James the Wonderer

Chapter One- A bishop and a jump

“Your bishop’s in trouble boy.  Aren’t you going to save it?”

James March tried to brush the comment aside and concentrate on his next move, but it lodged itself neatly into his mind, settling alongside the recent revelation that was already burning any fibres of focus he had left.

He was sitting cross-legged at a low marble table near the entrance to the Temple of Zeus, engaged in a game of chess, black and white ivory pieces scattered across the wooden board.  That in itself would have been strange enough for any normal eleven-year-old, but James had seen his fair share of incredible and unbelievable things since he had made the leap.  It wasn’t the location that had rattled him, or even the game.  

It was his opponent.

Zeus.  

As in ruler of the Greek gods.  Sixth son of Cronus and Rhea.  Thunderbolts and lightning, very very frightening, Zeus.

He tried to laugh inside, but even the thought of his Dad’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” impression couldn’t shake the fear seeping through his bones.  Not daring to glance at his not-so-mythical opponent, he stared at the board, willing his mind to see a way out of the trap before him.

The king of the gods was right.  His remaining bishop lay directly in front of a white castle, and found itself boxed in on two sides by pawns- one from each player.  If he did nothing to protect it, then Zeus’ castle would take it on the very next turn.  But if he moved it out of the B file, the legendary deity would have a clear run straight down the board to check his king.  From there, he would lose.  Zeus would turn the screw slowly and carefully, and move by move he would advance, forcing the black king out into the open, and toward certain death.

Checkmate. Game over.  And James couldn’t let that happen.  Everything depended on him now.

“I don’t see how you can save it” his opponent mused.  “It’s unfortunate for you, but it looks like you’ll be playing without either of your bishops from now on”.  He wore a serious expression on his face, blue eyes crinkled beneath bushy white eyebrows as if he genuinely cared about the predicament he had placed James in.

Could Zeus know about Samuel’s disappearance? Or was he just referring to James having lost his first bishop on the board already?

James knew that Zeus wasn’t even trying to put him off with his comments.  That was the worst of it- Zeus wasn’t worried at all right now.  He had repelled every attack James had tried over the last five minutes, cutting lines off and blocking files before he could even begin to mount a proper attack with his pieces.

James took a deep breath, then another one, then one more.  Always three.  This was seriously unfair.  

How in the world was he supposed to defeat the actual Zeus, in a game of chess?  He was only a kid for goodness sake, not even a teenager yet!  

Not that his chances of making it that far had looked great lately, but he could hope.  He could always hope.

This was Zeus.  His opponent was known throughout history as the one who sat atop Mount Olympus, his exploits forming the very myths that James had once learned in primary school history lessons.  Not only that, but he hadn’t even known it was really Zeus until part-way through the game.  It definitely wasn’t a coincidence that the god of the sky chose to reveal himself right when James had been about to take the upper hand in the game. 

Throwing his tattered brown cloak to the side, the friendly old beggar who had challenged James to a game outside the Temple had transformed in an instant.  His shoulders rose and his back straightened, his head had lifted and golden-white hair fell about his bearded face, freed from the confines of a ragged grey bandana.  His voice changed from a quiet creak to a confident boom, with a laugh that seemed to send tremors through the flagstones they sat on.  But it was the eyes that had changed the most- dull and weary before, now gleaming with light and life.  Plus there were two of them now, his black eye-patch discarded beside him.  Now clothed in a dazzling white robe laced with golden trim, he couldn’t look less like a beggar.

“Good thing you’re not the one who has to then” James replied to Zeus’s comments, more out of frustration than anything.  He wasn’t afraid for himself, for he knew that the ruler of the gods would not harm him.  Besides, this wasn’t the first legendary figure he had faced off with recently.  It was what James stood to lose if he couldn’t find a way to best Zeus on the board that scared him.

Zeus chuckled, and motioned to the pair of hourglasses on their right, plain wooden things clear of decoration or design.  The plainness of their appearance hid their importance, for the golden sands in James’s timer were even now trickling down in a steady stream, precious seconds ticking away.  

“Time waits for no-one” Zeus said, smiling.  And he was right again.

The sands had paused in the other hourglass, halted by a little board that blocked any grains from falling down.  Like normal rapid-chess games, pressing the button stopped your clock and restarted your opponents’.  Zeus’ own hourglass had a healthy amount of sand left in it, while James didn’t want to look at his.

Move the bishop? Sacrifice it?  

Possible moves and escape routes raced through his mind without helping, and the rising din of the people around them added to the growing chaos inside his head.  People were walking by chatting happily or strolling along in silence, oblivious to the game going on before them.  Little children wearing brown robes and bare feet darted through the throngs, their laughter melding into the air.

James was stuck, no doubt about it.  He shifted his weight on the dirt underneath him, feeling the little stones roll between his toes.

Little stones.

In a flash it hit him; he had been here before.  Not Olympia, but in this situation on the chessboard.  And he hadn’t been facing the king of the gods either.

“Rock and a hard place James” she said, a delicate brown chin resting on a neatly-balanced palm.

“Well I can see that” James muttered from his bed, unable to stop himself.

Lucy looked up with a grin, and tried desperately to muffle a laugh with both her hands.  Kind eyes crinkled and gentle hands hid a patient smile.  James reluctantly pulled a face that said he wasn’t really angry, only annoyed.  She had total control of the board, and his pieces were scattered. Now add in a trapped bishop and things weren’t looking good for today’s game.

“Remember; if I win this game then we’re all even 18 apiece” she reminded him, adjusting her pager on the chair opposite him.

“I knoooow.  No need to remind me”.  He scratched his head desperately, unable to see a way out.  A small pile of plastic figures showed that she had the pieces, but he had position.  Two pawns were threatening to creep further into enemy territory on his left side, and he just needed time to form an attack.  But without the bishop protecting his foot-soldiers, they would be swept away and he would have nothing.

He searched the board frantically for a way to save his bishop that didn’t include total annihilation, but nothing jumped out at him.  His knight was pinned, Lucy’s queen was covering the C file, and her king-pawn was holding the middle.  Just when he was about to pull his bishop back and concede the pawns, a clear and continuous beep made them both groan in unison.

“Red light’s flashing James, I gotta go on shift sorry.  Guess we’re a little short on time today” Lucy stood up and smoothed down her crisp blue scrubs, reaching for her lanyard on his bed-side table.  “We can finish it tomorrow if you want?” she suggested with a friendly shrug of her shoulders, short brown curls bouncing as she did so.  “I feel like you could do with the extra time”.

“I will take that time thank you very much” James replied, hauling himself up to a sitting position in bed.  He wasn’t sposed to play chess lying down, but he always did.  “And you’re gonna be in trouble when you get back I’m telling ya!” he grinned, reaching for a fist-bump and their special shake. Bump, shake, double-slap, scissors.

“You’ll need something good to get out of this one” Lucy said over her shoulder as she walked down the ward.

“Guess you’ll have to wait and see” James called back as she disappeared through the double doors.

He spent the rest of the day sleeping, reading, and contemplating his next move on the chessboard. Nurses did their rounds, meals came and went, and so did his parents.  All he could think about was his trapped bishop, and the day dragged until eventually the sun set.

It was a cool summer’s night, and if James sat up in his bed and craned his neck to the right, he would see that the stars were out.  Normally he spent the last part of his waking hours like this, just watching through the window as the moon rose and the lights in the sky appeared like speckled dots on a black canvas.  Sometimes the clouds stopped his view, and sometimes the stars were sleeping too.  

But nights like tonight were the best.  The moon was nearly full, glowing almost amber and bathing the sky in light.  The stars were sparkling and shining, seeming to twinkle almost with joy, as if there was something only they knew.  And the air was cool, a still February evening where everything was quiet except for a gentle breeze that drifted through the town below.  

Nights like these were perfect for an open window, but of course they weren’t allowed to keep their windows open at night- even a gentle breeze could lead to a cough or cold, and the doctors weren’t taking any chances.  Sometimes one of the nurses left the window open a crack with a knowing glance at James when they left, and he would spend half an hour on the windowsill gazing up at everything that lay in the sky.

He had already tried to fall asleep earlier, but the bishop problem wasn’t allowing any peace in his mind still.  Lucy would expect him to have an answer tomorrow morning, but he couldn’t seem to solve it in a way that kept him in the game.  Lying in his bed, his fingers grasped for a captured pawn that stood beside the board, and he held it tight to his chest.  It was just a game, even he could admit that, but James knew his brain well enough to understand that it didn’t like not having an answer.  He was finally starting to drift off when a quiet noise from above him made his eyes open.

It had been a gentle thump, almost like…the sound of someone landing on the fire escape outside his window, feet meeting cold metal with a soft clang.

In a flash James was up, twisting his blue dressing gown around himself as he stepped carefully over to the window.  Sneaking up to the edge of the floor, he pulled the curtain away from the glass a fraction and peered out into the milky night. 

What he saw was certainly unexpected.

A teenage boy sat on the fire escape, only a few metres from where James stood.  He didn’t seem to like where he was, judging by the nervous jitter of his feet on the stair, and the way his face was darting from down at the road to up at the stars and everywhere in between.  The boy looked older than James by at least a few years; taller, bigger, longer hair (of course).

What was he doing out there?

James knew that he should probably get back to his bed and press the emergency button on the side of his bed.  A nurse would come running, and they could find out who this mysterious boy was and why he was sitting out on the fire escape.  

But he didn’t go back to his bed.

Drawing the curtain a little further out, he called to the older boy, quietly so as not to scare him.  “Excuse me…what are you doing out there?”

The teen nearly jumped, and whirled around to face the voice.  Long black hair blended into the night, and a pale face stood out from the dark.  His eyes were somewhere in between, and they weren’t unfriendly.

“I…don’t really know to be honest.  Waiting, I guess” the teen replied.  “Apparently this is the place to be” he continued, and a wry grin appeared on his face.

James was quiet for a moment, then tried again.  “How did you get out there?"

The teen simply shrugged.  “I don’t know that either”.

“Hmmm.  This seems kinda weird” James replied, wondering internally if he was still awake.

“You're telling me” agreed the older boy with a throw of his hands.  “But I’ve got a feeling that all will be revealed soon enough”.

“What makes you say that?  I thought you didn’t know what you were doing out there” James frowned.

“I was telling the truth- I don’t really.  But I do know why” the boy replied.

“Why then?”

The teen paused and gave James a hard stare, as if searching his face.  At last he spoke again, motioning to the sky.

“My name is Samuel, and I’m here to help you James.  I don’t know a whole lot more than that, and I know that’s not very useful to you right now.  But I won’t hurt you, that I can promise.  I’m actually here to help make you better”.  His voice was quiet but certain this time, as if he truly believed what he was saying.

James thought for a minute, keeping an eye on the strange boy.  Surely he was dreaming.  How else could the teen know his name?  What did he mean by helping?

The wind had started to build outside, gentle gusts rising from the quiet street below to stir the air around them.  It was a warm breeze, and as it flew through the curtain it draped James in a total feeling of calm.  Maybe he was dreaming, and maybe he wasn’t.  But somehow, he felt he could trust the older boy, he just…knew it.

Reaching for the window, he pulled it up and clambered carefully out onto the fire escape, sitting beside Samuel. 

“How are you going to help me then? Are you a doctor?” James didn’t feel panicked or scared at all, though part of him felt that he should be.

Samuel laughed; a strong chuckle that raised his cheeks and reassured James.  Bad guys didn’t laugh like that.

“No sir.  But we might just meet one on the way.  You coming?”  Samuel reached out his hand, and nodded in the direction of the incoming wind, which had started to billow now.

“Where are we going?” James shouted over the rising flurries to be heard.

“Even I don’t know exactly.  But it’ll be an adventure James.  Take my hand okay?”

James drew a deep breath, then another, then one more.  Stretching out his hand, he felt his fingers grasp the older boy’s, and the wind ceased to blow.

Copyright 2023 © Joe O’Connor

Author’s Note: this is a novel I’ve been slowly writing since 2019. Most of it is still in my head, lots of it has been written, and some of it I’m going to publish here, chapter by chapter. If you have got this far and read through, feel free to let me know what you thought- I’m after honest, constructive feedback as it’s very much a work in progress, so no need to sugarcoat it😊