Seven Generations

Chapter two - six doors

Lucas opened the trapdoor. He found a staircase and stared at it for a while. He hesitated but then decided to explore a bit. He walked down the gloomy staircase. It was quite dark and Lucas didn't have a flashlight. The light from outside slowly faded as he walked deeper into the place. After a while of walking in the dark, Lucas found a strange light in the distance. He approached it and found an odd looking lamp crooked in a weird manner beside a wooden door with rectangular carvings and a black door knob. He walked closer to the door and put a hand on it. He looked on his right and found another door beside it. Lucas stepped back to get a better view and found out that there wasn't just one or two doors. There were six doors aligned next to each other. Lucas walked back in front of the first door. He slowly put a hand on the door knob and turned it even slower. He was about to open the door when he heard his grandfather call him from upstairs.

Startled, Lucas let go of the door knob and went back upstairs. He closed the trapdoor behind him and put random plants over it. He realized that he left the family book near the entrance and picked it up before running back to his family. "Yes?" The boy asked as he stood in front of his grandfather. Matthew seemed scared and immediately hugged his grandson. "Don't scare us like that! We thought you got lost in the forest or something! Come. Let's go see your mother. She was so damn scared she bursted into tears!" Lucas quietly followed him. In front of the house stood Hannah with a pale look on her face. She seemed horrified and was trembling. 'Isn't that a bit much? I just went for a bit. I'm sure it wasn't that long..' Lucas thought to himself. Hannah ran to her son and hugged him. "Don't go somewhere without telling us! I don't want to lose a child!" She screamed before mumbling something Lucas couldn't seem to understand. "Mom, why are you acting like this? I was only behind the house for a few minutes.." Lucas asked slowly. Hannah didn't respond. Instead, she tightened her hug and let go suddenly. Lucas was confused but didn't say anything.

A bit later, Robert and Hannah walked back inside the house. Lucas turned to his grandfather. "I have a question" "what is it my boy?"
He showed him the book. "I found this book in the attic. I believe it's a family book because it has family trees with our last name on it." Matthew smiled. "That book contains the history of the Crouse family. It tells the biography of each of your ancestors. Not all of them of course, but most of them." Lucas looked at the book and opened it to the pages of the writings he couldn't understand. "What does this mean?" Asked the boy curiously. Matthew frowned as he looked at the strange pattern-like writings. He shook his head. "I don't know.." he answered scratching the nape of his neck. Lucas looked slightly disappointed and thanked his grandfather.

After a bit, the family was having fun talking about the strangest things. Lucas had forgotten to mention the trapdoor in the back. At night, the teenager took his father's flashlight and decided to go see the trapdoor once again. He left the family book on his bed and looked out the window. There was a full moon and the stars were so beautiful. Lucas took a deep breath before slowly creeping out the house. Once he was out, he heard the sound of the crickets which reminded him of his childhood. He smiled briefly then walked  to the back of the house.

The boy moved the plants and the leaves away then opened the trapdoor which made a loud creak. Lucas cringed at the unpleasant sound and took out his dad's flashlight. It flickered a little but with a hit or two the object worked quite well. He walked down the stairs carefully and looked around him. The place was full of cobwebs, dead insects and rats. It was dark and humid and the scent wasn't exactly comforting. He walked over to the strange light he saw before and found the six doors. Lucas approached the first door on the left, the one with the rectangular carvings and black door knob. He slowly opened it peeking through the opening. Strangely, the only thing he saw was a blinding flash. He stepped back then closed his eyes to barge in.

Feeling nothing, the boy slowly opened his eyes. What stood before him was astonishing. He was inside a big room. It contained huge windows and a beautiful chandelier in the middle of the ceiling. The white curtains complimented the room's style. Lucas stared at the room stunned. He was confused at how there were skies out the window when he was underground.

Suddenly, he heard someone knock on the door. Frightened, the teenager tried to find a hiding place. Alas, he didn't have the time to hide as a woman stepped in. "Sir Crouse?" Asked a silky voice with a British accent. Lucas was surprised to hear his name and turned to her. "Y-yes."  "the ships have come back. Once you get dressed please come downstairs, the carriage is waiting for you." She said before leaving the room. Lucas was now very confused. 'Judging by her clothing, she must've been a servant from somewhere in the 18th century...' he thought to himself. Lucas turned to the bed where clothes were set perfectly. He stared at it for a long time before shrugging and deciding to play along. The clothes looked tricky to wear but Lucas had studied a lot about the 18th century and knew how the outfit should look.

"Breeches, stockings, waistcoats..I could pretend I know what's happening, but I doubt I'd—" a large mirror across the room caught Lucas's attention. He ran to it and couldn't believe what he saw. His face changed. Instead of having hazel eyes, he had blue eyes and had a beard. Lucas stepped back. He remembered that face from somewhere. He sat down and thought about it. Suddenly, he stood up remembering from where he saw that face. The boy ran to the door and opened it. There was a hallway. He closed the door quickly and started thinking. "I am in a different person's body, the door I opened earlier disappeared...maybe it wasn't that door?" He asked himself. Lucas tried to keep his composure as he looked around the room. After a while, he started to become desperate and looked under the bed. He was about to give up when his hand touched a handle from under the fourniture. The boy slid under it and opened another trapdoor. As he went through the door he made sure to keep his eyes open before tumbling.

The boy was back in front of the wooden door with rectangular carvings. He stood up and ran to the room he slept in before. He quickly grabbed the family book and turned the pages quickly before stopping abruptly. "Theodore Crouse." The boy whispered. "He was a rich merchant in Britain during the 18th century" Lucas stood up and ran to the bathroom. He quickly turned the light on and stared at his reflection in the mirror. He wasn't wearing the clothing from before and his face turned back to normal. 'Am I hallucinating? I'm probably thinking too much about it. I should go to bed..' the boy concluded as he walked out the bathroom.

The next morning, Lucas ate breakfast with his family. Robert and Hannah planned on leaving at dusk. The boy noticed how Matthew felt whenever he'd hear about their departure but didn't say anything as he knew he really couldn't do much. After breakfast, the boy helped his grandfather shear the sheep and feed the other animals. "Grandpa, I found a strange trapdoor behind the house. Do you know what that is?" The teen asked while working. Matthew seemed alerted. "What trapdoor? Did you enter it? When did you find it?" He walked quickly to his grandson and put his hands on his shoulders. "Listen Lucas. Don't ever enter that trapdoor. Never ever! Got it?! You most definitely cannot open it okay?" He asked with a serious tone and a terrifying gaze. Lucas felt scared to tell him the truth and simply shook his head. "Don't worry, I didn't and I won't" he lied.

A while after they finished working, Lucas went back outside using the pretext he wanted to climb trees. He quickly opened the trapdoor and descended the stairs to take back his father's flashlight. Once he came back up, he closed the trapdoor and covered it in plants so it would seem like he never opened it.