1 - A Day In The Life

Chapter One: A Day in the Life

In the morning hours, the City of the Steel Lotus is like any other metropolis. The dawning light burns away the accumulated pretenses and illusions of a capitol city from the prior night, leaving behind a conglomeration of Tengese people greeting another day. The layered stink of humanity, waste, and despair from the night before is long gone. Those horrid smells are replaced by the scents of hope emanating from bakers’ ovens, wafting into the streets to entice the hunger of those traveling to the day’s work. Networks of canals, their waters glittering in the rising light, bear boats full of cargo, fruit, and vegetables among the market squares. 

Bureaucrats, courtiers, noblemen, merchants, guardsmen, and laborers mix in the streets, all sharing the same place and ultimately the same purpose. Those who have status in the City, walk underneath bright parasols, decorated with their family crests and carried by ever-watchful servants. The heat of the summer demands light clothing that resists the ever-present humidity of the river deltas on which the city is built. Colored linen is the fabric of choice for the majority of the city. And the Tengese love their colors, usually solid and bright, with faint floral patterns lining the edges. Pastels are reserved for the Dragon-Blooded Dynasts who reside in the City, and those native nobles who wish to curry favor with the Realm’s favored.

Tengese men wear their hair short, while the women pin their long hair up in buns, which they adorn with jewelry and ornate spindle-thin metalwork. Here, one’s family is one’s entire identity, and a life can be born, experienced, and ended without ever making a decision for one’s own self. Tengese men and women hold fast to tradition, the worship of the Golden Lord and the Pale Lady, to studied compliance in the face of their superiors, and to the importance of preserving the reputation of their family.

For those without a family in the lands of the An-Teng, life can indeed be hard. The burden of being isolated lessens in cities such as the City of the Steel Lotus. And places like the House of Seven Dancer Shadows can come to be the foundation of a surrogate family. But during the mornings, even a hospitable, enticing, and discreet brothel gets revealed under the morning sun as a business, and this day was no exception.

On those days where no guests were in residence at the House of Seven Dancer Shadows, the Madame of the House gathered the staff for daily reviews at the Ringing of Nine Bells. This was such a day, and more than that, it was an important day. For the most important client of the House of the Seven Dancer Shadows was due to visit that afternoon after a long absence, and it was critical that the House be in tip-top shape. The Madame had no formal name, for that along with her left eye had been stripped from her when she was cast out of her House in the Realm. Here in the City, her given name was One-Eyed Lou, and she was a formidable Dragon-Blooded woman.

The nine bells had finished ringing and the staff was assembling in the interior courtyard of the House, awaiting the Madame. Rumors were already circulating amongst the inhabitants of the House about the client’s impending visit.

Amongst the gathering crowd was: John, the Janitor and general maintenance man of the House; Michele, the favored Courtesan of the house and of the House’s most important client; Lexi, the Bartender and chief counselor of all the staff save for Madame Lou; and Shenzen, the Cook and dojo master of the House. All four had found their way to the House over the last two years, and over the course of that time had forged a cautious friendship.

“Wonder what she’s going to declare this time?” Lexi wondered to John, who simply shrugged.

“Same thing as yesterday,” he responded. “‘Clean everything, nothing must be out of place, our clients come first’. The usual bullshit.”

Lexi rolled her eyes at John, then turned to Michele. The Companion was still and silent, but Lexi noticed the male courtesan was enjoying the feeling of being the unspoken center of attention. I… won’t even bother right now, Lexi decided, and moved on to Shenzen. One look at his face told her that even asking the question would be a waste of time. Shenzen was even more taciturn than John, and far more unpleasant to talk to.

“Staff!” Madame Lou called out. Her confident voice silenced the gathering, and echoed along the walls of the atrium above them all. “Today is a great day for the House of the Seven Dancer Shadows, for our most important client comes to visit us! Every care must be taken to insure that the best service in all of An-Teng is provided! I am counting on all of you to do your best at all times while the client is in our care.” She looked down at Michele, and the gazes of everyone followed.

Michele smiled, unfazed by the attention focused on him.

“The client has her favorite,” One-Eyed Lou continued, staring at the courtesan, “and so I expect all of you to support Michele in his efforts to make her stay here worthwhile.”

Michele looked around at the gathered people, and then bowed to One-Eyed Lou.

The rest of the speech centered on specific tasks that the staff needed to accomplish. John would have to confer with the household gods that insured the water flowed through the pipes, that fresh air circulated throughout every room, that the kitchen fires were at the proper heat, and that the gardens were pristine. Lexi would inventory the bottles available at the bar, Michele would obtain new silk robes that were in the colors the client liked, and Shenzen would have to cook for fifty-plus soldiers in addition to the normal household staff.

Once finished, One-Eyed Lou looked around at all of them, her sole green eye surveying her staff. Pride filled her face. “Today, we will once more rise to the occasion, and prove that we are the best House in all of An-Teng. The Golden Lord himself will be proud of us!”

The Tengese staff cheered while Lexi, John, Michele, and Shenzen looked at each other. The Madame indicated with a wave that the staff were dismissed.

As people left the courtyard, Lexi looked at John, Shenzen, and Michele. “I’ll go do inventory and be ready to go to the Sun Square market by half past the bell,” she said.

The other three nodded and split up. Michele talked to his assistant, an eleven year old boy who was the son of two of the house servants, about the necessary inventory of garments and perfumes needed. Lexi went to her bar and started counting bottles.

John followed Shenzen down the stairs connecting the dining room to the kitchen in the basement below. Down here the walls were simple unadorned wood and stone, with large wooden joists well overhead. The large fireplace against the west wall of the kitchen, small windows up high on the walls, and candles mounted onto the support pillars provided the necessary light for the staff to see. The air here was thick with spices, sweat, and the underlying, mouth-watering scent of fresh bread. Shenzen beckoned to his line cooks, who came over with their attendants and within seconds was giving orders and taking inventory.

Meanwhile, John walked away from the kitchen, heading through the open double-doors leading to the center of the basement, which also happened to be the center of his world. This was the maintenance workshop, lined with shelves bearing tools and workbenches. It was here that he would fix whatever needed fixing, gather the tools necessary for yard work, or cleaning a room that was beyond the capabilities of the normal maid staff. The air here was cool and clean, with a hint of earth. The only light came from candles, and a bar of red light cast through the open doorway from the kitchen beyond.

For the last year, this had been John’s home and refuge from the chaos of his life. When he first took the job as the janitor and maintenance man for the House of Seven Dancer Shadows and was shown this space, he felt as if he’d been thrust into a prison. Now the shadowed gray walls provided a sense of peace and safety. He knew every inch of the room and felt that it was as much of a home to him as Uncle Calam’s had been. But he had a job to do.

John turned to his right and walked through an open doorway into the utility temple of the house. In front of him were four shrines, each dedicated to a particular element and color: Water (blue), Air (a pale yellow), Earth (green), and Fire (red). Each shrine was about three feet in height, and inscribed with sacred texts and images particular to that temple’s element. In the center of each was a small, glowing being of Essence in the shape of an androgynous human seated in the lotus position. These were the household gods and they sat in front of small curved bowls that received the offerings necessary to continue the proper working function of the House’s utilities.

To his left was the white shrine of the Madame’s Ancestors--which he always left alone because that belonged to Madame One-Eyed Lou. It resembled the design of the elemental temples in the room but inside, where a god would reside, was a darkness that resisted the ambient light. It contained selected bones of Lou’s ancestors, and once a month she would come down to perform sacrifices honoring those ancestors who were abiding in Stygia--the Underworld.

John ignored the Ancestor shrine as he was here for the household gods. He stood in front of the four shrines and cleared his throat. Four sets of glowing eyes opened in response and John knew he had their attention.

“Okay everyone,” John said to the gods. “A big client--the big client--is coming once again to the House and I need everything in working order. Is there anything out of place that I need to address?”

The Earth, Fire, and Water gods all looked to the Air god who had enough of an ego that it arrogated for itself the title of spokes-being.

John realized the three elementals were staring at Air a little more intently than normal, as there was a strange tension suddenly in the air. A faint expression of -something- crossed the Air god’s normally bland face, before it resumed its divine imperviousness. John wasn’t sure what he saw, but deep inside he was sure something concerned the little deities.

“Everything is fine, Torre,” the Air god said in a high-pitched voice, reedy and almost grating. But John spotted the Earth god shaking its head. “Tell him,” Earth said, its voice low and resonant.

“Yeah, tell me what?” John said.

Air gave Earth an ugly glare and then returned its attention to John. “Torre, bring us the standard offerings and we will insure that clean air moves through the house, that the fires burn properly, that water rolls through the pipes, and that the gardens are in order.”

“You’re also going to tell me what the problem is,” John said, staring at Air. He’d had run-ins with the bossy little god before, and he’d proven to the little divinity that he wasn’t anyone to be pushed around.

“Fine,” Air muttered. “But bring us those offerings first!”

“This isn’t over,” John said to Air as he turned to leave. “We have to take care of the House, you’re going to tell me what the problem is, and then we’re going to talk about your manners.”

***

The Sun Square market was located in the midst of the City’s southern quarter. From within the square, one could enjoy the sight of the magnificent teak-and-opal decorated spires of the Palace of the Three-Fold Magnificence, rising into the sky from beyond the northern wall of the market. It was here that the merchants of food and drink gathered to sell to residents and to the proprietors of the City’s innumerable cafes.

Michele, Lexi, John, Shenzen, emerged into the market from its Eastern entrance, over which was erected a gate made of teak to honor the Elemental Pole of the East. Accompanying them was Michele’s assistant and several house servants to carry the purchased wares. The market itself was full of merchants, shoppers, and people passing through on business. Bright linens in solid colors turned the public space into a marvelous blur of colors, accenting the cacophony of voices haggling, pleading, gossiping, and laughing. Salted meat hung from hooks, spices were stored in vast ceramic bottles, and fresh vegetables lined the shelving in the stalls.

Lexi immediately took off to the wine seller, and Shenzen made his way over to the butchers. But John and Michele halted, because they noticed discrepancies in the normal flow of the market that the Bartender and Cook did not.

Michele was the first to spot a tall woman wearing a greyish-white tunic, bound with a black leather belt, and pantaloons. This was unusual in that only foreign noblewomen and outcaste Tengese women laborers wore pants. Yet to Michele’s trained eye, this woman was not a despised outcast. Her skin was almost alabaster-white, and her composure was both graceful and poised. Then he noticed the three soldiers. He was wearing a green sarong, which he immediately began adjusting in order to disguise his examination of the stranger.

John did not see the strange woman, but he did spot the three men, each one lean and wearing non-description beige tunics and pants, casually occupying spots in the market which allowed them to view all comings and goings. Something about how they stood jarred him. The memories of the men in the shadows watching the House during his self-imposed arrest surged through his mind.

“You see them?” John whispered to Michele.

The courtesan nodded as he smiled at his boy assistant, handing the page a list of robes to be purchased. “I did,” Michele replied. “Act casual, because they haven’t seen us yet. Have you seen the woman?”

“No,” John replied. He looked down at the bottles of a nearby vendor, and in doing so let his eyes travel. He noticed the woman, who thankfully appeared not to have registered them. But he did see that she, along with the soldiers, were watching the entrances. He decided he would get as close as possible to one of the men to determine where they were from. “I’m going to go check out the one watching the entrance we walked in.”

Michele nodded. “Try not to get caught. I’ll do my thing and see if I can keep them distracted.” He then sauntered off--almost a sashay, really--and began examining the wares of the nearest merchant with dramatic flair. And heads did turn, because after all, he was an extraordinarily attractive man in a sarong.

As it turned out, Michele wasn’t needed. John selected one of the soldiers that was watching the entrance they’d come through. Though the Janitor used every technique he could to get close, he realized he didn’t have to worry. The soldier in question was staring straight down the exposed cleavage of a middle-aged woman, who was bent over to inspect the wares of a gourd merchant. Judging by the vacant, longing expression on the man’s face, John figured it had been quite a while for the fellow. The capper was when the soldier absently began to pick his nose there in public. John could have erupted into dance in front of the man, only to be summarily dismissed for breasts and the search for gold.

Feeling somewhat cheated, John got into a good position to observe the soldier. The Janitor was certain he could have done a better job being inconspicuous, but this was ridiculous! He found, adding further to his disgust, that the other two soldiers were just as captivated by the buxom woman. He inspected the man from a short distance away, pretending to be interested in linen scarves. There was a small carved ring on one of the man’s fingers that John recognized as being from a mercenary band out of Chiaroscuro, a faraway city on the southern straits. The soldier’s nose was crooked and showed evidence of having been broken several times. His knuckles were scarred, ridged, and indicated to John that he knew how to fight. His clothing was that of common laborers in Chiaroscuro. John judged that this man had been out in the desert for quite a while due to how tan and weathered the man’s skin was. This would also explain why he was enraptured by the matron’s breasts. There were no women where this man had been. Then John realized that, judging by the way these soldiers were behaving, that they were not with the mysterious woman in the far corner.

Just then, Michele sent his page home, carrying the robes and some other sundries. Both John and Michele noticed the woman spotting the page, as if for the first time. And they beheld the stranger subtly counting everything the boy held. Michele and John shot each other a look. Shenzen was the next to leave, and the woman made note of him as well.

By now the soldiers had recovered from their daydreaming. From his vantage point, John watched the soldiers, who were watching Shenzen and the house assistants leave. The moment Shenzen was out of sight, the soldiers all left their position to walk out another gate. Only the strange woman was left.

Lexi emerged from the tents of the wine seller, bearing with her a wicker basket full of bottles. She caught sight of Michele and walked over to him. “Find everything you need,” she asked?

Michele nodded. With a broad smile across his handsome face, he looked down at Lexi. “Act as if everything is normal,” he said to her, “Do not start looking around. Instead, figure out a way to turn around and spot the woman in white behind you.”

Mystified, but choosing to obey the sudden seriousness that belied the expression on the Courtesan’s face, Lexi pretended as if she needed to adjust the bottles in her basket, and in doing so managed an inconspicous look and thus identified the stranger. “Wow,” she said under her breath. “She looks weird.”

“No kidding,” Michele muttered. He made a decision in that moment. “I’m going to go talk to her.”

“What?” Lexi hissed. “Are you crazy?” Then she paused, considering. “Never mind, don’t answer that,” she said. “Try not to get killed.”

“Like anyone would dare harm this,” Michele told her with a smirk, emphasizing his half-naked body. He made for the woman, sauntering with a brazen, insouciant pride. As he strutted, he surmised that the woman was too busy noting what the other House servants were carrying, to notice him. It was a damn shame, Michele felt--he had the attention of over half the market, and the one person he wanted noticing him was too busy watching the staff like a… predator, he realized. A chill ran down his back as the thought silenced his exhibitionistic joy.

The woman glanced at him, and then did a double-take once she realized how close Michele was. For his part, Michele stopped because of the weight behind the woman’s deep-set, kohl-rimmed eyes. Though the heat of the day should have been pressing down on them both, he only felt a deep chill emanating from her presence. He had enough self-control to clamp down on the surge of gibbering panic that rose up within him. He forced his sexiest, “Hello”, to her through lips and teeth that wanted to clamp together in fear.

She smirked at him, and then her gaze darted across the square. The woman noted John and Lexi with disquieting ease. Then her icy stare returned to the Courtesan and she lifted a hand to dismiss him, her fingers idly flicking him away.

“Go away, little man,” she said in a quiet, low voice.

Michele, speechless, could only nod and turn around. As he walked away, he looked to John and Lexi--who were tracking the departure of the woman through one of the other market gates.

End of Chapter One.