Sat, May 19 2012
General Von Kessler stepped closer to Melissa, and put a protective arm around the young girl. "You have done well, Fraulein Porter. Thank you for your efforts, I don't believe you are needed any longer."
Melissa's smile suddenly dropped from her face. "What?" she asked, bewildered. "But... but what about Rebecca... and our, um, friendship?"
Von Kessler chuckled, and turned to face Melissa. "My dear girl, you do not understand, do you? This 'relationship' was nothing more than the product of our combined will focused through the power of this crystal. It has no real basis, it's just a fiction."
Melissa shook her head. "No, no, it's not. I love Rebecca, truly I do!" she protested.
Von Kessler silenced her with a quick backhand slap across her face. Tears welled up in the young woman's eyes as she stumbled back and fell onto the couch.
Rebecca stepped forward, not bothering to cover herself. "Don't you dare touch her again, Von Kessler, or I swear to you..."
"Oh, come now, not you as well, Fraulein Fogg?" Von Kessler said, rolling his eyes. "You don't have any real feelings for this young girl. It was all implanted in your mind."
"Nevertheless, I cannot simply stand here and watch you strike a defenseless young woman."
Von Kessler nodded. "Point taken. However, with this crystal, I have now implanted the seeds of suggestion into your mind. Anything I project into your thoughts, you will act as if they are your own. For instance, you no longer have any compunctions about men striking 'defenseless young women'." Von Kessler shut his eyes and concentrated briefly. Once he opened them, he turned to Melissa once more, and slapped her again.
Rebecca watched silently, raising no protest.
"You see?" Von Kessler chuckled. "I now have total control over you, Rebecca Fogg. You will do as I say, you will follow my orders, and you will
be my slave. As my personal agent, I now have a very highly-placed mole within the British Secret Service."
Rebecca nodded.
"Now, come over here, and give me a kiss from your delicious lips, that I might taste a tiny bit of heaven on this dreamy evening," Von Kessler whispered.
Rebecca silently moved closer to Von Kessler, and wrapped her arms around him, holding him close. She tilted her head, moving her lips towards Von Kessler's. She paused before their lips met, and whispered back to him. "Oh, Von Kessler..."
Von Kessler, anxious now that the moment he had dreamt of for so long had now arrived, closed his eyes, smiled, and whispered back, "Oh, Rebecca..."
Rebecca smiled as well, and continued, "... if you think for one moment that I would be your slave, much less *kiss* you, then you're more of a fool than I ever gave you credit for." Von Kessler's eyes snapped open, as Rebecca, her arms around him, suddenly yanked him off his feet and flipped him head over heels onto his back. The wind knocked out of him, he could only watch helplessly as Rebecca stood over him.
"Kissing you is one of the very *last* things I would ever let myself be caught doing. There is simply no way I would let that happen, mind control or not!"
Von Kessler swept out with his arms, slamming them into Rebecca's legs, causing her to fall backwards amongst the furniture. He scrambled to his feet and, after a quick look round, dashed up the nearby stairwell.
Rebecca picked herself up off the ground gingerly. "Damn him!" she muttered. She then noticed that her top was still undone. Quickly redoing the straps and buckles, she hurried off after Von Kessler, taking the stairs two at a time. She reached the top floor just in time to see a window fall shut. She rushed over to it and opened it, climbing out onto the tiny ledge. She looked up, and saw a booted foot disappearing over the roof's edge. Refusing to look down, she quickly jumped up and grabbed the tiny lip of the edging. She just prayed that Von Kessler was fool enough not to hang around in order to prise her fingers off the ledge and cause her to plunge to her death. Of course he's not that smart, she said to herself, half-convinced.
Finally pulling herself over, and rolling onto the relative safety of her roof, Rebecca took in the scene. No sign of Von Kessler. The chimney over there provided the most obvious protection, she thought, which means he's probably behind it. The small door leading to the building's interior was locked from the inside, Rebecca was sure of that. So he couldn't have gone that way. There was no other cover. Right, Rebecca thought, chimney it is, then.
Rebecca slowly crept over to the chimney, listening for any tell-tale signs of Von Kessler's presence. She thought she heard his breathing, but couldn't be certain. As she neared the chimney, Von Kessler suddenly leapt out from behind its cover. A grin on his face and his sword in his hand, the general slowly approached Rebecca.
Rebecca smiled back, and reached down to grab one of the many weapons attached to her catsuit...
... and came up empty. Rebecca could have slapped herself. Of course, she grumbled to herself, I took all my tools off when I went to make tea. You're a fool, Rebecca. No, strike that, she thought, you were simply under the influence of the crystal.
"Poor, defenseless women seem to be all around this evening, wouldn't you say, Fraulein Fogg?" Von Kessler said with a hideous leer. He swished his sword teasingly at Rebecca. "I'm afraid your righteous indignation won't get you out of this." He swung the sword at Rebecca, who jumped back instinctively, narrowly avoiding a nasty cut to her torso.
"A defenseless woman can defeat a bully of a man any time, Von Kessler," Rebecca hissed back. "Just watch and see."
Rebecca threw herself onto the ground, and lashed her arms out, sweeping Von Kessler off his feet. Von Kessler's sword went clattering away across the roof. Both fighters scrambled on all fours to pick up the weapon. Von Kessler got to it first, and swiftly brought the point up and held it at Rebecca's throat. "My dear, you forget, not only do I have my sword, I also have the crystal."
Rebecca knocked Von Kessler's sword arm away from her throat as she rolled herself away from the general. She quickly bounded to her feet, and held her fists at the ready. "Have you forgotten, Von Kessler, that it no longer works on me?"
Von Kessler laughed, an evil grin spreading across his face. "Not at all. I wasn't referring to you, my dear Fraulein Fogg."
A high-pitched scream pierced the night air.
"Melissa..." Rebecca breathed.
Von Kessler chuckled again. "Correct, Fraulein Fogg. Now, the situation is this. You can either continue fighting me, in which case you might win, or you might lose. Or, perhaps you might want to see what all the screaming is about..."
Rebecca felt a blind fury rise within her. She kicked out with her booted feet, knocking Von Kessler down once more. Rushing back to the ledge where she first climbed over onto the roof, she looked over the lip to see Melissa dangling precariously from the window ledge just below. From the look of things, Melissa would not be able to hang on for very long. Rebecca looked back, and saw Von Kessler struggling to his feet. She turned back to Melissa, leaned over the ledge as far as she dared, and thrust out her hand.
"Melissa," she called urgently, "take my hand!"
Melissa was crying. "I don't know why I did this," she wailed. "I'm sorry, Rebecca."
"Quiet, Melissa, don't worry about it, I'm going to get you out of this." She thrust her hand out further. "Take it, take my hand, Melissa."
Melissa looked up into Rebecca's eyes. "Are you doing this because you love me, or is it that damn crystal?" she sobbed. "I'm so confused, Rebecca, help me!"
Rebecca strained to reach out further. "That's what I'm trying to do, now grab hold of my hand! Do it, now!"
Melissa looked doubtful, her tears streaming down her face.
Rebecca softened her voice. "Melissa, trust me. Please. Take my hand."
Melissa took a deep breath, and reached up with her left hand. She reached as far as she could, her fingers brushing against Rebecca's. Rebecca leant forward a touch more, and they joined hands at last. "Good!" Rebecca said. "I've got you! Now, let go of the window ledge, and I'll pull you up."
Melissa's eyes widened. "But I--"
"Now, Melissa, please!"
Melissa shut her eyes, and let go of the window ledge. She and Rebecca dipped slightly towards the ground below, before Rebecca got a better control of their balance point. Rebecca grabbed Melissa's blindly questing hand, and, now holding onto both of Melissa's hands, began to haul the young woman upwards. As they reached the safety of the rooftop, they rolled over away from the edge, to get them out of harm's way. They lay in each other's arms for a few moments, both of them catching their breath. Von Kessler was nowhere to be seen.
After a few moments, Melissa broke the awkward silence. "I'm sorry, Rebecca."
"What for?" Rebecca asked, as she lay peacefully next to Melissa.
"For everything," came the reply. "For using you, for using the crystal, for deceiving you, for... for loving you..."
Rebecca rolled over to lay on her side, propped her head up on her hand, and looked at Melissa. "There's no need to apologize for 'loving' me, Melissa, it was the crystal."
Melissa looked back at Rebecca. "No, it wasn't. Before we met, and when we did bump into each other at the market, yes, it was the crystal. But that first night, when we saw each other across the way... I wasn't using the crystal."
Rebecca raised an eyebrow. "Indeed."
"I swear to you, I was not using it. We connected, Rebecca, you and I, in a way I don't quite understand, except that I think I love you."
Rebecca sat up, and helped Melissa sit up as well. Rebecca took Melissa's hands in her own, and looked into the younger woman's eyes. "Melissa, we barely know each other. Having seen one another for a few days, having barely spoken to one another, that's... well, that's hardly the basis for loving someone."
Melissa frowned, and said, "But--"
Rebecca shushed her, placing a hand to Melissa's lips. "Melissa, trust me on this, as you trusted me before. It isn't love, whatever you might think. Right now, your heart is telling you it is. But you will see, as time goes on, that all it really is, is simply a fixation, probably a side effect of your use of the crystal."
A tear formed in Melissa's eye, but refused to roll down her cheek. "I trust you, Rebecca," she said.
"Good," Rebecca said, smiling. "Now, let's see about getting down from here."
Melissa stood up, and helped Rebecca up. "I don't want to go over any more ledges, Rebecca."
"Nor do I," Rebecca said, looking over at the locked door leading to the interior...
*
"... I'm sorry you had to break down your roof door, Rebecca," Melissa said, picking up her things from the drawing room.
"That's all right, Melissa," Rebecca said. "I needed a good workout tonight anyway."
Melissa giggled. "And I'm sorry Von Kessler got away from you."
"Oh, he won't elude me for long, not if I can do anything about it."
Melissa moved towards the door. "I should probably go home now," she said.
"Melissa, I'd like you to come with me to Headquarters tomorrow, we'll need to write up a full report on what happened."
Melissa's eyes twinkled as she turned to look back at Rebecca. "A 'full' report?"
Rebecca smiled back. "Well, perhaps not as detailed as it might be, but with enough of the facts to make it official."
The two women laughed quietly. Melissa turned back to the door.
"See you in the morning, Melissa," Rebecca called.
Melissa opened the door, paused, and turned back to look at Rebecca. "Good night, Rebecca," she said softly. She quickly turned away again and scurried out the door.
*
The next morning, Rebecca crossed the street and knocked on the front door of the Cashton Building. She stood patiently as she heard scuffling movements inside. The door was opened by a kindly old man, who let her into the main hallway. "Yes, can I help you, ma'am?" the old man asked politely.
Rebecca smiled. "Yes, I'm looking for Melissa Porter, I'm a friend of hers."
The man frowned slightly. "Melissa who?"
"Porter. She lives upstairs, on the side facing the street. On the north corner."
"I'm sorry, my dear young lady, that room has been vacant for several months now," the old man said. "Perhaps you are thinking of Old Lady Huggins, she lives in the rooms on the south end of that side of the building."
Rebecca pursed her lips. "I'm assuming by your usage of the phrase "Old Lady" that Miss Huggins is somewhat older than eighteen years of age?"
The old man laughed. "Oh, my goodness, yes! Lizzie Huggins is fast approaching ninety years old, and she's not showing any signs of slowing down, I can assure you!"
Rebecca nodded politely. "Well, might I just take a peep at the north end rooms? Please? It would mean ever so much to me."
Smiling, the old man replied, "Of course, young lady. But I assure you, there's no one there. They are available, if you're thinking of moving..."
"No thank you, I just want to confirm my suspicions."
"I understand. Come on in, the stairs are just over there. The door is open upstairs. Feel free to let yourself out. If you change your mind about taking up residence, you know where to find me." He shuffled off and headed into his set of rooms, marked with a number "1" on the door.
Rebecca headed up the stairs, and entered the north rooms. There was indeed no one there. There were some pieces of furniture about the place, but mostly covered in dust. She passed from room to room, eventually reaching the bedroom, which did contain an uncovered bed. Rebecca walked over to the window, and looked out. She could see her own rooms from here. Smiling wistfully, she moved away from the windows. As she moved to leave the bedroom, she noticed a piece of paper on a nearby table. Picking it up, she read it to herself.
"My dearest Rebecca,
"I am sorry that I left without saying goodbye. I couldn't face the fact that you would never truly love me. I know that now. It was hard for me to convince myself of that, but I see that it is true. My loving you was, perhaps, a side effect of the crystal. Your loving me was most definitely the result of its powers.
"I decided I had to leave because I know that the General would most likely use me again to get to you. And I could not bear the thought of being a pawn in his game against you. Know that I am well, know that I will remember you forever, and know that I will always love you, crystal or no crystal.
"Don't try to follow me. Don't try to get in contact with me. You would only bring me more heartache than I could bear.
"Take care of yourself. Don't get into too many dangerous situations.
"But most of all, find someone to fall in love with.
"Your loving friend,
"Melissa."
Rebecca closed her eyes. Silently folding up the note, she slipped it into her coat pocket, and left the room.
...THE END...
End of Chapter Four
Chapter 3 | Chapter 4