Maiden’s Petals
Why would a program devise vertical pupils?
The sense of utter strangeness hit me the moment we jumped into that world. Unsettled, I frantically tried to determine the root of its otherness.
Was it the crazy sky with a sun descending below a moon impossibly close? Perhaps it was the subdued shades of the broad heavens and gently rolling hills? Or was it the sweet perfume in the air with a hint of decay?
The girl let go of my hand and gestured at the ground around us on that high plateau with gravity that made each step a rebound. She was so beautiful it pained me to look at her for more than a few seconds, and her voice was a stream of pulsating honey flooding my core.
Either I am in a reality simulation, or she is using some damn advanced tech, I thought wildly.
But if I am inside a program, why would it create her with only four toes and fingers, and vertical pupils?
Then I realised; there was no sound, none whatsoever, not a rustle, not a whisper. I could see the petals moving in the deathly quiet breeze, with our voices being the only acoustic sensation. The silence was absolute.
She spoke, fluttering my heart.
The lavender formations on the low shrubbery were the only blossoms in that universe, growing uniquely on the outcrop beneath our feet. They contained immense power. She would give me space to think it over.
I watched her perch on a nearby boulder with her back to me, her gorgeous legs goldened by the plunging globe, and the long, strawberry-blonde hair merged with the shadows of approaching nightfall.
I stood there for minutes, perhaps centuries, my thoughts in disarray.
A waft of cooler air drove me to shiver, and I cried out the question to her, yet she just sat there, true to her word, waiting for me to arrive at the most important decision in my life.
“What happens if I pick the flowers?”
This text was first published on X (Twitter) and is © 2023 by David Pahor. No part of my stories should be used to train AI technology to generate text, imitating my writing style.
Please subscribe to me with your e-mail, so we can stay connected when I start serialising my novel, amidst the fall of the platforms. You can always unsubscribe. If you like my stories, consider recommending them to others. Medium’s algorithm is not kind to speculative flash fiction.
In my Twitter list, you will always be able to find all of my new flash fiction, recounting Kekuros’ tales of Iaanda, Garnaaq and Sorkaii — and assorted wizards, umbras and lethal females — https://t.co/Y3YrWpfkm7 .
(The rest of David’s tales on Medium)
