Quoted By:
>Phone a friend
...Maybe there is something you could do? It's not as though you're lying about dreaming of the Herald, or seeing it around places. You literally just saw it in the mirror dimension, even if you didn't stop to chat. Maybe that isn't the same thing as being it, but it's still important, right? And it seemed like it wanted to help you. It gave you venom and everything. Not that you've used it much, but that's your fault, not the Herald's: when you do use it, it'll be really cool.
Um. Ahem. What you're saying is: you're not some imaginary lizard-thing, but if you could get in touch, maybe it could help trick the stupid Managers into thinking you were. And while "getting in touch" with an imaginary lizard-thing is no mean feat, you are recalling one of the things you packed for the Headspace trip. Henry gave you that weird plant, right? The gulfweed? To... "bridge the gulfs between people," or something lame-sounding like that. There's a gulf between you and the Herald, probably, and Henry didn't say it wouldn't work on imaginary lizards, so where's the downside? Worst case, you'll be left exactly where you are.
You shouldn't really have the gulfweed on your person anymore, considering that you're on your third body this trip, but you pat all your pockets and find it in the back one. God, manses make things so easy. You didn't bring all of it, so it's a single-size serving in a little baggie. It's unpleasantly dark green. It smells bad. When you put it in your mouth (no time to reconsider), it tastes bad. Yuck! Who ever thought eating this was a good idea? Didn't Henry say it was poisonous? You push it all to the side of your mouth and chew gingerly.
Outside of you, the Managers are rushing around, clacking furiously at their typewriters, swigging furiously from their cups. Several have already vanished— reinforcements, you guess. God only knows what Ellery did to the first ones. None are looking at you. Inside of you, your tongue and cheek have gone numb, and you're finding it increasingly difficult to concentrate. Brain's going numb too or something. He said it was poisonous for sure. You remember that. God-damn cults and their sinister culty substances. Richard, are you poisoned?
«I hope not, primrose.»
(1/TBC)
