This is another Naomi Quinn and Mikayla Bloodmoore story in the Fallen Earth setting. Credit for the song goes to Sirenia.
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6/10/2156
When I was in school I took a Psychology class or two. My logic was that if I was going to be reporting upon the modern human condition I should understand what caused it, that way I could make the proper investigative assumptions and leaps. Really, I just wanted to take it but I had to justify it to the Board so that it'd count towards my major.
Anyways, in one of those classes I learned that memory never works alone. It's always affixed or related to one sense or another, usually smell or sound. I forget the word for it, but that's why people remember seemingly random things whenever they pick up certain smells or certain songs. I used this fact to my advantage during school. Whenever I was studying one subject I'd listen a certain album on repeat, a different band and album for each subject. That way when it came test time I could turn on the music and certain lines or refrains would remind of me something I read.
I think that's why I like the Second Origin so much. It reminds me of a time before all this. Nostalgia.
“Life brings nothing for the same. Keep searchin' new days on the horizon while time just seems to slip away. I'm leaving no trace along the way.” The sound of the strumming guitars seemed disembodied as it pounded from the amps in rhythmic melody. The singer, Mikayla Bloodmoore, stood isolated in a sea of near-darkness on an island of light as she dominated the stage. Her voice carried an angelic, ethereal tone as she sang an eerie, up-beat tune, her hips swaying to the beat of the song.
Her long black hair hung loose, tucked back behind her ears and baring her alabaster neck and shoulders. The black tank-top she wore had a flattering casualness to it and left a half inch of bare stomach before her black pants began. She held the microphone inches from her lips as her sharp blue eyes washed over the audience, seeming to focus on each and every occupant of the bar individually. “Seems like I'm falling deeper, deeper inside myself. Feels like I'm growing weaker, much weaker each day along the path to decay.”
Naomi turned her gaze from the stage and back to the woman sitting across the table from her. The band, Renew, had a mesmerizing quality to them, an energy she was willing to bet everything on that the world hadn't seen or felt in years. Not that that particular fact mattered to anyone inside the Second Origin, considering it was only five years ago at most when they'd last heard something like it. That was, of course, assuming they could remember it. She believed that anyone could remember their past if they tried to, though. The only limit was one's mind.
“Do you remember those days, Rebecca?” she asked, leaning back in her chair while she ran a pair of finger tips along the rim of her glass.
Rebecca was a hard woman. She could likely drive nails with a look. The woman always wore her hair pulled back in a ponytail so tight it seemed to be trying to keep her eyes open. It gave her a severe look which was only aided by her sharp, dry green eyes. No one would call the woman beautiful but her angular features gave her a mature charm. Her voice fit her persona. “I do.”
Sipping from her glass, Naomi watched the woman's face carefully. Her own face had a casually neutral cast to it although her eyes held a focused intensity. “Life was better then, back before everything went to hell.”
The other woman didn't so much as shift her weight. “Just because it was easier does not mean it was better. I always said you should have to fight to survive.”
“That's not what I refer to. The ease of life was a biproduct of humanity's laziness. I don't think we'll have that problem for quite a long while to come,” Naomi said.
“I wouldn't be so surprised. The Techs are remaking new advances every day. Before long we may find ourselves right back where we started.” Rebecca twisted her mouth as if at a sour taste.
She shook her head and sipped her drink once more before setting the glass down on the table, leaving her fingers loosely coiled around it. “The Techs do what they believe is right. What I meant, however, was that humanity wasn't nearly so segmented like it is now. Once upon a time people believed in the free trade of thoughts. Now all they believe in is what they find at the end of a gun's barrel.”
“Right by conquest. That seems to be one of humanity's oldest beliefs,” Rebecca commented with a trace hint of amusement.
”The lights are fading day by day. No cure for the lost, there's no ascending when life could not become more pale. A new dawn is here, another day.”
Naomi nodded towards the singer as she spoke. “A new dawn is here, another day. Right by conquest served us well for a time and will forever be useful, but now is not a time for that. The free exchange of ideas would benefit us far greater. Imagine what could be done by just a small few like-minded individuals in a world such as this.” Rebecca sipped at her own drink and gestured for her to continue. “There was a time in our history when humanity was sequestered from each other, every nation and every idea its own lonely island. Then, one day, someone had a different sort of idea. What if all of those ideas got together and collaborated? What if they worked together?”
Rebecca scoffed and interrupted. “Are you trying to unite the factions?”
“Of course not,” Naomi replied. “That'd be ridiculous. You can't change people. People are selfish creatures, by and large. They only travel in groups to protect their own hide. There are some people who think differently, think of the people and not the person. It's those people I'm looking for. It's those I'm attempting to unite, if in communication alone. All I wish is for an open dialogue, a free flow of thoughts.” She smiled at the woman opposite of her, her voice casual and light. People learned more to the sound of someone's voice than they did what was actually said.
“Seems like I'm falling deeper, deeper inside myself. Feels like I'm growing weaker, much weaker each day along the path to decay.” Mikayla stepped back as the guitarist began his solo.
As a waitress walked by, the older woman raised a hand to catch her attention before gesturing to her empty glass. The waitress nodded and went to the bar. “So you want to get people talking. Why?”
“You must be the change you wish to see in the world.”
“Ghandi,” Rebecca said with a nod.
“Very good.”
The older woman leaned back in her chair and accepted the drink as the waitress stepped forward to present it. After a long, thoughtful sip of her drink while she listened to the music she nodded. “You don't see many idealists these days, Ms. Quinn. I'll participate.”
Naomi smiled and raised her glass. “In which case, a toast. To the new world.”
Rebecca tapped her glass against Naomi's, “To new opportunities.”
“Seems like I'm falling deeper, deeper inside myself. Feels like I'm growing weaker, much weaker each day. Along the path to decay...” The singer's voice faded into applause as the song ended.
6/10/2156 – Continued
Another thing I learned in school was that humans are symbiotic organisms on a social level. In the end, people need other people to go on. As much as people spit venom back and forth and fight, they still need each other in the end. Good needs its evil. It was an idea that struck deep when I heard it and one that strikes me anew every time I remember. We need one another. We can't go it alone.
---
6/10/2156
When I was in school I took a Psychology class or two. My logic was that if I was going to be reporting upon the modern human condition I should understand what caused it, that way I could make the proper investigative assumptions and leaps. Really, I just wanted to take it but I had to justify it to the Board so that it'd count towards my major.
Anyways, in one of those classes I learned that memory never works alone. It's always affixed or related to one sense or another, usually smell or sound. I forget the word for it, but that's why people remember seemingly random things whenever they pick up certain smells or certain songs. I used this fact to my advantage during school. Whenever I was studying one subject I'd listen a certain album on repeat, a different band and album for each subject. That way when it came test time I could turn on the music and certain lines or refrains would remind of me something I read.
I think that's why I like the Second Origin so much. It reminds me of a time before all this. Nostalgia.
“Life brings nothing for the same. Keep searchin' new days on the horizon while time just seems to slip away. I'm leaving no trace along the way.” The sound of the strumming guitars seemed disembodied as it pounded from the amps in rhythmic melody. The singer, Mikayla Bloodmoore, stood isolated in a sea of near-darkness on an island of light as she dominated the stage. Her voice carried an angelic, ethereal tone as she sang an eerie, up-beat tune, her hips swaying to the beat of the song.
Her long black hair hung loose, tucked back behind her ears and baring her alabaster neck and shoulders. The black tank-top she wore had a flattering casualness to it and left a half inch of bare stomach before her black pants began. She held the microphone inches from her lips as her sharp blue eyes washed over the audience, seeming to focus on each and every occupant of the bar individually. “Seems like I'm falling deeper, deeper inside myself. Feels like I'm growing weaker, much weaker each day along the path to decay.”
Naomi turned her gaze from the stage and back to the woman sitting across the table from her. The band, Renew, had a mesmerizing quality to them, an energy she was willing to bet everything on that the world hadn't seen or felt in years. Not that that particular fact mattered to anyone inside the Second Origin, considering it was only five years ago at most when they'd last heard something like it. That was, of course, assuming they could remember it. She believed that anyone could remember their past if they tried to, though. The only limit was one's mind.
“Do you remember those days, Rebecca?” she asked, leaning back in her chair while she ran a pair of finger tips along the rim of her glass.
Rebecca was a hard woman. She could likely drive nails with a look. The woman always wore her hair pulled back in a ponytail so tight it seemed to be trying to keep her eyes open. It gave her a severe look which was only aided by her sharp, dry green eyes. No one would call the woman beautiful but her angular features gave her a mature charm. Her voice fit her persona. “I do.”
Sipping from her glass, Naomi watched the woman's face carefully. Her own face had a casually neutral cast to it although her eyes held a focused intensity. “Life was better then, back before everything went to hell.”
The other woman didn't so much as shift her weight. “Just because it was easier does not mean it was better. I always said you should have to fight to survive.”
“That's not what I refer to. The ease of life was a biproduct of humanity's laziness. I don't think we'll have that problem for quite a long while to come,” Naomi said.
“I wouldn't be so surprised. The Techs are remaking new advances every day. Before long we may find ourselves right back where we started.” Rebecca twisted her mouth as if at a sour taste.
She shook her head and sipped her drink once more before setting the glass down on the table, leaving her fingers loosely coiled around it. “The Techs do what they believe is right. What I meant, however, was that humanity wasn't nearly so segmented like it is now. Once upon a time people believed in the free trade of thoughts. Now all they believe in is what they find at the end of a gun's barrel.”
“Right by conquest. That seems to be one of humanity's oldest beliefs,” Rebecca commented with a trace hint of amusement.
”The lights are fading day by day. No cure for the lost, there's no ascending when life could not become more pale. A new dawn is here, another day.”
Naomi nodded towards the singer as she spoke. “A new dawn is here, another day. Right by conquest served us well for a time and will forever be useful, but now is not a time for that. The free exchange of ideas would benefit us far greater. Imagine what could be done by just a small few like-minded individuals in a world such as this.” Rebecca sipped at her own drink and gestured for her to continue. “There was a time in our history when humanity was sequestered from each other, every nation and every idea its own lonely island. Then, one day, someone had a different sort of idea. What if all of those ideas got together and collaborated? What if they worked together?”
Rebecca scoffed and interrupted. “Are you trying to unite the factions?”
“Of course not,” Naomi replied. “That'd be ridiculous. You can't change people. People are selfish creatures, by and large. They only travel in groups to protect their own hide. There are some people who think differently, think of the people and not the person. It's those people I'm looking for. It's those I'm attempting to unite, if in communication alone. All I wish is for an open dialogue, a free flow of thoughts.” She smiled at the woman opposite of her, her voice casual and light. People learned more to the sound of someone's voice than they did what was actually said.
“Seems like I'm falling deeper, deeper inside myself. Feels like I'm growing weaker, much weaker each day along the path to decay.” Mikayla stepped back as the guitarist began his solo.
As a waitress walked by, the older woman raised a hand to catch her attention before gesturing to her empty glass. The waitress nodded and went to the bar. “So you want to get people talking. Why?”
“You must be the change you wish to see in the world.”
“Ghandi,” Rebecca said with a nod.
“Very good.”
The older woman leaned back in her chair and accepted the drink as the waitress stepped forward to present it. After a long, thoughtful sip of her drink while she listened to the music she nodded. “You don't see many idealists these days, Ms. Quinn. I'll participate.”
Naomi smiled and raised her glass. “In which case, a toast. To the new world.”
Rebecca tapped her glass against Naomi's, “To new opportunities.”
“Seems like I'm falling deeper, deeper inside myself. Feels like I'm growing weaker, much weaker each day. Along the path to decay...” The singer's voice faded into applause as the song ended.
6/10/2156 – Continued
Another thing I learned in school was that humans are symbiotic organisms on a social level. In the end, people need other people to go on. As much as people spit venom back and forth and fight, they still need each other in the end. Good needs its evil. It was an idea that struck deep when I heard it and one that strikes me anew every time I remember. We need one another. We can't go it alone.
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