บท 3: A Journey begins with one step
"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." —Lao Tzu
After a good wash in the nymphs pools, I felt amazing! Squeaky fresh and clean. The lion closes its mouth promptly cutting off the supply for the water, and the nymphs who had been scrubbing and washing me, dance away singing and laughing, the water in the pool drained away.
I felt like I was in some kind of dream, I was waiting for an inmate to slap me or for the alarm to sound.
But I wasn't waking up, it just felt too good to be true, I hadn't been this clean in twelve years. For twelve years, I had felt alone, disgusting and miserable; not to say that my life before then had been a joy either but prison had been soul destroying. To begin with, it was where I discovered all about Mythical Creatures in the first place, and that was my main introduction to the Mythological world and its people. But meeting Rosealinde made me believe that like humans, it all depended on the person.
Sure, Rosealinde didn't seem to be on the straight and narrow. I believe if I didn't agree to do what she wanted she would snap my neck without a warning. I also realised, Rosealinde was probably relying heavily on my human feeling of gratitude and such to make me complacent to her wishes. She knew that now I would regard her as my saviour. Dammit this girl was good at getting her way. But I didn't mind, because for once someone wasn't torturing me to get what they wanted, or paying me. They were offering a bigger thing… happiness I guess?
I swear to god, you're making me sick! Shut up!
Rosealinde's voice snaps in my ear, she doesn't sound annoyed, but I realised she was what humans called autistic, so she was unable to decipher emotions well or show any affection. But in reality, putting it in perspective, Rosealinde wasn't human, she had never once been human and she hadn't even been born on Earth, if my suspicions of her being an alien from outer space were correct. So maybe this was very normal for the people of… wherever it was she came from.
I walk out of the bathroom trying to find her closet, Martha had disappeared, probably to wake up that Maya person. I turn around in circles staring up at the ceiling… there was none. The outside sky was all I could see, and a blanket of darkness with diamonds clung to it desperately. I felt like I was standing by a water's edge watching the starry sky and breathing in the beautiful tranquil air around.
I could fully understand why Rosealinde didn't want people in her room, she didn't want the sense of peace to be disturbed. I was careful to walk on my tip-toes, scared: that I would disturb the perfect balance her room was in.
I notice that by a large four poster bed with red curtains, hung a white sheet. It covered whatever was behind it, I approach it wearily wondering what I was going to see. Before I could get too close, a soft touch runs down my arm, I look down to see little flecks of lights hovering around my hands. Fairies??? Pixies? I was no expert, but when her massive floor to ceiling bookcase parted, sliding back on its self to reveal a massive wardrobe I knew I was to follow them.
I was no fashionista, or fashion geek but I could appreciate the things she had. From the jewellery, to shoes and clothes for every occasion. I wouldn't be surprised if she had a prison jumpsuit. I was stopped short by a golden shimmering pixie light hand, it pointed to the left. I followed the directions it gave me, her wardrobe was massive due to the fact Rosealinde had been around for centuries... At least I assumed she had. Why else would there be strange period costumes amongst modern mini skirts.
I stopped, the pixies/fairies had stopped in front of something.
The plaque said: 21st century clothing.
I was surprised, the road branched to two sides: Boys and Girls. Why would Rosealinde have boys clothes? I chose the girls one. The pixies shove me into a basket and I was whizzed away again. God, is this what Rosealinde does every day to get her clothes? What about underwear? Hhahaha, that would be so interesting!!!! While I amuse myself with visions of Rosealinde whizzing down the same basket searching for her clothes, something gets thrown out at me. Great! I didn't get to choose what I wore.
And then I was dropped down a hole, I felt like a child in the mad hatter's house, without the drink me potions. I land on the carpet; my bum was a bit sore already so it was now even more sore. I examine the room I had been dumped in, Rosealinde stood with her back to me examining the big pool table.
Around the room, books and scrolls were scattered everywhere. That was something Rosealinde seemed to have an excessive amount of: books and scrolls. I wouldn't mind reading a few of the older looking ones; they also were the major feature in every room.
Against the remaining bookshelves free walls, were chaise lounges. And more sofas scattered in a semicircle around a mahogany, liberty decorated oval dining table. This had a bowel of jewels for decorations and a picture of Rosealinde and another girl in a picture frame. Rosealinde looked very grumpy, while the other girl was making up for the lack of happiness in the picture by smiling twice as hard. It was very amusing! Mainly because I couldn't imagine Rosealinde posing for a picture, though she was very photogenic…
"You're late." I snap out of my musings by that statement.
"I wasn't aware I had a fixed time." I stand up rubbing my bum discreetly, Rosealinde turns around to face me. She leans against the pool stick,. She had changed… into a different coloured suit. I try to point out I was wearing a dress by smoothing the ends.
"Martha really doesn't like you, does she?"
"Nah, we're chummy." The look she gave me told me she wasn't in the mood.
I feel something crawl up me, it felt like spiders but looked like tar. I try to shove it off, or remove it but it covered me… then melted away into my skin… and I was no longer wearing a pale pink dress with flowers. Instead I was wearing track-suit bottoms and a tank vest.
"Please get on with Martha, I dislike conflict under my roof."
"Uh… tell her that! I haven't done anything."
"Let's not play the blame game… you are no longer three. Take responsibility for your actions." She says gently making me feel like I was a child that was getting a telling off from their grandma.
"Geez, Who didn't give you any."
There was a silence, I feared she hadn't understood my jibe, the look on her face remained impassive and unnerving. She didn't even blink.
…
….
"Ha, ha ha."
I frown, was that Rosealinde? She hadn't opened her mouth… so where was the laughing coming from?
I look at her searching for signs, she looks at me calmly, then swiftly turns around and looks at the bookcase.
"Maya."
Now, that, was Rosealinde. Also, why was she talking to the bookcase!!!! To my surprise a section of the bookcase moved (I needed to stop being so surprised at this point) , it revealed a small door, and out came the girl in the picture. This house was probably filled with secret passages, it's how the servants got around probably, interesting, wonder if there was a map.
"Sorry, Rosealinde… but that was funny."
"If you like the perverse kind of humour." Rosealinde's no-nonsense voice was boring Maya and I didn't like it.
But I had been asleep for a long time and I had a feeling that when Rosealinde was in this mode she was very whiplash like and on a whim would throw me back into prison; and I really liked this freedom she had offered me.
"Alright little girl, looks like mamma bear and I need to have an adult conversation."
"No fair, I am an adult." Snaps Maya storming towards me.
"I don't think so… how old are you?"
"one hundred and eighteen, you're like forty something." Ouch, I did not look that old.
"Escusez moi, j'ai… twenty-seven… ans"
"Vingt-sept" I hear Rosealinde saying to herself quietly. So Rosealinde could obviously speak French, interesting. I wonder how many languages she knows.
"Oh really… so where did all the extra… -I watched as she feverishly tried to calculate something, failing to do so she settles for- numbers go, hugh?"
"They didn't go anywhere because I'm not that old. Oh and by the way it's thirteen numbers missing."
"Rose!" She shrikes facing Rosealinde, to my horror (and something inside of me might've even enjoyed it) something invisible slaps her, hard. Oh, I know that feeling girl.
Rosealinde had done the same to me (probably not as hard as I was human, and that sort of hit what have killed me before I would have hit the floor) when I had 'insulted' Martha. Maya hit the ground, her skull made an audible cracking sound making me wince, Rosealinde didn't bat an eyelash. So much for the whole BFF vibe I was getting from Maya and Rosealinde. Maybe they were acquainted. A big pair of floor to ceiling doors open revealing a very tall and thin man with a straight moustache and sagging mouth. Did Rosealinde only hire strange looking people? Was it a requirement to work for her as long as some part of you looked funny… of course did that apply to me? Where did I look strange? Maybe my Bum? I was so lost in thought I missed Rosealinde's conversation with the tall, thin, moustache man, then he marched out carrying Maya with the help of other footmen.
"Now that, that's out of the way, let's talk business." She gestures towards a sofa, I pick a chaise lounge against the wall and she continues playing pool for some time. Obviously, she wasn't that geared up for that conversation. I was fine with just gazing around admiring, relaxing and more admiring. Then she walked over to the bookcase, she pulled out a book it got stuck half way and then that section swung open revealing… a booze cabinet. I could get used to living like she did, secret passages, secret booze cabinets, chefs and maids… Yeh. It was quit the high life.
"I think an introduction is in order." She pours two clear cut glasses of rum, one she swivels thoughtfully the other floats itself into my hands.
"I am Don." She says as if it the answer to all my questions, I stare at her puzzled. Don… like Mafioso, or Don… like BDSM? I watch and wait for her to amplify on the answer… she doesn't, instead she looks at me thoughtfully.
"I take it you have never heard of The Don? Nor seen any of these symbols anywhere." She throws a rosary at me, I look at it. I had seen these rosaries decorated with a rose and skull and crossbones, thinking about it I had seen these things everywhere. To begin with, it was on the banner outside, as well as in tile patterns. And now that I was thinking about, I remembered many inmates had these. And now that I thought about it the name Don was miles too familiar.
…
…
"So?" I ask taking a sip of my drink, it wets my throat nicely. I had been quite parched, plus I hadn't eaten in quite some time; she eyes me over the glass.
I was not telling her my name.
"Oh you don't have to, no. Let me sum up everything all right, you and I have a common goal – we do?- I can't get my hands dirty because of my reputation, but you are a nobody but you can't do the job I require you to do in this state. (She waves her hands at me for emphasis). Every day you will find yourself changing, you will also be trained, here by me until the consent forms come in. This is when you and Maya will go to a training facility to learn more. Hopefully you won't die, hopefully you will pass every challenge and hopefully you will be ready in time. –in time for what?- Also you will be working, a real job. Then you will strike when I need you to, then that's when our acquaintance will be officially over."
"None of that made sense, especially all the 'hopefully'- ies that was the hardest part. What do you mean by changing?"
She looks at me, then she places the glass down carefully, she walks over to another part of the bookcase where she pulls another spine, this unlocks a cigars and cigarette cabinet. She chooses one, then like she did when she rescued me, she struck a match on her shoe, she lit the cigarette and inhales… calmly.
"How are you feeling?" She asks with the cigarette in her mouth. Was she avoiding the question?
"Fine, why?"
"Do you feel hungry?"
"Doesn't everyone feel hungry?" What was this? Twenty-stupid-questions day?
"Have you looked in the mirror?"
Why in the world would I do that? I disliked mirrors a lot, largely because vanity had not been encouraged in my training school; you were whipped for looking at a mirror longer than three seconds. So… no, I avoided mirrors.
"No, why?"
I turn frantically around unsure what I was looking for, I watch surprised as from the ceiling four huge mirrors were lowered right in front of me. They placed themselves front, left and right and back. The wall, the chaise that had been up against the wall had disappeared. Rosealinde must have a lot of magic to spare if tricks like this were her way to prove a point. I unwillingly examine myself.
Last time I had looked at myself had been twelve years ago, apart from being reflected in my prison mates' eyes, I hadn't looked at myself ever again. So, imagine my surprise, when I see a clean version of me, scar-less and quite attractive. Not Rosealinde material, but not an eye bruiser, that was for sure. My cheeks were flushed, all those years training under the sun in the mountains had made my skin harsh and tanned had been replaced with a luxurious golden glow. My scars on my face were gone, I touch my cheeks, they weren't rough to touch, also I didn't have the acne I had had since puberty, all that was gone. Replaced with a girl with deep hazel eyes, my brown hair was clean and had even been curled. No thanks to Martha I guess, those nymphs had worked wonders on my normally hairy skin. I remember with a jolt the neuron-tracker, I squint at the mirror in front reflecting my neck. There was nothing, just small writing.
"4981, your gaol number. You must never forget any experiences. The ones that make you stronger are the ones you are to revisit in your dreams." Rosealinde had moved, she had wondered towards me and her hands stroked my neck, was she leaning down?
The proximity was strange, and very discomforting. She must have picked up on my vibe because she stood back up (Rosealinde could grow on command?) and snapped her fingers. The mirrors rose, I watch them leave, feeling a bit empty.
"What happened?" I ask quietly, I felt like someone had wiped my slate clean and was expecting nothing in return for it.
"Tabulae Rasa, you know what that is?" I had never gone to school, unless the one for assassins in training counted as 'proper education'.
"It's how a baby is born; the baby's brain is blank and with every new experience it can store and remember things by linking back. In other words, 'a blank slate'; I am offering you this proposal." She inhales deeply, I felt like Rosealinde was annoyed, she didn't like explaining things and so far it was all she had done.
"You didn't have a choice as a child, your parents were unable to provide for you, they left you in an orphanage in China, because that was where you were born. They had immigrated there in hopes of finding a job in one of the fastest growing industrial countries. But, instead they had you. They believed you would be better in other hands and so they left you in other hands… however the orphanage sold you themselves when their supplies grew too low. To a remote training camp. The advert said you would become a member of the Chinese military, but again that was all a lie." I stare agape, how did she know all this, even I didn't know my story.
"Like I said, I am Don. In the Mythological world I am more powerful than the king, who you will remember is my father, however he doesn't know I am alive because he has only met Don. Anyway, politics of the Mythological world I will teach you on another day. Right now, you need to understand what I am offering you. I am offering you a clean slate. You will be taught how to fight properly, you will not be abused or taken advantage of. You will have friends and a family. If, of course you don't want it, I suggest you leave while I'm in a good mood."
I didn't need to think about it, what I needed to think about was how to repay her, also I was restraining myself from hugging her. Rosealinde was my saviour! For once in my life someone was helping me, helping me to get somewhere, helping me to be a better person. Sure Rosealinde did want me to kill someone but that was nothing new, that kept things 'familiar' however friends and A FAMILY! I had never had any of those. I knew crying might irritate Rosealinde, I could see she wasn't enjoying my happiness too much, mainly because she was drinking her rum slowly and keeping a steel glare on me. But for some reason I found it funny, Rosealinde wasn't a clear cut good person, but she wasn't bad either, I wasn't sure of course but her alien race didn't seem to have such a divide in the line between good and bad that humans had given to it.
The word you're searching for is: agathokakological. I jump as Rosealinde invades my mind again, I glare at her across the room, she seemed to be lost in thought. What? I had been in prison many times, some people where in there for providing for their families and frankly I couldn't understand why that was bad. It was better than SELLING your child! I looked at Rosealinde to see if she agreed with me, however her blank vacant expression didn't change… wow she was just so… dead?
"What is the thing we have in common?" I ask trying to get back on track. She smiles, finally (admitting to even myself that I was after approval from Rosealinde showed just how quickly I had become attached to her), she walks over to the book case and picks a book. She opens it on the oval table. I stand up and walk over to see what it was.
There smiling up at me was a photo of… my employer, well my ex-employer!
"I know her, she's… she's…"
"Countess Katherine De Blanche of the French state, Lady and representative of public relations Hathaway."
"Yes, that!" Wow, she had a long title.
"Wait! Hathaway? Why would someone of your family hire me to kill you?"
Rosealinde's smile twisted with little humour behind it, her eyes scared me a lot. But I was glad it was directed at someone other than. Me.
"You would never understand Royal affairs and politics. Anyhow the line is so distant it's nearly extinct by the time the blood reaches her, it's turned into vinegar. And that's what she is a little bottle of distilled ugliness. Also… I don't have blood and I'm not really their family member. When I died I reincarnated as my past self. As Lamina Vampire I did have blood, I was born like every other Mythological creature, from the biological process of sex. However when I reincarnate… well that's none of your business, otherwise we wouldn't be called impossible"
Rosealinde's last words left me so confused (Mythological creatures were born?), hoping she would explain herself better, but she didn't. So, we both continued to look at the woman with contempt, her white wig was so tall it didn't fit properly in the picture; the bust on her dress showed too much cleavage. Her make-up was too bright the flowers in her hair were too innocent looking, her face was too young. All in all she looked too much of everything except the evil that was inside her.
"What's your problem with her?" I said realising that Rosealinde wanted this woman dead.
"The fact someone tried to kill me doesn't sit well with me, however I am not one for revenge. The king asked quietly for this 'favour' so I needed a person who understood what a hindrance she was; also, I understand you expressed a desire for revenge.
"Why does the King want it, though?" I ask frowning. When I last checked, this woman was his wife, it had been announced in the newspapers we were allowed to read, if we were on good behaviour. So, why would he kill his own wife?
"Hmmm, I can't tell you. I am disclosing as much as I can without getting the king in trouble" Rosealinde tilted her head looking up, I had a feeling she was able to look through the ceiling as suddenly she looked slightly irritated. To my left a chair lining the walls flew over and Rosealinde carefully sat down. God I wanted to be her!
Everything was making sense. More or less. Sure, parts of it where fuzzy, like the 'changing' remark, and the 'are you hungry' question. But I was free, I had a roof over my head, I had a bed and I had Don's protection.
"Hang on there, I have never agreed to protecting you." She takes another cigarette and lights it with a flame escaping through her fingers when she snapped them.
"… I assumed…" I begin, She exhales, the smoke leaves no traces, no smell.
"No, you have my protection while you're in my house. But you have my word when you go to the training facility, I cannot personally protect you there that's why I have assigned one of my people to you. You will have my protection when your carrying out the elimination of Countess of the French State; after that you are no longer in my services and if you wish to prolong our acquaintance you must improve yourself, by yourself. You and I will no longer see each other, and I withdraw my protection the moment you kill the Countess, not any later."
I couldn't understand why she was explaining it in so much detail, I stopped listening at one point so I nodded when she had stopped.
"You're not listening." She mutters, she stands up abruptly, fixes her blazer. Then she stalks off, I think she was even a bit angry, out of the tall doors that opened automatically, I saw the footmen bow as she walked past them. But I was happy, I could start all new.
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