Only a Game

Almost to the First Night

Kaz Brekker crumpled the letter in his fist, the shine of the paper mocking him as he discarded it in a nearby trash can. He had to make a plan. It would most likely be insane and almost impossible, but he was no stranger to defying the odds. But first things first, he needed to get out of this damn shop. All the ticking from the clocks was driving him crazy.

Kaz limped out of the back room and immediately saw a cash register that definitely hadn't been there before he had opened the letter. Not surprised by the random and peculiar appearance, Kaz slipped his lock picks out of his coat pocket and set to work, coaxing the lock on the drawer to open. At least he'd have some kruge with him—or whatever money was called on this damned island. The drawer slid open like it had been waiting to be robbed and Kaz slipped an ungloved hand inside, hoping for a decent amount.

But inside, there were no coins or crisp paper money. Instead, the cash register held a single intricately designed brass key. Holding back a groan of frustration, Kaz picked up the key and turned it over in his fingers. Well, if the owner of the shop had it locked up, it had to be worth something.

He began searching the store again, looking for a small keyhole. Kaz glanced at the large grandfather clock in the corner and narrowed his eyes. His hunches were very rarely wrong, so Kaz decided to inspect it in further detail. Pushing it with a great amount of difficulty despite its deceiving lightly constructed design, Kaz took in the back of the clock, searching for any nook or cranny in which a key could be placed. There—next to a particularly large gear, was a keyhole that matched the size of the brass key in his hand. Kaz inserted the key and turned it, almost expecting an explosion or bells and whistles to go off. Well, he was almost right—as soon as the key had been placed in the groove and turned, every single clock except the grandfather clock the key had been inserted into started blasting its own music and sound effects. More than a few cuckoos popped out of tiny doors in the clocks. Scowling, Kaz put his hands to his ears to block the ear-splitting sounds. Then, all at once, the clocks stopped and went back to their normal, ticking states. Kaz cautiously removed his hands, half expecting the clocks to start blaring again, but there was complete silence save for the incessant ticking.

A very brightly colored door sprung open straight from the wall on the opposite side of the room. He couldn't explain it, but Kaz felt an unseen presence urging him to walk through it, enticing him and persuading. He shook his head and frowned. This place was definitely getting to him. Kaz crossed the room and hesitated for just a moment before stepping through the painted neon green door.

----

Nina Zenik huffed in annoyance at the letter. She stared at it with a furious gaze, hoping it would magically burst into flames. To her surprise, it actually did. Nina dropped the quickly burning silver paper to the road beneath her in shock. And as the letter disintegrated before her eyes, Nina could have sworn she heard a high-pitched cackle.

She whirled around to find no one there, the discovery extinguishing her hope that an inferni had destroyed the letter. At least that way, something would make sense here.

"Get it together, Zenik," she muttered to herself. She brushed off the sleeves of her scarlet kefta and stared down the seemingly endless path in front of her.

Her mind recalled the images of her walking for what seemed to be hours down that very path as well as the beach, but it felt different this time. Like if she really wanted to, she could escape.

There—she could hear faint music playing. Some drums, possibly a guitar—no definitely a guitar, and a flute. She concentrated on that music, let it seep into her mind until that was all she was thinking of. And then, she started down the cobblestone road once more.