We all know that Salai cannot die and that that's a lie.
&as she strikes a match against the rough strip, the first photon speeds across the room where, for the lucky few, a ladybug catches the thing and flings it through time&space where it can land in a recognizable reality wherein she has a purpose.
Awoken, another match is struck, a single photon hits her consciousness, and she feels a breeze on her brow. She blinks in an attempt to wet her dry-feeling eyes. She lifts an arm to shield her eyes from something bright. What feels like the sun, shines down hard upon her face. Her eyes hurt. A crowd cheers in the distance. The ripping zip-pull of a lamp light's chain. A click.
Perhaps Salai can lie, and that's why she'll die.
She feels the familiar pull of the gelly, and after a while, she feels a hand touch hers, and as the hand reaches her wrist, she's grabbed tight and pulled inelegantly into the Post. A despondent heap on the floor, she knows exactly where she is before she even sees the familiar face of Jei and the unfamiliar face of someone she does not know. "This is Dei," Jei gestures toward Dei, and gesturing toward her, Jei looks at Dei, "And this is Salai."
Time oozes like dry-ice fog.
"She's a Bromide," Dei states. "Yes," Jei answers. "How can a Bromide do the job of a Monitor?" Dei wonders. "Exactly," Jei answers. Salai sits comfortably in the all-too-familiar high-wing-backed chair in the middle of the Post wherein she can face her face upwards to take in all of the knowledge stored within the books that sit upon the shelves that line the Post's interior wallspace upward, upward, upward until nothing can be gleaned. Salai sighs.
Aghast, Jei finds the task of controlling his anger a challenge, but wait they do, cause wait they must. "Who are we waiting for?" Dei asks, wide-eyed, curious. Salai scoffs. "Ladybug," Jei answers. "Ladybug?" Dei starts, "What does Ladybug have to do with any of this?" "Ladybug brought her here," Jei answers. "How?" Dei wonders. "How?"Jei challenges, "How? You want to know how?" Jei shakes his head in utter disbelief/disappointment. Dei slinks deeply into the couch upon which she sat only moments ago.
If Salai can die, what's with the lie?
"You know what we used to do with Lingerers?" Salai suggests. "'Suggests.' Oooo, you are good. I can see why she likes you or tolerates you," Salai chuckles; "There was a time when Lingering was frowned upon, which means that we must be on an Orbital. Is this The Orbital, I wonder. It seems like it must be if a Lingerer lingers so ... what's the word ... freely. Yet the two of you," she points slowly back and forth between Jei and Dei, "want me to believe that I am on the Listmaker's Ranch, and from the tangible evidence before me, I should be pretty convinced that I am on the Listmaker's Ranch, and yet, this one tiny little detail of this Lingerer has given up the whole charade (charade pronounced sharaahd)," Salai theorizes as she glances at the Lingerer. She looks amused, "Diction is everything."
Turning her attention to Jei, Salai challenges, "So tell me, dear Jei, when the fuck are we?" Standing now, she looks down hard upon Jei as she enlarges herself to tower over him.