REVISED -Chapter 1 - In the Shadow of the Clocktower or The one about Mondragon Ambassador and the Babbage Military Intelligence Chief
The Major was late. As he walked briskly down the boulevard, he could here the distant chimes of Clockwinder Tower alerting the city to the early morning hour. The fog was lifting a bit, but still smelled of soot and wood. The noises of grinding and churning from the brewery and the metals forge pierced the early morning. The trains rattled overhead. Two street sweeping Tik-Toks slowly swept the street and cleans the mixture of soot, ash, broken glass, feces and other unspeakable debris from last night off the sidewalk. He entered the Brunel hotel quickly. A security detail in the lobby ignored him as he walked directly to the staircase. So much for a discrete meeting. If we had to have so many soldiers as guards, why not meet at the ministry? When he arrived outside the suite, a uniformed Babbage Marine opened the door to allow him access to the conference room. The Mondragon Ambassador was seated nervously, while the Admiral paced. “Thank you for you coming, Major...