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Author: langbot
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English[en]
“Tanks,” I croaked. (Not a fulsome expression of gratitude, maybe, but the best I could muster in the circumstances – for my torturer-turned-saviour.) Ingrid nodded in shy acknowledgement. “David’s back in the cells,” she said. “He’s okay now.” She had known he was on my mind. “I want to tell you what happened to him,” she continued, very quietly. It was my turn to nod. “In the first experiment, when you were suffering, David’s EEG readout went from a complete flat-line to a sort of jagged, irregular, spasmodic thing – like I’ve never seen before. No normal brain could produce such a pattern. Your suffering turned David’s brain on – or so it seemed.” She paused, looking downcast: “I guess that’s why the Captain devised the second experiment. He didn’t really consult me on it. I ask you to believe me about this,” she said. I did – but this only confirmed that she was fully aware of – and consented to – the first experiment (and the cruelty it had inflicted on me). “Anyway, the second experiment followed the same pattern as the first – up to a point. You suffered and David’s zombie brain came alive – sort of. The same EEG pattern: jagged, irregular lines, some still flat, others off the scale. But then, ...” She paused again. I think she had started to weep – but she quickly regained control of herself. (Weeping is weakness, it seems.) “Then, you stopped breathing and went into cardiac arrest. David abruptly ceased to roar and protest at what was happening to you. He went completely impassive and just sat there in his chair. He simply ‘stopped’ at the same time as you did. There was a complete flat-line in his read-out again.” What did this mean? I couldn’t say but, perhaps, because he was my identical twin, born of the same fertilised egg – and because I was not a zombie – he was unlike other zombies. Until I, too, died.
Cornish[kw]
“’ras,” a renkis. (Nyns o lavar leun a’m grassyans, martesen, mes yth o an gwella a yllyn kuntell rag ow thormentor re dreylsa yn selwadores.) Ingrid a benndroppyas, nebes gohelus. “Yma Davydh y’n vagh,” yn-medh hi. “Da lowr yw lemmyn.” Hi re wodhvia y vos y’m brys. “Y fynnav leverel dhis pyth a hwarva dhodho,” a besyas hi yn kosel. Ow thro vy yth o dhe bendroppya. “Y’n kynsa arbrov, pan eses ow kodhevel, linennow orth an skrin GEY eth dhiworth platt yn tien rag mos ha bos dra dhynsek, anrewlys ha spasmodek – dihaval dhe oll an patronyow re welis kyns. Nyns eus ympynnyon normal vyth a allsa gul patron a’n par na. Dha wodhevyans jy re skwychsa yn fyw ympynnyon Davydh – po yndella yth heveli.” Hi a bowesas, digolennys hy fisment: “Y tesevav bos henna an acheson rag an nessa arbrov. Yn hwir, nyns esa kusulyans vyth genev kyns. My a’th pys a’m krysi y’n mater ma,” yn-medh hi. Krysis – mes ny servyas hy geryow saw afydhya hi dhe wodhvos yn ta gnas an kynsa arbrov ha’y fellder dhymm – ha hwath o akorydes ganso. “Yn neb kas, an nessa arbrov a sywyas an keth patron avel an kynsa huni – dhe unn boynt. Pan dhallethsys godhevel, ympynnyon Davydh eth ha bos byw – y’n neb fordh. Yth esa an keth patron GEY: linennow dynsek hag anrewlys – nebes yntredha hwath platt, nebes yntra’n re erell, dres skeul an skrin. Byttegyns, ena, ...” Hi a bowesas unnweyth arta. Hi re dhallathsa oela, dell grysav – mes, uskis, hi a waynyas arta omrewl. (Oelva yw gwannder, dell hevel.) “Ena, dha anellans a hedhis ha ty eth yn astell kolonn. A-dhistowgh, bedhyglans Davydh a hedhis – y brotestyans erbynn agan dyghtyans ahanas a hedhis ynwedh. Heb emoesyon vyth o ev. Ny wrug travyth saw esedha yn kosel yn y gador. Ev re ‘hedhsa’ yn kettermyn ha ty. Oll an linennow o arta platt yn tien war an skrin.” Pyth a styrya hemma? Ny yllyn leverel mes, martesen, drefenn y vos gevell kehevelep dhymm, genys a’n keth oy – ha drefenn nag en zombi – Davydh o dihaval dhe’n zombis erell. (Bys pan verwis keffrys.)