Dellen woke to a polite but insistent knock at his door. He moved and was rewarded with a burst of pain along his right side.

“Maybe you should stay in bed today,” Gilgamesh said.

“We need to find you something to do while I sleep,” Dellen muttered while holding his right side with his left hand, “It’s nice having you around during the day, but I need some privacy.”

“We’re almost through with the time loop; I can feel it. Afterward, you’ll live your life, and I’ll return to the Refinery.”

The knocking continued.

“Come in.”

The door opened, and a footman appeared with a bed table, a pot of tea, biscuits, fruit, and a pair of pastries.

“This seems a lavish start to the day.” Dellen said, “Watching the servant pour him a steaming cup of tea.”

“Not at all, sir.”

Another footman appeared through the door, carrying clothes. Dellen glanced at the clothes, reached for a pastry, then turned back to stare at the clothes carried by the footman, “I recognize those; did they come from my closets?”

“Indeed, sir, we requested them from your steward.”

“Stefan must have been delighted,” Gilgamesh said.

“That was considerate of you,” Dellen said.

“The doctor will be by to assess your wound after breakfast, then we can see about getting you dressed.”

Dellen’s fingers returned to his bandages, even as he ate a pastry and drank tea.

“It’s probably best if the doctor checks on you,” Gilgamesh said, “He seemed competent, and you have an incredible knack for dying.”

Dellen ate his breakfast, finished his tea, and asked for the table and the rest of the meal to be taken away. The doctor swept in minutes later. “Good morning, Lord Northcote. How is your wound this morning?”

“Tender and painful,” Dellen said, not feeling the need to dress up his answer.

“That is to be expected; I could only stitch up the edges of your wound; an enormous section of steelskin and muscle still needs to heal. You will suffer the effects of your… scuffle… weeks from now.”

“Weeks? How fragile are you now?” Gilgamesh said.

He didn’t have weeks to be debilitated. “Are there any alternatives?”

The physician looked amused, “An alternative to healing? No, my lord, not that I am aware of.”

“I didn’t enquire after your name last night,” Dellen said.

“Quite alright, Philip Deoden.” He said in a friendly tone, unwrapping Dellen’s bandages.

“Thank you for stitching me up last night, Dr. Deoden. Is there a potent source of Electrical Aether on the grounds?”

Doctor Deoden paused his unwrapping, “What do you need Electrical Aether for this morning?”

“I was wondering if I could use it to assist in my healing.”

Philip finished unwrapping the bandages and inspected Dellen’s wound. “This seems to be healing as well as can be hoped, given how recently you were injured, however, the medicinal use of Electrical Aether is beyond my remit as a physician. I recommend you stay on bed rest for at least the next three days, if not a week.” He replaced the bandages around Dellen’s torso.

Dellen snorted; that was not advice that he could take. “Thank you, doctor.”

“I can already tell that you will not be taking my advice,” he shook his head, “Noble patients so rarely do.”

“My apologies,” Dellen said, grimacing as he swung his legs out of bed.

“Let me help you, my lord.” The footman with his clothes said.

“Thank you,” Dellen said, holding his arms up as best he could.

A minute later, he looked like a proper lord again, even if he felt weakened. “Where might I find Lady Victoria?”

“This time of the morning, Lady Victoria is most often found having tea in the atrium.”

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

“I’ll meet you there,” Gilgamesh said and flew out of the room.

Dellen glanced with surprise at Gilgamesh before speaking to the footman. “Could you lead me to the atrium, please?”

"Of course, sir," the servant replied, leading Dellen out of the dining room.

They made their way down the expansive hallway that branched off from Dellen's suite, the polished marble floor reflecting the glow of gilded wall sconces. The murmur of the manor's early morning activity was a faint backdrop to the quiet of the hall.

The atrium was situated off the main foyer where he and Eliza had first entered the Lockridge Gala, its entrance flanked by tall, floor-to-ceiling windows that allowed the early morning sun to stream in, painting the hall in soft, warm hues. The entrance to the atrium was a set of tall doors in carved oak and etched glass.

A grand, glass-domed ceiling let in abundant natural light, illuminating a lush indoor garden. Various plants, some with vibrant blossoms and others with deep green leaves thrived under the glass roof. A few exotic, brightly colored birds flitted among the tree branches, their sweet songs echoing softly.

In the center of the atrium, a small table was set with an exquisite tea service, flanked by two comfortable-looking wrought iron chairs with plush cushions. Lady Victoria sat in one, cradling a cup of tea, while Gilgamesh hovered beside her. She looked up as Dellen entered, her expression shifting to a welcoming smile.

“Good Morning, I trust you’re recuperating well, and, as expected, you’re ignoring my physician’s advice.” She looked at her footman, “You may leave us now.”

They waited for the servant to leave.

“I’ve been telling Gilgamesh my plans to call the constabulary and have them examine the broken infusers we recovered yesterday.” She gave him a quizzical look, “And Gilgamesh tells me that you want a powerful source of Electrical Aether.”

“Feeling chatty this morning, are we?” Dellen said to Gilgamesh without rancor.

“We don’t have a source like that on the estate.” Lady Victoria said, ignoring their conversation.

“Perhaps I should go back to the Aetheric Cultivators under false pretenses.” Dellen said.

“You think that Thatch won’t have said anything to Thaddeus?” Gilgamesh said incredulously.

Dellen shrugged, “I don’t know, but I’m willing to bet that she’s busy and that Thaddeus is busy. I’m also willing to bet that Thatch isn’t a capable enough artist to convey to Thaddeus who she scuffled with yesterday by drawing a portrait, and we never gave her our names.”

“Go on,” Gilgamesh said.

“Thaddeus asked me to visit today; as far as he knows, I have no knowledge of or involvement with this attack. Why should he suspect me of anything?”

“Interesting.” Gilgamesh said, “So your thinking is that you will go see Thaddeus, and he will ignore the injury that you have on the same side of your body where Thatch cut open a noble yesterday, and that he will be unable to connect these two events. Devious.”

Dellen gave him an annoyed look. “Perhaps we can apply more of the numbing salve to help me conceal the injury. I don’t expect him to subject me to a comprehensive physical exam upon my arrival.”

“What about the constabulary?” Lady Victoria said.

Dellen held his chin in thought, “The sooner we meet with them, the better; if our actions yesterday are inconveniencing Thaddeus, surely it’s better if I see him as soon as possible to further complicate his day. He may well make himself unavailable.”

“And if he doesn’t? What if he kills you instead?” Gilgamesh said.

“Then we’ll do all of this again, and I’ll be more careful.”

“You weren’t being careful in the middle of a fight?”

Dellen put his hand on his side, “I don’t much care for the idea of being carved again. I’ll avoid it.”

“First, meet with the constabulary?” Lady Victoria said, “I expect them within the hour.”

Dellen felt the need to move but nodded, “First, we’ll meet with the constabulary.”

Lady Victoria glanced up; Dellen followed her gaze to see a small carriage. “That may be them now,” she said.

A few minutes later, the atrium door opened, and Lady Victoria’s butler introduced a figure dressed in the official uniform of the constabulary. He was a man of average height and build, his hair dusted with a light sprinkle of grey, the edges of his uniform immaculately pressed.

“My lady, this is Constable Hargrove.” Constable Hargrove carried an air of quiet authority, his sharp eyes surveying the atrium with practiced precision.

Lady Victoria took the lead and explained how they had stumbled upon a plot to sabotage the city, and they had proof to support their claims.

“That’s very interesting,” Hargrove said, a pen working over a pad of paper, “Could you show me this proof?” He said in a dry voice.

Lady Victoria led Dellen and Constable Hargrove down a series of hallways, Dellen’s pace was slower than he would have liked.

At last, they arrived at a modest wooden door, seemingly inconspicuous among the grandeur. Lady Victoria produced a key from her pocket, unlocking the door with a soft click. The door opened to reveal a well-lit storage room, the centerpiece of the room was undoubtedly the table that held the remnants of the Aetheric Infusers, shattered dials, and metal twisted from the fall onto the cobblestones.

"Here they are, Constable," Lady Victoria said, gesturing towards the table. "The Aetheric Infusers intended to bring calamity upon our city. I believe immediate action is warranted."

Hargrove strode over to the table, his gaze scanning over the broken pieces, his lips pursed in thought. He seemed less impressed than Lady Victoria had anticipated.

"It's concerning, certainly," he conceded, reaching into his pocket to extract his notebook. He wrote, his pen flying across the page, "But I need to understand this fully before we take any definitive action. I will draft a report, submit it to the Commissioner, and follow due process."

“Due process?” Dellen said, “This is evidence of sabotage; if you don’t act now, people are going to die, and the city will burn.”

“I think you’ll find that we always get there in the end.” The constable said, his pen still moving, his voice almost flat. “I trust you will make yourself available to answer a few questions?” It was phrased as a question, but Dellen knew it was not.

Constable Hargrove finished taking his notes and nodded at them, “Thank you for your time, I need to return to the station, I will be back shortly with experts to verify what all of this is.” He said, gesturing at the broken infusers.

With a start, Dellen realised that Constable Hargrove didn’t have the expertise to understand what he was being shown. “I’ll look forward to your return,” Dellen said.

Looking irritated, Lady Victoria said, “Yes, constable, please do hurry back.”

“Are you really going to wait for him?” Gilgamesh asked.

Dellen waited for the constable to leave. “No, I am not.” He turned to Lady Victoria, “Would you be able to send me to Northcote Industries? I have an alloy to recover from one of our metallurgists.”