The recollections of Martin Blackwood. Recorded in Situ.
Recording[]
Martin is lost. He is in a house full of fog as he finds a tape recorder and begins speaking to it. He rambles and struggles to remember things, he is unsure where he is or why he is there. He has been trying to find somewhere nice to sit but every chair he finds is uncomfortable, and there is an unpleasant damp, sort of chemical smell in the air.
Ever so often a swell of static rises and he seems to forget again, he is surprised to see the tape recorder and greets it repeatedly. He talks to it of various disjointed recollections from his past:
He fancies his new boss but his boss does not seem to care for him.
He has started lying on his CV and he is worried about being found out, but they really need the money.
They really should keep quiet so they do not wake his mum. He knows she loves him but there is so much to do and he is always forgetting things. He always thinks of her face when he has done something wrong but right now he cannot remember what she looked like.
He was terrified of being found out during his job interview and he only remembers the interviewer's eyes, but he got the job in the end.
His grandfather died when he was nine. At the funeral, there was a photo of a young man on the coffin it almost looked like his granddad but Martin could not quite recognise him. He was distraught to realise he could not remember his granddad's face.
He mentions running into other people when wandering this house. They were all thin, grey, and faded. They did not seem to remember much and asked Martin who they were or if there was anyone left who even cared about them. Unable to answer, Martin eventually ran from them.
Martin is not sure if there is anyone who cares about him either. He is scared, he feels like he is losing himself in the fog and he is not sure if he even minds because so much of what is behind the fog is painful.
He wonders if he asked the fog to come, but that is not true. He is here because he was too slow and the fog caught up to him when he was following John.
He remembers John and clings to the memory. He reminds himself, he is Martin Blackwood and he is not alone anymore. He did not choose to be here, he has friends, he's in love and he refuses to forget that.
In the distance, John calls for him and they quickly find each other again. John is apologetic, he thought Martin had been just behind him when they got separated and even when he tried to use his Knowing to locate him, it was hard to find him through the fog.
John realises something about this place and lets Martin know that he would understand if he just wanted to stay here and forget everything that hurts. Martin admits that it is comforting here but it is not a good comfort, it is the kind that makes you faded and distant. It is The Lonely, but it is not him anymore.
Continuity[]
- Related Entity: The Lonely