Chapter 8

Refrazzya: The Town of Intel

 

Tyler Marklin remained stationary as he directed the ship closer to the coordinates indicated on the RLC. Formally, he would have instructed Cesium to go alert the ship as he piloted, but he felt that if the Great Dane had roused the captain and Lady Olivia, it would be disastrous.

The crew had found out that the poor mechanical beast did not fare well over bodies of water. The Dane did spectacularly; it bobbed its head on top of the rail while playing with Leo and Jakob on deck. They were playing fetch when suddenly the ball Leo had thrown went sailing over the port side. Being programmed like a living dog, the Great Dane followed and plunged headfirst into the water.

This is where his name came from. After some terrible ruckus up on deck, two lifeboats released, and bundles of ropes with life preservers dismantled, the dog was safely back on the Phoenix. Of course, the dog had some major setbacks to its gears. It would start to go haywire, twitching its head the opposite way. It would also try to eat wooden crates instead of its intended energy source: glass bottles.

“Poor doggie,” Charlotte replied while holding the head of the dog on her lap. “You didn’t know you’d react so poorly to water, huh?”

“It’s a rather dumb machine,” Aden replied angrily as he wrung his cotton white shirt out in between his hands.

“No, it isn’t,” Charlotte countered.

“It is if it decided to jump in the bloody ocean!”

Olivia had popped up from the companionway entrance with her tool kit in hand while watching the two interact with each other. That was when a name hit her.

“That’s it!” Olivia called out and smiled. “We’ll name him Cesium. It’s perfect!” 

Charlotte gave her best friend a quirked eyebrow while Aden shook his head. He figured out why the name Cesium would work out, but a majority of the crew watching had not yet put two and two together.

“Why Cesium?” Damien and Xavier both asked as they tied the second lifeboat back onto the Phoenix.

“He is named Cesium because he reacts horribly to water. Did you not pass basic chemistry? Newbs.” She opened her tool kit once she took a seat next to her twitching dog. “Cesium, you should know better than to jump off the ship.”

The Great Dane merely whined and pushed its head back into Charlotte’s lap. Aden gave a disgruntled sigh before slapping his shirt over his bare shoulder and walking back downstairs. Damien and Xavier gave mystified faces in response to the comment Olivia made but did not want to say something else that could potentially lead to an insult on their intelligence.

“I think Cesium is a cute name,” Charlotte replied suddenly and gave the whole crew a big smile. “Olivia’s such a great master.”

Cesium barked, bringing Tyler back from the memory he was reliving. Snapping his attention to the mechanical beast, he found that it was slowly starting to rise out of its position lying down. After a month and a half of travelling around on the sea, it could drive anyone mad who was not prepared, Great Danes included.

“What’s wrong, Cesium?” Marklin questioned as he placed the RLC down on the table with the world map. Currently, they were about ten miles away from Refrazzya, a bustling merchant town that sold many types of merchandise; it ranged from medical aid to food, even weaponry. The only problem with this particular port town was that they didn’t exactly care who their buyers were. As long as they had money, they would not be trifled with.

Cesium meandered from his position to the table where the map was located and gestured with its nose to Refrazzya and, then with a whine, began gesturing to the mantra on the wall. There was a slogan on the wall that the state dictated to its citizens to raise hope: “Keeping the peace, one voyage at a time.”

Marklin chuckled, taking his hat off and placing it on Cesium’s head. “We all could use some peace, especially after all the stuff we’d been through.” He walked over to the communications device located in the helm that connected to the deck where several of the late-shift warrant officers were working on the sails.

“Port city Refrazzya dead ahead of us, prepare to port.”

There was an echo of “aye, aye” from below the helm as the men shifted to their duties to safely disembark. Marklin just hoped he did not circumvent the captain by issuing the order to land.

“Here’s hoping we’re in the clear,” he replied as Cesium padded his way up and down the wheelhouse before happily dropping down on its haunches beside Tyler.

Cesium did not really like the current captain Aden because of the way he manhandled it in the ocean that one time it fell in. A whooping hundred-and-forty-pound Great Dane was rescued by Aden’s and Xavier’s experienced hands, only to be rejected by Aden when it wanted to lie its aching head on his lap. Once the mechanical beast was on board, it hobbled and jerked its four paws over to Charlotte who it did like. She always fed him glass bottles when his master wasn’t looking.

Cesium tipped Marklin’s hat on its head with a deep rumble of his chest. At the least, they were both in agreement.

۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞

Charlotte spoke in awe as she walked off the Phoenix and onto the dock of the flourishing merchant city of Refrazzya. “This place is amazing!” The streets were filled with different vendors, and people all were billowing to and from, looking for the best produce and prices.

Someone whistled above her near the railing on the Phoenix. “It’s only amazing if you don’t live here.” Xavier was peering into the distance while scoping out possible people he may know.

“You lived here, Xavier?” the girl with hazel eyes looked up and asked while the man with the beanie stretched his arms up.

“I used to for a short time when Demeuillieu was in the middle of some restructuring, but ever since I joined the naval unit within the state, I haven’t seen a need to go back. This is also the city where I met Dean. It holds some fond memories.” He closed his eyes and enjoyed the cool breeze from the sea before turning a blissful smile to the girl. “It feels good to smell the metal, fish, and sleazy merchants trying to rip someone off.” 

Charlotte chuckled at the last comment before looking back up at city. “Do you think our ship will be all right? It definitely stands out since it has Olivia’s flare.” 

The Phoenix was a galleon vessel that was five times bigger than the normal vessel voyaging around. Charlotte remembered that the Division was smaller in size but tall in height. When she had asked Leo and Jakob about their previous vessel’s specs, they had replied that it was a hermaphrodite brig with added cabin space below. Further, instead of a human crew working on deck and in the galley, it was mostly filled with working robots and droids. They shuffled across the deck with supplies that still needed to be stored, sails that were packed neatly into crates as extras, and tool kits being pulled out to work on small minor problems that could pop up in their voyage.

 “It’s not every day a ship this large comes into port, especially with those pirates running around. The robots are a bit much, but it should be all right,” Xavier replied with a smirk. “It might just mean more business in this section, which the merchants would be glad for.”

Olivia and Tyler started to walk down the ramp with the large Great Dane following them. 

The girl with the lab coat had a long list of supplies they still needed and stopped in front of Charlotte. “I’m sending Cesium and Tyler to buy some supplies. You can either go with them or stay on board to work.” She handed the list over to her spectacled coworker and looked down at Cesium. “Don’t cause any more trouble than you’ve already had.” 

Cesium barked to his master and nearly dropped the hat it received from Tyler from its head.

Charlotte smiled before pointing to the city. “I’d rather go shopping than work all day! Olivia, you should join us. It’s been way too long since we’ve actually hung out! We could get drinks or something!”

Olivia waved off her friend. “We talked all week over tea, root beer, and biscuits. Besides, I have work that still needs to be done in the captain’s compartment.” Clicking her tongue in distaste, she abruptly turned around to head back up onto her ship, easily maneuvering around Damien who was walking down with two huge bags filled with sand over his shoulders.

Xavier chuckled from his position at the top before rubbing his beanie up and down his hairline. “Sorry, bestie, you got rejected.” He noticed Damien snap his attention to him and back to Lionsheart.

“You asked someone out?” Damien asked quizzically, just catching the last bit of Xavier’s words. The lieutenant commander laughed harder. 

Charlotte turned her attention to Damien before shaking her head; at least, she had the decency to properly explain. “Olivia is being stuffy and won’t join us. Would you like to come?” she posed him with the question, and Damien flushed at the invitation. Xavier saw him go red in the face and then whistled.

“Get it!” He laughed some more before receiving a death glare from the blond boy down below.

“Xav, get your ass to the galley and help the kitchen aides.” The man with the beanie turned to where the voice came from near the ramp and sighed.

“That effectively killed my mood.” He looked down at the blond and auburn before waving them off. “Have fun on your date, kiddos!” He laughed when Damien dropped the bags to the ground in embarrassment.

“Lieutenant, that was an order. Get moving before I have you cleaning the water cabinets,” Aden replied suddenly from where he stood. He was glaring his typical expression at Xavier, waiting for him to cease his teasing.

“Aye, aye, Captain.” Xavier waved a friendly one down to the trio with the dog before making his way down to the caboose. 

Aden watched him until he walked through the door before turning his attention to Damien. “Where are you taking those?” he asked while Charlotte knelt and poked them.

“Cheric said to toss these two particular bags out while we are here. She said something about a bug.” 

Aden walked down the ramp onto the dock before taking his knife out and grabbing its metal between his thumb and fingers. 

Charlotte gave him a look of bewilderment from her position before he handed it, hilt first, over to the blond.

“Take this and accompany them to the city.” Aden bent down and slugged one bag over his shoulder, then proceeded to grab the other in his free hand.

Charlotte merely looked at him with a question lingering in her mind. She wanted to ask him if he’d like to join, but being the captain of the ship probably meant he couldn’t spare the time. 

“What are you staring at?” he asked the girl when she didn’t relinquish her staring.

“Nothing.”

“Were you going to ask me to come along?” he teased, accurately guessing what she was thinking. He knew it was the exact thought she had because she immediately flushed a crimson red.

“Did you—” she started, but he immediately interrupted her.

“Nope, thanks for the invite. Damien”—Aden turned his attention to his brother—“be sure that she doesn’t wander too much.” 

His older brother chuckled. “Aye, aye.”

“Hey!” Charlotte whined before turning on the balls of her feet. “You know what? Whatever. Let’s get going, Tyler and Cesium!” She began to stomp down the dock to the bustling roads as Tyler and Cesium went to catch up with her.

Damien stuffed the dagger in a small empty sheath in his belt before giving a two-finger salute to his comrade. “Thanks, Aden, you’ve made the princess mad. Join us if you find the time!” Damien went to chase after his entourage that left him.

“It’s really not that hard to do.” Aden merely slugged the last bag over his shoulder and walked to the opposite end of the dock where the water sloshed against the columns below the deck. Seaweed and kelp must have accumulated over the years since the dock first opened for operations years prior. Had it only been three years since he last came to this town?

He tossed the bags into the ocean before walking back to the ship. He had a meeting to attend with Cheric that he couldn’t postpone any longer.

۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞

 “You’re late,” the purple-eyed girl replied as she sat in the candlelit room of his office. 

On his other vessel, he would have told her to get out, but seeing as how this was her ship that she built from scratch, he figured that his title was merely just what it was. Just a title. “I was busy dealing with idiots,” he replied before the door opened again. 

Simone De La Croix, Elliot Cheric, and Andrew Nielsen entered the room with grim expressions. Olivia gestured for all four to take seats around the board table before interlacing her fingers together.

“It seems that we have a problem on our hands,” she started before looking at the sheet of paper on the table. On the sheet was a list of names that the state wanted dead or alive. These names all reflected those on their vessel. The only ones that weren’t on that list were Elliot, Simone, and Nielsen. Charlotte’s name wasn’t on there, but that was probably because the state assumed she was killed by Zaine.

“Robert Petersons’s and Henry Hobbs’s names aren’t on this,” Olivia muttered once she had gotten a glimpse of the sheet. “Meaning, the state has been our enemy since day one.” She slammed her palm down on the parchment before rubbing her temples. “I was wondering why my plans didn’t unfold the way that they should have.” She slid it over to her brother’s friend when he reached for it.

Simone grabbed the sheet, glimpsing the names, while Elliot began to rub the bridge of his nose. “This may mean we still have some rats on board,” Simone said while he handed the paper over to Aden. The emerald-eyed lad briefly looked over the paper before placing it down.

“The robots and crew have been searching this place for bugs and locator devices all throughout the voyage. We found some more this morning while unloading more of our stock,” Olivia replied before looking at Nielsen. The blond was holding his chin in his palm, thinking about something. “Do you have something you want to suggest, Mr. Nielsen?”

“Well,” the man started looking at the people sitting at the board table before looking down, “I should say we keep our profiles low, but that will be difficult with this ostentatious vessel we have.”

Elliot leaned back into his own chair. “I suggest we get rid of this ship and get a smaller and accommodated ship that won’t raise suspicion. We decrease the size of the crew and robots then keep those who are well-known under disguise. New aliases would be appropriate and contact lenses as well.” He was staring at Olivia’s eye color when he said this.

“You want to hide?” Aden replied dully. “Haven’t you thought that maybe they want us to go under the radar while they continue doing whatever they have planned?”

Olivia sighed, ceasing the rising tension in the room. “I have to agree with Summerfeld. I believe it would raise more suspicion if we were to try getting rid of the vessel. I can disguise the ship to be less ostentatious by slimming it down. It will take some time, but I can assign the robots to begin immediately.”

Simone pondered, “How long will it take?”

“A rushed project on this level could take less than two weeks if I help with the components. We have to find a remote location that won’t necessarily care if we’re there for a long period of time,” Olivia replied before opening her briefcase. Inside it were completed blueprints of the galleon vessel they were on currently. The papers also contained sketches of the ship scaled down about two times the size and would accommodate forty to fifty people with the twenty to thirty robots. “I thought that the pirates may recognize us through our ship, so I planned for a new makeover.”

Nielsen looked at the blueprints spread out on the table before nodding. “This is brilliant, Olivia. I never would have thought technology would allow such an interesting transformation.”

Elliot peered at the drawing before leaning back himself. “Basically, you’re taking away all the empty spaces in this ship and narrowing down the areas to fit our needs. The cosmetic detail involving the stained glass and paint will not fool the state and pirates for long though.”

Simone glanced over to Elliot with a look. “I suppose that would work in regard to this ship’s image, but with all the checkpoints around the port cities these days, a vessel needs to have a signed contract to sail. All vessels are required to possess these sorts of paperwork. Otherwise, we may as well avoid all cities from this point.”

Nielsen nodded in agreement. “I read the Quarter issue this morning that the state was requiring all cities to report any unclaimed vessels to a local branch, but luckily, Refrazzya does not care who ports with them.”

“All they care about is money,” responded Aden while he absorbed the information. “This city is not the type to align itself to a particular group or interest because its particular leader is interested only by dreggs.” 

Regardless, Elliot added to the end of his sentence, “To avoid suspicion, we should claim ourselves once the ship is remodeled.”

Simone looked to the emerald-eyed boy before turning to the inventor. “We certainly can’t have you or Summerfeld in charge of this vessel. Elliot or Nielsen will have to sign as the commodore of this vessel.”

“I will jump off this ship before I am subjugated to Andy’s commands again.” He glared at his previous instructor before looking at the younger Cheric sibling, seeing how she weighed all the options presented. “You can’t honestly be thinking of agreeing with them.”

Olivia grabbed both ends of her blueprint to wrap it up into a neat roll. She merely glanced at Aden before sighing. “Once the state put our names on that wanted list, they completely tied our hands. If we intend to win this war, we must sacrifice dignity, honor, and titles to accomplish what we’re hoping for.”

Simone was curious by what she meant by winning. “What exactly are we hoping for?”

At which point, she bluntly replied, “To live.”

۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞

The merchant holding the tin-foiled corn waved his merchandise high in the air as he shouted, “Get your corn! Hot piping corn for ten dreggs!” He was walking by the open market front while Damien and Tyler were buying the twenty pounds of flour Olivia had wanted from the opposite end of the alleyway. “Care for some corn, beauty?” The man gave her a smile before Charlotte waved him off.

“I’m just browsing sir, but I’m sure that gentleman over there would be interested.” She pointed to a man who had stopped by the husks of corn in the cart. 

The merchant smirked, “That’s too bad, love, especially with corn in season after all.” He showed her the gleam of gold in one of his teeth before hurrying off to where she pointed.

Cesium tugged on the hem of her skirt to take her away from the stall before the man came back. 

“All right already. I’m walking.” She chuckled at the Great Dane’s attempt to watch over her but found it interesting that it needed more help than she did.

When they first arrived in the open-air market, the robot dog had walked its way into an open parcel of plums and effectively squashed a couple in its paws while it squirmed to get loose. Charlotte, who happened to see it, was forced to rescue the Great Dane and got a scolding from the merchant about those plums becoming a waste of food. Of course, she had to compensate for her “pet’s” mistake.

“Charlotte!” The girl turned on the balls of her feet to swivel around. Coming up behind her was Tyler carrying two ten-pound bags of flour and Damien carrying a bag full of other assortments Olivia listed. “There you are. We thought we had lost you when you disappeared.” 

Charlotte sheepishly gave Tyler a smile. “Sorry, I just wanted to walk around. It’s boring standing and doing nothing.” She then waved the list in the air. “We only have about two major items left to get, so I was hoping to decrease our time in finding them.” Charlotte pointed to the stall to their left. “We can find the mechanical tools Olivia needs over there, and farther down the alley, there is a shop with tailored clothes that she requested for the crewmates. Surprisingly, she wrote down all the measurements and then the instructions for delivery.”

Damien balanced the bag of supplies so that it was in one arm. “We won’t need to carry back the raiment then. That’s good.” He paused then thought about what the girl had said about measurements. “Wait, everyone’s measurements are on there? How’d she know everyone’s?” The blond walked over to the brunette and peered behind her shoulder at the numbers listed. It was accurate if he just went off his numbers.

“That’s kind of scary,” Damien muttered before Tyler shrugged his shoulders.

“Well, it is Olivia, and having known her for as long as I have, she has been particular about knowing everything.” 

The guy with the glasses smiled before suggesting they move on to their next destinations. “Damien and I will go order the tools from the stall. Charlotte, why don’t you and Cesium head on over to the tailor’s shop and order the shipment of clothing? It shouldn’t be too bad since everything is already written out.”

Damien was hesitant to allow them to split up again and voiced his complaint, “I don’t think that is a good idea.” 

But Charlotte merely waved him off. “I’ll be all right. I’ve explored the marketplaces near my uncle’s estate before, so I know how to navigate if I get lost. By the time you two are done, I would have already ordered the clothes and have walked the block twice.”

She smiled before tapping her chin with her index finger. “It’ll be fun! Why don’t we meet up by the fountain that connects this alley to the next one before sunset? We can do whatever we want to do while shopping!” She gave the blond a “pretty please” look before he caved.

“Two hours is the limit, but only that long. We can’t risk being seen by someone who maybe in with the state. Keep Cesium close to you, understand?” 

The girl gave him the two finger salute he normally gave to Aden when he agreed. “I understand! No later than two hours!” she squealed before running off to the tailor’s.

Damien yelled after her to be careful while Tyler heavily sighed. “We’re going to be tailing her after we order those tools, aren’t we?” He shuffled the weight of the flour while Damien sighed.

“More than likely. Well, let’s get on with it. After all, we have a princess to follow.” They made their way toward the open stall where all the mechanical tools were displayed and ordered what Olivia had specifically wanted from her list.

While Tyler had placed the bags of flour down to fill up another satchel full of tools, Damien noticed a mechanical dog’s nose pointing at a two-to-three-gear connected piece on top of one another. The gears didn’t connect in the dents, but it was an interesting piece that resembled a 3-D sun. 

A merchant oddly dressed in a cosplay version of the army uniform with sandy brown hair was wiping his hands on a napkin before gesturing to the gears. He face was obscured by a mask visor, oddly matching the strange outfit.  “Those gears were separated from one another, but my niece took a soldering tool and connected them into some makeshift-gear sun. It’s more of a jewelry piece than an actual tool.”

Lifting it up, Damien peered at it before inquiring a price, “How much?”

“Since it’s a special day today in Refrazzya, I’ll sell you it for five dreggs. Besides, it’s not something that would sell to any of my normal customers.” 

Damien smiled, handing over the small amount to the merchant. “Thanks, sir.”

The man gave him a curt nod before turning back to his work. 

Somehow, Damien had felt he’d seen him before but shrugged the feeling off. Damien deposited the three-piece gear shaped like the sun into his vest’s pocket just as Tyler came back with everything they bought. “I got all the tools she wanted, Damien.”

The blond looked over the list before seeing that their task was complete. “Looks like it. Are you ready to go after our companion?” Damien began to walk away from the stall where he stepped past a hungry-looking Great Dane staring at the cosplay man’s glass bottles. He continued down the designated path with Tyler, trailing after him before he registered what he saw.

Abruptly, he stopped, causing Tyler to crash into his back. “Ow.” The male with glasses reacted, and Damien snapped around to look at the Great Dane.

“What are you doing here?” Tyler turned to see Damien yelling at Cesium, and the dog slightly whined with puppy-dog eyes. The man in the cosplay uniform merely handed Cesium the glass bottle, and the dog happily chewed the bottle between its mechanical teeth.

“Oh, gods,” Both Damien and Tyler groaned in frustration.

۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞

Aden clicked his tongue before standing up. His chair screeched against the floorboards. “We may as well take this opportunity to use all the sources that we can possibly use. Andy”—he turned to the blond teacher—“as a previous upper-rank admiral, it wouldn’t appear odd for you to jump into this war. In fact, with this new wanted list, you could use that as leverage.”

Elliot seemed to catch on to Aden’s plan. “Nielsen and I will plead with the state that they should allow us to search for the traitors. Nielsen can lead the fleet we have while I am enlisted as his captain to redeem my family’s honor. Since my little sister is blacklisted, it would seem off if I just let things stand where they are.”

Simone finally caught on and added to the plan, “We lull them into a low sense of security by allowing ourselves to be the state’s dogs. Of course, that would not be the case because we’d be keeping our friends close and our enemies even closer.”

Aden grabbed the list before crumpling it within his palm while Nielsen pondered aloud, “We need to completely revamp the crew then and scan for possible double agents. Our plans will mean nothing if someone is communicating with the enemy. Cheric, I may suggest you system check each of your machines to be sure they were not tinkered with while on our voyage.”

Olivia jotted down the suggestion onto her notepad before switching to the next page. “I need to start the preparations of minimizing the ship. Let us leave whatever adjustments to the crew to Andy. Summerfeld, you will assist by searching for any possible traps, bugs, or devices that could impede our future goals on this vessel. Assign who you want to work with you, but I’m sure it’ll be Eagle Boy when he returns with Tyler and Charlotte. Elliot, you will find the fiscal means necessary to pay for the full usage of the dock for the remaining week that we’re here. De La Croix, if you can, come up with double aliases for those people who need them as well as disguises that would be beneficial. If that is all, let’s adjourn. We have a lot to accomplish, and the sooner we finish, the sooner we can get the state off our tails.” Olivia leaned over to place all her plans into her satchel bag and then began situating the strap onto her shoulder.

Nielsen interlaced his fingers before frowning. “We have our actions figured out for the ship and crew, but we may also want to consider how the crew and ship will be affected in regards to those Relic stones.”

“I say we take a step back from the stones and concentrate on the subject at hand,” Elliot suggested, and Simone agreed.

“Those Relic stones were what placed us here in the first place, Cheric.” Aden leaned his back against the wall away from the table. “Charlotte is also another issue that has to be dealt with carefully. Zaine will assume that she is dead, which will require someone to keep a constant watch on her.”

Olivia agreed with Aden by giving the room a quick nod. “I found it odd that all those pirates wanted to kill Charie. They weren’t concerned about the stones in her possession but more on how to end her life. Robert also mentioned that someone higher up in the state wanted her dead.” 

Nielsen gripped his chin in his left hand, pondering why that may be. “The highest position in the state would be Julian. Above him would be the fleet admiral, but surely, they haven’t filled in that position yet.”

Aden shook his head. “A man known as Viktor filled the position five months ago. He appeared every once in a while, issuing orders to the captains, commodores, and admirals to recruit men and women to his new training facilities and search for the Relic stones.”

Olivia paused. “I suppose we should assume he is being manipulated by Zaine to keep the state out of pirate affairs if he had ordered Charlotte’s death . . . How else could that explain the wanted list with our names on it? Though it makes me wonder what she could have done or could possibly wind up doing that would endanger his status. Further, what could Zaine have against Viktor that would make him be manipulated as such? Finally, what are these new training facilities? I have never heard of them before.”

“Apparently, they opened up for the public to learn how to fight against pirates. They didn’t want another incident such as the one that happened to Rothschild estate,” Andy Nielsen explained before crossing his arms. He turned to see Aden give a dark glance to the floor. Something was tugging at his memory, but he couldn’t depict what it was about.

“The state was using my estate as a temporary headquarter, yet it fell to the hands of pirates. What good would training facilities be?” The girl retorted before her brother interrupted her. “It was probably a tactic to raise the morale of those citizens around the world. I would not find it odd that they used such a device. As for those other questions you raised, we may have to wait on those answers. There just isn’t enough information for us to connect it all.”

“What we do know,” Simone replied sullenly, “is that the state is not on our side, and we should not rely on them to cover our flank. If anything, we are on our own, fighting for survival and looking out for those stones. Charlotte also has a role to play in all this.”

Aden snapped his attention to De La Croix. “How would you know she has a role to play?”

Simone merely waved Aden’s concern off by smiling sadly. He brought his hands together and gazed at the oak in front of him. “Intuition says so. In fact, we all have a role to play in this game.”

Olivia repositioned her bag on her shoulder before heading to the door. “Let’s discuss this later when we know more information. Presently, we know what we must do, so let us at least do as such.” She opened the door, holding it open but not before looking over her shoulder to Aden. As if reiterating Aden’s point earlier about Charlotte, Olivia continued, “I’d feel better if someone would keep a close eye on my friend. She needs someone who is capable and reliable. Role or not, she is a handful like we all have witnessed.”

Nielsen heard the suggestion in Olivia’s tone and clapped his hands together. That brought everyone’s attention to him as he winked to the raven-haired inventor. “I was supervising her throughout this past half year, but seeing as how I will be busy with the vessel, perhaps someone more suitable would suffice. Aden, what do you say?”

The hazel-eyed teacher smiled at Aden who gave him an uncertain look. He was not going to like where this was going. “I’m being demoted and now have to babysit. That’s what you want.”

 “‘Demoted’ is such a strong word to use, Aden,” the teacher replied immediately, and Elliot just bluntly replied with a “correct.”

Aden turned to look at Olivia who was holding the door open. “And you wonder why I am abhorrent about these meetings.”

He walked out of the room, and Olivia chuckled. She closed the door with a smile. “You’re welcome, Summerfeld.” All she received was a brooding back of Aden walking away.

۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞

Charlotte had long since completed the order at the tailor’s and given them the exact location of where the completed supplies would be shipped to. Now all that was left was to explore this new area and meet back at the meeting spot in a relative amount of time.

“Isn’t today a great day, Cesium?” She giggled before looking down for the inevitably padding of its massive paws behind her, but nothing happened. “Are you kidding me? Cesium, where are you?” Some people began to stare at her while she called out Cesium’s name but realized that it was nowhere in sight.

Shaking her head, she focused on the soft breeze around her. The breeze felt nice on her skin, and the trail from her tail hem dress was fluttering behind her. Her hair was giving her more difficulty than anything, blowing up into her vision as she walked. Every few seconds, she would push back her playful hair only to have it come back seconds later.

Some shop owners and merchants seemed to notice her dilemma and began pointing out certain hair barrettes and clips all ranging from different regions of the world. A particular stand stood out to the auburn-brunette as she was walking and stopped to view at the hair products.

A young woman merchant appeared wiping her hands with a handkerchief. “Good afternoon.” 

Charlotte responded to the woman, only to have a handful of hair enter her mouth with the sharp breeze that blew by. 

The merchant woman chuckled as the girl spewed her hair out of her mouth. “May I.” The girl nodded dumbly while the merchant reached her hand out to the girl’s hair and easily pulled her hair into a contemporary side braid. “You have such beautiful hair. The red tint within the brown locks is truly a rare sight. Natural?”

The auburn-brunette was about to nod but then remembered that her hair was being worked upon. “It is natural. My papa liked the color of my hair. I’m glad that I didn’t alter it or change it.” The girl smiled while the merchant chuckled at the tale.

“It’s a good thing too. Not many girls keep their natural hair color. Here, why don’t you sit down? I can show you different hair techniques and styles you can do with your long hair while I am at it.” The merchant walked Charlotte over to the chair, but the auburn-brunette flushed.

“I’m sure you’d like another young lady to showcase since I don’t have that much dreggs to buy anything.” 

The merchant shook off her comment. “It’s a good thing I don’t sell my possessions to every girl, and besides, with such beautiful hair, you’ll attract attention to my storefront.” The girl was confused until the merchant directed to the girl to look in front of her and then around the street. Somehow, the merchant had gathered a small crowd of men, women, and small girls staring at the display. “Welcome, everyone. My assistant and I will go through a tutorial of what one can do with long to medium hair using my products in particular. Now if you like the contemporary styles, this will be one of many styles you can do.” She lightly touched Charlotte’s chin and lightly directed Charlotte to face the left.

Some of the little children ooh-ed and aw-ed while the tutorial went on, and while Charlotte was sitting in that chair wondering how she did not know these different styles, all she really did with her hair was leaving it straight down with her bangs pushed off the side of her face. When she was younger, her hair had been put into two pigtails, one on each side of her head, but after a boy from her childhood played one too many pranks on her by yanking them, she effectively ceased the hairstyle.

“If you’re going to the masquerade ball this evening, a hairstyle that presents the face and keeps the strands out of the visage is a must. You can easily take half of the hair by parting it here and then clipping a barrette to hold these strands that will wrap around the barrette.” Then the woman grabbed a small box from her display container and opened it. Inside was a small tiara that was silver with sparkly flower diamonds on the intricate piece. “And to finish it, you can place a small tiara like this or even a headband on the tip of the crown like so.” When she finished, she stepped back and gestured for Charlotte to stand up. The girl did as she was told and then was directed to turn around.

“It’s very simple to do, and all the boys would fall head over heels. What do you say?” She gave a mischievous smile to a boy nearby who flushed.

“C-cute,” he stuttered before the crowd laughed at his reaction. “Oh, be quiet!” he retorted before crossing his arms.

The merchant woman laughed as well before bringing Charlotte back to the chair. “You can purchase these tiaras from the main branch of my store in town. The barrettes and pins are what I brought with me. Come and buy something.” She winked at Charlotte when some girls and mothers came up to purchase some of the hair supplies. A couple of gentlemen came up and brought some things for their own wives or daughters.

“Thank you,” the merchant woman replied once her buyers had all gone their way. 

Charlotte was sitting properly in her seat, fidgeting her hands up and down the end of her hem. She was curious to see what she looked like while her hair was like it was.

“My name is Giselle Eszes.” The merchant gave the girl a smile while she was counting her drawer. She was making small talk while she was working around the stall, which was easier for Charlotte to follow, seeing she was fidgeting in her seat. “Normally, I don’t come upon a natural beauty, so when I do, I just jump at the opportunity to make them my model. Keep the tiara for tonight; I’m sure that’s why you’re in town for the celebration and all.”

She gave Charlotte a small smile before lifting an object from her stand. She presented it to Charlotte who clumsily took it into her hands. “Take a look while you’re at it.” She smiled as Charlotte held her mirror up to look at herself.

It was strange seeing her hair in a different style, and for once, it was a style that complemented her flush cheekbones and tall forehead.

“Wow!” Charlotte replied in awe and touched her cheek with her free hand. She could not believe that was her that she was looking at. “There’s a ball tonight?” Charlotte returned the mirror to the merchant who nodded in response to her question.

“Yes, my dear, they are celebrating Refrazzya’s two hundredth year as a united port. It’s mostly merchant families and tourists that come here though.” The woman was going through her belongings before opening a small box by her cash register. Inside were distant memories printed on small photograph pictures and a couple of pieces of jewelry from her only marriage. She never opened the box in public for fear of prying eyes, but she felt she needed to look at one particular picture. 

“This might sound weird, but many years ago, I ran into a beautiful woman who came around the same time of the annual ball. I used her as my model that day, and my business flourished in a matter of seconds. You remind me of her.” The merchant looked at the picture before looking at the girl. She knew she shouldn’t show the picture to her, but again, she felt she should. Delicately, she held it up for the girl to see. “She was absolutely stunning.”

Charlotte stared at the picture for a while, not believing her eyes. The woman looked exactly like a younger version of herself.

Giselle paused when she saw recognition dawn on Charlotte’s expression. Unsure, she looked around her shop, noticing the people billowing through the streets like a normal shopping day. The woman knew she should not have mentioned the woman, especially with the mission she had undertaken, but the girl sitting in front of her reminded the merchant of her nephew’s partner. “You know her?” she asked in a soft whisper and glanced around again.

“That can’t possibly be . . .” Charlotte murmured, her words catching in her throat while she asked. It couldn’t possibly be her. “Mom?”

“You know Lessye?” Without a second moment, the merchant pulled the photo back and stared at the girl with an uncertain glance. This was not good, especially since the bounty showed up on her friend’s head recently from both those pirates and the state.

“It must not be since her name’s Lissa Rothschild, but . . .” 

Giselle gave her a strange look while glancing around the street. When she brought her attention back to the girl, she noticed the girl’s hand where a sterling silver ring had the Rothschild insignia displayed on her middle finger.

Charlotte raised her hands to cover her face. “If you are who I think you are, you shouldn’t be here,” Giselle hurriedly spoke to the girl by pulling her hands away and wiping her cheeks flushed with tears. “You need to leave this area. In fact, it would be best if you leave this port. Immediately.”

The woman moved away from the girl sitting and glanced around her. The street became unnaturally empty for a midafternoon.

“What do you mean?” she murmured, and the merchant gave her a stern expression.

“I fear I may have done you a fault by making you my model,” Giselle replied while leaning over and picking up a sheathed weapon. “They probably mistook you for her, which means he’ll be here soon.” Then she whispered the following order, “Run.”