Exerpt 2: Nigel Raskin "The Incubus"

It was on the fifth day after the "the incident" that Nigel finally realized that he no longer required sleep or nourishment.

He had been spending his nights on great adventures, exploring his second home in the Penumbra. Just last night he had spent the better part of five hours walking the great distance of the world inside the shadow of a bottle of table salt. Sleep never crossed his mind.

It began when he went to a small diner in search of a new friend to make. After a few kind words to a young waiter named Derran, Nigel was promised a free meal (and the location of a warm bed partner), despite his lack of funds. They brought him out a thin ham steak, two boiled chicken eggs, and four triangles of golden toast moist with sodium based butter substitute. It simply occurred to him that this was the first food that he had seen since his arrival on Clark Memorial Station. Although he did not feel hungry, he decided to try to eat.

Upon placing a bit of ham into his mouth, it also occurred to him that he had lost the ability to taste and smell. Thinking perhaps it was simply a poor quality piece of ham, he decided to sprinkle some salt on it. His second attempt yielded similarly flavorless results. The thought of this disappointed and worried him. He began to fear that he had undergone other changes as well, without having yet discovered them. The panic set in again, and seeking refuge Nigel reached his hand into the shadow the salt bottle cast across the table, and pulled himself inside, leaving his fear and any illusion of a body far behind.

It was here he walked, and thought about what his life had become. He struggled with the idea of never being the same again. This train of thoughts soon left him as he became lost in the peacefulness of the shadows. He didn't want to go back to the way he was. He was free now. Free from the pain of the real word, and more in tune with his fellow man than ever. He no longer saw, touched, or smelled others. He simply experienced them. Looking into their eyes he could see everything they ever wanted. Touching their skin he could feel every sensation they had ever felt. Kissing was like being in a soft blanket of passion. No, he would never want to back to the way he was. This thought process stayed with him for the hours he spent walking.

When he once again began to feel his connection to the real world slipping, he decided it was time to return. With a wince of pain and quick loss of eyesight he was back at the table. The food was still there, cold and stale. There was a note from the young waiter stating that he "knew it was too good to be true" and "Never expected to be so lucky". He decided he would return again and apologize to the boy.

The restaurant was clearly closed, and many tables were left dirty. Nigel later learned this was due to the fact that the young waiter walked out mid-shift in a fit of depression. He sat there alone in the light-less diner looking down on his plate. He wished he could taste again. He remembered the ham his mother would make back home for some holidays, or the flavor of fresh bread out of the copper oven at his grandfathers house. He could almost smell it. He took a deep whiff and realized he indeed COULD smell it. Without thinking he began to eat the food in front of him. Each bite of ham was as sweet and juicy as any meat he had ever tasted. The bread was warm and soft, yet flaky and buttery. He wasn't tasting the stale food that went into his mouth, but instead the the shadows and memories of every good meal he had ever eaten during his entire life. It was the finest meal Nigel had ever tasted. Tears trickled from his eyes as he wiped the crumbs from his face. He suddenly longed for the touch of another... He decided then and there to find the young man who he had upset so greatly, even if it meant he had to jump to every shadow on this whole station in doing so.


* * * * * * * * * * * * *

It was almost morning when Derran realized he was not alone in his room. He had cried himself to sleep. He didn't know why he let the stranger have such an effect on him. Maybe it was because for the first time he truly felt attracted to someone, or maybe it was because of the harsh realization that he was interested in other men. It had been a confusing night. As he sat up in his bed, he thought perhaps he was still dreaming when he saw the beautiful stranger peel from the darkness of his bedroom wall, and begin hovering over him. Before he could let out a whimper of fear or joy, he was pulled upward, and together they sank deep into the shadows.