The Rose and The Briar

Chapter 2- The emperor

Alma's empty stare wandered over the bars of the cage.
Beyond the metal only a succession of indistinct images, sounds of thundering voices, gigantic humanoid and deformed figures rested their inquiring gazes on her.
She saw them every time the cage was shaken, she felt them even when her eyes were focused on the ground.

She had been carried on the back of one of those "cervids", as the monster had called them, through narrow alleys and crowded cobbled streets. The stone buildings that completely covered her view had then been replaced by marble and glittering metal, twisted and folded over structures that touched the sky, trails and curls of smoke rose into the air from everywhere.
The monster then stopped in front of an imposing gate and took the cage she was in.

A green expanse opened in front of her, interrupted only by a gravel road and fountains decorated with white statues of mermaids, tritons and nymphs.
On both sides of the garden extended a colonnade, under which various monumental figures strolled, showing off dresses embellished with lace and flounces, their horns, tails and claws adorned with multicolored jewels.
The arcades connected to a larger building, she had to bend her head back to be able to capture a complete image of the palace. The pale marble turned to gold where the warm shades of the sunset caressed it, the facade was covered with carved ornaments that curled around large windows, all topped by a glossy dome that reflected the colors of the sky.

Her cage was shaken terribly as the monster hurried up a staircase.

She was shrouded in darkness, in which shadows of all shapes and sizes sprinted from corner to corner. But, when her eyes adjusted to the dim light of the interior, immense corridors opened in front of her, each decorated with rich maroon fabrics and gilded frames animated by wood inlays. Splashes of gold and silver flashed from time to time at the edge of her field of vision.

A distant voice boomed somewhere above her, to which answered the rough voice of her captor.

Each step of the monster was accompanied by a heavy thud and a creak of the planks below, as if they could not bear the weight of such a creature.

Her cold hands clung shaking to the equally cold metal bars, her fingers sticky with sweat.
At every step the world was shaken around her, as if she was still in that boat at the mercy of the waves, her body slipping from side to side, unable to resist that force.

The bumps that shook her prison stopped.
A dark wooden wall blocked her view, it seemed to rise to the ceiling.

Then a couple of knocks rang out in the corridor like cannon shots.

"Come in."
A deep voice answered from the other side of that wall.

The door opened, the smell of paper enveloped her in a gust of air.
The light that penetrated from the immense windows glided into the room, until it alighted on the tall bookcases from which the walls were covered.
From a desk in the center of the room a silhouette looked at the scene that appeared before it, an enormous body sprawled against the back of the chair.

"I hope you have a good reason to interrupt me, Osborne."

The armored monster's fingers tightened on the ring from which he was holding the cage, his gaze lingered briefly on the floor, his jaw clenched.
His torso bent into a stiff bow.
"I am truly sorry to present myself on such short notice, Your Imperial Majesty, but I believe I have something you need to see."

The monster straightened up, leaning slightly in the direction of the newcomer, beckoning him to come closer.

The rocking resumed, this time even more impetuous, as everything around her was transformed into a mixture of shapes and shadows.
The movement stopped with a strong jolt that made her fall to her knees.