4. Adrian
Adrian
This shirt was too tight.
I pulled at the waistcoat, praying that eventually it would release from my skin, even a bit. Alas, all my efforts proved fruitless, and I was caught in the infernal contraption once more.
“Stop fussing,” Connie said as she strode by, ale in hand. She didn’t have to attend this part of the mission.
I was flying solo for this one.
“At least you don’t have to be tied up in these tight clothes,” I shot back. Connie was my right hand, and had been since I started. She was reliable, not to mention bad ass.
“I wear a corset every day,” she snorted. “You can deal with a waistcoat for a day.”
I huffed. Moons, this was ridiculous. I had no clue if it would even work. I turned the pocket watch in my trousers, affirming it was still there, but also just to give me something to do with my hands.
“You should get going,” she pointed out. “Most guests are arriving the night before, and we had the carriage set up to pick you up at sundown.”
She was right. It was almost time for me to pretend to be one of these people. I wasn’t sure if I could pull it off, but we would see.
“Wait, Cap,” Anne said, whipping around the corner and almost tripping over her own feet. Anne was one of my newest crew members. She was just getting her sea legs, but she was scrappy and willing to learn, traits I valued highly in my members. “I got this for ya.”
She held out a chain, shined with a clip on one end and a dark blue brooch on the other side.
I held it up. “A watch chain?”
She nodded. “Got it from one of our last runs. It needed some shining and a new chain link, but it was no trouble. Just like repairing the anchor.”
That was the other thing that made her so valuable. She was one of the best tinkerers I’d ever met, making her perfect for fixing things around the ship. “You didn’t have to,” I insisted. “I don’t give special treatment for gifts.”
Her eyes turned the size of a wheel head. “No, not like that at all,” she insisted. “I just wanted to do something nice, no expectations, promise.”
My smile cracked through, unable to help it. “Thank you, Anne.”
She bowed like I was some kind of royalty. “Thank you, Captain.”
“Scallywag!” one of the other crew members called from across the deck. It was a name she was quickly familiarized with.
“Good luck then.” She bowed again before scurrying off to see what Links needed.
My hands went to adjust my hat before I realized I wasn’t wearing it. My long, somewhat unruly hair was tied back in a half up bun style that was common for the nobility of Yerev, where I was pretending to be from.
Well, it was where I was from, but I was far from royalty. But for the next couple days, it was my job to convince them otherwise. Which meant leaving the hat I wore constantly behind.
With a few more rolls of my shoulders I walked down the ramp towards the dock. I spent little time in Peradona myself, but I knew enough about it. It was a nation large in not only trade, but also travel. So it wasn’t unusual for a noble from a different nation to enter on the docks.
Bramwell walked beside me, but slightly behind. This was how nobles tended to act, and even other captains I’d met. I never saw the point in it honestly. If you needed your people to walk behind you to feel as if they respected you, then that respect wasn’t earned.
For the purpose of this mission however, this was what needed to be done.
Bramwell was the perfect person to come with me as the other half of my cabinet.
While Connie was tactful and the brawn the team needed, Bramwell was a reader.
There had yet to be a book we encountered he hadn’t at least skimmed.
His wealth of knowledge was something I wasn’t sure how I’d done anything without.
Which meant he knew a lot about noble customs I’d spend my entire life avoiding.
Which in part included pretending the people beneath you in the pecking order didn’t exist.
Moons, this was going to be a long two days.
It was strange watching people split the path for us, creating room for someone they perceived as higher than them. Even as a captain I didn’t get this kind of treatment from others, but as someone with shined buttons and a jewel-encrusted broach, the sea split wide open for me.
The sun was just cresting over the city as we entered the gaudy carriage. I had to wrap my tail in a tight coil to fit comfortably and duck my head slightly. These human things were not built for me, obviously.
Bramwell was able to sneak in easily. As a shifter, he appeared human most of the time. If he changed, however, no one would fit in this small area.
As soon as the door was clicked shut the horses ahead began their trot down the cobblestone streets.
The city was much different than the ones of Yerev.
While the buildings of Yerev were usually made of light, white stones and had tall ceilings to help battle some of the heat, Peradona had shorter buildings with darker brick, all smooshed together on either side to create dense walls of city blocks.
It made sense with the landscape, but at the same time it made it feel very claustrophobic.
However, as we moved further from the dock and closer to the manor, the more space that was provided, with houses now littered across the street with larger yards. And the manor on top of the hill seemed to encase acres upon acres of land, all held behind a wrought iron fence.
The building was in the same style as the ones below, just blown up to a scale that was unnecessary for anyone.
“Ready, sir?” Bramwell said. He’d already exited the carriage and was waiting patiently for me with the door open.
I rolled my eyes since we were the only ones visible, and he gave the smallest smirk of acknowledgment before turning blank and staring forward, as if I didn’t exist either.
Such a weird formality.
Someone was there to greet us quickly. It was a stout human, with a list in his hand. He bowed at me. “Hello sir, excellent to have you here. Could I get your name so we can get you settled in.”
“Augustus Chalamond,” I said. I’d had to recite it to myself a bunch of times. Who came up with this horrendous name, I might never know.
His finger slid across the list. “Sir Chalamond, I have you right here.” He took the quill in his hand, dipped it in the ink pot secured in the corner and crossed my name off. It reminded me of when Chef Lou did the inventory of the stores on the ship.
“If you want to come right this way, they’ll take your bags to your room. Dinner just began if you’d like to join in.”
Great. I thought I’d be late enough to skip, but it seemed not. “Excellent,” I said instead, keeping my pleasant, but disinterested smile. “Thank you.”
He bowed again before stepping aside to give me space.
I slithered up the stairs, my tail gliding over each step as we were led through the halls.
I did my best to look bored and disinterested, but in reality I was memorizing every exit and corridor I was led through.
Though dinner sounded truly horrible, it would give me another excuse to learn more about the place outside of maps and blueprints we’d managed to find.
That was important when you planned to steal something from a princess.
Our rooms were down a large hall that was uniformly lined with doors. I assumed all the other guests were here, which would make it even easier if my target was in proximity.
Once we were shut behind the doors and all of the bags were brought in I allowed myself to relax.
“Moons, this sucks.” I wrapped my tail in a tight coil to rest on. None of the furniture here would be suitable for me to sit in. I would be surprised if the bed would even work.
“Oh, I wouldn’t say it’s all bad,” Bramwell said. “We could be trapped in the mud pits of Coralin again. At least we’re getting fed here.”
I let out a laugh. It was fair, we had definitely been in objectively worse situations. But at least I didn’t need to worry about using the correct fork in the mud pits.
“You’re correct,” I confirmed. “We should probably go soon if dinner has already started.”
He nodded. “Except I think you’re on your own for this one. No one’s bringing their steward to dinner.”
Great, even worse. “You’re right.” I rolled my neck, gearing up for what I was sure would be a nightmarish evening. “While I’m gone—”
“Lay a perimeter, don’t get caught, review the plans. I know, Cap.”
I scowled, but didn’t let it linger. “I get it, you’re capable.”
“Nope, you’re just predictable.”
“Ass.” I nudged his shoulder as I moved towards the door. With each slither forward I let my back straighten and my posture correct. Nobles always had good posture. With one last glance to Bramwell I left the safety of our rooms and entered into what felt like the lion’s den.
Moons have mercy.