The Bronze Seagull - Ch. 7

"What the heck was that ruckus down the hall?  ...Whatever it was, I probably don't want to get involved.  Although, Steve's cabin is in that area... ugh, I need to go take a walk and clear my mind."

----

Steve wasn't sure what to expect to see when the door to his cabin swung open.  Was his target still there?  Had they already left?  What were they doing there in the first place?

His answers came in quick succession.  Nobody was there, but the place was a mess.  Everything had been turned upside-down and dirtied with oily handprints, as if someone had been looking for something, and the scent of oil was everywhere.

What a mess, Steve mused.  And what a smell.  Strewth.  I hope they stock air fresheners on this airship.

Once he'd turned on the air conditioning, Steve's attention quickly fell on the desk, where a note had been pinned with a dagger.  Both objects were stained with oily marks, but the writing on the note was anything but unreadable.

I know the Clockwork Diviner was here.  Deliver it to me at midnight tonight; I'll be in the cargo hold.  Come alone.  Tell no one.  Stray from my request and your good friend in Cabin 53 won't live to see the morning sun.

Steve's head spun from that one.  A threat from the intruder.  A typical ransom-note warning.  And something about a friend in Cabin 53... as if he had any idea who was staying there.

And what the heck is this "Clockwork Diviner"?  How am I supposed to bring it if I don't even... unless...

His mind racing, Steve took Hisser in his hands again.

"Hisser, give me a straight answer just this once.  Are you the 'Clockwork Diviner' mentioned in that note?"

There was a long pause, after which the clockwork snake's bulbs lit up.

YES.
I AM.

Steve took a deep breath.  As he did, the lingering stench of oil made him reel, so he had to step out into the hallway.

"Alright then, 'Clockwork Diviner', tell me..."

CALL ME
HISSER.

"Okay... Hisser... why do they call you the 'Clockwork Diviner'?  Can you tell the future?"

NOT
EXACTLY.
BUT I
AM THE
MOST
SOPHIS-
TICATED
AND KNOW-
LEDGEABLE
COMPUTER
FOR MY
SIZE IN
THIS
WORLD.
THAT
MAKES
ME A
HIGHLY
VALUABLE
TOOL
TO ALL
PROFESS-
IONS.

Steve could believe that.  No AI back home was as sophisticated as Hisser's.  He decided he'd ask one more question while he was at it.

"Who's in Cabin 53 and why did our intruder consider him my 'good friend'?"

WHY DON'T
YOU GO
VISIT
THAT
CABIN AND
SEE FOR
YOURSELF?

Steve let out a frustrated sigh.  Hisser was back to being cryptic once again.  He didn't even show any surprise as the clockwork snake took its now-familiar position around his neck.

Well, I guess I've hit the Diviner's limit for straight answers at the moment.

Opting to skip the shower (how could he take one when the bathroom was as dirty as he was?), Steve made his way down the row of cabin doors, looking at each one.  The cabin door numbered "53" wasn't hard to find.

He tried the door, but it was locked.  A peek through the delivery flap at the bottom of the door confirmed that nobody was inside.

That's just ripper.  How am I supposed to find out who dwells here now?  ...Well, it wouldn't be the first time I've impersonated a bloodhound today.

Kneeling down, Steve sniffed the doorknob and the air inside the delivery flap.  The resident was definitely a male... a furred mammal.  He could pick up a scent of wood, but not the same kind of wood as what the furniture was made from.  A little hint of graphite lingered as well.

"Wood and graphite," Steve muttered.  "Like in an old-fashioned #2 pencil.  Reminds me of one person in particular..."

"Erm... excuse me... I'm a little afraid to ask, but what are you doing outside my cabin?"

Steve whipped around.  Before him stood a brown fennec fox with green eyes.  In one hand he carried a notebook, and behind one of his oversized fennec ears rested a #2 pencil.

The werewolf recognized the fox's appearance in an instant.  There was no way he couldn't have; he'd designed it himself not long ago.

"...Interface?"

"22.  We meet face to face at last."