The Anarchy -1-

     When all seems dark

It gleamed. It shone with an almost blinding light and; yet, I couldn’t bring myself to look away. ‘I can’t be in here,’ I told myself and still I ignored myself. Rubies of red, emeralds of green, and sapphires of the darkest blue I’ve ever laid eyes on. The golden medallion looked cold sitting on that icy pedestal. The temptation being too great, I seized it, I looked around and I hid it, at the bottom of my velvet ever-green purse.

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“Viola….. Viola?!” My name bounced off the walls of my bedroom. It shook me from my fitful slumber. Sitting up, I violently scanned the room. “Who’s there? Present yourself at once!” I called as I sat upright, both hands folded in my lap. I waited for few seconds, then dismissed what I’ve heard to be only a fabrication of my subconscious. I laid back down and pulled the plush scarlet sheets to my shoulder; however, I froze at the sight of a faint glow coming from the hallway. Underneath my bed, I hid a small sword, fit for a lady. I silently grasped it and began to tiptoe towards the door. Hearing my own heavy breathing, I gripped the handle to steady myself as I counted down in my mind. When I reached one, I lunged into the hallway, the point of my sword almost striking my intruder’s neck.

Glancing upward, I dropped my sword in disbelief. "Ha- Ha- Harold!!!" I stammered.

"You should really try locking that door of yours. I see you've gotten yourself a new toy," he exclaimed motioning towards the sword.

"Why didn't you answer me, when I asked?"

"For the same reason I stood exactly two feet from your doorway. I don't plan on becoming minced meat anytime soon. Who do you think you are anyway? A knight?"

“I’d make a better one than you and you know it. Lord help the damsel in distress who leaves her life in your hands; you’d be her accidental killer.”

Harold roared in laughter, still clutching the right side of his stomach. “I’ve missed your sardonic humor and your viperous tongue.” His facial expression flickered from his usual cocky smile to an almost painful grimace, but it was only a flicker too quick to catch. “Where is Granpops?”

I scowled at the ground, “He is at the hospital with Albert. He and Albert went to the market. Some hoodlums came along and…” I paused. Harold winced. He started to come toward me, but suddenly swayed leaning against the wall.

“I read it in the papers. Albert tried to be a hero and met his match. The boy is only fifteen what was he thinking.” He paused his grimace coming back with a vengeance. “But I may soon be joining him,” he said as he sunk to his knees. He removed his hand from the right side of his stomach, revealing a dastardly deep cut.

In a panic, I ran out to Woody, my mahogany brown horse. He was asleep and my footsteps startled him. It was too dark for him to see that it was me calling him. “No, no, Woody. It’s me, Viola,” I whispered rubbing his long nose as I went along. “Harold and I need a ride to the doctor, but we need to get there quickly. Can you do that for me?” He gave a strong whinny and raced toward the door, Harold was standing in the doorway.

“Vi, Woody’s too small. Don’t we usually get Landon for these sort of tasks?” he asked. He’s right; we do usually use Landon for transport. But Landon is gone; he’s been gone, and now was definitely not the time to tell Harold. “Stop trying to make small-talk and get on!” I helped him on, and once we were both mounted, Woody took off. I held fast to Woody’s neck as Harold held on to me. My dark brown wavy locks whipping in the wind, the torches placed on either of the dirt road’s sides lit my way, and the surrounding silence amplified the sound of Woody’s gallops. With the wind skating past my ears, I barely heard Harry as he said, “You ride faster than any bandit I’ve chased. You make me proud to be your brother,” he said as his grip loosened. The hospital came into view, I pulled up to the front and dismounted. I caught Harold before he fell off, or I at least tried to. He fell like a ton of bricks. I struggled for a second to get up and then began dragging him toward the hospital entrance.

“Stay with me, Harry!” I shouted. Someone ran out the hospital door followed by someone else. As they passed the first torch I saw that the first two people were nurses carrying a stretcher and the third was Granpops. “Viola! What’s happened?” He inquired “Granpops. Harold is in the stretcher. He’s been wounded and... Granpops!” He didn’t appear to be listening. “This is the final straw. If Mr. Stephen won’t put his foot down than, the good Lord knows we the people will!” He exclaimed.

“Granpops this is no time for politics. Harry is…”

“Enough! I’m tired of living in lawlessness. People are slaughtered every day and no one is caught. Things are taken in the dead of night and the witnesses are too stricken with cowardess to speak up. You can’t even go to the local market without getting more than you bargained for,” at this his voice broke.

“We can talk about the anarchy later, but I want to check on Albert and…”

“Viola,” his voice turned low and cold. “Albert is… Albert is dead.” He looked toward the sky, breathing heavily, and shouted, “ALBERT IS DEAD!” He began to shout throwing rocks, dirt, even his own shoes into the air. I doubled back, turned, and left him. I’ve never seen Granpops this mad, and I didn’t want to. I began to walk into the hospital, but I didn’t want to do that either. So I, jumped on Woody, rode home, sank to the stable floor and wept.