517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQdnXJ0rpe7
CHAPTER FOUR517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTv0HK9qZnN
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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?517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFaTMbAhJ95
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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.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHLJBtwvWNs
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“HOLY SH--” Maverick explodes at something on his phone before glancing at Madeline’s little girl. “Cheerios...”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBi2w3kfxer
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Madeline gives him a tired thumb’s up as Dr. Fanfare hands her coffee.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡigQSrpOcMr
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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?!”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTd6u9e3ZBJ
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Viggo raises scratched hands, “That’s a hoax.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd0q9XWaiJ2
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“Ooh,” Maverick shows something else to Simone. She gasps and hides a smirk.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMepcGdMk4D
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“My gosh, Kirby,” Simone points at him. “Keep your pants on.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrbTxSJlwb2
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Kirby makes abrupt and awkward laughter. Madeline cups Ruthie’s ears.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzDDzXD1qOY
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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? 517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiaQXtMTO7N
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Kirby sucks air through his teeth. Iris becomes concerned when she hears that.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4QdcyPIR2a
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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?”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI0ogrvC6Xx
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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?”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjNySt0TFY4
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Viggo can only grunt at her wisdom.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeGnTiM4oed
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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.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKEFSp7PkVh
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5jfQk9wK7B
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHUiTZvimya
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“Skulls,” Simone Chaput insists. “Tiny, tiny skulls and diamonds everywhere.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUsSi5LroVA
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“Nice!” Maverick Clark nods. “Mine’s gonna have bricked gold.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8TlE3v3Hm2
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“You like teddy bears, Ruth?” Madeline Desjardins asks. “Maybe puppies.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq2AUXsqgK3
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“A big puppy bear!” Ruthie smashes small fists together to her mother’s delight.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfaJP3xDKGC
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpqNqFnTunF
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A silver glossy pod rises, spiraling up from the floor, before three others do.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkl9EEzfJkr
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5hw5QH5dkO
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2qGlAwsKUd
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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.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI9othMIeeJ
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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?”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsmNpENz7NU
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Iris raises a hand.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBHRbINLZDg
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“No questions I see,” Viggo rushes along.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3IOvVxPJhb
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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!”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0fE45wh17X
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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?517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUJJUMuj9Lc
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Iris shouts something back but it’s dismissed. She sits down.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1D9yr4WS6j
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Kirby texts Iris: Huh? What was your question?517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw0O2KFer5a
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNqocrkbhX2
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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?”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ2cvW4hXMw
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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.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs1Ux03CAED
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“Yeah,” Iris agrees. “I’m sitting this one out too.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5QaOQ2zr5Y
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Viggo replies, “Iris.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr8DHbpAcQD
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“Miss Frisk,” she happily reminds him.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5cU6yP1vNB
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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.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnHE4JnWVUh
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The room goes still and all eyes rest on Viggo and Madeline.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxWZ5P4TkBq
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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.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfvH1XmtKIY
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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?”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡObZkTDjq1k
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The girl fakes a vomiting sound, to everyone’s scattered laughter.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTiSM8rjPRT
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“You can leave now,” Viggo chuckles.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdwZ3M4zHqN
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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.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOsKgCKKWU9
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The Desjardins leave apologetically before a loud coffee spill.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUslaXOdwhV
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“Someone will clean that up,” Dr. Fanfare calls after her.
“Come on down,” Viggo tells the rest of the interns.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtxe8TDrU7x
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvZOe79ewyU
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Wonder how that will go.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgUndnj8hhT
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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?517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0MxIEAtNHF
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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?517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡynjyNbZion
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Chills crawl down Kirby’s arms to his feet just from thinking about it.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9Oru9oCc30
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc0qyNjWIkb
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What!? Kirby wheezes, tensing up.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz9dduny33T
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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. 517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2g2KiEQlXp
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMkly4RjO32
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuUqjPynRtb
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx2UpgyjgDE
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Then with a low whine, MyHAVEN fades in with an eerie glow. It is loading.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjx513ewS8y
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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!”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH2WvvLuPqK
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPfzKuvN0Dh
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEk6p1dWl5a
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNZ4r9sbSpt
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Soon, he will enter this world of Viggo Hayes’s design.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSbLbMQcxdc
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjhgPaiSSrH
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Darkness splits, doors sliding open and revealing the vast galaxy.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2DfbW96fw2
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLYnE4Z0D6Z
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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! 517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIs9UQOu050
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdxQmSFNddT
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Kirby clutches his head with agony. I don’t like this.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrfocQEJBDZ
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG21B5fxESo
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyO4d0R0RR8
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNNOBkFRAMZ
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ36ZJa804ee
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh1RPZl52BU
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3Z6JgMkMRH
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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!”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlWq9JBuQMp
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ63UX6Ll2qC
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And people wonder why he doesn’t just get hearing aids or cochlear implants.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJkjIUUHmCU
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzde0MUazm7
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MaverickClark: Look at that! This theater’s YUGE!517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1epZIT8FX5
SimoneChaput: I’m loving the red carpet. Ready for my close-up, fellas.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZmhmy05LR9
DrFanfare: You look sick, Kirby! 517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3mo5yVLbQI
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He smiles and assures her he’s feeling much better now.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlCkQehpbQn
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOyAFb1cWG5
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyU8tio7iGa
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtvFLl1WsOf
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6BOUyGDu3T
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFczT6PfDFF
DrFanfare: All that junk food, no side effects. No upset stomach, no acid reflux, no bacne. It’s genius if you ask me. 517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDsCwLdEkFd
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It registers on Simone’s face.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2o6dL1Qa8x
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SimoneChaput: You’re right... This is a real theater, but better. 517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXVnur3MEYE
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Maverick grips Kirby’s shoulder out of morbid fascination. They hug, which seems real and kind of a pleasant tingling.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡexCGOJlniz
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MaverickClark: Sorry. Now I kinda feel perverse.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrOICkfZv7A
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhZfV58aOmu
“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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡslHQFY8Ehy
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXeNfUIOWE6
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOBgqvQAT6g
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7M8g5SvrLT
DrFanfare: I’ve never actually seen the movie, Sky’s Falling, yet. I heard it’s incredible! Have you seen it? 517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSUWfTk9wwr
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Simone and Maverick eagerly admit they haven’t either.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYsT2BeoCd2
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVAwvGqsWg8
SimoneChaput: I’ve been itching for an opportunity though.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEXzyldPyeQ
MaverickClark: Especially here! And now! I’m so in. 517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZVizDWqedT
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOKfGACLkr6
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9nbB482PaG
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He frowns at a camera slowly tracking him.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjSMd6fgBRg
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvoGFTjOoad
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8hbKLzaXwM
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHdxRyEQ7hU
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1LNEgItdf8
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkZaYJje73b
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Fade to black. Credits crawl.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGyfphb7pl2
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DrFanfare: Good job, Kirby! I loved it. Whoop, our two hours are just about up. Byebye. See you on the other side, everyone!517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3BibQgIYQZ
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPskOKnh9Hd
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFwXNoYRF5P
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV0wlQQEpai
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsb8K2lG8sB
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgqWRyucQ2m
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCuN8okYNz8
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgunyao07RC
The popcorn stand catches his eye. He gets that funny feeling.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUkmSVRoDCv
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6cMSmWxA61
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkHkqTlqSs9
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Thought there was something secret here.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyySGjCboAl
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfys0liUxP0
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVkpW7iqn0b
“HELLO!” Kirby shouts freely.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDLbuPAe7Wp
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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. 517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC7VXmU0Aff
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1WG2GdqXal
To his horror, Kirby looks back. Nothing stirs.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLeSazDAI61
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAvZaIOyYGT
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSwInDg8GgN
He scrambles back from Viggo Hayes’s body hung from a red noose. Oh shit.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz1lOAyBgmX
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyOdBoQHN4k
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaYC6CvTDXT
It’s just someone’s sick prank.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrfMe73OaWs
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv9MqU3SeyG
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE70y9qtgHO
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Kirby frowns. What’s going on? He’d never put that in his world. One bedbug becomes hundreds skittering and crawling from the darkness.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXP6CLtEEx1
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO4KsBv7KjR
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaV2X3E8kNL
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡETHbC9bKgH
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡghIuswEE94
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS7RakFD3dh
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYgrftHkMmq
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDpfWyzuf7Z
DomTaylor: “Stop filming. I don’t trust drones.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnHFsGtshv5
ViggoHayes: “Sorry, cap’n.” 517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEVqBR4SmQw
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe9azmoaqRW
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV0jBqS6l3d
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpGkCPFR8Nz
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ82PX77wzOG
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc3Vu8hebcu
DomTaylor: “I’ve handpicked the winners by the way.” 517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyR90pjVrDv
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVCJaCdpehO
This makes Viggo and Kirby pause. He’s talking about the contest.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9U0wGFg9Iz
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡswIZKNd4BV
ViggoHayes: “Winners? There should be only one.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8HlGBAadoq
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.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqwJdIWbIaP
ViggoHayes: “All right. Who are they?”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjeUcehCBAy
DomTaylor: “Kirby Hayes and Iris Frisk.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2TMV7CAACt
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv5gszLh6rf
This makes Viggo and Kirby freeze. But Viggo looks a touch betrayed.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjHBGcugR92
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOSV7vjcDqt
DomTaylor: “What’s the matter? Thought you’d look more pleased.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPqPOsr4Gxu
ViggoHayes: “Why are you doing this to me?” 517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJIon520Isf
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4UkjvoKk88
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡikZ5PW8I0p
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdJCsqE0ID4
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBHPrbfeuwb
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaWuToOXbn5
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLnUXG2y8xh
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRKHlViztVg
Viggo’s jaw smashes the floor. He spits out blood and a tooth.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6nRtzDwvGZ
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7FezRNgwwn
Ishmael’s howls waver to whines.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDGTOB15TSv
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5VoADozIk7
DomTaylor: “Enough!”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUumkCUHUNU
ViggoHayes: “You promised you wouldn’t choose them, Dom ...” 517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOKAzLVFbNV
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRV2s3sJgMm
Taylor stands to his feet, panting. He glares down at him with distaste.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhtbKst7D14
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5GYjw50P9Q
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!”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkB5fkjSafX
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQAcajZDmGx
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?517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ08R286qXHY
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Subtitles inform him of the footsteps behind him. He slowly looks back and goes weak in the knees.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDuQNmeM6ZU
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPqxi3kga4i
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsLpUvcEX8l
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXZsT7wXV6r
He flinches when the Spook points a gloved finger his way.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHkaj67cGrJ
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7FvaLDqzK2
“Boo.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWqdgsElysd
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsEEmdMQ7G1
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…517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCmrFjrStPm
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He peeks again. The Spook points at him, this time in broad daylight.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr8V8a9GArN
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“Sorry you lived. I’ll try harder next time.” 517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP5q9CkG7cr
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOBGUHh5tCa
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWuDKwc1uMI
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He dies.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBTOn7ydPaD
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL37zymsp6t
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ6vcT25TY9
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4q4TomLlqt
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzLn9foU1wX
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ11LSBatQc3
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfCNClmY2Tr
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbgkLEtDJ2i
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfPPFjYowzQ
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnYyeOMIbEE
Kirby realizes Viggo has his hand wrapped around the emergency brake.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZkdbvleiJn
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpswbGsrPxM
They stare at each other.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyh7TotTHg3
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlEL2qG0JcE
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!517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnjxZPudnIB
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEqMCnYQcQB
The car flips.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9hfmPnvD5f
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiieIi8X9Wk
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJd30Ys7OvS
Kirby’s face is thrown forward.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfIFbN0gOeP
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT8xTBhs2HS
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He dies again.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaimyaLpjmP
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNkymW3zk22
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYTFdwwH3IS
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGOeCb0IBy5
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNqOwNnAiZT
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOUjd3MM0WD
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡftsrEuChJq
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Kirby grins a bigger one back at him.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjsvvRsnsQQ
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Anonymous: “You’re okay.” 517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn3j2C9GOx7
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDorOzxIESF
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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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPz7ON9phHf
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡllLgvTb1D1
But the Spook emerges. “Your time is coming.”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhY79qBiWVd
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4YuXYHT2v5
Chance tenses up, seeing that sad mask for the first time. The plane smokes something terrible, setting on fire.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKVtdMQXqcy
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTA42VyOk3a
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi3eOccQN0T
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy7ZjESqcqY
Their world gets erased with a zip, turning blank. It in fact turns bright white, leaving nothing behind but three avatars.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ35MLHdf8Zm
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnNQVjMlDUD
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!”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ06sIXEslm7
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnZJ7Ukk7RO
Kirby jabs at the Exit button. Like a deflating balloon, it all goes black.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7seczZT5Sa
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH6ruwb6HRJ
The MyHAVEN pod unlocks, opening slightly ajar by itself.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr1z6kvwwDF
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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?517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSfFvJWDJ8u
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0kEDsGkd5N
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW3RpLaW9Ti
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR33AF2f9k8
His wrist leans into the door, prying it open slightly. His shoulder presses into it. Fucking open.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVVgayZpxy2
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ92L8rPsM4D
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNPWbHH8ynU
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDM9xQelnwU
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJXHFRsa1cJ
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtnAicH7xMX
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡilUCzSErAx
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A shadow lurks through the rosewood study.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHKn3hMVff0
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His heart pounds. Please, he thinks. Not like this.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6ypqRn9EIT
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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?517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbRpVjpVdR4
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A haunting face.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtDXvt4SSLQ
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An impossible face, bearded white.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUx8lJy0XeA
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCE78I8ELNZ
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.517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk5y4TJ6IYZ
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5HVlpNPRkC
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!”517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi8j85QBGyj
517Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡobrNB5pRXU
No, Kirby realizes. Professor Dominic Taylor is very much alive.
THE SPOOK IS SAD
Jack Steele Adams
ns216.73.216.143da2
