Approval: Here
“Pawn to e4. The important thing to remember is that you’re never alone,” A grizzled hand swept from the visibly dated chess board towards a cup of tea resting nearby. Lifting it up to dried, cracked lips, the man continued, “It may feel like it, when you’re just starting out, but it’s not true. See, you’ve joined something bigger than yourself. Even though it doesn’t feel like it. Especially at your age. Seems like you’re part of a young man’s game. But you must be young enough yourself to set off on your own.”
“Pawn to c6.”
“Closed variation. Ohh. You like safety. That’s good. Safety keeps you alive. It’s probably why you’ve stayed out of the game this long. But you’ve lost something now right? There’s some reason why you’ve just started to do this recently. D4.”
“D5.”
“Oh ho ho! Brash now. And this is where the young man steps in. Half my age, did you say? I’ve been at this game longer than I’ve been practicing magic and I’ve been doin’ that since before your parents had met. But that matters less and less. We’re both old. No mistake. Now here’s what we always forget. It’s good to be safe and it’s good to be brash, but when you take the time to think, that’s when you know that you’re going to win. The young ones can act without thinking. We can’t. Bones are turning to dust. A race against time.” He let out a harsh laugh, grating like wrenching open an old barrel. “Make all of it count. Time’ll take you just as quick as adventures will. Eh? Is it me? Oh. Queen’s knight to c3.”
“E4. Take White King’s pawn.” The calloused hand of a hardworking man reached out for a cup of tea, revealing the hint of a scar at the wrist.
“Oh! First capture of the game. Winning the battle, I call it. Far step from winning the war, but it can mean a lot. Morale. That’s the key to the game. This game and any other. Which brings me back to what I was saying. You’re never alone. You’ve got people in your corner. Not me. I’m too old. If I stand up from this seat without a ten minute warm up, my spirit’ll stand before my body does.” Another harsh laugh, just loud enough to draw the attention of everyone in the little shop but not loud enough to cause them to actually look. “E4. Queen’s knight takes pawn.”
“King’s knight to D7.”
“King to e2.” He looked down at the board then at his opponent. A small wager of ten jewels lay on this match but what did it matter compared to a victory? He watched the wizard before him. Not a young man by any means, but the gaze in his eyes seemingly young and innocent enough. Like a true phoenix reborn from ashes. Not in the sense of being birthed some amazing blaze of glory, but a puff of smoke and an out of control fire, then a mixture of wisdom and innocence melded together.
“Queen’s knight to f6.”
“What’s that they say? Look a hundred steps forward and then you make your move,” The shaky hands of an ancient mage reached for a cigarette and lit it. For all his talk of brittle bones, body aching and near death, there was more than a spark of fire in his eyes when he looked beyond dirty half moon glasses at the man before him. “Chess has never been a game of skill when you get right down to it. Not really. This game is a game of memory. If both sides remember every possible reaction to every possible move then every single game will end in stalemate. Anyone with eyes and a week of practice can see you lost this match when you took my pawn. Which may mean you’re the type where the first victory means more than the last one. But I think you were after something else here. So tell me… did you get it?
King’s knight to d6. Checkmate.”
TWC: 684
“Pawn to e4. The important thing to remember is that you’re never alone,” A grizzled hand swept from the visibly dated chess board towards a cup of tea resting nearby. Lifting it up to dried, cracked lips, the man continued, “It may feel like it, when you’re just starting out, but it’s not true. See, you’ve joined something bigger than yourself. Even though it doesn’t feel like it. Especially at your age. Seems like you’re part of a young man’s game. But you must be young enough yourself to set off on your own.”
“Pawn to c6.”
“Closed variation. Ohh. You like safety. That’s good. Safety keeps you alive. It’s probably why you’ve stayed out of the game this long. But you’ve lost something now right? There’s some reason why you’ve just started to do this recently. D4.”
“D5.”
“Oh ho ho! Brash now. And this is where the young man steps in. Half my age, did you say? I’ve been at this game longer than I’ve been practicing magic and I’ve been doin’ that since before your parents had met. But that matters less and less. We’re both old. No mistake. Now here’s what we always forget. It’s good to be safe and it’s good to be brash, but when you take the time to think, that’s when you know that you’re going to win. The young ones can act without thinking. We can’t. Bones are turning to dust. A race against time.” He let out a harsh laugh, grating like wrenching open an old barrel. “Make all of it count. Time’ll take you just as quick as adventures will. Eh? Is it me? Oh. Queen’s knight to c3.”
“E4. Take White King’s pawn.” The calloused hand of a hardworking man reached out for a cup of tea, revealing the hint of a scar at the wrist.
“Oh! First capture of the game. Winning the battle, I call it. Far step from winning the war, but it can mean a lot. Morale. That’s the key to the game. This game and any other. Which brings me back to what I was saying. You’re never alone. You’ve got people in your corner. Not me. I’m too old. If I stand up from this seat without a ten minute warm up, my spirit’ll stand before my body does.” Another harsh laugh, just loud enough to draw the attention of everyone in the little shop but not loud enough to cause them to actually look. “E4. Queen’s knight takes pawn.”
“King’s knight to D7.”
“King to e2.” He looked down at the board then at his opponent. A small wager of ten jewels lay on this match but what did it matter compared to a victory? He watched the wizard before him. Not a young man by any means, but the gaze in his eyes seemingly young and innocent enough. Like a true phoenix reborn from ashes. Not in the sense of being birthed some amazing blaze of glory, but a puff of smoke and an out of control fire, then a mixture of wisdom and innocence melded together.
“Queen’s knight to f6.”
“What’s that they say? Look a hundred steps forward and then you make your move,” The shaky hands of an ancient mage reached for a cigarette and lit it. For all his talk of brittle bones, body aching and near death, there was more than a spark of fire in his eyes when he looked beyond dirty half moon glasses at the man before him. “Chess has never been a game of skill when you get right down to it. Not really. This game is a game of memory. If both sides remember every possible reaction to every possible move then every single game will end in stalemate. Anyone with eyes and a week of practice can see you lost this match when you took my pawn. Which may mean you’re the type where the first victory means more than the last one. But I think you were after something else here. So tell me… did you get it?
King’s knight to d6. Checkmate.”
TWC: 684
