Clockwork Immortal

by Sam Ryan

  Clockwork Immortal

  By

  Sam Ryan

  Cover photo © Shutterstock.com

  Copyright © 2016 Sam Ryan

  All right reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced or sold without the expressed permission of the copyright holder, with the exception of short excerpts to be used for review purposes. And by all means make all the reviews you want of this book.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, Places, and Events, are all the product of the Author’s imagination. Any resemblance to any actual people, living or dead, is coincidental. If you actually think that any of this really happened then you are either stupid or lead a far more interesting life than I do.

  PART 1:

  THE HUnt

  CHAPTER 1

  Sophia sat on the ledge of the three story building, kicking her feet absently off the side while casually taking bites of the sandwich she had brought with her. She silently gazed out at the vast cityscape forest of smoke towers, watching the sun slowly dip below the distant mountain range. The dying light caught the various kinds of coal smoke and clouds in the air, turning the sky into a magnificent purple and red.

  It was her first husband who had told her that she should cherish every sunrise and sunset, as their likeness would never be seen again. He would often tell her she should enjoy the changes in this world and try her best not to hold to anything to tightly. Instead, she should learn to embrace the changes this world had to offer.

  She had not been able to appreciate those words at the time. Back then Sophia was still young and naïve about the world and the life that she was fated to live. But after a thousand years of living, she had come to truly appreciate what he had been trying to tell her.

  And so, taking his suggestion to heart, every day that she was able to, Sophia would sit herself down on this rooftop and watch the sun set over the city. She did her best to appreciate the fleetingness of this world and not become embittered over it. Sometimes she would even manage to get up early enough to watch the sun rise. Though even for an Immortal like herself, it was still hard to get up that early. Maybe even harder as she could honestly tell herself that there would always be a tomorrow.

  Too bad what should have been a tranquil scene was ruined by sounds of construction. The constant pounding of nails being hammered and the grinding of some kind of machinery puking black smoke, made it hard for Sophia to truly appreciate the beauty of the setting sun. It was bad enough that airships were constantly flying in front of her, obscuring her view. At least those moved on eventually. The construction on the other hand went on all day and all night.

  At least someone seemed to be benefiting from the accident that took out an entire city district, she thought to herself, blowing a strand of loose hair out of her face. She looked down at the people diligently working below her as they created a new foundation in what was once an industrial area. That was until one of the plants exploded last winter. A lot of lives were lost but the lives ruined was well into the thousands.

  The result of pushing production over safety and working people to the breaking point. Eventually the machines, or the people working on them, break. When that happened, the supposed profit they had been making became all for not. That was one thing about human behavior that never seemed to change, no matter how much time past.

  Always so focused on the here and now, people never had any sense of what was to come. They never seemed to plan ahead or look to their past for guidance. So many obstacles could easily be avoided if they would only pay attention. They were almost like clockwork in that way, always doing the same thing over and over again. But then Sophia was the exact opposite. She was so busy thinking of the future or dwelling on the past that she rarely bothered with the present.

  Sophia shifted where she sat, looking down at the construction below her. She had heard that when the buildings were finished they were going to stand at least seven stories tall. She was not sure how they would manage a feat like that, considering the base seemed far too small to support some-thing so high. But she knew it had something to do with the new steel beams they were using to help reinforce the walls. She had even heard it said that in the future they would be able to build buildings thirty or even forty stories high. If that turned out to be true, then she would have to find a new place to watch the sun set. Maybe this was a sign that this city had outgrown her and she should move on from it.

  The city of Rouen had been her home since Sophia had settled there over three hundred years ago. Back then, Rouen had been nothing more than a quaint little trading stop along the river. As the years went by, the city slowly, and simultaneously rapidly, grew around her. Never did she wake up one day and find herself surprised at how large it had become. Nor did it seem that long ago that her house was in the middle of the forest a good twenty minute walk to the nearest house. A forest that no longer existed, and her modest home was now packed between other houses.

  Sophia finished the last few bites of her sandwich and tucked the lap napkin back into her leather satchel and flung it across her chest. She swiped up the lady top hat resting on the ledge next to her and twirled it in her hand before resting it gently on her tightly done up hair. With her other hand, she grabbed her walking cane and pushed herself off the ledge of the building, feet first.

  The hand holding her cane was firmly pressed between her legs, keeping her skirt from fluttering as she fell. She used her other hand to firmly hold the brim of her hat to her head, keeping it from blowing away. She landed with an impact that should have shattered every bone in her legs and arms but after a few seconds she rose to her feet and walked on like it was nothing at all. The fall still hurt, but it was nothing she was not used. Any amount of pain could become tolerable given enough time and exposure.

  Straightening herself up, she used her free hand to brush the dust off of her shoulders, readjusting her leather corset before beginning her walk down the now dark alley way. The gas street lights of the major roads were too far away to help illuminate her path but it did not matter, Sophia knew exactly where she was going. She doubted anyone in Rouen knew these streets better her. After all, she had been there when they were built. She likely knew of streets and passageways long forgotten by anyone else.

  She was not concerned about ne’er do wells either. The streets were relatively safe in in this section of the city, and she could easily handle any who might think to change that. So confident was she in her abilities, she had not even been paying attention enough to spot the two people standing in front of her home.

  “Madam Sophia?” a crisp voice called out to her.

  Sophia looked up from her feet, seeing the two people standing outside her door, apparently waiting for her return. Both of them were dressed in dark blue uniforms with the gold trim of the Royal Military of Lear, but one of them had on a suit of armor that covered both shoulders and hands, as well as a collar piece that Sophia knew could extend into a full face helmet.

  It would seem that Sophia was receiving a surprise visit by a knight and their squire. A rather uncommon occurrence, given how Sophia did her best avoid anyone in the military or government, as well as trying to do nothing that would cause her to stand out as anyone of note.

  But the real surprise was not the strange visit that she was receiving but the that the knight who stood before her was actually a woman. As far as Sophia had known, Lear did not have any female knights. She doubted any kingdom did, outside the Eternal Empire. And they were a fair distance away from there.

  “Aye, that’s me,” Sophia said, continuing to walk towards her front door, her pace unbroken by the sight of the soldiers. “What can I do you for?” Sophia asked, looking the two over out the corner of her eye, focusing her attention mo
stly on the woman knight.

  Had it not been for the pristinely military fashioned attire and rigid posture, she might have thought the woman to be some kind of joke. But the knight wore her uniform under her armor with pride, her long black hair held back with a simple ribbon tied into a bow. Like how men wore their hair a hundred years prior. This was someone who was a knight through and through, there was no doubt about that.

  Her squire, on the other hand, was nothing so special. He was young, probably around sixteen, maybe younger. A common age for a squire, most gaining their knighthood somewhere around their early twenties. He carried himself in much the same manner as his knight, only lacking the armor or the more fanciful sword on his hip. He also had a clean shaven face and short dark colored hair, no longer than an inch in length.

  The knight reached into her belt and pulled out a thick leather envelope, held closed by a leather string that wrapped around it. “You have been summoned by his Royal Majesty. We are to escort you to him at once.”

  Sophia paused in front of her door, looking over her shoulder at the woman holding the leather envelope out to her. Sophia turned her shoulders slightly and extended her hand out past the envelope and grabbed one of the woman’s breasts, squeezing it through her thick wool jacket.

  “Sorry,” Sophia said flatly, retracting her hand and opening her door. “Had to check and make sure.”

  “Satisfied?” the knight asked, trying to mask her annoyance. Her squire seemed to have found the whole thing amusing. He was staring off into the air while doing his best to hide a smile and maintain his regale composure.

  “Tell me,” Sophia said as she walked through the threshold of her house, hanging her hat on the wall rack and sliding her cane into the basket next to the door. “Do his Majesty’s Knights often deliver summonses to lowly commoners such as myself?”

  “They do if it is important,” the knight stated, walking in behind Sophia, not waiting for an invitation, her squire a few steps behind her.

  “Or if they don’t like said knight and wish for her to do menial, deg-rading tasks,” Sophia said offhandedly, not caring if the woman heard her or not. She moved into the kitchen and poured herself some tea from the kettle that she had left on the stove before she had left. She did not offer any to her guest and they did not seem to care for any.

  “Regardless,” the knight said, her voice firm. “Your king has summoned you.” She held the envelope out to Sophia once more. “It is your duty as his subject to obey.”

  “I am the subject of no man or king,” Sophia stated coldly, muffling her words with the tea cup. Sophia peered over rim of her cup at the knight and the two of them locked eyes. It would seem that this woman had no intention of letting this go. Not that Sophia ever thought she would. Degrading task or not, she was still going to fulfil her mission and bring Sophia to see his Majesty.

  With a bit of a snort, Sophia placed the teacup on the saucer and set it down on the counter behind her. She then reached out and took the sum-mons. Keeping her eyes focused on the stern looking knight, Sophia undid the leather string and opened the envelope, revealing the sealed piece of thick parchment inside.

  It was in fact a royal seal stamped into the wax holding the parchment closed. Of that she had no doubt. Meaning there was no chance of this being some kind of joke after all. She really was being summoned by the king. That made her wonder what she might have done to earn his attention. She was not so pretty that he would try to take her as a mistress and she had not done anything noteworthy in over a hundred years that should have drawn anyone’s attention to her or her unique abilities. She could not even remember the last time she had used her magic.

  Taking a kitchen knife from the counter, she used the blade to break the wax seal and unfolded the letter, holding it up to the light so she could read it. Its contents were basic and simple. A lot of flowery words that when paraphrased said: come to the palace at once or face the consequences. From your loving king. Thank the Alfather for me.

  Sophia seriously contemplated just tossing the letter away right there and then.

  One of the other Immortals that Sophia knew, Allora, would often say that Sophia’s immortality made her fearless, but also careless. That she tended not to give things the caution they truly deserved, thinking that her immortality made her invulnerable. Sophia would often retort that it did in fact make her invulnerable, but Allora would always smile and say;

  ‘There is no such thing as invulnerable.’

  Sophia hated that smug smile of hers. Especially when she was right.

  Taking a quick breath to calm herself, she decided it was better to play along for the time being. That meant no crumpling up the letter and daring the knight to do something about it. But if nothing else, she was intrigued and wanted to know what this was about.

  “And what might I ask does his Majesty want with a simpleton like myself?” Sophia asked, folding the letter back up and slipping it back inside the envelope.

  “That is for his Majesty to discuss,” the knight stated, her eyes cold. But Sophia could tell this woman also wanted to know what was so important to merit a late night summons of a woman whom, by all accounts, was nothing more than a middle class commoner.

  The knight stepped off to the side, extending her hand towards the door. Her armor rustling as she did so. The squire moved back as well, giving Sophia plenty of room.

  “If you are ready,” the knight said without even the courtesy of a false smile. “We have a coach waiting outside that will take you to the Palace.”

  ***

  The inside of the Royal Palace was just as grandiose as the outside had been. The outside being surrounded by a thick glass dome with countless air filters that shielded the Palace from the smog and pollution made by the city that encompassed it. The grounds around a lush garden that could have only survive with an army of groundskeepers giving it constant care.

  The majestic halls were well carpeted with stain glass windows that towered over them as they walked. Each one depicting a mural like story of something regarding Lear’s history or religion.

  The Palace had been constructed with comfort in mind and not defensibility. Not surprising as it was built after the implementation of airships and artillery, making conventional defenses meaningless. Gone were the days of city walls and moats. Replaced by large artillery emplacements meant to shoot ships out of the sky long before they ever reached the city.

  In-between the towering windows hung beautifully made tapestries, embroidered with the crests of various noble houses along with portraits commemorating various people for various deeds. All of them seeming stoic and flawless as their gaze was locked straight ahead. Sophia had known some of the people depicted in those paintings. None of them to her memory looked anything like their portrayal here.

  Sophia followed the knight and her squire down the long hallway. Neither of them having said a word to her since leaving the house. Sophia had replied in kind, deciding it best to save her questions for someone who might actually be able to give her answers. The only sound Sophia could hear was clanking of their sabers bouncing against their hips and the rustling sound of the knight’s armor echoing throughout the empty hallway.

  They had not entered through the front entrance of the Palace which was reserved for nobles and visiting dignitaries. Instead, they had taken one of the numerous side entrances that was considered more fitting for someone of Sophia’s low social ranking. They had easily gotten past any of the guards who might have stopped them and, at a certain point, the halls had become barren of human life all together.

  If Sophia had to guess, she would assume they had entered into the noble’s wing. Nobles tended to be a secretive lot and very protective of said secrecy. So much so that they did not trust there to be too many eyes to see or ears to overhear things. They would rather leave themselves potentially vulnerable to an attack than to an eavesdropper.

  But even as Sophia thought that she started to feel a slight buzz on
the back of her neck. She did her best not to be noticeable as she glanced around searching for the source. She had felt this kind of buzzing numerous times over the past thousand years.

  It was a rather simple counter magic rune that was meant to prevent any spells from being cast in a short radius. Going off of the intense humming in her chest, there were hundreds of them all around the Palace. Likely behind every tapestry, judging by how they were spaced, and quite possibly under the very carpet they walked on.

  Clever, she thought, genuinely impressed. Maybe this place was not so indefensible after all.

  She doubted even a powerful spell caster could use magic inside these walls. So she was sure there was no way she would be able to do anything with her trifling magical abilities. Not that she had planned on casting any spells, but it did limit her options should something go wrong, as they tended to do.

  The woman knight stopped in front of a large, double wooden door with steel reinforcements welded into them.

  “In here,” the woman said, gripping both of the handles. With one giant heave, she pulled both doors open.

  Inside was a large parlor-like room furnished with décor almost as old as Sophia was. She even recognized some of the furniture as being junk she had passed over back when it was new and being sold in bulk.

  A lot of money had gone into giving this room a refined sense of elegance with a feeling of age and tradition. Even the drapes around the windows were old, yet regale looking.

  The knight stepped to the side, allowing Sophia to enter the room first and moved in immediately after her. The squire entered last, turning around and closing the door behind them with a loud thud.

  Standing across the large room was an older gentleman well into his twilight years. He stared out the window at the green garden several stories below, his back to the rest of them.

  The old man was finely dressed in typical aristocratic attire, with a thin blue sash that hung over his tail coat, distinguishing him as high nobility. As if his shiny laced up shoes and bright colored shirt was not enough of a giveaway to his status.