《Dark Fantasy Short Stories》 Project Cinder The scorching heat. The unbearable suffocation. And the scent of ash. Those were his earliest memories. Covered in dirt and not a penny to his name. Such was fitting for an outcast such as himself. Years ago, He was found in the outskirts of the town as a child, not an uncommon occurrence in his world, infants abandoned in back alleys was not a rare sight, so nobody batted an eye when a three year old boy was found. Being nameless, He had no one. To live he was made to work as a child helper in a cinder brick factory, the lowest step in the social ladder. No child labour laws existed in his world, he worked all day, taking breaks for only meals and a few hours of sleep. As such, he was always covered in ash. Eventually, the townsfolk gave him his name for this peculiar appearance of his. As the years went by, the boy accepted it. Given name, Cinder. Act I He lived in what one would consider a twisted reality. Since times forgotten, an enchanted mist took over the earth, it was a sort of boundary between countries, people were separated due to the mist and contact between different areas of the world became impossible. After centuries passed, each area in the world developed in a different way from each other. So much that they would be considered like different worlds. This world in particular was one of the better ones, but not without its own issues. The world Cinder lived in wasn¡¯t much different from the other worlds covered in mist. The monstrosities appeared here too, after the Great Split occurred, although that too, took place uncountable years ago. As the countries developed, they devised counter measures against the monstrosities, they purged them from the areas near civilization and barricaded their towns. They dedicated a special military force for the sole purpose of dealing with them, the House of Purgatory, they cleared main travelling paths and set up guard posts as a protection measure. Unless one was living in the wilderness or travelling by obscure paths, it was uncommon to come by a monstrosity. The countries were small yet not a bad place to live in, same could be said of the town where Cinder himself lived, it was a town where middle to low class people made a living. Years had passed since Cinder was first found, he was now nineteen years old. He had amassed enough coins for a nameless such as himself, that now he could afford applying for a less demanding job. Although, his only choices were physical jobs. Fortunately, there was a job not much would apply for, unless they had no choice, but for Cinder it wasn¡¯t that bad. Since all he had seen was hell since his childhood, so this new job was better in every aspect from his current workplace. The neighbouring town to his was the capital, Ferrawend. This particular job was of a lowly castle guard. The wages weren¡¯t that good, the job was time consuming with no reward, and so most people would not consider it. But for Cinder, this was a step forward. Although the mist surrounded the world, it was considerably less than other worlds. As such, there was very little chance of a monstrosity attacking the castle. As for human threats, there were the more well-payed guards who protected the perimeter of the castle. Cinder¡¯s job would be a lowly castle guard, one of many standing in the hallways inside, so the risk involved was non existent. Cinder was in a better mood today, after all, he got accepted as a castle guard. He would be saying goodbye to the brick factory, and he wouldn¡¯t be covered in dirt all the time now. As he was exiting he saw the crown prince, Charltz IV enter the castle. A bright upstanding person, nice to all and loved by all. The polar opposite of Cinder, who was cynical and fairly anti-social. It wasn¡¯t that he had a problem with people, it was just that since a kid he never had a proper opportunity to socialize. He just didn¡¯t care for people and their petty relations. If his world was a fairy-tale, then he would be just a character that doesn¡¯t even make an appearance in the story, he would be just a nameless character that simply exists, and He himself of all people knew this and had accepted things as how they were. ¡°Ella, come down here right this instant!¡± Cinder heard a loud voice tearing apart his thoughts, and brining him back to his senses. He was returning to the small inn in his hometown where he lived when he heard the voice coming out of a house. ¡°I¡¯m coming¡±, another voice came, although not as loud. ¡°Ella, clean this rug, it seems to have amassed quite an amount of dust¡±, said the first voice. ¡°But I just cleaned it two days ago¡±, said the meek voice. ¡°Are you implying you know better than me, and talking back?¡±, the stern voice continued. ¡°No madam! I was jus-¡±, her voice was cut off. ¡°Then clean it¡±, the stern voice said. ¡°But it wa- ...alright I¡¯ll do it¡±, the meek voice seemed to have admitted defeat. ¡°A wise decision¡±, Cinder thought, and moved on to his inn. He, of course, knew the family that lived in this house, a middle aged couple and their young daughter Ella. Although the story was more than that, the couple had lost their young twin daughters to the plague ten years ago. To console her wife for the loss, the husband adopted an eight year old girl. However, the wife had suffered serious mental damage and had developed an odd obsessive-compulsive disorder. Only God knows how much the girl had to take from that madwoman while growing up. When Cinder was young, he was curious about that girl. They both were orphans, both were miserable, so perhaps he wanted to understand someone in a similar situation to him. But alas, one day when he passed by her, she gave him a look of contempt and hate not even the townspeople would give him. Some think that two miserable people might get along with each other, but usually it is the opposite. It seemed Ella had not accepted her fate for what it was, and wouldn¡¯t want to be categorized in the same group as Cinder. After that, cinder dropped the notion of talking to her. Cinder entered the rundown inn he lived and closed the main door. ¡°Hey, how did the applying for job go?¡±, asked the man sitting behind reception desk. His name was Selg, the owner of the inn. ¡°It went better than expected¡±, Cinder said with a smile. ¡°Well aren¡¯t you in a good mood today, I don¡¯t understand how that shitty job would make anyone happy¡±, sighed the man. ¡°Hey, it suits me¡±, said Cinder. ¡°As long as you keep paying rent on time as usual, its fine with me¡±, Selg turned his face away. Cinder went to the dinning area beside the reception, and after finishing, he went to his room upstairs. He paid his rent on time because he had nothing else to spend on, he didn¡¯t understand the concept of luxury; that and also he didn¡¯t want to sleep outside in the alleyways like in his early years. Soon after that he went to sleep. He didn¡¯t sleep comfortably and woke up earlier then he usually would. He had nothing else to do so he went out for a walk. It was a few minutes before dawn, so not many people were up yet. He was lost in thought about his new job and lifestyle that would come with it. Before long he passed by the house he had heard voices from earlier. It sounded like a whimper, like something was crying. As he got close, it became all too apparent that someone was in pain. Curious, he went around the backyard of the house and saw someone¡¯s bloody hands from under the fence. ¡°Did that old hag finally went crazy and killed Ella?¡± He thought. He peeked a little bit more and saw that the hands belonged to Ella. ¡°Did she injure her hands during her chores?¡± He wondered. But the thing from which the blood came from was a small rabbit, perhaps a pet. Its body bleeding profusely due to it full of needles stabbed into it. The hands took a hammer and nail, placed it on the knee joint and struck. Crack. What resulted was a horrible, gut-wrenching sound of a bone being broken. The rabbit tried its best to move away by using its remaining limbs, uselessly trying to get away by digging the soil by its bloodied little paws. However, the hands did not stop, they grabbed its hind leg and lower leg and started to pull on the broken knee joint from the opposite sides. Crunch. The sound of tendons, sinew and bone fragments tearing apart. The rabbit kept whimpering, but struggled less than before. The hands took two nails close to its eyes, as if to put it out of its misery by stabbing its eyes out. Cinder moved away before he saw anything else. He couldn¡¯t bear to watch it. As twisted as he thought he was, he had never hurt any living thing before for pleasure like this. But it did not seem as if she was enjoying it, her face an expressionless mask, almost as if she was experimenting with a non-living thing. Cinder was taken aback, but not completely surprised. While not hurting anyone with her words or actions, He had heard her cursing others and the world quietly when washing laundry outside alone, this was from a time when Cinder was curious about her. Ella was a delusional girl, still holding on to the delusion that her life wasn¡¯t supposed to be like this. The stress caused by this fissure in her reality might have played a role in causing this inhumane torture. And after observing this spectacle, Cinder knew, this wasn¡¯t her first time doing this. On the outside, being a meek damsel in distress, she was horrible inside, with a cold twisted heart. Act II Cinder had gone back to the inn and waited for breakfast before heading out to the capital. He was at the town¡¯s outer stables waiting for a carriage when he saw Ella again. She was with an unknown elder woman. The woman was dressed extravagantly compared to the other middle to low class families of this average town. ¡°One of the very few upper class families I suppose¡±, He deduced. ¡°Why is the carriage so late?¡± the woman said worriedly. ¡°Mrs. Mather, Perhaps due to the increased carriages on the road today, due to the event tonight?¡± Ella offered an explanation. An event, there was supposed to be a banquet thrown by the king today due to the prince turning twenty two years old. It was basically a masquerade party, with everyone wearing masks. The woman was the wife of Lord Mather, Fergo Mather. Cinder, of course, knew about the event, however he cared little for it. That also explained as to why Ella was in formal maid clothing, that elderly upper-class woman probably needed a personal maid and for some reason couldn¡¯t bring her own. And Cinder¡¯s hunch wasn¡¯t baseless, that morning the maid of the elderly woman had been assaulted, hit on her head from behind while shopping. So, she was in no condition to accompany the woman. The noble woman was an acquaintance of Ella¡¯s step mother. She asked her to let Ella accompany her for one night, and her step mother obliged. The two of them were making small talk as the carriage arrived, and the two got on the beautifully decorated carriage. The elderly woman was well mannered and educated so Cinder knew she wouldn¡¯t treat Ella badly. Soon after, His carriage also arrived, and he got on and headed for the capital. As expected, he was given a mundane point to guard in the castle, the garden outside the ballroom. Time passed and night came and the festivities started. Prince Charltz was accompanied by his fianc¨¦, Lady Allafio F¨¹r Everyln, daughter of one of the families only second to the royal family, three years younger than the prince. When Cinder had first seen her, he was at a loss for words. ¡°Beautiful¡±, that¡¯s what he had thought. He had never seen such a pretty woman before. Ella was not bad looking, however Ella wasn¡¯t beautiful; she was only a bit above-average, if one had to say. Even someone as Cinder, who didn¡¯t care for people, appreciated Allafio¡¯s beauty. But her good points were limited to her beauty. She was told to be very arrogant, prideful and harsh to others lower than her. Basically a villainess of the fairy-tale. And so Cinder didn¡¯t care for someone like her, who puts others below her, mocking them. He despised these sort of people on their high horses who have only lived a privileged life and looked down on hard-working people. As the night went on, Cinder kept his boring post in the corner. Sometime before Midnight, Ella came out to the garden, perhaps she came to get some fresh air. Cinder was observing her from his post, when suddenly the door flung open and the prince came out, escaping from the huge crowd inside for a little while. Ella, clearly startled by his sudden appearance tripped on her feet and fell on the bushes beside her. As she quickly tried to get up, the thorns on the vines of the bushes ripped her formal skirt, exposing her thighs and cutting her legs in a few places. The prince quickly approached her to give her a helping hand but stopped a few steps short of her. As he laid his eyes on her ripped up attire, he saw her exposed legs, for a moment he was frozen, as if stuck in time. However, if one looked carefully, they would notice his heart beat rising, his face turning a shade of red, body temperature increasing and ragged breathing. The prince could not take off his eyes from her thighs, with fresh blood seeping out from small cuts all over them. The prince was a deviant. He was a voyeur. One cannot be perfect without some setbacks, in other words, a hidden side people hide from others. The prince had such a strict upbringing, he knew nothing of worldly desires and pleasures when he was young. One night, spying on a maid¡¯s quarters as a prank, he saw a woman¡¯s legs for the first time. And he was entranced, by the concept of beautiful legs. As he grew, he developed a strange preference for women with pretty legs. It might have been nothing more than a fetish, yet he considered it to be something far more pure. And Ella¡¯s legs were the most beautiful he had seen in his life. Perhaps due to the balanced amount of exercise she put up with while doing her chores and her already naturally attractive legs, they made the perfect pair of legs for the prince. He wanted to caress. He wanted to take in the scent. He wanted to relish the taste. He kept gazing for some moments that seemed like an eternity, when someone from inside called for him. ¡°My Lord, Lady Allafio is calling for you¡±, the voice said. The entrancing spell above them finally broken, Ella suddenly got up and ran for the exit. ¡°Tell Fio I¡¯ll be there in a moment¡±, He referred to his fianc¨¦ with a nickname and took off after the running Ella. Only Cinder saw the spectacle that took place in the garden, a tender moment the two of them shared. The guests were all in masquerade masks so the prince didn¡¯t get to see Ella¡¯s face. No matter how hard the prince looked, he couldn¡¯t find her. However, his search wasn¡¯t in vain, for he found a bloodied shoe. This was his only clue, whoever fit the shoe was the person he yearned for.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. ---------- ¡°They say the prince is searching for a girl, whoever fits a damn slipper is the one he¡¯s searching for!¡± Selg said to Cinder almost irritatingly. ¡°Wonder who the lucky girl is¡±, said Cinder. ¡°Well I¡¯ll never get these rich bastards and their antics for sure¡±, Selg didn¡¯t seem to be in a good mood. Cinder was in his inn a few days after the banquet, when Selg brought up the topic. The search didn¡¯t take long, with Ella living in one of the nearest towns from the capital. She was inevitably found and taken to the castle, the prince offered her a place at the castle as a maid, perhaps for only getting closer to her. However, as time passed by, the prince found himself falling for the meek and caring personality of Ella, finding it comforting and easing his exhaustive daily routine. Polar opposite of his fianc¨¦, Allafio, whose strict personality only pressured him more and more. Cinder had more than once seen the prince and Ella indulging in debaucheries on the castle premises. And this time it seemed like he wasn¡¯t the only one. The gossip was spreading in the castle, and the news eventually reached Allafio¡¯s ears. She would try to stop him from his descent into plain out degeneracy, after all, that¡¯s what it was. But the prince was entranced, he cared not for his reputation. As for Allafio, he never liked her in the first place, so these little conversations would turn into straight up heated arguments, which ended in Allafio¡¯s humiliation. She would then take out her anger on the meek Ella, since she considered it all to be her fault. This would result in the prince getting even more enraged and reprimanding Allafio. It was an endless cycle of hate and envy and it was building up, reaching its climax. But the debauchery did not end there, Ella was rumored to have been getting intimate with castle officials other than the prince. The prince was one thing but Allafio could not bear this. And so one night the vicious cycle finally reached its climax. ¡°You damn harlot! How dare you tarnish the name of the prince?¡±, Allafio yelled. ¡°Bu-ut I did no su-¡±, Ella was cut off. ¡°Silence, Knave!¡± Said Allafio. Eventually, the commotion reached the prince¡¯s ears. ¡°What are you doing again? How many times do I have to tell you to stop harassing her due to your own insecurities and shortcomings?¡± Charltz intervened between them. ¡°Do you not see this woman¡¯s plot? Not only you, she¡¯s putting moves on others in the castle!¡± Allafio retorted. ¡°I didn¡¯t d-do it! You always take your a-anger on me, even though I didn¡¯t do anyth-thing wrong, how you can be so cruel?¡± said Ella sobbing. ¡°I have heard enough¡±, said the prince. He walked up to Allafio and slapped her square in the face. For a noblewoman of her degree, it was the biggest disgrace she could suffer. ¡°I really thought you were better than this, I hoped somewhere deep down you had some shred of goodness in you, but you¡¯re rotten to the core¡±, the prince said. ¡°Our pseudo engagement ends here, I only kept being your fianc¨¦ due to family appearances and matters. But that ends today, now I have someone I truly want to be, not someone I¡¯m forced to be with¡±, He continued. ¡°You, you would believe her rather than me, who has been by your side for all these years?¡± Allafio said with anger, tears in her eyes. ¡°Fine, I¡¯m not unkind. One, even if one person says that they saw what you claim she does, I¡¯ll give it some thought¡±, the prince lied, since he believed in Ella, and thought Allafio¡¯s words to be mere accusations. ¡°Otherwise, you will get out of this castle, right this instant!¡± the prince yelled. At this point a crowd had gathered around them in the castle due to the commotion. Of course, among the crowd, many had witnessed Ella in her little acts, but no one would speak on the behalf of Allafio, that was akin to ending your life at the spot. Allafio, looked at the crowd desperately, trying to find even one person who would support her, yet all she saw was people avoiding eye contact and snickering among each other. ¡°Serves her right¡±, they all thought. She had a terrible personality to begin with, as such she never had any allies, only foes. No one would take her side for no reward and all risk. She was on the verge of tears now, yet no one moved an inch. Taking her side was like committing suicide to save a tyrant. Such a stupid person did not exist. ¡°I saw her¡±, Came one voice from the crowd. It seemed such an idiot did exist, after all. Given name, Cinder. Act III Why did he of all people took an action? He wasn¡¯t sure himself. Cinder had also gathered, or rather made to go away from his position in the castle to check the commotion. For many moments, he had also watched the spectacle unfold before him. ¡°Well, she had it coming¡±, He too had thought that way about Allafio. Yet, as the commotion reached its peak and she searched desperately for even one soul who would support her, all he could hear were faint snickers among the group, mocking her under their breaths. Disgust. That¡¯s all he felt. Disgust for the people in the crowd, who when in a position of power were doing the same thing as those who were once above them. But above all, disgust for the drunk on charm prince, ridiculing someone from his high horse. Since birth, all he had known was people ridiculing him. He despised this side of human nature. As he saw Allafio helpless, on the verge of tears, ostracised by everyone, He made up his mind. He had no right to interfere, he, who wasn¡¯t even fit to be a minor character in a tale, nameless. Yet he couldn¡¯t let this be, in hind sight, he was probably pissed off, and pulled this stunt just to irritate the prince. ¡°Who said that¡±, the prince said startled. Cinder stepped forward, ¡°It was me¡±. ¡°Well if isn¡¯t a mere peon, you claim you saw her, I say those are mere lies¡±, the prince said, clearly irritated. After all, now he had just made a fool out of himself, due to his arrogant earlier proposal. ¡°It matters not whether they are lies or not, my Lord. You only required someone to come forward and support the Lady¡¯s accusations, even one person, and you would consider thinking further about this whole mater, those were your words¡±, Cinder replied as he saw Ella¡¯s face contorting in agony. ¡°Kh-¡±, the prince seemed to be at a loss for words. ¡°¡­Those were my words and I shall abide by them¡±, the prince groaned quietly and accepted Cinder¡¯s retort. Cinder smiled faintly, and chuckled inside. He had lied, for the first time in his life, he had lied for someone else. Watching Ella¡¯s agonized face and the prince eating his own words was enough, he had won. Even if this single event could potentially ruin his whole life, he in his own mind, had won. But all was not well, he was alone once again. All he had built in his lifetime had crumbled in a few moments. He was an outcast again and he knew this would not end well. Soon after, the crowd dispersed and everyone went back to their own posts. Cinder was returning to his post when a guard stopped him. ¡°You have been called to have a meeting with the Lady¡±, said the guard. Cinder was surprised, but he had no choice but to go. ¡°Damn stray dog¡±, the guard muttered under his breath, as Cinder walked away. Cinder knocked on the door of the Lady¡¯s room. He had not been to this part of castle before. ¡°Come in¡±, a voice came from inside. There she was, the fair lady, in all her glory. ¡°Well, you look like a knave, through and through. You have such little presence that I could barely sense you coming in¡±, Allafio took a stab with her words. ¡°What a pretentious little bitch¡±, Cinder thought. ¡°You think you were being courageous by stepping forward, but all you¡¯ve done is increase my troubles, well you did save me from imminent humiliation and prevented me from getting kicked out, but that was a temporary solution, my engagement is annulled and now I serve no purpose here in this castle¡±, complained the Lady. Cinder didn¡¯t understand, was she trying to be grateful or outright rude? Perhaps she was one of those people who could not be honest with themselves, He pondered. ¡°If I may be honest with you, I did not do it for your sake, Lady Allafio. It was just a stupid impulse and my idiotic ideals¡±, Cinder shrugged. ¡°Well, aren¡¯t you an arrogant little knave, what is your name?¡±, asked Allafio. ¡°It¡¯s Cinder¡±, He replied. ¡°That¡¯s an odd name¡­ well its matters not, I have something to discuss with you, knave, since apparently I have practically no allies left in this castle¡±, said Allafio. Of course, there were never any allies to begin with, due to her bad personality. But cinder didn¡¯t say that out loud. ¡°What about your family?¡± Cinder asked. ¡°Oh leave it, my family cares little for me, I might as well be dead to them since my engagement is annulled now, that is how Aristocratic families work, only reputation and rank matters to them, I cant return back¡±, sighed Allafio. For Cinder, that was an unexpected thing to hear. He thought all aristocrats lived a care-free luxurious life on their high horses without any care in the world. However, it seemed like reality was much more stressful, always under the risk of becoming irrelevant. ¡°And there, I have an idea. I can¡¯t trust others in this castle, now that my authority has gone. So, you are to guard my room, I appoint you as my guard¡±, proclaimed the Lady. ¡°I¡¯m sorry but I already have a job¡±, said Cinder, he wanted no part in this political nonsense, although it might have been too late. ¡°Your job being uselessly standing in a corner of a deserted place in the castle?¡± she hit right where it hurt. No wonder she wasn¡¯t liked by anyone. ¡°Also this should be apparent to you, but you won¡¯t be getting away scot free after that whole fiasco you pulled earlier¡±, Allafio reminded him. ¡°So, you have no choice but to accept this, knave¡±, she gave him a smug smile. ¡°Ahh, that¡¯s a villainous smile, she¡¯s definitely a villain¡±, He thought. ¡°Fine, I agree, I shall change my post to outside of your room¡± he sighed. ¡°That¡¯s how it should be¡±, she smiled victoriously. Her positive points included her smile and beauty, no, rather those were the only good points she had. Later that night, Cinder was guarding her room when he heard a voice come from inside. ¡°Knave, I have something to talk about, come inside¡±, said the soft whisper. Cinder looked around carefully and entered the room. The lady was sitting on the bed, legs crossed, wearing a nightgown, revealing more to him than any person before in her life. Cinder vainly tried to connect the dots and in his mind and reached a conclusion. ¡°Oh, HELL N-¡± his thoughts panicked. ¡°I¡¯m sorry while you are beautiful, I have my whole life ahead of me, and I don¡¯t want to be execute-¡±, His sentence was cut off. ¡°Knave, what have you been blabbering about since a while, and how long are you going to shamelessly stare at me like an idiotic mongrel? Get out to the balcony and sit there, I have something to talk to you about, isn¡¯t that why I called you here in the place?¡± she made a confused face. Was she that self-centered? Cinder wondered. Nevertheless, he was relived he wouldn¡¯t be executed due to infidelity, although somewhere in his mind, he was perhaps a little disappointed too. ¡°You don¡¯t have to answer anything, I just want someone to listen to me, for once in my life. Pretend as if I¡¯m talking to my self¡±, the Lady said from her room. Cinder sat on the floor of the balcony, the view outside from here was gorgeous, more than any view he had seen before. ¡°I know what they say about me in the castle, I hear about it all the time, but never directly to my face, it¡¯s always behind my back, and all these knaves don¡¯t have the courage to say it to my face so they resort to their dirty little ways. Saying it to my face would be better you know, unlike these underhanded tricks they use. That way I wouldn¡¯t be as much as disgusted about myself as I am now. That disgust would hurt me less, you know, that way I could turn it into anger and blame them, I wouldn¡¯t feel this murky feeling of uncertainty, but as of now I only hate myself and that hurts¡±, she said with a trembling voice. ¡°Is she venting?¡± Cinder thought to himself. ¡°I am a human too, you know. I grew up in a household that didn¡¯t care for me, all they care for is the name they have to uphold. Empty promises, empty words, that¡¯s all they know about. As a child, just because I was the most beautiful among all of other branch families¡¯ daughters, I was engaged with the prince. But I was happy about that, you know. Who wouldn¡¯t be happy about marrying a prince? But even the empty words stopped after that, while my own family praised me, my friends from other families distanced them from me. No one would play with me, I was left all alone¡±, she genuinely sounded sorrowful. Ah, so she was venting. ¡°That is when they started talking behind my back, about how pretentious and annoying I was. They called me words you should never call someone as a child. But I was still happy, I was going to be a queen someday you know. So, I ignored all of them, I pretended to not hear them. ¡®It would all end eventually¡¯ I thought. I had to become stronger, so that their words could not affect me. I made a shell around my self, I became a strict, prideful and arrogant woman. And for sometime this shell helped me live through my childhood. Unknowingly to me, this shell of a personality eventually overwrote my real personality. But I wasn¡¯t bothered by that, all was for my prince. As long as he believed in me, all was well. But even after moving to the castle, the bickering among these lowly knaves did not stop. Although, they were now afraid of me¡±, she scoffed deliriously and continued. ¡°I believe in something I call the ¡®Imperial Authority¡¯. I believe that only strong people have the right to power. If power is given to a weak person; such as you, knave, they will not know what to do with it and end up destroying the country with it. Only a strong person knows what to do with power, that¡¯s how it should be. The capital looks like its brimming with success, but that¡¯s just a front. Ever since the current king came into power, the proletariats, the poor people, keep getting pushed into poverty. And the bourgeoisies, the rich people, keep amassing more wealth. It¡¯s an unbalanced and unfair system, if this keeps up, eventually the country will be met with demise. I wanted to be a strong queen, you know. Someone who could change the land. Yet, now I¡¯m nothing but an outcast and cannot even guarantee my own safety¡±, Allafio finished. Cinder understood her story, he could relate to her. After all, his own story was somewhat similar to hers, like opposite sides of the same coin. However, he did not sympathize with her. Her situation was something she created by herself, while Cinder was born into it. Although, another odd thing he noted was how she repeated the word ¡°You know¡± a lot when emotional. ¡°Lady Allafi-¡±, he was about to say something when he heard a noise. Bang. The door flew open with a loud sound. It was Ella. Cinder got up and looked inside through the window. Something was wrong with Ella, she had an almost expressionless face, as if looking towards a non-living thing. ¡°You harlot! You dare intrude in my room? What do you want?¡± the Lady asked. The damsel ignored her, she picked up an iron skewer from near the fireplace and threw it at her. Clang. The Lady dodged in time and the skewer hit the wall with a clang. ¡°Have you lost your mind?!¡± the Lady shouted. ¡°Everything belongs to us, you were supposed to get out of our way today, and we finally would have had everything¡±, the damsel answered. Something was off putting about Ella, more than just her expressionless face, her voice was trembling, sounding almost inhumane. ¡°But everything was ruined by it, we hate it, that nameless filth¡±, she beckoned. A skewer came flying and hit the damsel right in her abdomen. ¡°Not filth, its Cinder¡±, He had picked up the skewer she threw earlier and had thrown it back. Yet she did not bleed. She took out the skewer out of her body, maintaining her poker face. She lunged at Cinder, knocking down a gas lamp in the process, causing a big fire on the bed. She tackled Cinder down and tried to poke his eyes out with her nails, but he defended himself with his arms. ¡°So, it struggles, even though it¡¯s futile!¡± she cackled. Even as a woman she was greatly over powering cinder. He saw the Lady giving him a signal, he nodded and kicked her in the abdomen with all his strength, the damsel stood up in pain, and as soon as she did, the Lady hit her on the head with a candle stand, causing her to fall into the fire. ¡°Now, run, we¡¯ll jump off the balcony to a lower floor¡±, shouted Cinder. The Lady ran to the balcony, suddenly her lower leg was pierced by a sharp object, she fell and Cinder gazed towards the fire where the object came from. And in the fire, he finally saw the damsel for what it truly was. Its skin had melted, revealing a charred black scaly skin inside, its long claws now sharp and black, same could be said for her teeth, now seemingly razor sharp. Under its skin it had white teeth-like thorns all over up from its neck to down to pelvis. A monstrosity in a humans clothing; that is what its true nature was. Final Act: Curtain Fall As the damsel gave an ear piercing screech, Cinder grabbed the Lady and readied himself for the jump to a lower floor, and as the monstrosity charged at him, he jumped. However, the Lady was hurt, her weight threw him off balance and he couldn¡¯t make it to the lower floor and they fell into the river beside the castle. Soon after the guards discovered the burning room, and an effort was made to put out the fire. The next day, an official announcement was made regarding Lady Allafio, she seemed to have died after causing a fire, her intent being burning down the whole castle alongside her. Fortunately, the brave royal guards put out the fire before her evil ambition could take shape, and saved countless lives. In another news, another official announcement was being made. Prince Charltz IV was to be holding his marriage ceremony with the girl called Ella in a month. She would be adding the title of ¡°Ferra¡± to her name, as was the custom for the queen of the land. Name given, ¡°Elferra¡±. A royalty marrying a commoner; that was the talk of the town everywhere. Apparently the prince was in an abusive relationship with her now dead fianc¨¦. She was driving him to the brink of insanity. That is when the girl called Ella appeared in his life, simple and meek, she gave the care and comfort the prince needed and saved him from madness. Of course, the envious fianc¨¦ tried to pry them apart, accusing the innocent and vulnerable Ella of infidelity. Yet she could not come between their pure love and met her ugly demise. ¡°So, that¡¯s what they are saying about you in the papers, hey are you listening?¡± Cinder told the woman changing inside a hut on the outskirts of the capital. ¡°You¡¯re quite the tyrant according to them¡±, Cinder added. ¡°Well they are not wrong about me treating the prince like that, although they greatly exaggerated the facts, but at least they got one thing right, those knaves¡±, she came out of the hut. ¡°More importantly, don¡¯t you see these garments you got me? They are ugly, do you even have a sense of clothing?¡± She complained. ¡°Well excuuuse me, princess. That I don¡¯t have a sense of clothing when you¡¯re the one who is penniless, this is all I could afford¡±, Cinder shrugged. ¡°Enough with the excuses, knave¡±, she retorted. ¡°Well either ways, you¡¯re naturally good looking, so you don¡¯t look bad in these¡±, Cinder pointed out. She looked around her body, judging her appearance. ¡°¡­Guess I will forgive your treachery this time, only because I am so forgiving, you know¡±, she said, apparently satisfied after receiving a compliment. ¡°What a childish and un honest bitch¡±, he thought. ¡°Anyways, lady Allafio-¡±, he was cut mid-sentence. ¡°Don¡¯t call me that out here, are you that stupid, knave? In their minds I¡¯m dead, and even if I¡¯m alive, I¡¯m a villainess who tried to burn down the castle. I won¡¯t be spared, typical of the aristocrats, pleasing the lower class by killing off someone the public hated¡±, she bit her nail. ¡°Then what do you propose I call you?¡± he asked. ¡°Think of a pseudonym, a false name¡±, she replied. ¡°What about Fio?¡± he said. ¡°..No, not that, something else¡± she said, dejectedly. ¡°How about ¡®Aella¡¯, sounds good to me¡±, He pondered. ¡°Aella, hmm.., that will do¡±, she said, coming to a decision. ¡°Aella it is then¡± He agreed. ¡°So, Aella, what do you suppose we do now? You¡¯re a criminal, I am literally nameless, and do you have any way of redeeming yourself?¡± He asked her. ¡°Worry not, my dear knave. I have a plan¡±, she said with a smug smile. ¡°And what is that almighty plan of yours that will cause your supposed redemption?¡± Cinder said sarcastically. ¡°I am going to start a revolution¡± Really, how self-centered, planning to turn the whole land upside down just for her personal interest. At least, that is how it looked, but Cinder knew this tyrant couldn¡¯t be honest and this wasn¡¯t just for her personal gain. Selfish, yet bold and straight-forward. Well, Cinder himself did not exactly dislike that. ¡­And so beings the story of the pair, cinder-aella. THE END The Cat Charmer ¡°Hey!¡± a voice cried. Ferraina looked around, curious where the voice was coming from. ¡°Up here, you bitch¡±, well the voice had gone straight up rude. The girl with the brunette hair looked around, but alas! She couldn¡¯t find the source. ¡°Damn, is your brain size inversely proportional to your tits, because it must be small as fuck¡±, the voice scoffed. Okay, who and where was this rude man. ¡°On the tree, dammit, I am stuck up here¡±, the voice beckoned. ¡°Excuse me! But there¡¯s only a cat up there¡±, Ferraina protested. ¡°That¡¯s because I am the cat, now just stay still, I am going to jump on you¡±, the ¡°Cat¡± announced. Ferraina was completely baffled and dazed, and just put out her hands, so the cat could land on them. That was a quite a futile gesture as the cat landed square on her face anyways. ¡°Ha, get out of here with your dirty hands! I am not landing on that, who knows what you¡¯ve touched with that¡±, the cat said mockingly as he got off. The ¡°Cat¡± in question was a black cat with amber eyes. One distinct feature that struck Ferraina odd was that the cat was huge. Not as big as a common dog, but quite close. The cat had a rugged appearance, he was wearing a dark blue shroud of some sorts, with a hood. Although, currently the hood wasn¡¯t on. Analyzing the cat made Ferraina a bit calmer. ¡°I have so many things I have to say to you, but first and foremost, how can you speak?¡± she asked. ¡°Woah, woah, slow down. Are we asking questions now? I didn¡¯t ask you how your tits got so big did I? Don¡¯t you have any manners? Please, have some class¡±, the cat brushed her off, while being unnecessarily curt. The nerve! She had had enough. ¡°You rude asshole! If you weren¡¯t a cat, I would have reported you. I don¡¯t care about your stupid voice anymore. Goodbye! And a good day to you!¡± Ferraina was genuinely outraged, and started walking towards the town entrance. ¡°Hey, look on the other side. I can say this shit exactly because I am a cat¡±, he said with a smug smile. ¡°Didn¡¯t expect you to curse though, I pegged you for a rich, sheltered girl who was raised in some countryside¡±, the cat said while following her. ¡°Why are you still following me? I saved you from the tree already, didn¡¯t I?¡± she lashed out. ¡°What? No, you didn¡¯t ¡®save¡¯ me, for the record. All you did was act as a placeholder for an inanimate object¡±, the cat arrogantly said. ¡°I am following you because you have a nice scent, solely because of that¡±, the cat added, trotting along her happily, not a care in the world. ¡°And why is there a scent on me? I am not wearing any perfume¡±, she said in a huff. ¡°I have no idea, it¡¯s the same scent female cats have when they- ah, now I see¡±, the cat said with a smug smile. ¡°ATTENTION EVERYONE! THIS WOMAN IS OVULA-¡± his yelling was cut off due to the pain surging in his tail. He turned around and saw Ferraina gripping his tail with her hands tightly, her face flushed beet red, on the epitome of embarrassment. ¡°Wait! Ma¡¯am please, not the tail!¡± he pleaded. ¡°I have made a severe and continuous lapse in my judgement, and I don¡¯t expect to be forgiven. I simply want to apologize¡±, he talked as if he was reading a script. ¡°No, I have heard enough of your bullshit, grit your teeth, you bastard¡±, she said as she twisted the tail. Good thing there was no one near them. And so, the cat screamed away in perpetual agony. ------------------------------------- The trading hub town of the province, Centuria. It was the best place for a beginner fresh out of training school. Quick cash, luxurious life, status, Centuria had it all. Especially for a green horn like Ferraina, this was an opportunity she could not pass on. And here she was, starting her exploration of the continent, taking the first steps, walking in the busy streets of the town. The only odd thing was the cat riding on her backpack. ¡°Damn, it still hurts like a motherfucker¡±, the cat complained. ¡°Oh stop your whining, I didn¡¯t twist it that hard¡±, Ferraina rolled her eyes. ¡°And don¡¯t talk so loudly, we¡¯re in the middle of the town¡±, she instructed him. ¡°Why are you still following me anyways?¡± ¡°Oh please. Don¡¯t be delusional, I am not following you, I¡¯m just terribly bored and have nothing better to do¡±, he brushed her off. ¡°Either ways, zip it. I am going to talk to some important people, and the last thing I need is your smartass comments¡±, she motioned him to stay quiet by making a gesture on her lips. The building they were about to enter had the following written on it: ¡°ROYAL BUREAU OF CARTOGRAPHERS¡± ¡°You¡¯re a cartographer?¡± The cat said, surprised. ¡°Yes, why are you surprised?¡± she asked him incredulously. ¡°I am just surprised, it is not a profession most women choose¡±, he said in a serious tone. ¡°It is a profession filled with unnecessary danger, with little to no reward. You seem to be from a small noble family, women of your social stature usually do not choose this kind of life¡±. ¡°And how would a cat know about dangers of the world?¡± she asked in disbelief. ¡°I know enough¡±, he snorted. ¡°Okay, be quiet now. I have important things to discuss¡±, she said, entering the building. The building was huge, with a large number of floors with big halls. There was a man sitting at the reception area, wearing glasses, busy with sorting out some paperwork. He looked up to see Ferraina, who had just arrived. ¡°How may I help you?¡± he said with his best business smile. ¡°Hi, my name is Ferraina of Rizav. I have an appointment with Lord Ruthenford of the general affairs department¡±, she said with a polite smile. The man checked around for his register for information, and after leafing through the hefty book, he faced her again. ¡°Certainly, you do. Head to the third floor and take a right, it¡¯s the second room¡±, he explained. ¡°Thank you for the help¡±, Ferraina said. ¡°You¡¯re most welcome¡±, he kept his smile. ¡°By the way, that is a very cute cat you have there. Does it know any tricks?¡± he looked at them expectedly. ¡°Uhh yeah he does, don¡¯t you wittle kwitty¡±, she stared daggers at him to do something. ¡°This bitch¡±, he thought. Was this payback for what he did before? He placed his paw on the clerk¡¯s hand and meowed. There was no other way to get this over with. ¡°Oh, he¡¯s a very obedient kitty¡±, the man seemed delighted. ¡°Thanks again¡±, she thanked the clerk again and left the desk. She headed for the stairs, all the while staring at the marvelous construction of the building. ¡°You know, you could learn some manners from the nice man from before¡±, she pondered. ¡°Tell that fucker, I¡¯ll gut him in his sleep¡±, he hissed. ¡°And he was far from nice, if you weren¡¯t standing there like a dumb broad, you¡¯d notice that all he did was stare at your tits¡±, he scoffed. She squeezed his tail a bit. ¡°Language¡±, she glared at him. ¡°Ow ow ow, okay sorry, sorry¡±, he poked out his tongue when she faced away, to mock her. She took a right after climbing the stairs and soon after came upon lord Ruthenford¡¯s office. ¡°Alright now stay here, I am going to do some formal discussions with him¡±, she placed him on the ground. ¡°Hey, careful with the fur¡±, he passed a snide comment as he landed on his feet. She entered the room and the cat waited outside. After a few minutes, he could hear some sort of muffled argument going on in there. Soon after, she stormed out of the room, very agitated. ¡°What happened?¡± he asked. ¡°This old bag of bones just told me that I was too old for the scholarship fund program, I am 22 only 22!¡± she sure was infuriated. ¡°He had the audacity of telling me the scholarship ends for applicants from my birthplace at 21!¡± she was huffing in anger. ¡°And was that a big deal?¡± he cocked his head to the side, not sure how to respond. ¡°Damn right it was! The bureau was going to cover my living expenditures during my first year as a cartographer¡±, she seemed to be disappointed. ¡°You got any other way of income? Maybe sell your maps or some shit?¡± he proposed. ¡°I need resources to even start cartography!¡± she hissed. ¡°What about any other skills?¡± he asked. ¡°My family made a living selling potions and concoctions, that sort of thing. I know a thing or two about cauldrons, but the ingredients are very expensive¡±, she sighed. ¡°Oh a sorceress family, is it? Speaking of your family why don¡¯t you ask them to aid you?¡± he gave another idea, ¡°Oh please, why do you think I am in this situation in the first place? She said dejectedly. That seemed to be a sensitive subject so he stopped inquiring about it and followed her silently. -------------------------------------- ¡°So, I get that you¡¯re somehow a magical cat and all and you don¡¯t wish to talk about that, but really, how old are you?¡± she asked intrigued by the situation.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. They were walking back to the inn she seemed to be staying at when she brought up the topic. At least, she was in a better mood now. ¡°How old do I sound?¡± he said lazily, resting on her backpack. ¡°Hmm, I dunno, if I had to guess maybe mid-twenties?¡± She guessed. ¡°Close¡± he said mysteriously. ¡°Really!?¡± she seemed happy. ¡°Maybe¡±, he decided to make her keep guessing. ¡°Aw, come on, don¡¯t be such a tease¡±, she said while nudging him on his nose. She was treating him like a normal cat. Heh, that didn¡¯t feel so bad actually. ¡°Hey, I¡¯m a bit hungry, you mind if I grab something to eat?¡± she asked a rhetoric question. ¡°Yeah, me too actually¡±, he added. She looked at him, eyes wide. ¡°What?¡± he asked with a grumpy tone. ¡°You eat food too?¡± she asked baffled. ¡°The fuck does it looks like? Do I strike you as some bastard who absorbs sunlight for nourishment? Bitch get your photosynthetic looking ass out of here¡±, he said curtly. ¡°Woah, didn¡¯t mean to offend, I just thought you lived off magical energy or something¡±, she said in her defense. They decided to sit in an open air caf¨¦, it was turning dark so all the gas lamps turning on in the cobblestone streets made quite a sight to behold. She had ordered a medium rare steak. He was sitting on her lap, she passed him small chunks of meat during her meal. There was a huge statue of a knight in the town¡¯s center. The epitaph read: ¡°IN THE MEMORY OF THE ABYSSAL KNIGHT. DUE TO HIS EFFORTS, CENTURIA STILL PROSPERS¡± ¡°Kinda looks cool, doesn¡¯t it¡±, she said when she caught him staring at the statue. ¡°I dunno, kid looks sketchy¡±, he said munching on the meat. ¡°Kid? What you knew him or something?¡± she asked as she took a bite. ¡°I was his companion actually¡±, he said smugly. ¡°Yeah, right¡±, she rolled her eyes. ¡°What? You don¡¯t expect that from a millennia old cat¡±, he said lazily. ¡°You said you were twenty five¡±, she said in disbelief. ¡°I said maybe¡±, he said happily licking his paws. He was looking around thoughtlessly, when he caught sight of a poster pinned on the street wall. ¡°INCUBUS INFESTATION! EXTERMINATOR NEEDED URGENTLY! INTERESTED PARTIES MAY CONTACT THE HUNTING BUREAU¡± ¡°Hey, found a way to make some quick cash¡±, he said with a devious smile. ¡°No way, I have no experience in hunting malicious entities¡±, she rejected his proposal. ¡°Relaxxxx, just tell them you¡¯re a sorceress or some shit, and adlib the rest. Besides weak entities like the incubus can be purged by almost anyone. They¡¯re a cowardly lot you see¡±, he said scratching his belly. ¡°Hmm¡±, she seemed to be in deep thought. ¡°You know, you would make for a good con-artist. I¡¯m in¡±, she passed him a smile. ¡°Right, so that¡¯s the first thing we do tomorrow?¡± he asked. ¡°Actually, I don¡¯t have enough money to rent the room at my inn for another night, haha¡±, she tried to play dumb. He gave her a judgmental look as he jumped off her lap. ¡°Fine, the night is still young¡±, he stretched his back. ¡°The hunt is on Miss Ferraina, the hunt is on¡±. ------------------------------------------- They had decided that the best course of action was to visit the hunting bureau and then interview the victims for information. The clerk at the bureau looked amused and told them how this was an unsolved case for months. Although, in the end, he did give them an official hunting permit anyways. ¡°It¡¯s kind of like as if a load was placed on your chest, it¡¯s kind of suffocating, I thought I was going to die¡±, the terrified victim they were interviewing tried her best to explain her experience. This was the tenth or so victim they had talked to so far and all their stories seemed to match up. The question was that where could they find this little deviant creature that had been terrorizing the townsfolk. ¡°You¡¯re going to take care of it, right?¡± the woman looked at her expectantly. ¡°That is correct, please have trust in me, this problem should be solved before tomorrow¡¯s sunrise,¡± she assured the victim gently. ¡°I will contact you for more information if it is required, have a goodnight¡±, she said her goodbye to the woman and came out of the house. ¡°Please have trust in me, my ass. You have no idea how to solve this, do you?¡± the cat mocked her. ¡°And you do? Please enlighten me, millennia old cat¡±, she said with a monotonous voice. ¡°As a matter of fact, I actually do¡±, he sounded offended. ¡°Nocturnal creatures like these usually make their abode in the wilderness, not too far from their hunting grounds, my guess is we¡¯ll find something of interest in about one km perimeter from the outside of town¡±. ¡°Wow, you¡¯re awfully well informed for a cat¡±, she seemed surprised, ¡°Aglovale¡±, he said. ¡°What?¡± she asked. ¡°Aglovale. That is my name. You keep calling me ¡°cat¡± and it is starting to irritate me¡±, he seemed to be annoyed. ¡°Not a cute name by cat standards¡±, she said. ¡°Alright Aglovale, shall we be off?¡± she said placing her hands on her hips. ----------------------------------------------- The guards appointed at the gates had given her strange looks, when she exited the town. After all, she was a lone woman going out into the wilderness at this late hour, with nothing but a cat in tow. They were searching all sorts of places and caverns where a nocturnal creature such as the incubus may reside. ¡°How far are we going to search, my dress is getting all ruined because of all the wild bushes¡±, she complained. ¡°Wear something more practical next time, instead of a fancy dress and jewelry¡±, Aglovale scoffed. ¡°Hey, I like jewelry. Although, I really would¡¯ve worn something more practical if I had the time¡±, she seemed to agree. ¡°Hey, that cavern seems really out of place¡±, she pointed to an almost hidden cavern. ¡°I don¡¯t think anyone ventures this deep, seems to be an ideal place for an incubus¡±, she suggested. ¡°No harm in checking it out I guess¡±, he responded. They were heading deep inside the cavern, the cat trotting along, occasionally wagging his tail. ¡°God, what is this smell¡±, for a while now there had been a faint pungent smell. ¡°Almost smells like-¡±, she stopped mid-sentence when she saw Aglovale come to a complete halt. ¡°Blood¡±, she finished her sentence. ¡°Ferraina. Listen to me very carefully. Stay still and don¡¯t turn around, try to stay calm as much as you can¡±, his tone was grim. Whether it was the tone of his voice and complete change of demeanor or her own danger senses telling her, she stood still and nodded. ¡°Now, do you have any sort self-defense potion?¡± ¡°I h-have a flash potion for emergency situations¡±, she stammered. ¡°Good, now when I give you the signal use it¡± he said. ¡°Now get ready, they¡¯re coming¡±. He had barely completed his sentence when she saw something crawling out from the depths. There were three of them. They looked like monstrosities yet at the same time felt different. ¡°Dark scaly skin and almost a humane appearance. Creatures of the void¡±, Aglovale said. ¡°Oh, so you know of us?¡± a voice rang out. ¡°Most of you humans never see us in your entire lifespan¡±. The thing had a pseudo appreciative tone in its voice. ¡°Listen, creature. I don¡¯t care what bloody rituals you have been up to here. We made a mistake coming here and will leave immediately¡±, Aglovale growled. ¡°Oh you know all too well I cannot do that¡±, the one that seemed to be the leader scoffed. ¡°I would be a fool to let you go. Besides¡±, he said while eyeing Ferraina, ¡°Human blood is most useful to us¡±. ¡°I don¡¯t want any bloodshed¡±, Aglovale said quietly. ¡°What, a mere cat like you thinks it can deal any significant damage to us? I do concur that you are most peculiar. I would like to thoroughly study your corpse¡±, the creature seemed amused. ¡°Don¡¯t regret it later creature, remember that it was your choice that led to this outcome¡±, Aglovale warned. ¡°I think I have had enough of your empty threats, you are idiotic if you think you can take on us alone¡±, the creature hissed. ¡°No. Not alone¡±, Aglovale replied. As soon as those words left his mouth, Ferraina smashed the flash potion on the ground, creating a torrent of blinding light. ¡°Impeccable timing, now give me a few moments¡±, Aglovale said in a rush. He started to chant in some language Ferraina had never heard before. But with each new of line of the chant, his voice sounded deeper, distorted and reverberating. The effect of the potion was almost over. The creature motioned his subordinates to attack them. ¡°Be gone¡± A large bestial claw came out of the light and smashed the skull of one creature straight into the wall. As the light diminished, it became clear where the claw came from. What stood before them was a shadowy beast, over two meters tall with two tails. Its teeth jagged and long, and its claws razor sharp. The other creature started to scream at the beast looming over him. ¡°Silence!¡± The beast pounced on him in a blink of an eye, and slashed its claw downwards, slicing the creature in half. ¡°What are you?¡± The leader asked him, no longer amused but still maintaining his composure. ¡°Oh you like this? I call this, the Goliath¡± The distorted and reverberating voice said in a cheery tone. Without sparing a moment, the beast charged at the leader. However, the leader managed to avoid a fatal blow, dodging in time. But the beast still managed to slice his arm clean off. The creature looked at its severed arm and then at the beast. Even though he was clearly grimacing in pain, he hadn¡¯t lost his composure. ¡°Ah, I see you for what you are now¡±, the creature smiled. ¡°It seems we have made a fatal error¡±, he said as he traced the air with his finger. ¡°Casting rune magic now, creature? You intend to run away?¡± The beast mocked him. ¡°Farewell, cat. I wish not to meet you again soon¡±, the creature said as he disappeared into thin air. ¡°Finally¡± The beast said as it collapsed. Slowly reverting to a cat¡¯s appearance. ¡°Are you alright? I have so many questions, don¡¯t die on me you dumb cat¡±, she said shaking him. ¡°I am alright you daft dumbo. I am just paralyzed due to the side effects¡±, the cat said while grimacing. ¡°Not exhausted, not passed out and definitely not dead¡±. ¡°That¡¯s a relief¡±, she said, relieved. ¡°Was it just me or were you having fun? You seemed to be very cheery¡±. ¡°It isn¡¯t every day I get to kill people in self-defense, besides I warned them¡±, he said drowsily. She just gave him a puzzled look. ¡°And thank you¡±, Aglovale said. ¡°If I was alone, I would have been dead right now. You were a huge help back there¡±. ¡°Those should be honestly my lines¡±, Ferraina said as she wrapped her arms around him and picked him up. ¡°No, if it wasn¡¯t for my suggestion, you likely wouldn¡¯t have been in this place¡±, he said. ¡°Also your huge tits are suffocating me, be careful with them¡±. ¡°Don¡¯t be so dramatic¡±, she dismissed him. ¡°We should check out the end of the cavern, might find something valuable¡±. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t really recommend that¡±, he said lazily. She ignored him and closed her eyes to concentrate and opened them again. "Lumen" As she said the word, a small orb of light formed in air. It was a basic sorcery spell, used for illumination. ------------------------------------------- Heaps and heaps of dead bodies, mostly women and children, that¡¯s all they had found. That and a big carriage with two horses tied to it. It clearly belonged to some traveler before he was ambushed and killed by the creatures. He was surprised that the blood and gore didn¡¯t seem to bother her. When he asked, she vaguely replied something along the lines of how this wasn¡¯t anything uncommon in this world. The monstrosities roamed free. Only the bigger cities had barricades of walls around them and a proper security system. Most countryside towns didn¡¯t have those kind of luxuries, and death wasn¡¯t the worst thing that could happen to someone. ¡°You were brave back there, but also very reckless and irresponsible¡±, she said while walking back to town, the cat in her arms. ¡°You could have been gravely injured, I don¡¯t want you doing that sort of thing again. Understood?¡± ¡°Bitch what makes you think I¡¯ll listen to you¡±, he said cockily. She squeezed his tail and glared daggers at him. ¡°Understood?¡± ¡°Fine! Just stop with the tail! You have some crazy grip strength!¡± he said, admitting defeat. ¡°Also the notion of you being the companion of the abyssal knight isn¡¯t completely implausible now¡±, she said wondering about the cat. ¡°Abyssal knight? Ah you mean Percival¡±, he said as if he remembered something old. You believe me now? I¡¯m cool aren¡¯t I?¡± he seemed to be smug. ¡°Yes, just a little¡±, she sighed. ¡°What? Falling for me now?¡± he said jokingly. ¡°Oh please, you¡¯re a cat¡±, she dismissed him. ¡°Well, we didn¡¯t find any incubus at the end, and this was a waste of time. Even if you¡¯re not exhausted, I am. I¡¯m going to hit the sack for now, I will worry about the money problem tomorrow¡±. ----------------------------------------- It was almost morning when she noticed a burden on her chest, suffocating her. ¡°The incubus!¡± she thought. She got up abruptly and to her surprise it was just the cat sleeping on her chest, not a care in the world. ¡°Get off, you¡¯re suffocating me¡±, She said tiredly. ¡°For a moment I thought you were the incubus¡±. Wait. Hold on. ¡°Hey, incidentally, where have you been sleeping for the past few months¡±, she asked him. ¡°I dunno, I just sneak into people¡¯s bedrooms and sleep there¡±, he said half-awake. ¡°And is it your habit to sleep on women¡¯s chests?¡± she said, continuing her questioning. ¡°What is with all these questions? And I don¡¯t know. Maybe? I like to sleep on soft and warm surfaces¡±, he said groggily. ¡°Wait¡±, he said completely waking up. ¡°You¡¯re not saying¡±, he could see the anger in her eyes. And he dodged just in time to avoid the shoe she threw at him, he rolled a couple of time for dramatic effect. ¡°Ha! Missed m-¡±, just on cue another shoe slammed into his face. ¡°If you had just told me about your antics, we wouldn¡¯t have gotten in danger last night. Not to mention, it was easy money and we would have saved a lot of time¡±, she seemed infuriated. ¡°I didn¡¯t exactly know it was me? Am I really that heavy?¡± he said in his defense. ¡°Are you kidding me? You are huge for a cat¡±, she huffed. ¡°Anyways, I am going to submit my claim at the hunter¡¯s bureau, that I have solved the problem. They¡¯ll most probably take a few days to verify my claim, and see if there are still incidents occurring. Which they shouldn¡¯t, because it was you all along¡±, she said still annoyed. ¡°Anyways, I should change into my dress¡±. She was about to take off the top of her sleeping pajamas, when she noticed the cat staring at her. ¡°On second thoughts, get out¡±. ------------------------------------------ The look on the clerk¡¯s face had been priceless as she told him she had solved the incubus infestation. He probably deemed her claim incredulous, and just said it will take some days for verification. She would have to take a minor loan from the bank until then. Meanwhile, they went back to the cavern and took out the carriage, it was quite luxurious after all. Few days later, she received her payment. Quite a generous amount at that. ¡°I have decided to travel the continent, do cartography, and solve people¡¯s problems for easy money. And maybe practice my potion making and sorcery skills¡±. She told the cat. ¡°So, you¡¯re leaving town?¡± he asked her. ¡°Yes, I suppose you want to tag along too¡±, she asked happily. ¡°Actually no, I cannot accompany you. I prefer not to travel and I like this town¡±, he said curtly. ¡°Oh¡±, she said dejectedly. ¡°I see¡±. She seemed genuinely hurt. ¡°She¡¯s gonna get her killed out there¡±, a thought popped up in his mind. ¡°Are you really okay with leaving her all alone?¡± another thought popped up. ¡°She doesn¡¯t seem to have anyone that cares about her¡±, the thoughts continued. ¡°Ah fuck, what the hell. Fine, okay. I suppose it might be nice to travel for a change¡±, he said, giving up. ¡°Really!? Thanks Aglovale!¡± she said as she hugged him. ¡°Hey careful with the fur¡±, he passed a snarky comment. ¡°So what are you going to name this carriage?¡± he asked. ¡°The Cat charmer¡¯s Cauldron¡±. ¡°I would like to say that¡¯s a shitty name, but that¡¯s not bad actually¡±, Aglovale said. Yes, not bad at all. The Galathea Expedition ¡°Deep in the ocean, dead and cast away Where innocence is burned in flames A million miles from home, I¡¯m walking ahead I¡¯m frozen to the bones, I am¡­¡± - Iron. ¡°Day I¡± ¡°It has been nine hours since I boarded the ship ¡®Galathea¡¯. The crew doesn¡¯t suspect a thing. Kinsella, my sister, you know all too well how much we¡¯re in need of money. So, when a dear friend of mine offered me this job, and to go to this expedition in his place, I knew I couldn¡¯t pass up on this chance. His wife had just given birth and he no longer had a need for this job. It is true that one person¡¯s trash is another¡¯s treasure. I am currently impersonating my friend and they haven¡¯t noticed. All they knew him by was his name after all. Now that I have spent some time on this ship, I have come to realize that, this expedition of going beyond the misty waters was put together very hastily. Most of the crew are strangers meeting each other for the first time. Except the cook and the captain, they seem to have some kind of history. My job on the ship is to be a bellboy, so far I have done some odd jobs such as wiping the floor and getting to know the faces of our esteemed passengers, but the journey is still in its infancy. The cook, Liseran, tells me that this is the second ship being sent out for expedition, the other vessel in question is called the ¡®Novara¡¯. However it will venture into a completely opposite direction to ours. The captain briefed all of the crew as soon as we took off from the port, about the reason for this journey. As I thought, it is related to the recent famine that has hit the island. It seems things are only going to get worse. Some higher officials are convinced that we¡¯re not the only ones in this world, that there might be more islands scattered around the world, unknown to us. And that food can be procured from them. For that, we must venture beyond the mist¡±. ---------------------------- ¡°Day II¡± ¡°There are a total of nine people present on the vessel. The Captain. The Cook, Liseran. The Quartermaster, Zadele. The Doctor, Perzier. The Cartographer, Kainseth. The Archaeologist, Denizen. Then there are two Sail masters, responsible for the navigation and direction of the ship, Cruz and Colt. Apparently, they are brothers. And finally there is I, Ulysses, the stow-away helper. I have decided to put my experience on the Galathea into words, using this journal. But my job is time consuming, and leaves me with little to no time for myself. Even now they call for me, I must take my leave from my quarters¡±. ----------------- ¡°Day VII¡± ¡°So far, I have had the pleasure of getting to know a few crew members. The doctor, Perzier is a jolly good fellow, from what I have gathered, he apparently volunteered to be placed on the vessel. When I asked why, he replied something along the lines of how he was getting too old, and this seemed like a chance for a good adventure he always dreamed of. I had some trouble understanding him, but perhaps old age does that to a person. Another person I briefly had a conversation with is the cartographer, Kainseth. He was likely annoyed with the higher ups as he explained, that why an expedition of this importance was given a small measly crew. ¡®The government doesn¡¯t actually suspect us to succeed. However, there is still a chance that we might. And that is the reason for this journey¡¯, those were his words. The quartermaster is a man of few words. I cannot seem to get that man to open up, but I have plenty of time. The two brothers are usually busy, but they¡¯re kind folks. So far, they¡¯re the only ones who have treated me as one of them. This isn¡¯t their first time on a ship, unlike me. They¡¯ve been at it since they were kids. The archeologist seems to be the head of the expedition, he just locks himself in his quarters for research, for hours. I occasionally see him in the dining area below deck. The cook, liseran, is the most troublesome to deal with, he is constantly telling me what I¡¯m not doing right, and he never passes up an opportunity to remind me that I am a green horn at sea travel. But deep down, I think that is just his way of teaching. The captain, is a man of dignity. He treats his fellow crew members equally, regardless of their position. He tells that all of us are tiny cogs, useful for running the ship¡±. ----------------------------------- ¡°Day IX¡± ¡°We have finally entered the waters beyond the mists, the folk call these the Dark waters. And their claims ring true, for wherever I see, there is a blanket of fog covering us; and beneath us is ominous dark water. This has all of the crew members on edge. But the captain says he¡¯s seen worse. He tells us that we¡¯ll manage. ---------------- ¡°Day X¡± ¡°It was a few hours ago when the tune first reached our ears. I swear on my life, Kinsella. It was the most beautiful melody I have ever heard. I wish to hear that sound again, even if I had to cut off my ears. I would gladly give up hearing for the rest of my life, just to hear it once again. The captain tells us to ignore the sound, although struggling himself. The sound invades your mind, Kinsella. It whispers sweet words of warmth and comfort, enough to drive a man insane. However, it stopped about an hour ago. And everything has returned to normal on the ship once again, except the wind continues getting colder¡±. -------------------------- Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. ¡°Day XI¡± ¡°Colt, the sail master has gone missing. A large commotion was caused by his disappearance. Every nook and cranny except the archaeologist¡¯s quarters was searched. And there was no sign of colt. His brother, Cruz, accused the archaeologist of harming colt. Citing that he refuses to show his room. However, the captain assured him there was nothing in there except state secrets. Bad blood continues to brew between them. The cartographer in particular is terrified of something. Since a few hours ago, he has locked himself in his quarters. ¡®This simply isn¡¯t possible on any scale¡¯, he had said after studying his maps thoroughly, and then he bolted for his room, where he still remains. A few minutes ago the cook asked me to take his supper to his quarters, since he hadn¡¯t come to the dining hall. When I knocked, he told me in a frightened voice to leave it at the door. Either he is afraid of us, because of trust issues, or perhaps something else lurks in his mind. --------------------------------------- ¡°Day XII¡± ¡°The wind has reached to the degree of freezing now, Kinsella. Most of us stay below deck, only the captain and the quarter master are above deck. They take turns steering the wheel. But I can see, they can only keep this up for so long. My suspicions were confirmed true when the melody returned! I haven¡¯t been happier in my life, my dear sister. The voice soothes my mind, unlike anything else. The voice warms me up against this terrible cold. Everyone is clutching their ears to stop the voices. The captain gave us solid pieces of wax to stuff into our ears so the voices could stop. And to my dismay, the voices stopped. I was again tasked to being the wax pieces to the cartographer by the cook. Even in this situation, he continues to work me to the bone. Once I arrived, the door to his quarters were open. I informed the others, and we searched and searched but to no avail. The cartographer had disappeared. --------------------- ¡°Day XIII¡± ¡°Two disappearances back to back have outright put everyone in a paranoid state of mind. The doctor, especially, is always tipsy now. Turns out, the man is a common coward. Runs away at the first sign of trouble. No wonder the man never had the gall to adventure his whole life. However, there was no running from here. Not now, and not ever, I reckon. My writing grows short, I¡¯m afraid. My fingers are close to being frozen and the act of simply holding a pen is painful. The song is continuous, but our ears are protected¡±. -------------------- ¡°Day XIV¡± ¡°Something unexpected has happened. The doctor has disappeared, but not like the others. He has willingly left, taken a life boat and most of our food rations. Actually, the greedy bastard took as much as he could fit on the lifeboat. All we are left with are a few barrels of rum and some food he couldn¡¯t fit on the boat. The song, as always, continues today as well¡±. ------------------------- ¡°Day XV¡± ¡°The song has found its way into our ears, regardless of the wax. Perhaps it has gotten stronger or louder. Either ways, the sickly sweet voice continuously numbs my mind and pollutes my thoughts. And so, we¡¯re left at the mercy of this voice. The captain had ordered us yesterday that from now on we will all stick together, except the archaeologist, who is still allowed be in his room. We are huddled in a room, wrapping ourselves in blankets and sheets. The captain, the quartermaster and the sail master take turns going to the deck, they always move in pairs. That is a change, nothing else of interest to add. We are all frightened and cold. And before not long I believe, Hungry too. -------------------------- ¡°Day XVI¡± ¡°Nothing of interest happened¡±. ¡°Nothing of interest happened¡±. ¡°Nothing of interest happened¡±. ¡°Nothing of interest happened¡±. ¡°Nothing happened¡±. ¡°Nothing interest happened¡±. ¡°Of interest happened¡±. ¡°Nothing of¡±. ¡°Nothing of interest¡±. ¡°Nothing of interest happened¡±. ¡°Nothing of interest happened¡±. ¡°Nothing interest¡±. ¡°Nothing of interest happened¡±. ¡°Nothing of interest happened¡±. ¡°Nothing of interest happened¡±. ¡°Interest happened¡±. ¡°Nothing of happened¡±. ¡°Nothing of interest happened¡±. ¡°Nothing of interest happened¡±. ¡°Happened¡±. ¡°Happened¡±. ¡°Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens, Happens¡±. ---------------------------------- ¡°Day???¡± ¡°Finally, some source of amusement in god knows how long. Cruz finally snapped today. I would be a liar if I said I wasn¡¯t trying to stop my lips from grinning when I saw him reach for his knife, when he asked to go to the bathroom. My dear sister, sister? Did I have a sister? Perhaps my wife. You had just given birth hadn¡¯t you? Silly me. Forgive me, for I am quite forgetful these days. Anyways, we heard screams coming from the archaeologist¡¯s room after a while. That lucky sonovabitch finally did it. He slaughtered that pretentious asshole. I was a tad bit jealous that I didn¡¯t get to do the deed. But Cruz did get executed afterwards by the quartermaster for insubordination, so maybe I was lucky. That gave me a good chuckle though, as if something as irrelevant as insubordination mattered anymore. The song is prevalent in my mind now, as prevalent as the sound of breathing. I am not used to it by any means. It still tortures me with its promises of comfort, it just feels like as if it has been with me since my birth. Afterwards, we all looked into the archeologist¡¯s room. Finally, time to see the elephant in the room. However, what we found there was disappointing. Gunpowder, heaps and heaps of barrels. The captain swore he didn¡¯t have any knowledge about them. It seems they were loaded at the port without him being aware. Or he simply was a good actor. I would say I suspect the former. The quartermaster deduced that if we had failed in our journey at some point, and the higher-ups were ninety nine percent sure we would, then this archeologist would have blown up the ship, reducing us to smithereens. A ploy to calm the nation, I suppose. If our ship returns with nothing to show for it, all the empty hopes they have given the populace would be shattered. It was downright disgusting how they planned to blow up the ship, snuffing out any chance we had of returning home. Killing us would consequently maintain the illusion of our journey. And the false hope would forever remain¡±. ------------------------------- ¡°Day Unknown¡± ¡°The quartermaster and the captain have both disappeared. It was only a matter of time, I suppose. Their death shall not be mourned. I received a most unusual request from the cook. He handed me a gun and asked me to kill him. Said he couldn¡¯t do it himself, he had a little girl at home waiting for her. Every time he tries to off himself, her face appears in his mind. After that, he went on a rant about how this job would have allowed him to give his daughter a better living and taking her out to visit the capital. I have a vague notion I was at some point in a same situation due to my wife. Or was it my mother? Perhaps sister. I cared not for his rant. His request was selfish, if he wished to cut his life short, he could do it himself. I didn¡¯t want to bear the burden of killing him, just because of his stupid daughter. When I told him so, he looked at me with hollow eyes, mumbling how I have changed. I found his hanging body in the morning¡±. ----------------------- ¡°Beware the Dark Waters, Gentlemen¡± ¡°So here it is, I am all alone. Nothing else to do, I visited the cartographer¡¯s quarters, curious about it. Curiosity was all I had left, after all. What I found there, reduced me to tears. Tears of laughter. According to what this good chap had scribbled on his map: We hadn¡¯t moved a single inch since we started venturing beyond the mist. But the ship was constantly moving, that was contradictory. In his own words, it was as if the ship was frozen in time. I am now standing at the deck, looking below at the dark waters. I can see something moving about, something humanoid. The song is as loud as it has ever been, the mist is still here and I am freezing to my bones. It calls for me, its voice promises me warmth, joy and happiness. I am not frustrated, Kinsella. Nor do I want to kill myself. I am just very, very tired¡±.