There are no words. And even if there were, I would not want to tell anyone about this. I'd rather bury it deep inside of me and let it rot there in peace. Forget about it, yes, let go of it, completely. But I don't have a choice, do I? I swore on it, a promise is a promise and I am a Demon of my word. I owe you a story. Brace yourselves then beings of all kinds and all ages, for here it comes, the tragic tale of a lost hope, the poignant testimony of one who lived to see the Demon wars.
You do remember me, of course you do. Melanie White, Demon Liberator, the girl who was turned into a monster and then back into a girl. The one who lost everyone she loved and then killed everyone she loathed only to find herself surrounded by a raggedy bunch of Demons with a whole world to rebuild. The one who turned the tables, and gave her people a chance at a fresh start.
And what kind of gratitude do you think I got out of this? They screwed it up. Badly. Call it stage fright if you will. Once they were in the spotlight, or rather in the sunlight, my kins embraced the same foul ways Sapiens persecuted them with for millennia. Discrimination, violence, deceit. They turned against me and then against each other and there was nothing I could do, all great liberator that I was.
This disappointment did not come right away though, it needed some time to take shape. There was a moment of shyness and innocence, a moment of grief for all our sisters and brothers lost, or if you prefer the cynical interpretation a moment of mischievous contemplation to learn how to best take advantage of the situation. It is at that time that I must commence my story, so that you may understand it fully with all its protagonists, its twists and its turns, on a beautiful morning in the surroundings of Ogden, land of mountains, always, but blind beliefs, no more.
I don't know if it was out of sick nostalgia that I decided to take my little troop there, in the city I was born twenty years earlier but it is where we settled, occupying homes left behind by the Sapiens, some of us aiming for grandeur, the rest adopting a more frugal lifestyle. The world was ours and we could enjoy as we saw fit the exuberant remnants of the great American civilization. There was plenty to eat and drink, shelter and transportation for every one, and a technology that was quite sustainable. After all, we were no dumber than the Sapiens had been and it took us only a few months to figure out and take over the key components of their infrastructure. The most detestable task we were left with was cleaning. Over the last few days of the pandemic, bodies had piled up everywhere on the streets, in houses and in other buildings. Ogden's hospital itself contained the lifeless carcasses of thousands of Sapiens rotting in an indescribable stench. It was my aftermath, the one I had single-handedly delivered and I did not feel an ounce of remorse for that. They were responsible, had brought it on themselves, by not letting go, by pushing us to the brink of extinction. I had only pushed back. Hard.
It was morning then, Fay and I were walking down Monroe Boulevard, sipping on fresh orange juice chilled by the cold Winter air. Since our encounter, she had evolved into a graceful demon, condemned to be the only one of her kind by a tragic twist of fate. We were out on reconnaissance duty, spotting remaining bodies for the pick up crew that would come by later during the day and take them to the landfill we had dug out ten kilometers north of Pineview Reservoir where they would be disposed of. Dust to dust.
"How many of these do you think are still out there? Fay asked as we had stumbled upon a half-eaten carcass.
- Not many, I guess. In a couple of months, it won't matter anymore. Nature, will take care of them.
- So why are we doing this, I mean, cleaning.
- Safety measure. Our population is still frail and we are genetically close to them. If we don't adopt basic hygiene measures, we risk an epidemic of our own. Now that would be a silly way to disappear, don't you think, especially after surviving the wrath of the Sapiens.
- You still resent them.
- How could I not? They wanted to exterminate us... They made me do this.
- Well from where I stand, you did not finish the job, she said cockily.
- What do you mean?
- There is still at least one of these uglies walking around in broad daylight, I have it right in front of me, she laughed pointing her finger at my face.
- You are so funny, I snapped at her. Come on, we have four more blocks to cover before lunch break. After that the last Sapiens on Earth will kick your ass at racing.
- Racing? Where? Along the Canyon track?
- No dear. I have something much better in mind. Hockenheim, Germany. Courtesy of Melanie Airways.
- Don't tell me! Formula one?
- Right on Kiddo!
- Oh, you are going to live to regret it, Demon Liberator.
- We'll see about that, ungrateful brat."
We laughed. It was a good sound, pure and innocent, echoing in the empty streets of Ogden. I lost the others, I told myself but I won't lose her. I'll protect her with my life. And so I did. But in the end it was not enough.
You do remember me, of course you do. Melanie White, Demon Liberator, the girl who was turned into a monster and then back into a girl. The one who lost everyone she loved and then killed everyone she loathed only to find herself surrounded by a raggedy bunch of Demons with a whole world to rebuild. The one who turned the tables, and gave her people a chance at a fresh start.
And what kind of gratitude do you think I got out of this? They screwed it up. Badly. Call it stage fright if you will. Once they were in the spotlight, or rather in the sunlight, my kins embraced the same foul ways Sapiens persecuted them with for millennia. Discrimination, violence, deceit. They turned against me and then against each other and there was nothing I could do, all great liberator that I was.
This disappointment did not come right away though, it needed some time to take shape. There was a moment of shyness and innocence, a moment of grief for all our sisters and brothers lost, or if you prefer the cynical interpretation a moment of mischievous contemplation to learn how to best take advantage of the situation. It is at that time that I must commence my story, so that you may understand it fully with all its protagonists, its twists and its turns, on a beautiful morning in the surroundings of Ogden, land of mountains, always, but blind beliefs, no more.
I don't know if it was out of sick nostalgia that I decided to take my little troop there, in the city I was born twenty years earlier but it is where we settled, occupying homes left behind by the Sapiens, some of us aiming for grandeur, the rest adopting a more frugal lifestyle. The world was ours and we could enjoy as we saw fit the exuberant remnants of the great American civilization. There was plenty to eat and drink, shelter and transportation for every one, and a technology that was quite sustainable. After all, we were no dumber than the Sapiens had been and it took us only a few months to figure out and take over the key components of their infrastructure. The most detestable task we were left with was cleaning. Over the last few days of the pandemic, bodies had piled up everywhere on the streets, in houses and in other buildings. Ogden's hospital itself contained the lifeless carcasses of thousands of Sapiens rotting in an indescribable stench. It was my aftermath, the one I had single-handedly delivered and I did not feel an ounce of remorse for that. They were responsible, had brought it on themselves, by not letting go, by pushing us to the brink of extinction. I had only pushed back. Hard.
It was morning then, Fay and I were walking down Monroe Boulevard, sipping on fresh orange juice chilled by the cold Winter air. Since our encounter, she had evolved into a graceful demon, condemned to be the only one of her kind by a tragic twist of fate. We were out on reconnaissance duty, spotting remaining bodies for the pick up crew that would come by later during the day and take them to the landfill we had dug out ten kilometers north of Pineview Reservoir where they would be disposed of. Dust to dust.
"How many of these do you think are still out there? Fay asked as we had stumbled upon a half-eaten carcass.
- Not many, I guess. In a couple of months, it won't matter anymore. Nature, will take care of them.
- So why are we doing this, I mean, cleaning.
- Safety measure. Our population is still frail and we are genetically close to them. If we don't adopt basic hygiene measures, we risk an epidemic of our own. Now that would be a silly way to disappear, don't you think, especially after surviving the wrath of the Sapiens.
- You still resent them.
- How could I not? They wanted to exterminate us... They made me do this.
- Well from where I stand, you did not finish the job, she said cockily.
- What do you mean?
- There is still at least one of these uglies walking around in broad daylight, I have it right in front of me, she laughed pointing her finger at my face.
- You are so funny, I snapped at her. Come on, we have four more blocks to cover before lunch break. After that the last Sapiens on Earth will kick your ass at racing.
- Racing? Where? Along the Canyon track?
- No dear. I have something much better in mind. Hockenheim, Germany. Courtesy of Melanie Airways.
- Don't tell me! Formula one?
- Right on Kiddo!
- Oh, you are going to live to regret it, Demon Liberator.
- We'll see about that, ungrateful brat."
We laughed. It was a good sound, pure and innocent, echoing in the empty streets of Ogden. I lost the others, I told myself but I won't lose her. I'll protect her with my life. And so I did. But in the end it was not enough.
Commentaires