Session 4: Vignette
May 18, 2018 22:14:54 GMT -8
Post by probablyok on May 18, 2018 22:14:54 GMT -8
RE: Episode 4
"Oh my god Cassie, you're not even looking at the video!" Lila and Cassie had been friends since grade school but even the best of friendships has its limits. They had been on the beach together, had the same near-death experience, and even huddled together in shock on the bus ride home, so Lila was hurt and confused at Cassie's coldness.
"I don't have to look at it Lila. I was there." Cassie turned and walked to the study hall window that looked out over High Tech High's greenhouse down in the quad. Cassie sounded as tired as she looked. All of them did. Their clique had been the ones saved from the lightning blast, but that's where things got confusing. Had there even been a blast? All their other friends thought it looked close, but hadn't actually hit any of them. For the seven of them though, Lila, Cassie, Danny, Max, Oliver, Ivy, and Rose, their memories were confused.
Their memories were not fuzzy though. Each one of them could clearly remember exactly what happened. The problem was that all seven teens could remember two distinct timelines of events. Most of them had come to terms with the only timeline that made sense, the near-miss of a huge lightning blast and evacuating the beach just in front of a freak storm. They had to quiet the memories that said most of them had been nearly killed by the blast, and that Max had actually died. They blocked out the tearful images of huddling together while paramedics worked on Max in the parking lot, only to fail and pull the white sheet up over his face. Oliver once said he could remember Max's funeral, but even he doesn't talk about that timeline anymore.
While six of the friends had started to come to terms with their juxtaposed minds, Max was still struggling. He hadn't spoken in the three days since, he barely ate, and he refused to take off the rose gold sunglasses he found after the beach day, but he also craved being with these friends rather than staying home from school. Oliver picked him up each morning and stuck with him most of the day, passing him to Danny or Ivy since between them they all had classes with Max.
At this point it was Tuesday after school, three days after the incident, and they had found an empty classroom to meet in. They had been talking about what happened for the first time, all as one group rather than in pairs and threes. They had a lot of notes to compare, but it sounded like the experience came out mostly the same in the end. When everyone had finished telling their version, except for Max who still wasn't talking, Lila got her phone out and pulled up a video someone on the beach had posted. At first glance it showed the seven of them nearly struck by lightning, but Lila said she could see something extra if you advanced the video frame by frame. Most of them squinted and thought maybe there was something but that was when Cassie lost her temper.
"I just don't see why we have to keep going over it," Cassie said, reaching up to put the flat of her hand against the cool glass. "It happened. It's over. Weird shit like this happens sometimes. And now it's done. It's fine. We're alive. We're good. Whatever."
Lila stood looking helpless, standing halfway between the rest of the group and Cassie at the window. She looked back at the group for help and got confused shrugs. She sighed, and started to turn back to Cassie but a sharp movement stopped her. Max's head snapped up in sudden attention, his gaze inscrutable behind the affected sunglasses no one had ever seen him wear before. His brow furrowed as he got to his feet, as if he were trying to read and listen to something at the same time.
"We're not good," Max said. His voice was resonant in a way it hadn't been before. It was his voice but it looked like the sound was slightly out of sync with the way his mouth moved. The others stared at him. Even Cassie came part of the way back to stand by Lila, unconsciously wanting that closeness again.
Max cleared his throat with some effort and kept speaking. "We're not alive either. Not the way we were before." He reached up to push the sunglasses onto his head revealing where his irises had gone to liquid silver. It made his eyes shine like little wet mirrors. His friends held their collective breath, knowing in their hearts that he was speaking a truth all of them had been trying so hard to bury.
"We are The Unstruck. They who died, and were saved from that fate by the one who could wind back time itself." As he spoke Ivy stood and slipped her hand into his and as she did so her irises flowed to silver as well. They began to speak together.
"We are The Unstruck." More hands came together, forming a circle of seven teenagers in a study hall room where the lights had begun to flicker.
"They who both died, and did not die. All possibilities are hers to command."
"As are we. We are hers to command."
"We. The Unstruck."
And the lights went out.
"Oh my god Cassie, you're not even looking at the video!" Lila and Cassie had been friends since grade school but even the best of friendships has its limits. They had been on the beach together, had the same near-death experience, and even huddled together in shock on the bus ride home, so Lila was hurt and confused at Cassie's coldness.
"I don't have to look at it Lila. I was there." Cassie turned and walked to the study hall window that looked out over High Tech High's greenhouse down in the quad. Cassie sounded as tired as she looked. All of them did. Their clique had been the ones saved from the lightning blast, but that's where things got confusing. Had there even been a blast? All their other friends thought it looked close, but hadn't actually hit any of them. For the seven of them though, Lila, Cassie, Danny, Max, Oliver, Ivy, and Rose, their memories were confused.
Their memories were not fuzzy though. Each one of them could clearly remember exactly what happened. The problem was that all seven teens could remember two distinct timelines of events. Most of them had come to terms with the only timeline that made sense, the near-miss of a huge lightning blast and evacuating the beach just in front of a freak storm. They had to quiet the memories that said most of them had been nearly killed by the blast, and that Max had actually died. They blocked out the tearful images of huddling together while paramedics worked on Max in the parking lot, only to fail and pull the white sheet up over his face. Oliver once said he could remember Max's funeral, but even he doesn't talk about that timeline anymore.
While six of the friends had started to come to terms with their juxtaposed minds, Max was still struggling. He hadn't spoken in the three days since, he barely ate, and he refused to take off the rose gold sunglasses he found after the beach day, but he also craved being with these friends rather than staying home from school. Oliver picked him up each morning and stuck with him most of the day, passing him to Danny or Ivy since between them they all had classes with Max.
At this point it was Tuesday after school, three days after the incident, and they had found an empty classroom to meet in. They had been talking about what happened for the first time, all as one group rather than in pairs and threes. They had a lot of notes to compare, but it sounded like the experience came out mostly the same in the end. When everyone had finished telling their version, except for Max who still wasn't talking, Lila got her phone out and pulled up a video someone on the beach had posted. At first glance it showed the seven of them nearly struck by lightning, but Lila said she could see something extra if you advanced the video frame by frame. Most of them squinted and thought maybe there was something but that was when Cassie lost her temper.
"I just don't see why we have to keep going over it," Cassie said, reaching up to put the flat of her hand against the cool glass. "It happened. It's over. Weird shit like this happens sometimes. And now it's done. It's fine. We're alive. We're good. Whatever."
Lila stood looking helpless, standing halfway between the rest of the group and Cassie at the window. She looked back at the group for help and got confused shrugs. She sighed, and started to turn back to Cassie but a sharp movement stopped her. Max's head snapped up in sudden attention, his gaze inscrutable behind the affected sunglasses no one had ever seen him wear before. His brow furrowed as he got to his feet, as if he were trying to read and listen to something at the same time.
"We're not good," Max said. His voice was resonant in a way it hadn't been before. It was his voice but it looked like the sound was slightly out of sync with the way his mouth moved. The others stared at him. Even Cassie came part of the way back to stand by Lila, unconsciously wanting that closeness again.
Max cleared his throat with some effort and kept speaking. "We're not alive either. Not the way we were before." He reached up to push the sunglasses onto his head revealing where his irises had gone to liquid silver. It made his eyes shine like little wet mirrors. His friends held their collective breath, knowing in their hearts that he was speaking a truth all of them had been trying so hard to bury.
"We are The Unstruck. They who died, and were saved from that fate by the one who could wind back time itself." As he spoke Ivy stood and slipped her hand into his and as she did so her irises flowed to silver as well. They began to speak together.
"We are The Unstruck." More hands came together, forming a circle of seven teenagers in a study hall room where the lights had begun to flicker.
"They who both died, and did not die. All possibilities are hers to command."
"As are we. We are hers to command."
"We. The Unstruck."
And the lights went out.