The Nibiru Effect

Memory 16

It takes a while, but the tears eventually stop flowing. Now that my thoughts are no longer muddled, I decide to review the situation.

Step one: Identify what I know.

I'm insane.

Step two: Identify what I don't know.

I don't know where I am—I think I'm in a mental hospital, but I can't be sure. I don't know what happened—was the insanity of the subway station real or a delusion? I don't know who Kidd is, or if he's even real, but I'm pretty sure he isn't a doctor. I don't know if time travel is possible, but I choose not to let it drive me even more insane than I already am. The final unknown takes the form of a question.

Did my mother contact me? I honestly don't know, but for the time being, nothing short of seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling, and feeling something will convince me it's real.

Now that I have taken a stand against my insanity, I feel better. Of course, that's the very moment she chooses to appear.

Scar Lady.

She stands by the very same wall that swallowed Kidd, glaring at me.

She takes a step toward me.

"This isn't real," I mutter, but Scar Lady keeps coming.

I'm having an episode, I tell myself. It's not real unless I can see, hear, taste, smell, and feel it. So far, I have only seen Scar Lady.

If I can't see her, maybe she'll go away. I close my eyes, but that only makes things worse.

I hear her.

The scraping of shoes against the padded floor reaches my ears. It's all I can hear. It's everywhere. I'm about to cover my ears when the noise stops.

Is she gone?

I open my eyes, only to find her standing before me.

"Give it back!" she growls. Her voice is powerful, far too powerful to be a figment of my imagination.

"You're not real," I say.

"Give it back!" she repeats. Her face is red, her eyes bulging.

I don't react.

"Give back what you stole!" she yells.

Spittle peppers my face. A drop somehow makes it past my lips, and I taste the acrid flavour of Scar Lady.

"No," I groan.

I close my eyes, desperate to escape the delusion, but it only makes things worse. Now that I no longer have my vision to distract me, I become aware of the rancid odour that permeates the air. It's a mixture of sweat and perfume. Four of my five senses have now been activated. Only one remains. It doesn't matter. I'll be fine as long as—

Scar Lady grabs me, shattering the belief that she's a figment of my imagination.

"Give it back!" she yells as she starts shaking me. When that fails, she releases me and begins pummeling me with her fists.

I scurry back.

"Give it back!"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Liar!" she screams and leaps forward. She knocks me to the ground and grabs my neck. Her hands dig into my windpipe, cutting off my air supply. I struggle to free myself, but she's too strong. I fight, but my strength fades quickly. And the more I struggle, the faster it evaporates. I grow still, but all it does is delay the inevitable.

The last thing I see is Scar Lady's face. The last thing I hear is her voice, repeating the same words over and over again. The last thing I smell is her rancid body odour. It's so overpowering I can taste it. The last thing I feel is her hands around my neck, squeezing tighter and tighter until...

Darkness.