literature

The Horologist Chapter 1: The Clock Man

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Published: Dec 7, 2013

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Literature Text

He just sat there on the floor of the shop. it was after hours and the shops owner had gone home. On the workbench was a strange machine. it looked like a simple clock, only there was a mass of gears around it, and a hand-crank protruding from the side. I suppose i should tell you readers about this fellow. His creator, also the shops owner; was an inventor. All sorts of things, including the tall, thin person sitting on the shops floor. Most recently, he had created the strange clock like device sitting on the workbench. He made it clear that it was not to be touched.

The man's curiosity finally got the best of him and he stood up and walked to the worktable. He turned the hand-crank a few times. there was a steady clicking sound, but the hands of the clock weren't moving. Puzzled, he turned the crank more vigorously, faster and faster. Suddenly there was a flash of light. He felt weightless, he was weightless, floating in an endless black void. His highly decorated top-hat began to drift away. He reached out a long hand out to grab it. Just before he got a hold of it, he began to fall. He was falling, he could see the dim light of a large, almost never ending city below. coming closer, and closer, and closer still.

"Oh dear." he muttered, terrified.

She was in the small hat shop, busy at work sewing fabric. Suddenly, there was a loud crash, causing her to jump and het the fabric jammed in the sewing machine. people outside the shop begin to gather around, muttering amongst themselves.

"what the?"

A highly decorated top-hat flutters down and lands softly on the ground. She walks outside, moving through the growing crowd of people; hopping up and down to see over them. She finally makes her way to a suitable vantage point. On top of the roof is a tall, thin man with long bright blue hair. Both of his eyes are hanging out of their sockets, suspended on long springs, an accordion like tongue hanging out of his mouth. the sound of grinding gears can be heard. The man sits up, still all googly eyed.

"...Oh dear..." he says

"Hey! Are you okay up there!?"

The man, still quite disoriented responds.

"what's that you saiiiAAAAAAHHH!!!" he falls off the roof of the hat shop.

"Oh my, why is everything all wobbly like?"

"Darlin', I think you just fell from the sky. And...um...Your eyes,sir."

"OH...that. hehe. he replies as he pushes his eyes back into their proper position.

The girl crosses her arms, trying hard not to laugh.

"Do you have any idea how you landed on my shop at all?

"I...I had no idea it did that."

"i thought it was just a simple clock and--a--aaand."

The girl tilts her head, confused.

"Eh?"

"My creator is an inventor."

The girl ghasps.

"You're tickin'. A clock man!

"Are you a robot?!"

The man smiles.

"Oh, no. Not at t'all miss."

"I am indeed a living, breathing thing."

"well, I'm Twill." The girl says, holding out her hand.

The man bows and politely takes her hand.

"I am Maurice Centric'."

"Say miss, have you seen my tophat?

The girl begins looking all over.

"Uuuummm, OH!"

She runs over to the hat lying in the street, which is now dripping with water and slightly misshapen.

She holds the hat up to him.

"This?"

"Yes, thank you miss." he replies, setting the hat lightly atop his head. hardly phased by the fact that it is dripping wet.

Twill smiles widely.

"Say miss, w-where exactly am I?"

"You're downtown,sir. in front of my store." she replies, while pointing to the building behind her.

"How do you not know? How did you get here?"

Maurice looks around at all the strange people.

"...Oh no...This isn't?"

"Yeah, it's my shop."

"Nonono miss, the city; the legendary city."

"Decembersville?" Twill asks, not quite sure what the man is babbling about.

Maurice looks distraught with fear and disbelief.

"Well, i mean DUH it's Decembersville, silly! Have ya hit your head on the way down?" Twill asks playfully, laughing.

"I-i-i-i--iiii. I can't be here, i have to go home!"

Twill grabs him by the wrist and drags him into the store, leading him upstairs into the living area.

"sit" she says, pointing to a chair.

Maurice sits, wide eyed.

"OKAY." she says as she pulls up a chair and sits herself.

"So. You're not from Decembersville?

"No, not at t'all..."

"Then where are you from?"

"I...don't know."

"i never left the shop.*

"Maybe you have amnesia." Twill says, speculatively

"But i cannot leave?!" Maurice asks, already anticipating the answer.

"Nope! You're here now. No way out!" she replies. it was not what Maurice wanted to hear, in fact it broke his clockwork heart.

"A kid got out once though...I'm not sure how. Maybe Chima kicked him out of the city." Twill says, giving a slight shrug.

"Twill..."

"yeah? Why do you sound so afraid?"

Maurice's lip starts to quiver, his eyes welling up with tears.

"...I'm scared..."

"Aw, come on! Don't be afraid..." Twill says, trying to cheer him up.

"You look like you'll fit right in! I can show you around."

"R-really?" Maurice replies, wiping his eyes.

"Yeah! It could be fun! Uh. Just try not to be scared of the freaks around here."

Maurice smiles.

"...Thank you..."

"I guess you can stay here with me and my boss for a while."

"I would like that very much, thank you miss."

Twill gives him two thumbs up.

"No problem man."

"Um, Please don't think me rude for asking but, what is it you do?"

"Well, I hang around the shop, help my boss and do tasks while he works."

"HEY!, i get a list of things i need to find every once in a while. I could give you a tour as i find materials throughout the city."

"Oh, i would be glad to" Maurice replies, bearing a wide smile."

"WOOT!"

"I could introduce you to my friend Scarfy if we ever run into her."

Maurice holds out his long, slender hand.

"Shall we go then?"

Twill sits there looking at his hand.

"Ya sure you're ready? or do you still need time to realize."

"Are you kidding, never before in my life have i ever left a room not much bigger than this. i rather like this feeling."

"Welll let's goooo!!!" Twill says, as she starts pushing him.

Maurice takes her hand and runs outside.

"Don't get lost now." She starts to walk, Maurice slows down to her pace.

"Are you human?" Twill whispers to him.

"Eh, i am...a..thing..."Maurice replies.

Then, he sees the giant clock-tower and gasps, stopping in his tracks.

"Ohhhhh myyyy..."

"I know right? it's very tall..."

"The clock tower gives me strange vibes. just somethin' about it."

"T'is an hour slow..." Maurice says

"Compared to where YOU'RE from maybe."

"No really, it is slow, getting slower all the time. needs a tune up."

Twill starts going up icy stairs.

"Come on! Let's go there."

"Who maintains it?"

"Eh. I have no idea. i don't think anyone does." Twill says, waving him over.

"This place is rather large."

"Oh, it is. I bet if we go inside the clock tower, we'd be able to see the entire city."

"We just can't get caught."

"Nobody is allowed?"

"We're going to explore it anyway!"

"Can you fix the time..?"

"I certainly can if i get to the clocks mechanism." Maurice says, as he climbs up the spiraling stairwell.

"This is gonna be so cool." Twill says, climbing up after him.

"Indeed." He replies, taking her hand and climbing up even faster.*

"Careful! knife fingers."

When they get to the top, they both stop, staring into the cavernous room.

"wow..."

"HAHAHAA! Look at the view! Twill shouts, jumping up and down excitedly.

"I can see Count Merry's mansion"

Maurice looks in the direction she is pointing.

"Who???"

"He's a vampire. Always crying. I throw snowballs at him sometimes."

"If you listen carefully, you can hear him playing the organ."

"Why does he cry?" Maurice asks.

"I think his wife died. something about a human killing her." Twill replies, shrugging.

"They would never do such a thing..."

"They have a bad reputation here. All of the freaks HATE humans!"

"well, except for a few."

"...Do you hate them???"

"They haven't caused ME any problems. so nah!"

"If the mayor heard that, i'd be dead."

"I think they are just misunderstood beings..."

"why would the mayor do such a thing to one of his own people???"

"OOOHOHOH, he HATES humans!"

Maurice begins to look worried.

"I was...made by a human, and i have a human heart..."

"You're not a human though."

"I think you're a freak, like me."

"i-u-um, i'm terribly sorry, i didn't mean to offend." Maurice muttered, not quite understanding that freak isn't considered an insult.

"Nah, you have nothing to worry about."

"Wanna know something."

"There is actually a human in Decembersville! A TINY one too. nobody can find her!."

"Oh my, i certainly hope she is safe..."

"Oh i'm sure. she's with a guy with AXES for hands, and a gangster werewolf. Also the mayors sister too."

"She's saaafe."

"I certainly hope so."

"What is her name?"

"Her name is Candell. And everyone is trying to find her.

"Hm..." Maurice decides to change the subject.

"Let's fix this clock shall we?"

"Okay!"

Twill opens a door, leading to a small room full of hundreds of gears.

"OH! well, HAHA! whadya know. It just needs to be wound up again." Maurice says, with pride.

He winds up a crank, loud metallic clanks can be heard, the gears turning.

Then, there was another sound. like heavy boots marching up the staircase. Twill peeks outside the door.

"PSST!, The dolls are coming!" she whispers harshly.

"Who?" Maurice asks, confused as to how "Dolls" would be coming up stairs.

"The Police, That's who!"

"We gotta scram, but that's the only way out."

Maurice ponders for a quick second, then gets an idea and takes out the clock-like device.

"well, let's not loose our heads miss."he says.

"Oh no!, YOU'RE RIGHT!, The'll take us to the CHOPPING PLACE!!!"

"I DON'T WANNA DIE!"she says, shaking him by the shoulders.

"Twill...Twill...TWILL! there is another way out. we can't leave this city right, which means that this device will take us to someplace within the city's limits." Maurice says.

He grabs her arm and winds up the small machine quickly. There is a burst of bright light, then they both became weightless.

"Do hold on miss." Maurice says, with a hint of a smile, holding his top-hat to his head with one arm, the other wrapped tightly around twill.

Suddenly, they fell. Faster, and faster.

Twill was screaming...Maurice was laughing, like an utter maniac. They both land face first into a deep snowdrift.

Maurice pops up from the snow, still smiling ear to ear.

"Nnngh, i'm stuck!" Twill says.

"Not to worry madaam." Maurice says, pulling twill out of the snow by her feet, then setting her upright. He brushes off some of the powder from his midnight purple coat.

"well, glad to be out of that mess."

"At least we have still got our heads on our shoulders no?" Maurice says.

He turns around and almost bumps into someone. a tall man. thin but powerful looking, dressed in all black. The man stood over Maurice, Dark and imposing.

"Uh oh." Twill says.

Story for my character Maurice Centric'

So basically, the strange wind up "clock" thingie wasn't really a clock at all. it teleported him to a random place/dimension(in this case he was unlucky enough to land in Decembersville). So now, if he were to use it. it would only take him to a random place INSIDE of the city, BUT! could come in handy no? ^^ (FORESHADOWING!)

Oh, and just to clarify, His heart is from a human, but it is run by a pendulum inside of his chest. so you could say he has a clockwork heart, even though it is made of human. hehe.

Maurice: