The Buried Star - Artifice Academy

Workroom - 2

Marvin signed the paper, rolled it up, and passed it through the door's vision slit. Srix's stared at Inga to the music of rustling paper. He looked down at it for a long moment, then looked up at Marvin.

"Sufficient."

He moved sideways and disappeared from the vision slit. Through it Inga could hear the clinking of keys, then a rapid series of clicks as the artifact lock unwound itself inside the wall. Srix grunted and spun the large crank, sending the crossbar hissing across its housing, sliding out of the door and back into the wall. After a loud clunk the room held its breath, and the door swung open.

Light and sound spilled into the cell block. Several distant sets of footsteps, dozens of quills scratching on parchment, and the murmuring of hushed conversations washed over Inga. Her smile returned. She squinted and pushed past Srix into the Security common workroom. Desks lined up in neat rows, all facing the commanding dark metal door of Security Master Ulrick's office. Black-robed Masters worked closest, with red-robed Students filling the seats further out. Brown-robed Assistants scurried between the aisles, fetching mechanical quills, ink, more parchment, and delivering ledgers between desks or back to archives. Sunlight seared long stripes across the room from tall, thin, window slits lining the east wall. Faint light shone in from the slits on the west wall, biding their time until afternoon.

The slightest breeze tickled her hair, but not enough to disrupt the stacks of papers on every desk. She turned toward the opposite back corner of the room, found the door to reception, and dropped her sneer for a smile. Before she could take a step a thick hand clamped down on her right shoulder, just above her metal bicep.

Her smile crumpled. On instinct her metal arm flexed, but she stopped it before it clamped onto Srix's fingers. Her gaze snaked up his arm and latched onto his face. Her eyes flashed a warning, which, as usual, had no impact on his stony expression.

From out of that mountain of brown-robed muscle his voice rumbled lower, quietly, almost gentle.

"Thirty-Two, you need to see Security Master Ulrick to receive your orders."

She heard the click of Marvin's cane behind her. He stepped up next to her.

"Do us a courtesy and avoid speaking until after we exit the Security building."

He walked the edge of the room, around all of the desks, toward the Master's office.

Inga watched him go, tongue rubbing the back of her teeth, eager to spit. She realized he was too far away to see it now, and swallowed the urge. She looked back up at Srix. She almost thought he nodded at her, then he let go and took his place back by the large door to the cell block, pressing it closed, and turning the crank to slide the bolt home. There was a loud click as the Artifact lock engaged.

Inga moved toward his office, but cut through the middle of the room, between the desks. The red hoods turned to watch, quills hovering over their work. The black hoods at the front shifted as she passed, but the old men had the determination and disdain not to let her presence interrupt their work.

By the time she had arrived at the front, Marvin had pulled the dark metal door open. He stopped, looked back, and held it open for her. Inga looked through at Security Master Ulrick, silently working at his desk. She took a breath and stepped inside.