Permafrost Slumber

Chapter 11

The Captain is willingly escorted back into the city under an exaggeratedly heavy guard for just one person who hasn't done much to deserve such a level of attention. The guards were silent for the entirety of the way back to the city, even though the Captain tried asking a question regarding whether he was going back to jail he was only met with silence leaving him only to guess why he was being taken back under such circumstances.
Nearly half an hour later of walking, the Captain and his escort reach the front iron-bar gates of a sizable building that's well over three stories tall, flanked at the sides by towering security watchposts that sweep the streets with floodlights that swing from side to side by guardsmen on duty.
Stepping in front of the main entrance, the twin double iron bar gates are pulled open by two guards who were on duty, creaking rather loudly on their unoiled hinges.
The Captain is then led up a brief flight of stairs and inside the building that proves to be more than meets the eye. Inside, the building's main entrance is sparsely furnished, only a few chairs and tables are placed for the guards on duty to use, and the walls are bare, except for several light-offering sources mounted on them.
Further inside the building, the Captain is escorted up a set of stairs that diverge into two directions. The Captain is taken on the left path on a set of stairs that are covered with a red-colored rug, fixated to the stairs through a series of thin metal bars at the base of each step that prevent it from being moved.
This side of the building has a rather regal feeling to it compared to the entrance, even the air has a certain scent about it that makes one almost forget about the dire situation outside.
The entire length of the corridor's floor is covered with a rug matching the one that covered the stairs, and the sparse furniture in the corridor is of fine make, from stools to chairs and tables, their shapes are graceful and their surface is treated with epoxy, giving them a clean and fairly shiny aspect to complement their elegant design and curves.
The Captain is finally led through a door and into what seems to be a private office that could only reflect the material wealth of its owner. This room boasts a sizable window that allows the owner a fairly scenic view of the city outside. The furniture here consists of a sizable red-colored plush couch with two matching armchairs and a long coffee table with rounded corners and vine-like designs decorating it. A few feet away from the furniture set lies a tall metal device with four thermo conductive rods inside it that radiate an orange light and heat, with a large wooden bucket of coal lying near it that is almost halfway empty.
Opposite the entrance is a desk with its surface cluttered with several books, a sizable hourglass on the far right side, and what seems to be a regional map. Behind the desk on the far wall is a tall ornate bookcase split into two equal sides with a glass case, filled with various porcelain figures and sets of glasses with matching bottles, placed in the middle separating the two bookcases. Each level of the bookcases is filled with books while the upper shelves are filled with rolled-up or folded pieces of parchment.
Sitting behind the desk in a plush highback chair sits an imposing man with fair features, Lord Mateo Grahames, wearing a fine black-colored embroidered waistcoat over a white shirt unbuttoned at the neck with a red-colored tie hanging rather loose. He busies himself with the map, charting down something on a piece of paper. He doesn't react immediately as the Captain is brought inside his office, nor as the guards' boots thunder across the floor, he remains focused on taking notes and measuring something on the map.
The rest of the guards keep their distance, not too far from the Captain should he try anything foolish, and not too close as to inconvenience their Lord. One of the guards pulls a chair matching the design and style of the one Lord Grahames sits on. Then with a rather forceful push on his left shoulder, the guard makes the Captain sit down where he waits quietly and patiently.
From that distance, the Captain takes a peek at what Grahames is working on and tenses up as the Captain recognizes the map on the desk; it was the same map he gave to Natasha a few days ago, there was no mistaking the marks he made on it the first time he had to make some calculations for their journey. Other modifications seem to have been made to it; clearly, Natasha had been trying to visit other places, as well as calculations now made by Grahames as he's studying it.
After a few more moments, and several more notes jotted down, Grahames places both of his elbows on the desk, knits his fingers together, and remains silent as if waiting for or thinking deeply about something. He lets out a quiet sigh then jabs the map with the pointer finger of his right hand saying: