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What a dick move.
“I guess we’ll just have to kick all their asses," I told Chess and Hatter. Their confident gazes met mine without flinching. “We can do this, right, guys?”
“If you play your cards right,” Hatter snickered under his breath.
Chess grinned wide at me, then faded into nothingness.
“I’m the luckiest one of all,” he crooned into my ear. Even though I couldn’t see him, I could feel his hands rest on both of my hips. “Come now, dear. Let me get you into position.”
Ignoring me as took my place, the black and red pawns all moved back to their original spots on the giant board. Even the crumbled red one put itself back together and ran back to its square.
“Your move,” said the lead pawn.
I turned to where Hatter was standing at the edge of the board. Chess was still invisible, although I felt his presence. I took a deep breath and braced myself for the challenge ahead.
“Alright, guys...what do I do?”
“Move your pawn forward two squares," Chess instructed from somewhere off to my left side. His voice was low and measured.
"Which one are you talking about?” I asked, my eyes darting nervously between the pieces. “Aren’t they all pawns?”
“Only the ones in the front row are called pawns,” he replied. “Take one from the center and move it two places forward.”
“Okay...here goes nothing.” I took a deep breath as I guided the pawn forward. To my relief, the chess piece moved without any resistance, gliding obediently into its new position.
"Good," Chess praised, his green eyes gleaming with approval. "Now, let's see how black responds.”
We watched our opponent make a similar move. Then it was our turn again.
"Left diagonal," Chess murmured after the black pawn stepped forward and drew a bow and arrow. With Chess coaching me, I was starting to feel a sense of exhilaration, like I was sneaking through enemy territory undetected.
"Three steps forward to the right," he advised. I hesitated for a moment, but then took the steps as directed.
As the opposing pieces shifted and changed, I struggled to keep up, my mind racing to find a pattern or strategy in their movements. But it was no use—I was hopelessly out of my depth, and I knew it.
"Move your knight," Chess said suddenly, his voice urgent. "To the left, then forward."
“Which one’s the knight?” I asked, starting to panic.
“The horse. Move it left, then forward.”
"Like this?" I asked, hesitating as I reached for the piece.
"Exactly," he replied encouragingly.
But as my fingers brushed against the cold, hard surface of the knight, I felt a sudden jolt of panic shoot through me, and I stumbled, accidentally knocking the piece into the path of an enemy pawn.
My heart caught in my throat as I realized I’d made a fatal mistake.
The chess pieces stopped their battle and turned their menacing gazes upon me. Fear gripped my chest as the monstrous figures advanced, their swords and bows drawn, their intentions clear—
capture or kill.
"Watch out!" Hatter shouted from the sidelines, his eyes wide with horror as the pawn lunged towards me, its razor-sharp sword drawn and gleaming.
“Oh, FUCK!” I shrieked, leaping back behind my chess piece, using it as a shield as a handful of arrows shot past me.
But it was too late. I’d taken a hit to my shoulder. It wasn’t very deep, but it was serious enough to make me start bleeding.
