Conversation · Cindy the SKULL

"Hello again, officers. Have you come to admire my mural?"

"So you won't talk about the murder -- but maybe you can tell me something about the murder victim's missing armour?"

"What do I care about some fucking tin egg shells?"

"Wait -- don't you wanna know how I knew to ask you?"

"Not particularly." Her eyes dart across the horizon. "I wanna keep this as brief as possible, you see. I want to return to painting the world red."

"Okay, so tell me what you know then."

"I think you didn't hear me. Why would I care?"

"Isn't armour... art? Art for the, uhm, body?"

"Ugh, alright, sad piggy. I'll give you this one -- I saw a little girl in the fishing village running around with military-grade hand-wear. Looked cute as hell."

Could that girl have been Little Lily? It's not a bad place to start.

"I know a little girl in the village -- Little Lily."

"Could've been her. Small kid with giant white armoured hands. If you've seen one of them you've seen them all."

There weren't any other small girls in the village.

"If you haven't been there, the village is a shithole down the coast from the main plaza." She waves her hand in a general westward direction. "Have a good time."

"And there's a little girl wearing the gloves there?"

"No-no. That's all the snitching Cindy the SKULL does for today. Actually, I don't even know why I told you what I just told you..."

"I have a weakness for animals. It's the animal-thing again. Damn it." She looks at you, a little sad suddenly.

"Or a weakness for police officers, miss." He makes a note in his notebook. "Thank you either way."

"Got it."

"Piggy, I have no idea why I just told you that..." She looks at you, a little sad suddenly. "You look like a shaggy dog left in the rain for too long. I have a weakness for animals."

"Ugh, alright, piggy. I'll give you this one. I saw a little girl in the fishing village running around with military-grade hand-wear. Looked cute as hell."

"C'mon Cindy, just help me out here."

"You might find armour useful if the streets flow red once more."

"Piss and Fuck told me."

"Fine. I don't care about those wannabe-SKULLS -- and I don't care about your armour."

The wannabe-SKULLS are dear to her. The armour less so.

She doesn't want to sound surprised at anything you say.

"Catch you later, Cindy." [Leave.]

"Watch your back, ungulate. You've got eyes on you."

"Is that heavy fuel oil?"

"Red-dyed heavy fuel oil intended for exclusive use in government vehicles, to be precise," he says, studying the contents of Cindy's bucket.

"What did you think I was using, aquarelles? Sucked it out of a cop's fuel tank myself -- back in Jamrock."

She really did it. She's proud of it, too.

"You'd better hand it over."

"Or what? You'll shoot me down from this ledge and pry the bucket from my dead hands?"

"Fumes are bad for you, okay."

"Something to think about next time you're driving around in your pretty little piggy carriage."

"That's some clever cultural commentary."

"You ain't seen nothing yet, piggy-boo."

"What did you think I was using, aquarelles? This shit is pumped out of government vehicles."

She did it herself. Pumped it out. She's proud of it, too.

"This has to be illegal."

"Cite me the statute that says you can't paint murals with fuel oil, and I promise I'll cease and desist."

"That's some pretty clever cultural commentary."

"You ain't seen nothing yet, piggy-boo."

"Fumes are bad for you."

"Something to think about next time you're driving around in your pretty little piggy-carriage."

Attempt to explain your artistic intentions.

You don't have the skills to execute something like this in practice, but, oh boy, the idea's going to blow her fucking mind!

"I'm going to create a highly detailed skeleton of an ancient bird that went extinct a hundred million years ago."

She squints her eyes...

"And then I'm going to paint it red using heavy fuel oil. And then I'm going to fucking light it on fire."

Her lips move. "On fire?" she whispers to herself.

"It's the phoenix, get it? What do you say?"

She hunches her shoulders and throws you a grim look. "I say, sod off. You don't have the technical skills to do that."

"But I thought you'd like my idea!"

"I like your idea. Should've thought of it myself. I don't need this kind of competition in my neighbourhood."

Damn, it was too strong.

"That's not fair!"

"Such is the bloody law of the bloody streets, you wankstain."