".... and that's all there is that I can recite at the moment," she said into the mic. "If there is anything else that I can add to this recording I will."
She hit the stop button and both the play and record buttons snapped to attention, aligning with the other buttons on the tape deck. Summer had a feeling this is what Sarah Connor felt at the end of the 'Terminator' movie. The original one, not the sequels and the pallid reboot.
Clint Eastwood was perfect in the original movie, playing the machine robot to the hilt, chasing after Melissa Gilbert's Sarah Connor in order to delete her from the timeline. She had read in a teen magazine that Gilbert had accepted the role of the mother of the future warrior in an effort to shake the squeaky clean image of her 'Little House On The Prairie' days. While Eastwood played the futuristic robot that was sent back in time to track her down.
"Was Eastwood in the original?" she said to herself. "I'm sure it was someone else... A body builder at one time that was."
Summer ejected the cassette and put it in its case. She took the sleeve out and labeled it Recollection #42. She smiled at that; 42 was supposed to be the answer to life, the universe and everything.
Showing posts with label travelers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label travelers. Show all posts
20150811
Summer's Journal - Stranger In My Eyes
I finally discovered what secret Max has been hiding all these years and it's not one that should be shared ... or even posted about. All I can say is that he's a shattered soul with a million angelic and demonic voices singing in unison. If that makes sense.
He doesn't dare look into a window or mirror much for he's afraid of what he sees there. Or what he doesn't see or what is missing. He's the Bob Dylan of wanderers, sometimes coherent, sometimes ranting on in jangled words stitched together like poetry.
He doesn't dare look into a window or mirror much for he's afraid of what he sees there. Or what he doesn't see or what is missing. He's the Bob Dylan of wanderers, sometimes coherent, sometimes ranting on in jangled words stitched together like poetry.
I know him but I still don't know him.
If that makes sense.
20150805
Riveta - Summer's Recollection
"I met Riveta once before, a long time ago when I was just a kid, but I guess she didn't recognize me or didn't want to remember," Summer said into the mic. "She was a cop then; I guess she is still a cop but one can't be too sure these days. Oh, it can drive one person out of your mind if not attuned to these things. Riveta is a very beautiful woman; she's smart, intelligent and she's got the right amount of sass."
She hit pause after a few awkward moments of silence as she was trying to compile the words in her head to speak. Setting the mic down on the blanket, she took a sip of the coffee and she closed her eyes as if recalling an event or image in her mind's eye.
Twin moons hung low in the sky with a third one phasing in and out, like a UHF tv station that her grandfather once had. She remembered her father standing outside toying with the antenna as her grandmother was shouting "a little to the left, a little more, there it is".
She smiled a sincere smile and then picked up the mic once again, thinking there should be one more, or was it two moons, she wasn't sure herself.
She hit pause after a few awkward moments of silence as she was trying to compile the words in her head to speak. Setting the mic down on the blanket, she took a sip of the coffee and she closed her eyes as if recalling an event or image in her mind's eye.
Twin moons hung low in the sky with a third one phasing in and out, like a UHF tv station that her grandfather once had. She remembered her father standing outside toying with the antenna as her grandmother was shouting "a little to the left, a little more, there it is".
She smiled a sincere smile and then picked up the mic once again, thinking there should be one more, or was it two moons, she wasn't sure herself.
20150731
> Chance in Plureality 7
He came to in a field. The sounds of tires on asphalt floated by with the Doppler effect. He rubbed his eyes and crawled out of the tall grass. He felt like being drunk, from the glass of water's point of view. He was actually starting to get used to it now. Balance was always hard to maintain though and he fell into the orange doors of the storage lockers.
Find an identity... Pretend. The usual course. Weather the shift.
Reaching up he grabbed at the lock on the shutter door. Someone didn't fully close it... Either that or reality was throwing him a bone. Dropping the lock to the ground he reeled the door upwards.
Stumbling over some worn faux-leather recliners, he squeezed himself between a propped up mattress and reached for the brown boxes in the back. Boxes held parts of people's lives, he knew. Stored away the trinkets that held memories, these time capsules of sorts.
He dug through quickly. Not wanting to handle too much at once. He'd come to realize across shifts that during these "calibration" moments he could take on the memories stored in objects. He wasn't sure if this was some sort of fallout, or if this is what the Angel and Demon wanted him to be doing.
It was a blessing and a curse at the same time. He could hide from the sweeper teams, those seeking the reality deviants, this way. You blend in properly they look right past you. They scan your mind, and if you happen to be carrying enough hijacked memory from someone they might just overlook you.
It's hard taking on someone else's life though. You don't always have the understanding you need to fully adapt. You've got fractions of the whole... And if you're not careful... You impale yourself on the sharp end of the stick of their pain.
Rummaging through the boxes Keane picked up his new identity... A writer... Struggling apparently. Lost... Self-destructive... A small red box he lifted sent a jolt of loss. A woman with red hair. Brilliant smile... Miles away. He dropped it with a pained cry.
Sudden spurt of rage and the box shoots out into the night air, its contents scattering along the gravel. Opening the new box, digging frantically. A jacket, worn beaten leather. Shrugging the mantel on the memories dug in. Sore feet. Vacant highways. Wanderlust.
Then he saw the phone... These little computers held so much of a person these days. Calibration was nearing its end... He grabbed the phone. A different woman's face now. A hollow feeling now. But a goal... Hear her voice... Even though he's never heard it himself. The memories he'd stolen were there... But memory wouldn't do this time... It wasn't as simple as hiding from the sweepers this time... He had to find this woman... It was going to be dangerous, it wasn't going to make sense... These weren't his memories. This wasn't his life... But this one held a key, he knew it.
Keane crawled back out of the locker, over the pile of scattered contents, and headed for the highway, down a road he had never walked, but one his stolen memories knew.
Find an identity... Pretend. The usual course. Weather the shift.
Reaching up he grabbed at the lock on the shutter door. Someone didn't fully close it... Either that or reality was throwing him a bone. Dropping the lock to the ground he reeled the door upwards.
Stumbling over some worn faux-leather recliners, he squeezed himself between a propped up mattress and reached for the brown boxes in the back. Boxes held parts of people's lives, he knew. Stored away the trinkets that held memories, these time capsules of sorts.
He dug through quickly. Not wanting to handle too much at once. He'd come to realize across shifts that during these "calibration" moments he could take on the memories stored in objects. He wasn't sure if this was some sort of fallout, or if this is what the Angel and Demon wanted him to be doing.
It was a blessing and a curse at the same time. He could hide from the sweeper teams, those seeking the reality deviants, this way. You blend in properly they look right past you. They scan your mind, and if you happen to be carrying enough hijacked memory from someone they might just overlook you.
It's hard taking on someone else's life though. You don't always have the understanding you need to fully adapt. You've got fractions of the whole... And if you're not careful... You impale yourself on the sharp end of the stick of their pain.
Rummaging through the boxes Keane picked up his new identity... A writer... Struggling apparently. Lost... Self-destructive... A small red box he lifted sent a jolt of loss. A woman with red hair. Brilliant smile... Miles away. He dropped it with a pained cry.
Sudden spurt of rage and the box shoots out into the night air, its contents scattering along the gravel. Opening the new box, digging frantically. A jacket, worn beaten leather. Shrugging the mantel on the memories dug in. Sore feet. Vacant highways. Wanderlust.
Then he saw the phone... These little computers held so much of a person these days. Calibration was nearing its end... He grabbed the phone. A different woman's face now. A hollow feeling now. But a goal... Hear her voice... Even though he's never heard it himself. The memories he'd stolen were there... But memory wouldn't do this time... It wasn't as simple as hiding from the sweepers this time... He had to find this woman... It was going to be dangerous, it wasn't going to make sense... These weren't his memories. This wasn't his life... But this one held a key, he knew it.
Keane crawled back out of the locker, over the pile of scattered contents, and headed for the highway, down a road he had never walked, but one his stolen memories knew.
20150727
Dictation Vacation - Summer's Recollection
Summer watched the stars appear in the evening sky one by one as if someone was pricking holes in the fabric. Venus and Mars appeared near the crescent moon in the heavens above. The waves lapping on the shore gave her a sense of calm and serenity, something that she needed after the events that had happened.
A lone gull called out in the night and she was shaken from her daydreaming.
A lone gull called out in the night and she was shaken from her daydreaming.
She continued dictating into the tape recorder.
"It feels dream-like at times. More like the sensation one feels after waking up from a dream and their mind is trying to sweep the dream away so the brain can focus on the tasks at hand; get up, go to the bathroom, make the coffee, the dull day-to-day things we do and take for granted.
"The girl they called Tatter... Well, I don't know if she really was a girl at that - she was trans, but that's not what I mean: transgirls are girls... I mean that she was alien-esque in nature, was rather strange and unique. She had the appearance of a teen but it seemed like a mask she had on. Though you could see the illusion if you looked at her through the corner of your eye."
"It feels dream-like at times. More like the sensation one feels after waking up from a dream and their mind is trying to sweep the dream away so the brain can focus on the tasks at hand; get up, go to the bathroom, make the coffee, the dull day-to-day things we do and take for granted.
"The girl they called Tatter... Well, I don't know if she really was a girl at that - she was trans, but that's not what I mean: transgirls are girls... I mean that she was alien-esque in nature, was rather strange and unique. She had the appearance of a teen but it seemed like a mask she had on. Though you could see the illusion if you looked at her through the corner of your eye."
20150720
A Recollection Of A Reflection - Summer's Recollection
Summer sat on the bluff overlooking the sea, enjoying the gentle breeze as it caressed her skin and whisked her hair about. The sun was setting upon the horizon which painted the sky with a reddish glow which reminded her of a Bloody Mary.
She poured herself a cup of coffee from the thermos beside her and took a sip.
She then placed the cup down and picked up the mic of the cassette recorder and pressed the play and record button at the same time. She could see the wheels of the cassette moving which told her that she could speak. She brought the mic up to her mouth and let out a breath.
"I don't have anything else to add, since the events beforehand are just jumbled fragments of memories. Did any of it happen? I couldn't tell you. It felt real, it felt dream-like, it felt like images on a silver screen projected before my eyes."
She paused for a few moments, letting the wheels spin away, dragging the fabric of tape before she brought the mic up once again.
"I'm convinced of whatever happened and the world keeps spinning. I'm grateful to the powers that be that opened my eyes to the frailty of what is real and what is truth. I'm only making this recording of what happened as a personal journal, a record of events that happened and now the traces have been wiped away by the Monitors of Time. Who knows, maybe when the next time someone presses play on this thing all they will get is static..."
She poured herself a cup of coffee from the thermos beside her and took a sip.
She then placed the cup down and picked up the mic of the cassette recorder and pressed the play and record button at the same time. She could see the wheels of the cassette moving which told her that she could speak. She brought the mic up to her mouth and let out a breath.
"I don't have anything else to add, since the events beforehand are just jumbled fragments of memories. Did any of it happen? I couldn't tell you. It felt real, it felt dream-like, it felt like images on a silver screen projected before my eyes."
She paused for a few moments, letting the wheels spin away, dragging the fabric of tape before she brought the mic up once again.
"I'm convinced of whatever happened and the world keeps spinning. I'm grateful to the powers that be that opened my eyes to the frailty of what is real and what is truth. I'm only making this recording of what happened as a personal journal, a record of events that happened and now the traces have been wiped away by the Monitors of Time. Who knows, maybe when the next time someone presses play on this thing all they will get is static..."
20150603
> Chance in Plureality 6
January 12th, ????
The two suited figures on the bench talked, the scruffy and worn man in his dirty suit and pristine crucifix; His head slowly leaning to one side. The old man in blue beside him, shaking his hands at him in an almost chiding manner, leaning on a cane, as if to reiterate a point already discussed. Still, no one but I seemed to notice them.
I'm leaving this floating in the stream. I still don't understand it, but I've come to feel its pull from time to time. The Angel and the Demon tried their best to explain it, but it's never fully taken hold.
I've kept moving like they suggested, never stayed in one place too long, never made waves; just observed them.
I can't count the number of places I've been in, nor the number of 'instances' I've participated in... I usually know when a jump is coming though. It's like a tremor, you could be doing anything, then you notice it. Things just seem off, or far too clear. Police describe the adrenaline rush they get as heightening sounds or sensations, things are louder, clearer... More focused. It's a shame I've never been able to adapt to it and use it like I feel I should be able to. I just get lost in it, fall into the life I've taken on during that instance... Try to cling to it, like it'll make a difference this time around...
I've made my way by assuming lives. Easiest way to start, gather up some money... Starting from the bottom in some instances, beg, borrow, steal... Get some bankroll. After that, hit up a storage auction. You'd be surprised what kind of a start you can get from that... Little bits of a person or a family, all conveniently stowed awaiting retrieval. You can use that, set yourself up, assume a life.
I know I'm supposed to observe, and wait... For what I still don't know, but I see them sometimes, during those tense moments. The kid and the girl with feathers in her hair. Often the man with the amusing or ironic t-shirts is there. Sometimes others... Recurring characters in a story I'm not allowed to know, but I play a part in apparently nonetheless.
I'm writing this now because I don't want to do this anymore.... I'm tired... I wish I'd never taken the time to listen to those two. Maybe I'd still be bouncing from cube to cube, making my ends meet, instead of digging through other peoples forgotten life fragments, trying to make some facsimile of a life.
I want the meaning I was promised by those two that day over breakfast... I'll even take part of that meaning... Something will be better than nothing... And yet... I still gets that feeling... Like the other night in that noodle shop.
There was a car accident outside, I'd swear that happened in slow motion... A white car narrowly avoided the wreck... It sped off into the night, leaving one of its passengers behind. I'd never met him, but he had that feeling about him, as I watched from the sidelines as I usually do. I knew this man somehow. He walked in the same stream as we do, and if you're reading this you know what stream I mean.
While onlookers swarmed the car crash, the suited man from the car stood staring down the street, all but unnoticed by the onlookers. He had a worn out look to him... He looked like I feel. Tired... Worn out... Just done.
Another man came out of the crowd then, also seemingly unnoticed by any of the onlookers. He walked with him and led him to a bench, where they sat down. It was then the scene enveloped me as they usually do... I could hear the sizzling of the kitchen behind me... The rustling of the man across from me as he turned to look at the chaos taking place in the streets, the overhead fans thrummed in tune to the footsteps of the people crowding the accident outside.
The two suited figures on the bench talked, the scruffy and worn man in his dirty suit and pristine crucifix; His head slowly leaning to one side. The old man in blue beside him, shaking his hands at him in an almost chiding manner, leaning on a cane, as if to reiterate a point already discussed. Still, no one but I seemed to notice them.
This carried on for some time, until the police showed up outside. A recurring character, the large detective among them this time for some reason. It was then the man in the blue suit took notice, of the detective I assume... When he placed his hand on his listeners shoulder and patted it. It felt like goodbye from where I was seeing it.
A man rose from the noodle counter inside with me and headed out to street. I'd seen him before... I'd recognize him every time, the angel mentioned him a lot, made a point of it even, he wore a black t-shirt this time with a large yellow infinity symbol on it. He rushed out to the nearby bench to the suited man's side, whom now alone raised his head to look at him with a smile. Then he closed his eyes and let his head sink into his chest.
The normal merge feeling I get turned to nausea then, and I felt like I couldn't breath... I knocked over my noodles when I ran to the bathroom, and once I hit the door I shifted... I'm leaving this letter on the typewriter I found amongst the clutter in the old shop I ended up in...
If you're riding the same stream... Please... I'm done... I want to go back to how it was... Before the man on the bench... Before that morning in the diner... Hell. I'll take getting fired, I'll even take getting creamed by that white Buick that morning instead of missing it. Just let this all make some sense...
If you're riding the same stream... Please... I'm done... I want to go back to how it was... Before the man on the bench... Before that morning in the diner... Hell. I'll take getting fired, I'll even take getting creamed by that white Buick that morning instead of missing it. Just let this all make some sense...
Signed... KEANE.
20150526
Neo Static: The Permutation Particles Polka - End
Aqua was in the middle of the tunnels; she was cut up and badly bruised but she kept swinging. It wasn't long before Suki was with her and she let her know that the job was done.
Darius, Twofeathers and Suki ran through the complex as Ul'ran zombies clambered after them. Wanting them to join the party.
Frank looked at the countdown on his chronometer. Only 18 more seconds to go before they were all aligned.
Angst, Ruffo and Angelissa sat at a table sipping tea as others walked past.
Max hovered off the floor, his fingers moving about seeing the data-streams of timelines before him and shaking his head 'no', dropping a few strings and gathering more and shaking his head 'no'.
Dan picked up the dice once again as everyone around the table waited for what was going to happen. It all resulted in this dice roll. It was all or nothing on this one.
"It's about time you joined the fight," Aqua shot at Suki.
"Sure thing, girlfriend," Suki said. "You think what I was doing was a picnic?"
"Yeah," Aqua replied. She took out a huge beastie with a punch, sending it sprawling back into its buddies. "Now, let's see if we can hold them off!"
"Madness," Twofeathers replied. No matter what corner they turned or what room they entered it seemed that the Ul'ran were already there. "This is madness."
"You don't know the half of it, sister," Suki said. She was rubbing her elbow; her arm was sore after dispensing a lot of charges with the Godhammer. She hoped Max was correct with whatever he was doing since it seemed like it was going to be the end.
Darius took out his cross necklace and gave it a kiss for luck. Twofeathers did a double-take at him and then she let out a chuckle.
Darius, Twofeathers and Suki ran through the complex as Ul'ran zombies clambered after them. Wanting them to join the party.
Frank looked at the countdown on his chronometer. Only 18 more seconds to go before they were all aligned.
Angst, Ruffo and Angelissa sat at a table sipping tea as others walked past.
Max hovered off the floor, his fingers moving about seeing the data-streams of timelines before him and shaking his head 'no', dropping a few strings and gathering more and shaking his head 'no'.
Dan picked up the dice once again as everyone around the table waited for what was going to happen. It all resulted in this dice roll. It was all or nothing on this one.
"It's about time you joined the fight," Aqua shot at Suki.
"Sure thing, girlfriend," Suki said. "You think what I was doing was a picnic?"
"Yeah," Aqua replied. She took out a huge beastie with a punch, sending it sprawling back into its buddies. "Now, let's see if we can hold them off!"
"Madness," Twofeathers replied. No matter what corner they turned or what room they entered it seemed that the Ul'ran were already there. "This is madness."
"You don't know the half of it, sister," Suki said. She was rubbing her elbow; her arm was sore after dispensing a lot of charges with the Godhammer. She hoped Max was correct with whatever he was doing since it seemed like it was going to be the end.
Darius took out his cross necklace and gave it a kiss for luck. Twofeathers did a double-take at him and then she let out a chuckle.
Frank checked the shotgun and was about to join Suki and Aqua in the tunnels.
"There's nothing you can do there," Max said to him.
"What?" Frank looked at him. "You're kidding right?"
"Frank, when have I ever misled you?" Max asked.
"The question is when haven't you misled me," Frank said. His impulse was to go and help the kids out in a overwhelming battle. But he trusted Max to the very end of his life.
"Can I get you ladies anything else?" the waiter asked.
Angst nodded and flashed him a smile and the waiter turned a little shade of red.
"There's nothing you can do there," Max said to him.
"What?" Frank looked at him. "You're kidding right?"
"Frank, when have I ever misled you?" Max asked.
"The question is when haven't you misled me," Frank said. His impulse was to go and help the kids out in a overwhelming battle. But he trusted Max to the very end of his life.
"Can I get you ladies anything else?" the waiter asked.
Angst nodded and flashed him a smile and the waiter turned a little shade of red.
"Mom," Angelissa said.
"I'm not your mother," Angst said to her, "Well, I... I could be your mother... Wait... I am your mother?"
"What are we doing waiting here?" Ruffo asked. She had a sound of agitation in her voice. She didn't know where they were and what they were doing but it was nice just to sit and catch their breath for a little while. "What are we suppose to be waiting for?"
"You will know when you see it," Angst said. She leaned over and gave Angelissa a kiss on the cheek, letting her know full well that she would be the mother she would never know.
Max's fingers were moving across like he was playing a huge harp. That's when he noticed blood on the tips of his fingers.
"Now you know how Bryan Adams felt," Maggie whispered.
Max noticed that his fingertips had thin slices like papercuts but it wasn't stinging at all.
"... and that's when you notice the cuts on Max's fingertips, each finger that he's been weaving with has left tiny droplets of his blood in it..." Tim said.
Dan's mouth dropped and everyone around the table looked up and he added, "You mean?"
"Yep," Tim stated with a sly smile. "Exactly. Now make your roll and let's just see how well the code was written."
Dan shook the dice in his hands and let them drop onto the table. They did their dance: the negative dice landed on a 1 (which was good to see) and the positive dice landed on a 6 and this meant he rolled it again and added it to the total.
Dan picked up the die to roll, Tim turned his attention to Peyton.
Aqua had taken a critical wound to the neck. Blood was pumping out due to her adrenaline being pushed to the limits, but she cracked a smile since she was going out on her own terms. She grabbed the huge beast in front of her and with all her might snapped its neck like a twig, letting out a primeval scream of victory before she staggered back.
A wall of beasties swarmed toward her.
"Nooo!" Suki screamed and that's when her face changed from a tween to a woman of rage. Mustering every ounce of strength she had she took the Godhammer in her hands and snapped it in two. "She you losers in hell!"
The explosion ripped through the tunnel.
"What is it?" Darius asked of Suki. She stood still for a second and let out a gasp.
"I don't know," she replied honestly. "It just .... I don't want this to sound corny... but I felt like something bad happened."
There was the sound of an implosion echoing off in the distance. A ripple and a wave of energy began washing through the area.
"Sweet," Twofeathers said. "Now what!"
Frank let the shotgun drop to the floor and he hung his head in shame. "Was this all for naught?"
The waiter placed another round of ice tea in front of the ladies, and they all smiled and raised their glasses in a toast.
"Ha! I win," Morganfokker whispered. "You lose, like the failure that you are!"
"Would it kill you to know that this was the game plan all along?" Maggie said with a knowing smile. "A sleight of hand so simple that you'd not be paying attention to what the other hand was doing."
"What?" Morganfokker said. "No, it can't be."
Max let the strings go from his bloody fingertips and let out a sigh of relief.
"I'm not your mother," Angst said to her, "Well, I... I could be your mother... Wait... I am your mother?"
"What are we doing waiting here?" Ruffo asked. She had a sound of agitation in her voice. She didn't know where they were and what they were doing but it was nice just to sit and catch their breath for a little while. "What are we suppose to be waiting for?"
"You will know when you see it," Angst said. She leaned over and gave Angelissa a kiss on the cheek, letting her know full well that she would be the mother she would never know.
Max's fingers were moving across like he was playing a huge harp. That's when he noticed blood on the tips of his fingers.
"Now you know how Bryan Adams felt," Maggie whispered.
Max noticed that his fingertips had thin slices like papercuts but it wasn't stinging at all.
"... and that's when you notice the cuts on Max's fingertips, each finger that he's been weaving with has left tiny droplets of his blood in it..." Tim said.
Dan's mouth dropped and everyone around the table looked up and he added, "You mean?"
"Yep," Tim stated with a sly smile. "Exactly. Now make your roll and let's just see how well the code was written."
Dan shook the dice in his hands and let them drop onto the table. They did their dance: the negative dice landed on a 1 (which was good to see) and the positive dice landed on a 6 and this meant he rolled it again and added it to the total.
Dan picked up the die to roll, Tim turned his attention to Peyton.
Aqua had taken a critical wound to the neck. Blood was pumping out due to her adrenaline being pushed to the limits, but she cracked a smile since she was going out on her own terms. She grabbed the huge beast in front of her and with all her might snapped its neck like a twig, letting out a primeval scream of victory before she staggered back.
A wall of beasties swarmed toward her.
"Nooo!" Suki screamed and that's when her face changed from a tween to a woman of rage. Mustering every ounce of strength she had she took the Godhammer in her hands and snapped it in two. "She you losers in hell!"
The explosion ripped through the tunnel.
"What is it?" Darius asked of Suki. She stood still for a second and let out a gasp.
"I don't know," she replied honestly. "It just .... I don't want this to sound corny... but I felt like something bad happened."
There was the sound of an implosion echoing off in the distance. A ripple and a wave of energy began washing through the area.
"Sweet," Twofeathers said. "Now what!"
Frank let the shotgun drop to the floor and he hung his head in shame. "Was this all for naught?"
The waiter placed another round of ice tea in front of the ladies, and they all smiled and raised their glasses in a toast.
"Ha! I win," Morganfokker whispered. "You lose, like the failure that you are!"
"Would it kill you to know that this was the game plan all along?" Maggie said with a knowing smile. "A sleight of hand so simple that you'd not be paying attention to what the other hand was doing."
"What?" Morganfokker said. "No, it can't be."
Max let the strings go from his bloody fingertips and let out a sigh of relief.
"Game. Set. And Match, Morganfokker!"
It was a sound like someone receiving a call on their cellphone, a little ding that seem to echo about the realms. Max hovered off the ground, light shining around him like beams from multiple lighthouses as cracks began to appear across his body. The ultimate sacrifice, he turned to the apparition of Morganfokker and lifted up a hand and simply waved at him, like he was waving to a friend who was moving away... and that's when Max seemed to implode on himself... creating a black hole sucking in the streams, data, and other realities with him.
Before everything went dark...
It was a sound like someone receiving a call on their cellphone, a little ding that seem to echo about the realms. Max hovered off the ground, light shining around him like beams from multiple lighthouses as cracks began to appear across his body. The ultimate sacrifice, he turned to the apparition of Morganfokker and lifted up a hand and simply waved at him, like he was waving to a friend who was moving away... and that's when Max seemed to implode on himself... creating a black hole sucking in the streams, data, and other realities with him.
Before everything went dark...
20150520
Neo Static: The Permutation Particles Polka VII
"'This transmission is coming to you', why is Maggie constantly saying that?" Chance asked. He pick up his coffee mug to take a sip. Spilling a little on his character sheet. So far this session had been pretty interesting and intense considering that he had shown up late to the session to begin with. "Is it a code of some sort? A clue maybe?"
Dan had been sketching out the scene Tim had described. It was in ink and looked like a quick sketch of Max hovering off the floor in a futuristic bunker with his arms outstretched and his hands picking at data threads around him. With the face of Morganfokker at his right ear and Maggie at Max's left ear.
"I think Tim is trying to give us a clue, that's why Maggie keeps repeating it," Amanda chimed in. She had written out the phrase on a sheet of paper and was also using an anagram app on her cellphone to work out the phrase. "I really don't understand the whole Morganfokker thing though."
"That was before you joined," Dan replied.
"Ah," Amanda said.
Dan looked down at Max's character sheet and then picked up his six-sided dice. One was red with white pips, which was the positive die, and the other was black with red pips, and this was his negative die. "Okay, here's what I'm gonna do. I'm going to pour all my Fu points and Fortune points out of the pool and add them to my Intrusive Skill."
Since Max was using the strings of data like a keyboard he figured it might just work. He had a hunch what Tim was getting at and he could see the look of approval on the Game Master's face as he had seen it before, knowing that he was write on track.
Dan rolled both dice. Chance, Amanda, Peyton and Mark all waited for the dice to stop rolling. The red die rolled a six and the black die came out a two.
The players around the table erupted because a positive six meant that Dan could roll again and add that to the roll...
Dan had been sketching out the scene Tim had described. It was in ink and looked like a quick sketch of Max hovering off the floor in a futuristic bunker with his arms outstretched and his hands picking at data threads around him. With the face of Morganfokker at his right ear and Maggie at Max's left ear.
"I think Tim is trying to give us a clue, that's why Maggie keeps repeating it," Amanda chimed in. She had written out the phrase on a sheet of paper and was also using an anagram app on her cellphone to work out the phrase. "I really don't understand the whole Morganfokker thing though."
"That was before you joined," Dan replied.
"Ah," Amanda said.
Dan looked down at Max's character sheet and then picked up his six-sided dice. One was red with white pips, which was the positive die, and the other was black with red pips, and this was his negative die. "Okay, here's what I'm gonna do. I'm going to pour all my Fu points and Fortune points out of the pool and add them to my Intrusive Skill."
Since Max was using the strings of data like a keyboard he figured it might just work. He had a hunch what Tim was getting at and he could see the look of approval on the Game Master's face as he had seen it before, knowing that he was write on track.
Dan rolled both dice. Chance, Amanda, Peyton and Mark all waited for the dice to stop rolling. The red die rolled a six and the black die came out a two.
The players around the table erupted because a positive six meant that Dan could roll again and add that to the roll...
20141210
The Persistence of Presence
"It's been going on six days straight," Summer sighed.
A gust of wind made the steady downpour bend to a 45 degree angle, then it returned to falling straight down.
Aqua watched water drip from the brim of her cowboy hat.
Summer shivered. "Isn't there something we could do? Maybe that's why we are here, to figure out how to make it stop? Isn't that how this works?"
Aqua watched the crowds of miserable people scurrying in the heavy rain. She said, "I think I saw an umbrella store a few blocks from here, yesterday. Based on the signs in the window it looked like they had raised their prices a few days back. Bet they don't have much of a security system..."
Aqua winked and Summer smiled.
A gust of wind made the steady downpour bend to a 45 degree angle, then it returned to falling straight down.
Aqua watched water drip from the brim of her cowboy hat.
Summer shivered. "Isn't there something we could do? Maybe that's why we are here, to figure out how to make it stop? Isn't that how this works?"
Aqua watched the crowds of miserable people scurrying in the heavy rain. She said, "I think I saw an umbrella store a few blocks from here, yesterday. Based on the signs in the window it looked like they had raised their prices a few days back. Bet they don't have much of a security system..."
Aqua winked and Summer smiled.
20140930
> Chance in Plureality 5
Keane sat in the booth on the quiet side of the diner. With this layout it was almost as if the other side didn't even exist, which suited him fine. He didn't really want to talk with anyone at the moment anyway. The day had gotten off to a rotten start. Slept in, burnt his breakfast (which is why he was finally getting around to it now at 2 in the afternoon), topping that off with nearly getting sideswiped going by the off-ramp on Clergy Street earlier.
Of course that wasn't anywhere near the end of the day either. By 11am he had been called into the boss' office and had been fired. Big show of things, too - his boss must have also had a rough morning, the way he went at him. On the other hand he just might have been the kind of boss who enjoyed firing people. Didn't help that Parsons, the douche-bag from near the water cooler, had to feign concern while Keane was cleaning out his desk. That kind of rising bile feeling, makes you wish you had super powers enough to knock a person through a wall.
It would all be alright though, he thought. Once breakfast finally came. Breakfast, especially a diner breakfast, always made him feel better. Besides, he always felt that he was meant for something more than cube work. The waitress arrived with his meal. The whole shebang! Pancakes, hash browns, toast, eggs, and a massive pile of meat. Toss in a nice cuppa java and a tall glass of OJ. This is what his day was missing from the get-go. This would make it all better, and THIS would allow the whole day to settle and make sense.
About 3 or 4 sips into his coffee, and a bite or two into the hash browns, a lithe woman with what appeared to be feathers in her hair slid into the booth across from him.
"Uh... Excuse me?" Keane looked up. "Can I help you?" She just smiled and pulled some of the brown curls back and tucked them behind her ear, the feathers brushing across the table.
"There's not much you could do to help us at the moment actually..." said a young man in a long coat (who wears one of those in this weather?) as he slid in beside the woman with feathers in her hair. A silver cross jangled on a chain around his neck. "'I always liked diner breakfasts too. Guess we have that in common... But you want a really good brekky? You gotta hit those little mom and pops... Just saying," the scruffy cross-bearer said.
"Do you guys mind? I'm trying to eat here, and I think you've got me confused with someone else," Keane pleaded. He only wanted his breakfast, even if it was 2pm.
"Oh I wouldn't dream of stopping you from eating - in fact you're gonna need it," the man in the long coat informed.
"It's going to be a looong day," the smiling feathered woman said.
"Look... What do you mea-" Keane started.
"Have you ever felt like you were meant for something more?" the young man smirked.
Keane felt something odd about that look, like these two knew more then they were saying. "Go on..." he said, slowly picking up another mouthful of hash browns with his fork.
20140804
Interface Zero
Tatterdemalion's fingers danced over the keyboard. She was inputting code faster than her mind could come up with it.
"Dammit," she muttered.
"What the frak are you doing?" Gabriel 7 inquired.
"It's defragging!" she shot back. "There's only one thing to do!"
"Oh hell no," Gabriel 7 warned her. "You are only a watcher and not a participator!"
Tatterdemalion's fingers touched the screen and then she disappeared, as if she was beamed away by Scottie in that silly old sci-fi show she liked so much.
"Damn," Gabriel 7 swore.
20140527
> Chance in Plureality 4
The full moon danced off the hood of the speeding
white Buick as it raced through crowded streets.
Pedestrians hurled insults and dove out of its way.
“I don’t even know what street this is!” Darius screamed, slamming a palm off the steering wheel.
“Well, it’s not like we’re looking for a spot for dinner, right…” Two-feathers chimed. Her braids flying in the wind passing through the missing wind-shield.
“I should know this place… That’s what’s getting to me… None of this is right…” Darius' voice shook. The screaming from the backseat broke through the chatter as another hail of bullets took off the driver-side mirror. Darius wrenched the wheel right, taking the Buick through a red light and causing a domino effect of scattering cars. The black van followed; making it through unscathed.
“Am I…. Is he okay?” he asked.
Two-feathers climbed over the seat, sending a few rounds back at the van. Curled up in a ball in the back seat, a young teen in a ratty trench coat screamed in pain; he was holding his face in his hands, which were covered in blood.
“Oh…. No god… Darius, he’s hurt bad… “ Two-feathers reached a hand to Darius’ shoulder.
“How bad?!” More gunfire from behind chewed into the trunk as Two-Feathers lay over of the boy to protect him. Darius winced, and put a hand to his face. “This isn’t right at all…”
“It’s his eye… glass everywhere.“ Tears streamed down her face. More screams. More gunfire. The Buick screeched around a corner onto an empty street. Darius pushed the pedal even further to the floor as two sets of headlights rounded the bend coming straight for them….
They made it through the racers, but the van wasn’t so lucky. The tuner turned a pop can with a bone crushing smash, the van lurched over its own front end, but not before one of the Hunter team ejected through the window and out into the street. Darius slammed on the break. It hit him then, like the car wreck behind them.
“Why are you stopping? There could be more coming… There are always more coming!” Two-Feathers panicked, one hand holding the young man, the other waving around the hand cannon.
“I know.," Darius said slowly as he climbed out of the car. He opened the back door and leaned in over the pair, his hands emitting a soft glow. “And I think I know why.” The screaming had stopped, the boy passed out from the pain. Darius moved his hands away to check his wounds. “I can’t save the eye, but he won’t bleed out," he said placing his hands gently on the young man's face. When he took his hands away the glow was gone, but so were the wounds. Pock marks and scars remained.
“So we go now Darius? We go?” Two-Feathers still struggled with the language in tense moments. She shook visibly, the gun wobbling in her hand.
“Not all of us, my dear, No.” He frowned. Tears welling up in his eyes as he slid her braids aside and put a hand on her cheek. Tears ran across his hand.
“Why… we keep running. We always get away. Right? We find Max. I said I help you find Max!” Two-Feathers dropped the gun; it clattered off the young man’s skateboard next to the seat.
“They’re after me, love. Not you. Not him. This is what I have to do this time, you see.” He brushed some of the tears from her cheek and pulled a necklace from his neck.
“Darius… Two-Feathers doesn’t want to lose you again.” She sobbed.
“That’s just it, sweetheart… you aren’t losing me. This is not how you lose Me.” Taking his hand from her face he gently lifted the young man’s head and placed the necklace around his neck; the silver crucifix resting on his chest. He picked up a small battered bible from the floor of the car and put it into a pocket of the tattered long coat. Two-feathers watched this and, between sobs and wiping tears, a puzzled look replaced the pain in her eyes. “This is not losing me. This… Two-Feathers… is how we meet.”
He smiled and wiped his own tears away, before leaning in to gently kiss her forehead. Screeching tires killed the moment.
“Go. Now!” Darius said, stepping back out the door and slamming it. “Drive, and keep your eyes on him. Everything will work out, trust me. Just keep him safe. Look out for him, like you always did me.”
More tears, but in a rush of braids and feathers, she hopped into the front seat. “I love you, Darius…" she chimed in, with a sad smile from amidst the bullet-ridden Buick.
“Remind me later, love," he says with a smile and a nod, as the Buick tears away. She watched him turn towards the wreckage of the cars in the rear-view. The young man stirred in the backseat, the chain of the necklace rattled. The rear-view caught the reinforcements arriving, the dark streets lit up with a white glow. She pushed the car harder, and the view disappeared around a corner. Then the sound of gunfire echoed into the night, along with the tears, and the feathers on the wind.
“I don’t even know what street this is!” Darius screamed, slamming a palm off the steering wheel.
“Well, it’s not like we’re looking for a spot for dinner, right…” Two-feathers chimed. Her braids flying in the wind passing through the missing wind-shield.
“I should know this place… That’s what’s getting to me… None of this is right…” Darius' voice shook. The screaming from the backseat broke through the chatter as another hail of bullets took off the driver-side mirror. Darius wrenched the wheel right, taking the Buick through a red light and causing a domino effect of scattering cars. The black van followed; making it through unscathed.
“Am I…. Is he okay?” he asked.
Two-feathers climbed over the seat, sending a few rounds back at the van. Curled up in a ball in the back seat, a young teen in a ratty trench coat screamed in pain; he was holding his face in his hands, which were covered in blood.
“Oh…. No god… Darius, he’s hurt bad… “ Two-feathers reached a hand to Darius’ shoulder.
“How bad?!” More gunfire from behind chewed into the trunk as Two-Feathers lay over of the boy to protect him. Darius winced, and put a hand to his face. “This isn’t right at all…”
“It’s his eye… glass everywhere.“ Tears streamed down her face. More screams. More gunfire. The Buick screeched around a corner onto an empty street. Darius pushed the pedal even further to the floor as two sets of headlights rounded the bend coming straight for them….
They made it through the racers, but the van wasn’t so lucky. The tuner turned a pop can with a bone crushing smash, the van lurched over its own front end, but not before one of the Hunter team ejected through the window and out into the street. Darius slammed on the break. It hit him then, like the car wreck behind them.
“Why are you stopping? There could be more coming… There are always more coming!” Two-Feathers panicked, one hand holding the young man, the other waving around the hand cannon.
“I know.," Darius said slowly as he climbed out of the car. He opened the back door and leaned in over the pair, his hands emitting a soft glow. “And I think I know why.” The screaming had stopped, the boy passed out from the pain. Darius moved his hands away to check his wounds. “I can’t save the eye, but he won’t bleed out," he said placing his hands gently on the young man's face. When he took his hands away the glow was gone, but so were the wounds. Pock marks and scars remained.
“So we go now Darius? We go?” Two-Feathers still struggled with the language in tense moments. She shook visibly, the gun wobbling in her hand.
“Not all of us, my dear, No.” He frowned. Tears welling up in his eyes as he slid her braids aside and put a hand on her cheek. Tears ran across his hand.
“Why… we keep running. We always get away. Right? We find Max. I said I help you find Max!” Two-Feathers dropped the gun; it clattered off the young man’s skateboard next to the seat.
“They’re after me, love. Not you. Not him. This is what I have to do this time, you see.” He brushed some of the tears from her cheek and pulled a necklace from his neck.
“Darius… Two-Feathers doesn’t want to lose you again.” She sobbed.
“That’s just it, sweetheart… you aren’t losing me. This is not how you lose Me.” Taking his hand from her face he gently lifted the young man’s head and placed the necklace around his neck; the silver crucifix resting on his chest. He picked up a small battered bible from the floor of the car and put it into a pocket of the tattered long coat. Two-feathers watched this and, between sobs and wiping tears, a puzzled look replaced the pain in her eyes. “This is not losing me. This… Two-Feathers… is how we meet.”
He smiled and wiped his own tears away, before leaning in to gently kiss her forehead. Screeching tires killed the moment.
“Go. Now!” Darius said, stepping back out the door and slamming it. “Drive, and keep your eyes on him. Everything will work out, trust me. Just keep him safe. Look out for him, like you always did me.”
More tears, but in a rush of braids and feathers, she hopped into the front seat. “I love you, Darius…" she chimed in, with a sad smile from amidst the bullet-ridden Buick.
“Remind me later, love," he says with a smile and a nod, as the Buick tears away. She watched him turn towards the wreckage of the cars in the rear-view. The young man stirred in the backseat, the chain of the necklace rattled. The rear-view caught the reinforcements arriving, the dark streets lit up with a white glow. She pushed the car harder, and the view disappeared around a corner. Then the sound of gunfire echoed into the night, along with the tears, and the feathers on the wind.
20140507
Fallen Six
Previously in the Metaplex...
“Things had gotten strange. Even stranger, I guess. And they had gotten desperate. More fragmented than ever. Things were happening out of order. Max was experiencing different versions with a different team. One of them had died but they got her back. Then another was killed. The man they called The Professor was experimenting with something they called Plexotron technology, remixing events like they were music. And another man was hunting Max, a man called Morganfokker.
“It seemed like everywhere we went Morganfokker was waiting, and people started to get hurt. Memphis, Precious, Summer, Amber... He got to all of them. As a way to get to us. And Max thought he had figured it out. Morganfokker was able to track us through plureality because we were a convergence. Our signals were amplified because we were all in sync. So the answer was to separate.
“We needed to hide, to go our own ways. Go to dark places, dangerous places. So that Morganfokker couldn't find us. It was the only way we could keep each other safe, keep other people from being used as pawns against us. That's why we broke into the Temple, fought our way to the final chamber. The Seven Lotus Portals were our way out. It was an escape plan.
“We would keep seeking, keep trying to find a way to fight back, and hopefully reunite someday. In the meantime, no one else would get hurt.
“Except that when we went through the portals we all ended up here, together. Trapped. And the Demon invasion had already started. So we did what we were used to doing, teamed up and fought back. And the invasion became a war."
Darius didn't have any answers about the Eyes, the Grids, the Gutters, what the world had been like before the Demons came. The Dragons learned what they could about the rules of this reality and helped build Frontline. They helped create Haven ("How old are all of you?" "Don't get me started about time and plureality.") They helped keep the Demons back long enough for the Arcana to start forging a new world amidst the ruins of the old.
He told Marshal about Aqua's Sacrifice, about Callan's Transformation, about Wraith's Curse, and about Dexter's Sickness. He told him about Maggie's Fall ("Dark Maggie, like Dark Willow, or Dark Phoenix I guess, if you want to go that far back - it must be a Magical Redhead trope." "I don't understand what any of that means..."). There were wins and a lot of losses. There were different theories about why they were here. Had something gone wrong with the Portals? Had Max made a mistake? Had Control tricked them? Was this what the world looked like without Morganfokker?
And then Darius told Marshal about the Disappearance of Max Cube.
“Things had gotten strange. Even stranger, I guess. And they had gotten desperate. More fragmented than ever. Things were happening out of order. Max was experiencing different versions with a different team. One of them had died but they got her back. Then another was killed. The man they called The Professor was experimenting with something they called Plexotron technology, remixing events like they were music. And another man was hunting Max, a man called Morganfokker.
“It seemed like everywhere we went Morganfokker was waiting, and people started to get hurt. Memphis, Precious, Summer, Amber... He got to all of them. As a way to get to us. And Max thought he had figured it out. Morganfokker was able to track us through plureality because we were a convergence. Our signals were amplified because we were all in sync. So the answer was to separate.
“We needed to hide, to go our own ways. Go to dark places, dangerous places. So that Morganfokker couldn't find us. It was the only way we could keep each other safe, keep other people from being used as pawns against us. That's why we broke into the Temple, fought our way to the final chamber. The Seven Lotus Portals were our way out. It was an escape plan.
“We would keep seeking, keep trying to find a way to fight back, and hopefully reunite someday. In the meantime, no one else would get hurt.
“Except that when we went through the portals we all ended up here, together. Trapped. And the Demon invasion had already started. So we did what we were used to doing, teamed up and fought back. And the invasion became a war."
Darius didn't have any answers about the Eyes, the Grids, the Gutters, what the world had been like before the Demons came. The Dragons learned what they could about the rules of this reality and helped build Frontline. They helped create Haven ("How old are all of you?" "Don't get me started about time and plureality.") They helped keep the Demons back long enough for the Arcana to start forging a new world amidst the ruins of the old.
He told Marshal about Aqua's Sacrifice, about Callan's Transformation, about Wraith's Curse, and about Dexter's Sickness. He told him about Maggie's Fall ("Dark Maggie, like Dark Willow, or Dark Phoenix I guess, if you want to go that far back - it must be a Magical Redhead trope." "I don't understand what any of that means..."). There were wins and a lot of losses. There were different theories about why they were here. Had something gone wrong with the Portals? Had Max made a mistake? Had Control tricked them? Was this what the world looked like without Morganfokker?
And then Darius told Marshal about the Disappearance of Max Cube.
20131109
> Debashis in Plureality 5
bright. sunny day. puffy clouds. warm wispy breeze.
grainy filmy image.
commotion. just over there. pan out. turn to the commotion. focus in, too far in, blurry and focus out. see more clearly.
he’s being pulled. three others. are pulling him.
words and shouts, nothing really intelligible.
Chaos. Loud. Emergency. Urgent. Disorder.
imperative to Intervene. but no manuals. no rules. no protocol.
just observe?
he’s not resisting the others. can’t.
Heart.Beats.Faster.
he is losing strength. dragged to the street.
they are intervening. violently. they are intervening.
he’s weak. grainy scene. sunny sky in sepia tones? moving toward black and white and grey.
they’re pounding on him. on his chest. some kind of system re-boot??????
getting darker and scene fading. they’re still pounding on him. no energy left. his eyes are trying to stay open and he stares at everything and anything. scene keeps fading. they’re still shouting and yelling. scene fades and pans out.
no-manuals-no-rules-no-protocol
can only observe. can’t intervene.
fade to white. heart beats loud.
grainy filmy image.
commotion. just over there. pan out. turn to the commotion. focus in, too far in, blurry and focus out. see more clearly.
he’s being pulled. three others. are pulling him.
words and shouts, nothing really intelligible.
Chaos. Loud. Emergency. Urgent. Disorder.
imperative to Intervene. but no manuals. no rules. no protocol.
just observe?
he’s not resisting the others. can’t.
Heart.Beats.Faster.
he is losing strength. dragged to the street.
they are intervening. violently. they are intervening.
he’s weak. grainy scene. sunny sky in sepia tones? moving toward black and white and grey.
they’re pounding on him. on his chest. some kind of system re-boot??????
getting darker and scene fading. they’re still pounding on him. no energy left. his eyes are trying to stay open and he stares at everything and anything. scene keeps fading. they’re still shouting and yelling. scene fades and pans out.
no-manuals-no-rules-no-protocol
can only observe. can’t intervene.
fade to white. heart beats loud.
20131102
Metaplexperiment: Remix 2 - the Mashup
Archived Fragment: I Know The Secrets...
Archived Fragment: The Train Kept On...
Archived Fragment: The Snake Moon
Archived Fragment: The Element of Surprise
Archived Fragment: A Matter of Music
Archived Fragment: A Difference of Opinions
Archived Fragment: The Ballad...
Archived Fragment: Wounded Puppy
Archived Fragment: After the Fire...
Archived Fragment: Unlike a Flesh Wound
Archived Fragment: Out of the Frying Pan
Archived Fragment: The Decoy
Archived Fragment: When Do Bullets Cry?
Archived Fragment: Gunfire Choir
Epilogue:
Bailey skipped down the escalator. She was worried that she was going to get in trouble for getting separated from the rest of the kids on the field trip but she had been sure that woman had been the actress who played Katniss and she wasn't going to miss the chance for an autograph. Not her though, so now she was late with nothing to show for it. Mr. Haskins was a cool teacher but he would probably still be upset.
When she arrived on the platform she was amazed at what she found. Dozens of unconscious men in suits scattered about. Some bullet-holes and scorch-marks on the walls. A group of people were gathered at the far end of the platform, shaking hands and laughing. Mr. Haskins was there, and Kelly the volunteer. And was that her sister, Peyton?
Bailey wondered what had happened. Then she noticed that one of the men in a suit was still moving... His hand was reaching slowly towards a weird device that looked like some kind of futuristic bomb. No one in the group noticed...
His hand was almost on the button when Bailey stepped over him and punched him squarely in the face. Knocked him out cold. She pulled a bunch of wires out of the device so that it wasn't a threat anymore and headed towards the group. It had been quite a field trip.
Archived Fragment: The Train Kept On...
Archived Fragment: The Snake Moon
Archived Fragment: The Element of Surprise
Archived Fragment: A Matter of Music
Archived Fragment: A Difference of Opinions
Archived Fragment: The Ballad...
Archived Fragment: Wounded Puppy
Archived Fragment: After the Fire...
Archived Fragment: Unlike a Flesh Wound
Archived Fragment: Out of the Frying Pan
Archived Fragment: The Decoy
Archived Fragment: When Do Bullets Cry?
Archived Fragment: Gunfire Choir
The
train rumbled on.
Max lay across a row of chairs; he couldn't sleep and hadn't been sleeping properly for the past few nights. Though he didn't feel tired at all; he hadn't been since the events that had transpired a few weeks ago.
If I truly fall asleep I will slip away from here.
He didn't want that. He was growing into this comfort zone, he was liking the company, the adventure he was having, and he would die if this reality faded away into the nothingness, like a dream after waking.
He'd grown accustomed to the shunting of the train, and the companions he had met along the way. For the first time in what seemed liked an eternity he felt the feelings of bondship.
It would be shame if I were to disappear.
And then one of the voices – he could never be sure which was which, and they were more of a feeling than an actual voice – said: You know it will end some time.
clickety-clack
A few seats away, Goner plopped down beside Suki. "What's going on at the moment?" he asked.
"A whole lotta nothin'," Suki replied with a smile. She was sipping on a soda and watching the platforms passing by, merging realities into one plureality. "Just watching the worlds meld before me. It's better than television!"
Goner chuckled. He had begun to miss some of the shows he had grown accustomed to.
"We've been traveling for a long while without any stops," Goner noted.
"I know," Suki said. "And I have to go to the bathroom!"
clickety-clack
On a subway platform several men in dark suits took position. They began ushering out people waiting for a train; flashing ID's and assuring them that all was going to be okay. Andy and Jeremiah kept strumming their guitars, cases open before them with a scattering of coins inside, each wearing their busker permit around their neck. They exchanged a wary glance when they saw the swarm of suited men.
clickety-clack
Suki fished a comic book out of her school-bag, the latest adventure of a group of mutants who were at a special school due to their gifts. She enjoyed reading since it helped pass the time between here and there. Depending on where there was and how long it took to get there, she would indulge in a trivial form of reading.
Her attention was focused on the sound bubble of each page, reading the story that unfolded. Drawing her in deeper and deeper into the continued story arc.
She was just getting to a good part when she flipped the page and the story arc was To be continued... and that irked her to no end.
“What's the matter?” Goner asked.
“They just met this cool new hero named Raven – she's got this awesome sortof telepathic reality-warping power – and now I'll never get to find out what happens next! The chances of finding the next issue in the next version are pretty slim...”
Goner nodded. Living a life broken up into strange fragments and shifting moments, it always felt like things were 'to be continued'. You always knew that eventually things would get weird, or dangerous, or both.
clickety-clack
The suits continued their sweep of the platform; Lee wasn't buying it. He knew the type, knew that their motives were usually suspect, and he was pretty sure that the ID's they were flashing were fake. He looked around, trying to see if there was anyone nearby who wouldn't think he was just being paranoid...
Adam watched the suits on the march, then noticed Lee, the suspicious look on his face, that rare moment when you know for certain that someone else is thinking the exact same thing as you...
clickety-clack
Angst sat looking out the window, watching the blur and listening to her mp3 player. She was listening to a classic song and moved her head to the rhythmic beat.
Suki sat behind her re-reading the comic book and sipping on a soda...
clickety-clack
Kelly gently nudged the group of children along the platform. The teacher had gone to the washroom, which left her and the other volunteer in charge of the field trip, and now these strange men in suits were herding everyone.
"What's going on?" the other volunteer asked. "Terrorists?" Kelly frowned; some people were so eager to believe some lies and so reluctant to believe some truths.
One of the suits barked at one of the kids to move along and Mark stepped in, back from the washroom, eyes locking on the man's sunglasses. “There's no need for that,” Mark said.
clickety-clack
"No way," Goner said. He had moved on down the subway car to where Frank was sitting. "Did you even watch the same game as I did?"
"Yeah, I did," Frank said. "You must be watching some fantasy version in your head."
"Clearly Redgrin had the ball in his possession before the whistle blew," Goner stated.
"The whistle blew before Redgrin could do the recovery," Frank grinned. "You are just a sore loser. You still owe me."
"Well, I don't have the cash on me," Goner said. "Wait to see if there's an ATM at the next stop and I will get it to you."
Frank rolled his eyes back and said, "That's if you do have an account in this version."
clickety-clack
Debashis and Joy stepped off the escalator onto the platform. “Consequences aren't merely arbitrary effects designated by the person with the power, they become the way that the person being helped understands that their actions are significant and important, as long as the person with the power is exercising it with self-awareness...” Debashis was saying.
“Or as we say on the frontline, 'shit's gotta mean shit',” Joy replied. Debashis laughed, until he saw the scene playing out before them and a suit started walking menacingly towards them.
Joy's cell made a strange beeping noise...
clickety-clack
Mags was sitting beside Bishop's booth, keeping the conductor company. She knew better than to ask him when their next stop was going to be. She hummed a tune as she dragged the whetstone along the blade of her katana. And then a strange feeling came over her...
She stared down the length of car, Max dozing, Suki reading, Angst listening to music, Frank and Goner chatting, the new girl Summer knitting. And someone else, a man sitting at the far end of the car; he was writing in a notebook and paused to roll some oddly-shaped dice. When he did, Maggie suddenly noticed a soft grey glow around Summer, then Frank, then a darker one around Suki...
clickety-clack
Chance and Peyton were listening to the buskers and talking about anime when the suits began their push. They watched for a moment then looked to each other. “Do they look familiar to you?” Peyton asked.
Chance nodded. “Do you feel that? It's the same feeling... from years ago...”
Peyton's eyes widened. “I remember,” she said. Then looked down at her hands, where two massive battle-gauntlets had appeared. Then at Chance's chest, where a gold cross suddenly materialized.
clickety-clack
Tim rolled the dice again.
clickety-clack
Most of the crowd had been chased off. Another LEGACY cell moved onto the platform, carrying some cases and setting them down. They moved with the purpose of a strike team. Opening up the cases revealing heavy weapons. They began to mount them on the platform, quick and efficient; with pressurized drills they were putting the mounts into the floor.
Anthony had been waiting on a bench, reading Nagel's 'What is it Like to be a Bat?'. He had watched the first LEGACY cell move in and begin clearing the platform. It was as if he could see it from different angles. He had noticed the way that the buskers' playing provided a soundtrack for the scene. And he had started having these brief flashes, like jump-cuts, to the interior of an approaching subway car, a strange group on board. A sense of tension rising.
And when the second team appeared and began setting the weapons, that's when the music stopped. And the silence was as loud and as profound as the noise had been. And that's when the shouting started and Anthony knew something very bad was about to happen.
clickety-clack
There were three dozen LEGACY members waiting. Three mounted cannons and each soldier armed to the hilt with weapons.
Jeremiah and Andy were standing now, clutching their guitars. The appearance of the weapons had surprised them, but not as much as seeing the cross materialize around Chance's neck and the gauntlets on Peyton's hands.
“That's very cool,” Jeremiah said.
Andy looked to the LEGACY team, then back to Chance and Peyton. “I think we're with you guys on this.”
Lee and Adam had instinctively moved towards each other. They were staring down a handful of the suits, who seemed surprised that the two men hadn't followed the order to leave. Close enough now that Lee could see some of the devices that they were carrying. “Dark Tek,” he whispered.
Adam held up a pack of handmade Tarot cards, cutting the deck and handing half to Lee. “Light tech.”
When the LEGACY suit tried to shove Mark backwards he got himself rugby-tackled. The kids behind Kelly cheered, “Yay Mr. Haskins!” The other volunteer started to run. Kelly sighed. “Alright kids, stay behind me!” And she faced the oncoming soldiers, and noticed that the suit Mark had tackled had dropped a device...
Joy was trying to understand how an app that she had dreamed about – there had been a spooky well, and this weird guy, who she somehow knew – was now actually installed on her phone and warning her that an 'OMEGA CLASS ANOMALY' was being detected. Debashis had advanced and was trying to negotiate with an approaching suit, with little effect. Joy was tapping the screen, trying to understand the strange software, trying to remember the dream, the odd conversations she had had with the weird guy...
Debashis, using every counseling trick he had to try and connect with the expressionless agent before him, had his own dreamy memory – a pathworking ritual, years ago, a vision of some trolls attacking a defenseless deer, and the knowledge that sometimes you had to stand up to the bullies...
Anthony stood up. And there was a woman beside him. She was looking at the chaos erupting before them on the platform. Anthony asked, “Aren't you a character from a comic book? A friend of mine reads a lot of them...”
Raven looked thoughtful. “I might be, in this version. What do you say? Shall we watch or shall we join in?”
Anthony smiled back. “Fight scene?”
Raven smiled. “After you, Butch.”
Anthony nodded. “My pleasure, Sundance.”
Kelly grabbed the device, thin like a pen but with a glowing light on the end. Mark was on his feet again, throwing a block at another agent. “You know how to use that thing?” he asked.
Kelly smiled. “I watch a lot of sci-fi.”
Adam smiled as he drew the first card from his deck and began accessing the necessary trance-state to engage the symbolic interface for tulpa summoning. “Do you know how to use those?” he asked Lee.
“I'll figure it out,” Lee said. “I play a lot of role-playing games.” He smiled.
Debashis turned back to Joy. “I'm gonna punch this guy out, if you're okay with that?”
Joy smiled as she finally figured out how to use the app to send a signal over-ride to the LEGACY heavy weapons systems, effectively shutting them down. “I accept that,” she answered.
Chance smiled at Peyton. “Alright, just like the old days!” And he charged the agents.
“Follow us!” Peyton shouted at Jeremiah and Andy, and she followed Chance into the fray, gauntlets swinging wildly.
“This is some pretty weird shit,” Jeremiah said, smiling. “I'm kinda freaked out but kinda excited.”
Andy nodded. “'It's the duplicitous edge which we all walk upon'.”
They raised their guitars and charged.
clickety-clack
clickety-clack
clickety clack
“Hey,” Suki said, tapping Angst on the shoulder. “Did you see that?"
Angst popped out her earphones. “Yeah... The last station we passed through, some kind of crazy battle going on... Did you guys see that?”
Frank and Goner were playing cards. They shook their heads in sync. Summer was still knitting; it was the first time that she looked even a little bit relaxed since they had brought her aboard the subway car.
“How about you, Maggie?” Suki asked. “Should we wake up Max?”
Mags watched as the strange glows surrounding Summer, Frank and Suki faded away. She looked to the end of the car where Tim was packing up his dice and notes.
Maggie smiled. “Let him sleep for a while longer.”
Max lay across a row of chairs; he couldn't sleep and hadn't been sleeping properly for the past few nights. Though he didn't feel tired at all; he hadn't been since the events that had transpired a few weeks ago.
If I truly fall asleep I will slip away from here.
He didn't want that. He was growing into this comfort zone, he was liking the company, the adventure he was having, and he would die if this reality faded away into the nothingness, like a dream after waking.
He'd grown accustomed to the shunting of the train, and the companions he had met along the way. For the first time in what seemed liked an eternity he felt the feelings of bondship.
It would be shame if I were to disappear.
And then one of the voices – he could never be sure which was which, and they were more of a feeling than an actual voice – said: You know it will end some time.
clickety-clack
A few seats away, Goner plopped down beside Suki. "What's going on at the moment?" he asked.
"A whole lotta nothin'," Suki replied with a smile. She was sipping on a soda and watching the platforms passing by, merging realities into one plureality. "Just watching the worlds meld before me. It's better than television!"
Goner chuckled. He had begun to miss some of the shows he had grown accustomed to.
"We've been traveling for a long while without any stops," Goner noted.
"I know," Suki said. "And I have to go to the bathroom!"
clickety-clack
On a subway platform several men in dark suits took position. They began ushering out people waiting for a train; flashing ID's and assuring them that all was going to be okay. Andy and Jeremiah kept strumming their guitars, cases open before them with a scattering of coins inside, each wearing their busker permit around their neck. They exchanged a wary glance when they saw the swarm of suited men.
clickety-clack
Suki fished a comic book out of her school-bag, the latest adventure of a group of mutants who were at a special school due to their gifts. She enjoyed reading since it helped pass the time between here and there. Depending on where there was and how long it took to get there, she would indulge in a trivial form of reading.
Her attention was focused on the sound bubble of each page, reading the story that unfolded. Drawing her in deeper and deeper into the continued story arc.
She was just getting to a good part when she flipped the page and the story arc was To be continued... and that irked her to no end.
“What's the matter?” Goner asked.
“They just met this cool new hero named Raven – she's got this awesome sortof telepathic reality-warping power – and now I'll never get to find out what happens next! The chances of finding the next issue in the next version are pretty slim...”
Goner nodded. Living a life broken up into strange fragments and shifting moments, it always felt like things were 'to be continued'. You always knew that eventually things would get weird, or dangerous, or both.
clickety-clack
The suits continued their sweep of the platform; Lee wasn't buying it. He knew the type, knew that their motives were usually suspect, and he was pretty sure that the ID's they were flashing were fake. He looked around, trying to see if there was anyone nearby who wouldn't think he was just being paranoid...
Adam watched the suits on the march, then noticed Lee, the suspicious look on his face, that rare moment when you know for certain that someone else is thinking the exact same thing as you...
clickety-clack
Angst sat looking out the window, watching the blur and listening to her mp3 player. She was listening to a classic song and moved her head to the rhythmic beat.
Suki sat behind her re-reading the comic book and sipping on a soda...
clickety-clack
Kelly gently nudged the group of children along the platform. The teacher had gone to the washroom, which left her and the other volunteer in charge of the field trip, and now these strange men in suits were herding everyone.
"What's going on?" the other volunteer asked. "Terrorists?" Kelly frowned; some people were so eager to believe some lies and so reluctant to believe some truths.
One of the suits barked at one of the kids to move along and Mark stepped in, back from the washroom, eyes locking on the man's sunglasses. “There's no need for that,” Mark said.
clickety-clack
"No way," Goner said. He had moved on down the subway car to where Frank was sitting. "Did you even watch the same game as I did?"
"Yeah, I did," Frank said. "You must be watching some fantasy version in your head."
"Clearly Redgrin had the ball in his possession before the whistle blew," Goner stated.
"The whistle blew before Redgrin could do the recovery," Frank grinned. "You are just a sore loser. You still owe me."
"Well, I don't have the cash on me," Goner said. "Wait to see if there's an ATM at the next stop and I will get it to you."
Frank rolled his eyes back and said, "That's if you do have an account in this version."
clickety-clack
Debashis and Joy stepped off the escalator onto the platform. “Consequences aren't merely arbitrary effects designated by the person with the power, they become the way that the person being helped understands that their actions are significant and important, as long as the person with the power is exercising it with self-awareness...” Debashis was saying.
“Or as we say on the frontline, 'shit's gotta mean shit',” Joy replied. Debashis laughed, until he saw the scene playing out before them and a suit started walking menacingly towards them.
Joy's cell made a strange beeping noise...
clickety-clack
Mags was sitting beside Bishop's booth, keeping the conductor company. She knew better than to ask him when their next stop was going to be. She hummed a tune as she dragged the whetstone along the blade of her katana. And then a strange feeling came over her...
She stared down the length of car, Max dozing, Suki reading, Angst listening to music, Frank and Goner chatting, the new girl Summer knitting. And someone else, a man sitting at the far end of the car; he was writing in a notebook and paused to roll some oddly-shaped dice. When he did, Maggie suddenly noticed a soft grey glow around Summer, then Frank, then a darker one around Suki...
clickety-clack
Chance and Peyton were listening to the buskers and talking about anime when the suits began their push. They watched for a moment then looked to each other. “Do they look familiar to you?” Peyton asked.
Chance nodded. “Do you feel that? It's the same feeling... from years ago...”
Peyton's eyes widened. “I remember,” she said. Then looked down at her hands, where two massive battle-gauntlets had appeared. Then at Chance's chest, where a gold cross suddenly materialized.
clickety-clack
Tim rolled the dice again.
clickety-clack
Most of the crowd had been chased off. Another LEGACY cell moved onto the platform, carrying some cases and setting them down. They moved with the purpose of a strike team. Opening up the cases revealing heavy weapons. They began to mount them on the platform, quick and efficient; with pressurized drills they were putting the mounts into the floor.
Anthony had been waiting on a bench, reading Nagel's 'What is it Like to be a Bat?'. He had watched the first LEGACY cell move in and begin clearing the platform. It was as if he could see it from different angles. He had noticed the way that the buskers' playing provided a soundtrack for the scene. And he had started having these brief flashes, like jump-cuts, to the interior of an approaching subway car, a strange group on board. A sense of tension rising.
And when the second team appeared and began setting the weapons, that's when the music stopped. And the silence was as loud and as profound as the noise had been. And that's when the shouting started and Anthony knew something very bad was about to happen.
clickety-clack
There were three dozen LEGACY members waiting. Three mounted cannons and each soldier armed to the hilt with weapons.
Jeremiah and Andy were standing now, clutching their guitars. The appearance of the weapons had surprised them, but not as much as seeing the cross materialize around Chance's neck and the gauntlets on Peyton's hands.
“That's very cool,” Jeremiah said.
Andy looked to the LEGACY team, then back to Chance and Peyton. “I think we're with you guys on this.”
Lee and Adam had instinctively moved towards each other. They were staring down a handful of the suits, who seemed surprised that the two men hadn't followed the order to leave. Close enough now that Lee could see some of the devices that they were carrying. “Dark Tek,” he whispered.
Adam held up a pack of handmade Tarot cards, cutting the deck and handing half to Lee. “Light tech.”
When the LEGACY suit tried to shove Mark backwards he got himself rugby-tackled. The kids behind Kelly cheered, “Yay Mr. Haskins!” The other volunteer started to run. Kelly sighed. “Alright kids, stay behind me!” And she faced the oncoming soldiers, and noticed that the suit Mark had tackled had dropped a device...
Joy was trying to understand how an app that she had dreamed about – there had been a spooky well, and this weird guy, who she somehow knew – was now actually installed on her phone and warning her that an 'OMEGA CLASS ANOMALY' was being detected. Debashis had advanced and was trying to negotiate with an approaching suit, with little effect. Joy was tapping the screen, trying to understand the strange software, trying to remember the dream, the odd conversations she had had with the weird guy...
Debashis, using every counseling trick he had to try and connect with the expressionless agent before him, had his own dreamy memory – a pathworking ritual, years ago, a vision of some trolls attacking a defenseless deer, and the knowledge that sometimes you had to stand up to the bullies...
Anthony stood up. And there was a woman beside him. She was looking at the chaos erupting before them on the platform. Anthony asked, “Aren't you a character from a comic book? A friend of mine reads a lot of them...”
Raven looked thoughtful. “I might be, in this version. What do you say? Shall we watch or shall we join in?”
Anthony smiled back. “Fight scene?”
Raven smiled. “After you, Butch.”
Anthony nodded. “My pleasure, Sundance.”
Kelly grabbed the device, thin like a pen but with a glowing light on the end. Mark was on his feet again, throwing a block at another agent. “You know how to use that thing?” he asked.
Kelly smiled. “I watch a lot of sci-fi.”
Adam smiled as he drew the first card from his deck and began accessing the necessary trance-state to engage the symbolic interface for tulpa summoning. “Do you know how to use those?” he asked Lee.
“I'll figure it out,” Lee said. “I play a lot of role-playing games.” He smiled.
Debashis turned back to Joy. “I'm gonna punch this guy out, if you're okay with that?”
Joy smiled as she finally figured out how to use the app to send a signal over-ride to the LEGACY heavy weapons systems, effectively shutting them down. “I accept that,” she answered.
Chance smiled at Peyton. “Alright, just like the old days!” And he charged the agents.
“Follow us!” Peyton shouted at Jeremiah and Andy, and she followed Chance into the fray, gauntlets swinging wildly.
“This is some pretty weird shit,” Jeremiah said, smiling. “I'm kinda freaked out but kinda excited.”
Andy nodded. “'It's the duplicitous edge which we all walk upon'.”
They raised their guitars and charged.
clickety-clack
clickety-clack
clickety clack
“Hey,” Suki said, tapping Angst on the shoulder. “Did you see that?"
Angst popped out her earphones. “Yeah... The last station we passed through, some kind of crazy battle going on... Did you guys see that?”
Frank and Goner were playing cards. They shook their heads in sync. Summer was still knitting; it was the first time that she looked even a little bit relaxed since they had brought her aboard the subway car.
“How about you, Maggie?” Suki asked. “Should we wake up Max?”
Mags watched as the strange glows surrounding Summer, Frank and Suki faded away. She looked to the end of the car where Tim was packing up his dice and notes.
Maggie smiled. “Let him sleep for a while longer.”
Epilogue:
Bailey skipped down the escalator. She was worried that she was going to get in trouble for getting separated from the rest of the kids on the field trip but she had been sure that woman had been the actress who played Katniss and she wasn't going to miss the chance for an autograph. Not her though, so now she was late with nothing to show for it. Mr. Haskins was a cool teacher but he would probably still be upset.
When she arrived on the platform she was amazed at what she found. Dozens of unconscious men in suits scattered about. Some bullet-holes and scorch-marks on the walls. A group of people were gathered at the far end of the platform, shaking hands and laughing. Mr. Haskins was there, and Kelly the volunteer. And was that her sister, Peyton?
Bailey wondered what had happened. Then she noticed that one of the men in a suit was still moving... His hand was reaching slowly towards a weird device that looked like some kind of futuristic bomb. No one in the group noticed...
His hand was almost on the button when Bailey stepped over him and punched him squarely in the face. Knocked him out cold. She pulled a bunch of wires out of the device so that it wasn't a threat anymore and headed towards the group. It had been quite a field trip.
20131031
20131025
> Debashis in Plureality 4
Suki was what they called “wisely innocent”, a soul
who presented as rather young but in reality, was ages beyond others.
It’s just that she would come across as naïve.
Max never felt sorry for her, but wanted to protect her. That was hard because she had her own little chaos and Max was chaos personified. Some days. Most nights.
Suki and Max, at some star-crossed time, had this mutual-protection-unspoken-pact between them that led them both to the brink of destruction – well, while Suki tended to come to the edge because of Max, Max led himself there rather often. They’d get to the edge, get nearly destroyed, and then walk away, with some bruises and cuts and scrapes, and maybe missing a limb.
Max would recover and get into some adventure again (more likely a ‘situation’) and Suki would rise to some other level of maturity or development or awareness or consciousness or some something self-aggrandizing like that. Except she would not really see herself that way. But deep down in her versions, her selves, her plurealities, she grew deeper and deeper, older and older, wiser and wiser.
To you and me, she was just Suki, someone to watch as she negotiated her way through the stars, someone who was cute, but in that ‘little kid’ kind of way – maybe like a little sister – a little sister who could just as easily pull an Uzi or furnish a switchblade to slit your jugular.
How can you want to be near someone to protect them and yet at the same time, be a little scared of them? That’s Suki. Cute and Cutting.
Max never felt sorry for her, but wanted to protect her. That was hard because she had her own little chaos and Max was chaos personified. Some days. Most nights.
Suki and Max, at some star-crossed time, had this mutual-protection-unspoken-pact between them that led them both to the brink of destruction – well, while Suki tended to come to the edge because of Max, Max led himself there rather often. They’d get to the edge, get nearly destroyed, and then walk away, with some bruises and cuts and scrapes, and maybe missing a limb.
Max would recover and get into some adventure again (more likely a ‘situation’) and Suki would rise to some other level of maturity or development or awareness or consciousness or some something self-aggrandizing like that. Except she would not really see herself that way. But deep down in her versions, her selves, her plurealities, she grew deeper and deeper, older and older, wiser and wiser.
To you and me, she was just Suki, someone to watch as she negotiated her way through the stars, someone who was cute, but in that ‘little kid’ kind of way – maybe like a little sister – a little sister who could just as easily pull an Uzi or furnish a switchblade to slit your jugular.
How can you want to be near someone to protect them and yet at the same time, be a little scared of them? That’s Suki. Cute and Cutting.
20131023
After the Fire, After the Pan...
Summer laughed.
Angst couldn't see the amusement in this particular episode, but she figured she would ask Summer about it later. Presuming, of course, that they would come out of this one alive.
Summer was leaning back against a wall rocking back and forth. Angst knew that she would crack in her first combat, but didn't everyone?
"Find a focal point, Summer," Angst ordered. "I need you on this one."
"S..s...sorry," Summer apologized. "I don't know what came over me."
"It happened to me as well," Angst said. She gut crawled over to where Summer was. "I need you to do something for me, only for a few seconds."
"I'll try," Summer responded.
Angst glanced over to where Frank was lying, he was still moving and that was a good sign. She tried to make a break to him but each time she moved a hail of bullets would rain down around her like an angry god.
"Frank!" she called out.
He didn't respond to her call.
"Hold on," she whispered.
Angst couldn't see the amusement in this particular episode, but she figured she would ask Summer about it later. Presuming, of course, that they would come out of this one alive.
Summer was leaning back against a wall rocking back and forth. Angst knew that she would crack in her first combat, but didn't everyone?
"Find a focal point, Summer," Angst ordered. "I need you on this one."
"S..s...sorry," Summer apologized. "I don't know what came over me."
"It happened to me as well," Angst said. She gut crawled over to where Summer was. "I need you to do something for me, only for a few seconds."
"I'll try," Summer responded.
Angst glanced over to where Frank was lying, he was still moving and that was a good sign. She tried to make a break to him but each time she moved a hail of bullets would rain down around her like an angry god.
"Frank!" she called out.
He didn't respond to her call.
"Hold on," she whispered.
20131020
Faux Blog
(nerdychick's blog from BloggittyBlogBlogs)
It was raining, pouring as if a waterfall had just appeared above me. Since I had several blocks to go, I decided to take the subway. Though the platform was crowded, I guess tons of other people had the same thought as I did.
The subway rolled in and everyone began to push in shove inside the cars, and I was being jostled around like a doll. I saw that the last car was practically empty and I made a beeline for it. At least I had a seat waiting for me.
I found a seat in a car and proceeded to bury my face in a book. At 42d St. there was another huge group of people waiting on the platform but none of them had made their way to the last car. I glanced around the car and noticed a very angelic woman who was sitting at the far end listening to an ipod. Across from here was a spikey-haired fellow on a cellphone, he seemed to be chatting in some foreign nerd speak.
Just before the doors closed. A girl in a cowboy hat and huge gloves stepped in. She noticed me and flashed me a smile.
"You new here?" she asked.
I looked around and noticed she was speaking to me.
"Oh yes," I said politely. I didn't feel like getting punched out for being rude.
"I'm Aqua," she told me as she sat next to me. She was chewing gum and that's when I noticed that her gloves (at the fists) were stained dark brown. So she has seen too many Street Fighter cartoons I gathered, I wondered if she was sizing me up.
"I'm Memphis," I lied.
Aqua went on this rant about demonic beasts and cyborg robots that she must of escaped from the mental ward. Man, she described every scene in gory detail, that it made me wonder and to see the crack of a smile as she told it made me wonder more.
"Aqua, let Memphis be," the spikey haired fellow called over. "She's got a lot on her plate at the moment and she doesn't need to be bugged."
"Sure Max," Aqua replied. She got up and moved on to the back of the car.
I was in shock since "Max" couldn't of known my name was Memphis since I just made it up on the spot. Maybe he just read my lips, but that couldn't be since I wasn't facing him.
Before I knew it he was right behind me. Must of snuck up fast like a cobra and he said. "I know your stop is up next, Memphis" he handed me a cellphone. "If you ever in trouble hit *333."
I hadn't had a chance to reply when he got up and moved on to the back, and the car was slowing down. I dropped the cellphone into my bag, I don't know why I just didn't leave it behind for all I know it has some sort of tracking device on it.
When I got home I put the cellphone on my desk and looked at it. I really don't know what to make out of it. Though, I tried to use it to make a regular phone call, it works... and the kicker of it all is that it's free. Wow.
I hope I don't have to dail that number he told me.
It was raining, pouring as if a waterfall had just appeared above me. Since I had several blocks to go, I decided to take the subway. Though the platform was crowded, I guess tons of other people had the same thought as I did.
The subway rolled in and everyone began to push in shove inside the cars, and I was being jostled around like a doll. I saw that the last car was practically empty and I made a beeline for it. At least I had a seat waiting for me.
I found a seat in a car and proceeded to bury my face in a book. At 42d St. there was another huge group of people waiting on the platform but none of them had made their way to the last car. I glanced around the car and noticed a very angelic woman who was sitting at the far end listening to an ipod. Across from here was a spikey-haired fellow on a cellphone, he seemed to be chatting in some foreign nerd speak.
Just before the doors closed. A girl in a cowboy hat and huge gloves stepped in. She noticed me and flashed me a smile.
"You new here?" she asked.
I looked around and noticed she was speaking to me.
"Oh yes," I said politely. I didn't feel like getting punched out for being rude.
"I'm Aqua," she told me as she sat next to me. She was chewing gum and that's when I noticed that her gloves (at the fists) were stained dark brown. So she has seen too many Street Fighter cartoons I gathered, I wondered if she was sizing me up.
"I'm Memphis," I lied.
Aqua went on this rant about demonic beasts and cyborg robots that she must of escaped from the mental ward. Man, she described every scene in gory detail, that it made me wonder and to see the crack of a smile as she told it made me wonder more.
"Aqua, let Memphis be," the spikey haired fellow called over. "She's got a lot on her plate at the moment and she doesn't need to be bugged."
"Sure Max," Aqua replied. She got up and moved on to the back of the car.
I was in shock since "Max" couldn't of known my name was Memphis since I just made it up on the spot. Maybe he just read my lips, but that couldn't be since I wasn't facing him.
Before I knew it he was right behind me. Must of snuck up fast like a cobra and he said. "I know your stop is up next, Memphis" he handed me a cellphone. "If you ever in trouble hit *333."
I hadn't had a chance to reply when he got up and moved on to the back, and the car was slowing down. I dropped the cellphone into my bag, I don't know why I just didn't leave it behind for all I know it has some sort of tracking device on it.
When I got home I put the cellphone on my desk and looked at it. I really don't know what to make out of it. Though, I tried to use it to make a regular phone call, it works... and the kicker of it all is that it's free. Wow.
I hope I don't have to dail that number he told me.
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