The Mask Town

Mask Town

By Rak Nay

The sunrise revealed the majesty of the labyrinth that went from one horizon line to another. The ancient walls were so tall and the corridors so amazingly wide that we could easily forget that we were in the most daunting dungeon ever created, built at the dawn of the world by the wizards and mages to hide their divine treasures and their ultimate alchemy.

The labyrinth was the magical challenge for any adventurer; many never get out, and many more are born and pass their lives inside the walls. The walls are so old that many adventurers forget their purpose, since with the hardships of time, walls look like ruins, broken and covered in choking vines. Only from high places could we really see that the whole place is a maze.

"Don´t matter what you look at; everything is the labyrinth. Hard to believe you aren't in the center," remarked a small, wizened man with a long, white beard and a raggedy hat. He smoked from a clay pipe, almost equal to his size.

"There much open spaces… you forget we arrested inside," the bulky adventurer answered with a smile waving his arm broadly across the air between them.

"Being arrested is a very tricky thing, Blackstar," said the old man as he released a long, curly cloud of smoke. "There is no door to prevent anyone from entering, or exiting my labyrinth."

"How you know my name?" Blackstar asked, thrilled. "Why you say is your labyrinth?"

The old man squinted, "Blackstar is not your name. It is just how you like to be called in the game." He released another long cloud of smoke. "And I said that it is mine because I live here, the same way someone proclaims it is his street, his town, or his country."

"You true, old man?" Blackhawk asked as he gripped his hand on his sword attached to his belt, worried about trust. "You are tell me you divinity… related to this labyrinth?"

"I didn't say that," the old man made more smoke. "The labyrinth is imbued with power. She is her own divinity. She has intent to make you question your own will. She will test you to see if you are really on a quest, if you play just a game, or if the treasure in the center of the labyrinth is worth your effort. Of course, Blackstar, you could just live a normal life, like everybody else."

"You talk like labyrinth alive," Blackstar relaxed as he released the sword.

"Like a woman?" The old man tapped the clay pipe to make more smoke. "Yes, she is that... with feelings, actions and reactions. Like every land or life itself."

"You no making sense."

"And what would make sense, Blackstar?" asked the old man as he enjoyed a large billow of smoke. "A man who searches for success in front of a light box game? Or, a boy on a quest to fight a monster to gain a hoax treasure and higher self-worth?"

"Stop with this smoke!" Blackstar coughed and waved the smoke away. The two stood in each other's light, not talking, and then, the old man vanished amid the smoke. Blackstar heard his voice trail away. "We are just puppets, Blackstar. Don´t forget that you are your own puppeteer."

Blackstar dispersed the smoke but the old man had vanished. He looked around and noticed a town ahead. There was no other place to go, so he began to walk. In the path to the town was a stone bridge across a river, and standing in front of it was a big rhinoceros wearing a suit and a yellow happy face mask on his horn. Cautiously, Blackstar avoided the animal to cross the bridge.

"You can´t pass," the pachyderm said.

That was a surprise. Blackstar took almost a minute to recover from the shock of a talking rhino.

"Why I don't pass?" Blackstar asked confused.

Slowly, as if to make himself more understood, the rhino enunciated, "Because… you… don't… have… a… mask."

"What is problem with me no have a mask?"

"Are you kidding?" the rhinoceros rolled his eyes. "If you don't have a mask, people will not know who you are, or how to react, or what they could talk about. Without a mask you are nobody. Who wants to be nobody?" The yellow happy face swung askew as the rhino's bouncing horn posed the question.

"Oh..." Blackstar was confused. "How I get mask?"

"I don't know," the rhinoceros answered angrily. "I have already wasted too much time talking with nobody."

Blackstar looked at the grass, the stones and the trees. There was nothing to use to make a mask. He viewed the long path he came from and gazed at the turbulent water in the river. Since he didn't have anything better to do, he sat to eat the bread and cheese he brought for his journey. The pachyderm didn't wish to talk, became tired, and ignored Blackstar. Blackstar sat for a long time. He tried to talk with the rhino, but the creature complained about talking with nobody and ordered Blackstar to read the sign beyond the bridge. But, the rhino wouldn't allow him to cross the bridge.

Blackstar polished his sword and wondered if he should fight the animal. He was a great swordsman; he probably could cut the rhino in half without effort. After all, Blackstar had fought against much bigger monsters.

A man dressed like one who goes to the beach, appeared carrying a float and a folding aluminium chair. Blackstar tried to talk with him, but he didn't slow down. Blackstar tried to explain the situation and the man took a cat mask from his plastic bucket and gave it to him.

"You not miss it?" Blackstar asked gratefully.

"I´m going to another place." Saying that, the man went away without slowing down. Blackstar watched the man walk to the same path he had come from, where he met the old smoking man. He put on the mask and engaged the rhino. "I like you!"

"Shoo, cat!" the rhino stomped on the ground. "Shoo!" On the other side of the bridge, Blackstar could read the sign: "Talk with the watcher only when necessary."

The mask town was an average, small town; some buildings used walls from the labyrinth as support. Every single inhabitant used masks made of paper, ceramic, wood and other materials. Some inhabitants were animals doing human stuff. He was almost run down by two men wearing horse masks pulling a wagon driven by a fat monkey wearing many layers of masks.

"Are you lost, kitten?" a cat wearing an old lady mask asked him. That was very disturbing to Blackstar.

"More or less," he answered. "I just passing."

"You want a candy?" She took a candy from her apron. "Kitties love candies."

"No thanks," Blackstar said. "I pretty sure candies bad for cats."

"I´m going to meet a couple friends in the park. Why don't you come with granny?" The cat talked like an old lady, but her feline voice didn't match.

"Sure." Blackstar was curious.

Blackstar followed the cat until she stopped at a stone table where a mare, a rabbit and an old lady played cards. These animals were also wearing old lady masks. They looked like they were seated, holding cards. A girl with a pigtail and a bird mask played on the table amid the cards. At the other tables, people and animals played chess or just ate their picnics.

"I want you to meet my friends!" the cat introduced him.

"Are you talking with cats now?" the mare laughed.

"You became one of those cats, old lady?" the rabbit asked.

"Must be great to be a cat," the old lady with a weathered clay mask remarked.

They delivered the cards to the cat which had a hard time holding them, but for a mysterious reason, the mare and the rabbit were very skilled. The girl with the bird mask kept messing with the cards.

"Hold your bunny, Peba," the cat complained.

"You are the one who should hold your cat, Tonia," the rabbit answered.

"He is not doing anything," that cat said.

"I want so much to be a cat," the old lady whimpered. "I could take sun all day, just doing nothing and drinking milk." Blackstar took his mask and gave it to the old lady. She accepted it with a smile and slowly exchanged the masks. She stretched in the cat mask, trying to emulate the behaviour of a cat. For a while, Blackstar watched the game while he was ignored. Silently, he took the clay mask and went away.

Walking toward the town, he saw a man in the middle of a square talking to no one, with a bunch of masks held in his hands. Blackstar went into a pub and asked to buy a drink. At least the bartender was a man with a man mask.

"What you can tell me about the center of labyrinth?" Blackstar asked the bartender.

"Everybody says that the center of the labyrinth is whatever you are," the barman answered.

"Deep!" Blackstar said and drank the beer. It was no average beer. "Is forbidden to walk around without a mask?"

"Yes, my lady," he answered like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"And that man no can be in the square doing speeches?" Blackstar wished to confirm.

"There is nobody doing speeches in the square, madam," the barman whispered, annoyed. "Every single day, there's nobody doing speeches in the square, not for many, many years."

Blackstar paid his bill with a copper coin; at least they used the same money in every place. He went to the man doing the speech.

"Why you do this speech with no mask?" Blackstar asked.

"To change people," the man answered happily because Blackstar talked with him.

"How many people you change?" Blackstar was curious.

"No one," replied the man, "but I´m not giving up."

"They told me you do it for years," Blackstar commented. "Why you keep doing it?"

"Because if I stop, I will be the one to change."

"How you expect to change people, if you no change?" Blackstar queried. The man got angry with the question, put on an angry face mask and went away, stepping hard.

Blackstar also went away and crossed the town; there he saw a sign with a happy face. "Mask town… where your dreams come true." In the road he saw a beggar.

"Please? Could you could give me a mask?" the man begged. "I implore you."

"I have old mask," Blackstar said as he offered the beggar the old lady mask.

"Thank you, but I don't want to be an old lady," the beggar refused. "I need the mask of a young and vibrant man." Blackstar put the mask upon a rock, but the mask was so old and torn that it broke into many pieces. The beggar knelt in front of the pieces with an expression of regret.

"There is monster in labyrinth?" Blackstar asked the beggar man.

"Not the kind you fight with swords," the beggar sadly answered, noting the clean weapon hanging from Blackstar's belt.

"What you know of treasure in centre of labyrinth?" Blackstar asked.

"I know that is not the kind of treasure you can put in a chest or change for money," the beggar answered.

Blackstar walked on the road until he found a great sign pointing to the exit from the labyrinth, just a few clicks from there. He soon stood still, staring at the exit. He looked around and he could see other towns and villages within the high, old walls.

The sun was setting low on the horizon and we watched him sit on a large rock, this side of the exit so clearly marked.

Smoke appeared, billowed around the rock, and we watched as Blackstar flapped his arms to disperse the smoke.

Sometimes, he beckoned the labyrinth as if she would appear to him. Then, he would jump up to leave, stop, and sit again on the rock. Soon, it was as dark as a dungeon and we could not see if he ever left.

***