Monday 7 May 2012

Shooting Star

Today, I encountered Evelyn again while going about some business in the city- more precisely, I had gone to the movies to see The Hunger Games, for lack of anything else to do. I was sitting at the bus stop, listening to Stella's iPod, when Evelyn spotted me from across the road and came over to say hello.

"Waiting for the bus?" she asked, sitting down next to me. I shrugged. "It's another fifteen minutes away, and I don't have anything else to do."

"What are you listening to?" she asked, glancing down at the iPod in my hand. "I don't actually know, some pop artist I've never heard of. See for yourself." I replied, passing it to her.

She took it and took a close look at the unlock screen, her eyes widening. "Two Face!" she exclaimed, looking at the background. The picture was one I had taken, of Stella and Kristen embroiled in a rather intense game of Connect Four. "And- what's her name, it was Latin..."

"The pseudonym she took on as an Indoctrinated or her real name?" I asked. "Both of them have Latin roots."

Evelyn snapped her fingers a few times, frowning. "Tenebria, that was her name. What happened to her? She just stopped reporting last February."

I took back the iPod, taking a while to collect my thoughts before I spoke. "She took a cure for His compulsion, and joined two bloggers in their fight against Him. When I wiped their minds, I couldn't wipe her as  integrating her back into society would be almost impossible, as to all intents and purposes she has never existed. She was killed by Him last May."

"I'm sorry." she said. "Were you two close?" The implications behind the question hung in the air for a few long, awkward second before I shrugged.

"Not romantically." I replied. "She was as close to family as I ever had."

There was a long silence before she said. "Well, nice speaking to you, anyway," and then she got up and left.

Across the road was a very familiar face. Not-Stella, my recurring hallucination. She leaned on the wall opposite, staring at me steadily, then a gaggle of people went past her and then she was gone.

As with every time I see her, I wanted to yell "What do you want from me? Why are you here?"

She never answers, and I feel like a madman, chasing shadows and shooting stars.

6 comments:

  1. You didn't tell her that it was Two Face that killed her?

    And fuck this bitch. 'Oh waaah, I'm sorry she died. I just happen to be part of the organization that helped her die, but I'm so sorrrrrrry.'

    If I was there I'd be putting my fist through her face.

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  2. If it had been her talking about a friend that one of the more aggressive bloggers had slain, I would have reacted much the same, Rob. Proxies are human, just like the rest of us.

    I was Indoctrinated once, remember?

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  3. And yet she seems to be perfectly lucid. Much more than Stella was even.

    She was part of the organization that helped get her killed. And if she's so lucid, she could fight against it. Like Stella did. And her saying 'I'm so sorry' for it just...Grah.

    Oh, and bitch? If you're reading this, if you ever get near me or try to harass me, I will *end* you.

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  4. I share your reservations, Jedi (at the moment our acquaintance seems to be based on mutual distrust) but I'm going to reserve judgement on what kind of person she is until I know the circumstances around her ties to He That Is. Until then I will provisionally only trust her as far as I could throw her (which is definitely not very far, if at all).

    As I recall, anyway, Rob, initially you were quite hostile towards both Stella and myself, and you and Stella ended up an item and we are friends. The situation we are in in more complex than us versus them. It's all of us versus Him. The proxies just don't know it yet.

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  5. At the time of my hostility, you and Stella were trying to threaten and potentially kill Vivi and Chester.

    but fine, I'll keep my feelings on the matter to myself.

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