2 Where Am I?
"My lady, you are finally awake."
As her eyes gradually fluttered open, Kayla was greeted by the voice of a young woman. Turning her head to the right, she saw the woman, adorned in a simple pink gown, who had just spoken. Her appearance was unkempt, with a tired expression and dark circles under her eyes, as if she hadn't slept in days.
Taking in her surroundings, Kayla found herself in an unfamiliar room. The walls were draped in lilac and white, with intricate floral designs adorning them. The room had an air of antiquity, with a dressing table mirror on the left and a brown cup placed on top of it. Her bed lay in the center of the room.
"My lady, are you feeling well?" the disheveled woman asked with concern. Kayla's last memory was of drowning in the ocean, so how come she was here? Or maybe truly she has a guardian angel.
"My lady. Are you feeling well?" inquired the disheveled woman with genuine concern.
After discovering her fiancé's unfaithfulness with her best friend, Kayla excused herself and sought refuge in solitude, only to be suddenly pounced upon by an unknown creature.
She trembled at the recollection of the beast and questioned how she was still alive. Was she hallucinating? Was she dead? Was this the afterlife? These were the pressing question echoing in her mind and she greatly needed answers before the woman interrupted her thoughts.
"My lady, do you require the services of the royal physician?" the maidservant inquired, her anxiety evident. Kayla struggled to comprehend the situation.
She was troubled by the woman's persistent use of "my lady." Trying to stand up, Kayla was hindered by the uncomfortable gown she was wearing.
Glancing down, she noticed that she was dressed in a long, regal purple gown with a golden waist belt, far from what she remembered wearing.
She hadn't changed her clothes and even if she did, why would she be wearing this ancient garment? The situation was bizarre, and Kayla couldn't shake off the feeling of strangeness and displacement in this place.
Looking around, she realized that even the room was drastically different from her own. It emanated an ancient aura that left her feeling unsettled.
As she attempted to sit up, the lady graciously assisted her. Kayla felt a dry and sore throat, which caused her to cough. In response, the lady handed her a cup of water.
She eagerly drank the water in a single gulp, finding some relief as it reached her parched hands. Slowly, she started to regain her senses, and her hazy memories became clearer.
"Where am I?" she inquired from the lady, as the cup was returned to her, and she gently cleaned her mouth.
She cleared her throat, and she added, "And what is wrong with my voice?" It sounded unfamiliar to her, yet this wasn't her primary concern at the moment. She concluded that it must be due to her dry throat.
"Don't you remember this place, my lady?" the lady asked.
Kayla glanced around the room, feeling increasingly uneasy. She nodded.
Ilvia, her handmaiden, gasped as she covered her mouth in shock. "My lady, don't you remember me?" she asked once more.
"Who are you?" Kayla questioned.
"It is I, your loyal handmaiden, Ilvia," she replied, tears beginning to well up in her eyes. Ilvia felt a deep sadness, as her mistress, whom she had served since childhood, seemed to have no recollection of their bond.
Kayla's voice trembled as she asked, "Who rescued me, and where am I?" Ilvia's revelations jolted her back to reality.
Overwhelmed with emotion, Ilvia burst into tears. She couldn't believe what she was witnessing, Kayla's complete lack of memory.
"My lady, the king's guards found you by the pool and saved you. I should never have left you alone..."
"Pool... king," Kayla muttered, memories of her previous world flooding her mind. In her world, there was no king, only a president. Besides, she remembered not drowning in a pool, but in the vastness of the sea.
"Where am I exactly?" Kayla's curiosity peaked as she posed the question.
"Elvonia," came the reply. The name sounded unfamiliar yet strangely familiar, as if she had heard or read it somewhere before.
"W-What year is this?" she stammered.
"The 1500s, the king Dynasty II."
Kayla's scream reverberated so loudly that Ilvia had to cover her ears to shield them from the piercing sound. She had time travel, and it was hard for her to believe.
Standing up and taking a seat on a nearby chair, Kayla's eyes widened as she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror.
She gently touched her face and whispered, "Why is my face different?" She clearly remembered that this was her younger self version, but in her world, she was more mature than this. She looked exactly like an nineteen-year-old lady. Overwhelmed with emotion, she placed her head on the table.
Raising her head, she uttered, "I must be dreaming." She pinched her left cheek and laid her head on the table, hoping she would wake up from her dream. She opened her eyes, and still, she was in the same room. She thought she had died, but right now she knew she was extremely likely to be alive.
Beneath a furrowed brow, she reached up and pressed her face, the harsh reality settling in her mind. She couldn't fathom or confront this truth.
"I am doomed," she uttered under her breath.
"The emperor is coming." The sudden announcement of the king's arrival left her perplexed. She was in no state to face anyone. She hurriedly lay down on the bed, feigning slumber without Ilvia noticing.
Ilvia immediately knelt down in fear and placed her hands atop each other. "Your Highness, my lady is in no position to meet anyone because my lady seems to have lost her memory." She said in fear as she pinched her fingers.
Jareth seemed to be thinking until he noticed her prone form and remarked, "I heard her scream just now." His voice deep and husky reverberated in the room, and this was enough to make Kayla shudder.
Ilvia turned to face Kayla and saw she was laying on the bed; she played along with her lady, thinking she didn't want to see his Highness, Jareth.
"Her Highness has just drifted off to sleep," she replied, turning back to Jareth. Her hands were trembling, but she managed to remain composed.
"Leave," he commanded.
She stood up and with a curt curtsy, she retreated three steps before exiting the room.
Kayla struggled to catch her breath, clutching the bedsheets tightly as she heard footsteps approaching. Before she knew it, the bedspread was peeled off her face.
"You're not really asleep, are you?" he inquired, twirling his twin dragon ring.
Kayla kept her silence, her eyes still closed. To anyone who saw her, she would appear to be sound asleep. What use was there in being a skilled actress if she couldn't play her part flawlessly?
But Jareth wasn't a foolish man. He leaned in and blew gently on her eyes. Though her eyes fluttered slightly, she refused to open them.
"Enough of this charade -" he began.
"I will kiss you if you do not wake up," she interjected, her lips pressed together as she continued to pretend to sleep. Her heart raced in her chest.
Jareth drew nearer. She could feel his presence, and with just a little more movement, he would have kissed her.
As she slowly opened her eyes and sat up, she unintentionally bumped her head into his.
Wincing in pain, she muttered, "Damn my head."
Gently massaging her aching head, she turned to face Jareth. She was taken aback, as this was not what she had been expecting.
Immediately she looked at him, memories flooded her mind from when she collected the script for her next film, Take Me to Hell. What was this memory? She thought.
She had not only time traveled, but also into the script she was preparing to star in. Shocked, she stared at him.
What was her purpose in coming? Why had she time traveled as a minor character in this script? She thought despairingly.
His immaculately chiseled jawline emitted an alluring aura, while his irresistible lips could seduce any woman into his bedroom.
His long silky hair were held in place by a discreet pin, adding to his appeal. However, it was his piercing blue eyes that captured her attention the most, much like the characters in 'take me to hell' she had read.
As he gazed at her, her cheeks turned a rosy hue, causing her to avert her gaze and awkwardly clear her throat.
She felt as if a boulder had hit her, her head burning with embarrassment.
Breaking the silence, Jareth cleared his throat and inquired, "I have investigated the assassins who attacked you. Can you recall any details about them?"
Drawing on her memory from the script, Kayla remembered that she played the role of the devil's fourth concubine and she had died early.
No wonder the name elvonia sounded familiar. Scarlet, the original owner of her body, was attacked early in the novel and ultimately killed by the scheming Consort Vera, who orchestrated the attack. Scarlet was always meek and chose to keep her emotions to herself.
According to the book, the King had no love for Scarlet but was deeply infatuated with Consort Vera even when scarlet was his mate. Kayla recalled that the main focus of the story was actually the love triangle between Consort Vera, the Emperor, the first prince and other consort that ensued from his love for the real villain.
She couldn't help but wonder, what would she do in this situation? She asked for a guardian angel and instead she time travel to 600 years ago.
As she pondered her role in this story, the purpose of time traveling consumed her thoughts. She questioned why she had been transported to this world as a mere minor character.
Would she dare to intervene in the plot by changing his fate or would she simply watch the events unfold as written in the novel? The power to change his destiny was in her hands.
