The Earth is My Prison

by Richard Sean Clare

  His furnace body now a smoking pile of slag, his cracked eye dials begging for forgiveness, I almost felt sorry for him. He spoke to me in a quieter voice that sounded like two sheets of metal being rubbed together.

  "THANK YOU FOR KILLING ME," he said.

  "All in a day’s work,” I said. “Where's Gwen?"

  "UNDER THE FLOORBOARDS. I DID AS THE MASTER COMMANDED. WILL HE BE PROUD OF ME?"

  So she was dead and I would have to be the one to tell Code.

  Martin's fire was going out. He was afraid.

  "ARE THERE OTHER WORLDS THAN THESE?" he asked.

  "Not for you."

  I took up a broken shovel and scraped the last dying embers from his wicked hearth.

  11.

  Beyond the large chamber was a smaller one that must have served as his quarters. There were stacks of writings and drawings strewn among mouldy cups. There was even a tiny bookshelf: Alongside books on metallurgy were Hunting Humans by Elliott Leyton and The Collector by John Fowles. There were designs for his metal men and detailed sketches of women he admired. Spying a diary amid the clutter, I opened it to the first page:

  Bealtaine, First Half Moon

  I have been cursing myself all day. Gwen came to the shop today and I drove Her away with stupid questions. Why am I this way? It's like the Maker put something in me that makes Girls hate me.

  Bealtaine, First Full Moon

  I've given up on Females. It doesn't vex me though. It will give me more time to work on my Philosophies. I am working on a new one that excites me. In part I believe this whole world to be some type of illusion.

  Midsummer, Day of the Sun

  I no longer think on it as an illusion. Instead I believe we are trapped in the dream of a Mad God. Sometimes when I am still I can feel the machinery of the world beneath my feet.

  I skipped to the final entry.

  Winter, not sure of the day

  Wonderful news! I no longer toil in the fields alone. He has visited me. He is a Knight of Hell. His black and shining armors attest to that. The Master has shown me much. He learns me the ways of women, how they can be changed under a blade, like molten steel on an anvil. I attend his lessons as eagerly as I did my apprenticeship when I was a boy.

  I am a new kind of smith. A “flesh smith” perhaps? I giggle as I write...

  I shut it there. I had seen enough. I had bad news to deliver, and swiftly. I left the diary, afraid that its twisted thoughts might somehow infect me.

  12.

  A chimney led from Martin's head to the surface. It put me out not too far from Dutchie's place. I gave it a wide berth on my way back to Ember. Crossing back into the forest I hoped Code would be there waiting but there was no one.

  On my way through the village I passed by Martin's house only to find it had been razed with not even a brick standing on a brick. The town was weirdly quiet. I met an old woman who told me the townspeople were all at the Keep, for the funeral.

  ~

  Once at the Keep, I followed the sound of voices to the castle courtyard, where the funeral service was taking place. All the Knights were there, and a large group of villagers who had come to pay their respects. Gwen's body lay in repose. She looked serene, in a frosted glass coffin surrounded by flowers.

  I took a place standing at the back with Firebeard and Slaine. We quietly embraced and they informed me in whispers what had been happening. In the short time I was in the Glitch weeks had passed in Ember. They were surprised to see me. Firebeard told me frankly that they had not expected me to return. They had searched Martin's house and found Gwen’s body. A funeral was held right away.

  I could just about make out Code at the front of the mourners. She was shaken with grief. I went up to her, placed my hand on her shoulder and told her: “he’s dead.”

  She squeezed my hand and thanked me through her tears.

  I retreated to the back of the room. Rescuing Gwen, going to the Glitch, it had all seemed like some marvellous adventure. More like a computer game than real life. Now, seeing her in her coffin, feeling the pain of her friends and family all around me, it felt terribly real.

  Matthews was delivering the opening speech, dressed in dark ceremonial attire.

  “She was the best of us...”

  Looking over at me, he lost his place briefly before continuing.

  “...we will never know her like again.”

  I was tired from my quest and shamefully my mind started to drift. I began to think of my gaming name (I thought Obsidian sounded boss) and other foolish things. One thing kept coming back to me. Something I had read in Martin's diary. Once it entered my mind it was like a burr lodged under my skin.

  ~

  I made my excuses to Firebeard et al and snuck away, heading straight to the Great Hall. There was a theory I had to test. I found Matthew’s portrait and stood before it. There he was in all his glory, against a backdrop of fire. The plaque read: “Matthias the Warlock”. His black hellforged armor shone brilliantly.

  ~

  I skipped the rest of the funeral and went back to my room. Matthews had said there would be a meal after the service to honor Gwen. That didn’t give me much time to prepare for whatever came next. I used the shower (another blessed anachronism) and my mind raced as the blessed hot water cascaded over my body.

  As much as I wanted to deny it, things were frighteningly clear. Although I wasn't sure of the details, I felt sure that Matthews had been behind Gwen's disappearance and Martin merely his pawn. His suspicious behavior since I entered the Glitch just confirmed it.

  He must have known where to find Gwen's body. Why rush to find it and bury her if not to conceal some evidence of his crime? From his reaction at the funeral I wasn’t sure he had expected to see me alive. He knew I had encountered Martin so he would suspect me of knowing the truth.

  I had no evidence, not even the madman’s diary, so it would be an uphill battle convincing the others what I knew to be true. Really, I knew, there was only one person I had to convince.

  I finished my shower, went to the wardrobe and put on my tuxedo for dinner.

  13.

  The dinner was torture. I had little appetite. I carefully sculpted a potato bunker while the Knights remembered Gwen. So far my plan had not evolved beyond pointing at Matthews and yelling: “It's him!” like a crazy man.

  I tried to avoid eye contact with Matthews so he wouldn't suspect that I was on to him. Then, thinking that was too suspicious, I made way too much eye contact. It was hopeless, I was sure he would find a way to get rid of me before dessert.

  Matthews had placed me on the far side of the table to Code, making chit chat impossible. The Knights were taking turns sitting vigil with Gwen. When Slaine came back it would be Code's turn and my only chance to get her alone.

  During a teary-eyed performance from Matthews, extolling Gwen's virtues, Firebeard came back and Code excused herself. After waiting in my chair as long as humanly possible I stood up.

  "I better make sure she's okay," I said, practically running out of the room.

  ~

  I went to the chamber where Gwen's body lay in repose. Code was sitting next to her, speaking to her softly as though she was only sleeping.

  “It's okay...” she said over and over.

  I would have to convince her. She would hate me for it but if I didn't do something Matthews would kill us both.

  “Please forgive me,” I said.

  “For what?” she looked at me, bleary-eyed from tears.

  I pushed the glass coffin onto the floor where it broke into a thousand pieces, sending Gwen's body tumbling out. Code was on me in a second, her eyes black, her sorcery burning the air.

  “Tag, you'll have to explain why you did that.”

  “If you could just not kill me for one second...”

  Her eyes returned to normal and she gave me a moment's grace. I leaned down, gently turned Gwen over and wiped away the skin colored makeup covering her face, revealing th
e metallic sheen beneath.

  ~

  We arrived at the dining hall just as Matthews was finishing his story. Code's eyes were black again. She had grown long multi-colored hair that flew around her in waves. Ribbons of dark magical energy encircled her hands.

  "WHERE IS MY WIFE, MATTHEWS?" she bellowed.

  The Knights turned in shock but Matthews stayed calm.

  "Code, please, I'm trying to finish my story."

  He snapped his fingers and a cage of fire formed around her, trapping her.

  "...then I raped and tortured Code's dumb cunt of a wife."

  Code roared with inarticulate rage.

  It was a signal for the rest of us to attack. None of us had any weapons (it was considered impolite at dinner) but we improvised. Slaine lifted one of the heavy oak chairs to use as a battering ram …and got it a few inches off the ground before dropping it again.

  “Oh yes,” Matthews said, “I took the liberty of lowering all of your stats. Slaine, your strength is now 1. You might be able to lift that pear if you really try.”

  Slaine hesitated. It was all Matthews needed, a well-aimed blow crushed the Barbarian’s windpipe and he fell down dead in his soup.

  “Who’s next?” he asked the people who up to five seconds ago had trusted him with their lives.

  He twisted a black ring on his finger and demonic armor spread over his body, culminating in beetle like horns on his head and long sharp claws at the tip of his gauntlets. He raised both arms above his head and brought them smashing down on the banquet table, breaking it in half.

  Firebeard was visibly shaking with rage.

  “How could you? We trusted you!” he accused. He took a fork from the table and charged, letting out a loud battle cry. He was halfway to Matthews when he tripped and dropped his weapon which slid to Matthew’s feet.

  Matthews picked him up bodily and taking the fork, plunged it into his eye socket. Everything I liked about the dwarf, everything unique, was now twitching at the end of some cutlery.

  Matthews threw his corpse aside with disdain.

  "Second-rate," he said by way of a eulogy.

  Meanwhile Code was keeping busy in her flaming cage. She had our character windows open along with another window of 1s and 0s, her fingers danced nimbly back and forth. Raising our stats back to their highest and performing an operation to lock Matthews out.

  “Hmmpf,” Matthews said, “maybe this will be interesting after all.”

  He opened some glowing windows of his own, I thought perhaps to undo Code’s work. Instead they showed a list of songs.

  He settled on Final Fantasy VII Fighting.

  “I can’t fight without my battle music,” he said while catchy electronic rock filled the room.

  Rincewind and I huddled together in front of Code’s cage, breathless at how swiftly our group had been decimated. The mage spun his hands in the air, forming huge stalactites of ice which he flung at Matthews. With apparent boredom Matthews held up his hand and the icicles melted in mid-air before they could reach him.

  “Is that all you've got?” he said.

  Rincewind didn’t answer, just began the incantation for some powerful magic.

  “Earth...I beseech thee...rise at my command,” he intoned.

  At his words the floor began to shake. A great fist made of Earth burst forth from under the floorboards, taking Matthews in its grasp. Matthews spoke with difficulty as the Earthen fist squeezed him, in a mirror of Rincewind's own.

  "You forget, I know you all too well," Matthews said.

  A strange squelching sound came from upstairs and Rincewind glanced at the landing with a terrified expectancy.

  “I call this one: “‘A taste of home’”

  The door to the bedrooms burst open and a green transparent cube, glistening with menace and as big as an entire room, squeezed its way through. Rincewind gave a high-pitched scream and ran out the front door, the cube gliding after him with frightening speed.

  Matthews’s eyes closed. I felt a wave of heat emanating from him. The fist started to dry and crack, taking on the texture of clay. While he was trying to free himself so was Code, she had summoned a vortex which she was using to blow out the flames of her cage. Unluckily for me Matthews was first. He burst from his prison, creating a cloud of chalky dust.

  Not wanting to just wait for Code to save me, I launched a flying kick straight for him, my feet making painful connection with his breastplate. He wasn't expecting such a bold move and it caught him off guard, buying Code more time. I summersaulted to her side just as the last bars of her cage were extinguished.

  Code had metamorphosed into a battle form. Her skin was deathly pale, her eyes and clothes jet black and her fingernails long and sharp.

  “I know I'm supposed to be a Sorceror,” she said, “but I'm really more of a Witch.”

  I watched as she made a slit in her arm and drew the blood, using magics to forge an oversized red Scythe. This she levelled at Matthews.

  “I'll use your bones to make my bread,” she said, “an edge of craziness in her voice.

  “Meh,” Matthews said, still maddeningly unfazed.

  We attacked as one.

  She moved very fast. Her Scythe made deep gashes in his armor but couldn't seem to breach it entirely. What she lacked in strength she made up for in rage.

  She was chipping away at him piece by piece and I even dared think she might be winning but that same anger made her clumsy, she lunged forward, missing him by a wide margin, Matthews took the opportunity and hit her a staggering blow. She flew across the room and smashed into the stones, sliding down the wall into an ugly heap.

  It was just me and him now. I felt none of the mad courage I had had in the prison. Just fear. He ignored me and went for Code. I knew he meant to finish her if she wasn't dead already. I decided to use my other secret weapon: sarcasm.

  “Hey Matthews.”

  He kept ignoring me.

  “Yeah I'm talking to you, you fucking nerd.”

  That got him.

  “What's the deal? You had to build a whole world cause the other kids wouldn't play with you?”

  He left Code alone and came to me. My plan to get myself killed was working perfectly. He loomed over me, so close that I could feel the faint heat from his demonic armor.

  “What did you say?”

  “Oh the whole world's ending, I'll go play dungeons and dragons in a computer. Pretty sad, man.”

  I expected him to rip me in two. Instead he opened up that little green window again and selected a new song. “Ring of Fire – Johnny Cash”.

  The lyrics are quite good, I thought, as I felt my flesh slowly cooking. I was on fire.

  14.

  Matthews left me for dead and walked back to Code, who was starting to come to. I could use my last 2 minutes of life to try and save her. I ran outside.

  Rincewind was battling for his life against the cube. He was backing away as it closed in for absorption. I could feel the fire turning me a nice golden brown. Thinking on my feet I ran at the cube and jumped inside it. The fire went out, its flames replaced by the relatively gentle burning of the cube's digestive enzymes.

  I could see Rincewind hazily from inside the cube. My little diversion had allowed him to regroup. While he attacked with an ice blast I trashed around inside, hoping to give the thing indigestion. Deciding this overcooked meal wasn't worth the trouble, the cube disgorged me onto the paving stones where I lay, dripping with acidic slime.

  The variation between hot and cold was more than the cube could endure. It shook itself apart, dissolving into smaller chunks that Rincewind and I slayed with our feet. That taken care of, we rejoined the battle proper.

  ~

  Inside the hall things had taken a turn in our favor. Code was up and fighting. Standing by her side, looking as though she had been woken from a deep sleep, was Gwen. She wore only a flimsy nightgown for armor. Matthews spoke to her in grotesque babyish tones: “Honey, go back t
o your room, Daddy's fighting.”

  I could only guess at the emotions that were running through Code's mind. The berserker rage that had fuelled her had fled, replaced by obvious concern. Whatever had been done to Gwen hadn't affected her magic. Code received several blows that should have been fatal but were stitched together by a healing ray of light from Gwen.

  That's when Matthews noticed us.

  “I thought I killed you two,” he said, and I heard the first hint of caution in his voice.

  I could see him weighing the odds. He had probably intended to kill us all at dinner but now he found himself outnumbered. He hadn't expected Gwen to come back either. He had lost chunks of his armor to Code's Scythe. Rincewind got ready to attack, a cone of frost forming in front of him.

  "What's the matter, Boss, out of tricks?" Code said, spinning her Scythe with an evil grin.

  "Oh, I have a few."

  With a wave of heat he propelled himself up in the air onto the balcony. We all went for him at once but he manifested a powerful wall of flames to keep us at bay. Rincewind and I had to hold back Code to stop her jumping through it.

  "Guys, in the Chinese Zodiac, my star sign is the Tiger. That means I only fight battles I can win. Seeya."

  He retreated into the bedrooms, sealing the door with fire. Then we heard his voice all around us, deep and resonant like trumpets on judgement day.

  “If you know anything about child pornography,” he said, “you know how hard it is to really delete something. Like all those demons we got rid of, I think it's time they made a comeback. Computer, restore Ember version 4.0.1.”

  As soon as he spoke the words day turned to night. I looked outside. Hanging in the sky was a pendulous blood-red moon. From the direction of town, a distant screeching could be heard, along with the sound of beating wings.

  ~

  "We need to secure this place," Code ordered.

  “Right.”

  I put a bar over the main doors. I started emptying out chests of drawers and placing them in the window alcoves.

  “Allow me,” Code said. She cast a warping spell that sealed off the doors and windows altogether.