The Book of Masks (Vol. 2)

The Girl in the Golem Mask

Previously: "Dragons Vs. Wildcats" 

by Masktrix

“You sure about this, boss?” The Will golem looks at you nervously. It’s early morning, and you’ve spent most of the night getting as much sleep as you can in the form of Carmen Acuna. You’re terrified what will happen when you slip back into your actual self, complete with fever, weakened legs and general delirium. For now, you’re going to stay as Carmen, or your likely to just collapse.

“I’m sure,” you confirm. You feel like you’re making a pawn sacrifice, giving up the one piece you can play in the hope it might get you everything. But hasn’t this been a high-stakes game from the start? Whenever you’ve tried to play safe, it’s backfired in your face. And, if you’re going to beat Vee, you need to try something nobody would expect.

Walking over to your own double, you place a hand on his shoulders. “Lie on the floor,” you command. The Will golem shrugs, and gets down. You crouch next to him, set the new mask down, and, with words that are all too familiar now, pull its face off. Then, standing with Shelly, you wait for the unconscious Abigail Steiner to wake up.

“This is going to be like negotiating with Chelsea Cooper,” you inform the golem. Shelly looks at you with concern.

“No freakin’ way,” she says. “I mean, like I’ve never spoken to her, I’m not insane! But I heard from Gabby Hartley that Mark Millan got his face pounded in by the basketball team for telling Daniel Belk that he thought she had an annoying voice, like, not even anything major, just a bit nasally, but somehow it got back to her, probably via…”

You tune the golem out. There’s something comforting about Shelly babbling away, even if the real one is a stone corpse in the corner. And so you just let her talk, about nothing, about stupid rumors of a cheerleader who feels a lifetime ago, until the girl on the floor begins to stir.

“…AND there was the time Helen, that’s Helen Kim, booked to use the rehearsal room but― Oh, hey! She’s waking up, Boss.”

You nod, and step forward. “Miss Steiner,” you say quietly. Abi murmurs, then gradually her eyes open. Her brow furrows. Her head twists as she takes in her surroundings.

“What…”

“Easy,” you say, using all of Carmen’s authority in your voice. “You’re all right. You’re safe. But you need to stay calm. There’s a situation unfolding that…”

“Where am I?” her voice is filled with the same innocence she had when you last saw her. “Is this the country club? Why am I? Who are you? I was supposed to be playing squash.” She looks at her clothes, pawing at them as if they’re an affront. Your shirt falls loose around Abi’s lean frame.

“That’s what we need to talk about,” you say. “My name’s Will, this is Shelly. And it’s not Tuesday. It’s Saturday morning. About 10am, if it matters. You’ve been… asleep since then.”

“What? I’m sorry, m’am, I don’t—” Quiet. Scared. A victim.

“This is a lot to take in,” you say. “But on Tuesday someone stole your identity. And, ah—” you really should have thought more about what you were going to say. It sounds ridiculous coming out of your mouth.

“Magic,” Shelly says, “is freakin’ real.”

Very slowly, Abi gets up to her feet and looks at you both. Then she does the only sensible thing and bolts for the door. You’re easily able to shuffle into her way. “Whoa! Whoa, you can’t leave! It’s dangerous!”

“What do you mean dangerous!” She’s practically squirming, and you realize she must assume she’s been kidnapped. Why else would you wake up with strangers in a basement?

“Relax! We’re trying to help you!”

“Then! Let! Me! Go!”

“Not! Until! You! Listen!”

Abi pushes back from you, and steps back, warily. Her eyes plead. “Please, I don’t know what’s happening, just let me go.”

“I will. We will. But first, you need to listen. Kristen has stolen your identity. She’s… turned herself into you. And she wants you dead.”

Abi doesn’t say anything. And so you decide to demonstrate magic in the easiest way you know how. “Look,” you say. “I know it sounds impossible, but I’ll show you. Just calm down and watch.” You beckon the golem over, and slip your hands to its face, tugging the mask off as you mutter the magic words.

Abi doesn’t say anything as she watches the teenage girl vanish, replaced by a golem of stone. She simply looks at you, then down at the golem. Her long, chestnut hair shields her face and you can barely see her emotions. It’s impossible to get a read on what she’s thinking, but at least she doesn’t run for the door again.

“You see what I mean?” you ask, quietly. “We really need to talk.”

***

“I’m going to kill that porcine truffle hunter. No. Better. I’m going to turn her into my slave. I’m going to make her my personal property.” Abi says, voice low and filled with menace, shaking as you reveal the full extent of what’s gone on. “I’m just surprised she had the guts to try something like that.”

“I know,” you agree. “I underestimated them both.” Your attempt at common understanding does not go well.

“And you? Sincerely: fuck you, you sick fuck. What kind of person goes around knocking people out and stealing their bodies? Creeps like you belong on a register. If you ever – ever – try something like that again, I will rip whatever stupid face you’re wearing off and you will wish you were trapped as that fat bitch Kristen for the rest of your days.”

You look away. What else is there to do? Abi snorts in contempt.

“Stop being so fucking pathetic,” she snaps. “You got yourself into this mess. Now you’re going to have to live with the consequences and clean it up.”

You still can’t look at her. “I need your help,” you say quietly. “I know I’ve messed up. I’m trying to fix it. But I need your help.”

You hear footsteps, slowly advancing across the room. You look up. Abigail feels like she towers over you – or, at least, towers over Carmen – even though there’s only a matter of a few inches. The shadows in the room seem to lengthen as dawn continues to break. Behind her, you can see the first shafts of light hit Shelly. So many mistakes. You look up, meeting Abi’s gaze. You’re unable to shake yourself away from the deep, smoldering rage in her narrowed eyes.

“Then what?” she asks.

You blink. “What?”

“What happens after you fix it,” she says. “What happens when everything returns to normal? You expect me to forget about this, like nothing happened? You think Vee’s just going to back up her bags and leave? A few years back, someone drew a graffiti scribble of her on a wall. Normally shit like that is fucking omerta among students – you don’t rat. Vee did, and her little enemy was expelled. No one ever found out what Vee did, except me. And I’m telling you this because I want you to understand two things: she holds a grudge, and she’s smart enough to fuck you over without anyone knowing who did it.”

“I can outplay her,” you mutter. “I almost did before.”

Abi shakes her head. “Vee’s too smart for you. She doesn’t just maintain her4.0 GPA, she keeps half the year afloat. Why? Because she’s collecting blackmail material, because she knows she’s hanging around with future congressmen, judges, industrialists. In 20 years, when she needs a favor, she’s going to turn up and ask for one – complete with a flash drive showing how the honorable gentleman from New York only got into the Ivy League by cheating through high school. That’s how Vee Macklin thinks. So you need to start thinking about what happens next.

You shrug. “I don’t know,” you confess. “I guess I have to deal with Vee, then. Not kill her, obviously. Just… deal with her.”

“And me? You going to make me your little slave again?” It’s a harsh, deliberate provocation.

“No! I mean, I guess I could cut you in?”

Abi’s eyes remain narrowed and imperious. She looks at you, thinking. Then she takes a breath. “This is the deal. Take or leave it. I’ll get your book and your masks away from Vee, and I’ll come up with a way to stop her – the others don’t fucking matter. Kristen is too weak to do anything, Todd thinks with his tiny maggot of a cock and Chris would walk away. They’re all dead to me now. After that, you and I are going to be partners. You like being a woman, Will? I’ll find you any one of a dozen girls – or guys – at Xavier’s who are almost as good, if that’s what you want. You can play your little dress-up game. We could even have some fun together.”

She tightens her lips. “But if we’re going to do this, I need to know everything. Every detail about those masks. You’re going to tell me, real careful, how it works and what we’ve got to play with. And then I’m going to tell you how we’re going to get your book back."

Next: "A View from the Sidelines" 

*
"Table of Contents (Vol. 2)" 
"The Book of Masks (Vol. 2)"