The Rules of the Red - 2nd Edition |✓|

Chapter Twenty-One, Part Two - What Is And Cannot Be

The castle of Ripley Hall sat on a vast property of rolling green moorland dotted only with barren fruit trees. The fortress itself was a massive structure of grey stone punctuated by dozens of glass-paned windows, several turrets, and four pointed towers.

Ethan and I approached the heavy, iron door. I laid a hand on a single flagstone of the castle's wall, running my hands across the soft green moss and ivy that webbed along the castle.

"Ready?" Ethan's hand hovered over the buzzer.

"Yeah, I'm ready."

However, before Ethan could make another move, the door swung open, to reveal a tall, thin man in butler's clothes. "Welcome to Ripley Hall," he said in a formal, lifeless tone as he bowed in greeting.

We stepped inside the castle, following the man from the darkly lit foyer into a long, shadowy hallway. I didn't have enough time to admire the expensive, stiff furnishings, or the lack of photographs along the walls, because I was too busy thinking of how drafty it was inside. The only things missing were baying hounds and howling wind.

The next room we entered caught me off guard. Startled, I grabbed Ethan's arm. "Oh. My. God... Ethan, I've never seen anything like this..."

It was like someone had picked up a jungle and relocated it in someone's spare room. We walked into a wide, space that was covered in flowers, vines and trees. The floor was dirt, and littered with plants, bushes and flowers, and you couldn't see the walls they were so covered in foliage. In center of it all was a splendid stone fountain a story high. I gazed upwards at the immense stone construction. It was shaped like a thin whistle, with water that spewed down in a wide radius from its top. Surrounding the entire fountain was a thick, concrete slab erected to chest height. It was filled with water, and floating on its dark surface were an array of lily pads and other, exotic-looking flowers in many shades of neon colors.

"Wow, it looks so deep. Wonder how far it goes..." I leaned against the concrete to get a better look. It was impossible to tell how deep the bottom went, considering the waters were so still and dark.

A ripple broke out across the water and I jumped back when something erupted from the surface in a loud splash. A face–a green face–was suddenly looking back at me. The owner of the face had dark green lips, and black eyes without pupils. Yet as strange and inhuman as the eyes were, this didn't detract from the intelligence within them. A small, button nose sat above a friendly smile, and all my surprise was replaced by intrigue when I noticed the jade green fin that lazily slapped at the water. It was a Mermaid–a real, living Mermaid.

The Mermaid grinned, without showing its teeth, and swam to the edge of the fountain. By the look of her chubby face and youthful smile I could tell she was young. Reminiscent of seaweed, her long, dripping hair was just as green as her skin.

"Are you seeing this?" I looked behind me, to Ethan, for confirmation. His reply was wordless; his tongue didn't seem to be in working order. His jaw moved but all sound was temporarily frozen by surprise.

I turned back to the Mermaid and she looked at me from her alien-like eyes. Then, bringing one green hand up from the water, she beckoned me closer. Without hesitation, I obliged, meeting her at the fountain's edge.

"Hi," I said. "I can't believe you're really... real." The Mermaid's smile widened, and the next second she spit a stream of fountain water in my face, revealing yellow, pointed teeth as she cackled. "Well, now I believe it," I muttered, wiping the water from my face, as behind me Ethan howled in laughter.

"Ahem. This way, if you'd please..." the butler drawled, standing patiently beside the doorway at the opposite end of the room.

We followed the butler to our destination with no other mishaps. The tour ended in a long, rectangular room painted and furnished in a shade of brown that retained its fashionable presence despite the dreary coloring. The floor was smooth wood, polished to a high sparkle, strewn with several authentic bear rugs. There were many pieces of dark, uncomfortable looking scattered throughout the room, but most of the handsome, finely dressed guests were on their feet. Drowning out the sounds of information was a girl standing in the corner, elevated above the crowd by a round platform. She sang soulfully into a microphone, holding it like she would a lover. Her thick, brown hair spilled across her bare shoulders and down her back. Who was this Vampire with the blood-stained dress? There was something awfully familiar about her...