that wandered into their midst.
“No time to consider the origin of such a welcome site, best be on my way!” She muttered to herself as she careened over the path and she didn’t shorten her strides until she was quite sure that the rushing sound of ploam, water, and whatever landed in the pool behind her were well outside of hearing distance. She continued on at a brisk pace constantly pausing to look about her and ensure that no one was following. When she was sure she was far away from danger she stepped off of the trail and hid behind a tree to catch her breath.
Upon doing so, Alice found that the situation had solved itself and she was quite dry. Her ploam attire didn’t retain water very well at all but during the interlude she’d been able to think or recall very little at all. She patted herself to knock off any dirt and inspect her condition. Alice had on a long blue dress that stopped short above the knees. The material at her shoulders was light and the dimensional printer she’d used had been able to condition the material at the bottom to be more rigid allowing for the dress to flare where it stopped. While her dress didn’t hug her figure entirely, it was slimming and hung from her shoulders in two large straps.
The opening for the head was quite large so Alice wore a nice white shirt underneath that contained short frilly patterns down the center. It was short sleeve and being fond of frills she’d designed it to have ruffles along the edge. Contrary to her mom’s sensible footwear, Alice had chosen to create a pair of ploam boots mostly because she did a lot of walking, but because it was the trending fashion at school as well. While the base design was sturdy, she’d been keen to add patterns of brightly colored flowers along the toes and up the sides that led to her legs. The sides also contained ruffles that resembled petals. There was no need for laces, buckles, or zippers as ploam could be either rigid or elastic depending on the need of the individual who created the item.
As she inspected herself for damage, nothing beyond minor scrapes and nicks from her run through the woods, she took another look at her digital device hoping that it may have returned to life. Removing it from her wrist, she pulled the back from the front and saw that the moisture indicator was thoroughly sodden.
“Heavens me, the poor thing has been thoroughly saturated! I shan’t be located by the authorities in the near future without a proper connection.”
She spoke the command to turn it on but she was sure it wouldn't respond. Good consumermanship dictated she should dispose of the object and buy a new one from a vending machine; yet, she was unsure of where a vending machine would be located in her current local. Nevertheless, she was sure the device was quite broken and she had no means of connectivity or the option to accessorize or purchase a new device. "Now what am I to do?" She gave in futilely sliding her device back into its location on her arm and collapsed on the ground with the useless device free of her hands and her hands in her lap with a tear ever ready to spring from her eye.
Indeed, a tiny silver pearl of sadness was just about to leap from her lower eyelid when, much to Alice’s astonishment, she could just barely discern the sound of sobbing creeping its way through the woods and landing lightly upon her eardrum as if it were a butterfly carried on a delicate breeze. Doubting her own senses, Alice wiped her tear away, sniffled rather audibly, neatly tucked away her own distraught, and craned her neck in the direction she thought she heard the sound from intensely listening for the sobbing once again. She heard nothing and her doubt grew. Surely, she thought, her mind was hearing the sound of her own sobs before they'd issued from her mouth but then there it was again! Reassuring herself and mustering her confidence, Alice stood up as quietly as she could and, positive she had heard someone else's lamentations, she faced the direction she thought from which she heard the sob. She heard it again and took a step. It was a low pitiful moan that communicated all the loneliness and despair she felt with her current predicament. Unwilling to let another poor soul suffer in silence, Alice felt it was only reasonable to investigate the source of the sadness. At the very least perhaps they could share each other’s discontent and recover.
Alice, timorously yet with determination, continued toward the mournful soul. As Alice got closer she couldn't tell whether the unknown individual was genuinely upset or hysterically laughing. She was able to comprehend that whoever the ruckus noise belonged to, they seemed incapable of controlling their emotions and could possibly be stark raving mad. She concluded it might be best to observe them for a moment to ensure they wouldn't possibly harm her since she was in, well, she didn't quite know where she was but she knew it was beneath Second City. Ahead of her was a small clearing with several downed trees. She couldn't see her possible companion at first until he sprang into view and seemed to be in a fit beside himself in what course of action he should take next. First he would walk in one direction, and then he would stop and go in another direction. When he’d frustrated himself with indecision, he’d settle for a moment, then sob, then spring back into the air as if he knew what he wanted to do.
Currently, there was a bit of mumbling, some angry words expressed with ferocity instead of audibly, then a settling, and finally a resigned forlornness followed by sobs. In appearance, his skin was a medium tone of brown and the hair atop his head was black and braided along the scalp down the sides and to the back like two long black ears. At least they seemed to resemble ears as they kept moving up and down but in truth had they not have done so, Alice would have been opined that they were simply pony tail braids.
From her vantage point, along with his incessant hopping and prancing about, she was of the mind that he resembled a rabbit. Rabbits were all together quite harmless in Alice’s point of view even if they were taller than her and muscular as this one appeared. It occurred to Alice that he could be an anthrobot and if that were the case she would be able to contact her parents for assistance. An anthrobot would be happy to assist her even if it were malfunctioning as this one seemed to be. Timidly, for she still wasn't sure the nature or purpose of the individual she was about to approach, Alice crept from behind her hiding spot and gave a cautious wave in the spirit of consumermanship.
The person in the clearing gave her a very uninviting scornful scowl in reply to her greeting and stared at her as if to ask what exactly was she doing there and furthermore who gave her permission to approach. Alice looked around the clearing as words had escaped her mind for the moment.
"Don't be sad mister bunny," Alice spoke remembering she’d followed the sound of his tears, “I'm sure that whatever is troubling you we could perhaps put our heads together and come to a resolution!"
She concluded giving a cheery Second City smile. The boy, who could have only been a few years older than her, dropped his jaw in shock and then appeared to become quite indignant.
"Who are you calling a bunny!” he quipped in an arguably dreadful tone demanding that she recant her previous statement. Alice was beside herself and altogether disgruntled that he’d declined her sincere attempt to assist with his displeasure.
“I suppose that since I’m in a group of trees that you didn’t think I’m a jungle bunny,” he continued growing ever more displeased with his own rhetoric, eschewing her gentile greeting.
“Well, perhaps. However since this section of the woods is penetrable, I would have guessed that you were more of a forest or wood bunny.” Alice concluded with a smile hoping to avoid offense.
“I can’t believe you! You happen to see someone in the woods and based off of appearance alone decide they are a jungle bunny! Did I see you in the woods and call you a snow bunny? You didn’t even ask my name, you just assumed I was a bunny. Did I assume you were a snow bunny? Did I call you paper mache girl? No, I did not. You’re rude and quite frankly I’m not sure I enjoy your company, so I say good day to you madam!” he interrogated and seemed to dismiss Alice all in one breath to which she felt quite perplexed. She had neither ears nor resembled a bunny in any way by hopping about seemingly distraught. Alice decided it was best to apologi
ze immediately whereby she hoped to stop his abrupt departure as she was in much need of assistance.
“Excuse me sir, I apologize for my earlier misgivings but I’m in need of assistance I thought you may be able to help.”
“Yeah, everyone is sorry when they need something,” The angry youth commented as he continued to walk away.
“Yes that is true, sir, however I thought you may have been an automaton and I’m in desperate need of assistance.”
“Uh, huh, suppose I’d be a robot bunny in that case.”
“You see I need to call my parents as I’m sure their desperately worried about me as I haven’t returned to the park.”
“Yeah, whatever!”
“Could you possibly direct me back to Second City?” Alice called as he rounded about a tree and disappeared from view.
“Right then, I suppose not.” She said to herself and sat on a nearby log contemplating. As she began to contemplate how she found herself in her current state, the death of Robert at the hands of the most insidious of beasts, how she missed her parents, and how she was lost with no hope of returning, she began to cry. It was quite unintentional at the beginning. A
Alice's Zombie Adventures in Under City: Downward Spiral Page 5
