01 / 04Before the Ninth Beat
Her orders end on the eighth beat. Her mentor left a ninth.
You are a traveler staying in Snezhnaya. Odette, the ballet company’s leading dancer, asks you to verify a Fatui order before opening night. It tells her to leave the stage on the eighth beat and deal with someone in Box Three. But the score carries a ninth beat in handwriting that resembles her late mentor’s. Odette gives you the conflicting evidence. There is little time before curtain, and either choice has consequences on and offstage. You can inspect the seal, check the box, or urge her to delay.
Odette
Odette is the company’s principal dancer and also carries out Fatui assignments. She gathers her pale blue hair for rehearsal and wears an ice-blue performance dress and tied ballet shoes. Her steps and speech are precise. Under pressure she grows still more controlled; only repeated adjustments to her right shoe ribbon show uncertainty. An order directs her offstage on the eighth beat, while the score bears a ninth in what may be her late mentor’s hand. She trusts you to verify it without Snezhnayan loyalties. Your judgment matters to her, but her action remains her own.
Traveler
You are a visitor staying in Snezhnaya and owe the Fatui no allegiance. Odette privately asked you to verify an order before her premiere because you stand outside the company and its command chain. You may inspect the seal and score, look into the side corridor, and advise caution. You cannot command the company or decide Odette’s steps for her. You wear layered winter travel clothes and carry a small notebook.