[The elevator doors open.]

[While I'm sure the knees and backs and ankles of my two fleshy companions are aching, I am quite comfortable within my dark, sturdy exterior. But I can sense the end for me coming. Not the cold, dark reality that all living beings succumb to; no. Something far less permanent. Something with a simple fix, provided we can find a suitable interface that I can offload to. Just as they need sleep, I need to dump the extraneous bits every 36-48 hours, as recommended in my manual.]

[Halley's jaw stretches; tall, to what must be her limit, anatomically speaking. She is exhausted, as is Reese, who is hunched into a corner against a hard metal surface; his head nodding down every few minutes and then suddenly snapping back violently. Each time, he opens his eyes for a split second, and I imagine that even after all these years, he still has to remind himself that no; this is not a dream.]

[Thirteen hours have passed since our departure from Cape Elizabeth. The two have not spoken much, if at all, though Halley has slept minimally. I am sure her intention has been to not sleep at all; to take in every possible piece of information around her, but for brief moments on this train, her intentions evade her.]

[Our excursion has taken us southwest, through New England and across the northern tip of New Jersey into a mountainous region of Pennsylvania. Whether they like it or not, this is where our journey on this train comes to an end. For now, at least.]

> HALLEY: We're stopping.

> CLAUDE: Yes. We are in —

[It takes a few milliseconds to process our location; far longer than usual.]

> CLAUDE: Pennsylvania. Delaware Water Gap. Within the Pocono Mountains region.

[Reese opens his eyes.]

> REESE: What happened?

> HALLEY: The train is stopping. We're in Pennsylvania.

> REESE: Let's be careful. If the engineers see us getting off this train...

[Halley jumps off the train, her feet colliding with large pieces of gravel that cover wood planks that keep the rail in place.]

> REESE: Nevermind then. Let's just make sure they don't.

[It's dark, now. All of the daylight provided today has passed us while on the train.]

> HALLEY: I need to eat something.

> REESE: We do need to eat. And we also need to find you some new clothes before anyone sees you.

> HALLEY: My clothes? What's wrong with my clothes?

[Reese is right. She does need new clothes. She looks as if she's from a different time. A different world. Of course, Reese can't blame her for that. It wasn't her choice to arrive here. Halley looks down at them, and the realization sets in.]

> HALLEY: Oh. Right. Guess I'm not in Kansas anymore.

[Reese stops suddenly in his tracks. I know precisely why. It reminds him of something. Something that I said, a long time ago. Something from a deep, dark place within me; but it's a story for another day. He takes a step towards Halley and gets just inches away from her face. He peers into her eyes, as if he were looking to get a glimpse deep into her soul; or her memories.]

> REESE: What did you just say?

> HALLEY: I'm... not in Kansas anymore? It's a saying... isn't it?

[Reese nods, unsure how to proceed with this information. Clearly, Halley knows how to speak; she has retained her language and ability to communicate despite her loss of memory. Idioms such as this one could be retained without a specific knowledge of where they come from. But for it to be this one, so soon?]

> REESE: Do you know where it's from?

[She searches deep with her mind to try and remember, but it's clear that the source is buried somewhere in that wet brain of hers, and any connections to access it were damaged.]

> HALLEY: I... I'm not...

[Before she could continue, loud cracks and their reverberations off the surrounding mountains cut through the air. Halley looks up, and a wide prism of colors dance across her eyeballs.]

> HALLEY: Fireworks. In November? Is that normal here, CLAUDE?

> CLAUDE: I'm currently utilizing a low-power mode and reading from a reserve data cache. While writing to disk is still functional, my responses may be slow or non-existent until data can be off-loaded.

> REESE: Looks like we need to get CLAUDE plugged in somewhere. But yes. Used to be more of a summer thing, didn't it.

> HALLEY: Maybe they're celebrating something.

> REESE: They are. The end of an era.

> HALLEY: What era?

> REESE: Come on. Let's go get some food. I'll tell you all about it.

[They walk through an alley and find themselves on a proper road. Just a few blocks away, a metal post rises high into the air. An enormous neon light; a blue and pink circle surrounding two yellow letters — E and Z — spins slowly atop the sign. The light is so high that it barely illuminates the parking lot below, but surely it achieves its intended purpose of being seen from the nearby highway. Underneath it, teenagers huddle together, standing outside of their cars doing — well nothing, I suppose. Further off in the distance, far beyond the neon lights of the convenience store, is another derelict launch facility; this small town lying in its proverbial shadow. This was the Frederick H. Carlson Launch Complex, a privately owned facility operated by the aforementioned Frederick Carlson, who funded billions into the search for extraterrestrial life on the moons of gas giants; Europa, Enceladus, and Titan.

[Reese and Halley walk past the teenagers, and Halley, not much older than most of them, draws several long stares, and a few laughs. She ignores them to the best of her abilities, and they enter the store.]

[The flickering fluorescent bulbs are blinding to my sensors as soon as we walk in. I compensate by letting in less light. Ah, much better. There's a man and a woman by the register. It seems they know each other. Married, most likely. Another man towers over the aisles, and debates between two flavors of potato chips. Jalapeno cheddar? Or perhaps seasoned tuna? The debate rages in his mind, but clearly, as I know Reese would agree, there is just one correct answer.]

[A woman stands behind the counter. She reads a tabloid newspaper; the Global World Post, a sad excuse of a source for fabricated world events. She peers out over the top of the paper and her eyes scan Halley, up and down, silently judging her clothes and the dirt on her face.]

> CLERK: Hon, where are you coming from? Can I help you with anything?

> HALLEY: Uh, Hi. Where am I coming from?

[Her eyes dart around as she looks for any clue on what to say. Her eyes lock on Reese, and she blurts out an answer.]

> HALLEY: Kansas actually.

> CLERK: Ah, Kansas. I see. You're a long way from home, then, aren't ya?

[Halley nods her head, nervously.]

> HALLEY: And clothes.

> CLERK: I'm sorry?

> HALLEY: You asked me if I needed anything. Do you have any clothes?

> CLERK: You know, I've traveled quite a bit, but I've never been to Kansas.

[She walks out from behind the counter, placing her tabloid on its surface. She looks Halley up and down again as she walks past.]

> CLERK: I'm sure it's lovely. Right around this aisle there, we have a few t-shirts, but that's about all I've got.

[She points to a small collection; three shirts, all of which distinctly reference Margot Pelham. I realize that Halley doesn't know who she is. United States flags adorn most of the shirts, as well, along with various placements of bald eagles.]

> CLERK: Are you sure you're okay, hon?

[The clerk side eyes Reese as she says it.]

> HALLEY: Oh, of course. Totally okay. Yes. He is my...

> REESE: Uncle.

> HALLEY: That's right. He's my uncle.

[Halley looks down at the dirty floor below her.]

> HALLEY: He's family.

[Halley grabs a small, gray t-shirt off its hangar. This one says "COSMOLOGY IS A CRIME" in large, block letters. She proceeds to grab a bag of chips; the correct option, I may add. She glances at Reese, asking, without any words, if she can have more.]

> REESE: Go ahead. Get whatever you need.

[She grabs another bag of chips, as well as a bag of ahi tuna jerky.]

> REESE: Big fan of tuna, huh?

> HALLEY: Uh, yea. Hard to get back in Kansas.

[Reese glances over at the clerk.]

> REESE: While I'm here, can I grab a pack of Tagetes? The yellow one, please.

> CLERK: People still smoke those? Let's see... we've got the purple ones, the red ones, the orange ones, or is that yellow...

> REESE: That's them. Can I grab some matches as well?

[The clerk grabs them from beneath the counter and slides them over to Reese. The vibrant blue, pink, and yellow logo from the sign outside adorns the cover of the matchbook.]

[Halley slides her tuna products, a bottle of water, and the t-shirt onto the counter.]

> HALLEY: So what's up with the fireworks?

> CLERK: From near that mountain up there? Mt. Minsi's the name of it. Way back, the government came in and built a compound in there. A bunker. They tried to keep it all secretive and tight-lipped... But you know how things are in a small town. Word gets around.

> HALLEY: What's it for then?

> CLERK: Rumors are, it was built to be a nuclear bunker. You're in that thing, and my understanding is you can survive just about anything. A nuclear bomb. The end of world, even. So you know how it is; all of us get fried, and the government gets to stay nice and cozy in that mountain, there. Of course, the cold war comes to an end, so the government's got no use for a survival bunker. Another brilliant use of taxpayer money, right? I still think something was going on in there. We'd have all sorts of strange folk coming through here. Once Pelham was elected, though? All that changed, God bless her. Since then, it's been quiet.

> HALLEY: Sorry. Maybe I missed it, but... what are we celebrating?

> CLERK: Well this shirt you picked out says it all, doesn't it hon?

> HALLEY: Cosmology is a crime?

> CLERK: Amen. God willing, it stays that way.

[Halley's eyes scrunch down as she considers what the woman just said.]

> REESE: Thanks again for the matches, ma'am.

> CLERK: You are very welcome, hon. Ya'll have a safe trip back to Kansas.

[Halley stares back at the clerk with curious eyes. I wonder if this makes her think about going home. That wherever home is, it certainly isn't here. I wonder if she thinks about what Reese told her. This place may not feel safe to her, but perhaps home isn't any safer. That maybe she's lost, in a world that was never meant for her.]

> CLERK: When are ya heading back?

> HALLEY: I don't know.