54 - 23. the game

by bofa xesjum

the sun smiled gently down on a well-tended public park. an old man sat on a bench, staring into space. a much younger man approached him, with a polite smirk. excuse me, may i ask what you are looking at? a picture of trump triumphantly entering the kingdom of kingdoms. you are, then, a follower of the so-called maga movement. i beg your pardon, i do not quite understand you. are you not referring to the 45th and 47th american president? why no, i meant trump vii, renowned emperor of atlantis. and who might he have been? the young man asked. it is not who he might have been, but is. so the empire of atlantis is right now in existence? what is it to you if it is, eh? eh? i’m sorry, i was merely trying to improvise polite conversation. i am afraid you were doing nothing of the sort. what do you take me for? the young man implored. i know exactly what you are - a spy for mudlark! a man in a light brown trenchcoat approached the pair. are you zachary colin marchmont? he asked the young man. why yes i am - officer, if i am not mistaken? and you, sir, are you not mister john jacoby lassiter? i have the misfortune to be that most unhappy personage. your jigs are both up, gentlemen - please come with me. a grey sedan halted on the graveled path behind them. neither marchmont nor lassiter resisted - they knew the game. i never got to feed the poor ducks, lassiter lamented.

54 - 22. good times

by bofa xesjum

willie, xena, yeti, and zorina called themselves the four amigos. they met down by the old mill stream in delaware.. willie worked as an elevator repairman on the swing shift. xena was a free lance doppelganger on the wild side. yeti was a professional class clown for the highest bidder. zorina had difficulty explaining exactly what she did or said. they had good times together, after the sun went down. things went on in this way for weeks and months. in his previous life willie was a dentist in el paso. xena had been alternately a butterfly and a dive bomber. yeti had never known his grandfather or a free lunch. zorina had been a princess in fifteen different forgotten kingdoms. willie’s favorite movie was the bridge on the river kwai. xena’s favorite lipsticks were imported from singapore and were expensive. yeti went for long walks along sandy beaches and coutnry roads. zorina had them all beat when push came to shove. bluebeard ran the old mill stream wih a iron hand. he did not let anybody challenge him on his turf. not the amigos, the so-called authorities or any other losers. zorina’s mother did not approve of zorina’s three friends. she appealed to bluebeard to break up the merry band. and hired a hotshot lawyer, clarence wimble, to get serious. and a seasoned hitman, named blackie, to back hm up. bluebeard saw the writing on the wall and headed south. that is just the way that some people are. unfortunately. don’t worry about it - just try to do your best.

54 - 21. favorite

by bofa xesjum

what is your favorite animal, alice asked billy quite innocently. a cow, billy replied with , to alice, somewhat surprising promptitude. a cow is a very gentle animal, alice murmured approvingly. a cow grilled over an open fire, with a-1 sauce. i meant a live animal, that you can talk to. animals can not talk, billy responded with his characteristic certainty. they might lf you sincerely tried to talk to them. let us talk about something else, you are boring me. what is your favorite insect, or your favorite vanished civilization? why is it always favorite this, favorite that? billy asked. you know we have been instructed to talk about things, yes, so that we can learn to talk about things. is that a problem? what else are we to do? we could just wait until it is time for lunch. stafford and mister brown might not like that very much. who are duke and duchess here , we or mister brown? the door opened and stafford strode into the sun room. mister brown wishes to see both of you right now. but it is not even lunch time yet, billy protested. mister brown has never wanted us before lunch, alice added. mister brown wants to see you right now, stafford repeated. alice and billy followed stafford down to the blue.river. they got in the boat and stafford began rowing across , to the island where mister brown was waiting for them. i always very much enjoyed your company, billy, alice cried . a bird flew overhead as stafford pulled at the oars.

54 - 20. walking in the rain

by bofa xesjum

the storm will begin in twenty minutes and seventeen seconds. i can make it, murchison thought, i can do it. i can get to the center in fifteen minutes easy. he set out, swinging his short but muscular arms confidently. after eight minutes, the rain suddenly began to fall heavily. murchison looked around desperately for a cab or a bus. he was quickly soaked like laundry in a washing machine. the people at the center would have a good laugh. he knew their type - always ready with a heartless smile. along with their rolling eyeballs and obviously fake sympathetic noises. it was the story of his life, over and over. the rain fell harder, almost knocking hin off his feet. the street was now completely empty of people or vehicles. just murchison and the rain and wind and falling darkness. why, he wondered, was life so awful and so meaningless? why did his fellow humans consider him ridiculous and pathetic? < p> his phone came back on, interrupting his despairing interior monologue. the storm will continue for anther twenty-two minutes before ending. how do i know this forecast will be any better? i might as well just give up and go home. home to the loneliest room in the whole wide world. a long black town car appeared in his peripheral vision. it pulled up beside him and the window rolled down. the young woman behind the wheel had a cheerleader smile. hello, bob, my name is cambridge, i’m from the center. we thought you might like a ride in this weather.

54 - 19. the outside man

by bofa xesjum

sarah looked out the window while travis read his book. look, there is a man sitting on the sidewalk outside. you mean he is not sitting on the sidewalk inside? your literal-mindedness gets more tiresome with every passsing decade. duly noted, travis replied, without looking up from his book. he looks so sad - i wonder what his problem is. you can see the expression on his face from here? i can tell from his body language, sarah replied confidently. why don’t you go out and engage him in conversation? that is a good idea - i will do just that. take your phone or your notebook - and take good notes. but sarah was out the door before the parting shot. good morning, my name is sarah , what might yours be? it might be many different things, thank you for asking. you sound just like my husband, sarah replied somewhat disappointedly. is that a compliment - is your husband a nice person? forget him - i came out here to talk to you. if i may ask, in some official or semi-official capacity? no, in a happy spirit of sincere friendship and enquiry. i think those are two different spirits - friendship and enquiry. tell me, what is in your briefcase, sarrah changed the subject. why would you want to know that? the man asked. a history of the world - ir maybe a groundbreaking novel? no, just some socks and underwear, if you must know, you can get the best socks at goodwill, he aded. but for underwear you should go to the salvation army.

54 - 18. beside the lake

by bofa xesjum

i feel i have done all i can do, sir. that is quite a statement from one so young, exeter. many have opined that i have an old soul, sir. so you have nothing for me, then? mister macardle sighed. i thought it prudent not to produce absolute rubbish, sir. feeling, like alexander, you have no more worlds to conquer. exactly, sir, i could not have said it better myself. outside the dusty window of the conference room, birds flew. ' exeter, with his old soul, walked slowly around the placid lake. mister macardle poured a cup of tea with a cavalier flourish. the door opened and proctor walked in quite at his ease. well, what did you make of him? proctor bluntly asked macardle. he just won’t do, macardle replied, he just won’t do. i will have the necessary paperwork done and steps taken. have you heard from parker ? macardle smoothly changed the subject. no, and i do not care if i ever do, exeter met juliana under a tall tree beside the lake. have you made up your mind? she asked without ceremony. i have made up my mind to conquer the world. i do not suppose you wish to take me along. of course not, it is obvious you just won’t do. pray, how any people in the world just will do? i never suspected you were such a philosopher, my dear. is not a philosopher but a person who asks questions? i never ask questions, exeter replied briskly, especially of myself. a sudden breeze stirred the lake, and a raindrop fell.

54 - 17. well furnished

by bofa xesjum

outside, the snow began to fall at an alarming rate. huddled in the grimy doorway, roger valmont felt very unhappy, he turned the collar of his ragged green coat up, how had it come to this? he asked himself speculatively. wet snow began to cover the glass in the doorway. roger could no longer see the people in the street. i am wasting my valuable time, he told himself despondently. the door opened suddenly and roger was confronted by aldington. aldington shook snow off his topcoat and glared at roger. do you live here, fellow,? aldington demanded in his brusque manner. aldington! do you not know me? roger cried out piteously. aldington’s eyes retracted in the way roger remembred so well. yes, of course, he murmured, what do you want now? now! it has been at least thirty years, roger cried. well, what is it that you want, after thirty yrars? shelter from the storm, what else would i possibly want? what could anyone possibly want? aldington muittered grimly to himself. come on up then, he added, pointing to the stairs. the elevator is broken, but the room is well furnished. roger followed aldington up four flights of dimly lit stairs. the room was indeed well furnished, and warm as well. roger sat down on a shabby but soft oriental divan. might i be offered a drink next, he mused hopefully. not yet, for aldington had disappeared into an adjoining room. roger heard aldington’s voice rising and falling, angry as ever. outside the wind joined the snow in a fierce embrace.