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CHAPTER FOUR479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIwfM3kEaaR
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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?479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD3yYrX8rZ3
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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.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw05KFoBh0t
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“HOLY SH--” Maverick explodes at something on his phone before glancing at Madeline’s little girl. “Cheerios...”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXc55EnnnnP
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Madeline gives him a tired thumb’s up as Dr. Fanfare hands her coffee.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoZwj4d9JuK
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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?!”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQhwEIueIrU
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Viggo raises scratched hands, “That’s a hoax.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlwd7AF9l6t
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“Ooh,” Maverick shows something else to Simone. She gasps and hides a smirk.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaYaP3TKlcb
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“My gosh, Kirby,” Simone points at him. “Keep your pants on.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY8gZhi5bmx
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Kirby makes abrupt and awkward laughter. Madeline cups Ruthie’s ears.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfBw5VAA6yV
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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? 479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeO5GGd99O9
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Kirby sucks air through his teeth. Iris becomes concerned when she hears that.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvlic4GGejj
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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?”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWjZcW0Qte4
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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?”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZvKPhwryPO
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Viggo can only grunt at her wisdom.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRQ1CbkHc53
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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.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡms0EVwfiq3
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWEaCBRN0z3
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvHd4YJBeH8
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“Skulls,” Simone Chaput insists. “Tiny, tiny skulls and diamonds everywhere.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXajTmSHNxA
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“Nice!” Maverick Clark nods. “Mine’s gonna have bricked gold.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvIb0aDYzJW
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“You like teddy bears, Ruth?” Madeline Desjardins asks. “Maybe puppies.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAa5cFFCMlU
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“A big puppy bear!” Ruthie smashes small fists together to her mother’s delight.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Ct0syJ3iv
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTxVeXnZemC
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A silver glossy pod rises, spiraling up from the floor, before three others do.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrOpJTJ4CNX
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKPPGNna1tA
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBM35k1oFm4
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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.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYs7EgPblW9
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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?”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM1RMMtAoOu
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Iris raises a hand.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Gi5E5uMEQ
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“No questions I see,” Viggo rushes along.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpBPjJNnU8W
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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!”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡClYXRmWc2P
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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?479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEA9JMfuvX0
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Iris shouts something back but it’s dismissed. She sits down.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3gOXpLNILy
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Kirby texts Iris: Huh? What was your question?479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEmpHkHJa8t
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0GkJVfkP2p
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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?”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ72vGgIiUcL
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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.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuIhCI7X34C
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“Yeah,” Iris agrees. “I’m sitting this one out too.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsHp73jTi41
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Viggo replies, “Iris.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8TyutrkV99
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“Miss Frisk,” she happily reminds him.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRftEjFWEIf
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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.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTXOS30w8Xp
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The room goes still and all eyes rest on Viggo and Madeline.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ0q3bW8Ekp
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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.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1ci3kM1Nwx
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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?”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbTci3BtdHF
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The girl fakes a vomiting sound, to everyone’s scattered laughter.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡamDcNxsM2K
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“You can leave now,” Viggo chuckles.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgWsNc7qbzl
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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.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8mTCpbDtXg
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The Desjardins leave apologetically before a loud coffee spill.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtozh7ZmIeE
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“Someone will clean that up,” Dr. Fanfare calls after her.
“Come on down,” Viggo tells the rest of the interns.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡekgslQNsH2
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5sY1BROPrG
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Wonder how that will go.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQyzlTWw08b
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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?479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcFfNC4gb98
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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?479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrpvbqq5p8x
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Chills crawl down Kirby’s arms to his feet just from thinking about it.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIrSFIgmC60
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmXplbsnNGk
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What!? Kirby wheezes, tensing up.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBC8yMdHsWe
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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. 479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6JtNkWNdlr
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaE8guiAsBX
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFGnU7AuxrU
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8fBUE4kw5M
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Then with a low whine, MyHAVEN fades in with an eerie glow. It is loading.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrU855YQmBB
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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!”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHQAvAhvHq8
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrUcQ16l153
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqT3MffWa5b
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ41QknoY5mr
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Soon, he will enter this world of Viggo Hayes’s design.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ19pmlNg2Lp
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOx3kqMCKgR
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Darkness splits, doors sliding open and revealing the vast galaxy.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8aUVjQRyeX
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYItUtUqily
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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! 479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡalBRGgjiay
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9hRwC9V6D9
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Kirby clutches his head with agony. I don’t like this.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiutCk5TpMy
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHZL8Qw4M83
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPLNh4tA1gi
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4gFgmmUZsR
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3fDkVZCyZJ
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwQI1alR3QI
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhivKMVhXYj
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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!”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCV40Glhflz
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx9UUlLU5j7
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And people wonder why he doesn’t just get hearing aids or cochlear implants.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4VzMjwM5K4
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZVz9MJqWIE
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MaverickClark: Look at that! This theater’s YUGE!479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVquRh3WpnK
SimoneChaput: I’m loving the red carpet. Ready for my close-up, fellas.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo7Km6cQIGL
DrFanfare: You look sick, Kirby! 479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7SDHYOyvdK
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He smiles and assures her he’s feeling much better now.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS4NYwB1S3Z
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4ftWgDqsZs
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBhs9iG7Ggh
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuMmmPE6qCG
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡghiRxIgn7V
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVHi5Ph0u82
DrFanfare: All that junk food, no side effects. No upset stomach, no acid reflux, no bacne. It’s genius if you ask me. 479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNPh4yefgTo
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUIoxyaOhuT
It registers on Simone’s face.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ89LWQ4a0Zu
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SimoneChaput: You’re right... This is a real theater, but better. 479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAalvtAPn4f
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpvha1c7mfF
Maverick grips Kirby’s shoulder out of morbid fascination. They hug, which seems real and kind of a pleasant tingling.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeC9mOsxXbw
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSoBGrIMn16
MaverickClark: Sorry. Now I kinda feel perverse.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡalukt0JUxZ
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN8hPU4YTPG
“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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5Ca9MtsmR6
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiPfEfmmYUj
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY7LzU2FH9e
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlzwWH07C6X
DrFanfare: I’ve never actually seen the movie, Sky’s Falling, yet. I heard it’s incredible! Have you seen it? 479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCIRv9wdDhz
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡprz8Lu8Qlh
Simone and Maverick eagerly admit they haven’t either.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuQ7ca4w28b
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVVZkgZ0laJ
SimoneChaput: I’ve been itching for an opportunity though.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsE95myajyZ
MaverickClark: Especially here! And now! I’m so in. 479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV3vmkLTTUa
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdWRJIUNod9
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFsBnwtUyCw
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4IRpMYnVa4
He frowns at a camera slowly tracking him.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcoIPlTMirX
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9wurvPqgfY
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx5v3GeB7PY
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2yOMbUR139
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKU4QhbAUeV
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUQaNwzUSMm
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzAcN6NKsFU
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡshpN1DY2xi
Fade to black. Credits crawl.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkFfIHYjoHg
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6FZQMnGil5
DrFanfare: Good job, Kirby! I loved it. Whoop, our two hours are just about up. Byebye. See you on the other side, everyone!479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJZIENlk0Vr
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ295aVeQKt
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs3kX6SR4GP
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmngRNElBmD
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXpjBwRpmei
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCce0ffGZ2H
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3NqOAQbPp2
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBW5Ko4svcA
The popcorn stand catches his eye. He gets that funny feeling.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8DlnuZBniQ
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwNxF9xldUY
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHJBqiqztW8
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Thought there was something secret here.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4ipQh6qYtp
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPKEaoUukdQ
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdMIIaogz37
“HELLO!” Kirby shouts freely.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbb8cJGyuKE
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhBZ5dliVUU
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. 479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZalJO8sg8M
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjGjcY9LoM3
To his horror, Kirby looks back. Nothing stirs.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOCmtr0E9oO
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRb5WAnqJ4u
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbw7kOg46GM
He scrambles back from Viggo Hayes’s body hung from a red noose. Oh shit.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT5jOjkKzpb
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq1xDotufpO
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEDIBEyICnH
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHmqcm3Eovv
It’s just someone’s sick prank.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI7SLeHml8r
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu9JYZHGAZA
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl5K9cJt048
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ59LxQmRELY
Kirby frowns. What’s going on? He’d never put that in his world. One bedbug becomes hundreds skittering and crawling from the darkness.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnC3rcqJStf
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6qJtYIsN5q
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqKgjpJovhF
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWZ8tvRHLKL
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg5SeVWMWqO
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGGSkZwWigp
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmhYJJHZFLh
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB6SsdkuFFl
DomTaylor: “Stop filming. I don’t trust drones.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWxhiKJNg5D
ViggoHayes: “Sorry, cap’n.” 479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5Zy2JnGNc7
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7MXcLyTRVG
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfM0A2k6BN7
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡepv3mQx4bM
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh5l3dFalBX
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3rkWI7sYQZ
DomTaylor: “I’ve handpicked the winners by the way.” 479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJV0A6qfwxt
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMNn5GgQegV
This makes Viggo and Kirby pause. He’s talking about the contest.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGl127fhsTh
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtXmcpK8xtn
ViggoHayes: “Winners? There should be only one.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLK2Y7vORia
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.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡenLGgZRnbY
ViggoHayes: “All right. Who are they?”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBO5FpntSjE
DomTaylor: “Kirby Hayes and Iris Frisk.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡijdzag9RcT
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoQeGmij8gF
This makes Viggo and Kirby freeze. But Viggo looks a touch betrayed.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJuRCygtyNh
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdnNBzuA8li
DomTaylor: “What’s the matter? Thought you’d look more pleased.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkgBeAJbgLZ
ViggoHayes: “Why are you doing this to me?” 479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI61O9fn6d0
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqH2APnyXgA
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡblPSmg686T
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCnBUvBssYx
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzUdMWjTP0E
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlblUbdlAkT
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ53BWsSOpx6
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5IAo7QHaE7
Viggo’s jaw smashes the floor. He spits out blood and a tooth.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnFwTP9UC23
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXoetYOdBrs
Ishmael’s howls waver to whines.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdPXxq0C3zI
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOq94Yd3gbb
DomTaylor: “Enough!”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc4hsAfrgf7
ViggoHayes: “You promised you wouldn’t choose them, Dom ...” 479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3GHifYPgWP
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡISdbHExcoQ
Taylor stands to his feet, panting. He glares down at him with distaste.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCePSFHAWJw
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqhK2rticiU
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!”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsUcN3PIRNw
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC41xKyAWak
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?479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1oULXvJAYE
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡePqxt1MnAp
Subtitles inform him of the footsteps behind him. He slowly looks back and goes weak in the knees.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn8Pml3qMMH
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡemer0yNBWL
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡazUnI0RbVJ
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ62IiqJCujy
He flinches when the Spook points a gloved finger his way.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQAg0PTOcdq
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuPrAzTdONh
“Boo.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsX6wggHakL
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXrISb9MoBl
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…479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ70UFgnaJRu
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrYRzdwgnaO
He peeks again. The Spook points at him, this time in broad daylight.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPtRCvJFKUw
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWTxv1G3x5w
“Sorry you lived. I’ll try harder next time.” 479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuwtdnSfjqo
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoA6fz5Vc47
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD8eRZxP0Gz
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1UB5sYU3iI
He dies.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcqWrG3Etpy
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVCRQEobwSO
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2TQSa3NCAj
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdxKWN8gdbP
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyxzRea8cZT
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6h5PXMbhh0
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZUrzF8fVhh
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZsJBVuIwZA
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMINfBSiTe6
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGZ6PxQRCjc
Kirby realizes Viggo has his hand wrapped around the emergency brake.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuRGZ1Qeqx6
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡajcnK7Ipkq
They stare at each other.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyndAjXubtC
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLoELL4lKcs
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!479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs5vCpvBjuF
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR1NwJHYMpS
The car flips.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7VAyEhXieh
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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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡirqwTBUfFN
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw7xOaSRDyh
Kirby’s face is thrown forward.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgvd1vOKHV7
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPXb4VkavCa
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡODeaDztRx9
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNSbsTzeozB
He dies again.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQd6c1itv8x
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMQGjjYo9KB
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVNAFLksvnx
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5aQaMBJQKG
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMx5Wkv7ngU
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7F5Aj0XdTq
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfZMdsXePjR
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfS8UY42kah
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEtofyX2VQR
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3LaxBnDhEU
Kirby grins a bigger one back at him.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6HflNYH3jk
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡllmwj2Deks
Anonymous: “You’re okay.” 479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ47cysybMO2
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ829rNsGfq7
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBNkeaZUufL
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhNw9ndr04r
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6h6hQVqRPa
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9OtLioNHqm
But the Spook emerges. “Your time is coming.”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡynGYOkg8T8
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡInT6yEJMmI
Chance tenses up, seeing that sad mask for the first time. The plane smokes something terrible, setting on fire.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCnIlZAEo25
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiynbVOB2iI
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRuyhRDLWsY
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTt3xhXbjq9
Their world gets erased with a zip, turning blank. It in fact turns bright white, leaving nothing behind but three avatars.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnsFwRSrfZS
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYDBYjSdzbT
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!”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxokY5hr0Jt
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMFTbyOtNds
Kirby jabs at the Exit button. Like a deflating balloon, it all goes black.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJG773RTciD
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXpwYhMFZdR
The MyHAVEN pod unlocks, opening slightly ajar by itself.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnYSrLBXnRa
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbngl5hudi1
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?479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWLqlhulRR1
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTVELxcZHXt
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqQzbYDubwm
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHdmKEveOV7
His wrist leans into the door, prying it open slightly. His shoulder presses into it. Fucking open.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpP97fSzeVG
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3S5TNguOLZ
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoJ8RZmr3oO
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSQPJ4RSaRa
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0TZtjCxcJV
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhS4C67vkic
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ2gV4NoHL0
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡozxGP69Ag4
A shadow lurks through the rosewood study.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV6g13sjWei
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQl3GRW3RQo
His heart pounds. Please, he thinks. Not like this.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsf6eQ12pno
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeUE53veY6g
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?479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKLQ9ccp3EC
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWfo56QWDaz
A haunting face.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsuFD1lTdMF
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQJBzoUf7LR
An impossible face, bearded white.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMUQrfpjP79
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡupJ7MxZ0qy
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.479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8wHPo60KpJ
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoVq4MAH0i5
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!”479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡickvZ6NVNl
479Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS7GtHho8A0
No, Kirby realizes. Professor Dominic Taylor is very much alive.
THE SPOOK IS SAD
Jack Steele Adams
ns18.220.137.35da2
