NINETY-TWO: One Holodeo, 1 million words

            Arous and Ricci were in the Purple Ward in the HaleSpa.  They stood in the room where Arous last saw her mother.

            “Where’s my mother?” Arous asked. She had an empty feeling at the pit of her stomach.

            “I’d rather show you, if it’s all the same to you,” said Ricci. “Play holodeo security footage from six days, 3 hours and 30 minutes ago.”

            “That’s when I was here,” she said.

            “It’s just a short little holographic video from a few days ago. I promise this won’t take long.”

            The two Miasmen stood cocooned in their corners just like that had six days and three hours ago.

            The holodeo images jumped out from the IDE-3 wall.  It was just like it was then, all of them there, Simon, the Miasmen, her mom.

            “Adjust sound,” said Ricci. “I hate it when the sound is off.”

            The sound came up but the voices were still a lttle muffled.

            “Seriously,” he said throwing his hands up in the air. “Can you make the voices audible?”

            The volume came up and the timber adjusted making the sound clear. Ricci looked over to Arous.

            “I mean, you’d think with technology these days that all these little bugs would be obsolete.  Seems like nobody is concerned with doing things right the first time.”

            The image of Arous ran into the room. She saw herself have a conversation with her mother.  Her stomach turned.  Her mother looked so beautiful, so vulnerable.

            “Okay, can you just fast forward a few minutes.  Get to the juicy part.”

            Images flashed by. The Miasmen unfurled and ran out of the room. The image of Simon escorted her out.

            Then Simon came in with a laser gun.  He looked more haggard than she remember him.

            “Okay, slow this part down please.”

            He pointed the laser gun at her mother.

            Simon was saying something.

            Her mother said something.

            Arous could hear them talking but she couldn’t hear the words.  They were going in through her ears and making sense but they would not plant in her brain.

            Simon fired.

            Lady Grey dropped to the floor.

            She was dead.

           

            The two Miasmen in the corner had unfurled.  Arous felt someone standing behind her.  Ricci looked a little surprised.

            “I suspected what you were up to Ricci,” Simon’s voice came from behind her.  Arous did not turn around.

            “Arous, you have to believe me, that is not how it happened,” Simon happened.

            “My mother’s dead?” was all she could ask.  She felt like collapsing on the floor for a moment.  The despair seem overwhelming.  From the pit of her stomach, something came crawling up her spine and sat right behind her eyes.  She felt herself growing, become large.

            “Arous,” said Simon, “what are you doing?”

            Arous looked down at her hands.  They weren’t her hands anymore, they were the hands of  a Nephilim.

            She turned from Ricci to face Simon.  Her whole body was consumed by the fire of rage.

            “Arous?” asked Simon he started to back away from her but stopped. “It didn’t happen like that.”

            Arous voice came out of the large Nephilim body.

            “You’ve done nothing buy lie to me.  You knew Siobhan was sick.  You knew what was happening-”

            “I didn’t-”

            “You did nothing.  You set out to seduce me, to bring me to my father.  You were never interested in helping me find my mother.”

            “You have to understand. Ricci was using us all.  Me. Siobhan. Jude-”

            “Jude tried to tell me the truth.  He warned me about you. And I wouldn’t listen.  I got mad and told him to leave.”

            “Right now, Ricci’s even going to try to use you. Don’t let him, Arous!”

            “You’ve done nothing buy lie since I met you. Lie, lie, lie! It’s all a lie.”

            “Right,” he said. “I have lied to you but I’m not lying now. Just listen to me.”

            Arous’ hands were one either side of his face.  She held his face gently.

            “Arous?”

            Like a giant flicking a fly, the movement of Arous’ two hands were graceful and quick. Simon’s neck was broken.  She let him drop to the floor.

            There was silence. Arous, not quite fully herself, flashing back and forth between Nephilim and Arous, dropped to her knees beside Simon.

            “What happened?” she sobbed. “What have I done?”

            Arous cradled Simon in her arms.

            “Arous,” said Ricci. His hand was on her shoulder, soothing her.

            “I didn’t mean to,” she said. “I don’t know what happened.”

            “Let me tell you,” he said softly. He looked so kind, so full of warmth. “You’re gift took over. It controlled you, instead of you controlling it.”

            “That’s never happened before,” said Arous, her whole body was shaking.

            “Shhhh. Shhhhh. It’s alright,” he said and pulled Arous into him.  “Arous I can help you.  I can help you make sure that your gift never controls you again.”

            Arous continued to sob.

            “There, there,” he said and pulled her chin up so that he could look into her eyes. “You trust me, don’t you?”

            “Yes,” she said.

            “Then let me help you.”

            Arous nodded and buried her face in his chest.  Ricci looked up at the two Miasmen who had unfurled into Grey Guard.  He motioned for them to remove the body.

            “Let’s get you a Chinese Water Treatment, a nice sedative and get you to bed.”