Philoscifi

Phil Safari is no more, shattered into a million pieces. Will a hero emerge from the ashes, and will it be in time? Find out in this second chapter of the Safaris

“Ugh… remind me never to do that again,” I said, rubbing my eyes after the triple feature movie marathon. “Unless we take breaks…like long breaks. So, what exactly was I suppose to get out of those besides the world’s biggest headache?”

“Haha. Yeah, I think we overdid it just a bit. Anyway, I’d say that these movies all fit under the ‘greatness and immortality’ category. Man on Wire was about a tightrope walker who obsessed about doing his thing between the two towers of the World Trade Center shortly after they were built. In the end, he achieves something great, something that can obviously never be repeated now…a sort of immortality. Yet all his friendships are destroyed in the process. Was it worth it?

“The second one we watched, Blade Runner, was about some androids who have reached the end of their short lifespans but don’t want to die. So they seek out their creator in hopes that he can extend their lives to no avail. They must accept that their fate is to burn twice as bright but live only half as long.

“And finally, The Fountain depicts Tommy Creo’s obsession with eternal life. ‘Death is a disease that can be cured.’ In the end, he finally accepts that death is a part of life, and his death becomes the start of a new world.”

“Wow…deep. Heavy,” I said, rubbing my temples. “This is the kind of stuff you like? No wonder you’re so serious!”

Phil laughed. “I guess.”

“So that’s your goal in life? Greatness? Immortality?”

“You know, I’ve always been a romantic: save the world and stuff. But now I don’t know,” Phil sighed. “Maybe greatness isn’t something you strive for, it’s something you’re born with. And I just don’t have it. I should leave the hero stuff to the pros.”

“Hmm, I don’t know about that,” I said. “A lot of great people started off pretty ordinary. Maybe they already had the tools, but it was circumstances that pushed them toward greatness.”

“Gee, thanks for bursting my bubble!” Phil replied in mock anger, and I bowed in mock graciousness. He sighed. “Yeah, you’re right. It’s just wishful thinking. I didn’t realize that greatness would be so hard. So lonely. When you read all those fairy tales as a kid, it seems so easy. Well, straightforward, I should say. The hero has a tough time, but you know he’ll succeed in the end. There’s no such guarantee in real life.

“And it’s not like he doesn’t have friends or people to help him along the way. It’s just that no one really understands him because they haven’t experienced what he has. Whoever said, ‘To be great is to be misunderstood’ was spot on. And unless you did something obvious like save the world, most people won’t appreciate what you have done until much later. They go about their daily lives without much thought about greatness and stuff like that.”

“Yeah, I suppose you’re right,” I said, absently chewing on my pencil. How do I turn this into a positive? “So if you could do it all over again, would you decline the Heroic Task and stay normal?”

Phil stared off the distance for a few moments before answering. “Hmm, I don’t know. I guess the accident still would have happened, so I’d probably still throw myself at people, trying to make up for it…”

“So a normal life wouldn’t work for you?”

“No, I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t. My life probably would have turned out roughly the same but not as good.”

“Oh yeah? How so?”

“Because I never would have met you,” Phil said, grinning slyly.

I knew he’d say that! I struggled to maintain some semblance of professional demeanor, but I couldn’t help but crack a smile. “Now, now, Mr. Safari,” I chided, wagging my finger. “What did I say about the flirting?”

“Sorry, ma’am. Won’t happen again,” Phil said, meekly.

“Ha, we’ll see about that.”

“Seriously though, I didn’t choose this life, but I suppose it’s for the best. I never really cared much about living forever, but I wouldn’t mind doing something worth remembering while I’m here. I’d rather live a short, brilliant life than a long, uneventful one.”

I threw my arms up triumphantly. “Well now, I dare say that sounded sort of confident. Even a bit heroic.”

“Yay! Do I get my cookie now?”

”No, but we are making progress.”

“Sweet, what’s next?”

“Weeell…definitely not more movies. My eyeballs are about to melt! Let’s go a different direction: let’s talk about you.”

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