Holy Crap, I'm Dead! Chapter 2: Her Funeral

Echo got used to the plane, and basically forgot they were in the sky. When the stewardess gave them each a package of peanuts and little half-glasses of soda (ginger ale for Anarchy, coke for Dimitri, and some sort of fizzy, bright green energy drink for Echo) Echo pulled the greasy plastic open, showering them with the all inside.

“Oh, crap! Aw, it would probably be bad to pick them off the floor and eat them anyway, right?” Anarchy gave a wince/smile, saying,

“Yes, I believe so.” And Dimitri twitched. Anarchy gave her his package, and Dimitri, not wanting to be upstaged, donated his as well.

“Hey, how long does this last? Maybe another hour?” Echo asked, popping another creamy-crisp peanut into her mouth. Anarchy gave a sharp laugh.

“Eh, no. This city is very, very far away. We’ll be flying until tomorrow.” Dimitri opened his mouth to start protesting, but Echo grinned hugely.

“Yay! I’ve never been on an overnight flight before! This’ll be fun!” He frowned at her opposite reaction.

“No, Echo, not yay. Overnight flights are awful, it’s impossible to fall asleep.”

She sighed.

“Oh.” She looked thoroughly depressed at this news. Dimitri regretted his negativity, it appeared to effect her more than he’d thought.

“Um, but, er, then we’ll get to eat dinner on the plane, that’s fun!” He said, forcing optimism into his voice. She brightened.

“Really? Cool!”

They rode for three more hours before they were given a menu to choose from. Echo picked quickly, some sort of Asian noodle thing. Anarchy and Dimitri just picked something randomly, both knowing that airplane food was always so mediocre it wouldn’t really matter.

They got their food and ate in relative silence, Echo sucking down her noodles happily. It was kind of like top ramen with sesame and some sort of weird miso-ish broth. Dimitri picked at his food (a neat little square of veggie lasagna), somewhat revolted by it, after being so used to the delicious food at the Center.

“Ew. The tomato sauce tastes all lukewarm and bitter like stomach acid.” Echo choked on her noodles in a combination laugh-gag.

“That is so gross, Dimitri! You have such a twisted mind!” She said after a short coughing fit.

“You should be a food critic.” Anarchy said, smiling. Echo snorted.

“The ‘Simon’ of the Food Channel. Oh boy.” Dimitri frowned.

“Uh, Simon? Who’s he?” Anarchy shook his head.

“Sorry Echo, he’s a lost cause. He doesn’t get any of your funny references! It’s about time you dumped him for someone who wasn’t a social outcast when he was young, someone with a sense of humor! Like me, for instance.” He grinned, lowering his eyelids so the deep purple of his eyes were scored with the mascara-dark lashes.

“Wha...?” Echo said, turning red. Dimitri lifted his fork lightly with the tips of his fingers and threw it like a dart at Anarchy’s face, fuming. Anarchy caught it deftly, smiling.

“Dear brother, I’m kidding as I’m sure you know.” He twirled it like a baton before snagging a little piece of lasagna from Dimitri’s plate, popping it into his mouth thoughtfully. “Hm, you’re right, that is disgusting.” His younger brother looked positively homicidal, so Echo said,

“Dimitri, enough already! He was just joking!” Dimitri scowled viciously.

“Yeah, well, ha ha. Hmph, I’m tired, good night.” He clicked a sticky button on the side of his seat and tilted it backwards about three inches. Then, pulling the seatbelt out hard, he turned to face the wall and fell sulkily silent. Echo rounded up the last of her noodles and ate them, and the second she was done she started to feel the soft nudge of exhaustion at her brain.

“Tired?” Anarchy asked. She looked surprised.

“Yeah, how’d you know?” He smiled, setting a hand on her head.

“You sway back and forth.” She blushed.

“Oh, really?” He nodded, saying,

“Now sleep, you really do look tired. It’s been a very eventful day, if you hadn’t noticed.” She smiled, then popped her seat back, level with Dimitri’s, and murmured,

“Okay, ‘night.” Then she dropped off to sleep. He watched her relax into unconsciousness, curled next to Dimitri, who was...

“Can’t sleep?” He whispered, and his younger brother twitched.

“What the hell, how’d you even know I was awake? Shut up, I’m trying to sle-” He dropped off. Echo murmured in her sleep, shifting over until her head was on his shoulder.

“She does that every time she falls asleep next to you, you know.”

“Of course I do.” Dimitri couldn’t stop himself from smiling a little.

“Don’t look so smug brother, it’s sickening.” Anarchy’s acidic comment pulled the smile from Dimitri’s face.

“I wasn’t looking smug! Gah, shut up! Good night!” Dimitri wished he could turn onto his side so he was looking away from his brother, but then he’d have to move Echo, which wasn’t worth it to him. He smiled again, and feel asleep.

Echo woke up last between the three of them, Dimitri touching her gently on the shoulder.

“Echo, wake up. We’ll be down soon.” She opened her eyes. She was resting her head on his shoulder again. She sat up fast.

“S-sorry.” She turned red, looking down. Dimitri grinned.

“No problem. Now look out the window. It’s beautiful.” Like you, he thought, then shook his head, annoyed at the cheesiness of his own thought process. She looked out the window, squinting in the clear sunlight.

It was incredible. The city was huge, hundreds of thousands of metal buildings glinting brilliantly with the sun’s light.

“Wah! Pretty!” She said happily, not affected by the hight in her appreciation.

“You sound like a little kid, you know.” Dimitri said softly, wishing she wouldn’t be so cute. It was driving him nuts. Echo was completely oblivious, of course, smiling into the sun streaks.

“Anarchy, did you see it out here? Have you ever been here before? It’s so pretty! I like it here!” She smiled at him, and he returned it weakly.

“Yeah, it’s nice.” His voice was unusually rough, as result of the nanos that were ripping through his throat. She felt a little thrill of sad panic; they needed to hurry.

“We’ll be landing soon. Thank you for taking Memento Mori Airlines, and have a nice day.” said the smooth voice of the captain, before the plane dipped to land.

They walked to the car Anarchy rented, both Dimitri and Echo weak from the long plane ride; Anarchy was as typically unfazed as he was always, of course. The city was amazing. The streets were filled to maximum capacity, but the traffic wasn’t slow or jerky like normal; all the cars rushed together at high speed, like a school of little fish. The sidewalks were full of tall, beautiful people, who were actually A.I., as Anarchy said. Most of the time it was hard to tell they weren’t real people; sometimes they looked like warped, gothic comic characters, anorexically skinny with ash gray hair, waxy, candle white skin, and huge black-orange cat eyes. Echo pressed her face to the window, taking in the giant buildings and pretty A.I. Finally, Anarchy pulled into a parking space by a line of little, falling-apart houses that appeared to be the poorer part of the city. They got out and walked to an apartment building, and Dimitri wrinkled his nose at the state of the building.

“Ew. Look at the mold! And don’t they know their lawn is dead?”

“Hey, just because you lived in a mansion doesn’t mean everyone can.” Echo said, surprised he had come from so much money. Anarchy sighed, and was about to poke the buzzer, when a thump echoed from inside.

“Hey! Okay, I’m going! Let me open the door before you... ow! Hey! I’m gone already! Ow!” Anarchy stepped neatly back pulling Echo and Dimitri away from the door right before it flew open, something shooting out of the door and landing hard on the steps right in front of them. The door slammed again, and Echo looked down. Apparently, the something was a someone, and that someone groaned and sat up, scratching the back of his head.

“Ouch, geez... oh, Anarchy!” He had scrappy long blond hair, scrawny and wirey like an alley cat. His easygoing, annoyed tone dropped as he saw the tall, dark Ricarde over him. He scrambled up, and Echo saw how tall he was, probably only half an inch shorter than Anarchy himself, if he cared to straighten his posture. “Er, how are you, sir? I didn’t expect you...” Anarchy looked furious for some reason, the sour expression on his face reflecting his opinion on this street-rat.

“What did you get kicked out for this time, Skipp?” The boy, Skipp, shrank under Anarchy’s glare.

“Don’t look at me like that! I just couldn’t pay the rent for this month, or last one either, it’s not like last time...”

“How interesting. Well I know you have to work, because your got thrown out of the local Center, and therefor I hate to ask for your time, but I’m afraid I must.”

“Wha... huh?” Skipp finally noticed Dimitri. Dimitri looked revolted, and stepped slightly in front of Echo protectively.

“Anarchy, why do we need him around? He’s trash!” Anarchy sighed.

“Hey, that isn’t nice, squirt. You’re just as snotty as I remember you.” Skipp said defensively, smirking as if insults were hilarious to him. He noticed Echo now, and he smirked a bit more. “Hello, there! Who are you?” Dimitri prickled, as Skipp stepped forward.

“Back off, pervert.” Dimitri said acidly, and even Anarchy seemed a little on-guard. Echo didn’t think Skipp appeared dangerous, just a little scruffy.

“What are you talking about? I’m hurt you would even suggest such a thing! So what, you finally found a girl who’d deal with your screwy schizo-ness, and you’re all afraid she’ll fall for me instead?” Dimitri growled,

“Back off, you disgusting little...!” Anarchy sighed.

“Dimitri, Skipp, quit it, now! You can fight later, but now I need both of you so get in the car and shut up!” Skipp smirked boredly (he had a smirk for every occasion, Echo noticed) and said,

“Yessir, absolutely.” He crawled into the car, straight to the backseat as if he didn’t belong in the front. Dimitri trembled with hatred at him, but after Echo returned to the backseat, he hurried to her other side, watching Skipp very closely. Anarchy closed the door behind them. At least with Echo in the middle, Dimitri won’t kill him. He wouldn’t want to risk hurting her. I just can’t believe I’m actually working with him again. Anarchy gave a resigned sigh, staring back at the scrawny kid, his roughly jaw-length hair dirty and mussed up, eyes filled with laziness and casual, street intellect. A geniuses like him aren’t all that common, and this one is crazy enough to do what I’m asking. Skipp caught his glance and held it for a second, passing along a heady shot of intensity from those previously careless eyes. Anarchy looked away, but he understood what Skipp was saying. Step lightly around me. I am reckless, and I will hurt you if you aren’t careful. Anarchy didn’t need the warning.