"Can someone explain to me how you guys managed to do that?" Baruk struck up a conversation the moment he decided to sit on Ghinorf's large belly.
"Do what?" Elara asked.
"Fire from your hands and that puddle of mud," Baruk added, slack-jawed, placing a finger on the gap of his missing tooth. "Not to mention the flower box."
The two girls exchanged a look. Ness felt a wave of embarrassment wash over her again; she didn't seem to enjoy being the center of attention.
"I have no idea," Elara exclaimed. "But it felt natural, as if I'd known how to do it my whole life."
Ness nodded in agreement.
The three made for an odd trio. Baruk was undoubtedly very tall for his age, though he couldn't remember how old he was. Grey skin, well-formed tusks, a pair of amber eyes, and strength to spare. Elara was his polar opposite: she looked delicate, with pale skin, equally white hair, and violet eyes. Slightly shorter, Nessaldom—or Ness—was also an elf, but her skin had a vibrant, rosy tone; she had some freckles, beautiful blue eyes, and wavy purple hair.
"Right," Elara broke the silence. "What do you remember besides your names?"
Baruk knit his brows, racking his brain for something, but it was in vain.
"Zip," he said without hesitation. "Just my name."
Ness grew bashful. She looked like she wanted to say something but was too shy.
"Go ahead, Ness," Elara said, noticing with a smile.
"Uh…" she began. "I know I'm ten… and I vaguely remember the sound of a river. Or a forest."
Nothing too important, Elara presumed.
Without wasting time, Baruk stood up—not before giving Ghinorf's belly a parting kick—and went over to a group of three children who showed no reaction at all.
"Why haven't they woken up yet?" he asked, waving a hand in front of one of the children's faces.
"I haven't figured that out yet," Elara replied. "For some reason, we woke up early. Some kind of glitch… like Ghinorf said."
"Ghinorf?" Baruk asked, just as Ness let out a small gasp.
"Yes. That's that man's name," Elara explained, pointing to Ghinorf sprawled on the ground. "As far as I can remember, that's his name, and he's a helper. But he's definitely not working alone."
"Is there someone else?" Ness asked, worried.
"If anything goes down, leave it to me," Baruk replied, puffing out his chest and flexing his biceps.
Ness looked away, visibly flustered.
"Well… it looks like we can't get out of here by climbing the fence," Elara commented, remembering Ness's failed attempt. "We're going to have to find an exit through—"
She was cut off. For some inexplicable reason, the previously listless children began to walk in perfect sync toward the manor door, like clockwork.
"Hey! Where are you going?" Baruk protested, trying to grab one of their arms. Elara stepped in front of them like a barrier, and Ness tried to speak softly, but every attempt was futile.
"Stop, please!" Elara cried out.
The children filed into a line and entered through the glass door on their own. The three watched them, one by one, until they vanished into the darkness of the mansion's interior.
"Should we follow them?" Ness asked.
"I think first we need to figure out how to get out of here… or rather, what this place is and why we're here," Elara mused.
The other two nodded.
Baruk followed the last child but stopped at the threshold, peering into the mansion.
"There's a piano here," he remarked. "But they're going into another room, all the way on the other side."
"It must be the dining room… I think," Elara replied, leaving Ness confused. Baruk didn't seem to care.
"Do you know what's in there?" Ness asked.
"I remember very vaguely… like scattered images," Elara replied. "What about you?"
Ness shook her head. Baruk was no longer paying attention.
"I remember waking up in a room, going through a hallway, and reaching a room with several tables," Elara continued. "After that, I spent a long time in a room with a piano."
"Must be this one," Baruk said, pointing.
"Then we went back to the room to eat… and that's when I started to really wake up. I managed not to drink that stuff," she said, pointing to the container of lilac liquid next to the fat man.
"Aghhh!" Nessaldom suddenly shrieked.
The two turned around, alarmed. The fat man with the red beard, who had been lying in the mud, was back on his feet.
Baruk stepped in front of the massive belly; Elara raised her arms in a defensive stance, while Ness hid behind her.
"You want another round, fatty?" Baruk roared, baring his tusks.
But the man didn't react. His gaze was hollow, fixed, without a trace of consciousness.
Without making a sound, he turned and walked slowly into the manor, leaving the three of them frozen.
"I think the liquid affected him too…" Elara commented. "Since we forced him to drink it."
"What do we do now?" Ness asked.
Baruk walked to the corner of the courtyard and picked up a piece of the easel that had been broken during the scuffle with Ruffos. The piece of wood was barely longer than his forearm and would serve perfectly as a makeshift weapon. He gave it a few practice swings before approaching the elves.
"Long story short: nobody remembers anything but their own name," he began, using the piece of wood as if it were a scepter. "There are some bastards trying to keep us locked up here."
"They wiped our memories with magic, obviously," Elara added.
"And the bearded guy said we were food…" Ness murmured, shuddering.
"Then we'll just knock their teeth in," Baruk said, simple and confident.
"But something is off…" Elara knit her brows. "I feel like this whole place has some kind of magical power. Do you feel it too?"
Ness closed her eyes for a moment. Elara noticed a green aura vibrating around the girl and felt a faint taste of grass in her mouth.
"Yes…" Ness confirmed.
"I don't feel a thing!" Baruk countered. "All I know is we need to keep moving."
Elara, however, perceived something more: a red aura enveloping the entire residence, like an invisible magical wildfire. This energy intensified at the edges, forming a sort of dome that extended beyond the fences. She looked up at the sky.
"Can you guys see the sun?"
Ness observed in silence. Baruk didn't even answer.
"Enough talk," Baruk grumbled. "Let's just go in and find a way out."
Without waiting, he stepped into the manor.
The two elves looked at each other. Elara put her hand to her face in frustration, while Ness seemed to accept their new companion's impulsiveness.
Ness went to the corner of the courtyard where Ruffos was still tied up but showing signs of recovery.
"If I let you go, you won't try to bite us, will you?" she asked, as if the dog could understand.
Carefully, she freed him. Elara stood mouth agape, expecting the worst. But Ruffos just gave Ness a big lick on the face and walked calmly to his doghouse, wagging his navy-blue tie.
"He said there are only two employees today: the bearded guy and another man… with a red ball on his face," Ness said matter-of-factly.
Elara stared at her, incredulous.
"Did you… just talk to the dog?"
"Well, yeah. Can't you?"
Silence was the only answer.
"He also said they told him to make noise if any child acted differently… and that he wanted something from the kitchen."
Elara was speechless.
The two of them, subconsciously, knew magic existed. They didn't understand how or why, but something flowed within them as naturally as breathing.
"Where's Baruk?" Ness suddenly realized.
That was when they heard the crash—like a thunderclap exploding inside the piano room. The two winced but ran toward the sound.
The scene they found was tragic and, at the same time, comical.
A polished bookshelf displayed a richly adorned steel breastplate. Resting atop it was a luxurious, teardrop-shaped helmet with three thin slits. Or it should have been.
The armor was on the floor, and the helmet was now stuck on Baruk's head.
"It wasn't me!" he shouted, his voice muffled by the metal.
"Then who was it?" Elara shot back, serious.
Ness burst out laughing.
Then they heard heavy footsteps approaching.
"Baruk, hide!" Elara whispered.
Reluctantly, he was dragged behind a bookshelf.
The door opened slowly.
"Ghinorf, you idiot, are you still out there?" a male voice shouted.
A short, stout man wearing an apron stained with lilac entered. The sickeningly sweet smell of the liquid filled the room.
He noticed the courtyard door was open.
"Ruffos, everything okay out there?"
Getting no response, he huffed, opened a large door decorated with black steel, and a freezing wind rushed into the room.
"Ghinorf, you incompetent fool! The Madame will be back with the order soon!"
He closed the door, cursing the cold, and left.
Once it was quiet, the three emerged from their hiding spot.
"I could've taken him," Baruk grumbled.
"Not everything is solved with a fight," Elara replied.
Now that the short man was gone, the three could better analyze their surroundings. The place was essentially an entrance hall, filled with various paintings and displayed objects. A small red sofa with gold details sat against the wall next to a large wood and black steel door, making the atmosphere a bit less terrifying. The piano in the center made the elegance and age of the place clear, but everything looked neglected, as if the last cleaning had been years ago.
Ness approached the large door.
"Did you catch what he said about some 'Madame'?" Elara commented, more to herself.
"Probably some old hag. Who cares?" Baruk scoffed, finally pulling the helmet off his head.
"I think this is the way out," Ness said, making the other two turn toward her.
The three lined up in front of the door.
"What about the others?" Ness asked.
"We can get out and go for help," Elara suggested.
"Ah, to hell with it," Baruk decided.
He swung the door open. A biting wind blasted against them. The doorknob froze Baruk's hand, pinning him to it.
"Close it!" Elara screamed.
"I can't, dammit!" Baruk howled.
Ness and Elara rushed to pull their friend, who remained stuck to the door. With a combined effort, Baruk finally managed to break free from the knob, and Elara—who was in front—was thrown back along with him, making room for Ness to rush forward and slam the door shut.
"Why are you so stubborn?" Elara complained.
"Because I want to get out of here!" he replied, panting.
As they argued, Ness, sitting on the floor with her back to the door, let her gaze wander around the room. Her eyes locked onto the opposite wall, where a large painting caught her attention.
The painting depicted an elegant, refined family dressed in luxurious clothes. The unsettling detail was that they all had a dark mole on their left cheek. In the background of the painting stood an ancient and imposing manor.
At the base of the frame, it read: The Darkmore Family.