Born Again from a Strike of Lightning
Chapter 3: Was it a Dream or a Flash of Memory?
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The librarian sat me down at a computer desk as I read his name tag. My vision was still blurry, but I could make out his name, that being Lucas. His voice was calm and quiet as one would expect of someone of his profession. He carefully asked me questions about myself until all of the preliminaries were done and he knew what he needed to know.
“If you just got out of the hospital, something could have gone wrong. You should go back and get yourself looked at again.”
“I have nothing to pay them with. I have nothing at all. No UB card or even any coins. I’m not a registered citizen either. I’m nobody in this time. It would be pointless to go back there.”
“I’m not sure what to say then.”
“You need not say anything. I’ll be leaving soon. I won’t be your problem any longer, sir. I’ve bothered you enough as is.”
“You don’t need to leave, ma’am. This is a public space. You can stay for as long as you wish. We’re open all day and all night. We are always open to anyone who needs a play to stay for a little while.”
“I can’t stay. I have much to do.”
He seemed to be caught on his words as he opened his mouth to speak and nothing came out. He covered his forehead with his right hand and slicked his hair back out of his eyes.
“Well, perhaps I could help you at least. My shift ends at four o’clock. Would you be willing to stay here until then?”
“Do you even know what you’d be helping me with?”
“I’m assuming getting your identification properties in order. What else would I need to help you with?”
“None of those things matter to me. There’s only one thing that does.”
“What does matter to you then, ma’am?”
“I have bodies in the woods that need burial. My friends from so long ago. They’re only skeletons now, but I can at least bury what remains. I owe them that respect for the years of my life I spent with them.”
“So you want me to help you bury dead people? That seems extremely suspicious.”
“I know that. If you need me to, I can tell you my story. Where I came from and when I came from.”
“What do you mean by that?”
I looked at him with soft eyes as his brown eyes peered at me.
“I’m four hundred and thirty six years old. For most of my years, I’ve been dead and rotting. A strike of lightning woke me up and left me in this world alone. The only people I ever knew died in a crash with me. I don’t really know what to do other than pay respects to them.”
“What will you do if you do bury them?”
“I don’t know yet. I don’t think I’ll do anything. I might just sit there, and let myself be reclaimed again. Go back to the place that comes after this.”
“There is nothing after this. This is it.”
“So everyone thinks.”
He sighed, not believing me. I could understand why he wouldn’t.
“Look, regardless of what you think, you can’t just give up. You need to plan your life beyond just burying your friends. I’ll help you bury them if you really want, but I’m not following you out there alone. I’m bringing my own friends. Let me make some calls, and hopefully I’ll have something organized soon. Until then, you can stay here. If it takes longer than a day, you can stay with me, or I can talk to my sister and see if you can stay with her.”
“Are you sure that would be okay?”
“Certainly. It’s in our family’s nature to help out the needy.”
“Thank you then, sir.”
“You can call me by my name if you wish. I’m Lucas, Lucas Cavero.”
“I am Victoria. I do not have a surname.”
“Well I’ll just call you by your first name then, Victoria. Make yourself at home here. Read some books or scroll the internet. There’s plenty to do until I’m off of work. Enjoy yourself.”
“I will try.”
“That’s the spirit.” he said with a caring smile. “Do you want any recommendations for reading?”
“No, I can find something if I wish to. I have a few ideas.”
“Alright then. I’ll start making those calls.”
“Thank you, Lucas.”
“Of course. Stay well, Victoria. I’ll check back in with you in a little bit.”
He left me sitting at the desk and went back to the back office where I could only assume that he was doing what he said he was going to do. I looked around the library and took in the sights. It was rustic and warm, but it really wasn’t what I would call home. It wasn’t dark and full of wonder like the starry skies I had grown accustomed to or the insides of a ship I’d spent so much time in.
In truth, life on the land wasn’t for myself. Living with my feet on a planet wasn’t for me. I had to find my way back to the stars, and maybe I would after doing what I needed to do. Maybe I wouldn’t though. What life would it be up there with people I didn’t know. What were the ships even like in the modern day? Would it ever really be the same? That I could not know fully, and what I could learn I didn’t want to learn. I wanted to stuff my head in the book that Monty had been reading. I wanted to read it for myself. I could remember him through it. Maybe I would remember something more. I stood up and started looking. That was how I would spend my time, looking for my past in old books from years gone by, if those books even existed at all.
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A half hour passed by and I had no luck in finding what I was searching for. Eventually I thought to ask one of the other librarians around, but then Lucas appeared again to check to see how I was doing. He stood behind me and tapped my shoulder and I turned around to see him.
“Looking for something in particular?” he asked.
“Yes, I am. Do you have a book known as ‘The Last of the Brothers’?”
“I’ve never heard of such a book, but I can look for it too if you would like.”
“That would be helpful.”
“Okay, then. I’ll take a look at our databanks. Give me a moment. Oh, also, I have good news. I’ve organized a day where myself and a couple of my friends can help you. It won’t be for a little while though. A few days from now. Until then, the choice is yours, you can stay with my sister or with me, or you can do whatever you wish if you don’t trust us.”
“I suppose I can trust you, but I’ll stay with her. I know ladies better than I know men, even if I am essentially neither.”
“I wouldn’t call yourself neither unless you feel that you are truly neither. You’re whatever you want to be. Whatever you feel like you are.”
Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
“I feel like I’m not a person.”
“Well, you are a person. Your life is yours to make decisions with too.”
“I already made a decision before, but I walked it back because it was foolish. I’m not good at making my own decisions. They don’t turn out well for me.”
“What was your decision?”
“To call myself Rain instead of my given name of Victoria.”
“Why not call yourself Rain?”
“Because it’s such a silly thing to call one’s self.”
“Not really. I don’t think so at least.”
“I think it is.”
“Well, it could always be a surname. You don’t have one of those yet. Maybe you could be Victoria Rain.”
“I don’t know. That still seems odd.”
“Well, it is your choice to make. I won’t rush you to any decision. You will need a surname eventually though if you want to be registered as a citizen of Sagrario.”
“I’ll think of something eventually. Hopefully something less ridiculous than Rain.”
“Hmm. Okay. I’m going to go look for that book of yours.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
He shook his head in confirmation that he had heard me, then he left to go back to his work. I continued my search for the book, wondering if maybe it had never actually even existed. Maybe all of what I had seen had been a dream and it was all my brain lying to me. Maybe the reality I was in was a lie too, and I was still dead and rotting. That could be true, and I didn’t know if I hoped it was or not. Either way my friends were gone, and I was separated from them by realities upon themselves.
“You’ve got to be around here somewhere.” I whispered to myself, trying to speak to the book.
It made no difference though, and I still didn’t find it. I kept looking and looking, and eventually Lucas came back. He rubbed the back of his head and gave me a confused look.
“I looked into it, and I don’t think that book exists.”
I nodded my head, not knowing what to think.
“Oh well. I suppose I must have been confused. Do you have any other recommendations?” I asked.
He smiled brightly and laughed a little bit.
“Oh I have plenty of them, Victoria.” he replied.
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I sat for most of the rest of the time reading a book about cattle drivers on the plains of Tyr. Worshippers of the Norse Gods who left offerings in brass casings and bones. It was an interesting story, though not entirely what I had been looking for. I finished it by the end of the night regardless and then I plugged myself into a computer to listen to music. I couldn’t remember anything that I’d once listened to with the others, only faint hums of pop songs that were likely lost to the cosmos in the years that followed. I put on what was popular in the modern times and laid my head down to rest. I didn’t exactly like the music, but I knew I would grow used to it in time. I let it lull me to sleep and eventually I was in darkness.
I slept for what was only a few minutes before a tap again came at my shoulder. The light came back and I popped my head from my arms. There was Lucas standing over me with a bag resting over his shoulder.
“It’s time to go. My shift is over.”
“Does your sister have any qualms about housing me?”
“None at all, but I have to ask, do you have any problems with children?”
“I’ve never been around them.”
“I’ll just tell her to ask them to leave you be then. They’ll likely ask you a bunch of questions regardless though, so be prepared.”
“I’ll try to be.”
“Alright, so let’s go. My car’s warming up outside. I’ll drop you off at her house and introduce you, then I’ll be on my way. Trust me, you can trust her. She’ll probably have you do some chores though.”
“Thank goodness. I was beginning to feel useless.”
Lucas laughed, then waved his arm for me to follow as he walked away. I followed him out the door and into the darkness. I could see his car parked beside the building with lights dimly lit and shining across the dark street. The grass and pavement were dry as the sun had come out and warmed them. The world was calm and cool in the spring nightfall as the two small moons of Mars did their best to shine light down to us. They did very little in the end, but they still looked pretty in the sky.
“So how far away is your sister?”
“Only a few minutes. She lives in town.” Lucas declared. “Also, I should offer a word of advice. I am trustworthy, but not everyone is, even now. Don’t just trust everyone in this world. Be picky about your people. Be careful.”
“Should I not take a ride with you then?”
“You can trust me, but I’m just saying that you probably shouldn’t have grown to trust me as quickly as you did.”
“Most likely not, but I did not have a choice.”
“I guess not. Still, be careful out there, Victoria. You’re a kind soul. I don’t want to see you get hurt or worse.”
“Thank you, Lucas.”
He nodded and we got into his car. He started driving down the road and I looked out to see the passing street lights. True to his word, only a few minutes passed before we stopped. I wouldn’t need to defend myself against him. He was truly trustworthy, and I had not made a mistake going with him. It was somewhat cute that he thought himself a threat to me when I could easily overpower him to save my own life. I would never kill a human, but I would stun one if it was me or them. I’m surprised he didn’t think about that at all, the fact that I could easily taser him with the press of my fingers against his chest.
“This is it. This is Mariana’s home. My stubborn mule of a sister. You’ll love her though, I can guarantee that. She’s always a nice host.”
“Shall we go meet her?”
“Yep. I’ll head up first. You stand behind me and let me do the introductions.”
“Alright.”
Our doors opened at the same time, but I waited for him to walk up to her home. I followed up the stairs behind him and watched him slam the knocker against the wooden door. It slowly opened and a similar looking person to him appeared on the other side. They were obviously related, though not so much that they looked like twins.
“Mariana, this is the girl I was talking about. Victoria, this is my sister, Mariana.”
“Hello.” I said with a cautious wave of my hand.
“Hi. Come on in, both of you. Dinner is almost ready.”
“Oh, you don’t need to serve me. I don’t know if we need to eat in this day and age, but in my day, we did not need to. I don’t need any food.”
She looked at me with a critical stare as if I had just said everything possible to make her angry. I suppose rejecting her offer of dinner had no been the right choice of words.
“Can you still taste and smell? Do you have a stomach compartment?”
“Well, yes. I can eat. I just don’t…”
“You’ll eat then. I won’t deny a guest dinner.”
“Okay.” I chirped, not wanting to offend further.
As we walked inside, Lucas pulled me aside.
“Yeah, never deny her meals. Should have told you that. I apologize. Don’t do it again.”
“I won’t. Sorry.”
“Say sorry to her, but not now. Do it later. Maybe offer to do the dishes too.”
“Will do.” I said to him.
“Good. Now, let’s go eat.”
He led me out into the dining room where the plates had been set and three people were already sitting. There was a woman and two boys chatting about their days, but their eyes turned to us as we walked in.
“Welcome!” the woman blurted.
“Thank you.” I spoke as I sat down.
“So what’s for dinner, Lucille? What has my sister crafted tonight?”
“A great meal of fried chicken, green beans, corn bread, and pan fried onions.”
“That sounds delicious. You hear me, Marmar? Your food sounds delicious. It smells delicious too!” Lucas screamed in a way that seemed uncanny compared to how he was before.
“Thank you, Louie. Pipe down though. You’ll get the dogs riled up.”
“Ope, sorry. I’ll use my work voice.” he said in a near whisper. “So how have you all been doing over here, Lucille?”
“I can’t complain. Work has been going well. Mariana is still adapting to not working, but with the baby on the way, I really don’t want her out on the job. I know I could barely handle it when I was pregnant with the boys.”
“Ah, yes. How are you doing, boys? Is school going well?”
“We’re learning about Old Earth right now in Mr. Jones’ history class.” one of the boys replied.
“Yeah! Did you know that some of the really old countries on Earth used to worship Mars? It’s weird. Why would they worship our planet?”
Lucas chuckled. “They used to think Mars was the god of war. That was the Romans, I believe. Their empire is long gone though, and it ended with them converting to Christianity anyway. They started worshipping a carpenter.”
“What’s a carpenter?” the second boy asked.
“A carpenter is someone who works with wood.” I replied, wanting to add to the conversation.
I felt embarrassed at having interrupted immediately afterwards.
“She’s right. I would expect her to be given that she’s four hundred years old.”
The boys both looked at me in shock at the admittance of my age.
“You’re one of the ancients?!” the first boy screamed.
“Cool!” the second blurted.
I smiled and blushed as they threw question after question at me. Whatever night I was in for, it was distracting me from what else there was. I forgot the world for a moment, and I understood that I was a person. I shook my head at Lucas to show disapproval and then smiled at him to say thanks. He got the message, and I was happy he did, because I had too many questions to answer and I couldn’t explain anything else to him. He laughed as I tried to answer them all. I had the time of my life.