Chapter 4
Atrus had tired himself out from all that rapping, and Catherine was ready to sleep too. Atrus pulled the sofa out and pushed hard on the top to fold it out.
"Are you done?" Catherine grumbled.
"Yes, I'm done."
Catherine squinted at the sofa-bed. "I still think it should be the other way round."
Atrus sighed. "Catherine, do we have to argue about everything? Ever since we started making games on Myst, we've hardly said a civil word to each other. If something's troubling you, you know you can always talk to me."
"Oh, Atrus... I... I'm sorry. It's no way for Yeesha to grow up, is it? With her parents arguing?"
"I'm sorry too, Catherine. If she ends up like... like Sirrus and Achenar, I'd-"
Catherine gasped. "But... WE traumatised them. It's our fault they turned out the way they did. For the Maker's sake, Atrus, we locked them in trap books all through the first of the games! It's no wonder Sirrus turned to drink and Achenar went power-hungry."
"Just... like... Gehn."
They slumped down next to each other on the sofa-bed. Atrus started to cry softly. He looked up at Catherine.
"Catherine... we won't have to trap them forever, like we did my father... will we?"
"I hope not." She paused. "I have an idea. Why don't we pay them a visit?"
"We could... Oh, but I burnt the books. How could I have trapped my own sons? I've as good as murdered them!"
"Well... we could have a browse through the library. I'm sure we'll find another link to the Age in there. Hey," she said soothingly, hugging him, "we could take Yeesha along as well. She's five now, she's old enough to come with us as long as we keep an eye on her."
"M-my boys... never even got to see their baby sister!" Atrus wailed.
"We can fix that, honey. All we have to do now is find a way out of here."
But it was late at night- far too late to be making escape plans. The basement looked so different in the dark. The eerie, angular silhouettes of the snooker table and the piano became grotesque monsters in one's mind.
Catherine rubbed Atrus's shoulders. "Let's get some sleep first, Atrus. Perhaps in the morning, we can make a start."
They settled down, but Atrus could not get to sleep. He spent the night tossing and turning, thoughts of his children filling his skull until he was certain it would burst.
It had just gone midnight when he shook Catherine awake.
"Catherine!"
"Ugh... what is it?"
"I've had an idea."
"Not now, Atrus, go to sleep."
"Myst. If a book can be used as a game... can't a game be used as a book?"
Catherine sat up. "I'm listening."
"Illuci said she was a fan of our games, yes? That means she must have a Linking Book to Myst!"
"By Yavo, Atrus, you're right! Why didn't we think of this before?"
"Ssh. We mustn't wake Illuci's family up."
Atrus and Catherine clambered out of the bed and padded up the stairs to Lucy's bedroom- the logical place for her to keep her books, in the absence of a library. Shadows played across the walls of the narrow staircase.
A dark shape bolted past them, screeching.
"Agh!"
Atrus fell and grabbed onto the stair-rail, but not without making an awful din.
"Why didn't she tell us they kept animals indoors?!"
"Quiet! Do you want to get out of here or not?"
"I hope they don't have a Maintainers' guild here. They'd be onto us like a shot."
They crept along the landing, and eased Lucy's door open. It creaked slightly, and Lucy woke up with a gasp.
"Shh. We've found a way out."
Lucy mouthed something at them in puzzlement.
"Where do you keep your Myst linking book?"
"Linking book?" she whispered. "What linking book?"
"Well, how did you play our game?!" Atrus hissed.
"The computer. That plastic box in the corner. Push that button and put the doughnut-shaped disc in the receptacle."
Catherine did so. The machine made a brief bleeping sound, and soon, their library on Myst appeared on its screen. Atrus felt all of the atoms in his body breaking away from each other and being drawn into the picture... and then, they were there- actually there, on Myst island. It was nighttime there, as it was on Earth. The air was still, and the chatter of the gulls had ceased. Atrus and Catherine could smell the familiar, reassuring scent of the forest.
The group headed up the hill into the library and down to the sitting room. Something was different about it. The chintz curtains had lost their homeliness. Shadows were more apparent on the patterened walls, as though a dark secret which they had kept for a long time was starting to emerge. Atrus slumped onto the nearest sofa and sighed.
"Thank the Maker that's over."
Lucy yawned. "I need my sleep. I've got a Physics test tomorrow and I don't want to be tired before it. Bye, Atrus; bye, Catherine. It was great meeting you."
She opened the front of her diary and linked back home, letting the diary fall to the floor.
"Somehow I don't think it is over," Catherine murmured.
"Why not?" Atrus droned.
"Well, for a start, how did Lucy manage to write a Linking Book? It takes great skill. Something you can't just do randomly."
"Maybe she was doodling and she drew a garo-hertee by accident."
"Unlikely. To do a garo-hertee properly, you have to draw the exact shape and get the lines just right. And how could she describe Earth in such a small book as a diary?"
"Linking books are typically much smaller than descriptive books, Catherine."
"True... but I still think there's something missing. I'm sure we don't know the whole truth."
Atrus sighed. "You're reading too much into this, Catherine. Let us worry about our own issues. Remember when we were in Illuci's basement and we were discussing our sons? Tomorrow, we shall visit them. We shall show them that we still love them."
Catherine sighed, remembering how thoughtless they were to imprison their own sons for something as stupid as a game.
"Which Age did we... trap them in, Atrus?"
"Channelwood," he muttered solemnly. "Channelwood."
Atrus had tired himself out from all that rapping, and Catherine was ready to sleep too. Atrus pulled the sofa out and pushed hard on the top to fold it out.
"Are you done?" Catherine grumbled.
"Yes, I'm done."
Catherine squinted at the sofa-bed. "I still think it should be the other way round."
Atrus sighed. "Catherine, do we have to argue about everything? Ever since we started making games on Myst, we've hardly said a civil word to each other. If something's troubling you, you know you can always talk to me."
"Oh, Atrus... I... I'm sorry. It's no way for Yeesha to grow up, is it? With her parents arguing?"
"I'm sorry too, Catherine. If she ends up like... like Sirrus and Achenar, I'd-"
Catherine gasped. "But... WE traumatised them. It's our fault they turned out the way they did. For the Maker's sake, Atrus, we locked them in trap books all through the first of the games! It's no wonder Sirrus turned to drink and Achenar went power-hungry."
"Just... like... Gehn."
They slumped down next to each other on the sofa-bed. Atrus started to cry softly. He looked up at Catherine.
"Catherine... we won't have to trap them forever, like we did my father... will we?"
"I hope not." She paused. "I have an idea. Why don't we pay them a visit?"
"We could... Oh, but I burnt the books. How could I have trapped my own sons? I've as good as murdered them!"
"Well... we could have a browse through the library. I'm sure we'll find another link to the Age in there. Hey," she said soothingly, hugging him, "we could take Yeesha along as well. She's five now, she's old enough to come with us as long as we keep an eye on her."
"M-my boys... never even got to see their baby sister!" Atrus wailed.
"We can fix that, honey. All we have to do now is find a way out of here."
But it was late at night- far too late to be making escape plans. The basement looked so different in the dark. The eerie, angular silhouettes of the snooker table and the piano became grotesque monsters in one's mind.
Catherine rubbed Atrus's shoulders. "Let's get some sleep first, Atrus. Perhaps in the morning, we can make a start."
They settled down, but Atrus could not get to sleep. He spent the night tossing and turning, thoughts of his children filling his skull until he was certain it would burst.
It had just gone midnight when he shook Catherine awake.
"Catherine!"
"Ugh... what is it?"
"I've had an idea."
"Not now, Atrus, go to sleep."
"Myst. If a book can be used as a game... can't a game be used as a book?"
Catherine sat up. "I'm listening."
"Illuci said she was a fan of our games, yes? That means she must have a Linking Book to Myst!"
"By Yavo, Atrus, you're right! Why didn't we think of this before?"
"Ssh. We mustn't wake Illuci's family up."
Atrus and Catherine clambered out of the bed and padded up the stairs to Lucy's bedroom- the logical place for her to keep her books, in the absence of a library. Shadows played across the walls of the narrow staircase.
A dark shape bolted past them, screeching.
"Agh!"
Atrus fell and grabbed onto the stair-rail, but not without making an awful din.
"Why didn't she tell us they kept animals indoors?!"
"Quiet! Do you want to get out of here or not?"
"I hope they don't have a Maintainers' guild here. They'd be onto us like a shot."
They crept along the landing, and eased Lucy's door open. It creaked slightly, and Lucy woke up with a gasp.
"Shh. We've found a way out."
Lucy mouthed something at them in puzzlement.
"Where do you keep your Myst linking book?"
"Linking book?" she whispered. "What linking book?"
"Well, how did you play our game?!" Atrus hissed.
"The computer. That plastic box in the corner. Push that button and put the doughnut-shaped disc in the receptacle."
Catherine did so. The machine made a brief bleeping sound, and soon, their library on Myst appeared on its screen. Atrus felt all of the atoms in his body breaking away from each other and being drawn into the picture... and then, they were there- actually there, on Myst island. It was nighttime there, as it was on Earth. The air was still, and the chatter of the gulls had ceased. Atrus and Catherine could smell the familiar, reassuring scent of the forest.
The group headed up the hill into the library and down to the sitting room. Something was different about it. The chintz curtains had lost their homeliness. Shadows were more apparent on the patterened walls, as though a dark secret which they had kept for a long time was starting to emerge. Atrus slumped onto the nearest sofa and sighed.
"Thank the Maker that's over."
Lucy yawned. "I need my sleep. I've got a Physics test tomorrow and I don't want to be tired before it. Bye, Atrus; bye, Catherine. It was great meeting you."
She opened the front of her diary and linked back home, letting the diary fall to the floor.
"Somehow I don't think it is over," Catherine murmured.
"Why not?" Atrus droned.
"Well, for a start, how did Lucy manage to write a Linking Book? It takes great skill. Something you can't just do randomly."
"Maybe she was doodling and she drew a garo-hertee by accident."
"Unlikely. To do a garo-hertee properly, you have to draw the exact shape and get the lines just right. And how could she describe Earth in such a small book as a diary?"
"Linking books are typically much smaller than descriptive books, Catherine."
"True... but I still think there's something missing. I'm sure we don't know the whole truth."
Atrus sighed. "You're reading too much into this, Catherine. Let us worry about our own issues. Remember when we were in Illuci's basement and we were discussing our sons? Tomorrow, we shall visit them. We shall show them that we still love them."
Catherine sighed, remembering how thoughtless they were to imprison their own sons for something as stupid as a game.
"Which Age did we... trap them in, Atrus?"
"Channelwood," he muttered solemnly. "Channelwood."