The NES Story (2018)

The Refresh Arc
It was a swelteringly hot summer morning, the kind where humidity drips from the trees and sticks to your throat. Gary was already sunburned simply from sitting next to the window, and based on how his sister, Liz, was slumped forward, her forehead resting on the back of the driver's side seat, she was also miserable. He would have given anything to sit inside an air conditioned room for maybe ten minutes, but unfortunately for the two of them, their family had decided to stay the summer in an old family manor in the mountains. They rolled slowly over a gravel driveway and he lifted his head to peer out the window. A large, wrought-iron gate stood cracked open, decorated with lovingly crafted vines and flowers. At the top, in a magnificent, scrolling script, read the words "Gateway Mansion"

The vehicle slowed to a stop across from the gate. Gary and Liz's mother gave them a loving look through the rearview mirror. "Your father and I are going to start bringing our belongings inside. You can explore the house while we're doing so. Be good, okay?"

Even though they were searing enough to be considered a human barbecue, both Gary and Liz nodded to show that they heard what she said.

It was a relief to escape the scalding insides of the Porsche. They could finally stretch their stiff muscles. Gary could never understand why his parents refused to turn on the air conditioner in the summertime, especially when they were in the car for three days straight.

"I wish they would stop doing that," Gary said. Liz knew what he was talking about. She shrugged in response. Sometimes parents just don't know.

They were greeted with a blast of cold air as they entered the mansion, using the key they received from their parents. Liz stared at the chandeliers and extravagant decorations in awe. She wasn't expecting something so sumptuous and opulent.

While she was gazing at her reflection, making its appearance on the impossibly well-polished floor, Gary wandered around the room. The first thing that caught his attention were the doors. There was at least one door on every wall. Sometimes there were two, or maybe even three, on one wall. Why would anyone need so many rooms?

Liz was snapped out of her trance by a click. She glanced around, looking for the source of it.

"Did you hear that?" she asked Gary. He was in the opposite corner fiddling with one of the countless doorknobs. Upon hearing Liz's question Gary shook his head. No, no, he didn't hear anything out of the ordinary.

Just then, an idea popped into Liz's head and she ran to the exit. She checked the doorknob. It rattled in its casing, but couldn't turn in either direction. Her panic grew as she realized it was unlocked, but she still couldn't open it. By now, Gary had joined her, with a bewildered expression on his face.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"The door won't open, but it's unlocked!" Liz said. She attempted to open the door again, just to demonstrate.

Gary glared at the door in suspicion.

"Stand back," he said. He backed up to the other side of the room, and charged towards the exit as fast as he could. The collision that ensued made a sickening thunk. Liz could hear the door cracking under the force of the charge, but it didn't open. Gary stepped back, a little out of sorts. There was no way he could do that again.

Liz glanced around, worried. What could they do?

Gary glared at the door again, rubbing his neck. “What are we supposed to do now?” He asked.

“We could try opening a different door maybe?” Liz suggested. “Mom and Dad have another key, don’t they?”

Gary shrugged in response. “Maybe?” He added.

Liz wandered down the hall, and Gary followed her. There was an array of doors in this hallway. Liz peered down the hallway itself, noting that it was very long, and wondering what was at the end. She walked further down the hallway, passing several doors along the way. Gary followed slowly, looking at the strange and ornate doors, each looking slightly different from the last. He drew near to one of them, curious. It had some odd scratch marks on it, and looked a bit blackened.

“Come look at this,” he said, calling Liz back. She went to stand next to him.

“That’s weird,” she remarked.

“Should we open it?” Gary asked.

"What, are you kidding?" Liz scoffed, already reaaching for the handle, "of course we should." There was a glint in her eye as her hand closed over the frigid door handle, a wild sort of light that simultaneously startled and excited Gary. They were both adventurous, but after three days trapped in a car with nothing but an iPod and two books between them, Liz's sense of adventure had gone just a little bit manic. Who cared that there were claw marks across the doorknob? She was ready for whatever secret tunnel, or dungeon cell, or dare she think-- super evil torture chamber, that might be hidden back there. Maybe, she was a little too ready. When the door flung open outwards, Liz stumbled and fell. Gary, right on her heels fell as well. Later, looking back on that moment, Gary would swear something had pushed him. But more important was the fact that they kept falling. And falling. And falling.

Liz might have let loose a few swear words that she wasn't supposed to know, Gary almost definietly screamed, and at the end of it all they both ended up flat on their backs, staring up at the branches of an oak tree. A moment past as they both struggled to get their breath back.

"Gare," Liz said when she'd convinced her lungs to work again.

"Yeah?" Gary answered, sounding considerably more wheezy.

"The tree is wrong."

"What?"

"The tree, it's colors are wrong." A brief inspection proved her right. The tree they were laying under was an massive, sprawling oak. I's trunk was too big for either of them to get their arms around, and it was a deep leafy green. The roots and branches carried the same green shade, and all the leaves weighing down its boughs were a murky brown. But before either of the siblings had a chance to explore this mystery further, someone's face popped up over theirs.

Liz almost swore again at the sudden appearance of a face mere inches from her own. She kicked on instinct and hit not flesh, but metal. This time she didn't bite back the curse as her bare foot cracked against the unyeilding material.

"U-um," the owner of the face backed away, giving Liz and Gary room to jump to their feet. Liz wobbled, her toes throbbing. Before them stretched out acre after acre of trees, all with green trunks and brown leaves. The grass was a lush shade of purple, and grew thick like a carpet under most of the trees. Standing in front of them, staring with wide, deadblack eyes, was a-- a girl? a boy?-- a blue-haired kid sporting loose grey clothes and a shiny metal arm. "Are you... okay?" the kid asked.

Liz and Gary exchanged glances. They weren't in the mansion anymore