Banished Divinity: Learning to be Human

After lunch, Minjae dragged me to an arcade.

I had never been to an arcade. I had never seen so many flashing lights and beeping sounds and mortals losing their minds over small plastic prizes.

And then I saw it.

The Claw Machine.

"You have to try it," Minjae said, already inserting coins.

"What is it?" I asked, placing my face up against the glass of a claw machine while trying to look at what was under the pile of soft, cushy things.

Is there an unknown creature from the depths of an unknown world living under those piles? I thought.

"It's a machine where you control a claw and try to pick up a toy." Minjae chuckled while trying not to laugh at me.

"That sounds simple. But I think there is a creature in that pile lurking inside. I think we should get him first." I turned to look him straight in the eye like a warrior, as I was convinced something was under that pile of soft, cushy things.

"Sera, there are no creatures from whatever dimensions under there. They are just soft toys. And it's not that simple." Minjae rolled his eyes.

"How hard can it be? I will reveal that creature and banish it to the depths of whatever it came from," I spoke with determination to uncover the truth.

"Alright. You go do that. Famous last words," Minjae said, chuckling.

I approached the machine like a warrior approaching a battlefield. The claw hung above a pile of colourful stuffed animals—round ones, fuzzy ones, ones with eyes that seemed to mock me.

I am a celestial being, I thought. I have fought demons across seventeen dimensions. I have banished kings. I have redirected the flow of cosmic energy. I can pick up a stuffed cushy thing with a metal claw.

I inserted a coin.

I moved the joystick.

The claw descended.

It closed on empty air.

"That's fine," I said. "That was a practice round."

"Sure, it was," Minjae said, grinning.

I inserted another coin.

The claw descended. It grabbed a small purple dinosaur. It lifted. It swung toward the chute.

It dropped the dinosaur two inches from victory.

I made a sound. It was not a dignified sound. It was the sound of a celestial being experiencing something very close to rage.

"Would you like some advice?" Minjae asked.

"No." I answered with pride and determination.

"You have to aim slightly to the left."

"I don't need your mortal advice. I am a celestial being. I will not be defeated by a claw or that monster under the pile of the abyss."

"The claw and the monster under the pile of the abyss?" Minjae laughed.

"That is what i called it.DO NOT JUDGE ME." I narrowed my eyes.

I inserted another coin.

And another.

And another.

Each time, the claw betrayed me. It grabbed. It lifted. It dropped. It taunted.

"This machine is cursed. That monster under the pile is good. It knows how to unleash its power. It is powered by dark magic and the tears of defeated warriors." I folded my arms and with a stare that could banished that hideous creature.

"Or," Minjae said, "you're just bad at it."

"I AM NOT BAD. THE MONSTER IS MALICIOUS."

While I was busy fighting the claw and the monster of the abyss, Minjae walked to the machine beside me. He inserted a coin. He moved the joystick. The claw descended.

It picked up a small brown bear.

It lifted.

It dropped the bear into the chute.

Minjae reached down and pulled out the bear. "Huh," he said. "That was easy."

I narrowed my eyes at him.

"You," I said, "are enjoying this."

"Maybe a little."

"You are enjoying my suffering."

"I am enjoying your enthusiasm. There's a difference." Minjae chuckled.

I inserted another coin.

The claw betrayed me again.

Minjae inserted another coin. He won a small blue rabbit.

Another coin. A green frog.

Another coin. A yellow chick.

By the time I had spent enough money to buy a small country, Minjae had accumulated an entire zoo of stuffed cushy animals.

"This is not fair," I said. "You have an unfair advantage."

"What advantage?"

"Male grip strength. Superior hand-eye coordination. The blessing of the claw gods."

"The claw gods?"

"THEY EXIST. I HAVE SEEN THEM. THEY ARE CRUEL AND CAPRICIOUS."

Minjae laughed. He walked over to my machine, inserted a coin, and moved the joystick. "Watch," he said. "You aim here. You wait for the claw to stop swinging. You—"

He pressed the button.

The claw descended.

It picked up the purple dinosaur—MY purple dinosaur, the one that had eluded me for what felt like a lifetime.

It lifted.

It dropped the dinosaur into the chute.

Minjae reached down, pulled out the dinosaur, and handed it to me. "Here. For you."

I took the dinosaur.

I looked at it.

I looked at Minjae.

"I hate you," I said.

"No, you don't." Minjae smiled

"I hate this machine."

"No argument there." He smiled again. This smile is annoying.

"I hate that you're good at this."

"Noted." His smile got wider.

I held the dinosaur against my chest. It was soft. It was purple. It was mine.

"Thank you," I said quietly.

"You're welcome."