Jason the Toymaker Rewrite

## Jason the Toymaker Rewrite by Doros70

(Jason the Toymaker was created by Kristantyl.)

During my early childhood, times were tough for everyone, and yet the world was much simpler than it is today. When everything changes all of a sudden, it's overwhelming. You're probably wondering what I'm talking about. I'll explain, but first, I have to make a promise.

I know what I'm about to tell you will sound unbelievable and even ridiculous, but I swear I saw what I'll say I saw. If you don't believe a word I'm about to say, then that's fine.

My parents were probably the richest people in town. My father owned a very successful company, and my mother owned an equally successful jewelry store. Needless to say, I was so rich that I could have anything I wanted. But you know what they say, "money can't buy happiness". I hung out with a lot of kids when I was a child, but even at a very young age, I understood that the kids were only hanging out with me because my family was wealthy. Maybe their parents told them to do so. In a way, I was lonelier than everyone thought.

I think I was six or seven when this whole thing started. My mother loved to walk me around town whenever I behaved long enough. She used to take me to every park, playground, store, or restaurant she could find; after all, she had a lot of cash to burn. That happened so many times that I knew the town like the back of my hand. At least I thought I knew.

One day, we were having a regular trip and mom suddenly ran into some of her friends, and they had a lot to catch up on. I was just a little kid who didn't know any better, so I was just bored out of my mind when they began to talk about nonsensical adult stuff.

I tried to get mom's attention, but she kept saying "the adults are talking" to shut me up.

When none of the adults were looking, I wandered off for a moment to look around. I was just desperate to find something to do. Soon, I found myself in a street that I've never seen before. I wanted to go back but I didn't know where I was going. I was scared for a moment.

I walked down the street until I saw a building. It looked like a store, and what I saw behind the glass windows made me lose it: Toys. There were many beautifully colored toys of different shapes and sizes. I was just a kid back then, so I immediately forgot about my mother and walked over to the blue wooden door like the idiot I was. It was heavy, but I managed to push hard enough to squeeze through.

When I entered the store, I thought that I died and went to Heaven. The inside of the building was larger than it looked on the outside. There were hundreds of toys on every shelf I saw. They were all unique and looked different from any toy I owned or saw. I looked around and admired the beauty of the place. Before I could examine a toy, something else caught my eye. I saw a man standing behind the counter. Something about him... intrigued me.

He was very tall and lanky and had shoulder-length red hair and green eyes. He wore a gray and black striped top hat, black gloves over his forearms, and a black tailcoat jacket with extravagant, voluminous white fur on his shoulders with rolled-up sleeves and a red waistcoat. He had a huge smile on his face that simply wouldn't go away. He walked over to me with his arms open.

"Welcome, dear! I see you found my store. You can admire my toys as much as you like!"

He came close enough that I could see his face. The skin on his face and arms looked... fake. It was like plastic or wax. And the makeup he sported on his face hid the strange texture poorly.

"Who are you, mister?" I asked confused.

"Oh, right! Where are my manners? My name is Jason, the Toymaker. And this is my little paradise, Jason's Joyful Toy Factory! Here, you can find toys from all over the world, even ones that haven't been invented yet! Isn't that swell?"

The name was a mouthful in my opinion, but it made perfect sense.

"What about you, little tot? What's your name?"

"A- Alice," I responded meekly.

"What an adorable name, Alice! It suits you!" he exclaimed. "Say, do you have any friends?"

"I... I don't think so, Mr. Toymaker."

"That's sad," he said in an empathetic tone. "I guess that makes two of us. Oh, and just call me Jason, sweetie. Mr. Toymaker was my father."

I laughed at his little joke. As unnatural as he looked, he was quite friendly, and I felt good when I was around him. I took one more glance around the room and asked him a strange question.

"Are those toys... expensive?" I asked, just before I realized how stupid my question was. He gave me a strange look, but his smile returned, and he chuckled a bit.

"Are you serious, dearie? No, I don't care about money at all. The only price here is very simple: I only want... to be your friend."

He noticed my look of confusion.

"It's been ages since anyone has set foot inside my store. I've come from far and wide, but few wanted to be my friend. Do you want to be my friend? If you do, I'll give you as many toys as you want. What do you say?"

I was a gullible little girl when I met Jason, and when he came up with that incredibly tempting offer, it was hard to say no or even have a shred of skepticism.

"I will be your friend Jason," I said. "We'll both have so much fun!"

Jason began to bounce up and down with joy, I don't think I've ever seen an adult move like that before.

"Hee hee hee! Heck yes! I haven't felt happy in such a long time!"

He showed me around the store with excitement, and I took my time to examine any toy I got my hands on. Like I said before, every single toy was unique. There were simple toys, dolls or figures with awesome designs, stuffed animals of all sizes (some of them were HUGE), toys that could have any shape you want, fun puzzles, toys that could play music, and even ones that could move on their own; things that I've never seen before, let alone imagine that they could even exist.

I asked him if he made them himself, he said that all of them require a "special method" to be built to perfection, but he never said what it was.

After a while, I began to notice something strange about Jason's little inventions. Even though all the toys were different from one another, all of them shared the same odd detail: all of them had, one way or another, a face. I know it sounds weird, but even the vaguest toys had some semblance of a face. I didn't pay much attention to it then, but if I ever saw that at my current age, I'd most likely feel disturbed.

Anyways, I continued to look at the toys or play with them for a while, but then I saw a particular toy that was different from the others. Unlike the other toys, which were either laying on the shelves, or packed boxes, or hanging from the ceiling, this one was kept in a shiny glass display case on an isolated part of the store. It was a ventriloquist dummy about my size. It had the appearance of a schoolgirl in the 1910s, wearing the uniform and everything. I gawked at the doll for a while until I felt the pressure of two hands on my shoulders, making me jolt in surprise. Jason was there and flashed a smug smile at me.

"You like this one?" he asked. "I call it 'Maggie'. I made it in the memory of someone I used to know."

"Was she your friend?" I questioned.

"Yes, this was my last best friend before you. She said she had more important things to do. Things more important than me. Can you imagine that?"

"She looks pretty."

"Yes. There are more toys where that came from, tens, hundreds of dolls like this!"

"Really? Where?" I asked excitedly.

"It's behind that door over there! You can choose whatever you like, just don't do anything dumb!" As he said that, he pointed at a door that I haven't seen before. Without thinking twice, I ran over to the door and opened it.

Sure enough, there were a lot of dolls like the one I saw inside that display. Even at such a young age, I noticed something strange about the dolls. They all represented kids with different skin colors and clothes from all over the world and from different times. I didn't even recognize some of the outfits, they looked a bit too advanced. What was weirder was that they all looked like little girls.

There were too many to choose from, and I was amazed by how many toys he made. There was no way anyone could make so many toys in a lifetime. Before I could pick one, I saw something out of the ordinary. Behind a small pile of dolls, was a blue door. I didn't know what it was about that door, but it piqued my interest more than the countless dolls at my disposal. I thought that if I opened that door, I would find something completely new. I placed my ear against the blue wood and listened. I heard some strange noises coming from the other side, like operating machines and such.

I slowly made my way past the dolls and gently opened the door. Before I describe the room, I want to remind you of the message at the beginning of this post. I know it will sound ridiculous and unbelievable, but I swear to God and all that there is, I saw what I say I saw.

What I saw didn't scare me or anything. It left me completely in awe, more so than the actual store. I was in a huge factory room of some kind, and it was fully operational. I don't know much about factories or architecture in general, but I'm pretty damn well sure that something like that couldn't exist. The building was no bigger than any normal store on the outside, and there was no way a whole factory could be there.

The machines I saw looked very strange, much stranger than the cars from my time. I looked around and I saw different toys being designed and packed in boxes by machines and moved by conveyor belts. I didn't know whether what I saw was real or if I was stuck in a fever dream brought on by mind-numbing boredom. Either way, it felt all too real to be even some kind of vivid dream.

As I looked curiously at how the toys were being made, I suddenly heard a loud noise that startled me. I hid below a conveyor belt and stayed hidden until I could see the source of the noise. From my hiding spot, I saw a strange device resembling a giant forklift, carrying a huge metal box. I could hear strange sounds coming from that crate, but they didn't sound mechanical at all.

It stopped just below a hopper, the mouth of which was about 90ft high. Somehow, the forklift extended, lifted the box to the hopper, and leaned it inward. Suddenly, I saw vague shapes falling from the crate, and the sounds became clearer but still unrecognizable. It sounded like... squealing, or something like that. The machine they fell in started to shake a little, and I could see pieces of plastic, wood, and dry wax coming out of the bottom and onto the conveyor belt.

I was curious as to what it was, so I followed the forklift-like machinery to see where it got that crate. It moved past me, and I followed it quietly. It led me to some metal double doors. The machine pushed the doors and made its way inside. I decided to hide behind some other crates and waited for it to come out, so I could take the opportunity to enter. I waited for a few minutes, and it finally came out. When it was far enough, I pushed one of the heavy doors and entered.

After I took a quick glance at the room and heard the horrible screams, I was sure I ended up in Hell. I was in a large room full of small cages. They were full of children... all of them were girls... and they were horribly malnourished. They sat in their small cages in different positions. Some of them were just standing idle holding one of their arms, others were shivering as they hugged each other for warmth. Some of them have gone completely mad; they were crying and screeching like wild animals. I could tell by their clothes and skin color... that they were from all over the world and different times...

A horrible realization set in when I looked at them. The children wanted me to help them, but I felt so overwhelmed, I slowly backed away from the cages and then quickly turned around. I know what I did was cowardly and even selfish, but the last thing I wanted was to end up like them.

I opened the door and ran out of that horrific storage room. I ran as fast as I could, I didn't even know where I was going, and I ended up bumping into something that wasn't there before. I fell on my back and looked up to see what stood in my way. Jason was towering over me, and all the positive feelings I had for that guy were completely gone.

His warm smile was gone. He looked disappointed and saddened.

"I told you not to do anything dumb, Alice," he said calmly.

"What are those kids doing in there?!" I shouted.

"All of them were supposed to be my friends. All of them were such ungrateful brats, even after everything I gave them. Luckily, you're my friend now, and you'll never, ever leave! Right?"

He seemed unstable, and I didn't know how to reply without insulting him. I didn't want to do it, but I answered him by shaking my head in refusal. His smile faltered...and he looked offended.

"Don't look at me like that..." he said in a hurt voice. "Why would you want to leave? AM I NOT GOOD ENOUGH?!"

The sudden outburst made me cry. I didn't even want to be there; I just wanted to see my mom again and hug her. My wish never came. At that moment, Jason pulled out his gloves to reveal his real arms. The skin on his forearms was black while having that rotten look to them, and his long fingers ended in very sharp claws that sent chills down my spine. The worst part about the situation was the way he looked at me. He didn't smile, but his expression was blank... soulless. I watched him as he reached behind his back and then pulled out a small saw.

"I really wanted to be your friend, Alice. But you leave me no choice!"

Before he could get his hands on me, I got up and ran away from Jason. He was blocking the exit door, so I had to run the other way. At that moment, Jason became angry, and suddenly, all the finished toys started to move towards me. All of them changed their appearance, too. Instead of resembling normal toys, they looked like horrible monsters. I remember a stuffed bunny walking on its own, revealing a mouth on its stomach with monstrous teeth. I had to take off every toy mouse that climbed on me, and if I remember it right, I also tried not to get swallowed whole by this gigantic purple stuffed snake.

I remember Jason yelling, "You are just like the rest of them! I offer you all the toys in the WORLD, and THIS is the thanks I get?!?!"

I don't remember much of what happened then, but I recall trying to escape using a conveyor roll that led upwards to avoid the living toys or at least slow them down. I managed to avoid the machines that were still operating, but just barely. Soon, I found myself at the highest point of the interior, which immediately triggered my fear of heights.

I was too scared to move a muscle, but in doing so, one of the toys knocked me off the belt when I wasn't looking. I screamed when I fell. I thought I was going to die, but Jason caught me in his rotten arms. He then proceeded to grab me by the arm and hold me suspended above the ground, being at eye-level with him. I remember crying my eyes out when I saw him. He was furious, but slowly, a deranged smile crept on his face.

"You're such a disrespectful young lady..." he growled. "I wanted us to be friends! But I suppose you'll have to learn your lesson by spending the rest of your life inside that case with Maggie!"

Without another word, his grip on my arm became tighter, and I could feel his claws slowly digging through my skin until I bled. I was in so much pain, but I simply couldn't scream. I tried to plead with him to stop, but all that came out was a pathetic whimper. I noticed that he was enjoying what he was doing to me.

In a sudden rush of anger, I did something my mother would have despised me for doing. I looked at him in the face and spat right in his eye. He winced and he suddenly released me. I took this opportunity and made a run for it. I finally got to the blue door and opened it. When I was about to close it, I saw how Jason sprinted towards me with his arms stretched, letting out a furious roar. When he was inches away from me, I slammed the door shut and backed away.

I made my way to the store and made sure to close the door shut. I remember shaking like crazy when I escaped. After collecting myself, I realized how quiet it was. I turned around slowly and was greeted by a shocking sight: all the toys from the store were gone, even Maggie. I remember feeling bad for leaving those poor kids behind, but even to this day, I still don't know what I could've done to help them. Then I looked at my arm, it had four nasty gashes, and I was still bleeding.

I decided to leave the store behind for good and find mom. It was already dark outside, so I was really worried about how long it would take to find her.

I opened the door, and when I looked around the street, an overwhelming feeling of terror grabbed me. There were a lot more people walking down the pedestrian zone, more so than the day my mother took me out for that walk. The buildings were taller and brighter, the air felt less clean, and those people were wearing strange clothes. Everyone used to wear suits back in the day, but the people I saw were dressed less elegantly.

You're probably wondering what the hell I'm talking about, so I'll try to explain: If my memory serves me right, I entered Jason's Joyful Toy Factory in 1926, and I exited the building in 2000. If you're not in the mood to do the math, apparently, I was in that store for 74 years... 74! I had not grown one day older, but the rest of the world has. I thought I was gone for a few hours, but I've been gone for seven decades!

I used to know the town, the buildings, the streets, and the people very well, but suddenly, I didn't recognize my hometown anymore, as if I suddenly woke up in another world. But worst of all... I was alone. Everyone I used to know is either elderly or dead, including my parents. They must've been worried sick.

I turned around to look at the store, but it was just an abandoned building with its windows boarded up and the blue door had a sheet of paper on it. I didn't know what it was when I first saw it, but looking back, it was most likely a demolition notice.

I walked around for a bit, crying like a baby. Thankfully, a stranger saw me crying and noticed my injured arm. He took me to the police and before I knew it, I was in an orphanage. After a while, I was adopted by an awesome family, and I started to learn more about this modern world.

I was a complete idiot when I entered Jason's store, but I'm a responsible young adult now, and even to this day, I can't stop thinking about the time I spent in there. And those poor girls are still in there; ending up as...God knows what. I tried to find the store again to get some answers, but I found absolutely nothing.

I don't expect you to believe a word of what I just said, I wouldn't believe it either if I didn't see firsthand what was truly inside. But ever since I witnessed what that miserable place had in store, I developed a strong aversion to toys. And to be honest, even if I didn't go inside that store, my opinion about toys probably wouldn't have changed.

After all, as people my age like to say nowadays, "I'm too old for this shit".