A sharp pang of jealousy stabbed through me. I looked at her- and at her temporarily rescued patient- with almost open hatred. Odile sat up straighter, smiled his perfectly even white teeth, and I swear I wanted to knock them out. I would've kept stewing, if not for the sudden wave of nausea, probably from the stress.
Time to snap back to reality.
And what was that reality, exactly? This medieval masquerade? Who the hell was it even for?
We need to keep moving, - Ada - Until we explore this place, we won't know what's going on. And let's not forget- where there's mystery, there's opportunity. Maybe even fame and fortune. Way more than we've got now. Every child and every adult in the world will be talking about us, - I whispered in All my bad thoughts just... vanished. Ahead of me loomed the Big Goal- and I was ready to kick Scrooge McDuck out of his gold vault and take a running dive into the coins.
As if reading my greedy little daydream, Odile decided to dump a bucket of cold water on the excitement:
A place this magical might hold .. but also danger. Let's not act like looters. Let's do the right thing. Who knows how the owners of these things might react? I swear on my Royal Hamster Benny- we could be in serious trouble…
I nodded quickly, though I had been toying with some raiding ideas in the back of my mind.
No arguments -
And Ada added, already moving forward:
Even if there aren't owners, there are still plenty of These walls and books could be full of mold. And that dust? It might be hiding fungal spores or bacteria. For example, Aspergillus or Penicillium spores can survive for centuries- and they can cause serious respiratory issues. -
What the hell is this crap? Are we in a science lecture, nerd? My - blogger mode - kicked back in.
Miss Scientist shot me a heavy look and said calmly:
Just don't touch anything, That's all. Actually, it wouldn't be the worst idea to go back to town and get some masks, so we don't inhale anything nasty. - Oh sure, and then the castle'll just disappear. It's probably not even here for - I chopped her sentence in half, and she just shrugged, sort of agreeing.
Yeah, the temptation was way too strong!
We were walking down a massive corridor, and I could swear the acoustics were so good I could hear every single third interval in the sound of my own hurried steps or Odile's wide - legged wobble. Ada's heavy breathing was loud enough to drown us all out, but that was normal for her- some kind of relaxation technique she always practiced. Hey, if it helped, let her breathe.
About forty or fifty steps later, we reached a pair of huge wrought - iron doors, one bolted shut, the other swung open like it was welcoming us. Behind them was a vast throne room that hit us right in the curiosity.
This was a place made for kings!
Even though we couldn't spot the actual throne, there were so many flying buttresses, caryatids, arches, and other stuff Adelgunda kept naming that it made us dizzy. And standing inside, in two silent rows, were real suits of knight armor, holding weapons and shields.
I have to touch this! - I declared. And, ignoring all of my friend's warnings, I ran ahead toward the entrance.
But she didn't stop me. The noose did.
Agh… what the… - I gasped and started wheezing, trying to see what was Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of a purple tapestry flying off the wall, twisting into a tight loop and snapping around my neck, pulling into a knot.
The others freaked out:
What's going on, NoWay?!
I tried to explain, but I couldn't get a word out- just kicked my legs uselessly, feeling myself weaken. Ada rushed toward me but froze mid - step and slowly collapsed to the floor, blood pouring wildly from a hole that had just opened in her eye.
Where the hell did that come from?! How?! -
I rasped and reached out, trying to pull some invisible blade from her eye socket, but the hole just kept growing.
But I was only a spectator- like in spectator mode in Counter - Strike- watching and helpless. The noose made sure of that.
Isn't this what you wanted to see? - A nasty little thought oozed into my brain. - Didn't you fantasize about this earlier today? Well, here's the result of your sick little Enjoy! -
But… no! Or…
And right after that lovely mental monologue, Odile lost it again- his head jerking side to side like a busted animatronic. But somehow, even as blood spilled from his body, flowing in rivulets across the floor, he kept holding that camera steady.
Then it started pouring from his ass.
Can't lie, even in his doom spiral, Odile still held onto some weird dignity. He didn't scream like a little bitch (unlike me, because the noose had suddenly loosened, and I was back to full - volume screeching).
Odile just sat there, staring down as his pants started tearing open in all directions. And I couldn't even figure out what was doing it.
But… did it really matter?
Because by that point, I had finally lost my grip on reality too.
Bye - bye, brain.