Helentine: Lacrimosa I
>Guest Room
The Spelmin Manor
The morning light is refracting off the antique bronze chandelier above you by the time you open your eyes. A glance at the ebony grandfather clock across the room shows that it is seven in the morning.
As a valued partner of the Spelmin family, you have been invited to their family estate for Helentine's upcoming birthday celebration. Arriving last night exhausted, you had a restful sleep.
The Spelmins use this manor to receive guests, and the wooden floors and furnishings of its many rooms carry a subtle, mellow scent. Servants are already bustling about, their activity chasing away the morning chill.
A figure in a black suit with gold-embossed trim approaches you from the other end of the corridor, dressed like a butler.
Good morning, Gray Raven Commandant. I'm the head butler of this estate. I trust the family's hospitality has been to your satisfaction?
That is precisely one of the reasons I came to see you.
Our lady has been acting rather peculiar lately. She seems far more at ease than before.
Not that I find her cheerfulness troubling. Seeing Lady Helentine in such spirits is quite heartening, truly.
It's just that when I speak with her, she occasionally becomes somewhat... unresponsive? Though she recovers quickly enough, I can't help but remain concerned.
Perhaps I'm overthinking it, but...
That puts my mind at ease. Our lady appears to be looking for you as well.
Right then, a maid approaches the head butler and whispers something. He nods.
I have some family matters to attend to. As you can see, many guests are arriving at the manor.
A light breakfast has been prepared for you in the dining room ahead. Please help yourself.
Should you need anything regarding our lady, you can find me in the butler's lounge on the first floor. If you'll excuse me.
The head butler turns and leaves the corridor, ascending the stairs to an upper floor.
After enjoying a lavish breakfast buffet, you leave the dining room.
You open your terminal and try to contact Helentine.
Walking while typing out a message, you are too distracted to notice your surroundings. Right as you round the corner and hit send...
A powerful force comes hurtling toward you.
A Construct charges in from the side, catching you off-guard. You stumble and knock into a porcelain vase on a nearby shelf.
Just before the vase hits the ground, Helentine catches it and steadies you.
After straightening up, she stands there holding the vase, looking somewhat flustered.
Hmm—
C-Commandant, are you okay? Are you hurt?
She helps you up and brushes the dust and wood chips off your clothes before methodically checking your joints from head to toe, making sure nothing is dislocated or broken.
After she helps you into a chair, you finally speak up.
...I was looking for you, Commandant.
Sorry, what I mean is...
I want to take you somewhere, and I've been waiting for you to finish breakfast.
Before you can finish, Helentine grabs your hand and hurries you downstairs once again, her quick footsteps echoing as she goes.
Though confused, you decide to shelve your earlier question for now. Led by Helentine, you head to the lowest level of the manor, pass through a heavily reinforced door, and arrive at a massive underground hall.
This is the Spelmin family collection. Most of what we have here are authentic props from famous movies.
The cases display all manner of seemingly ordinary items, each one carefully preserved behind reinforced glass.
The Spelmin family invested heavily in film and television back in the Golden Age, so we had strong ties with directors and production crews.
After filming wrapped, the crews would sometimes gift us props as keepsakes.
We also acquired props from older movies through auctions and other means.
Is there one that interests you, Commandant? I can tell you all about it.
Helentine carefully retrieves the wooden cane from the display case, twirling it in the air with a practiced flourish before catching it smoothly, then strikes a pose with exaggerated, comical flair.
This is the cane used by a legendary comedy master from the silent film era.
I'm not usually into comedies, but his films have this special quality to them. They give you strength.
I'll leave this bone where it is. It's pretty old and fragile.
It's from 2048: A Space Odyssey. It was the bone that got tossed into the air by the primate in the opening scene.
This was the signature revolver of the actor Westwood. He used it throughout his famous gunslinger trilogy.
It's a real gun, but it's loaded with blanks. It's all smoke and mirrors without any actual firepower.
Helentine goes on to showcase other pieces in the collection. Some aren't particularly valuable—one is just an empty shell casing—yet each is carefully preserved in its own display case.
Most props get auctioned off or returned to the studios, while the ones with sentimental value might go to the actors. There's no real system for categorizing them either, so it always ends up looking pretty disorganized.
Films are important works of art too, but it only takes a ticket for everyone to experience them.
I've always believed that, and I still do.
Helentine leads you deeper into the sprawling underground collection. It would be more accurate to call it a museum at this point.
Two locomotives sit in the museum's central sunken area, one completely destroyed and riddled with rust, the other restored to pristine condition.
One is the actual wreckage of the train that plunged into the river in The Colonel. The other is a fully restored, functional engine that can be modified for filming.
There's a large studio near our manor with tracks that allow both trains to run.
Helentine seems far more animated and talks more than usual when she explains the exhibits, speaking with a spark of passion in her eyes rarely seen otherwise.
I wanted to share them with you because it's you, Commandant.
The tour continues to a massive wardrobe room, stocked with costumes and makeup supplies used for filming.
The family used to lend out the manor to friendly directors for filming, and the guest rooms would double as lounges for actors and the like.
The Punishing Virus outbreak destroyed the film industry the Transatlantic took such pride in. It's impossible to recreate productions of that scale now.
These aren't one-of-a-kind art pieces signed by master craftsmen, so collectors don't see much investment potential in them.
If I didn't collect them, they could easily be lost down the line and no one would bat an eye. But I think that would be a shame.
Love... Is that what this is...?
Her focus wavers for a moment.
Helentine blinks at the sound of your voice, as if her mind is slowly returning from afar.
Yes, I really love movies.
I'd like to grab some lunch, Commandant.
Yes, I'm hungry.
...Let's head out together.
After leaving the underground museum, you two share a simple lunch in the dining room under the watchful eyes of numerous servants.
Many of the costumes are reusable. The manor hosts themed costume balls from time to time.
What interested you the most, Commandant?
The train can run in the studio, so you can ride it.
We have exact replicas of it. I can give you one before you leave, Commandant.
If there's anything you'd like to wear, our family tailor can make you a custom piece, Commandant.
She gives a slight nod to the servant beside her. Understanding her gesture, the servant promptly leaves the dining room.
Helentine freezes again, as if something has triggered inside her. She turns toward the window, gazing at the manor's sprawling, vibrant gardens that are bathing in the midday sun.
Let's take a walk in the garden after we finish our meal.
There's something I want to do with you, Little Helentine.
Commandant, will you come with me to the garden this afternoon? I just remembered something important.
You have grown accustomed to Helentine's scrambled train of thought.
So... that's what you'd call a "date," right?
Right.
Servants nearby begin clearing the table. Helentine glances at the clock on the wall.
Look at the time. Sorry, but I need my afternoon rest. Would you like to get some sleep as well?
I need to head back now, or I'll be late.
That's not necessary. You should get some rest too, Commandant.
After walking her out of the dining room and back to the corner where she crashed into you this morning, you part ways with her.
Back in her room, Helentine lies down in her modulation pod and closes her eyes.
Sensing their master has gone to sleep, the smart lights automatically dim, and the heavy curtains draw shut. The room plunges into complete darkness, even though it is still midday.
Helentine drifts off to sleep, and the modulation pod's dim blue indicator light flickers on.
Phew... That was close. We almost got busted.
That staged encounter was way too clumsy, Nelly. You turned a romantic meeting into an actual clash.
Still, the invite to the garden afterward was a smart move.
Make sure you seize the opportunity this afternoon, Nelly.
Otherwise, I'll have to step in myself.
