The Innkeeper

The room was very still and not even the sound of breathing could be heard. Everyone held even their breaths as they silently listened to Lex, but dared to not even look at him. This guy was about to die, they were sure of it!

"It's a strange thing, isn't it, to be a prisoner of your own mind, but have the illusion that you are free. I bet you always do everything exactly the same way and think that you've designed the most efficient system, but the truth is, you have to do things exactly the way your mind likes it.

"You're holding your cards in your left hand, but you always pick them out with your right. I'm guessing when you're putting on gloves, you always put on the one on your right hand first."

For the first time, there were rapid fluctuations in the numbers above the Game Masters head, and Lex knew he was on the right path. He had to push him, just enough.

"I bet it's even more than that. I bet you get dressed in the exact same order every time, but you probably don't even realize it. Let me guess, pants first, then the shirt. Are you… dressing up like that on purpose, or are you just existing within the prison that is your mind?"

Lex stared intently at the numbers atop the Game Master, and knew it was time to stop. He had primed the man, but he couldn't immediately begin the next stage of the plan. Everything had to be done systematically.

Leaning back in his chair, Lex made eye contact with the person whose turn it was next and gave her a subtle nod. She hesitated, but seeing how no one was speaking or doing anything, she picked up her cards and chose not to exchange anything.

Although her actions were minimal, the chains that had wrapped her legs clinked with every movement she made. It was not a silent affair even though she did almost nothing, and the tense atmosphere amplified the noise tenfold. But neither Lex said anything, nor did the Game Master.

The next person, however, did not choose to mimic her predecessor's actions. Not only did she exchange her turn by saying, "I have two kings."

Everyone in the room turned to look at her, Lex and the Game Master included. There was no way to determine if she was telling the truth, but her choice of statement was a spark on a bed of dry leaves.

Lex chuckled and said, "what a coincidence, I have a king as well."

"Are you just taking every possible opportunity to try and tick me off?" the Game Master asked, hiding his irritation well.

"Unlike you, who is bound by the rules and has no freedom to do what he wants, I can do whatever suits my needs. But you… you can't hurt me even if you want to, because that goes against the rules for the game, doesn't it? I mean, you could try to prove that your actions follow your purpose by killing me, and not some invisible rules that hold you in a prison, but then it'll just seem to everyone like you're just trying to vent. No one will believe you.

"And after that, the whole point of this exercise will be moot. Everyone will follow along with your rules and play your game. But they won't be learning to have their actions be motivated by purpose. No, they'll just be learning to silence any and all complaints and just follow the invisible rules holding them in place. They'll be the perfect puppets for society."

Lex leaned forward, as much as he could, and looked at the Game Master dead in the eyes.

"The truth is, buddy, of all of us here, you're the one living with the least amount of purpose. I might be the one in chains, but you're the real prisoner. Because the worst comes to worst, I'll die. But you… you can either die from your own game, a prisoner to the rules that your mind created, or you'll survive, and continue to live as a prisoner."

Lex paused for a moment, to let his words sink in, before leaning back once again. "Unless that is, you prove once and for all, you're not the prisoner. No, you're the one choosing your own actions, even if your brain, your captor, is telling you otherwise. Break the rules of the game completely. Take control of your own life - by ending your own life."

Lex was looking at the Game Master with eager eyes. He could see the numbers above everyone and he knew the emotions that were running rampant in the room. He also knew that his final delivery had been a little too premature, and that the Game Master wouldn't end up doing it. But he had done that on purpose. Lex no longer cared about completing the Mystery trial. No, he wanted to go through the same trial again and again, learning how everyone reacted to his different approaches. This time, he played the Game Master, and he knew that if he had done things just slightly differently, he would have won. Next time, he wanted to see if he could get one of the other captors to give up on the game on purpose.

His greatest skill, as it turned out, was reading people and having them do exactly what he wanted. Perhaps this was a skill he always had, or something he had learnt while dealing with so many precarious situations at the Inn. Regardless, he was having fun now, and he wasn't going to stop anytime soon.

*****

Back at the Midnight Inn, Larry ended up leaving William and his brothers because his girlfriend had finally arrived. What he didn't know was that after he left, William disappeared from the Inn.

It would be impossible for him to reach the William family home planet within a few years minimum because he was in a different galaxy, but that didn't mean he couldn't contact them from where he was.

Using a special formation, he allowed a projection of himself to appear within a sacred temple, guarded by his family's most trustworthy and prominent members.

"Ancestor!" one of them immediately exclaimed in alarm. This was the first time he had made an appearance in that guard's lifetime, but he didn't care about such things.

"Find all the information we have on a planet called Earth. And get the family registry while you're at it. I want to know if I have a descendant called Lex Williams."