Lust for Power
V Mortality

The next day... Terrence was gazing down at the morning highway traffic by his back-left corner seat. It was seven, Aries was not around, he felt a twinge of concern, thought better of it, Terr had faith in Aer’s invincibility.

Terrence, a guy much like Aries, he was as irresponsible as a high-school student could be, he believed a lot of things didn’t matter, so was the philosophy of the young, although most of his habits he had learned from the rest, along with Aer, they learned from the best. He was also tough, well at least since life demanded it, probably just as tough as Aer, however they had never believed in bullying, which on the contrary was quite a trend among many a high school boys and girls. Both Aer and Terr had been victims of bullying, both physical and otherwise long before they had met each other, “probably in the genes” they often joke. They knew how it felt, they knew how to bully just as efficiently, but found no significant gain in toying with people who couldn’t or wouldn’t fight back. They would rather indulge in more thrilling matters, stunts such as theft and potentially self-hazardous activities. The socially awkward kids always had to eat shit growing up, whether they were good or bad at something, it was simply because they were different, the world always had trouble with that.

Terrence was interested in reading some books and playing real-time-strategy games contrary to his delinquent appearance. he also was not a smoker unlike Aer, he believed a long life would be a good life, more or less. Aer and Ter, were more or less the same, although no two persons are ever exactly the same. Aries was an extreme case.

Seven-thirty. Aries arrived, thirty minutes class-time had already passed, however there was no teacher, thirty five students scattered themselves all over the classroom and the nearby hallway. Aries entered the room like he always had, paragon of apathy, some classmates bothered to look his way, the rest didn’t even notice him arrive, due to ambient effects, Aer did his sequenced rituals such as surveying the local wildlife, stretching where he stood, walking slowly and seemingly aimless, before finally simply staring indifferently at nothing, it was all part of how his morning started. But Terrence noticed something was not quite right. “What, you got raped today or sumthin?” Ter asked, he wondered why Aer was late, it wasn’t a common thing. Aer gave him a cold blank stare, then slowly his eyebrows furrowed, giving the impression he was trying to recognize who was talking to him. “De hell’s up, man? Aer?” “oh, uhnn” then he seemed to realize where he was. “Damn, man, I’m so sorry, uhn, shit went down the otha day, you would’nt believe...” “Yeah, Aer, guess I shouldn’t have went home too early yesterday” They got to their corner, Aer relayed his story, as he tried with all his wit to recall what had happened, it all seemed like a dream, where the only real incident seemed to be when Terrence went home yesterday. But eventually it came to him slowly.

He explained to Ter, about Senna, how it was all very funny, “who knows man, she might have her uses” was how he explained his reasons for being nice to her, Ter didn’t buy it, he knew Aer felt guilt he just wouldn’t admit even to himself. Aer relayed every trivial detail, and how funny it all went, how he got mugged, how he thought he would have died, how even enjoying just a single cigarette was taken from him, and how he probably heard the Old Man whisper something encouraging before he lost consciousness. To wake up, with two scars instead of wounds, how he felt more or less ok, and got up as the homeless man, resumed his slumber.

How he later that night was able find a hole-in-the-wall store and smoke a cigarette, the young lady who tended to the buyer seemed a little shocked, seeing a student with blood from his mid-section to all-the-way down, and little spots of it on his face and so on. Aer forgot about the blood, he felt nothing that reminded him of the recent stab wounds and although aware of the mess he was, only bothered to fix his hair, which was overdue for a haircut that high school required in his corner of the world. Although store-tender did tend to Aries’ needs despite the impression, Aer did need a cigarette. Aer handed her the coins, and flashed the sweetest smile he could ever give a girl, which chilled Tender to the bone, she was fairly attractive, handing over the cigarette with a forced-to-steady hand. She seemed afraid and curious, so Aer offered an answer to the un-asked question. “Uhnn, oh, just had a little accident, sorry if I scared you, well thanks anyway” Lit the stick, and continued his way home.

“Uhh, well what the hell your mom say?” “Patience Ter, I’ll get there, no need to coax” and get there he did.

Aries thought of the possibility on ways to clean the blood off, he thought maybe it wasn’t possible. His mom, would collapse if she saw him that way, and it would give so much away. He didn’t want to see his mother cry. He remembered the amulet, thought about his soul, thought about what really saved him, thought about the Old Man, thought about so much, especially god, who he didn’t quite believe in. He thought about hell, and the afterlife, and what the amulet really could be doing, for or to him, as he stared across a street that showed a house that seemed in the more or less well to do with generic of the middle-class, it was in a neighborhood that had houses that probably shared same blueprints. It was a neighborhood that seemed not at all to belong to the city where it was. It made Aries think of a garden plant with its pot placed beside the old roots of a giant tree surrounded by fallen leaves and thick grass. It seemed too tame, around unrestrained wilderness, but he was content with life there. It’s where he grew up, it was a place where hate crimes and such were unheard of, no one seemed to know why, but Aer promised the world hell if this little patch of peace was ever corrupted. He was the complete opposite of his origins, this Aer, it almost seemed a cliche scene where a child of violence gazed across a home of tranquility, ecxept he was no child of violence, this house he gazed at was his home.

He thought of a way, quietly got inside the front yard, peeked through the window saw his mom watching television, his fingers moved, as he muttered incoherently...

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