The Chains

Even though I knew I wouldn’t be seen, I still held my breath as the security guard passed by. The slightest mistake would get me killed, so despite being invisible, I wasn’t willing to take that risk.

I quietly hurried down the hallway. The rain was getting louder by the minute, so I couldn’t wait much longer. I needed to break the chains soon.

After what felt like an eternity, I came across the library. Slowly opening the door, I caught a glimpse of a large man. Bushy beard, narrow eyes, and a golden chalice on his coat. This was definitely the Watchmaker.

”Mr Watchmaker?”

He looked up from his book. “Huh? Who’s there.”

”It’s Sally- oh, wait. You can’t see me.”

The Watchmaker let out a chuckle. “Well what do ya know, you really are invisible. What do ya need?”

I took a deep, steady breath. “I need to break my chains.”

There was a moment of silence.

”It’s not an easy task.” He said gruffly. “After all, only sorcerers can chain someone.”

I knew what I was getting into when I got here. Pissing off a sorcerer was my own doing, so I would have to face the consequences of breaking the chains.

”How do I break them?”

”Hmm, you see that door over there?” He motioned towards a large detailed door. “All I know is that you’ve gotta find your locker. Apparently, it’s much harder than it looks.”

I didn’t have time to worry about that. If the rain turned red- which would be any minute now- the chains would seal themselves. Two years of invisibility would become permanent.

I pushed open the door and was faced with a set of lockers, as though it were a post office. They each looked identical, with no markings whatsoever.

“Great…” I muttered.

As I inspected the lockers, I noticed that the only way to open them was by using a key. So perhaps I wasn’t looking for my locker, but my key.

I walked around them room, looking for a key. I came across a secret pathway near the back wall, and I reached in. My hand grazed something cold and metal. I gripped it and yanked it out.

This was a key, alright.

The rain was even louder now. I was running out of time. Hastily putting the key in the first locker I saw, it twisted and the door opened. The second the key had unlocked it, the rain stopped abruptly.

It worked. I was free.

Inside the locker was a necklace and a folded piece of paper. I grabbed both of them and put the necklace on. Instantly, my body came into view. For the first time in two years, I could see my skin. My arms.

I headed out and was greeted by a very surprised looking Watchmaker.

”Well would ya look at that! It worked!”

I grinned and thanked him. As I walked outside, all I could think about was how shocked my family was going to be. But as I opened the door to the outside, it was still nighttime. The streets were still wet. The moon was still red.

This wasn’t supposed to happen. The rain stopped, everything was supposed to go back to normal.

I looked down at my hand to see the folded piece of paper. I opened it up to see just one sentence written in red ink.

THE CHAINS ARE BROKEN, BUT ARE YOU TRULY FREE?