Tarble's Coding Grounds

Tenebria

"I still wonder which was truly in the wrong.

The world I lived in... or perhaps it was me.

Different, foolish and headstrong,

This twisted world was not one I could see."

Tenebria knew that pain was as natural as rain, but she didn't think it rained in California. It began as a whispering in the air. The sky was cotton candy, and darker shades of purple, oranges, and yellow had filled the Earth's ceiling. But now the sky was a widow, bedarkened and weeping. The noise inside the airport was like the splattering of ripened nuts that fell to the ground. It wasn't the effervescent drops of a Scottish smirr, but the churlish soddening of a winter storm. People packed into the lobby gate like sardines, hoping against hope their flights would not be delayed. Tenebria remained still, letting the wave of people pass as if she were parting the Red Sea. Delays did not matter... she had no place else to go. 

The illumination of her phone's screen stood out now that the crowd had dispered. She caved, and the phone was turned off. In the distance, a child's face lit up from the screen of their phone, oblivious or uncaring to the attention it cast on him. She averted her gaze after a few seconds of indulgence, noting that it was rude to stare. 

Good afternoon passengers. This is the pre-boarding announcement for flight 89B to Mars. We are now inviting those passengers with small children, and any passengers requiring special assistance, to begin boarding at this time. Please have your boarding pass and immunization record ready. Regular boarding will begin in approximately ten minutes time. Thank you.

Tenebria let free a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. The announcement had startled her, but flight 89B's imminent arrival was a relief. In preparation of the lengthy journey to her new home, she put on a fresh mask. Not a moment later, the crowd returned like moths to a lantern. "I'm safe," she reminded herself. Yet practice made perfect, and Tenebria was a professional at being anxious.

After all- her world had been safe once before.

Dante Victis

Home was where the heart was, so how far was his heart forced to wander?

Agent Victis gripped at the handle of his suitcase, letting those plastic wheels roll along the shiny tile floor of the airport. Flight 89B was beginning their pre-boarding procedures and that was his cue to get on. Yet another assignment to make sure that nothing went awry on Mars. There was something about the pestilent bug of wanderlust that made what could easily be intelligent creatures go feral with disturbing thoughts. Perhaps it had something to do with believing in liberation through new horizons?

It disgusted the agent how often a human could associate 'liberation' with 'mutilation' or 'homicide'. These untoward thoughts went hand-in-hand with travel, and it was due to this that he was on assignment. Observe the people of this flight, watch their movements, observe how they interact with the new environment that they're about to be exposed to on Mars. It was true, the United States had been making strides alongside Russia in a conjoined effort to terraform nearby planets that could sustain life, but it was always a human thing to want to oppose someone simply for being different.

How long was it before history repeated itself, despite the developments in the world?

"I've gotta stop being so pessimistic.." Dante muttered to himself as he slipped his mask on over his lips. He showed his federal identification to the attendant before he was escorted close to the entrance. However, as he was beginning to make his exit to his flight, his eyes met with a young woman of ebony strands. His eyes didn't widen nor did they show any recognition he was even looking at her to the naked eye, yet it would be unmistakable to Tenebria that Dante was looking at her.

Then he looked forward again, as if that moment in time had been reversed and erased from the memories of the populace.

Tenebria

She was going to do it this time. Tenebria felt the cold stare upon her, and she turned her gaze to meet it. It was only fair- after all, a stranger had looked at her. The best thing to do in these situations was to look back, right? She wasn't the bad guy. She wasn't being rude. 

"Dammit."

She turned her eyes away in defeat. Once again, despite her being a victim, she couldn't help but feel that she was the one being rude. Well, the flight was boarding now anyway, so it didn't matter much. Once the immunization records and the ID were given to the attendant, she was allowed to board. 

"It's all real," she whispered to herself. It was real now. This entire trip had been fueled by adrenaline and emotion, stress and waiting, running and feeling threatened. But stepping into the plane had suddenly made everything so real. An invisible hand grabbed at her heart and would not let go. She was on a roller coaster, at the top of the tracks and looking down, waiting for the drop. Yet the release never came, and the feeling began to build. Trepidation was her best friend and it stood by her side at all times. And of course... 

"Excuse me," Tenebria said. She had the window seat, which was nice, but the person sitting next to her was none other than the rude stranger from earlier. Her focus was on the outside, through the window. This was the easy part. She just needed to sit back and let the plane do the rest. But why wasn't it taking off? Why was everybody boarding so slowly? The window seat was a curse dressed as a blessing. It gave everybody a reason to look in her direction. She remained perfectly still, blinking in perfect intervals and breathing like a pendulum, in case anybody was watching her.