One

Anna finished her drink with a grimace and snagged a bottle of water before she slipped out of the half burned out shell of a house that was being used for the party. The smell of smoke lingered all around but it was less strong outside. From inside came the rowdy sounds of encouragement for someone doing a keg stand, blaring country music, and laughter.

She opened the water for a sip and walked a short way from the house hoping for some cool air and a moment of quiet but there were a few small clusters of people who seemed to have the same idea. With a sigh, she walked around the ragged walls to look for a spot to sit in peace. Set back from the place was what looked like the remnants of a well, round and roughly knee height covered with a cracked cement slab. Anna walked over and took a seat on it.

Her phone buzzed in her pocket and she leaned back to pull it out. The stone cover shifted under her.

Jerking awake like she’d been falling, Anna rubbed her eyes and tried to figure out where she was. The room was pitch black and whatever she was laying on was hard. She sat up and realized she was naked.

“What the f**k? I swear to god if I got kidnapped by a serial killer Hollie will never let me hear the end of it.” Anna muttered to herself.

Something thumped hard and creaked like a stuck door on rusted hinges being forced open. As the door groaned open, rubbing on the floor, some light spilled in, illuminating a baffled face.

“Um, so, who are you and how did I get here?” With the light she could make out that she was on a low flat table. 

Cautiously she climbed down, and with hands lifted moved toward the staring face. “You look as confused and nervous as I feel. Do you, uh, can you talk? I have no idea how I got here and honestly, if you let me out it’s no harm no foul, right? I will get myself home and tell them I just had way too much to drink, yeah?”

The person yanked the door closed as she was close enough to touch it. Anna lurched for it and found the edge of the door in the dark where it hadn’t been fully jerked back into the door frame, pulling at it with her fingers until it budged. A light was retreating off to the left when she peeked out but there was a breeze from the right. The light must have turned a corner or been covered because it was gone in an instant.

The breeze was still there and she went that way, moving carefully and keeping a hand on the wall. It began to lighten the further down the path she went. Finally, she came to a place with a slimy wooden ladder and at the top was a grate.

“Oh, this is either going to be a way out or a way to break a leg.” Anna muttered under her breath.

The slimy ladder felt unpleasant but sturdy under her hands and feet and she made it to the top without slipping or having it crumble under her. The wooden ladder stopped short of the grate and she tried to grip the wall as she slowly moved up enough to be able to get her hands on it.

Her position felt precarious and the grate didn’t want to move when she gave it an experimental push. Anna had a moment of panic thinking that it might be welded down and then she realized she was on a ladder.

To herself she muttered, “You don’t put a ladder in if you can’t access it, right? So…”

To test her theory she got a grip on the grate and tried to turn it. It seemed stuck and she put all of her terrified strength into it. The grate made a loud sound as it turned slowly, rusty metal on rough stone. She tried again to push it up and it lifted a little.

Four hands suddenly grabbed it and helped her get it up and off to the side. As she tried to scramble up and out they grabbed her and pulled her onto the cobblestones. 

Two dirty skinny faces looked at her with wide eyes and she hissed at them, “Help me! Please! I need to get away from here and I don’t even know where here is!”

At once they helped her up and ran with her into a maze of narrow, stinking alleys. Anna was absolutely certain that some of what was squishing under foot was sewage but she was just as sure that this was a better choice than standing still and waiting to be scooped up by whatever psycho had kidnapped her and put her in a cell underground.

The pair ushered her through a crooked stone doorway draped with ragged cloth into a dimly lit room with a handful of men in it.

An older man rose from a table with a scowl, “What is the meaning of-”

“She came out of the hole! You said they keep monsters down there but she was trying to get out! We saw her hands and peeked and it wasn’t a monster!”

He gave Anna a horrified look and drew a knife.

“Please don’t! I don’t know how I got there, I swear! I-I was at a party, I stepped away from the house because I wanted some air and then I woke up naked in a cell!”

“Osros be merciful.” A man closer to her took off his cloak and covered her with it.

Anna let him usher her to a bench and she burst into tears for a moment as she sat down. There was a quiet conversation and a few men left. She focused on composing herself, taking a few deep breaths.

The old man brought her a cup with a stern frown and dubiously narrowed eyes. “This is pure water.”

“Thank you.” Anna took a sip and his eyes widened. “Is something wrong?”

“You,” he paused, “Have you been given pure water before?”

She tilted her head, “Why would you drink impure water? Wouldn’t that make you sick?” 

He took a seat next to her as she drank the rest of the water, and she looked around studying the place. It looked like something out of a story or some kind of super authentic, ultra immersive LARP set up.

Glancing back at the man, she asked quietly, “Can you tell me where I am? I’m not sure but I don’t think this is near Broad River. I go to BRU.”

“BRU?”

“Broad River University? I’m-I’m supposed to be getting my BFA, Bachelor of Fine Arts, in a couple of months.”

His frown returned, “What Arts?”

“Are you asking about my major? I’m a music major. I play a few instruments but I focus on the harp.”

Leaning back he studied her curiously, “What family do you belong to?”

“My surname is Fitz-”

“No, what house paid to send you to be educated?”

“I don’t understand the question. My family sent me, my dad covers all of my bills, he’s kind of loaded. My mom was a brilliant musician. She was one of those people who could play any instrument you put in front of her even if she hadn’t seen it before. Dad encourages me to pursue music, even if it’s kind of frivolous. I think maybe it reminds him of my mom. His second wife, my stepmom Hollie, trained as an opera singer. He really loves music.”

The old man blinked and then gave a small laugh. “You were at a party unescorted?”

Anna winced, “I wasn’t supposed to go at all but my friends from BRU were going and I wanted to have some fun. My stepmom was always worried about safety, and saying that I might get kidnapped. I thought she was being ridiculous about it.”

“A sheltered child of a wealthy family, educated in music for her father's amusement, and who has been given pure water to keep her pure.” He rubbed his head. “You have no memory of how you found yourself in the prison below?”

“No. I went outside for some fresh air. The party was,” she sighed and shook her head, “it wasn’t exactly what I was expecting and the people were all a little rowdy. I sat down and then the next thing I know I’m waking up, naked, in a cell. Someone with a lamp stared at me and then ran away, but they were in such a hurry the door didn’t get fully pulled closed. I managed to pry it open and I ran toward the breeze hoping I could find a way out.”

His head tilted. “Was anyone or anything in the cell with you?”

“I don’t think so, it was dark, like the kind where you can’t see your hand in front of your face when whoever it was ran away with the light. I wouldn’t have been able to find the door without that person. I got to the door just as it closed.”

Pressing his lips together he sat straighter, “Did you close the door behind you?”

“No, why would I?” Anna watched him swallow and look toward the door.

“They thought you were one of the common girls, a servant trained to entertain her master. You weren’t stolen for a ransom, you were stolen to feed one of the beasts. I suspect that you woke as you were placed in the cell, before the light had gone and the beast could devour you. The doors are soaked in pure water and blessed before they are placed, they do not require locks. Only someone pure can open them.” He sighed. “Whoever attempted to perform such a cruel deed is most at fault but in the future, close doors behind you, child.”

She nodded as he gingerly took the cup from her, despite the sinking feeling that he was either very immersed in whatever game this was or she’d been hit in the head and was now having some kind of ‘not dead just yet’ dream while her neurons were firing like crazy.

“Where am I?”

“You are in Doshil.”

“I’ve never heard of-”

“Few speak of the cursed city.” He smiled wryly, “Your father certainly never expected you to see such a place.”

A woman in what looked like a loose grey shift dress and a long, wrapped shawl hurried in. “Master Adphon? You sent for…” The woman blinked, “Who is this?”

The old man huffed a laugh, “I haven't asked. Child, what is your father's name?”

“Alexander Fitzroy-Grenfell.”

“Nobility?” Adphon blinked.

“Our branch of the family isn’t but I know that Father's family came from nobility. He owns a few houses, boats, and horses. My grandfather, his father, raised them for racing and Dad got a few as part of his inheritance.”

“He will be hunting for you.” Adphon sighed. “Look after the girl and see her dressed as finely as you can manage. Keep her apart from the common girls, she was sheltered and is pure. If you give her water, give her pure water. The girl-”

“Are you trying to make her-”

“She drank a cup of pure water in front of me, she’s been given it all her life and thinks that the only water fit to consume is pure water. I will have Lord Wilzaphir Elmaris informed that someone abducted the girl. Even if her father is of a branch that no longer holds a title, her breeding must be respected.”

“Osros be merciful.” The woman shook her head, “Come along, child.”

Anna got to her feet doing her best to keep the cloak closed. She followed through the alleys until they came out onto a wider street lined with large houses. One had a huge archway and a large open door. 

The woman ushered her toward a smaller door next to it and then called through the open door, “Ollyn? Can you open the door?”

“Why not just go in the one that’s open?” Anna tilted her head.

“You can try if you like, Lady.” The woman gave her a small smile.

Anna shook her head and walked into the open door to the startlement of the younger woman opening the small door.

“You…” the woman who had walked with her looked pale as she came in. “You walked in the…”

“Of course.”

“Osros be merciful. Ollyn get the lady the best of whatever clothes we have and have a bath drawn for her. Tell Elysriah to purify the hot water and have pure water ready for the girl to drink.” 

“Pure water?! Ibrelle, that will make her-”

“She was raised on it. The girl is of a noble family, a royally noble family if she can walk through that door. Master Adphon said she was abducted and he’ll be informing the Lords. Send one of the boys to find him and tell him that she entered the royal door.”

“Royal door?” Anna’s brow furrowed and she shook her head, “You have to be kidding. It’s a door. I have never in my life seen an open door that, if I wanted to, I couldn't walk through.”

“Send a boy to tell him that.” Ibrelle gave a nod to Ollyn who bolted.

“Come with me, Lady, we’ll see you washed and dressed.”

Anna followed quietly considering the insanity of everything for a moment. This was almost certainly some kind of injury induced dream of course it would be crazy, but if there were rules maybe she should learn them. The thought occurred to her at nearly the same time, if it was her dream the rules may not apply to her at all. 

“Lady?” Ibrelle was looking at her oddly. 

“Yes? Sorry, I was thinking, everything here seems so… strange. Doors that some people can’t walk through, monsters in a prison underground, I feel like I’m going crazy or something.”

The woman blinked. “Have you ever talked to the servants in your house?”

“Not really no, I tried once or twice and got fussed at for distracting them from what they were supposed to be doing. Even my nanny, she looked after me for years and I couldn't tell you if she had a family of her own or even her surname.”

“If you-” Ibrelle glanced at the door, “Come in and be bathed, Lady we can speak in a warmer room.”

“I appreciate that.” Anna followed her in and saw a few girls filling a tub with steaming buckets. “Would it be possible for me to wash outside of the water first? I do not want to soak in whatever it is that I’ve been walking in.”

“Can you wash from a bucket?” Ibrelle gave her an amused look.

“I think so, I’ve never done it but it shouldn’t be hard.”

“I’ll help you, Lady.” Ibrelle took the cloak and handed it off to one of the girls leaving with a bucket.

“I don’t know who that belongs to but it probably needs to be washed before it’s returned to him. I don’t remember if I thanked him or not, I really should have, I was just so…”

Ibrelle beckoned her over and sat on a small stool, rubbing a bar of soap vigorously with a dampened rag. As the woman began washing her feet and legs, Anna lifted them one at a time, obediently.

“Even your feet are soft, Lady.” Ibrelle sighed. “If your father was as careful as you say, how did you get abducted?”

“I was sent to University to further my musical education and I was told very clearly not to go to parties, especially not a kegger, but everyone else was going and it sounded like it should be fun-”

The woman started to laugh, “A keg party with the common girls?”

“There were guys there too and it was all… I’m not sure what I was expecting but,” she paused, “not something so... It was the first one I’ve gone to in the nearly four years I was there. I had to step away for some fresh air, there were so many people and it was all so loud. The last thing I remember is walking a short distance from the house and having a seat.”

Shaking her head with a wry smile, Ibrelle gave her an amused look. “Your father will be furious with you when you get home.”

“I know. I deserve a scolding, I’m very aware.” Anna gave a small laugh, “But I think he won’t be too hard on me, I can tell him honestly that I’ve learned my lesson and I won’t do it again.”

“He shouldn’t have sent such a sheltered girl away from his house. Part of the fault is his.”

Anna gestured to the soap, “What kind of soap is this? It feels very odd and I don’t recognize the scent.”

“It’s just soap.” Ibrelle blinked, “Scent? You use perfumed soaps?”

“Yes, my soap at home is very gentle and it has a light scent. I think it has sweet almond oil and vanilla in it too. It compliments the-”

“Oils you use after your bath.” Ibrelle smiled wryly. “You’ll have to make do with what we have.”

“I’m not complaining, I was just inquiring because it’s different.”

It was quiet for a long moment and Anna debated asking some questions about where she was and why this was a cursed city.

“I haven't been to a keg party in years.” Ibrelle glanced up, “Can you tell me about it?”

“There was music, very loud music and it wasn’t the kind I’m used to, and there was dancing I wasn’t really familiar with. There was beer, so much beer. I didn’t like it but I drank some, they cut it with something sweet and a little fruity. It made it better but I wouldn’t call it good.”

Ibrelle giggled. “Did you have men trying to dance with you after that?”

“I very firmly turned down all of the offers to dance. Being so close to strangers made me nervous and the air was feeling-”

“You turned down men and then went alone outside after having an apple ale punch? You should have expected something bad to happen to you.”

“Why?” Anna frowned and adjusted her position to let the woman wash her legs past the knee.

The annoyed look Ibrelle gave her made her tilt her head.

“I know I wasn’t supposed to drink it but everyone else was-”

“Apple ale punch is for unchaste girls. By drinking it you said you were-”

“They didn’t tell me that!” Anna lifted her hand to rub her face and stopped as she saw how filthy it was. “I need to wash my hands.”

“They probably expected you to know.”

“How do you know things if no one tells you?” She sighed and knelt as Ibrelle gestured for her to, offering her hands to be washed. “I’m sorely tempted to ask someone to explain all of the things I don’t know to me but I don’t know what I don’t know. What questions should I be asking?”

Smiling, Ibrelle shrugged. “How much do you know about-”

“You can’t go in there!” 

Ibrelle lurched to her feet and blocked Anna from sight of the door with her skirt. “Master Joran, the Lady is naked and being washed, you can’t come in.”

“I was told that this person entered through the royal door. I must see it for myself.”

Peeking around Ibrelle’s skirt, Anna offered, “I will be happy to go in and out of the door as many times as you like but I would very much like to be clean and dressed when I do.”

“I was told you were bare as a babe when you entered the tavern.” The man’s eyes narrowed. “Why are you now pretending modesty?”

“I was abducted from a party and I woke up naked in a cell! Was I supposed to wait for whoever put me there to give me my clothing back so that I could escape? I have never been as afraid as I was following those two very kind people who helped me lift the grate and escape. Stopping to find clothes was not a thought in my head, I just wanted to escape from whoever put me in that cell so that whatever they had planned to do to me wouldn’t happen.”

“The water in the tub needs to be purified, if you wish to do so you may, so that you know it was done properly. I’ve been washing her from a bucket because she was too dirty to bathe.”

“Very well.” The man sounded dubious. “Have you been inspecting her as you’ve washed her?”

“Of course. Her hands have calluses but they are the calluses of a musician, not where I would expect of a working woman, and her feet have no calluses at all. Her nails are all short and well maintained, as I would expect of a Lady and she moves with modesty and grace.”

“What marks does she bear?” Joran nodded.

“None that I have seen.”

“Find it. I am certain she must have one.”

“Marks?” Anna asked as Ibrelle turned back to face her.

“Those who belong to great houses have at least one.” Ibrelle swept Anna’s hair aside and then lifted it as if looking at her neck. “There is none on her back or neck, none on her legs-”

“I will look.” Joran sounded annoyed and he came around behind her and muttered something.

Several small tattoos illuminated to be visible under Ibrelle’s clothing in an iridescent blue.

“None?” Joran sounded startled.

“I will finish washing the Lady. Perhaps you can purify the water, Master Joran.” Ibrelle gave Anna an amused look before glancing at the door. “Johtora, see if any sweet oils can be found for her skin. She’s used to finer soaps and being oiled after bathing.”

The pensively frowning man made several gestures over the water and then stood with his back to her. “I wish to hear about the circumstances under which you came here.”

“So would I.” Anna shook her head as Ibrelle began washing her hands and arms again. “I don’t know about anything that happened between me sitting down alone outside of the party and when I woke up naked in a cell. I don’t even know where Doshil is in relation to Broad River.”

“I know of no place called Broad River in Lovaria.”

“Lovaria?” Anna frowned and furrowed her brow. The name sounded vaguely familiar but she couldn't place it.

“Such a deep frown doesn’t suit your face, Lady. Is Broad River near Lovaria?”

“No.” Anna took a deep breath, “I’m not even certain where Lovaria is on a map. I know the name but…”

Ibrelle helped her to stand up, “Don’t worry so, Lady, the Masters will sort it all out.”

The woman helped her into the water and she gave a small sigh, sinking in and submerging herself, rubbing at her scalp for a moment as she held her breath and then coming up to see both Ibrelle and Joran staring at her.

“What? My hair was just washed but I was told rinsing it now and then between washes and cleaning your scalp-”

“That is pure water.” Joran shivered. “It isn’t burning you?”

“No, it’s very pleasantly warm and it feels good. Why?”

“I…” He stepped forward and dipped a finger in the bath wincing as he stepped back and shook it. “To me it feels unpleasantly hot, like sitting in the summer sun with no shade.”

“Master Adphon said she’s only ever had pure water and not to give her anything else. He said to keep her away from the common girls and from her innocence and naivety I agree. She has been sheltered and kept ignorant, though I cannot fathom why.” Ibrelle frowned.

“I can. She would be a sought after jewel in many places.” He gave her a speculative look, “Does your father have a son?”

“No. He remarried eventually after my mom died but I’m an only child.” Anna tilted her head. “Though he is trying to have a baby with my stepmom. She’s closer to my age than his.”

“The only child of his first wife, she would have been married to the one he intended to inherit his property if he were unable to get a son on his second wife. I doubt she would have ever left that household. The man will be furious to learn she was stolen.” Joran beckoned for her to come out of the tub. “Even if you feel that the water is pleasant, you should come out. Lingering-”

“But the water is still warm. When I take a bath I usually stay in until the water is cool, otherwise it’s a waste of water.”

The man shuddered. “Very well. Ibrelle, come with me.”

“Master Joran?” Ibrelle asked as she followed, “Will it harm her-”

“It will draw all impurity from her. Whoever stole the child and brought her here had no idea what they had taken.”

Left alone, Anna dunked herself under the water again and considered things as she held her breath. This was absolutely some kind of weird dream, her phone had buzzed, the concrete under her had moved and she woke up here. All of this was just her brain trying to make sense of something. Dreams were the mind’s way of doing that, with symbolism and all kinds of stuff, right?

She came back up and took a deep breath. Purity was a big thing but she hadn’t ever been really concerned with it. Dating, sex, drinking, all of those were things she’d done without feeling any kind of shame. If purity was a big thing here maybe she should try to lean into it a little. Her grandmother was always strict about manners and kind of a classist snob so… “Maybe I’m sorting through something related to my family? If this is all in my head things have to have come from somewhere, maybe I’m processing things?” she murmured to herself.

Water was some kind of big thing in symbolism wasn’t it? Pure water was definitely a symbol of something. Anna rubbed her head trying to remember, dreams weren’t anything she’d thought much about but she knew a lot of people did, she just didn’t pay them a lot of attention.

Her thoughts turned to the people who would be worried about her, and upset when she died. It made her eyes well up and she submerged herself again. IF. If she died. If the dream was still going she was still alive right? Maybe working through whatever this dream was would give her time to heal?

Reviews

[Gary]

I enjoyed reading this. It grabbed my attention and held it to the end. However, there are a few minor things that you may want to consider.

“What the f**k? I swear to god if I got kidnapped by a serial killer Hollie will never let me hear the end of it.” Anna muttered to herself. This is her only reaction to waking up nude? No fear? N panic? I feel like you miss an opportunity to giving us some insight to Anna's personality.

At times, I felt your story was a bit wordy. For example, your reader knows how Anna arrived, do they have to reread it every time she meets someone new? Also, traditionally, actions are expressed before dialog. “Lovaria?” Anna frowned and furrowed her brow. The name sounded vaguely familiar but she couldn't place it.

I look forward to reading the rest of your story.

[harryjack09]

I liked this story, although I do think she could have quite a bit more reaction to her waking up naked, and she seems to take a lot of this quite calmly, even though it's an extremely strange situation with other characters talking of things like beasts, nobility and pure water.