Chapter 3

Indra suspects that she's being brought into another room. There is an echo when she starts to speak, so she assumes the room must be large with high ceilings. She is guided down into a chair with a soft cushion, trailing her hands over the chair’s armrests. The surface feels like smooth but weathered wood.

"I am King Laurin. I am King of the Crystal Castle in the Valley of the Roses," he finally says.

She senses a certain pride in his dark voice but she can't help but frown at his words. She does not trust this stranger for a second and decides not to say anything more than is absolutely necessary. All this should make her petrified, but she's not. She's way too angry.

"Sure," she snickers. " The King himself, from the Valley of the Roses, you impress me. Why, don’t you try the one about Little Red Riding Hood too, while you're at it."

"Little Red Riding Hood?"

"Yes, it's also a fairy tale. It's about a little girl who's going to visit her grandmother."

The man laughs out loud. "I'm not a fairytale character! Even though I wouldn’t mind having a few more supernatural abilities. However, I am the King of the Valley of the Roses, and I am not ashamed of that fact." Indra can hear The King chuckle while he strolls around the room, as if he can't quite stand still.

"King Laurin is a fairy tale," she continues. "He's not real. How stupid do you think I am? Besides, the story says that King Laurin is a dwarf and I guess you are not."

Another heartfelt laugh echoes through the room. "I can take many forms. So yes, I can transform myself into a dwarf too. Would you prefer me to transform myself into a dwarf? They are both strong and witty."

"Absolutely. Then I'd easily reach up to kick you in the face. And it's a highly effective maneuver when you want to silence someone”, Indra warns.

Laurin looks at her for a moment before he answers. "Why can’t you read my mind, Indra? Then you would find out the truth about me."

"What truth? That you're a mythomaniac? A man with a far too vivid imagination? King Laurin is a bedtime story that my Godmother Frigg used to read to me as a child. He's not real."

Indra is now furious. Why does he think she would believe such ridiculous lies? There is a slight sense of bewilderment when she can once again smell the faint scent of roses from his skin, but she quickly suppresses the thought.

She sighs deeply when he doesn't answer. For a moment, she doesn't know what to say.

"Let's say for the sake of it," she continues, breaking the lingering silence, "that you are King Laurin from the Valley of the Roses. How did you get me out of Lucifer's dungeons?"

"I used my invisibility cape. I carried you under it, so you became invisible too."

Indra can feel a slight twitching in the corner of her lip. "So, you're saying you have a cape that we both fit under?"

She sneers when he doesn't seem to want to answer. "Must be a very large cape, so allow me to doubt you," she says, her tone is short and full of annoyance.

"No, I won't allow you to doubt me." The man’s voice is visibly irritated. "What can I do to convince you?"

Indra ignores the question. "If I remember the story correctly, King Laurin also owns a magic sword and a belt that can give him the strength of twelve men."

"That's right."

Indra laughs straight out. "Oh my God! Can't you just stop lying now? Why would I believe all of this? It is stupid." She presses her lips together in a thin line and thinks about how she could put him in place, once and for all. "If you have magical powers, you should be able to help me get this damn iron mask off."

Laurin sighs deeply. "Well, I can but everything has its time, dear." She can feel him reaching out a hand and touching her hair. "Why have you cut off your long, beautiful hair?"

Indrashrugs her shoulders. "After the bath, it was impossible to untangle my hair because of all the dirt and dried blood. It was easier to just cut it off."

"But it was so beautiful. I could have helped you brush it out."

"Why do you care about what I look like?"

She starts to devour the food and drink she has been served. Her hunger started to overcome her. There is grilled chicken that smells wonderful. It’s combined honey-glazed vegetables and golden rice is the most delicious thing she has ever eaten. She can't curb her hunger anymore, even though it feels uncomfortable to eat in front of the strange man.

She keeps her head firmly facing down towards the plate, but senses that Laurin raises his head slightly to see her better in the dim glow of the candlelight’s lined up on the table. She gets the idea that he is watching her and is criticizing in his mind, the looks of her new unruly shoulder length hair.

When a door opens behind her, she turns around towards the sound.

"Yes?" Laurin says. "I made it clear that I did not want to be disturbed."

"Forgive me, Your Majesty, but everything is ready for you now," a thin voice answer back.

"Good!" He waves away the unwelcome guest as the hinges squeak under the weight of the heavy door as it closes.

"What's ready?" Indra can't help but ask.

"The sun is about to set and I can get the powers I need to help you get rid of your iron mask. Maybe then I can finally convince you that I am King Laurin."

"You can always try," she chuckles.

"Come with me, Indra." He gets up, reaches out and grabs one of her arms.

Indra wants to shake his hand off, but finds it difficult to walk by herself with the iron mask over her eyes. She allows herself to be led out of the room and into the crisp evening air with its faint sweet and inviting scent.

"Where are we going?"

"Have some patience, dear."

Indra really wants to strangle him. She's never met a more arrogant and annoying man. He's so used to being the one in charge, as if it is his unquestionable right and something which she could never dispute. That's the man's right, but not the women. Indra hates it.

"Patience is not one of my strong sides," she mumbles. "Would you be so kind to tell me where you're taking me?"

He sighs heavily. "I'm going to give you the pleasure to enjoy my rose garden. Here I am at my strongest and can gain access to the power I need to free you from Lucifer's powers."

His words send shivers down her back. Despite his calm voice, she gets the feeling that he has told her far from everything. He may seem dangerous, but he's not mad, or cruel. So, what is it that she reacts to in his deep voice?

He takes a firmer hold of one of her wrists and steers her out onto an open area. There, the wind strokes her face for the first time in months. Indra inhales a deep breath, filling her lungs with the fresh, restful air.

She can hear their steps echo as they walk. She stops and tries to get a sense of her surroundings. It's early spring. She can feel the air’s sweet scent of flowers in bloom and recently melted fresh water softly trickling down around her.

"Where are we now?" she asks.

"Let's go across the courtyard. Indra, this way." King Laurin directs.

The echoing of their footsteps subsides as he steers her gently to the right along a stone path.

Indra can feel that the path is covered in something soft, probably moss, she guesses.

An overwhelming scent of damp soil and flowering Hawthorns fills her nostrils.

And for the first time in forever, she is embraced by the warmth of the evening sun, and the scent of an invigorating freedom fills her senses.