The Lanternfish

Hale

by Hale

Story
London

For crying out loud, not again. I should be sleeping. Inauguration day is tomorrow. I will be so tired, I know it. It takes a while before the thick dust clears. Academy cannot happen soon enough. I need to learn to control these sights and have them at mildly more opportune moments than now. This is utter rubbish and pure depletion of the mind. How useless.

I only see different types of cereals, through the thick clouds of azure. Nothing but grains to the left and right. The floor is some sort of ugly grey sprinkled vinyl. Woefully tedious. I pull out some wholegrain flakes, and behind it appears an old person, or rather a wrinkly eye enlarged by glasses. It reminds me of a lanternfish. The kind with ridiculously disproportional orbs. It is difficult to tell whether it is a woman or a man from the shadow cast by the filled shelves before me. “Well, this is a touch perilous. Isn’t it?” the big-eyed stranger whispers through the nutrient-rich food products. The person has a low raspy voice.

“Are they safe?” I whisper back, leaning in close and pretending to read the back of a Weetabix pack. I am definitely female. Or I am a man with incredibly elegant hands. My voice comes out as a whisper but the pitch says woman. Her actions are an awful disguise, however. Why would anybody want to check on the ingredients of something that says 100% wholegrain wheat on the front? Despite the boring meal choice, it appears this conversation is worth missing sleep for. 

“Everything went off without a snag. You need to take great care, nonetheless. You don’t know who could be watching right now. Meeting like this… It’s rather dicey.” Although the other person’s voice is barely audible, it is ironic to listen as exactly one of those ‘whos’.

“They would never be able to trace either of us or the girl.” She isn’t wrong. I cannot, for the life of me, make out who the other person is, not to mention where I am. This is going to kill me tomorrow.

“And yet.”

“I had to know. I’m sorry to be putting you in this position with the Society.”

“Don’t worry about me. After all, I am not just helping you. I am helping the Society too. They just don’t know it yet. I understand you wish to keep an eye on the girl. You are not doing them or the Society any favours by doing that. She has not been picked up from our Safety & Justice chamber yet. And I will make sure, it stays that way. You have my word. I cannot make those promises concerning your whereabouts, however. You are an inaugurated member after all.”

“I know. Thank you. For everything.”

The Weetabix goes back into the slit in the otherwise perfect tapestry of grainy foods. Azure surrounds me again, and exhaustion finally takes over.


© Hale 2024-07-23

Genres
Science Fiction & Fantasy
Moods
Dunkel
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