The Sleeping Machine

Julian clamped a hand on Lumen’s shoulder, voice booming with forced cheer. “Didn’t take you long to recover — love your enthusiasm!”

But Lumen wasn’t looking at him. His pupils pushed against the corners of his eyes, scanning the silence of the corridor. Cold air clung to his skin, warning him that no one else was there. Julian followed his gaze, frowned briefly, then snapped back into his smile.

“Listen, I must apologise for her rudeness. Storming off like that… Not the sort of behaviour we tolerate in Cogsworth Manor!”

Lumen paused, “Ah… No, don’t worry about it. I’m just… Admiring.” He continued staring into the abyss, exhaling slow, hot breaths.

“Well then, let me personally escort you to what you’ll be working on. Follow me!”

Lumen trailed behind. The darkness receded under the glow of the ceiling bulbs, and the sound of their footsteps softened against the worn carpet. Lumen’s shoe caught on a loose thread. He lurched forward, saving himself with a desperate slam against the wall. The ancestral portraits shuddered on their hooks, swaying like pendulums before settling.

Julian spun with a sharp inhale. “Steady there!”

Lumen pressed a hand to his shoulder, wincing. “...Yes. I’m—ah—I’m okay.” The words fractured under the pain.

Julian slapped his palm to his own forehead, shaking his head with a scoff. “Good heavens, what a clumsy business. Come on, let’s keep moving.”

Lumen nodded, cheeks burning, and followed behind him.

Taking a sharp left through a barren doorway, they arrived at first glance to what seemed to be an empty room. Deserted. Left behind to rot from dust. The room was bare, without even a carpet to soften their steps. But there it lay, a dormant, but wide, and towering figure in the outermost part of the room. Pipes swirled in all directions from its centre, a lid accompanying them from its rear. Arrays of copper keys lay at its front. It looked broken, not physically, but rather as if it had been betrayed by the grasps of time. It was waiting to be used once again.

Julian spread his arms. “There it is! Beautiful, isn’t she?”

Lumen treaded carefully. Hands kept to his sides, eyes squinting, floorboards groaned beneath him. He came to a stop.

“It's definitely… Something.” He glided his fingers across the hood of this amalgamation, rubbing the dust that collected. Inspecting with awe, the dust crumbled beneath his touch.

“So… What exactly needs fixing with this… Piano.”

“Ah! Well that’s your job finding that out. Just stopped working all of a sudden,” Julian rested his elbow onto his hand, grasping his face with the other, and muttered, “Could be that damn maid, for all we know… just need it fixed before Mother and Father are back.”

Lumen blinked. “What was that?”

Julian straightened with a sharp smile. “Nothing of your concern! You just focus on fixing it. I’ll be nearby.”

“...Thanks.” Lumen turned back towards the piano.

Now, to find out what’s wrong with you.

He leaned forward into the belly of intertwined tubes leaking out. Looking inside, it was an endless chasm. Unsure of how to go about this job, he let out a sigh, and reached into the darkness.

What am I even trying to look for? I’m clueless!

Randomly shuffling his hand around, he hoped to grab something, anything that could be loose leading to the problem. His tongue fluttered in the air as his limbs stretched all the way in. The tips of his fingers brushed against a flat surface, eyes widening, he delved deeper trying to see what it was.

It felt way too flat to be a pipe! This could be it.

With the edge of his nails, he pinched it, barely hanging on. His face filled with blood and veins popped out. He halted his breathing, trying hard not to drop his only hope.

Come on… Come on!

A slow raise of his arm. He kept it still, straight, and steady, before yanking it out at the last second. With a tight grip, he clutched it instantly with both hands. A slight tremble, and a small drop of sweat ran down his temple. The unconscious thought that surfaced came too sudden. And a singular word spilled out after reading the letters woven into this scrap of paper.

“...Stars…”

He shook his head violently, discarding the words and stuffing the paper into his coat. Spinning back to the piano, he froze. A pair of eyes watched him from afar, it was the same maid as before. She vanished behind the doorway as quickly as she appeared.

Lumen’s arm twitched toward her, then fell. He pressed his hands to his hips, closing his eyes. A deep breath in, a slow exhale. 

Enough distractions. Let’s get to work.