Conversation · Inland Empire

One of the flyers has gotten stuck to the branches of a small brush. The sound of it flapping in the wind is an echo of Van Eyck.

Grab it quickly.

As your hand reaches for the small rectangle of glossy paper, it snaps free from the branch...

...and is swept away, out of existence.

Did that really happen just now?

Cold drops of rain fall onto your outstretched hand. A slight tremble passes through it...

IT HAPPENED ONCE; LONG AGO

The lieutenant is looking at the spot you were reaching for. "Did you notice something important?"

"No... I don't think so. It was just a reflection or something. Never mind."

He nods. "Let's get going. We have a case to solve."

At the back of your head you feel the rapid beat of anodic music... then it fades away.

"Kim, I think I'm seeing Van Eyck posters everywhere now."

"Okay. Well. I'm not going to ask who Van Eyck is. I'm just going to assume it's your business and move on, okay?" He raises his collar.

And so all our lives become but a faded memory, an ephemeral vision of a Van Eyck concert flyer... blink or you'll miss it.

Okay, I'm done with this. [Finish thought.]

"Never mind. Let's get going." [Finish thought.]

Am I hallucinating?

No.

Yes. It's likely triggered by a focal epileptic seizure in your temporal lobe.

Is it dangerous?

I don't know... probably. I'm not a doctor.

Oh my god, I'm going to die!

Yeah, probably, one day. But not this very minute.

Large flakes of snow fall onto your outstretched hand. A slight tremble passes through it...

Your outstretched hand casts a deep shadow on the ground...

The shadows play tricks on your mind...

What the shit?

Cold drops of rain fall onto your outstretched hand. A slight tremble passes through it...

A GLIMPSE INTO THE PAST

Flakes of snow fall onto your outstretched hand. A slight tremble passes through it...

Your outstretched hand basks in the warm spring sun.

Things in the night are not what they seem to be...

[Ignore thought.]

In the back of your head, you feel the rapid beat of anodic music... then it fades away.