The Tragedy of Renya

4.1 An Unexpected Reunion

12th day of the 5th month, Viusi

Although the outer ring of Viusi had been abandoned many years ago due to economic circumstances, it did not show the signs of an abandoned neighbourhood. The streets were relatively clean, the houses still looked as if their inhabitants had only locked the door the day before, and there were no squatters around. But as soon as Erica looked inside the houses she saw the empty rooms with floors covered in dust, telling a story that was quite different. And when Erica had entered the city she’d noticed some houses that were in ruins, although it appeared as if the houses simply had never been finished.

Erica sat down in one of the alcoves that were in and between all houses. She looked down at the street in front of her. She couldn’t help but notice the tears in her skirt; the bushes had done a great job at ruining a perfectly good outfit. She’d also lost one of her shoes as she was crossing a small stream, but the sound of hooves following her, imagined or real, had stopped her from going back for it. She’d managed to pick some berries at the side of the road, and drink from the streams, but she couldn’t ignore the hunger that was starting to grow. She sighed; she had not been raised for these situations. She hid deeper in the alcove when she heard footsteps, although she was not sure if the footsteps were real or imagined. She didn’t see anyone pass for minutes, so she dared look around the corner again. The footsteps had probably been in her mind, she realised. The entire situation was making her paranoid.

After a few more minutes, she wobbled on to the nearest door, to see if she could stay inside. It was already getting dark again, and she didn’t want to spend another night outside. There was something about sleeping under the night sky that made her uncomfortable. She felt vulnerable, although she knew her fiancé couldn’t have followed her here. Not yet; he had probably spent at least one more day in the city of Tusiaga after she’d left, to make sure she’d disappeared. If that, even. There was no reason he would have followed her. There was no reason for him to know she’d even been in Tusiaga, or Viusi!

She pulled the door handle, but realised this house too was locked.  She jolted up at the sound of footsteps. The footsteps were of more than one person, Erica realised. Ten? Maybe. She instantly knew it wasn’t a hallucination. Her eyes darted to the street, where she saw a group of men, all dressed in the same blue-yellow striped uniforms, marching towards her. It was too late for her to hide in a corner now.

A million possibilities shot through her mind with every step the men took. She could run. They’d outrun her. She could pretend she hadn’t been trying to break into the houses. Evidence was against her. She could explain her position. And get sent back to Ostia at the very first possibility.

And with each moment the men got closer to her, until they stopped in front of her. One of the man asked her name. Erica nodded, not sure what else to do.

“Come with us, please.”

The men had brought Erica to a large mansion in the inner district of Viusi, one of the few places of the city that had not been abandoned. This district was filled with mansions, of those who were wealthy enough to afford a mansion in the city of arts, some small apartments in which the artists of Viusi lived, and the buildings for the city government that a city needed. They had entered one of the large mansions and left Erica behind in a large, well-decorated room. Upon first glance Erica could tell some of the paintings on the wall and statues came from other countries, from well-known artists. She instantly knew that this place wasn’t a prison. There was no use in putting a criminal near this much wealth. One of the windows was open, the curtains were swaying slightly in the wind. Erica had already looked at it, looked down. There was a fall of two or three floors. For someone in better physical shape and with more experience, it would probably have been an easy escape. For her, not so much. She’d checked out the door but she didn’t even get to open it before hearing the guards outside the door talk.

So after a few minutes of exploring the room, investigating everything that was in it, trying to spend some time by identifying the maker, era and location. It didn’t take her very long to realise that she was horrible at it. And as she looked at the collection she could almost tell that the owner didn’t know either, but had only bought these things because they were expensive and rare.

Erica sat down on the black sofa that was located in the middle of the room, so she could see the door. There was another sofa facing her, and a table in between. A rug that would have cost millions and was evidently meant for decorating a wall was lying on the floor, used as a mere carpet.

She’d been sitting there for at least fifteen minutes, possibly even for the majority of an hour, before the door opened and an old lady came in. A second look told Erica the woman wasn’t that old; only about fifty, maybe sixty years old, although she had not taken the years well.

The woman sat down on the sofa opposite Erica. At that moment Erica realised why the women had appeared so familiar. She had seen the woman a few days ago, on a screen. Dame Pres was the woman’s name, if she remembered correctly. Professor Sother’s favourite actress.

A few moments passed before either one of them spoke. Erica’s hands had grabbed the bottom of her dress and were fidgeting with it without her being aware of it. It was only when the actress looked down at Erica’s hands that she noticed and stopped it.

“I have heard of your story,” the woman said. Erica stayed quiet.
“Why would you go through all of this? Your future seems so bright.”

Erica frowned: “I have things I want to do. He’d stop me from doing those things.”

“Things?” Dame Pres asked, “what kind of things?”
“Renya.” Erica said after a long pause, “If I figure out what happened to Renya I can find out what is going on.”
“It’s a quest!” Dame Pres squealed, and suddenly she looked many years younger, “a quest for wisdom!”
“I suppose so,” Erica said, “that’s why I definitely can’t get married now.”
“Then hush!” Dame Pres said, as she got up, “We need to get you into proper clothes so you can fulfil your mighty quest!”

The large door that was the only way in and out of the room opened again. Through the opening came a man of average build, with black hair covering his eyes. He was wearing a black outfit with a family crest embroidered in gold. Within a second Erica recognised the man who had caused her so much trouble; the Wyndri who had been stalking her since that meeting so long ago.

The man bowed and when he looked up he smiled.
“My name is Nicholas Tusemi of Ostia,” he said, “I heard you have my fiancée here.”