Alice groaned painfully. She felt like a building had collapsed on top of her. “Owww,” she gurgled out, her throat shuddered painfully. She tried to lift her arm to soothe the tender area, but another jolt of pain almost blinded her. So, she just lay there, in agony, looking at the pale sky, swaying trees, and an off-white cliff that jutted across her vision. Oh my lord, what did I smoke?
A weak shudder of laughter made her grit her teeth, though it wasn’t nearly as bad as it had been. She ventured to twitch a finger, a minor twinge. Moving slowly and feeling like a loosely held together bag of rocks she sat up. She looked at herself in surprise, she was wearing robes, a white inner robe that was soft against her skin and a green outer robe with black trim. In wonder she plucked at it and rubbed the silk between her fingers. Her eyes darted to her hand. Numbly she brought up her other hand. The lines were all wrong. She turned her palms over; the freckles had disappeared, and the tiny scars of her childhood were nowhere to be found. Most damningly, they were a darker beige, and noticeably smaller. What the hell? Am I dreaming, ohh, of course. I don’t remember falling asleep though, just scrolling on Pinterest, then… nothing. She wrinkled her brow, throwing lines across her forehead. I am not lost, I am here.
A bone in her hip snapped back into place and she gasped almost keeling over. Resting on a hand she recovered from the burst of sensation. Is this a dream? She shook her head and glanced around. She poked at dirt, it looked kinda like the monolith that towered above her. The product of erosion?
Slowly, with a legion of cracks and pops, she got to her feet and walked over to the wall and examined the gray rock. It was grainy, but lacked bands, a solid wall of grayish white. Limestone? Maybe shale, maybe sandstone but probably not “hmmm”
She looked around for a trail or obvious path but there was only dense jungle that thinned around the grey monolith. Alien chitters and whoops echoed from within the darkness and even safe as she was in the dream she thought better about walking into that gaping maw. Accompanied by the pleasant hum of the forest she skirted the edge of the jungle, stepping over tawny roots that crisscrossed the grey soil. A chain of ants caught her attention, and she spent a moment watching them with a little smile. They were big, almost the size of a bullet ant and some were almost as big as a thumb. The smaller ones carried pieces of leaves with them, while bigger ones watched over the others. Guards probably.
She hopped over the chain and continued. She looked at the rainforest with mounting awe and was considering exploring when she heard the faint sound up ahead. She twisted toward it and raised her chin. Is that crying? It grew louder as she got closer, until she turned a corner and saw him. A boy with one hand sat at the bottom of a staircase and in front of a stone path. He was a mess, head in his hand, racked with sobs, barely able to choke down a breath.
Pain bloomed in her chest, but she resisted an urge to rush to his side. Why do I feel so strongly? I don’t even know him. Tears pricked at the edge of her vision, and she stepped forward, unsure of what to say or do.
“Umm, Dude, are you okay?” she asked, instantly regretting her words.
He looked up stricken, tears streaming down his face, and his jaw fell. In a moment he was on her, throwing his arms around her waist and rambling unintelligibly while he sobbed into her robes. Warmth blossomed and she smiled sadly. She ran a hand through his hair and drew him down to the step. What am I doing?
“Just try and breathe, you’re alright. Deep breaths, just follow me” she said breathing loudly and rubbing circles into his back.
He took small gasps, his breath catching on his sobs.
“Just like that, you’re doing great.”
Slowly he caught his breath, and his sobs subsided. He blew his nose loudly into his green sleeve, she looked away but glanced back in time to see him wiping his sleeve on the stone step.
“So, umm, are you alright?”
“I can’t believe you’re alive! I thought you were dead!” he almost shouted.
She looked at him in confusion “umm what are you talking about?”
“The cliff, your fall, it was all my fault, I thought I’d killed you,” his gaze turned to the ground. Was that what he’d been going on about?
“What are you talking about?” she looked at him quizzically.
“Your fall” he looked at her expectantly. After a long moment his stare turned. “Are- are you okay?”
“Me? Right as rain, and you seem fine, so I should probably get going.” Alice said, standing up
“What? Where are you going?” he asked, rising to his feet.
“I just want to head into the jungle and look around a bit before I wake up. You’re welcome to join me.”
He looked at her blankly
“Anyway, see you around,” she said turning and taking a step on the stone path.
He grabbed her arm and yanked her back with surprising force.
“Ow!” she yowled “I just got put back together, I don’t need you messing with me.”
He was looking at her with real concern in his eyes “what are you thinking? Even the jungle close to the sect is dangerous, let’s find Elder Chuanli. I think you might’ve knocked something loose.”
“It’s dangerous?”
“Of course it is!”
She pondered the stones in front of her and turned around. “And where does that path lead?”
“Back to the sect. You don’t remember?”
She frowned “what are you on about?”
“Just- err, follow me. I’ll take you to Elder Chuanli, she’ll know what’s going on,” he began to make his way up the steps and stopped when he noticed she wasn’t following.
Alice tapped her chin with a finger. The forest is cool, but I don’t want this dream to turn into a nightmare. She shuddered. It’s way too real, and I guess a sect sounds cool, maybe it’s like a Daoist temple, actually that sounds kinda fun. Maybe I can meet some monks or something. After a couple of moments she turned and the boy who let out a heavy breath
The trees thinned as they walked, for the most part in silence. The steps were carved into the rock and seemed unmarked. Huh that’s strange, soft stone would show at some signs of weathering. Bah, dream logic. She remembered one time she’d been on a winding quest but ended up getting seduced by scantily clad man inside a dragon’s intestine. She rubbed her forehead in self-admonition. It’d been such an obvious ploy and she’d fallen for it. But even then, it didn’t really feel…
Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
A soft breeze bent the underbrush and rustled her hair. It brushed her face, her calves strained and sweat beaded on her forehead. I can’t remember feeling this alive in a dream before, I mean… kind of, but not this lucid. Is this a lucid dream? This would make for a terrible nightmare. What if just thinking about nightmares will turn this into one? She pushed the thought down, but it only bubbled up with more strength. What if the boy turned into a monster or something. I am not lost, I am here. I am not lost, I am here. I am not lost, I am here. She looked at the steps, the trees, the shining sun, coming back to herself.
“So, can you tell me a little bit about the sect?” Alice asked. She waited in silence for a couple moments “hey!”
He turned around startled. “What is it?”
“What’s up with this sect you’re taking me too?”
“Oh,” he let out a sigh, “It’s the Golden Beetle Sect, the second sect of the Jin empire. They’re our hosts for the time being.”
“Our?”
“Yup, you, me, and my sister.”
“Wait what?”
“Yeah, but Lai Meixiu left on an expedition two days ago, so you’ve been stuck with me.”
Alice stared at his back blankly. What is he talking about? Did I bodysnatch someone? Is… is this dream magic, holy shit! What the fuck! What is going on! “What was the expedition for?”
“She joined Elder Shu’s expedition to find spiritual herbs for Elder Bong-Hwan. The Elders Wei and Tingfeng are going with them,” his tone turned wistful, “and I think they’re going to make a pill then and there.”
“A pill?”
“Yeah! But I don’t know which one, there are more recipes than blades of grass under heaven, well maybe not quite that many, but there’s a lot. And it’s bound to be dangerous since Elder Tingfeng is going too.”
“Wait, why isn’t Elder Bong-Hwan going on the expedition? Isn’t he the one who wants the pill?”
“He’s the gatekeeper, he can hardly up and away from the gate. So he hired the other elders to do it for him. And that’s why I’ll never be a gatekeeper.”
“Sounds like you wanted to go with them.”
He drew a short breath and clenched his fist. “I would just be a burden,” he sighed, his hand fell limply.
Oh crap. I was just trying to distract myself. “So who’s this Elder, umm, Chuanli.”
Soon the sect came into view, she could just see the edge of the buildings, and in front of them loomed a lacquered wood gate that made the hair on the back of her neck stand up. The gatekeeper stood next to it. He was huge, with burly shoulders, like a walking wrecking ball. She was reminded of a Pinterest post, how the strongest people weren’t bodybuilders. This guy, this guy looked strong. He gave them a once over and flashed them a grin beneath a straw hat that hid his eyes.
The boy led him into the sect, and she stared around her. A sprawling set of buildings sat atop the mountain. Most of the vegetation had been cleared away and people in golden robes trimmed with black moved as a colony of ants. She was led up the main path and onto a smaller path that led up to a great mound of earth. It almost looks like a karst.
There was a small ‘Hobbit hole’ with a pagoda-roofed balcony built into the small mountain. Alice looked at the domicile in wonder, never had she imagined such a building. “This is where the Elder lives?” she asked wistfully.
“Yup, she should be inside, but it might be a bit of a wait.” The boy stepped forward and rang a little bell by the paper door and took a seat and melted into one of the chairs. She joined in an adjacent chair.
“What’s you’re name? I just realized I never asked.”
The boy looked at her in shock. “You don’t remember my name?”
“Nope, not at all,” so we’re close? Who am I to him? I’m not his mom, right!
“I’m Lai Jianjun, second son of the Lai Hyun-Sik, patriarch of Lai.”
“And who am I to you?”
His mouth fell open “You’re my sister’s handmaid, I’ve known you since I was born.”
Oh… This is awkward. “Sorry, but I don’t remember a thing about that.”
The door opened and a wizened lady in the plain gray robes peeked out. “Who dares to- oh, Lai Jianjun. Why did you disturb me?”
Lai Jianjun had fallen into a kowtow “I’m sorry Elder Chuanli, but Jo Meilin had a terrible accident and I don’t know who else to turn to!”
“She looks fine to me,” said the Elder, and moved to close the door.
“Jo Meilin’s completely lost her memory! She doesn’t even remember me!”
The Elder paused and looked Alice over. There was something in that gaze that reminded her of the gate, she shivered. “Fine, come inside, but this consultation will not be cheap.”
Lai Jianjun nodded meekly, and they followed the Elder.
“You have a beautiful home,” said Alice, sitting next to a window “plenty of light and fresher than I would’ve expected.”
The Elder eyed her, “Ah, thank you. I built it myself. I was inspired by a similar style of building in the far southeast. Now what do you remember.”
Lai Jianjun looked at the pair fretfully. “Nothing really comes to mind,” Alice lied
“What’s your father’s name?”
Alice shrugged
“Mother?”
“I can’t remember.”
“What’s your name?”
Oh my goodness, they just said it, what was it! “Uhh, Jo…”
The Elder turned to Lai Jianjun “Was there anything that might’ve caused this, an injury to the head or some esoteric poison?”
“Well… she fell off a cliff.”
The Elder stared at him pointedly “Yes. Well, that’ll do it, I’ve come across such cases of memory loss before, but treatment can be tricky. Sometimes the patient just needs time, sometimes they never recover, and a couple times I’ve been able to help them along,” the Elder turned back to Alice and everything went black.
Alice woke up to see Lai Jianjun standing over her looking concerned. Alice bolted upright. She was on the balcony outside Elder Chuanli’s home “What happened?” she asked.
“The Elder knocked you out and. I think she dug around in your brain. Apparently your fine and,” he smiled “your meridians are almost completely cleansed! I don’t know how or why, but they’re pristine! I actually found a manual you might be able to-”
“She knocked me out!” Alice said indignantly “How?”
Lai Jianjun shrugged “She’s an Elder.”
Alice shook her head. What the hell?
“Listen, the Elder thinks that your memories should come back with time, and for the time being you’re under my care.”
Alice looked at him blankly.
“Alright now let’s get something to eat, all this running around has given me an appetite.”
On the one hand being this snot’s ward is terrible, but food isn’t a bad idea. Besides, I’ll probably wake up in a little bit and It’d be a shame if I didn’t get to try the food.
“Lai Jianjun! Didn’t expect to see you back so soon, ah, and Jo Meilin, it’s been awhile,” said a young man in the golden robes of the sect. His long black hair was tied up in topknot and he wore a stained white apron.
“Hey Cai Junjie, Jo Meilin had a pretty bad fall so she’s taking the rest of the day off,”
“I’m fine, I just want to try some food before I wake up,” said Alice, giving Lai Jianjun a disparaging wave.
After giving Alice a weird look Cai Junjie sent them off with two trays of fried rice, noodles, and a vegetable dish and Lai Jianjun led Alice to one of the tables. She only had eyes for the food. She inhaled the meaty scent of the noodles and the hot smell that drifted from the rice, saliva flowed wetly along the tip of her tongue.
Lai Jianjun looked on in astonishment as Alice shoveled food into her mouth “Oh my goodness, this is delicious!” she sprayed.
Lai Jianjun seemed split between feasting with her and hiding his head so others couldn’t see him. “You really ought to slow down.”
Alice slurped up a tangle of noodles, chewed for a moment, then swallowed. “Okay, so this Jo Meilin, who was she?”
He stared at her blankly “You’re my sister’s handmaid.”
Alice rooted around the noodle dish for piece of beef “And who’s your sister?”
“She’s the young master of the Lai clan.” Alice raised a questioning eyebrow “The Lai clan hold’s one of the bastions that make up Jin empire. A gift from the King in Yellow.”
Alice thumped her chest and coughed, “The King in Yellow?” she asked in a strained voice.
“Yes, the immortal emperor, though it’s bad luck to speak of such things.”
Alice nodded seriously, food forgotten. “So, I’m ready to wake up, care for a nap?”
It took him a moment to grasp her meaning, “Oh, sure.”
He led her up a path away from the main sect, up a steep hill to a scenic little pagoda-like house. The view took her breath away. She stared with wonder at the karst-topography that rolled away from her, the solitary mountains that rose from the earth as though a giant had placed them. Dense forests covered everything in sight except for a sprawling city in the far distance. She only moved when Lai Jianjun pulled her out of her revery and into the small home.
He led her to a room and pulled out a mat and some pillows from a closet. She noticed the care he took in laying it all out. When he left she fixed the haphazard arrangement as though it was second nature and pulled the covers over her head.