Darkness Depths

“Follow me, it’s through here.” The archeologist gestured. He and his superior navigated through the rocky crevice, moving closer to the glowing blue light. “We found it, Ms. Wilson. We did it.”
The two entered a chamber, seemingly unnatural in shape and size. The blue light emanated from the center; from a blue crystalline structure that protruded from the ground. Hired drillers used their steam-powered tools, chipping away at the mineral, vying for what it held within.
“Inside of that structure lies all we’ll need, Ms. Wilson. Years of work; years of searching, finally about to pay off.” The archeologist commented, the light of the giant crystal shining off the short man’s glasses. The excitement of the whole venture coming to a close filled him to the brim.
“Calm yourself, Mr. Flemings. We’re only reaching our first goal. We still have the rest of our journey.” Ms. Wilson mentioned calmly as she stared at the glowing rock.
After hours of drilling, the miners struck the proverbial gold. An opening was made in the crystal, allowing relatively easy access to the contents within.
“Ma’am, you may proceed.” A miner clad in a brown and gold gas mask and leather trench coat informed Ms. Wilson.
But as Ms. Wilson took her first steps toward the structure, the color of the aura shifted from a soothing blue to an ominous blood red. The cavern started to shake; rocks began falling from the ceiling, and a thick black smoke seeped from the freshly made opening.
“Ms. Wilson, what is this?!” Mr. Flemings questioned, readying a retreat.
“This, my dear Flemings, is what we came here for.” Ms. Wilson grinned as she put on her goggles. She walked steadily toward the crystal, despite her surroundings descending into chaos. Boulders fell from roof of the chamber, crushing a miner and killing him instantaneously.
“Ms. Wilson! What are you doing?! It’s too dangerous!” Mr. Flemings yelled over the earsplitting noises the chamber was creating.
“You worry too much, Mr. Flemings!” Ms. Wilson called back as she neared the entrance to the crystal structure. All around her, miners were attempting to flee the scene, running through the thick black smoke in search of the exit. But the remaining miners realized that there was no escape from the smoke. Half of the remaining miners started falling into a weird insanity, as if they had been plagued by years of schizophrenia in a single instant. The tortured screams intertwined with the roar of the chamber, being matched only by a new sound resonating from the structure. The sound was ear-splitting, and two miners began experiencing bleeding from every orifice on their body.
Ms. Wilson entered the structure, as casually as one would walk into a shop. She slipped on a small mask that only covered the nose down. She then put on earmuffs, blocking every sound surrounding her.
Mr. Flemings watched as every single miner was being brought to their knees, all in pure, undiluted agony. Mr. Flemings watched Ms. Wilson disappear into the blood red rock, but had no time to ask questions. He turned and ran as fast as he could toward the crevice inside the rock in order to flee, but the black smoke entered his body, rapidly entering the nostrils and throat. Mr. Flemings’ internal organs started to bubble as he grasped his throat, struggling to breathe. The liquefied organs rose to Mr. Flemings’ mouth and poured from its corners. The old man collapsed to the ground, forced to watch as the others face the same fate.
A tall, slender figure approached Mr. Flemings, gold objects in the figure’s hands.
“Ah, Mr. Flemings. I recall telling you to come prepared.” A familiar voice taunted, almost sexily. “It won’t be hard finding another willing historian such as yourself. You know how powerful my charm is.”
Ms. Wilson emerged from the black smoke unscathed. She walked with purpose toward the body of Mr. Flemings.
“Death came slower to you, Flemings. However, it still reached you. I’ll be sure to inform your loved ones.” Ms. Wilson told the now dead historian.
She walked out of the cavern ever so casually, through the exit and onward to her transport.
“Back to the surface, quickly. The place is coming down, if you haven’t noticed.” She informed the Steam-Drill driver as she settled into her seat.

. . .

Juliet scanned the billboard for a job that interested her. The 19 year old needed some money, but didn’t want to be stuck behind some desk. She craved the thrill of adventure. She loved learning about the world firsthand, through her own eyes. Juliet looked and looked as steam-powered vehicles zipped by.
The year was 1842, and the use of steam-powered was almost as essential as food. Airships dotted the skies, and low-flying Aircycles filled the streets. Exploration and the desire to discover were interlaced in the blood of everyone, but none more so than Juliet.
The light-brunette girl looked and looked for an ad but to no avail. She let out a sigh and activated her steam-board. Juliet strapped her brown boots to the board, put on her goggles, and floated away from the billboard. She carefully edged into speeding traffic and pushed down on the pedal. Juliet zipped and sped past flying cars, narrowly dodging the other vehicles. She turned corners with ease, and eventually made it back to her humble abode.
Juliet lived in a small apartment in the less prosperous part of the Golden City, one of four floating cities hovering thousands of meters above the Earth’s surface. Juliet entered the building from the alley, and spotted her landlord repairing the wallpaper of the main hall. Juliet tried to slip by unseen, but the landlord’s hawk-like senses kicked in.
“I take it you don’t have your rent money, Juliet.” She said, not looking away from her task.
“Ah…well no, not yet. But I’ll have it, Mrs. Lorenzo! I promise!” Juliet assured sweetly.
“Mhm, sure. Oh! I know how you like the latest adventurer fashions, so I got you these gloves at the bazaar! The left one has a watch built into it, and they’re not even heavy!”
“My God, these have actual gold on them! Mrs. Lorenzo, how much did you spend on these? I can’t accept them! Not when I have a rent due…”
“Oh hush, dear! You’re my favorite tenant, even though you’re horrid at paying things on time. I insist! I also stitched your trench coat, and that skirt you wear. I added little white frills to the end of them, so they can look a little better.”
“Thanks but they looked fine! They didn’t need frills!” Juliet protested.
“I thought they did. You could look more lady-like! You’re a beautiful girl, but you don’t exactly show it off! They’re in your deposit box outside of your room.”
“I don’t need to show it off!” Juliet called out as she walked up the stairs. She grumbled with every step, until she reached her deposit box. Juliet took out her key and opened the box, pulling out the articles of clothing from inside.
“Oh wow…This actually does look pretty nice.” Juliet admitted to herself when she looked at the newly repaired skirt.
Juliet took her clothing and entered her apartment. She threw the clothes onto her clean pile and turned on her radio. Juliet hung up her board and collapsed onto her bed, sighing rather loudly.
“There’s got to be something somewhere. Hey, Lugnut, did I get any mail?” Juliet called out.
Suddenly, a small automaton appeared. Its jerky movements made it move forward slowly from its home inside Juliet’s closet.
“A LETTER. I HAVE A LETTER FOR YOU.” Lugnut exclaimed with excitement.
“Don’t tell me I have to fix your volume controls again.” Juliet groaned.
“JUST MAYBE, MISS JULIET.” Lugnut replied as it handed Juliet a sealed envelope.
“This looks fancy. I’ll fix you up after I read this.” Juliet informed the little automaton as she looked at the envelope. It was made of a fine white paper, and sealed with a wax stamp. The stamp itself was the family crest of one of Golden City’s wealthiest patron, Melanie Wilson. The flat side of the envelope read: Juliet Stonebridge.
“Why would Lady Wilson send me a letter? There’s a catch. There’s obviously a catch.” Juliet deduced as she tore open the envelope. The young lady pulled out the letter, message written on the white parchment.

Dear Ms. Stonebridge,

You have been cordially invited to a gala at the Wilson Mansion in the White Quarter of Golden City on the evening of September19th. The event shall begin at 6 pm. Formal dress is required. I do hope you shall be in attendance.

Best Wishes,

Melanie Wilson.

“A party? I just got invited to a party?” Juliet repeated in disbelief. “Lugs, what day is it?”
“THE 19TH.” Lugnut replied loudly.
“Oh my God! It’s tonight! Lugs. How long have you had this letter?!”
“SEVERAL WEEKS.”
“How come you never gave me it!?”
“MEMORY UNIT MALFUNCTIONS DUE TO YOUR FAULTY DESISNGS.”
“Oh you smartass. I need to go get a dress! God, I hate you sometimes, Lugs!”
“WHAT ABOUT THAT SKIRT. THE ONE MRS. LORENZO FIXED.”
“Okay, maybe I don’t hate you.” Juliet scrambled to the clean clothes pile and pulled out her newly stitched skirt. The white fabric made the front of the skirt, which was made from wine-red fabric, shine bright. The skirt made her slight bronze skin stand out magnificently. Juliet searched for her red corset, the same shade as the front of her skirt. Clothes were flung into the air as she frantically dug into the pile. After several minutes, the clean clothes were all over Juliet’s apartment, and the corset was nowhere to be found.
“MAYBE IT IS IN THE DIRTY CLOTHES PILE.” Lugnut suggested.
“Aw crap.” Juliet complained as she moved to the dirty clothes. She continued to search and came across of the article of clothing she was looking for. The young lady observed the corset, trying to find any distinguishable smudges or any sign of dirtiness. Deeming it worthy, Juliet took off her current blouse and put on a crisp white one, with puffed short sleeves. After that, Juliet put on her skirt, hopping over to her bathroom. One inside, she took a mini-vest from a hook and put it over her blouse, matching the corset and skirt in color.
“WHY DO YOU NEED SO MUCH CLOTHING?” Lugnut questioned, genuinely curious.
“I’m still a girl, Lugs. I like to look pretty form time to time. Especially if I’m headed to a party.” Juliet answered, focused on putting on her most valuable possession, a pair of white-gold earrings with ruby gems.
“ISN’T IT A FORMAL EVENT?”
“What are you trying to say?”
“YOU DO NOT LOOK VERY FORMAL. I DEEM YOU…SEMI-FORMAL.”
“I deem you a piece of shit.”
“YOU MADE ME.”
“Get back in the closet.”
“I REFUSE.”
“Don’t make me put you there myself!” Juliet threatened as she turned around, finished putting on a silver necklace.
“YOU WILL NEVER CATCH ME. I AM UNCATCHABLE.” Lugnut proclaimed as it started hopping around the apartment.
“I don’t have time for this! I need to put on some make up. And another thing, 'uncatchable' isn't a word.”
“YOU OWN MAKE UP?”
“...Some lipstick…”
“RED? IS IT BECAUSE YOU ARE WHITE?”
“Hey! I’m tanning a little!”
“KEEP DREAMING.”
“….Does that mean I’ll look good in the red lipstick?”
“YES.”
“…Thank you, Lugs.”
“YOU ARE WELCOME, WHITEY. WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO DO YOUR HAIR?”