Masque of Red Death

"WAKE UP, SLEEPYHEAD! WAKE UP, SLEEPYHEAD! WAKE UP, SLEE— "

WHOOP!!

Jude groaned as she slammed the alarm clock. Curse her ex-husband to get her such a loud, obnoxious clock for her birthday. Now she couldn't wake up without having a heart attack first.

As she slowly slipped her legs off the bed to sit up and put her cold feet into her warm furry bed slippers, she stared out into the slowly rising sun at the horizon beyond her window. An empty feeling that she thought was long gone resurfaced as she glanced at the empty space of the other side of her bed, and her heart unconsciously ached at that feeling, making her wish in vain that all this had never happened.

It had been almost 3 years to the letter that she had divorced Jay, her ex-husband of 5 years, due to some stupid misunderstanding. She had to admit, they were really young at the time and they seemed to have rushed into the marriage (after dating for only 6 months) as soon as they were fresh out of high school and at an age where they should be considering college first. She had abandoned almost everything: her friends, her family, her hometown of Burlesque, to be with Jay in Kite City, but when she had a miscarriage and, due to her depression over the loss of their child, mistaken Jay's visit to his sister, who came to console him, as an affair, they started drifting apart, losing each other's trust and finally lived separately for a few months before Jay mailed her the divorce papers for her to sign.

Jude sighed as she turned off the snooze button on the alarm clock and made her way to the bathroom to freshen up. Despite the divorce, she still kept a multitude of vanity items that she got from Jay when he was still courting her and she couldn't bear to part from it no matter how painful it reminded her of her mistake to let Jay go yet never tried to earn him back. Though, despite her lack of college education, her talent for linguistics due to the fact that she was a half-breed (incubus on her father's side) with better brain capacity to absorb foreign languages just as easy as one would learn how to drink water secured her a job in Kite City as an international translator, and while back then she used to be able to be the biggest breadwinner between her and Jay and live comfortably, now she, single and alone, was earning more than she needed to. If she were to show others her bank book, you'd be bamboozled with all the zeros laid before you.

As she finished freshening up and got dressed, she went to her front door of her $900-a-month condominium to check for any incoming mail, and sure enough, there were a few. Bringing them to the kitchen counter where she poured herself a cup of strong black coffee and reheating some leftover omelets, she sifted through them one by one.

"Junk mail…bills…bills…junk mail…subscription fee renewal advice…bills…hey, what's this?"

Her eyes caught sight at an odd-looking envelope. It was fully red, like the colour of blood, and sealed with golden wax, almost like the ones that were used during the Middle Ages. There was no return address and no indication that her address was written anywhere, and there was no stamp either. It was as if someone wrote a letter to her and mailed it by hand themselves.

"Ah well," Jude shrugged as she opened the envelope. "It's not like my day could get any worse."

As she took out a card that was inside the envelope, she saw that the front of the card was a picture of a medieval-looking castle. At closer inspection, she recognized the castle as Prospero Castle, one of the 8th wonders of Kite City, allegedly rumoured to have housed more than 5 generations of the area's most notorious and scandalous royal dynasty of the history. When she opened the card, there it wrote in red ink:

Dear Judith Light,

You are cordially invited to the most spectacular masquerade party the city has ever seen. Should you decide to accept this invitation, your life, as you know it, will change for the better and you will be rewarded with something you hold dear the most.

Venue: Prospero Castle, Frankfurt Avenue
Date: All Hallows Eve
Time: 7.30pm onwards
Attire: Will be provided upon confirmation

RSVP: Please confirm your acceptance of invitation by dialing 555-1408

P/S: You may want to think carefully and considerably before you decide to reject this offer. This is your only chance

"I…Is this some kind of joke?" Jude exclaimed in disbelief. She read and reread the invitation card and yet she still couldn't figure head or tail of this. Her? Invited by a stranger to a masquerade party? A change in life and a reward of something she hold most dear? It sounded more like a scam to her.

As she was about to reach back to the envelope to see if there was anything else that came with the card, she caught sight of the time, found out that she was almost late for the last subway train to work, swore and hastily made her way out of her condo, leaving the envelope and the card behind on the kitchen counter amongst the pile of junk mail.

--:--

Jude groaned as she finally stepped out of the subway train and into the open. She was glad that her job allowed her freedom to wear whatever she wants as long as she does not wear it during public functions for the rich and famous, and she was wearing her usual baggy clothes to work, or she would've probably suffocated to death by the clothes alone that everyone seemed to have an affinity of wearing despite its lack of room to breathe.

If only Jay were to understand that her lack of fashion sense was the one thing that probably saved her life so many times during rush hour.

She readjusted the strap of her sports bra she wore underneath that long, baggy T-shirt dress and made her way towards her workplace, her left pants leg folded up an inch higher than her right and her Japanese wooden sandals—Jay called it clogs, more like it—echoed down the steadily busy streets of Kite City. She couldn't care less if people were staring at her weirdly; she just wanted to continue on her way and be within the walls of her office listening and/or read into whatever her superiors had to throw at her to translate and get on with her day so that it would end quickly for her to return to the sanctuary of her home and carry on what she did best: drawing comics.

As she took out her pass card and made her way towards the building where she worked, she recalled the last time she tried to convince her mother to allow her to pursue her true dream career as a manga-ka. She always had a passion for comic books and manga and hoped that one day she could be just like those wonderful artists, sharing their dreams and imaginations for the world to enjoy, rather than sit there and tell people what other people were talking about. That discussion led into a huge argument about a total waste of talent and potential and total destruction of her manga story by her mother that she spent almost a month completing and had planned to be sent to publishers.

At least Jay allowed me to do what I want to do, Jude thought, barely realizing that she had tend to associate everything that she could think of to her ex-husband. She berated herself for not getting over it even though it had been 3 years after the fact, as she swiped her pass card at gate entrance, but she knew, deep down inside, it was easier said than done.

ACCESS DENIED

"What?" Jude raised a brow and swiped her pass card again. The reaction was the same for the next 2 times she tried it, and at the 3rd time, the security breach alarm went off, prompting the security guards to the door to investigate.

"What seems to be the problem here?" a chubby African-American man clad in the company's security uniform came out along with another tall, lanky partner. Jude recognized them as Al and Sticks, some of the closest friends she had made in Kite City.

"Oh, Al! Sticks! Thank goodness you're here," Jude sighed in relief. "Did you guys changed pass cards or pass codes or something because, seriously, you really need to update your memo system…"

"Ma'am, where did you get this card from?" Al asked sternly. "This is exclusively for employees only. And how do you know my nickname?"

"Al, it's me, Jude! You know me, I always get you decaf and jelly donuts every chance I get. Come on, it's not April's Fool Day, stop playing!"

"Ma'am, I don't know what you're talking about. I have diabetes and can't touch anything sweet without insulin, let alone have coffee and jelly donuts. Now hand over the card before I take you to the authorities for theft and trespassing."

"Sticks!" Jude turned desperately towards Sticks who looked at her just as sternly as Al did. "You know me too! I gave you that necklace for your birthday last week! Don't tell me you don't remember that!"

"Lady, I dunno watcha playin' at," Sticks replied in his thick Southern accent. "But the missus is the one who gave me this necklace, and you sure ain't lookin' like my missus to me."

Jude looked at each of them in disbelief. They seemed to know what they were talking about, but it seemed so impossible and unreal. Just the evening before she got off work, she had a hearty conversation with the two of them gossiping and joking about a recording she had to translate of a so-called Ukrainian underground mob, to only find that it was just some poor Russian sap being caught by his wife for having sex with her sister, and now they were looking at her as if they had never ever seen her before in their lives.

Her fight or flight instincts soon kicked in as she pushed past the two guards to run up to her office. Maybe it was a mistake. Maybe it's some sort of joke. Maybe it was some sort of sick sense of humour from the upper management to make subordinates like Al and Sticks not acknowledge her presence. She had to make sure that she didn't just step into the Twilight Zone. Ignoring the shouts of the guards that were chasing after her, she quickly dashed up the stairs (since her pass card couldn't work and the elevator required pass card access) to her floor where her office was.

The moment she pushed the door open, all eyes were on her. Everything in the office was just as she had left it last night, but something about it was different in a sense, like she both recognized and not recognized it at the same time. Her seat was replaced with a Caucasian man who was a half-breed like her as well, but one look at the wings he sported and Jude knew he was descended from a different breed of nether beings.

But the most disturbing part was that her fellow colleagues who shared the same office with her were all giving her the same look that Al and Sticks gave her.

Needless to say, once the security guards were able to catch up with her, she was dragged kicking and screaming out of the building, stripped of her pass card and clearance badge and escorted unwillingly into the company security car to the nearest police station.

After almost 3 hours of interrogation and Jude repeating over and over again her identity and her position in her company and almost half a day in a holding cell, the police decided to let her off—since they couldn't find any proof of foul play on her part as to how she acquired a high security pass card that was employee-exclusive only—provided that she did not leave town. As she left the station, she caught a glimpse of a newspaper clipping on the notice board. There was no picture to illustrate the article, but the headline was big enough to catch anyone's attention:

THE RED DEATH'S BLOOD TRAIL CONTINUES

She would've gone over to read it in more detail if she didn't realize that she was being watched. The piercing gaze of some of the detectives who were interrogating her was like daggers on her back, making her feel like a criminal already. Guess she was still under suspicion even though her situation proved otherwise. Giving the detectives one last challenging glare, she made her way out of the police station.

--:--

Jude was wrong when she stated this morning that her day couldn't get any worse, because it did. Just like the incident at her workplace, it was happening again at her own condo as the locks were changed and the landlord did not recognize her and denied ever letting her stay in her condo. Someone else—a family of four—occupied her home, and everything that she owned in that home was gone, except for her alarm clock that she got for her birthday from Jay and the invitation card that was left carelessly outside the door. And when she tried to prove her residency by showing her the clock and the card together with the condo keys, the landlord went into a fit of denial and threatened to call the police if she did not leave.

Not wanting to make another trip to the station and risk meeting those detectives again, she reluctantly left the condo with only the clothes on her back and whatever she had brought along for work in the morning, in addition to the clock and the invitation card. After walking aimlessly for miles, she found herself in Kite City Memorial Park, her footsteps echoing down the long walkway with only the park lights to illuminate her way.

Finding the nearest seat, she rested on it and mulled over what had just happened. Why didn't her pass card work? Why didn't anyone recognize her? Why was she suddenly replaced from her job and her home? How was it that she could be Judith Light the International Translator to Jude the Nobody overnight? Who was doing this? How did they do it? And why?

Giving her luck one more shot to assure herself that she had not gone insane, she took out her cell phone and dialed home, back in Burlesque. It had been so many years since she called home ever since she eloped with Jay, but knowing her mom, she would jump to the chance to scream her head off at what an ingrate she was for running away and ruining her dreams of seeing her little girl being the trophy daughter she always wanted her to be.

For a moment, she actually would welcome that if only to know that she still exists.

"Hello?" a brisk, no-nonsense yet familiar voice came through after 2 rings.

"Um…Hello? Is this…Mrs. Light?" Jude asked tentatively, testing the waters.

"Yes, this is Mrs. Light speaking. Who is this?"

"H…Hey, Mom. Um…it's me, Jude. You remember me, right?"

Jude braced herself for a yelling, but nothing prepared her for this reaction:

"I think you have the wrong number. I don't have a child."

"Hey, Mom, you're kidding, right? You're just saying that to spite me, right? I know it's been years and what I did was wrong but…"

"I said you have the wrong number. I've been infertile for as long as I can remember, let alone have a daughter to be done wrong to. Is this some kind of sick joke? Who is this? Hello? Hello?"

Jude hung up helplessly, not wanting to explain herself anymore. If even her own mother did not recognize her, who else would now? In a fit of rage and despair, she flung her phone against a nearby tree and shot up, shouting at the top of her lungs at thin air, "WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS?! WHO THE HELL IS DOING THIS?! WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU WANT?!"

She was about to grab something else to throw and vent when she caught sight of the invitation card. As her half-breed brain worked out the kinks, she soon realized that it was the moment she received this invitation that her day went downhill. As crazy as it may sound, it had to be the only explanation when nothing else made logical sense. It had to be!

Desperate for a lead, she snatched the invitation card and studied it again. She read and reread the message on the card from cover to cover until those specific words started to sound like a mantra in her head:

…you will be rewarded with something you hold dear the most…

Reaching over for the envelope, she tore it open as she should have done this morning and sure enough, something fell out of that envelope. As she picked it up, she was shocked to see that it was the 4-photo strip that she and Jay took at the Kite City carnival's photo booth on the 1st year of their marriage. She remembered it was near autumn when the annual carnival began, and the first she and Jay did was rush to the photo booth to take pictures of themselves. The first three were just silly faces they put up, but the last one was of them kissing.

She flipped to the back of the photo strip to confirm her suspicions and sure enough, there was the little doodle she and Jay did and the handwritten date of the photo taken in Jay's handwriting. There was no doubt about it as the answer and those specific words were laid out in front of her.

Whoever sent her the invitation card and the photo strip had Jay.

A feeling of warmth washed slightly through her heart at the thought of Jay keeping this photo when she did not, but a sense of dread overpowered that feeling as she wondered why Jay became collateral damage to a vendetta that was targeted to her. Millions of questions ran through her mind as to who, what, why, where, when and how did all this happen, but she knew it was not going to be answered by just standing there staring at nothingness. If she were to get her answers, she would have to accept the invitation.

She cursed as she remembered she smashed her cell phone against the tree and quickly exited the park to find the nearest pay phone. Finding one, she quickly dialed the number that was on the card and waited. At the 3rd ring, a woman's voice that you often hear on an answering machine greeted her:

"Thank you for accepting the invitation to the masquerade party at Prospero Castle. Please specify your residency to receive your event attire and everything else will be arranged."

Jude had wanted to say her condo's address but, remembering that she no longer live there, her mind immediately thought of the next best option, which was the Apollo Hotel where she and Jay stayed for their 2nd anniversary. The moment she said the address, the voice in the phone ended the conversation with just a "Thank you" and she was soon left to her own devices.

Double-checking to see if she had enough cash at hand, since using her credit card would probably not work thanks to today's events, she took a cab and made her way towards Apollo Hotel.

--:--

Jude's musings were broken with the sound of knocking on the door. It had been almost two days since she checked into Apollo Hotel and All Hallow's Eve was almost approaching. She was almost getting cabin fever waiting for any news from whoever sent her the invitation and she literally made a sprint for it when the knock came.

Seeing no one through the peephole, she opened the door cautiously to find a black box tied in blood red ribbon at her feet. Picking it up, she looked around again to see who left it behind in vain before bringing it into her room. Almost immediately, she tore off the ribbon and opened the box to see a shocking sight before her.

Inside the box was a pink ballroom dress with a slight dark hue and embroidered with tiny pearls and sequins in random pattern, with gloves, shoes and accessories to match. There was something very medieval about the dress, almost like something out of a Shakespearean era where Romeo and Juliet still existed and A Midsummer's Night Dream was not much of a dream at all, and judging by the quality of the dress, it did not come cheap. Along with the dress and accessories was the crème of the crop: a pinkish-white mask that could literally cover half of her face with elegantly carved holes for the eyes, and like the dress, it was decorated with tiny pearls and sequins with a creamy-coloured bunch of feathers on either side of the mask.

But that was not the shocking part.

It was a picture of Jay taped to the bottom of the box cover that really got her riled up. He was stripped down to his briefs and blindfolded and gagged while his hands and arms were raised and tied above his head. There were long and thin scorch marks on every part of his body and some of them were fresh and bleeding. Jude would've thought him dead if not for the fact that his legs were still standing firmly on the floor, albeit weakly.

Her heart burnt with fury and agony at the sight of this. Why him? Why, of all people, him? What did they want from him? What did they want from her? What was the point of all this? Those were questions she would demand from the culprit first chance she gets.

As she flipped to the back of the picture, a small note was found written in red, saying:

Your reward will soon be at hand, if you were to follow the rules.
Put on the dress and wait for further instructions

As much as she didn't want to, she had no choice. Jay's life was at stake, ex-husband or not. She couldn't deny that she still loved him with all her heart, and she would do anything to save him from this predicament.

The moment she finished dressing up in the outfit she was given and fitted the mask, the hotel phone rang. As she picked it up, the same voice she heard the first time through the pay phone came in.

"Thank you for accepting your attire. Please proceed outside your residence and your mode of transport will be with you shortly."

Jude was tempted to yell at the phone to demand she has proof of life from Jay, but the phone was already hung up by the time she actually thought of saying. Grumbling curses at it, she slammed the phone down and made her way out of the hotel, ignoring stares, teases and wolf-whistles by those she walked past.

She wondered, at the back of her mind, what would Jay think if he saw the ex-wife he knew who had totally next to no fashion sense all dolled and dressed up like that right now.

Sure enough, the moment she was at the entrance of the hotel, a black limo was parked right outside waiting for her. No one came out to open the door for her, so she had to go in herself. A tinted glass window separated her and the driver and the moment she got in and closed the door, the limo started up and made its way to their destination.

As she sat there, letting the vehicle take her to wherever she needed to be, she stared at both the photo strip and the photo she got of the tortured Jay and whispered quietly to it, caressing it tenderly.

"Hang in there, Jay. I'm coming for you."