“She’s…awake.”585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqyZYzIKoDZ
The man looked up from his book. “You sense her?” he said, looking intently at Apollo across the small grey cabin. “Where is she?”
Apollo pointed towards the cabin door. “She’s… that way.”585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKM50Bc0RKi
It was an odd feeling. Or maybe feeling wasn’t the right word, it was more of a knowing. A knowledge that she was in that general direction, in fact it was exactly that direction. 585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0kRBWfhKJx
“Then it’s time to leave, Apollo.” The man got up from his chair and walked towards the cabin door. “Come,” he said, gesturing for Apollo to follow. “It’s time for you to see the rest of the world.”585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGRc3r9HnWM
***
Coming out of the grey metal walls that had been Apollo’s home for the last three weeks, was an unsettling experience. Not because it was intimidating or chaotic or even unknown. It was in fact, quite the opposite, as after about three seconds of standing in the dim grey light of the outside world Apollo once more just seemed to know. Or at least he knew about the place and its people.585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7YPSgNDpIB
Individuals and communities, towns and cities, nations, federations he suddenly knew about them all. About people in general. How they were, what they’d done. Language, history, art, philosophy, geography, psychology, literature, music. Humanity was vast. And for some reason that he knew all this was right. In the proceeding ten seconds, after this newfound knowledge had filled his head, it dawned on Apollo that despite everything he knew, he did not know where he was.585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0hPXYDhXwc
He looked up at the man standing by his side. He felt a bluish, purple colour. If it were a word perhaps Apollo would have said, apprehension or perhaps curiosity. Something like that.585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlcwUZplb4x
“How do you feel?” The man asked.585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU9jZfORV6v
“You mean me? Me, me? Not her?” Up until now, any talk of feeling had been exclusively directed towards the unknown girl.585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ30ZDtRVctG
“I do.” Answered the man, a fleck of red shooting into his otherwise aquatic colouring.585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7SqKB4FazA
“Where are we?” Apollo answered, or at least it was the closest answer he could give to summing up how he felt.585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLK5UsT5FTe
“Oil Town”585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWaLJcN70tU
“Oil Town?”
“Yes. The first settlement to be established after ‘The Burnout’.”585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFZF4XlpOsd
“The Burnout? What is that? And why don’t I know about this place?”
“Because you are from before all this. You are from the point of time when humanity was at its best, the point at which we could have achieved greatness, but instead collapsed. And you are the guardian of that knowledge. Or you’re one of them at least.”585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMLXycemEaY
***585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR0w8SgcLlF
“Hello! I sense someone. I know you are near to me.”585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz7soAbpcoN
A light shined across the girl’s pale face. 585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEEfA6s00kt
“Who are you?” she asked. 585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNO1sxFBBN6
“We could ask you the same,” came a gruff voice. 585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMUS7i2lezv
“We are friends, that’s who we are.” came another voice, in a smoky tone that clearly disapproved of its partner’s comment.585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEgTbqpMbHO
The torchlight flickered for a second before cutting out altogether and plunging them all into darkness once more.585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡln703YiMas
“You see. I told you those batteries we dug up a few weeks back would be useful,” came the words from the smoky voice. 585Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU1F7i7nbNp
“Yeah, you’re right. All we need now is to go back up and get them out of pack in the dark.”
ns 15.158.61.54da2
