Clockwork Shadows

The Penguin, the Prince Charming and the Poker

Tick

Tick

Tock

The familiar mechanical heart-beat thumped softly in my room as usual, in fact I couldn't remember a time without it. But that's mostly because that's just how these cities worked, big Steam cities made up entirely of metal parts, wheels, springs, rods, and so on. And the engine was always at the centre of them so the sound reverberated more, to most it was comforting. Now I don't hate it but listening to that constant ticking all day and night unnerves me a bit.

"Lady Myrina," the lifeless voice of my scullery maid droned in the doorway, snapping me back to reality, "The guests are here, please come with me."

Sighing, I pushed myself off of my awfully comfortable velvet chair and slipped on my shoes. They, unlike my chair, were very uncomfortable. Since I was noble born here in the city Miracle parties like these were normal. I always got tired of them, if I was lucky these events went on for only two days. I turned back to my desk to check if I had left anything because once I left my room I couldn't come back. On the stainless steel table counter rested an elegant silver and bronze bracelet, another gift from another annoying suitor. I ignored it a put on my worn hand-made necklace, a small pocket watch around the size of my palm hung loosely on the brown chain. A wing like design on the cover revealed the interior of the watch and a small milky blue opal hugged the outsides of the wing. This was my prized position, I had made it with my dad before all of this suitor nonsense started.

I touched the cool metal and looked at my reflection. Looking back at me was a tall, well-built girl wearing a long velvet evening dress. The dress was very graceful, with a darker fabric made into an attached cropped jacket at the top with long sleeves splitting down the middle revealing other light purple sleeves. But along the dress were little silver designs that reminded me of webs then and sliver 'woven' belt near the waist. Her long obsidian hair was braided into a complicated bun with little stars woven into it. She didn't wear to much make up, just some black eyeliner to make her velvet eyes stand out more and some pink lipstick. She looked perfect, something out of a story book, and that felt wrong. In this world everything held its imperfections, they made things more human.

Dropping my hand from my locket I turned back to the cold maid, who instantly bowed her head. 'Off we go then', I said to myself and then with I made my way out of my room, trying to ignore the pinching of my feet, to meet the "guests". Following the maid through the elaborate maze of my house I tried not to make it obvious that I did not want to go. The hallway wasn't as dark as usual, the candles that were lit illuminated off the walls, removing the shadows from their hiding place. The doors, which were all hand polished today, loomed over us like giants from those children's books. It made me a little claustrophobic but the top rule of being a noble born was never to show true fear, it would ruin reputations. Soon we approached a set of familiar doors, they were the same clockwork design as the others, wheels and cogs set inside a smaller space of the mahogany wood, but this one had the Cogs language "Guests" engraved on the front on a steel plate. The maid then hastily turned away and began walking back to the long corridor, her steps were still echoing as she slapped her shoes on the floor.

Taking a deep breath I pushed open the door, my polite mask readied. Honestly, I didn't feel like being an asshole that day, I was too tired. "Hello gentlemen," I said warmly as I walked in, "My name is Lady Myrina Steel, daughter of the high noble of the Supreme Court, Sir Philip Steel. How do you do?"

A young man around 17 approached, his skin was quite dark but that could have been from work or just genetics and his hair was a cropped coco black style. He wore mostly grey, white and black clothes, but the beauty in them were still wroth appreciating. On his long black sleeves were thick bands of golden threads swirling around his arm until the just reached past the elbows. Then the normal court style white collar that looked kind of like when you shove a napkin in a child's shirt to prevent a mess. The rest of his clothes were slightly loose and again, colourless. The only item that wasn't voided of all colour was cape that was black, no surprise there, on the outside and a deep rusted red on the inside. Overall, he looked like a fashionable penguin that happened to be a lord.  "Lady Myrina," he bowed while taking my hand. He then gently kissed it, making it obvious that he was well practiced in the court's manners. "It is a pleasure to finally meet you. I am Fabron Copper, son of the middle classed James Copper. And might I say how lovely your Ladyship is looking tonight."