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Past Prose Contest/Challenge Entries (5)

Challenge #5 - 500 words or less - You find an old key. What does it open? Where does it lead you?

Curiosity and All That.

The key felt heavy in his hand as he fumbled with the lock on the small wooden door. What was he doing? He'd found the key on the sidewalk and right away felt impelled to try it on the door in front of him. Sagging on rusted hinges, the wood rotting away around the corroded metal caused it to drag on the stone sill as it opened and he crouched so as not to bang his head.

When it slammed shut he dug out his lighter, seeing the door had no handle and couldn't be budged. Under foot the steps down were broken and crumbling, forcing him to keep one hand on the wall while making his way into the basement. Cobwebs draped his face and he spit, brushing anxiously, his body reacting with a violent shiver.

The floor was dirt with a low ceiling of rotting joists, dark and stained from decades of dampness. He paused, cupping a hand around his lighter, coaxing the flame a little higher; moving shadows disorienting him momentarily. More cobwebs clung to his sleeves and his hair as he hurried forward, ignoring the uncertain footing.

He came to a set of curving stone stairs; a hint of illumination from somewhere above allowed him to see more clearly. Moisture seeped down the walls of the staircase and reeked with the unpleasant odour of mildew. Nearer the top, the light brightened, becoming a little more wide casting.

He entered what once was a dining room, now everything thick with filthy dust and carrying the smell of dry tepid air. A massive table contained plates with rotted, stale food at several of the places. A glass lay on its side, stuck in a blot of dried wine.

The large fireplace was empty. Andirons lay tipped over on the hearth and the lid of the ornate wood box was open, twisted out of shape. Outside the dining room was the front vestibule and he hurried to the big doors, finding them locked. He banged and yelled for help, kicking the solid wood uselessly then frantically tried the key in the door - nothing.

"That only allows me to get out." The voice startled him and he yelped, dropping the lighter, now seeing only by a faint glow from above.

"Who are you? How do I get out of here?" His voice trembled.

"Give me the key and I will tell you." A slim hand reached toward him. "Give me the key."

"How do I know- ?"

"You won't unless you give me the key."

Reluctantly, he handed it over and the figure swept past, unlocking the door and leaving, slamming it behind.

"Wait!" He screamed, pulling at the door. "How do I get out?"

The voice came through the wood between them, "I will leave it where you found it and you will get it from the next person who uses it."

"But when? How long will that be? How long were you here?"

"What year is it?"