Too bright!

The light was blinding. There was pain, strange pain; from a million different places and from nowhere at the same time.

I called out for her.

A tiled ceiling swam into focus, then resolved itself into a pig-faced nurse smiling down at me.

Not Elise.

She handed me a mirror. I looked at myself. Blinked. Looked again. It was a trick. Had to be. Some kind of carnival lens, like a funhouse mirror.

My blue eyes were laced with shimmering gold flecks. My hair was an iridescent white, so bright it almost glowed. My nails were jet black.

I opened my mouth. I felt my lips move, struggling, but only a rasp emitted from my throat.

Don't try to speak yet, not-Elise said. Rest.

She turned to go. My hand shot out and grabbed her wrist, yanking her back to me with a strength that surprised her.

Her smile vanished. It had never been real in the first place.

Is this heaven? I asked.

Way off, baby, she smirked, shaking herself free. This is New York.

I became agitated then.

After the sedative took effect, she asked questions. Name, age, occupation. Living relatives? Just my wife.

Where was I? Was there an accident? Why did I feel so strange?

She spoke in bland autopilot reassurances, telling me nothing. Which terrified me all the more.

Sleep, she said. Your body needs to recover.

From what? I wanted to know.

From being dead, she said.

Bad joke, I said, and closed my eyes.

3.

MAGGIE.

TRANSCRIPT NO:294610-112b 1200.011.03.54 REBORN:PAUL DONNER, REV. DATE [0430.10.31.54].

ASSIMILATION COUNSELOR:MARGARET CHI, SERIAL NO. 29940723492438.

SESSION NO. 1.

COUNSELOR'S NOTES: Subject's anger and denial are at upper levels of base for Stage One assimilation. Mental acuity exceeds base for early revival.

Subject is resistant to changes in modern language and colloquialisms. Subject uses a grim humor as a defense against the terror he feels. He is unusually strong-willed. He tests 320 on the Hamt Emotional-Psych Scale. While he demonstrates resilience, his adherence to antiquated concepts of masculinity (i.e. repression of emotions that he feels are "weak", difficulty asking for help, internalizing of stress) is discouraging. This type of personality has a 35% greater probability of failed re-integration into society, with the ensuing violence, drug abuse and suicide that this entails.

The transcript of the interview is as follows: DONNER.

I think I just saw a flying Studebaker.

(NOTE: Subject was looking out the window.) MAGGIE.

EM. John Q. Public thinks they're the cat's pajamas, but the insurance will kill you.

DONNER.

Huh?

MAGGIE.

Sorry. EM means electromagnetic. You called it maglev in your day-remember those high-speed Japanese trains? Same thing. They don't really fly-they just kind of hover.

Donner Uh-huh.

Silence while the subject looked around the processing room, then studied my floating face.

DONNER.

What... what are you? Are you real?

MAGGIE.

I'm a smarty. A Virtual Person. In the parlance of your time, artificial intelligence. You're currently experiencing me as a Type 3 hologram. I can incorporate in several formats, however.

DONNER.

Uh-huh.

MAGGIE.

I'm your assimilation counselor. Do you remember how you died?

The subject winced as though slapped. I re-scanned his file.

MAGGIE (CONT'D) Oh God. I'm sorry. Shit.

(NOTE to Assimilation Board: once again, the overwhelming caseload has resulted in inadequate preparation time. This does damage to the subjects! Please provide more staff!!) DONNER.

My wife...

MAGGIE.

I'm sorry. We don't know why some come back and some don't. Frank Sinatra is still dead, but you can see Elvis at Radio City every night at 9.

DONNER.

Jesus.

MAGGIE.

Not yet. Ha.

He didn't laugh. Tactical change.

donner They said we were murdered. I don't remember it.

MAGGIE.

That's typical. Your brain, ah, died before it had a chance to chemically encode your last memories. Probably best that way.

I administered a mild sedative .35 seconds after processing that the subject was going into shock.

MAGGIE.

Look, Mr. Donner, you should know what you're in for. During the Dark Eighteen, we- DONNER.

The what?

MAGGIE.

The eighteen months when the Shift was uncontained. We think it was some kind of bioweapon that mutated. It wasn't airborne, thank god, but it still moved fast out of New York. Things... fell apart.

DONNER.

"The center cannot hold."

MAGGIE.

What? Oh. Wow. Poetry.

Donner Yeah, a cop that knows Yeats. Go figure.

Typical fleshpot response. When frightened, get angry.

maggie The containment of reborns and carriers to Necropolis is why revivals continue here, but outside it's pretty rare now.

DONNER.

Carriers?

MAGGIE.

Normal people who have been exposed to reborns become carriers of the retrovirus, just like reborns. They can cause the Shift to start again wherever they go. By necessity, three million of them were quarantined here with the reborns.

DoNNER Christ. They must hate us.

MAGGIE.

Yes. They do.

Subject closed his eyes.

MAGGIE (CONT'D) To most norms, reebs are freaks of nature. Not... fully human. That's not true, of course. You're not a zombie or a vampire or anything. Just...

DONNER.

Just back from the dead. And growing younger, they tell me. Everything in reverse. Destined to be a teen again, then a baby, then a fetus-then adios, muchacho.

MAGGIE.

This is traumatic. But the quicker you accept what's happened, the quicker you'll get on with- DONNER.

Life?

Subject laughed harshly. Three seconds of silence.

DONNER.

I'm surprised they didn't nuke the city.

MAGGIE.

They almost did.

That got a reaction out of him.

MAGGIE.

Luckily, saner heads prevailed.

DONNER.