Recovering

True to his word, Captain Veles stayed on duty to make sure I did follow doctor’s orders. Though I hope it was not onerous duty, as he has not yet read all of the books my brother brought with him. He settled in, “Heh. Hy foundt Luffkreft. Vill be goot for a laff.” He settled in as I rearranged my position on the settee. “Schoont hyu be lying down, Frau Lowey?”

“Ach, I am tired of lying down, and if I sleep any more, I will get a headache,” I settled, and said, “I am still resting, yes?”

“Ja, uf courze. Bot negzt hyu vill schtend op, ja?” He smiled at my chuckle and then asked, “Hyu knowz you eyez iz glowing blue, ja?” He settled into the armchair, seeming to be very much at home.


I nodded, "It is the effect of the Working, nothing startling." I sighed and stretched my legs, “Sometimes I wish I had the knowledge to manipulate the equations like Kitla does. Right now, all I can do is feed the shields I spun for everyone, and find a way to anchor them better when I am not so... thinly spread.”

He went back to reading his book, and I smiled to myself. At least he did not feel the need to wear the tinfoil dǒu lì any longer. I took that to be a sign I might have gotten the shields strong enough by now. The effects should be that the thing out there would no longer manipulate their dreams, and at the same time might make them more aware of their surroundings. Might... such a fragile and powerful word, depending on the whims of fate.

The captain’s presence in the room was a solid anchor, as I reached, checking the shields in the network. Working from Captain Veles as the closest, through the family, staff and students in town, and whatever scamps I knew well enough to help, and finally stretching farther to reach for Griggs. He is distant enough that it is difficult for me to read him, so I think he is in no danger from what is stalking the town. As I let my attention return to monitoring those in my care, I wondered where he travelled... he has been so far away for so long....

I sighed as I came out of the light trance, and the captain made an inquiring noise. I shook my head and said, “Too tired for dancing, how sad is that?”

He chuckled, and I shifted position, drifting off to sleep again.

Notice to all staff and students:

While investigations into the graffiti are ongoing, we do *NOT* have a clear perpetrator. Due assistance to the sheriff and his deputies will be approved in all investigations.

Torches may *NOT* be requisitioned at this time. When said perpetrator is found, they will be dealt with by the local legal system.

Please remember that the mob permit application process is still in place, and the sheriff must be present for the training sessions. Final committee presentation must include all city management staff, with full environmental assays and community petitions in place.

Just because we are not currently in Europa does not mean we are permitted to bypass regulations.

Fr. A. Lowey
Cc: KW, TLE,TH, FO

Steelhead’s Lost Sleep

I have not slept well over the past few days, and my restless nights have sapped my energy. I put it down to my fretting over the increasing length of time since Sergeant Griggs last set foot in Steelhead, but other incidents have been brought to my attention.

The students have been increasingly peevish, which is odd. The ones in classes now are the ones who chose to be here, opting out of the long summer holiday many of the day students take, in favor of pursuing their particular special interests. However, finding Alexandria and Wolfgang quarrelling over a specific patch of ground (she wanted it for her test trenches, and he is still assaying the chemical composition of Steelhead’s topsoil) was exceedingly odd, since they have worked together harmoniously in the past. Anya has been twitchy, and rarely leaving the company of an adult. Rengerin snapping at one of the other instructors, with it escalating into a brief shouting match before they recalled themselves, brought it all to a head.

Meeting with the other teachers over tea clarified some observations. None of us has been sleeping well, and those who are not connected in some way to metaphysical studies are even worse off. Sister Mary Evangeline reported she had cancelled group target practice for the students, with their mood being so chancy. The sisters have reported some of the same symptoms as the teachers, but none as severe as Professor Lyles. If he has slept at all in the past week, I would be greatly surprised.

Dr Beck’s report at the town meeting did not put a specific name to the issue, but at least we know it is not an attack just on the Consulate or the school. The whole town has been affected, from Harborside to the slums in the Shanghai district.

The next day, half the office staff was out, including my assistant. Since she had come into the office last winter with a severe cold, this was a telling point. Something had to be done - actually, several hundred things, but I was just one person. Luckily, Amarantis was able to take on some of the tasks. I gave her the list of the staff that were out, and the notes Dr Beck had been able to assemble. That left me free to clear the rest of the office work and determine the next step.

My next clue was noting that, though he was melancholy over Miss Burton’s long absence, Messenger was not displaying the same symptoms as the rest of the staff. Some quick questions of the ones that were least affected brought up some similarities. They were either adherents of some esoteric practice, or they (like Messenger) were closely associated with a practitioner. The sisters were sleeping in blessed territory, and only lightly affected. A quick report by Amarantis brought the news that the missing staff were recovering slowly, as they were being shielded by Madame Kitla or herself, but that Miss Burton had shielded Messenger’s quarters against any and all inimical influences.

Surveying the affected population showed that mages and the sisters were the least impacted, empaths who were sleeping under shields were only partially influenced, but that those that were completely unshielded were suffering greatly, to the point that reality was difficult for them to track. Without the Foundation to triangulate the effects of different methods, I had to rely on Kitla’s formulae for structure. That did make it easier to explain our findings in my report to the Baron, as her work is rooted in mathematical forms.

The next escalation appeared at sundown. Messages crudely painted on the walls of the city in tar that “He is coming” and “Offer your heads” match the nightmares reported. The fact these were not some arcane language leads me to believe the person is likely not a practitioner of esoteric arts themselves. The language is Polish, translated by my new roaming assistant, Mrs DeCuir-Irato. We have inquired throughout the staff to find who in town might have Polish as their primary language, cautioning that the person who has done this could be dangerous. Orders are to watch and report only.

The staff members have also been advised that alert status is possible soon. Once we have the reports from the investigators, both ours and the sheriff’s, the next step may be clearer.

A Rumple in the Weft

I do not often explore on my own, but I do try to be aware of the surroundings as I attend functions in the Steamlands. The most recent salon was at the Dragonlands Hotel, as the discussion was on the archetype of Asian Steampunk, or the local interpretation thereof.

The Baron & Annechen at the Aether Salon, image by P. J. Trenton

I generally enjoy the salons, but my inattention was apparent to the Baron. Standing behind my chair, he subtly tapped my shoulder as the visitors left. "What is it?"

"Hm?" I was still distracted by the... something in the air.

"You are usually very focused at the salons, what is wrong?" He kept his voice low enough to not be noted by the last of the guests conversing with the speakers.

I was unable to answer right away, as I did not have a clear answer. "Something odd here... meh." I shrugged it off as best I could, "Could be all the new people here. Something seems a bit off, though."

His eyebrows twitched, as he hates drawing out inquiries, but he has learned sometimes it is for a lack of proper shared vocabulary when an answer is not straightforward. "What sort of 'off'?" he asked.

I checked for listeners nearby and murmured, "The kind of 'off-balance' that Rengerin brought with her." He winced, as he hates that sort of complication. His eyebrows asked the question he did not want to voice. After tilting my head about, trying to hear the scent and see the sound that was distractingly on the edge of registering, I nodded to him. "I will come back when it is quieter, with some back-up, and see if it is local or a visitor."

The Baron led the way out of the hotel and back to the office on the civic plaza, "Have some of your family cross-check your findings. We do not have full authority here, so make sure of your investigation." He strode to his office to review the reports from the week.

In the following week, I did not have time to make a full investigation, but I was at least able to discern the anomaly was upstairs, not in the Dragonlady's "special" parlors below the lobby. It was disturbingly familiar, and at the same time, set my teeth on edge. I was going to need a professional investigator on this one. Luckily, there were several in the family, and one that had just gotten back from her self-imposed medical trip to Caledon.

"Hokay, so why does this crottle your greeps?" Amarantis said as she leaned against the file cabinets, her wings folded tightly against her back.

I blinked at her terminology, then shook my head, "That is not the issue. For me to sense it, without looking for a problem, it has to be strong enough to be extremely out of joint."

She shrugged, "Or it impacts you directly. I'll take a look. Might even bring Greenie in on it, she needs the training."

"No, I do not like that idea, she is too young for that sort of operation, yet."

"Meh, better she learns with backup than in dire straits." She shrugged again, and headed for the door, "I'll watch out for her."

Which meant the plan would go ahead whether I agreed with it or no. Sometimes working with family can be severely distressing, especially when there is not an official chain of command. Thinking of family, I was reminded of the newest addition to the staff.

I gathered up the last of the copies of the marriage certificates for the diplomatic courier run later this week, with the back up accounting reports and letters regarding the treaty lands, and entered the clerical office. The desk closest to my office was not tenanted by a Consulate staffer, but one sent by the Old Bat to be my magistrate clerk. Once she had settled in, Hâjdău had proven herself to be competent and willing to pitch in with duties outside the magistrate's office. However, her tendency to daydream could be irritating, even if it did not interfere with her work.

My eye caught a flash of silver on her right hand as I instructed her on what she needed to have ready for the courier pouch this week. While she was writing down the particulars, I took a closer look, and recognized the Chinese character for "heart" inscribed in the purple enamel.

So, my assistant is wearing a poesy ring. Were it another staffer, I might not bother, but she is my responsibility, not the Consulate's. It may seem antiquated here and now, but her family is one of the many sworn to the House of my father, the same as my House is sworn to serve the Heterodynes. Past time I started investigating who she is seeing.

Family Travels

Augustus sent a note around to me, saying he had a set of forms for me to approve. So it was that I checked into the office on my usually free day.

A simple enough request on the face of it, a request for leave of a month for Birdie... save that nothing is simple around Augustus. I checked the rota, and she is not scheduled for any specific patrols. She has actually not been on any of the hunts lately, either.

There were no travel chits to Birdsan's home district included in the packet, and a note at the bottom stating they would not be travelling anywhere in Europa. That left one place.

He is taking her home to meet the rest of the family.

Considering this with the research requisitions he sent through in the early summer, it looks as if I might have to dig out another set of leave forms before next summer.