[She can’t know what they truly have in common. Even the remnants of uncanniness that remain within them both are so so slight as to only be just that— remnants. Old instincts of an old body, almost-flesh-and-blood, trained carefully to be more but never quite there, exactly. But it’s enough to make Markus feel, inexplicably, familiar.

And his discomfort bodes well.] Right.

[Concessions such as these aren’t new to her. God knows how long she’d really spent asleep, walking the circular track of dreams over and over; taking just one more command wouldn’t have been enough to really bother her. She won’t forgrt that Markus spares her the moment’s submission anyway.]

Yes, well, you’ll have to forgive me for being skeptical. I’ve already been here for days and they all told me that same story. Why has it all started over again? I should have been free to go.

[Waking in her bed and looping through the same words and faces, walking the same main street day after day. Not this shit again.]