After three days of rest Garia is ready to restart her new existence. She discovers more about palace routine before dropping more bombshells at the next meeting of the Council of the Two Worlds.

Somewhere Else Entirely

by Penny Lane

23 - Bells and Black Rock

Disclaimer: The original characters and plot of this story are the property of the author. No infringement of pre-existing copyright is intended. This story is copyright (c) 2011-2017 Penny Lane. All rights reserved.

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It was funny how a single personal event could change one's perception. Garia knew that she was living in the same palace with the same people but somehow everything looked kinda strange now. She knew intellectually that the change was within herself, but the end effect was the same: everything looked like a half-remembered echo of itself. An old service buddy of her grandfather had described the sensation of going back to visit old haunts in Europe.

"All very odd. The whole place was both familiar and strange at the same time. You couldn't rely on your memory because you were afraid you'd make a mistake, but around every corner were sights and sounds you'd known well, back in the day. Most unsettling."

To her surprise it seemed as if the ground had shifted beneath her feet even though she knew she was looking at and experiencing the exact same things as she had before. "They" had become "we" somehow, and "we" had in turn become "they". Garia wasn't entirely sure if she approved of that, part of her mourned the loss of what once had been, but another part looked forward to feeling comfortable in her new skin and there was a certain tension between the two parts. There was also a certain trepidation as she knew she would be venturing into the unknown in a way few had ever done before.

It had been three days since the start of her period and she'd done her best to adapt to the new realities of her body's functions. Today, she was only what Jenet had called "spotting" and her movements were no longer restricted, although attempting any kind of heavy exercise yet would have been a stupid idea. The days following what she thought of as The Bloodbath had been a brutal introduction to the rampage of female hormones, but fortunately Garia had understood what was happening and had made strenuous and conscious efforts to manage the worst excesses. She hadn't entirely succeeded, and she suspected that in the future she wouldn't either, but at least she knew what was happening to her body in a detail no-one else on Anmar did and could therefore make the necessary adjustments.

She had joined the rest of the palace for breakfast for the first time and found everyone very solicitous for her health. Today Terys had decided that she could move about the palace and perform light activities that didn't involve physical effort, a restriction that Garia had no trouble complying with. Breakfast itself was almost normal, Mistress Margra's potions having kept the worst of the hormonal side-effects at bay, although Garia did take care over what she chose to eat. She had been glad to get back to the dining room in order to be able to use a fork again. Although there had been further deliveries not enough were available as yet for them to be used by diners eating in their rooms.

After breakfast Keren, someone now both familiar friend and interesting stranger, had gone off with Captain Bleskin to complete the refurbishment of what was in future to be called the Self Defense Training Room, while the women had retired to the Queen's sitting room for what had become a regular morning talk. Garia had made it clear that once she was able she would be returning to her normal morning's activities but for now the occasionally intimate discussions had helped to bond herself, Merizel and Terys closely together.

Merizel for her part had taken it upon herself to begin her duties in earnest. A meeting of the Council of the Two Worlds which had been planned for two evenings previously had been delayed until the coming night and Merizel had handled the notification of all parties with a skill that even Terys had remarked upon. Garia had spent the lucid periods of the past three days thinking about what she was going to tell them at the meeting, but until the coming evening arrived some of her other experiments would occupy her time.

Yesterday she had finally learned the 'secret' of the bells used around the palace and the city for time-keeping. The Anmar day was divided into twenty equal portions each called a 'bell' and certain codes were rung to mark the passage of time. The whole thing was regulated according to an enormous mechanical clock hidden inside one of the palace towers. It seemed that it had not occurred to anyone that this mechanism could display the time directly by means of a clock-face.

The bells were divided into what she characterized as bings, bangs and bongs. The bings were all military: one bing was a guard movement or a meal break, two was a shift change, three was the alarm for an external threat, four was for an internal threat. Each twentieth of a day was marked by a bong, but curiously these were not always regularly spaced. At dawn, noon, dusk and midnight there was a double bong, at all other times a single one. Since the length of the day varied according to the season this meant that the noon and midnight bongs didn't often occur at a regular bell interval but were rung anyway.

After each interval was announced by a bong a sequence of one or more bangs would indicate which interval was starting or, if there was no preceding bong, the quarter, half and three-quarter of the interval. Everything was re-synchronized at dawn, which was done either by sighting the sun or by reference to the Great Clock if the sky was cloudy, and also at dusk. To Garia the whole system sounded crazy but these people had obviously found it sufficient for their needs.

"So, Garia," Terys asked her, "the device you brought with you which you call a 'watch' is really just the same as the Great Clock, then?"

"In principle, Ma'am. I haven't yet seen the Great Clock, but I guess they do more or less the same thing. I'm finding the system of bells confusing but I expect I'll get used to it."

"And you told us that everyone owned these watches. I find that remarkable."

"Um." Where does one begin? "It would be difficult for all of us to hear bells such as yours for a number of reasons. The first, I suppose, is that it's a lot noisier on Earth than it is here. Another is that, because of the noise, as well as for other reasons, our buildings are made in such a way that the sounds wouldn't come through the walls. Our cities and towns are large enough that some people would be just too far away to hear the bells. If you were out in the country, you wouldn't hear them. Besides which, here you might have a problem if you went to another town some distance away, since the local time might be different than where you started out. Since we have means of talking to people in other places, we need to be able to use the same exact time everywhere. That's why we all wear watches or have small clocks nearby."

"Local time?" Terys frowned. "But time is the same everywhere, surely?"

Garia nodded. "It would appear so, Ma'am. I guess every town marks time from sunrise just like you do here." Terys nodded. Garia continued, "But, consider. The sun takes a whole day to go round Anmar, doesn't it? That means that there must be parts of Anmar where it rises earlier or later. Therefore the local clocks will also be earlier or later. Mostly this won't matter, but when your towns and cities are connected together like those on Earth are, it does matter."

"I believe you, Garia, but I'm finding it difficult to visualize what you say."

Garia grinned. "It's not an easy subject, Ma'am, especially if it's not what you're used to. I could draw you a picture, but you would probably tell me I should wait till the next council session so that everyone can learn at the same time."

Terys smiled. "As you say, dear. But you told me at breakfast you are making an experiment with your watch."

"Yes, Ma'am. It occurred to me that I could find out how long Anmar's day is compared to Earth's, since my watch is adjusted to Earth days. So yesterday I set my watch when the noon bells sounded, and I will check it again today when the noon bells sound again."

"And what will this knowledge tell you?"

"I don't know, Ma'am." Garia shrugged. "I don't think it has any practical use, but it is just knowledge for its own sake. Sometimes that happens, and then maybe in fifty years or so someone else will find a way of making use of that knowledge. That's the way science works."

"And the day on Earth, as I remember you telling us, is divided into twenty-four. How was that number determined, do you know?"

Garia thought. All these questions, which she knew she inevitably would be asked, were making her head ache. I'm only this high-school guy, you know? I'm not exactly a history professor, or a math genius. Half this stuff I'm making up as I go along, and I suspect it's only going to get worse in the future.

"Uh, I think it has to do with the length of our year, strangely," she said finally. Terys raised an eyebrow. "Our year has three hundred sixty-five days, so it's shorter than yours. But in very ancient times, someone saw that it was not far from three hundred sixty which is a very useful number. Three hundred sixty can be divided up in a large number of different ways so the ancients set everything up to reflect that. You know how the sky gradually changes position during the course of a year? Well, that's about one three-sixtieth of the sky, I guess, so they divided up the sky that way. From there it was a simple step to dividing circles into three-sixty. It also means the world turns three-sixty parts - or degrees, we call them - in a day.

"Now, you could divide twenty into three-sixty, to give you portions of a day, but that gives you eighteen degrees for each portion, and eighteen isn't quite such an easy number to handle, so instead they chose twenty-four. So, each portion, which we call an hour, means the Earth turns by fifteen degrees. Or the sun moves fifteen degrees in the sky, which is the same thing. Quite handy if you're navigating the seas, for example."

Garia glanced at Merizel whose eyes were glazed as she tried to follow through the math.

"Sorry, am I going too fast for you, Merizel?"

"Er, just a little, Garia. How did you come to be so comfortable with numbers?"

"Our numbering system is part of the answer," Garia told her, "but the rest is the amount of schooling I've received compared to people here. You're only using a tiny fraction of what your brains are capable of, you know, but if you don't get the right schooling, it won't matter how clever you are, you can't make use of it."

"Yes, I believe I understand. But, please continue what you were saying."

"So, on Earth we have twenty-four hours in a day, and each hour is divided into sixty minutes, and each minute is divided into sixty seconds. A second is about the same length of time as a heartbeat, I guess. Because everything is divided into sixty, which is two by two by three by five, it makes it easy for clock-makers to design wheels for clocks. In practice we don't have twenty-four marked on most of our clocks and watches, but twelve, much the way you repeat the bell codes in the day and night."

"Interesting," Terys mused. "Have you discussed any of this with Master Gerdas or any of the metalsmiths?"

"Oh, no, Ma'am. I'm causing enough upheaval as it is, I don't want to make things any more difficult for anyone. I have mentioned some of what I've just told you to Master Gerdas, but only in relation to astronomical matters."

"I think you are fighting a losing battle, my dear. Like your system of numbers, the logic of what you have just told us is very difficult to ignore, and the fact that it comes from you is a recommendation in itself."

Garia balked. "Ma'am, I'm trying hard not to turn Anmar into a copy of Earth. I really don't want that, and it would be arrogant of me to tell all of you that the way they do things there is better than the way you do things here."

"Yes, dear, but that is one of the reasons we created the Council of the Two Worlds, if you remember, so that we could decide for ourselves what parts of your knowledge to use and what parts to hide. I would rather you explained your concerns to us so that we can appreciate the dangers for ourselves."

"As you wish, Ma'am. "

"Garia," Merizel asked her sometime later, "could you explain your numbers to me again? I feel that I almost grasp how they work, but then I get confused again."

"Yes, dear, an excellent idea," Terys said. "If you sit between us with your slate, you can explain to us both."

The slates were about a foot square and obviously created a lot of chalk dust in use, but that didn't seem to worry anybody. Garia drew the ten symbols and then explained how each digit position in any number related directly to its size. It seemed that Merizel got that, but the combination of unfamiliar symbols and simple arithmetic formulae was what had thrown her. Garia was unprepared for the feeling she got when the 'light bulb' moment finally happened to Merizel. It gave her a warm glow of satisfaction inside, and she realized that this must be how her teachers had felt whenever they had managed to teach a particularly difficult idea to a class.

"That's amazing, Garia! It makes it so easy to do sums! I'm glad you've brought such an idea to Palarand."

"Thank you, Merizel. I don't expect that you are going to understand everything I want to tell people, but I'm glad you like the numbers."

"I do, Garia! I can't wait to tell people at home, they'll..." Merizel stopped and frowned. "Oh. I'm not likely to be going home for a while, am I?"

"My dear," Terys told her, "it's possible we could arrange some time off for you to visit your parents, but I'm afraid it probably wouldn't be until after the rains. Garia will be too busy."

"Oh." Merizel's face fell.

"Not to worry," Garia said, "I'm sure once we get the printing under way your father will find out all about the new numbers, probably before you see him next. And, if you're going home to visit, I could come with you if you like. I'd like to see a little of the countryside rather than just the inside of the palace all the time. Uh, begging your pardon, Ma'am."

"I quite understand, dear. We kept you here for your own safety but I see no reason that you shouldn't go traveling in the future. The King often makes visits to different parts of the kingdom, perhaps you'd like to accompany the royal party on some of those occasions."

"That would be interesting, Ma'am, but there's so much to do here right now, I couldn't possibly leave the city for a month or two."

"No-one will be going anywhere until after the rains have finished, Garia. There will be plenty of time later for us to make arrangements for visiting."

Later, Jenet reminded Garia, "Mistress, I believe the noon bell will sound soon."

"Oh yes, Jenet! Thank you for reminding me. I must go and check my watch."

Terys and Merizel followed Garia into her dressing room where she had left her watch on her dressing table. Garia frowned when she saw the time displayed.

"Five past one! I hope there's nothing wrong with it, I didn't think there would be that much discrepancy between the day lengths."

"How does your watch work, dear?"

Garia gave a brief explanation of how the watch was used to tell the time, explaining that she had reset the hands to twelve noon just as yesterday's double bong sounded and then let it run. She had expected a few minutes difference in the day length, and she wondered whether there were other subtle differences which had caused the watch to run fast - such as possible changes to the laws of physics, the concepts of which she found difficult to explain to her audience. As she was trying to explain this, the bells sounded again and she breathed a sigh of relief.

"Wow! That means your day is twenty-five hours eleven minutes long. I wondered whether I'd done something horribly wrong. Let me write that down on my slate and then we can go for lunch."

Jenet fetched the slate from the sitting room and Garia wrote "25h 11m" on it, which provoked further questions. By the time she had satisfied them and they had each cleaned themselves up, they were the last to appear for lunch.

"My dear," Robanar greeted the Queen, "we thought you had decided to take your nap early today."

As they were seated by their servants Terys replied, "We were slightly delayed by an experiment which Garia was conducting, dear. She had to wait for the noon bells and then we asked her some questions which delayed us. It seems, dear, that Anmar's day is longer than that of Earth."

Garia had been doing furious math in her head as they had walked through the corridors.

"Almost a bell longer, Ma'am," she said. "I don't believe there is any significance in the fact, though. Oh!" She had another thought and blushed. "It's just occurred to me that I'm even younger than I thought I was, comparatively speaking. When I worked out my age for Morlan I had assumed the day lengths were the same."

Robanar gave her a smile. "I think the opposite is almost certainly the case, Mistress. You have shown maturity greater than many girls years older than yourself. I have no doubt that the age you decided upon was correct, and I see no need for you to change it. "

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

It's one of those moot points, I suppose. These people are adapted to the day length they have just as I was to mine. I don't feel that the day is longer here, so perhaps I've adapted as well. And, looked at one way, a day's experiences are a day's experiences, however long that actually takes. Perhaps Robanar is right. It doesn't really matter, anyhow.

As Garia sat she had another reminder from when she had first arrived at the palace.

Heh. I'm wearing a pad, and I'm probably going to be wearing some kind of pad for a few days yet. And to think, when I first started wearing these gowns, that I was glad not to be wearing shorts, that I was happy not to have all that material bunched between my legs! If I had only known then what I know now...

Both Captain Bleskin and Keren had tales to tell about their morning activities.

"I think you'll like the result, Garia," Keren told her. "Now we've cleared the room and given it a scrub out, it looks quite big and light. There'll be plenty of room for almost anything you might want to do in there, I think."

"Of course," Bleskin added, "I regret we'll still have to use part of the room for storage, Mistress. But we've been able to dispose of a considerable amount of equipment that had no business being in there. Why, we discovered things in there which I do not recognize at all. I suspect that some of it may go back to the days before I joined the Guard," he smiled at her, "which was a very long time ago. I have resolved to continue the equipment review throughout the palace, so that when I hand over the Guard to Captain Merek at my retirement in a few months time he shall have no reason to complain about what he will inherit."

"What about those odd items, Captain?" Keren asked him.

"Oh, aye, Highness. Mistress, during our clear-out we discovered a number of strange items, which I can only conclude are some kind of war booty. We do not understand what they are. It occurred to the Prince that with your different knowledge, you may be able to identify some of them."

"Me?" Garia raised an eyebrow. "I don't know, Captain. I'm not an expert on, if you'll excuse my expression, ancient weapons of war."

"That's just it, Mistress. Some of the items, we don't even know if they are weapons or not. We just wondered given your different history and background, whether you might find any of them familiar. I don't think it's important whether you can identify anything or not, but if you can, there may be a benefit to us."

"I'll take a look, Captain, of course I will. "

During the meal the Queen sent Kenila away to talk to someone on one of the other tables, and when she returned the two had a short conversation before Terys turned to Garia.

"My dear, I noticed Mistress Shelda at table, and it occurred to me that, bearing in mind what has happened to you recently, that you could do with a little personal attention before you return to your normal activities. I have just enquired whether she could fit yourself and Merizel in this afternoon after our nap and the reply is that she can. Is there anything you have planned for later which might make a visit to the salon a problem?"

"I don't think so, Ma'am." Garia looked at Merizel, who had a surprised expression. "Have I anything arranged between our nap and dinner, Merizel?"

"Nothing specific, Garia. You did want to continue with the experiment with your watch, and at some time you'll want to collect your tunic, won't you. Mistress Rosilda did say that she would probably be finished today."

"Yes, that's right." Garia thought. "There's no reason we can't visit her after we've been to the salon, I guess. Ma'am? I think that's a great idea, going to the salon. Merizel will just love it."

"Then that's settled, dear. Kenila, go and tell Mistress Shelda that she has two customers for later this afternoon."

"Garia?" Merizel asked cautiously. "A salon is a name for a kind of room, isn't it? What's so special about this one?"

Terys favored Merizel with a smile. "It's where almost everyone in the palace goes to have their hair cut and styled, and where men go to be shaved or have their beards trimmed. They will also provide manicures and pedicures and other treatments which a woman might need."

Garia added, "On Earth a place like the salon would be called a beauty parlor, although it would be almost entirely for women. Men get their hair cut in what we would call a barber shop."

"A beauty parlor! I like the sound of that," Terys said, "although if we started calling it a beauty parlor I don't think many of the men would keep going there."

"No indeed, Ma'am!" Garia agreed. "Best to let things stay as they are, I think."

"I have never heard of such a place," Merizel said. "I always assumed that such attentions were the duties of one's maid. Certainly Bursila has always attended to my own needs in the past."

Terys blinked. "Yes, dear, you may be right, most ladies' maids, including my own, should be able to do such duties, and mine will do them when we are traveling. But in the palace, it makes sense to employ experts who can concentrate on such specialized tasks and leave our maids free for other activities. I think you will enjoy your visit to our salon."

"As you say, Ma'am."

~o~O~o~

"Here we are, Merizel," Garia said, ushering her into the long room. They walked through the activity to the inner sanctum where Mistress Shelda stood waiting.

"This is my new secretary, Lady Merizel, youngest daughter of Baron Kamodar of South Reach. Merizel, this is Mistress Shelda, who runs the salon."

Shelda curtseyed to them both, and then said, "I am pleased to see you again, Mistress. Welcome to the salon, Milady. If you would both take seats? I shall be attending to Mistress Garia today, as her hair will need my special attention, and my assistant Vandara will attend to Lady Merizel. Will that be acceptable to you both?"

"Of course," Garia said, and Merizel nodded agreement.

"What shall we do for you today, Mistress?"

"The works, please." At Shelda's puzzled look Garia realized she had used an Earth expression. "Um, anything and everything you feel needs attention, Mistress Shelda. The Queen suggested I am in need of a little pampering, and here I am."

"As you wish, Mistress. And the same for Lady Merizel?"

"Lady Merizel has never been to a place like this before," Garia told her, "so I don't see why not. Let us see what you can do for both of us, Mistress."

Shelda's eyes flickered over both women, and then she began issuing orders. The two were given capes and Vandara inspected Merizel's hair, while assistants were called from the larger room to give both women manicures and pedicures at the same time. Shelda, familiar with Garia's hair since she had been the one who had styled it originally, trimmed out some odd growths and reshaped it. Vandara, who had not been exposed to Garia's radical style before today, looked askance at it from her position behind Merizel.

"Milady? How do you wish your hair to be styled? Should I be cutting it similar to that of your companion?"

"Oh, no! Um, actually, I've been wondering what I would look like if my hair were cut like that, but I'm not sure that's such a good idea at the moment. Could you just trim the ends, please?"

"As you wish, Milady."

Like almost all women in Palarand, Merizel's hair was left to grow long. In her case, it fell below her waist and was normally kept just caught together at the nape of the neck, except for evening meals when Bursila piled it artfully high on her head.

As Shelda trimmed she remarked to Garia, "I must tell you, Mistress, I've had several inquiries from women servants since I cut your hair, asking if I would be prepared to cut theirs in a similar style. Not many, but eight or nine at least. I have told them that I would not do that without discussing the matter with you first."

Garia thought. "I wouldn't have been upset if you'd just gone and done it, Mistress Shelda, but I'm glad you didn't. There was a specific purpose for the way I wanted my hair cut, and I'm not sure I want other people with too similar a style just yet. Maybe in the future."

"As you wish, Mistress. I shall tell any others who ask that I cannot oblige them."

"That's not the entire story, though," Garia continued. "There are a whole range of other hairstyles I would be delighted to describe to you. Assuming I can find the time to do so, of course. I am rather busy at the moment."

"Indeed? Then I look forward to your next appearance, Mistress."

After their hair had been seen to a ribbon was used to hold it off their faces, which were given massages and thoroughly cleaned with some kind of cream, which Shelda assured Garia had been mixed from natural herbal ingredients.

Yup. Poison Ivy is a natural ingredient, isn't it? Guess I just have to hope for the best...

"A question, Mistress," Garia asked. "Can you provide full body massages? Are you the right person to be asking such a question?"

"Massages, Mistress?" Shelda's expression was of caution. "I don't know of anyone who could massage a woman's body, it wouldn't be seemly. Certain of the trained warriors employ manservants to massage them, usually foreign-born men who come from lands beyond the northern mountains. Is it usual for women to be massaged where you come from, Mistress?"

"Not usual, no, but not unusual either. The masseurs -" this translated into what seemed a long and awkward phrase "- would be women themselves in that case. It is usually done for women who lead very active lives or who are recovering from an injury."

"You come from a very strange land, Mistress, but then I already knew that. The answer, then, to your question must be no. Is it something that you think we should be providing for you here in the palace?"

"I don't think so, Mistress Shelda. At least, not for some while, I think. Forget I asked."

Garia had to admit that the experience on the whole had been a good one. The sheer decadence of having people wash your hands and feet and trim, shape and polish your nails while others cleaned your face and did your hair was very seductive, and she wondered how often she would need to come to the salon. She certainly felt refreshed by the time the two of them left to find Rosilda.

"What did you think, Merizel? Was it worth coming?"

"An unusual experience, Garia, but one I could easily get used to. I never knew such places existed! I'm not sure Bursila was impressed, though, judging by her expression in the mirror."

"There's no reason we can't let our maids get attended to the same time we do," Garia said. "It's a shame I didn't think of it earlier, in fact."

"Maids having the attention we just had? You have some very strange ideas, Garia."

"You have no idea, Merizel. No idea at all."

When they arrived at Yolda's office she was nowhere to be seen. Instead two strange men in the tax-collector's livery were seated at Yolda's desk, and they looked up when the women entered.

"Ah, we wish to speak with Mistress Rosilda."

"Rosilda's no mistress," one of them muttered. To Garia, he asked, "Can I ask your name and purpose? I'll go and fetch her."

"I am Mistress Garia, and Rosilda is making a garment for me."

"As you wish, Mistress."

The man got up and walked out of the office. The other man looked at Garia and said, "Apologies for my colleague, Mistress. He is finding the work here complex and not to his liking."

The man returned with Rosilda, who had garments over her arm.

"If you would come with me, Mistress, we shall find a changing room where you can try these."

In the changing room Jenet helped Garia undress before Rosilda handed her the tunic. Garia examined it closely, noticing the folded seams and sturdy stitching. By feel the fabric was the same as that the men wore, but of course the shape was different. Jenet helped her pull it over her head and then tied the tapes at either side. Garia inspected the result in the metal mirror with some difficulty, as the surface was not as flat as that of the mirror in her dressing room. It was good enough to tell her what she needed to know.

"I am impressed, Rosilda. You have a good eye for my figure, it fits perfectly."

She tried grabbing handfuls of cloth to see if it would be suitable for the kind of training she anticipated doing and felt pleased by the result. She nodded thoughtfully.

"Mistress?" Rosilda asked, "is the hem the length you desire? I can shorten it if you consider it too long. Have I allowed enough flare for you?"

"No, it's about right, I think. Only a morning's test will show if it is good enough to work, but then all you've had has been my description of what I intend to do wearing it."

Garia considered inviting Rosilda to a training session but decided against it for the time being. Tomorrow would be the first session after... her break, and there might be consequences she would rather keep between friends. Garia tried various arm and leg movements to see if there were any tight points but found none.

"It's good, Rosilda. Can I take it with me, or do you have to do more to it first?"

"It's ready, Mistress. I also have this for you."

Rosilda held out the other garment she still held, a wrap-around skirt. Jenet took it and wrapped it around Garia's waist, securing it with the tapes provided.

"You didn't have time to make this as well, surely?"

"I did not, Mistress, but as it is a fairly standard skirt design I had one of the others cut it and sew it together."

"I wasn't expecting this," Garia said, swirling the skirt around her legs. Her hands brushed the fabric and she turned to Rosilda. "It's not the same as the tunic."

"No, Mistress. I remembered what you said, that you would use it to hide your legs while you walked to the exercise place, and I found some thinner fabric for you. I remembered that you would be wearing tights and would otherwise get too warm. You will also notice that it is cut wider than the skirts of most gowns to allow you to move your legs more freely."

Hosanna! I've found a woman who has a brain and knows how to use it!

"This is perfect, Rosilda. Jenet, wind that sash round my waist so I can see the final effect."

Garia checked herself in the mirror again. That really feels good. The tunic fits me perfectly, but it's not too tight for the intended use. I like this skirt, too, and with the sash I have to admit I could be described as looking cute. No, don't strike a pose, you'll destroy all your credibility, wait till you get back to the suite. Now, I wonder...

"Rosilda, you've done a great job with these." Garia hesitated. "Um, I wonder. Do you think you might be prepared to try and make me some other, um, unusual garments? You seem to have a good idea what I need, am I doing the wrong thing by asking you directly? Should I be going through Mistress Yolda instead?"

Rosilda was cautious. "Unusual garments, Mistress?"

"Um, more clothes for exercising in, I guess. What I have in mind, wouldn't be anything like you have in Palarand at all, it would all be completely new, and I suspect some of it might be considered unseemly hereabouts."

"You would not be wearing these clothes in public, Mistress? You would be wearing these in the training hall, like the tunic you wear now?"

"That's exactly right, Rosilda. What do you think?"

"Mistress Yolda will be leaving us in a few weeks, and her attention is on the audit and the Harvest Festival preparations at the moment. I have little doubt that her successor will... have different ideas about the running of the department. I do not think there will be too much difficulty there, Mistress. I admit to being curious about any new costume designs you may have, Mistress. I would certainly be interested in hearing your ideas."

Garia's smile became broader. "I'm delighted to hear that, Rosilda. I could spend a week satisfying your curiosity, but it may have to wait. First, let me try these out, and then I'll come back here and ask you to make me some more. After that, we can amuse ourselves with future designs."

"As you wish, Mistress."

Since she would have to change for the evening meal when she got back to her suite, Garia decided to go back dressed as she was, Jenet carrying the gown she had worn so far that day.

"That's really well done, Garia," Merizel said as they walked back. "I would never have believed a simple tunic could be dressed up like that. You do look cute. Oh!" Her face changed. "Shouldn't I have said something like that?"

"No, Merizel, that's fine." Garia gave the taller girl a grin. "If I'm cute, then I'll just have to get used to the idea." Her eyes gleamed as she tried, unsuccessfully, to suppress a giggle, and Merizel joined in. The two were still chuckling when they reached Garia's suite.

~o~O~o~

"We are glad to see you looking so well, Mistress," Robanar said, "after the events of the last few days."

"Thank you, Sire, I feel much better already. Although there are still some, um, side-effects, I feel that I will be able to cope with this meeting well enough." Garia turned to the others seated around the table. "I must apologize for the short notice in delaying this meeting. You may be able to appreciate that what happened, while quite normal for any woman, had never happened to me before and we were all taken completely unawares. Since I am unlikely to arrive on Anmar again in the same way, however that was, it should never happen again."

"Well said, Mistress Garia. So, let us begin the meeting. First, perhaps, a report from those here about the matters already disclosed. Parrel? Perhaps you should start, as you have an interest in most of the devices and inventions Mistress Garia has already revealed."

"True, Sire." Parrel frowned. "That very fact is leading me to some troubled thoughts of my own, if I may begin that way. There is so much new information and knowledge coming forth that I am finding difficulty in managing everything as I previously had done. Mistress Garia did warn me that this might happen. I begin to think that I may have to reorganize my guild - indeed, the whole guild structure throughout Palarand may need to be reorganized. I have already made preliminary contacts with all other guildmasters in the city, but of course I am meeting some resistance from those who have had no contact with Mistress Garia or the inventions she has provided us. I will keep you posted on progress, Sire.

"Now to details. First, the production of forks is proceeding with great energy. As previously noted we subcontracted the work and those involved are producing between forty and fifty forks a day, about half of which are being delivered to the palace. I am told that the use of the tool for eating is becoming quite popular in the city, and we have already had inquiries from merchants concerning export to nearby Valley countries. I will let Master Tanon handle that portion of the report.

"Next, there has been much experimentation in the paper-making workshop, and we can now say that we can produce several different qualities of paper reliably. Unfortunately, the production rate is very slow and it seems we require vast quantities of water, which means that any production here in the city will be very low volume. In addition we have been experimenting with materials of various kinds with some quite interesting results. Mistress," he turned to Garia, "we would like to ask you to attend the workshop at a date convenient to you to view our results and methods, if you will."

"I would be delighted to come, Master," Garia said. "Would tomorrow afternoon be too soon?"

"Not at all, Mistress. We shall make arrangements."

"To answer your earlier point," Garia added, "paper making will require some kind of crushing or milling to provide the final pulp so it makes sense to base production at a mill on a river somewhere. I would not think that the city would be a suitable place for paper-making, or indeed most of the activities I plan to tell you all about. It seems to me, from what I have learned so far, that the Palar Valley will be where most workshops - factories, we might call them - will be set up."

Parrel nodded. "I had more or less reached that same conclusion myself, Mistress. To resume, then, we have begun designing models of telescope, both for use by the various Guards and for watching the skies. I had not realized just how different the two kinds would be but I am satisfied by the way my guildsmen are progressing. Guildmaster Hurdin of the glass makers, who doubtless will make his own report, has joined with me in arranging lenses to be ground, both for the new telescopes and for the microscopes of which Mistress Garia described last time we met here.

"Next, my assistant Tarvan here has produced a functional model of what Mistress Garia calls a 'still', made entirely from copper pipe and sheet soldered into shape, which has yet to be tested. Guildmaster Hurdin will doubtless tell you of our experiments to make glass sheets. And finally, much of my time has been occupied with a new subject I regret I have become engrossed with, which Mistress Garia described to me at a separate meeting recently also attended by Master Pitchell here, which is the new Printing Press. Allied to which is another curious device which Mistress Garia described, called a Typewriter. I have had to pass that last on to several of my guild-members to develop." He gave the others a harried smile. "As you can see, I have much to occupy my time these days."

"Do you feel that you are overburdened, Guildmaster?" Robanar asked him.

"Oh, no, Sire! I feel more energized than I have for many years. As I explained at the start, I may have to review both my own activities and the methods of our Guilds, but I look forward with great anticipation to whatever Mistress Garia intends to reveal in the future."

I hope you still feel that way in ten years time, Garia thought. Come to that, I hope I can justify your enthusiasm.

"This Printing Press, Parrel," Robanar asked. "Will you describe it for those of us here who were not at your previous meeting?"

"Of course, Sire."

Parrel described the fairly simple method which Garia had told him for constructing a basic printing press. She was impressed to find that he had remembered all that she had told him, including the potential implications for Palarand society. Master Scribe Pitchell stopped writing long enough to add his impressions and ideas, including the need to design and lay out typefaces. It was obvious to all however that the main implication was the way in which this invention went hand-in-hand with the introduction of paper.

"It is such an obvious thing," remarked Terys. "I cannot imagine how paper will change Palarand society, but I can readily see that it will. And, a means of rapidly copying documents for mass distribution, that will have an even greater effect. I understand now why Garia was cautious about revealing her knowledge."

"On my world," Garia said, "the introduction of the printing press meant an end to the secretive hoarding of knowledge, as a means of retaining power. Begging your pardon, Guildmasters. It also meant that knowledge could be passed on without getting corrupted between one teller and the next, since it does not rely on memory but what was originally printed on the page. That does not mean that you can rely on any printed document, any more than you can rely on documents now. Once presses become available for general use, anyone can print whatever they like."

"I appreciate your warning, Mistress," Robanar said. "Like a pen, then, this press is but another tool, to be used for good or ill. Let us hear another report. Guildmaster Hurdin?"

"Sire. As Parrel mentioned we have been grinding lenses of various shapes and sizes to fit the devices he is making. We also arranged a demonstration in which we brought glass-making materials to one of his workshops and used one of his forges to make a pot of glass, which we then poured onto a shallow bath of liquefied tin. Much to our surprise the glass spread out in a thin sheet, and when the tin was cooled slightly we were able to lift the glass sheet with tongs." Hurdin turned to Garia. "All Anmar thanks you for this invention, Mistress. It will take a little while to perfect the method, but I can think of many ways in which these sheets may be useful."

"Pitchell?"

"Sire, I have been in discussion with Captain Bleskin and Captain Merek concerning the introduction of a semaphore system for Palarand. It occurred to us that this will have commercial as well as military implications, and thus we will provide a system which can safely be used for both purposes."

"Commercial implications?"

"Sire," Tanon broke in. "Of course. Imagine that a ship is newly arrived at Viridor from afar, bearing a valuable cargo. To get news of such a cargo in Palarand two days earlier than a messenger could bring it could mean a significant monetary gain. I could instruct my factor in Viridor to bid or not, as the circumstances permit."

"Ah, of course, I see your point, Tanon. Very well. Pitchell, do you see this new method replacing the Valley Messenger Service?"

"No, Sire, since there will always be need for packages and attested documents to be transported. And, of course, Sire, there is always the diplomatic element to the service."

"As you say, Pitchell. Anyone else have anything to say? Margra?"

"I have been having discussions with Mistress Garia, Sire, concerning the structure and functioning of our bodies. There is much to understand, so if I may, I will defer to another meeting."

"As you will. Tanon?"

"Sire," began Tanon, "I have been concerned with some of the numbers which Mistress Garia has used." He turned to address Garia directly. "Oh, I don't mean your numbering system which I find amazingly useful, I mean the sheer size of the production quantities you have mentioned. To produce huge quantities of steel, for example, will require huge quantities of wood for charcoal, and yet more quantities of wood to heat the furnaces. The paper-making will require yet more wood. If we plant more trees they will not be grown for many years, and may take up land better used for food. Yet your world must have found an answer, Mistress."

"Yes, Master Tanon," she said, "we did, and that's what I want to talk about tonight. Over the last few days, while I've been indisposed, as it were, I've had an opportunity to consider the way forward, and basically it comes down to a single commodity which made the revolution on Earth possible. I have made discreet inquiries and I know it exists here. It is coal."

"Coal?" Parrel's tone indicated contempt. "That rubbish? How is coal useful? It's more of a nuisance to the miners than anything."

"How so, Master Parrel?"

Parrel's disdain for the 'rubbish' was plain to see. "It has no strength, Mistress. When the miners tunnel through a seam of coal, they are forced to shore their tunnels in a way that is not necessary with most other rocks. There are roads in the Palar valley which cross seams of coal, the stuff crumbles and disintegrates, it means expensive repairs must be made all the time."

"Have you tried doing anything with it, to see if it is useful?"

Parrel shrugged. "We have tried most rocks in the past, Mistress, in case any were useful ores bearing metal of one kind or another. If we heat coal it just disintegrates leaving a thin layer of ash, no use to anyone. We have found no metal within it, Mistress."

"Have you tried burning it, Master Parrel?"

"Well, yes, Mistress, but I don't see the point. We just end up with the ash I mentioned."

"For about two hundred years, Master Parrel, my civilization ran almost entirely on coal. The point is that it is not an ore, it is a fuel. A fuel which gives out much more heat than the same weight of wood."

Parrel was taken aback, and there were a number of thoughtful expressions around the table.

"You mean that we could substitute coal for wood, Mistress?" he asked. "That would be quite useful."

"You have no idea, Master Parrel. When you heat wood to make charcoal, do you take note of what comes out of it?"

"Uh, I don't know what you mean, Mistress. Smoke, usually. Why? Is there something else?"

"If you were to make a closed metal container to hold the wood, and heat it from outside, you will discover that a gas is driven out of the wood as it becomes charcoal. This gas will burn and can be used for lighting or heating purposes if captured."

"Really?" Parrel's face fell. "More experiments, I suppose."

"Wait till I've finished, Master. You can do the same thing with coal. If you cook it in an enclosed container, it becomes a new substance called coke. This burns much hotter than charcoal. If you put coke in your furnaces, you will find that you can make steel much easier. This coke can also be burned as an industrial or a domestic fuel, and has the advantage that, left outside, it won't rot or disintegrate like a log pile might."

"Mistress, I should know better by now than to be surprised by anything you tell us."

"Thank you, Master Parrel. Now, coal is the key to almost all that follows. You will be building giant furnaces ten, fifteen or twenty strides high, usually on the side of a hill. You throw iron ore, coke, and a little limestone into the top of your furnace, and molten steel flows out the bottom. To make the furnaces you'll need millions of bricks, which will all require firing, which needs coal again. The mortar for the bricks again needs a furnace for its manufacture, fired by coal. Finally, you'll need a source of power for working the metal which doesn't depend on being near to a river, and that will be a steam engine, again fired by coal."

Parrel sat back, overwhelmed by what he had just heard.

"Mistress," Hurdin asked her, "could this coal be used for making glass, would you know?"

"Of course, Master Hurdin. Anywhere you need intense heat you can use coal. Or coke, if it is available."

The astronomer Gerdas, who up until now had kept out of the discussions, now spoke up.

"Mistress, you speak of a steam engine. May I ask what that might be?"

"Master Gerdas," she smiled at him. "If you heat water in an enclosed container, the steam produced will come out of a suitable pipe with some force. That force can be made to do useful work, such as turning a wheel. One of the projects I have for Master Parrel is to make a model steam engine to show you all how it works. A steam engine," she addressed all of them, "can take the place of a watermill, or a treadmill, or any other place where you might need motion. Once you get used to the idea that a steam engine can be put anywhere, not restricted to a river like a mill is, you'll discover many uses for it. Pumps, for example. Cranes, hoists, digging machines. They can pull plows across fields, drive ships without the need for wind or oars. Operate factories running weaving machines."

Easy, there. Don't overwhelm them. Let them get used to the idea of portable power first, see where they run with it. You can tell them the other uses another day.

"I had no idea," muttered Hurdin. "This will change everything."

"Indeed, Hurdin," Gerdas said. "I begin to understand the world Mistress Garia comes from, now."

"Drive ships without oars or sails," mused Tanon. "That will certainly change sea travel, and river traffic, for ever."

"It gets worse," Garia grinned at him, "some of our small ships are still made out of wood, but most are made of steel sheet. It's so much stronger than wood, and the power of steam can push them along easily."

"I think," Robanar said faintly, "that we'd better stop here. Tanon, my apologies, we'll hear the rest of your report at the next meeting. There is a huge amount for us to talk about, isn't there? Feel free, all of you, to come along to the palace and talk to any of us. Mistress Garia, you're going to a paper demonstration tomorrow afternoon, then?"

"Yes, Sire. And, I'll need to talk to Master Parrel about coke and steam engines, I guess. I also want to talk to Master Hurdin and Master Gerdas concerning a curious property of glass which you will find useful in the future."

Hurdin looked surprised but Gerdas just grinned at Garia. He was comfortable with her revelations now and no longer startled by anything she said.

"I'll arrange the meetings, Garia," said Merizel, sitting off to one side beside Pitchell. "Sire, when shall we meet next?"

"Lady Merizel, I cannot answer that directly. Perhaps three days. I will have to consult Kendar, of course. Will there be any difficulty for any of you?"

"Sire," Gerdas said, "I think I speak for all of us when I say that we will re-arrange anything, possibly excepting our own deaths, to be at a meeting like these have proved to be. Have no fear at all that we will not be available."

~o~O~o~

"Whew! That was an interesting day, wasn't it?"

"As you say, Mistress. Did it tire you out to do so much after resting?"

"Not really, Jenet. Don't forget, at my age I'm supposed to be full of energy. That was a good idea the Queen had, to go to the salon. Don't get me wrong, I really appreciate all you do for me, but it's nice to sit in a chair and have everything done occasionally. It's not something I ever experienced on Earth."

"It's nice to let someone else do all the hard work, Mistress. Not that I don't mind doing it for you myself, of course."

"Ah, I'm sorry, I've worked you hard the last few days, haven't I? And there's nothing at all I could have done about any of it."

"You're a woman, Mistress. It's what our bodies do. Now you know what to expect and when to expect it, the whole thing should be much easier in the future."

"As you say, Jenet. Do you think I should be able to train tomorrow? I'd like to, now I have the tunic."

"I don't see why not, Mistress. I'm not sure you should be attempting that thing with your legs, but if you take it carefully there should be no surprises. You might find that some parts of your body are still sensitive, though."

"I'll bear that in mind, Jenet. Now, let's go to bed."