"A game?"
"Yes," he said as he laid
out a finely carved wooden board. It was covered in black and white
squares, painted in bold, outstanding colors, and the whole thing
shined like nothing Llorne had ever seen before. "It is a game
from a world away. One of chiefs and paupers, scientists and
priests, and a game you will learn to play."
"Okay," she replied as he
placed each piece on the board in their proper place. "But
why?"
"There are many things I know,
and much of it is difficult to understand, let alone learn." He
places his hand alongside the board, palm down, then pulls back,
revealing a T shaped piece of twisted metal with a long chain
trailing out behind it. Its darkened steel seemed to sparkle with a
light with no true source. "If you can learn to play this game,
and beat me in a match, this will be yours, along with all I can
teach."
"But how can I beat you?"
Llorne protested. "If you know so much, perhaps you know how to
beat me every time."
"This is true, but I promise you
that I will play at a level that is comparable to your abilities.
The game will be fair." She didn't look very reassured. "There
is a rule amongst my kind that we must follow when we are first
taught. The rule simply says 'trust me.' If you can find it in
yourself to follow that first rule, then you're already halfway to
earning that amulet."
Llorne locked herself in deep thought
for a moment, then smiled and reached out to pick up one of the
pieces. "What is this piece? It looks like a dog, but not."
---------
The girl had long ago regained her
breath and seemed to dedicate herself to the task of beating Llorne.
Each move was powerful and well thought out, a balance rarely seen
outside of clubs and groups. "You're very good."
"You think so?" the girl
moved her knight.
"Oh yes." Llorne took a
pawn. "Where did you learn, if I may ask?"
"One of my mama's regulars taught
me." Bishop across the board. "I think he had a thing for
little girls."
"Oh really?" Her king was
moved. "I assume that you didn't. . ."
"No no no. Mama would have
killed him." Rook two spaces forward. "I guess since he
couldn't get his jollies with me, he settled for this."
Rook was countered by an angry pawn.
"Well he taught you quite well."
"Yeah, I guess." Rook
bulldozes the pawn out of its way. "We almost never finished a
game; his time usually ran out before we could. I won a few times
when we did though." She wrinkled her nose in thought. "I
bet he let me win."
"I doubt that. In fact, I'm sure
you earned every victory." Llorne grabbed at the amulet hanging
from her neck and caressed it between her fingers as if in thought.
She stared at the board for a time, never saying a word.
"You gonna move?"
"I'm thinking."
The girl sighed a kind of reply and
scratched her forehead. She turned slightly to watch the rest of the
park. The trees barely moved in the still air of mid-spring, with
nary a cloud in the sky to indicate any potential danger of rain.
Children ran through the grasses followed by parents who walked arm
in arm. A woman, not much older than her mother, ran amongst a small
crowd of children, most likely not her own, chasing them like a
monster of some kind. A more bitter sigh came from her lips as she
turned back to Llorne, who still had yet to move. "You know
what move you're going to make, so just do it already."
"Oh really? And what might that
be?"
The girl rolled her eyes and reached
over the board and grabbed Llorne's lone bishop. "Like this."
She moved the piece and then grabbed one of her own. "Then I
move like this, then you do this, and this. . ." She trailed
off as her hands continued to move each piece, playing out a game
that should take hours in mere minutes. She piled the pieces on each
side until only a few were left. With a final flick, she knocked
over her own king. "And that's how you would win." She
sat back up with a rather smug smile, then a brief moment of shock at
her own actions followed by a more sheepish look. "Sorry, I got
a bit carried away."
"That's alright. I've actually
been expecting that."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Now it's my turn."
Llorne leaned forward, folding her arms underneath her chest.
"You're here to ask me to help you find your mother."
The girl backed away in total shock.
"Wha. . . how. . . huh?"
"Well, it wasn't too hard. Lots
of little things said that was the general idea of what was going
on."
"But if you knew, why the chess
game? Why didn't you look for me?"
"I wanted to know how much you
wanted me to help. That and I haven't played chess with anyone in a
while." She chuckled and leaned back again. "And that was
a pretty good game, even when you finished it for us."
"Oh." What else could the
girl say?
"So, go ahead."
"What?"
"Ask me. I'm certainly not going
to help you unless you ask me."
"Oh, yeah. Okay, um, could you
help me find my mother?"
"Sure thing." Llorne stood
up and took a deep breath. "I bet you're hungry, want to get
some lunch?"
"Yeah!" The girl nearly
jumped up, then pulled herself back under control. "Yes, I
would like to have some lunch." She corrected. Llorne started
walking, leading them both out of the park. "Um," the girl
said. "Thank you, um, what's your name anyway?"
"Lcorn Llorne."
"Lcorn is a funny name."
"Where I come from, it would be
considered my last name. You can call me Llorne."
"Llorne is a funny name too."
"Is that so? Then what's your
name?"
"Deborah. Deborah Ignigus."
"Ignigus is a really funny name."
Questions
1. What kind of person is Lcorn Llorne? What does she look like (in your mind)?
2. What kind of person is the Deborah Ignigus? What does she look like (in your mind)?
3. Does the setting seem fitting? Would you like to know more?
4. How do you pronounce Ignigus? Get as close as you can.
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