Isolated (Stardew Valley)

Chapter Nine

THERE WAS A building that lay tucked in between thick trees and shrubs, a little past the town centre.

It had growing vines that snaked up like tangled wires along the bricked walls, slithering and covering every surface. It towered over Pierre's little shop, yet cowered beneath the valleys of the mountain. It sat so deserted, so empty, that any ounce of life faded away.

It had a pointed roof and a clock embedded in its middle, with hands that seemingly have been pointed at the same numbers for years. The words Pelican Town were engraved to its side, chipped and on the verge of fading away completely. The Community Centre that once flourished now seemed crumbled to bits.

I stood outside the building, gazing up at its wreckage. I tried to picture what it would have been like years ago, when Grandpa was still alive. Children bouncing off the stone steps at its base, lively flowers blooming in the pots, people coming in and out as they all gathered in a wide space.

The key dangled in my hand.

Mayor Lewis had given it to me a while ago, with the insistence that I try to restore the centre to its former glory. I tried to tell him that he should reconsider the faith he had with my abilities; the old man didn't hear it. He only smiled with his face bound in wrinkles and walked away.

"Imagine what Joja Corporations would do to you," I mused.

The thought of the company infesting even more of this town burned a sense of hatred within me, flowing like the hot magma beneath the earth. They would only turn this historical building into another one of their pawns, a victim to its control. Like I was. And so many other people.

I'd heard of this building before, had seen it while walking towards the mountains. There was always a nagging feeling within me that tried to draw me towards it. There was also something telling me not to go there.

I tried to follow the latter, feeling the ominous stare of the building every time I passed. The feeling of being watched always filled me, as it did now. I hesitated to walk in.

The summer breeze danced around me and as if sensing my hesitancy, pushed me forward until I stood right outside the door. I slowly slid the key into the lock where it fit perfectly, like a missing piece within the puzzle. The door answered to this; it opened lightly.

"Hello...?" It was only when dust greeted me that I realized how foolish it was be expecting anything living to greet me. No one had entered this place in years.

Apparently Grandpa used to tend to it, but after he died... well, no one took over. The place crumbled to bits, and the once lively place was nothing more than a burden to town.

A burden it was.

There was little light in the building, save for the sun that shone through the windows on the back wall. The light illuminated the floors where some of the wooden floorboards had been ripped out completely. Dirt peaked out of the ground, with roots and dead leaves growing out of it. Garbage scattered the floor completely: wrinkled papers, plastic bags, and rocks streaked in dirt.

Some of the furniture seemed intact, with a fireplace along the back, and there was even a tank along the corner of the room with murky blue water that seemed to bubble. Hallways led to other sections of the centre, and I shuddered to think of what a wreck the other rooms appeared to be in.

I took a step forward. The floorboards beneath creaked, sending a loud sound echoing around the big space. If there was anyone or anything in here, surely they'd have heard my presence by now.

I walked further into the building, goosebumps tearing themselves along my arms and legs. It was only the steel sword I kept by my side that kept me calm throughout this.