The Obsidian Princess

Chapter 1

 Eloa opened her eyes to see that she was encased in a cocoon of bubble wrap which gave her just the air enough to breathe to be still alive. Her most immediate reaction was to try to get out of it and tear off the bindings that were keeping her stuck at that position. As she raised her head she found that there was no one else in the place, which was a haven for almost an incredible degree of cleanliness. No light, no darkness, no shadows, just white, bland emptiness without the tiniest splash of colour. After a lot of struggle she could finally get out of the bubble wrap and fell on the ground with a thud when she heard light footsteps on the floor.

There were no doors, no windows, just more walls stretching away like an infinite prison with someone coming after her. She started to sweat, tremble and her heart started beating out of her ribs. She started running to find a way out of this place, but kept on finding endless passages and tunnels in white with the footsteps steadily coming after her although she could not see her pursuer. And finally she stumbled on empty space and fell down only to cower back from the figure looming over her when suddenly she heard something ringing. This time when she opened her eyes, it was for real and her alarm was ringing near her head.

Eloa switched off the alarm and pulled back the covers. As she rubbed her eyes she could still feel beads of cold sweat running down her spine from the dream she just had. But she could not dilly-dally any longer since their team was supposed to meet at the airport in two hours. As she put on her slippers and walked towards the bathroom, yawning, Eloa knew that it was gonna be a pretty long day.

“You are up early dear,” said Sonia as she pulled out the toasts from the toaster oven.

“Yes Mom…we are going for this trip, I told you know…I have to be pretty early..I still have a few things to pack,” said Eloa as she pulled out the container of orange juice and poured herself a glass.

“Now what for was this trip again?” asked Sonia as she could not remember what her daughter had told her. She was old enough to be her grandmother but Eloa knew that there could be no better mother for her. She had come to their lives at a time when there was no chance of them having a family. She was their lucky miracle, as they called her.

“This is a trip to study the ancient castle of the Bloody Countess. She was a very strange woman as far as I have read. We are being taught about the architecture of the old Gothic structures so that when we are supposed to design for high end clients we can suit their needs and whimsies in any way they like,” said Eloa as she drank the juice from the tumbler.

“I still cannot come to terms with the fact that you are going to spend your 21st birthday away from us,” said her father who came in from the greenhouse attached at the back of their home.

“Come on Papa…it is no big deaaaalll….at alllllll,” said their pretty little girl who had been always called the freak and had been bullied in school. But strangely she had fought with every single one of the, and made her mark, letting it know in the town that just because she looked different she was not going to hear anything different or be treated anything different.

“You know darling…it is a big deal for us…our little girl is now so much grown up that she is going to see things and go places where we have never been before…but still I cannot believe we are going to miss her having her birthday with us. And who on earth takes someone to a trip just a few days before Christmas??? I don’t have any clue that who takes away their kids during this time of the holidays,” said Sonia as she sniffled softly without looking back and the father and daughter looked at each other.

Eloa wanted to roll her eyes but she knew that her mother was really sad about the fact that she would be away.

“Mama…come here….yeah…look at me…,” said Eloa as she made her mother turn towards her,” I am going to be back home even before you know it…so don’t you worry at all….and we are going to have our Christmas party and my birthday party together…alright? It will be double the fun…come on…now smile a little bit…you know I hate seeing you this way while I am going somewhere.”

Sonia looked at her and then said,” Is it really that essential for you to go? I mean can you not give it a miss this time?”

Eloa smiled at her mother and said,” Mama…you have raised me to be a strong and independent woman who wants to make her own mark and create her own niche and I am never going to be able to do that if I am always here with you guys staying back at home!!!”

“She is correct Sonia..it is time to let your bird fly you see!!!” said Hans, Eloa’s father as he took a sandwich from the pile kept on the plates and bit into it.

“How many times…Hans? How many times all these years have I said that you ought to wash your hands after you come from the greenhouse before eating? When are you going to learn that it is not a good habit to be like this? Cleanliness is something you should practice as a way of life…” said Sonia as her complete attention shifted from her daughter to her husband.

Hans smiled at the mother and daughter as Eloa nodded her head at her father. She knew that he had done that intentionally.

“Mom…look at me…,” said Eloa,” I am always going to be your baby girl and I am always going to be yours…no one or no such thing can take me away from you. I promise this. And this is going to be my home always, my only anchor. So don’t worry at all.”

“Well darling…I don’t think I can really be of much help when it comes to the last segment. You see, from the day you came home in my arms it is my primary job to worry about you and then to take care of my baby girl. Now that you are all grown up I am not going to be able to get rid of that habit so easily,” said Sonia as she wiped her cheeks with the back of her hand.

“I am never going to say that to you ever Mom. Worry all you want…and I am gonna send you a lot of pictures from the trip and I am going to call you on Face time almost every single day when I get a chance. Is that going to do?” asked Eloa as she kissed her mother’s hands.

“Well I guess we have to come to some kind of arrangement and this might be it,” said Sonia as she kissed her daughter’s cheeks.

When she had brought the new born baby home she had marveled at the fact that she had a head full of black hair like the raven’s wing and eyes which were greener than the purest cup of absinthe. But that was not what had worried Sonia that cold night, it was the fact how cold and clammy her body was, and even after keeping her near the fire as well her temperature did not rise. They had taken her to the doctor of the town who had said that every thing was normal with the baby. There was nothing wrong with her health at all but that never stopped the people of the town from calling her kid the freakish pale ghost.

“When you will some day become a mother Eloa, then you will understand how tough it is for a mother to let go off her child when she is grown up. You might not understand this today but you will understand that some day,” said Sonia with a sad smile on her face.

Eloa knew that her mother was sad at her going away for a few days but she could not do anything about it. It was a question of her career and the way that she will be going ahead in her life and in this town only two people except her parents have been always protective and caring about her. One of them was her best friend Nia and the other one….welll she had not heard from him since the last six years when they were in eighth grade and their parents shifted away with him in tow.

It still pained her to think about him…but she could do nothing about the fact and nothing good was going to come out thinking about him.