On the day of the Masquerade Feast, the maids ran a pleasantly warm bath, scrubbing her skin with prickly sponges. Afterward, they placed her into a robe, taking out the dress her mother picked out for her. The maids were overly excited about Alessia’s first social outing, even more than Alessia was about it.

The maids allowed her to get ready into the dress behind the wooden divider in the room. They made a few adjustments to her dress and then had her sit in front of a mirror to do her hair. Her hair was put into long curls that waved around her face and past her shoulders. Once she was done, she was given a golden and silver mask with sparkles around it. She placed it on her face, satisfied with how it looked.

Enora smiled at her once she saw her in the dress. “Wow,” she said, her eyes widened in surprise. “You look mesmerizing.”

She peered at herself in the mirror hanging in the bedroom, admiring the dress even more than before.

Her father came home within ten minutes, as Enora ensured Alessia looked her best before the Masquerade occurred.

Calien’s attire was a doublet in the same dark green as her dress, with golden patterns outlining the sleeves. It was the first time he saw her in the dress her mother picked, but his face remained unchanged. His blonde hair had grown into a bit of a fringe that parted in the middle, covering one of his eyes.

Alessia tried not to overthink about last night. Once she could finally leave Tethys, she could leave it all behind and never look back. The images of the snakes crawling all over her the previous night never left her mind—not once. She didn’t want to tell her mother about it, as the woman was preoccupied with preparing for the Masquerade Feast.

“You are quiet today, Ale,” her father, Alaric, said to her while she waited for the maids to finish with the final touches of her hair.

She gulped nervously. “Worried about tonight,” she said. “I have never been to one of these events before, have I?”

“The last time was ten years ago, and your grandfather cared for you. The Count has never been one for such events, so he rarely hosts them.” Another reason to leave Tethys. Since feasts, festivals, and balls were rare on the island, they did not leave a lot to be desired. “You look lovely, by the way.”

She nodded politely. “Thank you.”

Her mind returned to the conversation with Rinna yesterday, and she knew there was no way her cousin would not find out about her trying to get her request approved. Ceinwen… Alessia could handle it because of the tricks she’d pull. Almost all her life, she has tried sabotaging Alessia at any time she can.

Once Ceinwen discovered what Alessia planned to do, she would stop at nothing to get what she wanted. It must have been engraved into her when she was born.

Alessia fidgeted with the seam of her dress, wondering what would happen at the Feast. This will be interesting, no less, she thought, watching through the window as people passed by, heading to the castle. “Behave yourself,” her father warned her. “Be a good role model for your younger cousins.”

“I will, don’t worry.”

He nodded, calling out for Enora to finish up and come downstairs.

“You—not getting into mischief? I wish I could attest to that,” Calien said when her father was out of earshot.

Alessia rolled her eyes at him. “Oh, quiet. You are lucky you are even attending this event.”

Enora came down the stairs, her mask on and wearing a dress similar in color to Alessia’s, but it was more off-the-shoulder than hers. She smiled at her mother warmly, excited to see her mother dressed up formally. They left their house, following the crowd toward the count’s Castle. Something inside her made her feel uneasy, but she dismissed it as worrying about what she might say to the Count once she was there.

How would she speak with Fairley without Rinna or her parents noticing? This has to go according to plan, or I can kiss the dreams of leaving Tethys goodbye, she thought, as she, Calien, and her parents were now at the castle gates.

Once inside, she immediately spotted her cousins with her aunt and uncle. She waved at Rinna, who excitedly walked over to her and squealed in delight over Alessia’s dress. Kalix, who had his mask on, rolled his eyes. Elsbeth didn’t even acknowledge Alessia, which was normal behavior. Elsbeth was usually in her world, and who wouldn’t be at the age of fifteen? She had the same thinking expression as Delroy but sported Vilica’s beauty. Rinna and Kalix were more of a mix, but Rinna was slightly plain-looking compared to her sister and mother.

“Someone looks nervous,” Kalix said to Alessia, nudging Rinna.

“You’re not helping.”

“I know,” Kalix replied, giving her his best smirk. “Oh, come now, cousin. I was teasing.”

“You aren’t funny,” Rinna butted in, pushing him out of the way. She slipped her arm around Alessia’s, walking to their parents' place. “But seriously, Ale, are you okay?”

“I’m fine.”

“Really? Because it doesn’t look it.”

Alessia opened her mouth to respond when someone roughly pushed past her. She nearly fell over, but Rinna caught her. “Watch it!” Rinna snapped but went pale when she saw it was Ceinwen.

Ceinwen rolled her eyes at them. Her white and pink dress was a little too flowy for her taste. Her golden blonde hair was in an updo with a pink ribbon to match the dress. “Sorry,” Ceinwen said, giving Alessia a smirk that said it all. “Next time, have a bit of self-awareness, which you lack.”

“At least she has class,” Rinna replied, ignoring the glare. She took Alessia to the front of the group, where their parents were waiting to be let in. Her Aunt, Vilica, smiled warmly at Alessia while her uncle nodded.

The doors to the main ballroom opened at last. They were nearly blinded by the chandelier, made of crystals and gold, hanging above the long tables for the feast. She was struck by how beautiful and glossy the white floor was beneath her feet, how she could practically see reflections of herself and others. On the ceiling, she noticed detailed oil paintings of Tethys’ history, each one in order of how the settlers from Firdun sailed all over Sacellum until a storm from the Mercurial Sea brought them to the big island. The artists went all out for the details, she thought, unable to pull her eyes off the ceiling.

Alessia sat down beside Rinna, and Calien was on her other side. The servants were strict about having each group of guests sit with one another so as not to mess with the order of things. The feast first served a vegetable broth to each guest, and while they all enjoyed it, Count Fairley made his speech at the front of all the long tables.

“He’s going to go on and on,” Kalix muttered. Vilica elbowed him in the ribs to be quiet.

It was a typical speech on how happy Fairley was that most were able to make it to the Masquerade. Alessia soon drowned it out by gazing down at her untouched soup. The speech was too much but ended quickly, allowing the guests to finish their meals.

She didn’t feel hungry but refused to look rude by not touching the soup. She wanted to at least please Count Fairley by looking like she enjoyed the food.

The rest of the meal came after the soup, with a small portion of turkey meat, mashed potatoes, herbs, and garlic on the side. He couldn’t have thought of something more spectacular. She thought until servants poured gravy on top of it. They were also given a bread roll, each with some butter. “Now, this is a meal!” Kalix exclaimed, practically reading her mind.

“Mind your volume, boy!” Delroy snapped at him.

“I am complimenting the meal.”

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“You are too loud.”

She smiled to herself, hearing father and son banter. They were still the same; even when Kalix was a child, he always argued with his father.

Alessia was surprised when she took a bite of the turkey as she expected its meat to be rough and dry, but instead, it was nice and tender. It did not take long before everyone finished the meal and waited a few minutes before a small dessert was brought. The dessert was a brownie cut into a square smaller than her hand, marked with blue icing on top of it – the blue represents Tethys’ national color.

Not long after guests ate their dessert, the dishes were taken from them, and all were gathered into another room – a much larger one. Portraits of people from Count Fairley’s family, mainly his ancestors, decorated the walls, each with golden frames. While some were larger than others, only a few stood out to the naked eye. The ballroom’s beige porcelain tile made her nervous to step on as it was even more elegant than the dining room hall.

Violins began playing, and guests had already started dancing. Alessia stood there, knowing she should dance, but wondered if that was a good idea. What if she slipped on the floor? It was slippery enough to make her look like a fool. Her parents were dancing, both with the same love in their eyes that they had for one another since she could remember. She cursed herself for not practicing how to dance more before this Masquerade Feast.

People wore their masks, and it started getting a bit difficult to distinguish who were her relatives and who weren’t. She spotted Ceinwen dancing with a gentleman older than her by at least ten years. She noticed she disappeared after the first dance, and Alessia lost sight of her. She just wanted to avoid Ceinwen altogether.

“You aren’t going to dance?” Calien asked her. She forgot he had been next to her the entire time.

“Told you I wouldn’t.”

“All right, if you insist.”

He left her side and asked a woman at least her mother’s age if she would like to dance. She accepted, and he gently took her hand to the dance floor. Unease settled inside Alessia as she watched the random woman with Calien. He was a graceful dancer, not even worried about where to put his hands… he just knew.

She almost regretted not dancing with him. She had nobody to blame but herself. Who else would ask her? Despite the masquerade, nobody paid her much attention, although a few glares were aimed in her direction here and there. How come her parents never noticed the attention she received from the people in Stag?

A few moments later, Ceinwen, as red-faced as ever, brushed past Alessia harshly as she did before. “Out of my way!” she snapped, looking like she might pop a vein from her head at any moment.

As the dancing continued, she noticed Count Fairley was by himself, drinking his wine as he studied one of the paintings on the wall. The painting was of a woman with curly blonde hair and beautiful blue eyes, wearing a white dress with poofy sleeves. She took the time, slipping away from Rinna and the others, hoping Calien would not follow her. “That’s a beautiful painting,” Alessia said.

“You like it?” he asked. “The artist’s name is Noel Owens. I commissioned him to paint this woman – my wife before she passed away 20 years ago.”

Her smile faltered. “I am sorry to hear that.”

“Don’t be sorry. She was a lovely woman, and I celebrate the life she lived with me.”

“Experiencing loss is never easy, no matter how long ago it’s been,” Alessia said.

“What loss have you had, young lady?” he asked curiously.

“My Grandfather died a few years ago.”

He nodded, his eyes still not taken off the painting. “What’s your name?”

“Alessia Raith.”

“Ah, how could I forget? The daughter of my favourite Sea Captain!” She stood awkwardly, her eyes searching for Rinna, but only found Calien speaking with another young lady. “What can I do for you, my dear?”

She was not expecting that question. She tore her eyes away from Calien. “Your Lordship, I… had no intentions of –”

“Lady Alessia,” he said, turning his head toward her. “Rarely do guests come up to me for small talk. Out with it.”

She sighed a bit nervously. “I wanted to ask you if I could have permission to leave Tethys,” she said, grimacing at how informal she sounded in front of the Count of all people!

“And why do you wish to leave?”

She wondered if she should tell him the real reason or not. Anxiety rose inside her chest as she felt the muscles in her body constricting. “I don’t need to live here any longer.” She gulped, unsure if the answer was a good enough reason.

He shook his head as if he were disappointed in what she said. “That isn’t the reason,” he said, frowning. “I want the real reason.” She opened her mouth but closed it, clenching her jaw. Her mind spun, trying to think of words to say to him. “No answer? Then I cannot allow you to leave Tethys until you have a better reason.”

“I promise you my reason is a valid one.”

“But it’s not permissible. The law I have in place for Tethys is for war and safety reasons. Leaving because you don’t enjoy living here won’t help anyone but yourself.” Damnit, no! she thought, words still racing inside her head. She stood before Count Fairley, knowing her future was slipping through her fingers. “Give me a real reason, and then we will talk. One person has already asked tonight. I turned her down.” Ceinwein, Alessia thought, explains her foul mood.

“There might be another person wanting permission to leave, your Lordship,” she said, which caused him to raise an eyebrow. She whispered, “My cousin Rinna plans on asking you.”

He rubbed his chin, nodding. “That is a problem,” he said. “The tensions with her father do not help the situation, especially if I agreed. I will handle it. Thank you for letting me know.” He excused himself from her, and she exhaled a breath she was holding in. She couldn’t believe she sold out her cousin, but it was true. Rinna’s father contributed to tensions outside of Tethys. Allowing his daughter to leave would cause more problems.

She stood there for a moment, shocked by her actions.

She needed a breath of fresh air.

Heading out to the balcony with no one else around, she trembled with closed fists. She paced back and forth. She didn’t know if Count Fairley would tell Rinna, who ratted her out, but hell would freeze over if he did.

The cold night air made the hair on her arms rise. The wind lightly blew against her hair while she tried to ignore the music and laughter from inside. She felt a strange crawling sensation at her feet, which made her yelp loudly. A snake, about average size, with green scales, slithered toward her. She turned around, almost screaming, when she saw even more approaching her. It was like the night before, except there were even more snakes.

She tripped and fell backward, feeling the snakes crawling all over her body. She tried opening her mouth to scream, but no sound came out. She covered her eyes, muttering how it wasn’t real. She stopped hearing the snakes’ hisses and uncovered her eyes. Instead of the snakes disappearing, she saw their carcasses… each with blood and skin still attached.

“Alessia.” The voice yet again. But it sounded more profound than before.

Her chest tightened.

She saw nobody near her, yet she heard the words of chanting under a tongue she didn’t recognize. “Sarah manet.” She backed away until she hit the balcony railing. When she glanced at the ground, the snake carcasses disappeared. “Maledictio adest.”

Who are these people? She thought, watching from the balcony. Were they new arrivals? People from the town were still outside and chose not to attend the Masquerade Feast, cautiously approaching the strangers, but guards around Stag ordered citizens to stay back. One of the guards was becoming annoyed with the strangers who were not answering him.

Dazed from seeing the snakes’ carcasses, she was about to walk away from the balcony when screaming from the town stopped her. The guard who spoke to the strangers was covered in blood, and from where she was, she saw his face was completely gone. Citizens who witnessed the scene ran into their houses. The guard still screamed relentlessly as the strangers ripped him apart limb by limb. She closed the window instantly, covering her mouth. What the hell is happening?

She still heard the screams, unsure if they were coming from the guard or others.

She ran inside, where nobody knew of the commotion happening in the town, frantically searching for her family amidst the dancing. She bumped into a few people, tears streaming down her face, ruining the cosmetics on her face. While the music continued, despite her fears, she finally spotted her parents dancing with each other, laughing and having a good time.

Her breath hitched, moving toward them. A hand grazed her shoulder, and she yelped. It was Calien. “What’s the matter?” he asked her.

“I saw something in town…” she said.

“The music is too loud,” he said, trying to raise his voice louder. “I can’t hear you.”

“I said, I saw –”

The large doors to the dance hall opened. A guard with blood all over his face and armor strode in, limping. The blood was coming from an empty eye socket. “Help…” he said, stumbling into Ceinwen, who looked at him in horror. She screamed, catching the attention of other guests. The crowd stood back, watching the guard fumble until he abruptly stopped, falling face-first onto the floor. Behind him was a woman smiling from ear to ear. A wimple covered most of her hair, leaving only her face, while the rest of her outfit was a simple brown cotte. The way she kept smiling and standing still made Alessia’s heart beat faster.

Nobody in the room moved. The music stopped, and people weren’t even screaming.

“Get her out of here!” Count Fairley commanded the guards.

The guards approached the smiling woman in a group of four, who had not even moved. “You are not welcome here, peasant,” one of the guards said.

The woman’s features darkened, and the guard who spoke stopped.

“Don’t go near her!” Alessia called out. “She’s dangerous!”

With their attention on her, the woman drastically changed. Her teeth became sharp as knives, biting one of the guards’ necks. Guests started screaming again, running out of the dance room. Calien grabbed Alessia’s hand, pulling her away from the crowd. They ran in a different direction, still hearing the shrill screams from down the hall.

“Keep moving,” Calien urged her. “We have no time to stop!”

“But my family is still out there!” she cried.

“Your father’s instructions were to keep you safe, not the entire family.”

Alessia was too out of breath to respond to him.

As they reached for the door that would lead them outside, the same woman who killed the guard in front of everyone stood there smiling. “Now, now,” she said. “No need to run. We just wanted some fun.”

Calien kept Alessia behind him, his sword out of the sheath. “Stay back,” he warned the woman.

“Oh my, a sword?” the woman chuckled. “There is no need for such things when we both know it won’t do anything.” Calien was not backing down, aiming the sword at the woman. She grabbed the sword, clasping it until it broke into several pieces. “You can call me Fiona. It’ll be the last name you will hear before you die.”