Running Out of Servants

Ploink~ ♪

Teo winced at the sound from his cittern. He continued his attempts to tune it, under Ekliptik's intense stare. Kid enjoyed his playing, but their total tone-deafness completely prevented them from learning anything from him. Not that he was much of a teacher, to be honest.

It has been a few quiet days since that absolute nightmare that happened right under Hexkey's nose. Prony and Cinda were already walking around the manor, he couldn't help but feel as if he was tripping over them on every corner. He figured they won't get into any worse trouble if they stay quiet and don't rob the Governor. The situation in the city was calming down, and they were nearly ready to begin with classes. He used the calm to check out the state of their ship, and took his cittern with him when he was leaving.

He wanted to play it for Lord Nivelir...

Preferably under his balcony, under the light of stars and moons, while a gentle breeze carries the sweet scent of oleanders through the air...

Unfortunately, despite it being nighttime, he was currently doing none of the above. The three of them were winding down in a quiet drawing room on the upper floor, here to discuss the day's events. As usual. Tea was resting inside a fancy porcelain pot, Nita was reading the letters she'd received that day, and Ekliptik was lurking. That beautiful, overworked man had already retired for the night. If he bothered him with music just as he was about to go to bed, Lord Nivelir would certainly be angry with him. And he simply could not allow that. Besides, these meetings were of importance for the future of Hannau Cove. His burning love demanded a lid on it for the time being.

Nita let out a laugh and set one of the letters down on the couch next to her.

"What did you get?" he asked.
"A response from Baroness Mayberry. I believe she'll be a valuable ally. You'll enjoy her company."
"What's she saying?"
"I sent her the designs from that tailor Lord Governor had found. She called them 'kitsch rags that would make the most divine saint look as abhorrent as the devil lords'," she said fondly.
"Sounds about right. Where did he even get that man? His outfits are impeccable, there is no way they were made by him."
"He didn't know a tailor in the city, so this was just one man that was recommended to him," she said. "Baroness will provide us with her tailor's services, so you don't need to worry."
Teo wasn't worried. Well, they will need to charm the nobility. He will worry about outfits at that time. Until then, however, this was quite alright.

"How are we with the money?" he asked.
"The Captains that agreed to fund this along with us are all on time. A few more have joined into the idea. For now, I don't see any chicanery with the money."
"Well, that sounds good."
"For now, aye. While we're at Captains, I noticed Jason was here again today. Think she's up to something?"
"I could keep an eye?" Ekliptik offered.
"Are you going to tell us if anything happens?" Teo asked. Alright, that came off meaner than he wanted. Nita shot him a glare.

"M'sorry," they awkwardly said. "I- I panicked. Thought Rosamund oughta handle it. His men."
"And he handled it," Nita said. "And you've learned something new for the future. Let us know next time. You got lucky Lord Secretary managed to handle the situation in the city."
"I know," they said.
"I'm sorry, kid. I'm on edge these days." Who wouldn't be? The incident only showed him how fragile the whole situation was. One wrong move, and they'll die before Lord Governor even manages to react.

If he even tries to.

Paranoia was rooting itself too deep into his brain. He took a deep breath, in and out. Keeping a lid on it. Lord Governor, it was now crystal clear, will assist them. So there was no need to continue with this line of thought. As for the other people in the city... ah, to Hells with it. He had his cittern, he had his charm. He can manage the commoners opinion with a few more people who knew how to play music. He'll get to it tomorrow, in fact.

♫ ♪ ♪♫♪𝆗

Better. He was also feeling better. The instrument was tuned, today's news were good, their ship was in good shape, and he was willing to give Lord Governor his trust.

"You're doing a good job, Ekliptik. You just have big shoes to fill. I'm sorry I snapped."
They shrugged. "It's aight."
"Pour us tea?" he asked.
"Aight."

Ekliptik poured three cups of tea and left one next to Nita. She took a sip as she was opening the next letter, and they walked over to Teo with two more cups. They had a seat next to him, clearly waiting for him to continue playing. He set the cittern down instead, and picked up his cup. Hmm... ginger, orange, lemon, and another scent that was nearly hidden by the strong fruits-


He slapped the cup out of Ekliptik's hands.

The porcelain shattered on the floor. His heart was beating in his ears, and he could feel his hands grow cold as terror was taking over his body.

"Poison," he said.
"How bad?" Nita asked.
"Can you stand?"
On her first attempt, she fumbled back on the couch, holding onto her head. Low pressure. She managed to get on her feet on her second try.
"I didn't drink," Ekliptik said.
"Me neither," he said, getting up.

The three exchanged glances one last time before they went for the door. They immediately split up, clear on what to do.

~~~

Rosamund sipped his tea, reading the reports on the matters of the house. It was just a bit of light reading before sleep, the papers were of such low importance he felt more than comfortable to read them in his bedroom. It was too early to begin public preparations for the celebration of his inauguration, but he could still get some things ready. Ansatz gladly recommended him the people he needed to see for the organization of decorations. He will contact them only after he clears his name from this scandal with Vice Admiral Khamil, but until them, he had the time to have a look at them and pick the best fits. The spending of the household was still within the limits of the budget. He had a little extra he could use for the event, too...

The papers fell out of his hands. Mildly confused, he set the teacup down, but it fell over, the vibrant liquid pouring out on the small table and the floor. The maid who was in the bedroom to take the dishes away after he was done approached to assist him as he bent down to pick up the papers before the tea could reach them.

"No need, thank you. I am simply a bit-" clumsy tonight. He felt a sharp pain in his chest. He didn't manage to finish the sentence. With deep horror, he realized he couldn't really say anything, barely managing to stay sitting by tightly gripping the armrest of his chair.

"Don't worry, my lord. You'll feel all better soon," the maid said quietly. She didn't call for help. Instead, she took an ice pick out of her sleeve.

He helplessly watched her approach him, unable to move out of her way. The metal gleamed as she raised her hands.

This was it. He tightly closed his eyes. Maybe this time, it won't hurt...

~~~

He had no idea where Soxhlet's room would be, but he knew where Lilac was. Nita needed the antidote immediately. Lilac would surely have it. Limping towards his bedroom, he cursed his damned leg in every language he could think of, while his panicked mind went through every possibility he could think of. Attack on them? Attack on the Governor? Were the people in the city safe? Attack on them? They couldn't trust the guards, so none from the trio shouted for help.

He fell over in the dim hallway, and cursed again as he was getting up. At least the pain had cleared his head. He burst into Lilac's room and cursed at him, too. He was on the ground, visibly in pain, clutching onto his chest.
"T-teo-" he called. His voice was weak, he was barely able to speak. He drank his tea just as he was about to go to bed, he was already in his nightwear. He must've realized what was happening, because he fell over right in front of a cabinet filled with bottles of various shapes and sizes.
"Where's the antidote?" Teo asked.
Lilac weakly pointed. His entire body was shaking, so Teo just opened the cabinet and grabbed onto bottles until the man finally gave him a nod. He gave him a sip, holding him up. Some color returned to his face, and he refused to drink more.

"One man. One sip. Find Rose," he ordered clearly.

Screw the Governor, he had Nita coming for him. He needed to find Lord Nivelir first. He gave Lilac a nod and gently leaned him against the cabinet.
He limped out. Carefully. He was tightly gripping the bottle, keeping his mind calm. No falling over this time. No panicking.

~~~

The double-winged wooden door crashed open under the force of her kick. She didn't even bother trying to check if it was open or not - she needed to get to Rosamund. The crash distracted the armed woman from striking him. The woman started turning around, defensively raising her arms in front of her. She threw a cutlass and missed her completely. The cutlass hit a painting before bouncing harmlessly off the wall and hitting the floor with a loud clang.

Shit.

The poison was definitely messing her up. She made her way up here, but moving around made it circulate through her body like a stream of ice. Her vision was getting blurry. Barely holding her balance, she tightly gripped the other cutlass. The room was swaying as if she were on a ship, but she was hanging on as she walked towards the woman. It seemed the would-be assassin decided it was more important to focus on her, and she was right. If that ice pick made its way to Rosamund, the woman would be dead. Unfortunately, killing her won't be that easy.

She stepped away from him, tightly gripping the ice pick. Adanita quickly put herself between them. She couldn't check on his condition while the assassin was still here, but at least there was no blood.

He will survive.

The woman eyed her as if she was trying to figure out whether she was sufficiently weakened. She moved as if she wanted to find a way around. Rosamund was her target and she was clearly trying to avoid having to fight her. Refusing to show weakness, Adanita swung her cutlass at her. She got out of the way easily, with sudden look of confidence. Intent on wiping that look off her face, she swung again, and got stabbed in the forearm for it. She let out a hiss as the assassin pulled the ice pick out of her arm. She was just a moment too slow. Adanita grabbed her wrist and pulled her closer, slamming her forehead into her face. The dazed assassin almost lost her footing. Adanita grabbed her by the neck with her free hand. If she kills her, they won't know who sent her. Meaning, keep her alive if possible. Either way, she wasn't getting away.

Gasping for air, the woman threw the ice pick at her. It lodged into her shoulder, and pain momentarily had Adanita weaken her grasp. The woman used the chance to kick her for good measure, and got out of her reach. She reached Rosamund's cabinet with drinks and picked up a large glass bottle, ready to throw it at her. A dagger lodged into her wrist, and the bottle fell to the floor.

Ekliptik.

Accompanied by Doctor Soxhlet.

Assassin realized she was heavily outnumbered and jumped through the glass balcony door.

"Find her!" Adanita shouted. "Don't let her get away!" By this point, the sounds of fighting had alerted the guards.

Ekliptik followed her to the balcony, and jumped off after her.

Shivering and breathing heavily, she finally turned to Rosamund. He was unconscious, and his doctor was checking his condition. It didn't seem as if she had any antidotes on her, though. Hopefully Teo was luckier. Ah, and there he was, limping in with a bottle just a minute later. She recognized the way he walked, no matter how blurry her eyes were. Now that he was there, she could relax. He can protect him, and she can sit on the floor. Thankfully, he first made Rosamund drink, before he gave the medicine to her as well. Shivering, she started to feel better.

"You're bleeding a lot, Nita..." His voice was oddly distant, and the edges of her vision began to turn a darker color. "Doctor, her first!"

No, no, she was fine. Rosamund first. Rosamund must live. She will be fine.

Just fine.

Teo grabbed onto her before she could fit the floor, holding her in his warm embrace. Doctor Soxhlet grabbed onto her too, and they carried her farther, farther away from him...