// TOWER OF AZORA //

OPHELIA

LIKE, ISN’T VLAD LATE WITH OUR STUFF?

ESTHER

HE IS A LITTLE LATE. HE’S BEEN LATE A LOT LATELY.

OPHELIA

HE DOESN’T, LIKE, HAVE HIS ASSISTANT ANYMORE.

ESTHER

MANDARC?

OPHELIA

YEAH. MANDARC MOVED OUT.

ESTHER

THAT’S A BUMMER I GUESS.

OPHELIA

JUST MEANS HE’S GOT LESS HELP AROUND THE HOUSE.

ESTHER

I’M SURPRISED HE KEPT ANYONE AROUND.

OPHELIA

HE’S ALWAYS HAD PEOPLE AROUND.

ESTHER

SO MUCH FOR LONER TRAIT.

OPHELIA

PSH-YEAH!

ESTHER

REMEMBER THAT ONE PARTY?

OPHELIA

YOU KNOW I DO.

ESTHER

SHOULD I CALL HIM?

OPHELIA

NAW.

HE’LL BE HERE.



The girls cycle about the apartment. Ophelia was going through a phase wherein she didn’t care to be around Esther unless she were in an exceedingly good mood. It was recent and unusual and seemed centered on her sister. Who is to say if she’d grow out of it?

I was lurking about in the shadows outside their entrance waiting for an appropriate time to interrupt.

I knock on the door.

STRAUD

GIRLS.

ESTHER & OPHELIA

VLAD!!

ESTHER

IT’S NICE TO SEE YOU.

OPHELIA

PLEASE COME IN.


The girls let me into their flat.

STRAUD

I APOLOGIZE FOR BEING LATE.


Ophelia waves her hand to dismiss my concern. It was a showy gesture, bold and unbidden, as was her mannerism.

OPHELIA

IT’S NO BIGGIE.

ESTHER

YEAH, SINCE YOU DON’T HAVE HELP ANYMORE WE JUST FIGURED YOU’RE A BIT SHORT-HANDED.

OPHELIA

WE DON’T HAVE ANYTHING BETTER TO DO.


Esther loved to correct her sister.

ESTHER

WELL THAT’S NOT EXACTLY TRUE.

OPHELIA

WE’RE TAKING SOME CLASSES.

STRAUD

THAT’S WONDERFUL NEWS, GIRLS.


I take a moment to brush my hands off on my wool coat, straightening it out from the voyage.

STRAUD

AS FOR THE ASSERTION THAT I DON’T HAVE HELP ANYMORE, I MUST INSIST THAT’S NOT TRUE.

I HAVE MORE HELP THAN I KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH.

I POSSESS NO IMPEDIMENTS TO VISITING YOU TWO ONCE A WEEK. IN FACT, I RATHER LOOK FORWARD TO THE EXCHANGE. IT GIVES ME A CHANCE TO KEEP UP WITH THE LATEST GOSSIP.

ALTHOUGH ON THIS PARTICULAR OCCASION, I WOULD LIKE TO BORE YOU A MOMENT OR TWO WITH A FAIRYTALE.


Esther, too, maintains the appearance of her dress, flattening her hands against her hip.

ESTHER

OH, YOUR STORIES ARE NEVER BORING, VLAD.

OPHELIA

IT’S BEEN FOREVER SINCE YOU TOLD US A STORY.


I brush down my hair and think for a moment on my top hat.

If the era were different, I might be removing it right now and placing it upon a hook.

STRAUD

SINCE YOUR MOTHER PASSED.


My statement brings a somber tone into the gathering.

ESTHER & OPHELIA

YEAH.


I wonder how genuine their emotions are. The girls were often a torrent of tumultuous reactions.

STRAUD

HOW HAVE YOU TWO BEEN?

ESTHER

WE’VE BEEN ALRIGHT.

OPHELIA

BEEN A LITTLE, YA KNOW, QUIET AROUND HERE.

STRAUD

I’M SURE IT HAS BEEN.

THAT WAS PART OF THE REASON I THOUGHT I MIGHT LINGER ON YOUR PRESENCE FOR A MOMENT MORE THAN IS OUR CUSTOMARY.

ESTHER

OH, IT’S NOT A BIG DEAL.

IT’S JUST NICE OF YOU TO BRING THE GOODS HERE, WEEK AFTER WEEK.

OPHELIA

YEAH, IT’S REAL NICE.


But the girls don’t realize that I see the delivery as my duty, in the memory of their mother, to continue on as I had been doing. It is fine for them to express gratitude, but I would continue at my task with or without their display.

We leave the foyer and make our way to the sitting room. The television is on. It’s a fairly recent addition to the flat. Or at least, it feels recent to me.

The windows are generous and lightly frosted.

I start into my speech.

STRAUD

THERE ONCE WAS A PRINCESS OF A KINGDOM FAR AWAY.

YOU GIRLS STILL BELIEVE IN PRINCESSES, DON’T YOU GIRLS?

ESTHER & OPHELIA

OF COURSE WE DO!

STRAUD

THIS PRINCESS LIVED FAR AWAY BUT WAS MUCH LIKE US IN VALUES AND SENSIBILITY.

HER MOTHER WAS BENEFICIENT, NEVER PAUSING TO GIVE GIFT UPON ANY WHO NEEDED IT.

BUT THE PRINCESS GREW UP SPOILED AND IGNORANT OF THE VALUE OF THE SPLENDOR SHE TOOK AS SO COMMONPLACE.

IT WAS NO ONE’S FAULT AS MUCH AS IT WAS EVERYONE’S FAULT.

HER MOTHER AND FATHER ALWAYS HAD SOME MANNER OF BUSINESS THAT THEY HAD TO TEND TO.

THIS, TOO, WAS THE FAULT OF EVERYONE AND YET, NO ONE.

IT WAS A TIME OF GREAT CONFLICT AND THE TWO PARENTS WERE EMBROILED IN THE AFFAIRS OF RULING A KINGDOM.

SURELY YOU TWO MIGHT UNDERSTAND; YOUR PARENTS ALWAYS SENDING YOU OFF TO SCHOOL?

ESTHER

WELL, MOM FELT WE NEEDED TO LEARN SOMETHING.

STRAUD

THAT’S VERY WISE OF YOU TO SAY, ESTHER.

SHE DID FEEL HER DAUGHTERS SHOULD HAVE MORE THAN WHAT WAS OFFERED TO HER.

I DARESAY NEITHER OF YOU HAVE SUFFERED DUE TO YOUR SCHOOLING.

OPHELIA

NO, IT WAS JUST A WASTE OF TIME.

STRAUD

YOU KNOW WHAT THEY SAY.

TIME ENJOYED IS NEVER WASTED.

ESTHER

YOU’RE SUCH AN OPTIMIST.

STRAUD

I’VE BEEN ACCUSED OF SUCH ON MORE THAN ONE OCCASION.

OPHELIA

ANYWAY, PLEASE CONTINUE.

STRAUD

WARTIME BRINGS IN ITS WAKE BOTH GREAT TURMOIL BUT ALSO SOIL RICH WITH THE BLOOD OF ONE’S ENEMIES.

THAT SOIL IS RICH FOR GROWING FRUIT.

SO LONG AS IT IS NOT TAINTED WITH ASH.

ESTHER

WHAT HAPPENED TO THE GIRL’S MOTHER?

STRAUD

THE PRINCESS? HER MOTHER, THE QUEEN, DIED.

WHETHER DUE TO OLD AGE OR A BROKEN HEART, NONE CAN BE SURE.

BUT THIS STORY IS NOT ABOUT HER, NO, HER DEATH OCCURRED LONG AGO.

THE PRINCESS WAS WISE TO THE WAYS OF THE WORLD.

TO PURSUE HER DESTINY, SHE KNEW SHE HAD TO GO ON A GREAT JOURNEY, ONE THAT COULD EQUALLY RESULT IN HER DEATH.

BUT THERE WAS NOTHING LEFT FOR HER IN THE OLD WORLD.

ON THE OTHER HAND, SHE KNEW SHE COULD NOT SURVIVE THE JOURNEY WITHOUT SUPERNATURAL ASSISTANCE.

SHE PRAYED AND PRAYED AND THE GODS SENT HER AN IMMORTAL STEED, THE MOUNT PEGASUS.

OPHELIA

REMINDS ME OF SAILOR MOON.

STRAUD

THERE ARE CERTAIN SIMILARITIES BETWEEN THAT TALE AND OURS.

BUT I’D LIKE YOU TO REMEMBER THE DIFFERENCES AS WELL.

HERS WAS A TIME OF GREAT WAR.

BUT WAR MEANS SOMETHING DIFFERENT TO THE TRUE CHILDREN.

NO, THIS PRINCESS WAS AN ADOLESCENT COMPLETE WITH THE LIMITATIONS AND RIGHTS CONFERRED UPON THAT LIFE STAGE.

SHE HAD NO SHORTAGE OF KNIGHTS KNOCKING DOWN HER DOORSTOP, AN ACT THAT WENT MOSTLY UNWATCHED BY HER ELDERS.

BUT THEY WERE A CHIVALRIC LOT, AS THE SOLDIERS OF THE TIME WERE. IT FALLS IN AND OUT OF FASHION, THAT SET OF RULES.

SHE NEVER TOOK ANYONE’S HAND, KNOWING HER DUTY FELL TO HER KINGDOM.

SHE KNEW SHE NEEDED TO FOLLOW IN HER PARENTS’ FOOTSTEPS.

THE PRINCESS KNEW SHE NEEDED TO MAKE A JOURNEY IN ORDER TO HAVE ANY HOPE OF HELPING HER NATION.

IT COLORED HER WAKING MOMENTS UNTIL SHE COULD TAKE IT NO LONGER AND SHE LEFT THE PLACE OF HER BIRTH.

ESTHER

WAS IT THAT SHE FEARED DEATH?

STRAUD

EITHER HERS OR THE VERY RUIN OF HER PEOPLE.

BUT SHE MADE HER JOURNEY, AND LIVED TO TELL THE TALE.

BUT WHAT SHE FOUND FRIGHTENED HER TO HER VERY CORE, AND SHE KNEW NOT HOW TO RECTIFY THE ISSUE.

OPHELIA

WHAT DID SHE FIND?

STRAUD

A GODLESS WORLD.

A WORLD WHERE THE PEOPLE OF THE EARTH WERE ATTEMPTING TO RULE THEMSELVES, IGNORANT OF THE CIRCUMSTANCE BY WHICH THEY’D BEEN PLACED UPON IT.

SHE HAD DESIRED TO FOLLOW IN HER PARENTS’ FOOTSTEPS BUT HER MOTHER AND FATHER WERE UNKNOWNS IN THIS NEW PLACE.

ESTHER

BUT SHE STILL HAD HER PEGASUS.


I bow to her slightly, trying to impress upon her my gratitude for her paying attention to my tale.

STRAUD

YOU’RE VERY CORRECT, ESTHER.

SHE STILL POSSESSED THE GUIDANCE OF THE PEGASUS.

THERE WAS STILL THE REMNANTS OF AN OLD RELIGION WHICH HAD SUNG THE PRAISES OF THE MONARCHY AND ITS DEIFIC SPONSORSHIP.

BUT THE MESSAGE WAS OBSCURED BEHIND FALSE PROPHECY AND MISTAKEN RHETORIC.

DARE I REMIND YOU THAT OUR PRINCESS IS TROUBLED WITH THE ALL-CONSUMING WORSHIP OF THE NEW, AS IS COMMON IN PLACES RAVAGED BY WAR. SHE DOES NOT WANT TO LINGER UPON THE MESSAGE OF THE YOUNG CHURCH AND TRY TO WAIT FOR WORDS TO FALL OUT OF FASHION.

SHE HAS BEEN SUBJECT TO A NUMBER OF VISIONS AND REFUSES TO DELIVER A PATIENCE UPON THE FEW WORSHIPPERS THAT REMAIN.

THE PRINCESS TAKES OVER THE CHURCH AND INSISTS HER PEOPLE, AN ANCIENT SORT OF ELF, WILL BE BACK TO CAST JUDGMENT OVER THE PLANET IN THE LIGHT OF THE GODS THAT HAD MADE THEIR HOME THERE.

SHE PROCLAIMED THE SAFETY OF ALL WHO TRULY BELIEVE.

BUT SHE MADE UNFOUNDED PROMISES, FOR SHE’D BEEN UNABLE TO SPEAK WITH THE GODS OF THE NEW LAND.

HER CHURCH A COLLECTION OF ILL-LED BISHOPS.

OPHELIA

DID SHE KNOW WHAT SHE DID?

STRAUD

THAT’S A VERY GOOD QUESTION, OPHELIA.

NO, I DO NOT THINK SHE WAS AWARE OF THE DEGREE TO WHICH THE POWERS OF THE GODS HAD CHANGED.

FOR HER WORLD WAS VERY DIFFERENT THAN OURS IS.

SHE ASSUMED THE NEW LAND WAS LIKE THE OLD LAND. BUT IT WAS THERE SHE WAS MISTAKEN.

OPHELIA

IF THAT’S THE WAY SHE WAS RAISED, IT’S LESS HER FAULT.

ESTHER

YEAH, THAT’S RIGHT. SHE TRIED HER BEST TO DO GOOD BY HER PARENTS.


I suppose I should not expect my tale about the irreverence of youth to fall uncontested upon their ears.

OPHELIA

HOW WAS SHE TO KNOW THAT THE NEW WORLD HAD MORE GODS IN IT?

ESTHER

THE GODS ARE NOT KNOWN FOR GIFTING US THEIR HOW-TO MANUALS.

STRAUD

IT IS CERTAINLY TRUE THAT THE YOUNG WOMAN WAS USED TO APPROACHING THE WORLD AS A SET OF DISPARATE POINTS WAITING TO BE AMALGAMATED. ORGANIZED. CONQUERED.

ONE OF HER DEFINING FAULTS WAS THAT SHE DID NOT LISTEN TO HER WOULD-BE CONSTITUENTS. SHE SAW EVERYTHING IN THE SHADOW OF WHAT SHE’D KNOWN IN HER CHILDHOOD.

WARTIME DOES NOT OFTEN TEACH THE MERITS OF ABSORBING THE SPEECH OF ONE’S RIVALS.

ESTHER

WHAT HAPPENED TO HER?

STRAUD

WHAT HAPPENED TO HER? WHY, SHE LOST CONTROL OF THE CHURCH THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN LAID IN HER HANDS AS A GIFT AMONG GIFTS.

BY REFUSING TO INTERFACE WITH ITS ROOTS, SHE DAMNED THE CHURCH.

SHE MIGHT VERY WELL HAVE FOUND SOMETHING WORTH FINDING, IF SHE’D LOOKED MORE CAREFULLY.

OPHELIA

SO YOU’RE SAYING SHE TRAVELED ALL THIS WAY JUST SO SHE COULD FAIL AT TAKING OVER THE NEW NATION?

STRAUD

NOW BE CAREFUL WITH MY WORDS, GIRLS.

I DID NOT SAY THAT SHE FAILED IN TAKING OVER THE NEW NATION.

JUST THAT SHE DID SO GODLESSLY.

ESTHER

BUT WE’RE SUPPOSED TO TAKE IT AS A FAILURE BECAUSE OTHERWISE SHE’LL GET CURSED OR SOMETHING.

STRAUD

ASTUTE.

BEWARE THE PRETENSES UNDER WHICH YOU ARE BORN. TRY TO COME AT LIFE WITH AN UNBIASED PERSPECTIVE.

AND, AS ALWAYS, BEWARE THE WRATH OF THE GODS.

OPHELIA

FIRE AND BRIMSTONE, I DIG IT.


She roughhouses an elbow into my side, unwelcome.

ESTHER

THAT ONE WASN’T SO BAD, VLAD.

I LIKE ONES WITH PRINCESSES.


I mutter quietly to myself, irritated that the girls have aleady fled into one of their other distractions.

STRAUD

IT WAS A…CAUTIONARY TALE.