Chapter VI

And once again, the car rolled smoothly, with two women sitting on the back of the pickup, Ignis and Riole on the back seat, Lualeen on the front seat and I was still behind the wheel. Ignis seemed too excited about the situation, which troubled me deeply. He had brought with him a mere bag with what he considered “essential belongings”, not bigger than the size of a golfer’s. A few minutes later, I stopped the car a few paces away from a gas station, trying to evade having someone seeing the car too closely or a camera recording the plates, and pondered for a few seconds. “Ignis, would you happen to have money with you? It’s going to be useless anyway, and I think it would be a good idea if we could get some provisions now.” There was dead silence for a second, even from the women who I would have expected to protest.

“Yeah Damien, that’d actually be a great idea. Ladies would you like anything?” he turned and asked kindly, almost flirtingly around, getting a harsh look from the two ladies inside. “Guess not!” he turned around and followed me.

I mindlessly left the engine running this time around, evading the thought about how it would have taken the same process all over again to get it on. I felt a somber expression growing over my eyebrows, and when I cleared my forehead I was sure to see dark drops of sweat in my hand, as if the heavy emotions were filtering through my skull and skin. A dull pain started in the lower part of my spine. The automatic doors slid open as we walked into the gas station shop. The plan was to get basic supplies and so we got some cheap packs of food, a gallon of water, and a pack of Coke. Also, Ignis decided to get a couple of candy bars and I, three packs of cigarettes and a tiny lighter. That was all that our current money could buy. The few remaining coins went into the tip jar, which gained us a smile from the lady behind the counter. When I looked back, her face turned grim and her feedback lead me to understand that she had become to some extent afraid, but… afraid of what?

I ignored her gesture and pushed myself back into the car. When I sat behind the wheel, I felt suddenly drained, exhausted. When I looked at myself into the rearview mirror, the image horrified me. ‘So that’s what it was all about,’ I thought. Ignis handed me what I had bought and in three dexterous movements I had the pack open and the stuffing pushed back into the cigarettes. I grabbed one, carried it to my mouth and gave fire to the tip, inhaling deeply without caring less if the smoke impregnated the car. A moment later, I lowered the windows and I exhaled a cloud of gray smoke towards the outside. A morbidly powerful spark raced through my veins and my body jolted to life once again; my feet stepped on the correct combination of clutch and gas in perfect synchronization with my hand, which found the transmission handgrip: the car greeted warmly my deftness, starting with excitement. I felt my body reacting marvelously to the chemicals and I wondered why. I would have dared to say that the abstinence I put myself through after I’d quit, made me more vulnerable to the effects of it and, therefore, in that afternoon of mixed emotions and unexplainable events, such substance did all the explanation I needed at the time. It was a curse I abhorred yet craved for.

My eyes shifted for the swiftest moment from the front of the vehicle to the women through the mirror, and I wondered why they did not bother to ask what I was doing. Perhaps smoking was something they had in their planet as well? I realized I was really starting to believe this, mostly due to the long period of time these women had spent with us. The road beside the highway took us to our next destination. I made a left and passed under the lazy shine of a green light. Shortly after that, I turned left and stopped at another gate, just like it happened at Ignis’s complex. The security guard just extended his hand and asked for identification and for the place I was to visit without paying much attention to the rest. “Hunairel family please,” I requested in a courteous voice, finishing my cig. He explained how to get to his house from there and I thanked him for his kind gesture even though I knew the route by heart. The roar of the truck increased again as we moved toward Sebastian’s house. I parked the car in front of his residence and waited for a second, trying to figure out my action plan this time.

“Hey Damien, why are we at Sebastian’s place by the way?” Ignis asked, merely curious, but already guessing the reason.

“He’s the second ‘guest’ coming along,” I sighed, not entirely happy with it.

“Ha! Sebastian’s coming along! That sounds awesome,” he smiled to Riole, as if trying to sympathize. She turned the other way around and crossed her arms. “Gee, talking about being anti-social.” That comment stole a smile from Lualeen’s lips and a growl from Riole’s throat.

“Ignis, you know anything new about Sebastian?” I paused, confused, not sure what to say. “It’s just that… I don’t know how to break this down for him.” I looked outside, deep in thought.

“You leave it to me, I know the exact words to tell the guy,” he left the car and went to his doorway without waiting for a reply.

I looked back at Riole, who had a smirk on her lips. “You think I was going to let that Earthling leave and put our entire mission at risk?” she raised her index and conveyed a negative motion. “We have just been letting you people get your things straight to evade raising suspicions. Let’s see what this conversation can procure us, Lualeen.” She took out a tiny device that was composed by a small screen with a speaker. The speaker burst to life and produced Ignis’s voice as he inspired Sebastian into coming with us, reassuring him of the veracity of everything over little details he had seen so far, and offering him the unique chance of following his dreams and living an adventure. Lualeen’s expression was a mix that built up into absentminded concentration; yet, deep in thought, and through the mirror, I realized that the strict features over Riole’s face had smoothened. She looked kind of pretty when she didn’t squeeze her face as if she was a prosecuting attorney. Sebastian went back into his house and in less than two minutes he was back outside with a bag in his hand; there was a sparkle of excitement in his eyes. At that moment, something really important flashed into my mind: “What if the police was already tracking down the stolen vehicle?!” After a couple of seconds, I realized that I had spoken out loud because of the exchange of looks around the vehicle between Riole and Lualeen. The women mechanically got the circular plasma television set – I mean the transmitter – out and contacted the girl with the high-pitched and euphoric voice, telling her about my sudden thought.

“No problem!” she said out loud. “I’ll just rechannel the signal into another far-away vehicle, with the same specifications, that isn’t being used right now so they won’t try to contact it or shut it down and that will buy us some time! …although I think you really aren’t being tracked; seems like the owner hasn’t realized so far,” she sounded skeptic, but secure about her words.

“Thanks, Zena. Keep a watch if anything, nonetheless,” Riole commanded in a firm voice.

“Yes, right away!” Zena’s voice fell silent, followed by a digital, decaying noise.

Ignis crawled into the back of the truck with the other two women and Sebastian went into the back seat with his bag and Ignis’s. “Hey guys! I’m Sebastian Hunairel and I will be traveling with you.” His smile was heartening and kind. Lualeen half-smiled back but stayed silent.

“Something else we’re missing?” Riole asked, somewhat trying not to be too harsh.

“Actually, yes, just a couple of things of mine; don’t worry, it’s a three minute ride and I know exactly where everything I need is.” I gave out such a secure and reassuring impression that, I believe, it made them both reconsider our position when leaving our homes and, almost indulgently, Riole mumbled “Ok then.”

Indeed we arrived in about three minutes. I half-parked and ran inside. I opened the door. Not a sound came, nor a light to be seen anywhere. Just my luck: there was no one there, which was exactly what I had been wishing for. I stepped up to my room and grabbed a dusty backpack that I had thrown in the back of my closet. I quickly packed my laptop, a music player, a couple of books and notebooks and, leniently towards my sudden creative urges, a handful of pens. My feet gave no time to my mind and once I was about to step out, I recalled from a very old Astronomy lecture that pens did not quite work on space. I frowned and stepped back unwillingly to grab a few pencils and a sharpener. I looked at my muddy clothes and remembered the episode in the morning. I frowned again, heavily this time: a switch of clothes was in order. I got undressed and, without much time to scrap all of the mud off, I slipped into a pair of black jeans, got some socks and simple pair of slip-on black loafer shoes, strapped on a couple of black cloth wristbands and threw on a plain dark gray t-shirt. ‘Fitting,’ I nodded satisfied with the clothing; nothing too extravagant and rather comfortable for mostly anything. I packed a basic set of clothes which I had somehow forgotten to do in the first place. Once the backpack was zipped, I felt ready. As a final touch, I grabbed a necklace from my nightstand: a leather string with dark metallic nodes in the front, engraved with the roman numerals, two per node, up to twelve. ‘Let’s roll,’ I thought as I ran out of my room.

‘Due where it is,’ I considered as I halted by the kitchen. I scribbled something in a colorful sticky note, explaining my disappearance and wishing the best to them. Life at home wasn’t really the most exciting of experiences and I had it for certain that no one would miss me, but I thought that at least I should tell them something, anything, in place of having them desperately trying to find me. I ran towards the door and stopped half way there. A shiver ran cold down my spine and I turned slowly back and gazed at the entity amassed by a mirror and ornamented by the many hats that invaded its frame and hanged on small perches that perked shyly out of the casing. I approached it slowly and, when I finally stood in front of it, a familiar, yet awkward sensation overcame me. As I shook my head, I took notice of a very dear piece of clothing of mine: a lustrous black leather jacket with a white fur neckline and cuffs. I snatched it and threw it on. Falling into place, it garnished my reflection with a last touch of distinctiveness. A smile was drawn upon that reflection. That man seemed… excited. Yes, the thrill of adventure did feel a tad different on my ordinary life and I wasn’t about to let it slip by. I smirked and finally ran out the door, while the little, colorful note stared at me from the mirror.