Mr_DC
Been a while
The Affable Spy walked the cobbled roads of London. Her eyes darted around the street but never making eye contact. She didn't want to be noticed. She could always just blend into the crowd. It was one of her skills. A gift of sorts. An attribute which made her valuable to her employer. Her current employer. The Governor had many spies but there were few he directly interacted with. Even fewer who he truly trusted. That was why she was around. The Governor needed someone to handle the more... Trivial aspects of the Game. Things he couldn't be bothered with. A manager for his empire. In spite of the power, the Governor granted her, she knew he didn't trust her. Every now and then, she would hit a wall. A wall placed by her employer which kept her from going further. Just an endless hole from which she could extract no further information.
He was right not to trust her, though. The walls were in all the justified places. She bumped into them because she wasn't meant to be there. If she questioned him for hiding that information, she would be questioned right back about why she was looking for it. The Governor gave her power but he didn't trust her with his own secrets. To her, it was as if Port Carnelian never even existed. She wasn't allowed to ask about it.
When she first arrived under the Governor's wing, she didn't know it was a taboo. She didn't know the boundary. She soon learned, though. The Spy didn't require her great intellect to notice that everyone turned stiff when she mentioned the colony. She could feel the weight of the silence filling the room. The desperation of everyone to try and find a subject they could grasp on to. To change the topic.
It was one particularly drunk evening that she confronted the Governor. He had one too many bottles of Broken Giant and Mr Wines' girls just left. When she entered his lavish bedroom, an image instantly scarred itself into her mind.
She would never forget it. Seeing him sit on the edge of the bed, bottle in one hand... Several bandages loose enough that she could see his ghostly gray skin. It looked almost like fresh snow. Like a puff of air could blow off the top layer of his skin.
She was brave then. She didn't fear him as much as she did now. She asked about the colony. Why it was a subject not open to mention.
"Do I chop you apart and dig through your gore?" His voice was colder than the wind when she traveled... North that one time. She wasn't sure at which point her jaw fell open but she couldn't gather the will to shut it. "That is the price for digging through mine." She could feel the hair on the back of her neck rising. "I charge up front." He added after a short pause, dismissing her with a wave of his hand.
That was the moment that broke her. When she turned from a curious, rising spy into a child afraid of punishment for doing the wrong thing. She never truly questioned the Governor about his forbidden subjects again. She didn't stop researching him, though. She was simply more cautious. More patient. The information came as rare as a Master's generosity. But it came. And she didn't mind. He couldn't see her making such moves. He had more important things to worry about. Like his protege.
There was a bitter taste in her mouth whenever she had to do anything concerning the Deluder. The Affable Spy disliked him as a person. The Deluder did nothing to cross her. He was even charming. Yet she believed he didn't deserve the attention of their employer. The Governor was a great - if cruel - man who kept all his knowledge and insights to himself. A lazy and ungrateful person like the Deluder didn't deserve such knowledge. A man who was more of a criminal than an intriguer getting to learn from the master instead of her... Insulting. It mattered little to her, though. The Spy could learn just by watching the Governor conduct his business through her.
The Affable Spy's stomach growled as she passed a bakery. The pastries weren't quite like those served at grand society balls she visited occasionally while Deluder had other priorities. Those were like food sent down from heaven while the goods offered to the general public on the streets... Not so much.
Still, her appetite wasn't for baked goods. What she really was in the mood for was mushroom stew at a small pub in Watchmaker's Hill.
It was a little gem of a place she discovered by visiting it with the Governor. The mushrooms were of amazing quality and they even had good wine in store for guests who knew to order it. It kept her returning even after the Governor got bored of the pub. A bowl of mushroom stew and half a glass of Broken Giant really made her day. She was more picky about her wine than the Governor. The deep red... The smooth taste dancing on her tongue...
A small urchin ran into her and kept on his way like nothing had happened. She tapped her pocket to check if he stole the invitation she carried for Deluder but no, it was still there. The boy must have simply been in a rush. He wouldn't get far with the invitation, of course. Two members of the Selection were a safe distance behind her, lumbering like two bears to protect their master's subject. And even if the little child got past the Selection, he would probably return the invitation once someone who can read explained to him what exactly he stole... And who he stole it from.
She reached her destination. A building not really worth noticing. A random passer-by took pity on the wretch and saved Deluder from an almost certain death. It took but a single inquiry for her to locate him. She knew there were spies tasked with observing them. All of the Governor's important associates had someone looking over their shoulder. The Spy got startled by that sight so many times now that she barely noticed it anymore - when she did notice it. the sight of a figure standing atop a roof, looking down on her. Like ravens searching the street for lost jewelry. It was used as the Governor's show of power as well. Her questions about Port Carnelian became too loud once. The morning she came out of her townhouse was the strongest message the Governor sent her without uttering a word. Countless people on roofs, looking down on her as she headed to the yacht to see the Governor. He was watching her.
And he was watching the Deluder. Most of the time, at least. That one got even more freedom. Too dumb to research the Governor... No. The Spy didn't underestimate him. She knew that Deluder was around longer than she was... The Deluder knew what others weren't allowed to know.
"Ministry of Public Decency!" The Spy banged on the door Deluder was supposed to be behind, putting on her harshest tone.
She had no idea if he was alone or not so an alternate reason behind her visit would be required. "Open the door!" She commanded.
He was right not to trust her, though. The walls were in all the justified places. She bumped into them because she wasn't meant to be there. If she questioned him for hiding that information, she would be questioned right back about why she was looking for it. The Governor gave her power but he didn't trust her with his own secrets. To her, it was as if Port Carnelian never even existed. She wasn't allowed to ask about it.
When she first arrived under the Governor's wing, she didn't know it was a taboo. She didn't know the boundary. She soon learned, though. The Spy didn't require her great intellect to notice that everyone turned stiff when she mentioned the colony. She could feel the weight of the silence filling the room. The desperation of everyone to try and find a subject they could grasp on to. To change the topic.
It was one particularly drunk evening that she confronted the Governor. He had one too many bottles of Broken Giant and Mr Wines' girls just left. When she entered his lavish bedroom, an image instantly scarred itself into her mind.
She would never forget it. Seeing him sit on the edge of the bed, bottle in one hand... Several bandages loose enough that she could see his ghostly gray skin. It looked almost like fresh snow. Like a puff of air could blow off the top layer of his skin.
She was brave then. She didn't fear him as much as she did now. She asked about the colony. Why it was a subject not open to mention.
"Do I chop you apart and dig through your gore?" His voice was colder than the wind when she traveled... North that one time. She wasn't sure at which point her jaw fell open but she couldn't gather the will to shut it. "That is the price for digging through mine." She could feel the hair on the back of her neck rising. "I charge up front." He added after a short pause, dismissing her with a wave of his hand.
That was the moment that broke her. When she turned from a curious, rising spy into a child afraid of punishment for doing the wrong thing. She never truly questioned the Governor about his forbidden subjects again. She didn't stop researching him, though. She was simply more cautious. More patient. The information came as rare as a Master's generosity. But it came. And she didn't mind. He couldn't see her making such moves. He had more important things to worry about. Like his protege.
There was a bitter taste in her mouth whenever she had to do anything concerning the Deluder. The Affable Spy disliked him as a person. The Deluder did nothing to cross her. He was even charming. Yet she believed he didn't deserve the attention of their employer. The Governor was a great - if cruel - man who kept all his knowledge and insights to himself. A lazy and ungrateful person like the Deluder didn't deserve such knowledge. A man who was more of a criminal than an intriguer getting to learn from the master instead of her... Insulting. It mattered little to her, though. The Spy could learn just by watching the Governor conduct his business through her.
The Affable Spy's stomach growled as she passed a bakery. The pastries weren't quite like those served at grand society balls she visited occasionally while Deluder had other priorities. Those were like food sent down from heaven while the goods offered to the general public on the streets... Not so much.
Still, her appetite wasn't for baked goods. What she really was in the mood for was mushroom stew at a small pub in Watchmaker's Hill.
It was a little gem of a place she discovered by visiting it with the Governor. The mushrooms were of amazing quality and they even had good wine in store for guests who knew to order it. It kept her returning even after the Governor got bored of the pub. A bowl of mushroom stew and half a glass of Broken Giant really made her day. She was more picky about her wine than the Governor. The deep red... The smooth taste dancing on her tongue...
A small urchin ran into her and kept on his way like nothing had happened. She tapped her pocket to check if he stole the invitation she carried for Deluder but no, it was still there. The boy must have simply been in a rush. He wouldn't get far with the invitation, of course. Two members of the Selection were a safe distance behind her, lumbering like two bears to protect their master's subject. And even if the little child got past the Selection, he would probably return the invitation once someone who can read explained to him what exactly he stole... And who he stole it from.
She reached her destination. A building not really worth noticing. A random passer-by took pity on the wretch and saved Deluder from an almost certain death. It took but a single inquiry for her to locate him. She knew there were spies tasked with observing them. All of the Governor's important associates had someone looking over their shoulder. The Spy got startled by that sight so many times now that she barely noticed it anymore - when she did notice it. the sight of a figure standing atop a roof, looking down on her. Like ravens searching the street for lost jewelry. It was used as the Governor's show of power as well. Her questions about Port Carnelian became too loud once. The morning she came out of her townhouse was the strongest message the Governor sent her without uttering a word. Countless people on roofs, looking down on her as she headed to the yacht to see the Governor. He was watching her.
And he was watching the Deluder. Most of the time, at least. That one got even more freedom. Too dumb to research the Governor... No. The Spy didn't underestimate him. She knew that Deluder was around longer than she was... The Deluder knew what others weren't allowed to know.
"Ministry of Public Decency!" The Spy banged on the door Deluder was supposed to be behind, putting on her harshest tone.
She had no idea if he was alone or not so an alternate reason behind her visit would be required. "Open the door!" She commanded.