Sudoka appeared at the gates to Castle Phantasm where she was to meet with Lord Servas Phantasm in the flesh. She never met him before, so it was a bit exciting to meet royalty. It was hard debating on what to wear and rather or not to show up drunk. But in the end, she decided on her usual revealing dress, with full cleavage and a slit up to her hip leaving little to the imagination. She also wore a pair of nine-inch heel stilettos. Having the balance and coordination of a cat meant you could wear heels and not look ridiculous and clumsy doing so.

So many humans struggle to walk without twisting their ankles. It made the Nekomata wonder how the human race survived so long as the dominant race of Earthland. As she approached Lord Servas, she offered him an elegant bow as he took her hand in his and placed a kiss on her knuckles. "You must be miss Kanekite, yes? I have a simple task for you, my dear. It is the anniversary of my wife's passing and I wish to have her memory honored perfectly. All I need you to do is bring me her favorite flower from the dungeon."

"The dungeon? Why not have a servant do that?"

"As I stated on the job request, my butlers and maids are all busy with other preparations. All I ask of you is to pick a couple of flowers. Surely it isn't that difficult a task for a lovely young Neko such as yourself?"

Sudoka sighed but decided that as she had already taken the job and took the time to come all the way to the castle she may as well finish what she started. The guards directed her to the dungeon, to which the nekomata proceeded to head down the winding staircase. Her heels moved silently upon the hard stone steps as she descended farther into the darkness. It seemed as though she'd never reach the bottom as the stairs appeared to go on forever.

The deeper she went, the darker it became. Thankfully, Nekomatas was no stranger to darkness, and her slitted pupils dilated so as to see better in the darkness. Her nose crinkled at the smells of mold and death and decay. The dungeon cells had a few skeletons and the entire area wreaked. At this point, Sudoka's only desire was to locate the flower and be gone.

She had been told what the flower looks like and that it apparently only grew in the dungeon. Perhaps it was one of those species that required a moist, dank, dark, secluded location to take root and bloom? Regardless, the woman searched the dungeon for any sign of the flower. Her tail swished behind her as her ears twitched and pricked at the slightest sound.

She brushed aside spider webs and grimaced at the lack of care this dungeon obviously had. It appeared as though no one had been down here in centuraries. Neither staff nor prisoners. Eventually, she found two flowers blooming in a dark gloomy corner of the dungeon. Sudoka casually walked toward the plants and plucked them. Now, flowers in hand, she headed back up the long winding stairs until she eventually reached light once more.

Not that it mattered to her. She could see fine either way. As she approached Lord Servas, he waited eagerly for the flowers. Upon receiving them, he burst into tears and wrapped the smaller woman into his arms in an embrace as he thanked her repeatedly for her services. She wiggled free, feeling awkward as she took her reward and hurried away.

[WC 500/500]