{"id":819,"date":"2026-09-25T08:55:25","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T08:55:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/?p=819"},"modified":"2026-09-25T08:55:25","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T08:55:25","slug":"queen-victoria-vs-the-ministry-of-darkness-chapter-13-the-ferocious-fury-of-miss-miao","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/?p=819","title":{"rendered":"Queen Victoria vs The Ministry of Darkness &#8211; Chapter 13, The Ferocious Fury of Miss Miao"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Queen Victoria Vs\u2026 Chapter 13<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Miss Nightingale\u2019s hands closed around the heavy crimson velvet and, with a deep, ragged gasp, she yanked the curtains aside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On the other side, a room opened out before her, the walls and floor twisted and swayed in a swirling maelstrom that caused the mutton she\u2019d eaten for lunch to tumble over itself inside her stomach. A heavy, suffocating cloud of incense and jasmine stung her eyes raw. Tears blurred her vision and, mingling with the gritty soot that coated her face, ran down her cheeks in jet black droplets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Blinking away the tears, Miss Nightingale watched as the creature within rose to face them. Its naked body twisted and jerked as it stood, its joints clicking rhythmically. Sallow skin, covered with patchy, mange-ridden fur, stretched taut against its skeletal frame.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What had she been thinking?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Barging in like that was a dreadful mistake. Another foolish, hasty move. She knew it the second she saw Miao\u2019s green eyes glaring at her through the dim light.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Inside her boots, Miss Nightingale\u2019s toes curled, gripping the hard leather soles. Her knuckles turned bone white as her hands balled into tight, trembling fists. She was ready to defend herself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But how on earth was she supposed to defend herself against this creature? She had no idea, but she was braced for the violent pounce that she knew was coming.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It was an attack that never came.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Miao never lunged forward. Instead, she stumbled, her feet tangling in a discarded pile of pink silk. Falling backwards, she landed in a heap on the pulsating stone floor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Her eyes lifted, settling on Miss Nightingale while a constant tremor racked her body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhy are you here?\u201d Miao rasped in a grating voice. \u201cWhat do you want?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Miss Nightingale spared a swift glance towards Miss Kelly, who returned the same wide-eyed, puzzled look that she herself must have carried.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In front of them, the formidable creature was cowed, quivering on the stone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe\u2019ve come to take Mr Dickens back,\u201d Miss Nightingale said, forcing her voice, low and steady.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThis one is mine by rights,\u201d came a frantic hiss from the floor. \u201cMy debts are all settled.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The sharp clack of Miss Nightingale\u2019s boots echoed loudly in the silence of the vast chamber as she took a step towards Mr Dickens. He lay slumped across a pile of crimson velvet cushions, their gold cord edging seemingly glowing in the dim, ethereal light.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Shivering, Miao shrank away from the soot-covered nurse, pressing her bare form prostrate into the cold floor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bending over Mr Dickens, Miss Nightingale slipped her arms under his and hauled him up. His mouth hung open as his vacant gaze brushed over her. A stray trickle of saliva traced a wet path through the wiry bristles of his beard. Letting out little more than the slightest grunt of effort, she hoisted the dead weight of his body upright, his legs dragging limply beneath him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She had lifted far bigger than him between stretchers and the operating tables of the Crimean wards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Her eyes flickered to the doorway. Mr Crackit and Mr Sikes couldn\u2019t be far behind now; soot and camphor would only keep the dog at bay for so long. She would need to find another way out, and quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Something was off about this room. She couldn\u2019t quite put her finger on it, but there was something not right, something missing. This wasn\u2019t the first time she\u2019d felt this either. Every room she had been in felt the same, but she couldn\u2019t quite fathom out what it was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It mattered not. She had to get Mr Dickens to safety. She didn\u2019t have time for idle speculation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&nbsp;\u201cMiss Kelly,\u201c she snapped. \u201cIs there any other way out of here?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cYes, Miss. There\u2019s an old service passage behind those silks at the back.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cHumans!\u201d a voice, like dry leaves skittering over an autumn pavement, hissed sharply, snatching Miss Nightingale\u2019s attention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Miao glared up at them. Her eyes twitched, glowing and flaring like pools of emerald fire, the pupils as narrow as a scalpel\u2019s edge. Her lips drew back into a gruesome snarl. Sharp, yellowing teeth glinted in the shifting light of the stars overhead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cYou\u2019re no demons, you\u2019re just filthy humans,\u201d she said, stepping forward with claws flashing from her fingertips. \u201cTwo females, nonetheless. The males can be\u2026 entertaining. The females I have no care for, not alive at least.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Miss Nightingale scanned the room for any means of escape. Behind was the main corridor and a promise of a what would certainly be a most unpleasant encounter with Mr Sikes and Mr Crackit. In front of her were Miao\u2019s claws.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The creature prowled forward, her eyes gleaming with predatory hunger. Her dagger-like claws retracting slowly into her fingertips, only to snap out again like a set of spring-loaded switchblades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cStay back from us, you hideous creature!\u201d Miss Kelly\u2019s shrill voice pierced the silence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Miao let out a vicious laugh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cHideous!\u201d she spat, baring her teeth as her twin tails flicked dangerously behind her. \u201cYou call <em>me<\/em> hideous, do you, female? I am the embodiment of beauty. I am grace and elegance. I am absolute perfection.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That wrongness tugged at Miss Nightingale\u2019s mind once again. Something was profoundly out of place. But why worry about such a triviality right then? With no means of escape, surely it was the last thing that mattered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Only it did matter, and suddenly the realisation crashed into her with blinding clarity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mirrors! Or the lack of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There were no mirrors. What sort of house of vice wouldn\u2019t be adorned with mirrors? It wasn\u2019t as if Miss Nightingale was intimately acquainted with such establishments, but if there was one thing she did know, it was women. Why would creatures so vain, so self-obsessed with their own powdered skin and painted lips as these Blossoms, not possess so much as a single looking glass?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cMiss Kelly?\u201d she whispered sharply. \u201cDo you so happen to have a mirror about your person?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cYes, Miss, but why\u2013\u201c<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI don\u2019t have time to explain. Give it to me! Now, girl!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With fingers trembling violently against the soot-stained fabric of her robe, Miss Kelly pulled out a small, silver-backed hand mirror. Miss Nightingale snatched it from her grip and, not sparing a glance at her own reflection, turned it on the advancing creature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cGaze upon your own beauty,\u201d she commanded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cNo!\u201d the creature hissed. \u201cPut it away!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cGet to the service passage. Get Mr Dickens out of here; I\u2019ll follow you up. Go now!\u201d Miss Nightingale ordered sharply over her shoulder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After giving the girl a firm nudge, she turned her full attention back to Miao. Stepping into the creature\u2019s space, she thrust the silvered glass closer. \u201cLook at yourself, Miao! Behold the ugly, wretched creature that you truly are!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Miao unleashed an utterly chilling wail. Blinded by the horror of her own appearance, she recoiled in a frenzied rage. Slashing at the silk wall hangings, her curved talons shredded the fine thread into tattered ribbons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cC\u2019mon Mr Sikes, I reckon we\u2019ve nearly got \u2018em.\u201d Mr Crackit\u2019s voice thundered from just outside the room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Miss Nightingale glanced towards the service passage just as Miss Kelly dragged the stumbling Mr Dickens into the dark opening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&nbsp;Letting the mirror fall to the floor, she bolted after them and into the shadows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Charles doubled over, a spluttering, ragged cough tearing through his chest. The heady scent of opium and jasmine was gone. Instead, his lungs choked on the stench of dirt and horse manure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He blinked rapidly against the morning light as the Lotus Blossom and that divine creature vanished before his eyes. It was as if he\u2019d been plucked from a truly delightful dream and dumped into the middle of a midden heap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The clatter of iron-shod hooves filled the air, and the squat, yellow brick facades of the mews rose up around him, under a bruised, purple morning sky.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cMr Dickens!\u201d he heard Florence calling out in a breathless voice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhat in heaven\u2019s name is going on, Florence?\u201d he gasped, gawping in bewilderment at the face of the soot-stained girl. A girl who was usually so immaculate. \u201cLook at the state of you! What the blazers have you been doing and why are we stood out here? We should be in the Lotus Blossom gathering information.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe have all the information we require, Mr Dickens,\u201d she replied flatly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What was the silly girl going on about? They didn\u2019t know anything. If only he\u2019d had a few more minutes with that charming Miao\u2026 he had her wrapped around his little finger. She was about to tell him everything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI\u2019ll explain it all when we get back to the Palace,\u201d Florence muttered with a heavy sigh. \u201cBut tell me one thing, do the names Mr Sikes and Mr Crackit mean anything to you?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Well, of course he knew Mr Sikes and Mr Crackit, not very pleasant fellows at the best of times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cCertainly, they\u2019re Fagin\u2019s roughs.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cFagin?\u201d Florence repeated. The Rat King? If his men are over this side of the city, then the truce truly had been broken. \u201cWe need to speak to Her Majesty, and quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-8f761849 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Queen Victoria Vs\u2026 Chapter 13 Miss Nightingale\u2019s hands closed around the heavy crimson velvet and, with a deep, ragged gasp,<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/?p=819\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Queen Victoria vs The Ministry of Darkness &#8211; Chapter 13, The Ferocious Fury of Miss Miao<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":778,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[35],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-819","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-queen-vic"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/QueenVic-Cover-NEW-JPG-scaled.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/819","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=819"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/819\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":820,"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/819\/revisions\/820"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/778"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=819"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=819"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insidemayasmind.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=819"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}