Death of chess - part 4 - Information Center

This is the fourth part of the chess story Death of Chess.

(If you want to read the first part, you can find it here).

I wrote this story as a chess fantasy about a woman whose passion for the game—and the trauma she carries within her—draws her into another world. It is a story full of raw emotions, dark twists, and an unexpected clash between chess and the ancient game of senet. I would love to hear your thoughts.

DEATH OF CHESS - PART 4 - INFORMATION CENTER

Carolyne had just entered a massive information center, rising almost like a cliff and stretching so far in length that the end could not be seen. It was hard to measure, but it might have been miles. All around were piles of books and papers, and in the distance she saw the enormous legs of a strange creature. Carol was resting on her shoulder, so Carolyne ran carefully, making sure not to stumble.

When she finally saw the creature with those giant legs, she could hardly believe her eyes. It looked like a dog with black fur, a body four meters long, and stilt-like legs twenty meters tall, thinner even than a giraffe’s. On the dog’s back sat a man with a beard two meters long, hanging down along the animal’s body. His beard was gray, his hair partly gray but mostly bald. His forehead was lined with countless wrinkles, his skin unbelievably dry, cracked, yellowed like rancid oil, and his enormous green eyes glowed against the whites. He looked terrifying, but he was probably one of those men who knew everything about this world.  

From such a height, Carolyne could barely hear him. She decided she had to climb. She placed Carol by a bookshelf and asked her to wait. Then she leapt onto one of the dog’s stilt-like legs and began climbing, like a student on a gym pole. It went fairly well, but the climb was terribly long, and the creature moved as she climbed. It moved slowly, but dangerously. Luckily, the Dog Walker shifted its legs one at a time, so Carolyne could prepare. Each time it was about to move, she stopped, crossed her legs like in meditation, gripped tightly, and held on.  

Her climb lasted a very long time, but at last the end was near. When Carolyne looked down, her head spun and she slipped. She realized she was falling, but quickly grabbed the man’s beard. The man clutched the dog tightly, while the animal cried out in pain, kicking its legs wildly. One kick struck a small shelf—small compared to the others, only eight meters tall. The shelf shook, papers spilled everywhere, and finally the whole thing toppled, crashing down directly onto Carol.  

Carolyne didn’t notice. She grabbed the Dog Walker’s fur, let go of the beard, and pulled herself up to the man.  

“I’m sorry, sir, for the pain I caused, but I could have fallen. I need help. I don’t understand this world. I don’t know why chess is forbidden here, why senet rules everything. And I want to return to my own world. They say you can help me,” Carolyne said.  

The man looked at her with his giant eyes, stroked his beard, and replied:  

“Well, all right… I’ll tell you why chess is forbidden, and how you can leave. In your world, thousands of games exist, each born in different times. Here, too, many games appeared—until around 3000 BC. In Europe, chess arose. In China, Go. In Egypt, Senet. And so on. But then came the problem: chess prospered too much. Every land wanted its own game to dominate. In your world, these games appeared at different times, but here they clashed all at once. Arguments turned to wars. Chess was the strongest, so Egypt allied with China to fight against it. Chess was defeated, and it became forbidden to speak of it, except in historical records and here in this place. People know of it from school, but they know it is criminal. Senet was not yet supreme, but when China spread Go across the Pacific, Egypt struck. They captured China’s leaders, destroyed their ships at Nauru, and forced China to surrender. In fear, all nations agreed: only Senet could exist. Every other game was banned, but chess, as the greatest enemy, was punished most severely.”  

Carolyne nodded, but realized he had not told her how to return. She asked him.  

“Oh, pardon, I forgot,” the man said. “The way back is through the Gem of Worlds. It can take you to any world, but it was split into four pieces. One lies in a chess tomb inside an Egyptian pyramid. Another is hidden in the Forbidden City in China. A third rests in Moqua Cave on Nauru. And the last was placed in a vault inside the Asuria Hermitage Highrise in Suriname. You must find all four, unite them, hold the gem in your hands for three minutes, and choose your world.”  

“Thank you so much,” Carolyne said, and asked how to climb down. The man handed her a parachute.  

“I have two. Jump with this, but open it before you fall. You won’t drop too far.”  

Carolyne thanked him, leapt, and floated down. But then she saw something horrifying: Carol was buried under the fallen shelf.  

Terror seized her. She didn’t know what to do—until Carol suddenly appeared beside her, tugging at her hand.

“What’s wrong, Mom?” Carol asked.  

Carolyne turned to her with joy and tears, hugging her tightly.  

“How did you escape the shelf?” she asked, then realized the answer. The shelf had a large hole, and when it fell, Carol had landed inside it.  

“You don’t need to explain. You’re here, that’s all that matters,” Carolyne said, hugging her again.  

Together they left the infocenter, while the man on the Dog Walker searched for his lost papers. As they stepped outside, Carolyne fell into a canal. Darkness surrounded her—until something began to glow.  

Beside her stood a giant chess pawn, covered in sticky green slime. Rats crawled over it, and the light grew closer. Suddenly, someone grabbed Carolyne’s leg.  

“Hello, I am a representative of the Chess People,” said the man who held her. “Yes, the Chess People. They didn’t tell you about us, or why chess pieces crumble. Long ago, in Equatorial Guinea, they built a massive transmitter that sends waves to destroy chess pieces. But we who love chess discovered that in the canals, the waves don’t reach. No one looks for us here. I see you seek the truth. You love chess, don’t you? Will you join us?”  

Carolyne refused. She wanted only to return to her own world. She climbed out of the canal and set off toward Egypt, where the first fragment of the Gem awaited—and that was enough for now.

The story will continue soon.

© Laura Choanozoa (a pseudonym and the author’s trademark), all rights reserved.

A FEW WORDS FROM THE AUTHOR

Dear reader,

I hope you enjoyed the story. And you’ve probably realized by now—this isn’t the end. Just like the chess tale Instead of Thousand Possibilities, this one has multiple chapters. But as I said, I truly hope you liked it, and I hope you’ll stick around for what comes next.

Either way, I’d be really grateful for your feedback.