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I looked around to see if Mr. Sri was not around yet as I wanted the act to be perfect. I quickly put on a poker face and stared intently at the grave as Mr. Sri would be here any moment.
12 minutes later, I heard the sound of footsteps and quickly adjusted my slacking posture. I tried to stand with a straight back, but that was only if my disguise weren't this old.
"Too much work these days?" my voice quite low and shaky and I was quite unsure for a moment. The footsteps halted and I couldn't help but smile as I knew I had him where I wanted, I turned around and saw a similar-looking man standing 10 meters away from me, all dressed in black with a round top hat and a flower in hand. His face was distorted as he saw the smug smile on my face and he looked..... Bereaved.
I was amused for a moment and almost laughed out loud but I held it in forcefully to avoid blowing it up. I never could have pictured Mr. Sri with such an expression on his face.
"Who- who are you?" he asked wearily as he took a step back and raised an arm in defense.
"Really? I thought we always kept our rationality in all situations?" I said mockingly and soon realized I was overplaying my role. I took a deep breath and turned around to face the grave once again with my back turned towards Mr. Sri.
"She was a good woman, Phillip." I had to improvise as I didn't quite know what to say with so much nervousness writhing all around my material. Phillip was his first name which only few people knew as he always went by Sri, his last name. I called him Philip because, well, it seemed more appropriate in this situation.
"Do you believe in Time travel?" I couldn't be defective in my act and I realized I shouldn't waste too much time being dramatic in order to avoid a blunder.
*thump*
I turned around to see Mr. Sri kneeling on the floor, looking derailed as all his face was distorted to an imaginable extent. Seeing him like this, I quickly told him how the world would end soon and kept giving him a shocker. At a point, I could only hope he had no cardiac issue as I would be responsible for killing this old geezer. Right beside his mother's grave at that.
"You have to warn the world, Phillip." I ended my theatrical dialogue and I could see he was still on his knees, his head lowered and I thought I could see a liquid drooling down his face, probably mucous or was it spittle.
I started walking towards the exit to conclude the drama and I only took two steps when I heard someone clapping from a different angle in the cemetery.
*clap* *clap* *clap*
"Wonderful..... Beautiful Drama. Really worth an ASTER award."
'Th- this voice, it sounds familiar!'
'dont tell me!!!?'
I turned around in haste and right beside Ms. Sri's grave stood someone I definitely didn't expect to be here. It was....Dan.
I was surprised to see him here, he wasn't supposed to be here? And why did he suddenly blurt out that this was all a drama, a farce. I quickly turned back to see if Mr. Sri heard what he just said as my whole plan would be ruined if he did. He was still on his knees and I prayed silently that he was deaf or anything. I could see he was trembling slightly but something was wrong. Suddenly, he raised his head up and what I saw made me shiver in fright
"Hahahahaha" he had been laughing all these while? What is this?
My heart raced wildly as I prayed fervently that my conjecture be wrong.
"What were you thinking Jenkins? Ha-ha!" If there were anybody in the Celestial space right now, they'd see my prayers floating about, ignored like it was a detestable plague.
"Why?" was the only word I could afford to mutter as I clenched my teeth hard, trying to suppress the wave of overwhelming emotion that hit me.
I was made a fool, a jester amidst the two people I had come to trust the most in my entire life. They were laughing at how stupid and naive I was. But I still couldn't understand, was it a prank?
"Well.....I guess you deserve to know" I could see Mr. Sri standing up and dusting his pants in a blur.
"We plan to end this world, and of course, Mr. Benjamin here is one of the top pioneers, so you could guess what this is all about, vaguely."
His words were like a hammer, striking fiercely on me, breaking something in me and shattering the last thread of hope I held on to. I was really the fool here.
"The Low-lands took everything from me, and I only want to pay them back... is it too much to ask, Jenkins?" Dan spoke earnestly this time. I understood his reasons and I knew he couldn't be brought back, it was no use trying to dissuade him.
"What about her? She wouldn't want this!!" I pointed towards Ms. Sri as I looked at her son, trying to scour the little chances at hand.
"She's gone Jenkins. The Highlands made me what I Am." clearly, he was lost as well.
"Join us, Jenkins" Dan demanded, his voice carrying a heavy power that would not accept refusal.
"They're the ones who need to go...We can start afresh on Mars." He beckoned with his hand stretched forwards. His words full of lure and enticement.
"Don't do this, Dan!!!.... They also have ~"
"A family? A life to live? They sure gave my parents a lot of that!!" he cut me off before I could finish my words. He was really furious this moment.
"I can't..... I~"
"Is that so?" he murmured and closed his eyes. Silence fell over the place for several minutes. The wind howl and absolute silence were the only thing that could be heard all around. When it seemed like forever, Dan took a deep cold breath and opened his eyes before saying coldly;
"I'm afraid this is where we part.....Jenkins." He said as he brought out a DKX-4 Revolver.
I subconsciously stood on alert and took several steps backwards. My whole being trembled in fright as I could see the dark insides of the 'Beamel'. The fear of not knowing when the beam would emerge from that darkness.
'They're going to ...kill me?'
Quickly, I turned and resorted to escape the scene as I knew I had no chance of surviving anymore.
*tweez*
Instantly, I held my chest as I felt a burning sensation, an intolerable pain spread through my whole body as I tried to find the exact source. I felt a wet spot and soon enough, my fingers found a space in my chest area. I looked down and I saw the fist-sized hole in my chest. Knowing that I was shot, I quickly put my hands on it to reduce the bleeding but then I realized that the pain seemed to come from the back side mostly.
'I had been perforated by the beam!'
I slumped on the floor as I lost control over my own body. My body squirmed on their own, my lungs were airtight as I tried to speak and my mouth could only move inaudibly. I swam in a pool of my own blood, numb to the pain. My eyes were as of now staring in disbelief and soon all I could only see was darkness with a tiny light that seemed really far away. The excruciating pain still lingered as if it had found its home, and the only thing that seemed to function was my ear. I could hear my heart beat slowly, fading away and I could hear the earth quake as they walked away from the cemetery.
"It shouldn't have been this way, Jenkins."
Those were the last words I barely heard as I drifted into an endless abyss.
'This is the end?'
'It..... couldn't be?' I was consumed by the darkness as... I died.
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