Beyond Wonderland - Chapter I: Leosia

Sirens went off loudly that night. You would think we would get used to them by now. The Middle East was attacking again, a war to take over the United States. Everyone wanted power; power corrupts those who have it and the need for it corrupts those who want it. The U.S had all the power.
         I had been asleep with all of the others when shouts joined the sirens. One of the little ones began to cry as I raced to meet the owners of the orphanage. Being the only sixteen-year-old in the orphanage was pretty hard to deal with. I mean, I had to help take care of the younger ones and look out for them. Along with that I had no friends. They were all given families when I was younger.
         I recognized the sirens as soon as I got out onto the front step. This time it was an air raid. They would bomb us from above in airships as large as the state of Rhode Island. People lined the streets, pushing each other to get out of the city. New York was always crowded and selfishness did not help at a time like this. I stubbed my toe as I hurried back inside to round up the younger ones. We had to get to the shelter.
         “Jane!” I heard Misa, one of the owners of the orphanage, shout my name. They were already safe in the shelter. All I needed to do was get there myself. The shelter, which we so desperately needed at the moment, was just a basement. I had been there several times over the last couple of years, since the war started. Of course I was nowhere near the shelter. A whizzing noise made me run faster. They had dropped a bomb. Time was running out and I had to get to the basement. I pushed my way through toppled furniture and forgotten toys left out. Only inches now from the shelter, I started to relax. I would make it in time. I clung to that belief as a blinding white light filled the room.
         A sharp pain ran though my body and I was flung up against the wall beside the door to the basement. Blackness replaced the white.
         Did I die? I saw no tunnel, no life flashing before my eyes. Maybe that was not how it went. Maybe I just stopped existing, but then why was I still thinking?
         Was this what it was like to die? To be terrified and hopeful? You could be terrified of what awaits you and hopeful of something good to be waiting for you. No. I wanted to live. No matter how many times I had thought of suicide, I wanted to see what life had in stored for me. I wanted to live.
         I gasped for air and to my surprise a lungful filled into my mouth. My eyes opened slowly to see the sky. It was a brilliant light blue, the afternoon sun shinning down upon me.
         I was not dead after all. I sat up slowly, leaning against the wall behind me for support. My body hurt exceedingly awful and I noticed a red liquid covered most of it. Blood. I was shocked to even have survived the attack. Why had I survived? Had the others?
         The others! I should go see them. My hands pushed on the wall and I slid up into a standing position. My knees were wobbly and I felt dizzy. I turned and made my way to the door. I pulled hard on the handle and it took a lot of my energy to even open it a crack. After about ten minutes I managed to get it open enough to squeeze through.
         I squinted into the darkness, a feeling of dread creeping into my stomach along with the dizziness. Something white glowed at the edges of my eyes and as I turned my head to look at it, it raced down into the shelter. “Hello? Aunt Misa? Uncle Ryan?” I called down to them. The owners always insisted on everyone calling them aunt and uncle. I had rarely done so. My footsteps sounded loud in the vast room below as I stepped down the stairs. Everything was messy and crowded, like usual. They kept old forgotten junk down here.
         My eyes adjusted slowly to the darkness and I could faintly make out some of a dark brown off to the side. I ran my hand over it and was not too surprised to see it was wooden. It was one of those rounded wooden doors. I laughed softly. The younger ones had always wanted to open the door, to see what was behind it.
         I wonder, could they be hiding behind the door? It was sitting up against the stone wall like a regular door. Maybe it led to another room. I pulled the door open, surprisingly it was light. Another bright light filled the room and blinded me. Another bomb? But the sirens were off. No, the light was coming from the other side of the door. I reached out my hand and caught empty air. My feet took me a step closer and I grasped more air. My eyes adjusted now, I saw I was on the other side of the door but not in the basement. It was a field of flowers. A wonderful fragrance filled the air, from the flowers I assumed. I was lost in their aroma and I felt like sleeping. I felt like returning to the safety of slumber.
         Colors swirled around as sleep threatened to overtake me. I stumbled, trying to get away. I felt that if I fell asleep here, I would never wake up. That thought motivated me to get away. The drowsiness went away as soon as I stepped out of the flowers and onto sand. I looked up and saw a desert before me. In the distance I could see a castle or something. A city maybe. I began walking towards it slowly. I was still a bit tired and my body still hurt like hell. Where was I anyway? This place seemed so strange and weird. After about an hour of walking I found myself under a shadow. My eyes wandered up and I was looking at a wall. Was this the magnificent city at which I had seen? I allowed my hand to rest upon the cool surface. I blinked slightly as the walls began to move. A mirage? No, the walls were actually gates and they were opening.
         Surprisingly the doors made no sound as they opened. They stopped; wide enough to let me though and I hesitated. Should I go into this unknown city? My stomach answered for me. I needed food. My shoes crunched on the sand as I walked in. The gates immediately closed after I entered
         There were guards. They stood on either side of me facing into the city. It was like they didn’t expect anyone to come through the gates. This whole place looked like a scene straight out of Arabian Nights. I cautiously walked forward, everyone stared at me. I had never been as self-conscious as this before. Was there something on my face? This was so bizarre. The people moved out of the way as I approached.
For the second time today, I saw a white glow at the edges of my vision. I turned around in a circle trying to get a better look at it. That didn’t do anything but make me dizzy. I shook my head slightly, regretting it afterwards. A pounding headache now formed. How much more pain must I go though before I found any information? This was all so confusing.
         For the first time since I arrived in weirdo-vile, someone stood in my way. He looked like one of the guards but more muscular and taller. He spoke too, in a deep voice.
         “Are you Spadein, stranger?” I had no clue how to respond. Was being a Spadein good or bad? How was I to answer? I chose to gamble, possibly my life in the next few words.
         “No, I am not. I am just passing though.” This seemed to anger the man. Had I done something wrong? I had not said anything to upset him, did I?
         “Do not mock me! You have been accused of being a Spadein. You will come with me.” He had snarled every word and I could not help but cower slightly. Who was this guy? Suddenly my air was cut off and I clawed at the arms that now grasped my collar. The man showed no sympathy for my lack of air but amusement. A smile lay on his face as he carried me somewhere. Though my vision was starting to blur I did figure out where he was taking me. I saw a tall castle-like structure in the middle of the town. In gasps I managed to ask a question.
         “Where... are... you... taking... me?” It was hard to speak but I was sure he heard me. He replied loudly and angrily.
         “You, Spadein scum, are to be placed before the Queen and King for your judgment.” Judgment? What had I done? I had not even said five words to the guy. No, I am not. I am just passing though. Wait, that was nine! I began to panic. This guy frightened me tremendously and being in a strange place did not help at all. Where the hell was I?
         The castle loomed above us as he stopped. His grip loosened slightly as he talked with the other guards. I began to plan an escape plan. How was I to survive this? Who the hell were these people? What was a Spadein? I could run after he lets me go. No, he looks like he had some pretty good leg muscles, he could catch me easily. I could kick him in the shin and make a run for it. He seems strong altogether, which means I would probably break something trying to hurt him.
         I sighed, giving up. Then, a thought occurred to me. What if none of this was real? It’s all a dream or something. Maybe I really did die. What if this was hell? What had I done in life to go to hell? I had been a good child. I did as I was told.
         I was so lost in my thoughts that I had not even noticed that we had started to move again. Something hit the back of my knees and sent me down. I was on my knees, head down and I couldn’t look up. What if the sight before me was what my run-away mind had thought of? What if Satin himself was the king of this strange land? It would prove that I was dead.
         “Your honor, I have brought you another Spadein. She was in the marketplace, though I know not how or why.” The man was beside me with his head bowed. Though, as terrified I was, I was anxious to hear what the king and queen had to say.
         “You have been charged with being a Spadein spy. Tell us. What were you doing in the marketplace? Or even how you entered our city.” I was not sure on how to answer here either. I forced myself to look up, to face them. The voice had been that of the queen. Her voice was light and was like a melody. When I looked up, I wished I hadn’t. Their eyes seemed to pierce my heart with icy glares.
         “This has to be a dream. I’ll wake up soon and be back at the orphanage.” I was talking to myself, trying to find a logical explanation of all of this. I closed my eyes silently. A headache had started to form behind my eyes. What the hell had happened to me? Even after surviving a blast from one of those bombs I didn’t have a scratch on me. I felt a lot of pain, but none life threatening.
         “She speaks nonsense, your highness. She’s denies knowing even what a Spadein is.” The guard spoke softly. I noticed as I opened my eyes, he was watching me out of the corner of his eyes.
         “Better to be safe than dead,” replied the King. My head swerved to watch him. What had he meant by that? “Put her with the others…You have been sentenced to a life of servitude...Get the scum out of my sight.”
         I didn’t know how I was going to get out of that one. A life of servitude was a long time. But this was all just a dream. I kept telling myself that at least. I sighed as the guard grabbed my upper arm tightly, pulling me up. Where was he going to take me this time, I wondered. The guard made me bow before leaving the king and queen’s presence. Roughly, he pushed me out of the grand hall and into a long hallway. It was weird. I mean, it didn’t feel like a dream yet it had to be one. Nothing like this could be real. Life wasn’t this abnormal.
         I tried once more to have a conversation with the guard, but he gave me a glare just as I opened my mouth. I shut up for the rest of the trip which hadn’t lasted long. He dragged me to a stop at a dead end. I looked around with a confused look. Then, he had stepped forward and pushed at the wall. I had started to think the guy was crazy, thinking he could move the wall or something. Just then the wall slid back and off to the side. It revealed a staircase leading into the darkness. Not even torches hung on the walls. Spiders and rats scurried in the distance.
         “You want me to go down there?” I had asked skeptically. I didn’t hesitate after his reply. He glared at me, a look that told me I didn’t have a choice. I stepped on the first step and then the next before the wall closed behind me. He had left me there. I shook my head and forced myself to take another step. What was down there? The thought of all this being a dream was what kept me going. I took one step at a time, clinging to the damp walls.
         “Shhh… Someone’s coming. “That was what made me stop. It was a voice from below in the still darkness. How would anyone react to something that this? At least someone normal. I forced myself to keep going and I finally reached the end of the stairs. Next, I had to find the source of the voice. Maybe they could help me. Most people would stay clear of the unknown; danger thrived in the unknown and the darkness.
         “Hello? Is anyone there?” I called into the darkness in spite of my instincts to roll up into a ball quiver. Nothing greeted me with an answer. Not even a mouse made a noise. They seemed to be waiting to see if I was a threat. Finally, I couldn’t take it anymore. All of this didn’t make any sense. I needed to get home. I needed to wake up.
         “What if it’s not a dream?” I asked myself quietly. Tears formed at the edges of my eyes.
         “Only you can determine that,” came a voice from the black. It was melodious and soft, a relief to my ears from the silence. Sound. I had started to think I was deaf.
         “Who’s there?” My hands went out instinctively to find the person who was brave enough to respond to me.
         “My name’s Ronan. Don’t be afraid. You’re safe now.” His words quieted my qualms of all this. His voice was reassuring.
         “Where am I?”
         “You’re in the slave quarters.”
         “Is any of this real?”
         “Depends on what you mean by real.”
         The sound of the door opening reached my ears from above and I instantly felt worry fill my stomach. What was happening now?
         “Don’t worry. The work day begins. I’ll help you. What’s your name?”
         “I’m Jane…why do you want to help me?”
         “Because, you’re a Spadein like me.”
         “No, I’m not. I don’t even know what a Spadein is.”
         “Where did you come from then? You didn’t come from Diante or Leosia?”
         “What? What in the world are you talking about? I’m from New York. You know, in America?”
         “I have never heard of such lands. Are they beyond the Etan Sea?”
         “Ronan, I’ve never heard of those places. I came though a door and suddenly I’m in a field of flowers that makes me sleepy and a huge desert before me. I come to find help and these people attack me. What the hell is happening to me?”
         “Jane. I can’t give you an explanation to any of that. In fact, I don’t understand any of it myself. Right now though, we need to get going. We’ll get the whip if we’re late to our stations. What have they assigned you to?”
         “They haven’t. The king said I have a life of servitude or something but that’s it.”
         “Just stick beside me then. You can work with me. We’ll be running errands for the cooks today. It’s the princess’s birthday and we must prepare for a feast.”
         “Thanks, Ronan.” My voice shook a little with fear. Would that be the rest of my life? Would I be destined to live my life being a servant in some strange land beside some stranger I had just met? I decided to ask at least one more question.
         “What is this country called then?”
         “Leosia, the land of the sand slaves.”