Rip made his way to another meeting room after the lunch hour. Most everyone had returned from their pubs, restaurants or other errands.

Hedgefield walked in last and said, “As you are aware, the king wishes to meet with you all in private. Please follow me.”

He walked to the far wall and touched a hidden switch. A wooden panel slid open, revealing a staircase lit in sconces flickering on the walls.

By this time, Rip had come to expect the use of secret passages in the massive office complex. He suspected Doctors’ Commons was honeycombed with them.

They walked down the steps single file in silence, Hedgefield leading. Soon the group ended up in the same basement area Rip remembered from before. Everyone gathered on the middle platform and Hedgefield activated the lift. They ascended into the royal offices above.

Waiting for them, along with the usual guards in red coats and great black hats and Tommy guns strapped to their backs, was Sir Jefferson Prescott, the Lord High Steward. He nodded his greetings, eyes lingering a bit longer on Lady Fisher than the others.

“If everyone would follow me, please. I do ask that any interspatial wallets or satchels or other such items that hold weapons please be deposited here. They will remain untouched until you leave.”

He pointed to a basket, and one by one the party members unloaded their accouterments. Chance and Twig pulled out several hidden weapons and left them behind, too, along with a prodigious amount of dynamite.

Blair surprised Rip by producing a few interesting items hidden on her body, such as a derringer, a serrated knife, and several vials of various unidentified liquids.

He wondered if they were poisons. Obviously they could be used for deadly purposes, otherwise she would not be relinquishing them here at the guard station.

Once everyone had stripped off their weapons, Prescott led them deeper into the royal offices. They entered the same large study as before, with King Allo seated behind a giant desk.

“We have much to discuss,” he said without preamble. “Sir Prescott, send for tea, if you will.”

When everyone had settled in the comfortable chairs and sofas, and the tea service had made the rounds, Allo opened up the conversation.

“Lord Bixby, Lord Sharp, thank you for your efforts. I am devastated at the news of Lady Finley’s death. She led a fine team, and now they are all gone. Rest assured Dar Caul will be dealt with. No quarter will be given by any forces under my command who may chance upon him in the field.”

The two barons nodded solemnly. Bixby took another sip of tea.

“Lady Fisher, it has been too long since we saw one another. I fear running an empire takes its toll on one’s personal time.”

“That is quite alright, Your Majesty.”

“Please. Amongst family, there is no need for formalities. And we are well out of the limelight here in this building.”

Her ears turned pink but she nodded in acquiescence.

“Now, I wish to discuss the army of robots you all uncovered yesterday, and fought with. First, my sincere gratitude is extended to the Verez sisters. From Lord Bixby’s and Lord Sharp’s reports, it seem quite evident that this metal army could not have been neutralized so easily were it not for your powerful skills.”

The two sisters smiled and nodded, but remained silent.

No one spoke of the skills involved. Both Bixby and Sharp delicately avoided mentioning what, exactly, the women had done to all those machines in order to disable them. Hedgefield did not press them in the public hearing, either.

Rip thought the king obviously knew the skills had to be vampiric in nature, but he did not ask for specifics even in this private settings.

Maybe he just doesn’t want to know, Rip thought. Plausible deniability.

“I have sent word to your emperor, formally expressing my gratitude for your assistance in these matters.”

They both looked shocked at this statement.

Liza recovered first and said, “Thank you, Your Majesty!”

“And of course, you will be richly rewarded. We saw the extraordinary damage just three of these enhanced machines were able to wreak in a short amount of time. For your efforts, I have already remunerated your accounts accordingly. Of course, I’m sure your team has split amongst you the silver retrieved as well. All in all, I think you will come out of this whole affair quite wealthy thanks to your service in the defense of Ethinium, and to Greater Umbria as a whole.”

The sisters nodded, looking grateful. Rip couldn’t tell if they were more pleased with the money or his personal note of gratitude to their Austro-Hungarian emperor.

The king turned to Marissa.

“I also regret the loss of one of your students. I had Sir Prescott reach out to her parents and assure them we will be taking care of the funeral and burial. She died performing heroic service few others could offer, and I have taken pains to express that sentiment to her family personally. We’ve offered the family a burial spot in Westminster, if they wish it. She will be honored as a heroine to the realm, regardless of where they decide to inter her.”

Marissa maintained an expressionless face, unlike the sisters.

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

“And now for our otherworldly sergeant. Once again, you have gone above and beyond anyone’s expectation of service. You hitched a ride on yet another airship, and somehow you managed to follow the robots it dropped down to cause destruction on our city, helping the Army to neutralize them.”

Rip smiled and tried to think of something pithy to say. Then he noticed everyone in the room was looking at him, and his mind dried up along with the smile.

“Your RVS account, like the others here, has an extra reward in it. However, I think it’s high time we go ahead and offer some of the other bounties an Empire can bestow upon its loyal subjects performing extraordinary service. Stand up.”

Rip now had a confused expression on his face, but he stood while setting his teacup down on a tray. The king stood at the same time.

“Come forward.”

Rip hesitantly walked up to Allo.

“Kneel.”

He raised his eyebrows at this command, but he did as he was told and went down on one knee.

Allo gestured to Prescott, who produced an ornate silver sword that had been hidden away somewhere.

The king took the sword and laid it gently on Rip’s left shoulder, then lifted it over his head and touched his right shoulder with the blade.

“I dub thee Sir Ripley Coulter, Knight of the Realm.”