The City of Angora: Chap 1 The Good, The Bad and the Queen

Derrick rode his bike along the older roads whose pavement was worn and cracked. He hadn’t set foot in Angora since he had been delivered to his first mentor, Vince. Derrick had been around ten at the time and had been more scared of the city than anything else. Derrick rode through the deserted cities that plagued the ground. He had his suitcase strapped down to the back of his motorcycle and had a spare gun under his black shirt, safely harnessed in a leather strap across his chest.

The motorcycle’s rumbles echoed off of the tall, menial buildings. Derrick checked the motorcycles gas as he sped forward, seeing it had half a tank. The loneliness of the city wasn’t what made Derrick nervous, mostly due to the fact that he was already used to being alone and used to the idea of being that way for the rest of his life. What made Derrick nervous was what had previously lived in the buildings before the creatures moved in. Derrick watched as movement raced past windows as he rode by. He loved to make the creatures squirm when noise came to their ears. They had driven humans out of their habitats hundreds of years ago by wrapping their fingers around each city, one by one, clawing and eating children and adults. The creatures viciously took lives from animals and fed off of anything that moved until there was nothing left but dust and worn down buildings.

The people that had managed to escape made civilizations led by powerful leaders. Angora was known for its “Queen of Death”. The woman always took matters into her own hands when it came to her people. Everyone else could have their own problems until it involved her. Derrick had heard men talk of her as if she was the answer to their dreams. Derrick had never personally seen her with his own eyes, but she was highly known for her many admirers and no husband.

Derrick rode past empty warehouses and weed-infested parking lots. He looked up at the sky. The dead air pushed through his straight hair. His hair had grown to be three inches long which, to Derrick, meant he needed a haircut. He had been driving for twelve hours with the occasional gas, bathroom and lunch break that he had taken before he reached this dead city. The sun was starting to descend, creating shadows that danced on the pavement, calling out all of the creatures to play. Derrick pushed his bike to 100 mph. He knew the consequences very well of overstaying a welcome when in a dead city.

Derrick whizzed past parallel parked cars, some still containing the remains of their deceased owners. The skeletons didn’t have an effect on Derrick. He had already seen much worse than bleached bones baking in the sun. Derrick pressed on, pressing his bike as fast as it could go. By 5:30, the creatures would begin to walk outside and follow him. Derrick looked at the clock on the bike’s dash and saw that it was already nearing 5:23. He knew his exit to the old interstate was four miles ahead of him. Derrick looked in his side mirrors and sighed. The creatures were beginning to stir as they lurked out of the doorways and began to creep after him. There seemed to be hundreds of them.

Derrick watched as his exit came into view, only two more miles out of reach. Derrick raced to the finish line as white wisps of smoke chased after him, each hissing and screeching. The interstate would free him temporarily of the creatures. A bank building created a long shadow that covered the pavement and walkways just as Derrick neared the exit. Derrick cursed under his breath and pressed himself closer to the bike. The shadow engulfed him and wisps of white smoke came up next to him and screeched, reaching out towards him on both sides. Their hands were made of fog that acted like skin covering muscle and tissue. The hands grabbed onto his jacket and Derrick yelled out in frustration. He pulled out his revolver filled with bullets of poisoned gas from the pocket of the motorcycle. Derrick swung his hand and began shooting on both sides and from behind. The hissing turned into screams as the creatures began withdrawing. Derrick grabbed the bullet packs from the compartment and began reloading with one hand. Just as he reached the exit, a fogged hand came up for one more try. Derrick pulled the trigger at the hand and the ear-piercing scream became far away. Derrick flew up the ramp and followed the interstate to Angora for the rest of the trip.

 

 

When Derrick reached Angora, it was 6:57 P.M. and deserted. Derrick turned to head toward where he was supposed to stay. Angora’s buildings reached to the sky and were made of old brick and stone. The roads were cobblestone and shook Derrick when he went over 15 mph. Finally, Derrick saw an older man walking down the road. Derrick drove up to him and stopped.

“Hey, where is everyone?” Derrick asked. The graying man looked at Derrick like he was a fool.

“You didn’t hear? It’s only been projected everywhere,” the old man replied. Derrick shook his head.

“No, I’m afraid I haven’t. I just got here after being in an old city,” Derrick said. The old cities were more like run down cities that had been taken back over by humans and anything similar to humans. The old man nodded and pointed down the street.

“They’re all at the ceremony over at the kingdom. The queen holds one every year around this time,” the old man said looking at Derrick in a serious manner and then began to walk down the sidewalk. Derrick nodded and kicked off.

Derrick rode past the sturdy houses and businesses that crowded the area. They had planned it accordingly so if they were ever under attack, the people could easily help one another and flee to the forest that wasn’t far off, although, all of the other cities and nations knew better than to invade Angora. Derrick came up to a tall monument that stood in the center of an intersection. Derrick stopped the bike and stared at it. The monument was of a woman with her eyes closed and held her hands out as if welcoming a guest. Her head was held high as her dress clung to her torso. The woman seemed so graceful and so calm.

Derrick pressed his lips together and drove on toward the kingdom that grew as he approached it.

 

 

Valorie waited to be called on to go out. She could hear the pitter patter of footsteps as they found seats. She would come out first and then dancers would come out after she took a seat, each with an ability that would amaze the crowd. Valorie looked in the mirror with her hand on the table. Gray eyes stared back at her with ease. The woman’s dark hair flowed down a little past her shoulders in elegant waves. A light necklace hung from her neck that met with a silk, white dress that fit her torso perfectly and slid down her body, growing wider until it hit the ground. Two yards of cloth formed a train behind her. Sheer material draped her shoulders, covering her arms like sleeves. The material bunched up in the front of the dress and the rest of the material fell behind her back, covering her dress making it appear more angelic. Her lips were a nude color and the rest of her face was covered in natural make-up.

The woman’s expression didn’t seem happy like it was supposed to be.

“My queen,” called a man’s voice. Valorie sighed and stood up, waving her hand as a silent reply. She walked down the large hallway until she reached two closed doors where guards stood on each side, both wearing white suits, each holding their sword handles that hung from their waist belts.  A woman came from behind Valorie and silently fixed the dress’s train.

“And everyone rise for our leader, Queen Valorie,” called a voice from behind the double doors. Valorie rolled her eyes at the voice just as the doors opened.  Valorie stepped gracefully through the first set of doors and into the others as the room opened into a large hall that seemed to stretch forward with every step that Valorie took. Clapping rose through the hall and bounced off of the ceiling.

When Valorie had first become leader at 18, she had smiled and waved. Now that she was 23, she wore a serious face as if reminded of the battles she had seen during her time of ruling, as would her children and their children. Valorie walked through the dimly lit hall to where her large throne-like seat awaited her. Candles lit the large pillars that held the roof up, defying gravity by floating in circles around the pillars. Each pillar had a circle of candles around them, ringing the top of the pillars. The ceiling stretched out to 132 feet starting from the ground and formed an arch at the top where little round lights lit it up, all hidden, to make it appear more serene. Benches formed for the guests that angled upwards to allow a better view from every point.

Valorie kept walking, taking in the scene before her. It was beautiful, but it typically was. Movement jumped in the corner of her eye and her instincts made her turn her head. A tall man that looked about Valorie’s age stared back at her, curiosity leaking from his dark eyes. His straight hair fell just above his eyebrows, making his eyes appear fierce as they looked back at her. He wore a black shirt with denim jeans which made him stand out from the rest of her people who were mostly semi-formal for the occasion. Valorie continued walking and looked back at her chair that beckoned her.

Valorie walked up the stone steps that led to the small, round stage that held the oversized, wooden chair. The applause dimmed down as she turned around to face her audience, still standing tall. She took a breath and calmly sat down.

“You may all take your seats,” the voice called out from beside her throne.

Valorie looked at the crowd that filled the long benches on both sides. When she had first become leader, not all of the benches had been taken mostly due to the fact that some did not think she would succeed as well as she had. Valorie scanned the faces, seeing new ones and old ones, but they were not the faces she wished to see. Valorie acted as though she were merely looking at who had come to her ceremony, but she was really trying to find the man who had so bluntly stared back at her. Finally, she found the black shirt that he wore, but he wasn’t staring back at Valorie. He was talking to a woman. The man smiled as the woman laughed and he blinked his eyes over to Valorie. Valorie forced herself not to blush and deny the urge to quickly look away. She held his gaze for a brief second and turned her eyes to look at the spokesman.

“May the ceremony begin!” When the man finished his sentence, he threw his hands in the air and two explosions occurred on either side of the stage and near the double doors that Valorie had walked through. Valorie jumped a little even though they were planned. Valorie smiled at herself and four people came out of the doors, swirling and doing acrobatics. There were two men and two women. They parted as four more people came through the door, also two men and two women, wearing elegant suits. The men wore tuxedos with coat tails as they escorted their women partners who wore silk, flowing dresses that ended at the floor, long trains shaped behind them. The women wore stilettos and the men wore black shoes that reflected nicely.

They walked down the center of the hall towards Valorie. One couple paused closer to the entrance and the other couple paused close to Valorie. Suddenly, music began to flow out of hidden speakers. The couple began waltzing, completely in sync with one another. Valorie slowly began to hear the beginning of Beethoven’s 7^th symphony play. She watched as the acrobatics flowed with the music perfectly. As the music rose, the women became more graceful, stepping lightly and in tune with their partners. When the 7^th symphony began to die down, a song began to play that Valorie didn’t care to know the title of. The dancers and Valorie had each practiced the routine four times before the ceremony.

The couples spun around as the men pulled them back in again; matching their rhythms to the woman’s soft singing voice. Each movement the dancers made was graceful. Valorie watched the dancers while looking through her peripheral vision at the man. She could see him watching her, occasionally looking back at the dancers. Valorie took in a breath and looked at him. She saw him whispering to the woman next to him and she began whispering back to him. They both stared at the dancers, but didn’t seem interested. Valorie looked back at the dancers, unsure of whether she should be concerned about the man.

One of the couples danced off through the doors as the couple dancing broke apart. The man dancer walked up to Valorie and knelt on his knee in front of her, head bowing and lifted his hand, asking for her to come and dance. Applause rose through the hall and Valorie smiled, stepped out onto the first step and took his hand. The man led her out onto the floor and suddenly, the man on the benches was pushed out onto the floor as well. Valorie’s breath caught, but didn’t flinch. People gasped as they watched the scene. Valorie’s curiosity rose as he walked nervously toward the other woman, who stepped back, unsure of what to do. Guards began to walk toward the man, watching Valorie, ready to take action that she could do better. Valorie held up a finger and pushed her partner along to where they were supposed to be. The guards stopped and Valorie could see the frustration from her rising from all of her servants.

Valorie saw the man from the benches whisper into the woman dancer’s ear quickly and the woman smiled and began to dance. Valorie’s partner looked at Valorie as if he didn’t know what to do.

“Just dance like we have been practicing,” Valorie whispered and he nodded, beginning to move. He pulled her in and stepped to the side as did Valorie. The man twirled her and swept her off of her feet, carrying one leg while her other leg slid along the floor easily. The man set her down and immediately spun them both, taking large steps toward the pillar and took a step back, using momentum to push them upward to the next trick. Just as soon as he stepped back they lifted off of the ground and defied gravity by walking along the pillar as if it were the ground. Gasps rose from the crowd as they spun, dancing gracefully. Valorie’s partner stepped back from her and pulled her by the waist, swinging her off of the pillar and in a circle. Valorie let her body fly through the wind and more gasps rose.

Valorie caught site of the other couple who were on the opposite side of them on the last pillar towards the door. They mimicked the dance as if the man had been there during the rehearsal.

“Ready?” Valorie’s partner asked and she nodded, smiling. The man kicked off of the pillar and did a back flip through the air. He landed gracefully on his feet. Valorie looked over at the couple and saw that they were making up their own dance since he had not practiced for it. Valorie spread her arms out, still standing vertically on the pillar and kicked off. Everyone in the crowd was staring at her as she fell to the floor. She slowed her falling and was floating in the air with her hands spread out. She felt her hair and dress stop in the air, but they continued to blow as if she was in slow motion falling. Valorie pushed her feet toward the floor, making her dress slowly move.

Valorie stood with her back arched, hands raised and feet pointing toward the floor, still floating in the air like a picture of an angel. Her partner raised his hands to her and she reached out for them. The lights suddenly went black as the music began to stop.

 

 

Derrick knew he pushed the line, but his dance partner and the woman from the crowd both urged him to do it, whispering to him about how to really catch the queen’s attention. Derrick stared into the blackness as his dance partner pulled him off of the pillar and onto the horizontal floor. Suddenly, arms grabbed him, covering his mouth as he was dragged off of the floor. He fought hard, but there were at least six pairs of hands that carried him. When Derrick heard doors shut, he saw the lights in the large hall turn back on, filtering through the cracks of the large entrance doors. Derrick looked at the people that carried him and they looked down at him with unpleased faces. Derrick took in a breath and prepared himself for the worst.

A large man with black irises walked toward them and stared down at Derrick.

“Welcome to Angora, you’re going to be here for a while. Hope you like ropes around your neck,” the man said through a serious tone and with that the arms took Derrick away.