The hill was much steeper than it first appeared, but that had never stopped him before. The challenge brought a wry smile to his face. He had to see it. Nothing less would satisfy him. As he literally clawed his way to the ridge, he looked back on what appeared as a long but gentle slope. Such deception, and yet here he was nonetheless. He began to laugh, much to the confusion of the rugged fisherman at the peak. The fisherman knelt down, brow furrowed, “You come here without the dead in tow. What be your peculiarity?”
He looked at the fisherman, light still gleaming in his eyes even though his breathing was ragged. “Worry not! I had mere come to see the ‘High Land Sea’. Now do not mistake me for a fool dear fisherman! I sought not a highland sea but the High Land Sea.” He leapt to his feet and took a long breath in and eventually released it, his little trick soothing his breathing. He pointed with great gusto at the man, “I have come here to the place referred to as The Summit for one goal and one alone! I shall wield my brilliant intellect to sanctify this glorious village for all to see its glory!”
The fisherman looked him up and down with disinterest and explained, “Sir, this be a place of burial and rest. A shanty town built to maintain the graves. Me profession exists entirely by necessity. Who would come to the gallows for the laugh of it?”
The traveler nodded, “You are correct!” He threw back his hair and laughed to the heavens before his eyes rested on the waters he had craved to lay eyes on. As he saw the sun begin to set into it and the world begin to tinge with its odd hue, he nodded to himself. His once cheerful expression now somber, he stated, “ When the surrounding land is so low, it is no wonder they believe this sea to be in the heavens. Should the worst come to pass this whole town would be washed away and so too would the legacy of memory this town seeks to maintain. Such a travesty is inevitable without divine intervention. So, let us hope that Lady Aurea shines her brightest light upon our efforts here.”
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She looked out from her balcony, the sun rising over The Hamlet on the Summit. The beautiful town that had been built from naught but graves and the seabed now beginning its hustle and bustle as people from all stripes began to wake. She ran back into her room, quickly changing before rushing out the door. Running among the shops, she bypassed them all in hopes that she didn’t miss her. The Lady in White. As she reached the top of the steps and walked under the canopy of trees, she found the woman smiling softly in the morning breeze. Her hair was as black as night, her eyes the color of the ocean. Her pale skin didn’t seem to reflect light as much as emit it. Even as she watched her white jacket flutter in the wind, the crimson lining kept color dancing across her. She leapt up and hugged the woman and asked her if she would finally tell her why she was here.
The Lady in White laughed and said softly, “I am waiting for some old friends. I know that if I’m patient enough they will find their way here.” When the girl asked her how she could be so sure, she spoke kindly, as if reassuring her, “Because all things happen in time. As sure as the sun rises.”
She watched the Lady in White look to the sun’s slow ascent with a warm and passive smile. As she watched it, a figure in black armor approached through the trees, a golden cape flowing behind him and a single blazing golden eye within the shadow of his helm. The heraldry was unfamiliar to her, but she could feel his presence in the air. As though the warmth was being stolen. Still, the Lady in White seemed reassured to see him. Tussling her hair, the Lady in White walked towards the figure and motioned him into the woods.
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“Lady LaBlanc!” She looked away for a moment to see the head of her father’s servants running to the clearing. When she looked back, she saw no trace of the two despite the meager size of the copse. She explained to him what she had seen. That she had come to talk to the Lady in White. He looked at her sternly, as if to rebuke her for lying, but upon the sincerity in her eyes he changed his approach slightly. He leaned forward and said, “The Lady in White, eh? And what was she doing today?”
She explained how she was waiting for her friends. About her comments about the sun rising.
“Well, folk tales say that she helped to bring light to this once dreary town. That many things find their way here because of her light. Mayhaps these lost souls that drift into our town are her old friends?”
She asked if the Lady in White would be back tomorrow.
He smiled softly at her, “Perhaps. Or maybe she has found her friends for now. Either way, if you are patient, I’m sure she will wait for you here one day too. Now come along. Your father is meeting with the merchant guilds from across the sea and he wished you to be there to observe.”
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Viola adjusted her lapels as she took a deep breath. She had spoken to the shareholders so often before, and each time it had ended the same. A blend of unquestioned confidence in her decision and harsh scrutiny of the quality of dividends. Regardless, she had not simply inherited this company. She had shaped it the same way every LaBlanc before her had. Each leaving their mark. Stepping out onto the stage for her rather theatrical method of addressing them, she looked back only briefly to the reassuring smile of her twin, Violetta. Smiling back, she pressed on and stepped up to her microphone. She stated firmly, “LaBlanc Limited has been expanding for many years into every avenue of profit we can, even contracting out labor we lack the natural materials for. After many years of cooperation with Lotus Electronics, we have decided to enter into a joint project with them. The terms are still being negotiated, but we are hoping that Lotus LaBlanc Unlimited will be a mutually beneficial endeavor.”
Much to her surprise, there was murmur among the shareholders. Rumors of a merger, or worse a hostile takeover. She knew why. She had heard of Mr. Lotus’ ruthless nature as a businessman and every deal she had explored with him up to this point was less akin to a negotiation and more a duel between equals. She had never steered them wrong, but the body count of Lotus Electronics was infamous in the corporate sphere. They had no idea of her own. Mr. Lotus practically made a show of his takeovers, drawing attention to it so all of his competition knew that they either take what they are given or will end up on display like the rest. But she was one of the few who had managed to earn his respect. One of the few who dared to even try to pressure him with consequences of failure to comply with her contractual demands.
He was the only one she ever discussed her conquests with. Every tech startup subsumed and gutted. Every franchise she had reskinned with their own branding to perpetuate their image. Every charity she had formed only to turn a profit on the advertising and parties for it. She was one of very few that Mr. Lotus seemed to view as an equal. It had become a game. Discovering every unfavorable deal in every contract. Every underhanded trick to hold some measure of influence and power over the other.
But they never got to see that. They had no clue of the dynamic or how carefully considered and negotiated this deal was. Viola was about to speak when her sister in her eloquent and voluminous dress stepped forward and spoke far softer than Viola had within her. While her voice was gentle, there was a strength and confidence that Viola couldn’t mimic either. It almost brought her shame. “I appreciate all of you for bringing forth your concerns and insights, but Viola and I have never failed to bring fortune and expansion to this company or pride to our family name. The LaBlancs have always been revolutionary visionaries for this city. Our ancestors came to a place that was little more than rumor and myth and helped to raise it from little more than a glorified graveyard to a sprawling metropolis.” She motioned grandly to the crowd and stated without a hint of doubt in her mind, “We have built a family for ourselves. You and all those in this town are an extension of our pride and legacy. We swear on all that we are, we will never abandon you or allow others to treat you as a commodity. Please continue to have faith in us, and we will repay that faith every time.”
The room was quiet at first but, as always, it began to slowly erupt in applause. Viola couldn’t help but smile as well. As cheesy and simple as that speech was, it truly came from her sister’s heart. Neither of them were fools, but their skills lay in different places. Watching her sister’s sincere and soft smile, she was reminded of what everyone in this town has known for years. The LaBlancs see what others do not. This city may have been founded by tradition, may have evolved by necessity, but it endured by the unbreakable spirit of it’s people. That, beyond any urban myth or lost bit of folklore, is what made this city special.