Chapter Two

Suddenly she is shocked out of her daydreaming by the emergency alarm blaring four times, interrupting the song on the radio. An announcer with a deep raspy voice comes on. "There has been a mysterious disappearance of Sir Dratch of the Seven company. So far, no witnesses have come forward, so we ask if anyone has seen or heard anything, to come forward immediately. The Seven company has said there will be a reward for any good leads. Do what's right, the Seven company." Four more harsh buzzes of the emergency alarm go off, and the radio switches to a swift-paced song. Alice's interest is definitely perked, but she's far from any type of investigator, and the area of the Kingdom district is far from her little place above a tavern in the Night district.

Standing there daydreaming about all of the theories she has on what could have happened, the phone on the wall across the room rings, and Alice involuntarily lets out a little yip. She quickly walks over and picks up, and before thinking about it, says, "Alice, who is this?" like they had asked who she was in the first place.

On the other end of the phone is her longtime friend Harper a detective for the city and a robo-tech. Sarcastically annoyed, she says, "Alice! You know that's rude. Anyway, I know you heard that announcement. Well, guess what? I'm on the case that has just been announced, and let me tell you, it's strange. They said I could bring in someone for support on it. You want in?"

"Harper, you know I'm not a trained investigator. They would never approve of it. Plus, you know how I feel about leaving the house. Thank you, though. It was sweet of you."

Harper laughs, then says, "That's the best part. They said I can have anyone, and honestly, what I need more than an extra set of hands is a fresh perspective. For the other part, you'll get to meet me for the first time, at least. I know it causes you a lot of anxiety, but I think you should give it a shot." After a short pause of silence, "I'll bring treats."

Alice lets out a deep sigh. "You always seem to know the right thing to say. I'll get ready and head over at once." She hangs up her phone with a little too much excitement and nearly misses the receiver.

She runs to her room and swings open her closet and realizes she has nothing to wear to meet someone for the first time in person that she's been admiring over letters and phone calls. They met when Harper had called in response to an ad Alice posted looking for an expert on dragon wings, a subject Harper is fascinated with.

After what seems like forever, Alice decides on a short dress in a deep blue color, with a flowy skirt that ends a bit above her knees. The dress has a V-neckline, and the sleeves are three-quarter length with a slight flare at the end. The dress has a cinched waist, which accentuates her curves. She pairs the dress with a cropped-length black leather jacket, which complements the short dress.

To finish off the outfit, Alice wears tall black buckled boots that come up to her knees. The boots have a chunky heel, which adds a little bit of height making her even taller than she normally is at 6 foot tall. The boots have multiple silver buckles with black cats on them and spike up the outsides, which add a touch of edginess to the outfit.

Finally feeling confident to leave the house she heads out and down through the tavern. Rote isn’t working today so she just heads straight through and out the front door. Just down the road, there is a transport stop she plans to take to get to the Kingdom district. As she approaches, a small boat powered by propellers and steam engines lands. Little does she know she’s now on her way to what will be the start of a whole new life.