Steven Harper - The Dragon Men

Kung’s soldiers quickly joined in, which encouraged the others. Shouts and chants swirled around Alice, who was lost in Gavin’s embrace. And then everyone fell slowly silent. Alice and Gavin parted, and she saw that the hundreds and hundreds of people-soldiers, eunuchs, maids, and even Dragon Men-in the courtyard had stopped chanting to kneel and knock their foreheads on the ground, formally acknowledging Cixi as emperor. Even Zaichun was on his knees. Gavin hesitated, then bowed deeply to her, and Alice sank into a curtsy. It wasn’t strictly correct to make such obeisance to a foreign monarch, but the gesture would only solidify Cixi’s hold on the throne, and after everything the woman had been through, Alice would be the last person to stand in her way.

Gavin came awake, slowly and luxuriously. Drowsiness slid away like a silken coverlet, and he essayed a stretch. The muscles in his back moved with easy smoothness. Soft fingers brushed his forehead, and he opened his eyes. Alice smiled gently down at him. He smiled lazily back and pushed himself upright.

“What are you doing in here?” he asked lightly. “This is my room.”

Alice, who was perched on the edge of his bed, ran her hand down his arm. She wore a new outfit in the Manchu style-wide trousers and a long coat over it in embroidered blue silk. A whirligig sat on her shoulder. “Just watching you sleep, darling. You looked so peaceful, I couldn’t bear to wake you.”

“It was just a nap. Besides, you can always wake me, Alice. Any time.”

“A nap?” She laughed. “Gavin, you slept all day and all night.”

“Did I? It felt like only a few minutes. I haven’t slept that long since I contracted-”

“I know. I know !” Alice was beaming now, and joyful tears stood in her eyes. “Oh, Gavin! I can’t believe you did it.”

“ We did it,” he said, trying himself not to tear up. “Both of us.”

He kissed her, and now he felt the joy and relief carrying him up into pure sunshine. Fear and sadness melted into the ground, leaving only exultation and anticipation. An entire life stretched ahead of him, an entire life with Alice, and it started here. He ran his hands over her face and her shoulders, wanting to merge with her like two droplets of water. Nothing would separate them again, and the thrill was so powerful, it stole his breath.

But at last they separated. “That,” Alice said, “was a wonderful kiss.”

“I’ve got lots more,” he said with mock seriousness. He started to stretch again, then halted. “Oh! Oh my God.”

“What is it? What’s wrong?”

He grinned, surprised that he could feel even more wonderful. “I just realized-I slept and woke up. Like a normal person. First time since that day the pirates captured the Juniper. No nightmares, no jerking awake. I’d forgotten what it was like.”

She grinned back. “That’s fantastic! I’m so glad for you. No, that sounds tepid. I’m thrilled, darling, absolutely thrilled!”

They embraced again, and he sighed as her arms went back around him. It felt so good to be alone with her here in Prince Kung’s palace, far away from the chaos of the Forbidden City. The rooms Kung had set aside for Gavin were large and luxurious. A set of sliding doors opened onto a tranquil courtyard, where the sun was peeping over the compound walls. Soft summer breezes slid idly through the room, carrying the scent of flowers and running water.

“What’s Lady Orchid doing now?” Gavin asked when at last they parted.

“Her name is actually Cixi, I’ve learned, and she’s very busy consolidating her new empire,” Alice told him. “She’s grateful to her new friends from England. I also hear she was quite upset that she wasn’t able to fulfill her promise of finding a cure for the clockwork plague.”

“Well, that was only because I. . it doesn’t really matter,” Gavin finished lamely.

“It does to her. The Chinese take these debts seriously. At any rate, she persuaded the Dragon Men to do some final work.”

“Persuaded?”

“The Jade Hand doesn’t control them anymore. She has to persuade them like anyone else must. I expect it must be very trying.”

He laughed. “I’m sure. But the plague is gone. How are there still Dragon Men?”

“Your. . cure affects different people differently, darling. Some Dragon Men-and, I assume, clockworkers-became normal men and women right away. For others, their intelligence seems to be fading gradually over time. It appears that a tiny minority may even retain their powerful intellect, though whether they’ll go mad or not remains to be seen.” She paused. “How do you feel?”

“I’m not sure.” He thought a moment, trying to find the patterns and the particles. But all he saw was an airy room. And Alice. Always Alice. “I’m not very. . I don’t think I’m a clockworker anymore.”

She breathed out heavily. “Oh, darling. That relieves me more than I can say.”

He took her hand. It was a great relief not to feel the impinging madness all the time. But he also had to admit it was hard giving up everything he had seen and learned. The clockwork plague was gone, and now he was just himself. It would have to be enough.

“So, what did Lady Orchid-Cixi-ask the Dragon Men to do?” Gavin asked.

“They repaired the Lady of Liberty from stem to stern, and while they were working, they uncovered one of your projects and arranged for its completion.”

“Project? What project?”

Alice raised her voice. “You can come in now.”

The door slid farther open and a mechanical man entered. He was painted black and white, in a sort of butler’s uniform, but with a distinctly Oriental sensibility, and he was carrying a fiddle case. Gavin clambered to his feet with a little shout. “Kemp!”

He almost hugged the automaton, then stopped, considering the gesture silly. Instead, he shook the mechanical man’s free hand. Even that much seemed to put Kemp off a bit.

“It is good to see Sir again,” he said. “Very good indeed. Thank you, Sir.”

“How do you feel, Kemp?” Gavin asked. He looked the automaton up and down, half expecting his mind to analyze how he was put together, but nothing came to him. It was both odd and exhilarating.

“I am much improved, Sir,” Kemp replied. “The Chinese Dragon Men finished the body you started and were able to reattach my head very nicely. I am quite ready to resume my duties. As a start, I have brought Sir his fiddle from the ship.”

Gavin accepted it gratefully, checked it, and set it on the bed. “Thank you, Kemp. You always remember.”

“Would Madam or Sir like something to eat? I have learned Chinese and can communicate with the kitchen staff quite readily.”

“We would, Kemp.” Alice said, and Kemp bustled off. “Thank you for that, darling. I missed him so.”

“The Dragon Men-”

“Only finished what you started. And you started it when you were in that fugue state, didn’t you? It means a lot that you were thinking of me, even when the plague had you.”

Moments later, Kemp returned with a tray of tea and food. To Gavin’s relief, it had no feeding spiders on it-just chopsticks. Click followed Kemp in and sat at Alice’s feet while they ate. It was the most relaxing and wonderful thing in the world to simply share a meal with her, and what made it even better was knowing that he could do it over and over again for the rest of their lives.

“What are you smiling about, you devil?” Alice asked over her cup.

He rested his chin in his palm. “How beautiful you are. And how it must be a relief for you to be rid of that spider on your hand.”

“Thank you. You’re a dear.” She held up her bare left hand. “It does feel nice. As far as we can tell, the clockwork plague is completely gone. The people who have it are recovering. The zombies will still be scarred-there’s nothing for that-but no new cases, no new deaths.”