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ALIXEM CLAWED HER WAY THROUGH one of the old fallen skyscrapers with Jasira following close behind. The building fell on an angle and they crawled across giant glass windows to the other side. The glass beneath them were the only things between them and the city below.
“Where are you taking me?” Jasira asked, trembling on all fours and trying – but failing – not to look down. The ground below seemed a thousand kilometres away. The longer she stared, the farther down it stretched.
“Well, I assume you didn’t bring any fancy clothing with you. We can’t show up in ripped pants and faded shirts,” Alixem replied as she looked back.
Jasira regained her composure and continued following Alixem.
They crawled underneath furniture that was crammed in the hallways until they reached an open space in a tower that penetrated the fallen skyscraper.
“Where are we?” Jasira asked, wiping dust off a counter with her finger.
“I found it a couple years back. You know this city is super boring, so I made my days a bit more adventurous,” Alixem said, laughing as she disappeared into one of the rooms.
Jasira walked around the hall, pausing to look at everything she saw. She noticed a dusty dining room with plates, cutlery and chairs that hadn't been used in years. The chairs looked more plush than anything she had ever seen.
“Jasira come look at these,” Alixem called out.
Laid out across a bed were dresses made from the most expensive fabrics in The Border. The only place Jasira had seen such extravagant clothing was the market hall in Monday. Back then, she’d never dreamt of being able to afford such expensive items.
“This is what I’m going to wear,” Alixem said as she picked up a short black dress and a pair of high heels.
Jasira walked to the other side of the bed and ran her hands over two of the dresses. She quickly withdrew her hand from the first one, which was prickly. The second was soft and light, but she didn’t like its yellow colour.
“This one feels nice, but it—” She noticed a bright red dress in a wardrobe across the room. “This one,” she said, taking it off a rack and examining it. The dress was open at the back and had two strings that tied it together.
“That one will complement your skin tone,” Alixem said. “You know what you need?”
“What, what is it?” Jasira asked eagerly.
“Shoes to go with it,” she answered, holding out a pair of red high heels with straps. “And you need earrings.”
“No. No piercings. My sister had one, and it always got infected.”
“Oh, come on, it’ll be fun. I know someone who can do it real quick. It won’t hurt at all,” Alixem insisted as she tried on her black dress.
“Fine. But don’t make me regret this.”
“What about mine? Do you think it’s too tight?” she asked.
“No, that looks perfect on you,” Jasira answered.
Alixem’s friend lived in a small brick and mortar house on the wealthier side of The Border. It was tucked away between some nondescript buildings in an obscure part of the city. Alixem knocked on the door twice, paused and then knocked again.
“My friend never learnt to speak, so you might find it a bit hard to understand her,” Alixem warned. “And, don’t stare.”
“I’m sure it’ll be fine.”
The door opened slightly, and a face appeared from the shadow.
“Fenix, are you doing any piercings today?” Alixem asked.
The door opened wide, and they walked in. Jasira saw the woman’s face and stepped back. It was covered entirely with piercings. The woman looked Jasira over from top to bottom.
“Piercing for who?” she asked.
“Me,” Jasira said, quivering.
“You are Alixem friend?” she asked, moving to the living room.
“Yes, she’s with me,” Alixem said. “I think maybe an ear crawler will suit her.”
Jasira sat on a velvet couch while Fenix opened a case that contained different types of ear crawlers. Fenix lifted the top layer to reveal a second set of ear crawlers that were much larger and shinier.
“Which one you like?”
Jasira took her time to examine each earring carefully. Her hand hovered over a set of snake and dragon earrings, but she changed her mind and quickly picked up a silver ear crawler designed in the shape of an animal fang.
“Do you have this one in gold?” she asked.
Fenix lifted the layer of ear crawlers to reveal another set of earrings. She picked up the same fang design in gold and placed it in Jasira’s palm.
“This is the one,” Jasira said.
Fenix pulled out a tiny wooden device that had a metal pin sticking out of it.
“This hurt little bit, but not a lot,” Fenix said.
Jasira closed her eyes and clenched her teeth.
“We count to three,” Fenix said as she rested the device around Jasira’s ear. “One.” She squeezed the device and poked a hole into Jasira’s earlobe.
“Ouch! What happened to two and three?”
“Two, three.”
Fenix wiped away the blood that dripped from Jasira’s earlobe and quickly fixed the fang crawler to her ear. Then she pulled out an old hand mirror. Jasira turned her head to the side and moved her hair out of the way.
“This is beautiful, Fenix. Thank you,” she said as she stared at her reflection.
“That one does look good on you, good choice, Jasira,” Alixem said.
“What do I owe?” Jasira asked, still staring at her ear in the mirror.
“No worry. You Alixem friend. I give you free,” Fenix answered.
“Where did you learn to how to pierce?” Jasira asked.
“I pierce Cerberi body, maybe, twenty Cerberi.”
“How did you even get that close to them? They’re so protective of themselves.”
Alixem dropped a pile of jewellery she was examining and picked some rings off the ground. Jasira noticed her shove them in her pocket and return the rest to their container.
“I was Cerberi, long time ago,” Fenix began as she closed the case of ear crawlers.
“Why did you leave? Cerberi are treated very well in Diektra,” Jasira asked.
“You ask too many questions,” Fenix continued. “But my leader, I no trust. Something very fishy about her.”
Jasira twitched slightly and leaned back.
“Do you remember your leader’s name,” Jasira asked, hoping it wasn’t Prianaj.
“Queen sister, Prianaj,” Fenix said.
Jasira got up from the couch and thanked Fenix for the piercing.
“No worry, Jasira. Come back for more piercing next time,” Fenix said, smiling.
“Wait, Fenix,” Alixem said as she ducked under a chain that stretched from one wall to the other. “We need masks. It is a masquerade after all. Do you have anything?”
Fenix walked over to the bookcase opposite the couch and pulled it towards her, revealing a restricted section. She grabbed two face masks from the compartment and handed them to Alixem.
Jasira immediately grabbed the white porcelain mask and stared at it with wide eyes. It had red lips and was decorated with black rhinestones.
“All right, I guess that one’s yours,” Alixem said, holding onto her domino mask.
As night fell, the wealthy citizens made their way to the masquerade. At Jasira’s old home, she and Alixem dressed up in their exquisite gowns and put on their masks. Alixem let her hair down past her shoulders while Jasira tied hers up. They put on perfume from Alixem’s collection. This was the first time Jasira had worn perfume. Nobody ever traded it at the market.
Jasira strapped a dagger to her ankle for protection and made sure Elaine’s necklace was visible on her neck.
“That’s pretty, where did you get that?” Alixem asked.
Jasira hesitated for a second and then repeated what Elaine had told her. “Family heirloom.”
Alixem decorated her hands with the rings she stole from Fenix’s place and handed Jasira two of them.
“I saw you take those from Fenix,” Jasira said.
“She stole them from me, I just went to get them back,” Alixem said, laughing.
The masquerade, like all other events, took place in a private location underneath the city, ‘The Clandestine’, they called it. The Clandestine had three tunnel-like entrances, which were all hidden in clever spots around The Border.
Alixem and Jasira made their way to the closest entrance. Alixem knew its location because of the previous events she had attended.
There was a long queue of people dressed in fancy attire. Some of their dresses were quite long, and the women tripped over them. The queue moved fast, and it didn’t take long for Alixem and Jasira to reach the front.
At the front, ‘The Clandestine’ was engraved into a plaque on the floor. The Cerberi greeted them and asked them for their names.
“Alixem Alice,” Alixem said.
“I’m sorry, but your name is not here. Alixem, I believe your family is no longer welcome here,” the Cerberi said.
Jasira coughed, tapping her chest. Her rings clinked against the necklace and caught the Cerberi’s attention.
“Apologies, your highness,” the Cerberi said, opening the door for both of them. “Enjoy your night.”
“What was that all about?” Alixem asked.
“I have no idea,” Jasira lied.
They followed the metal staircase down into the tunnel. It was dark, but they could hear noises that grew louder as they walked down the stairs. As they reached the main entrance to the masquerade, Jasira realised the noise they heard was music.
The hall was enormous, bigger than any room Jasira had ever seen. It was packed with so many people, who were all wearing masks. It was only the Cerberi who didn’t have any masks on, but their mouths were covered as usual.
There were drinks on tall tables around the hall, and a live band was playing up-tempo music to lift the mood. They performed on a small stage that was not too far off the ground.
Jasira scanned the room looking for the box. People were crammed into a large circle near the centre of the hall. She followed the crowd and found, to her delight, the box staring at her. It sat in the centre of a black circular table and was guarded by a single Cerberi.
Jasira squeezed through the crowd and attempted to touch the box. The guard stretched her arm out and blocked Jasira.
“You can look at the box, but no guest is permitted to touch it,” the guard said.
Jasira pointed at her necklace.
“Apologies, your highness. I didn’t realise.”
Jasira grabbed the box and walked towards the exit. Another Cerberi whispered something into the guard’s ear before yelling out to Jasira.
“Hang on there,” the Cerberi called out.
The band started playing faster, and the women danced on the dancefloor, twisting and spinning around the Cerberi. Jasira lost her balance and sense of direction. One guest clutched her arm and spun her around; another shoved her to the side. Soon, she found herself lost in an ocean of fast-moving bodies. The band continued to increase the tempo, and Jasira noticed the Cerberi making their way towards her.
Jasira ducked and dodged the Cerberi’s punch. The women immediately dispersed to clear the dancefloor. The music stopped. Jasira jumped over a few tables and ran towards the exit. The Cerberi came at her from all directions with their batons held high.
“That necklace doesn’t belong to you. We’re going to need it. The box as well,” one of the Cerberi said.
“I can’t let you have it,” Jasira responded. “And I don’t think you’re allowed to touch it. It’s protected under Elaine’s authority.”
Jasira turned and made her way towards the exit. She sensed a Cerberi behind her and immediately threw her dagger in that direction, landing it in the Cerberi’s forearm.
Alixem followed Jasira outside and reached for her shoulder.
“I have to go Alixem. Thank you for helping me with all this.”
“Stay at least, this is a party,” Alixem insisted.
“I’ve got no time. I only came get this box. That’s it,” Jasira said. “You go and try to enjoy the party; I’ve already ruined it.”
Alixem hugged Jasira and wished her a safe journey back to Monday.
On her way to the front gates of the city, Jasira examined the etchings on the box. The lid was stuck, so she tried to pry it open with her fingers, but it was of no use. She looked around the box for a button or a latch but found only an engraving on the lid. It was the same shape as Elaine’s necklace. Jasira noticed a tiny hole in the centre of the engraving that was the same size as the gem on the necklace.
Jasira hid in a tucked-away spot between two buildings and removed the mask from her sweaty face. She then took off the necklace and held it in front of her. The red gem glowed in the dark. She brought the gem close to the engraving on the box's lid, and it was pulled into place magnetically. Jasira heard a low click sound and the lid popped open.
The box was filled with letters. Jasira took out the first letter and immediately noticed the names of the sender and recipient.
Prianaj,
The citadel is exactly how you described it, dark and smelly. But it’s definitely something I can get used to. Your sister, Marya, has had two children since you left: Samaari and Elaine. You probably already met Samaari, though. They only just found out that Marya raised Elaine in secret. She is being questioned by Queen Estella every day. I don’t know what will happen to her, but I hope it’s not anything terrible.
Elaine is the only friend I’ve made. Samaari doesn’t talk to us much; they’re training her for royal duties. Elaine and I try to sneak into the lessons, but we keep getting in trouble. It makes sense, though. I’m only a servant in this place. I like how Elaine makes me feel young again, like a child.
The food is absolutely insane, so much better than anything we ate in the Border. You probably already knew that ha-ha. The Cerberi still don’t know where you’ve run off to, and they won’t hear anything from me. I overheard your mother, Queen Estella, asking questions about you. I think she still cares. But other than that, there’s not much going on over here.
How did it go with the garden you started?
Is anything selling well at the market?
Save something fresh and tasty for me. I want to try it when I come back in two weeks.
Give my love to Vaika.
Best wishes,
Sirena Revken
Jasira covered her mouth with her hand.
“I didn’t know Vaika’s mother worked at the Citadel,” she whispered as she packed all the letters back into the box and locked it. She wrapped the necklace back around her neck and put her mask back on before making her way to the front gates.
Jasira quickly stopped back at her old home to grab her backpack and change into more comfortable clothing. She arranged Alixem’s clothes, which were in a messy pile on the floor, and left her rings on top of them. She then sneaked out and left the city through the front gates, unnoticed by anyone.