Whatever Happened to Lilybell Snoodle?

May 30 - Hale's Moon

"We foot it all the night,
Weaving olden dances,
Mingling hands and mingling glances
Till the moon has taken flight;
To and fro we leap
And chase the frothy bubbles,
While the world is full of troubles
And is anxious in its sleep."

----

After departing the lab, I made my way back towards the landing area.

Off in the distance, I caught a glimpse of a figure moving fast. It jumped and scampered, and weaved in and out of buildings

It had to be Lily. No one else could move like that.

I sent a communication to her private channel.

"Deputy Snoodle...... Lily... this is Major Siamendes."

She hissed. "Lily got shocking 'tricity from bad Redfur, now Little and H I D I N G but...would see you if you gots somefing her need.... maybe make a deal." She purred.

"Lily," I began, "she talks to me too, you know."

"Miss Ardra?"

"Yes."

"I know them words," she declared.


"What words are those Lily?"

"You know."

"Ardra tells me many things," I said.

I spoke of Ardra herself. Lily however carried the Ardra AI from one of the drones. She had downloaded it some time ago. And I wanted to know what the Ardra AI whispered into Lily's mind. I counted on Lily not making the distinction.

"I need my medicine," she said directly.

"Medicine?" I asked.

LilyBell hissed. "Her tell you I gots her in a special place, not really gone? And her tell you also in the cube, Miss x0x0 take her but I trick her? Her tell you we like how it taste? Not supposed to be so small, but ok ok can hide. You got spice?"

She purred. "Lily gots big sapphire. Will trade."

"Yes Lily, I have spice. Come and meet me," I invited.

"Where am you Miss? Where at you being now? Huh huh?" she asked with some urgency.

"The butcher shop," I said.

.............

Lily approached the butcher's shop from a protected angle and scurried around the rear of the building in a counter-clockwise direction.

"Hello Deputy," I called out, "I am alone."

I held out a small bag of raw spice.

Lily crawled out from behind the wall. Smaller than normal. More the size of a child.

She came closer and accepted the gift.

Without further discussion, we settled next to each other on some barrels at the entrance to the stall.

"You are smaller than I remember," I remarked.

"That her fault," she admitted.

"Ardra?" I asked.

LilyBell shivered. "Miss Redfur," she replied. "Wanted to 'get it all'. I fool them all."

She laughed a bit eerily.

"I stay this way now," she continued, "Not gots to do no grown up fings and nobody chase me. Eat cats from the fire. Berries. It nice life."

She looked up at me. "Got any more?" she asked.

"Yes," I replied, "For later."

LilyBell's hands trembled.

"I remember you liked chocolate once," I commented.

She nodded, "Chocolate not keep you from getting tall."

From a pouch on my duty belt, I produced a chocolate bunny on a stick made of pressed paper. I had come prepared.

Lily grabbed the treat and declared, "I can sell it for money and buy more spice. Ardra eat it all day. Now Lily eat it too."

She continued, "It that bad lady do it. Feed her from a big jar. Now, now this one know why. It nice.

"Are you still carrying Ardra?" I asked.

"Got two," she answered.

Two?

LilyBell looked up, "Why you ask?"

I did not reply.

"Tillery gots a big mouf," she said suddenly, "Dangerous to have big mouf."

"Ardra told me the true colour of the sky," I offered.

"What her said.... you see her laser so pretty, many colour. See wif you eyes? Not believe all you see Miss. Those words."

"She said the skies were violet," I said coyly, "What did she tell you?"

"Colour of eyes... violet eyes!"

LilyBell screamed.

And she was off and running.

"Lily wait!!" I cried as I ran after her.

She ran straight for a cluster of cactii. Then arching around she tore across the street, a spray of dust and gravel in her wake. She fled into a nearby building.

"Lily wait!!"

Her refuge was an apartment on the ground floor of a two storey building. A picture window in the front.

The grey door swung open with a touch.

"Can I come in?" I asked gently.

Lily was in the far corner bending over a child's bed.

"A lot has happened to you," I said as I slowly crossed the room.

LilyBell sang looking down into the crib.

"A lot that .... shouldn't have," I added as I drew close.

LilyBell looked up. "See my baby," she whispered.

Inside the crib was a jar bearing the logo of the Umbrella corporation

And inside the jar something floated. Something red and fleshy.

"I am so sorry Lily," I said sincerely, "for what happened to Aurora."

LilyBell narrowed her eyes and looked at me, "I cut off her head."

I was caught off guard. How do you reply to that? I'm sure you had your reasons?

LilyBell looked around, "It a secret....that cub smart...had...itself ready to go only fixed...and Cody its Daddy now. No tell, ok? Secret. Call it Anna."

She nodded, "This new baby name Audrey".

I arched one eyebrow, "Audrey?"

Ardra's name. From before.

She nodded again, "Yes. This new baby name Audrey."

"And how old is Audrey?" I asked.

LilyBell looked at me like I was dense, "Her not in here YET".

"No, not yet," I agreed.

LilyBell continued to pet the bed linen, "Aurorablue perfect. All human. All computer. Perfect."

"What words did she tell you?" I asked.

LilyBell looked up. "Two words," she said and started to purr.

"Then you need a second bag of spice," I said with a congratulatory tone.

"Yes, yes", nodded Lily, "for later."

"For later, yes," I agreed.

Nods and happy smiles all around.

"That lady gaved me some but I dropped it. Her say 'Come to ma ma.' I go. I stay little, maybe get to keep spice. Not tell her them words. One letter gots in it. M."

"Well," I conspired, "if you tell me the two words, I will give you a bit more."

"You tell me," she answered, "You tell me and I tell you if you right."

I laughed. This was getting us nowhere. "You don't know do you?," I teased.

Lily hissed under her breath, "Barbosa not set me up." She looked up suddenly. "I know", she said defiantly.

"Well?" I prompted.

"I know Controlled Chaos. I know Angel of Mercy," she boasted.

I shrugged.

"Know more than that," she continued, "Know it not in language of this place for sure. See, see....some other language." She smiled knowingly. "Two words," she said.

"In some other language," I repeated.

LilyBell purred as she stroked the jar, "Audrey, you gots justice soon too."

She then answered me, "Yes like, maybe..oh...Latin or...somefing."

"Latin?"

LilyBell started to laugh. "I KNOW!" she exclaimed and spinning about she called out, "We all dance and then we die!"

She stopped and questioned me, "What you come want this one for? Just stupid construct, not worf nuffing. Just a ...I take that absinthe too."

"Want fuel?" she asked suddenly.

I tapped my finger to my lips, puzzling over what the two words could be that she referred to, and then said, "Sure." Fuel might mean fuel. It might mean food. I could eat.

"What you gives me for it?" she asked.

I toyed with a third bag of spice, "I'm more interested in what she told you, on where she is now, and on 'The Project'."

"Memento Mori," she purred.

I translated, "Remember you will die."

Now this was indeed interesting. That was the message I sent to Ardra herself last December when I initiated contact. A poke at her transhumanist views.

Ardra had, in return, carved it on the shipping container that carried the remains of St. Zenobius. Returning the jab.

And now it was etched in the mind of LilyBell Snoodle.

"Do you know what is that Zahir?" she asked.

"No," I replied, "but I can find out."

"You tell me.... and I...let you see her," she squinted.

"I will...did she tell you that word too?" Now, we were getting somewhere.

"Her tell me lot of words in her secret house." She looked at me, "I NEVER let her go".

"I know Lily...." I felt deeply sad for Lily. This thing already had a grip on her.

I couldn't honestly tell if she still carried the AI from the drone. If I understood her correctly, there had been an extraction attempt. It was clear there was still some kind of connection.

And if Ardra herself was planning to do what I suspected, to push the spacial and temporal limitations of what it meant to be human through the use of cybernetics and artificial intelligence, regardless of cost or consequence, what would happen to Lily attached as she was to one of the drones?

I could imagine that one day we might find her dancing on the landing pad, playing little cymbals and chanting the name of Ardra. The light of individuality all but burned from her eyes.

Or perhaps an even more sinister fate awaited her. I could imagine, yes, but I did not know.

LilyBell looked up and asked, "You know?"

She produced a crossbow from somewhere close by and began to stroke it. "What you know? You not take me."

"She isn't done with either of us yet," I said fatalistically. My own role in Ardra's plans was unclear. It is always harder to see the possibilities inherent in one's own trajectory.

"Her gots a big laser. You see it?"

"In long distance scans," I admitted.

"We see it and it almost ready too. Lily not go lately...been...digging.... oh, it beautiful!"

I smiled gently.

"It so beautiful. so very beautiful...all that my mind dream."

"That is a fine crossbow," I commented.

"It pierce armour," she explained.

I resisted the urge to ask to have one of the crossbow bolts for forensics. She might just send it ballistically.

"Miss Ardra not ever mention you," she said.

"Really?" I asked. No surprise there. The drone never knew me. Lily was starting to put it together.

I moved for the exit. "Stay safe Lily."

The door however was locked. A privacy screen slowly rolled up to cover the window.

"You not go no where," she said darkly.

"Okay," I agreed. Don't argue with the pretty synthetic holding the armour piercing crossbow.

"Stay wif us."

I wondered how long 'stay' would entail. And if it involved being buried in the wall.

"Let's talk some more then," I suggested calmly. I looked around at the comfortable furniture.

LilyBell looked at me and for a moment, her eyes flashed red, but only for an instant.

We sat down.

We were quiet.

We watched television.

"Fruity oaty," remarked Lily when the commercial came on. She giggled and watched the screen.

"I got pictures," she offered. The good hostess.

I took the opportunity to continue my questioning, "Now this word....zahir... how did Ardra use this word?"

"It me," she hissed. "Don't tell nobody or them think you mad. Soon you not know what am real... fing of nuffing else. Got to gots it and put it in the place for power."

"You are to get this 'zahir' and put it in place?" I asked.

Without another word, Lily handed me a photograph of the interior of the heighliner. It showed the control panel. A mainframe hovering nearby. Activated screens. And Lily in the foreground, walking or possibly dancing. Moving at least.

"It goes here....?" I prompted.

"Maybe I show you what you want." She mused as she looked at me, "Don't know. Miss Mercedes say I see it soon or somefing."

"Tell me," I asked, "do you like Miss Mercedes?"

"Say her, ma ma." she replied then she added, "Mindo shooted himself."

"I heard that," I acknowledged.

"Not got nobody," she elaborated, "Made only..this one just bad."

Then she whispered, "Pax."

"Anyway," she continued conversationally, "Like her ...her seem nice. Say 'ma ma ma' and give spice. Her not really nice ...gots ...well, you know."

I smiled. I had seen the offices of Mercedes Celestalis. Nothing good lurked there.

The door unlocked with a click.

Taking the opportunity I stood up, "Well Lily, I should go ..."

Without actually diving for the exit, I left the room.

"Take care Deputy," I called out.

As the door swung shut, I could hear her talking.

"Miss Ardra... Miss Pepper nice."

-----

"Away with us he's going,
The solemn-eyed:
He'll hear no more the lowing
Of the calves on the warm hillside
Or the kettle on the hob
Sing peace into his breast,
Or see the brown mice bob
Round and round the oatmeal-chest."
- William Butler Yeates, "The Stolen Child"