So this is another old story I eventually finished recently. Why? Because I like the idea of the cynical Nash with peppy catgirl Menat and gang and I'm that local oddity who ships oddball ships.
Title is in latin because I am pretentious and means To The Stars
Chapter title: from the beginning of the world
Used for a bunch of shit but, in literature, it refers to a story told from the beginning rather than in medias res.
And as always, thank you for reading.
"And that will be your mission. Understood?" Rose spoke pointedly, eyeing her disciple with a stern look. Menat nodded, keeping a straight face to mask the fact that she was beaming with excitement. It had been a while since her master had assigned a mission to her, even if it was something as mundane as picking up bottles of wine. It would appear that Rose had been too busy with clients to keep up with her stash in the cellar and thus sent Menat out to pick up a few bottles from a winery across the harbor.
"Yes, Master," Menat exclaimed with more vigor than she intended. Despite her task, it was for her master's benefit so the mundanity didn't bother her. She put the deck of tarot cards into her bag and was about to run out the door when Rose called her back.
"Oh, and Menat?"
"Yes, Master?"
"Do hurry back before it gets dark," she said pointedly and Menat could only smile and nod. Of course, she would be back before then. Quickly, she left the Palace of Mysteries, now greeted by the cool afternoon wind and the buzz of people moving about in their daily lives.
Things had been quiet since the fall of Shadaloo, Almost like the world had time to put itself back together akin to a jigsaw puzzle; Maggio had found his sister yet chose to remain and continue life as usual in the Palace of Mysteries as Rose's other apprentice. As for Menat, she missed traveling the world like before but appreciated the small tasks given to her by her Master. Even if it involved spending an afternoon doing chores.
Soon after leaving the streets, Menat found herself boarding one of the ships that sailed to one of the many tiny islands outside the harbor. It would be an hour before she reached her destination and so, she could spend the voyage staring into the afternoon sun or practicing her divination readings. Soon, the ship was drifting into the waters, further away from the harbor. Menat sat on the deck, lulled into a feeling of peace by the gentle rocking of the wooden vessel.
In her hands was the deck of tarot cards, which she shuffled to pass time. There were not many other passengers on the ship but she did consider asking to read the fortune for one of them. For now, she could just as well practice on herself, even if she had memorized much of the different tarot card meanings by now, courtesy of her Master. All things divination began with tarot cards although Menat had grown more accustomed to her crystal ball.
As it was with fate, strange things tended to happen when one least expected them. Thus this became her excuse to shuffle through the cards one last time. Afterward, she drew a card from the bundle.
It was Death, turned upright.
Puzzled, Menat clutched the card as she tried to think of a satisfying meaning. She reckoned this would be infinitely more stressful as common folk tended to take the card's meaning literally. The card represented changes; the closing of one door to open another. It was interesting that she had not drawn Death before the end of Shadaloo or the defeat of her Master's adversary.
Perhaps this simple wine journey would bring about a change for Menat personally. Giddy with the idea of new possibilities, she found herself daydreaming about new travels or exploring new locations. Perhaps going to a place, she had not been to before. Maybe she would go to Scandinavia next time.
After half an hour, the vessel had finally reached its destination and Menat, still excited about the future, left alongside the rest of the passengers. The port here belonged to a small fishing community with an accompanying tiny village with less than five hundred citizens. There was a path that lead to a nearby beach and two roads; one led out of the village while the other led to Menat's destination; the neighboring winery.
On her way to the location, Menat walked alongside the edge of the downtrodden road, carved by trucks driving by with wine bottles to the port, ready for shipping to the mainland. It also happened to be surrounded by dense forestry, that bore resemblance to a thick jungle at times.
Menat had taken the route numerous times now, but usually, it was in the company of Rose, seeing how she knew her apprentice's affection for traveling and seeing new places. This however would be the first time, she had taken this path alone. It wasn't going to a new country but it would suffice.
Taking a deep breath, Menat continued trekking down the dirt road, as the afternoon soon began edging towards twilight. There was still some time left before it got dark, not that she was scared of the dark. Naturally, she wasn't, not at all. Mayhaps this was what Death had meant, the change of her fear. If so, that sure was insignificant.
As she continued to walk down the passageway, time itself seemed to come to a crawl, even as she saw the shape of a massive building in the distance. Despite her now aching feet, she hurried her pace. Before long, she was finally at the winery and free of the forest and made way for the storage. By the doorway stood an older woman, tapping liquid from barrels into bottles. Upon spotting Menat, her eyes lit up like Christmas lights.
"Master-Rose couldn't come along today so I'm here!" Menat waved, eying the row of bottles, which had already been filled.
"Ah, I see. Here you go. She already paid me in advance so no need to worry about the money. Please be careful on your way home," the woman was kind in her approach (yet wholly unaware of that ominous warning she had just issued) as she handed Menat the bottles.
They were somewhat heavy with a fruity scent to them. Menat reckoned Rose preferred it this way; choosing to get her wine directly from niche locations rather than the easily accessible brands from grocery stores. All for the sake of the taste.
"Oh thanks!" she put the bottles in her bag. From the corner of her eye, she saw the woman returning to filling the bottles and so she found it appropriate to make her leave after bidding a hasty farewell. Now was the challenge of walking back home and catching the last boat back home.
By now, the sky had been dyed in glum colors with limited light and navy clouds obscuring what could be seen of the sun. It had gotten darker and Menat felt slightly anxious at the trees now being cast into deep shadow with the sun bidding its farewell. In the far distance, she could pick up speckles of light from the port town but there was still a long way to go.
Inhaling some crips forest air, she continued to march down the dirt road, trying not to get startled by the occasional rustling of leaves from a gentle breeze or any noise from beyond the trees. By now, she was using her phone as a flashlight; a beacon in the dark. With the departure of the sun, the world had cooled to a chill, forcing Menat to hurry up a bit.
It was not like she expected to be attacked or anything but the prospect of walking alone in the middle of the woods brought about something fearfully terrifying. The underlying fear of the unknown. Which was ironic because divination required diving into the unknown. And here she was getting scared of nothing. She could always call Rose for comfort but her stubbornness wanted to prove that there was nothing to be afraid of. Even with the oncoming feeling of something watching her between the trees. It was probably an animal.
Nothing to be afraid of.
Now, she was halfway, and she could see the port town with some of its inhabitants loading the last ship with goods to be sent overseas. She was almost there, she would have sprinted if not for her sore feet. But as it was with fate, she was startled by something unexpected, a loud crack of a branch.
Terrified, she jumped in place, skipping to the safety of the trees, away from the sound and plain sight. However, the place from which she sought refuge happened to be at the top of an incline and she tumbled down a slope. Fearing for the safety of the bottles, she clutched her bag as she continued to roll down the dell and landed in a ditch.
Ripples of pain shot through her leg from her ankle but the first thing Menat did was open the bag and find herself relieved at the sight of the unharmed bottles. Now was only the issue of her ankle and being alone in the dark. Dirty, sullen, and in agony, she tried to stand, finding it difficult to keep her balance, although miraculously she did, leaning against a nearby tree for support.
She had managed to stand but how the heck would she get back to the ship in time? As she stood there and wondered how loud she should scream, something in the distance caught her attention and distracted the worry of getting home; the shape of a person moving in between the trees. Momentarily, absolute fear paralyzed her, and images of masked killers and true crime stories about women getting gutted filled her head as she laid eyes on what appeared to be a human.
Gosh, maybe she should take a break from horror movie nights.
The person before her bore a strange appearance but he didn't lurch at her, trying to decapitate her with a chainsaw. His skin was green and crudely stitched together at places that made him look somewhat inhuman. There was a gem embedded in his forehead that glinted green, only partly revealing his face if not for Menat pointing the bright flashlight directly at him, and almost getting blinded by the reflection of his glasses. Despite his appearance, he had come as a holy angel of mercy, and she prayed that he would feel so inclined to help her out.
Slowly, she attempted to limp closer to him, lowering her flashlight a bit. It struck her as a little odd that he had not said a single word. The man was quiet still, giving her a look of disdain before heading back into the depths of the forest.
"Wait! I don't suppose I could ask for a hand?"
He paused, shooting her a look of bewilderment. It seemed as if he was considering her pleas, pushing up his glasses before relenting and helping her move. With her arm swung around his shoulder, they made their way through the dense forestry.
Menat wondered if she should say something to break the silence, or perhaps satiate her own curiosities about this guy while they walked closer to the port town. He didn't seem like a crazed serial killer but rather a selfless, kind of weird-looking Samaritan. Why his skin was like that or what he was doing here in the woods of a tiny island? She noted he was incredibly cold to the touch, icy even. Humorously, it matched his general attitude.
Finally, they were on the outskirts of the port town. There were still a few meters left to the harbor but if she limped fast enough, she could make it. But before then, she needed to thank her mysterious knight in glasses.
"Wow, thank y-"
He didn't wait to hear her gratitude, instead heading to the edge of the pathway, partly obscured by the darkness. His walk was staggering even as he attempted to appear strong and before long, he had vanished in between the trees. Menat stood, left with more questions than answers.
Was this what Death had foretold? The end of her normal, quiet life and the beginning of something new? The more, she thought about it, the more intrigued she became. And thus she made a silent vow to try and seek out that man again.
"Here's the wine, Master," Menat fished out the two bottles from her bag, souring when she saw their labels stained with forest dirt. Quickly she attempted to smooth out the stain, hoping Rose didn't notice them. On the other hand, her master did notice her apprentice limping.
"What happened?"
"I got spooked and messed up. Some…locals helped me," Menat shrugged.
Rose narrowed her eyes, clearly suspicious. Menat forced an easy smile, hoping not that Rose picked up on the technical lie. After all her master had an amazing talent to pick up on people's actual feelings and intentions. Perhaps if Menat could do the same, she would have found out more about that mysterious man.
"I see. Go and rest. I'll have Maggio bring you some ice,"
Always willing to follow her master's word, Menat limped to the best of her ability to her room, although she'd have to crawl up the massive staircase in order to get there. By the time, she miraculously made it to her room, her ankle had begun to ache to the point where she collapsed onto the floor, praying Maggio would arrive right about now with that damned ice. Soon after, there was a hard knock on the door and Maggio stepped in, carrying a plastic of ice cubes.
"Hey. Heard you screwed up badly," he handed her the ice, eying her ankle with something resembling smugness.
"Language. I got…distracted,"
"Sounds like something you'd do,"
Scoffing, Menat had the sudden urge to throw an ice cube after the young man but refrained, instead putting the bag to her limb. The ice calmed the throbbing.
"Ugh, stop being a jerk. I just…got a little sidetracked, that's all," she managed to limp the comforts of the bed with the bag of ice to soothe her. She had no intention of telling Maggio of her new discovery or her readings until she knew more. He was a good kid but reminded her of an annoying younger sibling and deeply curious. A trait, that she herself exhibited now when she thought about it.
"What did you find?" his eyes widened, proving that curious streak.
"N-nothing!" Menat nearly choked on her own words, realizing that she no doubt made Maggio invested in her extracurricular activities. Or perhaps not as he shoved his hands into his pockets, looking bored.
"I bet on souvenirs," he mused with little interest.
"Sure…you do that,"
Perhaps it was something akin to a souvenir. Something special and fascinating. But for now, Menat would let that be a secret of hers. She managed to crawl into bed and found her journal, writing down her plans for uncovering the mystery of her tarot readings. Though in her writing, she found herself more preoccupied with the mysterious man in the woods.
It would be her mission to find him again and find out more. This would be her new adventure.