Writer Akila Raza
Editor Edward Wangamah

1653 (phase 8)
” When the ego dies, the soul awakens….. Fear no longer conquers, consequences matter less,what truly matters is picking up the pieces of all that shattered beyond repair……….
Sameer felt trapped to the wall.
He seemed to be swinging between a trance as the last conversation before the destruction of 1653 replayed before him again.
” Sameer Walia?” A deep voice interrupted his senses pulling him abruptly out of the trance for which he was thankful.
” Yes that’s me Doctor” ..
he responded to the tall man standing next to him. The doctor looked at him ….
..” are you a relative to the patient?” The doctor asked, Sameer nodded ” he is a friend”… He replied.
The doctor asked Sameer to follow him to the cabin… The walk was brief but it seemed endless, Sameer felt a sinking in his heart, there was an eerie feeling about the place,.
The scent of medicine, nursing mothers with crying babies, smell of burnt flesh, wails of women in the labour room…. his ears were suddenly picking all sorts of sound… And finally he found himself seated opposite the doctor…the question he was asked , hit him in the gut and he stared at the doctor…..” Why did Jacob commit sucide?” The doc asked again…. Sameer turned pale, the memories finally found a loophole and flooded in torrents, hitting Sameer back to back mercilessly…. Before the doctor could prompt further, they were Interrupted by a call. The doctor spoke softly but from the look on his face it was clear….. The storm was brewing pretty fast. He put the call down and looked at Sameer, ” the police want your statement……
1653 (phase 9 )
LAST EPISODE…..
” You Dwell in the past , chased by my voice,
Chained by my thoughts,…
Then slumber abandons you
Leaving you to drown in the horror of your own guilt…..”
” The police want your statement”….. Those words set my ears on fire and suddenly I went super deaf… I simply looked at the doctor and managed half a nod, he walked out leaving me to decide my fate …. Perspiration danced on my forehead like a slithering shape shifting snake, I felt chills that seemed endless then once again My body went into a trance……I saw a flash back of that day which had stamped the never ending tragedy into our lives.
Flash back ……
It was late afternoon, I had just finished making coffee , I cleaned the kitchen, filled the thermos and grinned at my self, the Aroma of my secret ingredient spread in the room creating endless bliss….so inviting so sensual ….reminded me of 1653, I blushed , straightened my shirt and took off my apron…. I couldn’t wait to go and see 1653, she may be a robot but to me she was just something else ….. Sensual …illness free and no fear of ARV. I may be a pervert but again if the wildest dreams of us men were to be put on check ….. The world would surely perish……
I quickly walked out of the kitchen after applying my perfume….and excitedly walked towards the research room…. After watching Jacob for fifteen years …even I had learnt afew tips here and there and had tried something secretly….well now I would get to see the end result.
Happiness and I seem to have a bad relationship….. I was about to enter the research room but I stopped on my tracks…..Dan and his sister Penny were in there…. Penny sounded infuriated and Dan was trying to pacify her but in vain, I came closer to the door and the last words of penny sent me in a frenzy…she sounded like a witch ….or a ruthless crazy woman whose mind was adamant on destruction…..she wanted 1653 destroyed….. Without thinking twice I ran to look for Jacob …..the bastard..oops but yeah at that time he behaved like one…. When I found him he was in a state of self pleasure also thinking about 1653….I ignored my jealous feeling and told him what penny was planning to do. We rushed towards the lab but it seemed fate had its own storm brewing, …we reached there too late…. 1653 was not only dismantled but all the trace of reconnecting her was also gone….Dan and Penny were also gone…. Jacob was speechless he fell on his knees and screamed so loudly that everything around us shook….My mind went blank …the next thing I know is that there was blood splattered, everywhere…. ambulance siren heard and we were in the hospital….”
Jacob had slipped into a never ending coma, I was blank when the doctor asked me what happened….
” Mr Sameer”…..a female voice was trying to get to me but the distance seemed endlessly long….like that of the sun and the earth.
Sameer felt lighter and lighter, he heard voices from a distance…. Suddenly he found himself looking at a body…it belonged to him.
The doctor shook sameers body but there was no response….he and the police man looked at each other in surprise…. The nurse checked pulse and said ” sorry he is no more”.
Sameer was floating in the air ….
” Interested in being friends?” A voice behind him whispered…he jumped and looked back…two ghosts were staring at him with great interest…” Who are you? ” He asked…. They laughed….
We are what you once were , and now you get used to being us……
The End ……
Or it’s just the beginning……















