ALL NOVEL Chapter 30 (A doll)
Materializing again, the old man looked on in contemplation, staring at me as though he had found an answer to a riddle that had been bothering him. Falling into a roll, I felt the bristly fabric of the shop's welcome mat underneath me. My headache; it was much worse than the first time, like I was passing through a layer of molten lead. I felt bile rise up my throat, filling my mouth with a foul taste as my stomach roiled. Apparently, my body couldn’t stand activating the skill so many times in a row. Glancing back, the old man was walking calmly towards me, taking his time to retrieve any obscured objects from the fight a moment ago.. Seeing the frame of the door spin into my vision, temporary safety waited temptingly on the other side of the frame Mariam and I had so recently repaired. Stumbling forwards, any joy that I had felt at the current success of my less than graceful retreat was slowly fading, the pains of regret nipping at my sides.
Self-doubt swept through my thoughts. Even if I did get away now, would I ever be able to come back? Sure, it’s not like that psycho could stay here forever, but what would I say to Mariam. “Hey, your grandpa tried to kill me”? Hardly seemed like a good icebreaker. Ha, then what if I couldn’t come back? Where would I run to then? It just felt off; in the moment I had found a fragment of peace, could I really so merrily sever it to go alone into an even more unknown world? Thinking back to the words of the old man, my movement stalled for an instant.
Faint hope rekindled, clearing some of the doubt in my mind with the promise of another way out. Perhaps, if given enough time, we could reach a common ground. Part of me wondered if Mariam were here, would this have gone any differently, but judging by the way the old man had acted until now, conflict was the only real outcome.
Steeling my resolve, I lunged the final gap, expecting to burst through the thin glass of the door and continue my reckless flight to the street outside. Yet as the seconds ticked by, my body didn’t move. I felt like I was dangling in the air, the ground hovering below me until I suddenly noticed what felt like a dainty hand gripping me tightly by my dress.
[Crappy Old Man] “Sophia, it's alright, you can show yourself. Mairam's not here, and won't be able to enter for the time being, your sister is keeping her busy.”
Confused at what he was I talking about, I began to move, but before I could make a sound, something cool and smooth slipped across my mouth. Next to me, I saw the space begin to shimmer in refractions of light, like a mirror shattering. The space broke open, melting away, revealing an entity standing there. I nearly cried out in surprise as I felt the arms of a woman in an outfit, resembling a combination of a maid’s dress and a military uniform. Looking down at me with a fist full of my clothes providing her the leverage to dangle me from her fingers ratcheting by ball-like joints. My brain short-circuited a little as I stared blankly at the being, forgetting the situation I was in as I observed the strange woman closer.
Her hands were smooth and flawless in appearance, like a doll's. And that wasn’t the only thing that looked doll-like. Looking at her, my expression cramped as I struggled to talk through her hands, my voice coming out muffled as she held her smooth palm tighter against my lips. The old man looked a little concerned as I struggled tighter, the strange being seeming to only hold me stronger in response. I looked desperately at the old man, praying to anyone, even the crappy goddess, that I’d manage to hold out against the iron grip of the doll holding me before my warp could come off cooldown and I could escape this puppet. Despite all the commotion, Miriam still hadn't come, making me worry for her safety.
The woman holding me clearly wasn’t human; her body was held up by threads that went nowhere, floating erect in the air as if she were being moved by some unseen hand. A fox mask obscured her face, though it didn’t seem like there was anything under the mask. The body that was exposed under the dress seemed to have a series of strange lines carved into it, in intricate and suggestive patterns which glowed slightly as she held me.
Giving up struggling, I stopped talking, as it wasn’t doing me any good. Instead, I gazed firmly at the old man in had walked over in front of me. He seemed unsurprised by the doll holding me, even addressing it with a name. I’d need to be stupid, well stupider than I was, to not understand it was working with him or rather seemed to be an object directly operated by him. Perhaps it was a little mean-spirited, but I couldn’t help but judge his sense of aesthetics for the outfit it was wearing. I’d need to apologize to Miriam later, but I really didn’t have a good view of her grandfather. He seemed like more of a thug than anything else.
Interrupting my thoughts, the old man began to speak once more, as the puppet held me in its polished arms, unnervingly silent. Only a small glass-like sliding noise seemed to come from it as it moved me around to face it. My discontent palpable as I was carried aloft back to the old man, who looked at me with a wry smile.
[Mairam's Grandpa] “Sophia, it's fine. Let her go, ahaha this one seems to be a little different from the others"