by Jared Ravens
“Ogden would know about this?” She asked.
“He would know more than I do,” Martel said. “So it’s in your hands now.”
Vivian was deep in thought, and Martel assumed she had confused her, so she offered more detail.
“He doesn’t literally look like a cow.”
“Of course not.”
“Its just a… perception… that my niece has. We thought your husband would know a thing or two about cows”
“Shouldn’t we ask your husband about cows as well?” Vivan asked, looking up at Martel. “He knows them just as well.”
Martel’s face went blank and she drew back.
“Thank you,” she said, “for giving this to Ogden.”
Vivian sat still until Martel was out of sight, then jumped up and hurried across the lawn. She secured a ride down the hill from a begrudged Marcus and had him let her off on a deserted street on the seedier side of town.
She knew Ogden’s haunts. The smoke shops and residences and dark alleys of the western edge of Sigma was where she could hear him guffawing and carrying on at the wee hours of the morning. It was where she found him one night, in a place where neither one of them should have been. She had winked at him, letting him know that no one had to know, and she carried led him out of the smoke shop and took him to a park. They fucked so loudly that lights went on around the park and they escaped by climbing over a fence.
He later asked why she wanted to have sex in the park, and she told him that she hated the city. He agreed, but after spending night after night laying in wheat fields he craved contact.
This is where he found it.
She went from window to window, looking for him in every mistress’s house and apartment. When she finally found him it was dark, and she sat on top of a roof and waited. The street was full of stumbling ruffians and alleys with robbers and smokers waiting for a mark. She watched a man be ruffed up and left for dead, then a healer come and haul him off to a hospital bed. She saw fights in the windows and lovers come together. It was a beautiful mess of humanity, cramped into an unnatural situation. It made her claustrophobic.
But the people, she did love them so much.
She loved the women and their soft curves and them with their stoutness and rough energy. She loved Ogden and the way his chest rounded out and met his belly, and she loved the way other men tried to measure up and sometime succeeded. She had a deep affection for all of those women that been overcome by her wildness and attempted to contain her in their arms. They always failed. But she had a need for something more, and it had finally come to her.
She saw Odgen stand up in the window. Vivian crawled down the side of the building she was on and waited by the door. It flung open, slamming against the wall, and the rotund figure hobbled out into the abandoned street.
“Don’t break it,” she said. He twisted around in alarm to see where the voice was coming from. He smiled and she returned the look, kissing him on the lips and taking him by the waist as they walked.
“How was it?” She asked.
“All right,” he said in a gruff voice. He shrugged. “She was OK. She seemed to like it.”
“I’ll bet.”
“And you?” He asked.
“I’ve been laying on the roof watching you.”
He let go of her and glanced at her.
“I’d prefer you not,” he said.
“Then close your shades.”
He shrugged again.
“Must have been boring on The Hill for you to come down and watch me.”
“If I’m in Sigma, it’s important,” She replied, pulling out the paper from inside her dress. He attempted to read it but he didn’t seem to understand.
“What is a cow doing?”
“I need you to do something for me,” she said. “Tell Celia that you have a kid from a cow.”
“What?” He said, stopping.
“Tell her that you have a cow that had a kid. It can be your kid, or someone else’s kid, but just explain the to her and it will be done. She won’t think about it again.”
“That’s embarrassing.”
“You’re from from a cow.”
“I know! Do you want to be from a cow?” He huffed angrily. “I’m not doing that. They’ll make fun of me all over again.”
Vivan rubbed his neck with her hand to calm him down. His heaving chest slowed.
“Could you tell them that your cow gave birth to a person and you don’t know how that happened?”
He closed his eyes.
“What did you do, Vivian.”
“The less you know, the better.”
He sighed deeply.
“They’re going to find out.”
“Not if they stop thinking about it.”
“So I’ll just be the idiot again and that’ll distract them.”
She breathed into his ear.
“They won’t think you’re dumb.”
He looked at her, examining her figure. He sighed.
“Thank you,” she said.
“And?” He asked.
“When I get back,” she assured him. “I have more to do.”
Felix swung the door to bathroom shut and stumbled backwards, falling into his bed. He held his hands above his face and screamed before he realized who was in the corner. He blinked several times to see if it was true. Vivian walked towards him.
“That was not good reaction,” she said.
“What… what are you doing?” He said, collecting himself and reaching for a shirt.
“You told someone about me?”
“Of course… yes,” he said, pulling a shirt on and looking around his room for any other prying eyes.
“Quit,” she said sternly.
Felix’s chest heaved and he examined the woman in front of him.
“Who are you?”
“The less you know the better.”
“How can you say that? I have to know eventually.”
She shook her head.
“Did you read any history in school? Do you know what my family does?”
“Of course I do. Why do you think I’m scared?”
She nodded and glanced out the window. Even she wondered if someone was watching them.
“Last time you said that a deal was coming due,” he asked. “What did you mean?”
“I didn’t mean it in a bad way.”
“What did you mean, then?”
“What did you want to do with your life? You wanted to be a… what did you call it?”
“… work on the miner carts.”
She nodded. “That’s natural. That’s in your blood.”
He stood up. “Are you saying I’m related to you?”
“No.”
He waited for more to come from her mouth but she only stared at him. Finally she sighed.
“You asked a question of a friend, and the answer you get back won’t be the right one. Don’t believe it.”
He nodded. The intensity of her eyes were glowing and it felt like the pull between them was inevitable. There was a whirlwind of activity and she was on top of him. He was inside of her, a blast of electricity coming over him. He felt like a hurricane had ignited inside of him. In a flash of blinding light it was over, the world transformed and he was laying half off the bed, unsure of what time it was. She was standing above him, he face peaceful with a slight smile on it. She dressed slowly, watching him as she covered her naked body.
“Vivian,” he said quietly. She did not respond. She did not confirm.
“Do not let anyone know who you are,” she said. “Do not stand out. Do not let anyone know of you. If they know of you, they will try and control you.”
He lifted himself up leaned on his arm.
“And you? You won’t control me?”
“I will protect you,” she said. “I promise you this.”
Dinner at Twilight
Adapted from the forward of the book:
An Extended and Annotated Of
ficial History, Explaining the Current Situation in the East
by Genesee
The deceptive practices of Vivian could have remained secret. In conspiring with others, including Celia, she had covered her tracks for decades. The machinations are not new to the residents of The Hill, but her actions are the worst that I have heard of in quite some time.
People are not playthings, and they should not be treated as such. I have nothing but respect for humans and their lives. I wish nothing more than to provide for them and give them all they need to be prosperous in their short lives.
Others on The Hill feel differently. It is important to remember the disrespect of so many others have for the human race. They see them as below them, or as worthless. Their attitudes must be checked. I have fought for all of my existence for the value of a human’s life. When a person feels threatened or acted upon the result can be disastrous. Indeed, what is happening in the East with Fairfax is a direct result of the actions of so many that feel the need to force humans to fight for their causes or squash them out.
My only focus is protection and growth of the human experience.
Adapted From Celia’s Testament of an Alternate History of Creation
As Received by Anonymous
Others would have you think that I only use humans like living dolls, breeding them and throwing them away if they do not please me. They’ll point to people in my orbit and say how cruel we are to people. These are lies, distortions that are meant cloud the truth.
Rumors of some scheme by my daughter to meddle in human creation are just that: vicious rumors. She had no hand in any of this mess.
Fairfax was not a result of anything I or Vivian did. He was plucked form obscurity and elevated to a heightened position because of the dysfunctional system of management my husband employs. Fairfax should have been stopped before he was created. Bautomet should have been stopped after he was stopped the first time. The system that had allowed both of them to happen should have been changed long ago, or not built at all.
How much far down the chain of poor decisions does someone need to go before you see who is behind the worst that our world has to offer?
Dinner was at twilight, early enough that Felix had to race to make it to the restaurant on time. It was virtually empty at that time, a feature his mother enjoyed. Sitting near the window, she watched the shoppers on the street walk from market to market while she commented on their clothing. His father picked the basket of bread and recounted his day. Felix watched both of them very closely, attempting to locate some secret hidden in their faces.
“…Anyways, the workshop is the way into management,” his father stated. “I’ll pay for it if you’ll go.”
“Maybe,” Felix muttered.
“You’ll have to pass,” his father added.
“Oh, so if he fails he has to pay for it, too,” his mother replied, rolling her eyes.
“Well, it’s fair,” Taniel explained.
“Its already torture enough for the boy to go to a class during the week, let him take it again if he needs to.”
She glanced at Felix as the two continued arguing. He was glad for her defense but he was subdued and irritated at her tonight. She picked up on this.
“You’re different tonight,” she said, eyeing him. “Did you have a long day?”
“Yeah,” he sighed. “It was a long day.” Felix stretched his arms broadly across his side of the table. How to tell them what had happened the past several days? He couldn’t tell if his mother was looking at him with suspicion or curiosity. He did his best to tell her about the mundanity of his day but he was clearly distracted. Images of Vivian flew through his, thoughts of her naked body floated in the air. He everything he touched made him think of her. And when he thought of her he thought of himself. He sighed and pushed her out of his head.
When his father stood up to excuse himself, Felix’s heart began to race. He had thought about what to say but hadn’t come up with anything solid. But he felt he would burst if he didn’t ask, and his mother was the easier place to start.
“I have something to ask you,” he began. He paused as she waited patiently. How did he bring up what he was thinking?
“Am I…”
He paused again and she waited again.
“What is it?” She asked, concerned. “Is it about the law class? You don’t have to do that…”
“No, no…” he shook his head. “I wanted…” he looked towards the back. His father wasn’t returning, as he had hoped. He wanted to be interrupted. He looked back at her. Something in her face moved, just a touch. It was a nervous twitch. Had something occurred to her?
“Was I related to someone?”
Her face reflected confusion.
“Like a grand parent? Someone famous?”
“No, I don’t know how to ask this.”
“Well, you have to be more specific.”
“Something happened,” he blurted out, “and I was told a deal was coming due.”
She drew back in a small burst of surprise. She blinked several times but remained quiet. He looked for some acknowledgement to betray some secret but he saw nothing.
“Well,” she said, “I don’t know. Is it about money? Do you need money?”
“No,” he said, shaking his head. “Well, maybe but that’s not what I’m thinking of.”
His father slid back into his seat and the topic was mercifully left alone. Felix was quiet for the most part. He knew he had to be more blunt but telling his mother that he had sex with a rapacious nature goddess would not come out easy. She was now quiet as well, watching the window more closely and not meeting this eyes for the rest of the dinner.
He decided he would ask his father. Perhaps tomorrow, maybe during lunch. It was dark when they said their goodbyes and went their separate ways. He shuffled slowly down the streets, heavy with the large meal but not anxious to get back to dusty apartment. He wondered what Dani was doing. He listened to the banging and hammering of construction. It felt late to be doing that. He wondered what the Copper Tower night conscription crew was like.
He kicked a large rock into the wall. It ricocheted and came back at him. He called out for a moment and someone appeared at the window above him. He was about to apologize but they weren’t looking at him. They pointed out over the buildings towards the sounds of demolition.
He continued on up the street, aiming for Dani’s place. He looked up as he turned a corner and admired the the gleaming gold shell of the Tower rising above him in the distance, lit from below by fires reflected in mirrors. Above it, the fortress’ hundreds fo windows glowed in white light.
Then it struck him. The noise had come from the opposite direction.
He turned around and walked back down the street to where the people were looking out their windows. Many more had joined them. Dozens were pointing, some calling out. He ran towards the noise, trying to get a sense for what was going on. He yelled up at some people, asking what was happening.
“I don’t know,” the man said. “There’s smoke!”
There was indeed smoke, smoke black against orange light that flickered in the night clouds. Felix burst into the tallest nearby building and ran up the stairs. On the roof above the fifth floor a crowd had gathered. The sky to the south was glowing with flame light. Against it was a small black figure thrusting itself back and forth. Its arms thrashed to the left and a distant crash caused everyone on the rooftop to react.
“Are we safe, mommy?” A young girl asked. Felix waited for the answer but the woman was silent.
“We have to get out of here,” a man said.
No one moved towards the doorway. They murmured and moved about. Felix thought where he could run to in the north part of the city. He looked out over the rooftops at the creature. The thing turned, lashing out; a far away building was smashed in a spray of wood and dust. His skin went cold.
They’re down there.
His parents house was there, in betw
een where that thing was and where he was. He ran for the exit. People were yelling down the hallway. Felix pushed past several people on the stairs and burst out onto the street. Buildings were emptying out and frantic bodies were running past him. Wading past the rush of people, Felix squeezed his way through the waves of humanity.
He fought his way forward, the smoke invading his lungs. He craned his neck at every corner to see what street he was on. The chaos delayed him, and by the time he reached his parent building he could hear the noise from the beast. He ran up the stairs to the second floor. He ran through their darkened apartment, calling for them. He found nothing. The scratched of the creature were closer now. He took the stairs four at a time and ran behind them to reach the basement stairs. He slammed his fist agains the door and heard a cry from the outside.
“Its Felix!” He yelled.
A panicked man opened the metal door and beckoned him in.
“You have to get out!” Felix yelled. The man, shaking violently, moved back to reveal a table. His mother leaned over his father who was on the table, his lower leg bend outward in an unnatural position. Felix pushed past the coupled and tried to move Taniel. Carmen protested as Taniel screamed in agony.
“They pushed him down on the street!” His mother exclaimed. Felix looked at his parents hopelessly and then at the other man and woman. There was a roar outside.
“He’s going to push the building over,” Felix said. His mother looked upward as if assessing the strength of the basement ceiling.
“You’ll be buried,” Felix said. His mother looked at the stairs, hopelessly deadlocked in bad decisions. Felix saw the desperate look in her face. His decision was made for him.
“No, Felix,” his mother said.
“Felix, don’t go!” His father called.
He was already up the stairs, his body pulsing with a newfound energy. He shut his mind out and became something different. The force he felt inside him was sparked.
This was what he wanted.
A black cloud swirled in the air. Crazed faces rushed frantically into each other and yellow laps of fire licked at the tops of houses. He could see the thing now, the top of it at least. It had a hunched back of bone that poked at its blue and grey skin. It wasn't just a wild beast; it knew how to start fires. It ripped off smoking chimneys and grabbed the fiery logs beneath them. He threw these onto rooftops and watched the home explode in flames. It was coming this way. Felix needed to distract it, to move it away from this part of town.