Entry 91. June 20, 2009.
[x] Struggle with Selest and try incapacitating her.
"But...I... Argh!"
You must not shoot her! She's desperate! She's losing herself! Maybe you can stop her!
KILL HER!
"NO!"
Felix ducks to the side and Selest runs into him, sending them both crashing to the ground. The gun flies out of his hand and slides away. He tries to get the upper hand, but she pummels on him furiously. "Selest...stop this..." He desperately tries to defend himself against her blows. She gets through and punches him in the face, and then crawls towards the gun. "Selest! On the news... Your father... He was murdered..." Her fingers wrap around the gun and she freezes. "What did you say..." She spins around to face Felix and points the gun at him. "He was killed... Please, it's over..." She stomps over to him and slams her foot down onto his hand. "YOU LIE!" she yells, losing her last bit of sanity. "GUH! S-Selest, you don't have to do this..." She brutally drives her other foot into this gut. A loud crash of thunder. A scream of desperation. "SHUT UP! SHUTUPSHUTUPSHUTUP!" Selest's drenched hair and clothes soak the floor around her. Runny make-up flows from her eyes like black tears. A flash of lightning. A pathetic attempt at laughter. "Daddy is counting on me! Everyone has failed! I won't fail! I CAN DO IT ALL BY MYSELF!"
The three men stand over Chad as Lizor walks towards them. "Heh, not bad, you bastard." His feet stop mere inches from Chad's face. One of the men hands him Chad's gun. He points it at him and flicks his wrist upwards. "You shouldn't forget your place. I owe you nothing," he pauses, "and you know, it was actually quite helpful of you to come here. It saved me the trouble of having to track you down." Chad stands up and smiles. "And you know, it's quite stupid to tell a man that you're not going to kill him." Chad introduces his face to a firm fist, catching Lizor and everyone by surprise. He dashes past the men before they can react and goes through the door. "After him!" he yells, holding his bloody nose. The young man watches cluelessly as Chad flies by him and through the front door. Seconds later, three men burst out from the back in hot pursuit. He gets in his car and locks the doors. "Come on, baby," he says, fumbling with the keys. One of the men smashes a window with a wrench and gets the door open, just as Chad gets it started. He shifts into reverse and slams on the gas, sending his uninvited passenger flying into the mud. The other two men narrowly jump out of the way as Chad swings around, shifts into drive and tears out of the parking lot. "Dammit."
The small apartment building's third floor hall quickly fills up with people eager to see the unfolding madness. Many of them have already called the police, but none of them are willing to actually help Felix. They're all painfully aware of what happened to the first guy that tried to interfere. Roberta stands in front of everyone and watches her best friend fade away. "Selest... Please stop..." she cries. "I can't STOP! DADDY IS COUNTING ON ME! EVERYTHING IS FALLING APART!" The gun rattles her in hand. "He wasn't lying... Your father was killed today..." she says. "YOU LIAR! IT'S NOT TRUE!" Her eyes fill up with tears. The wind and rain beat on the building. Sirens blare outside as the police arrive at the scene. "DAMMIT! DAMMIT! WHY IS EVERYTHING GOING WRONG?" The sound of the officers entering the building and running up the stairs echoes through the hall. "It's over Selest..." She focuses on Felix again and aims the gun directly at him. "THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT! NONE OF THIS WOULD HAVE HAPPENED IF NOT FOR YOU!" The footsteps grow louder and louder. "You don't have to do this..." She shakes her head violently and screams. "IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT!" Another roar of thunder, and then...a gunshot.
...
Everything is gone. Everyone is gone. Nothing but black. The all-consuming blackness stretches on and on forever.
"Is this death?"
No, you are alive. This is your subconscious.
A strange man walks out of the blackness and stands before Felix.
"Are you me?"
You could say we are you, yes.
Felix stares at the strange man and reaches out his hand to touch him. The man takes his hand and places it between his own.
"Are you...?"
Yes, we are.
"Where am I?"
You are in a deep sleep. You are in a great deal of pain right now.
"But I feel fine."
We desperately needed to talk with you, Felix.
"I don't understand."
Then we will help you understand. You must understand and grow stronger. We will start in the beginning. You should recognize this right away.
In an instant, the blackness disappears, and the man and Felix are standing in a bright, clean room.
"Is that...my mother?"
Yes, it is. While you do not remember this moment, of course, it is very important. It is when you and we were born.
"Where is my father?"
Ah, I'm glad you noticed. That is why we are here. Your father is outside the room talking with a specialist. He has been in contact with him many years before you were born.
"A specialist?"
Yes, he is a psychologist that is obsessed with phenomena of the mind. He has been working with your father for a very long time.
"With the voices in my dad's head?"
Correct. Unlike you, your father was always fascinated by the "voices," as you so call them. He worked to learn how to communicate and cooperate with them more. His teenage years were consumed by it almost entirely.
"That's when he met my mom, though."
Indeed, and it wasn't long before he confided his secret in her. She was just as fascinated by them as he was, and she began helping him.
"Whoa, hang on. How can you possibly know all of this?"
That is not important right now. You must understand and grow stronger, Felix. You need to know what your father was discussing with the specialist.
The faces of Rose, baby Felix and the doctors melt away. The hospital room explodes and is quickly consumed by the blackness. Suddenly, the emptiness bursts into many colors and two figures grow out of nothing. The man and Felix stand before Chad and the specialist.
"When will we be able to find out if the experiment was a success?"
"I will run the tests as soon as possible. Everything points to your new child possessing a piece of your voices. It's even possible he inherited an exact copy. Wouldn't that be marvelous?"
"Let's not get ahead of ourselves. First, I have to make sure my wife and baby are healthy."
"Haha! Of course, my friend. Of course! Go, be with your family for now! I will impatiently await your next visit."
Their faces are eaten away and the blackness consumes everything, leaving just the man and Felix once more.
"My parents had me because they wanted to see if I would inherit the voices...?"
I am afraid that was the driving reason, yes.
"I don't know why that surprises me. Nothing should surprise me about them anymore."
Do not dwell on it. You must understand and grow stronger, Felix.
[] The first time Chad and Rose take Felix to the specialist.
[] The first time Chad meets with the specialist.
[] The time when Chad tells Rose about the voices.
What are the voices going to show Felix next?
[x] Struggle with Selest and try incapacitating her.
"But...I... Argh!"
You must not shoot her! She's desperate! She's losing herself! Maybe you can stop her!
KILL HER!
"NO!"
Felix ducks to the side and Selest runs into him, sending them both crashing to the ground. The gun flies out of his hand and slides away. He tries to get the upper hand, but she pummels on him furiously. "Selest...stop this..." He desperately tries to defend himself against her blows. She gets through and punches him in the face, and then crawls towards the gun. "Selest! On the news... Your father... He was murdered..." Her fingers wrap around the gun and she freezes. "What did you say..." She spins around to face Felix and points the gun at him. "He was killed... Please, it's over..." She stomps over to him and slams her foot down onto his hand. "YOU LIE!" she yells, losing her last bit of sanity. "GUH! S-Selest, you don't have to do this..." She brutally drives her other foot into this gut. A loud crash of thunder. A scream of desperation. "SHUT UP! SHUTUPSHUTUPSHUTUP!" Selest's drenched hair and clothes soak the floor around her. Runny make-up flows from her eyes like black tears. A flash of lightning. A pathetic attempt at laughter. "Daddy is counting on me! Everyone has failed! I won't fail! I CAN DO IT ALL BY MYSELF!"
The three men stand over Chad as Lizor walks towards them. "Heh, not bad, you bastard." His feet stop mere inches from Chad's face. One of the men hands him Chad's gun. He points it at him and flicks his wrist upwards. "You shouldn't forget your place. I owe you nothing," he pauses, "and you know, it was actually quite helpful of you to come here. It saved me the trouble of having to track you down." Chad stands up and smiles. "And you know, it's quite stupid to tell a man that you're not going to kill him." Chad introduces his face to a firm fist, catching Lizor and everyone by surprise. He dashes past the men before they can react and goes through the door. "After him!" he yells, holding his bloody nose. The young man watches cluelessly as Chad flies by him and through the front door. Seconds later, three men burst out from the back in hot pursuit. He gets in his car and locks the doors. "Come on, baby," he says, fumbling with the keys. One of the men smashes a window with a wrench and gets the door open, just as Chad gets it started. He shifts into reverse and slams on the gas, sending his uninvited passenger flying into the mud. The other two men narrowly jump out of the way as Chad swings around, shifts into drive and tears out of the parking lot. "Dammit."
The small apartment building's third floor hall quickly fills up with people eager to see the unfolding madness. Many of them have already called the police, but none of them are willing to actually help Felix. They're all painfully aware of what happened to the first guy that tried to interfere. Roberta stands in front of everyone and watches her best friend fade away. "Selest... Please stop..." she cries. "I can't STOP! DADDY IS COUNTING ON ME! EVERYTHING IS FALLING APART!" The gun rattles her in hand. "He wasn't lying... Your father was killed today..." she says. "YOU LIAR! IT'S NOT TRUE!" Her eyes fill up with tears. The wind and rain beat on the building. Sirens blare outside as the police arrive at the scene. "DAMMIT! DAMMIT! WHY IS EVERYTHING GOING WRONG?" The sound of the officers entering the building and running up the stairs echoes through the hall. "It's over Selest..." She focuses on Felix again and aims the gun directly at him. "THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT! NONE OF THIS WOULD HAVE HAPPENED IF NOT FOR YOU!" The footsteps grow louder and louder. "You don't have to do this..." She shakes her head violently and screams. "IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT!" Another roar of thunder, and then...a gunshot.
...
Everything is gone. Everyone is gone. Nothing but black. The all-consuming blackness stretches on and on forever.
"Is this death?"
No, you are alive. This is your subconscious.
A strange man walks out of the blackness and stands before Felix.
"Are you me?"
You could say we are you, yes.
Felix stares at the strange man and reaches out his hand to touch him. The man takes his hand and places it between his own.
"Are you...?"
Yes, we are.
"Where am I?"
You are in a deep sleep. You are in a great deal of pain right now.
"But I feel fine."
We desperately needed to talk with you, Felix.
"I don't understand."
Then we will help you understand. You must understand and grow stronger. We will start in the beginning. You should recognize this right away.
In an instant, the blackness disappears, and the man and Felix are standing in a bright, clean room.
"Is that...my mother?"
Yes, it is. While you do not remember this moment, of course, it is very important. It is when you and we were born.
"Where is my father?"
Ah, I'm glad you noticed. That is why we are here. Your father is outside the room talking with a specialist. He has been in contact with him many years before you were born.
"A specialist?"
Yes, he is a psychologist that is obsessed with phenomena of the mind. He has been working with your father for a very long time.
"With the voices in my dad's head?"
Correct. Unlike you, your father was always fascinated by the "voices," as you so call them. He worked to learn how to communicate and cooperate with them more. His teenage years were consumed by it almost entirely.
"That's when he met my mom, though."
Indeed, and it wasn't long before he confided his secret in her. She was just as fascinated by them as he was, and she began helping him.
"Whoa, hang on. How can you possibly know all of this?"
That is not important right now. You must understand and grow stronger, Felix. You need to know what your father was discussing with the specialist.
The faces of Rose, baby Felix and the doctors melt away. The hospital room explodes and is quickly consumed by the blackness. Suddenly, the emptiness bursts into many colors and two figures grow out of nothing. The man and Felix stand before Chad and the specialist.
"When will we be able to find out if the experiment was a success?"
"I will run the tests as soon as possible. Everything points to your new child possessing a piece of your voices. It's even possible he inherited an exact copy. Wouldn't that be marvelous?"
"Let's not get ahead of ourselves. First, I have to make sure my wife and baby are healthy."
"Haha! Of course, my friend. Of course! Go, be with your family for now! I will impatiently await your next visit."
Their faces are eaten away and the blackness consumes everything, leaving just the man and Felix once more.
"My parents had me because they wanted to see if I would inherit the voices...?"
I am afraid that was the driving reason, yes.
"I don't know why that surprises me. Nothing should surprise me about them anymore."
Do not dwell on it. You must understand and grow stronger, Felix.
[] The first time Chad and Rose take Felix to the specialist.
[] The first time Chad meets with the specialist.
[] The time when Chad tells Rose about the voices.
What are the voices going to show Felix next?
Spoiler