101 Ways to Skin a Hoodie

Chapter 13

"It's a nice view, isn't it?"

"...Yes."

The earth spins slowly in the empty void of space, just as picturesque as it was in 1968. I lean back in my chair, at ease, feeling one with the stars. I take a sip of tea from the mug in my hand. My tongue gets burned a little.

"I've always cherished this view. No one else gets to see it unless I want them to. The stillness is the most beautiful part. It is so rare for one of our species to have a place where they can be truly alone, away from all things."

I swing my foot, stirring some dust on the ground. He kicks a moonrock, and it falls gently back to the ground.

"Why are you showing this to me?"

"There's no reason. That it's you in particular I mean. You won the lottery. But I've taken a liking to you, over these past few months, and I figured I'd share something close to my heart, as a sign of goodwill for what's to come, even though you never remember come morning."

A shooting star passes behind the earth. I have no wish to make that I can think of. Just being here, enjoying the serenity of this earthrise is enough. Tears stream down my face for a reason unbeknownst to me.

"...amantha? Samantha?"

My head jerks up. "Oh, sorry, I must have dozed off. I think I'm just tired from the battle."

"Oh it's fine. I just finished washing your back so we should probably clear out for whoever wants to shower next." Ben hands me a towel.

"Thanks." I briefly run the cloth around my body before tying it around me. Ben does the same before grabbing our clothes off of the floor, and we head out of the washroom to free the aforementioned space for our fellow hallwaymates.

We've gotten quite efficient with our everyday lives at this facility during the two months we've been here, and the once abnormal elements- such as the portal doors linking this whole place together- have grown increasingly trite as time has passed.

Today is actually the exact two month anniversary of the day that Ben and I crashed into this place initially, which we only know thanks to various mechanical watches that have been hung up in various places on the walls. Any sort of digital technology gets too hot to function in this place, with the exception of Hana's medical tablet. She has to expend an absurd amount of magical effort to keep it cool, and frankly I couldn't care less about my phone anymore. I don't even know where it is.

Right. Anyway.

Our two month arrival anniversary.

I'd love to celebrate, but I really am so tired from the battle. The demons today were actually skinless wolves that swam through the ground and attacked us from below. It was a massive pain just trying to track them down, but once we did it was easy to pick them off. Unlike that first battle sixty odd days ago. I feel like this job has gotten easier.

On the topic of jobs; Ben's work in the research division has helped to illuminate some of the secrets of this place. Well, kind of. Often times the answers are obnoxiously simple, such as how there is absolutely no connection between the different types of demons that raid this place, except that they come every couple days or so. But we had already had an inkling as to that sort of thing.

The one big breakthrough that Ben and the team he's on had made was actually figuring out how exactly a soul was turned into a life-lily upon death, but the explanation was so completely technical and menial that it just flew right over my head.

Not to discredit any of Ben's successes or anything, I acknowledge to myself as I pull open the curtain for our room. Ben pulls it shut behind him. I flick my wrist and the water pail sails into my hand. I hold it out to Ben and he starts filling it up.