by Rick Field
His lips twisted in a slightly wider grin. “Ah, My Lady, should the Overseer give me paid time off, she wouldn't have to order it. If enforced paid vacation is your only plight, then I would gladly accept your burden as my own.”
Liane did shake her head. Afraim could be very silly sometimes, but he had made her feel better. “Lunch or dinner would be good, My Lord,” she said, wanting to bring the conversation to a close before he managed to break her Decorum. Once, he had managed to make her laugh. In front of half a dozen other Pillars. It had been humiliating.
“Perhaps I may call on you, depending on my assignment load? I should have my current assignment completed within the next few days, perhaps near the end of the week,” he offered.
“That sounds very good, My Lord. Please ensure that the restaurant is of impeccable taste and reputation. With all the help I have given you, I should make a fair attempt at lightening your purse.” He almost laughed again, enjoying her attempt at staying in the verbal game.
“I am looking forward to it, My Lady,” Afraim the Necromancer said, holding open the door for her to exit the wing. “Have a good day, My Lady.”
“Have a good day as well, My Lord,” she greeted, and left while thinking about Lord Pertogan, another childhood friend. He was a Necromancer as well, and just like Lord Afraim, he lived life to the fullest. Perhaps it was due to their magic; after being surrounded by death one could not help but live life to the fullest.
She relaxed; maybe this vacation thing wouldn't be so bad after all. The anticipation of an excellent meal with a good colleague lifted her spirits, and a wave of possibilities opened itself to her. She could actually go to the market. It had been over a year since she had been able to do that. And tomorrow, well tomorrow was that day. It would be nice to see her old Assistant again. Maybe she would get a chance to exchange a few words with her. Yes, her vacation time was rapidly filling up, now that she thought about it.
Rather than walk out the palace the same way she had originally arrived, Liane took a different turn and walked to the storage depots attached to it. Holding everything needed to supply the palace, from food to cleaning agents, the depots also served to store carriages, weapons, and all other sorts of equipment needed.
As such, the depots were numerous as well as varied in size and shape depending on what they stored. Finding the one she wanted, the Pillar pulled open both double doors with a burst of magic from her staff, and strode in eagerly. The depot she had entered was about two stories tall, with its walls covered in racks holding all sorts of materials needed to repair, replace, or otherwise recondition carriages and chariots of all shapes and sizes.
The center of the building was open-plan, holding a couple of mobile tables that were currently laden with tools, and a couple of jacks and other heavy machinery that could be used to replace broken wheels.
At the moment, with nobody at work in the depot, the central area was devoid of broken or damaged machinery. Liane looked around, then strode to one corner, where a large object was hidden under a tarp. To her magical sight, runic seals glowed a murky red, showing the protections were active, and hadn't been tampered with.
She spoke her passcode, waving her free hand in the required patterns. The tarp's runes died out quietly.
Pulling the cover off, Liane cast a spell to make it fold itself while she studied the object that had been revealed. It was a golden-colored and streamlined carriage with no wheels. As it sat on the floor, it looked rather flat, but Liane knew from experience that the perception was very different once the floating carriage came off the ground.
The tarp had folded itself and floated into the boot almost eagerly. Maybe it was just her magic giving that impression, but Liane definitely knew she had missed this. Pulling the door open, the Mage sat herself behind the controls. The staff was placed on the set of seats behind her.
Her hand came up, touching the central control rune that would allow power to run through the floater's dormant systems. A large dial in front of her lit up, a few smaller ones lighting up on either side of it. The control column vibrated as the floater came off the ground and finally became worthy of its name.
Liane grabbed the controls, and eagerly, effortlessly, pulled the floating cart out of its parking spot, backing it out of the depot without issue. A single wave of her hand closed the doors once more, and the Pillar pushed the controls.
The floater did not hesitate, and the acceleration pushed Liane back into the comfortable seats. She raced down the Palace's access way, before shoving hard on the brakes. The floater halted as quickly as it had accelerated. A pleased smile appeared on her lips. She really had missed her own personal floating cart.
She eased it out into the busy traffic of Kiria's capital city, and navigated expertly through the horse-drawn carriages and foot-traffic until she finally reached the open road leading out of the city. Rather than take the turnoff toward Carnach, she took the road toward Sevenoaks, and pushed the controls to maximum.
The cart rocketed forward, floating effortlessly above the stone pavement. The tension ebbed from her shoulders and Liane allowed herself to remember the memorable trip she had taken with her young Assistant, a trip taken in an effort to save her best friend, Milor. She wished she had known of his hidden past earlier; perhaps it would have made a difference.
Maybe she would have stuck closer to him, maybe she would have been able to protect him from being kidnapped. Or maybe she wouldn't have fought with him as much during the time they had been imprisoned by his kidnappers.
Or perhaps it wouldn't have made a difference. She had to accept that the Rules of Equality were there for a reason. They hadn't been allowed to discuss their backgrounds or families while in school. She had long since accepted that, but it did not stop her from wondering how things might have gone differently.
That her best friend had turned out to be the crown prince of Kiria's Imperial Dynasty had been an unwelcome surprise for her. She had always known there was something different about her friend, but this difference had gotten him kidnapped, and had gotten Liane and her Assistant imprisoned, stripped, humiliated, and nearly raped.
It wasn't the first time she took this road, and it wasn't the first time she had this internal dialogue with herself. Remembering the past and allowing her thoughts to escape from daily life was an excellent way to relax, especially when it could be done in the comfort of an enclosed floating cart of her own design.
Floaters were usually large, bulky, and had a top speed about the same as a horse and cart. Liane still smiled when she thought about how she had demonstrated her own design; a design whose secrets she kept hidden for a very good reason.
Permanent power anchors were huge stones and generated power indefinitely. Due to their weight and size, they were only useful for wards and permanent charms on large buildings.
All floaters used huge power tokens, tokens that were heavy and expensive, but held only a limited charge. Her own floating cart used something she had discovered by accident while still in school, a way to shrink down permanent magical power anchors to the point they became portable. Of course, the amount of power they generated dropped along with their size.
It had been a challenge for her to enchant something large enough to permanently generate enough power to fuel her floating cart, but not be so large and bulky that it kept her from reaching the speeds she had wanted.
The cart raced along the road, now well away from the Kirian capital. She felt the area of influence of the city die out, its magical tax no longer drawing from her magical abilities. She breathed easier. Even at her speed it would take another half hour to reach Sevenoaks. She had plenty of time to think and relax in the plush seats.
********
She arrived in Sevenoaks without incident, and slowed down when she started nearing the town. She slowed down even more when a couple of children screamed and started chasing her. She smiled tolerantly, hidden in the safety of her closed-canopy floating car. Child
ren loved floaters, and by the time she arrived in the village square, she had a few dozen of them chasing her, screaming and yelling.
When she parked in a narrow side street, out of the way, the children simply stared at her when she got out, locked, and left her vehicle. By the time she entered the tavern, they had dispersed to play other games. There was not much fun to be had at chasing a floater that did not move.
This was hardly her first trip here, and the locals had gotten quite used to the eccentric Mage that drove a really fast floating cart and would stop to have a drink at their tavern every now and again. Unfortunately for Liane, all the tables seemed occupied, so she sat herself at the counter and ordered a pint of the local beer.
She loved the beer in Sevenoaks.
The locals left her alone, merely chatting with each other and gossiping about her. It was fine with her; as long as they gossiped, they didn't bother her. The tavern keeper seemed to recognize her moods by now, and merely handed her the pint without engaging her in conversation. There were times that she seemed more approachable and where he would venture small talk with the strange Noble that frequented his place, but today she seemed especially closed off.
She nodded in appreciation for being left alone, and drank her beer. Alcohol made her feel funny so she never over-indulged, and thus Liane paid for her single pint, nodded a good day to the innkeeper, and walked out again, feeling better about herself. The drive was relaxing, the beer was good, the weather was warm and the sun was shining.
What more could anyone want?
Getting back in her vehicle, she left Sevenoaks. It was time to bite the bullet and go home. She hardly noticed the screaming gaggle of children that chased her out of the village.
She did notice when they screamed in loud protest when she floored the controls the moment the car left the community and the acceleration far outpaced them. For a moment, she had to resist the urge to roll down a window and wave tauntingly. By that time, she had reached a speed that would have made the gesture futile anyway.
Returning to the capital seemed to go far faster than driving out here, and it wasn't long before she pulled her floater into the garage built especially for it, attached to a mansion that was far larger than she needed. Located not far from her starting point at the Imperial Palace, her townhouse reached three stories above ground, two stories below, and was large enough to house two dozen of the same orphanages that she had grown up in.
It was a stupendous display of wealth and power, one that she hadn't originally wanted.
Unfortunately, being a Kirian Noble came with responsibilities, and becoming a Pillar burdened her with even more of them. One of those responsibilities was to accept gifts given… and when the Crown Prince of Kiria decided to give her a house as thanks for rescuing him and his title, she had no choice but to accept.
In the end, the house was much too large for her, but she had to admit that it had every comfort imaginable, and plenty of room for her to spread out in.
After getting out of her car, she found her butler already waiting just outside the garage. If it had been raining, the poor man would have brought an umbrella to shield her while getting soaked himself.
“Welcome back, My Lady. I trust everything is well?” the man asked.
“As well as can be expected, Dominique,” Liane answered easily, waving at the doors of the garage to close them. “I am looking forward to two weeks of vacation, starting tomorrow. Please have a hot bath drawn for me, after which I will take some tea in the experimentation room.”
“Of course, My Lady,” Dominique said as they walked to the main entrance of the house. It wouldn't do for a Noble to enter her own home through the servants' side entrance. “What tea would My Lady like?”
Liane thought for a moment. “I think I'll have some Iron Belly.”
“Very good, My Lady,” the butler spoke, opening the door for her. Immediately, he spotted one of the maids, who was cleaning an antique vase that sat on a pedestal right next to the grand staircase leading upstairs. “Have a hot bath drawn for My Lady, Ophie.”
“Of course, sir,” Ophie said, immediately walking off to start Liane's bath. Meanwhile, Liane had placed her staff on her custom-built weapon's rack, and Dominique had taken her coat. The Noble felt as bemused as always at the sight of the order of importance within her servants. Dominique, the butler, was the one that ran the household, he was responsible for its workings and ensuring that everyone did as ordered. He was also responsible for serving drinks and meals, and there was a manservant present at all times to assist him with serving meals, should she have unexpected visitors. There was a gardener that took care of the grounds, as little as there were here in the city. The cooks prepared food and ran the kitchen, the maids cleaned the house and laundered clothes.
Compared to most of the other Nobles, Liane had a very small household. She didn't have a handmaiden (she could dress herself perfectly well, thank you very much), nor did she employ any Assistant or Apprentice level Nobles to assist her in developing magic.
Dominique returned after placing her coat on the coatrack, and found her looking at one of the paintings that adorned the walls of the spacious and bombastically impressive entrance hall. “I do not recall seeing that before, Dominique. Is it new?” the Noble asked.
“It is, My Lady. Toris's latest painting, Mists at Dawn on Mount Sina,” her butler said, not offering his own opinion.
Liane studied it for a few moments longer. Toris was one of her favorite painters, to the point where she had actually offered to become his patron, which he had immediately accepted with profuse gratitude. Her impoverished upbringing had winced at the expenditure that was involved in becoming an art patron, but her adult reason had noted the total expense was something she could afford quite easily and never have to suffer for it.
Toris, a new artist in the Kirian art scene, had gone from struggling painter to well-known artist practically overnight.
Unfortunately for other collectors of the fine arts, being a patron carried its advantages, and Liane always got first pick at any new work her favorite painter made.
His latest work, which now decorated her entrance hall, seemed to harmonize well with the work it was hanging right next to, one of his earlier works, Full Moon over Sevenoaks.
Full Moon managed to capture both the ethereal quality of the night, the ghostly shadows created by a full moon, and yet make the work breathe adventure and mystery rather than gothic fear-mongering. Very few artists managed to capture a night scene without turning it into something scary and repulsive.
His latest work, Mists at Dawn on Mount Sina, seemed to go in the same trend. The sun was just peeking over the horizon in the far distance, burning through the wispy mists of the lingering night that still clung to the mighty slopes of the extinct volcano that sat at the heart of the island.
She loved it.
“It is probably one of his best works to date. What do you think, Dominique?” she finally said.
Her butler considered his words. “It is an attractive display, My Lady,” he replied at last.
Liane shook her head quietly. Her butler wouldn't know fine art if it hit him over the head.
Ophie returned, coming into the entrance hall from one of the side doors leading to the servants' wing. Had she taken the long way around, using the small servants' staircase, to go up, draw the bath, and return? “Your bath has been drawn, My Lady,” she announced, answering Liane's internal question.
“Thank you, Ophie,” the Noble said, using the grand staircase. Her personal quarters were on the top floor, despite the fact that most Nobles preferred having them just one floor up. Liane liked the view and the idea that anyone who wanted to disturb her would have to climb. Plus, running stairs kept both herself and her staff fit.
The bathroom she emerged into was plush and posh, covered in black tiles that both gripped bare, wet, feet, and yet were easy to maintain despite their color. Magic had its advantages.
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nbsp; The bath was a sunken hole in the middle of the floor, and Liane made short work of getting out of her crystal-blue robes with animated flames dancing at the borders. Normally, her robes were only animated when at the Academy.
She'd entered the necessary requirements for animating the flames into her house charms as soon as she had received it.
Finally nude, she descended the three steps into the large bath, and submerged herself completely in the piping-hot water. Her skin complained at the high temperature. She ignored it. Within a minute or two, she was used to the temperature, and simply relaxed in the large bath, letting her body drift and float. It was large enough for her to share the bath with half a dozen others, if that were not too scandalous a thought to entertain, so there was plenty of room for her to float freely.
She closed her eyes and let the stress ebb from her body.
For close to an hour, she floated and relaxed, before emerging once more, red and wrinkled, from the steamy waters. Once more, magic had its advantages. This time, in keeping her bathwater warm.