Reality 2048- Watching Big Mother by Derek Cressman

Author:Derek Cressman [Cressman, Derek]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781733956710
Publisher: Poplar Leaf press
Published: 2019-05-21T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 9

The more you know, the less you believe.

— Aris Tautel

Two weeks later, Vera awoke determined to take the next step. Her head was aching, so she took a PainZapper pill before entering the shower. Slowly, deliberately, she shaved her armpits, feeling the cut of the blade severing each hair as she drew it across. Her skin stretched a bit under the razor as the hairs pulled before they cut.

Vera switched the razor into her left hand and took a deep breath. Slowly, she slid the blade edgeways down the length of her right thumb. A bright red line, thin as a paper’s edge, appeared on her thumbprint and then a stinging sensation shot through her thumb. Vera winced and instinctively thrust the thumb into her mouth, taking in its salty metallic taste.

The bleeding wouldn’t stop. She let the water wash it away continually for several minutes. Vera could now more carefully observe the sensation instead of writhing away from it. The pain was undeniable, but it was bearable. She was not afraid.

The bathroom began to smell like a swimming pool, with the sharp smell of chlorine wafting up with the steam of the shower. Vera realized that the recycling filter was removing the color of the blood from the water along with the soap scum and hair it normally captured, and then chemically treating the water as it recirculated through her high efficiency shower system. Vera asked her bathroom fiber protruder to make a bandage, thankful she’d downloaded a design for one after the encounter with the chili can lid.

The library stood impressively, if desolately, against the deep blue sky overhead with puffs of white clouds on either side of the faded gold, red, and blue mosaicked pyramid that crowned the top of the antiquated building. A small spire pointed upward from the top of the pyramid, but Vera couldn’t make out what it symbolized as its color had worn off.

It had been a challenge to prevent herself from anticipating the event. Aneeka Randall had warned against thinking about the title of the book, for that would signal the metadata crawlers that she was interested in the Sisterhood.

But more than the book, what pre-occupied Vera’s mind was Chase. Her thoughts returned to him nearly every waking moment. When his name flashed into her mind, it triggered a cycle on her MyndScreen that was becoming as predictable as a Big Mother Gets Real episode. First, her bank account popped open and presented her available balance. Then, she thought about their encounter in the desert while ads for Las Vegas casinos popped up incessantly. She recalled the arboretum and saw opportunities to place bets on the upcoming gladiator races in Santa Anita. In her mind, she saw the photo image he’d taken of the two of them standing in front of the set for Fantasy Island with his 180° sunglasses. Her thoughts lingered there a moment, and she admired the crown of forget-me-not flowers in her hair before her MyndScreen kicked in with another infotainment announcement or Chatter burst that broke the trance.

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