The rest of Garia's guardsmen turn up and she begins training them in earnest. Later the gang go and check out Morlan's quarters, becoming horrified by what they find and realizing that a serious cleaning job is called for. Cue semi-abortive visit to Mistress Yolda and some lateral thinking...

Somewhere Else Entirely

by Penny Lane

30 - Morlan's Laboratory

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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Garia looked at the two guardsmen who stood before her. These were the two who had previously been on nights, that is, they had only just ended the last night of their shift. She was sorely tempted to tell them to go home and get some rest but it was likely that both would refuse, what was happening in the Self Defense Training Room was too interesting for either to pass up the opportunity. She sighed internally.

"You had better tell me your names, then."

"Mistress, I am Joran of North Slip," said the older of the two, "and this is Maxilar."

She turned to the younger man, guessing his age at around the low twenties in Earth years. Physically, his appearance punched her in the gut. He was a heroic specimen, broad-shouldered, narrow-waisted, square-jawed with intense blue eyes and an array of shockingly white perfect teeth set in an attractive mouth. And he knew it, too. With a smile that blew her away he banged his fist on his chest and came to attention.

"Your servant, Mistress. I was intrigued when Captain Merek detailed me to come here after my shift. I heard of your meeting with the randy Duke, I did not expect you to be so small."

"Maxilar, is it?" He nodded. "What I intend to teach here will show you that size is not important, when it comes to unarmed combat. Leastways, in most of the situations you are likely to find yourself in."

She told both of them what she had told the others, that she or anyone else, for that matter, who happened to be teaching, should be addressed as 'Teacher' while they were in this room. They both nodded and she asked them to join the others.

"Okay," she addressed them all. "Today I'm going to be teaching you an exercise that should help you prepare your bodies and minds for the real business of this room, which is to defeat an opponent using only the parts of your body you were born with. This is called Tai Chi, and you should perform it every morning before you go out on the field. Firstly, I'm going to run through the whole exercise with the Prince here and my maid Jenet, both of whom have been learning the forms over the last week or two. After that, I'll get you all out and guide you through the first of the forms. Yes, Joran?"

"Mistress, I mean Teacher, women do this exercise as well as men?"

"Anyone may do it, Joran. Young or old, man or woman, it will help you all. From today my secretary Lady Merizel and her maid Bursila will be learning the exercise alongside you." There was a muttering among the group and she looked at them sternly. "This is not a competition. The exercise is designed to help you prepare your own bodies for the day ahead, not to see who can do the exercise fastest or most accurately. Oh, and one other thing." She held up her bandaged hand. "Since I won't be able to make the correct hand movements for a few days, you should concentrate on what the Prince is doing, not me."

Half-way through the exercise the door opened and two men came quietly through it to stand watching them. When they had finished the two came forward.

"Mistress, Captain Bleskin told us we were to join you here for the future. Something about fighting without weapons?" The speaker clearly thought he had mis-heard his instructions.

"That's right. You must be the two who have been... at ease, I believe you call it?"

"As you say, Mistress. We were supposed to be part of tonight's watch but he told us this was more important."

"So it is. You are?"

"Uh, Yasoon, Mistress."

Garia turned to the other guardsman and got her first good look at him.

Oh, God, another beefcake. At home this one would be playing football for sure. No, scratch that, he'd have been snapped up by Hollywood, or at the very least a modeling agency.

This one had lighter-colored hair than Maxilar but he still had the classic shape of a healthy male athlete. His face was not quite so beautiful but there was a definite something about him. For some unaccountable reason Garia had the urge to jam her breasts against his no-doubt hard body and she fought to keep her composure.

"Benith, Mistress," he said in a soft voice before saluting.

"Okay," she said, "join the others and we'll start by teaching you the exercise I was doing when you came into the room."

It was necessary to roll up the mats to clear enough floor space for them all. Once they had done so, and found positions where they could all see her and Keren, she began. The men were all serious, now. This was business, and if the Captain said they were to train with her, they would do it, however strange the idea seemed. To most of them she had already shown that she knew exactly what she was doing, even if it was obvious that she couldn't have the experience most of them had. The three that had watched her encounter with Jarwin had passed on the story to the others and her abilities were unquestioned, at least in that respect.

After a time she thought they had had enough so stopped for everyone to take a drink. Following that she had Keren begin the job of showing them how to fall and roll, different ways from various starting positions so that when they ended back up on their feet they could immediately press the attack. The men were then paired off and shown how to do some basic throws, Garia emphasizing that one followed your opponent's movements and used them to your own advantage.

Merizel blew in her ear.

"Garia!" she hissed. "Pay attention!"

"What?"

"You've been staring at that side of beef for so long I was afraid you'd turn into a statue!"

The word Merizel had used wasn't exactly 'beef' but the meaning was obvious. Garia blinked and came back to reality. With difficulty she pulled her gaze away from Benith and turned to Merizel.

"What do you mean?"

"I'm not stupid, Garia," she said in a low voice. "That was exactly how Jarwin got to me. It seems there are some men that each woman finds it difficult to resist."

"I wasn't -"

"No?"

"...No, but he's just not a type I've seen around here before."

Merizel snorted. "That's what you call it where you come from, is it? I thought you were supposed to be able to spot that sort of thing a mark off, coming from Earth. Or so you told me the other night."

"Shh! We'll talk about this later. We mustn't distract the men."

It was odd, she mused as she watched them. Those two were by far the most attractive of the group, but some of the others weren't all that bad, as such things go. And how would I know how to size up a man? she wondered. It's not as if I have had any experience of such matters, and no desire at all. By God, though, Benith fascinates me. Perhaps it's the hormones? Do I have to put up with this for the rest of my life? I hope I'll be more discriminating than Merizel was with Jarwin but given her performance I'm not holding out much chance. She shivered as her body reacted to the signals it was receiving. Damn, that's going to be hard to control. Focus, Garia! Business, not pleasure.

Later, walking through the corridor on their way back to their chambers, Merizel resumed the conversation.

"So, Benith, then?"

"He's an interesting person, isn't he? On Earth someone who looked like he does could earn a lot of money."

"Oh? How so?" Merizel smirked. "By hiring himself out to appreciative women?"

"I thought you didn't know about such decadent city practices," Garia grumbled.

"I'm a noblewoman," Merizel replied. "Men like that home in on us because we may have access to coin or influence, so we get told about such things as we grow up. I'm not saying I've ever seen or heard of one, though. That's why Jarwin came as such a shock. That's not what you meant though, was it?"

"No." Garia considered, then sighed. "I'm not sure I'm going to be able to explain this easily if at all. Let's start with the easy option. We have a kind of entertainment a bit like the traveling players here, where players act out stories of various kinds. It's called the movies. We have a means of recording the performance visually and then playing it back later. Someone like Benith would earn serious amounts of money acting in movies, I can tell you, because he will draw in people to watch the recordings. We charge money to watch the recordings."

Keren, walking alongside, asked, "You can record... a performance?"

"Yes. In fact, these days, if you can see it, you can record it. Don't worry, that will be a very long way into your future. And then there's advertising. How the heck do I explain advertisements?" She shook her head. "I'm not sure I want to, just at the moment. Just take it from me, with that face and body he could become seriously rich on Earth even if he has the brain of a brick."

Merizel snickered. "With that body, I would think the brain of a brick would be all he needed. So, you felt moved by him, did you?"

"Apparently so," Garia agreed reluctantly. "As you noticed, I wasn't even aware it was happening to start with." She scowled. "Is this how it's going to be, from now on? I'm just not ready for this nonsense."

Keren gave a chuckle. "I don't think you need worry where Benith is concerned. He's more likely to pay attention to me than to you. In fact, he has done so in the past."

"What?" A shocked Merizel gasped. "Benith likes men? What a waste!" She shook her head in disbelief.

"He's well-known among the guard, Merizel. Some of them even respond. Fortunately my position stopped him from pressing me too far, but he doesn't do badly with the others from what I hear."

Merizel stared at Keren as though he had grown another head, and he hastened to establish his position.

"Don't concern yourself over me, Milady. For your express and private information, I think I would have difficulty with such a relationship. My interests are firmly aimed at the female half of the population."

"That makes me feel ever so much better, Your Highness," Merizel pouted.

Keren merely grinned back at her. "I never said I was perfect."

"There's always Maxilar," Merizel said. "Garia, what about him?"

"I thought he was quite good-looking at first," she replied, "but he didn't have the same effect on me that Benith did. Then I realized the only person Maxilar was interested in was Maxilar."

"You do have a strange view on life, don't you, Garia? Although, I suppose you can't help it with your background. Maxilar looked perfectly acceptable to me, I must admit, though I wasn't immediately attracted to him."

"Are you two going to just analyze every eligible man you come across now?" Keren asked. "If so, I think I'll find some other places to be in the future. "

"Don't be like that, Keren," Garia told him. "You are a disinterested observer and a close friend whose opinions we value greatly. After all, we wouldn't have figured out Benith by ourselves, would we?"

"As you say, Garia. But I can only take so much girl talk, you know."

"I know," she said. "We'll keep our gossip to ourselves in future, I promise."

Back in her bedroom, Jenet carefully stripped off Garia's tunic and regarded her mistress's back.

"Hmm. Your shoulder has turned a mottled shade of greeny-yellow, Mistress. All the darker colors have gone, I know from past experience that what is left will disappear in a few days. I saw this morning that you were able to move it quite well. How does it feel?"

"I can't quite do the full movements, Jenet, there is still some slight restriction, a tightness here and there, but that's to be expected. If we keep going it should ease up as you say. After all, I only fell on it, it's not as if I broke anything." Garia frowned. "The hand is a different matter, though. I hope Mistress Margra is right and I haven't broken anything."

"As you say, Mistress. Did you want to have a quick wash now, before we dress you for lunch?"

"No, Jenet, I think I'll manage without today. After all, I haven't exactly been doing a lot of exercise lately, have I? Let's go and find a gown to wear for the afternoon."

~o~O~o~

"I heard you talk about this, what did you call it, Laboratory," Merizel said. "It used to belong to someone important, yes?"

"The Royal Questor, Morlan," Garia explained. "He died recently, you might remember, after some unexplained circumstances. The Laboratory - his workshop - was attached to his quarters here in the palace."

"I did remember some fuss a week or so back," Merizel said. "Did that have anything to do with that kidnap attempt, come to think of it?"

Garia frowned. "We're not sure. He disappeared the same night as the attempt, saying he was going to meet Master Gerdas at his observatory, but he'd already visited Gerdas that afternoon, and once he went out that evening he never returned. No-one really knows what happened. We're assuming there was some link, but we can't prove it. Ah, here's Keren with the keys."

Keren held up the bunch of keys. "Terevor had them, filed away in his office. I hope you didn't mind waiting."

"No, we're fine," Garia said. "Merizel didn't know about Morlan and I'd started telling her."

"Do you want to keep hold of the keys?" he asked her.

She shrugged. "I've no preference. Jenet can have them, or even Merizel. I don't think I'm going to be coming here unattended, am I?"

"Probably not," Keren said, trying several of the large iron keys in the door till one turned. "Ah! Here we go." He pushed the door open and they all entered the suite.

Merizel wrinkled her nose. "Pooh! Musty in here."

"Aye," Keren said. "It's all been kept closed up since Morlan's funeral and the weather has remained hot. We should really get some windows and doors open, let some air through."

"That sounds exceedingly domesticated coming from the Heir Apparent," Merizel observed.

Keren grinned. "It's only what I'd do - or at least order to be done - in my own suite, if the weather is hot. Besides, I had two older sisters, remember? Learned a lot tagging around behind them."

"What have we got in here?" Garia asked. "I've only seen the study and the lab."

"Mistress," Jenet said, "I have cleaned these quarters, before Master Morlan took office. There is a bed chamber, a sitting room, a bathing chamber, toilet and small kitchen. There is a large closet for his clothes and a room for his manservant in addition to the workshop and study."

"Then lead on, Jenet," Keren said. "I've been here maybe three times in my life, only as far as his study. It is an opportunity to find out what else is here."

The bedroom, clothes closet and sitting room had been cleared of personal belongings, as had the servant's room. The essential furniture remained, as this was presumably a furnished apartment. They each took a brief look in the rooms before heading for the study.

"Maker!" Merizel exclaimed. "I don't think I've ever seen so many scrolls!"

Garia remembered the room from her previous interrogations and it brought back some uncomfortable memories. The study was a fair-sized room, the walls lined with shelves as she remembered, every shelf filled with books, scrolls and piles of parchment. The huge desk in front of the full height window was also piled high with paperwork. Merizel groaned.

"Garia, you can't be serious! You want me to go through all of this?"

"I thought you and Keren could make a start between you," Garia said. "I'd forgotten just how bad it was in here. It would be nice if you could at least make a difference with the desk." She added lightly, "We might even find out what wood it's made of."

"Didn't you want Gerdas to sort this lot out?" Keren asked her. "If any of this is Questor business, then he's the proper one to take charge of it, don't you think?"

Garia's shoulders slumped, one with a twinge of pain. "I'm not sure how useful he's going to be. He's probably as busy as I am right now, and it's only going to get worse in the future."

There was concern in his eyes. "Don't you think you ought to think about easing up, Garia? You're handling rather a lot at the moment, especially since you've started teaching the Guard."

"I'm not sure I can, just at the moment," she told him. "Once I get things going enough that they are self-sustaining, then sure, I'll take a rest. But I don't think I can do that for a month or so, at the very least."

"What were you planning to do in here, Garia?" Merizel asked.

"I wasn't, I was concentrating on the laboratory first," was the reply, "but now I'm in here it's occurred to me that this might be a better place to hold the council meetings. It's certainly big enough, and there's that big blackboard over there, so it would be perfect if we lay in some more chairs. What do you think, Keren?"

He nodded. "It has possibilities, especially if we can clean it up. It will also save us from having to hunt down public rooms at the front of the palace whenever a Guildmaster or a Questor turns up in the middle of the day. Most of them know their way here, after all. I'll make some enquiries."

"Okay, we'll leave the study for now," Garia decided. "Let's get to the laboratory."

The laboratory occupied the full width of the building with high windows and French doors opening out onto the cloisters either side. It was a single-story structure but the same height as the other palace buildings, so the ceiling was high up in the gloom of the steeply-pitched roof. A door at one end led to a cross-corridor, two at the other led to Morlan's quarters and his study.

"Tell you what," Merizel said as she took in the shambles, "I'll stick with the study. You two can amuse yourself in here for a year or two."

There were heavy tables, benches, in rows to each side. Most were covered with unidentifiable apparatus made of glass, iron, wood and leather or other fabric. Some of it looked like scenes from a painting of an alchemist's workshop. Other constructions lay discarded on the floor under the windows. At the corridor end was an open area, a small furnace in one corner, the necessary tools by its side. Blocks, lengths and planks of wood lay jumbled on the other side. On the walls, at both ends of the building and between the windows and doors, were more shelves holding papers, scrolls, experiments, sealed glass jars containing animal and vegetable specimens, rubbish.

"We could always turn around and walk quietly away, you know," Keren said as they took in the scene. "No-one who actually saw what was in here would blame us, would they?"

Garia sighed. "You are probably right, but your father was also right when he said that we two were probably the best people to clear this lot up. I'm not sure anybody really knew what Morlan was up to in here, and no-one else is going to have a clue, are they? Besides, we don't have to do it all at once. What I really had in mind to start with was somewhere to run the model steam engine. If we can just clear one of these benches, and enough space for us all to stand around it -"

Keren reluctantly nodded. "Unfortunately, as usual, you make far too much sense. Very well, we shall make the attempt. But I shall insist that you take care of yourself by not over-working, do you hear me?"

Garia curtseyed with a smile. "As you command, Your Highness."

"We can't do much in here or in the study dressed like this, Garia," Merizel said. "There's far too much dust. I'm not sure I have anything suitable to wear."

Garia and Jenet looked at one another.

"But we have," Garia said. "Remember those outfits we wore when we went up the watch-tower? They'll be perfect for doing this."

"That's exactly what they were made for, Mistress," Jenet confirmed. "As you say, they are just what we need. We must get some more of them for Merizel and Bursila to wear."

"Leaving the lone man to sort out his own protective wear, I suppose," Keren said with a wry smile. "I ruined a tunic cleaning out the Self Defense Training Room, I wonder what Yolda will say when I ask her for something to wear while I clean some of the palace rooms?"

"It won't be pleasant," Garia said nastily. "Can I come and watch?"

"If we all go together and explain," Keren said, "she ought to see reason. After all, my father has expressly commanded it, hasn't he?"

Garia snorted. "You wish. I'll reserve my judgment, thank you. Considering the trouble Jenet and I had prising something out of her to get up that tower, we may have to be a little... creative." She turned back to the room. "Anyhow, what do you think? I guess the idea is to start small and clear away more as we need the space." She grimaced. "The study is another matter. As you say, the King wants to know what Morlan was up to, and I don't think we can put off that project too long. I think the only reason it hasn't been done already is that people have taken one look in the room and backed rapidly away again."

"You fill me with such joy, Garia," Merizel said.

"I'm sorry, Merizel, but I'd do it myself if I could read your script, I really would. I'm not asking you to clear and sort it within a week, we have time, but we have to make progress. So, if we want to get started, perhaps we'd better go and face Yolda. Coming?"

~o~O~o~

Keren had rehearsed his speech so was ready when Yolda looked up from her documents.

"Mistress Yolda, we three have been charged by the King to inspect and examine the contents of Master Morlan's quarters in the palace. He has chosen us as he considers that we are the only people who might understand what will be found within. Because the quarters have been locked up since his disappearance, the whole suite is filthy with dust, and as I understand it Master Morlan never let any of the palace servants into his... workshop or study to clean it. Therefore, we require sturdy clothing to protect us as we move documents and apparatus around."

Yolda sat back in her chair and contemplated the group with interest.

"Your Highness, although of course I know of the quarters you describe, I am not familiar with them enough to understand the task you are charged with. May I ask for more details?"

"Jenet? You would best answer this."

"Mistress Yolda," Jenet said, "I have cleaned Master Morlan's quarters in the past, although he always refused to allow his study or his workshop to be touched by any servants. His study is about six times the size of this room and just as full of documents. His workshop is a room as big as the Family Dining Room and filled with his experiments. No-one has entered his quarters since his funeral and it is all very dusty. Mistress, his study has become so bad that the dust on some of the shelves is as thick as my finger."

"If I understand you then, Highness, it will be just yourself, Lady Merizel, Mistress Garia and the two maids engaged in this enterprise?"

"That is correct, Mistress Yolda," Keren replied. "It will take us several months, we estimate."

"Very well, Highness, there is protective clothing available for your female staff and I can issue them three sets each to allow for laundry. Will that be acceptable?"

Keren frowned. "Well, yes, Mistress Yolda, thank you. But what of myself? I will need protective clothing as well. My recent experience of a similar exercise for Captain Bleskin led to the ruin of one of my tunics."

Yolda looked at him doubtfully. "Highness, only female staff perform cleaning duties in the palace. I'm not sure I can suggest a suitable substitute for you."

"What about the kitchen staff, then? Don't the porters wear overalls or aprons? Is there something similar I could use? It's going to be filthy in there."

She looked at him for a long moment, silent. It was clear to all of them that Yolda didn't consider clearing a workshop to be a suitable use of the Heir Apparent's time, but after recent episodes she wasn't going to say anything directly to him.

"I could find you an apron, Highness. I'm not sure what else we have in stock that would suit you. Perhaps Mistress Garia can offer a suggestion?"

Damn that woman! She knows we're going to get our way in the end but she's going to dig her heels in every single step of the way. And she knows that an apron probably isn't going to be adequate. What on Earth can I tell her? How was I supposed to know that only women do the cleaning around here?

"At the moment I cannot, Mistress Yolda," Garia said, defeated. "Perhaps it would be for the best if the Prince took a less active part in the proceedings and instead oversaw our work. I think we should be able to arrange things to get round the problem."

"As you say, Mistress. I will arrange for your cleaning clothing to be delivered to your chambers later today. Will that be acceptable?"

"Three sets each, Mistress Yolda?"

"Yes, Mistress. If you require more later, then I will supply them."

"Mistress Yolda," Jenet said, "We will also require scarves, to cover both our hair and our faces."

"Of course. I will supply you ten each, five for your hair and five for your faces. Will that be all?"

"For now, Mistress Yolda," Garia said, wishing it wasn't so.

"Mistress," Jenet said, "There is the Harvest Festival to consider."

Yolda looked at Garia. "You wish a gown for Harvest Festival, Mistress?"

Garia looked at Merizel, then turned to answer Yolda.

"I will do, Mistress, but I think I'll need to consult the Queen first. I'll come back another day, perhaps."

The five left the office with mixed emotions. Garia was both annoyed and frustrated by Yolda's attitude. Merizel was upset because nobody had thought to ask if she needed anything to wear for the Harvest Festival. Keren was annoyed that Yolda had been so stubborn and that he didn't yet have the authority to change her attitude.

"That's not going to work, Garia," he said as they walked back. "I can't just stand around directing you four. It wouldn't be fair to any of you, would it?"

"I don't see why not, Keren," she said. "After all, one day you'll have a whole palace running round doing your every command. Why not start now? We won't begrudge you it, really."

"You know I'm not that sort of person, Garia. I prefer to get my hands dirty." His eyes hardened. "And when I'm King I want to continue getting my hands dirty, as much as I'll be able to. You have shown us that one does what one can regardless of rank or status."

"So..." Garia said slowly, "if you're sure that you want to get as dirty as us, do you mind if I find another way round our problem? Remember, we had to be creative to get me and Jenet up that tower."

"I'm sure." He looked at her curiously. "What did you have in mind?"

"I don't know yet. Let me think this through this evening, will you? We have until tomorrow afternoon until we go over to the lab again."

"Lab?"

"Oh, that's short for laboratory."

"Ah. In the common tongue, that's the name of a small rodent."

"Funny you should say that..."

~o~O~o~

"Are you serious?" Keren almost shouted.

They had come back to her suite after the evening meal to discover that their cleaning clothes had been delivered. It was then that Garia had had her brainwave, which Keren obviously did not like.

"It's a practical solution," she told him. "Nobody's going to see you, are they? Yolda apparently forgot she already given Jenet and I dresses, so that makes fourteen sets we have between us. With a bit of judicious juggling we ought to be able to provide you with something to wear."

"But, if I wander round the palace wearing a dress it would be the end of me! I'd be a laughing stock!"

"Nobody's asking you to walk round the palace. What I had in mind was that you could use Morlan's bedroom to change in. It's probably best to keep the scarves in his quarters anyway so keeping a spare dress or two there won't seem odd."

"You had better keep this quiet, woman, or I'll have your head off the moment I become King!"

"Calm down, Keren! As I said, no-one's likely to see you, are they? And with a scarf over your face to keep out the dust, even if someone catches sight of you through a window, say, they are going to think you're one of us. What do you say?"

Keren glared at Merizel, who had her hands firmly clamped over her mouth to stop herself howling with laughter. Bursila seemed shocked at Garia's idea, while Jenet had become accustomed to her mistress's strange leaps of imagination so merely had the glimmer of a smile.

"It's not funny, Merizel," he said. "There may be men - and boys - who do that sort of thing but I'm certainly not one of them. The whole idea is outrageous."

Merizel removed her hands. "And perfectly practical, Your Highness."

Keren harrumphed and then rolled his eyes. "You too! Very well. I will permit you to try out this mad scheme tomorrow afternoon, to see if you can get it to work. Mind you," he wagged a finger at each of the four women, "I want your solemn oaths that this will remain a complete secret between the five of us until the day we each die, is that understood?"

"As you command, Your Highness. What would you like us to swear by? What are you going to say to your father when you tell him you want to borrow his crown?"

A startled Keren gave Garia a frustrated look. "This is a bad idea." He calmed down slightly. "I'll take your word, I trust each of you at least that much."

They each gave a vow of secrecy, and then by common consent changed the subject to something less controversial.

~o~O~o~

The following afternoon they had met in Garia's sitting room before setting off for the rooms of the late Royal Questor. Each of the four women wore one of the cleaning dresses and soft boots but also carried a spare dress and all the fifty scarves Yolda had provided. When they reached the door leading to Morlan's quarters they discovered that Terevor had arranged for cleaning equipment to be left, two tall step-ladders, buckets, long-handled brooms, brushes and dustpans, dust-cloths and fluffy dusters on sticks, jars containing what Jenet said were mild abrasives and wax polishes. It took them some little time to carry all within before they locked the outer door behind them and congregated in Morlan's bedroom.

"All right," Keren said heavily. "Let's get it over with. What do you want me to do? I'm not undressing in front of you, at least not all the way. I do have some self-respect, you know."

Jenet said to him, "Highness, we don't wish to cause you embarrassment -" Keren snorted, "- so at first it might be best to try these over your tunic. That will tell us which will fit and let you see how they are fastened. They are not made to personal sizes so we should be able to find at least one which you can wear. You'll have to dress yourself, I think, as it will be too warm to wear with your tunic underneath."

"As you say, Jenet." Keren held out his arms. "How does this work, then? It's strange, I've passed cleaning parties countless times in the corridors over the years but I have no idea how your clothes work. How's that for powers of observation?"

"Why would you be interested, Highness?" Jenet asked, and then blushed as she worked out the answer to her own question. A Prince might very well want to get a female servant out of her dress, wouldn't he? Except that Keren wasn't that kind of Prince, fortunately.

Garia's dress was too small, but everyone had expected that. Jenet's was wide enough, but quite short when worn by Keren, scandalously so by the standards of the locals. Merizel's dress was certainly long enough, but because she was so thin it didn't quite have the width to accommodate Keren's shoulders. In the end he wore the spare one of Bursila's. This was still a little short, but not unreasonably so, especially given how hot it was likely to become as the afternoon progressed.

The dresses were wrap-rounds with the overlap across their backs, in order to prevent dust and dirt getting in via the front. The necks were quite high in the front with a V behind, the tails sloping down sharply to the waist at either side. The inside tail came out through a slot just above the left waist and the two ends tied with a bow in front. The hem was just about below the knee on Keren, and the skirt had sufficient flare to enable the wearer to climb step-ladders without being hampered. All of them were of course wearing tights for protection and modesty despite the hot weather.

The next step was to add the scarves. The head-scarves were folded diagonally and wrapped around the head from behind, being tied over the forehead. The triangle which was left was brought over the head and tucked in all around to protect the wearer's hair.

Garia cocked her head. "That doesn't look too bad. How do you feel?"

"Bit of an anti-climax, really," he replied. "It's somewhat like a wrap-around tunic, isn't it? I was really thinking about all the fancy gowns I've seen you wear, and feeding my fears off that. What do I look like? Will this do?"

"For cleaning the laboratory, certainly. If you're asking me if you look like a Prince pretending to be a female servant, the answer is no. Especially with that scarf over your hair, I think you could be taken for a tallish maid at first glance. That might be useful if anything unexpected comes up, don't you think? Not that I expect anything unexpected to come up, you understand, but it's best to have a plan in case something does."

Merizel inspected him next. "You have a nice, smooth face, Highness. As Garia says, you could carry this off if absolutely necessary. Of course, you could do with a little padding here and there but I've seen some flat-chested maids around the corridors so I wouldn't worry. And once you put a scarf over your face no-one will be able to tell who or what you are."

"Thank you," he said, rolling his eyes. "I suppose that means I'm committed to this crazy scheme, then. Right, you'd better all get out so that I can take my tunic off."

Keren rejoined them in the laboratory once he had changed. Jenet had to retie his headscarf which had become dislodged along the way.

"Jenet," Garia said, "You'd better lead the way, here, as you have experience of this job. What do we do first?"

"We start at the top, Mistress. Any dust we disturb will fall, so there is no point cleaning the lower portions of the room first. Since you wish to clear a bench first, perhaps we should begin with the shelves nearest to your chosen bench. Oh! Of course, we have to clean the lights first. They are let up and down on ropes."

They proceeded slowly at first, no-one finding it strange that a maid should be directing her mistress, the daughter of a baron and the heir to the throne how to do a menial cleaning job. Once all had become familiar both with the tools and with Jenet's method of cleaning they split up, Merizel and Bursila going into the study to begin the long process of cleaning and organizing the contents. Garia had chosen a bench nearest the space in front of the furnace and they had cleaned all the nearby shelves before starting on the bench itself.

"Phew! This is hot work, isn't it?"

"I could bring water, Mistress. There are goblets in the kitchen, I remember."

"Do you normally work all the way through an afternoon on jobs like this, Jenet? About now, the Queen would be offering us pel."

"No, Mistress, normally we would have a break. Of course, we would also not be doing a job like this in such hot weather, cleaning usually takes place some time after the rains finish. Would you like me to make you some pel? I'm not sure what is available in the kitchen with regard to food and drink."

"No, water will do fine today. Keren?"

"As you say, Garia. Water is fine. What do you think this is?"

He had hauled out a canvas package from the shelf under the bench and started unwrapping it. It seemed to be an oblong wooden box with a brass plate inset on either side, and a handle on a third face.

"Hmm," he said, turning it over, "it's quite heavy. It looks like some kind of machine, if all these wheels I can see are any clue. There's writing engraved on both sides, but I don't recognize the script."

"May I?"

Keren put the box down on the bench and Garia tried to lift it. It was quite heavy and she had trouble holding it, but managed to turn it over enough to make her blood run cold.

"You stand it up like this on one of the small sides. I recognize the script," she said quietly, in a voice which made Keren look up. "It's a script I know well, although I don't know the language to be able to read any of this. It's called Greek, and I recognize the device as well. It's a sort of calendar and it's called the Antikythera device. It's around two thousand of our years old. On our world, it was found about a hundred years ago in a shipwreck on the bottom of the sea. Keren, I feel funny."

He grabbed a nearby stool, quickly brushed the dust off the seat and offered it to her. She sank onto it, her hand wiping the sweat from her forehead.

"You're saying this comes from Earth?"

She nodded, her heart pounding. "Yes, probably the same way as my watch and clothes did. Since on Earth it ended up in a shipwreck, that might mean that whoever had it there was carrying it at the moment of the wreck, which might mean he died there and came here. Keren, it looks like I'm not the first person to have come to Anmar from Earth."