World 101
A Short Story By: Jennie Bean
-continued-
Chapter 2 - What Do I Do?
Catchy, upbeat music starts to play. A flute plays a cheery Irish melody. Where is that coming from? I look all around, but cannot find the source of the tune. It fills the air like surround sound, and I check if speakers are hidden in the long grass, though nothing is there. After 20 seconds, the music stops.
Puzzled, I walk towards the first clunky computer. There is a screen with items for sale. It's a vending machine! I check my bag and dress pockets, and I have no money. The products I could purchase range from a raw fish to a steel shovel, just like in the handmade instructions I have! There are many selections that are blacked out. I wonder what they are. I spot an advertisement that says 'FREE!' It is for a wood axe. I press a green button selecting it. Nothing happens. I press it again and again. It's a scam! I angrily punch the grass on the ground in front of me. The whole ground in that area suddenly disappears! I look down the small hole, and dirt is all around the sides and bottom. I feel my bag starting to get heavy. I opened it to see my original purple glow stone, three small wood axes and a square inch amount of dirt. "Aha!"
I grab one of the wood axes, and it grows to normal size. I use the wood ax on another area of grass, and it disappears similarly to when I punched it. Well, this hurts less! I step down into the hole and then jump out. It's about the same size as the funny looking stone with the purple glow a few feet away that I threw earlier. I reach down and strike the dirt underneath to make the hole deeper. There is some sort of sandstone under the dirt here. I wonder how deep it can go. Before I try, I really should check out the other computer vending machine.
In walking over, I scratch an itch on my arm, and notice it's just my watch. My watch?! What time....oh... Instead of a clock face, there is a small blue arrow that is spinning. I wear my watch all of the time, so I didn't notice this was different. This arrow looks strangely familiar. It could be some type of compass. I move around, and it fixates on a certain direction. I want to follow it, but first glance over at the second computer screen. Nothing free here. Just a bunch of stones.
I run in the direction of the arrow. The arrow spins faster and faster! Cautiously, I slowly creep in that direction. There is a blue speck amongst the purple flowers. It's another blue brochure! Duh! The blue arrow emblem on the back matches the arrow on my wrist! The watch arrow is going crazy now and is pointed straight down at it. I open the brochure and find that it's another set of instructions for a chest. I could store some items in there instead of my bag getting heavy. I look at the materials, and realize I don't have wood planks. I'd have to chop some trees to get wood. I pocket the brochure and look down at my watch.
The arrow is now pointing in the opposite direction spinning slower. Eager to get another set of instructions, I set out to the other side of the islands. Going in and out of the water to get there, I am thankful for the coolness on my feet. This blue brochure, close to the outer edge of this plot, is instructions for a ladder. I will also need wood for this.
I chop at the tree trunks closest to me; they disappear, and go straight into my bag. Neat trick! I go back to my home base and set up a workspace. I construct some ladders and a few chests. I put all of the material I don't need into the chests and carry my ladders. I try placing a ladder against a tree, but it is not stable because of the unwieldly branches. I dig up some dirt and stack them. I place a few ladder pieces against it and climb up. Curious to see the islands from high in the sky, I keep building the dirt up and up. 'Clunk!' "AHH, I should have expected that!" I said as I rub my head. My boundary limit is above too, so I can't go over and out into the ocean. The clouds are so close but can't quite reach them. There are still no birds or planes up here. Hmm...
I head back down to my home base, collecting my material as I go. Just remembering the blue brochures, I quickly look down at my watch. The arrow is pointed straight down.
------------------------------------------------------
Stay tuned for Chapter 3 - Where do I go?
-------------------------------------------------------
Thank you to Total Miner for being the inspiration to my story. Thank you to the bf who motivates me to actually do things.
Thunk!
ReplyDelete