THE STEAMCHILD CHRONICLES PRESENTS: CHILDREN OF THE CLOCKWORK SKY

CHAPTER 9: DEMON OF THE SANDS

Kenzo sat on the floor next to his bed.

His eyes were closed, his legs crossed and his posture remained as rigid as his mind while he continued in deep meditation.

All was quite and serene.

To Kenzo, his moment of aloneness was perfect.

At least until the door flew open with a rusty screech. Mrs. Peterson came in with a tray of tonics and paused as she noticed that not only was her patient out of bed, but his bandages had been removed and neatly piled on a nearby table.

"Oh dear," she said. "Doing better I suppose?"

"Only scratches," Kenzo replied dreamily, all the while keeping his eyes closed. "I heal faster than most."

"So it seems."

She glanced at the contents of the tray in her hands before setting it down. "Would this even matter?"

Kenzo stood and gave a bow.

"Thank you Mrs. Peterson, but your medicines are not necessary."

The grace of his formality gave her a feeling of content. But she paused a brief moment when she thought -that out of the corner of her eye, at the far end of the room- she saw the flash of a teddy bear's face disappear behind the side of a metal shelf. She turned her head slightly to see around it, but nothing was there.

"Are you all right?" Kenzo followed her attention to the same shelf then back to her.

She shrugged and gave her warmest smile. "I'm fine. Just a bit distracted is all."

"It's that man, Derriden Eidel, isn't it? He's been harassing you again. There is no honor in him."

She flashed a glimmer of sincerity before she spoke. "I wouldn't be so quick to judge. He was once a man of noble intentions, and he may yet have something about him worth redeeming."

"Is that why you, the vice captain, and the rest of the council voted to make him a citizen AND a representative?"

"Just a citizen. It was his poison tongue that won him the representative vote."

"I worry sometimes."

"Don't. I can take care of myself. Besides, there are people more deserving of your concern than I."

His posture grew more rigid. "You mean Ella."

She nodded. "Did she tell you?"

"She explained a few things about that night with a certain metallic box."

"Then you know she's going after her father."

"You mean the man who left her behind to seek some myth in the wastes?"

"You shouldn't be so quick to judge."

"Ella deserves better."

"She does. As do you. As does my little girl. As does everyone. That's why Clancy Marshall left. And now that she has a direction, she's going to go after him. Even if it means putting herself in danger."

His expression turned neutral. "You want me to reason with her?"

"No. She will go no matter what you say to her. So instead, I'm begging you to protect her. She will soon come to know -that because of who she is- everyone will be coming for her life."

It was then that she revealed that she'd brought in more than just medicine. She presented him his family blade.

He took it reverently and partially pulled it from its sheath. It'd recently been cleaned and polished with great care. Every stain and blemish from the last fight with the wayward twins had been removed. He bowed again in gratitude.