The Automaton ( Part 3)

It stopped inches from her feet and fell on its side.

She stood still for a few seconds until she felt confident enough to bend down and pick it up. Although shaken she kept thinking that there had to be a reasonable explanation. She shouted out, expecting an answer.

“Tom? Tom? Is that you?”

Silence.

“Tom, if that’s you playing some kind of trick trying to scare me, you’re in big trouble.”

Still silence, then Ben came bounding into the room. She was relieved to see him.

“Okay Ben, I know you’re a clever dog but how the hell did you manage to get this thing to come in here?”

She showed him the toy. Ben wagged his tail and started to bark again.

“Okay, let’s get you outside before you somehow start the bloody thing off again."

She walked back into the kitchen still holding the toy, opened the back door and let Ben go outside.

She saw something that made her smile. Coming up the long driveway was Tom’s car. She waited for him to park and gave him a hug as she met him at the door.

“Wow, what was that for, I’ve only been gone a few hours.”

“Just good to see you, that’s all.”

“Now what have I told you about playing with toys while I’m out at work.”

He pointed at the mechanical toy she was holding and laughed.

“I found it in one of the bedrooms; it’s some kind of wind-up toy.”

“Automaton.”

“A what?”

“Automaton, it’s a kind of self - operating machine that one looks quite old, could be worth a few quid.”

She handed it to him. He wound it up and put it on the floor. It started immediately and moved quickly along the kitchen floor, ringing its bell as it moved. Tom was excited.

“Wow that’s brilliant.”

The toy continued then did something quite bizarre. Just inches before it was about to hit the kitchen wall it turned right and when it got the doorway it turned left and entered the hallway.

“Wow, it’s got some kind of sensor built in, fantastic.”

Dianne started to laugh.

“What’s so funny?”

Dianne made them both coffee and told Tom about the toy coming into the lounge when she was sure she had left it on the table.

“Ah my poor baby, did you think the nasty man on the bike was coming to get you?”

“No! I was just confused how it could have happened that’s all, but now I know how it works, everything’s fine.”

“Just teasing Di, don’t get defensive.”

He stood up and gave her a cuddle.

“I’ve got to go back to work now for the afternoon shift, why don’t you see if you can find out more about it, Google it or something, try to find out who made it and when, as I said it could be worth a few bob.”

She kissed him goodbye and he left.

She sat down at the table and turned on her laptop. She Googled the word “Automaton.”

She read a much as she could from Wikipedia and then looked at various videos of different Automatons. She was impressed by how intricate these machines were. There was even one that could do seven different technical drawings and write poetry in three languages, incredible!

She picked up the toy and looked for any signature or markings. On the handlebars just to the left of the bell were the letter JHD.

Now she Googled “Automaton and JHD.”

She found what she was looking for. John Henri Demart, a Swiss watch maker whose passion was also making intricate and advanced Automatons. There were pictures of some of his work now in a Museum in Zurich. Born 1872 in Berne, Switzerland, died 1936 in England. She was drawn to a paragraph half way down the page. For some reason she found herself reading it aloud.

“He was well known for his love of dark magic and his close intimate relationship with Aleister Crowley another well-known occultist. It is thought they were involved in satanic worship and were the founders of a sect called “The Live Tobors.” He died in 1936 after spending his last few years in an institution for the clinically insane.”