3 - Lost and Alone
2024
London, England
"Hey! What the hell do you think you're doing?!"
When she went to go visit her parents' memorial before starting work a few days later, Freya was met with a distressing sight:
They were taking it down, the rest of the memorial. Their memorial.
A couple of staff members were removing it from the wall, and their heads snapped up at Freya's echoed cry.
"Uh-" They exchanged a glance.
"Why are you doing this? Who told you this was okay?"
"Margaret did."
She gawked back. "What?"
"Uh yeah. She said-"
But she didn't hear them - she was too busy storming down the hall to the back and through to Margaret's office. She didn't even knock, she just flew right in.
"Freya-"
"Marg, what's happening?"
She didn't even need to clarify, Margaret knew exactly what she was talking about. "I've asked that we take down the rest of the memorial, I'm overseeing it. I felt it was time to move on-"
"You 'felt it was time'?" She couldn't believe what she was hearing. "But Mum and Dad - they're your friends. They still haven't come back."
Marg gave her a sympathetic look. "Oh, Freya."
"And you don't think they will, come back. You don't believe they're coming back."
A crowd had gathered now, other people peeking out of their own offices, drawn out by the noise.
"Freya, I miss them just as much as you do-"
"No you don't! You have no idea how much I miss them every day! No idea!" Her shouting was echoing down the length of the hall. "After all they've done for you and this place, this is how you honour them? You should be ashamed!" She pointed right at her when she said this.
"Freya!"
But she ignored Marg's call as she stormed away and headed right for her own office, slamming the door and shutting herself inside, collapsing into her desk chair.
She was crying, and hadn't even realized it. Tears left wet lines along her cheeks.
Thankfully, no one must have followed her, having received a very clear message, for there were no knocks at her door.
Good, I just want to be left alone.
How could they? How could they just do that to Mum and Dad ad their memory? It hurt her deeply, as deep as she was already hurt.
She tried to do some work, but was too distracted. Too distracted even to dive back into her exciting new project.
She sat there for a while just staring at the box and pendant trying to stir up some excitement within herself, but it unfortunately didn't happen.
However, that was when she noticed that the pendant had started glowing. Yes, glowing.
It was so dim to begin with she was completely convinced she had imagined it, but no, it was indeed glowing, with a light that was only becoming steadily brighter...
"What the-"
She picked it up by the string to inspect it closer. It was glowing with a pulsing green light that only continued to grow brighter.
But how?
The light kept pulsing, brighter and brighter until it grew so bright that she had to look away, and had to close her eyes.
What the hell was going on?
It was so bright now it was burning. She slapped her hands over her tightly squeezed-shut eyes, trying to block it out.
When finally she opened her eyes again, she only did so because there was no longer any light straining against the delicate skin of her closed eyelids.
Had it not been the necklace after all? Had it been her? Had she been experiencing some sort of sudden internal injury?
But she wasn't in any pain, she was just a little dizzy.
Stone walls, that's what she saw surrounding her when her eyes slowly fluttered open. Four of them, with her in the middle, sealing her in.
What a beautiful structure. Like I've seen in studies of Ancient Asia...
It was so like her to become so immediately drawn to the details of the place that she didn't even stop to question what had happened.
Wait, what?
There it was, the sudden realization clapping down on her. Where was she? What had happened? How was she here? Where was here?
And she wasn't alone, as become quickly and strikingly clear.
Four men in dark clothes - no, not just clothes, armour - with long blades in their hands were approaching her.
No, they were circling her.
Her first thought was, how long had they been standing there? Creepy...
One spoke, but she did not, or could not, understand.
"S-sorry?"
They spoke again, louder this time, but she just stared blankly back.
It sounded like an Asian language, which would make sense with the ancient Asian design of the walls, but whichever language it was, she did not speak it, nor could she understand it at all.
The guy nodded to the others, who stepped forward with such speed she barely caught on to what was happening, until they hauled her to her feet by her arms and started leading her deeper into the fortress.
"Hey! What are you doing? Where are you taking me? Oi!"
The compound narrowed slightly, and faced an open room looking out into the courtyard. Up ahead, a man sat before them.
He had long, dark hair, and wore dark robes. Gold gauntlets covered his wrists. He sat lounging in a throne, and looked her up and down. He had an air of great importance about him.
One of the soldiers bowed and addressed the man, who continued to look at her.
Then he spoke - in English.
"My men could not understand you, and evidently you could not understand my men - but luckily for you, I have been practicing my English."
And there he is! ;) So excited for the upcoming chapters - see you then!
As always, thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed! :)