Chapter Four: Seperation Anxiety

Ruby found herself in an almost pitch dark room with a single spotlight aimed at a chair. It was hard to know whether she was in danger, but sat herself down regardless.

Once seated, the harsh light and spirit-sapping gloom made her head spin.

“Don’t pass out just yet.” A nearby woman said. “You might not wake up again.”

Dressed in double denim, a chunky, middle-aged blonde stepped into view.

“You’ve been slacking off for 18 hours,” She said. “We can’t have that, it sets a bad example.”

“I wasn’t slacking off.” Ruby said, flatly. “I was DEAD.”

The woman levelled a night-stick under the girls’ chin. “Don’t raise your voice at me, Princess. The ability to speak is not necessary around these parts. I can easily take it away.”

Another memory swam into Ruby’s head. Curst Grifter, the Warden’s second in command. A corrupt Western localiser, who made a hobby out of distorting, mangling and ruining Light Novels to make it about herself.

“Alright, that’s enough.” A second woman said. She was thinner than the first and wore a long summer dress. Another memory: Warden Yvette Yvonne, inscrutable and measured; the best choice for running a Prison.

Curst shook her head. “Tough love is what she needs, not mothering.”

“If we want to keep her onside, she needs to have a reason to stay.” The Warden said, before turning her attention toward their guest. “How’s it feel, Ruby? You had us worried for almost a day. Please be more considerate, because deaths on my watch reflect badly on me.”

“Yeah, sorry for being murdered unexpectedly.” Ruby said, dryly. “It was selfish of me not to notify in advance.”

The two women looked at each other.

“Well that’s new.” Curst said.

“Too new for my liking.” Yvonne replied, her maternal smile fading. “I have never known this one to be sarcastic, especially with the higher ups. She was always distant and cold toward others. When she did speak, it was forthright, blunt, almost…brutal.”

“Hal mentioned something about her mouthing off to the Snake Maids. The Tuxedo of two days ago would not have bothered.”

Ruby turned away, almost embarrassed.
Don’t tell me I went the full Kuudere on these people? What the hell, Ruby? This isn’t the eighth grade, Lone Wolf on your own time!

“Still,” The Warden said. “It does raise suspicions.”

I knew it! They found out!

“Like why would one of the best fighters, suddenly lose to a weak opponent?”

Eh?

Curst folded her arms.

“The match was thrown, obviously.”

“That’s the problem, it was too obvious. Mademoiselle is usually more subtle. Plus Ruby was one of her best enforcers, so the whole charade wouldn’t have fooled anyone.”

The word ‘Enforcer’ pricked up the new girls’ ears.

It was usually a word associated with Underworld criminal gangs. Who was this Mademoiselle and how did the former Ruby end up entangled in her web?

“Yeah well,” Curst said, with a heavy sigh. “May as well throw her back into Gen-Pop, see how she does.”

“We can’t. In this condition, she’ll be eaten alive and all that sponsorship will be gone.”

Ruby hitched a breath. “Sponsorship?”

“Oh don’t tell me.” Curst said, leaning in. “Our little Princess has gone and lost her memory too.”

Yvonne palmed her face. “If word gets out, I’d have no choice but to stick her in a padded cell for her own protection. Worse case scenario.”

“There is a third option.” A familiar voice said, from somewhere in the dark. Ruby felt two bandaged hands gently rub her shoulders. Not good. “You’re probably wondering why I put her in this room specifically.”

“What’s the plan, Hal?” Yvonne asked.

“Our friend is a little too light on her feet. We need to build her back to competition size and who knows? She might go up to Badgerweight.”

“You think it’s possible?” The Warden asked, brightening slightly. “The best weight she could manage was flea.”

“I will be more than happy to test this theory.”

Curst smiled at Ruby. “Good news. We’re back to running your life.”

“The only thing you’ve run is your mouth.”

Incensed, Curst yanked a trapdoor level, which sent  Ruby hurtling toward the distant desert below:

AARR

GGGHGHHHH!!!

YOU FAT Biiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

TTTTTCCHHHHHH!!

Curst peaked over the edge: “Hey! It’s holiday weight. I’m COMFORT EATING!”

Yoooou’re

only

foooooooling

YOURSEeeeeellfffff!!

Ruby hit a soft dune and rolled onto her side all the way down.

Stopping at the bottom, she was on the verge of passing out, but managed to hang on by the merest thread of consciousness. She rolled onto her back and looked up at the calm blue sky.

If I died now, it wouldn’t be so bad. I’ll finally be left alone.

Submerged in a daze, she thought about what she would have done, had it been any other world.

Top of the list was finding a cliff and carving out a space for a cosy hovel. The cave would have had several rooms and a fire place, with a small chimney hidden by the crash of waves. Once complete, the hole would’ve been sealed back up, leaving The Mage completely isolated and impossible to find.

No adventures, no quest...Demon King got you down? Kick rocks, tough it out.

If I can’t see it, it didn’t happen.

She pushed up onto her elbows, glancing around at an endless desert was spread out  with high dunes and cracked, barren flats.

No rivers, no sea, just a hard punishing sun overhead.

“Sand.” She said. “Nothing bad ever happened to someone landing on sand.”

Tempting as it was to lie there in the boiling heat; she was distracted by the low growl of a motorcycle drawing near.

Slowly rising to her feet, Ruby brushed herself off and squinted into the distance. The beastly shape of a Triumph III Rocket merged into view, driven by the maniacal spectre of Hal Caesar, wearing a Cat helmet and paw gloves.

That Crazy Ninja is going to kill me.

And yet, it wasn’t the masked Maid that got Ruby worried, but the sight of two adult bears with Mustard-colour fur, bounding along with what appeared to be an electrified pitchfork strapped to their backs.

The girl panicked and began to run.

“Hoo hoo!” Hal said, riding close by. “It is true what they say. People do run faster when they are chased. If you get tired, you can always stop and let them eat you.”

“What…argh! The hell…argh! Is this?!” Ruby said, barely managing to keep away from being poked and zapped at the same time.

“A cattle fork. An electric prod combined with a pitching fork. Call it my way of getting you back into shape.”

“I had a shape! I was happy with it!”

“Oh, that body of yours won’t last a week, surrounded by the meanest cats in Prison. A lot of money’s riding on you, so slacking off is not an option. I have to admit, it is fun watching the ‘The Shadow Queen’ being put to the test.”

“Who the hell ….argh! Calls me that? HEY QUIT IT!”

“It’s your reputation, of course.” Hal said. “The things you did, the way you got your hands dirty. The reason so many evil doers went missing. You were so in the zone, when threatened.” She thumped her chest with a fist. “Got me right there.”

“What is all this about/?” Ruby asked, between cries of agony.

“I call it Separation Anxiety; as in the anxiety brought on from being separated from your head and limbs.”

“So what are these things?”

“Desert Bears, obviously.”

“There’s no such thing as Desert Bears!”

“Then why are you running?”

“Because I don’t want to be eaten by Desert Bears!”

Hal Caesar shot her a finger gun and peeled off out of sight.

It was hard at first; since running was all Ruby knew for weeks on end.

Nightmare days were spent sprinting up dunes and the dusty hard scrabble, under a merciless sun. Sweat would coat every inch and fall away in glistening cascades.

For six hours a day, four times a week, all the girl did was run. It was not like she had a choice, the Bears certainly didn’t and they were always hungry.

It got to the point, where Ruby's shoes broke apart, forcing her to go barefoot for the rest of the challenge. Weirdly enough, this seemed to spur her on.

Even though bottoms of her feet resembled a lunar surface, she felt a sense of accomplishment for the first fime since the age of fifteen.  It was exhausting, but new and exciting. Muscles she took for granted were screaming with exertion, but she couldn't stop, she didn't want to stop, this was best feeling; a new power, but one borne of effort.

Slowly, inch by inch, day by day, Ruby began to improve and slip away from the fork's reach.

The running became easier, and not just for short bursts but entire hours, thanks to new levels of stamina. There were days when madness would take hold and despite her lungs burning hot gas, she wanted to keep running and revel in the sound of mad laughter.

Every day would end with the Bears lured away by fresh meat, while Ruby was given water and a lunchbox filled with Cheese Sandwiches.

Then there were other times, when Ruby wasn’t running and instead found herself trapped under a heavy iron Safe.

The new challenge came to Ruby the very next day. She woke up with a note balled into her fist and words written in black:

‘1000 push ups and the Safe disappears.’