“Come in. Sit,” said the voice. “Raise your eyes, both of you and look at me. Tell me what you see.”Shen and Taren sat in cold silence. Nostrils involuntarily flared with each in breath as if preparing to absorb a blow.
“Give me one good reason I should not have you both summarily executed.”
Shen started to speak.
“Shut the frail up Shen. There are no words to succor your failings. Do you have any idea? Any? Shen?
“All is not lost. We have the girl,” offered Shen.
The voice hovered as if chewing Shen's words like cud, digesting each syllable in preparation to shat the refuse back forth from whence it came.
“Yes, you have the elusive null. Quite a coup for your research wouldn’t you say?” said the voice in slow even tones making nuance impossible to read.
“Once in a life—“
“Shen,” interrupted the voice, “speak again and I’ll have your head on the floor before the echo of your vapid vision soils one more precious moment of my time. I want you to look close. Look at me Shen. Come closer.”
Shen stood slowly and walked toward the voice. Taren watched as men on death row watch others take the walk. A small drop of perspiration ran down his face. Shen’s footsteps echoed in the small room, sounding louder than usual.
“I want you see Kulmyk handiwork up close. Please, hold out your hand. The eyes alone do not do justice to their craftsmanship with a blade.”
Shen ran his hand over the lump of flesh that spoke. As an experienced interrogator Shen had seen the worst of physical torture; yet, still, it took all of his estimable mental abilities to quell the disturbance in his stomach.
Are you married Shen?”
“Yes.”
“Does your wife love you Shen? Does she make love to you?”
“Yes.”
“What do you think she would think if you looked like this?”
The voice allowed silence to suck the living air from the room. Shen struggled to take a breath. Falling to the floor his hands instinctively moved to his collar. The room seemed to get smaller. The floor felt cold and had a distinctive antiseptic smell. Shen’s eyes narrowed and all he could think was just how clean the floor was.
“Your foolishness has put our entire mission in jeopardy. Within days, the Kulmyks will launch a taskforce toward our small sanctuary. And when they get here, when they get here Shen,” said the voice, hovering just over Shen’s ear, “they will make what they did to me look like child’s play. And all for a null.”
The voice pulled away. Shen gasped for air as if breaking the surface.
“Taren?”
“Yes sir?”
“Get him out of my sight before I change my mind.”
“Yes sir.”
“Oh, and Taren.”
“Yes?”
“You’ve got twenty-four hours with the null. Don’t disappoint me.”
Categories: Story, Shen, Taren, The Voice
17 comments:
Editor's Note: The grammatical use of shat, while improper in normal usage, is used here by means of literary licence. In other words, it just sounds better than the correct term. Besides, this is fiction and my story so I can do whatever I want. There! :-D
Amazing fractal! It matches the story really well. Your descriptions are incredible. Could almost here the voice in my head.
You painted quite the picture of the scene and I could feel Shen's knees knock in terror. Great chapter! The Voice is quite evil. I wonder what is in store for Shen next...
Fantastic frac!
Keep it up... *snortle* you and Jack writing, of course!
Hugggggggggz Tre!
Keshi.
Thanks Trace. Nice to be compared to Abnett. :-)
Have a great weekend.
Jenni, as soon as I saw this fractal I knew where I wanted to take the story. Once again, the image leads. :-)
By the way, I've done several more images off this variation, one or more might make it into the story and one of which I posted on Trebuchet.
Thanks as always for the kind words. :-)
Karen, it took me awhile to get this chapter going. I rejected the first two openings and was stuck. On the third try, the dialogue, once started, just flowed and once started was actually a very enjoyable chapter to write. The more fun in writing usually the better the chapter. If I have to really work, then that is usually not a good sign.
Have a great weekend from Jack and I. I've got my sleeping bag ready, just in case some unexpected visitors decide to pop over. :-D
I'm trying to lower Jack's expectations. He seems quite excited. :-)
Hey Keshi! Hugs back at ya my dear sweet southern angel. :-)
Oooh, I like the sound of having a "smashing" weekend. :-)
The story has been moving along this week. Nice to get into a flow.
Likewise, go create your own smashing weekend my friend. I don't think anyone else is going to do it for us. ;-)
Your images of late have taken on a decidely alien perspective. All of the scary outer space stories I've collectively seen in the past are being amplified by your graphics. It is really interesting that you are able to create such images yourself. I don't know anything at all about the process - how you program the computer to create them, or what. But the results are nothing short of astounding. And, yes, again I would prefer not to meet such creatures or beings in a dark alley - or for that matter, anywhere at all!
Terry, what would a sci-fi story be without aliens? :-D
As for the images, I use several different programs depending on my mood and need to just do something different. Some are easier to use than others and some require more user input to get a decent image. All of them, however, do require a certain amount of imagination to see something more than just a bunch of scribbins in pretty colors--LMAO!
Terry, thanks again for the very kind words on the images. They are a labor of love and I think as much fun for me to create as for everyone else to see.
Oh, and start putting titles on your posts. Go to Trebuchet to see why this could be helpful. :-D
The image is perfect...
Am an alien from outer space
Somehow the signals from your blog made me visit it
kidding:)
just a regular anon
BTW...
************
no thing, no person, not even this illness will keep me from living in your heart
************
Touching words
Thanks for visiting Anon and thanks for the kind words. :-)
What are you trying to do, scare the living daylights out of me?! Wowzer, think I was just about as frightened as Shen as he took that walk, well, okay, maybe not quite :-), but almost. Drew me right in, very, very well written!!
Thanks Sweetest. Took me awhile to get this one going, but once the dialogue started, it just flowed. Hope you have a safe and uneventful flight home. Hard to believe its been three months. Seems more like a year that you've been gone. I've missed my warm Danish buns. :-)
Does the Voice sound like James Earl Jones - cause thats how I'm hearing it.
Jack, that is a good question. I was thinking maybe Nicholson but I suppose JEJ could work too.
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