Anachronistic: Endless Masquerade

9 | Finally Free?

- 9 -

After everything that came before, boarding seemed a trivial task. Lilith joined a small queue stretching forward toward an older man. He examined each passenger's ticket before handing them a key ring from the small metal lockbox beside him. When Lilith reached the front of the line, he gave her a kindly smile.

        "Ticket please, young lady."

        Lilith held the ticket forward. The attendant grabbed it, adjusted his glasses, then squinted as he read some numbers aloud. A worrying wrinkle formed between his eyes. Maybe boarding wasn't going to be as easy as she had planned.

        "Ma'am, this is a second class ticket. This entrance is meant to board the third class passengers. I'm afraid I don't have your key with me."

        Lilith stiffened. Boarding here was her only option. Andor was patrolling the other ramp. She would be caught in seconds if she tried to sneak through. Her thoughts raced, searching for any to avoid that possibility.

        "You can't be serious," she cried. She morphed her voice into an imitation of the stuck up woman that had spit on her that morning. It was her best reference for the type of rich woman that always got her way. "How was I to know that? You really aught to label these things better. And now you want me to walk all the way to the other ramp; it's so dreadfully far away."

        Lilith felt horrible speaking to the man like she was, especially when she noticed the way his face twisted at her words. He reached down to his hip and took hold of a large metal block hanging from his belt. "I truly am sorry for the inconvenience, ma'am. Of course, I don't intent to make you walk all the way back along the dock. If you just give me your name I can radio for your key to be left with guest services. You can board here and pick your key up on the ship."

        It had actually worked. Relief washed over her. Suddenly, the smile Fennel had gifted her felt real. She had actually made it, she was safe. 

        The attendant unfastened a rope strung across the ramp's entrance and held it aside. "Welcome aboard."

        Lilith thanked the man, sure to use the haughty tone from before, then started up the ramp. She slid her fingers over the canvas wall as she ascended; felt the texture bounce against her fingertips. She wanted to take in every detail: The salty taste of the air, the spacing of the boards below her feet, the shine of the metal handrail poking out between the straps that held the side walls in place. Lilith's feet grew lighter and lighter the higher she rose. This was freedom.

        The third-class ramp didn't climb all the way to the deck like its counterpart across the ship. Instead, it lead up to a massive door built into the side of the hull. Above the archway, the name of the ship, Colossal, was displayed in massive block letters. A smaller sign hung at the side of the door. It read, stoop watch your head. Lilith's height made that a non-issue.

        Stepping inside, she was greeted by a group of uniformed men standing in a line. They welcomed her aboard the ship and she nodded to them before stepping further inside. She glanced around, finding a seemingly endless hallway extending in both directions. Countless white doors lined the hall blending in with the white paneled walls, small brass plagues the only indication of their presence. She felt helpless to navigate the nondescript path alone so she turned to the uniformed men to ask for directions.

        "Excuse me, sir. I was told I need to go to guest services. Do you know where that is?"

        "Yes, ma'am." The man closest to her stepped out from the line while the others continued greeting the other passengers. "Allow me to escort you."