***
The throne was empty. So she sat in it. She meant nothing by it.
How could she? She knew nothing. Was nothing. Would be nothing.
Ever since waking up in this strange palace, she hasn’t seen a single living being. Even her own reflection in the shards of broken glass, littered here and there, seemed a stranger to her.
Where was she? She didn’t know.
Something was wrong. Yes, without a doubt, things were not as they should be.
There’s meant to be an order to these things, right? Effect follows cause.
But here, there was nothing.
At least, the throne felt nice. Sitting alone in a decrepit hall, grand and ornate though it may be, should not have brought her any comfort, given the circumstances. But it had. On that throne, she felt at peace. It was there that she belonged.
Thinking this, or rather, feeling this, she relaxed.
And promptly fell asleep.
***
“Is that…?”
“It has to be. She’s back. We’re done for.”
“...But how? She should have been…”
“Shut up! It’s her. Just look at her! There’s no mistake. We have to act, now!”
“She’s just sleeping there, covered in drool. Maybe we could just, you know…?”
“You never learn, do you? Why do you think she came back?”
“Then what the fuck do we do?! Why is this happening, at a time like this?! I don’t understand!”
“If we understood a single thing about her, we wouldn’t be in this position to begin with.”
“Then what the FUCK do we do??”
“Calm down, we don’t know anything yet. It could work out.”
“What do you mean ‘work out’?? After what we did, do you honestly think she’ll let us live?”
“Maybe she forgot.”
“That’s not something you just forget!!!”
“For her, it just might be. At any rate, take something to calm yourself down.”
“...Sure, I’ll do that. Nothing else to do, anyway. Fuck, I really hope you’re right.”
“Great. And you there! Stop standing there with your mouth open, and send out a telegram to the rest of the council.”
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
“Er…, yes,...ma’am. Right away. What should it say?”
“Let’s not beat around the bush. Here, I’ll write it. Now go!”
“Certainly, ma’am.”
“The rest of you, clear the hall! Let’s give her some space. Until we figure out what exactly is going on here.”
“Yes, ma’am!”
“...”
“Bye for now, Your Majesty. Please forgive us. Please…”
***
<
***
The door and window both had been locked from the inside, but the victim still had a knife in her back. How? There must be some trick to it. It just needed to be reasoned out.
The detective paced back and forth as he considered the possibilities.
Had the culprit been hiding under the bed?
Was there a secret passage?
Could it have been an elaborate trap?
Perhaps there had never been any killer at all? A suicide?
Or maybe the one to first discover the scene was actually…
“Detective? You need to see this!”
See what? The nervous maid was pointing at the window.
But it had already been examined, why would it be of interest?
“Please, detective? Look, something’s happening!”
Ah, she wasn’t pointing at the window, of course. She was indicating something on the other side of the glass, something outside the manor. The detective approached closer to try and understand what had gotten her so riled up.
At first glance, nothing of any interest could be seen, but…
Ah, the sky! It seemed as though the sky was glowing. A bright, overbearing violet color.
“There!” pointed the policeman standing outside the window, aiming at a golden chariot flying across the sky, driven by winged lions, leaving behind a golden trail, “Isn’t that Councillor Sax’s ride? What the hell is going on?”
“Well, I can’t conclude anything without more information…” opined the detective, “...but any conscious observer with half a wit about them could certainly deduce that some major Political Event must have occurred, or is now in the process of occuring.”
“But detective! We can’t go on like this! Surely we must flee to a safer place?” implored the maid, her face contorted with worry. As she said this, ominous purple clouds covered the sky, and a crimson rain started coming down.
“Sounds wise.” said the detective, starting as if to move away, “Only, let me ask just one more thing, my dear maid.”
“Yes?” asked the maid in a concerned tone, having already began her hasty retreat from the estate.
“Regarding your earlier testimony,” began the detective, approaching her with sharp, rapid steps, “isn’t it a complete fabrication?”
“What?” the maid froze mid step.
“That’s right, as could be expected, all along,” started the detective with finality “there has never been any locked room at all. You are the killer, who, as the first discoverer, tampered with the scene and blatantly lied to us to create the illusion of an impossible crime!”
“Do we really have the time for this now, Detective?” inquired the policeman as he moved to shelter from the all consuming wall of crimson droplets.
“There’s always time for the truth.” remarked the detective as he grasped the trembling figure of the maid “Which I shall now reveal in full. Starting from the very beginning.”
Indeed, thought the policeman, it seemed the night would be a long one.
***
“Are we there yet?” [No we are not.]
“When will we arrive?” [Perhaps in an hour.]
“What will happen when we get there?” [Unknown. Nothing good.]
“Will I survive this? Will anyone?” [It remains to be seen.]
“I’m scared. Can we turn back?” [That would not be wise.]
“Okay. Promise to be there with me?” [Naturally. I would never abandon you.]
“No matter what happens?” [No matter what happens.]
“Then it’s going to be fine, right?” [I have every hope that it will.]
“We’ll get through this.” [We shall endeavor to.]
“Good.” [Splendid.]
***
AWAKE/ASLEEP - END