The King's Mechanic

by Katharina Gerlach

  Luna looked around the dim hall. The mechanical man was still hanging where she left it, and the two mugs the men had used still stood on the workbench beside Gustavo's will. Luna closed her eyes. Why, oh why had she signed the king's will? She could have refused, but now, she was partially responsible for the mess the kingdom was in. As if it hadn't been enough that her father kept messing things up. She wiped a tear from her eyes. There had to be a way to prolong the king's life. She remembered his warm mouth on hers when she fed him water or broth, and her lips tingled. What would her life be like if he died? Would she miss … she pushed the thought aside. Surely someone would hold her responsible for killing him. After all, she was the one who had repaired the monster. Maybe she could gain mercy if she helped nurse the king back to health. She had to talk to the doctor. There had to be something more she could do. Luna turned to leave when her gaze fell on the mechanical man's skull with the weird contraption.

  No.

  That was as crazy as the drive on the monster had been.

  Impossible.

  Still … what if the machine worked? Her mouth went dry as she approached the workbench. Was there a handbook on how to use it? A few sheaves of paper lay there held down by the brass skull. She picked them up and read through them. On them, the Royal Mechanic explained the handling of his invention. He also described the experiments he had done with the Mind-Machine, as he called it. Obviously he had succeeded in moving an animal's thoughts into his artificial brain which then worked the mechanical man like an animal would if it found itself in a human's body. He then proceeded to return the mind to its original body but found that impossible to do until he discovered that he needed a recently dead body, meaning death couldn't have occurred more than five minutes before the swap. In a next step, he transferred his assistant's consciousness into the brain and back immediately. The assistant had been a little dazed and fled the castle upon recovery, but the experiment didn't seem to have harmed him. The article ended with the announcement that the Master would now get two convicted culprits from the dungeons to see if he could move the mind of one into his mechanical man and then return it to the second one's body.

  Luna shook. Another lunatic, but at least he hadn't been able to finish his second test. Thoughtfully she stared at the golden, gleaming skull. What if this was the king's only chance? She pushed back her hair and grabbed the skull, contraption and all. She'd have to talk to the Royal Nurse and the doctor.

  Half an hour later, the three of them and the advisor stood beside the king's bed. Two servants set down the mechanical man on a chair beside the fire, and the conspirators waited silently until they had left.

  “Are you sure this will work?” the advisor said for the umpteenth time.

  “It doesn't matter,” the doctor said. “The king's pulse is getting weaker. By my reckoning he's got two or three more hours to live. We've got nothing to lose.”

  Gently Luna placed the sieve-like contraption on the king's head. Countless cables ran from it to a similar sieve on the brass skull that lay on a cushion beside the man. For a second, she wondered what he would feel like once he was inside a metal body. Surely that'd be really strange.

  And no more soft lips. She shrugged off the thought. It is only pity. Pity and hormones, nothing more, she reminded herself, busying herself with double checking the settings on the electrical charger. Then everything was done, checked and checked again. The others shifted uneasily as she reached for the switch. What if the contraption killed the king?

  She closed her eyes. If the experiment wasn't successful, she'd bear the consequences whatever they'd be. At least the nurse had promised to raise Mondo like her own son, should someone insist on punishing Luna. Her index finger toggled the switch. The familiar hum of tamed lightning filled her ears. She counted to ten and flipped the switch back. Only then did she open her eyes to see if everything had gone according to plan.

  A few superfluous sparks shot out from the cranium. Carefully Luna put on her gloves, picked up the skull, and carried it to the mechanical man where she fastened it to the artificial backbone. The skull's eyes fluttered, opened and closed, and opened again. They resembled human eyes surprisingly well despite the tiny cameras mounted inside.

  A tinny voice from the back of the mechanical man announced, “Battery charge sufficient, all systems clear. Initializing brain functions, now.” The mouth moved, and the mechanical man stood up.

  An infernal wail filled the room. Everybody put their hands over their ears except for Luna. She ripped the gloves from her fingers, grabbed a screwdriver and tightened a screw on a box at the throat. The wailing faded. A final tweak, and the piercing noise was replaced by words.

  “What have you done to me?” The mechanical king lifted his hands and stared at them.

  Luna marveled at the Royal Mechanic's skills. Not only did the brain transfer machine work, the mechanical man was also operating as expected by instinctively using his new brain's commands. And the best thing was that the minute steam engine's exhausts were filtered, cooled and then used to simulate a human's breathing. The whole contraption was a marvel.

  “Welcome back, Your Majesty.” The advisor grabbed his monarch's metal hands, blocking the view of the bed. Luna realized that he had done it on purpose. Sidling up to the bed, she pulled the cover over the dead body's face. This wasn't the king any more.

  “Please sit, Your Majesty. The maiden will explain everything to you in a moment, but first I will have to ensure you're fully recovered.” The doctor pushed his patient back into the chair and began asking him a myriad of questions. After he had examined the king's memory, he rubbed his hands. “This worked much better than I had thought. Congratulations, Your Majesty. I attest you are fit enough to return to your duties.”

  He waved Luna closer. “This young lady here not only saved your life after the accident, she also had the presence of mind to use the Royal Mechanic's contraption. She can tell you all about it.”

  Before the king could open his mouth to say anything, the advisor stepped forward and bowed.

  “If Your Majesty will allow, I shall go and inform the court about the happenings. They will rejoice to have you back again so soon.” He bowed and left the room with the doctor, leaving behind the Royal Nurse and Luna.

  “Would someone please explain to me what you did?” The king's metal face was utterly expressionless but his confusion was evident enough. Luna told him all that had happened from the second he crashed the monster. She had just finished when the door crashed open and Gustavo stormed in.

  “Is it true? Has he recovered?”

  “Sort of.” The mechanical king turned and spread his arms. If it weren't for the metallic surface of his body, he would have looked like a real human. “Look what they've done to me.”

  Gustavo's jaw dropped and for the first time ever, Luna saw him lost for words.

  “It sure will take some getting used to,” the king said. “Nursie, could you find me something to wear, please? And don't forget a pair of gloves.”

  “Anytime, my sweets.” The Royal Nurse kissed him on the cheek and hurried off.

  “How are you going to hide that?” Gustavo had found his voice again and pointed to the king's silver face.

  “I'm going to wear my veil, like always,” the king said. “Aside from my closest advisors and Nursie, no one really knows what I look like. They won't notice the difference at all.”

  Soon, the metal king was dressed in the royal colors with the veil draped over his head. Luna thought he was a little taller than before but it didn't show.

  Gustavo shook his head. “I don't know if we can get way with this. If someone finds out you're mechanical, they will start looking for the rightful heir. They'll never believe you're the real king.”

  “All the more reason to keep this between us, right?” The king turned to Luna. “At least I'm still alive. Well done.” He patted her shoulder, and it felt as if he had hit her with a club.

  Luna w
inced.

  “Oh, sorry. Did I hurt you?” He seemed genuinely concerned, so Luna shook her head. She'd survive, and she didn't want the king to be nice to her anyway. It was better for all.

  “Well, it seems I'm ready for the big show.” The king took Gustavo's arm and looked back at Luna. “You better come along. I am sure there'll be a lot of adjustments to make in the next few days.”

  The court was delighted to have their ruler back. Luna could see the relief on their faces. The afternoon dragged. More than once, she wished she could leave, but she dutifully noted every too jerky movement or quiver she'd have to adjust later on. Once or twice, she saw Mondo squeezing though the crowd of onlookers, waving at her here and there. She smiled. It was wonderful to see him so happy. And he had gained some weight in the last few days. The Royal Nurse had fed him quite well. It suited him.

  A hand pinched her bottom. She shot round and had to force her hand not to slam into Gustavo's face.

  “Touch me again and I'll tell the king,” she hissed.

  He bent forward until his mouth was so close to her ear she felt his breath on her skin as he spoke. “I am sorry. I never meant to upset you, lovely lady.”

  The warmth of his breath spread through her body like a wildfire. Oh dear, why does he have to be so attractive? She pressed her lips together and chided herself. The man hadn't had a single friendly word for her before the accident. His current interest surely wasn't due to the fact that he had fallen in love. There had to be a different reason.

  “Would you please consider taking your dinner with me?” His hand on the small of her back seemed to burn a hole into the fabric of the dress. Luna swallowed. Against better judgment, she nodded. Now, why had she done that? Gustavo was way too good-looking for comfort, and his character was dubious at best. He undoubtedly wanted to seduce her. On the other hand, he'd been very concerned about the king before they set out on the monster which showed that he had a heart. Maybe she could soften it. Well, no, that was only daydreaming. Still, she decided she would have fun this evening. She didn't get asked out for dinner often and never by someone this good-looking.

  When the audience was finally over, the king feigned fatigue and left his courtiers behind. Gustavo and Luna followed him to his room where he sat on a chair with his arms around the backrest.

  “I feel strange,” he said. “As if I've been dancing for too long.”

  “It's been a long day, and you've been ill for such a long time.” Gustavo put a hand on his shoulder. “You need to rest.”

  Luna didn't say anything. She pulled her roll of tools from a hidden pocket in her voluminous skirt, selected a delicate screwdriver and began tightening nuts and bolts.

  “Recharge necessary,” a mechanical voice said from the back of the king's body. “Please recharge in the next half hour or this body will shut down.”

  Oh my. How am I going to do that? Frantically, Luna searched through the Royal Mechanic's papers to see where she had overlooked the instructions for recharging. Nothing. Only a short and rather smeared note on the last page reading “check energy flow — blue cabinet.” There wasn't a blue cabinet in the workroom, Luna was sure of that. She turned to Gustavo. “Where did the Royal Mechanic live?”

  “He had a mansard right over my rooms.”

  “Can you show me?”

  “Twenty-nine minutes and counting,” the mechanical voice said.

  “Sure, come along.” Gustavo led the way and Luna ran after him. He must have realized there was little time because he moved really fast. She had trouble keeping up. After what seemed like an eternity but was hardly more than a few minutes, they arrived on a landing resembling the one leading to her room. The Royal Mechanic had two rooms both slightly bigger than hers. Every available surface was strewn with papers, so it took Luna another minute to find the blue cabinet. Luckily it wasn't locked. She opened it: To her great relief, a machine the size of a lady's reticule stood there. It was covered in dust and there was no documentation in sight. Well, she'd have to figure out how it worked on her own. At least that was something she was good at. When she pulled out the smooth orb, she moaned under its weight. In the rays of the late afternoon sun, a sapphire the size of her fist glittered in the middle of a setting that was made of silver, gold and brass with a few lines of dark iron threaded throughout. It was beautiful craftsmanship, but too heavy for her to carry.

  “Give it to me.” Gustavo took it off her hands and winced. “Uh, I didn't know it'd be this heavy.”

  “Is it too much?”

  “Nothing's too much if it helps saving a friend,” he said and staggered off. Luna followed, hovering at his side like a worried mother hen.

  They reached the king when the mechanical voice announced, “Fourteen minutes and counting.”

  Panting, Gustavo set the heavy orb on the cushion Luna had placed on the table. She bent over it and examined it thoroughly. As far as she could tell, the sapphire was the central element. It seemed to collect something and send it through a variety of filters and converters to the orb's sides. Well, there was just one thing that could be collected and condensed with a gem: sunlight — and there was not much left.

  “Nine minutes and counting.”

  With Gustavo's help, she carried table and orb to the big window, and the king followed. When sunshine fell on the sapphire, the whole orb began to glow. At first it was barely a glimmer, but it grew brighter with every passing minute.

  “Three minutes and counting.”

  “It's magical.” The king's gleaming eyebrows moved upward, the only movement his face was capable of aside from opening and closing the mouth.

  “It is.” Luna took his hands and examined them thoroughly. As she had suspected, there were thin lines of dark iron embedded in the palms. “Put your hands on the orb, please.”

  The king hesitated.

  “One minute, fifty-nine seconds, fifty-eight seconds, fifty-seven…”

  After staring into her face for a seemingly endless time, he turned to the globe.

  “Twenty-two seconds, twenty-one…”

  He grabbed the glowing orb with both hands, and his eyes turned inward, displaying the silvery backside.

  “Recharging.” The metallic voice was replaced by a clicking sound.

  Chewing on her lower lip, Luna watched the sun sink behind the horizon. The light from the orb dimmed until there was nothing left of the magical glow.

  “Recharging not successful,” the mechanical voice announced. “Charge sufficient for ten hours, twenty-one minutes and forty-three seconds. Please continue charging at the earliest convenience.”

  Luna's knees gave and she sank into the chair the king had vacated a little while back. They did it. Ten hours would last him until next midday. That was plenty of energy for passing the night. They only had to wait for morning to fully charge the king's body.

  “Saved for another day,” the king said, turning to her. “You seem to have become invaluable to me.”

  “I'll always be at your disposal.” Luna's voice caught more than she liked. She wasn't sure if he meant it as a compliment or a warning, but she bobbed a curtsy.

  Gustavo slapped the king on the back. “Well, at least you get to live tonight. That's quite an improvement over last night.”

  “I'd like to be alone now.” The king turned to the window, dismissing them.

  Relieved, Luna slipped through the door, and Gustavo followed her. Before he turned right in the corridor, he winked at her.

  “Don't forget our little tête-à-tête tonight.”

  Luna nodded automatically, wishing she hadn't agreed to that. On the way up to her room, Mondo came running after her.

  “Guess what?” he yelled when he recognized her. “They managed to get the remains of the machine back that nearly killed the king. The police will check it to make sure it wasn't sabo-whatchamacallit.”

  “Sabotage. And with the speed the king was driving at, there was no need for sabotage.” She ruffled his hai
r. “I've been asked out for dinner. Will you be all right?”

  “Sure. Can I stay at Nursie's for the night? She promised to read me a fairy tale.”

  “That's fine by me.” Luna smiled — the first genuine smile in quite a while. She watched him speed down the stairs again. With a sigh, she climbed up to her room and lay on the bed for a while, pondering the possibilities of sabotage. She had checked and double checked it and seen nothing suspicious. It couldn't have been sabotage. Also, the only one profiting from the king's death was Gustavo and he owed that to a spur of the moment idea. No, the machine had been as safe as a prototype of this kind could possibly be. The king had brought this upon himself through speeding.

  When the tower clock of the castle's church rang eight, she got up to choose a dress. In the last few days, the Royal Nurse had given her seven that had become too tight for her daughter. They fitted Luna perfectly. She picked a dark blue one that complemented her eyes. Her long honey-colored braid would be a nice contrast. And the blue and yellow would emphasize the fact that she was now part of the royal household.

  She found it quite a challenge to close the dress without help. When she was done, she felt utterly out of place in it. The bodice pushed up her breasts so that they looked like apples in a basket. The clock showed half past, hurrying Luna on. It wouldn't be polite to let the king's best friend wait. The skirt was so wide, it filled most of the free space of her little room. She had difficulty turning, and opening the door was a major struggle. In the end, she pushed against the crinolines at the front to reach the door handle which lifted the rear higher than was decent. Luckily there was no one else in the room. She would have liked to change into something more sensible. Up to now, her dresses had always been practical without flourishes and, needless to say, with a skirt that enabled her to open doors without help.

  She found Gustavo's quarters easily enough. They were just around the corner from the king's. Insanely glad for the footman who opened the door for her, she entered. Gustavo sucked in his breath and whistled before he greeted her, kissing her hand. Luna blushed and wished she had chosen a dress with a less daring neckline.