His Prodigy

                   His          Prodigy          
          Dameon nervously waited for his sister to appear. He knew she wouldn't have changed since the last time he saw her fifty years ago. He hasn't changed since the day of his creation two hundred and twenty-two years ago. It still made him nervous whenever they met. Their first meeting wasn't one to write home about. He tried killing them both by blowing up the castle laboratory two hundred and fifteen years ago. By the time the fire and smoke cleared, they were both gone and presumed destroyed.
         "Dameon? It is you! You are looking excellent. That color is a good match for your eyes." Ana embraced her brother lovingly, sharing a bond no one else could even imagine.
         "Ana, I am so glad you remembered. I was worried you weren't going to be here. I Look forward to our day together. I wish we could spend more time together. Please, have a seat. We have a lot to catch up on."
         He was pulling the seat out from the table and helping his sister scoot toward the table. He then sits to the left of her.
         "So, you begin, I started the last time." Offered Dameon.
         "Well, yes. I have traveled the southern hemisphere for the past fifty years. I spent a wonderful ten years in Antarctica. I made several lifelong friends with the Albatrosses, a social Elephant Seal, and had several soft spots for the Emperor Penguins. I had to stay hidden from the Lifers because I didn't want to ruin their 'We're the only ones here' party."
         Ana continued, "I then went to Australia. I was there in 1901 and only stayed long enough to buy some properties as investments, open a bank account, make a recurring deposit, and update the properties as needed." She paused to take a sip of her water, then calmly continued. "I got bitten by one of their damn Taipan snakes above my right ankle. It hurt. I wasn't paying attention because I was busy getting a radio station on my Walkman."
         Stifling a smile, "I can imagine it did hurt. I am sure you surprised the poor snake, and it attacked out of instinct as you walked by."
         Covering her mouth and muttering, "I kind of stepped on its tail by accident."
         "What did you say? Your hand covered your mouth, and you muttered the whole time."
         Uncovering her mouth and facing him, "I accidentally stepped on his tail while looking at my Walkman. In my defense, he was wilting."
         "Wilting? What's wilting?"
          "You know, when a snake is shedding its skin," Ana answered matter-of-factly.
          "Oh! You mean 'molting'. Gotcha"
          Dameon looks at Ana and sees her begin to smile, then giggle.
          "You've been playing me this whole time? Why? What did I ever do to you? Besides blowing you up, making us leave the only home we've ever known, wander the earth for over two hundred years, and be labeled monsters?" Dameon asked.
          "Well, for starters, for the reputation that followed us because of your earlier behaviors: killing innocent people simply because they were in your way, including a child; the destruction of the properties; and," Ana paused, trying to regain her voice, "for trying to kill me before we had a chance to evolve." Dameon sees tears running down her cheeks. He has pangs of a longing for a similar release.
          Having Ana talk about Dameon's earlier life brought the memories flooding back uninhibited. The townspeople were afraid of him because he looked different. Seeing the medical gauze, bandages, stitches, and neck electrodes on a moving cadaver. He looked every part the monster he felt when he saw people scream, run, throw rocks, or attack him with pitchforks and fire.
          "I can't undo what I did at that time. I wish I didn't kill all those people; please believe that. If it matters, I made restitution to each of their families several times over. Money appeared when they most needed it. My quilt and shame will never cease." He turns and faces Ana fully, "When I tried to harm you, my mind was still in the infant stage. You were more advanced than me, even though they created me first. After the explosion and I woke up, I searched for you, and you were already gone."
          There is a long pause. They both feel the Change faintly begin and soon would need to leave.
          "It's happening already. We better get going before we begin to revert. Do you still want to see me again?" Dameon asked, afraid to be too hopeful. He knew Ana had many issues with her creation and what happened to her for three dozen years. She didn't kill anyone; she did, however, destroy a complete village and a Parrish Hall. She wandered a large forest, staying away from humanity. Her Creation Madness lasted on and off before it faded completely away.
          Ana had created Safe Houses in all the major cities in the world. Her houses were fashionable bomb shelters. The homes were built on the sides of hills or mounds with steel-reinforced concrete bunker walls. All electricity, water, sewer, and air are state-of-the-art and placed by contractors outside the country.
          During the same time, Dameon found a deep cave and rolled several rocks and boulders over the entrance. He began to regain control of his mind and the terrible thoughts. He learned to meditate and focus his energies on a positive flow. Depending on atmospheric conditions, if he were in a darkened space, his body's Chi could softly appear to be glowing white, blue, yellow, or violet.
          He knew better to stay too long in each other's company. For all their forward progress, neither could figure out why being together caused a reversal back to their earlier states of existence. The last thing they wanted was to regress to the monsters they were in the beginning.
          Answering Dameon's question to meet again or not, "Yes, I do. We are the only two in the world like us. We weren't born, Dameon. He made us. He made us from other people. Dead people. All the stitches and parts will be seen if we stay together for one more day. We will be freaks again. I already feel itchy around my joints. I know you do, too."
          "Let's call it a day, Ana. I will meet you here fifty years from today. If this is no longer a Bistro, we'll still meet here and decide what to do next. Stay safe, Ana.'
          "Stay safe, Dameon."
          Fifty years later, and one minute.
          This year, Ana arrived first. She thought Dameon would have arrived already. He has always been first.


1112 Words