04-21-2014, 09:23 AM
Continued from Combing the Grid
The day was frigid, a light dusting of freshly fallen snow swirled as he walked. The last few days had seemed to fly by. His aunt Ivana seemed genuinely relieved to note the change in her nephew. For Connor, it had been as if he had been sleep walking and had finally woken up. Learning that there was real magic out there- that his son had been touched by it- and that there were monsters and an evil MiB group- Atharim or whatever- who hunted monsters and men alike- had been one thing.
But the gift he had been given that night by Aria and by Jensen and Giovanni had been what woke him up. The realization that he had lived up to his vow to protect Hayden with all his power, that he had had those precious last moments with his son, that was what finally freed Connor. He felt forgiven. And now Hayden was always in the back of his mind, expecting his father to start living again and Connor was going to honor that.
He only had a few more days left in Moscow- he was anxious to get home and back to some semblance of normalcy- and had been killing time by exploring the city. Such a strange mixture. He thought about the things he had seen in his lifetime- the amazing advances in technology and science- and could see how much of what he had seen in movies and TV growing up was now everyday reality. There was an explosion of color and light. It reminded him of that movie TRON he had seen with his dad years ago. Glowing strips and lights that existed for no reason except because they could. The CCD was energy rich and loved showing it off. They wore in on their clothes, put in on their buildings and paraded it on their cars.
But he also saw the poor wandering those same streets. Alley ways and tunnels where people huddled in groups to escape the frigid cold of the nights. There were charity groups that endeavored to help those unfortunates. And just as back home, there seemed to be number of religious revivals going on. He could see a steady stream of supplicants, mostly those who were clearly struggling, interspersed with those better off, entering into churches, synagogues, mosques and converted store-fronts.
His eyes took it all in and he felt a sense of sadness at the unfairness of life, that some people could be so blessed and seem to be free of worry and that others struggled just to survive. It was the same everywhere. I can't change the world, he thought when he imagined what he was supposed to do about it. I'm just one man. At one time, he thought he knew what was going to fix those problems...but that had been a long time ago. He still wanted to believe....but wanting something to be true didn't make it true. All I can do is show kindness and compassion to others, he thought. If I can make things a little easier or better for the people in my life...maybe that will be enough. It seemed a weak purpose, but it was all he had.
As he thought, he made his way done a subway tunnel to take the next train. It was still cold, but without the wind, it seemed less intense. He was glad he had worn layers of clothing though- black jeans over black hiking boots, black pea coat, white shawl neck sweater over a white button neck t-shirt.
Connor saw a man and a woman standing on the platform. The man- almost a kid really, the same age Hayden had been- was about his height though a bit more narrow in the shoulders, and dressed in dark colors and makeup. It was a statement, though of what specifically, Connor didn't know. His earlier musings about the unfairness of life here- and in the US too- made him briefly wonder what would have had to happen to make this kid feel like physically expressing a sense of alienation. Sadly, there were far too many possibilities and again he felt that sense of despair at the way the world was.
The woman on the other hand was dressed casually in jeans that were tucked into boots. And she was tall for a woman. As he approached, she briefly glanced at him, and he immediately saw that she was Native American. He smiled. She reminded him of home. She was really quite striking. Connor watched her for a moment more before looking down the tunnels in either direction. "Is the train coming soon?
"
Edited by Connor Kent, Jun 20 2014, 08:28 AM.
The day was frigid, a light dusting of freshly fallen snow swirled as he walked. The last few days had seemed to fly by. His aunt Ivana seemed genuinely relieved to note the change in her nephew. For Connor, it had been as if he had been sleep walking and had finally woken up. Learning that there was real magic out there- that his son had been touched by it- and that there were monsters and an evil MiB group- Atharim or whatever- who hunted monsters and men alike- had been one thing.
But the gift he had been given that night by Aria and by Jensen and Giovanni had been what woke him up. The realization that he had lived up to his vow to protect Hayden with all his power, that he had had those precious last moments with his son, that was what finally freed Connor. He felt forgiven. And now Hayden was always in the back of his mind, expecting his father to start living again and Connor was going to honor that.
He only had a few more days left in Moscow- he was anxious to get home and back to some semblance of normalcy- and had been killing time by exploring the city. Such a strange mixture. He thought about the things he had seen in his lifetime- the amazing advances in technology and science- and could see how much of what he had seen in movies and TV growing up was now everyday reality. There was an explosion of color and light. It reminded him of that movie TRON he had seen with his dad years ago. Glowing strips and lights that existed for no reason except because they could. The CCD was energy rich and loved showing it off. They wore in on their clothes, put in on their buildings and paraded it on their cars.
But he also saw the poor wandering those same streets. Alley ways and tunnels where people huddled in groups to escape the frigid cold of the nights. There were charity groups that endeavored to help those unfortunates. And just as back home, there seemed to be number of religious revivals going on. He could see a steady stream of supplicants, mostly those who were clearly struggling, interspersed with those better off, entering into churches, synagogues, mosques and converted store-fronts.
His eyes took it all in and he felt a sense of sadness at the unfairness of life, that some people could be so blessed and seem to be free of worry and that others struggled just to survive. It was the same everywhere. I can't change the world, he thought when he imagined what he was supposed to do about it. I'm just one man. At one time, he thought he knew what was going to fix those problems...but that had been a long time ago. He still wanted to believe....but wanting something to be true didn't make it true. All I can do is show kindness and compassion to others, he thought. If I can make things a little easier or better for the people in my life...maybe that will be enough. It seemed a weak purpose, but it was all he had.
As he thought, he made his way done a subway tunnel to take the next train. It was still cold, but without the wind, it seemed less intense. He was glad he had worn layers of clothing though- black jeans over black hiking boots, black pea coat, white shawl neck sweater over a white button neck t-shirt.
Connor saw a man and a woman standing on the platform. The man- almost a kid really, the same age Hayden had been- was about his height though a bit more narrow in the shoulders, and dressed in dark colors and makeup. It was a statement, though of what specifically, Connor didn't know. His earlier musings about the unfairness of life here- and in the US too- made him briefly wonder what would have had to happen to make this kid feel like physically expressing a sense of alienation. Sadly, there were far too many possibilities and again he felt that sense of despair at the way the world was.
The woman on the other hand was dressed casually in jeans that were tucked into boots. And she was tall for a woman. As he approached, she briefly glanced at him, and he immediately saw that she was Native American. He smiled. She reminded him of home. She was really quite striking. Connor watched her for a moment more before looking down the tunnels in either direction. "Is the train coming soon?
"
Edited by Connor Kent, Jun 20 2014, 08:28 AM.