Chapter Thirty-Eight: Chesterfield

Chapter Thirty-Eight: Chesterfield

Amelia blinked awake in the embrace of Serena’s arms. She was warm, cosy, and wanted to do nothing but lie here for hours listening to her girlfriend’s cute snoring. Serena, of course, denied snoring adamantly. Her snoring had become yet another tool in Amelia’s ever-growing repertoire of things to tease Serena about.

Amelia stared at the creeping morning light bathing the room for a few minutes until the sound of footsteps reached her ears. They were too energetic to be a servant and too light to be Dalinar’s, Serena’s father. There was only one person they could be.

Lani!

As the footsteps made their way down the hallway, Amelia elbowed Serena awake. “Lani’s outside,” she whispered, prompting Serena to sit up frantically. Despite the situation, Amelia couldn’t help appreciating Serena’s bed hair and how the light bounced off her horns.

A knock sounded, not at the door to Serena’s room, but at the door to Amelia’s room opposite.

“Amelia! Let’s have breakfast!” Lani said cheerfully. When no reply came, Lani tried again. “Amelia? Are you awake?”

Bloody hell! What teenager got up this early!? Amelia turned to Serena and quickly mouthed: What do we do? Unfortunately, her normally reliable girlfriend seemed at a loss and simply shrugged back at her with eyes wide in fear. Although Amelia didn’t think their relationship was anything to hide, she understood that perhaps this wasn’t the best way for Serena’s little sister to find out.

“I’m coming in!” Lani chirped and opened the door to Amelia’s room. “Huh? You’re not here...”

Hide! Serena mouthed.

Amelia raised her palms upwards, widened her eyes, and shook her head quickly.

Where!? She mouthed back.

More footsteps and then a knock on Serena’s room. “Big Sister? Are you up?”

Amelia scrambled out of bed, trying to be as light as possible on her feet. Where the hell was she going to hide!? There were no side rooms, the bed was too high off the ground, and for some reason, this was the only bedroom in Cascadia with no large wardrobes to hide in! She turned to Serena and wiggled her head to say, There’s nowhere to hide!

“Door!” Serena whispered as loudly as she could get away with. Amelia looked at the door and then at Serena with a tilted head of confusion. “Behind the door!” Serena hissed, and Amelia finally twigged what she was getting to. Darting across the room, she stood behind the door in the corner. Amelia was light on her feet but not light enough. The noise of the creaking floorboards encouraged Lani to open the door.

Which she did, just as Amelia got into her position. “Big Sister!” Lani called out, standing a few feet into the room. Amelia was hidden against the wall, the open door hiding her completely. Thankfully, Lani was lax regarding etiquette for her family because if Amelia remembered her lessons correctly, leaving a lady’s bedroom door open was impolite!

“Lani,” Serena cooly intoned. Amelia couldn’t see what was happening, but from the rustling sounds, she could tell Serena had propped herself up against the pillows. The sound of paper being flipped reached her ears. It seemed Serena had grabbed the citizenship documents and was pretending to flip through them.

“Good morning!” Lani said in a sing-song voice. “Where’s Amelia? She promised she would help me with my workbooks!”

“You woke up early to do homework?” Serena said doubtfully. “Lani! If you’re looking for Amelia, I heard her heading to the kitchen for breakfast. Go find her there.”

“Hmm...” Lani mumbled, “I just came from there...”

“Then you must have just missed her. Now, I’m very busy, so if you could...” Serena trailed off and Amelia could sense the glare that punctuated that sentence.

“Boo! Boring! Bye!” Lani bounced out of the room, pulling the door shut behind her. Amelia stayed utterly still, like a frozen hare. She and Serena looked at each other while listening intently to Lani’s footsteps disappearing down the stairs.

Once Lani was gone, Amelia broke out into a grin and Serena soon followed. She delicately hopped over to the bed and began putting on her clothes. “That was close,” she whispered.

“I swear,” Serena said, shaking her head. “She’s never get’s up that early. You promised to help her with her work?”

“I spent an hour yesterday finding out exactly who has a secret crush on who at her academy,” Amelia said with a smile. “Being a teenage demon sounds exhausting! I was going to pull my hair out until she mentioned the workbooks! She struggles with mathematics, and that’s my favourite subject!” Amelia finished dressing, and a quick burst of cleaning magic left her clothes and body feeling fresh. “I’ll head down,” she bent forward, kissing Serena. Then, not entirely satisfied, she gave her another, longer-lasting kiss. “See you there?”

“Tsk!” Serena tutted, but her rosy cheeks suggested she greatly enjoyed Amelia’s affection. “I’ll be down in ten minutes...”

Waving goodbye, Amelia bounced out of the room and down the stairs. “Hello!” she greeted an old maid cheerfully. “I’m looking for Lani! Which way’s the kitchen?” The old maid bowed and offered to lead Amelia, which she accepted. Amelia was once again impressed by the politeness and professionalism the house employees displayed. She wasn’t sure why, but she had expected snide comments whispered in secret or glances with traces of dislike and distrust. There had been nothing like that. Amelia made a mental note to ask Serena about it later.

They arrived at the kitchen, and when she entered, all the employees stopped what they were doing and bowed to her. It was a little awkward, and Amelia wasn’t sure exactly what to do, but Lani rescued her by taking control of the situation.

“Morning! I’ve been looking for you!” Lani exclaimed, grabbing Amelia’s hand. “You promised you were going to help me! Let’s eat!” She dragged Amelia over to the head chef and listed off several dishes. “Come on!” Lani pulled her to the dining room from yesterday, where Amelia was surprised to see Serena’s father already seated.

“Good morning, Speaker- I mean, Amelia,” Dalinar said, correcting himself quickly. “I hope you slept well.” Amelia awkwardly returned the greeting, wondering how much Serena’s father knew about last night. Well, she would just power through any awkwardness like usual!

“Yup! Thank you for your hospitality, Dalinar!” Amelia beamed and sat down in the same chair as last night. Lani quickly followed and began bombarding Amelia with everything Lani wanted to do after breakfast.

“Lani,” Amelia began when the girl had finally taken a breath. “I have to spend this morning going over documents with Serena, and then at lunchtime, I have a very important meeting.” Lani’s face dropped and Amelia quickly added, “However, afterwards, we can hang out for the rest of the day! Maybe we can go through your workbooks in the garden?”

“O-okay! Do you promise!?”

“Of course! Here, pinky promise!” Amelia curled her pinky finger and held it out. Lani looked at it as if she didn’t know what to do. Amelia mentally slapped herself. Once again, she had forgotten many things native to her world didn’t translate well here. “Here, copy me. Give me your pinky finger.” Once Lani did, Amelia grasped it with her own. “This is a pinky promise. It’s an unbreakable vow between two women. I promise we can spend time later, okay?”

“Hehe... okay! Pinky promise!” Lani announced happily and Amelia suddenly had a dreadful feeling that pinky promises would soon be a widespread thing amongst the gossipy teenagers of the academy.

Before any more awkward moments could happen, Serena appeared. She was dressed in her military uniform and once again Amelia was taken aback by how striking Serena could be. Her girlfriend exuded a natural feeling of command and confidence that Amelia could only hope to emulate.

“Father, Sister, Amelia,” Serena greeted each of them before sitting down. Breakfast arrived, and Amelia found herself eating a tasty fish similar but not quite as tender as sardis. When she made the comparison, Dalinar explained it was something known as a springfish that was frequently caught in high-sky during this time of year.

“When did you have sardis?” Dalinar asked.

“North of Kenhoro,” Amelia answered. “The Vengeance caught some. It was the most delicious thing I’ve ever eaten!”

“You’re so lucky!” Lani chirped with an envious expression on her face. “The fishermen can’t get it here due to the ban!”

“Ban?” Amelia asked.

“The nearest schools of sardis fly about two hundred klicks south-east,” Serena explained. “That’s far too close to the Shattered Isles. The arcwhales are protective of their feeding grounds, and no fishing ship will risk a five hundred meter behemoth ramming it out the sky.”

“Whoa,” Amelia struggled to imagine a creature of that size. The one she had seen in the skies north of Kenhoro was only three hundred meters, and that dwarfed the Vengeance and sent the crew into a panic. “How big is Rhaknam?”

“Hmm...” Serena looked up thoughtfully, “He hasn’t been seen for a while, but I remember reading about a sighting in the eighth century, about sixty years ago. Then it was said he was a little over two kilometres long.”

“Ah!” Dalinar stood up. “Lead me to them. Serena...” He turned to Serena. “I’ll bring them here, so be prepared.” Serena nodded and began adjusting her military uniform, her face suddenly becoming very serious.

After Dalinar and the butler had left, Amelia asked, “You’re nervous around the Dragon, aren’t you?”

“Tsk! Obviously,” Serena mumbled as she fiddled with her hair. “The man’s a snake, and like the most dangerous snakes, he has his own goals and has the power to pursue them. If the ship didn’t prevent him, he would have put us both in chains and more likely than not, attempted to hang one or both of us.”

“Hmm...” Amelia thought quickly. “I’ll try not to say too much then; let you take the lead.”

“Perfect, thank you, Amelia.”

“Mmm!” Amelia nodded happily. “You’re welcome.”



Serena had just finished adjusting her uniform to be perfectly straight when Father appeared with the Dragon and another man shortly behind him. When they entered, Serena swore the temperature of the room dropped. Once again, she was reminded how accurate the man's moniker was. The Dragon was crowned with at least six sets of horns, some of the most prominent Serena had ever seen on a demon.

The plain-looking man who followed the Dragon was practically the exact opposite. Where the Dragon’s presence dominated the room, this man seemed unassuming and unthreatening instead. His horns were small stubs, a horn-type found in some areas of Centralis, and his face was plain, neither attractive nor unattractive.

Intelligence Officer, Serena thought.

“Lord Halen,” the Dragon intoned as he stepped in, his deep voice filling the room and sending shivers down Serena’s spine. “And Lady Thornheart. I see you’ve seen fit to join our humble Empire.” Amelia politely returned the greeting, and Serena quickly followed suit.

“Please, sit.” Father gestured to the prepared chairs, and the Dragon and his guest slowly sat down. Serena, Amelia, and her father quickly followed. An awkward silence passed before the plain-looking demon spoke up.

“Some tea, perhaps?” He requested with a smile. Dalinar quickly rang a bell and a moment later an employee appeared. The guest raised a finger. “A pot of mint tea, if you have it.” The employee bowed at the request and vanished. “I’ve always preferred conversation with tea,” he said to the room. “Having something to do with your hands makes those awkward moments almost bearable, doesn’t it?”

No one seemed to know how to reply to that statement, so Serena simply resigned herself to silence. She noticed that the Dragon’s guest was carrying some kind of case, which made her uneasy for some reason.

A suffocating eternity later, the tea arrived. While they held their cups in polite silence, the Dragon eventually began talking.

“We have matters of import to discuss,” he said. “This here is Mister Chesterfield, a representative from Centralis Intelligence. He will explain some of these matters, as they are beyond my paygrade.”

Oh? Now, that was interesting. As far as Serena understood, there was very little beyond the Dragon’s paygrade. Additionally, he had referred to his guest as Mister, not Lord or Speaker. Who was this man exactly? He didn’t appear to be any kind of mage or warrior.

“A pleasure to meet you, Lord Halen,” Chesterfield said, tilting his head in Serena’s direction. “And a terrific pleasure to meet you, Lord-Prospect Thornheart.” He smiled at Amelia for a period of time that was just a little too long to feel natural. “Now, before we get onto the more serious stuff...” Chesterfield glanced at the Dragon, who pulled out a small box from about his person and passed it to Serena.

She took the box. It was a little larger than her fist and covered in black cloth. On the top side, a familiar symbol was embossed in gold. A crown wreathed by horns. The emblem of Cascadia.

“Open it,” the Dragon instructed, and Serena did. Within the box lay a bronze medal with embossed silver. “Your bronze eagle,” the Dragon explained. “For your exceptional work capturing Port Highwind. It would have been silver if...” His eyes narrowed. “...You hadn’t ended up losing control of your Word and battling the commander of your ground forces to near-death.”

Serena felt a flash of annoyance but quickly quenched the feeling. After all, the Dragon was correct. What happened in Port Highwind was her failure; it was a miracle she hadn’t been dishonourably discharged.

“Thank you, Highlord,” she uttered with as much sincerity as she could manage. “It’s a great honour.”

“Greatlord Oshiro also offers his congratulations and wishes he could have been here to hand it off personally.” The Dragon said. He produced a cigar and lit it, inhaling and exhaling slowly out his nostrils. Now, he really did look like a dragon. Serena couldn’t help but wonder if he did it on purpose. “Speaking of the Greatlord, the Vengeance is being pulled out of the Eastern Fleet.”

“What?” Serena hissed, unable to control her displeasure at the sudden subject change.

“As you know, the Vengeance is leased to the Eastern Fleet on a contractual basis. That contract has ended, and Greatlord Oshiro has not sought to renew the lease from the Centralis Navy.”

“You’re taking my ship from me?” Seeing Chesterfield smile at her words, Serena struggled to keep herself calm and threw him a piercing glare. He held her gaze, and eventually, Serena looked away.

“Unfortunately, no.” The Dragon puffed his cigar again. “The ship has taken a liking to you, and as you know, without the consent of both parties of the original agreement, the Captain of the Vengeance can not be removed so easily.” Another stream of smoke out of his nostrils. “You and your crew will remain with the ship. You’ll be doing important work, taking on missions directly from Intelligence. Chesterfield will be your handler, through whom your orders will be given.”

“I would like to protest,” Serena said with as much force as possible. She didn’t want to be passed so quickly from Greatlord Oshiro, a man she respected, to some nameless face from Intelligence.

“Ahem,” Chesterfield coughed into his hand. “The instructions for this... shuffle come directly from the top.”

“The top?” Serena asked.

“The Empress herself has commanded it.”

Serena bit her tongue, swallowing loudly. She forced herself to slow her breathing. “Then, I accept,” she finally said.

“Excellent!” Chesterfield clapped his hands, turning to Amelia. “Lord-Prospect Thornheart, am I correct in my understanding that you intend to keep following Lord Halen, your employer?”

“Umm...” Amelia glanced at Serena. “Y-yeah! I’ll follow her!”

“Terrific!” Chesterfield’s face broke into a warm smile that seemed genuine yet entirely out of place considering the atmosphere. “Now then.” He turned to the Dragon. “Francis, if you could...”

“Sir.” The Dragon nodded before standing up and gesturing for Serena’s father to do the same. “Highlord Halen, could you show me around your spectacular gardens?”

“Oh? Yes, of course!” Father stood up, his face looking a little confused.

The Dragon politely nodded at the room and the pair of them exited, leaving only Chesterfield and his easy, out-of-place smile.

“Who are you?” Serena asked, raising an eyebrow. “You’re not some paper-filing, pen-twirling middle-ranked Intelligence Officer. You’re high up, aren’t you?”

“Quite high up,” Chesterfield said softly, sipping the mint tea. “However, when you’re as high up as I am...” he looked at Amelia briefly, “...you come to understand there’s always someone greater. Well then...” Chesterfield opened the box he had bought with him. From within, he pulled out two more boxes. One was about ten inches in all directions, while the other was about as big as Serena’s medal box.

The smaller box made her instincts scream. Whatever was in there couldn’t be good. Chesterfield brought his hand to the lid of the larger box, hesitating. “Would you like to know what the Vengeance really is?” He looked at Serena with a tense expression.

“... Yes,” Serena finally answered.

“Wonderful,” Chesterfield said, opening the larger box and pulling out a human skull and placing it on the table.

“Anathor, could you join us, please?”