Nanny For The Alien General by Athena Storm
Serafina
The moment I step off the airship, I’m whisked away by some guards or servants or something and ushered to the palace nursery.
I’m kind of relieved. As much fun as it was to see the sights from the sky, the flight on the airship was exciting, terrifying and overwhelming. Even from the landing pad, I could tell that the palace itself would be yet another overwhelming experience. Being quickly hurried somewhere, with no time to sightsee or take in the enormity of it all, is probably the best thing for me.
Though I hate to be separated from Keilon. We’re barely able to exchange more than a glance as an assembly of bodies surrounds him. Kiphians hurry about in a complex, orchestrated wave of motion around him. That dance includes siphoning me off.
At least I have the kids with me.
They race ahead while I keep pace with the female Kiphian who ushers me through several halls until we reach the nursery.
“It’s best to stay in this wing for the time being,” the Kiphian tells me. I consider letting her know that that won’t be an issue because I got completely lost on the way, but I just nod.
Without another word to me, she turns away and stalks down a hall.
I try to get my bearings. The ‘nursery’ is actually several interconnected rooms, each about as large as a cabin in Tilleli. The kids have vanished into one of those rooms.
Where I currently am seems to be the… I don’t know what you’d call it… maybe the ‘central chamber’? It’s vast, the walls lined with shelves of books. There is a huge dining table with ornate chairs in the center of the room. At the far end from me is a veranda.
As I make my way there to check the view, I note the multi-colored tiles of the floor. I realize they are actually images – tiled illustrations of fantastical creatures, like you might find in a children’s book. Looking up, past the chandeliers (who puts chandeliers in a nursery?!) I see the ceilings are covered in pictures, too. These appear to be more centered around Lakes history. I guess I’ll have to start learning this stuff if I’m going to be the kids’ nanny.
“Settling in?”
I leap at the sound of the voice. It’s hard to know why. It’s a friendly voice. Something instinctively makes me worry, though.
I chalk it up to being in a new, strange environment.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you,” says the man to whom I now see the voice belonging to.
He’stall and oddly skinny for a Kiphian. His skin is dark purple skin and dotted with black tattoos. In his formal, black, butler-y sort of attire, he reminds me of a shadow moving through the bright halls of the palace. I suppose it’s good for a servant to have that sort of ‘blend into the background’ look.
“Forgive me… Serafina? Is it?”
“Yes.”
“I am quite certain you have not been properly welcomed to the Lakes. Allow me to do the honors.” He steps forward and gives a low, solemn bow. “We are at your disposal, here. As the rivers feed the Lakes, may our house feed its guests.”
Well, I think, now that’s the royal treatment.
“Thank you,” I say, feeling great relief at finally encountering someone who’s not just a by-the-books operator.
“The palace can be overwhelming,” he says. I realize that he’s somehow, without me even really noticing it, slid further into the room. “Even to Kiphian royalty, the Lakes palace can seem like a maze.”
“I bet,” I say.
“May I also presume,” the guy (why doesn’t he tell me his name?) goes on, glancing at some open books on the table, “that no one has taken the time to thank you for assisting His Highness’s children?”
“No one really has. I suppose Keilon –”
“His Highness,” the guy interjects with a smile and tone that makes it sound like he’s doing me a favor as opposed to correcting me.
“Yeah. His Highness has thanked me, but –”
“But no one else. Typical. Then know this: we here in the Lakes Kingdom owe you a tremendous debt of gratitude.”
Again without my noticing, he’s slipped close to me and taken my hand in his, a gesture of his appreciation.
“You’re… welcome,” I say softly. Now that he’s this close, I can see his thin eyes are a bright blue. Against the darkness of his skin, they seem to glow coldly. Like ice.
“Now you must inform me,” the guy goes on, somehow still getting away with not telling me his name, “how did His Highness find such a competent nanny while lost in the woods?”
He’s still smiling, like we’re sharing a joke. But now alarm bells are going off in my head. Something’s off about this guy.
“Y’know, I was working in an inn near Lake Fogfrost. And I couldn’t resist the offer when he – when His Highness – asked if I would help him with the children for the time being. They were… um, lost and all, so… I guess I wanted to just be helpful.”
“Mm,” the guy says, smiling thinly. He’s still holding my hands. “And helpful you were. And shall be, I am sure.”
What the fuck is going on? my brain is screaming at me. Meanwhile, I’m kicking myself for mentioning Lake Fogfrost at all. What was I thinking? Someone could go exploring the Lake and find Tilleli!
I’m trying to come up with something distracting to add when suddenly the kids run into the room shouting for me.
“Sera, Sera, come play with us!” Emex screams.
“I want to show you my room,” Belanna adds.
They get my hand out of the grip of the strange Kiphian and he steps back. I clock him noting the familiar way the kids interact with me. The fact that they seem way more comfortable with me than one might expect if I’d just encountered them at the inn very recently.
He doesn’t say anything, though, just excuses himself. He’s gone almost before I realize he’s started to leave.
I let the kids drag me to their room, which is again the size of my own house, and resolve to inform Keilon about this strange encounter as soon as possible.
