I wrote this short “cutscene” for a one-word prompt. The prompt was “fire.” I’m not sure if I should do anything more with these characters, but they seem to have a lot of potential.
Enjoy!
“Everyone has a choice, Cal. Isn’t that what he told us, all those years ago, when we finally cut the strings? When the puppeteer died, and we were set free?”
Dust coated Caleb’s lungs, preventing him from speaking without doubling over into a cough. The coiled snakes which bound his wrists tightened their cold grip as he collapsed against the stone floor. Shakily, he looked up at Kaz through blurry eyes. Kaz knelt down, arms against his knees in a carefree manner.
“I would offer you some water, but that would be counterintuitive, given your hydrokinesis.” He smiled, white teeth gleaming. But the smile didn’t reach his eyes. “Do you remember that day, Cal, when the strings were cut and the world rejoiced in its newfound liberty? We called him our savior, crowned him our leader, blindly listening to the words he spoke and following his every step. Were we among the deceived?”
The cold stone sunk into Caleb’s skin, sending a shiver down his spine. With some effort, he forced himself up to his knees. Dry air and dust caught in his throat. “Why are you doing this, Kaz?” he rasped.
“Because I’m free,” Kaz said, locking his gaze with Caleb’s. “Because we took for granted the puppeteer and the strings we danced upon. We had no will, but we had purpose. We were heroes and villains, then, each with their own part set into the stone script of our lives.”
“That’s exactly what he freed us from,” said Caleb, voice weak. “Everyone should have a choice.”
“I’m offering you yours, right here. Right now.” Kaz extended one hand, palm upwards. “Do you want to know what I see, Cal?”
Behind him, the snakes hissed softly, warning against any attempt to escape. Caleb leaned onto his heels and gave a short nod.
“If Phil was right, if everyone really does have a choice, then there’s only two actual options. Good or evil. Light or darkness. Right or wrong. The path of the hero or the path of the villain. Even the puppeteer followed this rule. Tell me, Cal, what choice would most people make? What choice did we make, when Phil offered it to us?”
Caleb’s heart pounded against his chest. “We chose…good.”
“Exactly. And so did all the thousands of people who broke free from the puppeteer’s tangle of control. At least, so we thought. It would have been so simple,” Here, just for a moment, his control slipped and the first hint of emotion tinged his words. His hand, still outstretched, began to tremble.
“Good or evil, black or white — yet look around. Look at this world we’ve carved in our freedom. We live in shadows, in the grays between.” Kaz scoffed. “Oh sure, your average citizen may claim to be a fine person. At least they’ve never killed someone, but how many little lies do they tell throughout a single day to make their lives easier? Every day they make absolute claims, of love and loyalty and friendship, yet when pressed hard, when a single threat to their comfort or existence appears, how true will they remain? Don’t you see, Cal? We gave people their freedom, and they’ve chosen to live in the grays between.”
Caleb furrowed his eyebrows. “But-” he began.
“I’ve had enough,” Kaz said, tone sharp. “I can’t live like this anymore, bowing with the masses to our so-called savior, always living in the shadow of the choice he gave us. I thought good was the way to go. I thought destroying the puppeteer meant I could be the hero. Nothing really turns out the way you want it, though.”
“What do you mean?” asked Caleb. The snakes were growing ever tighter around his wrists. He felt the beginnings of panic start to rise in his chest, but forced them down.
Kaz smiled again, and this time it reached his eyes, turning down their corners with a strange mixture of either sorrow or resignation. “I’m choosing evil. It’s time someone forced our people out of the gray area between right and wrong. They’ll make the choice, too. All they need is a little…push.”
“That goes against everything you and I worked for,” said Caleb in desperation. “What are you going to tell Phil? He won’t let you get away with this.”
Kaz’s eyes glinted. “Won’t he? I thought everyone deserved a choice.”
“Not like this,” Caleb whispered. Panic kicked at his stomach. “Please, Kaz, don’t-”
“I’m offering you a choice, Cal.” He glanced down at his extended hand. At his low whistle, the snakes loosened their hold. “You can come with me. We can make this decision together, just like before. We can face the puppeteer one more time.”
“And then what?” Caleb whispered. “Watch the world burn?”
“If you’d like.”
Swallowing tightly, Caleb shook his head. “No. I’m sorry, but I can’t do it. I can’t betray Phil and the nation like this.”
Kaz’ shoulders slumped, just for a moment. He withdrew his hand and stood sharply. “I should have known you’d say that. Fine then. Be the hero, if you want. Walk the line, until you too fall into the shadow. Until you can’t tell if the purposes behind bad actions are good, or vice versa. Until your means justify your ends. Until you see Phil corrupt under the power we willingly handed him.” A small flame licked up between Kaz’s clenched fingers. “I may be the villain, Cal, but at least I’m aware of the strings tied to my back.”
As Caleb gave a shout and sprang to his feet, Kaz hurled his fist upward. A stream of flickering red and yellow bloomed into the air. The roof above them burst into flames.
“Maybe you won’t believe me, but if I could, I would be truly sorry.” Kaz stepped back as the burning rafters began to fall around Caleb. “This was your choice. Remember that.”
A wave of blazing orange blinded Caleb’s vision. By the time it cleared, Kaz was gone.
*reads this just before going to listen to a podcast on The Abolition of Man*
Timely.
That is way too cool and I absolutely totally want to know more 🤯😃