Unexpected Guests - Chapter 3 - Mind your Manor

I stepped back and stared at the well dressed man for a moment. “How could she be expecting us? I didn’t even know this place existed an hour ago.”

“I’m afraid I’m not privy to all her secrets,” Luther replied smoothly. As he swept a hand in front of his face in one of his exaggerated motions the mask changed to an apologetic expression. “All I know is that she asked me to go to the front gate and wait for you, saying ‘I’d know you when I see you’.” 

A hand passed over his face, and the mask changed to one with a raised eyebrow and smirk. “I admit though, I didn’t expect you to stand out this much.”

“I’m glad you find this entertaining. Truth is I didn’t have either the time, or the money, to change out of my combat armor,” I sighed. “Can you give me a moment?” 

“Of course,” Luther said, bowing his head slightly.

I awkwardly mirrored the action, before stepping away and heading back to where everyone else was waiting. 

“Well, it looks like we’re going to get our audience,” I declared. “Oscar, Dorthia, thank you for your help. I’d like to give you something to thank you for your help, but I’m afraid I wasn’t expecting to visit another world today, and all the bears and I have on us are weapons. All I can give you is my heart filled thanks.”

“It’s alright girl,” Oscar laughed, “We didn’t do this for a reward, and we were heading down here anyway. Dorthia would never let me hear the end of it if she’d missed a match.”

“I’m glad,” I replied, with a smile. 

“Even though you didn’t do this for a reward, you still deserve something,” Luther declared, causing me to jump. Somehow he’d managed to sneak up just inches behind me without a sound. “Here are a pair of tickets to the premium pavilion, and a limited edition print of the staff, signed by all the floor bosses.”

The high pitch happy noise that erupted from Dorthia nearly burst my eardrums, as the orc bounced in place. Thankfully her husband was a little more reserved. 

“We appreciate the gesture, thank you,” he said, accepting the bundle before turning towards me. “You lot, take care of yourselves!”

“You too,” I replied. “Thanks again.”

As the orc couple wandered off towards the square on the opposite side of the street, attracting a crowd of excited spectators, Luther slipped up behind me again. “Now, shall we go?”

“Lead the way,” I muttered.

My bears didn’t need to be told, they just fell in behind me as I followed Luther through the massive gate. I found my eyes slowly lowering as I realized he was still moving absolutely silently. Turns out he was floating along a couple inches above the ground. When I looked up again I realized that he didn’t have any hair, or skin, on his head. It was just polished wood, almost like a mannequin. Curiouser and curiouser.

The main road of the estate was paved with dark grey stone blocks, but they were so perfectly shaped and maintained that the way was absolutely smooth, like walking on pavement. On both sides of the road were some immaculately maintained gardens. Instead of bright paths, and colorful flowers, the entire place was filled with black roses, carnivorous plants, and gargoyles. That’s not to say it wasn’t pleasant to look at, it was still beautiful, it just had a certain spooky aesthetic.

About a hundred feet down the road was a gatehouse, which seemed to be built of the same dark marble and slate as the main house. It had another dark, wrought iron gate blocking the way, and twelve foot tall hedges which extended from both sides of the gate, extending as far as I could see. The most impressive thing was a pair of fifteen foot tall blue metal statues standing on both sides of the gate.

As Luther opened the gatehouse, and gestured inside, Bob ran up to the nearest statue, and stared daggers at it.

“What are you doing?” I hissed. 

“These are trouble, dangerous!” the big bear growled. I glanced over at Bandit, who just shrugged.

“We’re here as guests. No destroying the statutory, or picking fights with locals,” I growled. 

“Fine,” Bob grumbled as he slowly backed away from the statue, never taking his eyes off the massive gatekeepers. It was only after he joined the group that I finally stepped through the door.

“Your friend has good instincts,” Luther muttered under his breath.

“Pardon?” I asked, turning towards the man, his mask now sporting a mischievous smile.

“Nothing, this way!” he replied in a singsong voice as he skipped down a long set of stairs just inside the door.

We followed him into a long, well lit stone corridor. It was quiet at first, I could hear our footsteps echoing off the heavy walls, but as soon as we reached the first connecting hallway the place started to fill with people. There were women with blue hair and gills, traveling with an assortment of sea life, and a group of wasp-like humanoids marching around in formation. There was even a transparent floating woman in a ballgown who passed up through the floor of the corridor, pausing only long enough to wave and blow a kiss our way before disappearing up through the roof. 

“This is getting crazier and crazier,” I muttered under my breath. “Deadbeat, this is real, right? It’s not some sort of crazy coma dream, caused by me smashing my head on something after going through the portal?”

“Your helmet is too well designed for that. Even if you fell directly on your head you’d be more likely to break your neck before the helmet gave out,” Deadbeat snorted.

Luther paused at the next intersection, letting a massive couch with teeth and a tongue poking out beneath its pillows waddled by. I just pointed.

“Not a hallucination,” the aqua-green bear confirmed.

Luther chuckled. “We’re almost there, please stick together. I wouldn’t want you to get separated.”

He flicked his hand at the large double doors at the end of the hallway, causing them to swing open and reveal the cavernous room beyond. 

The circular room was made of white marble, and appeared to be a hub for the complex. Multiple hallways converged in this room, and dozens of people rushed back and forth between them. The middle of the room was dominated by a massive pillar, which supported a large room which practically glowed with power. 

I only had enough time to have a quick glance before I had to run after Luther. The man floated across the room to the only set of doors which hadn’t moved since our arrival. The only difference between these doors and the other ones around the room was they were a little more ornate, but when I approached them I felt a sense of foreboding.

“This is where we part, Lady Lanivia awaits below,” Luther declared with a bow. When he came up the mask was solemn. “Your bears will have to wait here, with me. Please show her respect.”

“That’s it? Not going to warn me not to threaten her?” I joked.

“If you do, not only will your body not be found, but your spirit will be completely destroyed,” Luther replied seriously. “Respect.”

“Got it,” I replied, letting my smile fall. Bob gave me a questioning look, probably wondering if he should force his way through. I just shook my head. “I’ll be back soon, behave yourselves.”

After taking a deep breath to calm myself I pulled on the door handle. Even though the door was massive, it opened effortlessly, revealing a dark stone spiral staircase lit by black torches which disappeared deep below.

“Inviting,” I muttered as I began the long trek down. 

I wasn’t sure how long I traveled downwards, the stairs seemed to continue forever and there weren’t any landmarks or unique features, just a seemingly infinite set of stairs. Just when I started considering whether I should turn around the stairs ended, depositing me at the base of a small worn wooden door.

Frowning at how plain, and unassuming it was compared to the rest of the complex, I pushed inside. My previous impression was immediately forgotten, blown away by the scale of what was before me.

It was a library, one of nearly impossible size and impossible geometry. Hundreds of lanterns, each one sporting a purple flame, just floated in the void, and the shelves seemed to extend both up and down nearly infinitely. 

I shuddered, trying to ignore the impossibility of the place, and trudged towards the only place I could go. A platform hovering above the void, connected to the corridor by a narrow bridge of stone. As I crossed I could see dozens of books float down out of the bookshelves. Each of them pausing before a massive ornate table.

When I got closer I realized there was a woman sitting there. Grey skin, bone white hair, and dressed in an elegant purple gown. The woman sat stooped over the table, absorbed in her reading. As soon as she’d finished reading a passage of one book, and when she was done the book would shoot out from under her hand and another would take its place. She was so consumed with her reading that I wasn’t sure that she’d noticed me until I was right on top of her.

I was about to clear my throat when all the books around us simultaneously slammed shut, making me jump. I’d only taken my eyes off the woman for a moment, and when I looked back she was standing there, arms folded in front of her. Her purple eyes glowed faintly in the low light, and she wore a small knowing smile.

“Greetings Evelyn Claire,” despite her quiet tone her words seemed to echo around the room, “I am Lanivia, Lich, and owner of the Wailing manor.”