‹ Prequel: Blind Photographs
Status: Updates every other day
Destination Detonation
Sand and Sky With Nothing in Between
I hadn’t told her then, but then again, I hadn’t told anyone at all. That was reason enough for me to believe these people. I neglected to voice the answer to his question. They already knew it was me. They already knew me.
“So, where is Gr- I mean, Boom Box?”
“That’s one of the reasons you’re here, actually,” Party Poison explained.
“What do you mean by that?”
“She was taken by the city. Before, she was kept in minimum security areas, and BLI thought we’re too savage to go back for our own. It took them a few tries, but they’ve finally grasped that we’re going to go back for Boom Box, like we always have. We have an idea of where she is, too, but they’ve got her under such tight watch that we need all the help we can get.”
“I barely know anything about how this works, though. Besides, I’ve never fired a gun, what use could I be?”
“She’s your sister and we thought you’d want to help. You were pissed the last time we went in without you.”
“Last time?”
“Doctor Death Defying has the whole story. We were hoping you’d remember all of this by now, so we’re a little behind schedule, but we have a few more ideas.”
“So you would have left me in the city otherwise?” I asked, realizing what had been said.
“What do you mean? Of course not.”
“You just want my help getting Grace back. If she was still here, I would still be living out my life like normal.”
I looked out the window. It was darker than it ever got within city walls, there were no late night shops open, no officers patrolling the streets, just sand and sky with nothing in between. Jet Star reached across the table and took my hand, bringing my focus back to them. His hand swamped mine in a comforting sort of way.
“Look, we care about you too, Fai- err, Photo. But one of the first things you told us was not to panic if you left. It was your thing. You’d stay for a while, and then move on. We thought that’s what you did, until Boom Box mentioned Destroya. We thought you’d want to come with us, since she’s your sister, and that’s when we learned you were in Battery City. We came after you as soon as we heard.”
That didn’t make me feel very good about myself.
“Well, I’m back now, I guess. Thanks.”They let me out of the booth after that, showing me to a back room filled with cots. It smelled almost familiar.
“D and Show Pony should be back by tomorrow morning, so we’ll try again then to get you un-brainwashed,” Jet Star reassured me.
I was in a glass box, like the ones in the rehabilitation center, but something was different. I was wearing strange clothes, pounding on the walls and screaming. It was one of those strange instances where you knew it had to be you but at the same time you looked absolutely nothing like yourself. It was like watching a horrible movie, just watching the different me struggle endlessly until a hissing started and the doppelganger slid to the floor.
“Let me OUT!” I finally sobbed, but I wasn’t in the box anymore.
I was in the diner, with the same shocked and confused looks coming from every direction.
“…Sorry,” I mumbled, using the back of my sleeve to wipe at my eyes, more embarrassed then I could ever remember being.
“Do you want to um, talk about it?” The Kobra kid asked hesitantly.
“No, I really don’t. Sorry for waking you guys up. Just a dream.”
I hope…
I turned with my back to them and pulled the blanket up higher around my face. If that was a memory, I don't think I wanted to know the rest of it.
“So, where is Gr- I mean, Boom Box?”
“That’s one of the reasons you’re here, actually,” Party Poison explained.
“What do you mean by that?”
“She was taken by the city. Before, she was kept in minimum security areas, and BLI thought we’re too savage to go back for our own. It took them a few tries, but they’ve finally grasped that we’re going to go back for Boom Box, like we always have. We have an idea of where she is, too, but they’ve got her under such tight watch that we need all the help we can get.”
“I barely know anything about how this works, though. Besides, I’ve never fired a gun, what use could I be?”
“She’s your sister and we thought you’d want to help. You were pissed the last time we went in without you.”
“Last time?”
“Doctor Death Defying has the whole story. We were hoping you’d remember all of this by now, so we’re a little behind schedule, but we have a few more ideas.”
“So you would have left me in the city otherwise?” I asked, realizing what had been said.
“What do you mean? Of course not.”
“You just want my help getting Grace back. If she was still here, I would still be living out my life like normal.”
I looked out the window. It was darker than it ever got within city walls, there were no late night shops open, no officers patrolling the streets, just sand and sky with nothing in between. Jet Star reached across the table and took my hand, bringing my focus back to them. His hand swamped mine in a comforting sort of way.
“Look, we care about you too, Fai- err, Photo. But one of the first things you told us was not to panic if you left. It was your thing. You’d stay for a while, and then move on. We thought that’s what you did, until Boom Box mentioned Destroya. We thought you’d want to come with us, since she’s your sister, and that’s when we learned you were in Battery City. We came after you as soon as we heard.”
That didn’t make me feel very good about myself.
“Well, I’m back now, I guess. Thanks.”They let me out of the booth after that, showing me to a back room filled with cots. It smelled almost familiar.
“D and Show Pony should be back by tomorrow morning, so we’ll try again then to get you un-brainwashed,” Jet Star reassured me.
I was in a glass box, like the ones in the rehabilitation center, but something was different. I was wearing strange clothes, pounding on the walls and screaming. It was one of those strange instances where you knew it had to be you but at the same time you looked absolutely nothing like yourself. It was like watching a horrible movie, just watching the different me struggle endlessly until a hissing started and the doppelganger slid to the floor.
“Let me OUT!” I finally sobbed, but I wasn’t in the box anymore.
I was in the diner, with the same shocked and confused looks coming from every direction.
“…Sorry,” I mumbled, using the back of my sleeve to wipe at my eyes, more embarrassed then I could ever remember being.
“Do you want to um, talk about it?” The Kobra kid asked hesitantly.
“No, I really don’t. Sorry for waking you guys up. Just a dream.”
I hope…
I turned with my back to them and pulled the blanket up higher around my face. If that was a memory, I don't think I wanted to know the rest of it.