This was not, however, the end of that night.

Mina appeared back on the second floor of her workshop, her mind buzzing with possibilities. She wasn't able to learn everything in only a couple hours, naturally, but what she had learned was nearly enough to…

She chewed her lip as she stood staring at the wall. Well, I'm not quite certain what to do with it yet, but there must be some relation to these mysterious machines. The one I've studied shows no direct source of holding fuel, and it can't possibly utilize magic while simultaneously nullifying it. If Ir'alith is successful in her attempt to procure an active one later today, I imagine Valgud and I should manage to make great progress. It was so nice to see him again after—

"You're back," said Phonia in a quiet voice.

Mina jumped. The construct had been leaning up against the wall in the darkness, and its shape was only barely visible by the minuscule amount of light trickling in through the windows to the side and the slight glow of its eyes.

"I waited for hours," it continued. "You and master give the most boring orders."

"Yes, yes, I'm certain we do," Mina said in annoyance when she recalled her other plans for the night. She yawned. "You've located the places I've specified?"

"I did," Phonia said. It pushed itself off the wall and stepped nearer, standing slightly too close. "You know, I really don't think this is what master meant."

"Regardless, he did order it," Mina said. She bent down and picked up an object off the floor.

"I could just make you stay here," Phonia said. "Then you'd definitely be safe." Its voice grew more excited as it spoke. "And then maybe he'd be so happy with me that he'd finally fuck me!"

Mina sighed. This thing is so clever, yet so dull-witted. It resembles Jungrathol in a certain manner, but I believe even he functions with a higher level of logic than this phony woman-thing. The idea of anyone desiring to fornicate with something so witless is truly revolting. "You're quite welcome to attempt it," she whispered, staring into the softly-glowing eyes, "but I'm quite certain you'll achieve nothing more than making him cross with the both of us. And then, well, I should think he'll put you in time-out once more as punishment."

Phonia whimpered.

Yes, it seemed the doll, as Carl referred to it, had a weakness. It positively loathed being made to sit motionless and speechless in one of the workshop's corners. With this fact in mind, combined with what she'd gleaned of Carl's orders to it, the teachings of her governance tutors had come to the fore.

Namely negotiating.

"Now then," Mina said, setting her free hand on its shirt-covered shoulder. "If you've no wish to stare into a corner again, or to be put away…"

That was another interesting tidbit Mina had learned. A golem-like construct it might be, but Phonia had no knowledge of its prior uses. It awoke anew each time, retaining only the physical characteristics its previous master had desired. If it couldn't detect its master within a certain proximity upon waking, it would seek a new one.

Perhaps after being awake for an extended period of time, or perhaps based on Mina's descriptions of what it would mean, the thing had grown increasingly afraid of being put to sleep once more. As such, it had grown somewhat more malleable and able to be reasoned with.

"No! Please, no!" it begged quietly, beginning to shiver.

Mina patted it on the shoulder. I'll confess it does elicit some slight amount of sympathy when it behaves in this manner. "No need to fret. So long as you uphold your half of our bargain, I'll uphold mine."

The bargain was simple: so long as Phonia assisted her in various small matters, she'd encourage Carl to be more lenient with it.

How beneficial this bargain is remains to be seen, but I've my suspicions. If—

Phonia surged forward, wrapping her in a tight, warm hug.

Mina stiffened.

"Thanks, Mina," it whispered into her ear. "You know, I said I wouldn't, but if you want, I'll—"

"No, none of that," Mina said quickly, pushing the thing away. It always returns to fornication if left unattended. She started for the stairs. "Let us be off. It will take some time to walk—"

"Why would we walk?" Phonia asked, sounding perplexed.

Mina pressed her fingers against the bridge of her nose. "How else do you expect we should cross the city?"

"With this?"

Mina slowly turned around, and her eyes widened.

The space where the remainder of the workshop's dark second floor should have been was no more, replaced instead by a street that was faintly lit by lamps on posts a short distance away.

She rushed forward, standing at the edge of…

She stroked her chin as she stared down at the seamless edge of whatever it was. What manner of magic is this? Were it a portal I'd expect it to have borders which glowed with excess magic, as even the portals Ir'alith somehow is capable of creating by her own means do, but this is completely seamless. It's as if there's no excess. Or it's not a portal at all, perhaps. "You first," she said.

"Okay!" Phonia skipped through onto the street, then turned around to look back. "C'mon!" It waved for her to follow.

With some trepidation, Mina walked through onto the street. She looked around for a moment before recalling the precautions she'd intended to take. I'd never anticipated wearing this again. That being said, it's quite a nice disguise. Donning the skeleton mask had once more changed her form to resemble that of a skeleton, and she again looked at her bony hand. Is it simply an illusion, or does it truly reveal my own bones?

"Wow, I bet even more guys would wanna throw you a bone now," said Phonia.

Mina sighed, the sound coming out as an unmuffled rush of air. The one thing their bargain hadn't been capable of affecting was the thing's penchant for innuendo, though it tended to lean heavily on outworlder ones it had scavenged from Carl's mind. "Let's get on with it," she rasped. "Where have you brought us?"

"This is one of the workshops of Drusus Bruccius Leontius," said Phonia, pointing to a building past the end of the narrow street they'd arrived into. "I couldn't bring us closer without being seen, and you told me not to be seen."

The first of the names Pertinax gave me. Mina smiled a little. I was somewhat skeptical that the idea would be viable, but he seemed quite ready to provide names when asked.

She recalled the memory.

"Pertinax," she said, once again making use of the Stadalite language she'd been forced to learn from her tutors despite her view that it would serve no purpose, "do you happen to be aware of any notable workshops in which cars are produced for the upper track?"

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The big man wore a grimace as he watched Carl move closer to the apparent leader of the Reprensores. "He know what he's doing?" he asked.

"Yes, I'm quite sure he'll manage," Mina replied, having no doubt in her mind at that moment that Carl could do anything. "But in regards to my question…"

"Huh? Oh, talking about D-one 'shops?" He paused a moment while Carl spoke, not seeming overly concerned but still overtly hoping for his success, no doubt from the thousand marks he'd already been paid. "Probably the most well-known is Drusus Bruccius Leontius. He's an asshole from the couple times I've had the displeasure of meeting him, but its his work you saw if you happened to witness the victory of Marcus Camelius Belenus yesterday—"

"Marcus Camelius Belenus, you say?" Mina said, her breath catching at the name of her eldest sister's husband. "Are there others to whom he entrusts his steamcar?"

"I've heard he brings his business to Hostus Umbrenius Lutherius—one of Leontius's former apprentices—depending on scheduling," he said, looking down at her. "There was also talk that he and Papia Iuncina were more than just mechanic and driver before his marriage as well. Why do you ask about this? Have you become an admirer of his?"

"Something of that…" Mina watched as Carl lifted a steamcar and threw it with such force that it looked as though it had vanished.

"And how were you able to locate it across the city?" Mina asked, starting off towards the workshop.

"Magic," Phonia said as though it should be obvious.

Which, I suppose it is now that I consider it in full. It seems impossible to imagine that such a powerful creation was used solely for fornicating. She shook her head and stopped just before the mouth of the side street, glancing across one more time to the gladiators who guarded the workshop entrance. Now then, how to go about this… "Phonia, you were commanded to guard me, yes?"

The phony-woman halted next to her. "Yup!" it said, its voice strangely proud. "Master was so forceful! It got me really—"

"Yes, splendid," Mina interrupted, unwilling to let it once more descend into an unproductive state. "And you're to obey me as well?"

"I am…"

"Terrific," Mina said, beginning to grin. I do believe this should be a viable scheme. I can only hope that it ends less fatally than my last one. Her smile faltered. Perhaps I shouldn't. Were something to happen, Carl might… She wrestled with the idea for a moment. No, I must.

Another memory, this one more distant, came to the fore.

"Must I duel her as well?" Emma asked in an exasperated tone.

"It's an all-fight-all practice, just as it always is," said Mister Hewet. "Isemeine, are you prepared?"

The fourteen year-old Isemeine raised her foil, trying to retain her good cheer. "Yes!" she called back. She would be brave and fearless, just like the Scipio she'd admired from the tales her Stadalite tutors had spun for her. This would surely be the time she'd give a good accounting of herself and prove to her eldest sister that she wasn't useless.

"If I must," Emma said with a sigh.

"Stop whining, Emmy, we both dueled her," Jeanette called, seated to the side of the fencing strip and sipping her wine.

"Quit your protesting and fight already," Sosanna said, her boredom evident as she leaned on her hand in her seat. "Without your complaints, the bout would be ended by now."

Isemeine frowned. She hated it when her sisters spoke of her as though she weren't present. Her desire to gain her sisters' approval won out over her displeasure, however. "Come, Emmy!" she challenged. "Today I'll land a touch. You'll see!"

Emma scowled. "I've told you not to call me by that name," she said, her own foil coming up. "You'll refer to me as Your Highness, as befits your status."

The point of Isemeine's sword dipped, and her lips trembled at the reminder.

"Ah, I've an idea to make this interesting," Emma said, a wide grin forming on her face—an older mirror of Isemeine's own. "If you manage a touch today, I'll permit you to call me Princess Emma. Quite magnanimous, am I not?" she asked, turning her head to her other sisters.

Sosanna giggled. Jeanette was occupied gesturing to have her glass refilled.

"Ready!" called Mister Hewet.

Isemeine pulled her mask down and saluted as she'd been taught.

Emma left her mask up and gave a half-salute, her arm not even rising past her shoulder.

"Begin!"

Emma advanced slowly, her balance and poise flawless as always. The tip of her foil wove in a short circle. "Yes, today could be that day," she said softly. "Would you like that, Devil Princess?"

Isemeine froze, the appellation again bringing back the memory of kindly old Mister Godfry's face turning purple and his feet beginning to kick while the noose choked the life from him.

"Too bad."

A stunning pain erupted in her neck and she fell backwards, then over onto her back. Her foil dropped from her hand, and she grasped at her neck, choking and coughing, gasping for breath.

Something wasn't quite right. Her breath was no longer coming as it should. It was as though her throat had shrunk, allowing only a tiny portion of air through.

It wasn't enough.

Isemeine gasped, clawing at her neck.

"Healer!" shouted Mister Hewet.

"Jeanette, if you've drunk all the wine," Emma was saying, "I'll…"

Mina squeezed her eyes shut and took a deep breath. I will best Emma in something. That this workshop is affiliated with her husband is a pleasant coincidence, but in truth it matters not. I've never hoped to be some hero. She turned to her side. "We'll need to enter that building," she told Phonia, pointing. "You'll create a portal once inside, and we'll return to the exact place we departed from inside my workshop. You're capable of it, I assume?"

Phonia frowned. "How will this make master less likely to put me in time-out?"

"I'll become more pleased with you, which will give me cause to plead on your behalf."

"He does seem to listen to you…"

"You'll do it then?"

"Okay."

"Good. Now, in addition to this, I'll need you to provide an entrance for us, as I've no key."

"What? No way! I can use magic to defend my master—or you, since he ordered me to so forcefully—but I can't—"

"You've already created a portal to take us all the way here."

"Ugh…"

"Are these restrictions that truly exist, or are they merely things you would prefer not to do?"

"They exist!"

"Truly?"

"Well…"

"I'm ordering you to speak honestly. And you were commanded to obey me, were you not?"

"Ugh… Fine, maybe they're not real rules. But if I spend too much time doing magic, then I'm spending all that time not getting fucked by my master! And I have to do that! It's my only purpose!"

"Truly your creator was equal parts—"

"Hey, what're you doing over there?"

The shout took Mina by surprise. They were standing a short ways back from the other side of the street that the workshop was located on, and only the barest amount of light reached them from the lamps; it was surely not enough illumination by which to be noticed. Now that I consider it, I believe those lamps are similar in construction to the ones I saw when we visited with Valgud. They function using controlled lightning? I'd no notion the Empire was so advanced!

"Clear out," the broad-shouldered gladiator of the pair of workshop guards called.

Mina pointed to the guards. "Incapacitate them, then create an entrance," she ordered.

"No, I'm not supposed to hurt humans unless it's in defense of my master," Phonia said, shaking her head.

"I care not how you accomplish it," Mina said testily. "We must gain entrance to the workshop, and they'll seek to prevent our entrance."

"I'm warning you," the gladiator called, starting towards them.

"Why didn't you just say that to start," Phonia said. "You're so roundabout in getting what you want."

Mina felt herself begin to sink Into the ground. She tried to jump, but her feet were caught fast. "What—"

"You said you wanted to get inside," Phonia said in a too-innocent tone. "I know all about getting deep inside."

"Truly you're as brainless as can be."

They dropped onto a hard surface in total darkness.

"Light, if you please." It seems this structure has no windows. Perhaps—

There was a sudden, bright illumination, as though a small sun had come into existence nearby.

"Perhaps slightly less light," Mina said while she squinted.

The light dimmed.

"My thanks." She opened her eyes and looked around at her new surroundings.

Mina grinned. Yes, I should think this will do nicely.