest of you young folks," a wizened old man said from the door way. Toshio was one of Avery's favorites of his father's advisors, with his white long whiskers, and the colorful robe he always wore.
"Toshio, none of us are young anymore," the King said. "That's why I decided that Avery should start sitting in on these meetings. We need him to know everything. Now, since Avery doesn't know all of you, or all of your roles, I'd like you to preface today's reports with you job titles. Harlan, you go first today, and I'd like a full summary of all intelligence today, both external and internal."
"Very well, your Majesty," Harland said as he opened one of his clip boards. "Your Highness, I'm Chief of His Majesties Intelligence force. We'll start with External affairs. Janvart is still engaging in piracy along the Rogian coast. They suspect we know that. It looks like Rogian is going to invade Grimall. The Archduke is getting rather anxious, spending lots of time upgrading his border outposts. It makes me glad Ellosia has no land borders. Dinath's Queen Kaitlin is courting King Louis V of Rogia, again."
"Isn't he already married?" Avery asked.
"Queen Theresa died two months ago," Harland said. "King Louis is keeping it quiet, but our intelligence indicates that Prince Louis pushed his stepmother out a window. Now on to internal affairs, and boy is this a mess, gentlemen."
"When has it not been?" Toshio interrupted.
"You have a point," Harland said, opening another clipboard. "We'll start with Avtra. Duke Murdock has sent his soldiers to the border with Fasstime again, but word is this time that Cedric asked him to do it and hold steady. In the seven years Cedric has been Earl of Avtra, he's never done this before. Cedric has also disappeared from his castle on Dragon Island. Rumor is he might be on his way to see his younger brother, as a message from Lord Elden had arrived shortly before the current chain of events began in Avtra. Oh, and Duke Murdock's annual request for an adjustment of his border near Janna Bay arrived yesterday, with his taxes."
"Pen the usual response, Lord Kelsey," the King directed. "Only this time tell him that I've decided to question Earl Cedric and Lord Elden on their lord's respective behalf's, next time I see them. I've let that issue go on too long."
"Very well, your Majesty," Lord Kesley, the youngest member, save Prince Avery said. "I'll have it ready by this afternoon for your signature."
"Now on to Castrome, and perhaps our biggest problem," Harlan said.
"Since when has Castrome been a problem," Toshio said. "I thought we solved that one years ago."
"Since other Dukedoms started butting in again," Harlan said. "It seems someone realized the importance of Lady Hayley. Being in the direct line for two dukedoms makes her a very marriageable woman. In particular, Lord Henry of Fasstime has approached Lord Elden of Castrome about marrying her, and opposing the King. Lord Elden immediately informed his wife, and Duchess Desiree and Lady Hayley immediately set out for Odyssey. Since then, Lord Elden has communicated with his brother and told Lord Henry that 'he'll think about it.'"
"What about the other two daughters of Duchess Desiree and Lord Elden?" the King asked.
"Lea and Whitney have been moved to Castromepor Villa, and placed under Royal guard at Lord Elden's request," Harlan said. "We'll be sending a naval vessel to pick them up and bring them here soon. That's on Admiral Sidney's agenda. I believe you have an announcement concerning Lady Hayley, your majesty?"
"Yes, I've decided that Lady Hayley will be marrying my son, as soon as practical," the King said. "Duchess Desiree proposed the match, and I have informed her of my acceptance of the match. A public announcement will be made in today's session of Court. Try not get dusty riding before then, Avery."
"That solves part of our problem," Harlan said. "It seems Lord Henry has been busy. In response to my quires last night, I have learnt that all of the Duke of Armedge's sons have been approached about an unspecified alliance with Fasstime. Since Duke Nolan is a very smart ruler, and his sons have spent quite a bit of time at court, the offers were rebuffed. In fact, Lord Henry's representative was thrown off the side of the second son's ship."
"I wasn't aware that Trevor had gotten a ship," the King said.
"He took over the Godspeed from Captain Farley last week," Admiral Sidney said, flipping though his papers.
"That would be one of our fast cutters?" the King asked. Admiral Sidney nodded. "Where is it now?"
"It's docked at Bluepor," Admiral said. "It's been reprovisioned and is await reassignment."
"That's a quarter day's ride from Odyssey," the King said. "After we're done here, Avery, I want you to take a ride to there, and give Captain Lord Treavor Armedge some new orders. Admiral Sidney, those orders are to go to Castromepor and retrieve Ladies Lea and Whitney and bring them back here."
"Now on to the center of this mess, Fasstime," Harlan said. "I'm not sure how long Lord Henry has been scheming, but he's been good about hiding it. Duke Lionel is most definitely unaware, as Lord Henry has been intrusted with the Ducal seal. Previous patterns indicate that he may have arranged the whole Drake mess. He was the one to introduce Drake to the Earl of Dunsen's daughters. I suspect that at least one of the three children, if not all, were actually his. When looking at the evidence from another angle, I've found a connection between Lord Henry and the poison used on Earl Drake. Lord Henry was, and still is, in charge of customs at Dunsen on Fasstime. If anyone can sneak in poison, he can."
"I wish you'd found that out seven years ago," the King said. "Then I would still have my court musician. I've summoned all the Dukes, Lord Elden, Earl Cedric, and Lord Henry to Odyssey. Hopefully we'll be able to break this plot out into the open. Any thing else, Harlan?"
"No, sire."
"Then get some rest before court," the King said. "Lord Toshio."
"Your highness, I'm the head of the King's Diplomatic services," Toshio said. "Since Lord Harlan took up so much of our time, and Lord Kelsey does hate when we mess up his schedules, though he'll probably deny it, I'll stick to new business and updates today. Rogia is still not accepting our overtures of peace, but they never do. It's a hopeless cause. Grimall has asked for assistance in defended their shores."
"Admiral Sidney, look into the possibility," the King ordered. "Toshio, I need more detail on that, see if you can get a representative of their navy to sit down with myself and Admiral Sidney."
"Very well," Toshio said. "Queen Kaitlin of Dinath still wants to marry Avery, but that's now a moot point. That's all I have."
"Admiral Sidney."
"Your highness, I am Lord Admiral of the Fleet. Since Lord Palmer, Army Chief of Staff, is currently reviewing training in Avtra, I'll be handling all of the Armed Forces briefing today," Admiral Sidney said. "Lord Palmer reports that all of the Army units are up to his standards, though he is worried about the loyalty of the Fasstime unit. Castromepor Shipyards indicates that the new Ship of the Line that Lord Elden designed will be ready to launch in a week. I must report that the frigate Caroline went aground and sunk off the coast of Rogia, after being chased by a Rogian ship of the line. Her crew was captured, save a midshipman and some crewmen who evaded capture in the ship's boat."
"See that the midshipman gets a reward," the King said.
"Done, sire," Sidney said. "That's all I have to report."
"Lord Kelsey, my schedule," the King asked.
"9 o'clock, meeting with the Duchess of Castrome," Kelsey began. "10 o'clock, meeting with the Odyssey City Council about sewage and marketplace price gouging. 11 o'clock, early lunch. Noon to 3 o'clock, Court. 4 o'clock, tea with the Queen. 5 o'clock meeting with the Ambassador of Dinath. Please try not to insult him about his hair again, your majesty. 6 o'clock meeting with the Duke of Armedge about teenaged sons. 7 o'clock, annual town ball. Recommend a short stay, as this is more for Prince Avery's set. Your highness will be glad to note that as a newly engaged man, the Prince will not have to dance with all the young ladies regardless of how ugly he may think they are. You will be expected to stick to Lady Hayley."
"That, I can handle," Avery said.
"That will be all at the moment," Kelsey said.
"Very well, I'll see you gentlemen early tomorrow, or if you're so inclined, at the ball," the King said before heading down the stairs."
* * * *
Clara had never slept on the ground before. She also had the misfortune to sleep on a rock. So she didn't sleep well, and she was finding the minstrel to be overly cheerful. Clara was blaming it all on Marrissa. After all, she wouldn't have volunteered if it wasn't for Marrissa suggesting it.
"Good morning, Ladies," Cedric said. "It's time to get moving, if we want to get to Odyssey before midday."
The dry bread did not make for a good breakfast. If she was still on the Enterprise, Clara would have been having a good breakfast with a tall glass of apple juice, pancakes covered with maple syrup, and two eggs, sunny side up.
"You seem eager to get to Odyssey, Minstrel," Beverly said, smoothing out her robes.
"Once I was King Richard's court minstrel, Sister," Cedric said. "I have lots of old friends in the city I'd like to visit."
"Then perhaps you might know of a good place to stay for my charge?" Sister Beverly said. "I will be staying at the Cloister of the Overflowing Cup, but they have limited space, and my charges's school does not open for another couple weeks."
"For a young lady, staying alone, I'd recommend either the White Dove, or the Prancing Faire," Cedric said. "Personally, I used to stay at the Golden Rinnebeast, but that is mostly for sailors, well off merchant sailors, but sailors none the less."
Clara mounted her rinnebeast. It was not, as the herdmaster had said, a well tempered beast, at least in Clara's view. It tended to rear when she prompted it to move forwards, and its gait was rough. Of course, since this was her first rinnebeast, she had no idea if this was normal. In any case, she'd be glad when they left this planet, because she never wanted to ride a rinnebeast again. Riding was Marrissa's gig, not hers. She was an engineer.
* * * *
Marrissa, meanwhile, was dealing with her own problems. Most notably of these was her morning companion, Lieutenant Calgary. He was getting on her nerves.
"So what are we going to do now, Miss Picard?" he asked, as they walked toward the docks.
"First thing we are going to do is to get a couple things straight," Marrissa replied. "First, we are fellow Lieutenants on the same ship, with only a couple days seniority separating us. Following naval tradition, we are expected to be on first name basis, and I don't know yours."
"Kendrick, but everyone calls me Ken," Calgary said.
"Marrissa, but you knew that. I never had a nickname I really liked," Marrissa said. "And the other thing, ask if I'm dressed before entering my room, tomorrow."
"Sorry," Calgary said. "I'll try to remember. So, what are we doing?"
"You're supposed to figure out if any of the Odyssey's technology has been used in the surrounding city," Marrissa said. "I thought a tall tower might allow you to figure out where to look."
"Where are we going to find this tall tower?" Calgary said, somewhat sarcastically.
"I thought the Church of Saint Dominic might do the job," Marrissa said. "According to the Innkeeper it's known for it's hundred and two feet tall twin bell towers, and its clock. I thought you might want to look at the clock as well. The accuracy of time pieces is supposed to be a good way to judge how advanced a place is."
"How would you know?" Calgary asked, as they turned up a broad avenue towards the distant church.
"I read about it in 'Evaluating Pre_stellar Culture,' Captain Harrington, 2285," Marrissa said. "I may not have much experience, but I am at least book smart."
If there was one vice that Prince Avery had, it was racing his rinnebeast. He liked to ride his pale gold colored lizard as fast as he could go. At the normal sedate pace that everyone else traveling the road to Bluepor was taking, it took about two hours to get there. Avery did it in half that. Of course, his rinnerbeast nearly ran over several of his fellow travelers, but most of them were locals, who knew that when you heard Prince Avery coming, you got out of the way. So, it wasn't surprising that Avery's rinnebeast was breathing heavily when he reached the dock where the Godspeed was docked. Avery tied up his rinnebeast and approached the gangplank.
"Who goes there?" a sailor said from on board.
"Prince Avery, from Odyssey. I bring orders from Admiral Sidney and the King for Captain Lord Trevor Armedge."
Lord Trevor quickly appeared by the sailor side. "Welcome on board your highness," he said.
Avery bounded up the gangplank. "Thank you, Captain," Avery replied, carefully pulling the folded and sealed orders out from under his over tunic. "Is there some place that I can give these to you in private?"
"Certainly," Trevor said. "May I show your highness to my quarters?"
Together they went aft and into the Captain's Quarters. It wasn't very big, in Avery's standards, but it had a desk, a couple chairs, and a bed of sorts. On the bed, nearly hidden, was a garment that Avery thought looked similar to his sister's breast bindings.
"Still taking the ladies to bed, Trevor?" Avery asked.
"A lady in every port, as Admiral Sidney once said, your highness," Trevor replied.
"We are alone, Trevor," Avery replied, handing over the sealed orders. "And I don't know how you do it."
"Don't knock it until you try it, and I'm sure your father wouldn't mind a few royal bastards around," Trevor replied, opening the orders with a knife from his desk.
"He might not mind, but I'm sure Lady Hayley would," Avery replied.
"So they finally decided who to betroth you to. I wish you all the luck," Trevor said as he read over the orders. "It seems I'm to go pick up your future sisters_in_law. May I assume that you've been briefed on Lord Henry's ambitions?"
"I've been told that you threw his messenger off your ship," Avery said.
"I had him tossed overboard when he threatened me," Trevor said. "Then he snuck back on board that night and tried to kill me. I lost three men, including my first mate, as a result. Let your father and Lord Harlan know just how far Lord Henry will go. I'll depart within the hour."
The two walked back up on deck, and Prince Avery took his leave, racing back to Odyssey.
* * * *
Up with the bells of the Church of the Overflowing Cup, Lieutenant Calgary was finding it hard not to tell Marrissa that this had been a good idea. This city, was not a typical city compared to Earth's in the fourteenth century. It had wide avenues, no sign of open sewage drains, and if he wasn't mistaken, those were aqueducts bringing in running water to most of the city.
The aqueducts were within the tech level, but not generally this wide spread. Every part of the city had access to one of them.
He looked over at Marrissa, who was peering into one of the bells. It was almost time for the things to ring. "Get out of those bells," he called. Marrissa ducked out of them, just as the monk below started to pull the rope. The bell rose, tilting upward until it reached halfway. The monk let it go, and the bell swung down, ringing it's deep tone. Beside it other bells began to ring, in the classic peal of the hour.
"What were you doing?" Calgary said. "You could of been killed when that bell rang."
"Sorry, I didn't know," Marrissa said nervously, barely heard over the bells.
"Some day you are going to get yourself killed if you don't start being more careful," Calgary said. "I don't want to be the one to tell your father that you did something stupid and got yourself killed."
Unfortunately for Calgary, this rant went unheard, as the tolling of the hour was much louder than his voice.
Prince Avery woke up just before the sun broke over the horizon. This was unusual for him, but he wasn't going to miss his first morning council meeting. He quickly washed and dressed, thankful for the plumbing of Odyssey Palace. Verifor Castle and Castromepor Villa, the other two royal residences lacked plumbing in the private washrooms. Then he hurried toward the Map Room stairs.
On his way, he encountered Lord Harlan. The Minister of Intelligence was carrying several covered clip boards and appeared to be disturbed and tired. "Morning, your highness," Harlan said.
"Good Morning, Lord Harland," Avery said. "You look like you haven't slept."
"You'll find out why, soon," Harlan said, as they reached the Level 6 entrance to the Map Room stairs. The King's usual guard stood at attention there. "Good Morning, Roland."
"Morning, sir."
"Good man, Roland," Harlan said, as they began to climb the stairs "His mother was one of my officers, before she married a merchant and started having babies. I think Roland has four little brothers and seven sisters. Ah, her we go."
The door to the Map Room was already open. Inside were the King and the rest of his advisors. They seemed to be having bread and jam, waiting for everyone. "Good Morning Harland, have some bread and jam," the King said. "It's yellowberry this morning. You too, Avery. We're waiting for Toshio."
"Well pardon me if I can't run up the stairs like the rest of you young folks," a wizened old man said from the door way. Toshio was one of Avery's favorites of his father's advisors, with his white long whiskers, and the colorful robe he always wore.
"Toshio, none of us are young anymore," the King said. "That's why I decided that Avery should start sitting in on these meetings. We need him to know everything. Now, since Avery doesn't know all of you, or all of your roles, I'd like you to preface today's reports with you job titles. Harlan, you go first today, and I'd like a full summary of all intelligence today, both external and internal."
"Very well, your Majesty," Harland said as he opened one of his clip boards. "Your Highness, I'm Chief of His Majesties Intelligence force. We'll start with External affairs. Janvart is still engaging in piracy along the Rogian coast. They suspect we know that. It looks like Rogian is going to invade Grimall. The Archduke is getting rather anxious, spending lots of time upgrading his border outposts. It makes me glad Ellosia has no land borders. Dinath's Queen Kaitlin is courting King Louis V of Rogia, again."
"Isn't he already married?" Avery asked.
"Queen Theresa died two months ago," Harland said. "King Louis is keeping it quiet, but our intelligence indicates that Prince Louis pushed his stepmother out a window. Now on to internal affairs, and boy is this a mess, gentlemen."
"When has it not been?" Toshio interrupted.
"You have a point," Harland said, opening another clipboard. "We'll start with Avtra. Duke Murdock has sent his soldiers to the border with Fasstime again, but word is this time that Cedric asked him to do it and hold steady. In the seven years Cedric has been Earl of Avtra, he's never done this before. Cedric has also disappeared from his castle on Dragon Island. Rumor is he might be on his way to see his younger brother, as a message from Lord Elden had arrived shortly before the current chain of events began in Avtra. Oh, and Duke Murdock's annual request for an adjustment of his border near Janna Bay arrived yesterday, with his taxes."
"Pen the usual response, Lord Kelsey," the King directed. "Only this time tell him that I've decided to question Earl Cedric and Lord Elden on their lord's respective behalf's, next time I see them. I've let that issue go on too long."
"Very well, your Majesty," Lord Kesley, the youngest member, save Prince Avery said. "I'll have it ready by this afternoon for your signature."
"Now on to Castrome, and perhaps our biggest problem," Harlan said.
"Since when has Castrome been a problem," Toshio said. "I thought we solved that one years ago."
"Since other Dukedoms started butting in again," Harlan said. "It seems someone realized the importance of Lady Hayley. Being in the direct line for two dukedoms makes her a very marriageable woman. In particular, Lord Henry of Fasstime has approached Lord Elden of Castrome about marrying her, and opposing the King. Lord Elden immediately informed his wife, and Duchess Desiree and Lady Hayley immediately set out for Odyssey. Since then, Lord Elden has communicated with his brother and told Lord Henry that 'he'll think about it.'"
"What about the other two daughters of Duchess Desiree and Lord Elden?" the King asked.
"Lea and Whitney have been moved to Castromepor Villa, and placed under Royal guard at Lord Elden's request," Harlan said. "We'll be sending a naval vessel to pick them up and bring them here soon. That's on Admiral Sidney's agenda. I believe you have an announcement concerning Lady Hayley, your majesty?"
"Yes, I've decided that Lady Hayley will be marrying my son, as soon as practical," the King said. "Duchess Desiree proposed the match, and I have informed her of my acceptance of the match. A public announcement will be made in today's session of Court. Try not get dusty riding before then, Avery."
"That solves part of our problem," Harlan said. "It seems Lord Henry has been busy. In response to my quires last night, I have learnt that all of the Duke of Armedge's sons have been approached about an unspecified alliance with Fasstime. Since Duke Nolan is a very smart ruler, and his sons have spent quite a bit of time at court, the offers were rebuffed. In fact, Lord Henry's representative was thrown off the side of the second son's ship."
"I wasn't aware that Trevor had gotten a ship," the King said.
"He took over the Godspeed from Captain Farley last week," Admiral Sidney said, flipping though his papers.
"That would be one of our fast cutters?" the King asked. Admiral Sidney nodded. "Where is it now?"
"It's docked at Bluepor," Admiral said. "It's been reprovisioned and is await reassignment."
"That's a quarter day's ride from Odyssey," the King said. "After we're done here, Avery, I want you to take a ride to there, and give Captain Lord Treavor Armedge some new orders. Admiral Sidney, those orders are to go to Castromepor and retrieve Ladies Lea and Whitney and bring them back here."
"Now on to the center of this mess, Fasstime," Harlan said. "I'm not sure how long Lord Henry has been scheming, but he's been good about hiding it. Duke Lionel is most definitely unaware, as Lord Henry has been intrusted with the Ducal seal. Previous patterns indicate that he may have arranged the whole Drake mess. He was the one to introduce Drake to the Earl of Dunsen's daughters. I suspect that at least one of the three children, if not all, were actually his. When looking at the evidence from another angle, I've found a connection between Lord Henry and the poison used on Earl Drake. Lord Henry was, and still is, in charge of customs at Dunsen on Fasstime. If anyone can sneak in poison, he can."
"I wish you'd found that out seven years ago," the King said. "Then I would still have my court musician. I've summoned all the Dukes, Lord Elden, Earl Cedric, and Lord Henry to Odyssey. Hopefully we'll be able to break this plot out into the open. Any thing else, Harlan?"
"No, sire."
"Then get some rest before court," the King said. "Lord Toshio."
"Your highness, I'm the head of the King's Diplomatic services," Toshio said. "Since Lord Harlan took up so much of our time, and Lord Kelsey does hate when we mess up his schedules, though he'll probably deny it, I'll stick to new business and updates today. Rogia is still not accepting our overtures of peace, but they never do. It's a hopeless cause. Grimall has asked for assistance in defended their shores."
"Admiral Sidney, look into the possibility," the King ordered. "Toshio, I need more detail on that, see if you can get a representative of their navy to sit down with myself and Admiral Sidney."
"Very well," Toshio said. "Queen Kaitlin of Dinath still wants to marry Avery, but that's now a moot point. That's all I have."
"Admiral Sidney."
"Your highness, I am Lord Admiral of the Fleet. Since Lord Palmer, Army Chief of Staff, is currently reviewing training in Avtra, I'll be handling all of the Armed Forces briefing today," Admiral Sidney said. "Lord Palmer reports that all of the Army units are up to his standards, though he is worried about the loyalty of the Fasstime unit. Castromepor Shipyards indicates that the new Ship of the Line that Lord Elden designed will be ready to launch in a week. I must report that the frigate Caroline went aground and sunk off the coast of Rogia, after being chased by a Rogian ship of the line. Her crew was captured, save a midshipman and some crewmen who evaded capture in the ship's boat."
"See that the midshipman gets a reward," the King said.
"Done, sire," Sidney said. "That's all I have to report."
"Lord Kelsey, my schedule," the King asked.
"9 o'clock, meeting with the Duchess of Castrome," Kelsey began. "10 o'clock, meeting with the Odyssey City Council about sewage and marketplace price gouging. 11 o'clock, early lunch. Noon to 3 o'clock, Court. 4 o'clock, tea with the Queen. 5 o'clock meeting with the Ambassador of Dinath. Please try not to insult him about his hair again, your majesty. 6 o'clock meeting with the Duke of Armedge about teenaged sons. 7 o'clock, annual town ball. Recommend a short stay, as this is more for Prince Avery's set. Your highness will be glad to note that as a newly engaged man, the Prince will not have to dance with all the young ladies regardless of how ugly he may think they are. You will be expected to stick to Lady Hayley."
"That, I can handle," Avery said.
"That will be all at the moment," Kelsey said.
"Very well, I'll see you gentlemen early tomorrow, or if you're so inclined, at the ball," the King said before heading down the stairs."
* * * *
Clara had never slept on the ground before. She also had the misfortune to sleep on a rock. So she didn't sleep well, and she was finding the minstrel to be overly cheerful. Clara was blaming it all on Marrissa. After all, she wouldn't have volunteered if it wasn't for Marrissa suggesting it.
"Good morning, Ladies," Cedric said. "It's time to get moving, if we want to get to Odyssey before midday."
The dry bread did not make for a good breakfast. If she was still on the Enterprise, Clara would have been having a good breakfast with a tall glass of apple juice, pancakes covered with maple syrup, and two eggs, sunny side up.
"You seem eager to get to Odyssey, Minstrel," Beverly said, smoothing out her robes.
"Once I was King Richard's court minstrel, Sister," Cedric said. "I have lots of old friends in the city I'd like to visit."
"Then perhaps you might know of a good place to stay for my charge?" Sister Beverly said. "I will be staying at the Cloister of the Overflowing Cup, but they have limited space, and my charges's school does not open for another couple weeks."
"For a young lady, staying alone, I'd recommend either the White Dove, or the Prancing Faire," Cedric said. "Personally, I used to stay at the Golden Rinnebeast, but that is mostly for sailors, well off merchant sailors, but sailors none the less."
Clara mounted her rinnebeast. It was not, as the herdmaster had said, a well tempered beast, at least in Clara's view. It tended to rear when she prompted it to move forwards, and its gait was rough. Of course, since this was her first rinnebeast, she had no idea if this was normal. In any case, she'd be glad when they left this planet, because she never wanted to ride a rinnebeast again. Riding was Marrissa's gig, not hers. She was an engineer.
* * * *
Marrissa, meanwhile, was dealing with her own problems. Most notably of these was her morning companion, Lieutenant Calgary. He was getting on her nerves.
"So what are we going to do now, Miss Picard?" he asked, as they walked toward the docks.
"First thing we are going to do is to get a couple things straight," Marrissa replied. "First, we are fellow Lieutenants on the same ship, with only a couple days seniority separating us. Following naval tradition, we are expected to be on first name basis, and I don't know yours."
"Kendrick, but everyone calls me Ken," Calgary said.
"Marrissa, but you knew that. I never had a nickname I really liked," Marrissa said. "And the other thing, ask if I'm dressed before entering my room, tomorrow."
"Sorry," Calgary said. "I'll try to remember. So, what are we doing?"
"You're supposed to figure out if any of the Odyssey's technology has been used in the surrounding city," Marrissa said. "I thought a tall tower might allow you to figure out where to look."
"Where are we going to find this tall tower?" Calgary said, somewhat sarcastically.
"I thought the Church of Saint Dominic might do the job," Marrissa said. "According to the Innkeeper it's known for it's hundred and two feet tall twin bell towers, and its clock. I thought you might want to look at the clock as well. The accuracy of time pieces is supposed to be a good way to judge how advanced a place is."
"How would you know?" Calgary asked, as they turned up a broad avenue towards the distant church.
"I read about it in 'Evaluating Pre_stellar Culture,' Captain Harrington, 2285," Marrissa said. "I may not have much experience, but I am at least book smart."
If there was one vice that Prince Avery had, it was racing his rinnebeast. He liked to ride his pale gold colored lizard as fast as he could go. At the normal sedate pace that everyone else traveling the road to Bluepor was taking, it took about two hours to get there. Avery did it in half that. Of course, his rinnerbeast nearly ran over several of his fellow travelers, but most of them were locals, who knew that when you heard Prince Avery coming, you got out of the way. So, it wasn't surprising that Avery's rinnebeast was breathing heavily when he reached the dock where the Godspeed was docked. Avery tied up his rinnebeast and approached the gangplank.
"Who goes there?" a sailor said from on board.
"Prince Avery, from Odyssey. I bring orders from Admiral Sidney and the King for Captain Lord Trevor Armedge."
Lord Trevor quickly appeared by the sailor side. "Welcome on board your highness," he said.
Avery bounded up the gangplank. "Thank you, Captain," Avery replied, carefully pulling the folded and sealed orders out from under his over tunic. "Is there some place that I can give these to you in private?"
"Certainly," Trevor said. "May I show your highness to my quarters?"
Together they went aft and into the Captain's Quarters. It wasn't very big, in Avery's standards, but it had a desk, a couple chairs, and a bed of sorts. On the bed, nearly hidden, was a garment that Avery thought looked similar to his sister's breast bindings.
"Still taking the ladies to bed, Trevor?" Avery asked.
"A lady in every port, as Admiral Sidney once said, your highness," Trevor replied.
"We are alone, Trevor," Avery replied, handing over the sealed orders. "And I don't know how you do it."
"Don't knock it until you try it, and I'm sure your father wouldn't mind a few royal bastards around," Trevor replied, opening the orders with a knife from his desk.
"He might not mind, but I'm sure Lady Hayley would," Avery replied.
"So they finally decided who to betroth you to. I wish you all the luck," Trevor said as he read over the orders. "It seems I'm to go pick up your future sisters_in_law. May I assume that you've been briefed on Lord Henry's ambitions?"
"I've been told that you threw his messenger off your ship," Avery said.
"I had him tossed overboard when he threatened me," Trevor said. "Then he snuck back on board that night and tried to kill me. I lost three men, including my first mate, as a result. Let your father and Lord Harlan know just how far Lord Henry will go. I'll depart within the hour."
The two walked back up on deck, and Prince Avery took his leave, racing back to Odyssey.
* * * *
Up with the bells of the Church of the Overflowing Cup, Lieutenant Calgary was finding it hard not to tell Marrissa that this had been a good idea. This city, was not a typical city compared to Earth's in the fourteenth century. It had wide avenues, no sign of open sewage drains, and if he wasn't mistaken, those were aqueducts bringing in running water to most of the city.
The aqueducts were within the tech level, but not generally this wide spread. Every part of the city had access to one of them.
He looked over at Marrissa, who was peering into one of the bells. It was almost time for the things to ring. "Get out of those bells," he called. Marrissa ducked out of them, just as the monk below started to pull the rope. The bell rose, tilting upward until it reached halfway. The monk let it go, and the bell swung down, ringing it's deep tone. Beside it other bells began to ring, in the classic peal of the hour.
"What were you doing?" Calgary said. "You could of been killed when that bell rang."
"Sorry, I didn't know," Marrissa said nervously, barely heard over the bells.
"Some day you are going to get yourself killed if you don't start being more careful," Calgary said. "I don't want to be the one to tell your father that you did something stupid and got yourself killed."
Unfortunately for Calgary, this rant went unheard, as the tolling of the hour was much louder than his voice.