Elsewhere

by Daniel Thron

Waiting for the gas to take effect, I regard the patient’s acorn head: beneath his knobby cupule lies a placid, smooth-cheeked face, like a kid in a knit cap on a snowy day. The image sticks with me, and even after we have the go-ahead from the anaesthesiologist, I still I can’t help but hesitate. I know his eyes won’t move, his mouth won’t go slack; they are only an improbable arrangement of spots that induce pareidolia. As I make the first incision along the base of his thorax, I still feel him looking up at me, guileless and content.



Author bio: Daniel Thron is a writer and filmmaker living in Los Angeles.  He largely pays the bills with visual effects, and his work can be seen in movies such as David Fincher's 'Zodiac' and 'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo,' as well as 'Blade Runner 2049' and 'Avengers: Infinity War.'

Elsewhere is part of 101 Fiction issue 19.