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CHAPTER FOUR487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh29l1oa0FF
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Kirby Hayes stares right at his older brother with a growing fire, an unquenchable thrill, until Ishmael the German Shepherd woofs. They have made it off the planet. They have lost a fistfight with each other. They have stopped and survived a disastrous car wreck together. They’ve ping-ponged their first scandal, leaving Kirby banged up for the wear. And it’s just day one. But Viggo is the one who has somehow made it out on top, unscathed, above the law, and absolutely dominating Skyden. How his brother’s achieved it, Kirby has only begun to imagine. Money? Politics? Loyalty?487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFfZuPxjoOK
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Iris Frisk’s wondering the same thing, seeing Viggo prowl like a bristling animal. The interns watch him toss a manila folder in a trash can and snaps a lighter. He sets the trash can on fire and says, “New curriculum.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsiBHU6DM0R
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“HOLY SH--” Maverick explodes at something on his phone before glancing at Madeline’s little girl. “Cheerios...”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzcm0GGXqoe
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Madeline gives him a tired thumb’s up as Dr. Fanfare hands her coffee.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQriM4lW2r6
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Simone snatches Maverick’s phone, eyes widening at the news, and screams. She grips her mouth, “You guys just came out from that wreck?! How are either of you even alive?!”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxfRGM4FUmZ
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Viggo raises scratched hands, “That’s a hoax.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhXpPplPwo8
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“Ooh,” Maverick shows something else to Simone. She gasps and hides a smirk.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGsRFBJgvlB
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“My gosh, Kirby,” Simone points at him. “Keep your pants on.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkVpaQZFgYM
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Kirby makes abrupt and awkward laughter. Madeline cups Ruthie’s ears.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlZVlXTx4Ub
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Simone and Maverick go seriously quiet at something else. No longer laughing. Viggo demands the phone to be handed over. They get jittery but he insists nothing would happen to it. Viggo blinks at the latest news, processing it as calmly as he could. He hands it back to Maverick and shoots Kirby a glare. He signs too casually: Nice. Playing the deaf card, you little bitch. Does it feel good making your brother look like an audist in front of the world? 487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUO8HqFZVF9
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Kirby sucks air through his teeth. Iris becomes concerned when she hears that.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcSoeTqsBO1
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Viggo announces to the room, “I propose we ban phones from all future meetings. Saves us the trouble. What do you think, Dr. Fanfare?”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDPCeZhzchx
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July stammers for a minute, studying the interns before asking Viggo, “Oh, have a little pity, will you?” She gestures to the others with timidity. “It’s only the first meeting. Perhaps we can let them off with a warning. For now?”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLtYRMmoa8v
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Viggo can only grunt at her wisdom.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3sOGfxNSDV
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“Here’s a pro tip. If you really want to be a successful writer,” says Viggo with rambling hands, “or actor or producer or insert job title here, there’s something else you got to be. You have got to be a business. An icon. You and your name must be a brand.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1lGkvj2JnO
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Kirby imagines it. His name pops up in his mind as some kind of a summer fuchsia splash, a super fun and mini-sized invitation to a beach party at sunset. He remembers seeing Viggo’s as neon orange and black metallic with a razor sharp edge.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD6piENt3A5
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“Branding is psychology and sociology behind marketing magic. I mean real subliminal stuff. If people can recall your image, people can recall your message. That fits the profile Pegasus Studios always looks for. This is your mission and your first assignment: look like a superstar. Today.”
The interns gab about how awesome their brands are going to be.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1g3dDEWA4u
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“Skulls,” Simone Chaput insists. “Tiny, tiny skulls and diamonds everywhere.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQQOI9gx7dc
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“Nice!” Maverick Clark nods. “Mine’s gonna have bricked gold.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqiBbr0qRU3
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“You like teddy bears, Ruth?” Madeline Desjardins asks. “Maybe puppies.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcZjQJBf5FE
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“A big puppy bear!” Ruthie smashes small fists together to her mother’s delight.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWCLmQ0XDh7
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Walking over to one of the globes, Viggo opens a latch. To everyone’s amazement, he presses a button. Hollow clanking roars through the walls. Kirby could sense that. The rumbling grows nearer. The interns look wildly about to see where it’s coming from. Paranoid of the superimposing compass for a domed ceiling, Madeline holds Ruthie’s hand as they huddle.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOd2OcbfyaD
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A silver glossy pod rises, spiraling up from the floor, before three others do.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTXyjNL2mdv
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They’re humongous dragon eggs, Kirby thinks. Might have come from an Apple lab. The pods emit a spreading chilly fog and then beam a celestial white light show. The name MyHAVEN is impressed into their shells along with their barcode version indicating the latest of its kind. Ruthie, Simone and Maverick make oohing and ahhing noises. Kirby stands on his toes to peek inside them.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9FvS5y1rs6
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There’s roomy black chairs with gel support and wired black sunglasses that’s hooked up to the machine. Rainbow striped lights scroll down the inner walls. If they were a game console, Kirby is sure they’re the coolest he’s ever seen. Gnarly.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbyQj3L8UVn
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“The most effective marketing tool for the best of the best,” Viggo explains. He gazes into the wide eyes of his interns, obscuring a fox-like smile. “As you’ll come to know, nothing seems as real … as virtual reality. That is why it sells.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4iGjCnH0f5
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“Last month, Professor Taylor purchased these four MyHAVEN pods and had them installed here for your internship. Twenty grand per model, but they came in a bundle deal for seventy five k instead of eighty k. I know, I know, it’s pretty cool. Any questions?”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVn2t1HkrwZ
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Iris raises a hand.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWwxTXBRJ2e
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“No questions I see,” Viggo rushes along.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaUfmMjtaln
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Iris slams her table with both palms with angry puckered lips. She addresses the room, “In fact, I do have a question!”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKF1wehI3FA
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They burst into laughter. She asks the question but Kirby misses it in a blink. Don’t panic. He looks to his brother to see what he says. Maybe he can still figure it out. Viggo makes an obviously annoyed eyeroll. He does respond to her but not with one word in sign language. Kirby’s mouth slacks as nothing comes to mind. Is it worth the trouble?487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFS1semw4gO
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Iris shouts something back but it’s dismissed. She sits down.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX5YvnEzHta
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Kirby texts Iris: Huh? What was your question?487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW8CSh4xsjm
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Frustrated, she texts back: Why would Prof Taylor go thru what he did after a big investment on us? V says it’s an inappropriate topic. We’re not in a class in criminal justice. He says fame can be nasty, that it’s not all glitz and fun for everyone. Whatever.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWB8yPGwXy0
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Viggo claps. “You should register with MyHAVEN and when you’re done, type my first name in the search bar. Viggo. My profile and logo will pull up; you should be able to see it. Take your time. It’s a real mind trip. It’s up there at Inception level. I am going to set each pod at a two-hour tour limit. After that, the meeting is officially over and you are all free to go. So ! Are you ready to see... what real branding looks like?”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcDGfSsDjOr
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“Can I do this another time? Or never?” Madeline declines as she goes through her bulky bag. She brings out a book for her daughter and a binder for herself. Viggo looks at one spot, getting peeved. “I don’t feel comfortable, I guess, going ‘under’ or going into people’s heads. And I-I’m not taking my eyes off my Ruthie here.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4pYu8lr7RP
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“Yeah,” Iris agrees. “I’m sitting this one out too.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfmsVzJyn5D
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Viggo replies, “Iris.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlaXPS5HQS3
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“Miss Frisk,” she happily reminds him.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9b4nv7nnM1
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“Miss Frisk, we’ll talk in a minute,” Viggo says, gritting his teeth and cringing. “Miss Desjardins, since this is the first meeting, you get a warning.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡECKpn8FPlB
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The room goes still and all eyes rest on Viggo and Madeline.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNKipkyG0H1
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“As cute as she is, and we all love her, you can’t bring her to the meetings.” Madeline nods painfully. “We need your focus.” She nods again, even harder. “Have you looked at daycares or babysitters? I know of quite a few.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu9TVwd8Lw4
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Madeline sips from her venti mocha and gulps. She stammers, “Um yes, I have, Mr. Hayes. We should find at least one that we like by today, I’m sure? Right, Ruthie?”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsUAaBjoLhL
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The girl fakes a vomiting sound, to everyone’s scattered laughter.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8PwAkn4oLk
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“You can leave now,” Viggo chuckles.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmd5fJMiGsa
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“Okay,” Madeline says, putting her books back into her bag. She looks put on the spot, humiliated, like a pathetic struggling single mother. Kirby feels bad. Viggo’s clearly being discriminative with her. She gets out of her seat, taking Ruthie’s hand. “Come on.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGEyGYDhm0l
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The Desjardins leave apologetically before a loud coffee spill.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDqNnwkEWxG
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“Someone will clean that up,” Dr. Fanfare calls after her.
“Come on down,” Viggo tells the rest of the interns.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡADgSmMfEms
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Fantastic. Simone and Maverick leap from their seats and hurry down the steps while Kirby and Iris amble on. The pods hiss, spraying them with faint mist. Viggo assures them that the worst thing that could happen is falling asleep. Kirby doesn’t believe him. But what real choice does he have? Viggo decides for the group that Simone Chaput, Maverick Clark, Kirby Hayes, and Dr. Fanfare are the four participants while he and Miss Frisk will have their moment of privacy.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1kygbosOYM
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Wonder how that will go.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnBTWAna3j9
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The four step into their egg. Kirby feels already relaxed, body-hugged by his gel recliner. Bathed in rainbow lights, his breathing turns shallow. What if something goes wrong? Something won’t, but what if it does?487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpeCF7RR7px
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His heart starts pounding. Anxiety’s back. He can just see it. The pod spirals down, the floor swallows him up, and this ends up his weird flickering coffin. Trapped under the floorboards deep; hearing nothing; not knowing when to scream. Should he just climb out now? Before it’s too late?487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwORPJmhtPc
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Chills crawl down Kirby’s arms to his feet just from thinking about it.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡviMg3G8RfC
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Viggo sets each pod’s timer at two hours except for Kirby’s. He says: I hope your bladder is okay. I’m setting yours up to four hours.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡruLYZzQtOl
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What!? Kirby wheezes, tensing up.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaOpIjCqvzl
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Relax! Viggo pushes him back down in his seat. I’ll join you after everyone has gone. Got to look like I am in charge, right little bro? I have a lot to show you. You’re going to have fun, I promise. You know how I keep my promises. 487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbt93CaBzuy
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Kirby feels sick to the stomach. He checks his phone. It is roughly 9:30 AM right now. He imagines that the interns would be gone by 11:30 before he would by 1:30 PM. Somewhat late to lunch, but he won’t miss it. Four hours don’t sound that bad, he thinks it over.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH14sfBgOrP
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He could barely shrug and nod. Good enough for Viggo who does a small wave and returns to Iris and Ishmael before the egg closes and locks. It seals shut.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeTXemJrXdw
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Kirby runs his fingers over the lines, almost not feeling them at all. He locates several vents and breathes easier. Just keep cool. Nothing will go wrong. The rainbow lights cut to a dull gray. He fits the black sunglasses over his worried, shifty eyes. All he sees is a warm fuzzy black screen with incredibly high resolution.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRPGAdvRjsK
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Then with a low whine, MyHAVEN fades in with an eerie glow. It is loading.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ206ZOD7JKm
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He takes a few minutes to register, typing his username as Kirby-Hayes. The egg does a full body scan, firing like a child’s laser gun. As it zaps, he shouts “Whoa!”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡib4V34UN6y
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An avatar that is an exact replica of him appears before his eyes. He marvels at his twin who acts too freely to be a mirror. Kirby adjusts his avatar’s clothes to a sharp tux resembling his brother’s. Call me lazy. Instead of orange, he goes for ghostly fuchsia. That’s enough decorating, he’s decided.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS5fXDF3pw7
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He types in Viggo’s name which brings up at the top of the list, just above Viggo Mortensen. It’s not in alphabetical order, but ranked by popular searches. Of course, I shouldn’t be this surprised but for some reason, I am.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5y6rfkQgnz
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MyHAVEN cuts to the same warm black screen with a gray side menu on the right. He sees that there’s options to choose from like going to his Profile or to Exit entirely. It is loading. He sees the empty horizontal bar fill up with billowing smoke.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7GI9eZE2mu
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Soon, he will enter this world of Viggo Hayes’s design.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG19jkU7xA1
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Oh god. Is this such a good idea? Kirby holds his breath, assuring himself that it’s only in his head, that it should be safe.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUMGrcBGxUv
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Darkness splits, doors sliding open and revealing the vast galaxy.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2GgZjBgFdP
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Trillions of stars, all around him and underneath, welcome him with nothing propping him up. Oh my god, it’s loud with heart-stopping howls. His legs scramble through nothing and start kicking frantically. It’s no use. He falls.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpiwVdHgtKV
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He spears headfirst to the bright nearby Moon. Hundreds of craters and thick moon dust await him one mile below. Heavy layers of wind collide with his body and rise. Whoosh-slap, whoosh-slap, whoosh-slap! 487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFUsBe5kxz9
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When the interns skydive in formation with him, cheering and laughing, he realizes he can hear their echoing voices among the other unearthly noise. There’s a deep background of sounds, and he’s deaf to none of it.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIcmopJE0Gx
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Kirby clutches his head with agony. I don’t like this.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa400KQFVJ2
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He struggles with the explosive wind to lean his body in closer to the interns, preferring to be closer to them. It’s different from seeing them together in a hallway or in a rosewood study. This time, they’re skydiving.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw85B9cNQaO
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Despite that they’re falling to the Moon, there is at least unlimited air. He gasps it all in and breathes out. This is okay. This is epic, this is soothing, and this comes with a youthful essence. He tells himself as outrageous as it is, it’s still a lucid dream.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCUvnSX2ZtH
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This is Viggo’s dream, Kirby starts to understand. This is what his mind looks like. The Moon approaches dangerously near. His heart wants to leap out of his chest right now.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVlwXkhHSrI
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Kirby notices a gleaming multiplex theater smack dab in the middle of the white desert. He careens there, somersaults, and lands softly with a thump in a dune. He bounces off and hops, startled from the feeling of how the ground hit his feet. Too real, he thinks with terror, smelling the bitter gunpowder. This is too real for me. I want out.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmfQXmP0mda
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Simone Chaput lands, showing off her dark black skin in her blue filigree dress. She wears a silver wig straight and long enough to rustle at her eyebrows and naked shoulders. Her heels stomp, sporting two diamond human skulls that cradle her toes.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDNjmPd1Nnx
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Maverick Clark lands, showing off the world’s tallest punk hair. He rocks his erectile crest back and forth like a pink cockatoo and riffs at his invisible wailing electric guitar. He’s dressed from head to toe in heavy black clothes and boots with pink earphones that blink eyes and grin at other people like cartoon characters.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq8P0cRMzyq
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Dr. Fanfare lands and bounces besides Kirby. Her white grandma hair is tethered back in a loose bun. She dusts her same vest and blazer from before, coughing up a storm and laughing. “Now I can finally say that I’ve been to the Moon! Yahtzee!”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdqewzjwQaw
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But Kirby is hardly happy or can stay coherent. He gets dizzy. People are chattering and overlapping too loudly, and the multiplex theater is playing deafening music. What a migraine. Kirby’s head feels like it’s about to burst. He finds the Mute button to toggle. Sweet, sweet silence! He sighs orgasmically. The pain and nausea cease altogether.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbjYWKPMkhB
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And people wonder why he doesn’t just get hearing aids or cochlear implants.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRry77YR494
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English subtitles spell out for him like magic, translating every word they say. He smiles. That’s perfect. This is good. I’m liking this already.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtd5gOn6IK5
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MaverickClark: Look at that! This theater’s YUGE!487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxndWQfXIF9
SimoneChaput: I’m loving the red carpet. Ready for my close-up, fellas.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMIkLLXoEXg
DrFanfare: You look sick, Kirby! 487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwdcw8OZHoj
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwScNY8Ruox
He smiles and assures her he’s feeling much better now.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOvosYYHF6V
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuJDOQUw0Cr
Entering the busy multiplex theater is overwhelming. First, the reflection of the lunar scape in the glass door startles him. As Kirby’s hands wrap around the cold steel bar that is surely a door handle, his dress shoes scrape against the ridges of the metal door frame. He knows he is not here. He knows he has never been here. That doesn’t matter. Here feels like a physical place, and it feels wrong.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqzE8uUl6yO
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡloWTYVdNYR
The rich aroma of buttered popcorn and kettle corn hit them like a wall. Crowds of moviegoers pack the place, standing in lines for twenty-dollar tickets to virtually real Pegasus films and all kinds of candies and sodas sold.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMkOJ5sZfyx
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTd3Cish65G
DrFanfare: All that junk food, no side effects. No upset stomach, no acid reflux, no bacne. It’s genius if you ask me. 487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbGveMH6u1F
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaWApOcyIff
It registers on Simone’s face.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9R35bpcKrN
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNjJpLhrWG2
SimoneChaput: You’re right... This is a real theater, but better. 487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgJsupOvpUY
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWmfUuqyW0p
Maverick grips Kirby’s shoulder out of morbid fascination. They hug, which seems real and kind of a pleasant tingling.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfEBDo38Hl4
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsKpCYpAdLr
MaverickClark: Sorry. Now I kinda feel perverse.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM0U2UaUusI
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3MnFvBQa9l
“You should be,” Kirby mouths, getting them to laugh. He tries tapping his knuckles hard against the wall. It’s solid, and damn, it kind of smarts. Actually, it does hurt. He checks his avatar’s knuckles but sees no cuts or blood.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcqpzCWbj9e
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP1r1C8bMJ0
They approach an enormous banner, a poster, and a cardboard cutout of Sky’s Falling! It is decked out with a square version of Skyden, bombing and falling in pieces. It is an exaggerated, horrific doomsday for those onboard hurtling towards planet Earth.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVsdqjwrRp7
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYSciZDyeLg
DrFanfare: I’ve never actually seen the movie, Sky’s Falling, yet. I heard it’s incredible! Have you seen it? 487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQTc0GPPA07
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKKQzjsGe2y
Simone and Maverick eagerly admit they haven’t either.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmnbIecpKk3
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo1bCpOqm0a
SimoneChaput: I’ve been itching for an opportunity though.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaWt2mWtfBH
MaverickClark: Especially here! And now! I’m so in. 487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPr4lMopbbI
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdjbmM3URN9
Kirby blushes, not knowing what to say other than he hopes they’re left at least entertained. He hasn’t even begun to fathom how his screenplay would play out in virtual reality. That’s beyond 3D, that’s like 5D, isn’t it? He wonders. Huh.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaPo0sngcRW
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbRGgByPSgF
He frowns at a camera slowly tracking him.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ24aVipbNvD
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8pt6mpYRRH
They spend twenty dollars and two hours through Kirby’s movie. He could hide and beam the entire time, proud of his only accomplishment. Even though he didn’t touch the movie or influence the final cut in any way like his brother had, Kirby has still locked down the credit of being the sole writer. It says “Written by Kirby Hayes. Directed by Viggo Hayes.” Kirby thinks it sounds better that way instead of “Written and Directed by the Hayes Brothers”. Everyone will start believing that Viggo will have relinquished some creative control when it’s far from the truth. Though the Hayes brothers thing still may be in their near future.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ182F6tDdEe
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTa4iPiMxT2
Kirby ignores the dread of how much heartache he’s going to get from Viggo. He focuses instead on other moviegoers. The way their faces light up and their mouths collectively gasp remind him why he’s come here. I am going to get in Pegasus Studios. Kirby makes fists. I have to.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuOVAyIJJbq
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPOWt2f2mkX
The audience screams at last at the menacing part when the satellite city rips apart. Boom, boom, boom, a succession of flying bodies and metal scraps! Spinning debris fling down to Earth. They storm through the skies exactly the way they arrived to Viggo Hayes’s moon theater. They fall towards the tumbling ocean blue.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqBnCh5YIgT
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp8CYEtcr8g
Fade to black. Credits crawl.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2AYskAqChU
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM30SN1Ihbn
DrFanfare: Good job, Kirby! I loved it. Whoop, our two hours are just about up. Byebye. See you on the other side, everyone!487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1p2y4We81I
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEp5uLHlqoF
As Simone and Maverick dote him shamelessly, they murmur dazed farewells and log out with Dr. Fanfare. Kirby stays behind and can’t stop grinning like a fool. Even Simone would want to work with him now. This is a dream come true, a dream within a dream.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz6snGikWTJ
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDwk3utTwiA
He wanders through his brother’s world, the idle halls of his brother’s owned theater. Kirby can’t help but respect him. He sits back on a bench to rest his eyes for a second. Oh wait. He starts to remember. I could fall asleep right now. No wonder the others sounded so drowsy.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8ogifnxzNb
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQy5WPsZ21u
Man, I have another two hours left to wait around for Viggo. I can’t simply leave either. He’d be livid from looking for me for too long. Kirby gets back on his feet, looking around the theater for a good distraction.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzxdUgOLWOD
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQpSHniChZz
The popcorn stand catches his eye. He gets that funny feeling.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡigXuV1Cxoo
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWNKDC9cHzV
Kirby makes it behind the counter, inspecting the area for something abnormal. So far, it’s a boring and greasy workplace. He becomes irritated with crunching over kernels. They stick to the soles of his shoes. Hmph, nothing.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXz23gIzY1J
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3RPPqOmTat
Thought there was something secret here.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9nbmO1OSLB
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTZaUAQZLQQ
Another door catches Kirby’s eye. It would lead to the back of the theater. Tucking his hands into his skin-tight dress pants, he follows the empty hallway farther into what seems like a dark warehouse or a garage. The air gets colder. Moon sand is blown inside.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7mQVPdR0Fj
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtQAZlUDf4R
“HELLO!” Kirby shouts freely.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmjeSNjOD5b
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4dZqaBO3Hk
The subtitles notify him that the shout echoes a dozen times before fading to a sad droning whisper. He pauses. That is a particularly creepy detail for Viggo to add in his world. What is this place? He looks among the shadows.
A distant thud echoes. 487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO86NT4W4KT
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuiBel8hpMh
To his horror, Kirby looks back. Nothing stirs.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUVEPmeJrXo
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu0KM2L6DxT
This place is still otherwise empty. His hand presses against his chest, calming his blipping heart. Okay, I think I’m getting out of here. He turns face and bumps into dangling feet.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHBVIUN8L6w
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlZqlrqHpb1
He scrambles back from Viggo Hayes’s body hung from a red noose. Oh shit.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ02LLXUAgw8
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8uEzXUtzQH
His brother’s psycho orange eyes bulge, jaw open and aghast. Drool drips from his perfect white teeth. There’s not a finger twitch or a muscle clench, but the body looks real. And dead. The suit blinks orange like a Halloween tree. Kirby could die himself right now from the fright. It’s just an avatar, he tells himself.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx5DIhhDnNU
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDaf4c2aa8Y
It’s just someone’s sick prank.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMWnRJxuBwZ
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC6chTaxUTY
He gasps at the sight of a single bedbug on the cement floor. Okay, now he is sure something’s terribly wrong. Viggo hates bedbugs.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVWaQYjTMir
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3VDTkWl8id
Kirby frowns. What’s going on? He’d never put that in his world. One bedbug becomes hundreds skittering and crawling from the darkness.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXbtvCkJmhU
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCLOSgutqSJ
Oh! He pulls back. Hordes of bedbugs stampede and flood toward him, becoming thousands and counting, drawn magnetically to the smell of his blood. That’s awful. He can’t get away from them. They smother his shoes, covering them completely from sight. Kirby moans and leaps back, stomping on them. But they continue to smother. He itches at his neck like a madman. Too disgusting. Too real.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTaXkDIjo6I
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYJY1P7YXir
A bright light bursts. A video plays, projected on one wall. It is dated earlier this year. What’s this? It’s the rosewood study, Kirby recognizes. He’s still there.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsLvHlfvs8r
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4hulJPJ6Wq
Professor Taylor watches him from afar with furious, fearful eyes. He’s bearded with white hair, like a sea captain who’s now a dead one.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6qsjTMje7y
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5P6ac2edvZ
DomTaylor: “Stop filming. I don’t trust drones.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzIiB9gpgnP
ViggoHayes: “Sorry, cap’n.” 487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu4PBYrZiFj
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOUAyezdJCB
Viggo Hayes steers the camera until it lands across Professor Taylor’s large desk. Ishmael lopes over with protruding wet nostrils and sniffs. Kirby moans again at the swarming bedbugs that now creep up his legs. It’s not real. But his gut tells him that something about this video is real, and it’s something he shouldn’t be seeing. He searches for what that is.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjOri0oGPlg
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡih7mpIMGvx
The bugs reach his inner thighs. This is so wrong, he whimpers, but the bugs are nothing. Nothing! He clamps down his lips, watching the video.
Professor Taylor rifles through his manila folder.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpq38PBI0MX
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjs8sIkN514
DomTaylor: “I’ve handpicked the winners by the way.” 487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE0hXfJy70W
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXFD7Lpbukm
This makes Viggo and Kirby pause. He’s talking about the contest.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGb4as4pf6c
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoloJAbmNkX
ViggoHayes: “Winners? There should be only one.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBrFBdrUq6e
DomTaylor: “Oh, there’s one, publicly. The other’s a runner-up; her name won’t be announced but she’ll be one of the interns.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl10zKaP9wC
ViggoHayes: “All right. Who are they?”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9bNl4WDwrR
DomTaylor: “Kirby Hayes and Iris Frisk.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyKcCIRZrBr
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG84P2UER5v
This makes Viggo and Kirby freeze. But Viggo looks a touch betrayed.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy7wazTIoMn
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxQEPqnOcfb
DomTaylor: “What’s the matter? Thought you’d look more pleased.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1LbMCpwPri
ViggoHayes: “Why are you doing this to me?” 487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX3wby4ZNgx
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlIcGCIrSmR
Viggo’s forgotten he’s filming himself as his face contorts into something ugly. He suddenly tackles Professor Taylor to the floor. Ishmael goes insane and hysterical, barking nonstop, but cannot break them up. The men wrestle onto the floor, banging and slamming into the furniture. The camera falls next to the floor.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsov3lozLkX
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7FwsvsGwWK
Each man throws wild punches at their faces and unprotected areas, but Taylor’s the one who quickly makes it on top. The camera’s kicked away.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTdmGbwNqDg
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkgGZIOhYq2
Kirby can’t believe his eyes. Ishmael fills the office with his mournful cries and howls. Using both hands and all of his weight, Professor Taylor chokes Viggo who digs his nails deeper into Taylor’s long gash of a cheek scar. The man screams out before a beefy fist clocks Viggo hard.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoHQCsge4mO
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNKgaT6zHD9
Viggo’s jaw smashes the floor. He spits out blood and a tooth.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP2X6pB81MC
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA6JTzEtExh
Ishmael’s howls waver to whines.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd2JEw0jtsU
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡblBdPdBMOz
DomTaylor: “Enough!”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaTypEZZ3WO
ViggoHayes: “You promised you wouldn’t choose them, Dom ...” 487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9nJzguUX5E
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpk7lkMQswv
Taylor stands to his feet, panting. He glares down at him with distaste.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDxqqMY6rln
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgdDxfdPtJz
DomTaylor: “That was before I saw their work. I would be one stupid son of a bitch to turn them away. When I look at them, I don’t see interns. I see cash cows. Golden goose eggs. You and your personal feelings have gotten in my way for the last time!”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSwAwRMtBKR
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYXa7fEfeYs
The video is put on pause. It glitches. Kirby shakes the bedbugs off his face, trying to make sense of it. That’d be inspiring and uplifting for him if it weren’t for the fact that they got violent over it. I didn’t know Viggo would get that upset. And why ... is there a video playing of it?487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ33mXn485J7
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS5FL53wcFc
Subtitles inform him of the footsteps behind him. He slowly looks back and goes weak in the knees.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1N17R78Jyi
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡob1zbsp9op
The Spook trudges out of the dark, out of the steamy home of scattering bedbugs, with a wooden sad mask. Kirby is rooted to the spot as it all comes together. It’s the same person he’s seen on the road this morning. Their near death experience, these bugs, and that video have everything to do with that weirdo.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXJXVbSSwj5
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy1eYjyXdYo
He flinches when the Spook points a gloved finger his way.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡapUC0yDyEV
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyP7eYx4Xdb
“Boo.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoVdovgUaob
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIgyOMgEDKH
Kirby squeezes his eyes. It’s just virtual. It’s MyHAVEN. It’s just a bad dream. I am untouchable. Seeing nothing, I’m feeling nothing. His breathing starts to regulate, calming down back to normal. Deny, deny, deny. It’s purely psychological…487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSLsy5uvdkf
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ71xV7XpaZq
He peeks again. The Spook points at him, this time in broad daylight.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmVKKYQvYwP
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwoEgd7jqcj
“Sorry you lived. I’ll try harder next time.” 487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0NbMrGMRc7
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9jsUVGJVyU
Sitting cross-legged in the middle of a railroad, Kirby feels the pebbles jump and nip at his skin. Oh no. He realizes it too late when the train rams into his spine, two hundred tons ripping through his puny body, severing him in half.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2SQKcnCl8z
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFy5R232feV
He dies.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUyOHqplZnW
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7hZsxf7VIz
This numb brutality snaps him awake in mid-air. The sky, the road, the grass, they all rush by in a savage whirl. Kirby’s back in the car now with Viggo’s dead body, spinning about in slow motion.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIMPSKRwn9e
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwn6vRtp7B6
His brother flails about like a dead-eyed mannequin. There is no sense of control. Only weightlessness and the promise of weight being delivered. Only suspension and the promise of a delayed end. He lets out the longest scream in his life.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP9jBa39PYl
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS8X6hwqJNw
Kirby’s head slams into the ceiling when the roof of the car hits the ground. A sharp spasm jolts through his boiling neck and spine. He coughs out liters of blood, watching Viggo fly out of a window. His leg gets torn on the frayed window, being left behind a wobbling carved piece of flesh.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcbvgYuGvtl
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNg6fpsviJg
Bits of glass and drops of blood rain into the deep pores and wrinkles of his face. The car tumbles across the ground, turning over and over. He wakes up again in mid-air. Viggo’s back inside the car. So is he.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA9JbK1rN6i
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsVYXlhpjEP
Kirby realizes Viggo has his hand wrapped around the emergency brake.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcz9sztmcsq
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx1QAXHaUo8
They stare at each other.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAuhI2lhjQH
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCWAPwgwJdj
The Spook means to torture him for as long as the timer on his pod keeps ticking. A two-hour night terror. He looks at his right where the side menu should have been but is missing. Somehow the Spook has blocked him. Overriding him. Viggo nods at him this time. Kirby croaks out a no… ! The car smashes through the parked police cars. The Spook watches them from behind their seats as bedbugs crawl all over them. Wait, wait, no!487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwh32HQ8Os0
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxP7w8K6wbr
The car flips.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb2bMO1JPrh
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXxhaExZX07
He braces himself as the car slams into a guardrail. They are showered in sparks as blunt as hail. Viggo’s torn asunder, scattering apart in all directions with glass. Strings and gobs of milky blood stretch out thinly, a strange crimson.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr0Nt4EVZkl
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUyFIlUonDG
Kirby’s face is thrown forward.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt4FXNaKPkV
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnAZFmdUEGc
His skull shatters grisly upon impact, skin shuddering and splattering along the gritty asphalt. He feels his arms snap. He feels how his clavicle cracks. His neck is bent out of shape. His body is mangled all wrong, and he can feel every dislocated joint. He learns the mesh of road and bone. He tries also to become numb to it.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4UM1RyDYNt
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0rx8Zk45Xo
He dies again.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxLTixpsoqT
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9oUVseYCY6
His eyes are squeezing shut when the engine sputters to life. His seat rattles. His skin crawls. His hair rises. Deja vu. Kirby braves opening his eyes back on the plane.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc2EqmKIaWO
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlnJ3JqKvCh
His knees shake freely and out of control, no longer knocking into anyone. It is an evacuated plane, but it’s surely the same plane that blows up.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡad9r19O7Rr
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpTLdRTpB2o
No way. Kirby yanks at his seat belt but it does not budge. He pulls with everything he has, yelling to suppress the raw burn in his hands. The plane starts moving. No, he thinks sobbing like an useless thing. Trapped.
He sees someone familiar rush at him, fumbling with his seat belt. His jungle green eyes grow feral. Kirby is startled to see Chance again. That handsome face he hasn’t seen in forever hollers at him to snap out of it. The man brings out a long military knife and starts sawing crazily through the thick restraints.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXF7NTRLC4B
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkqWlGr39Rr
When Kirby’s finally freed, they claw at their shirts, embracing so tightly that they feel each other’s heartbeats. Chance smiles at his smile.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwyDiy8CJan
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUAGpzkLEhz
Kirby grins a bigger one back at him.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ99ZQNaql6I
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXvHvq43Ggr
Anonymous: “You’re okay.” 487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5dg90DSsWs
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRUQ1umtOaX
Kirby nods. Despite the recent nightmare, he’s now convinced that this is still nothing. It’s just for two hours, even less. He can do this, now that his hero Chance Gott is really here.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL4nRfF8fHK
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQuDx0KRaRe
They run out of the plane on wobbly legs. They make their way into a seemingly empty airport. They look wildly around. No passengers, no reporters, and no dead bodies. There’s no one.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3FptJ142vG
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQaaPT94wAW
But the Spook emerges. “Your time is coming.”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbP6ZK5QkcA
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdiZ4gJEKtC
Chance tenses up, seeing that sad mask for the first time. The plane smokes something terrible, setting on fire.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCtYoR51lMg
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡowXQn0X34Q
Kirby grips Chance’s arm. He brings out a keyboard and clacks away, piling up strings of coding and symbols. Line after line, formulas and their functions go way over Kirby’s head but they bring immediate changes to the environment.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmFGqV6MB8P
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡznuI9FAHRJ
Their world gets erased with a zip, turning blank. It in fact turns bright white, leaving nothing behind but three avatars.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMkKoSluYO7
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFWBVH5ZlZo
Kirby sees the side menu light up again at his right. He’s no longer blocked. He should be able to escape now. His fingers are ready to jab at the Exit button but hesitate. However, Chance roars at him. “Go! Now!”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBSkrd7TCCE
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2HVQe1ERCR
Kirby jabs at the Exit button. Like a deflating balloon, it all goes black.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY2wZLbwLfD
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF26VFR2Uyn
The MyHAVEN pod unlocks, opening slightly ajar by itself.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqpHSOyJvHG
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2Czm3RryZQ
Kirby pants heavily. He’s all numb and can’t keep his eyes open. His heart is pounding at its hardest, as if he’s done a triathlon. His hair and his clothes are drenched in cold sweat. His trembling fingers reach out of the egg. Doesn’t anyone see me?487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfEoI8mGhlU
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhPBJfHJd14
He can’t see either. He rests for another minute, panting. However, the silence doesn’t mean no one’s there. He knows that. Come on, Kirby begs of himself. Wake up.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqxcsRHc302
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUarIFwN7Dv
His wrist leans into the door, prying it open slightly. His shoulder presses into it. Fucking open.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqgUk1jvRzA
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoA3ajoPB6n
The door opens to a dark room. The sun has gone down, leaving Skyden a pitch-black one-o-clock in the afternoon. How long was I under? His phone tells him that only four hours have passed, like Viggo’s said.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxy8a6XIkE7
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZtM9hTDPtC
Kirby sighs with relief, drooling on the floor. It occurs to him that Skyden orbits the earth twice in one day. Two sunrises, two sunsets. Noontime here is always as dark as nighttime.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyg1fATMC9t
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlh8jwzG2H0
Kirby climbs out of the pod and his shoulder crashes onto the floor. He moans softly. Not so numb anymore. That hurts. The room starts spinning back and forth, leaving him dizzy and blind. He blinks as much as he can.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUGaH8xhkhN
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPei6eNIMld
A shadow lurks through the rosewood study.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxtlqrmO7xA
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcyoU8h4uh4
His heart pounds. Please, he thinks. Not like this.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjPSjvfKNUt
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOEdxQdzmju
The silhouette passes some windows, walking briskly for someone who’s seen Kirby. Unless he hasn’t. Kirby remains still, holding in his ragged breaths as best as he could. It is a man or a woman walking by with a familiar face. Who is it?487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsq9d1IZh3d
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡShMxiUSMcV
A haunting face.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAf0AjtKEBa
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeQu59od7nm
An impossible face, bearded white.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFeHTdZFyL3
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHdsVyqrFbB
The ghost of Professor Taylor passes a dim lamp. His furious, fearful eyes glare. Taylor roams around his study in the darkness before slipping through the back door. Kirby squints, rubbing at his eyes.487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLmHU4NEOlN
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTFERI6N4T7
His brother saunters out of Taylor’s office, chasing after who left. Viggo looks terrorized as he kicks a giant hole in the wall. He screams, “Fuck!”487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp5I9dRJa1a
487Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxVn9RTmUqg
No, Kirby realizes. Professor Dominic Taylor is very much alive.
THE SPOOK IS SAD
Jack Steele Adams
ns3.15.28.86da2
