Europa - A Banshee Story

Introduction

Lucius Reilly jr. (London - October 18, 2070) 

The lights in the hotel lobby stabs my eyes when I enter the building. Quite a contrast with the twilit streets of London. A quick look at my phone reveals to me that I am well on time for my appointment; it is now 5 o'clock. A few swipes and thumb presses remind me of the room where I am expected an hour from now. With so much time left to kill, I figure it wouldn't hurt to have a drink at the hotel bar.

Being from a well-off family, I have been to my fair share of hotel bars over the course of my life, but visiting one in a Bolton Hotel pretty much guarantees a good experience. There is always someone on hand to provide service, which in turn is also always top of the line. The amount of money required to keep even one of these hotels running must be staggering, let alone somewhere around 50 hotels. Then again, the founder of the hotel franchise could more than afford any expenses; for such people, the aftermath of the War has proven to be more than kind.

Having been born long after the War had ended, my knowledge on that time comes from my parents, who had been born in the middle of it. My grandparents, some of whom had also fought back then, could even tell of a time when London looked quite different from what it is today. One of them had even been present when the old city was destroyed. In school, I heard little about the War itself, with the curriculum choosing instead to focus on what happened after it had ended.

Long story short, this is also what has led to me having an appointment in this hotel. Within an hour, I will be interviewing someone who had fought during the War as part of my PhD research. To clarify, my research aims to create a contemporary account of what happened during the War through the recollections of people who had actively lived through it, before old age takes either them or their memories away. My professor has pulled some strings to get me an interview with whoever veteran was in this hotel tonight; he has not given me an identity though, so I had no idea who I will be interviewing.

It is 6 o'clock sharp when I knock on the hotel room door. The door is opened by a Hybrid, which is distinguishable from a Blue by their clearly human eyes. Technically the correct term for a Blue is a Silcar, but their clear blue skin has made the nickname stick ever since the War brought them to Earth. Those of them who ended up fighting on our side were allowed to settle here after the War, and after a couple decades, they have become a fairly common sight in public. When it turned out that their physiology was compatible with that of humans, however, it did not take long for Human-Silcar Hybrids to make their appearance as well. Their skin is blue as well, but they have human eyes and are capable of having natural hair colors that aren't shades of blue or purple, not to mention other traits that sets humans apart from Silcarin. But I digress...

"Come on in," the Hybrid says. "My grandmother is expecting you."

He takes my jacket and shows me into a sitting room; clearly, this suite is quite large. Already sitting there is a Silcar woman, still young looking by human standards but already starting to show a middle age.

"Welcome, young man," she says. "It is good to see you. Would you like to have something to drink?"

"I would like that, ma'am," I reply, to which the woman nods at her grandson to see to the drink.

"I understand that you are collecting memories from War veterans for your research...?"

"That is correct, ma'am."

"Have you interviewed many people yet?" she asks.

"In truth, you are the first person to be interviewed..."

"So I will be setting the standard then, I suppose?"

"Possibly... I suppose that would depend on your memories..."

Wait...!

"Please forgive me, ma'am, I didn't mean to sound disrespectful towards your experiences..."

The woman chuckles for a bit.

"That is quite alright, young man. There is nothing wrong with speaking directly every now and then. One of the things I miss most about the war, I suppose..."

She looks away for a second, appearing reminiscent...

"But you will hear all about that once the interview begins. That being said, I do not believe I caught your name..."

"Lucius Reilly junior, ma'am. And on that note, I don't believe that I caught your name either..."

"I will make sure to drop it during the interview," she says. "I should probably inform you that I am full of surprises, as well as experiences. I will do my best to tell not only my own story, but also the stories of those at whose sides I fought. I owe them at least that much..."

"I look forward to hearing these stories, ma'am... Shall we begin...?"

"Let us begin, yes. It is a long story and I am not sure whether I will be able to tell all of it..."

(20-09-2019)