The Story
Her eyelids were impossibly heavy, as if every ounce of energy went into opening them. It was dark inside the room, but the dim rays of a setting sun shone through one of the windows and, even with what it illuminated, she could barely make out the shapes of furniture. She couldn't blink enough times to prevent the burning sensation that followed. And more than that... Pain. Radiating over her entire body. So much so that she couldn't tell whether it came from a single source or multiple. An intense ache from her lungs, to her abdomen, to her throat, all while her limbs were encumbered with a fatigue she had never before experienced.
She lifted her head, then a hand. Again, each action taking every effort to perform. More blinking, trying to focus. Whereas it was once soft and porcelain, the skin was shriveled. Rough. Sickly. Her heart responded by pounding faster and harder than it already was.
She was still lying in her own bed. The last thing she remembered was saying good night to her husband and turning in. So what the fuck was happening?
As her head fell back on the pillow, her attention broke from her increasing panic long enough to notice the body lying next to her, head swiveling weakly to the other.
"J... Jona..." She couldn't finish uttering his name. From her own mouth, her voice was hoarse, unrecognizable. She swallowed to soothe her parched throat to no avail, mouth opening to cry out, but she could muster neither sound nor tears to mourn the loss of her husband. As dry and cracked as she, his chest showed no movement and innumerable flies clung to his skin, whisking through the air around them. Between the putrid smell that filled her nostrils and the pain, it elicited a dry heave.
For a long moment, she could only lay motionless with her quiet sobs.
And she was thirsty. So... thirsty.
Gathering what little strength she had, she managed to roll from the bed, the sound of dead weight thumping to the floor. She winced and grit her teeth against the sharp, new wave of pain that engulfed her.
Another long moment to find her resolve through ragged breathing, and she used her forearms to slowly coax her body along the floor with a single-minded focus: Reaching the bathroom. Water.
Too weak to stand, one arm after another propelled her forward.
The room seemed to move on its own.
Not much farther...
Water. It was right there. All she had to do was reach it.
But she felt lightheaded, and her limbs became all the heavier, refusing to cooperate as the remaining strength left her.
She closed her eyes.
If she could rest for just a moment...
"Breaking news coming in to us," a local news channel blares excitedly, a sleepy town with a reputation for difficulty in finding a decent story to publish. That is to say, beyond bingo nights or the doozy of a rumor old Jan had spilled about Michael the other day. An older, holographic screen is perched in the corner of the bar, which appears hazy and its picture glitches, flickering periodically. The chatter from those occupying the room falls to near-silence as all eyes fix to it, yours included. "A couple was found dead in their home tonight. While their identities have not been released yet, preliminary review of the scene indicates that the cause of death was a combination of starvation and dehydration. Reports say, it's almost as if they were in a coma-like state for the past several days. There are no signs of struggle, drug use or even poison, but tests are still being run to be sure." The reporter, a tall, thin man with side-combed hair, not a hair out of place, pauses to push up the glasses resting on the bridge of his nose, long enough to add suspense to his unseen, expectant audience. It'll be a long time before he's able to report on anything as remotely interesting as two mysterious deaths, and he and the news channel will be sure to exhaust the story in the coming weeks. But maybe, just maybe, this report will be his big break to move up in the world of media. He continues, "As it fits the other notorious crime scenes found in other cities recently, authorities are beginning to treat this as a criminal investigation despite the lack of evidence and victims' connection to one another. Either this is something of a strange cult and people are intentionally harming themselves in this way, or we may just have a serial killer on our hands, folks. Because of the mysterious nature of these deaths and no supporting evidence for either theory at this time, social media is already exploding with the assumption that a serial killer is responsible. There are many notable names at this point, but the most wide-spread pick appears to be... 'The Reaper.'"
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About
About
This stems from a whacky dream I had some time ago, which just so happened to tragically involve my husband and I as the victims of a heinous crime. We both died. I, as an out-of-body onlooker, was more worried about the dog we left behind (pretty typical). It was quite tragic and morbid. The End. (Don't worry, the dog lived)
As the title indicates, I'm expecting this to be a sci-fi/mystery/crime thriller story (perhaps cyberpunk?), which involves a mishmosh of aliens and a pair of detectives in a futuristic setting either on Earth or some other planet. How did I settle on aliens and detectives from this dream, you may ask? Bare with me a moment and I'll be happy to explain the general idea.
You may also want to check out my Main RT first to see what I'm like as a partner, as well as what I'm looking for in a partner.
As the title indicates, I'm expecting this to be a sci-fi/mystery/crime thriller story (perhaps cyberpunk?), which involves a mishmosh of aliens and a pair of detectives in a futuristic setting either on Earth or some other planet. How did I settle on aliens and detectives from this dream, you may ask? Bare with me a moment and I'll be happy to explain the general idea.
You may also want to check out my Main RT first to see what I'm like as a partner, as well as what I'm looking for in a partner.
- The Aliens: A benevolent race of aliens, humans' first contact, arrived on planet Earth some-odd years ago. Requiring hosts to survive, some humans have agreed to share their body with the aliens -- known as "Paired" -- in return for the advantageous benefits they provide, particularly in certain work forces. What are the benefits? That's for us to decide. Longevity? Emotion or truth sensing? Enhanced attention to detail? Gnarly powers? All of the above? We'll see. Whatever it is, it makes them good at their jobs. But things can get a little awkward since they are, you know, sharing their bodies with sentient beings. I imagine the aliens communicate with them and have personalities of their own.
- The Detectives: The detectives are part of a work-force that have all agreed to become "Paired." FBI? Some made-up futuristic organization? Again, that's up to us to decide. Our detectives will be long-time partners OR new/temporary partners assigned to work together for this case.
- NOTE: I am imagining a male/female duo for this, however this can be a platonic work relationship or not. I would like to play the female in this case.
- The Reaper: This is a name I came up with on the fly, thought it was fitting, but it's possibly a bit unoriginal, so definitely not set in stone and changeable, if preferred. The idea is that the killer uses a technology (or ability?) that literally gets in peoples' heads and simulates their day-to-day life. It may require planning ahead of time to get it right on his/her/its part (human or otherwise). Nonetheless, they get in these peoples' heads, simulate their life, and make them believe that nothing is out of the ordinary. Meanwhile, unbeknownst to them, their stationary bodies are slowly dying of starvation/dehydration, and the technology or ability leaves no trace. And, most importantly, who are they and what is their motive? The answer is: I have no idea, and that's also for us to discover and discuss... TOGETHER.
So, this may be a little on the rough side, but I do have some other ideas swirling about. If you're someone that's willing to take on the challenge, throw around ideas, and brainstorm, please contact me!
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