Chapter 13

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"Thus, the councils of the First Blades, or the Ruling Lord's representative, submit petitions directly to the First Lord of the High Side." Nadine Pell's voice echoed through the Admiralty's Great Hall of Councils, a gloomy room with high vaulted ceilings and black marble walls decorated with frequent strips of polished bronze throughout.

In the Admiralty, the whole atmosphere inspired a sense of grim grandeur, which was only emphasized by the effect of "emptiness." Behind a huge long table in the center of the room designed for at least forty people, at the head of which, in a chair more like a black throne, sat Alex, there were only three of them.

Yes, it's not a workplace for those with a fear of attention. He was going to spend quite a bit of time here; the Admiralty Council was run by the first lord, and his office was right there, in the Admiralty. One of the offices. He corrected himself mentally, for it still had the Court of Blood Grudges on him and the Ergo Seneschal's office located in the palace.

"... Notices, on the other hand, are given through a Second Lord, in this case, a Second Lady." Nadine bowed her head graciously toward Baroness Tayor, who responded with the distracted smile of someone who has heard her name but doesn't know what it was about. "Who in turn, after proper elaboration, if any, will forward them already to the First Lord, i.e. you, for a visa."

"And after my visa, they go to the Emperor's office," Alex repeated tiredly. "I understand, Lady Pell."

This went on for six hours. Two hours of "preliminary preparation," practically one-on-one, after which they made their way to the Admiralty, where they were joined by the Second Lady of the High Side, the polite and terse Baroness of the House of Rien, who had already received her assignment.

Short, slightly swarthy, with shoulder-length platinum hair and a perpetually bewildered smile of a lost person, Baroness Iolaya Tayor looked like a pretty enough, blue-eyed woman in her forties. But her head was shaking almost constantly like a very old woman creating an unpleasant dissonance with her appearance. Because of that, Alex suspected that the baroness was much older than forty:

About a hundred. He thought, glancing at Lady Iolaya, who, as is often the case with very old people, seemed immersed in her own world, not paying attention to what was going on around her.

"Lord Cassard." Nadine hissed angrily when she noticed his distraction.

Although maybe it's not about age, I would also love to disengage from what's going on. If it were possible.

"You may believe me, Lord Cassard." Lady Pell continued, glaring at him. "The necessity of being in the same room with you gives me absolutely no joy either, so please, as much as you can, concentrate on my words so that we can both get this 'help' over with as quickly as possible."

And it wasn't that she was neglecting her duties. Nadina was indeed an honest help. Without her explanations, it would have been much worse, despite all his attempts to study the matter on his own, with the help of Sir Ulter and Liora, who proved to be a treasure trove of information on everything concerning the intricacies of palace protocol. Nadina did help, but:

How that redheaded bastard twists and turns. Alex rolled his eyes. He hoped Lady Pell would cool down in a day. But she missed no opportunity to verbally abuse the House of Fyron in general, much less him in particular. And while this was tolerable for the first couple of hours, by the sixth hour, it began to be quite annoying, even though the angry Nadine looked especially attractive for some reason:

And okay, me. Thought Alex, silently watching the monologue of Lady Pell, who began to flare up again. At least I can, as compensation, ogle Nadina, but Taer and Baroness Tayor, not only do they suffer quite innocently and so put up with it all for free.

Fortunately, Lady Iolaya, being mostly in her own world, did not react to what was happening, and Taer managed to keep a positive attitude and even smiled, despite all Nadine's words.

I suppose I should be thankful for the long sleep. Such cheerfulness was not at all typical of his perpetually disgruntled first blade, but it impressed Alex a great deal. With a Taer like that, it's more comforting... Should I force her to take more naps? He smirked, To improve her character.

"Are you even listening to me, Lord Cassard?!" Nadine burst out, clearly noticing that he was in his thoughts.

"Of course, Lady Pell, I'm all ears." He smiled at her sparkling, angry eyes.

"Let me question that." She snorted, cocking her nose defiantly.

"How could I ignore the words of such a charming lady?"

"And what did you get out of my words, then?" Nadine asked in a pallid tone, clearly anticipating his failure.

"You advised me to hand over all unclosed petitions to the Emperor's Office at once to free up my time at the beginning of the Onstum while I get into the business of the service." Calmly replied Alex, who had mastered the art of listening half-heartedly while reading books under the desk.

"Is that so? Very good." Mumbled Nadine, with a slight disappointment in her gaze. "At least my words don't fall into the void."

"However, in this case," Alex continued, watching with interest the reaction of the red-haired beauty. "I don't think it's possible for me to take your advice. Though, I appreciate your attempt to ease my burden. But I've been told at least ten times how important the project about decommissioning of light cruisers, which you suggested at your previous onstum, is, and I really don't understand why. And in such a situation, it seems to me wrong to submit a petition to the Emperor without first figuring out for myself what the matter is."

"Oh, I had no doubt you wouldn't miss this opportunity." Nadine snorted again, rolling her eyes defiantly. "I suppose that's what this was all about. If it were any other person, I'd just ask to be treated fairly, not thinking of the benefits to your house. But in your case, it doesn't make any sense. The only hope is that the Emperor will lash out at House Fyron if your abuse of office becomes so egregious."

"It's rather ironic, given your views, that you rely on the Emperor." Alex couldn't resist a quip, for which he received, predictably, another attempt to drill him through the gaze of her angry green eyes.

"His Majesty is simply a luminary of justice compared to the low, unprincipled greed of House Fyron. Particularly vivid among some of that house's ancient clans. He never stooped to meanness for the sake of a position needed only to be able to cheat in an already prearranged game in his favor without thinking it as his own incompetence..."

The rumble and loud squeak of the legs of the chair being pushed back interrupted Nadine's angry tirade, and she froze, looking at Taer, who had suddenly jumped up from her seat.

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

"I need to freshen up." Taer threw, not even looking at Lady Pell, and walked briskly toward the exit of the hall, covering her nose with the palm of her hand for some reason.

What's the matter with her? Alex stared at his security specialist in silence, not quite sure what had happened because just a few seconds ago, Taer had looked completely serene, and Nadine's many slurs against House Fyron that she had made before didn't seem to affect his first blade at all.

There was a pause. Nadine, who had been shot down in the middle of her denunciatory sermon, had clearly cooled down somewhat:

"Really, we should probably take a break." She said, rising from her seat, too. "We've been here long enough. Let's take a break."

"Lord Cassard, please tell her already that it wasn't her fault." The baroness's voice rang out as soon as the door closed behind Nadine, making Alex flinch in surprise. "I don't know what exactly happened between you two, but the poor girl has been clinging so desperately for hours to any opportunity to show your sins in an attempt to prove that you are to blame, too, that it just hurts to look at her. A man should be lenient to his woman's weaknesses, especially if she's really wrong."

Lady Iolaya, looking at him with mild dissatisfaction if not accusation. And if her sudden emergence from a prolonged confused-smiling prostration was surprising in itself, her words confounded Alex altogether. Did she take us for a couple?

It was strange, to say the least nothing was going on between him and Nadine that even hinted at a relationship.

There's either some cultural quirk that I don't understand. Or the old lady is not quite in her right mind. Confused, he thought, trying to figure out how best to respond to these words.

"I don't think there is a context in which Lady Pell can be considered "my woman." Alex cautiously answered her.

"'So?" The baroness seemed genuinely surprised. "You mean you're not dating?"

"No," he assured her honestly. "You can't even call us good acquaintances."

We crossed paths with her, like, five or six times. But all of them fell within the three dozen days that I've been here.

"I'm sorry, that was awkward." Lady Iolaya laughed embarrassedly. "And I thought I was witnessing a lover's quarrel... But, then, why do you tolerate it?"

"I wish I knew myself." Alex sighed, genuinely not knowing the answer to that question. "Maybe I just like looking at her when she's angry."

The Baroness only shook her head indulgently in response. She too rose from her seat and headed for the exit of the hall.

It didn't take Alex long to admire the decorations alone; a few minutes later, Taer returned.

"Is everything all right? You jumped up so quickly." He asked as he stared at her while Taer took her seat, a little disheveled but still positive, even pleased, judging by the slight smile on her lips. Her face was still a little glistening with moisture. She was obviously washing her face.

"It's all right."

"I think you have blood drops on your shirt." He remarked.

"It's just a nosebleed." Taer smiled nonchalantly, buttoning the collar of her uniform tighter. "It's nothing."

"Are you sure you're okay? A nosebleed isn't very normal. How are you feeling?"

"I feel fine." Taer brushed it off. "Don't make a big deal out of it. It's probably the Fenote. It can raise your blood pressure, so you be careful yourself."

"Fenote?" Alex was sincerely surprised. "You look like you slept in."

"Actually, that's not what it's for at all," Taer told him instructively. "And I only took, like, three capsules - two at night and one now, just to refresh my mind."

"That's right." He nodded knowingly. "Consciousness is refreshing, especially when chewed up."

Soon the baroness returned, but the return of Lady Pell was a long wait, fifteen minutes if not more. Alex had even begun to worry about her a little.

"I've been thinking about what you said, Lady Pell." Taer began suddenly as Nadine took her seat. "And I thought we were obviously wasting your valuable time. Perhaps we shouldn't spend so much time discussing paperwork and protocol - we can learn that from the droids as well. While you're here, why don't we visit one of the units under your command?"

"One of the units?" Surprised Nadine, the long absence had clearly had a beneficial effect on her. At least she stopped flashing her eyes angrily and looked more like she was just tired. "I suppose it's possible, but not today, the nearest one is on another continent. Besides, House Fyren has just filed some sort of notice for visitation, and I thought I'd look at the procedure with a concrete example..." She added without certainty.

"Well, we've got full-fledged landing bots with us." Taer smiled at her indulgently. "The sub-orbital jump will take less than twenty minutes. And that notice you were talking about, our office has already withdrawn it for revision, and it will take them a few days. Besides, how else can you learn if you don't see before you an example of what a really competent control can accomplish in two years?"

"And I almost thought you really cared about your lord's schooling," Nadine said thoughtfully, glaring at Taer and adding with a heavy sigh. "Well, if you want to give me a surprise inspection, go ahead and evaluate. I'm not afraid of something like that."

"Why do you say that?" Taer scolded her complacently. "How can I, or Lord Cassard, judge you? Neither of us pretends to. We simply lack the competence to understand and evaluate. But fortunately, we have Baroness Tayor with us." Taer bowed her head courteously in the direction of Lady Iolaya, who slipped back into absent-mindedly smiling prostration. "And here she is, from the height of her experience, able to appreciate everything on its own merits. And the suddenness, well, that's all nonsense. Surely someone will warn, and in those twenty or thirty minutes, it is quite possible to have time to polish up or to clean up the most egregious violations."

"Do you really think?" Nadine inquired coldly. "That I'm going to sneak a visit just to look a little better?"

"You? Not at all, Lady Pell." Taer assured her and, as it seemed to Alex, quite sincerely. "But you know how it is, pilots, guardsmen, they all have means of communication. Somebody's bound to talk. I tell you that as a former lieutenant in the Guard."

"Okay." Nadina shrugged indifferently. "Since we're flying on your bots, I don't have to tell my entourage where we're going at all. Where do you propose to go?"

"Well, since Lady Iolaya is with us, I suggest a visit to the Imperial Guard's honorable "Amber" assault squadron. It's one of the closest, and the same base, if I'm not mistaken, is where the Warriors of Arm are stationed. It will be interesting."

"I don't see what this is all about." Suddenly Lady Iolaya broke her silence, and her head was shaking in a way that was not at all approving. "There will be irregularities in any really sudden inspection, and it won't say anything about the quality of management unless something really awful is uncovered. I'm sure Lady Pell has managed the troops entrusted to her with dignity, during her previous Onstum, and there's no reason to question her service now."

"Thank you for your trust, Lady Iolaya." Nadine smiled coldly at her. "But please let me protect myself, and give this ridiculous excursion to the new shift from Fyron. Otherwise, they might be left in doubt, they might think you had reason to cover for me. Why leave room for gossip when we can really see for ourselves in an hour?"

Lady Iolaya was clearly going to say something to Nadine but held back and only sighed heavily:

"All right, as you wish. Let's pay a surprise visit."

"Thank you," Nadina answered as she rose from the table. "I am going to warn my escort that we are going to the palace. Please, Daim Diltar, come with me, so you can make sure I do not give them any conventional signs."

"I would trust your nobility, Lady Pell." Taer smiled back at her, and her smile was a bit predatory. "But if you insist..."

What was that now? Alex was taken by surprise by Taer's activity; he only realized that she had outplayed and successfully tricked Nadina into some kind of inspection. But why? Why?

"After all, the University of Tallana is not the place where a princess of a Great House should be educated." The Baroness pronounced with obvious condemnation as she looked behind Nadine and Taer. "If she had received a normal education, she would realize how foolishly she was caught, and your First Blade, Lord Cassard, is a very cruel woman. Nadina might be worth knocking down, but to do it in public in front of her former subordinates..." She shook her head disapprovingly. "It's too much."

"You say that, Baroness, as if you thought we'd find something awful in this unit," Alex asked with sincere interest. He did not understand what was planned at all, but he liked what was happening much more than a few more hours of dull discussion of papers under Nadia's already rather bored taunts. Especially since it's a fighter base - you can see a real space fighter from up close. Maybe, they will even let you climb into the cockpit! I'm the boss. And the bosses are pampered and entertained here. He thought about it, remembering, however, that his very puppy delight was not to break through a mask of secular politeness.

The answer to Alex's question was a pained look from Lady Iolaya:

"You, too, should restore your knowledge as soon as possible to the level befitting a nobleman. The Amber is a mixed squadron, a fighter-assault squadron. Of course, we'll find something terrible there. They are fighters there, after all." Declared the Baroness with the look of someone explaining something self-evident that it's a shame not to know. "Otherwise, what are fighters, much less Guard fighters, if they don't do some tomfoolery in the absence of their superiors? It's a shame, not fighters."

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