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Informe sinnumero (excerpt)

Informe sinnúmero sobre una eventualidad corriente (2021). Numberless report on a common eventuality. CON/TEXTO Tipea Award, 2020. Buenos Aires: Funda/mental Ediciones. 

EXCERPT:

THE NEW ONE interrupts the recording. She approaches NONAME slowly. Once she is next to the body, she examines it. She takes a lot of photos with the tablet, from all angles. At first, THE NEW ONE is afraid to see NONAME’s face. She slowly cheers up, and takes photos of NONAME’s face (which is out of public view).

THE NEW ONE touches the body tentatively, with a finger. She raises one arm from her body, lets it fall, in disgust. She goes back to the side. She activates the recording.

THE NEW ONE: “13:02. Complete preliminary exam. Condition of the affected person satisfactory. Extraction is recommended. Night falls… Gradually… Apart from this, no change worth reporting is observed, in accordance to the specified parameters.”

THE NEW ONE cuts the recording. She pauses. She activates the recording.

THE NEW ONE: “Draft. Tentative start. Uncertain exam. Pending status. Unknown name. Indefinite age. Sex to be determined. Marital status under investigation. Destination to be consigned.”

THE NEW ONE interrupts the recording. Pause. She activates it again.

THE NEW ONE: “I remember… Not long ago… Don’t know if it was a lot or a little…”

THE NEW ONE interrupts the recording, scared. Pause. She rewinds. These last three phrases are heard. She deletes them. Rewind. She hears: “Destination to be consigned.” She resumes.

THE NEW ONE: “All subjective impressions are suppressed. It’s 1:09 p.m. Soon everything will come to an end.” (Turn off, pause, turn on). “It will be as if nothing had happened. None of this, even if it is. It’s hard to believe.” (Turn off, pause, turn on). “The wait continues, the night continues to approach. Almost there… The parameters of the observation will be informed to me. Believe. A little nervous, as is reasonable.”

THE NEW ONE rewinds. She listens to this last part. She deletes the last sentence. She resumes the recording.

THE NEW ONE: “I delete reference and try again. The night falls. I continue. Indefinite identity, satisfactory condition. There are no changes. Wait. Memory. Recommended extraction. Only those data allowed by the observation parameters are included in the report.”

THE NEW ONE turns the recording off. Footsteps are heard. THE SUPERVISOR enters from the left wing, escorted by AGENT 4 and AGENT 5. THE SUPERVISOR is a high-ranking officer; this is obvious by his cloak, his hat and his leather gloves;.He doesn’t carry a briefcase. AGENTS walk around taking notes on their tablets. None of the newcomers notice, or give any importance to, the presence of the two women (dead and alive) on the scene.

AGENT 4 and AGENT 5 (in unison): “Expectations?”

THE SUPERVISOR: “Reasonable.”

AGENT 4 and AGENT 5: “Panorama?”

THE SUPERVISOR: “Encouraging.”

AGENT 4 and AGENT 5: “Overall status?”

THE SUPERVISOR: “Optimum.”

AGENT 4 and AGENT 5: “Odds?”

THE SUPERVISOR: “Infinite.”

AGENT 4 and AGENT 5: “Liquidity?”

THE SUPERVISOR: “Full.”

AGENT 4 and AGENT 5: “Solidity?”

THE SUPERVISOR: “Impenetrable.”

THE SUPERVISOR, and AGENTS 4 and 5 pass by and disappear into the right wing.

Lights off. One-minute pause.

Lights on. NONAME is awake, leaning on her elbows, painfully trying to sit up. A new presence has appeared: ANONYMOUS (young man, in the same state as NONAME: bruised, in rags, leaving a trail of urine and blood on the floor). THE NEW ONE stands on one side, motionless and expressionless.