Stef grunted as she tried to get comfortable – there was something wrong with her pillow. It was warm, yes, and comfortable, it just wasn’t familiar. She curled her hand into a fist and tried to mash the unfamiliar lumps into place, only for this to be met with a grunt of pain.
Pillows in her house generally being of non-speaking variety, she threw herself back from the grunting pillow, losing her balance and nearly falling off the edge of the bed before being caught with strong hands.
‘You should probably open your eyes,’ Ryan said.
She did as she was told and blinked a few times as her eyes adjusted to the light – she was on her bed – well, mostly, two strong agent hands were the only thing stopping her to crashing to the laundry-free floor. He steadied her and she crawled back to the safety of the middle of the bed, one hand landing in a pile of paperwork. Ryan resumed his former position on the bed beside her, lifted the paperwork – and her copy of Wind and the Willows – onto his knees and smiled.
‘See, I told you that you would be all right.’
She lifted a hand to her head, and nodded. ‘Yeah, I do feel a lot better.’ She gave him a confused look. ‘Was I using you as a pillow?’ He nodded. ‘Sorry.’
‘It wasn’t the first time I’ve been used in that capacity, and I doubt it will be the last, so don’t worry about it.’
‘How long was I out?’
‘Only three hours.’
She folded her legs beneath her. ‘Ok, first thing’s first, can you help me cash in my life insurance policy?’
He flipped open the top folder of his pile of paperwork. ‘According to this, your family already did.’
Her shoulder slumped. ‘You’re shitting me.’
‘They also took the contents of your bank account.’
‘Wonderful. They’ll waste it on one party. What the hell am I supposed to do now? Oh wait…’ She held out her hands. ‘Money, money, money, require: money.’
He silently swore as she looked up at him with a confused look on her face. ‘Did I forget the magic word?’
‘The ability to require is severed at death. It’s a security protocol.’
‘Ah,’ she said and looked up at him. ‘In that case, require: coffee.’ She stared at him until a white mug appeared in his hand.
‘Thanks.’ Her stomach growled and she barked at it after she downed the mouthful of coffee. ‘Since I seem to have puked out the contents of my stomach, can I fill it back up? Cause if this is one of those “you can’t eat” deaths, I’m going to off myself with a spork.’ A sudden, and very uncomfortable look crossed his face. ‘Yeesh, sorry, didn’t mean it, and it’s not like I’d really use a spork, there are much more efficient ways.’
The uncomfortable look disappeared, but in its place was an expression far more neutral than she was used to. ‘You’re hungry, of course, it’s natural, I’ll require whatever you want.’
She shook her head. ‘No, I want to go out. I’ve been immobile for a month, and if I’m saying that I want to get out for a while, then the situation is pretty freaking dire. I just want to go down to Chinatown and grab something. I think my legs can carry me that far. I think.’
‘If they can’t, I’ll be there.’
‘K…’ she mumbled as she pushed herself off the bed and stumbled toward her wardrobe. ‘I can live with the funky new chair, but what did my wardrobe door ever do to you?’
‘I had to remove it.’
‘Can I have it back? It defeats the purpose of hiding in a wardrobe if you don’t have a door to close behind you.’
He snapped his fingers and it was replaced.
‘Now, um…’ She looked down at herself. ‘I don’t know if you awesomed these clothes on me or if you saw my shame.’
‘I’m an agent, we’re gentlemen by default. You-‘
‘I meant my scars,’ she said quietly. She shook her hands. ‘Not the point. Get out of my room so I can get changed.’
‘As you wish.’ He rose and walked from the bedroom, closing the door behind him.
I-
You’re alive.
I can’t-
You’re awake.
She walked over to the wardrobe, undressing herself on autopilot.
This can’t-
You’re fine.
She held a hand to her bare chest, feeling the lack of heartbeat.
I’m going to-
You’re alive, you’re awake, you’re fine.
‘Pants,’ she said aloud, ‘pants are definitely needed.’ She groped at the high shelf and pulled down a pair of faded black cargo pants.
I don’t have a heartbeat.
Maybe it’s beating so fast it just seems like its standing still.
Don’t you dare try and fool me with science.
Was worth a try.
She turned her head to look at her collection of shirts – a strangely ordered collection of shirts. ‘Oh, bugger…’
She walked over to the door, and stared at where she thought the agent would be on the other side. ‘Did you organise my wardrobe?’
‘Yes,’ came his answer from the other side of the door.
‘Why the hell would you do that?’
‘I was…bored.’
She wished her stare could penetrate the door. ‘How am I supposed to find anything now? I mean, it’s not like I plan what I’m going to wear, but if it’s organised, then how am I-?’
‘You have four seconds before I require a shirt for you.’
‘You wouldn’t.’
‘Four…’
She silently counted down as she stared over at her organised wardrobe. ‘See, knew you wouldn’t-‘ Something brushed against her skin. Something awful.
She dropped to the floor and tried to pull the horrid thing off, but the complicated top stayed obstinately on. Ribbons criss-crossed with other ribbons, preventing her from escaping it. Ruffles scratched at her neck, fashionable frills mocking her as she still failed to escape the horrible thing.
Worst of all, it was pink.
‘You’re evil!’ she screamed at the closed door. ‘Four seconds is like…’ Something unfamiliar escaped her throat. A laugh, a real laugh – not one mocking herself, not one mocking someone else, but a real laugh.
You’re laughing?
I’m alive, I feel-
‘-good. I feel good.’
She stopped tugging at the ribbons then leaned back against the door. ‘Can I please have a real shirt now?’
The pink abomination was replaced with a plain gray t-shirt. She nodded, stood and pulled the door open. ‘Where did you find that…shirt?’
‘It’s the magenta-‘
‘Call it what it was, it was pink.’
‘Magenta.’
‘Narc.’
‘-version of something Magnolia wore last week.’
‘Ok, ready.’
‘Are you sure you’re feeling up to this?’
‘Peking duck is calling. Plus, I’ve been dead a month, the sky might have turned red or something in my absence.’
‘Speaking of which…’ he said as he reached into his pocket. He handed her his sunglasses. ‘You should wear these.’
She slipped them on. ‘Any reason?’
‘You haven’t opened your eyes in a month, it’s possible that sunlight could temporarily blind you.’ He snapped his fingers and they disappeared from the apartment.
The hustle and bustle of dinner-time Chinatown met her eyes as she blinked. ‘Now where?’ he asked.
‘This way,’ she said as she started toward her favourite restaurant. After a moment, she froze, unable to move.
He put a hand on her shoulder. ‘Are you all right?’
‘Have you ever stayed up for four days straight doing a hack, so strung out on coffee that you can feel it bouncing around in your veins, that you lose yourself? That…you catch a glimpse of yourself in the monitor and wonder if that’s the real you, and you’re just the shadow? And that as soon as this little glimmer of light goes away that you’ll disappear forever?’
‘No, but I was once caught in a blackout zone and injured to the point where my memories began to fragment…and I wasn’t sure what was the memory, and what was really happening to me.’
As uncomfortable as it made her, she leaned back against his hand. ‘I want to be numb. I want to feel something that’s as strange as what’s happening to me. I want coffee.’
A hand appeared over her other shoulder, a plain white paper cup of coffee in it. She gratefully took a sip, then grimaced. ‘How many sugars is this?’
‘More than enough.’
‘It only tastes like eight.’
‘Which is more than enough.’
She shrugged. ‘Not if you’re me.’ Falling silent, she quickly downed the rest of the coffee. ‘Ok. Better. Not completely better, but better enough.’
She began to walk again, then nervously grabbed his sleeve as he fell into step beside her. Everything was so…new. She could feel the concrete under her feet, the gentle breeze was the strongest thing she’d ever felt, all the sounds were as strange as if she’d never heard them before.
It was like being a tourist in her own body.
All she wanted to do was run back to her unit, lock the door and stay there forever. Surely it was safer than feeling like the only black and white thing in a technicoloured world. She felt out of place. Out of time. Out of her mind.
‘The only other time,’ she said as she stopped to fiddle with her shoe. ‘That I’ve ever felt like this is the morning after that hack. Or afternoon. Whenever I woke up from the mini-coma. I came down here.’ She pointed the McDonald’s. ‘And went there. I wanted food. I was out of food, and I didn’t trust myself to even boil water.’
‘It’s fast food,’ he reasoned. ‘How hard could it be to-?’
‘I tried to order food. I ended up sprouting Beowulf instead.’
He stopped walking. ‘Since this is you, I have to ask-‘
‘Old English,’ she said, anticipating the question. ‘They thought I was a tourist.’
He smiled and shook his head. ‘Did your “breakfast” eventu-?’
A bullet silenced him.
She watched as he fell to the ground, almost in slow-motion, his face slamming into the cobbled brick before he unceremoniously broke apart and disappeared, leaving only a few blue sparks for a split second.
This, Spyder, is the part where you run.
She looked over to where the shot must have come from.
Aren’t I running?
You’re being a target, that’s what you’re doing. Run.
She shook her head, snapping herself awake, ran a few steps and threw herself behind one of the large stone planter boxes.
Yeah…this isn’t much better. Run…more? I know it isn’t an activity you enjoy, but this is one of those times where you have to listen to me.
The ground shook as an explosion rocked the upper part of the mall. Ryan reappeared, and ran towards it.
Get up.
She got to her knees and looked over the planter box – two Solstice were dragging a screaming young man down the mall. He was doing all he could to impede them, but the kidnappers were much stronger – practically carrying him between the two of them.
No. Don’t.
She turned and looked at the store behind her, lying near the door was a short length of thin pipe – the kind used to help open and close the roller doors – she scrambled across and grabbed it, took a few quick, sharp breaths and ran after the Solstice.
You’re going to-
Don’t want to hear it.
Since when the fuck is Stef Mimosa a hero?
…wanting to beat people with pipes is being a hero now? Order my cape!
She swung the thin pipe and hit the first cultist – he shouted in pain and released his grip on the young man – the second cultist tightened his grip on the boy and kept running. She lifted the pipe and hit him again, and this time, the pipe bent.
‘What’s your fucking deal?’ he yelled as he tore the pipe from her hand. He raised a hand to his head, but his expression changed when he looked up at her.
Remember that thing about running?
‘Recruit.’ He said. ‘Shoulda fucking known it.’
Thinkthinkthink! ‘Kidnapping people is bad, lol?’
He grabbed her by the shirt, punched her, pulled the sunglasses from her face and let her fall. ‘These are recruit glasses.’
‘No, they’re knockoffs!’ she said, grabbing her bleeding nose. ‘Bought them at the market for ten bucks.’
‘Then I guess it doesn’t matter that we just set off a blackout bomb.’ She couldn’t keep the horror off her face, and his expression changed from anger to victory. ‘Don’t lie to Solstice, recruit. Only makes us enjoy the kill even more.’
Require: gun.
Damn.
Require: gun.
She tried to push herself up, but earned a boot to the face for her trouble.
Require: gun.
The cultist pulled out a gun.
Not exactly what I had in mind.
‘Ry-Ry-Ry…’
The cultist lifted the gun.
Gods, no!
‘Pl-ple-please…’ she lifted shaking hands. ‘Ple-ple-please-pl-please please don’t.’ Her legs felt like ice – she was sure that even if she’d been able to stand, that she wouldn’t have been able to run. ‘Please don’t.’
‘You’re a recruit.’
‘I’m not, I’m not, not-not-not, pl-please don’t.’
Require: gun. Require: gun. Requirerequirerequirerequire…
The cultist shook his head. ‘Not gonna let you live, just so you can kill me.’
You’re so pathetic. You should have run.
She took a deep breath and lowered her hands. ‘Can I at least stand up?’
‘No,’ he said, and fired.
She saw the muzzle flash, and felt the impact. Unable to control herself, her head dropped back.
Gotta get up…why aren’t you telling me to get up?
Spyder, you can’t feel your legs.
A dark spot appeared in her vision, and everything began to go gray.
Oh.
That’s it? No screaming, no crying, no-
Shut it.
-no bargaining? Come on, Spyder, react!
…why?
There was one bright spot left in her vision, and she clung to it.
Because you’re going into the darkness, and that’s going to be it.
I know that.
Be scared already!
No, you can be the scared one this time.
There’s nothing irrational about-
The bright spot began to grow dark.
I brought this on myself.
lol @ “…, but better enough.”
AND THEN YOU KILLED HER!!! AGAIN!!!
you evil Stormy! I’m never going wibbly again! (in case you can’t tell, this is a lousy threat in the way that i cannot help myself anyway.)
Why did you have to go and do this? Why did Stef not listen to her bold voice anymore?
So… evil…!!!!!
Why revive her just to kill her again? T_T
Require: cookie and coffee for Stef…
Worth a try, no?
Why revive her just to kill her again? T_T
…to make you people hate me? 😛
And why aren’t you just uselessly trying “Require: Stef” over and over. 😛
I didn’t kill her, I just wrote it that way. >_>
And, as to not listening to bold voice…she saw something that was bad, and wanted it to stop, even if it wasn’t in her best self-interest (which is all that bold voice cares about).
It’s an attempt at growing up…which went horribly wrong so she’ll never, ever try again. 😛
Well, certainly not if she’s dead…
I hate you. Seriously. I do. -_-
But… maybe she’s not dead, only badly injured, and Ryan has to take her to the Parkers to save her life, and a big mess comes out of the whole thing. Precisely your style.
LOL @:
She curled her hand into a fist and tried to mash the unfamiliar lumps into place, only for this to be met with a grunt of pain.
…do you? ;_;
Hmm…even if you did, you’d say you didn’t, so you could get another update. ^_^
Interesting theory as to what will happen…but no, unfortunately no. (But man…now my brain is going off in interesting directions).
…
…
…
Nah. I don’t. But if I will, I’ll let you know.
Now I wish I were one of my aliens, and dig whatever comes next out of your brain, without you even figuring it out. >_>
…you start to dig around, and then just get confused, you’d be like…
“Hey, wait, WHAT?” “Why would you- OH MY GOD?!” “No, no, no, can’t be happening!” “Aww…that’s sweet, and I knew something was up with him!” “O_O is he going to be ok?” “Oooh, that’s funky” “bitchbtichbitchbitch!” “nonononononononono!” “…that’s it? That’s it?!” “Ok…Stormy what the hell did you just do?”
…and that’s just for the rest of this book. (…notice I’ve actually tried to do these reactions in order, so just try and imagine what you’d be reacting to).
…and if you got in my head, you’d see a whole bunch of stuff that would be so much happier just to wait for.
…not to mention all of the abandoned plot threads and ideas, some of which will rightly never see the light of day. (Like, er, probably the most fucked up sex scene I could have ever thought of. -_-).
…I’d manipulate you into playing the whole MH in your mind, so I’ll have front-row tickets to the kewl show. ^_^
Hmm…
“Hey, wait, WHAT?” “Why would you- OH MY GOD?!”
Killing Stef again, or Stef-related Stormy-bitchness.
“No, no, no, can’t be happening!”
Emma evilness.
“Aww…that’s sweet, and I knew something was up with him!”
Merlin or Curt.
“O_O is he going to be ok?”
Something to do with Ryan.
“Oooh, that’s funky”
Stef powers.
“bitchbtichbitchbitch!” “nonononononononono!”
Moar killing Stef (or other nice characters) or something to do with Ryan getting recycled.
“…that’s it? That’s it?!”
Abrupt ending.
“Ok…Stormy what the hell did you just do?”
Reactions to the abrupt ending, which was either uber-predictable, or mind-boggling. Also precedes throwings of potato peelers and sharp objects.
probably the most fucked up sex scene I could have ever thought of
More fucked up than AL13N’s? ^_^
(no offence here :p)
Am I being some Reference now???
But seriously, my reaction to Stormy’s comment was:
– Hmm, interesting
– Nah, Stormy can’t handle that much, it won’t be that fscked up.
– That would be best for the story.
– Shit, I’m still curious
– I wonder if I can get Stormy to …
– Argh, won’t happen…
– But maybe she’d be inclined to post a short overview with one or two particular hints, which could set off a whole new tangent with more comments of Stormy, Bufi and myself…
…
… your story did rob my brain of its innocence, so that means something :p
But maybe she’d be inclined to post a short overview with one or two particular hints, which could set off a whole new tangent with more comments of Stormy, Bufi and myself…
I’m all for that! Come on, Stormy, give us something! >_>
…let’s start this train wreck.
…ok, remember that this scene has been ditched, long ago been ditched, and that no version of it will be appearing in canon, at all, and that the story it was attached to no longer exists and that something entirely different is happening in its place.
…but since I have the feeling that this is going to turn into one of those long things, I’m posting it in the forum so that we don’t end up with comments half an inch wide.
And here we…go!
Killing Stef again, or Stef-related Stormy-bitchness.
On the right track…but it’s another step further.
Emma evilness.
Close.
Merlin or Curt.
Unfortunately wrong, it isn’t someone you’d immediately think of. (You’ll understand what I mean when you read it).
Stef powers.
Powers yes, but not Stef.
Moar killing Stef (or other nice characters) or something to do with Ryan getting recycled.
Relatively close.
Abrupt ending.
Bingo!
Reactions to the abrupt ending, which was either uber-predictable, or mind-boggling. Also precedes throwings of potato peelers and sharp objects.
…yup.
More fucked up than AL13N’s? ^_^
…yeah.
On the right track…but it’s another step further.
You mean killing Stef for good.
Powers yes, but not Stef.
Sure, if you kill her for good first. -_-
…yeah.
Wanna see wanna see wanna see! 😀
So Stef dies for good and Ryan gets recycled?
Require: Wall Color Brain Matter Grey
Mwa ha ha ha, ok that’s enough. Guess I am in a strange mood today.
I loved how he made her chose a shirt, that sounds like it would really be hard to put on. Let alone get the sucker off. Good think for Magnolia is that most of them get destroyed before she has to worry about that.
This part made me laugh: Worst of all, it was pink.
Well, really, like you’ll see in the next chapter, it’s the ground that’s splattered with that attractive shade of grey.
As to Mags, well, she can just require on and require of whatever she wants to wear…those that aren’t ripped to shreds anyway. ^_^
therefore I declare that Stef will no fade into nothingness, Stef will continue to be awesome little hacker girl.
It is my reality and I will do with it what I will… at least until the next update.
…you’ll just have to wait till I update. 😛
…which may be later, I don’t know, I’m not feeling well, and now I’ve got that stupid “I’ve been napping in the middle of the day” hangover-thingy, although the can of LOL* that I’m drinking right now will help inspire me to write hacker-related things.
*Carbonated fruit juice, but seriously, it’s called LOL. ^_^
… that one I didn’t know! My very fave kewl drink name is Bawls though, but I did drink once a carbonated orange juice called Pipi (suggestive name, that one was).
… called “pipi” and you have drank it?
You must be insane…
…we saw Pipi on the menu, found it hilarious, asked what it was, and the waiter showed us a bottle of carbonated orange juice with a cute little girl on the label. Most likely Pipi was her name, and Croatians have no idea what pipi means in other languages… my brother and I dared each other to try it. The juice was pretty good though, kinda like Fanta :p
When i was little, there was a little show on TV called “Pipi Langkous”, which was the full name of the girl in question (translates literally as Longsock), I know this show has run in eastern european countries (dubbed).
It’s about a little girl with dirty red hair and 2 pigtails but they curl upwards. If the girl on the bottle had 2 orange pigtails curled upwards, It’ll probably be that.
Oh, Pippi Longstocking! I used to watch that as a kid! *nostalgia coma*
That might have been the Pipi on the bottle. We didn’t get the “Pipi Sosetica” (they translated it as “Littlesock”) show in the 1990s (when I was little), but some Pipi books started showing up around 2003. We did have lotsa “Captain Planet” and “Biker Mice from Mars” though. ^_^
A lot of Pipi here :p
so mean so very mean… I hope you have a nightmare where you are Stef trapping in your own plot and have to to live out Stef’s entire life… meanie.
I feel to need to hurt something…
…really, don’t say that, MEANIEHEAD! o_o
Besides, she’s gotten some good stuff along with all the bad…
Thats like saying hey waiter theres a fly in my soup but at least its crunchy.
Good one, silentdeth! ^_^
*hands over cookie to silentdeth*
Hey, I could have left her dead, you know!
>_>
Hey, I could have left her dead, you know!
No you couldn’t then you wouldn’t have anyone to torture or use against us, and you like torturing your audience, and Stef, and Ryan, and probably your flatmates too.
… What did the ad for a roommate look like? Seeking female androgynous roommate with masochistic tendencies and a high threshold for pain, slight insanity a plus.
Edit: OMG your roommate is Mags!
…ok, fine I do. But, it’s in a good way, and I tell you guys a lot more than most authors would (just not the big stuff, cause that’s so much more satisfying to wait for). Seriously, like I’ve said, you can ask any question and it’ll likely be answered.
I don’t like torturing Ryan though, he’s already been through enough. -_-
… What did the ad for a roommate look like? Seeking female androgynous roommate with masochistic tendencies and a high threshold for pain, slight insanity a plus.
Awesome ad, but no, we didn’t have to advertise, we just moved in with Randi, and later a couple of our other close friends.
Edit: OMG your roommate is Mags!
Idiot, mags isn’t andro. 😛 (She’s…oh god, is she the closest thing we have to sex appeal? I mean, Emma’s hot, but the with the degree I’m demonising her, that kind of detracts from the sexy).
you can ask any question and it’ll likely be answered
Stormy-like answers:
I can’t answer that.
You’ll just have to wait and see.
Mwhahaha.
I dunno.
But you also get:
Stef lost her parents in a car accident.
Her scars came from that car accident.
Ryan has a son.
Yes, the Parkers are doing each other.
Grigori and Taylor sitting in a tree, S-N-I-P-I-N-G (and other stuff :3).
And yanno, other stuff that hasn’t come up in canon yet.
… you answer some questions, I’ll give you that.
And…
Grigori and Taylor sitting in a tree, S-N-I-P-I-N-G
…stop making me gigglefit >_>
…I’m trying to analyze this speech, and now that line is stuck in my head. >_<' ... So I must say that it appeals to Pathos, has the stylistic function of movere (given by the phrasing), and its main trait is evidentia. And I'm still gigglefitting. >_<
…for it to be so catchy/annoying. >_< Clear it out with some nice proper death metal and you should be fine.
Right now I’m involuntarily and out of reflex applying the principles of classical rhetoric to pretty much anything that falls into my hands… don’t even want to imagine what would come out of a death metal song O_O
/me likes