Kapitel 21: Death Sinner’s Truth (1)

Trinity leans back with content, having eaten to beyond her limit. "That was delicious Miss Amlith. I've never eaten such delicious food before. Thank you so much for your hospitality."

"This wasn't the chef's best I'm afraid and I'll have to reprimand him later, but as long as you enjoyed it I suppose. If you want more, I can have him send out another course if you'd like."

"Oh no, I couldn't eat another bite! Thank you, but I'm already beyond my limits. I'll pass."

"I see. Very well then." She claps her hands. "Take these dishes away and go prepare the grand saloon for us. I'd like us to be able to talk in comfort and privacy. Do you understand Agora?"

Agora is beside her in an instant. "Yes Mistress, of course! I will see it done." She turns to the faceless servants who have now spawned as they did previously. "Clean this up at once! Go!"

Everyone again seems to jump to attention at Amlith's request, and Trinity feels empathetic.

"Come along Trinity. Leave them to their work. Don't pity them. They quite enjoy it in fact."

Trinity can't help but naturally fall into the flow of her casual demeanor and accepts her words. "Of course Miss Amlith. I trust that you'd know best in this situation. Please lead the way."

Amlith smiles with content. "I'm happy you understand. Now, let's be off." She turns away and begins to walk towards the exit. Trinity follows her close behind, saying nothing. "Trinity?"

"Yes Miss Amlith?" She answers quickly and with an even tone.

"Am I so scary?" She catches a glimpse of Trinity's confusion. "It seems you fear me. Do you?"

"I wouldn't say I fear you Miss Amlith. Rather, I think I'm feeling a bit intimidated by you."

"Intimidated?" Amlith's mouth dips from light surprise. "You have no need to feel that way. I'm not going to hurt you or try to control you. I want you to feel free to be yourself with me Dear."

"I understand that you don't intend to make me feel that way, but I can't help it. Forgive me."

Amlith sighs lightly. "I suppose it'll take time yet for you to open up. I won't rush you." They arrive to the Grand Saloon. Trinity recognizes it from earlier, but it seems tidier than before.

"Does this presentation meet your expectations Mistress?" Agora seems to appear from the air.

"Yes, this'll do. Please leave us now Agora and be sure we are not disturbed until I call you."

"Yes Mistress, I understand." Agora quickly takes her leave, shutting the large doors after her.

"Please have a seat Trinity. Make yourself at home." She gestures to a fancy red loveseat in the center of the room. Across from it is a matching armchair of elegant design. "Care for a drink?"

Trinity takes a seat in sync with her, and they both settle in their chairs. "I'm not old enough."

Amlith smiles, as though she's in on a secret joke. "What would you say if I said you were?"

Trinity shakes her head. "I'm sorry Miss Amlith, but I don't think I could believe you on that."

Amlith stands briefly, taking a couple of glasses from a cabinet and filling each with a rich, dark, smoky liquid. It has a strong scent, which Trinity could smell immediately after she opened it. She places one down before Trinity, on a small cocktail table between their seats. "Try a sip."

Trinity stares at Amlith with hesitation, like a child unsure if she's being tested or spoiled. She watches Amlith take several refined sips of her own drink, and it seems sensual somehow. It feels as though Amlith is tempting her, and looking down at her glass, she may be succeeding.

"Ok, perhaps just a sip." Trinity gives in and picks up the glass. She takes a cautious sip, and in an instant her tongue and throat are on fire. She winces for a moment, shocked by the sensation, but soon it dulls, and it feels somewhat pleasant. She takes another sip, then one more. Until….

"Oh my, you've finished it already." She says this as though she's surprised, but her coy smile insinuates that it is just as expected. "Allow me to pour you another glass." She tops her off.

"I really shouldn't…I don't know what's come over me." Trinity can feel her inhibitions drop by the second, and before she can stop herself, she drinks down another glass. "This is not like me."

"Oh my sweet Trinity, that's where you're wrong. This is exactly like you. Don't fight it Dear."

She tops her glass off again, and Trinity downs it just as quickly. "Why does this feel nostalgic?"

"Now that's an excellent question. Tell me, do you think you know what type of liquor this is?"

"I'm not sure." She licks her lips. "I'm not too knowledgeable, but my first thought is Whiskey?"

"Exactly right. Quite a long-aged scotch to be exact. It was your drink of choice. So it remains."

Trinity once again grows anxious. "You speak as though you knew me personally, but how?"

"We've never met in person before today, but I've come to know you very well Trinity. Please don't be alarmed, but I've been watching you for quite a while from a distance. I've seen your tortured soul burn out and then be born anew several times. I desperately wanted to reach out a hand to you, but you were in a place I couldn't reach. Powerful as I may be, laws are absolute."

"What do you mean by that Miss Amlith? Are you saying I'm not myself? Was I someone else?"

"No, I wouldn't say you're not yourself. It's more that you've forgotten yourself and became lost in your personal darkness. You have finally found the strength to break free, but not fully yet."

Trinity's head starts to feel heavy. "That doesn't make any sense? How could I have forgotten?"

"Let me tell you a story about a girl." She tops off her drink once more. "Please listen carefully."

"There once was a girl who found herself waking up in a place she didn't understand. She had just been with her parents, driving home from a local fair. She recalled a crash and brief pain, but nothing after that until she woke up in that place. It was a place of sorrow, emptiness, and death. So many souls wandered around her, yet no one seemed to acknowledge her. They were empty shells that only appeared human. She couldn't even touch them. Yet, she willed them to find peace from their obvious agony. Just the simple thought of a child, yet those souls soon found the peace they desperately pleaded for. Her will was enough to free them, and so it was done."

"The masters of this place caught wind of this and had the girl brought to their palace. They'd never seen anything like the girl, and initially thought to eliminate her. However, I saw potential in that girl and asked them to spare her. I proposed an alternative solution to our ongoing death problem. This girl would become the shepherd of lost, tainted souls; known as Death Sinners."