I stood outside of the large wooden door. I took a deep breath and tapped my knuckles on it twice. It was quiet, but loud enough that the occupant of the room heard it.

  “Come in,” the deep voice of my father sounded from inside. I reached up and grasped the ornate handle, turning it swiftly and pushing open the door.

  Directly across from the door was a wide and sturdily built desk. The dimming light of the evening shone through the window behind it, making the man at the desk, my father, appear as a silhouette. I walked across the room, staring at the stone floor. As I neared the desk, I raised my head. The cold blue eyes of my father bore into me, making my palms sweat and my hands gain a slight tremor.

  “Vincent. A war has broken out in the East. The Emperor demands a soldier from each noble family.” My fathers voice remained monotone while speaking. “You will leave tomorrow at dawn. I’ll send a servant to grab you when the time comes.”

  My heart froze. The battlefield? I barely knew how to wield a sword. As I was about to plead him to send someone else, I met his gaze. It was indifferent; emotionless.

  “Yes, father,” I replied, returning my gaze to the floor. I promptly turned and started making my way out of the suffocating room. As I neared the door, I heard the rumbling voice of my father once again.

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  “And Vincent,” I heard his chair creak as he leaned forward.

  “Yes, father?” I said without turning around.

  “Don’t feel the need to come back.”

  I simply nodded and rushed out of the room, only making it into the hallway before warm tears spring into my eyes.

  ………….

  The first thing I did when I arrived at my room was grab my mask. I always had very strong senses, and when I felt overwhelmed the only way I could calm them was hearing, smelling, or tasting something nice. To solve this problem, my late nanny had brought me a mask. She said it had been her grandfather’s, who was a plague doctor many years ago. Whenever I felt anxious, she would fill the beak with rose petals. The smell allowed me to calm down. I took deep breaths of the dried petals, and was able to clear my mind.

  I rubbed my hand over the worn leather of the mask. I reached to the back of my head and clumsily unclasped the straps. I didn’t own much, so packing wasn’t a problem. My room was small and dirty, with no decorations. I walked to my desk and examined my few possessions. There was the rest of the plague doctor suit, which consisted of a top hat, a cotton undershirt, a leather vest, a long trench coat, gloves, pants, and worn boots, all of which were varying shades of black. All of the articles were folded neatly and stacked, with the boots and hat set on either side of the clothing. I moved my gaze to the next items. There were three bags, filled with flower petals. They were replacements for the beak of my mask. My last possession was a steel bat. I wasn’t exactly sure what it was, or where it came from. I had found it in the garden one day while collecting flower petals. I had thought it was cool and brought it back to my room.

  After careful consideration, I brought everything. I decided to wear my suit, as my current clothes weren’t suited for travel. The suit was big on me, with my coattails dragging on the ground and my pants bunching around my ankles. When I was fully dressed, I stuffed the inner chest pockets of my coat with the dried petals. Lastly, I grabbed my bat. I could barely lift it, so I opted to drag it over to my bed.

  I laid down on my stiff mattress and shut my eyes, dreading the next morning.