The World in the Fireplace

III

We head back to the manor. Rose said that it is late and that we need sleep, but I know it's because she wants to give me some time. I follow her through the maze of corridors, my mind on the heavy weight in my pocket. We pass by a door that is slightly ajar, and I recognize it as the office I first landed in. A soft, orange glow lights up the room. I stop walking and open the door all the way. I step in and turn to see the fireplace aflame and on closer inspection I can see my drab blue couch in my living room.

"Is that your world?" Rose asks, standing in the doorway.

"Yeah."

"What's it like?"

"Oh, it's so different from yours. Everything is technology based. We can talk to people across the world in an instant, but we can't talk face to face anymore. Everything is automatic, so you don't have to try for anything. You work to pay the bills and get away from your families. You have to be beyond perfect at something, or no one will know who you are and no one will care. It's a pretty sad world actually, but it's the world I know. I grew up there, and in my world, I don't have to kill anyone. The fire is lit. I could go back. I could go back to my world and forget all about this place. So why won't my feet move?" I'm frozen in spot, staring at the flames.

"Everything happens for a reason Tyler, even you being here. You can go back if you choose to, but my world is being destroyed, and you're the only one who can stop it." Her words scream at me and something in me clicks.

"Okay." I turn to face her. "It may not be my world, but it's the one I can save. I'll kill Eleven. But we're doing it tonight." She nods her head once with a faint smile on her face. I turn my back on my world and follow her back outside. Together we walk through the garden and out onto the now empty streets. It's so different from earlier today. It's dark and quiet. The moon lights our path as we walk from shadow to shadow. Just because there's no one on the streets doesn't mean that no one is watching.

We go where the folder says Eleven's last known whereabouts are and climb to the top of the building next to it. We climb onto the roof and find a spot in front of a window where a light is on, but we make sure we are not seen. We wait in silence until a man who looks like the man in the picture sits down at his desk in front of the window. My hands slightly shake as I pull out the derringer from my pocket. Nervousness, anxiety, and fear are the only things on my mind right now. I'm going to kill someone. I get a nudge from Rose, and I look at her.

"Just point and shoot," she whispers to me. I nod, not trusting my voice at the moment. I get ready on the roof and shakily raise the pistol. I close my left eye and take a deep breath. I aim and fire.

The bang reverberates through the air as I fall backward. I fall flat on my back and the wind gets knocked out of me. I cough and manage to sit up. I see the derringer still gripped in my hand, and I quickly let it go.

"Rose..." Her name dies on my lips when I look at her. Her skin is an ashy white like she saw a ghost. She stares at the house, not blinking, so I follow her gaze to see what she's looking at. There, sitting where Eleven was, is Eleven, without his head.

Rose takes off toward the house, and I'm quick on her heels. We make our way through the window, like thieves in the night, except we aren't here to steal anything. Rose goes first, and I walk behind her. We make our way closer to Eleven and see that it isn't Eleven at all, but a steam-powered robot that looks exactly like him.

I let out a breath, relieved that I didn't kill someone. I examine the inside of the robot and marvel at its makings. Someone very smart and talented had to have made it. It's too complicated and sophisticated to be anyone else.

I hear the sound of a pistol and freeze.

"You move. We shoot." I slowly raise my eyes and see two girls aiming pistols at us. The girl with the red hair talks again, "Come with us."