Truth
The seasons follow in rigid sequence--summer to autum, winter to spring. From the fork of her tree my sister says, "Not so." And thus her words take flight once again.
"That is just what They want you to believe. They have you fooled. They control what you think, say, do. You are just a tool for Them to use to further Their goals."
This is where I stopped her. "Who are they? And how do you know this?" I ask her, not believing a word she was saying.
"They are Them. That is all They are. I know this because I am a virus. Just a virus to Their system."
"You are not a virus, you're my sister. You always have been." I object.
"That is what They made you believe. All of your memories are fake. Nothing is real. This is not reality, just the reality they want you to believe. It is all a lie." She has never lied to me before, why should she lie now? I begin to see the truth. . . .
A man clad in white observes the girl strapped to a metal chair. The I.V. drip is normal, yet her heart rate has started to increase.
"We have another one," the man sighs. "Twenty-third one this week."
Over a monitor, a monotone voice is heard, "You know what to do."
The man in white grabs a syringe off of the nearby table. He injects the serum into the girl's I.V.
In a simultaneous moment, the world around me and the life signs of the girl in the chair begin to fade. Everything turns to white around me and the image of my sister fades. Snow and red leaves fall while flowers sprout around my feet as the sun shines overhead. The heart rate monitor begins to slow and the girl's breathing slows. Beep. Beep. Beeeeeep. . . .
