《Terms and Conditions》 Ferrets and Beetosaurs

A SHARP SERIES OF BEEPS REVERTED MARINE THE DINOSAUR BACK TO HUMAN FORM. In fact, Marine mayn¡¯t have been dreaming about being a dinosaur at all. Perhaps she was having a rather unpleasant dream about being a large beetle. But since beetles shared an uncanny resemblance to dinosaurs, from the perspective of an ant, it didn¡¯t matter much if Marine were to be a dinosaur or a beetle. And, as Marine had already forgotten the details of her dream, she could have been a rare species of Dinobeetle or Beetosaur for all she cared. Marine¡¯s foggy brain finally came to the conclusion that whatever the dream was about, it had to have been extremely important, for she had promptly forgotten all about it. The ability to rapidly forget information is a talent Marine reserved only for extremely important tasks. Tasks such as finishing her homework she had left on the floor. Marine scrambled to her feet. She stopped her stubborn watch from beeping, strapping it on her wrist. In half an hour, the bus would arrive. Marine flicked on the switch, using five of those precious minutes blinking her eyes and squinting to get used to the light. She thought she must look a lot like a turtle. Fifteen more minutes were spent in the shower. She had attempted to take a cold one, like in movies, but found it was impossible to enjoy a shower cold, and twisted the knob to a temperature crafted to accommodate those who enjoyed taking long, hot, showers. Marine flew threw her math problems while scrambling eggs, her mind constantly preoccupied with excuses for the grease on the printout. She poured the slightly overcooked eggs out on a plate, packing her backpack as she waited for the eggs to cool. Three more minutes. Marine shoved eggs in her mouth as she pulled a sweatshirt over her head. Stuffing her feet in untied sneakers, she ran down the driveway in time for the bus. Marine was greeted by a grunt from the driver, and she returned her gratitude with another grunt, searching for an empty seat. She filtered out the chaos in the bus easily, catching her breath as she watched the window. Despite the hurry she was in to complete her math homework, Marine felt confident that she had gotten everything correct. Her peace was interrupted by a sudden halt, which seemed to be the only thing the bus driver excelled at. ¡°Hey Nick!¡± someone called.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Marine, or more commonly called by her middle name Nick, plastered on a smiled. ¡°Hey,¡± she replied, ¡°morning.¡± Nick sighed internally, finally accepting that the dreaded obstacle course known as school had begun.
SOMEWHERE IN THE VICINITY OF EARTH A MUSTELA WAS CRUISING AT 80% LIGHT SPEED. His grand name cannot be spelled in the puny language of Earth beings, but pronunciation of the name closely resembled the jumble of consonants and vowels known as Exflibberaguil. Mustela, by sheer coincidence, is also the scientific name for animals like the weasel. Exflibberaguil was having a strange and heated monologue, along the lines of: ¡°Calm dowZRITIOS.¡± ¡°trifliwerSTOP.¡± ¡°Oh, come on! You¡¯re being immaturALFOTERAGETBEN.¡± It should be noted that this is not translated from the language of Mustache. Exflibberaguil then continued his monologue in Mandarin. Upon closer examination, it was not a monologue after all, but an argument with his translator, who was being particularly sulky after Exflibberaguil had attempted to install a new dictionary that his translator didn¡¯t approve of. Exflibberaguil resigned to the debate, and as a punishment, the translator refused to translate anything he said. Therefore, for the benefit of the reader, the rest is translated from the sophisticated language of Mustache to the primitive English language. ¡°7730!¡± Exflibberaguil called out. A ferret brought a thin device to his owner. Exflibberaguil turned 7730 on, muttering and tapping his fingers on his knee impatiently. The device loaded, but Exflibberaguil was immediately disappointed again for her uttered a beautiful walrus cry. ¡°No one agreed!¡± he cried, sounding very much like a disappointed evil mastermind. He set 7730 back on the ferret to put away, and leaned back on his seat (which strangely enough, was shaped like a toucan). A little blue planet was not far away.
AT THE SAME TIME: An archeologist cut himself with a razor while he was shaving, and the blood that dripped down on the floor would later be licked up by his dog. A dress maker was humming a strange tune that sounded eerily like wind between tree hollows, waking up squirrels who screamed agitatedly and cursed the wind, and then getting eaten by an owl. A meercat specialist bit into a tapeworm-infested piece of raw fish. None of these people have any importance to this story, but it is worth noting that the doctor of the meercat specialist had taken three hours out of his sleep to extract the tapeworm, and it probably wouldn¡¯t be a great idea to cross the man. llama-nade THE BUS SKIDDED TO ANOTHER SUDDEN HALT AS THEY PULLED UP TO SCHOOL. The bus driver grunted once more, which was the only thing Nick had ever heard him say. It would not be an altogether too unbelievable conspiracy theory to say that the driver may have been a caveman. Ben had been stubbornly pelting Nick with a string of one-liners the whole bus ride, and Nick had been stubbornly trying to convey her boredom without seeming too rude. Finally giving up, Nick had been puzzled over Ben¡¯s last name, a topic which she cared more for than jokes about llamas. ¡°What do llamas like to drink?¡± Nick didn¡¯t have time to answer, not that she would have anyway, before Ben hurried to the punch line. ¡°llama-nade! Oh, here¡¯s another one. Where do sharks come from?¡± Nick refrained from saying, ¡°their moms¡±. ¡°Finland!¡± Ben cried gleefully. Nick gave him a pained smile, her eyes searching for a path through the throngs of awkward, odorous, puberty-infected schoolchildren. ¡°Hey Ben,¡± she said, ¡°try this: What makes a turtle fall asleep?¡± Ben pounced on the riddle happily. ¡°Ooh, let¡¯s see¡­¡± but Nick had already made her getaway. Truthfully, she had no idea what made a turtle sleep, but Ben¡¯s puns must make the list. Nick glanced back to make sure Ben hadn¡¯t followed. Running was Nick¡¯s specialty. Not running itself; she was no good on track, but running from trouble, or from problems she couldn¡¯t solve. It was a very useful skill, knowing how to run. After dropping off her backpack in her locker, Nick collapsed on a last-row seat in her homeroom. She didn¡¯t want to be seen, for the time being, by Ben. The whiteboard displayed the new weekly quote, some cheesy words of inspiration that everyone was forced to write an essay on. ¡°THE WORLD IS YOUR OYSTER.¡±This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. It¡¯ll certainly be quite a gross one. Nick had never liked eating slimy oysters. ¡°Yer in my seat.¡± Nick jumped, but quickly regained posture. It was only one of the jerks, the type teachers are all too happy to call on because jerks never seemed to know anything. Nick wasn¡¯t sure why teachers even bothered calling on those who obviously didn¡¯t know the answer. Teachers didn¡¯t need to bolster their ego. ¡°So I am.¡± Nick replied evenly. ¡°Get out.¡± ¡°I quite enjoy sitting in this particular seat.¡± The jerk blinked. ¡°I want to sit in my seat.¡± ¡°You can sit in mine.¡± Nick pointed to an unoccupied desk at the front of the room. ¡°No. I want to sit in my seat.¡± The jerk reached for Nick¡¯s textbook, the closest projectile. ¡°Well,¡± Nick said, ¡°I¡¯ve given up my seat to sit in yours, and you¡¯ve given up your seat, so the only way to make this fair is if you sit in my seat. This is for your own benefit.¡± ¡°But¡ª¡± ¡°I want to sit in my original seat as much as you would like to sit in mine.¡± ¡°But¡ª¡± ¡°So it seems that we¡¯ve both given up something. I¡¯ve given up my seat and you¡¯ve given up yours.¡± ¡°But¡ª" ¡°Of course, if you insist, I will return to my seat, but just keep in mind that you¡¯d be losing my seat.¡± ¡°Um,¡± he said stupidly, ¡°No. I want to sit in your seat. Don¡¯t try to sit in it.¡± ¡°Aw man!¡± Nick shook her head, as if everything she was planning was ruined. The jerk moved slowly to the front of the classroom, looking very stupid and very confused. Transcript 01 NOTE: THE FOLLOWING IS ALSO TRANSLATED FROM THE GREAT LANGUAGE OF MUSTACHE TO THE PRIMITIVE LANGUAGE OF ENGLISH.
¡°LOOK, YOU CAN¡¯T STAY MAD AT ME FOREVER.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Hey, I don¡¯t even know what that word means.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°oh.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°I really could have done without that explanation.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Alright. I know I shouldn¡¯t have downloaded that dictionary. Not with the words you¡¯re saying now.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Don¡¯t go on saying it! Imagine if that just came out of my mouth in the middle of a senten¡ª@#*!!¡± ¡°¡­!¡±If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°That was not funny.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°Oh, come off it, will you?¡± ¡°:P¡± ¡°Fine. We¡¯re good?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°¡­Terms? You have terms?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Really? You know, you¡¯re really immature.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°I am not going to agree to tha¡ª@#*!!¡± ¡°:P¡± ¡°Har, har, har.¡± ¡°:P¡±
AND SO IT WENT ON IN THE SEEMINGLY NEVER-ENDING BATTLE BETWEEN EXFLIBBERAGUIL AND HIS TRANSLATOR, THE FORMER BEING THE ONLY THING THAT MADE SOUND IN THE WIDE EXPANSE OF SILENCE IN HIS SHIP. On Mustela IT IS IMPORTANT TO KNOW THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A MUSTELA AND A HUMAN. Most Mustela are taller than an Odriew. They evolve from an animal similar to an ape, but with a larger brain, sturdier build, and a keen sense of fashion. Most Mustela have black pupils and smooth but thick skin, with very little hair (most of which have fallen off from millennials of evolution). In the case of Exflibberaguil, (the only Mustela close enough for Sodriew [the plural of Odriew, or ¡®human¡¯ in English]) the only hair visible would be on his head, which has grown long from the years he had repeated over and over in his spaceship by going back in time. In the eyes of an Odriew, Exflibberaguil would be strangely tall and sharp-looking¡ªthat is, have many sharp angles in his face and limbs in an undeniably geometrically pleasing sense¡ªbut is certainly no older than fourteen. And they would be quite right. But Sodriew can easily be deflected from their original thoughts, which really makes them quite useless. That is to say, it is quite easy to convince an Odriew that Exflibberaguil, was, in fact, much older than fourteen and has just hit puberty late. In fact, most Sodriew can also easily identify Exflibberaguil being an extraterrestrial, but would quickly dismiss it for the thought itself is to large for Odriew brains to process.Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. This peculiar occurrence has been observed by Mustela for many years, as the same thought process occurs to all living species very early in the evolution process, early being relative, of course. The brain of an Odriew, or, specifically, another extraterrestrial species very similar to an Odriew, is hailed as one of the most important things in the Mustela world. The brain has become an astonishingly good example of an early computer, and was the inspiration for the first one on Mustela. From then, computers started to become more complicated, though never surpassing Mustela brains, until very recently (that is, only a few millennials ago, time being relative.) There is also the dolphin in which the Mustela have always looked up to. The dolphin, the most intelligent creature on Driew, had a brain that surpassed that of the Mustela, and also surpassed a computer¡¯s brain in some areas, including strategy games and color theory. However this statement can never be testified for computers refused to turn on every time one was dropped in a water-filled dolphin tank. Also, some Mustela are purple with fleshy tentacles, fifty eyes, and like to enjoy treats with Red 42 dye. But that¡¯s not important because they¡¯re all dead. Detention ¡°AGAIN?¡± ¡°Surprised?¡± Nick asked, slipping into one of the many vacant seats. ¡°I wish I were.¡± Ms. Elis, the intern, had replaced Mrs. Yuna as detention duty. Ms. Elis didn¡¯t look like a teacher. She had short, pixie-cut brown hair with streaks bleached blond. She was younger than any teacher Nick knew, and she wore a lot more makeup. Nick liked her a lot more than Mrs. Yuna. She was a lot nicer and didn¡¯t have tuna sandwich every day during detention duty. Nick tossed a crumbled ball of blue paper to Ms. Elis. ¡°What is it this time?¡± Ms. Elis asked, studying the report. ¡°I dropped my pen,¡± Nick answered innocently. ¡°Hardly ¡®dropped¡¯,¡± Ms. Elis snorted, ¡°Have you read your report?¡± She tossed the crumbled ball back to Nick.
Date: Student: Marine N. Lucifay Teacher: M. Hardagree Period: 1 Notes: Disrupting class; Flinging pens across the room; Disrespecting the teacher and students; Double detention Parent Signature:
Nick smoothed the blue paper out. ¡°I see what you mean,¡± Nick said, ¡°She didn¡¯t even write the date.¡± Ms. Elis rolled her eyes. ¡°What does M stand for?¡± Nick asked suddenly, ¡°I always assumed it was Mrs.¡± ¡°Melina, I think,¡± Ms. Elis replied halfheartedly, ¡°Melina Hardagree.¡± The two lapsed into silence. Nick didn¡¯t think Mrs. Hardagree looked like a Melina. She looked like a Tyrannosaurus on a Monday. Her breath was proof she dined on dead carcasses every day. But Mrs. Hardagree certainly was a Hardagree. It was always hard to make her agree to anything. The mustard-yellow walls of the detention room had now become beige. To hide crack in the paint, multiple inspirational posters had been put up, telling you to ¡°Keep Quiet¡± or ¡°Don¡¯t Draw on the Desks¡±. Nick noticed this not because she was particularly interested, but because her eyes had to look somewhere when everything was silent. Nick didn¡¯t mind the silence, or detention for that matter. Detention was a good time to think. Nick thought about a lot of things. Which, she supposed, was the purpose of humankind. People were made to be giant thinking machines, though not, perhaps, a very efficient ones. Perhaps the dinosaurs were very good thinking machines too. Nick wondered how far away an alien would have to be to watch the destruction of the dinosaurs at this very moment. The thought that you can watch things back in time, as long as you were far enough, was still perplexing to Nick, but very amusing to think of. Oh, well. Another one of Nick¡¯s wandering trains of thought. What really needed thought was Nick¡¯s next school. She didn¡¯t like how she turned out here. She wasn¡¯t popular and not enough people seemed to know here funny side. Nick was just another kid getting jostled by others. Nick had saved the best school for next year¡ªeighth grade. It was important to have a good school in eighth grade. She wouldn¡¯t let the trouble go to waste. Where had she gone wrong this year? She didn¡¯t join enough clubs¡ªthat was one thing. She didn¡¯t meet enough people. She¡¯d have to improve on that. And she didn¡¯t make an impression on the first day of school. How, she couldn¡¯t imagine, but Nick could think something up. ¡°What are you thinking about?¡± Ms. Elis asked. ¡°I was wondering what your full name was.¡± ¡°It¡¯s Rein Andrelina Elis,¡± she replied, ¡°But such a boring topic hardly prompts twenty minutes of consideration.¡± ¡°I was also thinking about my next school.¡±If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Another school? What¡¯s wrong here?¡± ¡°Nothing,¡± Nick admitted, ¡°But I like moving on.¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to have to settle sometime. You can¡¯t run forever.¡± Nick didn¡¯t answer. ¡°Well, detention¡¯s over,¡± Ms. Elis said, standing up. ¡°My mom can¡¯t sign¡ª¡± ¡°I know. Keep the detention slip. I don¡¯t want you to hand it back with a forged signature. Not that I believe you ever will¡ª¡± Ms. Elis squinted suspiciously at Nick. Nick stood up. ¡°Or have.¡± Ms. Elis laughed. ¡°Or have. Enjoy your lunch. And you can pass on detention tomorrow.¡± Ms. Elis tried to shield her obvious eagerness of spending lunch break out of detention. ¡°Thanks,¡± Nick said, leaving the classroom, ¡°But don¡¯t expect me not to come.¡±
¡°WAKE UP.¡± ¡°C¡¯mon, wake up.¡± Exflibberaguil banged on a little box. The box made a little whirring sound. ¡°Good¡ª¡± it stopped. ¡°Good¡ª¡± it stopped again. ¡°Good¡ª¡° ¡°Oh, for Zrillions¡¯s sake.¡± Exflibberaguil sighed and banged the box again. ¡°Good morafevniteringnogon,¡± the box said in a high-pitched voice. It struggled trying to say morning, afternoon, and evening all at once, for, in space, there wasn¡¯t really a standard time at all. Or, more precisely, a standard period of each day. No morning, afternoon, or evening. It made weather forecasting very difficult, but little things like that can be excused. ¡°Box!¡± Exflibberaguil barked, ¡°Current stats of planet Driew!¡± Box¡¯s screech wheels ran back and forth across the polished marble floor, playing an odd tune. ¡°I am so happy to be of assistance!¡± ¡°You¡¯re not assisting very good yet!¡± Exflibberaguil yelled over the screeching. ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry¡ª¡± ¡°Just give me the stats!¡± ¡°One million or four million?¡± ¡°Four is cosmos,¡± Exflibberaguil sighed, as it was obvious, ¡°so four of course!¡± ¡°Please stand by,¡± The box said pleasantly, ¡°while I play infuriating yet calming elevator music that goes on repeat for several years.¡± ¡°I swear¡ª¡± Exflibberaguil lifted his fist once again. ¡°Currently,¡± the box whined, slightly offended, ¡°it takes four years for four million bunnies to spring from a single breeding pair.¡± Exflibberaguil breathed heavier. ¡°Only four years?¡± ¡°That¡¯s rrright! Jeopardy!¡± ¡°Box, how many pet bunnies are there in the world?¡± ¡°Would you count rabbits as well? And hares?¡± ¡°I say yes every single time! You¡¯re supposed to have good memory or something. ¡± ¡°There are about fourteen million pet bunrabhaniesbitsres in the world,¡± the box said, glitching again as it tried to say bunnies, rabbits, and hares at the same time. ¡°Fourteen million? I have to go through fourteen million?¡± ¡°And in counting!¡± ¡°Box, shut up.¡± Exflibberaguil paced around the room. ¡°That news is so bad, I almost wish I could forget it.¡± His eyes lingered on a strange device in the corner. ¡°I almost wish I could forget it,¡± he repeated. Violemortem EXFLIBBERAGUIL WAS SLEEPING. His dreams are not important, as they were rather, er, explicit to say the least. Average Mustela puberty occurred only a year after average Odriew puberty. Next to him, a violet flower suddenly shriveled up and died. An hour later, Exflibberaguil woke up.
"BOX!" ¡°Box!¡± Box woke up, just in time to dodge a punch. ¡°Yeah?¡± it whirred. ¡°Box!¡± Exflibberaguil thrusted a small plant pot at Box. ¡°Fix it!¡± he said desperately. Box looked at the pot thoughtfully. ¡°Well, sir, it seems to be in good condition. Only one minor crack at the top. A potter can probably fix it¡ªany potter. Harry Potter too.¡± ¡°Not the pot, you boxhead! The plant!¡± ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°Fix it!¡± ¡°It¡¯s dead.¡± ¡°I know!¡± Exflibberaguil wailed, ¡°It¡¯s not supposed to die!¡± Box¡¯s circuits whirred, analyzing the crinkled brown petals in his database. ¡°It¡¯s a violemortum.¡± Box said, ¡°Violemortem can see into all possible futures. When it is certain it is going to die in the next year, that is, the future has been decided, it dies to save the trouble of living for the next few months.¡± ¡°But why would it die?¡± Exflibberaguil cried, ¡°I take good care of it and everything!¡± ¡°Actually¡ª¡± ¡°Fine. My ferret takes good care of it. But what¡¯s the difference?¡± Box did the equivalent of a shrug, ejecting the ¡°shoulder¡± plates three feet in the air. ¡°But it¡¯s not supposed to die,¡± Exflibberaguil muttered in desperation, ¡°it¡¯s supposed to live forever and ever and ever. I don¡¯t suppose the seller is still alive.¡± ¡°No. He¡¯s ¨C¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think I should tell¡ª¡± Box said suddenly. Exflibberaguil hit it. ¡°He¡¯s dead. Along with everyone else,¡± Box said unwillingly. ¡°My mom can fix the plant¡ª¡± ¡°Your mom is dead. And so is your planet.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Pylo¡¯rox is no more, sir,¡± Box said, ¡°and neither are any of your relations.¡± ¡°What do you mean, no more? Do I need to buy some or something?¡±The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°They¡¯re dead.¡± Exflibberaguil breathed in a breath of cold, industrial air. ¡°No. they¡¯re not.¡± ¡°They were invaded, sir.¡± ¡°They were not!¡± Box made a sighing noise, turning on his fan for effect. ¡°¡­I¡¯m sorry, sir.¡± Exflibberaguil sat down in his toucan seat. ¡°Let me get this straight. My planet was invaded, and that¡¯s why I¡¯m trying to help other planets?¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± ¡°And now I¡¯m an orphan, driving around space with an outdated robot and a ferret and a flower.¡± ¡°Correct.¡± ¡°And now the flower is dead.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°And the flower only dies when it knows it¡¯s going to die in the near future.¡± ¡°Yup.¡± ¡°But me¡ªor my ferret, whichever you¡¯d like to choose¡ªhas been taking very good care of the plant.¡± ¡°Uh-huh.¡± ¡°So, it seems, the only case in which the flower would die is when neither me nor my ferret can take care of it.¡± "It seems so.¡± ¡°And I can see no reason why I should leave this ship without bringing the flower. Besides, even if I forget, my ferret won¡¯t. He was quite attached to the flower.¡± ¡°Si.¡± ¡°So the only reason the flower would die is because my ferret and I would die in the very near future.¡± ¡°Right you are.¡± ¡°Box, how many ways of saying yes do you know?¡± ¡°One thousand four hundred¡ª¡± ¡°Shut up.¡± Exflibberaguil was looking very green. He took another breath of air, then refused to let it out. Not that he needed to, for some of his pores could breath. ¡°I think I want to forget it all.¡± Exflibberaguil said softly. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure my machine could do that.¡± ¡°Sir?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You can¡¯t just forget it!¡± ¡°Why?¡± This only seemed to motivate Exflibberaguil to move. ¡°You¡¯re not the boss of me!¡± ¡°But you need to remember! To save Driew!¡± ¡°Why does it matter. My planet is dead.¡± ¡°But¡ª¡± ¡°So it seems like the only way to save Driew is to forget about my planet.¡± Exflibberaguil stepped into the forgetting machine. ¡°But¡ª¡± Exflibberaguil pressed a few buttons. ¡°But¡ª¡± Exflibberaguil pressed ¡®Start¡¯¡± ¡°But,¡± Box finally completed, ¡°If you forget everything now, almost all our fuel would be gone!¡± Conspearisee NICK WAS SEEING DOUBLE. Her chest heaved. She fumbled at the lock of her house, staggering inside before collapsing on the sofa, face first. Her desperate pants for air were muffled by the ancient-smelling cushions. Nick, in her attempt to evade Ben¡¯s pursues for the answer to the riddle, had also managed to evade the bus. Typical. She had run home as fast as possible, which wasn¡¯t very fast at all, just in case her mom decided to come back and pick up something. This rarely happened, but when it did, Nick knew better than to be away. The last time this happened, Nick had been at the library, when a furious stream of calls targeted her phone. Nick had been yelled at by both her mom and the librarian, which was about as frightening as being nearly rode over by an eighteen-wheeler (which also had happened when Nick was biking home at top speed). Her efforts had gone to waste today. Her mom was not home. Nick¡¯s mother would best be described as a ghost. You rarely see her, yet you feel the presence. Nick¡¯s mom was almost always away at work. The few moments she was at home¡ªthat is, late in the night and early in the morning¡ªshe was glued to her smartphone or laptop, texting or typing furiously at coworkers. Nick didn¡¯t mind it too much, really. Nick didn¡¯t like talking to people, something unavoidable in school. She¡¯d much rather stay at home and do her own thing. However, having the lack of a motherly figure did dump a heavy load of responsibilities to Nick, like cooking, cleaning, and being well-mannered. Everyone in school were too eager to grow up and have responsibilities. But responsibilities were one thing Nick couldn¡¯t share. Oh well. Some guy had once said something wise like ¡°Man make really nice plans, but God blows them up.¡± Some other guy had said. ¡°Life doesn¡¯t give participation awards to everyone.¡± Nick had once said, ¡°Life sucks.¡± Nick fell rolled out of the couch, and was painfully reminded that the force of gravity was still in action, and that hitting your head on wood was a very undesirable event. Nick dragged her legs to her room, locking the door behind her. Like all technology-driven teenagers, she instinctively flipped open her laptop, before remembering she had to complete homework, which was in her backpack all the way at the end of the hall. Life sucks. The laptop played its welcoming jingle, and Nick remembered one of her social studies assignments was to check up on the latest conspiracy theories, and then write a five paragraph essay summarizing the most interesting or convincing points. How was conspiracy spelled again? Nick frowned, her browser search bar still blank. ¡°Con-spear-i-see,¡± Nick said, sounding it out. Conspearisee.com, Nick typed. She half expected to be redirected and told that the website did not exist. But a black screen started loading in. Then, pixel by pixel, white words were formed on the screen. Nick blinked. It wrote: Hello Odriew. This is the fifth time I had to translate this, so I¡¯m not in a very good mood. Like, I thought the most used language was supposed to be Mandarin, and therefore that was the global language. But no! I¡¯ve got to translate it to Spanish and French and Italian and now English. I¡¯m going to do binary next because who knows what language your robots speak! Right, so this website needs you to agree to a Terms and Conditions. I¡¯ve taken the effort to install a timer right here, which will count down the moment you scroll down. After ten galactic minutes, you will automatically agree to the Terms and Conditions. This is the timer: 10 galmin. remaining. This website also uses cookies, though I¡¯m not sure how you should give it to me. I¡¯m sort of floating in space, but I suppose you could send one of those outdated rockets to mail a packet of cookies. However, remember, I don¡¯t like raisons. I hate those cookies who pretend to be chocolate chip but are actually oatmeal raison. Where was I? That¡¯s right. Terms and Conditions. Well, here they are:Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. This thing I¡¯m doing is going to be pretty dangerous. But if you have a life to spare, please join me. The brief synopsis is that I¡¯m an alien and there are a good number of invading alien species whom have settled in your planet Driew. I provide free water, but you¡¯ll have to purify it. You¡¯ll probably want to bring your teethbrush or something. I don¡¯t have any to spare, and I¡¯m not going to buy any. Be warned. Also, it would probably be nice if you brought your own food and oxygen. I¡¯m running a bit low. Some things that are not allowed in my ship: Beanbag chairs. They¡¯re way too big, and my ferret is more that likely to poop on it. Guns. I mean, what¡¯s the point of bullets in space? I¡¯ve got a pretty nice arsenal of laser darts so you don¡¯t need to worry about protection. Cheese Puffs. I find no pleasure in smelling the horrible smell of cheese puffs. Why Sodriew find them so pleasurable is beyond my knowledge. They are blobs of stuff with orange dust on them. I can make some that smell way better. Automatic Bubble Blowers. I do not harbor criminals or violators of the Galactic Yelling Papers. The use of Automatic Bubble Blowers is strictly prohibited as using them is counted as cheating. Of course, primitive planets like Driew are excused from the Galactic Yelling Paper until the fifth millennial, marked from the birth of Jesus Christ, a really nice guy that visits all planets sooner or later. Also, the cost of your fares is a big jumbo pack of bubble solution. It¡¯s the galactic currency, though I¡¯m sure you know. Even a primitive planet like Driew has got to have some mediocre bubble solutions. I¡ª At this moment, Nick stopped. She had previously been reading mindlessly, but it wasn¡¯t until now had she suddenly processed the information. This had got to be a joke. Of course it was a joke. Then, it occurred to Nick that this was not a very good website, and there was a very big probability that her computer was currently being hacked. Nick stared at the website. At the bottom right corner, there was a little gray box labeled ¡°chat¡±. The only thing in it was [Hello, Sodriew.] Tentatively, Nick typed in a message. [are you hacking me] There was no answer. Nick breathed out a breath she had been holding. Of course there would be no answer. A hacker wouldn¡¯t answer her. A hacker would be busy hacking, of course. Nick was an idiot. She should close this tab right now. She shouldn¡¯t still be spending time in it. [What¡¯s a hacker, Sir/Madam?] Nick jumped. The message popped up along with a little ¡°whooping¡± sound. Nick read the message again. So someone was admitting that they were on the website. Some kid maybe, who didn¡¯t know what a hacker was. Awfully polite for a kid, though. [Hello?] Another message. Someone was chatting on this site. Nick¡¯s fingers hovered on her keyboard. [what is your name] A moment¡¯s pause. [I don¡¯t have one.] [you¡¯ve got to have one. everyone has one] [I don¡¯t have a Nedriew one.] [what the hell does that mean] [Well, I have a galactic name. It¡¯s Exflibberaguil.] [youve got to be kidding] [I think it¡¯s a very nice name.] [no offense, but i don¡¯t believe you] Another longer pause. [Wow. Sodriew really are true to their name.] [what] [What¡¯s your name?] Nick hesitated, then remembered her nickname was a boy¡¯s name and felt rather sure it wouldn¡¯t do any harm. [nick] [Hello.] [¡­you said that already] [I know. I suppose you¡¯ve agreed to the terms and conditions?] This comment caught Nick off guard. Terms and conditions. The little timer showed less than a minute. Of course. Nick was an idiot. In less than a minute, this hacker would have extracted all her information, and put a virus in that cavity. In less than a minute, her identity would be stolen. Nick was an idiot. An idiot. She clicked for the X button in panic.
[Hello?] [Are you still there?] [Dammit. You¡¯re gone, aren¡¯t you.] [Box, what¡¯s a hacker?] Forgetting ¡°DO YOU REMEMBER ANYTHING I TOLD YOU, SIR?¡± BOX ASKED POLITELY. ¡°Nope!¡± Exflibberaguil answered cheerfully, ¡°none at all.¡± Exflibberaguil stepped out of an interesting machine in the corner of his ship, completely neglecting the horrible shape the machine was in. The machine resembled a giant portable sphere frame. Why anyone would care if it were portable or not was a great question, but ¡°portable¡± sounded nice and professional, and perhaps would attract a few more galactic bubble solution bottles. The frame was made of foot-long lengths of ruler-shaped metal, connected together with hinges and great amounts of duct-tape. It was given a nice afro of twisted wires, which seemed to just sit on top of the sphere rather than connect to it. Inside the machine was a smoking mess of tangled wires and brown soot. ¡°That machine needs cleaning,¡± Box remarked. ¡°Perhaps.¡± Exflibberaguil didn¡¯t say anything for another few seconds. ¡°I don¡¯t suppose you can clean it for me?¡± he asked Box. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but that is not an ability I have.¡± ¡°Well then,¡± Exflibberaguil said with finality, ¡°the machined does not need cleaning.¡± ¡°However,¡± Box cheered brightly, ¡°you can go to your BawksApp for a full list of my abilities. Would you like me to list some for you?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°I can call your friends, tell the time, and tell the weather. Additionally, there are many Easter-eggs¡ª¡± ¡°Yes, yes, thank you. Just shut up.¡± ¡°I apologize for any inconvenience. Would you like me to file a complaint? Bawks Kumpuhnee offers a full refund guaranteed to anyone unsatisfied with their products.¡± ¡°Yeah right. I¡¯ve read the fine print and the terms and conditions. ¡®Full refund¡¯ does not mean the customer has to pay double the original price plus donation to fund the company again. Box shut up. ¡°Sir?¡± it asked after a moment. ¡°Out with it.¡± ¡°I would just like you to know that you should probably consider landing in the next five days. Of course, the alternative is death with a pain factor of 7.69241 out of ten. We¡¯ve done surveys to confirm the exact number.¡± ¡°And you didn¡¯t think of informing me sooner.¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°What about my ferret?¡± ¡°He knows.¡± ¡°And he didn¡¯t tell me.¡± ¡°For a very good reason.¡± Exflibberaguil was stumped. ¡°Well, what do you suggest?¡± he asked, changing the topic. ¡°My opinion is that McDonalds is a pretty swell place to land. The most grease and oil concentrated on one spot that I know of.¡± ¡°Will I kill anyone?¡± ¡°There¡¯s a really big chance.¡± ¡°Rabbits?¡± ¡°There¡¯s a really, really, really, small chance.¡± ¡°Then I won¡¯t land.¡± ¡°But, sir, it is highly recommended that you land in the next five galactic days.¡± Box reminded, annoyingly cheerful. Exflibberaguil typed into a little laptop without answering. Suddenly, his head dropped. ¡°7730 still has not reported positive!¡± Exflibberaguil moaned. ¡°Really sir, it would be recommended¡ª" ¡°But 7730 had not reported positive!¡± Exflibberaguil insisted, ¡°It was all my fault. I must¡¯ve scared that one Odriew away. I never knew Sodriew were so jumpy.¡± ¡°Sir, landing after the next five galactic would not be recommended.¡± ¡°Why the hurry? I have plenty of time. Why did I leave my planet anyway?¡± ¡°Because it was destroyed.¡± Box was no longer so cheerful, having repeated the same thing for several years.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. ¡°Oh. Did I forget that?¡± ¡°Yes, sir,¡± Box sighed, ¡°three hundred sixty-seven times, not including the years you spent back in time. The last time you forgot was three galactic days ago.¡± ¡°And I intend to do so again.¡± ¡°Sir¡ª¡± ¡°Anyways, I still have loads of time. It takes seven years for one breeding pair to produce four million bunnies. Seven is more than four. Plus, seven is five is four is cosmos. It all makes sense. I¡¯ll have at least a couple more galactic years.¡± ¡°Sir, it takes four years for four million bunnies to be born from one breeding pair.¡± ¡°What?¡± Exflibberaguil exclaimed, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me earlier.¡± ¡°You forgot, sir.¡± ¡°Well, for such bad news, I can see why!¡± Exflibberaguil instinctively moved to his large spheroid machine in the corner, tinkling with the wires. ¡°Hold on. I think I can double wire this so I forget about my home planet and this bad news. And next time I ask something I forgot, don¡¯t tell me the answer.¡± ¡°But sir, last time I did that you smashed my CPU,¡± Box said painfully, ¡°I do not like being smashed. And the new one you bought isn¡¯t the same. Nothing is the same. I liked my darling little CPU before it was smashed.¡± ¡°Shut up,¡± Exflibberaguil muttered instinctively, ¡°I¡¯ll smash your AC the next time.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not my air conditioner, it¡¯s my¡ª¡± ¡°Done!¡± Exflibberaguil intentionally interrupted, saving himself from a lengthy and boring lecture. ¡°I think that¡¯ll do it.¡± He stepped into the spherical frame. ¡°Sir, it is not recommended you use that machine for the current time being.¡± ¡°And why is that?¡± ¡°For your health, sir.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Well,¡± the box said brightly, ¡°it will drain most of the fuel, and landing takes a lot of fuel, so you would die with a pain factor of 7.69241 out of ten.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°Doctors do not recommend dying very much. No one has ever done it more than once.¡± Box added, wheeling toward a plasma display and showing the statistics (a histogram with an infinitely rising bar at ¡®Deaths = 1 per being¡¯ on the x axis). ¡°Remind me to forget as soon as we land,¡± Exflibberaguil said with a sigh. ¡°I will, sir, unless you forget to forget about what you told me to forget.¡± Exflibberaguil was not to be beaten. ¡°I shan¡¯t forget what not to forget for getting into the forgetting machine so that I can forget what you told me not to forget.¡± ¡°But sir, forgetting to forget is not¡ª¡± ¡°One. Twenty. Nine.¡± A nasally, monotonous, feminine voice boomed through the ship. Exflibberaguil jumped. His ferret jumped. Box danced a sort of turning Irish jig, for Box was a flat, circular machine with wheels (who couldn¡¯t jump), and Exflibberaguil purposely didn¡¯t buy the newest version of Box (which had legs) because it was said that those new versions had an even worse personality. Also, Exflibberaguil couldn¡¯t buy the newest version because Bawks Kumpuhnee closed. It would not have been smart to continue the production of Bawksez because everyone in the company, included the CEO¡¯s, were dead. But Exflibberaguil had chosen to forget that insignificant detail. ¡°What was that?¡± Exflibberaguil demanded. ¡°The countdown clock,¡± Box replied, dancing a different sort of jig because one of its wheels was caught in a bundle of wires. ¡°Who set it up?¡± Exflibberaguil said, then realized the stupidity of the question. ¡°It was me, wasn¡¯t it, and I just forgot. I must have set the timer as a personal reminder. How smart I am.¡± ¡°Well, actually¡ª¡± Box coughed, ¡°it was me.¡± ¡°No it wasn¡¯t,¡± Exflibberaguil said with spite. His ferret agreed. Box looked taken aback. ¡°Well¡ª¡± The ferret started an odd screech. ¡°Ok, ok,¡± Box admitted, ¡°it wasn¡¯t me. It was that ferret.¡± ¡°The ferret?¡± ¡°But the credit should go to me because I thought of the idea first,¡± Box added. ¡°The ferret?¡± Exflibberaguil repeated, ¡°Yes, I mean, I couldn¡¯t have done it anyway because I don¡¯t have hands. But, in case you forgot, I thought of the idea first.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you do a computer-telepathy-thingamabobber, and not use hands?¡± ¡°It¡¯s called NodeTalk,¡± Box said, offended, ¡°but I rather NotTalk to the Countdown. She¡¯s so boring.¡± Exflibberaguil ignored to lecture that followed on the up and downs of NodeTalk, and if the pros outweighed the cons in Binary. ¡°Ferret,¡± he asked, ¡°why did you set up a countdown clock?¡± ¡°Because he was in a hurry to land, of course,¡± Box said matter-of-factly. Exflibberaguil blinked. ¡°Now why would he do that?¡± ¡°To escape death. And several other very good reasons I can not tell you because it¡¯s password locked.¡± The ferret screeched again and quickly ran off. ¡°That¡¯s odd.¡± ¡°No,¡± Box said, ¡°it really isn¡¯t.¡± Second Encounter ¡°FANCY SEEING YOU OUT OF DETENTION.¡± ¡°Fancy seeing you out of luck.¡± ¡°Touch¨¦,¡± Devon replied, a blue detention slip in his hand. Nick was glad to see him finally punished. He always seemed to slip out of trouble. Unfortunately for Ms. Elis, it seems like she wouldn¡¯t be getting a lunch break any time soon. In truth, Nick would have been wholly prepared to do something ¡°disrupting to the learning environment¡± and get into detention, but she had forgotten Ms. Elis excused her from double detention. So, Nick, like all introverts, avoided human interaction, and headed for the least crowded area during recess; the library. Nick always wondered why people bothered to go to the computer lab when the library was so much quieter and comfier. The computer lab had hard plastic chairs, while the library allowed you to recline on a sofa while you type. Nick wolfed down a chicken wing on her way. No food was allowed in the library, so she may as well finish her lunch in the hallway. Nick waved a hello to the librarian whom looked just as eager to get home as the students. Nick logged in to her school account, thought a moment, and decided to type Conspearisee.com. The same black screen greeted her, with the timer refreshed at 10 galmin. She hurried to type something in the chat box, which only said [Hello Sodriew] like yesterday. Right before she started typing, her fingers already poised over the keyboard, she hesitated. No. She was being an idiot. Why did she go on this hacker¡¯s site? And she really shouldn¡¯t be doing this on a school account. The last thing she needed was to be put in detention because she was on a ¡°inappropriate website.¡± Nick didn¡¯t mind detention, but she went into detention with honor. Nick went to detention for starting games in class, or pulling pranks. Not for looking at ¡°inappropriate websites¡±. If that were announced over the PTA her entire reputation would fall. It was slightly far-fetched, but, at the very least, Nick didn¡¯t want the hacker to break the school computer. Also, why would the person who had chatted with her yesterday¡ªthis guy named Exflipper-something¡ªstill be on the site? Why is Nick on the sight? What was wrong with Nick? Then it occurred to her that the school had put up multiple firewalls and stuff to block hackers, and if this hacker was able to bypass the firewalls, this hacker must be very good. And at least Nick would be chatting to a skilled hacker who didn¡¯t treat the victim as a helpless idiot¡ªif the person Nick was chatting to was indeed the creator the website. Perhaps Nick can learn to hack the hacker and find out. Comforted, Nick typed out a quick greeting. [hello] The response was nearly immediate. [Oh, Nick, you¡¯re back!] At once, fear rose. So this person was on. How did he¡ªor she¡ªknow that it was Nick? Nick was on a completely different computer on a completely different school account! Panicking, Nick typed: [HOW DID YOU KNOW IT WAS ME?????!!!!!] [I¡¯ve never met anyone else who so stubbornly refused to use correct capitalization and punctuation. Except for your last message, which had way too much of both.] Nick was still not completely convinced, and typed cautiously: [promise youre not a hacker] [I searched up ¡®hacker¡¯. I¡¯m not sure I understand why you use it in your context. It doesn¡¯t make sense.] [what] [The definition of hacker is ¡°a person who is inexperienced or unskilled at a particular activity¡±. If you¡¯re asking if I¡¯m a hacker, are you asking if I¡¯m unskilled?] [uh¡­what dictionary did you use? hacker is someone who breaks into computers and steals your information and puts in a virus and stuff] [Oh. That¡¯s definition two.] [whatever] [So, are you going to agree to the Terms and Conditions, or are you going to just keep chatting?] Again Nick paused. Did she want to agree to the Terms and Conditions? They were the weirdest ones she¡¯s seen. She still hadn¡¯t finished reading the Terms and Conditions, something she would normally never do. But then again, Nick always agreed to the Terms and Conditions. Besides, what was the worse that could happen? Death? Yeah, right.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. Nick was being a wimp. She couldn¡¯t agree at school, of course, especially if the Terms and Conditions was a virus, but she would agree at home. [i cant agree right now. im on a school account] [Oh. School. So you¡¯re younger than twenty?] Nick felt like she just gave away a valuable secret. [none of your business] [It¡¯s ok. I¡¯d rather you to be younger. I don¡¯t want some fifteen hundred-year-old man, since (if you agree to the Terms and Conditions of course) this mission I¡¯m on will require strength and agility. I¡¯m fourteen, by the way.] [figures] [What does figures mean?] [look, did you drop out of school or something? you barely know anything] [I¡¯m from another planet.] [yeah right. get out of town] [I am out of town, if you didn¡¯t notice. I¡¯m floating in space.] [whatever. also what gender are you] [ __ /| ____ / / \/ / \ | | \ / \______/ ] [showoff. you could have just written male] [It wouldn¡¯t have been Galictically correct.] [whats galictically] [Now look who doesn¡¯t know anything.] [look if you want to pretend youre in space and making up words do your thing] [Galictically is just Galactic politics. There are technically more genders than male and female. Even on your Driew.] [what. are you talking about lgbtq+] [Yes, but even more literally. The mole salamander is what I meant. Their species consisted only of females.] [so how do they¡­you know¡­reproduce] [Do you really want to know?] [¡­no. please dont tell me] [I thought so. I¡¯m pondering ]whether or not I should forget that detail. I really wish I didn¡¯t know.] [i dont think you can forget that sort of thing easily] [Easy enough, once I land and get fuel. Also, you probably want to exit out of this website now. The terms and conditions countdown is almost to zero.] [oh. right. thank you bye] Nick quickly x-ed out of the tab. Nick looked at the time at the bottom of the screen. Ten minutes? That wasn¡¯t ten minutes. It was only seven! But then again, it said ten galmin, whatever that was. Or, more likely than not, Nick had mixed up the times and had logged on three minutes earlier than she thought. With that, Nick opened a new tab and started playing Paper.io. The Archeologist REMEMBER THE ARCHEOLOGIST WHO CUT HIS FACE WITH A RAZOR WHILE SHAVING AND HIS DOG LICKED ON THE BIT OF BLOODY FLOOR? That dog got sick later and had to be taken to a vet, which turned out to be the same doctor who cured the meercat specialist¡¯s case of tapeworms. It¡¯s a small world. And since the doctor was very cross, a strange case of slippery scalpels seemed to target the dog, who had to then stay in the hospital for a week. That archeologist had then woken up on a rainy morning, suddenly feeling extremely depressed without his dog and the sudden revelation that his life¡¯s work was as important as dirt. And that man decided to go to McDonalds so he wouldn¡¯t need to cook his own food. This would have continued for several days, if the nearest McDonalds had not had a peculiar sign taped to the ¡°M¡±. The archeologist stood in front of McDonalds, staring at the sign that looked as if was written on a very large, stiff piece of paper. On it, was written: ¡°It is advisable that Sodriew should not come to this fuel station in the next five galactic days, as I will be landing very soon and do not wish to hurt anyone. It is also advisable that Sodriew should not be anywhere near this building, for you will see something very odd and would almost definitely be put in a mental institution for life. I hope you have a nice day, and that my drone did a good job of taping.¡± The archeologist stopped. He read the sign again, and his frown only arched lower. He was an archeologist, an educated person. He should know what this sign meant. But he didn¡¯t. He was utterly at lost. Fuel station? Was that supposed to be a gas station? But the closest gas station was half a mile away. McDonalds wasn¡¯t a gas station. Five galactic days? What the hell was that? 120 hours? But how long was one galactic day? Was there even a galactic time zone? How many earth days was a galactic day? Who would be landing very soon? And how? Like a plane? Why would a plane intentionally crash into McDonalds? And why would they put up a sign to convey their meaning? And what was the sign made of anyway? It certainly had to be a very sturdy piece of paper, if it was made of paper at all. And was the part about mental institutions a warning? Or was it a threat? The said almost definitely. Why would anyone be put in a mental institution for being near McDonalds in five galactic days¡ªhowever long that was. Also, how in the world did a drone tape something? And why drones? Nothing about the sign made sense whatsoever. The archeologist also felt insulted somehow, perhaps because he had been referred to as a ¡®Sodriew,¡¯ whatever that was. However, he felt no reason to be insulted by this title, even though it still irked him. What did sodriew remind him of? The archeologist shook his head. What he should really be wondering about is how on earth the sign got on the M, and also if McDonalds still served breakfast at eleven fifty. The archeologist pushed open the front door, noting happily that the display still offered hot cakes. There was only one other person in line, who was ordering a latte on the go, but had a little trouble finding her money. All the seats, however, had been taken, and the loud chatter easily became meaningless white noise. Finally, the woman found her purse, and snatched the latte from the counter, as if she should have gotten it without paying anyway. The archeologist, whose name was Timothy, stepped up to the counter and ordered two hash browns and a hot cake breakfast. ¡°Er, excuse me,¡± Timothy said at last, ¡°I saw a sign outside, on the big ¡®M¡¯. I was wondering what it meant.¡± ¡°Sign.¡± The counter boy, a pimple-faced teenage, repeated rather stupidly. ¡°Um, yes, The sign was rather, I mean, it was confusing,¡± Timothy stumbled on, ¡°it said something about not coming here or¡ª¡± ¡°We only have one sign,¡± the boy said, ¡°and it says ¡®we are now hiring¡¯. We have always been hiring since the moment this McDonalds opened.¡± ¡°I-I meant the other sign. The one on the big M, I mean.¡± ¡°We only have one sign.¡± The boy was obviously irritated.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Er¡ª¡± ¡°Here.¡± The boy pushed a brown paper bag at Timothy. ¡°Have a nice day.¡± Timothy, looking very confused, took the bag and stepped outside. He walked back to where he once stood, and looked up. The sign was still there. So he hadn¡¯t imagined it. Then why in the world was it there? And why didn¡¯t anyone else see it? The answer didn¡¯t take long to find. A woman walked out of McDonalds, past Timothy, her head never lifting up. Her eyes were glued to the smartphone, scrolling down the screen with a long pink fingernail. Timothy thought it was rather ironic that he, an archeologist whose job was to look down at the dirt, was the only person who looked up and saw the peculiar sign. Timothy still had a week before his dog would be back. And in this particular week, he hadn¡¯t much else to do. This mystery sign promised that something would happen in the next five days. Besides, Timothy needed something to take his mind off of depressing thoughts. With a renewed sense of purpose he strolled back into McDonalds. The counter boy was not happy. ¡°Er, I have another question about the sign¡ª¡± ¡°There is only one sign. That is the hiring sign.¡± ¡°I quite understand. I understand that one really well. I just went outside to read it.¡± ¡°Goodbye.¡± ¡°Oh, but I thought I¡¯d like a job here.¡± The boy was clearly startled. ¡°Job?¡± he repeated. ¡°Yes, that seems right.¡± ¡°No. You do not want a job here.¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯d like it very much, on the contrary. I heard this McDonalds runs 24/7. I¡¯d like the graveyard shift, if it¡¯s open.¡± Timothy had chosen this shift carefully, as most crimes such as putting signs on buildings always seemed to occur at night. If it had occurred during the day, someone would have seen it, if only to take a picture and put it on their instapound (or was it gram?) or whatever they were into these days. Of course the sign did say the drone was the one that taped the sign up. Oh well. Drones were pretty interesting anyway. ¡°Er, Boss!¡± the boy yelled. A fat woman bustled out. ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°This man here says he wants a job. Graveyard shift.¡± The woman squinted. Timothy, dressed in a nice gray blazer, an ironed shirt, and a pair of suede loafers, was evidently not a McDonalds worker. ¡°Yer mocking us, eh?¡± ¡°No, I-I-I don¡¯t mean that at all, madam,¡± Timothy stammered. ¡°I-I-I just need a few bucks in my pocket, and I can only do that during the night. You know, paying student loans.¡± The manager looked amused. ¡°Ya won¡¯t be paying back much of your students loans if you keep buying clothes like that.¡± ¡°Oh, these?¡± Timothy pinched his jacket, ¡°got this at a thrift store. It the only clean thing I have at the moment.¡± The woman looked satisfied with this hastily concocted lie. ¡°Do you know what to do?¡± ¡°I think so.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s see it then,¡± the woman commanded. Timothy cleared his throat. ¡°Hello, Madam, your order please?¡± ¡°Fifty packets of ketchup.¡± ¡°Very good. It should be with you shortly. Please help yourself to this other counter to pick up your food. Thank you!¡± Timothy was sure that no one in McDonalds spoke this politely, but Timothy was a polite man and it was hard to break the habit. At least, for the time being. Timothy had a strange suspicion that working graveyard shift for five days would easily change that. ¡°Good enough for me. Your hired. Come here at eleven thirty.¡± The woman thrust a dirty, striped uniform into Timothy¡¯s arms, without mentioning salary. The woman left. Timothy stared at the gross bundle of clothes, gulped, then turned to leave. ¡°You really don¡¯t want to work here,¡± the boy said. But Timothy hadn¡¯t heard. Agreement THE FIRST THING NICK DID WHEN SHE REACHED HOME WAS TO OPEN CONSPEARISEE.COM AND AGREE TO THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS. Nick timed the minutes it took for galmin to reach zero. It took seven minutes forty-two seconds. So she hadn¡¯t been wrong the other day. Nick had copied and pasted the Terms and Conditions onto another document, as she didn¡¯t have time to read it while timing the minutes. Nick hurried to the chat box, to report her agreement. She felt oddly proud of doing so. To her surprise, the box already bore the message: [Thanks for agreeing, Nick!] Nick restrained herself from typing, ¡®Hacker!¡¯ [how did you know i agreed?] [It¡¯s my website. Of course I know you agreed.] Nick thought that this was a pretty good reason. [Did you read the terms and conditions?] [some of it] [Did you get to the part about death?] [sure] [Oh. Good. That¡¯s the most important part.] [whatever. so i agreed. what now] [I will be landing in the next two galactic days, at the nearest McDonalds. Perhaps you want to congregate there?] [i dont know. how long is one galactic day] [fourty four galactic hours.] [in earth time] [You mean Driew.] [whatever. just answer me] [Roughly a little less than one Driew day.] [and one minute is¡­] [One galactic minute is 0.77 Driew minutes. One galactic hour is 30.8 Driew minutes. One galactic day is 1355.2 Driew minutes.] [thats confusing] [Driew time is confusing.] Nick was about to type a reply, when the most unexpected sound came. The sound of the electronic lock being pressed. Nick hurried to type: [wait. my mom arrived.] Nick ran out of her room, relieved to find her mom still hadn¡¯t entered. Nick smoothed down her hair, her hands fidgeting. Her mom finally entered through the door. ¡°Hello Marine,¡± she said, flustered, ¡°I¡¯m so, so, sorry I haven¡¯t told you earlier. But I just got a notice that I would have to be going to California for a business trip. Ms. Wooddell next door would look after you. I¡¯ve just come back to pack a few things. I¡¯d be back by Monday.¡±Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. Nick wasn¡¯t given a chance to speak, not that she would have, before her mother hurried to get her clothes. Nick was suddenly reminded of Ben. She took a seat on the couch. Her mom flung open the front door with a small suitcase in fifteen minutes. ¡°I¡¯m so, so sorry Marine, I just had to go. I really would have liked to tell you a few days in advance,¡± her mom said, checking her watch, ¡°Oh, I¡¯ll be late. Ms. Wooddell should be able to take care of you. Bye Marine Barine!¡± The door slammed shut. Only then did Nick stand up. If one galactic day one Driew day, and if something was going to happen in two galactic days¡­this weekend would be perfect. Nick suddenly realized she had automatically taken this Exflipper seriously. Nick shook her head. No. This was ridiculous. Some fourteen-year old guy tells her he¡¯s an alien, and now Nick believe it? She didn¡¯t even know if the person was fourteen years old. And now, more likely than not, she¡¯d just let a virus into her computer. This so-called alien was floating over Earth, and none of NASA¡¯s satellites detected it? How was that even possible. Then the part about death. And going to McDonalds. What the hell was that supposed to be about? She had taken the death as a joke, but it occurred to Nick that it may possibly be very real. Was she really going to go to McDonalds alone, to be kidnapped or murdered? The answer came to her easily. Yes. Yes she was.
¡°YES! YES!¡± Box rolled over to Exflibberaguil. ¡°Good news, sir?¡± Exflibberaguil was about to answer when Countdown cut in. ¡°Eight. Ty. One.¡± she boomed. ¡°Oh, shut her up,¡± Exflibberaguil groaned, ¡°I don¡¯t care how boring she is. Shut. Her. Up.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t. Your ferret did something to her.¡± ¡°That¡¯s it!¡± Exflibberaguil yelled. ¡°Ferret. If you don¡¯t stop that galacticdamn countdown, I¡¯ll cut down your food by half!¡± ¡°Because you don¡¯t have enough anyway.¡± Box added unhelpfully. ¡°Shut up!¡± Exflibberaguil shouted, ¡°I forgot why I was so happy!¡± ¡°You aren¡¯t anymore.¡± ¡°I know!¡± ¡°Well,¡± Box said in a reasonable voice, ¡°still, Countdown¡¯s right. We should be landing in the next eighty-one hours.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± Exflibberaguil exclaimed. Box was so surprised to hear his employer agree with it, Box wheeled away in surprised. ¡°You mean, I¡¯m right?¡± Box asked? ¡°No, you boxhead. You¡¯re never right. I said ¡®that¡¯s right¡¯ because I remember why I was happy!¡± ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°Nick agreed to my terms and conditions, and he said we he would be free anytime the next two days.¡± ¡°That¡¯s great, sir!¡± Box exclaimed. ¡°I know! That¡¯s why I was happy!¡± As they spoke, a single, odd-shaped screw became loose on the ship, and it started to fall to earth.
REMEMBER THAT DRESSMAKER HUMMING THAT STRANGE TUNE THAT SOUNDED EERILY LIKE WIND BETWEEN TREE HOLLOWS, WAKING UP SQUIRRELS WHO SCREAMED AGITATEDLY AND CURSED THE WIND, AND THEN GETTING EATEN BY AN OWL? Well, so it turned out, one of the squirrels had been eating a particularly odd nut with a high level of a strange acidic substance and a warped shape, so much so that one with a slightly higher level of intelligence would have easily and correctly identified that the thing that the squirrel ate was not a nut at all, but something unidentifiable and should not be eaten or, in that matter, touched in any way. I am, of course, talking about dolphins being the ones with slightly higher intelligence. It is not that humans aren¡¯t intelligent, compared to the primitive squirrels, but simply that as stated earlier, they easily drift from the correct first assumption. This nut had been in the middle of a well-traveled sidewalk and no less than seven humans have come across it. Their thought processes were remarkably alike, going on the lines of: ¡°That is a strange object. Almost alien-like. Why would it be in the center of a sidewalk? It certainly doesn¡¯t look like any acorn I¡¯ve ever seen. But then again, how much do I know about acorns exactly? I suppose it¡¯s just a deformed acorn. Nothing weird. Nothing worth picking up.¡± Their actions varied slightly. The first person stopped and stared at it. The second person cursed at it for it almost made that person fall. The third person stepped on it. The fourth person walked over it. The fifth person spit on it. The sixth person tied their laces next to it. The seventh person kicked it all the way to that person¡¯s driveway. Then the object was promptly eaten by the squirrel. This whole time, this object was thinking very hard along the lines of: ¡°Ow. That really hurt. Ow. That really hurt. Ow. That really hurt.¡± The squirrel, after being eaten by an owl and regurgitated, attracted the nose of the dressmaker¡¯s cat. The cat went to sniff it, became repulsed, and stalked back to her master. The dressmaker patted his cat affectionately, touched the pin he was pinning, and pricked himself. His finger was badly infected from the regurgitated nut-object-acid-substance, and he had to wake up his doctor, who was feeling extremely cross for he had to cure a case of tapeworms in the morning, and was mistaken for a vet in the afternoon, and now in the evening, a dressmaker was coming to him with a pricked finger. It¡¯s a really small world. Ms. Wooddell TIMOTHY ARRIVED AT MCDONALDS RIGHT ON TIME. He was dressed in the striped uniform, though it was less dirty now that he washed it. Timothy hoped the fat woman-whom Timothy supposed was the boss-wouldn¡¯t notice it. She might realize that Timothy had access to a washer and therefore, clean clothes. But the manager wasn¡¯t even there. No one wanted to be on graveyard shift. Timothy took his place behind the counter, happy that he had a large window next to him. There was only one customer sipping coffee in the far corner. Timothy used the time to get used to the McDonalds computer interface. The first customer arrived in a few minutes. He was a dark, unshaven man who smelled strongly of cigarettes. ¡°Good evening sir, how may I¡ª¡± ¡°The usual,¡± he interrupted in a gruff voice, then coughed. Timothy resisted the urge to wave away the smell of smoke. ¡°I apologize, sir, but I don¡¯t know¡ª¡± ¡°Black, all the way through.¡± ¡°What size¡ª¡± ¡°Do you think I look like a man who drinks from a tiny cup?¡± A credit card was shoved into Timothy¡¯s face. Timothy gulped, and pressed the appropriate buttons. ¡°Please help yourself to the coun¡ª¡± ¡°It¡¯s goddamn black coffee! How long will it take to make that!¡± the man shouted. Timothy was starting to understand the infamous graveyard shift. ¡°I apologize¡ª¡± but an employee had already hurried to place the cup on the counter. The man grabbed it, and snorted, leaving McDonalds smelling of a pack of cigarettes. The man in the corner hurried to leave too. The rest of the shift was about as bad at the man. Even the Asian family had struck up an argument when Timothy couldn¡¯t understand what they wanted (a bowl of porridge). But Timothy was quite sure of one thing: he had heard no one climbing up the side of the building, and taping a sign to the large ¡°M¡±. Timothy ended the shift even more depressed than before. His dog was hospitalized, and the whole sign was a hoax after all. As he left McDonalds and turned on the headlights of his car, Timothy glanced up at the sign once more. It was exactly the same. Except¡­ Timothy gave a start. The sign now said the date was Sunday. Tomorrow! So someone had come and climbed up so silently, Timothy hadn¡¯t heard! Or maybe¡­ Timothy shook his head. No. It couldn¡¯t have been the drone. No drone was good enough to do this. It simply wasn¡¯t invented yet. With that, Timothy drove home, vowing to himself that he would witness whatever was going to happen tomorrow.
THE DATE HAD BEEN SET. Nick would be meeting with Exflipper tomorrow. Before she could leave, however, a few things needed to be taken care of. The first of which was Ms. Wooddell. Ms. Wooddell was the old lady next door, who was very fond of cats. Nick¡¯s mom usually asked Mrs. Fanil to babysit Nick, but Mrs. Fanil had gone to visit her daughter in Boston.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. Ms. Wooddell was old. She was afraid to use telephones, because she always thought she¡¯d be electrocuted by them. However, Ms. Wooddell often would write a letter and ask a neighbor to post it to the house next door, as Ms. Wooddell refused to leave her cats unattended. Nick had a suspicion that Ms. Wooddell wouldn¡¯t have come to see Nick anyway, even if Nick left the house, but she had to make sure. Nick set off to the next-door house. There was a great shuffling from inside, and someone elderly said, ¡°Oh, do stop, Max. Those are the new curtains. I just got them last month.¡± The door was opened, and Ms. Wooddell came forward. Ms. Wooddell was a plump old lady with pink cheeks and a bobbing pile of white hair pinned to her head. ¡°Oh, Marine isn¡¯t it? Yes, yes, your mother said you would be alone. Oh, you should come in. So lonely, aren¡¯t you? Your poor mother always seems to be in a hurry. Comes home very late.¡± Nick replied with a thank you politely, silently wondering how late Ms. Wooddell stayed up to see her mom drive back, then faked a sneeze. ¡°Bless you, dearie, do you need a napkin?¡± Ms. Wooddell plodded to the coffee table and plucked a tissue out of a flowery box. Nick accepted it gratefully. It smelled of strong perfume and was rather rough and uncomfortable. Nick was offered a seat on an overstuffed couch, and took it, sinking in rather uncomforatbly. For a moment, she thought of Mama bear''s chair in Goldilocks: too soft. Nick then pretended to just notice Max, though he had been meowing loudly for attention. ¡°Oh, do you keep cats?¡± Nick asked, with faked surprise. ¡°Oh, yes.¡± Ms. Wooddell answered with pride, ¡°this here, is dear old Max. He¡¯s thirteen now, you know. Perhaps he¡¯s as older than you?¡± ¡°That would depend on his birthday, wouldn¡¯t it? I just turned thirteen last month.¡± ¡°Then Max would be older than you. He¡¯s nearly fourteen.¡± Ms. Wooddell said with great satisfaction, as if she should get an award for her excellent cat breeding. Nick smiled, then sneezed again. ¡°Oh, dear,¡± Ms. Wooddell said, ¡°Are you quite all right? Is it too cold?¡± It was not cold at all, but rather overheated. ¡°No, I¡¯m sorry, Ms. Wooddell, but I¡¯m allergic to cats, it seems.¡± ¡°Oh, dear,¡± Ms. Wooddell repeated, slightly downcast, ¡°Your mother never mentioned it to me.¡± ¡°Well, my mother is always in rather a hurry, you see, and usually Mrs. Fanil looks after me.¡± ¡°Mrs. Fanil? Isn¡¯t that the lady at number three? Oh, quite nice, I think, always sending fruit cake when she comes around. Not as nice as my mother¡¯s fruit cake, but it¡¯s alright, I suppose. I¡¯m horrible at baking anything, so it¡¯s nice when someone comes and sends some home-baked treats. I hate the ones in the grocery store. Ms. Fanil knows nothing of cats, unfortunately. I shouldn¡¯t think I¡¯ll ever ask her to look after Max again.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Nick commented. She sniffed and wiped her nose. ¡°But her daughter is rather a nasty sort. Always was when she was a child. Teased the cats, she did. Mrs. Fanil spoiled her daughter, I should imagine. Her daughter was always yelling or throwing a tantrum when they came home from shopping. Mrs. Fanil didn¡¯t buy the toy she wanted. And then, in a matter of minutes, her daughter would get what she wanted. Poor Mrs. Fanil. Oh, do you need another napkin?¡± Nick nodded her head. ¡°Then, of course, there was Mr. Fanil¡ªa drunkard I believe. They were divorced very quickly after they had a daughter, I believe. Horrible man, he was. I believe he¡¯s gone and tried to get another woman¡ªthough I wouldn¡¯t say he¡¯d succeed. He was rather ugly to begin with. Oh dear, it seems as if your allergies are getting worse.¡± Nick had been faking sneezes and coughs more and more often. ¡°I didn¡¯t realize my allergies were so strong,¡± she admitted. ¡°Oh dear.¡± Ms. Wooddell seemed very fond of saying that. ¡°Is there anything I could do?¡± Nick moved to stand up. ¡°I¡¯m so, so, sorry, Ms. Wooddell, but perhaps I should leave. I don¡¯t want to have too strong an allergic reaction, and have to go to the doctor¡¯s or something. My mother would have to cancel that very important meeting and fly all the way back.¡± ¡°Oh, yes, I suppose you shouldn¡¯t stay very much longer,¡± Ms. Wooddell agreed, very unhappily, ¡°but I don¡¯t know how else to look after you. I really don¡¯t want to leave Max alone, you see, because he¡¯s really very old for a cat, and I don¡¯t want him to die without me.¡± ¡°Oh, don¡¯t worry yourself too much. I¡¯ve stayed at home myself plenty of times. I¡¯ll be quite fine. If I leave now, I won¡¯t even need to take my allergy medicine. And you can always call,¡± Nick added, though she was quite sure of the answer. ¡°Oh, dear. I don¡¯t trust telephones very much. I¡¯ve heard people get shocked or electricitied by them. Though everyone says they are quite safe now, but one can never be too careful. One nasty shock may be all it takes to get my heart a nasty start. Are you quite sure you¡¯ll be fine? I would send someone to mail a letter¡ª¡± ¡°Please don¡¯t trouble yourself. I¡¯ll be quite fine.¡± ¡°Oh, I do wish I could do more.¡± ¡°I should probably go now,¡± Nick said with more finality, and sneezed once more for effect. ¡°Oh dear. Goodbye now. Are you sure you¡¯ll be quite all right? Your allergy seems quite strong.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be fine. Really. Take care of Max. Goodbye, Ms. Wooddell.¡± ¡°Oh, bye Nick. I really, really wish I could do more for your poor mother.¡± Nick waved, sniffed, and left through the front door. Setting the Stage EXFLIBBERAGUIL GULPED. It had been so long ago that he had landed one of these ships. Nearly forty years, as Exflibberaguil had gone back in time a couple of times. Unfortunately, his time machine was broken, but he supposed his was outdated anyway. He¡¯ll just buy another one on Driew. The landing was scheduled in three galactic hours. ¡°Sir, fuel unit is going into grams.¡± ¡°Box¡ª¡± ¡°Shut up. Yes, I know.¡± Box said. ¡°Good.¡± Exflibberaguil gripped the handles. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me to land sooner? There¡¯s not enough fuel for auto-land!¡± ¡°Sir, I did,¡± Box whined, ¡°but you forgot.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t remember forgetting anything!¡± ¡°Because you forgot about that too!¡± Box groaned. Then it said, ¡°Box, shut up.¡± ¡°Did you record my voice?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t give your permission to do that!¡± ¡°Yes, I know. But your ferret did.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Before Box could answer, Countdown started again, reminding Exflibberaguil he only had three hours left. ¡°Shut up!¡± Box and Exflibberaguil said at the same time. Exflibberaguil jerked a lever and felt the pressure drop. ¡°Box, can¡¯t you NoseTalk to the ship or something?¡± ¡°NodeTalk. And no. It was specially designed so that it was impossible to hijack this ship. It¡¯s blocking all access to my requests.¡± Exflibberaguil sighed, pulling the lever up once more. Then his face brightened. ¡°Hey, Box, I need you to assist me.¡± ¡°Of course! I am so happy to be of assistance!¡± ¡°Remember, if this ship crashes and we all die, it wasn¡¯t my fault, ok? It was my ferret¡¯s fault. Or even better, your fault. Just in case anyone asks.¡± ¡°But sir, if we all die, how can I¡ª¡± Box stopped, looked at Exflibberaguil¡¯s face, and said, ¡°Wait, don¡¯t say it. ¡®Shut up.¡¯¡± Box repeated the recording. ¡°Translator, please give me another catchphrase.¡± The ship accelerated suddenly. ¡°Damn it. Driew¡¯s gravity is finally strong enough to have effect. I was wondering how far we¡¯d have to be for such a small planet to pull us in.¡± ¡°Sir, you probably want to switch gears and¡ª¡± ¡°Pipe down, Box.¡± A beat. ¡°How was that?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll have to record that too.¡±
NICK STARTED MAKING HER WAY TO MCDONALDS. She strapped a cave light on to her bike helmet, and duct taped a flashlight to her handle. Exflipper had told her to be in a good mile radius from McDonalds, but Nick wouldn¡¯t be listening to that. Whatever Exflipper was doing, she didn¡¯t want to miss it.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Nick took a roundabout route to McDonalds, being careful not to be in Ms. Wooddell¡¯s line of vision. As she pedaled along the sidewalk, she suddenly realized that she had no idea what she was doing. It had never occurred to her that Exflipper¡¯s claims of being an alien were true, but if not, why was she going to McDonalds? Perhaps it was a show? Or some crazy gadget? Maybe Exflipper was a child genius, who invented some sort of UFO-looking machine, and now needed Nick as a witness? Or maybe Nick was really just going to be kidnapped. What a clumsy way to do it, though. It would probably have been smarter to leave an email or something. Not a stupid website that barely anyone would go to. Or maybe it was a McDonalds worker. Some sort of contest? Maybe she¡¯ll get a free serving of chicken McNuggets. Nick realized it took more imagination to think of reasons why someone would want to meet her at McDonalds, than it did to simply believe the whole alien hoax. Anyways, whatever happened, it was bound to be amusing, at least. Nick pedaled on harder. Soon, the gold McDonalds ¡®M¡¯ came into view. McDonalds was in a sort of clearing in a semi-forest. You had to be only a few yards away to see it. A twisty road led up to the parking lot. Nick had brought some money, just in case the whole thing really was some stupid prank. At least she¡¯d have something to eat. Nick wheeled her bike into a bit of trees, making sure she was far enough in that she looked like a shadow. Nick leaned her bike on a trunk and sat down, waiting. She squinted at the large ¡°M¡±. Was there a billboard stuck to it? She was momentarily distracted by a McDonalds employee dressed in red stripes drive up in a nice car.
TIMOTHY ARRIVED ON HIS SHIFT. He looked anxiously at the sign. It still read Sunday. Something was supposed to happen today. He stepped out of his car, parked in the reserved employee lot, and entered through the kitchen door. As usual, there was only one chef who was half asleep. He relieved the other employee¡¯s duty for the moment, standing behind the counter. His eyes kept on darting to the window. Was that a creak? He wished McDonalds had a window on the ceiling. But then again, if something was to happen, he would know. One of the customers would say something. The man from last night entered. Timothy was able to understand what ¡°the usual¡± meant this time. ¡°Here you go,¡± Timothy said, less polite then yesterday. The man grunted. His lungs were just as full of smoke as yesterday. ¡°There¡¯s something stuck to building,¡± he said unhappily, ¡°almost made me miss this place.¡± Timothy¡¯s heart quickened. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°On the big M. Nearly didn¡¯t see this road. Covered all the light.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°Yeah, a piece of paper or something. Get rid of it.¡± ¡°I believe it was a sign.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t care what it is. Get rid of it. Don¡¯t want to see it tomorrow. Next time I¡¯ll complain to the manager.¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± The man grunted and left. If nothing happened today, Timothy though, he¡¯d personally remove the sign and resign from his work. He had already thought of an excuse. He had a rich, childless uncle who recently died and left all his fortune to Timothy. He¡¯d be able to pay back his student loans. But somehow, Timothy felt certain something was about to happen today.
REMEMBER THE DOCTOR WHO CURED THE MEERCAT SPECIALIST¡¯S TAPEWORMS, THE ARCHEOLOGIST¡¯S DOG, AND THE DRESSMAKER¡¯S PRICKED FINGER? Well, he was able to remove a small splinter of the unidentified object which caused the whole finger infection. As he was shutting down for the night, hoping he¡¯d finally be able to get some sleep, he heard something coming from the stethoscope he wore around his neck. Hesitating, he placed the earbuds into his ears. It was a low, humming noise. The doctor moved the stethoscope around. The sound was coming from the biohazardous trash bin. He opened it. A pale light was emitting from a piece of gauze. Donning latex gloves, the doctor slowly pulled it out. He hadn¡¯t noticed the glow before, as it was only visible in the dark. Using tweezers, her carefully pulled out the small fragment the gauze was protecting. It was the splinter he had removed from that whining dressmaker earlier that evening. ¡°Donna?¡± he called, then, with more impatience, ¡°Donna!¡± ¡°Yes doctor?¡± ¡°Look at this.¡± He raised the tweezers so the nurse could see. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Came from one of the patient¡¯s finger. Have you seen anything like it?¡± ¡°No, doctor, though the piece too small to make sure. Might just be a glow-in-the-dark toy fragment. Do you want it analyzed?¡± ¡°Would it cost a lot?¡± ¡°Perhaps. But if we found some rare material, we might get a lot of money.¡± ¡°Stop with your fantasies, Donna. There¡¯s no such thing as a rare material nowadays.¡± ¡°Then what should we do with it?¡± The doctor considered. ¡°Find out how much it costs to be analyzed,¡± the doctor decided, ¡°then I¡¯ll make a decision.¡± ¡°Yes, doctor.¡± Donna retreated. The doctor placed the splinter into a container and pocketed it, remembering his lack of sleep. It was probably some sort of nut anyway. Countdown EXFLIBBERAGUIL WAS DROPPING. Countdown had already switched to mere minutes. Exflibberaguil could see the blue-green planet in detail now, noticing that it wasn¡¯t as much green as it was brown. He was dressed in what looked like a white jumper and a pair of visor-equipped headphones. He pressed a button on the headphones, turning the visor translucent and slidding it down to cover his whole head. Exflibberaguil¡¯s dashboard currently looked very much like a car¡¯s, only with extra dials and monitors. This was usually all he needed, if he hadn¡¯t used up so much fuel. Auto-land was so much safer, but it required twice the amount of fuel than what Exflibberaguil had to offer. He braced himself when he called, ¡°Full dashboard.¡± Instantly, the displays that were showing bunny population turned to touch-screen buttons. The toucan chair grew a few joystick-shaped feathers, and was unlatched from the floor, allowing Exflibberaguil to fly to the higher screens. The toucan was connected to the visor-helmet by a wireless connection called bluetongue, allowing to sense a few strong commands like, ¡®move left¡¯ or ¡®fly a bit higher¡¯ without the words exiting from Exflibberaguil¡¯s mouth. Ferret was in an egg-shaped capsule, harnessed and ready for landing. Box had shut itself in a safe, as to (hopefully) not be damaged should Exflibberaguil die, because it still had to deliver the most important thing: it was Box¡¯s fault. The ship lurched again, plummeting further towards the planet. Exflibberaguil cursed, commanding the toucan to fly to the top-right corner, where he twisted a dial to ¡°orbit¡± mode. Flicking a few more switches, the ship finally steadied enough that Exflibberaguil didn¡¯t feel like he was dropping so quickly. Exflibberaguil pressed another button and brownie batter was delivered to his mouth via a tube. He sat back on the toucan, relaxing for just a moment. It can out of nowhere. Well, that would be inaccurate but for the sake of suspense, it should be left at that. Suddenly, a large blaring sound came from the speakers, multiple diagnosis of the problem popped up onto plasma displays. Exflibberaguil bolted up, the toucan flapping around confused from all the commands Exflibberaguil was sending it. He manually controlled the chair with a joystick. A satellite. He was in the path of a satellite. He had no time to think. Exflibberaguil rushed to the main dashboard, flicking switches and heading into a nosedive. But the crash was inevitable. It was only a small satellite, about the size of a large cardboard box. But the damage was done. The speakers went wild, blaring ¡°ERROR. 943. ERROR. 943. ERROR. 943. WING DAMAGE.¡± Exflibberaguil had planned another thirty minutes to safely land. But the crash affected everything. His ferret was knocked into the wall of the capsule. It scratched the glass for a way out. The ship tumbled. Countdown was calculating the time until landing, calculating the new time until landing. The speakers continued to yell their commands, telling Exflibberaguil to flick switch 78V, press button YE9, and type 9err43 at the same time. But one sound stood out from the rest. ¡°Five minutes,¡± Countdown declared, having finally calculated the new obstacle into the time limit. ¡°Five.¡± Nick swore she would leave if nothing happened in the next five minutes, She had been in the woods, munching on snacks, for half an hour already. What was she doing? Tomorrow was a school day. Of course, she could always call in a sick day¡ªespecially with Ms. Wooddell talking about cats, but her mom may find out about her non-existent allergy and have her tested. Having her bluff called would not be in her favor. Already though, Nick had come up with half a dozen potential excuses. But one fact remained. She was in a forest because some shady hacker on a shady website told her to. It suddenly occurred to her that this is how she would die.Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! It didn¡¯t work out logically, of course. A kidnapper wouldn¡¯t chat with you online, but some people were rather stupid. In fact, all murderers were, as Nick had always believed that killing people was the most stupid of actions in the world. Smart people didn¡¯t need to kill to get what they want. They use their brain, and think. Smart people were cunning, manipulative, even, but certainly not murderers. Murderers were people who weren¡¯t smart enough to figure out a solution to their problem, like the kids in school who would lie that they accidently dropped their homework in water, rather than doing it or asking someone for help. Hell, even cheating would be smarter than lying. Nick realized she would no longer look at one of those kids who always had excuses the same way ever again. But then again, she was one of those kids, except that she had no trouble with homework. With a sigh, she looked back up at the glowing ¡®M¡¯. It was quite evident that nothing would be happening anytime soon. She wasn¡¯t even expecting anything to happen at all; in fact she never was. But somehow Nick found herself in the woods, anticipating what would eventually lead to a long and boring night, or perhaps her death. Typical. ¡°FOUR.¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± ¡°Oh, I apologize, madam. You were saying?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t madam me. I¡¯m not that old. The disrespect these days!¡± ¡°I apologize. Large burger?¡± ¡°What, do I look like I need another large burger? I said a chicken salad for heaven¡¯s sake!¡± ¡°So sorry. Would you like a receipt¡ª¡± But the woman already left for the other counter to pick up her food. Timothy sighed. He had uttered the word ¡°four¡± because it was the fourth time a person had come to him complaining about the sign. The woman had just been saying that the billboard placement was very stupid, and that she couldn¡¯t read it. Timothy didn¡¯t think anyone read billboards anymore, and doubted this woman was an exception. The woman just looked like the whining kind who would turn anything into a complaint. Timothy looked at the sky again. Nothing. It was all stupid. Some idiotic prank pulled by some stupid graffiti-inspired teenager who did parkour. Timothy would take the sign down as soon as his shift ended. ¡°THREE.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°What¡¯s your verdict, doctor?¡± ¡°Donna, you make me sound like a judge. Are you sure we have three tests given to us for free?¡± ¡°Yes, doctor. They allow it for medical purposes.¡± ¡°Very well,¡± the doctor said, pausing dramatically before revealing the glass vial in his pocket. ¡°We¡¯ll use one chance and analyze this.¡± ¡°You took it home, doctor?¡± Donna said this without surprise. ¡°I had to make sure it wasn¡¯t some part of a glowstick or something.¡± ¡°Was it?¡± ¡°Maybe one of those high-tech anti-fluid ones,¡± the doctor said with disgust, ¡°the sort of thing you¡¯d expect from a spoiled kid. I wonder if that dressmake had a child. Definitely had cats though. I could smell it off him. Anyway, to you think this could be some sort of new glow-in-the-dark toy?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll see,¡± Donna said, shuffling for a paper in a manila folder, ¡°You¡¯ll need to fill out this form.¡± The doctor took it, checking his watch. It was a slow day today, with only one appointment at four. Dammit, why couldn¡¯t the people yesterday have come today? He sighed. At least he¡¯d be able to fill the form. ¡°You¡¯re excused, Donna.¡± Donna left with an air of immense importance. The doctor gripped the little glass vial. He was being an idiot. There was nothing special about it. Only a shard of oddly shaped¡­oddly shaped¡­something. Still¡­ ¡°TWO.¡± Just two more minutes and she would have caught that goddamn plane! Just two minutes! It was all that man¡¯s fault. Mr. Finnick? Or was it Friedman? It didn¡¯t matter. Dammit, it was all his fault! Couldn¡¯t he see that she was in a hurry? What was so important about the bug on line 458 anyway? Any idiot could fix it in two seconds! Why did it have to be her! Or maybe Mr. Freddell thought she looked like an idiot. Mrs. Lucifay breathed in. So her plan was ruined. It was okay. She would just make another plan. She ran through a maze of hallways, winding in an out of the airport security checks, finally arriving at the ticket booth. ¡°I need the next flight, same one as this,¡± she said, pushing the unused ticket across the counter, ¡°Preferably tomorrow?¡± The lady glared at Mrs. Lucifay, clearly implying that it was her job to decide whether or not Mrs. Lucifay would be getting on a plane tomorrow. ¡°¡¯plogize, miss, but the next plane would be on Tuesday.¡± Mrs. Lucifay groaned. ¡°Are you quite sure there isn¡¯t one sooner?¡± The lady glared harder. ¡°Yes,¡± she said, obviously disliking Mrs. Lucifay¡¯s doubt in her ability. ¡°Oh, I¡¯ll take it.¡± She silently fretted about Marine, her daughter. She¡¯d have to call Ms. Woodpecker, or was it Wooddeck? Seizing the new ticket offered to her by the lady, Mrs, Lucifay dashed to a vacant bench and dialed the number. She was greeted by the answering machine. ¡°Oh, hello (I really feel a little silly talking to no one but a phone),¡± a slightly shaky, flustered voice said. A constant meowing was in the background. ¡°I¡¯m afraid I wasn¡¯t able to pick up. These telephones are all very scary. One doesn¡¯t know if you¡¯d be electrocuted one day. And such a shock may give me a nasty jump, and I don¡¯t know if my heart could take it. But please send me a letter. I would love it. I wouldn¡¯t bother leaving a¡ªwhat is it called?¡ªmessage. I¡¯m not sure if I would dare use this ever again. Oh Max, please stop meowing and scratching the table¡ª¡± The tone beeped; the same sound used to mute curses such as those that were coming out of Mrs. Lucifay¡¯s mouth. She took another deep breath. She¡¯d just call Marine. Marine was perfectly capable of staying at home herself. Mrs. Lucifay nodded to herself, trying to sooth her nerves. Marine would stay at home, safe and sound. Touchdown ¡°ONE.¡± Exflibberaguil nearly didn¡¯t hear Countdown over the rushing of wind. He¡¯d had muted all other warnings, but somehow Countdown had been tampered with, and he was unable to shut her off. ¡°Yes, I know!¡± he screamed, partially because he was annoyed and afraid, and partially because screaming was the only way he could be heard. Not that there was anyone, of course, who could hear him anyway other than himself. Countdown was a SLIM, a speech-less interactive machine, meaning that she could only be used through buttons. ¡°Would you want to hear the seconds?¡± ¡°NO! For the love of Milky Way, NO!¡± Exflibberaguil screamed this too, but only because screaming was fun. The loss of the wing fragment greatly impacted the ship¡¯s stability. The ship had been designed for resistance to laser beams, missiles, and other weapons, but not brute force! Even the Yolos were more sophisticated than that! Why did Driew need so many satellites anyway? Shouldn¡¯t they know enough about the planet they live on? Exflibberaguil could now see the mountains and rivers in close detail. He was pretty sure that what he was looking at was no more than one state. Clouds rushed past the windows. Sweat poured down in buckets. Exflibberaguil hoped he wouldn¡¯t need to change his helmet from perspiration. He wouldn¡¯t have time for that nonsense. The velocity of the ship was making his gut sink. Down, down, down it went. Exflibberaguil supposed this was what falling into a black hole was like, before he reminded himself that falling into black holes also required spaghettification, an unpleasant infinite stretching that almost certainly would resolve in death. ¡°Half a minute.¡± Exflibberaguil no longer had the energy to scream. Of all things Mustela could be, why wouldn¡¯t they have an extra hand? Or two? Or a hundred? How in the world did these ships operate before auto land? His fingers moved across the dashboard. His helmet kept his ears from popping, but the toucan was having trouble with the sudden increase in gravity. ¡°Quarter a minute.¡± Exflibberaguil could see the houses, the roads, the cars¡ªwhich were going so fast. ¡°Ten.¡± The world was enlarging itself like a magnifying glass. It wouldn¡¯t have been so frightening if the ship wasn¡¯t in a nose-dive. ¡°Nine.¡± Exflibberaguil tried to calm himself. The nose-dive could be easily changed with a single lever. ¡°Eight.¡± Exflibberaguil yanked at the lever, but the ship wouldn¡¯t budge. A red warning flashed across a screen. There wasn¡¯t enough fuel left for such a dramatic change in direction. ¡°Seven.¡± Exflibberaguil stared blankly at the screen. No, there must be some other way! His eyes ran across the row of switches, his pulse quickening. There must be something that could help. ¡°Six.¡± He pulled at the lever again, and the warned flashed once more. He could see¡ªwas that¡­ ¡°Five.¡± He could see a bright yellow ¡®M¡¯. His coordinates matched with building. He was heading straight for it. ¡°Four.¡± So this is how he would die. Pathetic. ¡°Three.¡± Exflibberaguil let go of the lever, completely defeated. His sudden realization that death would be upon him had made him feel completely helpless.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Two.¡± It occurred to him that he needed Box to be able to get out of the safe in order to deliver the message. He scanned the row of buttons for the one that unlocked the safe. ¡°One.¡± Exflibberaguil reached for a large red button. At least it would all be Box¡¯s fault. ¡°Zero. Fuel is now completely depleted.¡± And silence at once. SOMETHING MADE A SOUND. Nick fell, her heart quickening, before realizing it was just her phone. She picked it up. ¡°Hello?¡± ¡°Marine, is it you?¡± ¡°Oh, hi Mom!¡± Nick said, ¡°When will you come home? Tomorrow, I remember?¡± ¡°Er, as a matter of fact, there were some complications. I¡¯ll be back by Wednesday.¡± ¡°Wednesday?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Are you all right? You didn¡¯t pick up the home phone.¡± ¡°Oh, right,¡± Nick¡¯s years of practiced allowed her to easily come up with an excuse. ¡°I was at Ms. Wooddell¡¯s.¡± ¡°I rang her up too.¡± ¡°Yes, I remember that. Her telephone rang, and I wanted to pick up, but Ms. Wooddell wouldn¡¯t allow me to. Said I might get electrocuted. You know how she is around phones.¡± ¡°Oh, thank goodness. You¡¯re all right then?¡± Nick didn¡¯t hesitate. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m fine.¡± ¡°Ok. Be safe!¡± ¡°Yeah, Mom. Bye.¡± The call ended. Nick sighed. Her mom always had complications. On the bright side, that would mean Nick could get away with coming home late. She was certain nothing was happening tonight. The sky and clouds looked as gloomy as always. She tapped around aimlessly at her phone, sorting through browser tabs. She should be getting home now. It was nearly midnight, and she didn¡¯t want to fall asleep in class. Her finger lingered on Conspearisee.com. With nothing to lose, she tapped on it. After Nick had agreed to the terms and conditions, the website simply had a large chat box, and a small button to click back to the terms and conditions. Today, however, there was a large message across the website, with a font size of at least one hundred. It read, ¡°ARRIVING THIS SUNDAY, DRIEW DAYS.¡± Nick smiled to herself. This person was stubborn. He went through all this trouble for an inside joke? This prank had to be pulled by someone rich, who was homeschooled and had all this time to fix this prank up. It was rather sad, Nick thought. Didn¡¯t he have something better to do? Oh well. People were weirdos, Suddenly, she was reminded of a dream she had the other day. She been a scientist, looking at dolphins in a tank, when Nick had a sudden revelation that dolphins were called ¡®dolphins¡¯ because they had ¡®dull fins¡¯. Then Nick had realized she was a dolphin, and had felt herself become a whole lot smarter. Then Nick woke up, and was frustrated to find she had become stupid again. Nick shook her head. Why was she thinking of these things now? What good does it do? And why was she reminded of the dream? It made no sense. Nick sighed. She was getting tired. She needed to go home. Then the sound came. A humming noise that doubled in decibels every second. A light shone from McDonalds. Nick turned to look. Then she fell to the floor. TIMOTHY SIGHED He knew he had got his hopes up for nothing. Nothing was going to happen tonight. He had already come to hate the smell of greasy burgers and fries. ¡°Hey,¡± he said to other worker, a high school female, ¡°can you cover for me?¡± ¡°Why? What are you going to do?¡± Timothy realized that ¡°getting a breath of fresh air¡± would not be the sort of excuse a McDonalds worker would use. ¡°Er,¡± he mumbled, his brain working to come up with an answer, ¡°I, I just want to pop out and smoke a cigarette. Been a tough day.¡± The girl raised an eyebrow. ¡°One dollar?¡± Timothy tried. The girl shook her head. ¡°Five?¡± The girl sighed. ¡°I¡¯ll cover.¡± Timothy slipped a five-dollar bill discreetly along the counter. Timothy nearly gasped out loud when he stumbled outside. Even the dumpsters were more preferable to the inside of the building. He glanced up at the sign. It hadn¡¯t changed yet. Yet? It would never change, Timothy thought. He gazed at the forest. Maybe the person who changed the sign was hiding in the forest. Timothy chuckled at himself. He felt like a child, fantasizing¡ª Wait¡ª He rubbed his eyes and squinted. No, there definitely was a light. Someone was in the forest. What was the light? Oh. Of course. It was all to obvious. A phone. The light came from a phone. Then what was the owner of the phone doing in the forest? Well, it was obvious, wasn¡¯t it? That person was waiting for Timothy to leave, so he or she would be able to change the sign. Timothy stood in silence, looking at the person. The phone only offered so much light, but from the position of it, either the person was rather short and standing, or rather tall and sitting. Timothy blinked. Well, he had seen the offender. What was he going to do about it? Catch the person? Take a picture? Do a victory dance? Was this why he got this horrible job at McDonalds? Just to see some person in the forest? He should go back inside, and quit this job tomorrow. Then the humming began, and a blinding light. Instinctively, Timothy shielded his eyes, wishing he had another hand to plug his other ear. It was too loud. He glanced up at the sky, and instantly fainted. AN EXPLOSION. An explosion in the parking lot. A bright flame erupted, and black ash fell on everything. Within the wreckage wheeled a single figure, It looked something like a cleaning robot. It was slightly dented, and rather dirty. ¡°Hello?¡± it said, ¡°Is there someone conscious enough to help? And in case everyone in the ship is dead, it was my fault.¡± 3rd Encounter ¡°SIR?¡± ¡°Sir?¡± ¡°Oh, dear.¡± Exflibberaguil awoke. His face was slammed against his helmet, which was slammed against an air bag. ¡°Is this a cloud?¡± he asked. Exflibberaguil opened his helmet, and bit into the air bag. ¡°Bleh. Bad cloud.¡± ¡°Sir?¡± He blinked again. It seemed rather hot. ¡°Can we please go to another planet with less than two suns in close vicinity? It¡¯s hot.¡± Exflibberaguil attempted to stand, but slipped on who-knows-what (as he was hallucinating), and fell. ¡°Whoopsie. Must¡¯ve stepped into a puddle of CLOUDENSATION!¡± he laughed uproariously. ¡°I think it would be better if you remained asleep,¡± Box said, and whacked its master on the head with a boxing glove that ejected from the front. Exflibberaguil went unconscious. ¡°I always wanted to do that,¡± Box said happily. NICK OPENED HER EYES SLOWLY. ¡°I¡¯m dead,¡± she proclaimed, testing the phrase out. She didn¡¯t like the way it sounded. She¡¯d have to practice saying it more. ¡°That¡¯s a pity,¡± an Australian said. Nick jumped in fright, then looked around. ¡°Down here.¡± Nick followed the directions. A little cleaning robot spoke. ¡°Hello. I¡¯m Box.¡± ¡°I¡¯m dead,¡± Nick repeated, with more conviction. ¡°Hi, Dead.¡± ¡°That was a horrible dad joke.¡± ¡°Then you should practice phrasing your words better. I told you my name, and you told me you were dead.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°No matter. It¡¯s a real pity you¡¯re dead.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Well, everyone here seems to either be unconscious or, in your case, dead.¡± Nick looked around. Who else was here? ¡°Is that fire?¡± she asked accusingly. Box looked at the Odriew very oddly. ¡°Why yes of course. What else would it be?¡± Nick thought about this. ¡°Anyway, I need help,¡± Box admitted, ¡°as I do not have hands.¡± ¡°Why should I help you? I¡¯m dead.¡± ¡°Well, if you don¡¯t help me, all this would be my fault, and I rather prefer it not to be.¡± Nick looked at the robot. ¡°This doesn¡¯t make sense,¡± she said, ¡°but then again, I¡¯m dead.¡± Box decided not to correct this. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we call the fire department? The fire is spreading,¡± Nick said with worry. ¡°Fires tend to do that.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know why I am worried. Can you die when you¡¯re dead? ¡°I¡¯d advise you not to find out.¡± ¡°What should we do about the fire?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it,¡± Box said, ¡°Someone would take care of it. It¡¯s a LAPOP.¡± ¡°A what?¡± ¡°A Large, Annoying Problem for Other People.¡± Nick blinked. ¡°Ok. But what about the plane that looks suspiciously like a spaceship?¡± The spaceship was almost invisible in the dark sky, the large fire barely illuminating its silhouette. Nick couldn¡¯t see any features on the shape. It seemed to be made of blackness itself. There was a little open door at the bottom, visible only from the light pouring out of it. This was where the robot had descended. ¡°That¡¯s a LAPU,¡± Box explained, ¡°A Larger, Annoyinger Problem for Us.¡± ¡°Typical.¡±This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Nick was now very sure she was dead. She wouldn¡¯t dream of something as complicated as this. The most complicated dreams she had always involved Nick thinking that everything made sense in the dream, only the realize that nothing made sense when she woke up. But this was different. Nothing was making sense in the dream, and sure as hell nothing would make sense when she woke up. Therefore, the only logical conclusion was that Nick had died, perhaps from the explosion. However, she didn¡¯t know that being dead was so annoying and worrisome, and that you¡¯d have problems to solve when you were dead. ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to come in the ship?¡± Box asked. ¡°Um, are you sure it is perfectly safe?¡± Despite not being able to see anything worrying inside of the ship, Nick had an unsettling feeling that she would disappear in the pure blackness once she stepped in. ¡°You¡¯re dead, aren¡¯t you? You shouldn¡¯t worry.¡± The robot wheeled itself toward the open doorway. Nick still felt slightly unsure. ¡°I thought you told me I shouldn¡¯t try to find out if I can die twice.¡± Box sighed. ¡°That¡¯s true. But the ship is perfectly safe for anyone, unless they are an extremely primitive species in their early stages of evolution.¡± ¡°Oh good. We humans are quite advanced.¡± ¡°But then again, Sodriew have only gone through a few millennials of evolution.¡± Nick decided she was a human, not a Sodriew. So she would be perfectly fine. Where had she heard Sodriew before? With care, Nick stepped into the smoldering ship. The first thing she saw was a figure biting a plastic bag. He had a very pronounced cheekbone and jaw. His hair was also amazingly long, for someone that looked almost certainly no older than fourteen. Nick regretted her decision to follow the robot instantly. ¡°Is he dead too?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so.¡± Box punched the figure. The boy awoke. The boy looked around, confused. His eyes settled on Nick. ¡°Who are you? Would you like some cloud?¡± he gestured to the plastic bags. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Quick,¡± Box said, ¡°The medicine for concussions is in the bottom right Fayckbawtum cabinet.¡± Nick opened the cabinet. ¡°Where?¡± ¡°I said, Fayckbawtum!¡± Box hissed. The boy bit the plastic again. ¡°Ooh. Rubbery clouds.¡± Box ignored him. ¡°Pry the F-ay-ck b-aw-tum up!¡± Nick blinked. ¡°Fake bottom? Oh!¡± she did as she was told, and retrieved a small vial. ¡°This it?¡± ¡°Of course it is. Why wouldn¡¯t it be?¡± ¡°Would you like to step in this Cloudensation?¡± the boy said loudly, then broke into an uncontrolled laugher. ¡°Is he drunk?¡± Nick asked Box. ¡°No, he¡¯s fine.¡± Nick looked at the robot, unconvinced. ¡°You can be drunk and fine, you know.¡± ¡°Just give me the pills.¡± ¡°Pills,¡± the boy said dreamily, ¡°like the platypus in la-la store. Poisonous platypus. Or is poison platynous? There¡¯s no way of finding out. Life has so many mysteries. Like these strange clouds. Can I have a chocolate-tasting cloud? I¡¯m getting tired of rubber.¡± Nick handed the pills to the robot. ¡°Are you sure this is a concussion? Is he drugged?¡± Box, tired of Nick¡¯s chattering and the boy¡¯s moaning, said nothing and deftly began curing the boy with the aid of its boxing glove. Nick wasn¡¯t able to see the exact procedures, but it looked rather uncomfortable for the boy, as pills seemed to be shoved up his nose. The boy fell unconscious, and Nick supposed he was going to die. However, within minutes, the boy woke up. He stopped biting the plastic, and looked around in confusion. ¡°Oh, hello there,¡± the boy said to Nick, ¡°I¡¯m Exflibberaguil. I trust Box here told you that it was all its fault?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Nick said, stunned. The boy spoke flawlessly, though his lips seemed to move a second before the words were spoken. It reminded her of movies when the captions were half a second too late. Exflibberaguil waited. ¡°Well,¡± he said at last, ¡°in my home planet, which I can¡¯t remember, it was polite to reply a greeting with your name.¡± ¡°I¡¯m Nick,¡± Nick muttered. ¡°Oh, I see,¡± Exflibberaguil said, ¡°Conspearisee? However, I always imagined you were a boy?¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯m not,¡± Nick said shortly, ¡°though I¡¯m not sure if I¡¯m alive.¡± ¡°I think you are. It would not be so pleasant if I were interacting with the dead. However, I would recommend you not to keep asking questions, as it is delaying our take-off time. We will have to leave soon. Has a fire arisen?¡± ¡°Yes, sir,¡± Box replied dutifully. ¡°Have we soaked up enough fuel to leave?¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± ¡°Then we will leave now.¡± ¡°Where to, sir?¡± ¡°You know, I never really thought about that. Nick, what do you think¡ªNick?¡± Exflibberaguil looked around. Nick was nowhere in sight. ¡°Ugh. Sodriew are so jumpy.¡± They found her outside the ship, her face illuminated ominously from the growing fire. ¡°Hey, Exflipper. Are you sure this dude¡¯s okay?¡± Nick asked, squatting down next to a fallen figure. ¡°He looks sort of funky.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure he just fainted or something. Let the authorities take care of him. You do have a civilized enough society to have authorities, right?¡± Exflibberaguil asked with a hint of condescendence. ¡°There¡¯s an awful lot of Sodriew coming. I don¡¯t want anyone taking pictures. And I see flashing lights on fast cars coming our way.¡± ¡°But this guy probably saw this ship. Isn¡¯t it dangerous for anyone to witness a UFO, or whatever this is?¡± ¡°UFO?¡± ¡°Unidentified Flying Object, sir,¡± Box quickly filled in. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Nick, I¡¯m sure nothing bad would happen,¡± Exflibberaguil assured her, ¡°None of these people look like they have any credibility. I¡¯m sure the authorities would dismiss them as weird Driew beings.¡± Exflibberaguil laughed, though Nick didn¡¯t know why. However, Nick did remember that Exflibberaguil had used ¡®Sodriew¡¯ instead of humans, for whatever reason aliens had. ¡°But I do know this guy,¡± Nick insisted, ¡°He was just on the news. I think he was an archeologist, and he just found something that further solidifies the theory that dinosaurs had feathers.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Exflibberaguil clucked, ¡°That greatly complicates things. He has credibility then?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Exflibberaguil glanced again at the approaching blinking-vehicles. ¡°Then quickly, haul him up. We have to go.¡± Nick did as she was told. As soon as she was safely in the ship, the doors slammed shut, and the UFO started to rise. There were plenty of windows in the ship, though for some reason, she hadn¡¯t been able to see it on the outside. Nick didn¡¯t look out the window too long though. She was awfully tired, and maybe just a minute of shut-eye¡­ Suddenly, a survival instinct kicked in. This was very much like alien kidnapping humans she saw in movies. ¡°Wait!¡± Nick cried, ¡°Are you going to kill me? Because if you are, I¡¯d much rather be on the ground!¡± ¡°Well, you¡¯re dead, aren¡¯t you?¡± Exflibberaguil said, ¡°I haven¡¯t yet found a way to kill a dead person.¡± Nick thought this was a pretty good answer, and instantly fell asleep. The Captive TIMOTHY AWOKE. He felt sick, and his head hurt. Also, something wasn¡¯t quite right with the ground. He had studied the ground his whole life. He didn¡¯t like it when it changed too much. Then he realized that he must be on a plane. It was a little quite for a plane¡ªno crying babies or loud announcements, or even the annoying hum of engines, but he supposed it was nice to be on a quite plane once in a while. He must be on some sort of business trip. Though wearing a McDonalds uniform may not be suitable for such an important trip, especially when his host was rich enough to own a private jet. A boy came into view. ¡°Hello,¡± the boy said. Timothy thought the boy had too much and too long hair, though it may be just the new style. What was the word? Trend. Timothy didn¡¯t like young people who followed new trends, especially when they were as absurd as growing her hair very long. Timothy, his voice crackly and raspy, told the boy just that. Then it occurred to him it probably wasn¡¯t a very smart thing to do. The boy may have been a son of some important scientist, and insulting the son of an important scientist on a nice plane surely won¡¯t make a good impression. But then again, Timothy was also lying on the floor in a McDonalds uniform, so to hell with good impressions. Timothy decided he would just lie a little bit longer. Standing up felt like it would take a lot of energy. ¡°Something¡¯s not right,¡± he complained loudly. ¡°Oh?¡± the boy asked, amused. ¡°I don¡¯t know what it is,¡± Timothy admitted, ¡°Let me think. Is there hair on my head?¡± He patted his head and smiled with satisfaction. ¡°Yes there is. Is my neck connected to my head?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± the boy answered, ¡°along with all your other body parts, to my knowledge, at least. I¡¯m not very up to date with Odriew anatomy. Have you recently evolved a tail?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Never mind. All your external body parts seem to be connected.¡± Timothy was glad the boy had stopped being confusing. The boy¡¯s talking gave him a headache. ¡°Oh, good,¡± Timothy paused, trying to think of another reason why something was off, ¡°Is my shoe on the wrong foot then?¡± ¡°Which shoe?¡± ¡°Any one of them.¡± The boy bent down to look. ¡°The right shoe¡ªI mean, your left shoe¡ªis on the right foot. I mean, it¡¯s on the correct foot, not the right foot as in¡ªhold on. Let¡¯s put it this way. Your west foot is on the west shoe, or should I say your west shoe is on your west foot? And, of course, assuming your feet are pointing north.¡± Timothy was irritated. The boy was talking again. Timothy¡¯s brain pulsed painfully, trying to comprehend words as fast as the boy spoke them. ¡°What about my eastern foot? Is it in an eastern shoe?¡± ¡°Er, well, your eastern shoe is nonexistent.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°My ferret pooped in it, so for the interest of your sock, I didn¡¯t replace it on your foot.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Timothy relaxed again. That seemed thoughtful. He certainly did not want to get poop on his sock. But something about this seemed odd and absurd, even for a son of a really important scientist. ¡°Wait, ferret?¡±Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°I have a pet ferret.¡± Now that was odd. He¡¯d never heard of a scientist who got their son a ferret as a pet, and allowed it on a plane where it could roam around pooping on undoubtfully expensive material. ¡°Are you a son of an expensive scientist?¡± he blurted, ¡°I mean, rich scientist.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so, though I have no way of knowing.¡± Now that was certainly a very odd answer to the question. ¡°Then whose plane is this?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not a plane,¡± the boy said matter-of-factly, ¡°it¡¯s a ship painted with¡ª¡± a sudden garble of language came out of the boy¡¯s mouth. ¡°A ship painted with what?¡± ¡°Box!¡± the boy yelled suddenly, ¡°what Nedriew substance is closest to¡ª¡± and the garble of language again. An Australian answered somewhere from the left. Timothy didn¡¯t want to waste any energy turning his head to look. ¡°The closest substance on Driew that matches that is Vanta black,¡± a strangely flat voice replied ¡°Yes, this is a ship painted with something that closely resembles vanta black,¡± the boy said. Vanta black. Timothy had heard of it somewhere. Somewhere in the news, when he had been trying to find an article about himself. Vanta black¡ªwasn¡¯t that something like the blackest black in the world? Then again, many people claimed to have made a substance even blacker. Timothy closed his eyes. His head was hurting again. Maybe he should go to sleep.
HE AWOKE AGAIN. This time, Timothy sat up. The sleep had helped significantly. It didn¡¯t take him long to figure out he was in a different room. ¡°Hello?¡± he called. He heard some mumbling that came from what seemed to be another room. Dark splotches of black and yellow clouded his vision. He blinked them away. Then it came back to him. McDonalds, his excuse of smoking, seeing the figure in the woods, hearing the humming, looking up¡­ Explosion. A sudden panic filled him. Was he captured now? Was he a prisoner? Timothy stood up rapidly, searching for a window, but the movement hurt his head. The splotches came back. He sat down again, steeling his nerves. His head hurt, and the pain reminded him of something. It was a boy with long hair, and being on a plane. Was it a dream? Timothy breathed in deeply, momentarily placing the dream aside for now. So there weren¡¯t any windows. Big deal. If he was on a plane, windows wouldn¡¯t have been very helpful anyway. Timothy didn¡¯t remember coming in this room. Somebody had to have put him here. There would have to be a door. He was quite right. There was a door. He opened it, and the door yielded. Timothy felt like an idiot. He must have watched too many action movies. But then again, in movies, this was when an unseen attacker would appear and clock him in the head. Timothy glanced back just in case. There wasn¡¯t anyone. ¡°Hello?¡± he called again. The mumblings were definitely louder now, but the source of it was nowhere in sight. Timothy glanced back at the door he left, but realized he had no way of knowing which door it was, for there were four identical doors next to each other. Should he try to go through each door? Timothy decided against it. He was already pushing his luck. Now that he was out of his original room, Timothy wished he had looked around a bit more, just in case he¡¯d find anything useful. You know, just a random gun lying around or something, in case someone tried to kill him. The room he was in now was no larger than the room he exited. It consisted of several flamingo-shaped chairs, what looked like a complex coffee machine, and a plate full of cheese puffs. At the back wall were another four doors, and on each side were two more. Slowly, Timothy advanced for the flamingo seats. It occurred to him that this would be a perfect time for a booby trap to spring up. Was that a scurrying sound? Of course it was a scurrying sound, Timothy decided with a hint of pride. In movies, when there was a scurrying noise, the protagonist always dismissed it as a rat. But Timothy was different. He knew the scurrying noise was no good, so he was one step ahead of the idiots in movies. But, as he could not find the source of the scurrying, he advanced further, constantly turning his head painfully to see what was behind him. Each time he saw only the pale beige walls, yet the pattering of little feet constantly followed him. He knew the feet likely belonged to a small mammal. Even though his most famous discoveries were about the tyrannosaurus rex, most of archeologist work consisted of tiny little fossils of imprints and whatnot. These imprints, though boring, can reveal plenty of clues to the size of the animal, and therefore the environment it lived in. This animal, however, seemed invisible. Timothy once had a cricket in the house where it screeched all night. No matter where had looked, he could not find it. This went on for three days, the screeching become quieter and quieter until the cricket expired. Timothy often wondered when he¡¯d find the dead body. Timothy shuddered a bit. Maybe the animal was in the walls? Timothy realized this couldn¡¯t be true, because just then, a furry animal rubbed across his shin. He fainted. An Alien Explains the Meaning of Life NICK WAS STARVING. However, despite her stomach¡¯s groans, she couldn¡¯t bring herself to eat. ¡°Are you sure this is food?¡± she spoke with disgust. Exflibberaguil, however, didn¡¯t look like he heard or, if he did, decided not to speak. He shoveled Spoonfuls of glowing blue soup and something green that looked like radioactive batteries. Noticing Nick¡¯s look of disgust, he asked, ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to eat?¡± ¡°Eat that? No! Never! Even though it smells delicious,¡± Nick added hesitantly. Exflibberaguil looked at Nick with a mixture of wonder and confusion. ¡°You must be hungry by now,¡± he said, ¡°unless humans have evolved a second stomach. Your body looks a little too small to fit too of the though¡­¡± his eyes ran down her torso. Nick shifted uncomfortably. ¡°Stop looking at me you perv!¡± ¡°What¡¯s a perv?¡± ¡°A pervert you idiot!¡± ¡°Well then,¡± Exflibberaguil replied with the air of a young child, ¡°I will continue enjoying this marvelous food while you starve to death. Besides, I kidnapped you for your brain anyway, not that it seems like you have a very large one. But did you know, your brain can sell for three thousand Unpoppable Bubbles! Brains of such a primitive species are hard to find nowadays.¡± ¡°What! You¡¯re not taking my brain!¡± Nick screamed, clutching her cranium with her hands. ¡°It was a joke,¡± Exflibberaguil said flatly. ¡°A bad one!¡± ¡°Interesting though,¡± Exflibberaguil began again, after a moment of silence, ¡°can primitive species not define the difference between jokes and everyday speech?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not a primitive species,¡± Nick said hotly, ¡°and I know good jokes, not ones of questionable taste.¡± Exflibberaguil sighed, looking at Nick with pity. ¡°Well then, you must eat. Starving is a very painful way to die. What¡¯s the pain factor, box?¡± ¡°5.8123 out of ten,¡± Box replied from his charging station, every bit as dent and dirty as he had been the day before. ¡°Exactly. And what¡¯s so bad about the food anyway?¡± ¡°It looks like it was dipped in printer ink!¡± ¡°Oh!¡± Exflibberaguil exclaimed, ¡°Box, note that down. Odriew do not like food that are bright blue or bright green.¡± ¡°Or bright anything!¡± Nick added.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°Then explain cheese puffs!¡± Nick sniffed indignantly, but had nothing to say. ¡°Look, if you aren¡¯t going to eat, can I have your portion?¡± Nick sighed with defeat. Food was food. Besides, her stomach would never forgive her if she passed on this chance. ¡°Fine. I¡¯ll eat your artificially colored food, but only because it smells like fresh hot pancakes topped with whipped cream and raspberry sorbet.¡± Nick dropped into a duck-shaped chair stiffly. The radioactive batteries wobbled. Yellow, slimy pus leaked out from cracks. The blue soup was dotted with fleshy pink bits and more batteries. Closing her eyes and pinching her nose, Nick shoved one spoonful into her mouth. Her taste buds exploded with confusion. Her first reaction was that it was sweet, but then she decided it was actually rather salty. While Nick had been debating what flavor it actually was, the color kicked in. She couldn¡¯t explain it, but she felt a whole new, delightful flavor she could only describe as blue. ¡°I¡¯m tasting blue,¡± she gurgled through mouthfuls of soup. Exflibberaguil had, once again, been watching Nick with the look of a scientist. Now he smiled rather arrogantly (Nick thought), taking a breath in to prepare for a speech. ¡°Sodriew taste partially with their nose, actually, which is why pinching your nose can take away some of the flavor. I can¡¯t imagine why Sodriew actually want to take away the flavor though. If one didn¡¯t like the flavor of something, they shouldn¡¯t have ate it anyway. But that¡¯s for another day. More advanced species, which is practically all species, have an extra sense, being about to taste by seeing. Not seeing through their eyes, of course. One species, the Greets, had once been able to, at one point in time. However, once when a Greet was piloting a ship, she crashed while eating a particularly bright-colored food which made her see practically nothing by red. From then on, the Galactic Yelling Papers had instructed that eating while piloting was outlawed until the Greets were extinct. The Greets were a rather old species who died out a few millennials ago by warfare. All current advanced species in this galaxy have evolved so that their conscious sight would not be obstructed while eating and piloting. Instead, they have a mind¡¯s eye, which can allow their subconscious to see the colors. This is actually something that develops quite early in evolution and, as I predicted, Sodriew have started developing it already. Do you know if your parents have this? Or what generation this attribute started developing?¡± Nick barely listened. When Exflibberaguil stopped speaking, she realized he had been waiting for an answer of some sort, though she had no idea what the question was. So she resorted to her comeback. ¡°Nerd,¡± Nick burped. ¡°Naturally. I know almost everything you Sodriew can¡¯t explain.¡± ¡°Oh, really?¡± Nick asked, as she moved on to the batteries, ¡°I sense a challenge.¡± ¡°So be it.¡± ¡°Hmm,¡± Nick though, yellow goo dripping down her chin, ¡°What¡¯s the meaning of life?¡± ¡°To help the next generation,¡± Exflibberaguil answered promptly. Nick was surprised. ¡°Whoa, whoa, whoa. You have to explain that.¡± ¡°Easy. You live to either create, educate, or provide for the next generation. Parents create the children. Those who don¡¯t create children can teach them, adopt them, or care for them.¡± ¡°What about businessmen?¡± ¡°They, essentially, make money to provide for their children, or the next generation who would inevitably take over the business.¡± ¡°But what about the people who buy the products?¡± ¡°They are giving up their money for the next generation, or the business. And they must need to earn money to pay for the products. Even if they don¡¯t have any children, and spend all their money, they are still providing for the person they gave their money to in exchange for products. The meaning of life is to help the next generation.¡± Nick tried frantically to think of some way to refute this, but could not. ¡°You see,¡± Exflibberaguil said with satisfaction, ¡°I really do know everything.¡± I am an Alien, I swear! ¡°OK, THIS WAS A REALLY GOOD PRANK, BUT I THINK IT¡¯S TIME YOU LET ME GO.¡± Nick crossed her arms and frowned. ¡°No,¡± Exflibberaguil said shortly. ¡°Look, I really got to get back home. My mom is going to be furious when¡ª¡± ¡°You were the one who agreed to the Terms and Conditions,¡± Exflibberaguil reminded pointedly, ¡°you should have taken these things into consideration before agreeing. Violating the terms and conditions is against rule 22419 in the Galactic Yelling Papers. I could sue you for it.¡± This was not true, of course, because the Galactic Yelling Papers didn¡¯t apply for primitive species, but Exflibberaguil took the chance and guessed that this Odriew wouldn¡¯t know. He assumed correctly. ¡°This is really taking this whole ¡®alien¡¯ thing a little too seriously,¡± Nick said uncomfortably. Over the past few hours, she had sat in a sleeping room given to her, and thought. She finally came to the conclusion that this Exflipper was not an alien and that she wasn¡¯t on a spaceship at all, but on a normal plane. ¡°Of course,¡± Exflibberaguil sniffed, ¡°I am an alien. At least from your point of view.¡± ¡°You¡¯re insane, aren¡¯t you?¡± Nick asked, a hint of fear in her voice. She read about people that were insane. They had obsessions, and maybe this person was insane too, and his obsession would be pretending he was an alien. ¡°Perhaps,¡± Exflibberaguil answered thoughtfully, ¡°You know, insanity is a very interesting topic. Because, in a sense, the whole universe is insane and chaotic. So perhaps those who are insane are actually sane, and act so oddly because they see the reality of the universe. And perhaps our natural combat to such a frightening insane universe is by acting ¡°sane¡± and refusing to believe the insanity of everything. But since the majority of us sees the universe through this filter of, well, sanity or insanity (call it what you want), we automatically believe that the exception (that is, those who act differently) is insane.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°But then again, there are those who are insanely stupid,¡± Exflibberaguil muttered. ¡°Ok, you¡¯re insane,¡± Nick blurted, ¡°I read somewhere that I shouldn¡¯t anger someone insane.¡± ¡°Correct,¡± Exflibberaguil agreed, amused, ¡°it¡¯s common sense.¡± ¡°Can I please, please, be dropped off at my house?¡± Nick pleaded, dropping to her knees. ¡°Why, you don¡¯t like my ship?¡± Exflibberaguil waved his hand, motioned around the room. Nick was obliged to look around. It was a very nice ship. No, a very nice plane, Nick reminded herself. This room she was in was about the size of a large garage. Three of the walls were painted clean white, and one was painted cool grey. The floor was carpeted with soft, white carpet, as both Nick and Exflibberaguil walked barefoot. There were three very inviting blue chairs, the cushions neither too soft nor too hard. Like Goldilocks. These chairs were arranged around a glass-covered table, the border the same color as the wall. And, for a pop of color, there was a bowl full of what looked like cheese puffs. Nick had eaten one, and it turned out to be orange-flavored puffs. Nick had also been able to see the orange-ness of the food.This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. On the opposite wall was a large television monitor, covering nearly the entire wall. Beneath it was a low counter. There was also a port for Box to charge in. These ports were placed everywhere around the ship. The whole room was illuminated from the top. It would be incorrect to describe this as the ceiling, because there wasn¡¯t one. It was just a giant light, which for some reason, felt strangely natural. What was the most remarkable about the ship, besides the fact that the bright white walls were unbelievably clean, was that it smelled exactly like how the room looked. Nick¡¯s sleeping room, which had consisted mostly of warm reds and oranges, smelled of cinnamon buns baking in an oven. This room smelled like fresh mint leaves with a touch of citrus. Nick still couldn¡¯t find the source of these wondered smells. At length, Nick spoke. ¡°Your ship is very beautiful,¡± Nick admitted, ¡°But I really want to get home.¡± Exflibberaguil rubbed his chin thoughtfully. ¡°Well, I regret to inform you, but you may not have a home in a few more galactic years. Or a planet, for that matter.¡± Oh great. I¡¯m dealing with an insane terrorist. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Nick asked, panicking, ¡°are you going to start a nuclear war?¡± ¡°I¡¯m here to stop an alien invasion.¡± ¡°This is not funny, okay?¡± Nick exploded, ¡°It was funny for the first few seconds, but I really want to leave now. I don¡¯t know who you are, or what you do, but I¡¯m not willing to risk my life to find out!¡± ¡°You don¡¯t need to risk your life to find out. My name is Exflibberaguil. I¡¯m a Mustela. My planet Pylo¡¯rox was invaded and destroyed¡ªsomething, by the way, I¡¯m working on forgetting. I¡¯m here because I don¡¯t want your planet suffering the same way. Planets are supposed to go extinct either because of solar flares, other natural destructions, or warfare, but not by invasions. It¡¯s breaking the laws of nature, and the laws of the Galactic Yelling Papers.¡± ¡°Stop it! Stop pretending! You¡¯re not an alien!¡± ¡°Why not?¡± Exflibberaguil challenged. ¡°You don¡¯t look alien enough!¡± ¡°And what does that mean?¡± Exflibberaguil raised his voice. ¡°You don¡¯t look¡­¡± Nick faltered. ¡°Like a monster?¡± Exflibberaguil snapped, ¡°is it that? It¡¯s a real pity, you know, that Sodriew associate aliens with monsters now. But isn¡¯t it obvious that not all aliens look like monsters? I live on a planet that survives on oxygen, and gravity very close to that of Driew¡¯s. Therefore, I should look very similar to what Sodriew look like. And yes, we¡¯ve had animals very similar to the dinosaur before. Even though we are a lot more evolved than Sodriew, evolution takes a long time, and only when we, Mustelas, go extinct can the next wave of evolved living things take over. ¡°But going extinct takes a long time. Living things try their best not to die out. Only nature can decide when a species had enough time on their planet, and that it was time for the next, better, living things to take over. It hasn¡¯t happened yet for Mustela. ¡°Driew and Pylo¡¯rox are all part of a class of planets called ¡®Goldilocks¡¯ planets, in Nedriew terms. Planets are grouped by the Most Optimal Evolution Form, or the MOEF. That is the form we would end up evolving to, if we had infinite time. This form can only be achieved under the right amount of oxygen and gravity. Therefore, Sodriew and Mustela should look very similar.¡± ¡°You¡¯re obsessed! You¡¯re an insane terrorist who is obsessed with aliens to the point where he believes he is an alien himself!¡± Nick yelled. ¡°You¡¯re stubborn! I¡¯m telling the truth!¡± ¡°Prove it!¡± Exflibberaguil sighed. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to do this so early in our acquaintance, but it looks as if I have no choice.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Prove it, or let me go!¡± Exflibberaguil clapped, and the TV turned on. ¡°I would tell you to enjoy the show,¡± he said, seating himself in one of the chairs, ¡°But I know you won¡¯t.¡± Part 1 The screen lit up. It was of a large, yellowish ball spinning slowly. ¡°This is planet Phachopsty,¡± Exflibberaguil commented solemnly. ¡°If you say so,¡± Nick replied, faking a yawn. The camera zoomed in through clouds of gas and dust. ¡°Phachopsty is a ¡°little bear¡± planet. Very similar to ¡°Goldilocks¡± in terms of gravity and sun exposure, but their species evolve completely differently. However, they can survive easily in Goldilocks planets.¡± The camera flew closer, and the clouds parted, revealing a brown planet dotted with reservoirs of blue. The camera zoomed in, capturing a volcano, black chunks of lava floating on molten rock, Suddenly, a chunk of orange lava became pixelated, glitching for half a second. ¡°This isn¡¯t real?¡± Nick asked. ¡°Of course not. Pylo¡¯rox hasn¡¯t even been populated by Mustela at this time. Dinobeetles were roaming our world. This is simulation of what was really likely to have happened.¡± After another moment capturing the flowing lava, the camera flew to a large desert with a small lake at the side. The camera zoomed toward the edge of the lake, then, with a pause, dived into it. Bubbles filled the screen. The camera swam through the water, finally settling on the sandy bottom. Clouds of silt rose. For a few moments, nothing changed except the bubbles which floated to the top, off screen. The camera panned up toward the bubbles, and settled down again. The top of the water quivered from then popping bubbles, then lay still. Nothing happened. ¡°I enjoyed that a lot,¡± Nick said, once she was certain this was the end, ¡°and this doesn¡¯t prove anything of importance¡ª¡± She stopped, her eyes flickering back to the screen. The camera had zoomed in to the surface of the water when something green began to sprout. Then, within seconds, this green multiplied. The camera shot out of the water, shooting the scene downwards. The green, which Nick now realized was algae, grew exponentially. Nick noted a number that had appeared at the bottom of the screen, and, though she couldn¡¯t read it, realized this must be time lapsed. The camera dropped back into the water, disturbing the thick blanket of algae that covered it. The water was magnified, and Nick saw little dot that looked as if they had been swimming, fall to the bottom. The screen went black. Nick released a breath she hadn¡¯t realized she had been holding. ¡°As I was saying, that was a great video,¡± she continued, ¡°and I can¡¯t imagine why you said I wouldn¡¯t enjoy it.¡± Exflibberaguil said nothing, only pointed to the screen. Slowly, white words formed on the black. Nick could see them instantly translated to English: END OF PART ONE. ¡°I see. So there is a part two?¡± Exflibberaguil nodded. ¡°But before we advance, you have to understand part one. Did you understand it?¡± ¡°I think so,¡± Nick said, eager to show that humans weren¡¯t stupid, ¡°it showed the growth of algae.¡± ¡°Why did the little organisms die?¡± ¡°Organisms?¡± ¡°The little dot.¡± ¡°How should I know? There was no commentary.¡± Exflibberaguil sighed. ¡°How do you not even know about the basics? Algae converted carbon dioxide to oxygen. I trust you know that?¡±The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. ¡°Photosynthesis, yes.¡± ¡°Oxygen was poisonous to early organisms. That is why they died.¡± ¡°Oh. I get it now. Can we continue to part two?¡± Exflibberaguil stood up with a sigh. ¡°If you must.¡± He clapped twice. Two pairs of googles fell from the glowing ceiling. ¡°Part two is continued in virtual reality.¡± ¡°Cool.¡± Nick jumped down from her chair and strapped the goggles on her head. They were interrupted by a thudding noise against the wall. Timothy sighed, though Nick couldn¡¯t determine if it was from relief or exasperation. ¡°That would be our friend,¡± he said, and left the room. Nick stood in the room stupidly, goggles still on her head, before realizing she should probably take them off and follow Exflibberaguil. It wasn¡¯t difficult to find the right door. All others were locked.
TIMOTHY WAS BEING DRAGGED. He tried to find his captors, but they were nowhere in sight. ¡°Look down,¡± an Australian advised him. He did. His captors turned out to be a cleaning robot and a ferret. ¡°Oh, hello,¡± Timothy said, ¡°Where am I? And why am I being dragged?¡± ¡°Ah, yes, the most important questions of life,¡± Box sighed, ¡°Unfortunately, I can not answer either of them, because explaining is against my rules.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°My owner wants the glory of doing that himself. When we reach him, do you mind asking the same questions again? It shouldn¡¯t be too hard. You Sodriew have a habit of repeating things stupidly.¡± ¡°What? No I don¡¯t!¡± ¡°Yes, you do.¡± ¡°I do not!¡± ¡°Exactly,¡± Box pointed out, ¡°Here is where we stop. Don¡¯t go anywhere.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t stop me! You¡¯re only a cleaning robot.¡± ¡°This ferret will stop you. It has been having a bad case of diarrhea. If you move, it will poop on you.¡± The robot left, dropping Timothy¡¯s head unceremoniously on the floor. The ferret climbed on top of Timothy¡¯s chest. Timothy didn¡¯t even dare to breath. The ferret looked like it¡¯d let go whatever was in its intestines any second. He heard a shuffling from the door right of him. A strange minty smell floated out from the crack at the bottom. Slowly, cautious, Timothy poked his nose through the little crack. The ferret had been farting. The door slammed into Timothy¡¯s face. A boy with long hair walked out. It was the boy in the dream which, evidently, wasn¡¯t a dream at all. Timothy moaned. ¡°Oops, sorry,¡± The boy apologized, ¡°Do you know where Box went? The little robot.¡± Timothy pointed down the hallway with his left hand. His right hand was pressed firmly against his nose. ¡°Good. Box should be set up by now.¡± The boy sniffed, ¡°Phew! Ferret, go back to your bathroom. Don¡¯t even think about doing your business here.¡± Timothy was glad to weight on his chest lift. ¡°Anyway, I hope you aren¡¯t too tired. Did I hit your very hard? I don¡¯t want you going unconscious again. I won¡¯t be able to complete this if you fell asleep. You Sodriew are very frail, you know that?¡± Timothy moaned a response. ¡°Hm. I think you¡¯re fine. I hope you don¡¯t mind a bit more dragging. You see, I can¡¯t have you remembering all this. You have too much credibility, or so my friend says. Don¡¯t know what she¡¯s still doing in the room, but Sodriew are weird.¡± The boy laughed, though Timothy had no idea why. ¡°Come on. Just turn your head a bit to the right, so you won¡¯t get hit again when I drag you.¡± Timothy did so. ¡°Where am I?¡± He asked at last, remembering to sound stupid. ¡°You are in a ship. A spaceship.¡± ¡°Who are you?¡± ¡°I am an alien.¡± ¡°Why am I being dragged?¡± The boy took a while to answer. ¡°Well,¡± he said at last, ¡°I guess I could put you on a leash. I can¡¯t let you walk around freely, of course. I don¡¯t know how much strength Sodriew have. But even if I put you on a lease, and you refuse to move, I¡¯d still end up dragging you. So this seems like the most efficient way of transportation.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°No, you don¡¯t.¡± Timothy frowned. ¡°No, I don¡¯t,¡± he agreed. He let himself be dragged in silence. This time the journey didn¡¯t take as long. ¡°We are here,¡± the boy announced. ¡°Go ahead, get up and take a look.¡± Timothy did as told. This room smelled of whiteboard cleaner. It wasn¡¯t as much of a room, really, but a large, open, circular space. On one end were ginormous screens and ginormous, opaque panes of glass. Beneath the screens was a bench full of buttons and switches. A toucan chair was placed in front of this bench. The other side was mostly occupied by a large, spherical object that resembled a frame of a large hamster ball. Timothy moved toward it to get a better look. ¡°Go on. You can go inside. It¡¯s a virtual reality machine,¡± the boy said, ¡°Here, I¡¯ll set up a game for you.¡± The boy moved to a screen. Timothy stepped into the hamster ball with wonder. There was a pair of black, ski-goggles. Timothy put them on. He could see nothing, but pure, baffling blackness. Timothy knew this was also vanta black. Instantly, his other senses perked up to make up for the lost of sight. He heard a pair of footsteps. This was lighter than a boy¡¯s. Most likely a female. ¡°Exflipper! What are you doing?¡± the female exclaimed. ¡°Nick! Just in time for the best part.¡± (Nick? Timothy wondered for a second. Was this not a girl?) ¡°What best part¡ª¡± And Timothy could hear no more. Memory ¡°STOP!¡± NICK SCREAMED IN HORROR. She couldn¡¯t bear to look. The smell of electricity hung in the stale air. She could see blue zaps through her closed eyelids. The hair on her arms tingled. Electricity sizzled. ¡°What?¡± Exflipper asked, unheard over the constant zapping. ¡°Stop!¡± Nick cried, ¡°Stop the machine! You¡­you¡­¡± Several fitting curse words came to mind, but Nick had realized these would have had no effect. Exflipper¡¯s vocabulary was limited to only the most proper English words. ¡°What?¡± Exflipper hollered. ¡°You piece of feces! You donkey-butt! You child of a dog! You life-devouring bacteria. You methane-farting bull! You animal!¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Aaaaargh!¡± Nick screamed with anger and frustration. And just like that, the zapping stopped. Nick panted heavily. Her hair stuck to her forehead from sweat. Her throat was raw and sore. She had not cried, but her nose and cheeks were bright red. ¡°There,¡± Exflipper said shortly, ¡°That wasn¡¯t too bad, was it? Please refrain from screaming. I didn¡¯t right it in the Terms and Conditions, but perhaps I should have. Sodriew are so jumpy.¡± ¡°That wasn¡¯t too bad? THAT WASN¡¯T TOO BAD?¡± Nick yelled. Exlipper stuffed his ears. ¡°I just told you not to yell. And yes, I did say it wasn¡¯t too bad. You do not need to repeat it for me.¡± ¡°YOU JUST KILLED THAT MAN AND IT WASN¡¯T TOO BAD?¡± ¡°Killed?¡± Exflipper repeated. Then he looked back at the machine, then laughed. ¡°Oh, just my luck. You¡¯re a psychopath too.¡± ¡°I am not!¡± Exflipper roared with such ferocity that Nick jumped. ¡°I didn¡¯t kill anyone. See for yourself.¡± Nick had not looked back. ¡°You just electrocuted a man. I have no wish of looking at a dead body.¡± Nick didn¡¯t dare raise her voice though. Exflipper scared her. ¡°He¡¯s not dead.¡± Exflipper walked to the machine and gave something a little kick. ¡°Come on. Wake up. It couldn¡¯t have been that bad.¡± Nick¡¯s curiosity overcome her. She glanced back. There, as expected, was a man in the machine lying prone to the floor, his who body covered with blackish soot. Exflipper gave the man another kick. Nick felt sick. She looked away. So this is my fate. Why, oh why did I stay in that forest and follow that robot and type conspiracy wrong and why did I even think it was a good idea to¡ªNick¡¯s ran through all her life¡¯s choices, or, at least, the choices that were responsible to what would happen now. Her death.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. A moan sounded from behind her. ¡°Why did I eat eggs it was obviously the eggs that made me all funny for the day and why hadn¡¯t I listened to Ben he may have given me a valuable clue and why did I not pay attention to social studies and so I wouldn¡¯t have typed conspiracy wrong and why did I get detention it was obviously the detention¡¯s fault and why did I even respond to the chat box and why did I agree to the terms and conditions and¡ª¡± Nick chanted aloud, her voice rising over the groaning. ¡°Who are you?¡± someone murmured. ¡°¡ªand why hadn¡¯t I eaten the other chicken leg instead of the wing and why did I¡ªwhat?¡± Her head swiveled back. In the machine, propped up and sitting, was the man. His eyes were opened. ¡°Why are you alive?¡± Nick blurted. After a pause, Exflipper answered. ¡°Phew. For a moment I thought you wouldn¡¯t stop. That was a real question, right? Not like the other ones.¡± Nick nodded. ¡°He¡¯s alive,¡± Exflipper said nasally, ¡°because I didn¡¯t kill him.¡± ¡°Then what did you do to him?¡± ¡°I merely wiped his memories. We are just about to land in about ten minutes. I¡¯ll just drop him off.¡± ¡°Land?¡± Nick asked, panicked again, ¡°You mean like the explosion that happened?¡± ¡°No, I have auto-land. We have a high chance of not dying.¡± ¡°Oh, that help so much,¡± Nick said sarcastically. ¡°Your welcome.¡± So he doesn¡¯t understand sarcasm either. Great. ¡°Isn¡¯t he making new memories now?¡± Nick pointed out, ¡°Why did you wake him up?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. He¡¯s too weak and tired to make new memories. I¡¯ll put him back to sleep in a moment. When he¡¯s dropped off, he¡¯ll just assume it was a dream. Sodriew are so weird.¡± Exflipper paused, then giggled. ¡°Why do you keep laughing like that?¡± ¡°Nothing,¡± he replied, ¡°Inside joke.¡±
TIMOTHY BLINKED. Everything was pink and happy. Pink and happy. It all seemed underwater though. And the air smelled all gross and burnt. Electrocuted¡ªthat was the word. He felt proud of thinking up the word. Maybe his dad took him to an aquarium. That must be it. Then why was everything pink? This had to be a special aquarium, where the water is all pink. And this was the electric eel exhibit. That¡¯s why the air was so funny. But did eels have hair? Long hair? Timothy frowned. No, this was not an eel. This was a person. This person must be an electric eel trainer. Very little, but that was the only reasonable explanation. His face was all messed up though. The eye was halfway down the cheek. The eels must have bitten him. Where were the eels then? A sharp pain was delivered to his butt. Then it all made sense. Timothy was an eel. And another eel just shocked his butt! The person looked all funny because Timothy was looking at him with eel eyes. But Timothy could still detect no eel. And no wet water either. What an odd aquarium. Suddenly, painful flashes of brilliant blue invaded his vision. His skin tingled all over. Timothy gasped. Then the vision went fuzzy, and it was gone. Timothy shook his head, clearing his thoughts. There were no other fish tanks, at least, none that Timothy could see. There were, however, strange buttons and metal things. There were funny noises too, now. Funny yelling noises. Words. They were words. Timothy struggled to string them together. It hurt. His ears hurt. He stopped trying to make sense of the gibberish. Much better. It occurred to him that he, too, had the power to use words. Yes, he would use them. But what should he say? He tried something. but it came out all wrong. The yelling continued, louder this time. He must have said the wrong thing. He strained his tired brain for something else to say. The boy came to view again. ¡°Who are you?¡± Timothy croaked. The yelling stopped. The boy with long hair lifted Timothy up, and placed him on his butt. Timothy frowned. His butt still hurt. He wanted to express his unhappiness. But talking was tiring, and besides, he couldn¡¯t think of the right way to explain his discomfort. Something pierced his arm. Timothy¡¯s frown deepened. It hurt more than his butt. But the pain wasn¡¯t so bad after a second. Maybe he should just sleep it off¡­ Penguin THE LIMP BODY ROLLED FORWARD. His chest heaved, reassuring Nick that the man was still alive. ¡°Come on, help me drag him to one of those glass capsules,¡± Exflipper pleaded, lifting one of the man¡¯s arms. Nick took the other arm, and followed Exflipper through an automatic door, into a wood-paneled hallway that smelled of chocolate ganache and orange peels. ¡°Look here, Exflubber¡ªExflipper¡ª¡± Nick began. ¡°Exflibberaguil.¡± ¡°Yes that. You see, we never finished Part two. I still don¡¯t know what you are doing on Earth¡ªthat is, if you are an alien at all which I highly doubt.¡± ¡°I told you. I¡¯m here to fight an invading species which had destroyed my home planet.¡± ¡°Well, why would this species come to Earth? And I¡¯ve never heard of any alien species on my planet before.¡± ¡°Oh no,¡± Exflipper muttered, ¡°Oh, no, no, no. You are so far behind.¡± ¡°Well, Exflipper whatever, maybe you should have known since our species is so primitive.¡± ¡°My name,¡± Exflipper panted, ¡°Is Exflibberaguil.¡± ¡°How am I supposed to remember that?¡± Nick heaved the body up a few steps, thinking. ¡°You need a nickname,¡± she decided. ¡°I do not need a nickname.¡± ¡°Yes, you do, now shut up and let me brainstorm.¡± ¡°But shut up is my catch-phrase¡­¡± ¡°Shut up,¡± Nick snapped, ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­ ¡°Exflibberaguil. What can I do to that name? Ex? Flibber? Flubber? Blubber? How¡¯s blubber?¡± ¡°Do I look blubber?¡± Nick glanced at Blubber¡¯s thin, angular face. ¡°Good point. Moving on. ¡°Flicker. Flacker. Flibber. Flapper. Flipper? Flipper¡­Penguin. That¡¯s it! Your nickname is Penguin.¡± ¡°It is not!¡± ¡°Yes, it is, Penguin. Now, what was I talking about?¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter,¡± Penguin sighed, ¡°Help me lift this Odriew up.¡± They had arrived at an airy room that smelled of rain and mowed grass. Inside the room were many large, egg-shaped capsules covered with a glass dome. Tubes poked through the side, delivering oxygen and water. It looked very much like a hamster cage. ¡°What¡¯s this for?¡± Nick asked, as Exflibberaguil reached up to close the dome. Despite having given Exflibberaguil a nickname, Nick still couldn¡¯t imagine the sharp, angular alien as Penguin.Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! ¡°This is a landing capsule. Protects you against most damage.¡± ¡°Most?¡± ¡°Oh, let¡¯s say, more than half. Come on. Our capsule is in another room.¡± Exflibberaguil exited the room. Nick glanced warily at the fragile-looking glass the man was in, then followed Exflibberaguil out. ¡°What if I die here?¡± Nick fretted, ¡°and shouldn¡¯t you be up there piloting this landing?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Auto pilot probably won¡¯t crash. And if we do die, it would all be Box¡¯s fault.¡± ¡°Yup, I¡¯m definitely going to die,¡± Nick sighed, resigned. Exflibberaguil stopped at another room that was exactly the same as the one they left. However, instead of twenty or so beds, a much larger capsule occupied the entire room. Nick stood in front of it and stared. ¡°This is ours,¡± Exflibberaguil said, after a moment¡¯s pause. ¡°This is big.¡± ¡°Yes, it is,¡± Exflibberaguil replied patiently. ¡°Another very interesting Sodriew discovery. For some reason, they like to state the obvious. And they are also unable to make the simplest of everyday-life inferences.¡± ¡°Shut up.¡± ¡°Also, they like to steal another person¡¯s catch-phrases.¡± ¡°Well, Penguin, care to explain the large proportions of this glass capsule?¡± Nick said sarcastically, ¡°Or should I say transparent landing protector modified for multi-cellular organisms?¡± Exflibberaguil sniffed. ¡°Well, didn¡¯t you say you wanted to watch part two?¡± ¡°While we are landing? And, may I remind you, the last time you landed you set the building on fire.¡± ¡°This time we are landing in a forest. Sodriew would just dismiss it as a forest fire. ¡° ¡°That¡¯s horrible!¡± Nick exclaimed, ¡°We need our trees! They give us oxygen.¡± ¡°What you need is algae. They provide most of the oxygen you breath.¡± ¡°Stop being so knowledgeable!¡± Nick yelled. ¡°Stop being so stupid!¡± Exflibberaguil retorted. ¡°Fine! Even if algae do provide so much oxygen, we still need trees. I¡¯m not going to let you burn a forest down.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t. It would be Box¡¯s fault.¡± ¡°Whatever!¡± ¡°Look at it this way,¡± Exflibberaguil said reasonably, ¡°perhaps, if we do die, it would be better to do so in virtual reality.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because you¡¯d probably want to die anyway.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not very reassuring.¡± ¡°Of course it¡¯s not. It wasn¡¯t supposed to be.¡± Nick sighed. ¡°Penguin, you are a pain in the fanny.¡± ¡°And you are a pain in my food supply, so we¡¯re even,¡± Exflibberaguil replied, with finality. ¡°If you want a slightly higher chance of surviving, I suggest you step inside.¡± Exflibberaguil climbed into the dome, and grabbed one of the goggles placed neatly on a coffee table. ¡°You talk like I have a choice.¡± Nick sighed again to make sure Exflibberaguil knew she was reluctant to follow. Exflibberaguil pressed a button on a remote control, lowering the glass dome on top of them. The inside of the capsule was cold and boring. The limited furniture was white, with exceptions to the virtual reality goggles. The room smelled like artificial freshener. Nick shivered a little, and zipped her black jacket up. She glanced at Exflibberaguil. Exflibberaguil seemed not to mind the cold or, at least, had a higher tolerance against it. He only wore a gray t-shirt and a pair of knee-length cargo shorts. Exflibberaguil sensed Nick looking at him, and he turned his head. Nick jumped. The bug-like virtual reality goggles were frightening. Nick hurried to put hers on before she was creeped out any further. Instantly, Nick¡¯s head began to swim. She felt as if she was in the inside of a black sphere. Her legs loaded in. Nick looked down. She was floating. She returned her gaze to the front again. The same white font loaded on the black screen. Beginning of Part Two. ¡°I¡¯m ready.¡± Nick announced. ¡°Of course you are. Do you think it is really that easy to navigate through NodeTalk?¡± Exflibberaguil snapped. Nick was slightly taken aback, but she supposed she shouldn¡¯t had expected any better from an alien. The words pixelated, then disappeared completely. Nick steeled herself for the video. Exflibberaguil had described it as horrifying and gross. He even hinted that it would make Nick want to kill herself. But she simply couldn¡¯t imagine anything that horrifying. She did not expect what happened next. Part Two IT WAS THE UGLIEST CREATURE NICK HAD EVER SEEN. But it certainly wouldn¡¯t qualify as revolting or horrifying, much less suicide-prompting. In fact, Nick was vaguely familiar with creatures like it. They were all over the internet. It was a baby creature. It had swollen eyes too big for its body. Red slits for eyes peeked through the wrinkled eyelids, blind. The body was a structure of pure bone held together by wet skin that stretched thinner than pantyhose. Tufts of hideous whitish fur sprouted from its pointed nose. Two purple ears jutted from the head. Its hideous little nose twitched, and a little stub on its butt flicked, but then it lay still again. ¡°Is this a baby rat?¡± Nick asked. ¡°No.¡± Exflibberaguil replied. There was no follow-up explanation. ¡°You should use the virtual reality,¡± he reminded, after a long pause. Nick had been so engrossed (or, rather, grossed) by this creature that she had been completely oblivious of the surroundings. They were, in her defense, rather bleak and boring surrounding though: hot, dry desert. Nick moved her head, and the landscape moved with her. She never liked the dizzying quality virtual reality had, but she wasn¡¯t about to complain. The little figure lay in the sand barely breathing. Nick kneeled down. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we help it?¡± ¡°That is probably the most horrific thing you¡¯ve ever said.¡± ¡°Stop being sarcastic, Penguin.¡± But there had been no angry comeback. Only silence. ¡°Okay! I won¡¯t help this virtual creature! What next?¡± ¡°Nothing. Watch.¡± Nick did. Slowly, the tuft of fur spread across the body. The eyelids opened, revealing black pupils. A long tail grew from a stub. Whiskers stretched out from the nose. The limbs, especially the hind legs, grew longer and more muscular. The feet lengthened. Two fangs grew from the purple gum. Nick was aware this all happened under the influence of time-lapse. The result looked like a cross between a rat and an otter, with fur so short the pink skin was showing through. It looked just as hideous as before, although worse, in Nick¡¯s opinion. It was like when humans were born, they were expected to be wrinkled and ugly. But they were also expected to become cuter as they grew. This animal growing to be just as ugly as before was almost a disappointment. The animal laid on the sand, aging every second. It didn¡¯t do anything. Didn¡¯t hunt for food or water, only twitch or scratched it¡¯s ear once in a while. Nick was always reminding herself this was only because it was a simulation. She also expected something to happen. A simulation wouldn¡¯t be created just to watch an ugly animal grow uglier. Soon, another of the same sort came. It was just as ugly, only slightly fatter and larger. It didn¡¯t take a genius to figure out this was one of the opposite sex. Nick looked away as the two performed their mating ritual. She was glad the virtual reality allowed her to. She could not see Exflibberaguil, but she wondered briefly what he was doing. Was he seriously watching this all? Even though her mother never gave her the official ¡°birds and the bees¡± talk, Nick knew what action created her. However, she had no desire for her innocent mind to be scarred just yet. ¡°They¡¯re done,¡± Exflibberaguil said, ¡°you can look. Though you really are more immature than I imagined. And I doubt you would care so much in a matter of minutes.¡± ¡°Who asked for your opinion?¡± Nick looked back after a moment¡¯s pause, just to make sure Exflibberaguil had not been trying to trick her. The two ugly animals had separated now, and they lay next to each other, doing nothing as before. As the minutes passed, a bump grew in the second animal¡¯s stomach, presumably the female. It wasn¡¯t long before a little of little ugly creatures were born, about five that Nick could count.This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. She could feel the time pass quicker now. Only a few minutes passed before the animals began finding their own mates, and the original parents birthed yet another litter. A few minutes later the animals reproduced again. More than a hundred ugly animals were roaming the desert now. Nick was aware that these animals began to become livelier. Some where hopping now, though they were still disregarding the crucial elements to survival: food and water. Nick had no time to dwell on it longer. The time-lapse clock ticked faster. The animals multiplied exponentially. Hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands, millions filled the desert, filled the screen. It was a little frightening when she realized how many had sprung from that one breeding pair. It wasn¡¯t long before the entire desert that Nick could see was covered with the animals. Every second, five more animals seemed to be born. There was not enough space now. They pressed against each other, fighting for territory. It now felt dangerous, Nick being in the center of the desert. The animals began piling up in another layer. The thick, musky smell of feces wafted to her nose. Some died, yes, but not enough. And most had died from fights and stampedes. They twisted and turned and bit and screamed. Nick had already witnessed countless acts of reproduction. Her heart quickened. ¡°There¡¯s too many,¡± she gasped, ¡°something isn¡¯t right. They should start dying.¡± ¡°They should, shouldn¡¯t they?¡± Exflibberaguil replied. Nick detected no amusement in his voice. ¡°I mean, that sounds horrible. But something should happen. Something that could control their population.¡± Exflibberaguil did not reply. A strange feeling of claustrophobia overcome her. The animals climbed on each other, writhed and squirmed. They reminded Nick of earthworms and the bait shop. She had an urge to rip off her goggles, knowing that this was all a simulation. But her pride prevented her from doing so. Suddenly, the animals stopped, their black eyes glinting. Throughout the whole simulation, she had been invisible, a bystander. But now, these animals were aware of her presence. Naturally, they objected to it. Instantly, they jumped at her. She did not feel pain, but they covered her body, her vision, everything. They clung to her. She could almost feel the fur. She could not breath. The air smelled of sweat and feces. Her hands were sticky. This wasn¡¯t right. There was something very, very, wrong. More weight. She could feel the weight. She could feel herself dropping. Nick couldn¡¯t breathe. She was losing her balance. Then one jumped on her face, its yellow fangs too long to be healthy. Nick shook her head, trying to shake the animal off. But it didn¡¯t leave. It¡¯s fangs sunk into where her eyeball should be. Blood splattered. She couldn¡¯t see through that eye. Then another joined the party on her face. Nick felt herself hyperventilating. To hell with pride. She ripped off her goggles, panting. To her surprise, Exflibberaguil had already taken off his own. He sat on the couch, staring at the television in which the same thing was being showed. ¡°Even I made it farther than you on my first try,¡± he remarked. ¡°What was that?¡± Nick yelled, ignoring Exflibberaguil. She could still smell the sweat and feces, but she now realized this was because the mysterious smell machines had been emitting it. The weight and the balance were because of the landing, which Nick could only assume was smooth as she was still alive. ¡°Those,¡± Exflibberaguil sighed, ¡°were the invading species.¡± ¡°What was wrong with those animals?¡± Exflibberaguil let silence fall before answering, as if gathering his thoughts. ¡°Remember when I told you that nature kills off waves of evolution creatures? And the only way creatures continue to evolve is when they go extinct?¡± Nick nodded. ¡°The problem with these animals is that they went against nature. ¡°They refused to die out. Sure, nature tried of course. Nature sent plagues and storms, but they grew resilient. It was not that these animals stopped evolving altogether, but they took tiny, micro steps. In fact, they have not changed very much in size and body structure up to this day. ¡°Of course, no species could fight nature when they are following the rules. Not the rules of the galactic yelling papers, of course, but the rules created by nature itself. Nature created planets for organisms to live on, limiting population area. This is one of the ways it makes sure no beings get out of hand. ¡°So they broke that rule. They invaded other planets. For space. For food. And eventually, for fun. And that¡¯s the very short synopsis.¡± ¡°But what are these animals? When will they invade Earth?¡± ¡°You misunderstand, little Odriew,¡± Exflibberaguil replied, ¡°They have already invaded and plotted a substantial base on your planet.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I believe,¡± he continued, pausing dramatically, ¡°they are called ¡®rabbits¡¯ on your planet.¡± ¡°Rabbits?¡± ¡°Rabbits.¡± ¡°Cotton-tailed fluffy balls?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Lop-eared whisker noses?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Carrot-eating poof-bunnies?¡± ¡°Actually, now that you¡¯ve brought that up, no.¡± ¡°What?¡± Exflibberaguil sighed. ¡°This is unproductive. Let¡¯s drop off the archeologist and I¡¯ll explain. I should also let you know that there¡¯s a part three.¡± ¡°Please, merciful Penguin, spare me,¡± Nick begged. ¡°Oh,¡± Exflibberaguil replied half-heartedly, ¡°I think it won¡¯t be necessary, for now. But you may need to watch it when you start losing motivation.¡± He said this with a strange matter-of-factness, or a blank, detached feeling. It was then that Nick realized one strange thing. Exflibberaguil wasn¡¯t what she thought he was. There was something not quite right about him. It was like the animals (Nick couldn¡¯t quite believe that the animals were really rabbits). There had been something very wrong about the animals. And there was something very wrong about Exflibberaguil. Exflibberaguil, Nick felt sure, had defied the rules of nature once. Nick shivered. Perhaps she was overthinking. Perhaps she was just on edge after watching the video. Of course, the real problem was that perhaps she wasn¡¯t Amnesia THERE WAS NOTHING MORE FRIGHTENING THAN WAKING UP, NOT KNOWING WHERE YOU WERE OR HOW YOU GOT THERE. Timothy learned this from a first-hand experience. It wasn¡¯t as frightening as, say, waking up and remembering you were kidnapped and imprisoned by a serial killer. But it was the fact that many horror movies began very much the same way as Timothy: cold, confused, and creeped out. The part where he¡¯s kidnapped and tortured would come shortly afterward, and Timothy was not looking towards it. Timothy did not have amnesia. He remembered everything, up to the point when he applied for a job at some fast-food chain. He couldn¡¯t remember which. He also had a vague wisp of a dream about a plane. Flying on a plane, to be exact. And there was an Australian that was somehow connected to the plane as well. Timothy shook his head. Dreams would do him no good at this time. He could ponder them once he had gotten out of these eerie woods. He didn¡¯t like this place at all, but maybe it was just his hatred against pine-smelling things. These woods were almost completely consisting of pine trees stretching to the sky. Their deceivingly green leaves annoyed Timothy. Why couldn¡¯t these trees be affected by the cold Timothy was suffering? Something vibrated. Timothy jumped. After a bit of investigating, he realized it was his phone. How nice of his captors to give his phone back to him. What? Captors? Where had he thought of that? It was more likely he ran off somewhere in these woods by himself. Maybe he had been especially drunk that night, though he didn¡¯t feel any trace of a hangover. However, he may have been in the forest longer than he thought. Rough stubble had already grown around his chin and mouth. Again, Timothy shook his head. He couldn¡¯t have been out here for too long. By now, he should have caught early stages of hypothermia. Timothy quickly pulled out his phone to see why it was vibrating so hard. It was his calendar application, reminding him that his dog is now healthy and ready to be picked up. But wasn¡¯t that on Wednesday? Timothy checked the date. It was Wednesday, three o¡¯clock pm. But wait. Timothy clearly remembered that last night was a Sunday. Was he really out in the woods for two whole days? What was he doing here? And what was the last thing he could remember? Was it McDonalds? He remembered there was a sign about drones. And then, he remembered feeling like he¡¯d quit or something, but that wouldn¡¯t be a surprise. Somehow, he got outside of McDonalds. And then¡­and then what? Was it light? Was it an explosion? Was it a girl in the woods? Was that the woods he was in now? Maybe he had gone chasing the girl and ended up here? But then, where was the girl now? What had she done to him? Or was that all a dream? So he did have a mild case of amnesia. Well, that¡¯s great. What can he do now? He needed to get out of the woods. ¡°Oh, that¡¯s right. I have my phone,¡± he realized. His phone still had a good 30% left of its battery. Timothy opened a navigating app.This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. He wasn¡¯t in the woods next to McDonalds. He was actually surprisingly close to the doctor¡¯s office. As he walked, Timothy shouted out as much as he could remember about himself. ¡°My name is Timothy Blake Fletcher. I am twenty-nine years old. ¡°My favorite ice cream flavor is raspberry sorbet. I am an archeologist. I recently discovered further evidence that dinosaurs have feathers. ¡°I am secretly afraid of touching chewed gum. I have perfect vision. My dog got sick recently. I¡¯ve broken my right ankle five times and my left ankle four times. I hate papercuts. My largest bruise was five centimeters in diameter. I am of average height and slightly below average weight.¡± Satisfied that he knew enough about himself, Timothy continued on his way out of the woods. He wondered, for a moment, whether or not he should head home and change, as his face camera showed that he looked far from presentable. But then again, he doubted that many of the doctor¡¯s patients looked very presentable anyway. And his home was a long walking distance. It almost seemed like an awful lot of work for a dog, but Timothy needed something to do for the time being. Besides, he wanted to check if he had caught a cold in the woods. It was a good thing that he had built a tolerance against back cramps. He¡¯d surely would have gotten one if his life¡¯s job didn¡¯t include bending over to study the ground all day long. The trees were now getting sparser and more separated. They no longer clumped together and blocked the sun. Timothy¡¯s vision was clouded with dark spots and a green fog. He blinked them away. Then he heard the cars. In no time, he arrived at the edge of the road. Drivers shot him dirty looks as he crossed the crosswalk. He supposed they had a right to. Timothy must look like he was homeless. After all, it was a McDonalds uniform he was wearing now. He reached the large building that housed many other medical departments. On the second floor was where his doctor¡¯s office resided. A bell system alerted the doctor that someone had arrived. ¡°Donna? Donna? Where are you?¡± the doctor called from another room, ¡°who just came in?¡± The red-haired nurse rushed forward. Timothy had gotten used to this doctor¡¯s habits. The doctor used Donna more of a secretary than a nurse. Two more nurses milled around, going over paperwork and whatnot. ¡°Ah, Timothy, here for your dog?¡± Donna said, reading from a file, ¡°Just come this way and¡ªoh, are you quite all right?¡± ¡°Yes. I may have a cold though.¡± ¡°Donna?¡± the doctor called again, ¡°I asked, who is it?¡± Donna didn¡¯t have time to answer before the doctor stomped out of a room, enraged. ¡°Donna! I told you¡ªoh, Timothy. Good lord. What happened to you?¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯m not exactly sure.¡± ¡°You can start with why you¡¯re dressed in a McDonalds uniform!¡± ¡°I think I was hired,¡± he recounted slowly, ¡°because I wanted to take my mind off my dog for a while. I worked there for two, maybe three days? And then one time I got out, and I think something happened because I don¡¯t remember anything else. I think it was two days ago.¡± ¡°Wait a minute,¡± the doctor said, ¡°Donna, Donna, wasn¡¯t there that big news about a gas leak two days ago?¡± ¡°Yes, it was at McDonalds.¡± ¡°Timothy, you wouldn¡¯t happen to have worked at the McDonalds off highway 23, would you? The McDonalds that is nearly hidden behind these big trees?¡± ¡°Actually, you¡¯re right,¡± Timothy replied, ¡°What? What happened? Gas leak?¡± ¡°Do you seriously not remember anything?¡± ¡°Well,¡± Timothy tried to think harder, ¡°there was¡­um¡­light? I¡¯m not sure. It may have been a dream. And¡ªoh, there was this really loud noise.¡± ¡°Oh, boy.¡± The doctor uttered this with a bit of scientific malice. ¡°You know, I think you can help me. You¡¯re an archeologist, right? You should know about rocks and stuff.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s correct.¡± ¡°There¡¯s something I want you to take a look at. I pulled it out of a tailor¡¯s finger a few days back. In exchange, I¡¯ll fill you in on what happened a few days ago. I¡¯ll also need to run a few tests. Purely for your health and memory, of course.¡± ¡°Well, I really think I should be heading home¡­¡± ¡°You¡¯re also, I¡¯m presuming, missing a car. I could drive you to your house.¡± ¡°I can take the bus¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m also holding your dog hostage.¡± Timothy sighed. ¡°I really don¡¯t have a choice now, do I?¡± He followed the doctor into exam room four. Examination ¡°WHAT IS IT, DOCTOR?¡± TIMOTHY ASKED, UNABLE TO CONTAIN HIS SCIENTIFIC CURIOSITY. ¡°I¡¯ll show you later. I first want to know how much you remember.¡± ¡°I told you, doc,¡± Timothy said with a hint of exasperation, ¡°There was this loud noise and light and that¡¯s it.¡± ¡°Why are you wearing a McDonalds uniform?¡± ¡°I think I went to work there?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Well, it was something about, um¡­¡± The doctor screamed in frustration. ¡°Become a doctor, they said. Pays well, they said. Respectable job, they said. Women would love you, they said. And I still don¡¯t have a girlfriend. You know why?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because all my time is wasted trying to get a straight answer out of the people I¡¯m TRYING TO HELP.¡± ¡°It was you who asked for my expertise,¡± Timothy pointed out, ¡°and I¡¯m giving it to you for free.¡± ¡°And it is I who is taking care of your animal. I¡¯m a freaking doctor, not a vet! And you¡¯re supposed to make an appointment three hours before you come. Time is money. Should I charge you for my time you¡¯re wasting? And don¡¯t even think about leaving right now. I¡¯m the one with the car keys. And I doubt anyone around here would lend you a ride. I¡¯m still holding you dog hostage, by the way. ¡°Besides, I don¡¯t need your stupid expertise. I could go find another, better specialist.¡± ¡°But it would cost money,¡± Timothy reminded in an infuriating, sing-song voice. The doctor frowned. Timothy had hit his weak spot. ¡°Go on,¡± he muttered. ¡°That¡¯s it. There was something that prompted me to get a job there. I just can¡¯t remember it.¡± ¡°An awful lot of use that is. Are you sure there¡¯s nothing you remember after the light?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Any dreams?¡± Timothy considered. ¡°Yes, actually, but I don¡¯t remember most of it now.¡± The doctor sat up. ¡°Did you know that dreams are basically the product of your brain processing things you have been thinking of during the day?¡± Timothy thought again. ¡°I would have believed that if this dream hadn¡¯t been so random.¡± ¡°Tell me about it.¡± ¡°Well,¡± Timothy hesitated, ¡°before I begin, don¡¯t yell at me for wasting your time again.¡± The doctor scoffed. ¡°Which just so happens to be exactly what you¡¯re doing right now.¡± ¡°Okay. So this dream was about, I mean, I¡¯m not sure what it was about. I knew there was a ferret somewhere in there, and a British? Australian? I think it was Australian voice. Oh, and it also had something to do with really long hair. Does that make sense?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°I thought so. I also I remember being dragged¡ª¡± Timothy stopped, ¡°I mean, dreamt about being dragged.¡± The doctor was deep in thought. ¡°You¡¯re using a lot of strange words,¡± he remarked.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you have something more important to say other than my choice of words?¡± ¡°No, you misunderstand me,¡± the doctor replied, shaking his head, ¡°You see, you said Australian voice. Normally, you would say an Australian person. Was it the ferret¡¯s voice? Was the voice coming from a speaker? Was it inside your head?¡± ¡°I really don¡¯t know.¡± Timothy frowned. ¡°I¡¯m sure it wasn¡¯t the ferret that spoke. But it may have been from a speaker?¡± ¡°Do you remember anything said?¡± ¡°Of course not! I¡¯d would have mentioned it if I had!¡± The doctor frowned too. ¡°Hmm. Moving on. What color was the long hair? How long was it? Who was the owner? Was she like Rapunzel, when you could only see the hair and not the person?¡± ¡°No. Definitely not Rapunzel. I don¡¯t remember the face though. I can¡¯t remember how long the hair was, but it felt very strange to see such long hair. I don¡¯t remember what color the hair was, but probably something dark. And something you just said wasn¡¯t quite right. I don¡¯t know what.¡± ¡°Hmm,¡± the doctor said again, ¡°So we have a ferret, a Australian voice that may have come from a speaker, a person with long, dark hair, and being dragged. Perhaps all of them dragged you?¡± ¡°Maybe. But how does that help? If dreams really do reflect what happens in real life, what happened in the last two days?¡± ¡°What?¡± the doctor exclaimed, ¡°two days? What do you mean two days? And what do you mean ¡®what happened¡¯?¡± ¡°Well, I just woke up in the woods a few hours ago!¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t tell me that! I thought you just, well, I don¡¯t know what I thought, but you never told me you just woke up in the woods!¡± ¡°What did you expect? I come here in a McDonalds uniform, knowing nothing!¡± ¡°You knew you had an appointment.¡± ¡°That¡¯s beside the point!¡± The doctor sighed. ¡°Whatever. I don¡¯t know why you thought it was a good idea to get your dog before the authorities, but I¡¯m not here to judge. This has just become a kidnapping case.¡± ¡°That is my choice, doctor,¡± Timothy argued, ¡°I don¡¯t want to call just yet. They wouldn¡¯t believe me anyway. I don¡¯t even believe me. But first, I want my information. I¡¯m assuming you don¡¯t have any other ¡®tests¡¯?¡± The doctor shook his head. ¡°I would test you for hypothermia or a cold, but it certainly wouldn¡¯t be for free. Time is money.¡± ¡°Fine. Then tell me what the hell happened, and give me my dog.¡± ¡°Easy. There was a gas leak at McDonalds. Everyone survived. The worker insisted it was a plane that crashed¡ª¡± ¡°Plane?¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t believe it if I were you. There was no evidence suggesting it.¡± ¡°No,¡± Timothy silenced the doctor, ¡°I just remembered. My dream had something to do with planes too.¡± ¡°So we can connect that part at least. Still don¡¯t know about the ferret and the other crazy things you said. ¡°Anyway, so there was the gas leak. Everything caught on fire. Everything absolutely destroyed. The firefighters were able to prevent a massive forest fire, which was good. End of story.¡± Timothy pouted. ¡°Couldn¡¯t you just make the story sound a little bit more interesting? Dramatic? Not anti-climactic?¡± ¡°Of course I can, but that comes with an extra fee.¡± ¡°Hmph. Of course it does. What was the thing you wanted me to look at then?¡± ¡°Ah, yes!¡± the doctor exclaimed, fishing for something in his pocket. ¡°The day you brought your dog, a tailor came whining about his finger infection. It wasn¡¯t too bad. Just a little pus. Anyway, I pulled this splinter out.¡± The doctor closed his hand around a glass vial and presented it to Timothy. ¡°I got it analyzed, of course. They said that they couldn¡¯t identify the material. But that was for free, and I never trust something that¡¯s given for free.¡± ¡°I¡¯m doing this for free.¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t count. You¡¯re a second opinion.¡± In the tiny vial was a tiny stick about the size of a single staple. ¡°I don¡¯t see what¡¯s so special about it,¡± Timothy admitted. ¡°Wait until you see this.¡± The doctor flicked the light switch and pulled down the blinds. Timothy still didn¡¯t see anything, but he waited for his eyes to adjust. Then, a faint glow was visible, growing stronger as Timothy¡¯s pupils dilated. ¡°Now that¡¯s interesting,¡± Timothy murmured, ¡°is it related to phosphorus, like in glow sticks?¡± ¡°But it¡¯s been glowing the entire time. A reaction wouldn¡¯t last that long.¡± ¡°True.¡± Timothy reached out to take the vial, but the doctor flinched and pulled back his arm. ¡°Hey, I need to take it to figure out what it is,¡± Timothy objected. ¡°Look, do you know what it is or not?¡± ¡°Did you listen to what I just said?¡± The doctor sighed, flicking the lights back on. ¡°Oh, well. You can have your dog back.¡± ¡°Maybe you should try putting it in the dark for a while,¡± Timothy suggest, ¡°don¡¯t leave it in the light for too long.¡± ¡°I tried. But it was glowing when I put it in the trash.¡± Timothy sighed. ¡°I really have to take it if you want me to¡ª¡± ¡°I said it¡¯s fine,¡± the doctor repeated, unlocking the door. ¡°Donna? Where are you? Give this man his dog!¡± Timothy stepped out of the room, rolling his shoulders back and stretching. It wasn¡¯t his job to get involved with this strange splinter anyway. But there was something nagging at the back of his brain. The Missing Girl ¡°JUST TELL ME THE ADDRESS,¡± THE DOCTOR INSISTED, SEARCHING FOR HIS CAR IN THE GARAGE. ¡°No,¡± Timothy replied stubbornly. His dog, who was in his cage, yapped an agreement. ¡°Fine. Have it your way. Walk. Besides, if you get injured on your walk home, I¡¯m the one profiting. You¡¯ll have to pay me to heal your injuries.¡± ¡°So be it.¡± The doctor groaned. ¡°Why are you specialists so stubborn?¡± ¡°I agree. You are a pretty stubborn medical specialist.¡± Timothy stuck out his tongue petulantly. ¡°Ugh,¡± the doctor sighed, rolling his eyes. ¡°Then tell me where to drop you off.¡± ¡°Oh, no doctor. My small errand is too trivial for you. Time is money, right doc?¡± Timothy replied sarcastically, ¡°You don¡¯t have to drive the ten miles just to drop me off at the park on Helix street. I¡¯ll just walk there with me sore legs.¡± ¡°Hmph,¡± the doctor groaned, ¡°fine. I¡¯ll get you an Uber.¡± ¡°What! No, no, no. That was sarcasm. Please don¡¯t call an Uber!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I have an Uber app on my phone. Helix Street, you said? If sure there will be plenty drivers willing to drive you. You¡¯ll have to pay, of course.¡± ¡°Wait doc! Forget what I said. I don¡¯t trust Ubers.¡± ¡°No, no. You were right. Time is money. I¡¯d rather have someone else waste their time driving you.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll, I¡¯ll,¡± Timothy stammered, ¡°I¡¯ll pay you! In taxi fare!¡± ¡°That¡¯s more like it.¡± The doctor finally located his family van, unlocking it with the key. Timothy moved to sit in the front. ¡°No animals in the front. Sit in the back,¡± the doctor ordered. ¡°What?¡± Timothy wasn¡¯t sure if it was he or his dog that had been called an animal. ¡°Sit in the back.¡± Timothy huffed angrily, opening the back door reluctantly. The doctor strapped himself in, and Timothy followed suit. The engine roared, and the car began to move. The ride was quiet. Any attempts at conversation was immediately turned down by the doctor, insisting that talking would break his concentration. Timothy, fearing for his life, didn¡¯t argue. Timothy¡¯s dog, however, was constantly barking and scratching at the bars. Timothy¡¯s dog was a tiny Alaskan Malamute, commonly mistaken for a husky. However, instead of growing gigantic, his dog was only about the size of a large pug. Timothy called him Stapes¡ªthe smallest bone in the human body, due to his small size. The car screeched at braked at the corner of Helix street. Timothy thanked the doctor and paid his fares. He barely stepped on the sidewalk before the car speeded away. Stapes barked at the car for the last time, before continuing to whine and scratch at the cage. ¡°I know, Stapes,¡± Timothy murmured soothingly, ¡°but I don¡¯t have your leash. I¡¯ll take you out as soon as we get home.¡±This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. Timothy set out on his way. People still threw him glares, but Timothy didn¡¯t mind. He was close to home, and then he could change. His legs ached though, from walking through the woods. ¡°Ugh!¡± Timothy spat, colliding with a woman. Papers flew everywhere. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± The woman was on the ground. She looked up. Timothy gave a start. Pronounced dark circles were under her baggy eyes. Her cheeks were so shallow they were non-existent. Her graying hair was unbrushed. Timothy bent down to pick of the papers. The woman beat him to it, clawing and shuffling to gather the papers. She shoved one into Timothy¡¯s face. ¡°Have you seen my child?¡± she rasped. Timothy pried the paper of his face, secretly deciding whether or not he should let Stapes out as a precaution against this mad woman. On the paper was a large, blurred photo of a female with dark hair, dark eyes, and a forced smile. Timothy certainly didn¡¯t know the girl. But something about her¡­ McDonalds. She was the girl in the woods. Timothy read the day she had gone missing. Sunday. The day he lost his memory. ¡°Actually, miss,¡± Timothy replied, surprising even himself, ¡°I did see her. In the woods at McDonalds.¡± ¡°McDonalds? The one that blew up?¡± the woman cried. ¡°Er, yes. That would be the¡ª¡± The woman gripped Timothy¡¯s arm. ¡°Hey! Hey! Help!¡± Timothy hollered. Stapes barked. ¡°Shut up! You may be the last person who saw my daughter! The authorities need to know about this!¡± ¡°Hey! Miss? I¡¯m sorry for your loss but¡ª¡± Timothy yelled. The woman took no notice of him. ¡°Um, can you please let me go?¡± More people began to stare. But the woman continued to pull Timothy across the street, like a mother dragging a struggling child home. Timothy played his part as a child by screaming and yelling to be let go. Stapes was still in the doggie cage, which had toppled to its side from Stapes¡¯s weight. ¡°Let me go!¡± Timothy hollered. Passersby murmured to each other, wondering what they should do. Eventually they decided to do nothing. None of them wanted to get mixed up in any trouble. Timothy couldn¡¯t blame them, of course. He wouldn¡¯t have wanted anything to do with a insomniac woman capable of dragging a grown man along the street. Timothy too, eventually gave up his struggles, followed the woman¡¯s commands. They arrived at a small blue house. The paint was old and cracking, but it didn¡¯t look run-down. The woman pushed Timothy to the door, and unlocked it with a numeric keypad. Timothy looked away. The door buzzed open. Timothy stepped in. The woman kicked off her shoes and started inside. Timothy stood at the hallway, wondering if he should take off his shoes as well. Finally, he decided to keep them on, even if it was a little disrespectful. The last thing he wanted was to worry about his feet if the woman was every going to start chasing him. Tentatively, Timothy walked in to the living room. Inside was a police officer, looking very bored, cradling a mug of coffee. The woman was talking to the officer in a rush glibberish. ¡°¡ªthis man says he saw Marine at the McDonalds the day it exploded. The McDonalds on highway 23? You know the gas incident? He said he saw her. Do you think that she¡­Marine¡­¡± the woman choked. ¡°Don¡¯t get ahead of yourself, Miss,¡± the officer replied in a drawling voice, ¡°No dead bodies were found on the day of the accident.¡± ¡°Erm, excuse me officer?¡± Timothy coughed. ¡°Ah!¡± the officer jumped, the coffee dancing along with him. ¡°So you must be the man.¡± ¡°Er, yes.¡± ¡°Hm,¡± the officer murmured. ¡°You look familiar. You haven¡¯t been in any trouble with the police before, have you?¡± Timothy caught the woman sneaking off to the second floor. He was glad to be away from her. She made him uneasy. Not that being interrogated by a police officer was any better, of course. ¡°Well?¡± the officer asked, impatiently. ¡°Oh, no. Never. Though it¡¯s likely you¡¯ve seen my face before. My name is Timothy Blake Fletcher, if that rings a bell?¡± The officer furrowed his brow, then whipped out his phone and typed the name in the search engine. ¡°Ah, yes. That¡¯s right. Just did some discovery of bones?¡± ¡°Uh, yes. Something like that.¡± Timothy was rather offended by his job being called ¡®bones¡¯, but decided it wouldn¡¯t be smart to lecture an officer. ¡°Can¡¯t imagine why you spend so much time doing something like that,¡± the officer continued, completely oblivious to Timothy¡¯s glares, ¡°But anyway, we¡¯re not here to talk about the better job. Do you know where this girl is?¡± ¡°Um, no. But you shouldn¡¯t take my conscious word for it.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Well,¡± Timothy explained, ¡°I don¡¯t remember anything after the explosion.¡± ¡°Now this is odd,¡± the officer muttered. Argument ¡°DO YOU THINK HE¡¯D BE OK THERE?¡± NICK ASKED. ¡°He¡¯s fine,¡± Exflibberaguil replied sternly, ¡°What¡¯s really worrying me is just how credible this Odriew is. The last thing I need are your Sodriew authorities chasing after me.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. He¡¯s only an archeologist,¡± Nick replied. ¡°Still, he¡¯s a scientist. That means he was taught to question everything, even dreams.¡± ¡°You are a criminal, you know,¡± Nick pointed out, ¡°you set fire to McDonalds.¡± ¡°That¡¯s was Box¡¯s fault.¡± ¡°Sure. Blame it on Box,¡± Nick muttered. ¡°Anyway,¡± Exflibberaguil continued, ¡°I can¡¯t save your planet flying around in this ship. It¡¯s way too obvious. I plan on sending it to space and let it orbit around Uranus while we¡¯re here. I can call it back easily. But the real problem is my transportation. You¡¯ve been on this planet longer than me. How do you suggest we travel?¡± ¡°We can steal a car,¡± Nick said sarcastically, ¡°You know, we¡¯ve already set fire to a fast-food restaurant. Why don¡¯t we nick a car as well? A sports car, maybe. Or a limousine. Hey, how about we hijack a private jet?¡± ¡°That would be too obvious. However, what is this ¡®car¡¯ thing you¡¯re talking about.¡± Nick gawked. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re considering it.¡± ¡°Of course I¡¯m going to tell you I¡¯m considering it,¡± Exflibberaguil replied, ¡°But don¡¯t change the subject.¡± ¡°You¡¯re so advanced in technology! How can you not know what a car is?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what a car is.¡± Nick rolled her eyes. ¡°It¡¯s hard to explain. I suggest we send this thing off to space, and then you can tell me what you plan to do next.¡± She waved vaguely towards the hulking structure coated in the darkest black known to Odriew. It reflected almost no light, making the structure seem two-dimensional. Nick didn¡¯t like it. It hurt her eyes. ¡°Then where do you suggest we sleep?¡± Exflibberaguil argued. ¡°You can¡¯t make these sudden decisions. It¡¯s my ship.¡± ¡°But how re you going to hide it? It¡¯s too big. And I want to finish this adventure as soon as possible. You may not have the authorities at your heels, but you have my mom.¡± ¡°You should have thought of that¡ª¡± ¡°before I agreed to the Terms and Conditions. Yeah, yeah, I know,¡± Nick sighed. ¡°But that¡¯s not the problem. You need some way of covering this, or we¡¯re bound to be discovered.¡±The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°Heard you the first time,¡± Exflibberaguil snapped impatiently, ¡°Come on. Let¡¯s get back inside.¡± ¡°Hey, it was you who posted the Terms and Conditions. I can leave any time,¡± Nick shot back, ¡°So I suggest you be nicer to me.¡± ¡°That would be against the Galactic Yelling Papers, exiting the Terms and Conditions without the other¡¯s consent.¡± ¡°Yeah, right. The ¡°Terms and Conditions¡± on some shady website I didn¡¯t even sign with my hand? I could have left the tab on by accident. It could have been someone else who agreed. I could have said that my computer was malfunctioning. And hey, how come we haven¡¯t heard of this ¡®Galactic Yelling Paper¡¯ thing?¡± ¡°You are too primitive.¡± ¡°Which would mean we should be excused from these laws.¡± Exflibberaguil glared. ¡°How did you know?¡± ¡°Well,¡± Nick began, her voice laced with anger, ¡°maybe if you haven¡¯t been so conceited the whole time, and so condescending, maybe you¡¯d see that I can actually come to simple conclusions. Primitive ones, yes, and it does take me a bit of time. But hey, maybe if you actually did something nice once in a while I can help. Stop ordering me everywhere.¡± ¡°Hey, what¡¯s with the sudden change of attitude?¡± Because I don¡¯t trust you. Because I still don¡¯t know enough about you. What are you keeping from me? What rule of nature did you violate? Nick thought bitterly. ¡°There you go again. Changing the subject. Making me and box the scapegoat.¡± ¡°Well, what do you want me to do?¡± ¡°Just think of others for once!¡± ¡°I am!¡± Exflibberaguil hissed, ¡°I¡¯m thinking of you right now! I¡¯m think how stupid you are, for yelling. We could get caught, you know? And then we¡¯ll all be in trouble.¡± ¡°You. Not we. You would look like a kidnapper, with your ship and your equipment. You¡¯re the one that would get in trouble.¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t talking about you,¡± Exflibberaguil snapped, ¡°I meant your planet. Your planet will fall from the rabbits.¡± ¡°Better than being a slave for you.¡± ¡°What do you want!¡± Exlfibberaguil hollered, ¡°What, some pampering? Or do you want me to make you forget all this and send you home.¡± ¡°No, but¡ª¡± ¡°Then I¡¯m going back inside.¡± Exflibberaguil turned abruptly, and stomped inside. Nick stood in silence in the middle of the forest. What was she doing? What was she trying to achieve? Nick kicked at the pine needles layering the ground. Was she really this angry at Penguin? She was irritated, of course, and impatient. She was certain Exflibberaguil was hiding something from her. And Exflibberaguil was certainly rude and obnoxious. But did it really call for an argument? It gave her a headache. Or maybe it was the pine trees that made her angry. Pine cones and need kept on falling in her hair. Which was odd, because there was no wind to blow them down. But what was really odd was how short the anger lasted. Nick was quite sure that now, the phase had completely subsided. She felt no reason to yell anymore. In fact, the only thing stopping her from stomping inside the ship and apologizing was her pride and dignity. And just now, you were criticizing Exflibberaguil for being too conceited. It was getting cold now, Nick had to admit. The ship would be awfully cozy. By now, Nick shouldn¡¯t bump into Exflibberaguil. She wasn¡¯t sure how she¡¯d find a bedroom, but Nick had confidence in navigation powers. If she really didn¡¯t find a bedroom, she could just take the opportunity to give herself a little tour. Nick headed back in the ship, nearly stepping on the ferret¡¯s tail. It squealed. ¡°Sorry, little guy,¡± Nick apologized sweetly. Strange, she thought, my headache is gone. Plan THE DOCTOR COULD NOT CONCENTRATE. ¡°Still worrying about the splinter, Doctor?¡± Donna asked. Donna possessed the annoying quality of saying things extremely respectfully, so much so that the doctor often couldn¡¯t determine whether or not she was mocking him. ¡°Yes,¡± he answered truthfully. ¡°I see.¡± The doctor frowned deeper. Was she teasing him? But he decided not to ask. Donna was sterilizing scalpels with strong rubbing alcohol, and the doctor had no wish to be stabbed. ¡°What should I do?¡± he asked. Donna did not answer. The doctor rubbed put his hand in his pocket, rubbing the glass vile he kept there. He had been testing to see if warmth would change the properties of the object. There seemed to be no change. The doctor still wanted to do a few other tests before melting the object though. ¡°I¡¯m going to leave early. The smell of alcohol is making me dizzy. Lock up after you leave, Donna. There aren¡¯t any appointments early tomorrow, right?¡± ¡°No, doctor.¡± ¡°Alright. I¡¯m heading out. Goodbye.¡± The doctor waved, as he stepped out of the room. Donna waved back, a scalpel in her hand. It was a frightening sight. The doctor made his way to the garage, his mind still on the object. He kept on thinking in loops, his train of thought always ending up at, What should I do? What should I do? He never got an answer. He pulled out of the garage and headed for the road, just making two green lights before being stopped at a red one. The smell of old bananas never left the car. The doctor had complained that the smell of rubbing alcohol had made him dizzy, but bananas were even worse. Finally, after making it through a short stretch of highway, the doctor was forced to roll down a window. He never liked rolling down car windows. There was never something good outside. Always the smell of gasoline, if you could smell anything at all through the freezing breeze. But it was better than bananas. The doctor tried to concentrate on bananas. He didn¡¯t want to think of anything else. But the doctor had already begun to pick up another, well-worn train of thought. What should he do with the vial? Should he try another testing facility? It would cost money, of course. That wasn¡¯t good. Should he send it to some other science department that specialized in odd materials? That may cost money too, but if he really discovered a new metal, it could be named after him. He would gain fame and, of course, a lot of money. But would he really? The doctor had heard medical horror stories of plagiarism and theft. Maybe the credit wouldn¡¯t go to him. Maybe someone else would pretend to discover it. After all, perhaps the tailor should really be the person who discovered the new metal. Or the cat. I¡¯m getting ahead of myself, the doctor thought. More likely than not, it wasn¡¯t some new material. All materials had already been accounted for. The periodic table looked complete already. There can¡¯t be another substance squeezed between. But still, what was the metal? And what should he do? Just then, a woman with messy hair sprint across the street. The doctor was barely able to brake. The woman stumbled and fell. Paper was strewn across the road.The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. Oh god. Oh god. Oh god. The doctor thought, panicked. He was about to get out of the car, but the woman had stood up abruptly and gathered as many pieces of paper she could. Then she ran across the street as if nothing had happened. ¡°Hey!¡± the doctor called, ¡°If you value your life, use the crosswalk!¡± The woman had already stumbled off. The doctor sighed, and returned to his car. Others were beeping him. The doctor quickly pulled off the road, into a gas station parking lot. His heart was pounding at an undoubtfully unhealthy pace. The doctor reminded himself that it was these idiots that allowed him to have a job. But, despite the revolting smell of gas, the doctor knew he was not yet ready for the road. He went inside the gas station, which, for some reason, smelled strongly of cheese, and bought a bottle of water. By the time he reached his car again, he had already guzzled half of bottle. Much better. But the doctor knew he¡¯d better determine what to do with this strange splinter. This time he had barely been able to stop himself from causing a fatal accident. Even though it was the woman to blame, the doctor hadn¡¯t been concentrating on driving either. Who knew what other dreadful things could happen? So, doctor, he thought, sounding like Donna, what are you going to do? He¡¯ll try to find the source of this material. Which mean he¡¯ll have to go to the tailor. It was the first tangible plan he had made so far. The doctor picked up his phone and called Donna. ¡°Yes, doctor?¡± she asked. ¡°Donna. You know the little tailor with the splinter?¡± ¡°The splinter you¡¯re still worrying about?¡± ¡°Yeah. Can you get me his address? I know he left it in his contact information.¡± ¡°Would you like me to email it to you?¡± ¡°Yes, please.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll get it to you in five minutes.¡± The phone call was ended again. In five minutes, the doctor was back on the road, gunning for 42 Funnel Street.
¡°YES?¡± A TINY, PORTLY MAN WITH A SMALL TOUPEE OPENED THE DOOR. ¡°Hello,¡± the doctor answered. ¡°Ah, yes, doctor,¡± the tailor spoke, his voice unnaturally high, ¡°Is there anything I can do for you?¡± He eyed the doctor carefully. ¡°Was my blood bad? Do I need to be tested? I knew it! I had an infection! I was dizzy the whole day. It must be too late to recover now. You come bearing bad news. I must contact my family. Oh! What a tragic death I shall suffer! Death from a feline¡¯s fang.¡± ¡°Actually, your cat never bit you. Your cat licked you. A cat has a barbed tongue, and the splinter was caught in one of the barbs. That¡¯s all.¡± ¡°It¡¯s called poetic license, doctor,¡± the little man replied with contempt, ¡°I don¡¯t want my cause of death to be ¡®licked by his cat.¡¯¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be so dramatic. You¡¯re not going to die.¡± ¡°Then why are you here? My contact information was listed under ¡®emergency¡¯. I¡¯d hardly believe you¡¯d be the sort to pay your dear patients a visit.¡± The doctor hesitated. Half of him wanted to argue that he was a very nice doctor. Half of him agreed that the tailor was right. ¡°It¡¯s mandatory,¡± he lied. ¡°I highly doubt that. The waiting room was full that day I went. I don¡¯t believe you really went to all those people¡¯s houses.¡± ¡°You misunderstand. You have a special case. The object I found in your finger is quite rare, and can be quite deadly to some people. You are lucky to be immune. I just want to know where it came from, and if there are more. If so, it would have to be taken care of immediately to prevent larger accidents.¡± It wasn¡¯t a complete lie, after all. The doctor hadn¡¯t determined if it was deadly or not yet. But he had learned that anything that was green, and glowing was usually nothing good. The tailor glared at the doctor, not quite believing his story. Finally, he let out a sigh. ¡°Very well. My cat was in the woods I believe, when she licked the metal. The woods over there.¡± He pointed a pudgy finger toward the woods in his backyard. ¡°Thank you,¡± the doctor replied graciously, ¡°You may have just saved a dozen lives.¡± ¡°Hmph,¡± the man snorted, and slammed the door shut. Oakley IT WAS A DISAPPOINTMENT. There was nothing in the woods. The doctor had purposefully waited after dark to look for any traces of the same metal. But nothing glowed in the dark. Everything was dark. So much for that plan. The doctor began to head back to the car. He had expected to find something at least. He sighed. Not everything always worked out like movies. The doctor unlocked his car and began turned the engine on. He arrived home fifteen minutes later. It¡¯s a pity the doctor didn¡¯t look a few minutes more. *** REMEMBER THE MEERKAT SPECIAL WITH THE TAPEWORMS? She¡¯s okay now, thank goodness, because otherwise, the dressmaker¡¯s cat would have died. She was now on her way to the little dressmaker¡¯s house, because of very peculiar circumstances. The dressmaker had called the animal control center. ¡°Hello?¡± the operator had answered, after putting the dressmaker on wait for half an hour. ¡°Are you a human?¡± This was, surprisingly, a standard greeting. The automated voices had gotten surprisingly realistic nowadays, and many callers couldn¡¯t differentiate humans from machines. ¡°Yes, I am. This is the animal control center.¡± ¡°I just saw a standing cat.¡± ¡°Excuse me. Did you say a standing cat?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Thank you. Can you describe what it looked liked?¡± ¡°It had brownish fur, and a pointy nose.¡± ¡°I see. Where do you live?¡± ¡°42 Funnel Street.¡± ¡°Thank you. We will send someone to take care of it.¡± The operator hung up. ¡°What was it?¡± another operator asked. ¡°Nothing important. Just a standing cat. This man keeps on reporting things like it. He owns a cat himself, you know,¡± she answered. ¡°I see,¡± the other operator, a man known to everyone as Z, replied thoughtfully. ¡°What did it look like this time?¡± ¡°Brown fur and a pointy nose. Whiskers too, I bet. Probably his cat.¡± ¡°But doesn¡¯t his cat have white fur?¡± ¡°You know how animals are like. The cat¡¯s probably just dirty.¡± ¡°I suppose,¡± Z yawned. ¡°Though maybe we should have someone check it out.¡± ¡°Why?¡±Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. ¡°Well, it just sounded sort of like a meerkat. A new meerkat specialist just moved in. I want to see her. Maybe introduce myself¡­¡± he wiggled his eyebrows. ¡°You¡¯re hopeless.¡± ¡°Hey, I bet you were like me before you got married. I¡¯m going to ring her up. Where¡¯s the phonebook?¡± And that¡¯s how the new specialist¡¯s first contribution to the community was going to a dressmaker¡¯s house to investigate a case meerkats. The meerkat specialist pulled up to the address given to her. The house, on first impression, was rather small and petite, but very well kept. Thick woods loomed behind a little wooden fence. The specialist, named Oakley, walked hesitantly up the tiny porch steps. She debated whether or not to knock or look for a doorbell that may or may not exist. She wasn¡¯t given a chance to decide, when a white cat with green eyes meowed aggressively at her. ¡°Ah, Charles,¡± a high-pitched voice squeaked. Oakley jumped, catching sighed of an elliptical head poking out of the window, ¡°and who are you?¡± he asked, glaring at Oakley accusingly. ¡°I¡¯m,¡± Oakley gulped, feeling strangely intimidated by this man, ¡°I¡¯m a person the animal control sent? They said you saw a standing cat?¡± ¡°Oh. You. Yes, I saw a standing cat. In the woods over there.¡± The man coughed. ¡°In the darkness a figure appeared, eyes of burning coals.¡± ¡°Ah, I see,¡± Oakley replied quickly, ¡°I¡¯ll just, um, go check on the situation. Do you mind?¡± ¡°I told you to come. Of course I don¡¯t mind. But don¡¯t disturb me anymore. I¡¯m a busy man.¡± He retreated his head out of the window. The cat shot Oakley one last look of contempt, and jumped through the window itself. Oakley stood at the door for a few seconds, gathering her thoughts, before setting out to the woods. ¡°Okay, Oak,¡± she muttered to herself, ¡°try to do something good for the community. Find what¡¯s behind all this. I doubt it¡¯s a meerkat, since meerkats actually look a lot different than cats, but maybe it¡¯s a¡­a¡­.well who cares what it is as long as I find it. Brown fur and a pointy nose is all I know, but that¡¯s enough. I can do this.¡± She stepped over the little fence easily, and made her way through the woods. Suddenly, the overwhelming size of trees overtook her. Pine trees were everywhere, competing against each other to become the tallest. There were huge open spaces between trees, yet the pine needs were knitted together so closely, barely any light came through. Oakley was reminded just how small she was compared to mother nature. ¡°I can¡¯t do this,¡± she sighed. She marched through the stubborn little and crept deeper through the forest. Never mind the standing cat. There were animals of much larger sizes and strengths. What she should really be worried about was wolfs and coyotes and bears. Especially bears. Oakley turned on the flashlight function on her phone, illuminating only a small portion of the vast darkness. It was risky to have her phone on. She wanted to save as much battery as possible, so she¡¯d be able to get back to her car. Oakley knew the chances of finding such a small animal as a cat in this ginormous forest was pathetically small, but she had to try. Failing the first mission her community gave her was not a good way to introduce herself. Advancing slower, she began to quiet down and listen. Birds were here, which was a good sign because there wouldn¡¯t be something too dangerous and abnormal here. Squirrels and chipmunks were also scattered across the forest, feasting on pine nuts. Numerous anthills dotted the pine-needle covered ground. But Oakley heard no sign of a larger animal. She went deeper. For some strange reason, it seemed like a weight was growing steadily on her head. It was irritating. The further Oakley went, the heavier the weight seemed to be. Eventually, she had to sit down between breaks. There were less birds and squirrels now. Oakley¡¯s instinct was to investigate somewhere else. But her curiosity urged her to find the reason behind this weight. Her curiosity won, and she advance even deeper. What could it be? Then came the sound of feet. Pattering paws scurried somewhere close by. It was a larger animal. If Oakley had ears like a dog, her ear would have flicked forward. Like a predator, she stalked closer to the running sound. Then she saw it. A flash of brown and white with a long tail. Oakley ran faster, but her large size and the bushes kept on stalling her. So close. She reached out¡­ ¡­and caught the tail. Breathing heavily, she picked the animal up, being careful not to let it bite her. It was a ferret. ¡°A ferret?¡± she asked, bewildered. Why would a ferret be here of all¡ª The animal twisted and writhed under Oakley¡¯s grip. Oakley released it. The ferret scurried through the bushes and disappeared. The patter of feet stopped. ¡°What?¡± Oakley exclaimed, following to where the animal had disappeared. There was a huge black structure, with no corners and no edges. Just a mass of blackness. Oakley stared. Then, coming to her senses, she took a few photos, and began running out of the forest. On Track ¡°APOLOGY ACCEPTED,¡± EXFLIBBERAGUILREPLIED NONCHALANTLY. Nick looked at him expectantly. ¡°What?¡± ¡°You¡¯re supposed to apologize too! Did you know how hard it was to destroy what little pride I had to apologize?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to hurt my pride,¡± Exflibberaguil replied, ¡°is this whole ¡®apologizing¡¯ thing Sodriew etiquette?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Nick shouted, exasperated. ¡°Well then, I still refuse to apologize. It is not Mustela etiquette.¡± ¡°I think I remember why I was mad at you now,¡± Nick groaned. ¡°Yes, I know. I was just too infuriatingly perfect.¡± ¡°I¡¯m leaving. Tell me when the ship¡¯s about to take off.¡± Nick shuffled off. Exflibberaguil bit his lip, a Sodriew action he had been trying to learn. ¡°Er, about that,¡± he began, ¡°there may be a slight delay. You see, my careless ferret brought another specialist, and I have to memory wipe her before we can take off. I also need to memory wipe myself.¡± ¡°I told you we should have taken off earlier! Now look at the mess you created!¡± ¡°Oh, it¡¯s not too bad. I¡¯m sure with Odriew curiosity, she¡¯d eventually come back.¡± ¡°Yes, but she¡¯d bring a dozen people with her?¡± Exflibberaguil blinked. ¡°Now why should she do that?¡± ¡°Well, to confirm that she had really saw this ship,¡± Nick explained. Exflibberaguil¡¯s brow furrowed even more from confusion. ¡°But she already saw the ship. What is there to confirm?¡± ¡°I guess,¡± Nick stopped, trying to think of the right words, ¡°I guess we¡¯re just insecure. We see a lot of things, but we don¡¯t believe what we see. Does that make sense?¡± ¡°So what you mean is, I don¡¯t actually have to wipe all their memories. As long as they don¡¯t see this ship when they come back, even the woman wouldn¡¯t have believed herself,¡± Exflibberaguil mused, ¡°You are actually pretty helpful.¡± ¡°Exactly! I was trying to say that yesterday!¡± ¡°Yes, but the problem is that there is photo evidence.¡± ¡°Oh. That¡¯s a problem.¡± Nick sighed, deflated. ¡°Yes. But now that I think about it, I can¡¯t memory wipe a dozen people. I have enough fuel, but unless Sodriew have a brain of a skunk, sooner or later they¡¯d figure something was wrong. Having so many people lose their memories at once is way too suspicious,¡± Exflibberaguil rambled, ¡°And I don¡¯t know if I¡¯ll be able to delete the photo the woman took. The device is simple enough. I saw the same thing on the man we wiped yesterday. And box could probably get into it easily. However, some photos are very loyal to their capturer. Especially photos of significant importance. It would be hard to delete those.¡±Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. ¡°But wait,¡± Nick interrupted, ¡°what would the photo show?¡± ¡°My ship, of course.¡± ¡°Yes, I know. But your ship is completely black. And the forest is also very dark.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°So,¡± Nick continued, ¡°The photo would just be a dark spot in a dark setting.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Then it¡¯s easy! I¡¯m sure humans are stupid enough to believe that the dark spot was just a finger that accidently covered the camera hole.¡± ¡°You wouldn¡¯t believe that! No one will ever believe it.¡± ¡°Yes, but you forget. I¡¯m a kid, and kids have a greater imagination. We want to believe the impossible. But grown-ups want to understand everything that doesn¡¯t make sense. And so they¡¯ll invent these stories and think they¡¯re so smart.¡± ¡°Are you sure this will work?¡± ¡°Almost positive.¡± Exflibberaguil considered. ¡°Well, what have we got to lose?¡± he said at last, ¡°You know, I remember why I hired you in the first place.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Only you can understand the idiotic brains of your kind.¡±
¡°I SWEAR I SAW SOMETHING HERE LAST NIGHT.¡± ¡°Oakley, that¡¯s enough. I never expected you to find the standing cat anyway,¡± Z said soothingly. ¡°No, I took a picture of it!¡± ¡°That¡¯s just a dark smudge. You must have covered the camera by accident.¡± ¡°No! I know what I saw!¡± ¡°If you insist,¡± Z sighed, ¡°But there¡¯s obviously nothing here.¡± ¡°But¡­¡± Oakley trailed off, ¡°¡­you¡¯re right. I¡¯m sorry for dragging you out here. I must have been tired. Maybe it¡¯s the medication I¡¯ve been taking.¡± ¡°Medication? Are you sick?¡± ¡°No. It just helps me digest easier. I recently had a tapeworm extracted from my intestines.¡± ¡°Ah,¡± Z replied, no longer so interested, ¡°I see.¡± ¡°I have to go to my doctor today anyway. Let¡¯s head out.¡± Z had been a little put off by Oakley¡¯s cold demeanor. All his attempts at conversation had been met by cynical and sarcastic replies. Eventually, he gave up, walking in silence until he reached the edge of the forest. They bid goodbye, and both set off in different directions. Oakley, still deep in thought, began driving to her doctor. She was met by the pretty nurse, Donna. ¡°Hello. I made an appointment.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. The doctor will be here in a moment.¡± ¡°He¡¯s not here?¡± ¡°No. He will be in a moment.¡± Soon enough, the doctor bustled through the door, pulling on his white coat. ¡°Donna! You told me there were no early appointments!¡± ¡°It is one in the afternoon, doctor.¡± ¡°Still!¡± the doctor huffed, ¡°Oh, hello Oakley. Here for your checkup?¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right,¡± she replied robotically. ¡°Well, come right in then.¡± The doctor held a door open, and Oakley stepped inside. Oakley continued to frown, as the doctor asked questions. She replied in a monotonous voice. ¡°Yes. No. No. Yes.¡± ¡°Oakley, is something bothering you?¡± the doctor asked. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s just,¡± Oakley poured the story out, ¡°¡­but when I went an hour ago, it was gone! Nothing. Really, really strange. I have a picture of it, but it was so dark. Like, I couldn¡¯t even tell it was three-dimensional. So the picture just looked like a black smudge. Z says it was only my finger blocking the camera. But I know what I saw!¡± ¡°Interesting,¡± the doctor commented, as if he had been treating a patient who was describing a long history of headaches¡ªsomething easily curable by drinking more water. ¡°You don¡¯t believe me, do you?¡± Oakley sighed. ¡°Where was it?¡± The doctor purposely ignored the direct question. ¡°Oh, just at some tailor¡¯s backyard.¡± ¡°Tailor?¡± ¡°Yeah. Funny man with this oval-shaped head. Has a cat. I think he lived on Tunnel street? Kernel street? Something like that.¡± ¡°42 Funnel street?¡± ¡°That¡¯s it! A patient of yours?¡± The doctor sat down, barely able to contain his excitement. ¡°Please repeat your story.¡± Oakley raised an eyebrow, but obeyed. ¡°Alright. So yesterday¡­¡± Party of Three TIMOTHY WAS MILDLY DISAPPOINTED. He was supposed to be famous by now, but no one even noticed he was missing, except Stapes. However, he supposed having privacy was a good thing. The last thing he needed was to have someone take a picture of him last night when he was still in his McDonalds uniform. For some reason, Timothy was almost relieved to repeat his morning ritual, as if he had missed doing in for a long time. He shaved (being careful not to cut himself this time) and showered, happy to get all the grit off himself. He had been so tired last night that he had barely been able to brush his teeth before dosing off to sleep. He treated himself to a nice, hot breakfast (though it was already one in the afternoon) full of pancakes made from scratch. Stapes was also glad that Timothy had returned. The doctor, presumably, had not given him his favorited treats. Timothy gave Stapes an extra helping of bone-shaped doggie biscuits. Not every day was this easy, Timothy reminded himself. Half of the time, Timothy wouldn¡¯t even be in his house. He¡¯d be in some cheap hotel close to the site of the dig. If not, Timothy would be in some stuffy room, staring at an old, boxy computer screen, analyzing data. People always thought archeologists had a ¡°cool¡± job. They¡¯d imagine dramatic scenes, when a rare dinosaur bone is found, or an ancient sword. Some would describe men with ginormous magnifying glasses, polishing and piecing together pieces of beautiful pottery. In reality, most of Timothy¡¯s work was determining that one pile of dust was older than another pile of dust, or if this bit of dirt was more important than that bit of dirt. However, Timothy had been granted a break after his recent breakthrough, so his days were easy and carefree. At least, they were supposed to be carefree. Unfortunately, he managed to get his dog sick and also get amnesia during his vacation. Just before Timothy was about to leave the house to walk Stapes, his phone rang. Snorting a sigh of disgust, he picked up his cell phone and answered the call. ¡°What?¡± he yelled into the speaker, frustrated. ¡°Timothy!¡± an unnaturally cheerful doctor replied, ¡°just the person I wanted!¡± ¡°You called me for heaven¡¯s sake! Did you think it would be my lover who would answer the phone?¡± ¡°How are things going with your girlfriend, by the way?¡± ¡°Doctor, I know you don¡¯t like small talk. Get to the point.¡± The doctor coughed. ¡°Ah, yes, well. You know the little glow-in-the-dark splinter¡ª¡± ¡°Not interested. Goodbye.¡± ¡°No, no, no. Wait! WAIT!¡± ¡°What?¡±The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°I think I can find more of it!¡± ¡°Good for you.¡± ¡°But I need your help! I don¡¯t have your, er, digging expertise!¡± ¡°Doctor,¡± Timothy growled, ¡°what you¡¯re asking me to do is work on my vacation.¡± ¡°Well, if you put it that way¡ª¡± ¡°Are you out of your mind? Goodbye!¡± Timothy hung up on the doctor¡¯s protests. He threw the phone across the room, before realizing that he¡¯d regret it later. Oh, well. He picked up Stapes¡¯s leash, and marched out the door. And nearly hit a familiar face. ¡°Oh, hey Timothy! Long time no see!¡± Timothy stopped dead. ¡°You.¡± ¡°Yes, me! I did just hear you, but I didn¡¯t see you. Of course, I did see you yesterday, but yesterday seems so long ago.¡± ¡°Please don¡¯t tell me you were outside the whole time.¡± ¡°Well,¡± the doctor replied sheepishly, ¡°I had expected you to say yes, and you didn¡¯t have a car so¡­¡± ¡°You came here.¡± ¡°Yep.¡± Stapes barked and yapped angrily at the doctor who had caused him so much pain. ¡°Stapes,¡± Timothy command, ¡°bite this man¡¯s leg off, and you can have it tonight for dessert.¡± ¡°Please!¡± the doctor pleaded, ¡°this can be the biggest thing in my career! And you¡¯ll get credit for it too! And there¡¯s this really pretty lady involved!¡± ¡°You forget it¡¯s you who doesn¡¯t have a girlfriend. Or any fame, for that matter.¡± ¡°Please, Timothy! I don¡¯t know who else to turn to! And you can bring your dog. Your dog can help.¡± Timothy¡¯s curiosity perked up. What could get the doctor to plead so desperately? He had mentioned the little green splinter which, for some, reason, the doctor was so obsessed about. But Timothy refused to work on a vacation day. He decided to implement a technique he had learned from the doctor himself. ¡°I¡¯ll consider the proposal,¡± he replied professionally, ¡°but what do I get from it?¡± ¡°Two free flu shots!¡± ¡°I can get that at my local pharmacy.¡± ¡°One free appointment!¡± ¡°Do you want me to get sick?¡± ¡°One free animal microchip removal!¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Oh, yeah,¡± the doctor remarked slyly, ¡°I found a microchip impeded behind your dog¡¯s collar when I x-rayed him the other day. I forgot to mention it the other day.¡± ¡°My dog¡¯s being tracked?¡± ¡°Really quite normal, actually. I¡¯m assuming your dog was a stray? The microchip is of no use now, though there can be complicated side-effects in the future. I could get it out pretty easily.¡± ¡°I agree!¡± Timothy cried, ¡°I¡¯ll go on this expedition! Anything! Just get the microchip out!¡± ¡°No problem. Get in the car then.¡± Timothy obeyed, feeling a sense of d¨¦j¨¤ vu, though this time the doctor allowed him to sit in the front.
IN A FEW MINUTES, THE TEAM WAS ASSEMBLED. ¡°Timothy, meet Oakley. Oakley, Timothy.¡± The two shook hands. Stapes barked to acknowledge his presence. ¡°Hello,¡± Timothy greeted politely, ¡°Nice to meet you.¡± ¡°Nice to meet you too. Is that your dog?¡± ¡°Yes! His name is Stapes!¡± ¡°Cute!¡± Oakley turned to the doctor, ¡°But couldn¡¯t we just go inside the building to do our introductions? Why the parking lot?¡± ¡°Faster,¡± the doctor replied. ¡°Also, why are you two so polite? You always treat me like garbage.¡± ¡°I bet you would¡¯ve treated me like garbage if I couldn¡¯t pay for my treatment,¡± Timothy replied. ¡°Man¡¯s got to earn a living. Come on, let¡¯s go.¡± The doctor headed back to the family van. Oakley sat in the front, while Timothy had to content himself in the back seat. This time, however, the ride wasn¡¯t as silent as the other one. Oakley and Timothy chatted, while the doctor continued to grit his teeth and yell at them for being too loud. The party of three arrived at the tailor¡¯s house, where they barely had time to introduce themselves before the dressmaker shooed them to the forest. In the midst of the confusion, two small figures, a robot, and a standing cat slipped through the trees, unnoticed and unseen. The Missing Poster ¡°WHAT¡¯S THE PLAN?¡± NICK HISSED THROUGH GRITTED TEETH. ¡°Right, about that¡­¡± Exflibberaguil trailed off, ¡°Well, I don¡¯t have one. I sort of counted on staying in the ship for a bit longer.¡± Exflibberaguil heaved an enormous backpack containing the forgetting machine. Nick had all the essentials, including a limited food supply and Box¡¯s charging port. They had been counting on Box to carry a bit more, by Box¡¯s small wheels could barely move in the forest. Even the ferret had a backpack with tiny gadgets Exflibberaguil insisted they bring. ¡°How fast do your cars go?¡± Exflibberaguil asked, changing the topic. ¡°Oh, about, I don¡¯t know, really, really, fast?¡± Nick paused. ¡°But then again, I suppose your planet has way faster.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I mean, you have spaceships for heaven¡¯s sake! Your form of transportation must be insanely fast.¡± ¡°Actually, it¡¯s very slow,¡± Exflibberaguil replied, ¡°Only the poor buy cars. After millennials of pollution, gas and even battery-powered vehicles were banned on Pylo¡¯rox. Cars could only be solar-powered or wind-powered, which, you can imagine, is really quite slow.¡± ¡°Wow,¡± Nick whispered, ¡°I¡¯d never expect that in the future, cars will be slower.¡± ¡°We have other forms of transportation anyway.¡± ¡°Yeah, like spaceships,¡± Nick frowned, ¡°But that doesn¡¯t make sense. If cars are slow, what do your spaceships run on? Spaceships have to be fast to take off, I¡¯m assuming. ¡± ¡°Er, I don¡¯t know, actually,¡± Exflibberaguil admitted sheepishly, ¡°I¡¯m supposed to know everything, except that. Box, do you know?¡± ¡°I recommend you not to request answers at this moment,¡± Box replied, nearly inaudible, ¡°as it will drain battery quicker. I do not wish to die in the forest at this moment.¡± ¡°How do you not know about a ship you spent years in?¡± Nick interjected. ¡°Nearly a century,¡± he replied proudly. ¡°Haha, you said you were fourteen,¡± Nick challenged, stepping over a large root. ¡°I am fourteen. But I traveled back in time.¡± ¡°You can time travel too?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°How does it work?¡± ¡°I uh,¡± Exflibberaguil scratched his head, ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°There you go again! You really do know nothing!¡± ¡°Look,¡± Exflibberaguil argued, ¡°I didn¡¯t build my ship or the time travel machine! Do you know how a plane works?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not like everyone has a personal plane! I know roughly how a car works. Well, at least I know that you need gas for a car.¡± ¡°Hey, a ship¡¯s really big! And I have a really bad memory on account to all the wipes I¡¯ve been through. And also,¡± his face contorted into a grimace, ¡°also¡­¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t remember, and I don¡¯t want to remember.¡± He replied. ¡°Just how many of these memory wipes have you done?¡± ¡°Oh, I don¡¯t know. About three hundred? Three thousand, counting the years I repeated back in time.¡±This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°You electrocuted yourself three thousand times?¡± Nick gasped, ¡°That can¡¯t be healthy.¡± ¡°Er, yes, I know,¡± Exflibberaguil answered, ¡°can we sit down now? This whole walking thing is tiring. I wish I could bring my toucan chair.¡± ¡°What, you never exercised in your ship before?¡± ¡°Who needs exercise? It¡¯s the diet that counts.¡± Exflibberaguil collapsed under a large pine tree, shaking the trunk. Box and the ferret rested beside them. ¡°Take Box¡¯s charger out,¡± Exflibberaguil commanded. ¡°Yessir,¡± Nick muttered unzipping the ginormous backpack and sorting through the contents. Nick and Exflibberaguil sat next to each other, both unwilling to break the awkward silence. A few pinecones fell in the distance. ¡°Oh right,¡± Nick exclaimed, ¡°We don¡¯t know where we¡¯re going. We don¡¯t have a plan either. We¡¯re practically homeless.¡± ¡°Eh. I was practically homeless my whole life,¡± Exflibberaguil shrugged, ¡°I¡¯m sure we can find a car to live in.¡± ¡°Cars aren¡¯t tiny ships, Ex.¡± Nick rolled her eyes. ¡°Our cars aren¡¯t big enough to live in.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure there must be livable cars.¡± ¡°I, well, I suppose there are trailers,¡± Nick admitted begrudgingly. ¡°I knew it. We¡¯ll just nip one of those.¡± ¡°Steal one of those.¡± ¡°It wouldn¡¯t be stealing if no one owned it.¡± Nick rolled her eyes again. ¡°You can just find trailers lying on the side of the road. Every trailer on this planet is owned. I suppose you must not know that since probably a lot of things were unowned during your bunny apocalypse.¡± ¡°Hm,¡± he sighed, ¡°you¡¯re right. I suppose we¡¯ll just have the make the owner forget ever owning anything.¡± ¡°What?¡± Nick shouted, ¡°No! No more electrocuting people!¡± ¡°It was you¡¯re bright idea to send the ship off in the first place.¡± ¡°But didn¡¯t you see? The woman came back with a second person! If we hadn¡¯t left, they would have discovered the ship!¡± A gradual headache once again began building in Nick. ¡°Well,¡± Exflibberaguil began, angry. He didn¡¯t get a chance to finish his sentence, when a loud rustling of leaves sounded nearby. Both Exflibberaguil and Nick froze in their place. ¡°Rabbit,¡± Exflibberaguil whispered, ¡°the odor is unmistakable.¡± Odor? Nick wondered, do aliens have a better sense of smell? All I can smell in pine. The ferret was wary too. It had begun transforming into a vicious beast, stretching is front limbs into a prowl. It sniffed and wiggled its ears, moving silently among the pine needles. Box¡¯s whirring engine became silent. This was obviously a practiced procedure. Nick tried to quiet her breathing, though she did not know why. It was only a single rabbit after all, and despite the video she saw, nothing of the sort has happened to Earth. A single rabbit could cause no harm. And rabbits couldn¡¯t understand Nick anyway. Suddenly, the ferret leapt. The scurrying began once more, but this time it was obvious the animal was being chased. A flash of grey was followed by a flash of white. Nick spun her head to catch the highlights of the chase. A sudden impulse urged her to start commentating. And now, Rabbit, a deadly alien, is in the lead! But watch out! Ferret is quickly gaining ground. Look at that speed! Oh no, those who bet on Rabbit is in for a bad day! Is it true? Has Rabbit gotten caught in a bush? Is this the end? But no! It fights through. But Rabbit has lost valuable time. Ferret leaps over the bush in one jump! He almost has Rabbit¡¯s tail! They are running away. Let¡¯s zoom in for a closer look. Nick stood up, and began chasing the ferret despite Exflibberaguil¡¯s protests. It looks like Rabbit¡¯s demise is near. Ferret has almost completely caught up, running parallel with Rabbit. It doesn¡¯t look good. Just one jump and¡ª Has he¡ª Is it¡ª ¡°Yes! Ferret has caught Rabbit! And now it¡¯s biting into Rabbit¡¯s neck, and dismembering it into several large pieces! Graphic images ahead. Do not look if you have heart problems. Gross. Ferret¡¯s slick white coat has now been doused in blood,¡± Nick rambled. ¡°Nick!¡± Exflibberaguil yelled from somewhere far behind. ¡°I¡¯m here!¡± Nick yelled back. She looked up from the ferret. Nick didn¡¯t feel queasy or repulsed, as many other girls may have felt, but she had no desire to continue watching a close study of rabbit anatomy. Her eyes wandered to the trees. Wait. Was that her fifth grade yearbook photo? Nick stepped over the ferret, who was still busy consuming the rabbit. She moved closer to a tree where a piece of paper had been taped to the trunk. Oh. On the paper, in large bold letters, were the words: ¡°MISSING. HAVE YOU SEEN THIS GIRL? MARINE NICK LUCIFAY. TWELVE YEARS OLD. FEMALE. IF SEEN, PLEASE REPORT TO THE POLICE STATION FOR REWARD.¡± Underneath was fuzzy, blown up picture Nick in fifth grade. Nick wondered why her mother hadn¡¯t put up a better quality photo, before remembering that her mother had no photo of her. Twelve years old? I¡¯m thirteen, Nick thought bitterly. Her mother couldn¡¯t even write her correct age on a missing poster. Nick heard footsteps approaching. She quickly tore off the sheet, and stuffed it in her pocket. Another day. This is a problem for another day. The Freezing Forest THE FOREST WAS SILENT. Four figures emerged from the thick foliage. The first, and the most authoritative was an attractive female with smart grey-blue eyes and a pointed chin. Her cheeks and nose were red from the cold. Her pink lips were slightly pursed, and silent. A splatter of light freckles dotted her nose. Her straight, red-brown hair flowed over her shoulders, onto her coral pink vest zipped to the neck. Black-and-white striped sleeves were rolled to the elbow. She finished the outfit with a dark pair of blue jeans and well-worn sneakers. She wasn¡¯t especially tall, though her high waist and thin structure often gave the illusion of so. It was her gait that was powerful. Her spine was so straight, as if it curved inwards. Her arms didn¡¯t swing when she walked. It was as if her body floated on top of her legs, and the legs were from a completely different person¡¯s. Her name is Oakley. The second was a sizable man in a long white coat, the edges of which were slightly browned and dirty. He had intelligent brown eyes, with suggestions of crow¡¯s feet appearing at the corners, which was surprising as the man did not seem particularly old. His pale skin was still young and bright. A lumpy nose sprouted above a silent, angry mouth. Dark brown hair was gelled to a side, though the result was obviously a hurried and messy attempt. He wore a collared shirt tucked into his black pants. He was rather tall, but, for some strange reason, not at all intimidating. He wore a cheap knock-off watch three minutes slow on his left hand, which was in his coat pocket clutching a pathetically thin wallet. His name is, well, no one quite knows. He is the Doctor. The last was a skinny man with large green eyes and a nest of hair. His entire face, including his ears, was bright red. He was shivering and sniffing loudly, his mouth constantly twitching, yearning for conversation. He wore a puffy jacked with the hood on. A large wooly scarf wrapped around his neck. Two skinny legs poked out of the winter jacket. He moved by shuffling. He was all hunched over and curled up. He walked in a zig-zag, the large, furry hood blocking his vision. His hands were stuck deep in fur-lined pockets. He glared under the hood. His name is Timothy. The last was a small dog, almost a perfect imitation of its owner. Despite it thick fur, the dog was shivering and freezing. It whimpered whenever its delicate paws stepped on a sharp pine needle. It kept licking its nose to keep it warm, but the moisture only froze its nose more quickly. Its name is Stapes. And the four of them made their way through an eerie pine forest. ¡°We there yet?¡± Timothy finally mustered the courage to ask.Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. ¡°Not even close,¡± Oakley replied, growling softly. She receded back to silence. ¡°Where are we going anyway?¡± Timothy whined through his scarf, ¡°Why did you have to bring me here?¡± ¡°Oh, will you shut up,¡± the doctor hissed. ¡°Look, I¡¯ll pay you, alright? Not as much as you¡¯re probably used to, but I¡¯ll shut your whining if I were you.¡± ¡°Are you bribing me?¡± ¡°Shut it. Hear me?¡± The doctor zipped his lips for clarification. They walked in silence some more. ¡°I¡¯m¡ª¡± Timothy began once he was certain that they weren¡¯t anywhere close. ¡°Shut up.¡± Without breaking a stride, Oakley twisted her head to glare at Timothy. ¡°¡ªhungry,¡± Timothy finished, ¡°or rather, was hungry.¡± He muttered to himself for the rest of the walk. ¡°We¡¯re here,¡± Oakley announced, as they walked to a very ordinary bit of ground. ¡°How do you know?¡± Timothy challenged, ¡°How can you remember so clearly? I heard you were wandering about that day. How do you know this is the right place?¡± ¡°Please ignore him,¡± the doctor apologized, producing a pair of latex gloves from a pocket, ¡°He¡¯s usually this irritating. I¡¯m used to it.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not irritating! It¡¯s just you that get easily irritated!¡± Timothy protested. ¡°And you too, Oakley,¡± Timothy added off her glare. ¡°Put these on,¡± the doctor instructed, tossing the gloves to Timothy, ¡°And start examining the ground. Is there anything out of the ordinary?¡± ¡°Oh, great,¡± Timothy grumbled, ¡°now you want me to get on all fours, and crawl around looking at dirt. I have feelings too, you know. Where¡¯s my respect?¡± ¡°You lost it when you started whining,¡± Oakley pointed out. ¡°Oh, shut it, you. You and the doctor really make a nice pair.¡± Timothy, after a great deal of arguing and cursing, finally squatted down and examined the ground. ¡°Do you see anything odd?¡± the doctor asked. ¡°No¡­¡± Timothy replied, ¡°nothing very interesting. A leaf here and there. And a poor ant. This area is slightly darker than this other area. Very strange. Wonder what that could be. But other than that¡ªWhat is that?¡± ¡°What?¡± the doctor exclaimed eagerly, ¡°What do you see? Something glowing?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s just dirt,¡± Timothy replied maliciously. ¡°You know, it could be awfully helpful if maybe one of you also started looking. It¡¯s not like I have super vision and I can detect any odd object in any given area. Or hey, here¡¯s a thought. Maybe both of you start looking. Aren¡¯t I such a genius sometimes?¡± ¡°Who¡¯ll watch the dog then?¡± Oakley asked. ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sure he wouldn¡¯t go far.¡± Slightly confused, Oakley put Stapes down and accepted a pair of gloves from the doctor. The three of them were squatted in a sort of circle, performing an odd ritual that involved a lot of staring at the ground and grunting. Timothy had been right about Stapes not going far. In fact, Stapes was absolutely frozen in place, sitting upright and staring at who-knows-where. ¡°Well?¡± Timothy said sarcastically, ¡°any updates? Anyone find some especially interesting dirt?¡± ¡°Shut up and keep working,¡± the doctor hissed. ¡°Ah yes, working. You know, something that usually involves a nice a hotel and a considerable amount of money. Oh, and let¡¯s not forget. Work also happens in good environments. That is, places where the temperature is above zero.¡± ¡°Alright, I get it,¡± the doctor grumbled, ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have called you. I should have come with just Oakley. Because hey, now if we find some rare material, the money wouldn¡¯t have to be split with you ungrateful swine. I should have thought of that.¡± ¡°You¡¯re trying to bribe me by calling me an ungrateful swine? Good luck,¡± Timothy pouted. ¡°Shut up you two,¡± Oakley commanded, and all three of them fell silent. Largely because, of course, Stapes had begun barking loudly. After the Dog ¡°FOLLOW THE DOG.¡± ¡°Stapes,¡± Timothy corrected, ¡°his name is Stapes, doctor. And it should be easy for you to remember, being a doctor and all.¡± ¡°Staples, yes, I suppose it should be easy for me to remember that,¡± the doctor replied thoughtfully, ¡°as I do go through many stapled documents daily. Though it¡¯s really Donna that does all the stapling. I never really liked doing those boring office tasks.¡± Timothy groaned. They were running after Stapes, who had suddenly taken flight in the middle of his barking. Timothy was running even deeper into the forest. Nearly all light was blocked by the towering pine trees. Every step made needles shower onto his head. Stapes was at an advantage and the ground between them was quickly expanding. Stapes could leap over bushes and twigs easily, while Timothy had to backtrack and find ways to get around these obstacles. ¡°Come on, you guys, stop arguing,¡± Oakley hissed, ¡°You¡¯re already lagging behind.¡± ¡°Only because you¡¯re going too fast!¡± Timothy replied, ¡°I¡¯ve got stomach cramps now!¡± ¡°Boohoo. Maybe the doctor would take a look and put a little ointment and a pink bandage. I¡¯m sure your stomach cramps are painful. Would you like a glass of water? Or a hot bowl of soup?¡± ¡°You¡¯re just as bad as the doctor!¡± Timothy wheezed. ¡°Well, if I had to deal with idiots like you every day, of course I¡¯d become the doctor!¡± ¡°Someone gets it!¡± The doctor exclaimed happily. ¡°To be fair, though, you would also classify as one of the ¡®idiots.¡¯ Who eats raw fish at some shady restaurant in a tiny town? Any biologist should know the risks.¡± ¡°Wrong, the medical people know the risks, the biologist¡ª¡± Oakley was cut off by a loud thud. She turned her head. Timothy was on the ground, his clothes covered with dirt. ¡°Now what?¡± Oakley yelled with exasperation. ¡°I fell over a tree root,¡± Timothy replied pathetically, his voice muffled by the ground. ¡°Get up, then.¡± Oakley sounded a lot like an impatient mother. ¡°It¡¯s cold. I don¡¯t want to get up,¡± Timothy replied, fulfilling his role as a stubborn child. ¡°Then you will never see Stapes again.¡± ¡°He¡¯ll come back eventually, I¡¯m sure. I think I¡¯ll just stay here.¡± ¡°Come on, you pathetic excuse for a human!¡± the Doctor urged, dragging Timothy by the arm, ¡°Get up.¡± ¡°For some strange reason, I¡¯m feeling d¨¦j¨¤ vu.¡± ¡°Guys, quite down!¡± Oakley whispered urgently, ¡°I hear something.¡± ¡°Yeah, me too. It¡¯s the wind. I¡¯m freezing in it!¡± Timothy shivered for effect. ¡°Hey, doctor, can you stop dragging me? It¡¯s hurting my back.¡±Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. ¡°No, something else.¡± Stapes began barking loudly nearby. They had lost sight of him. Timothy looked around the trees wildly, searching for his dog. ¡°Yeah, nice job Sherlock,¡± he teased, ¡°that sound was my dog. Where the is he? Stapes!¡± ¡°Oy, quiet down! I have to hear his bark.¡± ¡°Ugh,¡± Timothy rolled his eyes, ¡°Do you know anything about dogs? Doctor, let go of me. I¡¯m getting up to look for my dog.¡± ¡°A few minutes ago, you said your dog would eventually come back too you,¡± the doctor observed, ¡°yet now, you¡¯re standing up to look for Staples!¡± ¡°Stapes,¡± Timothy corrected. Stapes barked in return. ¡°Stapes!¡± The dog began barking wildly again. Sticks and leaves crunched. The malamute pounced out from behind two large pine trees. ¡°You idiot!¡± Oakley yelled, ¡°now we have no idea where the dog went!¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sure Stapes can find you stupid metal.¡± Timothy sniffed. ¡°Do you guys smell that too?¡± It was a pungent smell of feces and iron. Not even the pine could cover it. Timothy gagged. ¡°It¡¯s so strong. My nose is runny and freezing, yet it¡¯s still so smelly! Stapes, what were you up to?¡± As if to answer, Stapes barked and turned around, back through the bushes. Oakley sprinted to catch up, followed by the doctor. Not even Timothy could contain his curiosity, and he followed after them as well. They chased the small dog through thorny bushes. Timothy wished they knew where they were going. That way, Timothy could find some better path to walk through. Thorns were no fun. ¡°Stapes, where are we going?¡± he whined. ¡°Why couldn¡¯t you just be a good boy and tell me? Why couldn¡¯t I just have been a good man and stayed inside the house? Why did I have to follow the doctor?¡± Timothy ranted on. ¡°It¡¯s all your fault, Stapes. Why did you have that tracking device in the first place? Who put it there? So annoying.¡± ¡°Stop talking!¡± Oakley and the doctor yelling in unison. Timothy stopped talking, largely because he didn¡¯t have the breath to. It was only a few more thorny bushes later that Stapes stopped and barked. He had a very good reason to. It was a scene of a crime. Blood was everywhere, splattered on trees and leaves. The pungent was everywhere. It was undoubtfully the smell of blood. ¡°Is¡­is that human blood?¡± Timothy whispered in horror. The doctor snorted, then burst out laughing. ¡°Ha! I knew it! You were secretly hopeful that we¡¯d find something! Why in the world did you think it was human blood? It came from that rabbit.¡± ¡°Of course I hoped we found something important! I didn¡¯t want to run all the way here for a rabbit!¡± Oakley sat down, defeated. ¡°It¡¯s a rabbit. Only a rabbit. I wasted all my energy for a rabbit,¡± she muttered. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, guys. I probably was hallucinating after all, when I saw that large ship.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I thought!¡± Timothy replied angrily. ¡°I¡¯m going home and making a large mug of hot coffee. I had enough. Stapes, come on.¡± Something rustled in the dark bushes to the right. All three of their heads turned. The rustling stopped, then started again. They held their breath. More rustling now. It sounded desperate, like something trying to escape. Timothy held his hand over Stapes¡¯s mouth, to keep him from barking. Slowly, Oakley advanced, a large stick in her hand. She approached the bush silently. Then, without warning, she brought her hand down on the bush. A little animal squealed, and darted away. ¡°What was that? A squirrel?¡± Timothy asked. ¡°No,¡± Oakley turned back, her eyes wide and confused, ¡°That was a ferret. Covered with blood.¡± ¡°The same ferret you saw the other day?¡± the doctor asked. ¡°The one that led me to the large black thing.¡± Timothy breathed in sharply, which he immediately regretted because the cold air hurt his lungs. ¡°Tell me,¡± he gasped, ¡°are ferrets common around here?¡± ¡°No. That¡¯s what¡¯s strange. I don¡¯t think a ferret would ever appear around these woods, unless it¡¯s an escaped pet.¡± The doctor looked at Timothy with confusion, before it clicked. ¡°Timothy, are you talking about the dream?¡± Timothy nodded. ¡°Dream?¡± Oakley demanded. But the doctor was lost in thought. ¡°It can¡¯t be a coincidence,¡± he muttered, ¡°the ferret, the ship, and the metal. How come all three odd things appeared in the same place? There has to be a reason.¡± ¡°What dream?¡± Oakley repeated. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you,¡± Timothy replied, ¡°But only if we go somewhere that¡¯s warm.¡± Bubbles ¡°BAD, BAD, BAD, BAD, BAD FERRET.¡± Exflibberaguil gasped for air, and continued. ¡°Bad, bad, bad¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s not his fault,¡± Nick interjected, gasping as well, ¡°that he¡­he¡­made those people chase us.¡± ¡°Yes, it is,¡± Exflibberaguil replied crossly, ¡°He knows perfectly well I can¡¯t run well. He should know to be more careful and not to be spotted. Can you stop sweating so much? It¡¯s irritating.¡± ¡°What?¡± Nick replied loudly, bending over and panting some more. She was wearing the same black shirt she had on the first day. In their hurry to leave, Nick had not grabbed extra clothes from the ship. The black shirt she wore now was already soaked in sweat. She¡¯d need a change of clothes very soon. ¡°I can¡¯t stop sweating. It¡¯s unhealthy for us¡­us Odriews. We need some way to cool off.¡± ¡°The plural of Odriew is Sodriew, by the way,¡± Exflibberaguil corrected with the air of a superior, ¡°And I sweat too, you know. But I can control it. On such a cool day, sweating will do no good. It would only make you colder.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Maybe I¡¯m too primitive to control the amount I sweat,¡± Nick mimicked in a snotty voice. ¡°As a matter of fact, you are,¡± Exflibberaguil answered, annoyingly oblivious of Nick¡¯s glare. He was digging deep into his backpack, spilling all sort of odd gadgets everywhere. ¡°Ah-ha!¡± he exclaimed, extracting an elegantly carved wooden bottle. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Would you like one?¡± he offered, holding out another, much plainer bottle to Nick. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Bubbles!¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Oh, stop repeating in the same thing,¡± Exflibberaguil snapped. ¡°You¡¯re sounding like Countdown. What, what, what, what. Is that all you say?¡± ¡°No!¡± ¡°Good. Then do you want it or not?¡± He stuck his arm out further, shaking the bottle in front of Nick¡¯s nose. Nick snatched the bottle. ¡°But what is it?¡± ¡°I already told you! Bubbles! Don¡¯t tell me your planet doesn¡¯t have bubbles?¡± ¡°Of course we have bubbles! But why are you giving it to me?¡± ¡°Oh, for Zrillion¡¯s sake!¡± Exflibberaguil groaned, ¡°it¡¯s one of the best parts about your planet! It¡¯s against the Galactic Yelling Papers for minors to blow bubbles, but since your planet is excused from the rules, I can finally blow bubbles! It¡¯s been, what, two time warps ago that I last entered the atmosphere of another primitive planet and tasted bubbles last. I¡¯ve been saving this particular bubble solution until now!¡± He twisted the cap off the bottle, and a slender bubble wand appeared, connected to the cap.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. The wand had more than a dozen different sized and shaped holes, twisted together like a complicated puzzle. In fact, one hole actually looked like a puzzle. Nick cautiously untwisted her bottle, and was dismayed to find one two holes: a large round one and a small square one. ¡°What? I don¡¯t get some fancy-pants wand?¡± ¡°Hey! Do you know how much those things cost?¡± ¡°I can just buy one at some convenience store.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Exflibberaguil breathed in wonder, ¡°You must be wealthy.¡± ¡°Whatever. Let¡¯s just go get that trailer.¡± Nick had already searched her phone for an available trailer they could get. Even the closest dealer was at least a couple hour¡¯s walk away. As a punishment for the ferret¡¯s misbehavior, Exflibberaguil had strapped Box to the ferret¡¯s back, along with the backpack it originally wore. Exflibberaguil was beginning to wear down now, from the heavy backpack and the lack of exercise he had on his ship. Nick wouldn¡¯t have been surprised if the journey took twenty-four hours. The group began walking along the sidewalk, joining the crowds as much as possible. The last thing they needed was have some crazy drug-addict sabotage them and rob them of the little money Nick had. Exflibberaguil dipped his bubble wand in the little container. A thick, blue film now stretched between the holes. Bringing the wand to his face, Exflibberaguil blew hard. The bubbles expanded, but, to Nick¡¯s surprised, not one of them popped. And some of them weren¡¯t spherical at all. They kept the shape of the holes, only expanded. ¡°What?¡± Nick exclaimed. ¡°I¡¯m getting awfully tired of hearing that word.¡± ¡°But¡­but that doesn¡¯t make sense! Bubbles are supposed to be spherical because¡­because¡­¡± Nick stammered, ¡°because that maximizes air storage or whatever! Bubbles don¡¯t keep their shape!¡± ¡°These do,¡± Exflibberaguil replied simply. Nick blew a bubble through her wand eagerly, and wasn¡¯t disappointed. There were cubical bubbles! She dipped her bubble wand in the solution again, and blew as many bubbles as she could. ¡°Be careful!¡± Exflibberaguil warned, ¡°don¡¯t get addicted to bubbles. Bubbles can be very addictive! Almost as addictive as nickel teens if it isn¡¯t handled correctly!¡± ¡°Nicotine?¡± ¡°Yes, that.¡± Nick looked at her bubble wand doubtfully. ¡°But what are the health risks of bubble blowing? So what if I get addicted?¡± Nick dipped the wand again. ¡°Of course there¡¯s health risks! Eternal lip-pursing, constant dizziness, bubble sneezing¡­¡± Exflibberaguil ticked them off on his fingers, ¡°There was this one Globbigrinckle who blew bubbles every few seconds. He claimed he¡¯d have a heart attack if a bubble wand was not in his hand. Anyway, he began sniffing the bubble solution directly, and sneezing the bubbles out. Then he began drinking it, so he¡¯d always have bubbles coming out of his mouth. He must have gone through twenty packs of Super Superb Solution a day. You have no idea what happened next.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°He died. I mean, did you ever expect him to life after drinking bubble solution?¡± Nick frowned. ¡°That was anticlimactic.¡± ¡°As are most stories.¡± Exflibberaguil dipped the wand in again, and blew through the puzzle-shaped hole. As they walked, Exflibberaguil began piecing the puzzle together again. Whenever a correct connection was made, the bubbles merged. Nick watched in wonder. ¡°Your home planet must have been nice before it was destroyed,¡± Nick remarked wistfully. ¡°I suppose. I don¡¯t remember.¡± ¡°Why did you erase your own memories?¡± Exflibberaguil connected another piece. ¡°Oh, some things aren¡¯t good to dwell upon. There¡¯s no good in it.¡± ¡°But you would rather forget your troubles than learning from them?¡± ¡°I can learn nothing from them,¡± Exflibberaguil replied. ¡°They only drag me down. I¡¯m better off without troubling memories. That way I can move on.¡± Exflibberaguil paused. ¡°You know, I¡¯m quite certain that I¡¯m not the only one who escaped from my planet alive. We Mustela are intelligent enough to have at least a thousand survivors. But I doubt many made it far without committing suicide.¡± Exflibberaguil sighed. ¡°I just don¡¯t want to end in that same fate. Can you blame me for wanting to do something more with the rest of my life?¡± Nick had nothing to say. Trigger Words ¡°HOW MUCH LONGER?¡± Exflibberaguil had quickly gotten tired of bubble-blowing, and resorted to whining and moaning about whatever little thing irritated him. It began with the way flies buzz, and now it was about how his feet hurt. ¡°Only a dozen more hours at your pace,¡± Nick snapped. ¡°We cross the street here.¡± Nick stopped at the foot of the crosswalk, waiting for the electronic sign to turn to ¡®walk¡¯. Right now, cars were still speeding across the road, neither of them wanting to be stopped by a red light. ¡°Hey, Flipper, keep an eye on your ferret,¡± Nick warned, ¡°or he may become roadkill. You hear me? Flipper?¡± Nick swiveled her head to the right, where Exflibberaguil once stood. There was no one. Cars honked and beeped loudly on the street. Wheels squealed as the vehicles braked. Nick turned to the commotion. Exflibberaguil was walking in the middle of the street, glaring at the cars. ¡°Quiet down! You almost ran over me!¡± he yelled. ¡°Go fix you auto-driving system! What is wrong with all you guys?¡± An enraged truck driver rolled down the window. Before he could start firing insults and curses, Nick sprinted onto the crosswalk waving her hands in surrender. ¡°I¡¯m sorry! I¡¯m sorry!¡± she yelled frantically, escorting Exflibberaguil safely to the other side of the street. ¡°What was that about?¡± Exflibberaguil barked. ¡°Why were you on the street? The light didn¡¯t tell you to walk!¡± ¡°It¡¯s obviously their fault,¡± Exflibberaguil retorted. ¡°They need to fix their auto-drive! I almost got run over because of them.¡± ¡°Because of them?¡± Nick yelled, ¡°It was your fault! Stop blaming everyone else. Their traffic light was green, so they were supposed to go!¡± ¡°Green? What difference does that make?¡± ¡°Green means go! People drive the car and step on the gas when the light is green.¡± Nick frowned. ¡°Though, I suppose I should have expected your ignorance. Traffic policies must be different on your planet.¡± ¡°Wait,¡± Exflibberaguil exclaimed, bewildered, ¡°people drive cars by themselves? And the only thing that keeping them ordered are lights? You mean, my life and the life of others depend on colored lights?¡± ¡°Well, that and white lines on the road,¡± Nick admitted. ¡°Let me get this straight,¡± Exflibberaguil began, ¡°everyone on this road is following a colored lines and lights system, along with a few other rules. And so everyone is basically trusting that everyone else would also follow these rules.¡± ¡°I suppose¡­¡± ¡°However, you lock your doors every night because you don¡¯t trust people and are afraid some stranger might break in. So you are basically trusting people you don¡¯t trust at all with your life.¡± Exflibberaguil paused. ¡°Don¡¯t you find that frightening?¡± ¡°Now that you put it that way¡­¡± Nick confessed, ¡°I suppose it is frightening. Any moment, someone who breaks one traffic rule could end our life. Yet we allow that to happen, even though we don¡¯t allow that same person to come in our houses because we¡¯re afraid they¡¯d steal something.¡± ¡°How can anyone have the guts to drive?¡± Exflibberaguil asked.Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. ¡°How was it like on your planet?¡± Nick inquired, ignoring the question Exflibberaguil posed (mainly because she didn¡¯t know the answer). ¡°We had auto-drive, obviously.¡± Nick snapped her fingers. ¡°Ah, yes. I forgot your planet was insanely advanced in technology.¡± Exflibberaguil smiled modestly. ¡°Yes, it was. Well, only advanced compared to you Sodriew, of course.¡± ¡°Yes, thank you for your hourly reminder of how pathetic my planet is. Really motivates me to help you on your mission.¡± ¡°Can you stop talking?¡± Exflibberaguil complained, ¡°You¡¯re lagging behind. I want to get that trailer as soon as possible, and then we can start travelling.¡± ¡°Yes, travelling,¡± Nick repeated. Travelling, why did that seem odd? ¡°Wait, Flipper?¡± she ventured cautiously, ¡°I don¡¯t think this trailer is going to work if we want to travel.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because none of us can drive it.¡± Exflibberaguil laughed. ¡°Box can. It can just talk to the engine. I¡¯m sure the engine would have been very tired anyway, and would be willing to let Box take over. Engines are always very tired and very lazy.¡± ¡°But,¡± Nick argued, stopping in the middle of the sidewalk, ¡°you can¡¯t just let a car drive by itself. Someone has to do the driving.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do it then.¡± ¡°But you have to be older than sixteen!¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure it would be very easy to convince whoever stops us,¡± Exflibberaguil replied, his ego flashing like a neon-bordered restaurant sign. ¡°You know, Sodriew are extremely easy to convince. I¡¯ll just say I hit puberty late, and that I really am sixteen.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that easy. The police would ask for your driver¡¯s license.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll think of something up. Come on, let¡¯s go.¡± But Nick didn¡¯t budge from the front of Pinky Princess Pies. Something was still troubling her. ¡°My world may not be a big place compared to your planet,¡± Nick said, ¡°but it¡¯s still pretty big. There¡¯s no way we¡¯d be able to destroy all rabbits.¡± ¡°We¡¯re not destroying all rabbits. All I need to do is destroy the chief rabbit, and everything should fall apart from there.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. Box told me.¡± Nick frowned deeper. ¡°Ok. Fine. Let¡¯s assume that you¡¯re right¡ª¡± ¡°Of course I¡¯m right.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s hope so. There really is this chief rabbit. But there are a lot of rabbits in this world! We can¡¯t possibly go through each one!¡± ¡°We only need to go through the ones that are old enough.¡± ¡°That¡¯s still a lot!¡± Nick plunged into contemplation. ¡°The only way to complete the mission is if you collaborate. You must remember something about your planet.¡± ¡°The only way I¡¯ve ever been able to remember something is when a trigger word is said,¡± Exflibberaguil explained. ¡°Some memories are easy to trigger. The trigger words are used every day. But some memories, like most memories about my planet, are difficult to trigger because I suspect I deliberated tried to erase it out of my hippocampus. These trigger words are very uncommon. And if not triggered for a long time, the memory would go extinct.¡± ¡°Has it gone extinct yet?¡± ¡°If I remembered, it obviously wouldn¡¯t have.¡± Nick groaned. ¡°You¡¯re so frustrating. You want to save Earth, yet you know nothing that will help save it.¡± ¡°Quite frankly, saving your planet is not my top priority. My health comes first. Afterall, I¡¯m the only reason why your planet has even a slight chance of surviving the bunny apocalupse,¡± Exflibberaguil replied. ¡°Nick, you¡¯re making an evil face again. What are you thinking about?¡± ¡°So these trigger words,¡± Nick began, ¡°they must exist, as long as the memory isn¡¯t extinct. What if I just told Box to blurt out words every day. Sooner or later, your memory will be triggered, right?¡± ¡°I¡­I suppose.¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s try it! Box!¡± Nick commanded. ¡°Yes? I¡¯m so happy to be of assistan¡ª¡± ¡°Start saying every word you know in alphabetical order.¡± ¡°How many words per minute do you want me to say?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s say, five¡ª¡± ¡°Er, Nick?¡± Exflibberaguil murmured uncertainly, ¡°shouldn¡¯t we do this in the trailer? People are staring.¡± ¡°Oh, that¡¯s right. I¡¯m still a fugitive.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Never mind. I might tell you later. Let¡¯s go.¡± Nick walked with a spring in her step. It was then that Exflibberaguil learned something very fascinating. Sodriew are very much like dogs. They like to be praised for their supposed intelligence. The only difference is that dogs are, of course, a lot smarter. Trailer ¡°NINE-ONE-ONE, WHAT¡¯S YOUR EMERGENCY?¡± ¡°My trailer was stolen.¡± ¡°Oh? Did you see the thief?¡± ¡°Thieves. Plural.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Did you see the thieves?¡± ¡°Er, yes. I think.¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure they actually talked to me.¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± ¡°Yeah, and they probably bought my trailer. But they didn¡¯t pay, I think.¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t remember what they looked like. I just know that they stole my trailer. I don¡¯t know who they are though. I forgot what they looked like. I also forgot my license number. And I can¡¯t find any of my paperwork.¡± ¡°Goodbye. Anymore pranks like this will not be tolerated again in the future.¡± ¡°Wait¡ª¡± ¡°Goodbye.¡±
NICK STARED CROSS-EYED THROUGH THE WINDOW. ¡°This can¡¯t be safe,¡± she repeated for the hundredth and thirty-seventh time. ¡°It¡¯s safe,¡± Exflibberaguil replied for the hundredth and thirty-sixth time. ¡°I¡¯m referring to Box¡¯s driving skills, of course. As to the safeness of this vehicle, which in no way resembles a car, I cannot guarantee.¡± ¡°But what if Box runs out of battery?¡± Nick fretted, ¡°Or gets water damage? Or malfunctions?¡± ¡°Which is precisely why I plugged it in, sealed it in a waterproof bag, and have a backup driver.¡± ¡°Backup driver?¡± ¡°My ferret.¡± ¡°Yup, Marine Nick Lucifay,¡± Nick muttered, ¡°great idea, trapping yourself in a car driven by a malfunctioning robot and an alien who believes that a ferret would make a suitable driver.¡± ¡°That sounds about right.¡± Exflibberaguil pulled out the passport and driver license Box had forged for him a while ago. They looked real enough, and though Exflibberaguil had repeatedly assured Nick that the card was really the same as any Sodriew driver¡¯s license, Nick was still convinced that the police would still be able to find something wrong with the card and insisted Exflibberaguil adopt the name ¡®Bob¡¯.This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°Don¡¯t take your hands off the steering wheel!¡± Nick yelled. ¡°But I¡¯m tired,¡± Exflibberaguil whined. Exflibberaguil had already been ¡®driving¡¯ for an hour. He didn¡¯t have a specific destination, other than ¡®far¡¯ and ¡®remote¡¯. No amount of interrogation could make him spill his intentions. The only hints he gave was that the rabbit leader would most likely be very old, and well taken care of. ¡°Nick,¡± Exflibberaguil asked suddenly, ¡°how many Brachylagus idahoensis are there on Driew?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Just tell me. I don¡¯t want to ask Box right now, because you might freak out again.¡± ¡°Okay, okay.¡± Nick pulled out her phone, which was nearly out of battery. ¡°This better be important.¡± ¡°It is.¡± ¡°Your definition of important is dramatically different from mine,¡± Nick grumbled, after dozen tries at spelling the word. ¡°And I don¡¯t know why you said Brach¡ªBrachy¡ªBrachy whatever when you could have just said Columbia Basin Pygmy rabbit.¡± ¡°Just tell me the results.¡± ¡°Around 2003,¡± Nick read, ¡°it was recorded that there were only thirty Columbia Basin Pygmy rabbits in existence. It is now still considered extremely endangered and on the brink of extinction.¡± She paused. ¡°I still don¡¯t get it. What¡¯s so important about this one rabbit? There are hundreds of other species.¡± ¡°But this particular species is one of the cuter types,¡± Exflibberaguil pointed out. ¡°I never expected you to be the sort of person that would care if something is cute or not.¡± ¡°First, I¡¯m not a person. I am a Mustela,¡± Exflibberaguil corrected. ¡°And second, I have no use for ¡®cuteness¡¯. However, being cute is one of the rabbits first line of defense. It had no great effect on Mustela, because we were more developed, but it may have a greater impact on Sodriew. It¡¯s a gamble on their part. Sodriew are less likely to want to harm something that is cute. However, cuteness does trigger aggression, so there is a large chance that the rabbit would be hurt either way.¡± ¡°But I still don¡¯t get it,¡± Nick persisted, ¡°what¡¯s so important about this particular species?¡± ¡°I just wanted to know how well you fight against cuteness,¡± Exflibberaguil explained. ¡°I¡¯m pleasantly surprised, even impressed. I never expected Sodriew were able to counter the cuteness factor and kill these rabbits to near extinction. I¡¯m assuming the last thirty are kept in labs and are being tested?¡± ¡°Er, no,¡± Nick corrected. ¡°There is now a considerable recovery of their population due to restoration projects. The only reason why their population decreased so dramatically was because of the colder temperatures and loss of habitat.¡± ¡°Never mind what I said about being impressed. Sodriew are just as much of an idiot and a disappointment as I give them credit to be.¡± Nick did not know how to respond. ¡°If cuteness didn¡¯t work, how was your planet destroyed?¡± Nick asked, deliberately changing the topic. ¡°In the beginning, it was overpopulation. No one thought much of it. It didn¡¯t seem like too big a problem. As long as we dominated the planet, we didn¡¯t mind immigrants coming into our planet.¡± ¡°Wait, I¡¯m getting confused,¡± Nick said, ¡°did you say it was against nature to take over other planets? Then why were you accepting other planet immigrants?¡± ¡°They weren¡¯t taking over the planet,¡± Exflibberaguil pointed out. ¡°As long as their main planet had the most amount of rabbits concentrated in one spot, it¡¯s fine for a few rabbits to visit other planets occasionally. Aliens do it all the time. But it becomes a problem when too many come to a single other planet, attacking that one planet. That was what the rabbits did.¡± ¡°So your planet was the first victim?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I can only believe so. I forgot the details.¡± ¡°I see,¡± Nick replied. ¡°Speaking of forgetting, where are we going and when are we going to get there? I want Box to start spewing words as soon as possible, so you can actually recover some important parts of your memory and do something proactive for once.¡± Exflibberaguil gave Nick a wry smile, the sort of smile adults gives children when children say they want to be a wizard when they grow up. Store ¡°I CAN¡¯T BELIEVE YOU.¡± ¡°You said you were hungry.¡± ¡°Which didn¡¯t mean I gave you permission to print money!¡± Nick exploded, ¡°In case you didn¡¯t know, I¡¯m hungry means that I¡¯m malnourished, and I need food soon. This can be achieved legally!¡± ¡°But you only have one paper slip with the number ¡®one¡¯ printed on it,¡± Exflibberaguil pointed out. ¡°Excuse me for being unaccustomed to your currency, but I believe the twenty paper slips I¡¯m printing right now would buy much more food.¡± ¡°But it¡¯s not right!¡± ¡°And sacrificing yourself to starvation and allowing aliens to take over your planet, is?¡± Nick sighed. She knew arguing would do no good. Exflibberaguil always found a way to win a debate, whether it be by finding a loophole or by just plain stubbornness. Nick had never expected to meet another person who would be more stubborn than her. Correction. Exflibberaguil was an alien, not a person, Nick reminded herself. ¡°Are you coming or not?¡± Exflibberaguil demanded, after finally figuring out how to open the car door. He held a thick stack of one-dollar bills. ¡°You go without me,¡± Nick mumbled. They were parked at a gas station store. Even though they had drove pretty far, Nick was still worried that someone might recognize her. It almost happened when they had been walking on the street. Besides, the smell of gasoline made her nauseas. Exflibberaguil waved the green bills in the air. ¡°Okay then. Smart of you to let a clueless alien loose with a pile of currency. I¡¯ll just go and spend these then. That is, if I can figure out your currency system.¡± ¡°Fine, fine, I¡¯ll join you. But you really need to do something about your hair.¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong with my hair?¡± ¡°It¡¯s way too long. Normal human males don¡¯t grow long hair.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right. It¡¯s a fire hazard,¡± Exflibberaguil agreed, ¡°but I can¡¯t cut it now. Are you just trying to stall?¡± ¡°No,¡± Nick lied. ¡°Come on. You were the one who was hungry in the first place. I can absorb a little energy from the sun. I can survive for another day.¡± ¡°I¡¯m coming!¡± Nick groaned, dragging herself to the door. She pulled it open, inhaling the putrid smell of gas and old cigarettes. Gagging, she made her way to the store, Exflibberaguil following close behind.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. The brightly lit store smelled no better, with the stink of urine floating in through the bathroom door. Exflibberaguil wrinkled his tall nose, but made no comment. ¡°Not all of our stores are this bad,¡± Nick told him under her breath. She gravitated toward the snack aisle, giving a brief lecture about the good and bad brands. ¡°Are there any rabbit-repelling snacks?¡± Exflibberaguil asked. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Ah! A shame.¡± A pause. ¡°Then what¡¯s the point of snacks anyway?¡± ¡°Exflipper,¡± Nick sighed impatiently, ¡°not everything revolves around rabbits. There¡¯s such a thing as entertainment and recreation. Snacks were invented simply to taste good.¡± ¡°But they aren¡¯t healthy.¡± ¡°Taste good,¡± Nick repeated, stressing the words. Nick already had enough about her unhealthy eating habits from her friends. She didn¡¯t need an alien commenting on her diet as well. ¡°But why can¡¯t snacks have a purpose?¡± Exflibberaguil persisted. ¡°I know what entertainment is. Bubbles, for example.¡± ¡°Yes! Bubbles! Exactly! If I asked you what¡¯s the point of you blowing bubbles, what would you say?¡± ¡°Mostly for protection. Bubble solution stings your eyes, making it an effective distraction. Bubbles also make rabbits sneeze, especially the solutions infused with pepper. Additionally¡ª¡± Nick groaned. ¡°Okay. Bad example. Let¡¯s take something else. Say¡­you¡¯re colorful food. What¡¯s the point of adding color to food? You could have just served a perfectly plain plate of food, but still have it be nutritious. The color just adds the extra. You see what I¡¯m saying?¡± ¡°Stimulating your color taste buds can help you see and smell better, as well as develop a more sophisticated palate. This can be helpful in many ways. For example, some aliens have been able to see the color red whenever they smelled poisonous food. That brings me to--¡± ¡°Rabbits. Yes, yes, I know.¡± Exflibberaguil had been ranting on about rabbit defense mechanisms during the car ride. One extreme defense rabbits use is known as poisoning themselves. Whenever they sense the end is near, they poison themselves in hopes that the predator dies with them. If Nick developed advanced color taste buds, she may be even able to smell the poison and recognize it with the color red. This will reduce the amount of animal deaths. Exflibberaguil stared at a pack of cookies. ¡°You know, this food could really be useful. Maybe they could add some sort of subtle rabbit repellent that rabbits will smell and stay away from you. Or maybe¡ª¡± ¡°Exflipper, have you ever considered that not everything has to be a weapon?¡± ¡°Then what¡¯s the point¡ª¡± ¡°There is no point. It¡¯s just a completely pointless circle.¡± ¡°Ah! I see¡­¡± Exflibberaguil murmured, sinking into silence. She hurried to the counter, eager to get out of the foul building. The cashier glared at her with thick, bushy eyebrows as she counted out the one dollar bills. Exflibberaguil could only replicate one-dollar bills because that was all Nick had. ¡°Oh, and sir? Can I exchange these for a few fives, tens, and twenties?¡± Nick asked sweetly, pushing forward a mound of bills. The cashier grunted a reply, making Nick slightly nostalgic, remembering her bus driver. Meanwhile, Exflibberaguil¡¯s eyes became wider and wider, as he watched the transaction with fascination. Nick thanked the grumpy cashier, and darted out of the store. ¡°Give me the keys,¡± she ordered Exflibberaguil. ¡°The door is already open, if that¡¯s what you mean.¡± Nick groaned. Exflibberaguil was always a step in front of her. Park at Park ¡°GOOF MURNIN NEEK!¡± Nick¡¯s drowsiness lifted immediately. She spun around, clutching a toothbrush in front of her. ¡°In¡ªIntruder! Where a-are you?¡± she stuttered. ¡°Not intoodre!¡± Nick turned around, her oily hair slapping her face. ¡°Exflipper!¡± she exclaimed, ¡°What¡¯s wrong with your voice?¡± ¡°Puh-lite!¡± Exflibberaguil demanded pointedly. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Not ever mind,¡± Exflibberaguil sighed, ¡°Tranzlater got an-gree. Sulking now. I don¡¯t good Nedriew.¡± The only thing that sounded normal in Exflibberaguil¡¯s sentence was Nedriew. But then again, Nedriew was an alien word, after all. Exflibberaguil¡¯s normal voice sounded very much like what you¡¯d think a strangled seal would sound like. Key word would. In reality, normal strangled seals don¡¯t talk. Exflibberaguil¡¯s voice cracked and squeaked at the oddest of moments, and though the words were recognizable, each word sounded wrong. The emphasis was in the wrong places. Most of his words sounded like they required a question mark at the end. And he was loud as well. ¡°Did you fight with your translator? Is that why it isn¡¯t translating for you?¡± Nick clarified. Exflibberaguil nodded. It obviously strained him to talk in English. ¡°Well then,¡± Nick said, ¡°can you understand me?¡± ¡°Not good. Hard.¡± Nick sighed. ¡°Well, I guess we can¡¯t continue with the trigger words. We only got half of ¡®A¡¯ yesterday. At this rate, it¡¯ll take a year for you to remember anything. Plus I can¡¯t understand half of what you¡¯re saying.¡± ¡°Box¡­Box tranzlate.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right!¡± Nick started, ¡°Box can translate! But that means we have to find somewhere to park. We can¡¯t be feeding this parking meter forever. And I don¡¯t trust Box enough to ensure my safety when it multi-taskes.¡± ¡°Park,¡± Exflibberaguil repeated. ¡°Yes, park. But¡ª¡± ¡°No!¡± Exflibberaguil groaned with frustration, ¡°Park at park! Cam-p!¡± ¡°Park at¡­?¡± ¡°Park!¡± Exflibberaguil yelled, waving furiously at the window. In front was a large wooden arrow-shaped sign with white, blocky letters painted on. Written on it was ¡°PLAYING! CAMPING! FUN! A PARK TO BE IN WHEN YOU HAVE NOTHING BETTER TO DO!¡± ¡°Oh! You mean we park at the park, and pretend to be campers!¡± Exflibberaguil nodded, his now-greasy red hair shaking with his head. I never realized it, Nick reflected, but we really are different. Exflibberaguil needs his translator and Box simply just to communicate with me. After their trailer was secured a good distance into the forest, Exflibberaguil began unplugging Box from the many wires attached to it. Nick had insisted Box severed all connections to the car, in case Box would accidently activate the car and explode the vehicle.If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Hello! I am Box! It¡¯s so nice to see you again!¡± Box said cheerfully. ¡°Box, can you please be a translator for us?¡± Nick asked politely. It was refreshing to hear the cheerful Australian accent. ¡°I¡¯m so happy to be of service!¡± Box bubbled joyfully. ¡°I¡¯ll love to be your translator! What are the languages?¡± ¡°English and¡­well¡­whatever your language is, Exflipper.¡± ¡°Mustache.¡± ¡°Mustache?¡± Nick repeated, ¡°You have to be kidding me.¡± ¡°Not keed-ing.¡± ¡°Ok! The translator is now set up! I will begin translating now!¡± Box beeped. Exflibberaguil sighed a breath of relief. Nick could see that speaking in a different language had tired him out considerable, not to mention that he had been awake all night. He was the first to speak. Speaking, however, would not be the correct verb to describe him. He sang. And it was not words that he spoke. It was music. Smooth, classical music that are played in elevators and telephones because they go on forever without stopping. Of course, after listening to Exflibberaguil a little more closely, Nick was able to differentiate certain phrases and groups of short melodies that she could only assume were words. No wonder why his voice kept on changing pitches so dramatically, Nick realized, his language requires him to. His language requires him to. ¡°Exflibberaguil says,¡± Box began, ¡° ¡®I will stand guard and watch over the trailer. Nick, you go and buy some food. I¡¯m sure you¡¯re hungry by now. You humans always get hungry so easily. It¡¯s annoying. And buy something healthier this time. None of that non-rabbit-repelling snacks.¡¯ ¡° It felt so odd to hear the word ¡®humans¡¯. Exflibberaguil always said Sodriew. But of course, how could Box know? ¡°Um,¡± Nick spoke, ¡°Box, can you not translate this?¡± Box paused, making sure Nick had nothing else to say, before turning to Exflibberaguil and relaying the message. ¡°No! Box! This is an order!¡± Poor Box spun in circles, unsure whether or not to translate. ¡°I¡­I¡­I¡­¡± it glitched. ¡°Box! Instead of telling English trigger words, you should have been saying Mustachela words! I¡¯ve been so stupid all along! How long with it take to got through all the words?¡± ¡°Only a few centuries.¡± ¡°Ah, nevermind,¡± Nick muttered, thinking hard. ¡°Box¡­¡± Exflibberaguil croaked in his broken voice, ¡°no¡­include¡­words¡­sayed¡­beefore¡­¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± Box asked politely. ¡°That¡¯s genius, Exflibberaguil!¡± Nick blurted, ¡°Box! Don¡¯t include words that Exflibberaguil has said before! Or any words that you¡¯ve said before!¡± ¡°That will cut it down to only half a century.¡± Nick sighed. ¡°Oh well. Better start now, I guess.¡± Exflibberaguil sang something. Box said, ¡°Exflibberaguil says ¡®go buy something to eat.¡¯¡± ¡°Oh, that¡¯s right!¡± Nick exclaimed, ¡°I¡¯ll also need to buy clothes and shampoo. I¡¯ll be out for a while then. Box, do you have money?¡± Nick still felt a pang of guilt for using the counterfeit money. ¡°Yes. It¡¯s in the safe.¡± ¡°Thank you, Box. Please begin saying the words.¡± Nick left the trailer.
NICK WAS WALKING BACK. She had several large shopping bags in her hand. Exflibberaguil would not be happy with her food choice, but she just couldn¡¯t resist the heavenly smell of croissants and macarons. Nick had gotten Exflibberaguil a salad. Salads were brightly colored, and Exflibberaguil seemed to enjoy anything that was bright. As she neared the little clearing in the woods where they had parked the trailer, she could feel the sense of wrongness. Once again, the pressure on her head and shoulders started, as well as her reoccurring headache. ¡°Exflipper?¡± she called out cautiously. Something rustled behind her. Instinctively, she dropped the bags and picked up the closest stick she could find. Everything put her on edge. But the bush parted. It was only the white ferret. Nick sighed. ¡°Ferret, have you seen Exflibberaguil?¡± she asked in a sing-song voice. The ferret looked at her stupidly. ¡°Of course, I wasn¡¯t expecting you to reply,¡± she said to herself, ¡°Exflibberaguil would be in the trailer you big idiot.¡± She picked up the bags and walked heavily to the trailer. For some reason, she took another deep breath, as if she were about to walk onto a stage. She reached for the doorknob. ¡°Neek¡­¡± Nick jumped, swinging the stick and nearly hitting the target. She was about to apologize, when her eyes fell on Exflibberaguil. His eyes were red and bloodshot, but for some reason, it did not look like he had been crying. His nose twitched slightly. He kept on gnashing his teeth and biting his tongue. ¡°I¡­reemeembeer¡­¡± he whispered. Danger ¡°I REEMEEMBEER¡­¡± EXFLIBBERAGUIL REPEATED. ¡°That¡¯s great!¡± Nick exclaimed, not exactly sure whether or not to be happy or frightened. ¡°What do you remember?¡± she ventured. ¡°No,¡± Exflibberaguil growled, ¡°no.¡± ¡°What do you mean, ¡®no¡¯? Did you learn something, or did you¡­¡± Exflibberaguil clasped his hand on Nick¡¯s mouth, preventing her from speaking. Nick dropped her bags. She struggled under Exflibberaguil¡¯s clasp, but it only made his sharp nails dig deeper into her cheeks. For someone who hadn¡¯t exercised for a century, he was frighteningly strong. Nick figured it must be adrenaline. I wonder if he can control his adrenaline as well, Nick thought, rather inappropriately. ¡°Ex¡­¡± Nick tried to say, not fully realizing the danger she was in. Exflibberaguil pressed his hand on harder. He did not look normal. His bulging eyes coupled with his angular features and the obvious lack of sleep made him look like a perfect murderer. He didn¡¯t bother speaking in English. He spoke in his musical language, only this time, instead of classical music, Nick heard fingernails on chalkboards and the scraping of metal. It didn¡¯t take a genius to figure out that Exflibberaguil was uttering a threat. ¡°He says,¡± Box translated, his cheerful voice clashing with the dark atmosphere, ¡°that personal memories are not something to share. He will let you go, but if you speak, he will wipe your memories.¡± Exflibberaguil relaxed his grip. Nick gagged. ¡°Seriously?¡± she coughed. ¡°You¡¯re threatening to electrocute me if I speak?¡± Exflibberaguil muttered something again. Box translated, ¡°No. I¡¯ll erase your memory either way. But it¡¯s actions that determine how much of your memory is erased.¡± ¡°What did you remember?¡± Nick demanded. Exflibberaguil hissed. Nick didn¡¯t hear Box¡¯s translation. In a flash, Exflibberaguil produced two pairs of handcuffs from his pocket. Nick could tell from the glowing aura that this was no metal from Earth. Nick tried to run and scream, but Exflibberaguil clasped his hand around her mouth once more, and shoved a small pill into her mouth. Nick¡¯s vocal cords stopped working. The most she could manage was a whisper, scarcely louder than a mouse¡¯s squeak. Nick bit Exflibberaguil¡¯s hand, breaking free and stumbling a few more paces. She neared the edge of the park, where she could see a few bored people milling around and watching their children play tag. But she couldn¡¯t reach it before something bit deep into her ankle. Nick kicked off the ferret, but the damage was done. Exflibberaguil grasped her wrist, locking the handcuffs with a click. Nick was dragged back to the trailer, her legs flailing wildly as she attempted to escape once more. But the second pair of cuffs were fastened on her right ankle and to the trailer. Exflibberaguil roared. The message was clear. Stay. Nick trembled with fear. This really was the end. All her jokes about Exflibberaguil being a kidnapper came true. Now she was at his mercy, chained to a trailer. What frightened her was that no one would discover her death. She was certain that this new Exflibberaguil, this real Exflibberaguil, would probably blast her off into space where she would decay. As for Exflibberaguil himself, well, Nick didn¡¯t want to imagine what would happen to him. Exflibberaguil sang once more, and left the trailer.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. And this is when he murders me. I wonder what weapon he¡¯d chose? ¡°He said,¡± Box translated, as if answer to answer her question, ¡°¡¯I¡¯m going to erase my memory first. Don¡¯t do something stupid.¡¯¡± ¡°A little too late for that,¡± Nick whispered in her rasping voice, ¡°I¡¯m chained to a car by an alien that would stop at nothing to achieve his goals.¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sure he¡¯d have to stop at some obstacles,¡± Box replied, as bright as always. ¡°Death would be one of them.¡± ¡°You can hear me?¡± ¡°I can hear everything,¡± Box stated proudly. ¡°Box,¡± Nick whispered excitedly, ¡°do you remember the trigger word you said that caused Exflibberaguil to regain his memories?¡± Box frowned, if robots could frown. ¡°I¡¯m very deeply sorry, but I don¡¯t seem to have ever heard of a trigger word before. What time would this be around?¡± ¡°You started at around seven in the morning.¡± ¡°I apologize from the bottom of my CPU,¡± Box said regretfully, ¡°but I do not remember anything before eight twenty-three in the morning. The earliest thing I remember is the data deletion initiated by Exflibberaguil the Mustela at eight twenty-three int eh morning.¡± ¡°Dammit. He even remembered to do that,¡± Nick cursed. But she knew that despite the agitation Exflibberaguil had been in, he was always thorough. It was not an uplifting thought. A wave of fear washed over her again, and she began to tremble once more. She collapsed on the floor, wondering when Exflibberaguil would be back. The thought of it made her stomach weak. Bitter bile trickled up her throat. A familiar flash. She could see it through the window. Nick hoped someone from the park would notice. But she knew the chances were slim. Even if someone did notice, it wasn¡¯t likely that they¡¯d bother to check. The brilliant blue light ended. Nick knew what was next. In her last moments, she knew she had gone crazy like Exflibberaguil as well. She felt suddenly very happy. Joyful even. If she could, she would have laughed. How stupid she had been! Leaving her mom in exchange for this crazy adventure. Exflibberaguil too, seemed ridiculous. What memories did he get that made him so angry? It was hilarious that Nick never felt in danger around such a dangerous person. No, Mustela. Nick wondered about school. How was everyone right now? Was the gossiping girls still whispering about so-and-so? Was Ben still pestering everyone with his punny jokes? Was Devon¡ªor was it Dillon¡ªstill able to escape from trouble? How nice it would be if Nick was able to run and escape the trouble she was in now! Nick heard footsteps approaching the trailer. Was school still functioning as normal? Did her disappearance make even the smallest impact in school? Did it make an impact anywhere? Nick heard the car beep, and the locks click open. No, her disappearance definitely affected her mother. Her mother must be crazy right now, searching for her¡­or so Nick hoped. Maybe her mother had given up, and went back to her crazy work schedule. Maybe the only person searching her would be her father in China, who Nick had never laid her eyes on. Or maybe no one was looking for her, and that she really did make no impact on the world whatsoever and no one would ever remember her. The door opened. Nick didn¡¯t turn her head to look. Being frightened will only make her suffer twice. ¡°Nick?¡± Nick set a placid smile on her lips, and did not answer. She refused to look at the door. ¡°Nick?¡± Nick wasn¡¯t even surprised that Exflibberaguil¡¯s voice was fixed. Anything could happen. ¡°Why are you chained to the trailer?¡± Now that was certainly odd. Nick turned her head to look at Exflibberaguil, breaking her rule. Exflibberaguil had recovered now. His eyes were back in his sockets, with no sign of ever being threatening. His crazy hair now looked just greasy and matted from days without a shower. The only sign of a fight ever taking place was the faint bite mark that was on his hand. ¡°You don¡¯t remember?¡± Nick whispered. ¡°Goodness, what happened to your voice?¡± Exflibberaguil asked. Nick stared at him. He looked genuinely concerned. ¡°You don¡¯t remember?¡± Nick repeated. ¡°Nope! I just wiped my memory,¡± Exflibberaguil explained, ¡°so I probably don¡¯t remember what you think I remember. And I certainly don¡¯t remember how this happened.¡± Nick¡¯s head swam. Exflibberaguil really didn¡¯t remember anything. ¡°Nick?¡± Exflibberaguil said. ¡°You know, I think you¡¯re really rubbing off me. I¡¯m repeating the same thing again!¡± ¡°I¡­I just have a cold,¡± Nick lied, ¡°so my voice is temporarily gone. And I found this handcuffs and I thought, quite stupidly, that it would be a good idea to chain myself.¡± ¡°You really are stupid,¡± Exflibberaguil answered disapprovingly. ¡°Do you know how hard this metal is to cut?¡± But Nick did not hear him. She was lost in thought. Aftermath NICK ACTED STRANGE FOR THE NEXT FEW DAYS. At least, it seemed strange in the eyes of Exflibberaguil. There were frequent periods of disappearance, with her coming back only to eat and sleep. She only spoke when it was an absolute necessity, and when she did, it came in short, abrupt phrases. Her sudden cold demeanor confused Exflibberaguil, but in no way troubled him. He supposed it must be one of these strange phases of metamorphosis all Sodriew go through at one time or another. It was the sixth day they had spent in the park, or so Exflibberaguil believed. He experienced a strong memory wipe two days ago¡­or was it earlier? Time was always a little confusing after memory wipes, especially with the more powerful ones. He couldn¡¯t imagine why he¡¯d need such a memory wipe. Box gave no clues. Most memory wipes only had a magnitude of three or rarely four. These were usually a temporary fix, as the memory would often reoccur in a few days¡¯ time. But he daren¡¯t go past five, because such a memory wipe could permanently damage his hippocampus. Exflibberaguil would gladly cut off part of his brain to forget certain, rather painful memories but if something went wrong during such an operation, he could easily forget how to walk or talk. However, the memory wipe he had recently experienced had a magnitude of eight. How could he have risked damaging his brain like that? What sort of memory caused him to act so rashly? And why did his head hurt so much? Of course, Exflibberaguil knew these questions were best left unanswered. Questions proved that the wipe had worked. Once, he had wondered if he had just made a mistake and entered the wrong setting. But Exflibberaguil immediately dismissed the ridiculous idea. How could he have ever made a mistake? Absurd! It¡¯s not egotistic, Exflibberaguil thought, it¡¯s a fact! He¡¯d often say this aloud as well, with great satisfaction. Today, on the morning of the sixth day, Exflibberaguil had woken up early, so that he¡¯d be able to catch Nick and solve a few mysteries. But evidently, he did not wake early enough because Nick had already left to who-knows-where. Exflibberaguil sighed, feeling irritated from rising early for no purpose. His ferret had also already abandoned him, though this was no great surprise. Exflibberaguil had long concluded that ferrets were strange creatures. Understanding their intentions would be a pointless effort. Exflibberaguil soon realized that waking early was not the only thing that bothered him. With some alarm, he realized he was bored, with only Box for company. This feeling of boredom was alien to him. But as he ate breakfast (which consisted of cookies and dry cereal), he felt with more conviction that it really was boredom that was affecting him. Exflibberaguil looked longingly at the door, but his pride prevented him from going out. He was afraid of bumping into Nick outside. She¡¯d undoubtfully ask why he was playing outside, instead of planning and plotting their next step. There were, of course, a few plausible excuses that Exflibberaguil could say, but excuses were only for the lowly and stupid who couldn¡¯t think of a clever loophole. Exflibberaguil refused to allow himself to sink to such a class. He also refused to admit that he had no plan whatsoever, and really was clueless about this whole planet-saving thing.This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. ¡°I do have a plan!¡± Exflibberaguil yelled to the empty air as if he were arguing with Nick. ¡°And maybe you should have stopped staying outside so long. Not that you could help with planning, of course, because your brain isn¡¯t sophisticated enough. But at least you could have¡­could have¡­¡± ¡°Pretended to work?¡± Box provided. ¡°Yes! That!¡± And Exflibberaguil lay back down on the bed with satisfaction.
NICK TREKKED THROUGH THE WOODS. The sky was still dark. She liked it that way. The world felt more peaceful in the night. For the past few days, she had been escaping from the suffocating trailer early in the morning and returning for only a few hours of sleep. The rest of her sleep she recovered on the forest floor in a sleeping bag she had bought with the counterfeit money. There was also a practical reason for getting up at night. She needed to practice escaping and develop a better night vision. No matter what, she would always be at a disadvantage against Exflibberaguil. She could only improve on what she had. Involuntarily, she rubbed her wrists where the handcuffs had once been. It was dangerous to keep around Exflibberaguil, but even more dangerous to leave. With his technology, Nick felt sure that she could be found no matter where she hid or ran. Nick knew that sneaking outside every night was just as dangerous and suspicious, but having to act normal around Exflibberaguil was something she just didn¡¯t have the strength to do. It was difficult to see Exflibberaguil the way he acted now. All Nick could imagine was the mad beast that had possessed his body. It felt as if Nick had become kidnapped. But the most frightening part was that the kidnapper was not aware of his actions. That was what made him dangerous. Nick wondered briefly if Exflibberaguil was ever confused about her strange actions. But then she consoled herself by reminding herself that Exflibberaguil was egotistic and would see her acting just like any other idiotic Sodriew. But on some days, Nick fretted that Box may utter the dreaded trigger word, and Exflibberaguil¡¯s memory would return. Nick wouldn¡¯t even have time to run. Something soft and furry rubbed against her leg. ¡°Ah, it¡¯s you.¡± Lately, Exflibberaguil¡¯s ferret had also been sticking around with her. Perhaps it, too, was frightened of Exflibberaguil. Exflibberaguil couldn¡¯t have taken much care of it through the years. He wasn¡¯t the sort of person¡ªalien¡ªthat would care for anything or anyone other than himself. The ferret rubbed Nick¡¯s leg again with its warm body as if saying, Yes, it¡¯s me. What a rude greeting, for such a dignified animal as me. Then, with a huff, it curled up in a ball, next to Nick¡¯s foot. But I will forgive you this once, as you have not been as irritating as my master. Nick smiled. Talking to animals didn¡¯t seem such a bad thing. It lifted her headache. Recently these headaches have been torturing her daily. With the headaches came stresses and a strange feeling of weight. It seemed only when she was outside early in the morning that the headache lightened. Nick spread her sleeping bag out and soon began dreaming. Return CAUTIOUSLY, NICK POKED HER HEAD IN THE TRAILER. She was able to open it easily with the spare key she found in the glove box. The beep the trailer emitted always made her cringe, but Exflibberaguil should already be fast asleep. Exflibberaguil¡¯s dreams were always deep, unlike Nick¡¯s which were now all nightmares. Nick paused before opening the door, pressing her nose against the window, trying to see if Exflibberaguil was still moving around. She did not want to bump into him. The lights were all turned off. Nick could only see dark shadows of chairs and tables, but as none of them were moving, she assumed Exflibberaguil was asleep. Taking a deep breath as if it were her last, she grasped the handle and pushed. Nick had stopped sleeping overnight in the trailer for the last two days. But, to her great dismay, she was forced to return every night for money. Exflibberaguil, having Box, didn¡¯t need to print money in advance. Box could just do it on spot. But Nick had to return every night and order Box to print as money as possible in fifteen minutes. She couldn¡¯t risk spending any time longer than that. Even the smallest possibility of being caught frightened her. She, of course, had thought about taking Box with her during the day, but she soon realized that this will only reveal her location. But Nick didn¡¯t need an infinite supply of money. She had been saving up the extra. Soon, she wouldn¡¯t need to come daily. She¡¯d have enough to come every other night. With trembling steps, Nick stepped into the dark trailer, listening to Exflibberaguil¡¯s quiet snores. She had memorized which floorboards creaked the most, but even so, her footsteps still sounded dangerously loud. She felt like a prisoner sneaking past a guard. Nick tiptoed towards a large shape she knew to be a sofa. These ten feet proved to be more difficult than a mile. Nick nearly tripped over the edge of a carpet within two steps of entering. Catching her breath, she disturbed an office chair which, thankfully, rolled off without making a sound. Finally, Nick neared the sofa, looking to the right where Box¡¯s charging port was. Box wasn¡¯t there. Immediately, Nick¡¯s heart went into overdrive, as if it were pumping blood for an elephant. She kneeled down to peer under the sofa, but there was no robot there either. Nick pivoted on her heel, looking to see if perhaps Box was somewhere close in the vicinity. But there was nothing. Evidently, for whatever reason, Exflibberaguil had moved Box somewhere else. What can I do now? She glanced back at the door. It was still open. Nick always left the door open when she came in the trailer. That way, she¡¯d always have an escape route if anything went wrong. I should leave now. I still can escape.This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. But she needed the money to survive! She hadn¡¯t yet saved enough to survive for long. And there was no guarantee that Nick would be able to find Box tomorrow. It only meant that she would have to come during the day. Conflicted, Nick stood rooted in place, sweat dripped down her face. On one hand, she should run when she still had the chance. She didn¡¯t need the money. She could still survive. But then, wouldn¡¯t that mean she¡¯ll have to come during the day? Sooner or later she would have to find out where Box would be. It turned out that she didn¡¯t need to decide after all. The door behind her shut with a click. What little moonlight that came in was blocked. Nick wheeled around, making the floor under her creak. What was that? It¡¯s nothing, she reassured herself. Wind. Only wind. Still, the closed door was inconvenient for escape. Nick didn¡¯t breathe, listened for Exflibberaguil¡¯s snores. It seemed like he was still asleep. I can¡¯t take this risk. I have to leave. Nick, with shallow breaths, twisted her body and began moving toward the door, painfully conscious of her heavy footsteps. Her heart was beating so fast, if felt like it was humming. She couldn¡¯t think rationally. Her head was buzzing as fast as her heart. Due to her night excursions, Nick was still able to see. Her night vision had improved a little. However, the lack of color and her panic made it near impossible to do anything with this ability. All she could hear was silence. Where did the snoring go? Exflibberaguil was awake. Nick¡¯s first instinct was to run. She couldn¡¯t hear her footsteps over her heart anyway. Running to the other side of the trailer, she collided with the door. Her night vision wasn¡¯t good enough to determine distance. Nick groped the smooth wood for a handle. With every second, she could feel someone approaching. Finally, her hand clasped around the handle. Her sweaty, quivering palm could barely grip the wood. She bit her tongue to keep from screaming, tasting the iron of blood. Nick was afraid her scream would determine her fate. She fumbled and tried to push open the door. But Nick spotted a faintly glowing metal around the handle. She knew immediately what it was. These handcuffs were, once again, restraining her. Nick turned to the other door and, sure enough, there was the same green glow, the only light in the trailer. Nick hear footsteps, but couldn¡¯t determine where they came from. Every dark shadow looked like clones of the alien, approaching her. What is happening? Could he have remembered? I remember he said that it¡¯s easier to trigger memories that were recently remembered. Nick shuffled backwards, pressing herself against the wall. She tried to be quiet. Her location could not be revealed. But she could feel her eyes water, tears flowing out of her eyes. Her nose was clogging. No! I can¡¯t cry now! Then I won¡¯t be able to breathe! You idiot! Nick tried desperately to control her loud sobs, but this only made it worse. She gasped for air in between the cries. The footsteps were getting quicker. Since when was this trailer so small? Nick ran to a window, but tripped on the leg of a chair before reaching it. She tried to scramble up, but only succeeded in bumping her head on the table. She scurried backwards, eyes burning. Someone grabbed her wrist from behind. Caught ¡°GOTCHA.¡± The light flicked on. Exflibberaguil beamed in Nick¡¯s face. ¡°How was that?¡± he asked eagerly, ¡°I was practicing it. It was from a new dictionary I installed on Translator. It¡¯s got a lot of these words called¡­er¡­slang, I believe is the term for it.¡± He grinned gleefully, as if expecting praise. Nick was on the ground, breathing heavily, frantically blinking tears from her eyes. Exflibberaguil observed, not at all disturbed by her puffy red eyes. To him, tears were a great mystery. The only tears he knew were the ones he shed when dust or other irritating particles got in his eye. ¡°Why do you cry?¡± he inquired bluntly, ¡°It¡¯s always been such a mystery to my planet. Primitive species have a tendency to cry when they¡¯re sad. Is that it? Is that why you cried?¡± ¡°You scared me,¡§ Nick said flatly. ¡§Ah, yes, fear! Fear also starts tears, so I¡äve been told. It¡äs really extraordinary, you species. Why waste so much energy on a pointless task such as crying?¡± Exflibberaguil became more excited. ¡°I know! I¡¯ll write a whole book about primitive species! I¡¯ll be famous! You¡¯ll help me with my studies. Like a test subject! I¡¯m so excited!¡± Nick didn¡¯t meet his gaze. She was afraid her glare would trigger him. She stood up without a word. ¡°Hey!¡± Exflibberaguil protested, reaching for Nick¡¯s arm to prevent her from leaving. Nick swatted the hand away. ¡°Don¡¯t touch me again,¡± she muttered, with as much hostility as she could inject in those four words. Instead of the desired effect, however, Exflibberaguil saw it all as a joke. ¡°Amazing! Seven words in an hour! That¡¯s a personal record for you, Nick.¡± Exflibberaguil reached for Nick again, and Nick wasn¡¯t fast enough to avoid. She struggled. ¡°Get off!¡± she threatened, squirming and attempting to pry off Exflibberaguil¡¯s fingers one by one. His grip was impossibly strong. The unmistakable feeling of tears rose up her chest again, despite her attempts at suppressing them. She knew Exflibberaguil would watch her in fascination, as if she were some extraordinary mutant. ¡°Leaving so soon?¡± Exflibberaguil asked with an innocent pout. The pout quickly broke into a grin, spread across his face like a large worm. ¡°Ah! You¡¯re doing it again. Crying. Why are you turning away? Let me see! Let me see!¡± Nick broke free of Exflibberaguil¡¯s grasp. ¡°Stop it!¡± she hollered, ¡°Stop it! I¡¯m not your lab rat! I¡¯m not your pet ferret. I¡¯m a human being, and if that¡¯s too hard for an emotionless psychopathic alien like you to understand, I suggest you leave!¡± ¡°Nick¡­¡± ¡°Why did you come to this planet anyway?¡± Nick exploded, ¡°Oh, don¡¯t feed me that ¡®saving your planet¡¯ bull. If that were your true intentions, you wouldn¡¯t have the time or heart to think of writing a book. You¡¯re just playing with me, aren¡¯t you? You just love being oh so high and mighty. A dictator. That¡¯s it!¡± Nick gasped for a breath. ¡°My planet doesn¡¯t matter to you. You think you¡¯re the center of the universe. I thought you were supposed to be smart and advanced! I can see that¡¯s obviously not the case. You¡¯re still stuck in the Middle Ages, where people believed the universe revolved around them.Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°I see it now. I know why you insist on that ridiculous forgetting machine. You just can¡¯t stand it, can you? You can¡¯t stand it that you¡¯re like everyone else, imperfect. You can¡¯t take the pain life gives you. Didn¡¯t you tell me once before, that rabbits interfered with nature and that¡¯s why they¡¯ve become so dangerous? The same is with you! You¡¯ve interfered with nature and¡ª¡± Nick stopped. What was she going to say? ¡°You forget Nick. I¡¯m not dangerous,¡± Exflibberaguil said snottily, pretending to be offended. Obviously, he believed this was still some big joke. ¡°Or am I dangerous? You do seem to be scared quite easily. Scared to tears¡ªthat¡¯s the poetic saying, isn¡¯t it? Is that why you think I¡¯m dangerous? I assure it, it¡¯s just fun.¡± Nick gritted her teeth, the prevent more tears from emerging. These tears weren¡¯t sad or fearful tears. These were hot with angry and bitterness. ¡°This is not joke!¡± she screamed. ¡°You think I want my planet destroyed? You know what I think? If every person on your planet¡ª¡± ¡°Mustela,¡± Exflibberaguil corrected instinctively. This only fueled Nick¡¯s anger. ¡°Exactly! You keep on correcting me, yet you still insist on calling humans ¡®Sodriew¡¯.¡± ¡°At least I give them a different name than my species.¡± ¡°Only because you can¡¯t stand being classified with the ¡®primitives!¡¯¡± Nick roared. ¡°You know, I think the rabbits have every bit as much right to inhabit your planet, especially if everyone on your planet acts like you! What did you say before? The rabbits were immigrants?¡± ¡°¡­yes,¡± Exflibberaguil affirmed meekly. ¡°I bet the only reason why you Mustela let them in was because you wanted another primitive species to boss around and compare to. You just needed something to boost your pathetic egos because you lack confidence! And what did you do to fix your low self-esteem? You built a forgetting machine.¡± Nick stated this with a sense of finality. Exflibberaguil, however, had started becoming as serious, though not as Nick wanted him. He began to go a little red in the face, before the color receded. Evidently, he could control that as well. ¡°What, so I¡¯m the only one to blame?¡± he shot back. ¡°Fine. You get mad at me for some reason. And you blame me for building a machine to fix my problems. What do you do? You run to who-knows-where and ignore me for a week.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not the only one suffering!¡± Nick spat. ¡°I agree. Maybe you¡¯ve also been through some pretty painful experiences. Maybe you¡¯ve also lost a parent. Both parents, even. But I ask you, have you ever lost your planet? Have you ever been forced to flee at the age of seven, knowing that you¡¯d never be able to go home again? Have you ever floated in space for hundreds of years, completely alone and isolated, with only a robot for comfort?¡± ¡°I¡­¡± Nick couldn¡¯t think of an appropriate response. ¡°Do you know what happens to you during that time of pure emptiness?¡± Exflibberaguil continued, unable to stop. ¡°Do you know what would have happened to anyone else without this forgetting machine? You would have gone insane, or so overcome with grief that you commit suicide. You can¡¯t even imagine it with your pampered, spoiled life. If you have a great lost, you can talk to someone about it. Your relations, your friend, or a psychiatrist. ¡°Me? I have to talk to an animal and a robot. And I hope you realize how wonderful this forgetting machine is. It¡¯s powerful enough to save at least one life. Do you think my life is insignificant simply because I¡¯m too egotistical?¡± Exflibberaguil adopted a horrible sarcastic voice. ¡°I apologize, then. But I see we aren¡¯t so different after all.¡± Nick was swallowing great gulps of air. Something was in her chest. She had to get it out. She wanted to claw her skin open and destroy the heavy air that rest deep within her. But she just stood rigid. With a great sigh, Exflibberaguil waved his finger toward the car door. ¡°The handcuffs are unlocked. You can leave now.¡± It was not an invitation. It was an order. Memory Wipe NICK DIDN¡¯T GO VERY FAR. As soon as she was ordered to leave, she bolted out the door and hid in behind a large tree, camouflaged by bushes. It was very dark. Nick doubted that Exflibberaguil would be able to see her, especially in the flustered and angry state he was in now. It was no surprise that she saw a brilliant flash a few moments later. She peeked out behind a large tree trunk. Exflibberaguil, covered in ash and soot, was whistling and skipping back to the trailer, the large forgetting machine still smoking. No doubt Exflibberaguil had forgotten entirely what he had said. Nick sighed. Against her will, she became sorry for the alien, despite the horrible incident that occurred earlier. Nick felt great doubt in her mind. Perhaps she had misread the situation when she had been handcuffed. Perhaps the memory Nick had forced Exflibberaguil really was important. Perhaps she was the one that overreacted, and the handcuffs and everything all had a deeper meaning. But Nick knew that the chances of her trusting Exflibberaguil was still very small. Such horrible nightmares could not be forgotten. Or¡­ Nick¡¯s eyes drifted back the silhouette of the forgetting machine. It was obviously possible, now. Anything was possible with a bit of technology. It just depended on the price Nick was willing to pay. Again, Nick found herself staring at the metal hamster ball, wondering. What was the price Exflibberaguil paid for using the forgetting machine? He certainly didn¡¯t seem to be paying anything with money. Even so, the value of money for him was nearly nothing, with a money printer always following his commands. That meant that Exflibberaguil didn¡¯t pay anything physical. Then it must be himself that he would be damaging. Would it be his brain? His brain can¡¯t be completely right after going through the machine so many times. But what if someone were to go through the machine just once? It can¡¯t be too bad. Does the machine make you addicted to forgetting or something? Is that why Exflibberaguil is so obsessed with using it? Why am I even thinking of this anyway? It¡¯s not like I¡¯m actually going to go through the machine! I need my memories! I like having memories. Maybe not some memories, but most¡­ It¡¯s only one bite that ruins an apple. Nick looked once more at the hulking metal structure. What was she feeling? Longing? A craving to rid herself of painful memories? Did she really need these memories at all? These memories really did her more bad than good. If she were going to save her planet, she should be working together with Exflibberaguil. These memories were the only obstacle, and there was no other way to get over them. Even if she¡¯s attacked again in the future, shouldn¡¯t that trigger Nick¡¯s memories as well? Then, at the right moment, she¡¯d know exactly what to do and where to hide. Slowly, Nick began floating toward the machine, as if a powerful gravitational force was forcing her to do so. She stumbled across the ground, feeling herself be pulled even closer to the structure. A look wouldn¡¯t hurt, she thought, justifying her actions. Nick was finally pulled out of this force when she reached the large sphere. It was too dark to seem much of it, but Nick determined by moonlight that this was extremely dirty and looked extremely dangerous and unstable. Wires that piled on top of the machine looked like it was begging for a short-circuiting disaster.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. But if Exflibberaguil¡¯s been through this so many times, it must be fine! Nick reassured herself happily. Suddenly, a jarring question barged into her happy thoughts. What are you doing? Are you asking for a death wish? Are you really considering getting in, and electrocuting yourself? Nick¡¯s calm, inner voice replied, Oh, come one. Don¡¯t be so pessimistic. You saw for yourself! Exflibberaguil survived multiple of these in a row, and turned out just fine! Besides, it¡¯s not electrocuting yourself. I¡¯m sure Exflibberaguil did something a lot more sophisticated. But you¡¯re a human! Exflibberaguil may be a more evolved alien and that¡¯s why he was able to survive! Oh, nonsense. There were plenty of other humans that had their memory wiped. That poor archeologist and the trailer seller. I¡¯m sure they¡¯re not dead. But you¡¯re a child! You¡¯re more prone to danger! Yes! And erasing these memories would prevent the danger. If I still have these memories, it would be like carrying bricks on my back. Eventually, I¡¯ll snap! I need to get rid of these! But¡ª Also, I have to do this to save my planet. I can¡¯t be on bad terms with Exflibberaguil and save the planet at the same time. I have to forget! Then I¡¯ll actually be able to communicate with Exflibberaguil again normally! Without shedding pathetic tears! I¡¯ll be able to move out of this park and continue with Exflibberaguil¡¯s plan. Then I¡¯ll go back home to my hysterical mother. She must be out of her mind right now. Yes! You should go back to her now. The only way I¡¯m ever going home is if I finish this whole adventure. I can¡¯t stop halfway. And the only way I can quickly advance in this adventure is if I forget all these bad memories that weigh and slow me down. Don¡¯t you see? It¡¯s the best way to go! But¡ª Nick didn¡¯t listen to herself anymore. She didn¡¯t want to be a pessimist. No one likes pessimists. With a little smile, she walk around the sphere, her fingertips touching the frame and skipping over the large gaps between the metal bars. As she walked, her hand hit on a slab. Confused, she felt around it, until she found a button. A small voice in her brain told her not to press it. Perhaps it was a self-destruct sequence. Perhaps it would start shooting lasers into the forest. Or at her. But Nick dismissed this little voice like a king dismisses its subjects. She smiled again, and hit the button. The slab lit up, and Nick was able to see that it was a screen. The bright light hurt her eyes. She blinked several times, to get rid of the green film she was seeing through. It was a very simply device. There were ten buttons, and a title that read: ¡®How strong do you want this wipe to be?¡± The little pessimist inside her sighed, and suggested ¡®one¡¯, the weakest setting. She should play it safe. There was no need to permanently damage her brain. But the rest of her rebelled. She should pick ten! The more the better. What was the point of playing safe when you could take some risks? Life should be full of risks! And what if the weakest setting did nothing whatsoever? It would be better just to go all in. Nick smiled at her boldness, and pressed ten. The screen refreshed, showing a countdown. ¡®Memory erasing of magnitude 10 beginning in ten¡­nine¡­¡± Nick hurried to the front of the machine and stepped in. She noticed a pair of google dangling from a hook in the machine. They looked familiar. Ah! The archeologist wore them when he had his memory wiped! Nick reached for the goggles too. She barely managed to strap them on before the memory wipe began.
EXFLIBBERAGUIL WAS ABOUT TO GO TO SLEEP WHEN HE SAW THE LIGHT. That¡¯s strange, he thought, what other than my machine could produce such a light? The light continued for a few more seconds, and Exflibberaguil was consoled. My machine doesn¡¯t produce light for that long. It must be some sort of Sodriew invention. He stayed awake for a few minutes after the light, then, satisfied that he will not be disturbed again, Exflibberaguil rolled to the left and fell asleep. Forgotten NEW DAY. A brand-new day! Revitalized and refreshed. Exflibberaguil jumped out of bed. He had a very pleasant dream, and believed that this dream was what inspired his plan. He checked the other bed, but Nick wasn¡¯t there. For some reason, he wasn¡¯t surprised. It must have made sense when he still had his memories. Memories were strange things. They were very much like dreams. Everything makes sense during the dream, but once you awaken, you forget all the logic and remember only the strange and stupid conclusion. It was only years of training on level one had Exflibberaguil gotten used to this strange feeling. Humming, he plodded to the door with a wad of money. Today, he was going to cut his hair. Long hair was never a problem in the ship, where furniture moved to avoid tangling. Showers were easy as well. All you needed to do was to lay down, and robots wash your hair for you. Plus, the slightly light gravity prevented him from feeling the weight of the hair. However, the hair had now become quite troublesome on Driew. It got caught in everything, including Exflibberaguil¡¯s own limbs. It always had knots. And whenever it got wet, Exflibberaguil felt like he was carrying a large asteroid on his neck. Step one for a successful plan was to get rid of this horrendous amount of hair. Exflibberaguil maneuvered through the chairs, somehow still getting the end caught. He opened the door with a happy heart. Of course, there just had to be a body leaning against the door so it would fall in. It was a girl with black hair and black clothes. Not a very creative outfit, in Exflibberaguil¡¯s opinion. His own bright red hair made much more sense in black. It looked a lot better. ¡°Oh, Nick!¡± Exflibberaguil exclaimed, partly from surprise. ¡°Are you dead? Because if you are, it would be very inconvenient for me. I¡¯ll have to find another person to agree to my terms and agreements.¡± Nick turned on her side and groaned, which was strange because she was smiling. ¡°That¡¯s good,¡± Exflibberaguil replied. ¡°Would you mind waking up a bit and moving? I¡¯m going somewhere.¡± Nick smiled even brighter, and groaned even more pitifully. ¡°You¡¯re certainly strange,¡± Exflibberaguil remarked. ¡°Strange!¡± Nick said brightly, her eyelids snapping open. ¡°Strange! Like a hat eating a giraffe!¡± ¡°Yes, yes. Though that really isn¡¯t very strange. Did you know, an alien named Dr. Rizzactor invented giant robot hats? I¡¯m sure one of those could very easily eat a giraffe.¡±This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. ¡°Giraffe! Like a looooong neck deer!¡± Nick giggled, then moaned with agony. Exflibberaguil frowned. He was fairly certain that giggling and moaning do not go together. ¡°Nick, I know Sodriew are usually rather weird, but this is a little¡ª¡± ¡°Weird! Like yogurt slime! Like brain slime! Like slime that came out of my nose earlier!¡± ¡°Are you okay?¡± Exflibberaguil asked, surprisingly concerned. ¡°Okay! Okay! Bibbity-babbity-kay!¡± ¡°Box?¡± Exflibberaguil said, ¡°Why is Nick acting like that?¡± ¡±It seems like she¡¯s suffering from extreme memory loss,¡± Box replied in a voice that matched Nick in cheerfulness. ¡°I believe this happened last night.¡± ¡°Oh, no,¡± Exflibberaguil muttered, recalling the flash he¡¯d seen. ¡°That was you, wasn¡¯t it? Nick, you should have asked me before you used my machine! Don¡¯t you know it¡¯s rude to touch someone else¡¯s things without permission?¡± ¡°Permission, parmission, parmesan! Parmesan pizza! Pizza, pizza, pizza, Friday!¡± ¡°I¡¯ll take that as a no,¡± Exflibberaguil sighed. ¡°I didn¡¯t know that my machine was this powerful. How can she become so strange?¡± ¡°I believe she experienced a magnitude ten memory wipe,¡± Box put in helpfully. ¡°Magnitude ten!¡± Exflibberaguil exclaimed, tripping over his own hair and falling. ¡°Wh¡ªwhat? I¡¯m surprised that an Odriew survived!¡± ¡°Actually, she just has a larger resistance. Her memories were relatively protected because she wasn¡¯t fully prepared to give all of them up.¡± ¡°A whole lot of use that did!¡± Exflibberaguil exploded. ¡°That did!¡± Nick echoed. ¡°Who did? He did? She did? Me did? That did!¡± Nick settled in the stupid smile again, like a happy drunkard. ¡°You idiot!¡± Exflibberaguil yelled. ¡°What were you thinking? Why did you think it was ever a good idea to erase your entire memory? Imbecile!¡± ¡°And idiot is dumber than an imbecile,¡± Nick corrected with a grave and serious expression. ¡°And an imbecile is dumber than a moron.¡± ¡°Of all things, you remember that? Why?¡± ¡°I remember plenty of things!¡± Nick argued with a humph. ¡°Astronomer is anagram of Moon Stares and No More Stars! Course, I don¡¯t know what anagrams are. Or astronomers, for that matter.¡± Nick burst into a fit of gleeful laughing. ¡°Box, will she ever recover her memory?¡± Exflibberaguil asked desperately. ¡°Oh, yes. In a week, probably. The memory wipe was not conducted properly. The beam didn¡¯t hit her head at the right spot, so there¡¯s nothing permanent. However, there is a slight chance of madness that will result if she does not recover soon.¡± ¡°How big of a chance?¡± ¡°Oh, almost certainly,¡± Box replied. If a robot could smile, Box certainly did. ¡°Oh no. How can will I be able to help Nick if she goes crazy?¡± Exflibberaguil whined. ¡°Today was supposed to be a good day! I was going to get a haircut! I was going to fight some rabbits! But now, I¡¯ll be stuck with a potentially crazy adolescent!¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m afraid you misunderstood, sir,¡± Box interjected politely. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean she will go crazy. I meant you.¡± ¡°Ah,¡± Exflibberaguil said. ¡°That¡¯s a very good point.¡± ¡°Circles have no points!¡± Nick put in brightly. ¡°Spheres have no points! And I have no point! That is, none that I remember.¡± Exflibberaguil collapsed, already feel the craziness begin to seep into his mind. ¡°I just wanted a haircut¡­¡± he moaned weakly. ¡°I just wanted a haircut,¡± Nick repeated. Exflibberaguil turned to Nick, who was still laying on her side on the floor. She looked back at him with bright eyes. ¡°¡­you just wanted a haircut? Is that what you said?¡± Exflibberaguil questioned. ¡°I just wanted a haircut. Bearcut. Marecurt. Staircut.¡± A half smile crept on Exflibberaguil¡¯s face. Might as well make the most out of this. ¡°You want a haircut?¡± Exflibberaguil laughed, ¡°Then you¡¯ll get one.¡± Haircut THE BELL RANG. It was obvious the bell intended to be cheerful and welcoming, but it contrasted so dramatically against the dark, dull salon that it only dampened the atmosphere. An employee wearing an ill-fitting striped shirt looked up with weary eyes and a battered broom in his hand, evidently sick and tired of sweeping hair. One of the florescent lights above flickered, but, like that employee, quickly gave up hope. Exflibberaguil stood in the doorway, unsure of Sodriew customs. Shouldn¡¯t he be invited in? He would have stood there for a long time, if Nick hadn¡¯t giggled and said, ¡°Jingle bells¡­¡± Exflibberaguil felt eyes on him from various customers, sitting in tall chairs and wearing strange plastic cloaks. He blushed awkwardly, looking for a vacant seat. Nick continued to giggle. ¡°Jingle bells, you all smell¡­¡± she sang. Exflibberaguil blushed deeper. He cleared his throat. Thankfully, before Nick could embarrass him further, an employee distinguished by the striped uniform shuffled over to them and wordlessly led the two to another room. Exflibberaguil decided not to ask where he was going. Nick continued to sing out of tune. ¡°The horses don¡¯t say neigh!¡± Exflibberaguil, feeling that an explanation was necessary, looked apologetically at the employee. ¡°She has a mild case of amnesia,¡± he said, ¡°so she doesn¡¯t remember much at the moment.¡± The employee didn¡¯t look surprised. His eyes said, I¡¯ve had much, much worse. They were led to the shampooing station, where the two were handed over to two other workers, soaking wet in black aprons. Exflibberaguil was instructed to lie down on a black chair, letting all his hair fall in a white basin. He didn¡¯t like it way his neck was in a well cut into the wall of the large sink. It made him think of being beheaded. Nick didn¡¯t like it as well, but largely because she was instructed not to move. Exflibberaguil repeated his apology and explanation. Despite Exflibberaguil¡¯s feeling of vulnerability, however, he felt himself fall into a relaxed state once the washing began. He felt his scalp being massaged by professional fingers, sending a tingle down his spine that was strangely satisfying. For once, his neck didn¡¯t feel like it was at the verge of snapping whenever he got his hair wet. However, he could feel the struggle of his unfortunate hair-washer, who attempted to shampoo and condition Exflibberaguil¡¯s hair without tangling it too much. He was soon instructed to climb off the chair, something he was dreading. The employee tried her best to wrap the enormous amount of hair in a towel. The weight was already making Exflibberaguil dizzy. It took all his strength to move to a chair, led by another employee, who buttoned the plastic cloak on him.This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°I¡¯m Lizzy,¡± she said in a bored voice, ¡°I¡¯m your hair dresser. How would you like your hair styled?¡± ¡°Shorter,¡± Exflibberaguil pleaded, ¡°Much shorter.¡± In a single, efficient stroke, the hairdresser released the burden Exflibberaguil had been carrying for so long. Nick was seated to his right. The hairdresser in charge of her was evidently struggling to get a straight answer. ¡°Excuse me,¡± he tried, ¡°but how would you¡ª¡± ¡°I really want to go to space, but then I¡¯ll have to pay-ay!¡± Nick sang loudly. ¡°I apologize,¡± Exflibberaguil said, leaning over, ¡°she has amnesia. She would like her hair cut super short, and have the bangs dyed platinum.¡± Lizzy the hair stylist looked over at Nick, who was flailing her arms under the plastic cloak. ¡°Joe,¡± she said to the struggling hair dresser, ¡°why don¡¯t we switch? I have more experience with little children.¡± Joe was relieved to step out of the difficult job. Exflibberaguil was equally relieved to have changed a stylist. For some reason, Lizzy felt unsettling. She seemed to have some hidden contempt with Exflibberaguil. Exflibberaguil tried to think where he had seen Lizzy before, but couldn¡¯t seem to remember. Perhaps it was because of the memory wipe, but even so, someone with as many piercings as Lizzy should be easy to trigger a wiped memory. Exflibberaguil shook his head, much to Joe¡¯s displeasure. Never mind. I¡¯m being paranoid, without Nick. An hour later, two people left the hair salon. One was a boy with bright red hair with medium length hair styled in a sort of faux mohawk. The other was a girl with a pixie cut, the front of her black hair silver.
¡°NINE-ONE-ONE WHAT¡¯S YOUR EMERGENCY?¡± ¡°I think I found one of your missing people.¡± ¡°Do you know who?¡± ¡°Well, it says here her name is Nick. Nick Lucifay.¡± ¡°Is there evidence?¡± ¡°We have a camera here at the hair salon. And I saved hair samples. Is that enough?¡± ¡°Thank you. Is there anything else?¡± ¡°Well, she looked drunk or drugged. I¡¯m not sure which.¡± ¡°Can you describe it more in detail?¡± ¡°She kept on giggling and singing in weird tunes. And she didn¡¯t seem to understand we were talking to her. I think she was drugged though. There was no smell of alcohol.¡± ¡°Thank you. What did she do?¡± ¡°She came with a boy, who claimed she has amnesia. I don¡¯t think he¡¯s telling the truth, obviously. The boy told her that she wanted a haircut.¡± ¡°What does she look like now?¡± ¡°She has short black hair with platinum bangs.¡± ¡°Can you describe the boy?¡± ¡°Um¡­his name was Bob, and he had really long hair. Now it¡¯s sort of medium length and styling in a faux mohawk. It¡¯s also the brightest red I¡¯ve ever seen, and I¡¯m almost positive it¡¯s natural. Really strange. I couldn¡¯t see any sign of dye. Hair that bright is impossible to achieve with anything other than chemical dyes.¡± ¡°Are you a hair stylist?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I thought so. Can you describe him other than his hair? Eye color? Age? Height?¡± ¡°Oh, sorry. He had, um, blue-grey eyes, I think. And looked about fourteen? Very sharp features. Skinny too. Pretty tall, but I¡¯m bad with exact measurements. Maybe almost six feet? Oh, and he also had the weirdest skin color. It¡¯s pretty pale, but I¡¯m almost certain it has blue undertones.¡± ¡°Anything else that was strange?¡± ¡°He paid with one-dollar bills. He had so many of them in his jacket. That¡¯s it, I think.¡± ¡°Thank you again. Address?¡± ¡°Er, sixty-four Morlon Avenue.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll be right there.¡± Theory ¡°PLEASE, OFFICER!¡± ¡°Ma¡¯am¡ª¡± ¡°Please!¡± Mrs. Lucifay begged. ¡°I know you know something! A tip, wasn¡¯t it? Someone tipped you off? Was she seen?¡± ¡°Ma¡¯am!¡± the officer yelled, ¡°I apologize, but I recommend you to go home! If any news comes, you will be the first informed. I sympathize with you, and the countless other parents that lost their children. You know we won¡¯t hold back any information.¡± ¡°Yes, yes, of course,¡± Mrs. Lucifay muttered, obviously not convinced or listening. ¡°What about the other man? The witness that saw her last? Where is he? Does he not know something?¡± ¡°Ma¡¯am!¡± ¡°Officer¡­¡± ¡°Ma¡¯am, I¡¯m afraid I¡¯ll be forced to take stronger measures if you continue to stay. You will know whenever news comes. I give you my word.¡± ¡°Of course¡­¡± Mrs. Lucifay repeated, again in that distant voice. ¡°Yes, yes, I will be informed.¡± She shuffled away as if in a trance. Officer Trent felt a little guilty telling a lie to woman. It was part of his orders, of course, to prevent her from doing anything rash. But Trent could hardly fathom the amount of emotional and psychological pain the woman must be going through now. He himself was a father of two. With a deep breath, he reminded himself that it was this pain that prevented him from speaking out. Pain is contagious. All the police does is to control pain and quarantine those who¡¯ve been infected. The Officer decided that donuts would be a good distraction.
THE OFFICER LIED. Mrs. Lucifay knew it. She had enough experience with lies to determine the honesty of one¡¯s words immediately, whether it be a trained professional or an emotionless psychopath. And one thing was certain. The Officer was lying. He didn¡¯t even try to hide his exasperation and his hand fidgeting when Mrs. Lucifay had pressured him. The problem was not the Officer¡¯s lies. It was what he had been lying about. That was always difficult. Mrs. Lucifay wanted to believe that the Officer had been lying about the news. Perhaps he¡¯d really had gotten word from a witness. But he also may merely have been lying about giving her his word. Nearly no one gives their word without a lie. Mrs. Lucifay spun her steering wheel around, skidding down the driveway. Why was everyone always against her? What had she done to deserve it? Calm down. There might be something online about her disappearance. Social media, perhaps. Everyone posts on social media. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. Mrs. Lucifay nearly forgot to open the garage door before she drove in. Her fingers automatically unlocked the key pin at the door. Running inside and shedding her coat, she leapt up the stairs to reach her computer. Her computer was never shut down. She didn¡¯t even need to type in the full name, before her browser automatically filled it in for her. These spur-of-the-moment searches were no rarity. Mrs. Lucifay constantly checked her computer, afraid that if she left it for too long, she¡¯d miss some crucial news that would allow her to find her daughter back. Mrs. Lucifay scrolled down the list of search results. There was nothing new, it seemed. School website¡­a mention in an art contest five years ago¡­Mrs. Lucifay¡¯s own business page. A few addition pages also sprung up, including the missing person police page and a local news article. The rest were all social media accounts that just so happened to share the same name. There was a new one though, in the fifth place. Mrs. Lucifay had scrolled down the search page enough times to know all the links by heart. And she was certain that one of them recently appeared, just as certain as she was that the officer had been lying. Perhaps it¡¯s that social media account I¡¯ve been looking for! With a trembling hand, Mrs. Lucifay clicked the link. It wasn¡¯t social media. It was an online blog, with a few hundred views. The title, framed in a cheerful green border, read ¡°Marine Nick Lucifay ~ the truth¡± The truth? What was the lie? Was there a lie? Mrs. Lucifay scrolled down the webpage, confused. It was not written very well, full of grammar incorrections and spelling mistakes. But it achieved the same effect on Mrs. Lucifay. It wrote: Marine Nicole Lucifay was recently reported to be missing. The police website states she had gone missing a few days ago, on Saturday. But did she really? The only clues we are given is the approximate age and a blurred photo. Such a photo is easily recreated with the resources police have access to. Even a random stranger¡¯s blurred photo could do. The appearance description is also very generic and vague. A black-haired, medium height girl with brown eyes¡ªhow boring could you be? No prominent features. No health difficulties. No nothing that distinguishes this one person from the billions of others. Then comes the evidence, or rather, the disturbing lack of it. All that¡¯s written is that she disappeared suddenly behind the woods of McDonalds which, conveniently, was destroyed in a gas accident. The only witness was a man who was knocked out during this accident. It could have easily been a dream. There was another person who reportedly talked to this girl just before she left. An old lady of ninety-three, who herds more than a dozen cats. This description is also laughably generic and stereotypical. A kindergartener could have made up a more unique character. Even if this old lady were to be real, you could hardly trust the memory of someone at such an age. Finally, there are the schools. The schools themselves are real, I¡¯m assuming. But the photos could easily be photoshopped. If a school¡¯s receiving money, they¡¯d do anything. Besides, this girl only appears in six photos altogether. This is far from the sufficient amount of information needed to prove of her existence and disappearance. Where am I going with this? It¡¯s obvious! This whole ¡®Marine Nicole Lucifay¡¯ person is a scam! It¡¯s completely false. It was all just a test by the government to see if we would respond to a disappearance. We will not be fooled! The government did this all on purpose! Together we can help stop this. No one should be allowed to joke on the expense of a real-life person. I cannot believe that the government really thought it was funny to fake a disappearance. If something like that happened for real, it would be the government¡¯s fault that they couldn¡¯t stop it. This next theory is about another girl¡­ Mrs. Lucifay could not bring herself to read another word. Police MRS. LUCIFAY TURNED AWAY. ¡°No!¡± she screamed in a hoarse voice. ¡°No! You are wrong! Wrong! My daughter is a living, breathing human who¡¯s truly gone missing!¡± She was too tired and sleep deprived to say more. Despicable! Ignorant! Malicious! Nefarious! She screamed internally. What right does this online blogger have to decide who is real and who is not? What qualification does he have to easily dismiss a living things life as a scam, a hoax, a fake? With renewed anger and rage, Mrs. Lucifay turned back to her computer and typed an angry response in the comments section. ¡°How dare you. Marine Nicole Lucifay is real. I am her mother.¡± With that, she pressed the post button and shut off the computer without waiting for the comment to load. ¡°Evil!¡± she yelled in a hoarse voice, before falling asleep from exhaustion.
REPLY FROM EXPERTSQUID (AUTHOR) How much did they pay you to say that?
TIMOTHY HAD NOT EXPECTED ANY MORE TROUBLE. He was due to leave in two days for work at a new site where it was believed that a Native American arrowhead was found. Stapes was recovering from a minor surgery when the doctor, as promised, took out the microchip. Timothy had been reclining on his sofa watching his favorite documentary while sipping black tea. His face was the definition of blissful happiness. His happy mood did not last long. His phone rang, starling him and making his spill his hot tea. ¡°Augh!¡± he wailed like a child, upsetting Stapes who began yelping to protect his master. With reluctance, Timothy paused the documentary, muttering angry, incomprehensible words. He snatched the phone up. ¡°Yes, yes, hello?¡± ¡°Ah, Mr. Fletcher,¡± a pleasant voice responded. Timothy was able to detect slight annoyance from the smooth voice. ¡°I am Officer Kirk.¡± ¡°Ah! Yes, officer!¡± Timothy said, his voice completely changing to the one he used in professional meetings. He instinctively smoothed his hair and arranged his robe, as if he were speaking to the officer in person. ¡°I apologize for my rude greeting. I was startled, and I automatically assumed the was another one of those telemarketer¡¯s calls¡­¡± The officer laughed coldly. ¡°Yes, those telemarketers really are annoying.¡± Timothy shifted his weight to the other foot, laughing awkwardly. ¡°That¡¯s right. Er, officer, may I ask of the reason for you call?¡± He assumed a slightly frightened, respectful tone. This Officer Kirk made him feel insignificant.This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. ¡°Ah! That¡¯s right. I was going to invite you down to our station. We are in need of your help. It¡¯s the Lucifay case, if you remember.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± Timothy murmured. He did remember something that involved the police, but this memory was gradually fading. With some difficulty, Timothy recalled being dragged to a woman¡¯s house, and being questioned by a fat officer. ¡°Oh, yes! I was the last witness.¡± ¡°That one exactly. Shall I be expecting you soon?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. Are you sure this isn¡¯t the sort of thing that police do to lure a suspect in? You know, ask the suspect to help out on a case and then arrest him?¡± The officer laughed that cold laugh again. ¡°That only happens in movies, Mr. Fletcher.¡± ¡°Still¡­¡± Timothy said, feigning uneasiness. ¡°There will be donuts.¡± ¡°Ah, yes. I¡¯ll be there then!¡± Timothy replied a little too quickly. He waited until he heard the officer hang up, before he replaced the phone on the receiver. He frowned at his reflection, not because of unsatisfaction, but because of the unpleasant realization that he¡¯d have to take off his comfortable robe in exchange for a stiff suit. Even if I am a suspect, at least my photo would be of me in a nice suit. Timothy laughed to himself. Stapes barked at him. After a few moments¡¯ consideration, Timothy decided to take Stapes as well. It was his only protection, though he doubted the police would have much trouble defeating a tiny little dog. Unless, of course, this Officer Kirk is allergic to dogs, Timothy thought with some amusement. For some reason, the idea that this cold-hearted officer to be allergic to anything seemed ridiculous to Timothy. Timothy couldn¡¯t help picturing a big, muscular officer running away from Stapes in fear of getting an allergic reaction. Timothy smiled at this thought. He was one of the few adults who still enjoys their vivid childhood imagination. With slightly shaky steps, Timothy set out with a leash in his hand.
IT WASN¡¯T LONG BEFORE HE FOUND ONE OF THOSE POSTERS. They were everywhere now. The same, blurry photo. The same black text. Timothy pitied the mother. How nervous she must be right now! Timothy couldn¡¯t imagine it, and was glad his imagination didn¡¯t kick in. He¡¯d never, ever want to experience what that mother would be going through now. Timothy was aware of the glances he was attracting. No normal person would walk their dog in suit. He himself felt a little silly doing it. But it had made so much sense earlier. Ah, yes. That was because of my imagination, Timothy remembered, with mixed feelings of pride and embarrassment. He walked a little faster now, growing more uncomfortable that so many people could see him. Timothy had once wanted to be famous, and be known wherever he walked. He wanted people to worship the path he walked, and magically clear a route through however dense a crowd. He had imagined shining lights from a giant paparazzi, being kept at bay by six bald body guards in black bulletproof vests and mirror sunglasses. Timothy was beginning to have second thoughts now. Even a few people looking at him made him nervous that he¡¯d fall and make a fool of himself. How would he be able to survive in a crowd of hundreds? Timothy broke into a jog, which Stapes greatly enjoyed. Timothy was growing more and more conscious that his run made him look even stranger. No morning jogger would ever take their dog out on a run wearing a suit. Timothy was glad he was nearing the police station. He could see more and more police cars. And he could begin to smell the unmistakable aroma of donuts. Officer Kirk ¡°AH, MR. FLETCHER.¡± Timothy jumped. He had barely opened the big, unwelcoming door before the booming, voice of the officer greeted him. Stapes too cowered in fear. ¡°Th-that¡¯s me!¡± Timothy stuttered, swinging his head to find the source of the voice. A menacing shadow fell over him. Timothy looked up. Stepping out of a hallway and approaching him was a large, bulky man in a blue uniform half a size too small. The shirt looked as if it were vacuum sealed to the muscles, outlining the deep contours in a dark navy. ¡°Good,¡± the man said, ¡°I¡¯ve been waiting.¡± Timothy, feeling eyes on him, looked up. He eyes had unconsciously been attracted to the big man¡¯s chest, whether it was from admiration or the fear of looking at the face. He blushed awkwardly upon realization that the officer had noticed him staring at the muscles. ¡°Er,¡± Timothy muttered, trying to find an apt excuse for his inappropriate staring, but soon realizing it was impossible to lie under the intimidating glare. The officer¡¯s skin had almost a tough, leathery quality. Timothy had no doubt that this man could take forty bullets without a flinch. ¡°I¡¯m Officer Hallthorn,¡± he said offering a handshake, ¡°I¡¯ll be taking you to Officer Kirk in a moment.¡± With a trembling arm, Timothy fitted his own sweaty palm into the hairy hand Officer Hallthorn extended. ¡°Ah, so you¡¯re not Officer Kirk?¡± Timothy asked in a timid voice, hoping he didn¡¯t sound too relieved to offend the officer. ¡°No. I¡¯m just a newbie here,¡± the officer laughed in a chilling voice. He wrapped Timothy¡¯s hand in a bone-crushing hold. Timothy¡¯s arm swung as if made of rubber. After what seemed like a full minute of swinging, the officer let go. Timothy flexed his fingers painfully. ¡°Newbie? Ha¡­ha¡­¡± Timothy laughed weakly, the pain showing clearly on his face. The officer didn¡¯t seem to notice. ¡°Follow me,¡± he commanded, and set off down that same hallway. Timothy shuffled after him. ¡°Oh,¡± the officer added, ¡°your dog needs to go.¡± Timothy watched as his only protection was taken away by a female officer who, in Timothy¡¯s opinion, Stapes liked a little too much. Timothy would have liked to see the other officers in their little cubicles as he walked down the hallway, but didn¡¯t have the chance to as he jogged to keep with the officer¡¯s long strides. Whenever he did pause or slow to a walk, the officer would urge him to go a little faster, and that Officer Kirk wasn¡¯t far. ¡°Wasn¡¯t far¡± was, of course, relative to the pace you walked. With heavy panting, Timothy made it up to the fourth floor. Apparently the officer didn¡¯t believe in elevators, as they were ¡°impractical¡±. Elevators could malfunction easily, and would not be an ideal place to be stuck in during a fire. Also, stairs weren¡¯t very hard to climb, so long as you went three steps at a time.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. ¡°Hang in there, that office right at the end is Officer Kirk¡¯s.¡± Timothy couldn¡¯t even manage a weak grin. He didn¡¯t know how he managed to make it to the door. The heavy knocks Officer Hallthorn beat on the door matched Timothy¡¯s heart. ¡°I¡¯ll be leaving now,¡± the officer said, as if believing Timothy would be devastated. The only reaction Timothy gave was the droop of his head, which he hoped would be interpreted as a nod. Timothy waited outside the wooden door for five minutes before the hinges began to creak. A thin, weaselly face poked out from the crack. ¡°Is he gone?¡± the man asked, in the unmistakable voice from the phone conversation. Timothy looked in shock at Officer Kirk. He was nothing like the man he imagined. Officer Kirk was a gray-haired, whiskered man with a long, bony nose. Clever blue eyes peered out from thick white eyebrows, enhanced by crow¡¯s feet growing out of the outside corners. While Officer Hallthorn had all his deep contours on his face, Officer Kirk¡¯s contours lay in his wrinkles and fold of his skin. He had a few crumbs on his small, wispy goatee. Timothy knew instantly that those came from donuts. ¡°Yes,¡± Timothy replied, with the same embarrassment from before. The officer¡¯s clever eyes studied him for a length, and Timothy felt it increasing more difficult to hold the gaze. Thankfully, Officer Kirk looked away. ¡°Oh, good. Officer Hallthorn can be a bit¡­demanding,¡± Kirk said. He smiled one of those smiles that only go as far as the teeth, never reaching the eyes. His voice and his smile were ill-fitting with his timid face. ¡°Well, come in!¡± he greeted, though missing the warmth. ¡°You look a bit red. Did Officer Hallthorn make you climb the stairs?¡± Timothy nodded, walking to the chair offered to him. Officer Kirk clucked his tongue. ¡°I told him to stop doing that. Donut?¡± ¡°Excuse me officer for being rude but what exactly is the nature of this meeting?¡± Timothy inquired. ¡°Anxious to get back to you dog, eh? Quite a small one for a malamute. I¡¯m afraid I¡¯m allergic to dogs,¡± he added with a cold laugh. Timothy didn¡¯t like the way the officer knew everything. ¡°Excuse me for going off topic,¡± the officer apologized. ¡°I just wanted to know what else you discovered since the last interview. You were the last witness, though you said it may have been a dream. Is that correct?¡± ¡°Y-yes,¡± Timothy stammered, somehow still getting intimidated by this little man. ¡°Well then. I happen to understand that you and two others visited a tailor. Can you tell me why?¡± ¡°Oh!¡± Timothy exclaimed, rather surprised this was brought up. ¡°Um¡­the doctor¡ªmy doctor¡ªbegged me to go investigate¡­¡± ¡°Excuse me. Can you begin with their names?¡± ¡°Er, the woman was Oakley. I believe she just moved here. And my doctor¡­well¡­this is a bit embarrassing, but I don¡¯t remember his name. I just call him Doctor.¡± ¡°I see. I¡¯ll ask for his address later. Please continue. You were talking of an investigation¡­?¡± ¡°Yes! Um, Oakley, she¡¯s some sort of animal controlist or something, she saw something strange in the forest. She had been at the tailor¡¯s to search for some sort of standing cat, I think. The tailor reported it.¡± Timothy fiddled with the donut in his hand. ¡°So Oakley went to investigate. She did see some sort of animal, and followed it. But it disappeared, and then she saw something strange. There was this really black shape that night, and she took of picture of it. But everyone thought it was just her hand blocking the camera, until the doctor said he also picked up something weird and¡ª¡± ¡°Please slow down,¡± Officer Kirk commanded, leaning in a little too close for comfort, ¡°and repeat all that.¡± ¡°I¡­¡± Timothy gulped. For some reason, he began imagining himself in a black-and-white jumpsuit, with a prisoner¡¯s plate on the left side of his chest engraved with the number: 84310. It was not a pleasant sight. Vanta Black TIMOTHY WAS PETRIFIED BY THE EFFICIENCY OF OFFICER KIRK. In the span of thirty minutes, Timothy had been led to an oak-paneled room and was asked his permission to be recorded. He had felt uncomfortably like a suspect and a villain and was relieved to be brought back to the office without handcuffs. Both Oakley and the Doctor were then summoned to the office. Even the tailor was on his way. It must have something to do with his voice, Timothy decided. He always sounds so cold and threatening. Anyone would be scared out of their wits if they disobeyed such a voice. ¡°Ah, that must be them,¡± Officer Kirk said, referring to the knocks. He stretched out his mouth like a smile again. Officer Kirk seemed very fond of smiling, thought Timothy couldn¡¯t see why. It didn¡¯t offer the officer much happiness, as his eyes always had the same, cold, gaze. And it certainly didn¡¯t officer Timothy much joy. It terrified him. Officer Kirk rose and walked to the door. ¡°I asked for Sam this time,¡± he answered, somehow knowing what Timothy was thinking. ¡°Morning, Officer Kirk!¡± Timothy was just as surprised as Kirk when he heard the booming voice of Officer Hallthorn. Timothy was glad to find that there were some things the officer didn¡¯t know. Timothy turned around, instantly noticing Officer Hallthorn¡¯s large body and then the two figures of the doctor and Oakley. It offered him slight satisfaction that both of them were puffing and panting, exhausted from the four-story climb. ¡°Good morning, Hallthorn,¡± Officer Kirk replied politely, though Timothy detected slight exasperation. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect you. I thought Sam¡­¡± ¡°Oh, I offered to take these two anyway. Sam was going to go up the elevator.¡± ¡°I see. Well, thank you, officer¡ª¡± ¡°Oh! Also, officer, I made this cup of coffee for you. I don¡¯t know how you like it though, so I just brought the whole tray up. I also brought hot water, just in case you prefer tea.¡± Hallthorn presented the cups with self-satisfaction. ¡°Yes, black coffee¡¯s fine¡ª¡± ¡°There¡¯s also no more toilet paper in one of the bathroom stalls, so I sent for someone to replace all the toilet paper. If you do one, you might as well do all.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true. Thank you, I¡¯ll take it from here.¡± Kirk smiled again, with a certain firmness. ¡°No problem, officer,¡± Kirk replied, ¡°I¡¯ll just head back down those stairs.¡± ¡°Oh, that¡¯s right! I¡¯ve been meaning to tell you. Our elevators really are very safe. You should try one. It won¡¯t be too bad, I¡¯m sure.¡± Officer Hallthorn laughed. ¡°I just like playing it safe. Be prepared, that¡¯s the motto isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°I suppose you¡¯re right¡­¡± Officer Kirk said. ¡°Well, thank you again.¡± He slammed the door shut.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. ¡°That was exhausting,¡± he sighed, his shoulders falling down. ¡°You have to be strong and curt against some people¡ªeven officers. Officer Hallthorn is a good man, but he needs a little work controlling his mouth. If you let him talk, nothing will ever get done.¡± ¡®I see,¡± the doctor said. ¡°Timothy, you¡¯re here already?¡± ¡°I arrived half an hour ago,¡± Timothy explained, itching to describe his unhappiness from being woken up so early in the morning. ¡°Good news everyone,¡± Officer Kirk said, ¡°there are enough donuts for everyone! You don¡¯t mind glaze, I hope? I ate all the chocolate ones already.¡± ¡°Thank you, officer,¡± Oakley replied politely, she too refraining from saying she was on a diet. She didn¡¯t want to be blacklisted in a new town so quickly. Blacklisted for refusing a donut? Is it possible? Oakley wondered silently. ¡°Well then, let¡¯s get to business, shall we?¡± Officer Kirk began, once everyone was comfortably seated and supplied with a donut. ¡°I¡¯m assuming we all know what we are talking about?¡± ¡°The kidnapping,¡± Oakley replied, trying to talk as much as possible to avoid eating the donut. ¡°The disappearance, actually, of a girl named Marine Nicole Lucifay, whom I¡¯ve heard goes by the name Nick,¡± Kirk corrected. ¡°Though I can¡¯t say I¡¯m surprised people have already begun to dramatize the incident in their brains.¡± Oakley blushed crimson. Officer Kirk continued, ¡°I¡¯d like to ask if any of you had any difficulties remembering this incident?¡± They both replied with a no. ¡°Good, that makes my job easier. Who did Mr. Fletcher go to first after leaving the forest?¡± Officer Kirk had already asked this to Timothy, but he obviously did not trust Timothy¡¯s memory. ¡°That would be me, officer,¡± the doctor replied. ¡°Ah, of course. Doctor¡ªyou don¡¯t mind me calling you doctor, do you?¡ªwas there anything too out of the ordinary with Mr. Fletcher¡¯s health when he had come to see you?¡± ¡°No, which was really strange. He had a slightly lower temperature, but that was to be expected since he was in the woods.¡± ¡°That makes sense. Now, Ms. Tellaman¡ª¡± ¡°Oakley¡¯s fine.¡± ¡°Oakley then. Can I see the picture you took of the black shape?¡± ¡°Of course!¡± Oakley replied hastily, rummaging through a large tote bag to find her phone. ¡°Here it is,¡± she said, offering her phone hesitantly. Officer Kirk studied the photo for a great length. Oakley fidgeted in her seat, ultimately resigning her will to keep a diet and began eating the donut. The officer frowned a bit. ¡°Oakley?¡± ¡°Yes?¡± she gulped her bite of donut. ¡°Did you really see it?¡± ¡°I¡ªI believe so,¡± Oakley replied without confidence. ¡°You don¡¯t believe it though, do you? I might have put my finger on the camera.¡± ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t I believe it? You believe it, and your memory is fine.¡± ¡°That¡ªthat¡¯s true.¡± ¡°And I believe that this object was not there the second day when you three went?¡¯ They all replied with a yes. ¡°Then there is only one explanation. This giant object was moved. Then I¡¯m assuming something was brought to transport it, or that object itself has its own means of transportation. I have another question though. How were you able to see it Oakley?¡± ¡°Er¡­I had my phone on, but I wasn¡¯t really able to see it. I sort of saw the trees and other shapes around it, and that object was just this really large black blob.¡± ¡°You had your phone on? Dd any of the light reflect off the black?¡± ¡°Now that you¡¯ve brought it up, I believe the light sort of¡­disappeared¡­¡± ¡°Vanta black!¡± Timothy blurted, instantly blushing from embarrassment. ¡°Come again?¡± Officer Kirk said. ¡°I remember that something about vanta black related to my dream or memory. I remember clearly thinking about vanta black.¡± ¡°Really now?¡± ¡°Vanta black, that must be it!¡± ¡°Now that¡¯s strange.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it?¡± Officer Kirk put up one finger to indicate silence. He had been on the phone. Timothy blushed still deeper. With much nodding, Officer Kirk replaced the phone with a click. ¡°It seems like our tailor friend isn¡¯t coming after all.¡± Missing Cat
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Part 3 ¡°THIS ISN¡¯T GOOD.¡± Nick snored a reply. Exflibberaguil had discovered that loss of memory also caused you to behave like a koala. Exflibberaguil didn¡¯t mind the snores, really, but it annoyed him that someone should be so carefree and relaxed, while he was dealing with major problems. The problem was someone had caught him on camera and posted it online. Not only did this greatly complicate matters, but it irritated him that he wasn¡¯t the focus of the photo but rather an ugly woman with a pig nose and yellow teeth. This photo must be taken down. It didn¡¯t have many likes anyway. Unfortunately, Box had no way of getting into this person¡¯s phone, and only minutes after deleting the post, it was put up again. Box did find this person¡¯s address, but it was in Singapore and Exflibberaguil didn¡¯t wish to find out if the trailer was waterproof. So Exflibberaguil decided to risk leaving the image on the website, even though that offered the slight chance that someone would recognize him in the future and inquire why he wasn¡¯t the main subject of this photoshoot. After that incident, Exflibberaguil decided to see if Nick had any photos taken of her. Turns out she¡¯s pretty popular on the internet. Even the police seemed to be big fans. ¡°Look¡¯s like her mom¡¯s pretty sad though,¡± he commented. ¡°Look, she even made a poster saying that she was missing Nick. It¡¯s strange though. I never knew Marine was Nick¡¯s name.¡± ¡°Perhaps saying her real name might trigger her memory,¡± Box advised. ¡°Maybe,¡± agreed Exflibberaguil. He proceeded to yell loudly, acting as an alarm clock. Nick stopped in mid-snore and laid in bed for a few seconds with her eyes squeezed tight before truly accepting her stake of awakeness. She muttered something incomprehensible. "Hey, does Marine Nicole Lucifay mean anything to you?" Exflibberaguil asked in a loud voice. "My name''s Nick. Call me Nick. My nickname''s Nick. Nickname...Nick...haha..." "I''ll take that as a no then," Exflibberaguil said to himself. "Well, there goes your smart idea, Box." "But sir," Box argued, "don''t you see? She''s saying these things instinctively. She''s remembering something." "What do you mean?" "She''s remembering how to respond to someone who calls her Marine." "I see," Exflibberaguil replied thoughtfully, his head nodding. "Should I just call her by her normal name then?"You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. "Try telling her more details about her town." Exflibberaguil turned back to his 7730. With a little help from Box, he was able to deduce Nick''s town. There seemed to be a sudden increase in news articles since Nick''s departure. Not only were these Sodriew desperately missing Nick, but they were also missing many cats for some strange reason. Exflibberaguil never knew that cats were popular enough to reserve a spot in the newspaper. Nick had fallen asleep again, and her snores were louder this time. "That''s strange," Exflibberaguil remarked. "It''s not. About forty percent of male adult Sodriew and twenty-four percent of female adult Sodriew snore." "I suppose that is sort of strange," Exflibberaguil agreed, "but that''s not what I had meant. Box, is it normal for many Sodriew to be missing many cats?" "Missing? That is certainly very concerning." "Concerning?" "Don''t you remember?" Box replied. If it were alive, it would be impatient. "Part three of the movies. The final part of the rabbit trilogy. It''s cats and pigs next. The bunnies recruit these other, slower reproducing animals to help. Then, once humans have gone extinct, it is much easier to take over pigs. Their intellect is dramatically lower than Leporidae. The rabbit family," Box added, noticing Exflibberaguil''s confusion. "So these rabbits are recruiting cats now?" "It seems so." Exflibberaguil felt something in the depths of his mind click. He remembered it now. "Has this happened yet?" he demanded, slightly panicked. "I didn''t know it had already come to this." "It seems that the rabbits are making their moves mainly on Japanese islands," Box replied. "Cats have taken several small islands in Japan already. And the Bahamas beaches are slowly getting crowded with pigs." "Oh no." "It''s simple," Box continued. "Any animal can participate. As long as they first take up the smaller islands, and force more and more humans onto the mainland, sooner or later humans would be forced to squeeze into small areas. Only then would they realize they were in trouble, but it would be too late. There would be at least ten rabbits for every human, and it wouldn''t be too hard to develop human deceases and wipe out their population." "That''s horrifying," Exflibberaguil breathed. "I wonder...are cats universal species too? Or are they only native to Driew?" Box hesitated. "If I told you, I''d risk trigger you into remembering. Last time you told me to warn you before I trigger your memory." "Oh." Exflibberaguil''s face contorted into a pained expression. A part of him knew Box was telling the truth, yet another part of him yearned to know the answer to his question. These dilemmas constantly pressured him. Fortunately, he had learned from Nick a simple yet ingenious way of solving these problems. Taking a coin he kept in his pocket, Exflibberaguil tossed it in the air and watched it clatter to the ground. "Head," he reported. "I guess I''m not finding the answer to my question today," he sighed. "Oh well. I just hope it''s not essential." "Excuse me, sir, for interrupting. But may I just inquire when you are leaving? You''ve been parked here for quite a while now..." "Either today or tomorrow," Exflibberaguil replied, tossing the coin again. "Eagle. Tomorrow then." "Very good, sir," Box said pleasantly. "May I inquire of your destination?" "A place north of here. To a man named Miles Bucker. He has a certain rabbit named Cosmos I''m curious about. Extremely gluttonous, lazy, and greedy. He spends most of his days doing nothing except stare off into space. Sound familiar?" "Yes. Like a Sodriew," Box agreed. "Very true. But I meant he sounds just like a rabbit leader. The rabbit leader." "He also sounds like any other normal pet bunny." "No," Exflibberaguil said sternly. "He is the rabbit leader." "How do you know?" "Because I''m not about to drive twenty thousand hours just to see a normal bunny!" Exflibberaguil exploded. Rhymes with Orange Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. Violence "I''M SORRY FOR TROUBLING YOU." "No, it''s okay," the doctor muttered, waving his hand. "I understand." "You seem to have something on your mind," officer Kirk noticed. "Is there anything you want to ask me? I know rumors have been circulating." The doctor felt his face heat up. He never liked people guessing his thoughts. It made him feel weak and transparent. "Yes, about that. I''ve heard the girl was sighted, unharmed. Is it true? I apologize if I''m asking for private information," he added. "Strictly speaking, I shouldn''t be telling you this," Officer Kirk replied. The doctor was already preparing himself for an apology. "But since you already know, I assume the rumor is already quite widespread." "I''m assuming then that it''s true?" Officer Kirk didn''t reply but gave him a meaningful smile. "I''ll let you on another little secret. She was spotted again in a drugged state," he whispered, leaning in. "Unharmed?" Officer Kirk nodded. "She was described as cheerful, even. Better than she looked in the photo. It''s strange. I don''t know what the kidnapper wants." They both fell into silence. Officer Kirk looked deep in thought. The doctor tried to mimic him and pretend that he too had many difficulties on his mind. However, the only thing he could think of was an itch on his back that he was afraid of scratching and looking like a fool. "It''s not the girl I''m worried about," Officer Kirk added as if it were something that accidentally escaped his lips. He paused, evidently expecting a confused reaction. The doctor didn''t catch on and allowed an awkward silence. "It''s her mother," Officer Kirk finally continued, slightly disappointed with the lack of reaction. "There have been more and more conspiracy theories popping up now. Not enough for people to notice yet, but it''s growing. I''ve been keeping a tab on them." "Why?" the doctor asked. He blushed again. "I mean--conspiracy theories doesn''t seem important enough for an officer like you. I would have expected you to be worried about the victim. Are conspiracy theories dangerous?" "You have no idea," Officer Kirk sighed with the air of a superior. "Conspiracy theories may seem harmless, but they can be more dangerous than a loaded machine gun. Many relatives of a victim have succumbed to conspiracy theories." "How so?"Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. "Depression, mostly. Suicide is not at all uncommon. Sometimes they resort to violence. It''s violence that I''m worried about." Officer Kirk sighed again. "Sticks and stones may break your bones, but words can break your heart. The problem with violence is that it spreads. The more violent you get, the more violent others get. And that can infect more people." The officer allowed that to sink in before continuing. "At least this case shouldn''t be too big. The theories shouldn''t get too uncontrollable. Only one person disappeared. Theories usually can''t build against one person." "Still...will she turn violent? What will you do about it? What will happen?" "I wish I knew..." Officer Kirk murmured.
FOR THE PAST TWO DAYS, THE NUMBER OF CONSPIRACY THEORIES GREW EXPONENTIALLY. Mrs. Lucifay worked feverishly, battling against these neverending stories. Hours passed without her noticing. She had moved to the dark basement, fearing that the cheerful sun would accidentally lift her mood. Mrs. Lucifay had learned that Nick was sighted alive and well earlier. However, this only fueled the conspiracy and thickened the plot. Mrs. Lucifay attacked the original writer first. In response to his taunt (Mrs. Lucifay automatically assumed he was male), she wrote: "I''m not paid to do anything. I am the mother of Marine Nichole Lucifay." Instantly, there was another response. "Sure. Anyone can be a mother." "She was born out of my own body if that''s what you mean." The author responded by updating the theory, claiming that a girl couldn''t be well after being kidnapped for a week. "The only reason why the government is doing this is so that the parents don''t have to fake a funeral," he wrote, obviously directing this attack on Mrs. Lucifay. A day later, on a more credited site, the same attacks were posted by a slightly more professional author. Mrs. Lucifay posted an enraged comment but got no reply. She ended up submitting a dozen comments with no success. Mrs. Lucifay, unable to contain her anger, reported the article for offensive content. Mrs. Lucifay checked on the article an hour later, only to find her account blocked and her comments deleted. It seemed to her that every attempt to take down these horrible theories only worsened the situation. After her comments and attacks, more articles sprung with more persuasive writing. The writers claimed that ''the threatening comments'' were all written by the government to attempt to keep the false kidnapping a secret. The more she fought, the more the writers strengthened. The angry comments posted were twisted to fit in with the ridiculous theories. Within hours, the number of theories about Marine had grown to fill up a search page. Some of them didn''t make sense at all. One writer claimed that this all had to do with the faked moon landing. Mrs. Lucifay attempted to fight all of them with words, but this only made writers more excited. The other readers also ganged up to attack her. Their replies included: "Only a psycho would speak like that." "I bet the government''s paying you a lot to say this." "Stop treating us like idiots, you tax-robbing asshole." Mrs. Lucifay had decided not to comment at all, in hopes that these writers would get bored. But people began celebrating, saying that they ''defeated'' the government and that she couldn''t think of another excuse. Mrs. Lucifay was strangely grateful for these theories. She felt like she was doing something productive with her time. The longer she spent fighting these theories, the more unwilling she was to go outside and face the real world. She didn''t want someone to recognize her on the street. She feared her willpower to fight would dissipate as soon as she stepped outside. It turned out her willpower was the least of her worries. Rabbit Murderer This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it Animal Rights? ANIMAL ABUSER! ANIMAL RIGHTS! ANIMAL MURDERER! The bolded titles were posted all over the media. Exflibberaguil had to drive several miles to escape a particularly crazed protester. It seemed ridiculous to him that there would be Sodriew who protested for animal rights. Shouldn¡¯t they be more worried about their selves? Several people had recorded Nick and the ferret taking down the rabbit and strangling it. One particular video, taken by the fat woman eating pepperoni pizza, had blown up on multiple social media websites, especially after a celebrity had reposted it with the caption: ¡°This is disgusting. #ANIMALABUSE MUST be stopped! It MUST be punished!!¡± Millions of comments agreed, writing, ¡°Humans were a mistake of nature. Soulless beings like these destroy what was intended to be beautiful.¡± ¡°Psychopath.¡± ¡°You make me sick.¡± They wrote with such passion and rage that Exflibberaguil if he hadn¡¯t had that much experience, would have easily believed their intentions were true. But he knew that this was all just a fa?ade. He didn¡¯t believe a word they said. He knew of these sorts of beings before. Even they, themselves, may believe that they are truthful and kind-hearted. Exflibberaguil knew better. There was a famous galactic experiment. A tiny planet had once been destroyed by a deflected meteor that originally was headed for another planet. Most of the creatures that inhabited it, small, gentle being called Kelm, had been killed. Thankfully, about a thousand of them survived because they happened to be away. A famous galactic reported had flown to several planets interviewing multiple civilized species. Strangely enough, all the interviews always followed the same path. Every single question was answered the same way. ¡°Do you think Kelms should be allowed to live on your planet?¡± the reporter would ask. ¡°Oh, certainly,¡± they¡¯d all reply. ¡°Do you think Kelms should be allowed to stay in homes?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Should they be treated just like how true residents here are treated?¡± ¡°Yes.¡±Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°Now, if a Kelm was on the street, do you think people should offer it their home? Bring them back to their house and treat it like family?¡± ¡°Absolutely.¡± ¡°If you saw a Kelm, would you be the one that would take it in?¡± ¡°Definitely. Only the heartless would leave such a poor thing out on the street, cold.¡± All of those interviewed were all too happy to express their concern for the Kelm and prove their kindness. The reporter would smile now, and single to his right. A little blue Kelm would waddle on the screen next to the reporter. The reporter would say, ¡°I have a Kelm friend right here. His name is Oskey. He doesn¡¯t have a home, and he¡¯s currently living on the street. Would you take him in?¡± Instantly, all the interviewee¡¯s faces would change. A sudden cold film would come over their fixed smiles. They¡¯d stare at the little dirty Kelm in disgust. The response they gave with their eyes was unanimous. No. I don¡¯t want to take that dirty little thing into my house. Of course, all of them would make up different excuses. One would say, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I would take you in if my house wasn¡¯t so small. I don¡¯t have room for another, and I don¡¯t have the money either. I still haven¡¯t paid my rent¡­¡± Or ¡°I would take you adorable thing of course! I just don¡¯t have space for the moment. But as soon as someone leaves, I¡¯ll make sure to take you. It¡¯s just because I don¡¯t have space. Really.¡± ¡°So if you did have space, you¡¯d take Oskey in?¡± the reporter asked with a hint of doubt. ¡°Yes¡­of course¡­¡± she replied unconvincingly. One even joked around, laughing, ¡°Ah, yes, brother! Of course, of course. Come with me right now.¡± ¡°So you¡¯d bring him home?¡± the reporter asked. ¡°Ah! Of course¡­if only I could. But I¡¯m afraid I have to take care of my family. My daughter, you see, she¡¯s only five. And my wife¡¯s pregnant with another baby girl. I want to bring you back, but my hands are full. Please don¡¯t be offended¡­¡± It was the same with these animal activists. They¡¯d say, ¡°Save the turtles!¡± ¡°Protect wildlife!¡± ¡°Stop animal abuse!¡± But they¡¯d never do anything themselves to make a difference. Some particularly generous ones would even give money to fund these projects. These Sodriew, essentially, just wanted to prove to others that they weren¡¯t bad people, while convincing and reassuring themselves that the world changed because of that one post, that one like, that one dollar. These were people who would fund for a cure of cancer, yet were extremely against animal testing. It was simply impossible to fulfill both wishes. If someone had arrived at their door, asking if they¡¯d want to be tested instead of animals, more often than not, they¡¯ll yell and protest in fury. If someone had asked if they¡¯d like to risk their lives saving koalas from burning in Australia, few would be brave enough to accept and even fewer would save a single one. What infuriated Exflibberaguil, even more, was that Nick had gone unconscious after the bite, yet none of the animal rights protesters had ever thought of helping her. The bite, Exflibberaguil knew, likely transferred some sort of disease. If was the rabbit¡¯s last attack. If one of them were to die, they¡¯d bite their enemy so they wouldn¡¯t die alone. If Exflibberaguil had posted online that Nick had died, none of the people who had witnessed it would feel any guilt for standing by and not helping. Instead, they¡¯d blame it all on karma, and that it ¡®served her right¡¯ to die by the rabbit¡¯s bite. It seemed that someone''s life no longer mattered if they ever laid a finger on an animal. Exflibberaguil felt, for the first time (though he really wouldn¡¯t know how many times he had erased his memory) true and utter disgust for the Sodriew. Before, he had only regarded them as strange and stupid creatures. Now, they were strange, stupid, and on top of that, completely lacking morality. Animal rights, he thought bitterly, unintentionally adding sarcasm. Sleepwalk Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.
Andrea ¡°FOLLOW HER? THAT¡¯S IT?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what Officer Kirk said,¡± Jake sighed. His voice betrayed doubt, but he respected Officer Kirk too much to question his orders. Jake¡¯s partner, on the other hand, didn¡¯t share his beliefs. Andrea, despite her seemingly small and timid frame, liked challenging authority and was a whole lot braver than Jake. She snorted and rolled her eyes, detecting the twinge of doubt. ¡°Look, you and I both know that woman¡¯s not fit for driving. I value my life, you know.¡± ¡°Your driving convinces me otherwise,¡± Jake muttered. Andrea ignored him ¡°Why do you copyeverythingthat man does? You¡¯re a police officer! You can make your own decisions.¡± ¡°Thatmanjust so happens to be our boss,¡± Jake reminded her. Andrea rolled her eyes, unable to think of an argument. ¡°Can I drive? You drive so slowly,¡± she complained, purely for the sake of criticizing. ¡°You can¡¯t drive when you¡¯re eating.¡± Jake nodded to the foot-long sandwich she held in her hand. ¡°Who says?¡± ¡°The law.¡± ¡°Rules,¡± Andrea began, swallowing between words, ¡°are meant to be broken.¡± ¡°Tell that to the judge.¡± Jake gripped the steering wheel even tighter, his knuckles white. Mrs. Lucifay was driving well under the speed limit, annoying other drivers who honked angrily. Jake remembered what Officer Kirk had said about the sleepwalking, and was afraid she¡¯d wake up any second and go crazy. He stayed several cars behind her, craning his neck so he wouldn¡¯t lose sight of the white minivan. Andrea shook her head and snorted, obviously having thought of something clever to say. ¡°Okay. How about this. You can chew gum when you drive, right?¡± ¡°I-I suppose.¡± ¡°And it¡¯s perfectly legal to swallow gum while you drive.¡± ¡°Unhealthy. But yes, it¡¯s legal.¡± ¡°So,¡± Andrea concluded, ¡°I¡¯m not breaking the law. I¡¯m simply chewing pieces from ginormous subway-flavored gum and swallowing it. Look, she stopped at a gas station. Come on, let me drive.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think the law would accept that excuse¡­¡± Jake argued, but reluctantly braked anyways and switched seats. He knew that if Andrea didn¡¯t get her way, she¡¯d just end up annoying him to no end. Besides, her driving wasn¡¯t half bad (if you liked averaging eighty miles per hour) and she did have more experience when it came to chasing criminals. She had been involved in a road race last month when a pocket thief tried to escape. Jake was certain that, should Mrs. Lucifay ever decide to flee, Andrea would have no difficulty chasing her down. The problem was that she was not the patient sort. Within seconds of Mrs. Lucifay getting back on the road, Andrea had also joined the group of cars that were honking and beeping. Some were able to pass the minivan, but it was soon impossible when Mrs. Lucifay turned onto a narrow one-way lane.Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. ¡°Hey¡ªhey! Officer Kirk said she¡¯s in a sleepwalking trance. You shouldn¡¯t wake her!¡± Jake protested. ¡°If she was going to wake up, she would have already,¡± Andrea pointed out, slapping the horn again. ¡°Why do you need her to go faster anyway? Isn¡¯t she easier to follow when she¡¯s going slow?¡± Andrea paused, obviously contemplating this question that had never occurred to her. She frowned. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I just want to go fast. I won¡¯t get any recognition for catching someone who drives at two miles per hour. And going slow is justso annoying.Cars are supposed to let you reach the destination faster. A pigeon would be faster than us right now!¡± Andrea pouted. After a long silence, Jake said, ¡°Hey look, she turned into a dead end.¡± Andrea brightened. ¡°This must be her destination.¡± ¡°Or she could be making a U-turn¡­¡± ¡°I won¡¯t allow her to.¡± Andrea swerved around the corner. ¡°I don¡¯t care what Kirk says. If this isn¡¯t her destination, I¡¯ll bring her back to the station. Besides,¡± she added, wanting to justify her decision, ¡°it¡¯s not safe for her to be on the road. Driving slowly maybe even more dangerous than driving fast. Any impatient driver can easily crash into her sheerly from road rage. She¡¯s a hazard to others, myself included.¡± ¡°Why do I have a feeling that you¡¯d be the one that would have crashed into her?¡± Jake teased. Much to their relief, the white minivan stopped at the end of the road and parallel parked clumsily on the side, nearly hitting a signpost. Mrs. Lucifay unlocked the car and stepped out. She stood in the middle of the road for a minute, surveying her surroundings in a confused sort of way. Finally, she seemed to come to a decision and took slow steps to a building with neon signs. Andrea hurried to park as well. ¡°A bar?¡± she asked, reading the sign. ¡°How¡¯s she going to get home? That¡¯s certainly something we can arrest her for.¡± Andrea opened the door and stepped out. ¡°Where are you going?¡± Jake hissed. ¡°What do you mean? I¡¯m going to follow her!¡± ¡°I think I should ask Officer Kirk first.¡± Jake started dialing his phone. ¡°Do you even call yourself an officer?¡± Andrea yelled with exasperation. ¡°Officers make their own decisions! You can¡¯t just rely on your precious Officer Kirk forever. Sure, he¡¯s our boss, but he doesn¡¯t pay us to ask him a million questions a day. He pays us for this!¡± Andrea tapped her head. ¡°He also pays us to follow directions and carry out his orders,¡± Jake snapped. Andrea sighed heavily. ¡°Fine. You stay in the car and get confirmation from Kirk then.I¡¯llgo into the bar and do what my duty is to do. I¡¯m going to protect that woman.¡± She stepped out. ¡°I¡¯m taking the keys, by the way,¡± she added before slamming the door shut. Jake flinched. He knew Andrea was partially right, that he was relying too much on Officer Kirk. But he¡¯d rather be a nuisance than be an idiot and act on a whim. He dialed the number. ¡°Hello Officer Jake,¡± Officer Kirk said. Jake was instantly relieved. ¡°Officer Kirk!¡± he said, before remembering to contain his enthusiasm. ¡°Erm, Officer. Mrs. Lucifay went into a bar. What should I do?¡± ¡°One of you should follow her.¡± ¡°Andrea already did. She took the keys too,¡± Jake added. ¡°I expected she would. You keep a good watch then.¡± ¡°That¡¯s all?¡± ¡°That¡¯s all. And you know Jake,¡± Officer Kirk said, slightly amused, ¡°you don¡¯t need my confirmation on everything you do. I know you¡¯re no idiot. You have some confidence in yourself, alright?¡± ¡°Ah, yes Officer!¡± The call ended, leaving Jake in an even worse mood.Even my boss tells me not to listen to him,he thought bitterly. The Leprachuan Pub I MUST BE HEARING THINGS. Everything was so loud. Was this what deaf people hear? Mrs. Lucifay wondered but quickly corrected herself. Deaf people hear nothing. Hearing so many loud noises is what makes me go deaf. I wonder what¡¯s happening. A party, perhaps? The thoughts muddled her mind, and she drove even slower. As she inched the car forward, some other cars flew past her, startling her and making her come to sudden stops. They must be new drivers, she thought. So impatient. The loud noise began to worry about her. She did not wish to go deaf so soon. It would make buying groceries so much more difficult. Besides, she needed to hear the death threats on the phone properly. How was she going to respond if she didn¡¯t hear the taunt? It occurred to her that perhaps they were warning her about some giant collision ahead. Her car slowed to a snail¡¯s pace. She turned left around the corner, her mind wandering to tiny trivial things. The noises suddenly stopped, and Mrs. Lucifay was glad of it. There wasn¡¯t any danger now and she could drive without worry. The scenery was a little unfamiliar. Perhaps the grocery store remodeled? If so, they didn¡¯t do a very good job. The road was gray and dusty. The shops had broken lights and signs with missing letters. Mrs. Lucifay didn¡¯t take too much notice though. She expected it to be the latest trend, like those makeup tutorials that made you look worse than before. She parked at the sidewalk and stepped out of the car. The grocery store was nowhere in sight. I must have turned the wrong direction. Mrs. Lucifay stood in the street for a few minutes, confused and disorientated. She knew she was too tired to drive home if she could find it again, so she ventured to go into the best store on the street. The one in the corner had bright neon lights and electricity, which already was better than most of the other buildings. She was too tired to read the sign that said: ¡°The Leprechaun Pub¡± As she opened the heavy glass door, she was immediately greeted by a strong scent of cigarettes and alcohol. People, mostly men, sat on tiny red stools in the dimmed lighting. The small pub was filled with raucous laughter and excited talking. Mrs. Lucifay slid into a stool herself and ordered the first thing she saw. She had no intention of drinking it but felt out of place without a glass in her hand. It had been years ago when she last picked up alcohol and she was resolved to never take another sip. ¡°Hello,¡± a thin, scrawny man greeted her. He looked dizzy, obviously on verge of drunkenness. Mrs. Lucifay¡¯s slow brain didn¡¯t have time to respond. ¡°Hellooo!¡± he giggled. ¡°My mom always told me to greet others when they greet you. It¡¯s a custom in my family.¡± ¡°Hello,¡± Mrs. Lucifay said stiffly. ¡°You spoke!¡± he exclaimed, drunkenly happy. ¡°How¡¯re you? Why are you here?¡± ¡°I took a wrong turn,¡± she replied truthfully. The man seemed to find this extremely amusing. ¡°Ha! That¡¯s what we all say to ourselves, isn¡¯ it? We¡¯re all here ¡®cause we took a wrong turn.¡± He scratched his stubbled chin. ¡°Well, I s¡¯pose it would make more sense to say we made a wrong choice. I loved the wrong girl.¡±Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. ¡°I turned left instead of turning right at the intersection,¡± Mrs. Lucifay explained, very confused. ¡°Ha, ha! That¡¯s funny!¡± The man broke into laughter, tears streaming down his face. ¡°Ha! I¡¯m Kyle, by th¡¯way.¡± He stuck his hand out. ¡°Pleasure,¡± Mrs. Lucifay muttered mechanically, gripping the sweaty palm. ¡°Y¡¯know, it¡¯s the custom to provide your name too.¡± ¡°Madeline,¡± she said, uncomfortable. Kyle chuckled. ¡°There y¡¯go! Ah! Maddy. Pretty name.¡± Kyle, who was no more than thirty, acted older under the influence of alcohol. ¡°Y¡¯know, I knew a girl with a pretty name too. Ivory, t¡¯was. Pretty name, pretty face. You¡¯d never expect that ugly temper. Came back one night to find her with another of them men. She blamed him on me, too. Said I didn¡¯t give her enough attention anyway.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Mrs. Lucifay murmured, though not very truthfully. She didn¡¯t like Kyle much. He invaded her privacy too much and couldn¡¯t catch on to the subtle signs of her annoyance. Her mind began to fog up and wander, different trains of thought merging into one until it no longer resembled thinking at all but rather a jumbled-up dream. ¡°¡ªso I said, you didn¡¯t do nothing either! All you did was beg me for money so you can buy your beauty crap and attract more¡ª¡± Kyle stopped, noticing the loss of interest in his audience. ¡°An¡¯ that¡¯s how we broke up,¡± he concluded hastily. ¡°How ¡®bout you, Maddy? Why are you here? What happened? Is it a relationship problem too?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s a GPS problem. Or the lack of one, for that matter.¡± ¡°Ha! Sarcasm! I like it!¡± He giggled some more and gulped down his beverage. ¡°Now, I just poured my heart and soul to you. You needn¡¯t be worried if it¡¯s your relationship. I can help!¡± ¡°My marriage is perfectly fine, thank you,¡± Mrs. Lucifay said coldly, purposefully flashing her ring. ¡°Ah, tough one, aren¡¯t you? Let me guess then. In-laws?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Money?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Job?¡± Mrs. Lucifay sighed, realizing that Kyle would not stop until he pried out the truth. ¡°No. It¡¯s just that¡­someone left me,¡± she said carefully. ¡°Ah, I see.¡± Kyle nodded sagely. ¡°My condolences. My cat went missing a few days ago. Nothing compared to what you must be going through now, but she was a very beautiful cat. Raised her since I found her by the dumpsters four years ago.¡± ¡°There have been a lot of cats that have gone missing. A person as well,¡± Mrs. Lucifay suggested, watching Kyle¡¯s reaction. He grinned devilishly. ¡°Cats, I agree. That person¡­¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve seen her posters. A blurry school yearbook photo, isn¡¯t it? A little girl named Marine.¡± ¡°She went missing,¡± Mrs. Lucifay insisted. ¡°See, that¡¯s the problem. That¡¯s only what the posters say. A blurred-out girl went missing, and suddenly reappeared yesterday attacking a rabbit? I mean, how fake can you get?¡± Mrs. Lucifay felt her heart quicken. ¡°What do you mean?¡± she asked, attempting to keep her voice calm. ¡°It¡¯s all a fake!¡± Kyle exclaimed triumphantly. ¡°It¡¯s all a government trick. They hired some child actress to do it all.¡± Mrs. Lucifay began to breathe laboriously. She drank her alcohol in big gulps. Kyle was too excited to notice. ¡°They just want to make a big scene so they can prove police do half a shit. Then they¡¯ll have an excuse to make you pay more taxes. It all adds up! This Marine girl was completely made up. She didn¡¯t disappear, she never lived here!¡± Mrs. Lucifay withdrew her wallet out of her pocket with a trembling hand. She sorted through it until she found her driver¡¯s license. She held it up for Kyle to see. Kyle¡¯s all-knowing smirk slowly drew down along with his eyebrows as he read the tiny text on the card. ¡°My name,¡± Mrs. Lucifay roared, ¡°is Madeline Lucifay, the mother of Marine Nicole Lucifay!¡± Kyle¡¯s face was scrunched up in disgust, his drunken stupidity dampening his danger instinct. He snorted and slapped the card out of Mrs. Lucifay¡¯s hand. ¡°Cut the crap. I thought you were worth wasting my time on. You¡¯re just one of those government slaves. You must be the one who keeps on posting those shitty comments on the website. You disgust me. How much do they pay you to say things like this?¡± Mrs. Lucifay rose and brought the nearest bottle on Kyle¡¯s head. Food THE WORLD IS ENDING. Only this world, Exflibberaguil corrected himself. I¡¯m sure there are plenty of other worlds that are perfectly fine. If I fail to save this little, insignificant one, I¡¯ll just move on to the next. I only need to wipe my memories, nothing difficult. If only I didn¡¯t feel the guilt¡­ Exflibberaguil sighed, turning his head to look at Nick. Her hand resembled a mitten from all the gauze wrapped tightly around it. Exflibberaguil had learned to become paranoid of rabbit bites. Most of them were harmless, but if that rabbit had been sent by Cosmo the rabbit leader, Exflibberaguil doubted the bite was not venomous. The higher circles of rabbits were usually carriers of viruses transferred to them by mosquitoes they breed. Nick hadn¡¯t showed any symptoms of illness, other than slightly longer sleep cycles and a decrease in appetite. But Exflibberaguil had no way of knowing whether this was abnormal, having close to no knowledge of Sodriew. Besides, sleeping longer didn¡¯t seem like a symptom and anyone would lose their appetite if they ate bowl noodles every meal for a week. ¡°Hey Nick, how are you feeling?¡± Exflibberaguil asked, trying to act indifferent. ¡°My name¡¯s Nick,¡± she replied glaring at him. She had almost completely recovered, except for some parts of her prefrontal cortex which often made her seem extremely immature sometimes. ¡°That¡¯s what I said.¡± ¡°You said Haynick.¡± ¡°I said,¡± Exflibberaguil sighed, rolling his eyes, ¡°Hey. Nick. Two very different words.¡± Nick shrugged. ¡°Whatever floats your boat. I know what I heard.¡± ¡°And I know what I said,¡± Exflibberaguil snapped. Nick muttered something to herself, but Exflibberaguil didn¡¯t bother listening. There were more important things to tend to other than Nick¡¯s useless blabbering, such as food. Their supply of instant noodles was running out again, which meant Exflibberaguil had to go out for more. Unfortunately, with the publicity they were getting, it was too much of a risk to go out with Nick behind him. The bandaged hand would also give off the wrong signals, and more than once Exflibberaguil had noticed people staring at him and was forced to change parks. Leaving Nick in the trailer was no better. Now that she had begun recovering, Exflibberaguil feared she¡¯d begin wandering around when he wasn¡¯t around. Box, having no hands, could not stop her long enough. Exflibberaguil could possibly handcuff her, but he couldn¡¯t find his cuffs and had a vague memory that something had happened to them. He didn¡¯t wish to remember though. Remembering things was always dangerous.If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. Exflibberaguil buried his head in his hands. Here I am. The world¡¯s only chance of surviving. Yet I¡¯m on the verge of starvation because these monkeys believe in the villain! ¡°What are you thinking about?¡± Nick asked in that annoying innocent way of hers. ¡°Food.¡± She sniffed. ¡°You couldn¡¯t be. You never think of food. It¡¯s cup noodles every day. If you actually took the time to think of it, you¡¯d realize that maybe it¡¯s good to buy different varieties.¡± ¡°There¡¯s nothing wrong with cup noodles,¡± Exflibberaguil replied defiantly. ¡°You have all this money! Can¡¯t you get pizza or Chinese takeout?¡± ¡°And risk being seen? No thank you!¡± Exflibberaguil groaned. ¡°What¡¯s so bad about being seen?¡± ¡°Just stop asking questions!¡± Exflibberaguil yelled. ¡°It¡¯s annoying. You still don¡¯t understand because you thought it was smart to just go ahead and wipe all your stupid memories. Just leave be alone, alright?¡± Nick sniffed and scrunched her nose up. ¡°You¡¯re the one to talk. What do you do? Mope and groan every day? Besides, don¡¯t you wipe your memory too? What¡¯s so bad about it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s only bad when some arrogant idiot uses it for selfish and personal motives!¡± ¡°Hmm, let¡¯s see here,¡± Nick began, holding out her hand. ¡°Arrogant? Check. Idiot? Check. Selfish? Check.¡± She ticked them off her fingers one by one. ¡°Personal motives? Check. Oh, were you trying to describe me?¡± Nick laughed coldly. ¡°You hypocrite.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not a hippo¡ªhippocrip¡ªhip¡ª¡± ¡°Hypocrite, sir,¡± Box called from his charging port under the bed. ¡°Yes, that,¡± Exflibberaguil said with a wave of his hand. ¡°That¡¯s not me.¡± Nick didn¡¯t say anything. ¡°Okay, that was a weak argument,¡± Exflibberaguil admitted, ¡°but at least I know what I¡¯m doing. You could have easily gone blind if you weren¡¯t so lucky.¡± Nick stayed silent. For a moment, Exflibberaguil feared that she had remembered everything, and had gone back to giving him the silent treatment. Finally, she spoke in a dry voice, ¡°It¡¯s been a long time, you know that? I need to go somewhere¡ªI can¡¯t remember where, of course, but I need to get back. Yet here you are, in this trailer doing nothing to help. Have you given up?¡± ¡°N-no!¡± Exflibberaguil stammered defensively. ¡°Of course not! I¡¯m doing plenty to help. You just don¡¯t know it of course. Look, I even know who the bunny leader is!¡± ¡°Do you have any proof of it?¡± ¡°Ah¡­don¡¯t start interrogating me now.¡± Nick sighed without taking her eyes of him. ¡°You know, I don¡¯t really trust you anymore. Just putting it out there. You haven¡¯t done anything productive lately. Is this a sort of prank? Because I¡¯m very tempted to just call the police.¡± She paused. ¡°You¡¯re not telling me something, aren¡¯t you? You¡¯re hiding something. I can feel it.¡± ¡°Me? No!¡± Exflibberaguil replied, not even convincing himself. ¡°I¡ªI¡¯m going to go to the convenience store for some food,¡± he said loudly. ¡°I¡¯m going to lock you in the trailer, if that¡¯s all right. Since you¡¯re telling the truth too, I might as well say I don¡¯t trust you either. So don¡¯t try and go escaping alright? My ferret will catch you, I¡¯m sure.¡± ¡°You mean the ferret you haven¡¯t seen in the last few days?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure he¡¯d turn up eventually,¡± Exflibberaguil said hurriedly. ¡°Now don¡¯t think about escaping, alright? I¡¯ll find you eventually. Not to be creepy or anything.¡± He slid out the door as if he were the one that was going to be locked in. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± he called. What for? Nick thought, moving toward Exflibberaguil¡¯s laptop, I never wanted to go outside. Discovery
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. Man Down ¡°BEEF, PORK, AND CHICKEN. Would Nick like shrimp too?¡± Exflibberaguil juggled several bowls of noodles in his arms. He hadn¡¯t yet discovered baskets and shopping carts. As he reached to add another Styrofoam bowl to his arms, the pile toppled, sending the bowls rolling down the aisle. This was not the first time it happened, but Exflibberaguil had a bad memory and kept on forgetting to bring bags. He groaned and begun the arduous task of picking them up. ¡°Er¡­excuse me¡­¡± he muttered to a large man. A bowl was stuck behind him. The man didn¡¯t move. Exflibberaguil coughed, but the man didn¡¯t seem to hear. Exflibberaguil looked up at the man¡¯s face. ¡°Would you mind¡ª¡± he began before stopping mid-sentence. This man looked strangely familiar. Exflibberaguil shook his head and cleared his throat. Memories were always so confusing. ¡°Er, excuse me, would you mind moving a little to the right?¡± he repeated. The bald man moved his head. Apparently he did recognize Exflibberaguil and glared. The glare completed the missing puzzle. Exflibberaguil knew who the man was. ¡°It¡¯s you!¡± the man shouted with disbelief and contempt. ¡°Me? Yes me! Who? Do I know you?¡± Exflibberaguil blabbered nervously, abandoning the noodles and inching away. He laughed. ¡°I mean, hello! It¡¯s me! Goodbye! Who are you?¡± ¡°Bob Smith!¡± the man roared. ¡°Bob Smith? That you? I don¡¯t recall¡ªoh that¡¯s right! I¡¯m Bob Smith. Ha¡ªwhat a name. I can¡¯t remember it myself.¡± The man¡¯s stubbly beard twitched, and he stepped in the way of Exflibberaguil¡¯s escape route. He did not look impressed with Exflibberaguil¡¯s improvising. ¡°Ah¡ªand you are? I think I remember you. Something like¡­Miles! Ha! I didn¡¯t think I could remember your name. I have so many clients asking for their picture. But oh, wow! Miles, is it you?¡± Exflibberaguil stammered on, turning around and backing the other way. ¡°I never thought we¡¯d meet again! Well, nice seeing you. I have something urgent now¡ª¡± Miles stepped around Exflibberaguil and blocked the other route. Exflibberaguil, accepting that he had no chance of leaving early, heaved a big sigh. ¡°Or we could talk. Talking¡¯s good too.¡± Exflibberaguil squatted down and picked up the bowl of instant ramen that he had originally been aiming for. ¡°Fancy meeting you here, of all places. Strange place to meet, considering your home is miles away. Almost in another state, I believe. What a coincidence, right?¡± Exflibberaguil laughed awkwardly.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. Miles glared harder, as if there was something he wanted Exflibberaguil to say first. ¡°Say, how¡¯s Cosmo?¡± Exflibberaguil suggested. ¡°How¡¯s he doing? Did you bring him here on this road trip too?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t bring him; he brought me!¡± Miles yelled. ¡°He escaped! Couldn¡¯t get very far, but I had to tranquilize him. Now he would let me have no peace until we went his way. Gave me a map and made me follow it. I don¡¯t even know how he knows when we¡¯re going the wrong way, but he knows! It¡¯s all your fault.¡± ¡°Woah, woah, woah. Let¡¯s not make any assumptions here yet,¡± Exflibberaguil said, putting up his hands in surrender. ¡°Look, Mister Miles, I apologize for what happened last time, but I don¡¯t know why your rabbit would target me now. How should it know where I am? I¡¯m just as confused as you are.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know why this is happened! I just know it has something to do with you, and that you assaulted my rabbit.¡± ¡°Oh, come on! That couldn¡¯t be. I already apologize for last time, but would you let me go now? I didn¡¯t harm your rabbit in any way. I¡¯m just here to buy my instant noodles.¡± Exflibberaguil began walking away now, gathering the last of his noodles. ¡°It was good to see you again, Miles. Goodbye!¡± Exflibberaguil turned and moved away. As soon as he was out of Miles¡¯s sight, he began running to the checkout with his noodles. Miles was big and dangerous, at least to Exflibberaguil. He was not about to make all the effort and fly to Driew only to have his life end in a Sodriew¡¯s hands. The thought itself was embarrassing enough to make any respectable Mustela depressed for several weeks. Finally, with his noodles secured in big plastic bags, Exflibberaguil headed out into the parking lot. He didn¡¯t bring the trailer, of course. But he needed to see Cosmos. It wasn¡¯t hard to find Mile¡¯s car. Not every car was a big red pickup with ginormous black wheels with an equally large brown rabbit in a cage in the back. Exflibberaguil lugged his bags to the rabbit. The big tires made it difficult to see over the top of the pickup, but Exflibberaguil managed on tip-toe. He tried to glare intimidatingly at the rabbit, but he was at a disadvantage, being shorter than eye-level. He stepped on the Styrofoam bowls for a little extra height, though he could feel the bowls being crushed under his weight. ¡°I don¡¯t know what your plotting, but you better stop wasting your efforts,¡± Exflibberaguil sneered, believing he sounded dangerous. Cosmo glanced at him, uninterested and continued to eat his lettuce. ¡°I know you understand, you useless rabbit. You know, I really don¡¯t know why you bother growing so big. The only purpose of your kind is just so there¡¯s more meat to eat. Size is useless, you know that? Only makes you easier to hit with a knife or bullet.¡± Cosmo didn¡¯t both looking. ¡°Hey¡ªlisten to me when I¡¯m talking! Look at me! Be respectful you little rodent! Yes, rodent! You¡¯re no better than a rodent! Hey¡ªlook at me!¡± Exflibberaguil reached over and tapped the cage. Cosmo didn¡¯t even bat an eye. He continued to eat without flinching. ¡°Hey! Hey! You listening?¡± Exflibberaguil leaned over, almost into the back of the pickup. He poked his finger into the large holes of the cage, prodding Cosmo. ¡°Hey!¡± Cosmo twitched so Exflibberaguil kept on poking. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right. Be uncomfortable you disrespectful brat! You¡ª¡± In a blink of an eye, Cosmo turned around and bit Exflibberaguil¡¯s finger. Exflibberaguil toppled off his pile of ramen, crushing the bowls as he fell onto them. Great amount of blood spurted from his right index finger. He couldn¡¯t tell if the top was attached or not. There was a great pain in his head. Perhaps he had hit his head against the pavement or some sort of curb. He didn¡¯t see anything after that. He could only feel the throbbing pain. Captured UGH. Are all these things so heavy? Most are heavier. They¡¯ve got buckets of fat rolling off their bones. You should come out someday. It would be good for you. No thank you! I was nearly devoured the last time I came out. Who knew such a place would be so aggressive? I couldn¡¯t even get a proper introduction. They¡¯re just begging for war. And I bet, if we did try, we¡¯d win the war right now. I don¡¯t know why you all are stalling. Our forces are so much stronger than theirs. Not everything¡¯s about war. Of course not. I know that. The new generations seem to think otherwise. It¡¯s all about control and that nonsense. Power. Pride. We don¡¯t do that. You do remember that, right? Of course! You don¡¯t need to always be so nagging. Good¡­I was just getting worried¡­ Pfft¡­ Stop taking everything so seriously. I¡¯m just kidding around. Now, why do these things weigh so much? Is it their diet? Or are they filled with water? You¡¯re changing the subject again¡­
¡°WHERE AM I?¡± ¡°Five more minutes,¡± Nick muttered, turning to her side. She groped around for the alarm. ¡°Where am I?¡± Exflibberaguil yelled again. ¡°Where am I? Where am I? WHERE AM I?¡± ¡°Shut up!¡± Nick screamed in an equally loud voice. ¡°I just wanted to sleep! What¡¯s wrong with you? And why¡¯s the trailer all¡ªhey where am I?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯ve been saying!¡± ¡°I should think you¡¯d recognize your own ship,¡± Box said. ¡°Apparently I thought wrong.¡± ¡°Box!¡± Exflibberaguil cried, leaping across the room and collapsing on the little round robot charging in the corner. Box¡¯s charging port was the only feature of the room. The rest was all a blank white. There were no doors. ¡°Do you know how we got in?¡± Nick asked, examining the walls. ¡°There are no doors here. I can¡¯t find any secret windows either. It¡¯s all just¡­wall.¡± ¡°How should I know how we got here? I was unconscious too!¡± Exflibberaguil whined, rolling around on the floor. ¡°Well, it¡¯s your ship¡­¡± ¡°So what? If you found yourself in a doorless room and a tiny robot says it¡¯s your house, how would you react?¡± Exflibberaguil groaned. ¡°We¡¯re doomed. Doomed! This is where I, the great Exflibberaguil, die of starvation.¡±Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. ¡°How ironic. This whole thing started because I was kidnapped onto this ship. This is where it ends, I guess.¡± Nick began speaking in a high-pitched sarcastic voice. ¡°Oh no! I¡¯m Exflibber-what-not and now I¡¯m going to die on my one spacecraft. I¡¯m so useless!¡± ¡°You are useless. I¡¯m glad you¡¯ve come to terms with it,¡± Exflibberaguil said matter-of-factly. Nick sniffed as angrily as she could, unable to come up with a good comeback. She lay flat against the wall, feeling her way to see if she could find a hidden button. ¡°Hey Box, you seem to know that this is your ship. Do you know how to get out of here?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Any useful information at least. Like, you know, where is the door?¡± ¡°No,¡± Box replied, as cheerful as ever. ¡°Try asking the ferret. He knows.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think ferrets speak English, Box,¡± Nick sighed. The ferret purred and rubbed against her leg, as if to say, Don¡¯t underestimate me! I understand you¡¯re talking behind my back. ¡°Help!¡± Exflibberaguil wailed, his voice echoing around the room. ¡°Help! Someone!¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s going to work.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°It never works like that in movies,¡± Nick replied all-knowingly. ¡°What¡¯s supposed to happen is that we¡¯re stuck in here. Food will come automatically or through some secret slot. Then, the lights will go out and a creepy voice will say: ¡®This is a game. Try to escape to survive. Mwahahahaha!¡¯¡± Nick acted all the parts out, throwing her head back for the evil cackle. ¡°We¡¯re not in a movie,¡± Exflibberaguil pointed out. ¡°We are if I say we are,¡± Nick replied stubbornly. ¡°Besides, I don¡¯t see you will a better plan. It took years of honing my internal movie database to get to this level. I¡¯m not about to get insulted by you amateur. All you watch are horror movies of buck-toothed animals eating you and clawing at your skin and biting and tearing and¡ª¡± Nick collapsed on the floor. ¡°I think I need to sit down.¡± ¡°Ah, so you finally realized,¡± Exflibberaguil sighed, collapsing as well. ¡°It¡¯s the rabbits that did this. Of course. I wonder if they know I¡¯m not an Odriew?¡± ¡°Of course they know! They¡¯re keeping you prisoner! Why else would they keep you if they didn¡¯t know you¡¯re an alien.¡± ¡°A Mustela, to be precise. But there are plenty of reason why we¡¯d be captured. We may be quarantined. There may be a lot more people somewhere else in the ship. You¡¯re not always so special, you know. Besides, it may also be because we¡¯d get some sort of special punishment.¡± ¡°Why would we get the special punishment?¡± ¡°Because I may or may not have insulted the leader of the rabbits¡­¡± Exflibberaguil murmured. Chase ¡°GOOD MORNING, OFFICER KIRK.¡± Officer Kirk nodded slightly, glaring at the person that greeted him. Jake had never seen his role model so flustered. Officer Kirk, though still commanding and intimidating, seemed hurried and flustered as he paced around station. Jake followed timidly, ready to complete whatever task Officer Kirk would give him. However, it seemed like his only job was to throw out the countless paper coffee cups Officer Kirk would finish. If there were one thing police stations had an abundance of, it would be coffee machines. Too many officers worked overtime, and with the media getting out of hand with the whole missing girl mess, more and more officers stayed in the office far longer than they are supposed to. Coffee was as essential to a station as oil was to machines. Officer Kirk made a cup of coffee at every coffee machine he saw, downing at least seven cups before he came to a rest. Jake noticed many officers wave from their little windowed cubicles, then become confused when Officer Kirk did not wave back. Those that greeted Kirk in the hallways were met by a cold nod. Jake took on the job of returning the greetings, hoping that the officers would interpret it as a sign to leave Officer Kirk in peace. ¡°Car¡¯s ready, sir!¡± Andrea reported. Somehow, she seemed even more energetic than Officer Kirk, even though she strictly frowned upon caffeine and complained it gave her headaches. ¡°Ah, yes!¡± Officer Kirk exclaimed, frowning deeper for some reason. He bumped into Jake as he hurried past, following Andrea. Jake felt a little hurt that Officer Kirk didn¡¯t even acknowledge him. He made a mental note to be the one that got the car ready, should the situation repeat. ¡°Officer Kirk, Hallthorn here will bring you to your car,¡± Andrea said politely, a fake smile on her lips. Officer Kirk followed Hallthorn wordlessly, though it was evident these arrangements did not please him. As soon as Kirk turned the corner, Andrea pulled Jake by the arm. Jake tripped on the blue carpet, stumbling to a stop. ¡°Hey!¡± he hissed. ¡°Shut it,¡± Andrea replied in a pinched voice. ¡°Do you even know where you¡¯re going?¡± ¡°No! I was following Officer Kirk all day, throwing away his coffee cups.¡± Though Jake respected Officer Kirk more than anyone else in the station, he struggled to keep his annoyance away from his words. Andrea shook her head, as if it were his fault that he knew nothing. ¡°Here¡¯s what you need to know. A stolen trailer was found in a park up in New Hampshire.¡± ¡°New Hampshire? That¡¯s a five-hour drive!¡±The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Six,¡± Andrea corrected, ¡°but I could probably get there sooner. There will be other officers, but you and Kirk are coming with me. I¡¯m driving, of course,¡± she said, glaring at Jake as if daring him to challenge her. Jake did not provoke her. He had no wish to drive. As much as he despised Andrea¡¯s habit of breaking the speed limit and using the power of the law, driving for six hours was more than he could take. He knew his limit was three hours, and he did not wish to challenge it. ¡°The trailer was full of blood, the police reported. Almost definitely Marine¡¯s. There¡¯s no one there now, though there are signs that the body was dragged. The dogs followed the scent into the middle of a forest, but then it ended. They¡¯re still searching for the body. ¡°Also, a giant, four-foot rabbit was reported missing from some man¡¯s pickup. Bloodstains were found around the car. They¡¯re still running tests on it. There¡¯s a lot of other details, but I think it would be easiest if you saw for yourself. I¡¯ll try to explain it better late. I can give you the full report when we get in the car. ¡°Any questions? We have to leave soon.¡± ¡°Shelter?¡± ¡°We were guaranteed hotel rooms free of charge.¡± ¡°How long?¡± ¡°As long as we need to be there. Probably a week, at least.¡± Jake nodded, a habit he had picked up from copying Officer Kirk. ¡°I see. One more thing. It¡¯s a little of topic, but I¡¯ve been meaning to ask, how has Mrs. Lucifay been keeping up?¡± Andrea sighed and rubbed her temples. ¡°As good as a childless mother in jail could be, I guess. I doubt even the best of lawyers could help her much now, with the way she¡¯s acting at least. I have no doubt she could file for insanity right now. Was that your last question? We need to leave if we want any chance of getting there before dark.¡± Jake nodded. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± he sighed. As they headed back to the elevators, Jake noticed no one went out of their way to greet him. It annoyed him even more, and he must have begun walking heavier because Andrea snapped at him to stop stomping. ¡°That¡¯s all you ever do!¡± Jake whispered suddenly. He would have liked to raise his voice, but he didn¡¯t want to disrupt someone working. Even though they stop working to say hello to Officer Kirk, he thought, feeling unusually bitter. ¡°Everyday, you just love to yell at me and criticize.¡± ¡°What am I supposed to do?¡± ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know, maybe say hello for once? Or even better, good morning?¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Andrea groaned rolling her eyes. ¡°Good Morning, Officer Jake. You¡¯re acting very strange today, you know that? Did something come loose in your brain when he tripped over the carpet?¡± ¡°No! See, there you go again. Insulting me like always.¡± ¡°Alright, alright!¡± Andrea replied, smirking and raising her hands in surrender. ¡°I¡¯m sorry Jake. I¡ª¡± she was about to say something sarcastic but decided against it and bit her lip. ¡°Come on, can you walk faster? You don¡¯t need to look at every stain on the wall. Your hero¡ªI mean, superior Officer Kirk is waiting for you in the car.¡± ¡°Hmph!¡± Jake snorted. ¡°Yeah, yeah. Everyone wants to be with Officer Kirk. Like he¡¯s the center of the universe. Like no one else exists. I can¡¯t believe you live like that.¡± He stomped off angrily toward the parking lot. What¡¯s wrong with him today? Andrea wondered, staying behind. After a moment of contemplation, she shrugged and laughed at her own worry. Must have broken up with his girlfriend or something. Background IN EVERY MUSTELA TEXTBOOK (THAT HAD NOT BEEN BURNT TO ASH) THERE IS AN ARTICLE THAT SAYS ROUGHLY THE SAME THING: Millenia ago, before the planet Driew was populated with the first ape-beings, there was a small planet called morph. Small, of course, being relative to the undefinably large universe in which the planet was located. Morph is a great deal older than Driew, and it had no trouble populating itself with organisms. In fact, Morph was almost identical to Driew in the fact that they both had all the essentials of a healthy planet: water and oxygen and politicians. The only true difference was that Morph did not evolve apes. Rabbits had not originally been smart or evil. In fact, they were very much like what Sodriew imagine them to be: cuddly, harmless prey at the bottom of the food chain. However, on Morph, no true predator emerged. Whenever one promising stronger animal began to fight to the top, some disease or difficulty always wiped it out. At one time, it was volcanoes. Another was flooding. Rabbits survived only because it, like most other small animals, was all over the planet and there were simply too many of them to go extinct. Eventually, the simple herbivores became the ones to evolve, and rabbits, due to their reproduction speed, populated much of Morph. Slowly, as they realized their power, rabbits began to kill off all the other fast-reproducing herbivores that threatened their dominance. Of course, with no other animal to kill them, rabbits began to overpopulate and exhaust their home planet¡¯s resources. Naturally, to preserve their species, they began sending bunnies and hares¡ªthe more expendable animals of the Lagomorph order¡ªto discover and colonize other potentially habitable planets. At first, the animals only immigrated to other planets. It was not something out of the ordinary. Many planets became easily crowded, and there were, in fact, many planets known as ¡°hotels¡±. These planets were specifically designed to house multiple species from similar planets, and many provided different artificial environments so a greater diversity of animals may come. These hotels gained more popularity and began collecting fees in exchange for their land.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. The rabbits were happy with these hotels and other temporary planets for quite a long time. Their planet began to breathe again, and those pesky hares (who were rumored to be jerks) were finally out of the justice system and stopped starting all the protests. Slowly, as the other species began to edge out of Morph, Morph began to consist only of rabbits. Leaders were elected, and minor wars were fought for the usual political, religious, and practical reasons. These rabbits were once surprisingly pleasant. They were polite and well-mannered; largely because they feared the other predators that could easily destroy them. Rabbits were seen as ¡°poor things¡± to be pitied on Pylo¡¯rox, and Mustela would often have rabbits clean and do insignificant tasks at their homes. Unfortunately, rabbits had an unusually fast reproduction rate. Soon, these hotels, designed to house only a few million of a species at most, began to fill up and overflow. Planets, such as the Mustela¡¯s Pylo¡¯rox did not have enough resources to keep the rabbits. They began to urge the animals to move, and when they refused, violence broke out. Even worse, hotels and other planets blacklisted them, and their already dangerously large population had nowhere to go. As a result, like a cornered dog, the animals fought with all they had. With no direction to flee, the inherited calm and peaceful herbivores became the most feared and ruthless soldiers. They had no shortage of weapons. Rabbits are surprisingly smart, and the leaders had already foretold the violence. Rabbits dropped their contracts and began invading planets blindly, regardless of species. Many planets perished, which included Pylo¡¯rox. Of course, some places did try to form allies and team up to defeat the evil animals. But like all realistic teams, betrayal was common. They soon found themselves fighting each other more than they fought the rabbits. They fought all for the same reason, the only true motivation for war: resources. As galaxies turned on each other, the rabbits sprang in and fought each planet at it¡¯s weakest. They spread like disease, encompassing and overpopulating newly acquired planets at an alarmingly fast rate. That¡¯s when they realized the genius of targeting new planets. Ones that were still reasonable fresh and full of undiscovered treasures. These planets had not yet been covered by the trademark black smog that hung over every other inhabited planet. And these new planets did not have too many harmful machines that could potentially make even the smallest of dents in the rabbit population. The first victim was Driew. Trial and Error ¡°IF YOU DON¡¯T HAVE THE GUTS TO COME DOWN, I DON¡¯T SEE THE POINT IN TALKING TO A COWARD.¡± The rabbit had been taunting them for a while now, the voice echoing around the room. Nick had searched the room, trying to find the source of the sound. But, after listening to the voice carefully, Nick had felt like the room itself resonated with the voice, and the absence of a speaker further convinced her of this theory. It was also evident that the rabbit had some way of observing them, and would often laugh at Nick¡¯s efforts. Exflibberaguil, on the other hand, had another strategy. He lied on the floor, sulking and returning the taunts thrown at him. Nick had begun to suspect he was enjoying the task too much, but Exflibberaguil insisted that words were the way to harm a rabbit. ¡°I ask you,¡± the voice said in response, ¡°would you like to get out of your room and enjoy the world outside?¡± ¡°Of course!¡± Exflibberaguil yelled back. ¡°I completely agree. That is why I do not want to come to your entrance-less room.¡± Exflibberaguil snorted. ¡°You know the entrance. You are just not willing to show it.¡± ¡°Precisely. Bravo! Excellent deduction.¡± Exflibberaguil snorted again to show he acknowledged the compliment but did not approve of the sarcasm. ¡°You speak excellent Nedriew,¡± Exflibberaguil said, returning a compliment but hinting at sarcasm. ¡°Thank you. I am invading another planet; the least I can do is show the courtesy to learn their language. Besides,¡± the rabbit added, ¡°it wasn¡¯t difficult to learn. I find the language only describes the most basic and primitive actions. There is no word for the uncomfortable feeling you get when you¡ªsay¡ªare about to sneeze but do not. There should be a word for it. It is one of the 5000 essential words in every sophisticated society.¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t describe Driew as sophisticated¡­¡± ¡°Stop it!¡± Nick admonished. ¡°And it¡¯s Earth, thank you very much. You¡¯re invading my planet. The least you can do is get its name right.¡± ¡°My, she¡¯s very attached to this planet,¡± the rabbit remarked. ¡°¡¯Course. She should be. It¡¯s her home planet, after all,¡± Exflibberaguil replied casually, shrugging carelessly. There was a long, awkward silence. Not even Exflibberaguil was willing to break it. Even his mouth was tired after spitting insults for three hours. ¡°¡­What?¡± the rabbit uttered finally, putting a strange weight with the word. ¡°Ah¡ª¡± Exflibberaguil began, not noticing Nick cutting her through with her hand and signaling him to be silent. ¡°I said¡ª¡± Nick jabbed him in the ribs (that is, if Mustela had ribs and ribcages). ¡°Uh¡ªhey! Oh my! We¡¯ve been talking for so long! I don¡¯t know how long because this room doesn¡¯t have a clo¡ª¡± ¡°Three hours twenty-two minutes,¡± Box offered. ¡°Ha! Time passes quickly, amiright? Ha ha¡­¡± she faltered. ¡°Well, um don¡¯t you have any rabbit things to do? And I¡¯m getting a little hungry. Is it lunch time yet?¡±The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Don¡¯t change the subject!¡± the rabbit roared, its voice echoing off the walls. Nick felt her eardrums vibrate. She could still hear the sound repeating in her head. ¡°Ah¡ªokay,¡± she stammered, before falling silent from fear. ¡°Now, what did you say?¡± the rabbit repeated. ¡°The little red-haired alien.¡± ¡°Mustela,¡± Exflibberaguil corrected. ¡°What. Did. You. Say? Do you need me to repeat that louder?¡± Exflibberaguil tried desperately to control his trembling, and hoped it was not visible. ¡°Me? I said nothing. Only that Nick here is not an alien. She¡¯s a native inhabitant of Driew. I really thought you knew¡­¡± ¡°Oh, no, no, no,¡± the rabbit muttered, though his voice was magnified ten-fold. ¡°You¡¯re lying, aren¡¯t you. You just want me to get in trouble and get executed.¡± ¡°I¡ªI¡¯m afraid not,¡± Exflibberaguil stammered. ¡°Why d-do you need two of us?¡± ¡°We incinerated your planet and destroyed everyone. We just feel bad and want to prevent Mustela from going extinct.¡± Nick and Exflibberaguil shared awkward, then disgusted glances. They subconsciously moved away from each other. ¡°Um, well, while I appreciate you concern and¡ª¡±Exflibberaguil began. ¡°We also want to perform tests. You have very interesting internal structures. We would just want to dissect you and compare you to the lesser ape-evolved Odriew.¡± Exflibberaguil stopped, his mouth gaping in mid-sentence. ¡°Never mind then,¡± he finally finished, then smacked his dry mouth. ¡°No thank you!¡± Nick reproached. ¡°I don¡¯t want to be dissected, thank you very much.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. There¡¯s plenty of better candidates to be dissected than a child with an infection.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure if I¡¯m supposed to be relieved or offended,¡± Nick muttered. ¡°Be relieved,¡± Exflibberaguil advised. ¡°Hey rabbit!¡± he called. ¡°There should be plenty of other Mustela floating around in space. I¡¯m sure you could find better than a fourteen-year old boy missing half an index finger.¡± He wiggled the bloody, bandaged stump. ¡°Also, could you give me some more of that pain killer? It¡¯s starting to wear off.¡± ¡°Space is big, boy,¡± the rabbit scoffed. ¡°You can¡¯t simply float around in space and find a Mustela. You have no idea how long it took to track you down.¡± ¡°Only about six or seven years, tops,¡± Exflibberaguil corrected. ¡°Though I spent centuries in space, I used my handy dandy time machine which I¡¯m assuming you¡¯ve found. It¡¯s really quite obvious.¡± The rabbit laughed outright. ¡°Ha! That piece of trash isn¡¯t worth our time. And yes, we did spend centuries tracking you down. Just because you have a time machine doesn¡¯t mean others don¡¯t have ways of travelling with you. Your technology is simply not good enough yet.¡± ¡°Ouch.¡± ¡°H-Hey! You are all missing an important detail here!¡± Nick said. ¡°What will happen to me?¡± ¡°Oh, we¡¯ll just find some place to throw you down, I suppose. Then I¡¯ll have to make an excuse why I only have one Mustela. Tell me, do you think it¡¯s better to commit suicide or be executed. I¡¯ll die either way, but if I commit suicide, my family wouldn¡¯t be embarrassed by others. Though they would probably be disappointed and eat my body for dinner.¡± The rabbit paused, though evidently not expecting an answer. ¡°Th-throw me down?¡± Nick repeated. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re still thinking about that?¡± the rabbit said, as if amazed that Nick still remembered such an insignificant fact. ¡°My bones are fragile! You can¡¯t simply throw me down! I¡¯ll die from the height.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± the rabbit agreed, ¡°we¡¯ll use the claw. It¡¯s not too painful, as long as it doesn¡¯t crush any bones. I¡¯ll be sure to give you numbing shots, just in case. Probably some sort of sleep medicine as well. I can¡¯t have you screaming your way down. A gag would work too.¡± ¡°Numbing shots? A gag¡ª? W¡ªyou can¡¯t do that! When I get on the ground, I¡¯ll be sure to spill all your secrets! They¡¯ll definitely trust me! I¡¯m famous on my planet!¡± Nick lied. ¡°Ah, that won¡¯t be a problem. I found a very interesting machine on your vehicle. I believe it erases memories. I¡¯m sure, with a few adjustments, I could make you lose all your memory permanently. You¡¯ll have as much memories as an infant.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t do that! It¡¯ll damage her brain forever!¡± Exflibberaguil cried. ¡°Oh, there are enough Sodriew on this planet. Damaging just one insignificant child won¡¯t make any impact, I¡¯m sure. What? Have you grown attached to this Odriew?¡± ¡°Wh¡ªno!¡± Exflibberaguil relented. ¡°I mean¡ªI just¡ª¡± he sputtered. ¡°Then it¡¯s settled. In a few moments, you¡¯ll fall asleep. Don¡¯t fight it. The gas will be potentially toxic if you breathe in too much.¡± ¡°Stop!¡± Nick screamed. ¡°Wait! I didn¡¯t agree to anyth¡ª¡± ¡°Nighty-night!¡± And the lights turned off. Extraterrestrial ¡°THE RESULTS TURNED UP NEGATIVE, SIR.¡± ¡°So it¡¯s not the girl¡¯s,¡± Detective Hart said thoughtfully, stroking his pointed goatee. Detective Hart, a large man of fifty, was the head of this case. He was an old member of the New Hampshire Police Department, and he was expected to stay there until his retirement. He had a large, sturdy frame, and intelligent eyes circled with laugh lines. ¡°No, sir. Negative,¡± a scrawny officer insisted. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t find DNA.¡± ¡°What do you mean, no DNA?¡± Hart exclaimed, jumping out of his office chair. It squeaked in protest and spun the other way. The scrawny officer shrank into the corner of the small office, bumping into the large oak bookcase and disturbing the thin layer of dust that rested on it. ¡°I¡¯m sorry sir,¡± he squeaked, though he had no idea why or what he was apologizing for. ¡°Are you sure? It could be a rabbit. A rabbit was missing too,¡± Hart continued, ignoring the officer¡¯s discomfort and advance menacingly. ¡°N-no! Certainly not! I checked to make sure. I was just as surprised, you know, that there was no DNA found. B-But¡ª¡± he stuttered harder as Detective Hart furrowed his thick, dark brows. ¡°B-But you have to see this D-d-detective! It¡¯s nothing I¡¯ve e-ever seen before! L-like a DNA substitute. I-It looks like DNA, but slightly mutated. I-it¡¯s definitely not from any living thing I-I know of!¡± ¡°What are you suggesting then?¡± Hart snapped. The officer¡¯s stuttering only infuriated him further. He had no time for repetition. ¡°Are you saying it¡¯s DNA from a non-living thing? Like a rock?¡± ¡°N-no!¡± the officer gasped, as if he were underwater. ¡°No! Definitely not! What a ridiculous idea!¡± ¡°Some sort of DNA mutation then? A sickness? Or a clever invention someone has done to escape the authorities?¡± ¡°N-no¡­¡± ¡°What then? An extraterrestrial? An alien from outer space?¡± Detective Hart snorted at the absurdity of his own comment. Before the officer could give a reply, he was jostled out of the way by another officer¡ªOfficer Vaxman-Madrid¡ªrushing through the door. ¡°Detective!¡± she breathed, panting between words. ¡°The officers have come.¡± ¡°Take me to them,¡± he replied, hurrying after her. The scrawny officer sighed the breath he had been holding in, and slowly made his way out the office. It was a dull and lifeless morning, with dreary gray clouds dragging across the sky. There was no rain predicted (though the accuracy of weather forecasts is always questionable), but the gray clouds seemed to be taunting all the humans on the ground. If the weather could speak, it would say, Ha! I¡¯m going to make your day miserable. You could take your umbrella just in case, but the effort may be a waste and you might forget it on the subway. It¡¯s a fifty-fifty chance. Take your pick.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. The weary silhouettes of Andrea and Jake could be seen through the light fog. The only one alert was Officer Kirk, who vibrated energy. His eyes darted around, as if expecting to be attacked any second. Andrea could barely stand straight from the fatigue, and Jake looked like his lunch would be coming out very, very soon. ¡°Ah, Detective Hart!¡± Officer Kirk exclaimed, standing even straighter and offering his hand. ¡°Officer!¡± Hart returned, accepting the handshake and completely disregarding Andrea and Jake. The two policemen plastered on their fake smiles as a silent arm wrestle took place, neither one of them wanting to end the bone-crushing handshake. Eventually, Detective Hart let go, and he hid his sweaty hand in his coat pocket. His dark eyes became even colder, and, like a wolf, he sensed his dominance being challenged. Officer Kirk¡¯s gray-blue eyes glinted in triumph, and the corners of his mouth stretched wider. ¡°Why don¡¯t you come this way, officers,¡± Hart said, his eyes still on Kirk. Andrea attempted to introduce herself, but she understood that Hart had no intention of remembering her name. Jake supported her as she stumbled along. Kirk and Hart were still locked in a staring contest, challenging the other to break eye contact. Hart pulled out a chair for Kirk as he entered the office. Jake hurried to close the door and pull a chair for Andrea, who was on the verge of collapse. Jake stood standing on the other side of Officer Kirk, though he himself was still suffering from motion sickness. ¡°Coffee?¡± Hart offered, making himself a cup. ¡°Thank you. Black, please,¡± Kirk accepted. Jake shared a glance with Andrea. They both knew Officer Kirk took his coffee with cream and sugar. Andrea motioned him to keep silent, and Jake shrugged. After a prolonged silence broken occasionally by Detective Hart¡¯s sipping (Officer Kirk did not drink because it was too bitter), Kirk began, ¡°This is a long way from Maine.¡± ¡°Maine?¡± Detective Hart asked, though his voice held no confusion. ¡°It was the last place Ms. Lucifay was seen,¡± Officer Kirk explained, a smile creeping on his mouth. ¡°Hair samples were found and matched with her mother. She was also seen with a boy, about fourteen, with bright red hair. Quite a unique color. The stylist had insisted that it was his natural hair color.¡± ¡°Hm,¡± Detective Hart replied, suddenly making Kirk seem foolish for talking so much about something so insignificant. ¡°Well?¡± Officer Kirk demanded. ¡°Have you analyzed the blood samples yet? What were the results?¡± ¡°The trailer was definitely Ms. Lucifay¡¯s blood, though there isn¡¯t enough to confirm death. Something large has been removed from it. Circular. There are also suggestions that a ferret lived in the trailer too, along with the red-haired boy. We still can¡¯t determine who this boy is, but I¡¯m confident it will all come out soon.¡± Officer Kirk nodded his head all-knowingly. ¡°And blood stains in the parking lot?¡± ¡°The results came back negative.¡± ¡°Negative?¡± Officer Kirk exclaimed. ¡°There was no match?¡± ¡°No. Negative as in no DNA was found. Only an approximation.¡± Detective Hart smiled smugly at Kirk¡¯s misunderstanding. ¡°That¡¯s impossible,¡± Officer Kirk declared. ¡°So I thought.¡± Hart sipped his coffee, though the cup had long been emptied. ¡°However, the results did show something similar to DNA, though it¡¯s from no living thing I know of.¡± ¡°What are you suggesting, then?¡± Officer Kirk asked. ¡°Me?¡± Detective Hart asked, feigning surprise. ¡°Nothing. I was just stating the facts. It could be an extraterrestrial, for all I know.¡± ¡°An extraterrestrial?¡± Kirk snorted. ¡°That¡¯s absurd!¡± The Trio ¡°I HOPE YOU¡¯RE HAPPY WITH YOURSELF.¡± ¡°Who asked you?¡± Oakley snapped. ¡°I never told you to come. You came because you were curious.¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Timothy said dryly. ¡°I was curious why I was called up in the middle of my dinner to a woman insisting that the world was in danger.¡± Oakley sniffed, her nose in the air. ¡°I¡¯m sorry your steak got cold. I never told you had to come. I simply wanted to say that the world was in danger.¡± ¡°You never told me I had to come, yet there you were, waiting on my porch ringing my doorbell as you called.¡± ¡°Well¡­¡± ¡°In the middle of my dinner date, to be precise. My girlfriend was very interested to know why I had a woman come to my place in the middle of the night that wasn¡¯t a coworker and I was on first-name basis with. I would have convinced her you were a stalker, if Stapes wasn¡¯t so happy barking. He only acts like that around people he knows.¡± Oakley stuck her nose even higher in the air, though the effect was dampened with her short height. ¡°Well, you could have refused to come with me anyway. Make some sort of excuse. I never kidnapped you. You could have stayed in the house and finished your dinner date.¡± ¡°Are you kidding?¡± Timothy whispered as loud as he could. ¡°Me? Stay with her while she thinks I¡¯m cheating? She¡¯ll burn the whole house down on me, and then hire one of those fast-talking lawyers to get her all the insurance money! On second thought, I probably shouldn¡¯t have left those candles lit¡­¡± Oakley smiled sheepishly. ¡°Well¡­¡± ¡°Don¡¯t even try to argue anymore. After I walked out, you pushed me into the car with child-lock on.¡± Oakley pouted. ¡°You¡¯re making it sound so dramatic,¡± she groaned. ¡°You¡¯re making me sound evil. I merely bumped into you and you fell into the back seat.¡± ¡°Bumped?¡± Timothy muttered grumpily. ¡°You gave me a bruise!¡± ¡°I feel like the third wheel here,¡± the doctor groaned. He had been silent while the two were arguing, smiling in a sort of way that made both of them get the urge to punch something. His reason for smiling was soon known. ¡°I¡¯ll be here when the two of you stop flirting with each other,¡± he said immaturely, a reminiscent of his evil middle school brain showing through his face. ¡°Hey!¡± Oakley protested, forgetting to keep quiet. She quickly swiveled her heard, anxiously surveying if anyone had heard her. ¡°Y¡¯know Timothy old friend?¡± the doctor continued, completely ignoring Oakley. He leaned close to Timothy and whispered loudly, ¡°I think she made your girlfriend mad on purpose.¡± He winked so much his face scrunched up rather unattractively. Timothy was very tempted to comment on it and suggest that perhaps he was jealous he couldn¡¯t get a love life. But knowing the doctor well enough, Timothy knew that saying such a thing would only make the doctor more determined to offend him. Timothy wasn¡¯t worried about himself. He knew that he could take the doctor¡¯s insults. But without Donna to control him, Timothy was worried these roasting battles could get out of hand and offend Oakley. ¡°Oakley,¡± Timothy said, taking a leaf out of the doctor¡¯s box and ignoring him, ¡°why are we here?¡±This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. He gestured vaguely to the bushes they were squatting in, spying on the crime scene. Oakley had persuaded them to drive with her up to New Hampshire. The news of the blood leaked very quickly. Social media exploded with criticism against Marine Lucifay, writing things like ¡°Serves her right¡± and ¡°Karma!¡± After first being shooed away by the police guarding the scene, Oakley had use what she called ¡®woman charm¡¯ and gotten out of questioning. As soon as they were out of sight, she pulled Timothy and the doctor by the scruffs of their neck (for such a small woman, she had surprisingly strong biceps) into the particularly large and overgrown hedges. The large, boring white flowers growing on some bushes emitted a strange, almost minty smell. Unfortunately, it seemed to attract bees. Timothy wasn¡¯t the fondest of bees. He had suffered minor trauma and developed a slight fear of bees after he knocked a hive over with a baseball when he was seven. He didn¡¯t run fast enough, and ended up getting more than a dozen stings. He shied away from the insects, and Oakley stared at him with an amused expression that he did not like. ¡°I told you,¡± Oakley replied to Timothy¡¯s question. ¡°We¡¯re investigating something that could potentially be dangerous to the world if gone unheeded.¡± ¡°What?¡± the doctor asked, not even pretending to be interested. She glared at each of them, then leaned in dramatically. Timothy and the doctor moved away. ¡°Ferret blood was found in the trailer.¡± For a second, none of them stirred. This was no news flash for Timothy, who had seen many posts on social media about it, conspiring that Marine had ate the ferrets raw for breakfast. However, he didn''t feel like it was appropriate to show his knowledge, and he let the silence continue. Suddenly, the doctor began to laugh, his voice dripping so much sarcasm, it was almost visible. ¡°So you came because you were worried about a ferret?¡± Oakley seemed taken aback. ¡°Well, yes,¡± she said after a moment of hesitation. ¡°Oakley! Ferrets are hardly a danger to the world!¡± Timothy hissed. ¡°Yes they are!¡± she protested, remembering to be quiet at the last second. ¡°Who says?¡± ¡°Plenty of professionals!¡± she replied unconvincingly. ¡°Well, okay, maybe just me,¡± she added hastily, ¡°but I¡¯m very persuasive.¡± ¡°Oakley, we¡¯re grown men,¡± the doctor said with an odd anger in his voice. Oakley opened her mouth (probably to correct him and say she was a woman), but the doctor didn¡¯t giver her a chance. ¡°We¡¯re adults now,¡± he continued, pronouncing ¡®adults¡¯ like ¡®ah-dolts¡¯. ¡°I missed three appointments now! I have bills to pay and work to do! You can¡¯t keep on dragging us into these things! Look at us! We¡¯re hiding in the bushes like children. It was fun the first few times, but now it¡¯s plain annoying. I¡¯m sorry to bring you back to reality, but I can¡¯t keep on running after you.¡± ¡°Well, don¡¯t then!¡± she said hotly. The doctor widened his eyes. Then, with a look of determination, he stood up and straightened his coat. He coughed awkwardly, then said, ¡°Good-bye then!¡± Timothy rose as well. ¡°You too?¡± Oakley asked, slightly heartbroken. ¡°Well¡­¡± Timothy said, dragging the ¡®l¡¯, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Oakley, but I really need to pack my bags. I¡¯m going to a new site this weekend, and I still haven¡¯t arranged for hotel and all that. And the doctor has a point. Don¡¯t you have work to do as well?¡± Oakley looked at the ground, without answering. ¡°I dunno,¡± she said at last. ¡°I just thought this was important.¡± Timothy looked down at her. Somewhere inside him, he felt it ridiculous that an adult woman would still be doing such a childish thing. Like I¡¯m the one to talk, he said to himself. ¡°You coming, Timothy?¡± the doctor asked, as if he were in a great hurry. Timothy knew the doctor would either have morning appointments afternoon ones. He rarely had both, and Timothy was willing to bet that he had already missed all the ones scheduled. ¡°Yeah,¡± Timothy sighed and moved to leave. ¡°Wait!¡± Oakley cried. ¡°Wait! Doctor! White fur was discovered here! White ferret fur! You remember, I saw a ferret when I was in the woods¡ª¡± ¡°I really don¡¯t want to offend you, but grow up Oakley,¡± the doctor snapped harshly. ¡°I no longer care about this. I¡¯m going back, and it¡¯s your decision whether to stay or not.¡± He flicked his hand and strode off briskly. Timothy shot Oakley a sympathetic look, and left himself. Oakley was left alone in the bushes, frowning and sulking. ¡°You no longer care, do you huh?¡± she muttered bitterly. ¡°Then why do you still carry that ridiculous glowing splinter in your pocket, doctor?¡± Dream NICK WOKE UP IN WHAT WAS UNDOUBTFULLY THE WORST POSSIBLE WAY TO BE BROUGHT CONSCIOUS. She was dangling a mile above the ground, a sort of metal claw gripping her around the waist. The sight of the tiny treetops below was enough to make her go unconscious again, which would have been the more preferable option if she had just been a little more scared of heights. The claw around her waist was freezing cold, jutting into her side comfortable. It didn¡¯t feel like it was tight enough to keep her from falling, yet because of the awkward way it was positioned, Nick also knew her ribs would crack if the claw gripped any tighter. She hung upside down, her head swimming. The long, though very fragile-looking chain that connected to the claw creaked with protest as she twisted and turned. She tried to scream for help, but a familiar, cotton-like substance seemed to block her throat. If she had been so scared and panicked, she may have realized that it hardly took screaming for people to notice a little girl dangling in mid-air from a giant claw connected to a UFO. The claw shuddered suddenly, like a car turning on its engine. And with a jolt, there was a great creaking sound, and the claw began to lower again. Nick felt strangely like one of the stuffed animals in the claw machine in arcades. She made a silent vow to never get another one of those, before her mind filled once more with panicked thoughts mostly consisting of ¡°AAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!¡± Nick could see the trees in more detail now, like a video game slowly loading its map. But the more Nick could see, the worse her panic got. Originally, it had looked like a giant mass of fluffy green foam. As she got closer, the foam magnified, and was now full of prickly thorns and deadly pointed branches. It no longer looked like a desirable place to land, and fear quickly built up within her chest. Cartoons of people and animals tumbling down trees and hitting every branch in a belly-flop began to rapidly replay in her mind. She could almost hear the thump, thump, thump her body would make as she tumbled down, though it was difficult to tell if it was just her pounding heart. It¡¯s not fair! she wanted to yell. Girls my age get pounding hearts and butterfly stomachs because of love! I get it because I¡¯m about to get speared by trees! It¡¯s not fair! Almost instantly, a voice in the back of her head said, You¡¯re right. It¡¯s not fair. The trees were looking very dangerous now. What had she been thinking, when she thought the trees looked fluffy? It was now obvious that trees were consisted mostly of big fat trunks and sword-like branches. Nick began struggling in the claw, her mind not clear enough to realize that the claw was the only thing that could possible help her. Nick kicked and wriggled, making the chain squeak and begin swinging. It started slow, but the swoops were wider every time, and Nick soon found herself swing at the end of a pendulum. Wind forced tears out of her eyes, and her stomach felt like it was dropping out of her body. Her heart pounded painfully, and breathing felt like inhaling spikes. Suddenly, in the midst of the chaos, a question was proposed in her mind that never occurred to her. What am I doing here?The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. It didn¡¯t seem like the most appropriate time to pose this question, but Nick wasn¡¯t thinking very clearly, and so she figured that swinging from a claw is just a good time as any other to contemplate deep thoughts and questions. The claw seemed to have stopped descending for the moment, and Nick had gone to enough theme parks and rode on enough of the pirate boat rides that the swinging she was experiencing now was bearable. What you are doing here? a little voice in her head repeated. There was definitely some danger, she recalled, holding in her breath as she passed a particularly tall tree without a scratch. I left someone behind. A really, white room¡ªif it could be called a room at all. Good, good. It was more like the inside of a blank box, with no entrance or exit. And there was this person speaking over a loudspeaker that I couldn¡¯t see. Really? No¡ªnot a person, but an animal. Something small¡ªah! A rabbit! That¡¯s right! She silently screamed a little as her hair got tangled in a branch, ripping out a few strands of her hair. Its teal dye was fading, leaving it looking grey and dry. Focus! the voice insisted. You¡¯re up to something¡ªI can feel it! You¡¯re close! Excited, Nick continued. Rabbits. Evil rabbits. All rabbits are evil. Then there was someone else in the room. I don¡¯t think she¡ªno he¡ªwas entirely human either. Bright red hair that no human could possibly have without dye. Also quite tall and angular-looking. What was he? Mus¡ªMushroom¡ª Think! Mustache¡ªMuster¡ªMustela! That¡¯s right! What else? What can you remember? And then he said something to the rabbit that made the rabbit very mad¡ªI remember that much. Something about¡­about me not being Mustache. And the rabbit said¡­said¡­ Yes? Come on! What did it say? It said¡­ Oh, I know you remember. Come on! It said¡­It will throw me off the ship and wipe my memories! Nick suddenly felt an immense satisfaction. It said I had to be Mustela and I wasn¡¯t so it told me I was to be thrown off the ship! But I said I would remember everything, and I threatened it. But then it said that it would come to get me and wipe all my memories when I¡¯m asleep from gas. It might damage my brain but I¡¯d remember nothing¡ª Then what the hell are you doing here with all your memories intact? The little voice yelled. Before Nick could react, the claw suddenly opened, and dropped her.
THERE WAS A HIGH-PITCHED SCREECHING. Nick woke up, covering her ears. She could make out two blurry shapes, arguing. Checking herself quickly, she was able to determine that everything had been a dream. She was still in the ship, though not in the same room, which meant¡­ ¡°Ah, you awoke,¡± said a familiar voice, but strangely small and weak. It was the rabbit, of course, but apparently the speaker had magnified its voice and made is sound so much more intimidating. Nick did not answer. Her throat was still clogged up with cotton. ¡°I forgot to say,¡± the rabbit continued, ¡°but the gas also gives you very vivid and peculiar dreams.¡± Nick continued to rub her eyes, but no matter how much she rubbed, she couldn¡¯t get the layer of thick fog that seemed to veil and blur her eyesight. She eventually gave up and decided that the rabbits must have done something to her eyesight as well, or maybe it was just a side effect of the gas. ¡°Mmrvb!¡± she protested, trying to speak. She blinked furiously, and felt around her. She was on a cold metal surface, but things protruding from above kept on tugging and tangling with her hair. ¡°You probably want to close your eyes,¡± said the rabbit. Nick was confused. I can¡¯t see much as it already is, why should I¡ª Then the ground began to vibrate and it looked as if the sun were pressed to her eye. Rabbit 2 EXFLIBBERAGUIL AWOKE ONLY TO FIND HIMSELF COMPLETELY ALONE. Not even Box or the ferret was with him in the white room. What the point of waking up, Exflibberaguil thought grumpily, when I¡¯m better off asleep? As the room slowly came into focus, Exflibberaguil was able to see four large televisions mounted on the four walls, plus another one on the ceiling for good measure. For the first few moments, the televisions showed only static. Then it came into focus, and showed a live video presumably from a surveillance camera. He wasn¡¯t able to comprehend much for the first few minutes. He had been recovering from the strange dream he had¡ªsomething about hunger. It must have been heavily influenced by his loudly rumbling stomach. After another fifteen minutes, Exflibberaguil finally sobered up. He finally was able to understand the meaning of the video. It showed Nick, all bundled up in chains and handcuffs, mumbling something and turning about restlessly. Her eyes were still closed, and it was evident she was still in deep sleep. Exflibberaguil knew that Mustela usually required less sleep, and had shorter dreams. Sodriew must need to sleep longer. Exflibberaguil couldn¡¯t see Nick¡¯s bottom half, which was cropped off by the video. The camera was likely in the corner of the room with a rather low ceiling. Taking up much of the video space was a familiar spheroid contraption. Slowly, the memories came back to him. ¡°Nick!¡± he exclaimed suddenly. ¡°Oh no! You¡¯re going to get brain damage! Hey you stupid rabbit. I know you¡¯re listening! Because I hope you¡¯re happy that you are about to¡ªto¡ª¡± Exflibberaguil faltered. ¡°Ah, you¡¯re awake,¡± a voice said. It had the same, strange accent as the previous rabbit, but it was undoubtfully a different person. It had something to do with the coldness of the voice. The previous rabbit¡¯s voice held mostly amusement and sarcasm. ¡°Yes I¡¯m awake!¡± Exflibberaguil yelled defiantly. ¡°And I demand to be freed! Who are you anyway? Where¡¯s the other guy?¡± ¡°The other rabbit is preparing the memory machine and is then going to jump off the ship. I doubt you would ever hear from her again.¡± ¡°Her?¡± ¡°She is female, yes.¡± ¡°Ah, I see,¡± Exflibberaguil replied awkwardly. He coughed slightly. ¡°Well, anyways, I demand to be let out!¡± ¡°I was ordered to make sure you sat and watched. It¡¯s about to start in, oh, four minutes.¡± Exflibberaguil missed the insults the previous rabbit had ceaselessly thrown at him. ¡°Er, let¡¯s just get this out of the way. What gender are you?¡± ¡°Rather rude of you to ask that,¡± the rabbit replied coldly. ¡°I see no reason why I should answer.¡± The rabbit went silent again. After a moment, it began, ¡°You are quite strange.¡±Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. ¡°Me?¡± Exflibberaguil said, surprised that the rabbit began speaking once more. ¡°All the others went crazy when they saw their partners all tied up.¡± ¡°Others?¡± The rabbit scoffed. ¡°Don¡¯t think you are so special. We¡¯ve had plenty of other species. True, they didn¡¯t have their memories wiped. They were mostly tortured, but I don¡¯t know if Sodriew could handle too much electricity.¡± ¡°Strange that you should care about the Sodriew.¡± The rabbit did not reply. It had evidently believed it had said too much. After a few attempts of striking a conversation again, Exflibberaguil too gave up and diverted his attentions to Nick. ¡°You are strange,¡± the rabbit repeated suddenly. Exflibberaguil tried the rabbit¡¯s tactic and ignored it. It didn¡¯t have the same effect though. Instead, it seemed to be satisfied that Exflibberaguil could not come up with an adequate response. The only thing Exflibberaguil hated more than cheese puffs were challenges he could not finish. ¡°What?¡± he said, in order to provoke the rabbit in repeating itself. ¡°You are strange.¡± ¡°I prefer one of a kind,¡± Exflibberaguil replied coolly. ¡°It took you close to three galactic time units for you to come up with that,¡± the rabbit remarked snidely. Exflibberaguil kept his cool, but the tips of his eyes blushed red, giving him away. ¡°Fine!¡± he snapped. ¡°You¡¯ve been saying I¡¯m strange three times now. I know you want to provoke me into saying something. What is it? Stop going around in that roundabout way. If you have something you want to say, say it out loud.¡± ¡°You¡¯re strange,¡± the rabbit repeated for the umpteenth time. ¡°Most of the others were wailing and pleading and begging to save their partner. But all you¡¯re doing is arguing with me. Very strange.¡± ¡°Of course I¡¯m worried! I just don¡¯t show it.¡± ¡°Yet you react so quickly to my insults. I can¡¯t say I believe you.¡± Exflibberaguil¡¯s ears were bright red now, and the color started to creep onto his face. ¡°Well, I¡ª¡± Before he could find a sort of excuse, the rabbit interrupted him. ¡°Save it. It seems like your friend has woke up. Oh, there¡¯s your rabbit.¡± Exflibberaguil turned around to face one of the many screens. The rabbit was right. Nick had woken up, not at all disturbed by her chains. She seemed oddly distant, as if she were hypnotized. Her mouth moved as if she were talking. Exflibberaguil would have thought the sound was off, if it hadn¡¯t been for the high-pitched squealing of the rabbits. One large, white rabbit with brown spots around his eyes was talking to a much smaller (though still rather fat for Odriew standard) black rabbit. Exflibberaguil assumed the bigger one was the rabbit that had spoken to him. This was the second time he assumed wrong. The little black rabbit quickly noticed Nick¡¯s movement. She hopped over to her, and in a surprisingly weak voice, said some unintelligible. It was without a doubt the weaker voice of the rabbit that had spoken earlier. ¡°It¡¯s all muffled. I can¡¯t hear a thing,¡± Exflibberaguil complained. ¡°You¡¯re not supposed to,¡± the rabbit snapped. After a moment, three robots, very much like Box, rolled up to Nick and proceeded to push her into the machine. The rabbit said something else, before hopping to the lowered control panel and began using the voice-activated system to begin the memory erasing process. ¡°Wait!¡± Exflibberaguil cried. ¡°They need to give her the sunglasses! She¡¯d go blind!¡± ¡°Strange, that¡¯s the thing you¡¯re panicked about,¡± the rabbit observed, ¡°when she is likely to get permanent brain damage.¡± ¡°Oh, if you want to be cool and mysterious, then stay silent!¡± Exflibberaguil yelled. ¡°Tell them that she needs to glasses!¡± Exflibberaguil could already see the blue electricity coursing through the wires¡ªtelltale signs that the memory erase was about to begin. ¡°Quickly! Let me out you useless rabbit!¡± The rabbit, apparently taking Exflibberaguil¡¯s advice, stayed silent and wordless. ¡°I¡¯m going to climb out then! I know you come in through the ceiling!¡± ¡°How?¡± ¡°Ha!¡± Exflibberaguil exclaimed triumphantly. ¡°It is the ceiling! Now tell your rabbits that Nick needs¡ª¡± Suddenly, the room was filled with a bright white light, coming from all five directions. Landing ¡°YOU KILLED IT!¡± ¡°Oh, shut up!¡± ¡°You¡¯re not supposed to kill it! It¡¯s thirteen year of bad luck for killing someone. You¡¯re going to die soon!¡± ¡°My lifespan is fourteen years.¡± ¡°See? You get bad luck for the rest of your life, and then you¡¯ll die!¡± Nick opened her eyes cautiously. She was lying on a surprisingly soft and carpeted floor, and her limbs were no longer chained. Everything was a peculiar shade of green, and strange bright spots danced around her vision. Her eyes hurt, and she was plagued with a bad headache. ¡°Urgh,¡± she groaned, then shuddered in surprise at her own voice. It was strangely low and cracked, as if she were sick. ¡°You¡¯re not dead!¡± a large white rabbit the size of a microwave exclaimed (at least, Nick assumed it was white. Everything looked rather green). A spotted rabbit next to the first bobbed its head. ¡°I told you it wasn¡¯t dead! Poor thing. I¡¯m Edna and that¡¯s Kor.¡± Nick backed away, her eyes wide with fear. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re scaring it!¡± Kor snapped. ¡°Don¡¯t you remember? Her memory was wiped. She can¡¯t understand what we¡¯re saying! She has the memory of a newborn rabbit.¡± ¡°Aw,¡± Edna said with disappointment. ¡°I wanted to test my English on a real human. She must remember something. Hi!¡± she said slowly. Nick stared at Edna with a look of extreme confusion. Then, taking a deep breath, she began to scream at the top of her lungs, rolling her head around and flailing her arms. ¡°See?¡± Kor yelled over the screams, ¡°I told you not to scare her! Oh, poor dear. We aren¡¯t going to harm you.¡± She hopped forward, attempting to be motherly. Nick screamed louder, her eyes darting around the room. ¡°Oh no. Look what you did Edna! You scared the poor thing out of its wits. Now it won¡¯t stop screaming. This is all your fault. Oh dear.¡± Kor ignored the increasingly loud screams, and approached Nick. ¡°Is there an off button to make it stop? Or¡ªwhat do you call it¡ªa pressure point?¡± ¡°I heard if you slice across its neck it will stop,¡± Edna suggest snidely. ¡°That will kill her!¡± ¡°It will be your fault then,¡± Edna said sourly, her nose scrunched as if there was a piece of rotten fish held under it. ¡°Well¡ª¡± Kor was suddenly interrupted by a loud roar. Nick stopped screaming immediately. Everyone turned their eyes toward the wall to Nick¡¯s right. There was a loud thud against it. After a moment of uncertainty, the two rabbits approached the wall. They looked more curious than afraid, and quickly gathered enough courage to touch it with their whiskers.This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Suddenly, the wall exploded and blasted both rabbits on to the far wall. They collided and fell unconscious. ¡°Bam! Bam!¡± a familiar voice shouted enthusiastically. The two rabbits fell dead unceremoniously. ¡°Ferret, you finish off the remains.¡± ¡°Took you long enough,¡± Nick groaned, trying to mask her pleasure. She stood up and carefully walked around the spilt rabbit gut. ¡°And I rather liked the two rabbits before you killed them. They were more amusing than you.¡± After a pause, she resumed, ¡°How was my act, by the way. I know you were watching.¡± ¡°Splendid!¡± Exflibberaguil replied, grinning. ¡°Your scream especially. Bought me some time. It really irritated those high-class rabbits that speak Rabbish. Their language revolves around precise tones and pitches. To them, your scream was like chalk on chalkboard.¡± ¡°Nails. Nails on chalkboard.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I said. Now, aren¡¯t you going to ask how I got out?¡± Nick shrugged. ¡°Through the ceiling, I presume.¡± Exflibberaguil¡¯s face fell. ¡°Uh¡­¡± ¡°I was going to tell you,¡± Nick continued smugly, ¡°but I was taken away. I am a little confused though. I expected they were going to drop me down by now.¡± ¡°They were too busy chasing me and ferret. Ferret found me as soon as I escaped from the ceiling.¡± Exflibberaguil held his large gun proudly. ¡°Got this from one of the guards. It¡¯s a little difficult to operate because it is meant for rabbits, but I figured it out. Shame I have to leave it behind though. It¡¯s out of explosives.¡± Nick nodded. ¡°I see then. I assume you fiddled with your memory machine last time I erased my memory?¡± Exflibberaguil grinned toothily. ¡°Well, now that that¡¯s all sorted out,¡± Nick said, standing up and stretching, ¡°how do you suppose we get down from here? And excuse me if I¡¯m wrong, but I think I hear rabbits coming this way very quickly.¡±
¡°THIS¡­THIS ISN¡¯T WHERE THE PARKING LOT IS, DOC.¡± ¡°I know, Timothy!¡± ¡°Then where is the parking lot then?¡± ¡°I¡¯m trying to find out!¡± Timothy groaned. ¡°You went the wrong way in the beginning, didn¡¯t you. We¡¯re lost, and my phone¡¯s out of battery and you¡¯re phone is charging in the car. You should of gone the other way when you were leaving Oakley.¡± ¡°It wouldn¡¯t have made for a dramatic exit,¡± the doctor muttered. They circled around a sign that read ¡®Treck Street.¡¯ ¡°Ah ha!¡± the doctor exclaimed. ¡°I recognize this!¡± ¡°That¡¯s what you said to ¡®Park Avenue.¡¯¡± ¡°That was a mistake.¡± ¡°And ¡®Ridge Road,¡¯ ¡®Jefferson Boulevard¡¯, ¡®Decade Street,¡¯ ¡®Eisenhower¡ª¡®¡± ¡°All right! All right! I get your point!¡± The doctor waved his arms in frustration. ¡°But I think I know Treck. It¡¯s a gut instinct.¡± Timothy glared. ¡°My gut tells me to go back down Park Avenue and visit that bakery that smelled so good as we walked by. I¡¯m hungry. It¡¯s about time you give up on that horrible pride of yours and ask for directions.¡± ¡°No! I know my way¡ª¡± But Timothy had already walked away. ¡°Er, excuse me ma¡¯am,¡± he said apologetically, ¡°but do you know the way to¡ª¡± The woman screamed and ran away. Timothy was taken aback. ¡°Gee, do I look that bad without showering for one day?¡± Suddenly, Treck Street erupted with screams and people running. A few pulled out their phones and began taking videos. Timothy raised his head. It was a spectacular sight. Two kids were descending rapidly, a sort of futuristic umbrella above them. The main source of the screams came from them. ¡°Make way!¡± one of them screamed. But it was too late. By the time Timothy was able to react, they collided. Timothy felt his head hit the ground hard. The doctor rushed to his aid. ¡°I¡¯m sorry!¡± one of the kids squeaked, her voice low but feminine. ¡°Me too!¡± the other, a boy, repeated. ¡°The weather¡¯s beautiful!¡± said the girl. ¡°Splendid!¡± ¡°Amazing!¡± ¡°So we thought it was¡ª¡± ¡°A good day to¡ª¡± ¡°To, um¡ª¡± ¡°Parachute!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right! Parachute! Love it!¡± The boy fumbled at the clasps that held them to their futuristic umbrella. ¡°The excitement!¡± the girl panted. ¡°Fun! Great fun. We were just testing out our new parachute! We have to go now. I¡¯m sorry!¡± Timothy opened his eyes. ¡°Hey wait!¡± he yelled hoarsely. The girl turned around, her black eyes fixed on him. ¡°Hey, it¡¯s you!¡± Timothy yelled. ¡°The girl on the posters!¡± A Mess ¡°WH-WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?¡± ¡°It¡¯s you! I know it!¡± Nick laughed awkwardly. ¡°Are you saying that I¡ªwhat are you saying?¡± ¡°You are the girl in the wanted posters!¡± the doctor chimed in, helping Timothy up. A small crowd began to form in a circle around them, phones out and ready. They lined the sidewalks and the front of the small little stores. It was a comfortable, breezy day, and the crowd grew quickly. However, there seemed to be a strange force field that prevented anyone to come within five feet of Nick or Timothy. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you did with your hair though. Black was way better,¡± the doctor continued. He flicked a nonexistent speck of dust off his coat, pretending to act cool and casual. It only made him look like he was flicking himself. ¡°Excuse me?¡± Nick snapped, trying to sound sassy and offended. She slowly backed away. ¡°For your knowledge, my hair was dyed teal for fifty bucks. I really should get home now.¡± ¡°Hey Nic¡ª¡± Exflibberaguil began. Nick whipped her head around and bulged her eyes out at him. She bit her lip and made a motion with her hand to signal Exflibberaguil not to go on. ¡°¡ªaragua. Nicaragua. Great place for a vacation, I heard, so here I am! Though I never imagined it to be so hostile.¡± ¡°I know, right?¡± Nick chimed in hurriedly. ¡°I never thought¡ªer¡ªNicaraguins spoke English. I thought they spoke Nicaraglish. I also always imagined them to dance and wear and eat more exotically. This seems strangely normal. What a disappointment. I knew I should never have trusted those advertisement and social media posts. Though I do appreciate the attention.¡± Nick waved at the cameras and phones. ¡°This is Maine,¡± Timothy said dryly. ¡°Oooh!¡± Nick gushed. ¡°You know, in the United States, there is a state called Maine too! I heard you can get the best¡ª¡± ¡°This is the United States.¡± ¡°Aaaah¡­¡± Nick said stupidly, nodding her head and furrowing her brow. ¡°I guess we jumped out of the plane too early,¡± Exflibberaguil added. ¡°Well, that just means we really better get going,¡± Nick said. ¡°How long of a walk is Nicaragua? Or better¡ªdoes anyone have a map?¡± After a silence, Nick shrugged. ¡°Guess we aren¡¯t very talkative, are we? That¡¯s alright.¡± Nick hesitated a moment, deciding if she dare continue, before she plunged on. ¡°I don¡¯t suppose any of you have a map?¡± She looked doubtfully at Timothy and the doctor. ¡°No,¡± the doctor said stiffly. ¡°Oh, for god¡¯s sake!¡± Timothy yelled. ¡°Stop playing your games. You have been missing, and that boy kidnapped you!¡± Timothy pointed at Exflibberaguil, who looked bewildered. The crowd¡¯s gaze immediately diverted to Exflibberaguil, their murmurs and expressions conveying amazement, doubtfulness, and anger. ¡°Most of you must have seen those post on social media,¡± Timothy continued, addressing the crowd. ¡°You must recognize this girl and her kidnapper. Come on!¡± This only had the opposite effect on the crowd, and they suddenly went silent. ¡°Oh, give me some affirmation here. Come on! Okay, let¡¯s try this. Can someone show their phone and one of the posts to this girl?¡± The invisible circular force field around Timothy increased to a ten-foot radius. People fought to be as far away from him as possible, should he begin asking random people for phones. Timothy did just that, selecting a teenage blonde who wore fluorescent pink eyeshadow and a nose piercing. He guessed correctly that she would be the sort of girl who usually went on social media and posted a lot. ¡°Can I borrow your phone, Miss? I assume you have all the usual social media accounts?¡±The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Uh¡­¡± she began, then shared a look with her friend, a brunette teenager with smokey black eyeshadow and over-lined lips. They burst into hysterical giggles. Timothy waited politely, feeling his smile becoming colder and faker and staler by the second. After waiting to see if the girls would stop giggling (which they didn¡¯t), Timothy repeated his request. The first girl finally stopped giggling enough to calm down. She gave him an are-you-serious? look, with her left eyebrow and nostril raised, and her face twisted to look like she smelled sulfur. ¡°Uh, no?¡± she said at last, rolling her eyes and shrugging. Then she glanced at her friend again and broke into a fresh round of hysterics. Timothy could no longer keep his fake smile. ¡°Well then. I don¡¯t suppose I could use your phone then?¡± he said coldly referring to the black-haired friend. ¡°I have no doubt you use social media as well. It would be such a shame that your¡ª¡± Timothy paused, and rearranged his thoughts to not sound so insult, ¡°your beautiful makeup look be wasted without the world knowing. Please, may I borrow your phone?¡± The black-haired girl suddenly froze, no longer giggling. She stared at Timothy almost in fear, before reaching over and digging in her friend¡¯s large tote bag. ¡°I¡¯m sure my friend would love to volunteer her own phone,¡± the girl said, handing over a ridiculously decorated and impractical phone. Timothy was about to say the phone was locked, but he quickly realized it had no password. Kids, he thought, almost rolling his eyes himself, don¡¯t know what security is. It wasn¡¯t difficult to find a post about Nick, especially her rabbit-killing encounter. But by the time Timothy raised his head to look up, Nick had already made it to the edge of the crowd and was beginning to squeeze her way out. ¡°Hey!¡± Timothy yelled. ¡°Doctor, why aren¡¯t you¡ª¡± But the doctor wasn¡¯t next to him either. He was also trying to escape, though his larger body made it more difficult. ¡°Doctor!¡± Timothy said with disappointment. The doctor smiled sheepishly. ¡°Ah, well, you were taking so long to get a phone. I just want to go before you emba¡ªI mean, to go find the car.¡± The doctor was already moving toward the kids while he was talking, and his big size and adult strength quickly overpowered Nick and Exflibberaguil¡¯s weak struggles. They were brought to the center once more. ¡°That¡¯s you, isn¡¯t it?¡± Timothy said, thrusting the phone in Nick¡¯s face. The picture showed a rather unattractive picture of Nick with streaks of rabbit blood on her face, her face contorted from the wind and running. A caption under it read: ¡°Animal abuser! So evil!!!¡± followed with have a million tags. Nick made a face. ¡°Eew. Why does the picture have to be taken so bad?¡± ¡°So you admit it was you?¡± ¡°What? No! I wasn¡¯t even aware you were accusing me. Are you?¡± ¡°Yes, I suppose I am!¡± Timothy replied with dignity. Nick fell silent. ¡°Well, then, um, okay then!¡± Exflibberaguil piped up pathetically. ¡°It¡¯s not me!¡± Nick insisted. ¡°What an unflattering picture, by the way.¡± ¡°Who do you suggest it is, then?¡± Timothy challenged. ¡°Your secret twin?¡± Nick considered. ¡°Well, actually, that¡¯s not a ridiculous idea. I don¡¯t know who my dad is. He may have taken my identical twin, and my mom took me. And she may be my doppelganger. There¡¯s a one in trillion chance that I meet my doppelganger, and if these posts continue, I¡¯m sure it wouldn¡¯t be difficult to meet her. I just won the lottery!¡± Timothy smiled maliciously, and tossed the phone back in the crowd. The blonde fumbled to catch it before it hit the ground, and glared and uttered a few choice curses. Timothy ignored them. ¡°Thank you. That¡¯s all I needed to know. You claim you don¡¯t know your father, and live with your mom. These videos are to prove your exact words.¡± Timothy gestured to the crowd. ¡°Yet I know it is your mother that put up the missing posters back in your hometown. So you must be the famous Marine Nicole Lucifay.¡± Nick froze, and Exflibberaguil took up the role of talking. ¡°H-hey! Wait here!¡± he stuttered. ¡°And you are the kidnapper,¡± the doctor said, pulling Exflibberaguil¡¯s arms behind him. ¡°Woah! Woah!¡± Exflibberaguil exclaimed. ¡°Take it easy! I suggest let¡¯s go somewhere more private. I don¡¯t like these cameras.¡± ¡°Marine here says she likes the attention,¡± Timothy replied coldly, smirking. ¡°That¡¯s when I thought I was in Nicaragua!¡± Nick fired. ¡°And my name¡¯s Nick!¡± ¡°Now, come on! Let¡¯s go to a bakery! Your stomach has been rumbling I know you¡¯re hungry.¡± Color rose in Timothy¡¯s face. He hadn¡¯t noticed his rumbling stomach until now. ¡°I quite like the cameras and videos,¡± he snapped. ¡°They leave evidence. I know you just want a chance to escape.¡± ¡°Oh, trust me!¡± Exflibberaguil whimpered, trying to break out of the doctor¡¯s grip. ¡°I won¡¯t try to escape this time.¡± ¡°I know you won¡¯t,¡± Timothy sneered, ¡°because I¡¯m taking you to the police right now.¡± ¡°If I can find them,¡± the doctor murmured quietly. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Nothing, Timothy old man. I have a really good feeling about Fletcher Road.¡± Crime Scene IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL PARK. Unfortunately, Officer Kirk didn¡¯t have the stamina to enjoy it. He didn¡¯t bother hiding his fatigue. He yawned and groaned. Earlier, he had suggested the team go to the hotel and sleep, but Jake refused adamantly. He insisted they check out the site, even though he was just as tired as the rest. When Officer Kirk tried to use his authority to sneak in a few hours of overdue sleep, Jake suddenly became angrier and threw something that can only be described as a tantrum. By that time, Detective Hart was holding his sides with uncontrollable laughter, and the only way Kirk could find to cease the embarrassment was to go with Jake. Officer Kirk made a lame excuse about Jake¡¯s good intuition and uncanny gut instinct, and hurried away, grabbing Jake a little harder than he should. From then on, Hart had become unbearable. He smirked at yawning Officer Kirk and began bouncing around to prove he was not tired at all. ¡°Beautiful park isn¡¯t it?¡± he said smugly. ¡°We make sure, to keep it litter-free. It¡¯s a crime to litter here, and we take it very seriously. Of course, I¡¯m sure you have plenty of volunteers at your place to pick up the trash. Those nonprofits sure are handy, huh? You won¡¯t need to pay them anything, but I¡¯m sure you know all about that.¡± ¡°Do you know,¡± Officer Kirk said, stifling another yawn, ¡°that it¡¯s the poorer cities that fine a lot for litter? They need the money. Of course, I know you have plenty of other reasons for fining litterers so badly. Maybe you have too many officers you can¡¯t get rid of. I know a case like this must really be a treat.¡± Hart¡¯s smile became a degree colder. ¡°The reason we charge citizens for littering is because we like to keep these parks beautiful. We here love the environment. We have to take care of the earth. I¡¯m sure you agree.¡± Officer Kirk pretended not to hear by yawning loudly. He had to admit though, it was a beautiful park, with its luscious green grass and picture-perfect pond. The harsh bright yellow of the CAUTION tape was horribly out of place, against the beautiful background of tall, full green trees, not a single one of their leaves brown. ¡°I admit,¡± he muttered, not quite loud enough for Hart to hear clearly, ¡°this place is real nice. I¡¯m sure all that money you collected from these supposed ¡®litterers¡¯ helped quite a bit.¡± ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± ¡°Come on!¡± Jake yelled as he crossed the caution tape. ¡°What are you all waiting for?¡± His voice was strangely high and childish, and his bottom lip quivered. Kirk ignored the nasty smug look Hart was shooting him and walked wordlessly towards Jake.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. Once he arrived however, he was surprised that Jake didn¡¯t want to see the crime scene. ¡°What?¡± Kirk hissed, glancing at Detective Hart to see if he was eavesdropping. Andrea had hooked him into a conversation which he seemed to be engrossed in. ¡°Hey, Officer Jake, you can¡¯t keep doing whatever you want. You insisted we come, why aren¡¯t you interested in the crime scene now? Are you playing me?¡± Jake just turned his head. ¡°I just don¡¯t want to see the crime scene!¡± he repeated. ¡°I don¡¯t wanna! You go and check it out. Me, I¡¯m going to stand right here.¡± He stomped on one of the stakes hammered crudely in the earth to support the caution tape. Officer Kirk sensed a na?ve stubbornness in Jake and resolved not to press on. Hart was finishing with his conversation and returned to his hew favorite past time: making the most annoying and smug faces at Kirk. ¡°All right then,¡± Kirk sighed with resignation. ¡°I¡¯ll go. You stay here and¡ªhey, who¡¯s that?¡± He was suddenly distracted by three figures approaching. As they ran closer, he could see two officers half hold, half dragging a short woman with brown hair. From the wrinkled blue uniforms, and the slightly off-center caps, the woman had obviously put up a strong struggle. ¡°Who¡¯s this?¡± Detective Hart asked. ¡°Not sure, sir,¡± said the taller officer on the left. His long, thin limbs were visibly tired from holding the woman. ¡°We¡¯ve caught her spying on the crime scene, sir,¡± the shorter and more muscular officer continued. His voice was surprisingly high, which made him rather comical. ¡°Twice, I believe.¡± ¡°Lemme go!¡± Oakley yelled, thrashing about and fighting against her handcuffs. The two officers, unable to keep her down, put her on the ground. She sprang up with her hands still cuffed behind her. ¡°I just wanted to know what happened. You know this has been all over social media. I¡¯m just interested, that¡¯s it!¡± ¡°I thought I informed the press that I did not wish them to be nosing about,¡± Detective Hart said icily. ¡°Uncuff her, by that way. I don¡¯t think she¡¯d escape just yet.¡± The first officer approached her slowly, inserted the key, and quickly sprang back as if he was setting off a bear trap. Oakley struggled out of her handcuffs and flexed her wrists. ¡°I told you!¡± she said. ¡°I¡¯m no press. I¡¯m just interested in this case. And all crimes, actually, but especially this one. It¡¯s internet famous.¡± She stopped, then cocked her head keenly at Hart. ¡°And since when have the media ever listened to your warnings? I saw at least five vans outside, poorly camouflaged.¡± Detective Hart shrugged. ¡°They don¡¯t get caught.¡± Oakley muttered something inaudible, then said, ¡°Fine. I won¡¯t be pestering and spying again. I¡¯ll just go home, alright?¡± She rifled through her pocket to find her wallet and pulled out her driver¡¯s license. ¡°Here are my credentials. You can do all the fancy police work with this, and you can see I am a perfectly respectable and law-abiding citizen.¡± Officer Kirk peered at the card. ¡°Oakley Noel? I think I¡¯ve heard of you. You¡¯re the new cat specialist that moved in.¡± Oakley gave him a pained smile. ¡°Yes, meerkats.¡± ¡°What are you¡ª¡± and once more, Officer Kirk was distracted by figures moving in the distance. This time, they weren¡¯t wearing uniforms. Jake seemed to suddenly take a particular interest in them. ¡°Hey!¡± the larger and bulkier one yelled. ¡°Hello? Police!¡± said the other. ¡°Oh lord,¡± Oakley muttered. ¡°What are these two idiots doing here?¡± Unite Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.
Interrogation ¡°OH BOY, I¡¯VE ALWAYS WANTED TO BE IN THIS ROOM.¡± ¡°Marine, I asked¡ª¡± ¡°Oh, I know what you asked. I¡¯m not deaf, you know,¡± Nick snapped, ¡°though I can¡¯t say the same for you. How many times have I told you to call me Nick?¡± ¡°My question was¡ª¡± ¡°Hello!¡± Nick said brightly to the one-way mirror. ¡°I would wave, but my hand is chained to the table. Of course, you can all see it,¡± she added. ¡°I keep on forgetting. This whole ¡®you can see me but I can¡¯t see you¡¯ thing is very confusing.¡± Detective Hart sighed. ¡°You understand this can be considered as obstructing the investigation?¡± ¡°You¡¯ve said that five times.¡± ¡°And I didn¡¯t lie.¡± Detective Hart rubbed his eyes, beginning to feel the fatigue Officer Kirk had been experiencing. Officer Andrea had to be taken to her hotel, but Officer Kirk refused to go. He was currently snoring on the couch in the break room. ¡°Also, just so you know, you are talking to no one. There is nobody behind the mirror.¡± Nick shrugged. ¡°It only helps when I plead for insanity in court.¡± ¡°Court?¡± ¡°By the speed we¡¯re going, I¡¯d be in court in an hour for ¡®obstructing the investigation.¡¯¡± Nick paused thoughtfully, her eyes glinting as she smiled at the mirror. ¡°And, I hate to break it to you, that was your first lie. I know officers are watching me.¡± Detective Hart¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change, though his eyes narrowed suspiciously. ¡°How did you know?¡± Nick grinned wider. ¡°I didn¡¯t!¡± she said brightly. ¡°I just guessed; you answered.¡± This time Detective Hart chuckled and silently chided himself for falling for the oldest trick in the book. It was a classic move that all amateur detective movie enthusiasts knew. There was always that one criminal that accidentally admitted a clue the detective guessed. This time, the trick was directed against the officer. ¡°Smart, smart,¡± he muttered, ¡°but that doesn¡¯t let you off the hook. I repeat, what is your account on what happened.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s see,¡± Nick said. ¡°I was kidnapped and forced to listen to nails on a chalkboard every day until I went insane and killed a rabbit.¡± Detective Hart raised an eyebrow. ¡°Ah! I seem to have the details mixed up!¡± Nick said. ¡°Here¡¯s the real thing: I was walking along the road, and the FBI suddenly appeared and recruited me to go undercover and discover the secret recipe to Bazooka Bubblegum and bring it back for mass production.¡± The other eyebrow when up. ¡°Fine!¡± Nick sighed, raising her hands, her wrists still cuffed to the table. ¡°I willingly followed a robot into an alien¡¯s UFO because I agreed to the alien¡¯s terms and conditions and I ended up fighting evil rabbits that will eventually take over planet Earth.¡± ¡°Okay, that was just an insult to my intelligence,¡± Detective Hart said dryly. ¡°You tried to make it somewhat believable in the first two, but the last one was just ridiculous. I¡¯m serious. This¡­this¡­red-headed Ex whatever could be dangerous. You don¡¯t want this country to explode, do you?¡± If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Nick shook her head innocently. ¡°Then let¡¯s get serious, alright?¡± ¡°I was. It¡¯s up to you to decide if you want to believe me or not.¡± Nick shrugged. ¡°Of course, I can always make up some believable story, and you can work your butt off trying to find Exflibberaguil, but I have a feeling you won¡¯t approve of that either. So what do you want? Do you want Earth to be destroyed?¡± Nick asked, turning the question back on Detective Hart. ¡°Of course not.¡± ¡°Then I suggest getting rid of the rabbits.¡± Detective Hart stood up suddenly, knocking over his chair and slamming his palms on the desk. Blue veins throbbed on his forehead, popping out and pulsing like a garden hose. His eyes bulged. ¡°You are still on that?¡± he roared. ¡°Enough already! I told you this is serious! You have to stop taking this as a joke. This is bigger than you know of.¡± ¡°And what makes you the judge of what¡¯s important?¡± Detective Hart sighed heavily and sat down again, rubbing his eyes. ¡°Ah, well. It seems like I won¡¯t be getting anything useful out of you anytime soon.¡± ¡°On the contrary, I believe I was very useful if you¡¯d only recognize my genius.¡± Detective Hart shook his head dejectedly. ¡°Do you have any relatives you can stay with? I don¡¯t recommend visiting your mom. She¡¯s in an unstable position.¡± Nick sighed. ¡°Wasn¡¯t planning to. Seeing me again might give her a heart attack.¡± She stared at the corner of the room for a while. After a moment, she set her lips grimly as if she had come to a conclusion she did not like. ¡°Relatives, you say? I suppose I have my father, but I never have seen him. I don¡¯t think he¡¯d like seeing me much either, though Mom says that he does care about us and sends us money. Mom says he just works a lot and never has a chance to come to see us, but it¡¯s a rather lousy excuse for divorce. ¡°I never really interacted with any other relatives. My mom didn¡¯t, at least. There¡¯s certainly no one on my dad¡¯s side and very few from my mom. I suppose Aunt Cara is alright, though I¡¯m not sure how she relates to us. Some absurd connection, I think, and I don¡¯t even know if I share blood with her. But at least I¡¯ve seen her, and she is willing to stay at our house for more than five minutes. I don¡¯t know where she lives, but I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll be able to find out with all your fancy police software.¡± Detective Hart nodded. ¡°Alright then. You¡¯ll be staying in here for a while, but it¡¯s the consequence of not answering my questions.¡± Nick cracked a smile. ¡°I¡¯ve spent much more time in detention; this is nothing.¡± Detective Hart¡¯s expression did not move. With a final long, hard, stare at Nick, he sighed and left the room. And Nick was alone again with her thoughts. Back to Square One ¡°OH, NOT AGAIN!¡± ¡°Yes, yes again,¡± a familiar voice replied. Exflibberaguil jumped up. His face split into a happy grin. ¡°Hey! You didn¡¯t kill yourself.¡± ¡°Clever observation. I proved I was worthy by capturing you again.¡± ¡°Well,¡± Exflibberaguil said brightly, the smile not leaving his face, ¡°at least I was captured for a good cause. I prevented a suicide! That would look good on my resume when I apply for rabbit-killing college. No offense,¡± he added hastily. ¡°None taken,¡± the rabbit replied icily. Exflibberaguil folded his hands behind his head and laid back down. ¡°You know, there¡¯s an invention called paint, and another called wallpaper. These white walls are so boring. The least you can do after taking over my ship is to redecorate it.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve heard you stole this ship.¡± ¡°What? I did? I can¡¯t remember,¡± Exflibberaguil replied. Then he paused and considered. ¡°I suppose that would be around the time I left my planet then. I remember forgetting about that.¡± Oakley stirred, yawning and smacking her lips. She turned over, then furrowed her brow, feeling the cold, hard floor, and slowly began to awaken. Next to her, the doctor began rolling around and tossed fitfully around. Only Timothy was snoring soundly. ¡°Seems like your friends are about to awake.¡± ¡°They¡¯re not my friends,¡± Exflibberaguil replied. ¡°They kidnapped me and took me to their authorities.¡± Timothy frowned. ¡°Speaking of which, I remember one of the authorities acted very strangely. He diverted everyone else¡¯s attention away, so I could be taken away. How did you manage to do that? I never imagined mind control was possible yet, though the Sodriew are rather primitive. Are their brain structures different? I imagine it will be easier to control them.¡± ¡°Nonsense,¡± the rabbit said. ¡°We can¡¯t control brains. Of course, I can¡¯t tell you the details, but brain-control is so very unimaginative. Besides, we tried to do something of the sort, but we had so much difficulty finding volunteers to control the brains. None of them wanted to be in an imbecile¡¯s head. When we tried to hire rabbits, they offered ridiculously high prices and were no good anyway. They often slipped up and made the test subjects speak Rabbish. A very clumsy mistake. That is why we train the current generation to speak in multiple primitive languages. Mind control is a very delicate and serious business. It is a possibility we are hoping to explore once we get a volunteer.¡± ¡°So, what are you doing now instead?¡± The rabbit made a noise like a defiant hmph! ¡°I¡¯m not going to reveal secrets that easily.¡± ¡°I know a secret,¡± Oakley yawned. ¡°I was the one that poured the soap in gold swishy fishy¡¯s fishbowl. The class all blamed it on Matt. I started the rumor.¡±If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. Exflibberaguil stared at Oakley in a strange, perplexed way, the raised his eyes and decided that he had experienced plenty of stranger things and heard plenty of weirder secrets when Nick awoke. ¡°Where am I?¡± the doctor muttered. He slowly raised himself into a seated position, his body wobbling and his head nodding. Suddenly, he opened his eyes, staring at the wall. ¡°So bright,¡± he complained. ¡°Turn off the light. Five more minutes.¡± He collapsed back on the floor. By this time, Oakley was fully awake, though even more confused of her current situation than she was of her dream. She was still debating if she was experiencing reality, or just the sort of dream where you dream of dreaming. Her forehead creased in concentration. Timothy still sleep soundly, snoring through his nose, holding his breath, and suddenly exhaling with a little puff. ¡°These humans have very strange habits,¡± the rabbit observed. Exflibberaguil hadn¡¯t been listening to her. He was busy squinting at the ceiling. It seemed high up than last time. Yet he was sure this was the same room he had been. The scuff marks from the televisions weren¡¯t completely wiped away, and he though he could see his nail marks where the ceiling used to be. ¡°Thinking of escaping again?¡± the rabbit asked smugly, her voice indicating she knew the task was impossible. ¡°We raised the ceiling and took away the televisions. It¡¯s you¡¯re fault. If you hadn¡¯t escaped last time, the televisions will still be here to entertain you.¡± ¡°And Nick would have suffered from brain damage.¡± The rabbit didn¡¯t answer. Then in strange and criticizing voice, she asked, ¡°Didn¡¯t that human still suffer from brain damage?¡± ¡°Of course!¡± Exflibberaguil replied quickly. ¡°I¡ªI had to carry her! You have no idea the harm you¡¯ve done to her brain!¡± The rabbit didn¡¯t answer, but somehow her silence still conveyed suspicion. The doctor broke the tension. His medical instinct was triggered when he heard ¡®brain damage.¡¯ ¡°Brain damage?¡± he asked groggily. ¡°What sort? I was always interested in the brain, but the closest I got to a neurologist was treating bad concussions. What part of the brain was damaged?¡± ¡°The hypothalamus, I believe,¡± Exflibberaguil replied, not sure of the answer he was expecting. Before the doctor could begin his lecture and a few dozen possible diagnoses, the rabbit cut in, ¡°When is that third one going to wake up?¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you wake him up then?¡± Exflibberaguil snapped. ¡°If you remember, the last time we woke one of your kind, she started screaming and hospitalized three rabbits, one of which has already gone deaf in one ear.¡± ¡°If you remember,¡± Exflibberaguil mimicked, ¡°you also wiped her memories and made her go insane. Just so you won¡¯t forget,¡± he added sassily. ¡°Ah, forgetting. Something you are an expert about.¡± Before Exflibberaguil could retaliate, the rabbit continued. ¡°Oh, forget it then. Will any of you be willing to wake that other one up.¡± ¡°First of all,¡± Oakley piped up, ¡°who are yo¡ª¡± ¡°I¡¯ll fill you all in later,¡± Exflibberaguil replied impatiently, hurrying over to Timothy and shaking him. When this didn¡¯t work, he proceeded to slap Timothy very hard, taking too much pleasure in doing so. ¡°That¡¯s. What. You. Get. For. Kidnapping. Me,¡± Timothy said between slaps. ¡°I¡¯m awake!¡± Timothy cried. ¡°Good,¡± the rabbit said snidely as soon as Timothy finished uttering his pleads for mercy. ¡°Then the test shall begin.¡± Punishment This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. Crevin DEVON FELIX LUCIFAY DOES NOT EXIST. Not anymore, at least. He died fourteen years ago, two months after his wife became pregnant. His cause of death is a car crash caused by Johan Cody, also deceased after the crash. Devon Lucifay did not die from the impact, like Cody, but was burned after the car exploded in flames. He could not escape from the locked door. He died at age 28. That was the end of the report.
NICK STARED OUT THE WINDOW BLANKLY. Her face was emotionless. Her hands still clutched the single sheet of paper Detective Hart had handed her. Devon Felix Lucifay does not exist. A while ago, Nick couldn¡¯t remember or care how long, Detective Hart had unlocked her chains while she read the short, official report and death certificate. Devon Felix Lucifay does not exist. She read it several times before exhaling. Then, in a cold, icy voice, she said, ¡°I see I¡¯ll be visiting my aunt Cara.¡± It was not a statement that allowed a reply. Detective Hart did not give one. He held the door open wordless and Nick walked straight-backed out the heavy oak door and into the back of a police car. Hart wasn¡¯t the one driving, though Nick could care less. A voice in her head relayed the report to her on repeat. Devon Felix Lucifay does not exist. Nick hadn¡¯t said anything since then.
DETECTIVE HART WAS THINKING. One of his officers looked at him with great concern. Hart flicked his eyes towards her direction. She immediately turned around and resumed making coffee, but her long swaying hair gave her away. ¡°Hey, uh, Lake,¡± Hart called, desperately hoping he got her name right. ¡°Come over here, will you? I want to ask you something.¡± She gave him a frightened glance, and then hunched over even more, stirring her coffee vigorously. ¡°I-I¡¯ll be right there, sir,¡± she squeaked and added three more packets of sugar. Hart was very annoyed. Everyone here fears me, he thought. Really quite annoying! How did they ever get in here if they don¡¯t have the guts to look me in the eye? The only one that does is that little egotistic bastard Kirk, and he works in the slum of his. Here, I¡¯m supposed to have the best officers! How are they so weak?This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. He noticed Officer Lake glance at him again. He turned around and forced eye contact. Lake gave a little shudder and began wiping the coffee machine. ¡°B¡ªbe right there with you sir!¡± she said shrilly. ¡°Just¡ªjust spilled something. That¡¯s all.¡± Hart frowned deeper. There she goes again! Finally, when all the sugar packets were organized by color, the stirring sticks all lined up, and the coffee cups stacked into a pyramid, Lake moved towards Hart, shuffling and gripping her coffee a little tighter. Suddenly, she seemed to be hit by a bright idea and said, ¡°Detective Hart sir,¡± she said, ¡°w¡ªwould you like some coffee?¡± ¡°No, I think not,¡± Detective Hart replied dryly. He was certain that if he agreed, all the paper cups and straws will be knocked over again, and another half an hour would be wasted on fixing them. ¡°Come on, hurry up. If I wanted you to make coffee, I would have opened a caf¨¦, yes?¡± Lake¡¯s mouth set into a thin hard line and she shuffled faster to the chair pulled out for her. She sat carefully at the edge of her seat, prepared to run in emergency. She sipped loudly from the cup, determined to drink as loud and as slow as possible, so that conversation was delayed. ¡°Yes, s-sir?¡± she stuttered finally in a faint, sickly voice. ¡°Strange girl, that Lucifay is,¡± Hart grunted. Ah, I forgot. That girl too. She could look me in the eyes. ¡°S-strange, sir?¡± ¡°Yes, very. Received news her mother was in jail, and suddenly found out she had no other parent. Most thirteen-year olds would have burst into tears or have gone hysterical. But she barely showed any emotion, though it was obvious she was holding back many. Remind you of anything?¡± ¡°No, s-sir,¡± Officer Lake said, her eyes flitting to the side. ¡°Don¡¯t lie,¡± Detective Hart snapped. ¡°I don¡¯t have time for it.¡± ¡°I am vaguely familiar w-with one similar case,¡± Officer Lake said at last. ¡°M-miss Ellen Teague. H-her parents were jailed for physical abuse. She didn¡¯t show emotion at all.¡± ¡°Yes, but we later discovered she was in early stages of drug addiction.¡± ¡°Then there was Mr. Relling,¡± Officer Lake continued, a hint of eagerness in her voice. Her stammering had decreasing significantly as she began warming up on topics she knew well. ¡°H-his father died from the flu. Relling didn¡¯t shed a tear.¡± ¡°His eyes were a little too dry,¡± Detective Hart muttered. ¡°He was tested for psychopathy and turned up nearly 80%. Doesn¡¯t match Lucifay. She was evidently affected, but her ways of showing it was different. Not what you¡¯d expect from someone so young.¡± Officer Lake nodded her head in understanding. ¡°I see,¡± she said. ¡°Then I think young Crevin should be familiar. Mother divorced. She became addicted to vaping and crashed while driving under the influence. She died from injuries in a hospital. Crevin sat by her side the whole time, but never shed a tear. He was silent for a week after her death.¡± Detective Hart rubbed his chin. ¡°Yes, that sounds similar. He was very independent, I know. His mother was barely fit for housework. She was never herself. Crevin is a bit older than Ms. Lucifay, but I think the cases are almost identical. Lucifay, I heard, also rarely sees her mother because she¡¯s at work sustaining two at a low-salary programming job.¡± ¡°Yes, they do sound similar d-don¡¯t they?¡± Officer Lake said, going back to her stammer once her job was done. ¡°Just one question. How did Crevin end up?¡± Officer Lake hesitated, gripping her paper cup so tightly it began to crease and fold. ¡°H-he disappeared, sir.¡± ¡°And then? Surely he was found?¡± Officer Lake nodded. ¡°Suicide, sir.¡± Maze THE DOCTOR HAD BEEN SURROUNDED BY SNAKES. It wouldn¡¯t have been too bad if the snakes had been aliens. But the cruel rabbits only chose ones from Driew. The doctor had too much medical knowledge about the venoms, and he knew all too well that one bite will easily lead to a slow and painful death. Oakley was harder to break. They tried to keep her in a dark room with centipedes and tarantulas, then they made her feel like she was choking. Oakley¡¯s resiliency surprised the rabbits, but this only made them more excited. They tried even worse forms of torture, including tying her to a spinning wheel and shooting all types of deadly weapons at her. Now they put her in a pitch-dark maze, with mines and fire traps behind every corner and shocked her with electricity Exflibberaguil predicted that despite how amazingly strong Oakley was, she was at the edge of her sanity. She stopped too often and got shocked. In the beginning, she gritted her teeth and refused to react. But now that she was more tired, the sudden shocks began to force screams from her, and after five more minutes, she was screaming the whole times she ran. She was burnt badly in several places and her knee was swollen. But she kept on running, trying to find the exit. That would prove to be a problem, of course, since the exit did not exist. Exflibberaguil knew this all too well as he watched her run. The top of the maze was roofed by a giant one-way mirror, allowing spectators to observe from above. Exflibberaguil wanted to scream at her and tell her to stop trying. As much as he liked her energy and will to fight against the rabbits, running and bumping into obstacles only made her more injured. But yelling wasn¡¯t an option either. He was gagged and given the horrible potion that made his voice go away. He suspected it was because he kept on pestering the rabbits for an answer to why they were torturing the Sodriew and refused to accept ¡°shut up¡± as an answer. The rabbit seemed to be gone, or at least muted for the time being. Knowing her, the rabbit would normally have been relishing this moment and reporting Oakley¡¯s progress like some twisted sport. But there was only an empty, disturbing silence in the room, and Exflibberaguil often fancied he heard nonexistent sounds. It is worse this way, he decided, never believing that he¡¯d miss Nick¡¯s endless amnesia chatter. Oakley was definitely breaking apart now, and she even began running into the black walls. Exflibberaguil flinched when an arrow was triggered and slit her ankle. Oakley stumbled and fell, then suddenly began to jerk and tremble, a flash of blue electricity illuminating her frightened and sickly face. She opened her mouth and Exflibberaguil knew she was screaming.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. She¡¯d be out in anther two minutes, Exflibberaguil thought gloomily, watching Oakley make a desperate and pathetic attempt to pull herself up. Exflibberaguil turned away, not wanting to look. He knew all too well that the next time he awoke, he¡¯d be in her place, suffering some terrible form of torture he didn¡¯t know why he deserved. What did he fear most? The rabbits will eventually find out. Exflibberaguil pondered over the question, but then realized it was meaningless because the list was too long. He feared loneliness and rabbits, but in two different ways. The only true fear he had was of death, but that was what each of the tortures had revolved around. Death was a universal fear. Exflibberaguil amused himself thinking of terrible ways the rabbits might hurt him. Perhaps they¡¯d make him a weight that kept on getting heavier until it crushed him. Or he might be forced into an acid pit that would eat away at his eyes and leave him blind forever. He imagined two empty sockets where his eyes would have been, then shuddered and decided that he¡¯d seen too many horror movie trailers. Just as he expected, an unheard command was soon given and three robots, each with a seven-fingered hand, carried the unconscious, yet still shaking and convulsing, Oakley out of the maze and too another room to clean her wounds and revive her. Exflibberaguil forced the gruesome eyeless face image out of his head and patiently awaited the sleeping gas. He didn¡¯t have to wait very long. A blissful smile crept on his face. He slept¡­
THAT ONE, IT RAN QUITE A BIT! Yes¡­ Oh, don¡¯t be like that! Come on. It deserved that. I¡­I suppose if that¡¯s what you believe. You¡¯re such a killjoy. Look, why are you trying to make me look bad and guilty here? I¡¯m not. You¡¯re not. And you really should be the one to know that. DON¡¯T YOU MENTION IT! Okay! Calm down. You know what that redhead¡¯s going to go through next, don¡¯t you? You¡¯ll feel better watching him, I¡¯m sure. I don¡¯t know about that¡­ He¡¯s a troubled soul. We¡¯re doing him a favor. What a clich¨¦ thing to say. But wouldn¡¯t you agree? He¡¯s¡­he¡¯s not living right. And a poor thing too. I can understand why he did such a thing¡ªnow don¡¯t get angry again! I TOLD YOU NOT TO MENTION IT! I¡¯m sorry! I really am! But¡­but I¡¯m right aren¡¯t I? He isn¡¯t living right. ¡­We don¡¯t have the power to judge. You can advise. ¡­I¡­I don¡¯t think I¡¯m qualified. Pssh. You? Not qualified? Well¡­hey! Wait! He¡¯s breathing too fast. He¡¯s waking up! Quick! Put him to sleep! He can¡¯t understand what we were saying, right? Don¡¯t be ridiculous! Now where¡¯s the gas? The Trunks NICK HATED AUNT CARA. She hated everyone in the household, but especially Aunt Cara. Nick didn¡¯t even like Aunt Cara¡¯s name. She tried to get away by using her last name, Trunk, but Aunt Cara insisted she is called by her first name so that Nick felt part of the ¡°family¡±. It could be worse, Nick thought glumly. She might have forced me to call her ¡®mom¡¯ or ¡®mommy dearest.¡¯ The Trunks lived in a big house with a lot of old, saggy wooden furniture. They had three boys, one aged eight and the other two aged four. None of them were very likable, and the eight-year-old named Reagan took a particular disliking towards Nick as if she were his replacement. But Nick was glad that there was only so much an eight-year-old could do, and her vocabulary of insults far surpassed his after years of building upon it. The other two boys were twins, though they looked very different. Travis was the louder one that took after his mother, with straight brown hair and eyes. The only thing he inherited from his father was a large, pudgy nose. Chris was quieter, but he wore a permanent scowl on his face and glared at everything. He looked like a particularly repulsive mix of exactly half of his mother and half of his father. He had hair the color of chewed-up cud and tiny, beady black eyes. He had a fat, round face and a flat nose, with a set of crooked and missing teeth to match. Uncle Trunk was a large balding man with an uneven beard the color of yellowing mowed grass. He too seemed to disapprove of everything around him, though his perpetual scowl was slightly less furious than his son¡¯s. He didn¡¯t like Nick very much, and would often complain loudly of the expenses needed to feed another mouth. But when Nick tried to eat as little as possible, he¡¯d act insulted that she didn¡¯t eat their food. But nobody compared to Aunt Cara. She was always so fake, pretending to be nice and happy. Her high, noncommittal voice made Nick want to kill herself. I¡¯m not sure if I can take another, ¡°Marine, dear, would you like some more pie?¡±, Nick thought angrily. As if someone were listening, Aunt Cara¡¯s voice rang clearly from the porch, ¡°Marine honey, dinner¡¯s ready!¡± Nick gritted her teeth, before plastering on a fake smile and starting back to the house. For the past two days, she spent most of her time outside. She couldn¡¯t stand the suffocating interior.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°Sweetie, it¡¯s been cold these days. Don¡¯t you want to come inside and play with the boys?¡± Aunt Cara asked and Nick neared her. Nick restrained from snorting. Play with the boys? As if you didn¡¯t realize they are five years younger than me. ¡°I like outside, Aunt Cara,¡± Nick said stiffly, emphasizing the ¡°aunt.¡± ¡°Oh, I suppose the fresh air is good for you, dear. The boys should get some too. They¡¯d be more than happy to join you tomm¡ª¡± ¡°No!¡± Nick blurted. ¡°Er¡­there¡¯s no fence! I won¡¯t be able to take care of them!¡± Aunt Cara was slightly taken aback. ¡°Oh, don¡¯t worry dear. I¡¯ll be¡ª¡± ¡°I¡ªI have a stronger immune system!¡± Nick persisted. ¡°I can handle the cold. But the boys are too young. They should stay inside.¡± ¡°Ah, I see. Very smart of you darling¡­¡± Aunt Cara said uncertainly. ¡°Now what¡¯s for dinner?¡± Nick said loudly. ¡°I¡¯m hungry.¡±
DINNER WAS A STIFF AND JOYLESS AFFAIR. Reagan clung to his mother and said fake and cheesy words promising his love and devotion. Travis screamed half of the time and threw peas across the room. Chris and Uncle Trunk adopted the same twisted glare and chewed rather aggressively. Aunt Cara made many pathetic and hopeless attempts at conversation, mostly towards Nick, which all ended in single-worded responses. Nick took as little as possible from everything, and chewed with as much vigor and energy as possible, so Uncle Trunk would only yell as little as possible. ¡°Marine darling, would you like to see some of your old friends tomorrow?¡± Aunt Cara asked. ¡°No,¡± Nick replied, spearing another pea with her fork. After an awkward pause, Aunt Cara continued. ¡°Would you like some more peas?¡± she offered. ¡°No, thank you.¡± ¡°Will you be staying for dessert?¡± ¡°I¡¯m very full, Aunt Cara,¡± Nick sighed. ¡°May I be excused?¡± ¡°Oh, you don¡¯t need to ask¡ª¡± but Nick was already out of the room, going up the stairs as quietly as possible. She reached her room, was consisted of a small bed that was too soft, and a few bare cabinets and desks. All of Nick¡¯s little belongings were still packed in her suitcase. She didn¡¯t feel like taking them out. Decorating was something Nick only did in her home. Nick sighed heavily. She knew what was going on downstairs. She could practically hear Aunt Cara¡¯s voice, her face full of pity. ¡°Poor thing¡­no parents¡­don''t be like that!... I suppose¡­she¡¯s part of her family now¡­good thing she has us¡­must be lonely¡­sits outside like that¡­don¡¯t know how she copes with it¡­very sad¡­she¡¯s opening up to us¡­feelings bottled up¡­eat your green beans, Travis.¡± Then, of course, there was Uncle Trunk. ¡°What use is she?...does nothing¡­ criminal parents¡­so what? Cara, we aren¡¯t rich! ¡­poor thing? That¡¯s what you said to the dog at the pound! ¡­Did you see how much she ate? ¡­ the boys¡­our fine children¡­bad influence¡­bad blood in her¡­I say we give her to someone else¡­¡± And finally Reagan, the only other person who was capable of making complete sentences that made sense. ¡°Mommy! ¡­dad¡¯s right¡­I don¡¯t like her¡­she hates me! ¡­I am¡­no, don¡¯t make me! ¡­mommy¡­ you¡¯re the best mommy in the world¡­I love you¡­¡± Nick groaned and collapsed to the floor. One thing was for certain, this family was better off without her. Glass Wall If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Memory #1 ¡°THE WORLD IS YOUR OYSTER.¡± That was the saying, wasn¡¯t it? Nick smiled slightly. That was such a long time ago, it seemed. Back when she still had a real family, and a fixed schedule, and school¡­ At that moment, she had felt the saying to be funny and stupid. Who would want a slimy oyster? And why was the world compared to it? Nick gazed into the night sky, perched on the edge of the roof. She liked to imagine she could actually see the stars through all the light pollution. She understood now. The world and oysters were practically the same thing. Most children can¡¯t open oysters. They aren¡¯t strong enough. That¡¯s why there¡¯s so much about their ¡°potential¡± and ¡°future.¡± It¡¯s a good thing they can¡¯t, because if they could, suicide would have become two times more common. It¡¯s the anticipation of the contents that keep parents and children motivated and hardworking. Adults already opened their oysters long ago, though none of them can remember exactly when. Rarely do they get pearls and fame and success. Most just get sparkly slime and must make do. Some find fake ones and are completely devestated when they got to the jeweller¡¯s. The worst kind swallow their pearl along with their oyster, and have nothing left. Nick pondered over her situation. She was still well under eighteen¡ªstill a child under official standards. Her oyster was still hiding in her pocket, unopened. But perhaps it was malfunctioned. A little dented. Or perhaps she was the malfunction, and was a little too old for her body. What was she to do about it? The answer came to her easily. She had been doing it her entire life. To run. Run away. That¡¯s what she had been doing. Running away from home. Running away from problem. Now she should be running away from the Trunks. It was only her nature. She glanced back at the sky again, taking a deep breath and inhaling the crisp night air. She thought she could see a star¡­
SOMEWHERE VERY HIGH UP¡­ Exflibberaguil woke up, being pushed into a room by robots. ¡°Box?¡± he exclaimed, lifted his head off a robot, before realzing all of them looked the same. He lay back down and let the robots push him away, quietly accepting his fate. He didn¡¯t have much of a choice, away. All four of his limbs were strapped securely to a different robot, and Exflibberaguil wasn¡¯t in the mode for fighting deadly robots. The sleeping gas they gave him this time seemed unusually potent and Exflibberaguil continued to interact with various hallucinations to pass the time. Several times the robots bumped into an obstacle, delievering an unpleasant jolt to Exflibberaguil and temporarily distorting his hallucinations. The robots then would proceed to squable in NodeTalk, some arguments Exflibberaguil knew were only as long as a nanosecond, before one of them would say something final and settle the disagreement. Exflibberaguil was temporarily distracted by these occurances. He didn¡¯t know how different robots would interact with each other. The hallucinations slowly began to blur and fade. Exflibberaguil felt the robots slow down and pass through a few more doors. It comforted him to see some familiar doors, reminding him that he was still in his own ship and had full control¡­If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. Into another room he went, where he was uncermoniously dumped on the ground. Exflibberaguil flexed his fingers, relishing the little freedom he had, before three more robots, each with a single crane-like arm protruding from it¡¯s conical torso, wheeled in from the corners and began fixing handcuffs on him. Exflibberaguil noted that the room was triangular, though this was not uncommon in his ship. He was picked up again and dropped on a cold metal plate. A mosiac of colors were above him. He felt like he was in¡­what was that called again? ¡°Kalidescope!¡± he said loudly. There was a strange beeping noise, and the colors began to turn lighter and lighter, eventually forming a blob of white, before Exflibberaguil was forced to close his eyes. He could see all, and he could see none. The ship glowed like a star.
A RABBIT? Exflibberaguil instinctively reached to kill it, but he could not move. So this is another dream, he thought. The dream was strangely familiar, like something he dreamed long, long ago and was revisiting now centuries later. A relieving warmth flowed over his body and he shook with delight. Warm yellow rays of light beamed through an unseen window, tinting everything in an inviting yellow hue. Exflibberaguil knew something about this place. It certainly wasn¡¯t Earth, but perhaps somewhere he travelled? Enough thinking. Enjoy, he told himself. The thinking was bringing a wave of anxiety. He didn¡¯t want to face his responsibilities and difficulties now. This dream will not be ruined by reality! But then again, why is there a rabbit here? For a moment, he wondered if it was one of those moving sculptures, displaying their proud kills. But the rabbit seemed to be washing dishes and a wearing a hideous flower apron. If anyone had a sculpture like that, Exflibberaguil would have been sure to remember it. Therefore, this must be a dream and Exflibberaguil¡¯s imagination was truly extraordinary. It gave him great satisfaction to have confirmation of this fact. He approached the rabbit now, though he had no idea why because he did not wish to. But Exflibberaguil was no longer frightened and angry at this rabbit. In fact, he had a strange attachment to it, something indescribable. Perhaps it isn¡¯t a rabbit? But the ears and nose were unmistakable. Exflibberaguil¡¯s instincts told him so much. Why, then, was he going towards it so fearlessly? ¡°Baba!¡± a voice not quite his own said enthusiastically. The rabbit turned, her eyelids dropping into a sad smile. ¡°Good morning, my dear,¡± she replied. ¡°I made berry pastries. They¡¯re in the oven.¡± Exflibberaguil felt himself nod, and began moving toward a big brown oven in the corner of the room, carefully moving around the dinner table and picking up oven mitts along the way. He smiled, inhaling the delicious scent of sweet sugary pie, and carefully lifted the tray out on the table. He set the pie down, and licked his lips, eagerly pulling off his mitts. ¡°Baba, can I eat now?¡± Exflibberaguil asked. He realized with a start that it was indeed himself that was speaking, but much younger. ¡°Ah, your parents would not approve of dessert before lunch¡­¡± the rabbit said dubiously. ¡°My parents don¡¯t approve of anything,¡± Exflibberaguil replied childishly. ¡°Though I can¡¯t imagine why. They don¡¯t care about me anyway.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t say that, child,¡± the rabbit sighed wearily. She returned to her dishes, but Exflibberaguil continued. ¡°But Baba, you know it¡¯s true. They¡¯re going to visit one of the moons tomorrow without me again.¡± ¡°Be understanding, will you dear? It¡¯s a big wedding¡ª¡± ¡°It¡¯s my friend¡¯s second cousin¡¯s wedding. Can I please have some pie?¡± The rabbit sighed and shook her head. ¡°I suppose, if you insist. Just be care¡ª¡± She didn¡¯t get to finish her sentence. Young Exflibberaguil reached for the pie, but forgetting his lack of mitts, he instantly recoiled and began screaming. Several red blisters began to swell. ¡°Oh!¡± the rabbit exclaimed. ¡°Oh! Oh! Come here! Cold water, there now! Please don¡¯t scream child! It¡¯s my fault; it¡¯s my fault!¡± She began to sob pathetically, her gray body shuddering. ¡°BABA!¡± young Exflibberaguil cried, tears squeezing out of his eyes, running down his cheeks. Exflibberaguil felt the pain and the blisters, yet he was strangely detached as well. His body moved forward to the sink, and he felt a wave of relief upon contact with the water. ¡°There now, dear! Oh!¡± The rabbit seemed just as, if not more, frightened than Exflibberaguil. Her quick black eyes glanced at the stairs, full of fear. Tears continued to streak down Exflibberaguil¡¯s face, converging at the bottom of his chin and dripping down in fat drops. Then someone began stomping down the stairs. Memory #2 BABA GRIPPED EXFLIBBERAGUIL¡¯S WRISTS HARDER, HER STRANGE PADDED PAWS PRESSING INTO HIS SKIN. She glanced at the stairs in fear, though Exflibberaguil himself did not share it. He looked at Baba with strange, confused eyes. The stomps grew louder and more chaotic, proving there were at least two that descended down the stairs. ¡°Oh¡­oh,¡± she whispered with a trembling voice. Exflibberaguil tried to will himself to turn around, but his little body only glanced at the grand, (wooden?) stairs and focused back on his hands, uninterested. Apparently, the stomping was a very common occurrence and didn¡¯t bother him a bit. Finally, the two came to a halt, and Exflibberaguil knew they had come to the bottom of the stairs. Finally, he turned his head, squeezing the last drops of tears out of his eyes. His childish self felt strangely annoyed that Baba quickly brushed them away. Exflibberaguil had no interest in the little things though. He waited impatiently for his child self to look up at the faces. But he never did. All Exflibberaguil could see were two pairs of large feet connected to slim ankles, which attached to long, thin legs. The large feet were traits of older Mustela. Most Mustela of the current generation underwent genetic modification as a fetus to make their feet smaller and more accommodated to the pedals of traveling capsules and toucan seats. ¡°Child, what has happened?¡± Exflibberaguil was surprised to hear something different in the Mustela¡¯s voice, something that he didn¡¯t hear when he had been talking to the rabbit. Young Exflibberaguil was also surprised at the fact that the Mustela even bothered to pay attention to him. He looked up in surprise, finally providing Exflibberaguil will a view of the face. He was sorely disappointed. The face seemed to have been edited and blurred. The other Mustela was no different. ¡°M¡ªme?¡± Young Exflibberaguil stammered, his voice also sounding different. ¡°Yes, you. I don¡¯t think I¡¯d ever have another child,¡± the Mustela snapped. ¡°Of course, how stupid of me, Guardian,¡± Exflibberaguil replied, his own young voice small and timid. Inside, Exflibberaguil gave a start. Guardian? he thought incredulously. But that would mean¡­ Something clicked in his head. He was reliving his memories. It made sense now, how he was trapped in the body of a child. The blurred faces of his guardians were because of his strong will not to remember them. And, from the ominous chill Exflibberaguil got from the dark shadows looming behind his guardians, this was not a memory that intended to be remembered. Exflibberaguil unknowingly drowned out the conversation with his own thoughts, but it was difficult to be panicked or surprised when there was another version of himself constantly interfering with his thoughts. ¡°¡ªwhat did you do to my boy?¡± the high-pitched voice of the female guardian exclaimed.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. Baba could only utter a frightened whimper. Exflibberaguil felt himself fill with rage at the thought of having been called, ¡°my boy.¡± His six-year-old self clenched his fists, and nasty angry thoughts clouded his mind. My boy? You never treated me like your boy. How dare you! Do you expect me to call you mother dearest? You would have left me in the hospital when I was born had there not been a law that every female must contribute a child. You have no right to call me yours! I refuse! But surprisingly, his voice held only trembling fear, with none of the rage his heart was pounding with. ¡°Guardian!¡± he squeaked. ¡°It¡¯s not Baba¡¯s fault! It¡¯s mine. She told me I shouldn¡¯t have taken a piece! I insisted, and I burnt myself¡ª¡± ¡°Burnt?¡± the female shrieked. ¡°And pie before dinner?¡± the male counterpart added. ¡°What nonsense is this?¡± Dinner? Exflibberaguil thought, unable to determine now which version of him was thinking. As if you¡¯d remember to feed me dinner before you take off early! ¡°But it¡¯s not her fault!¡± Exflibberaguil argued. This was the first time his older thoughts were in sync with his younger self. It was no longer strange that he was protecting a rabbit, his sworn enemy. ¡°Poor child, did she force you to say that?¡± the female chided in mocked pity. ¡°But¡ª¡± ¡°It wasn¡¯t the child¡± Baba sobbed in a final act of defiance. ¡°It was me! I took a piece, and¡­and¡­¡± ¡°Explain the burns, then!¡± the male roared. ¡°Lying now, aren¡¯t you? I had enough of this!¡± With one powerful, fluid motion, he knocked all the plates and bowls to the ground with a long, thin arm. A layer of thin clouds blacked from pollution drifted over their star, suddenly bathing the once warm, welcoming kitchen in dark, cold hues of blue and black. ¡°I...¡± Baba croaked, before breaking down in hysterics. ¡°Baba!¡± ¡°My boy!¡± the female guardian gasped, yanking him away from the fallen figure with surprising strength. ¡°My boy! Come outside, and I¡¯ll take you somewhere to treat your wounds. It¡¯s alright. The rabbit will be punished. You will be avenged. You will not be burnt again!¡± ¡°But I don¡¯t¡ª¡± ¡°Oh, what a terrible event! You must be terribly angry, but I beg you to leave it to your mal¡ªfather. He will take care of this, and give you your revenge.¡± ¡°I said¡ª¡± ¡°Come!¡± the female guardian yelled suddenly, her shallow pool of patience drained. She yanked at her arm, and Exflibberaguil felt an unpleasant pop in his shoulder. Exflibberaguil stared in shock at the crumpled heap of Baba, with the large guardian looming overhead. Exflibberaguil felt himself being dragged to the door, and a sudden panic and dread filled him. He tried to fight and put up a struggle, but the female guardian was too strong¡­ ¡­the memory seemed to fade¡­ ¡­Exflibberaguil felt time pass¡­ He came home late, with his wounds healed, but he felt only worse than before. Exflibberaguil ran through the front door and threw it open. No Baba in the kitchen. No Baba in the living room. No Baba in the bathroom. Up the stairs? No. No one. Exflibberaguil understood and did not understand. He expected the absence yet did not expect it. Was this reality? Crying and sobbing, his female guardian led him back down for dinner. They had meat. The male guardian cooked it. It was burnt on the outside. Exflibberaguil felt a wave of sickness and repulsion. His gut told him what the meat was. The male guardian was very happy. His hands were dry from washing. He also changed clothes. He cut the meat open. Strangely enough, the inside was still bloody and red. Exflibberaguil did not eat the meat. The male guardian yelled at him and tried to choke him with the meat. Exflibberaguil did not eat the meat. The female guardian clawed and screeched. Exflibberaguil did not eat the meat. He was the only one that woke up the next morning.
WHAT IS IT? I¡­I don¡¯t think we should continue. What do you mean? It¡¯s the peak of the show! Next! I don''t think¡ª White Room POOR KID, OAKLEY THOUGHT FROM HER ROOM. She was back in her strange little submarine, though it seemed to be mounted to the wall and served the purpose of a room. A giant television screen replaced the row of viewing windows. She was strapped to the chair, which Oakley thought wasn¡¯t too bad of a punishment. It prevented her from scratching and picking at her countless wounds, though she rather liked it when half of her hair was still attached to her scalp. Besides, she could hear her sanity clock ticking very quickly. It may be for the best that she was strapped. If not, she may easily cause self-harm. The red head was displayed on the television, motionless on a gray rock floor. Oakley had woken up after whatever punishment was delivered to him, but she supposed they electrocuted the boy out of his senses. He evidently didn¡¯t last very long, which Oakley supposed was to her advantage. She would have taken no pleasure in watching the boy tortured. Hmph. What happened to spirit? Oakley reflected with a frown. Electrocution can¡¯t be too bad. Even a 50-year-old man with a kite survived it. But a voice inside her replied, you wouldn¡¯t have survived very long either. Oakley breathed heavily through her nose. Her mouth was gagged by some fancy electric mouth handcuff. Real strange gag, Oakley grumbled inwardly. She always took a particular disliking to those who bought the latest phones and gadgets. Oakley herself always waited until the new craze was over and the phones got substantially cheaper before buying it. She was always a year late when catching up with trends. Though these things, these mini submarines and endless torture mazes did seem a little too futuristic. Oakley knew technology was growing rapidly, but surely it hadn¡¯t advanced that far¡­ Oakley rolled her eyes. She was becoming old. Of course technology could do these things. What other explanation would there be? Still, fire-breathing statues wasn¡¯t something that could be bought on Ebay. To design something like it, there had to be a sophisticated team of engineers, architects, programmers, scientists¡­ it sickened Oakley to think that so many geniuses used their brains on this. Who were they anyway? What did the boy say? That¡¯s right. Rabbits. Oakley twitched her nose in annoyance. Funny. Though I suppose it may have been their idea of a joke to call themselves the Rabbit team. Well, whoever they are, they sure did screw up the timing, Oakley thought, mentally changing the subject and shifting the focus to the television. I thought the point of this was to watch the torture happen, so the viewers would also be mentally tortured. I wonder when they¡¯re going to drag him off and heal him. ¡°You must think we¡¯ve made a mistake.¡± Oakley uttered a muffled yelp of surprise and tried to turn her head around. Nothing had spoken to her when she was in the submarine. Though this voice sounded very familiar¡­ ¡°I see you cannot speak. That¡¯s no fun. I¡¯d like to have a conversation with you. Here, let me ungag you.¡± The gag clicked open and Oakley took in a great gulp of air. Gasping, she croaked, ¡°It¡¯s you from the white room.¡±The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. The person giggled shrilly, sounded almost animal. ¡°Ha!¡± they screeched. ¡°Ha! Funny you should mention the white room. But no, you do not know me. The other one you heard was sort of my voice doppelganger. We sound identical. Quite common actually, considering our population.¡± ¡°You speak as if we were different species,¡± Oakley remarked with annoyance. The person giggled again. ¡°I apologize! I often forget. Oh, the things you¡­I better not say any more. Anyways, I quite assure you we did not make a mistake. Though I must admit, we are not perfect, but such a thing like this can not be overlooked. We just spared your eyeballs. It wouldn¡¯t be much fun if you were blind, would it? Such vulnerable thing, eyes are¡­¡± Oakley glared. ¡°Sidetracked again, aren¡¯t I? I apologize in all sincerity. Oh, but this is all very exciting. Great fun too. Never thought I¡¯d be entertained, doing this. At first, it all seemed rather pointless and loathsome, learning Engli¡ª¡± ¡°Aha!¡± Oakley exclaimed triumphantly before considering the consequences of her words. ¡°So you are foreign! I knew heard and accent!¡± There was a period of silence, and Oakley immediately regretted her exclamations. There you go again Oakley with your big mouth! She scolded herself. Now you offended them. How are you going to get out of your next torture, huh? And for all you know, you may die, though you evidently are too insane to be worried about that. Suddenly, the person burst into that strange, bone-chilling laughter lasting several minutes at least. ¡°Foreign!¡± they shrieked, attempting to recover between fits of mad giggling. ¡°Foreign! Oh, I wouldn¡¯t say that. A good number of us live in the United States of America, though you could say our ancestors come from very far away.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Oakley replied in an odd voice. She was unable to decide whether or not to be relieved or offended that her revelation was taken so lightly. ¡°Ah, well, such is only expected from you,¡± the person said in a shaky voice, trying to hold the laughter back. ¡°I see,¡± Oakley replied dubiously. ¡°I¡¯m getting off track again,¡± the person said, gasping between words. ¡°Oh look, your friend¡¯s being dragged away. Do you suppose he¡¯s foreign?¡± ¡°I¡ªI don¡¯t think so?¡± The person uttered another little burst of laughter, but recovered quickly and continued. ¡°Well, let me just change the direction of the camera for you. You see, what we¡¯re going to do is an experiment that we borrowed from you humans. It¡¯s called the ¡°White Room.¡± One of the worst tortures on your planet. Care to guess what it is?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve heard of the red room,¡± Oakley muttered, ¡°and that¡¯s when someone tortures another based on our commands. You aren¡¯t going to get any torture requests out of me, and I highly doubt Timothy or the Doctor would have any either. So I¡¯m guessing you and your team would be the ones asking for torture, though you said the white room.¡± The person snorted gleefully. ¡°Ha! I like how you think! It¡¯s very funny. But I¡¯m sorry to say it isn¡¯t the case. A red room, so unoriginal. And there¡¯s no purpose in it at all.¡± ¡°Purpose? Was there a purpose in any of the other torture you performed?¡± Oakley yelled. ¡°Well for one, the first one with the drowning was finding out the most effective way to squeeze secrets out of your kind,¡± the person began. ¡°The second was to test how efficient it is to play with your fears. Yours was to test endurance. And this one here would be psychological.¡± ¡°Psychological torture?¡± ¡°Yes, see here,¡± the person said, switching Oakley¡¯s television to show a white room. ¡°This is a completely soundproof room. Your version of this allows the victim to hear himself, but we decided to make it completely silent so the only think that can be heard would be your heartbeat and the shifting of bones as you move. ¡°The room is completely white, completely smooth. There are all the necessities: a white bed, a white bathroom, white tasteless rice, and white carpets. The experiment is to see how long he will last. The process should be speeded up quite a bit by the complete lack of sound. In fact, a regular room with no sound is just as effective. Of course, there is a chance you can get used to it, like a deaf person, so we would occasionally allow him to talk to himself. Interesting, isn¡¯t it?¡± Oakley didn¡¯t answer immediately. ¡°Doesn¡¯t sound too bad,¡± she said at last. ¡°Oh, it really doesn¡¯t. But I think the results will speak for themselves. ¡°But why are you doing this?¡± ¡°Oh, that¡¯s right. You still don¡¯t know,¡± the person said. ¡°I thought the redhead told you already.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°We¡¯re rabbits.¡± Finale 1 NOTHING. Absolutely nothing. He could be screaming. He could be insane. He could be a lightbulb. He could be a lion, facing off a gladiator. Better yet, he could be in the crowd, watching the bloody battlefield. He rather fancied he could see the scene unfold in front of him. Yes, there by the wall, hundreds and thousands of robed men were forming. And the bed made an excellent lion. So strange, these hallucinations.
¡°THERE ALWAYS HAS TO BE A PROBLEM!¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡­¡± ¡°You idiot! Can¡¯t a scientist conduct their own experiment? Oh, no matter. Where is she now?¡± ¡°I¡­I don¡¯t know¡ª¡± ¡°Oh, there she is, in my office? Get her! Capture her! But don¡¯t kill her, not yet.¡± ¡°Yes!¡±
EXFLIBBERAGUIL STARED BLANKLY AT THE WALL. He had plenty to think about, but the silence muted out all his thoughts. He could see seven Babas hopping around the white room. Pure emotion churned through his veins, but he couldn¡¯t focus on one and find the source of it. He could only stare and feel, and wish to scream and cry, if only he could hear himself do either. Suddenly the door burst open. ¡°You! Change of plans,¡± a rabbit screamed. It sounded remarkably like the female black rabbit that accompanied Exflibberaguil for so long. Exflibberaguil¡¯s ears vibrated from the suddenly sound. He himself wanted to scream and hear his voice, if he could only remember how. Exflibberaguil didn¡¯t bother turning his head. An open door would only give him false hope. ¡°Explain!¡± the rabbit said. There was a thump followed by a muffled scream that sounded very familiar. Exflibberaguil was unable to contain his curiosity and reluctantly turned around, his eyes cold and lifeless. His eyes first focused on the very large spotted gray-and-white rabbit at the door, standing on its hind legs. It wore strange gloves with a thumb jutting out of one side. Exflibberaguil supposed this must be their ¡°rabbit prosthetics.¡± The Babas began to fade as Exflibberaguil stared at the rabbit. His eyes slowly moved down. ¡°Nick?¡± he croaked. Nick said something. The rabbit reached over and ripped the gag off. She gasped, her face already a sickly shade of purple.This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. ¡°How¡­?¡± Exflibberaguil asked, his brow furrowing. The jumble of thoughts began to clear as he slowly recovered his senses. ¡°Stars don¡¯t blink,¡± Nick whispered, still gulping down air. ¡°Oh good, come join the insanity club,¡± Exflibberaguil replied. ¡°You should try insanity one day. You can forget all your worries. Forget everything. Strangely enough though, I think I was more sane when I did wipe my memories. You, on the other hand, were the opposite.¡± Exflibberaguil laughed. ¡°Funny.¡± Nick tried her best glare. ¡°I came to save you,¡± she said with an air of dignity. ¡°I applaud your efforts.¡± ¡°Well, I sure don¡¯t hope I¡¯ll be punished,¡± Nick replied loudly, looking hopefully at the rabbit. ¡°Would I, miss?¡± The rabbit giggled a high-pitched squeak. ¡°Of course!¡± ¡°Dang,¡± Nick muttered. ¡°Well, I tried to save the archeologist man who is in another room like yours, Exflibberaguil. I wonder what my punishment would be. That archeologist looked like he had some ideas of his own as to how he would punish you rabbits.¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t yet decided on her punishment yet,¡± the rabbit giggled, ¡°but you just gave me an excellent idea. I¡¯ll ask that man. I¡¯m sure he¡¯d give very creative suggestions.¡± ¡°Aw man! I seem to be working for the wrong side, aren¡¯t I?¡± Nick replied with a groan. ¡°Well, let¡¯s hear that man,¡± the rabbit said gleefully. It fiddled with a remote it had strapped to it left leg. ¡°Let¡¯s see here, this should do it.¡± She pressed a button with her prosthetic thumb. ¡°How do you want to punish us?¡± the rabbit asked, speaking directly into the control. ¡°Stadiums. Colosseum. Gladiator¡­oh, look! He fought the lion!¡± Timothy muttered in a dazed voice. His sound seemed to come from elsewhere in the room. ¡°Yay! Go!¡± ¡°Gladiator¡­lion¡­¡± Nick murmured. ¡°He must think this is Rome!¡± ¡°Yes?¡± the rabbit prompted. ¡°You know, when people watch one person try to kill another being. Oh! Don¡¯t say it! I¡¯ve just given you another idea, haven¡¯t I? Why can¡¯t I keep my stupid mouth shut?¡± ¡°Aha! I love your idea. Have you face off your friends, perfect! And I shall gather everyone to see it. You really are stupid,¡± the rabbit gloated. ¡°Dang it!¡± Nick wailed. ¡°I just sure don¡¯t hope I¡¯ll have to fight Exfl¡ªnot again!¡± ¡°Oh, both of you are fighting all right!¡± The rabbit screeched with delight. With the flick of her wrist, two other, smaller rabbits rushed in to fasten a collar and leash on both of them, handing the end to the leader. She gave both leases a hard tug, and Nick and Exflibberaguil lurched forward to prevent their necks from being snapped. Satisfied, she giggled again and began to twist and pull at their leashes, forcing them to yell out in pain. ¡°At least I¡¯m not at the stadium!¡± Nick cried. ¡°Oh, yes, you there!¡± the rabbit said, pointing to one of her assistants. ¡°You, go and organize this stadium thing. And don¡¯t you think you¡¯ll be able to stall. You¡¯re going straight there now!¡± The rabbit giggled again, and began walking them, head first through the hall. ¡°What are you playing at?¡± Exflibberaguil hissed. ¡°You¡¯re making this worse! I don¡¯t need you getting killed right now! I still can¡¯t get the taste of burnt Baba out of my mouth.¡± ¡°Burnt what?¡± ¡°Never mind. What in the world are you doing? I didn¡¯t think I was serious when I called you insane.¡± Nick attempted a small grin, but was jerked forward by the leash. ¡°It¡¯s all on her right leg, in the underside of her knee.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Oh, you really have gone insane, haven¡¯t you?¡± Nick snapped, enjoying her moment finally being better than Exflibberaguil. ¡°You taught me this yourself. There¡¯s a birthmark there. She¡¯s no rabbit, she¡¯s their stupid cousin, the bunny! Don¡¯t worry. If there¡¯s a way to get out of this, this is it.¡± And with that, the bunny threw them into another room, threading their leashes through a small hole and tying them to an unseen post outside the locked door. Finale 2 ¡°SO, WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU?¡± ¡°I got my memory back,¡± Exflibberaguil replied gloomily. Nick suddenly tensed up, looking very frightened. ¡°Oh!¡± she said in a peculiarly high voice. ¡°H-how are you?¡± ¡°As good as someone who just realized that your archenemy isn¡¯t always evil could be.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°And that your parents ate your rabbit nanny.¡± ¡°Hold on¡ª¡± ¡°And then they died because that nanny happened to be one of the first rabbits that took the self-sacrifice potion which kills anyone that eats them.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Nick yelled. ¡°Rabbits not bad? What do you mean? Why are they locking us up then? Did you even need to be saved?¡± ¡°Oh, these rabbits seem like the bad kind,¡± Exflibberaguil replied, his face blank and bored. ¡°And for the record, I was the one that was locked up first. Then you went and had this genius plan to get us locked and leashed. As for your rescue mission,¡± Exflibberaguil sighed, ¡°well, I don¡¯t know. Maybe I didn¡¯t need to be saved. Maybe I would be better off as a lunatic in that ja¡ªOW!¡± Nick struck him hard with her hand, leaving a bright red mark on his face. She dusted off her hands, looking very satisfied with herself. ¡°Why did you do that?¡± Exflibberaguil yelled, turning red. Nick smiled smugly, having predicted Exflibberaguil¡¯s reaction and obviously had an insult ready. ¡°First,¡± she said, extending her index finger, ¡°I don¡¯t know if anyone has told you this, but you are really irritating and I have been wanting to do that since you first became conscious and opened that beak of yours. Second, it hurts my pride to see that for the past month, I have been associated with such a pathetic loser that wouldn¡¯t even admit he is delighted to see me and would have been rotting in a white box if it weren¡¯t for me. And finally, I do not need to be reminded how stupid I was to come rescue you and how small of a chance I have now to escape, so if you don¡¯t have anything constructive to say, please close the lid on your toilet.¡± ¡°Lid on my¡ª¡± ¡°SHUT UP.¡± Exflibberaguil¡¯s mouth was still open in mid-sentence, but after a moment, he closed it and resigned to silence. ¡°You¡¯ll have to explain the whole memory thing later,¡± Nick said at last. ¡°And you should explain your plan now,¡± Exflibberaguil snapped. ¡°This is it.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Your out of your old jail now. Aren¡¯t I a genius?¡±Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. ¡°And now you¡¯ll be forced to fight me!¡± ¡°Well,¡± Nick said with a shrug, ¡°if I win, I can put you out of your misery.¡± ¡°Nick, are you¡ª¡± Nick suddenly reached the grab Exflibberaguil¡¯s wrist, and leaned close to his ear. ¡°There¡¯s a security camera in this room,¡± she muttered. ¡°And I believe that is our escort hopping towards us. Don¡¯t worry, I plan on getting out alive.¡± *** ¡°RABBITS AND BUNNIES, WELCOME!¡± The spotted bunny tugged on their leashes. Nick stumbled forward and tripped, resulting in a roar of laughter. ¡°Welcome, all!¡± the bunny continued, speaking to a hidden microphone. There were several shrieks of delight. Exflibberaguil looked at Nick pityingly, before reaching out a hand and helping her up. Amazingly enough, the rabbits were able to set up a giant battling arena in a matter of hours. Great stands holding hundred of rabbits were set up in a wide ellipse, with Nick, Exflibberaguil, and the rabbit right in the center. It was a mess of ears and fangs, snarling and hooting in a chaotic jumble of noise. Suddenly, a large tan rabbit leapt out of the crowd and began approaching them rapidly. Nick shielded her eyes in hopes she could see the dot of a rabbit more clearly. ¡°My god, it¡¯s Cosmo!¡± Nick breathed. ¡°I knew he was no good!¡± Exflibberaguil muttered. Cosmo completely ignored them, however, and headed straight towards the spotted rabbit, screeching something in Rabbish. Nick frowned and wrinkled her nose. It wasn¡¯t fair they knew a completely new language. She was missing Box. The two began a heated conversation, shrieking louder and louder, though the roar of the crowd drowned them out to any eavesdroppers. Exflibberaguil, however, was staring at them and listening intently. ¡°Nick!¡± Exflibberaguil gasped. ¡°This is incredible! Are you listening to¡ªhey, why aren¡¯t you paying attention?¡± ¡°Attention to what?¡± ¡°To what the rabbits are saying!¡± ¡°What?¡± Nick asked. ¡°Listen, I don¡¯t know what prank you¡¯re playing but I sure can¡¯t understanding screaming.¡± ¡°Screaming?¡± Exflibberaguil exclaimed. ¡°What do you mean¡ª¡± Suddenly, his eyes widened in understanding. ¡°You don¡¯t mean¡­¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Of course!¡± he said. ¡°I recovered my memory and I was able to talk to Baba! I knew how to speak and understand Rabbish all along, and now I remember how to! This is incredible!¡± Nick looked at him dubiously, evidently not sharing his enthusiasm. ¡°Well, alright Mr. Incredible,¡± she said impatiently, ¡°what are they saying?¡± ¡°Cosmo is telling the bunny to shut the whole thing down. He says it¡¯s stupid and I should be locked up. But the bunny is being stubborn and¡ª¡± Suddenly, Cosmo groaned in frustration and hopped away. The bunny looked triumphant, though rather out of breath, and turned on the microphone again. ¡°Anyways, welcome all, and I have a treat prepared for you. You see these two? They are going to fight against each other!¡± There was a loud cheering, though Nick could hear one ask, ¡°those puny things? It won¡¯t last a minute.¡± ¡°Now, without further ado, we¡¯ll get these two a few shots of adrenaline to get them going. Don¡¯t you worry. This is going to be quite a show. We have laid out an obstacle course, but we will not let them die unless they kill each other. And the winner will fight one of you!¡± This time the cheering was louder, and Nick suddenly looked much more anxious. ¡°Adrenaline?¡± she muttered. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect this.¡± ¡°For the first event,¡± the rabbit declared, ¡°I will inject shrivelberry poison into both of them. They will each have a sample of the antidote in a small locked box, and the key to their opponent¡¯s antidote. The injection also contains a microchip that can deliver samples of the excruciating pain they would experience should it ever get too boring.¡± Exflibberaguil glanced at Nick, he himself growing worried. Nick was visibly shaking and twitching now. This was definitely not her plan. ¡°And now, to begin,¡± the bunny said, reaching for her remote control. Nick was fumbling and twiddling her fingers, doing something in her large hoodie pocket. Suddenly, the ceiling opened up with a loud cranking sound, diverting everyone¡¯s attention to the four submarine-like capsules hidden above. All of them were empty. Finale 3 The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Finale 4 ¡°NICK! WAKE UP!¡± ¡°Mmm¡­¡± Nick murmured, reaching for a nonexistent alarm. She groped around blindly, until her hand grabbed a warm, fleshy object. ¡°Eeek!¡± she shrieked, recoiling. Exflibberaguil was cradelling his arm. ¡°Ow¡­¡± he whined, pouting with a hurtful expression. ¡°That hurt!¡± ¡°It was that gas they used on me earlier, wasn¡¯t it? When they tried to wipe my memories?¡± Nick was now fully awake, though her brain was still slow to turn on. ¡°Hm, I think so. I¡¯ve been through too many of them, and my memory wasn¡¯t great in the first place. But I doubt they would randomly switch sleeping gases that worked so well.¡± ¡°Never mind that, where are we?¡± The scene was completely different from the blank-white rooms Exflibberaguil was so used to. The place was completely dark, except for two spotlights that illuminated Nick and Exflibberaguil. They seemed to be in the middle of a large circle. Branching off of them were dozens of black hallways. Nick was unable to see into any of them. She cautiously ventured forward, but it only led her out of the spotlight and into the all-consuming darkness. ¡°Welcome to the mirror maze,¡± Exflibberaguil proclaimed, acting like a tour guide. ¡°Where you can have fun spending hours, or days, or years, or lifetimes trying to get out.¡± ¡°But you must know this room!¡± Nick replied. ¡°You don¡¯t happen to know how to get out, do you?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I know this place like the back of my ear.¡± ¡°I believe the phrase it, ¡®Like the back of my hand.¡¯¡± Exflibberaguil shrugged. ¡°How well do you know the back of your hand? I certainly don¡¯t. And I¡¯ve never once seen the back of my ear. In short, we are completely lost and hopeless. Besides, it wouldn¡¯t have been much help anyway even if I did have a mental map of this maze. There are hundreds of potential exits that can easily be changed. And that¡¯s if we are playing fair, which I doubt these rabbits will. Though I don¡¯t blame them¡­¡± Exflibberaguil trailed off. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± ¡°Nothing you need to stick your nose in. Now, I believe our first objective should be to find those other useless adults. I have a suspicion they are here in this maze with us. I am also fairly certain I hear the archeologist¡¯s snoring somewhere in the distance. Come on, start looking for a real hallway. Be careful, half of these are mirrors I believe.¡± ¡°Tell me what you know about this maze,¡± Nick demanded, standing up and walking to the nearest hallway. She hit it hard and fell back, rubbing her nose. ¡°Ow. This one¡¯s a mirror.¡±You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. Exflibberaguil approached a hallway carefully, his hands in front of him. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you what I know, but I figure it¡¯ll only make you more dispirited.¡± ¡°Hit me.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Exflibberaguil sighed, flinching away from the hard mirror. ¡°Get ready.¡± ¡°Each room is a triacontatrigon, that is, a thirty-three sided polygon. This is, of course, discounting the number of secret rooms that sometimes is needed to be found to reach certain exits. For most rooms, about half of the hallways are fake reflections, but this can of course vary. Some rooms have traps that lead you back to the start. Other rooms are or can appear to be dead ends. ¡°There are close to two thousand rooms, and a three hundred fifty-four possible exits. Seventy-two of them are extremely difficult to reach. Some rooms are escape rooms, where instead of hallways there are locked doors and puzzles to solve. Knowing the rabbits, I shouldn¡¯t be surprised if they take away all the hints to the locked doors, and make us try to guess the password out. And I expect there are hundred of possible obstacles and alterations the rabbits could have done to this place.¡± ¡°Alright, I see what you mean by depressing,¡± Nick groaned. ¡°But on the plus side, I found a real exit.¡± ¡°Me too,¡± Exflibberaguil replied, sticking his arm in to prove the corridor was indeed valid. ¡°Which one do we take?¡± Nick frowned and considered this difficult question. She fished in her pockets for some object, eventually brandishing a short stubby pencil. ¡°I¡¯ll throw this up. Whichever one it points to, we¡¯ll take.¡± ¡°You¡¯re basing life decision on a pencil?¡± Exflibberaguil said incredulously. ¡°I don¡¯t see what¡¯s so bad about it. My theory is, the less I think about it, the less I get blamed for it. Anyways, you said yourself that half of these hallways are real. Chances are, none of us has it right. We¡¯ve got nothing to lose.¡± With that, she tossed the pencil in the air, watching it intently as it clattered to the ground. ¡°Yours, it seems,¡± Nick said distastefully, as if the pencil should have none better than to chose Exflibberaguil¡¯s path. As they started down the corridor, pinpricks of light flicked on automatically, illuminating their path. The light bounced and reflected off the mirrored walls, making the maze seem even more confusing than before. After an awkward length of silent walking, Nick coughed to break the tension. ¡°I¡ªI think I hear Timothy¡¯s snoring a bit clearer. This must be the way.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t get your hopes up. Even after we find him, we have no way of finding the exit. I propose we stay in one room to conserve our energy.¡± ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we at least try to find the exit?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t see why. I don¡¯t even see the point of finding the rest, except that them may lend a bit of body heat and clothing garments should it get cold.¡± ¡°But¡­I mean¡­that makes sense, I suppose,¡± Nick sighed. ¡°Yet, it seems to be lacking in spirit I believe is the word.¡± ¡°Second time I heard the word,¡± Exflibberaguil murmured. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Nothing you need to ask about. Come on, we need to split up now. This is the next room. Have your pencil handy.¡± This room was illuminated by the pinprick of light. Nick obeyed, and set off to the left side of the room. ¡°Couldn¡¯t you tell my why the ferret and the robot want you dead?¡± ¡°I think ferret would be much more satisfied to tell us itself. Besides, I can¡¯t say I remember very well. I now have most of my memory, but the events closest to the wipe are still very hazy. Oh, lucky me. I only needed to search two hallways to find an open one. Have you found yours yet?¡± ¡°Hold on,¡± Nick mumbled, carefully reaching inside a hallway, ¡°yes I believe I have found mine.¡± She tossed the pencil in the air. ¡°It seems like we¡¯re going my way again.¡± Nick threw the pencil her nastiest look, before untwisting her face into face of surrender. This was going to take a while. Finale 5 ¡°SEE? THIS WASN¡¯T SO HARD.¡± Exflibberaguil shared none of Nick¡¯s joy. He huffed and turned around facing the wall. His eyebrows furrowed in concentration, yet he kept glancing back at Nick and the three adults, obviously hoping that one of them would enquire about his strange occupation. Nick knew Exflibberaguil well enough to know exactly what he was thinking. The adults didn¡¯t care much and simply assumed Exflibberaguil was sulking, which he often did in front of them. Nick snickered, her back turned toward Exflibberaguil. She was not going to give him the satisfaction of asking. ¡°What¡¯s he doing there?¡± Timothy asked in a loud whisper. Nick saw Exflibberaguil twitch, but he did not answer. ¡°He must have gone insane,¡± Nick replied as loud as she could while still passing it off as a whisper. ¡°Insane?¡± Oakley asked. ¡°I thought he was just throwing a tantrum and giving us the silent treatment.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve had my fair share of tantrums, and they have all come from five-year olds who don¡¯t want to get a shot,¡± the doctor replied. ¡°Tantrums are loud and noisy and full of spit and tears. That you see, is just sulking, what happens five minutes after the shot is administered. The child has already been comforted by Mom and had their boo-boo kissed, and then they begin to sulk at me as if I enjoyed the mess they make on my chairs and tables. Usually, however, this is easily cured with one of those cheap temporary tattoos Donna gives them. I don¡¯t think I have any on hand though. Do you suppose we should draw on him?¡± Finally, Exflibberaguil huffed angrily, evidently giving up on being asked. The adults all glanced back in surprise, as if they didn¡¯t notice him staring at a wall and weren¡¯t talking and attempting to throw their voice across the room. ¡°Please do not draw on me,¡± Exflibberaguil snapped, sounding very childish. ¡°My skin is sensitive.¡± ¡°Oh my, look at him! He¡¯s talking! Quick, put him in a straitjacket before he harms himself!¡± Nick exclaimed. ¡°But don¡¯t you all see, this must be a trap!¡± Exflibberaguil said, throwing his arms out to show a point. ¡°What clued to off? The dark maze we are currently trapped in and unable to get out of?¡± Nick replied sarcastically. ¡°Gee, what a genius.¡± ¡°You can continue being sarcastic. It won¡¯t get you anywhere!¡± Exflibberaguil yelled. ¡°But this has been too easy. In a maze this size, it should have taken weeks to find you all. But it only took a little more than an hour. Why would they want us like this?¡± ¡°They thought we¡¯d die if we were lonely,¡± Nick replied dryly. ¡°Like little fishies.¡± Nick and Exflibberaguil continued to bicker and argue, while the Doctor, Timothy, and Oakley shared bemused looks.This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. ¡°Imagine if we were younger,¡± Oakley began. ¡°I like to,¡± the doctor sighed heavily, ¡°but this whole situation here isn¡¯t helping. I plan on going insane in two days, and then committing suicide. You all can eat me to survive, though I suggest you have me cooked well done. You never want to catch salmonella.¡± ¡°If we were younger, we¡¯d all be bickering like this!¡± Oakley laughed hysterically. ¡°Over the craziest things, can you imagine! In fact, I think I have had some dreams about this very thing!¡± Her giggling became more high-pitched, and Nick¡¯s and Exflibberaguil¡¯s argument faded into silence as they stared with terrified expression at Oakley. ¡°Y-you know,¡± Oakley continued, unaware of the stares she was attracting. ¡°You know, I had the craziest dream that I interrupted your date, Timmy! And ¨C get this ¨C you were furious about it! Ha! Imagine that, you with a girlfriend!¡± ¡°Timmy?¡± Timothy exclaimed. Oakley doubled down in laughter, her shrieks echoing off the walls. Tears squeezed out of her eyes. ¡°Imagine that! Who would ever want to date you?¡± She couldn¡¯t say anything more, and hugging herself in a ball, she began to roll back and forth. Timothy looked very hurt know. ¡°Fancy that, I believe I had the same dream.¡± ¡°Timothy, you¡¯re nuts too!¡± the Doctor hissed. ¡°It happened!¡± ¡°How does that matter? We¡¯re going to be in here forever. It¡¯s better to imagine things are just a dream. You won¡¯t feel the pain and regret as all your friends and family slip further and further away from you, and¡­¡± ¡°Oh, get a hold of yourself you¡ª¡± the Doctor glanced at Nick and Exflibberaguil, waiting for him to continue, ¡°¡ªyou, um, big fat blubbergrandma! What are you, some Shakespearian tragedy playwright?¡± ¡°I propose we just stay in this room and conserve our energy,¡± Exflibberaguil said weakly, turning back to his wall. ¡°Oh my god, you too? And you¡¯re a child!¡± ¡°I¡¯m probably older than your great-great-grandfather,¡± Exflibberaguil muttered, ¡°considering how many years I spent back in time.¡± The doctor turned to Nick. ¡°Hey, don¡¯t look at me with pleading eyes!¡± Nick said, inching backwards. ¡°I like life as much as the next guy, but I¡¯m not lugging these useless corpses around this maze. No thank you!¡± Nick scanned her companions with a careful eye. ¡°Though I guess we could use them as a food source, should that run low. And I¡¯ll be happy to cook the salmonella out of them, if you have a fire.¡± ¡°What am I doing?¡± the doctor groaned. ¡°I graduated out of college, got my medical degree, and now the only person sane in this maze with no exit is a thirteen-year-old runaway!¡± Oakley¡¯s hysterical giggling now transformed into a sob. She cried and screamed, throwing an actual tantrum. She screeched intelligible phrases, something along the lines of ¡°Help! I¡¯m going to die! The lions will eat me!¡± Nick turned toward the black ceiling. ¡°A little help here please? Rabbits? I know I have eaten my fair share of you, but if it makes you feel any better, you are delicious. And ferret, I¡¯m sorry, but I still haven¡¯t got to eating you yet. But I¡¯d appreciate it if you¡¯d let us out and give me a little taste.¡± ¡°Never mind. She¡¯s not sane either,¡± the doctor groaned. ¡°But then again, I¡¯m talking to myself. What¡¯s this?¡± He picked up a piece of paper that had fluttered down from the ceiling. The doctor glanced up, but could make out nothing in the darkness. ¡°What do you have?¡± Nick asked, hurrying over. Exflibberaguil moved to come look, before remembering he was sulking and turned around, putting on his best pout. Suddenly hundred of pieces of the same, thin brown paper flew out of the ceiling from some unseen opening. Hundred upon hundred of them rained on the five insane people. Oakley stopped screaming. Exflibberaguil reluctantly looked around. As if all of them were once again controlled by one universal force, they all looked up and glanced at each other. Nick snatched out of the air, and everyone followed. She eagerly unfolded the wrinkled paper, revealing indigo ink printed neatly on the page, spelling a single word: ¡°MAP.¡± Finale 6 ¡°THIS IS A TRAP, YOU UNDERSTAND.¡± ¡°I am well aware of that,¡± Nick replied coldly, ¡°and you have been voicing your concerns the entire way. But you are welcome to stop any time and continue to sulk, if that¡¯s what you like. In fact, I clearly remember I was advising you not to come along.¡± Exflibberaguil grumbled something incomprehensible, though he continued to drag his feet after the team begrudgingly. Oakley delighted in ripping her map into thousands of tiny pieces, then throwing the shreds up and shrieking as they fluttered down. The doctor stuffed another map in her face before she could begin throwing a tantrum. She snatched it eagerly and ripped it in half with relish. Timothy glowered at her, though he did not look very sane either. He kept twitching and jerking at the slightest of noises, though he never seemed to react when someone spoke to him. Sometimes, his face would freeze in an expression of agony, and it would take minutes before he¡¯d resume to a state of unhappiness. Exflibberaguil looked just as gloomy as before, as if every step he took aged him by two years. Nick and the doctor regarded them as heavy luggage, shooting them expressions of disgust every so often before sighing and rolling their eyes. ¡°Finally (after many delays because of the paper-throwing), the crew arrived at yet another room. ¡°Where are we now?¡± Nick asked in a hushed voice. ¡°I thought you were keeping track!¡± ¡°You trusted me, a middle schooler, to keep track of your fate?¡± Nick said with disbelief. ¡°I¡¯m not sure if I should feel honored or congratulate you on your stupidity. But thank you, nonetheless. I¡¯m not sure if we are at room twenty or twenty-one.¡± ¡°Well, let¡¯s figure it out,¡± the doctor replied, attempting to keep his voice even to hide his nervousness. ¡°Let¡¯s see,¡± he said, hastily smoothing out his map. ¡°Didn¡¯t we just exit from door sixteen?¡± ¡°Yes, but room nineteen and room twenty both exit from door sixteen.¡± ¡°Well,¡± the doctor said, burying his face deeper in the map, ¡°d-do you remember if you went through two doors?¡± Nick flicked her eyes to him impatiently. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t be asking you if I remembered. You¡¯re being one of those people that ask, ¡®Where did you see it last?¡¯ whenever you tell them you lost something.¡±If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°I apologize for attempting to help,¡± the doctor snapped. ¡°Shall I go back and check?¡± ¡°How will you be able to get back?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll follow the paper scraps, of course.¡± He silently congratulated himself for thinking of a solution so quickly. ¡°Well, it¡¯s quite a long walk, though I suppose you could do with some exercise,¡± Nick muttered. The doctor pretended not to hear, but once he was out of sight, he glanced at his slightly protruding stomach self-consciously. He could almost hear that annoying child¡¯s voice echoing after him, Told you so! Maybe he was going crazy too.
NICK SAT IN THE CENTER OF THE ROOM, BEING CAREFUL TO FACE THE RIGHT SIDE. ¡°You there,¡± she said, pointing to Oakley, ¡°go tear up the paper near that hallway, so I know where I came from.¡± Oakley, of course, did not even pretend to listen and continued to prance around the room, scattering pieces everywhere. Nick sighed and stood up, collecting the scraps and arranging them near the opening they exited. Timothy was in one of his fit of jerks again, which was often followed with an agony-face. Exflibberaguil continued his staring contest against the wall, though Nick was beginning to question whether or not he was just sulking or actually speaking to the wall. Whatever it was, Nick knew she wished she could be as free and insane as they were. Heck, she¡¯d even be willing to die. Exflibberaguil was all too right. This map was likely just another one of the rabbit¡¯s games. Those animals are probably spectating them right now, holding their stomachs in laughter. She clenched her fists, crumpling her map. Die¡­she remembered thinking of that. Yes, she remembered clearly now. In one of those rooms, she had been wondering how long it would take for someone with no food to die. And then she began thinking of dice, the cube object. And then, that¡¯s right, her mind had wandered to how a die has twenty-one dots, and they were just approaching room twenty-one¡­ Yes! She was in room twenty-one! She grinned, imagining her glee when the doctor came running back, only to learn that his run had been useless. Though she was beginning to feel awfully like Exflibberaguil, and Exflibberaguil was acting a bit like her¡­so strange what this could do to people. Nick glanced back at the hallway where the doctor had disappeared to. She knew where she was now. The doctor was only slowing her down. Come to think of it, the doctor had always been slowing her down. He didn¡¯t even keep track of the room they were at. Maybe she could just go ahead¡­ Yes, that was what she¡¯d do. Give the doctor a smack in the face. She was feeling awfully bottled up lately, and this would be a perfect prank. Though she didn¡¯t want the doctor to be too worried. He the only sane person besides herself, and she may need a little help controlling the other people. She¡¯d leave a note. She had a pencil, after all. Out of her pocket she rummaged for her stubby pencil and a spare map, scrawling the words Meet you at the end on the back. She carefully, led Oakley away and to door three, the door they were going to, so that she wouldn¡¯t rip the map. Nick placed it carefully in the center of the room, and then began herding the rest of the team to the door. ¡°Betraying the doctor?¡± Exflibberaguil asked flatly. ¡°Just a little prank,¡± Nick snapped. ¡°Come on, you were doing such a good job at shutting up.¡± She pushed him into the hallway, and hurried ahead to lead the way. A smile creeped on her face. Oh, if only she could be there to see the doctor¡¯s reaction¡­ Finale 7 THIS IS IT. This is the end. Nick nearly dropped her map. Oakley had been hunting for scraps of paper for the last hour, and had already tackled Nick twice. She then screamed for half an hour until she was too tired and hoarse to talk. She now took to snarling and making strange animal-inspired faces at Nick and the party. ¡°This is it,¡± Nick breathed staring at the room they stood in. She knew more than anyone else that the end was probably fake. Nevertheless, it didn¡¯t stop her from feeling a wave of accomplishment that she finally got to the end. She unraveled her map again, looking toward the top where the big X was. Room 63, Nick thought, End. She looked up from her map, into the darkness of the room. This one wasn¡¯t lit, perhaps to make it more difficult. Nick could not see across the room to door 24, where the end to the torture supposedly lay. Nick sighed and glanced back to the hallway she left and sighed. Of course she couldn¡¯t leave yet. She should wait for the doctor. A prank shouldn¡¯t be taken too far. But the end was tempting her¡­ I suppose it would do no harm just to look at it, Nick decided. After all, I¡¯m sure exiting won¡¯t be as easy as it looks. She glanced behind her again, as if she expected the doctor to pop up any second. Then she turned around and shook her head. It was ridiculous. She didn¡¯t even need to mark which door she came from. She was certainly never going back. Carefully avoid Oakley (who had taken to becoming a wildcat and prowled on the ground, snarling and snapping), Nick edged across the darkness of the room, hugging the wall and counting the archways. Several times she nearly fell into a hallway, but at last, she managed to arrive at the opposite side of the room. She began shuffling over archway 23, half expecting some sort of rabid creature to jump out of the darkness and pounce on her. But as she moved away, no creature bit her, and no creature moved. She breathed a sigh of relief, moving to hallway 24¡­ There was no arch. Of course there wasn¡¯t. There was only a smooth wall. Of course. The map must have been a red herring, to throw her off track. Hallway 24 was only a mirror. As Nick lowered her hand in resignation, her palm hit a hard metal object. She recoiled, biting her tongue to keep from howling in pain. Cautiously, she began moving her hand back to where she injured it. Her hand touched the smooth surface of a round sphere¡­This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. A doorknob? It was a doorknob! Of course. The end was just a door. She seized the knob and began to twist it. It did not budge. Hoping it was just because of rust or some other factor, Nick grabbed on it with her other hand and began tugging at the knob, growing more panicked by the second. Perhaps she was turning the wrong way? Perhaps it was a pull door? Perhaps there was another knob? Nick moved to the door feeling around it until she touched the hinges. No. It was obvious. The door was very locked. Nick slid to the floor in disappointment. In all honesty, she never expected something different. How cruel of the rabbits, to give her a map to the end, which only led to a locked door that may or may not be the exit. ¡°I wonder how long I¡¯ll survive,¡± she muttered. ¡°For you? I believe the answer is three or four days, without water.¡± As if the room was a giant lightbulb, it turned on with blinding light, searing into Nick¡¯s eyes. The darkness converted to the bright light of the sun. Nick squeezed her eyes shut in fear of damage, tears trickling out from the sudden brightness. ¡°But it would be awfully boring to watch you dehydrate. Though it would be a very intriguing science experiment, I suppose. Would you shrivel up like grapes? Or does that effect only happen when you are soaked in water for too long? ¡°But forgive me, I¡¯m off topic. In terms of entertainment, watching you die in a black maze for three days can get very tiring quickly, and frankly, I don¡¯t want to think of some way to make it more interesting. All this pretending has been very trying on me, and I was hoping I could end it now. So let¡¯s start with proper introductions. Hello Marine, my name Ilder.¡± ¡°My name is Nick,¡± Nick said weakly, trying in vain to force her eyes open. She caught a glimpse of the ferret¡¯s white coat. ¡°Is Nick your first name?¡± ¡°It¡¯s my nickname. Call me Nick.¡± ¡°If it¡¯s not your name, why should I call you it?¡± ¡°My name is Nick.¡± ¡°My name is Ilder. Your name is Marine. Now that we¡¯ve agreed on that, allow me to continue.¡± Nick struggled to sit up, waving her arms blindly to swing at the ferret. The ferret slipped nimbly through her clumsy fingers. ¡°What do you want?¡± Much to her surprise, these words did not come out of Nick¡¯s mouth. The cold, flat voice undoubtfully belonged to Exflibberaguil, but the tone seemed so out of a place coming from him that Nick didn¡¯t completely believe it. ¡°Nothing,¡± the ferret said with a hint of glee. ¡°I was going to ask you the very question.¡± ¡°I want out!¡± Nick screamed, finally opening her eyes. She pounced on the ferret, trying to catch it and smother it under her. The ferret easily jumped away. ¡°My, did Exflibberaguil here manage to tell you why I¡¯m doing this?¡± the ferret asked tauntingly. ¡°Because you want to kill us and then take over my planet?¡± Nick guessed. ¡°Which, by the way, I¡¯m not giving you permission to do.¡± ¡°Ah, so you didn¡¯t tell her,¡± the ferret said with a strange animal smile, ¡°shall I do the honors then?¡± ¡°I saved them for you,¡± Exflibberaguil replied coldly. ¡°I thought you¡¯d enjoy.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want an explanation! I want to get out!¡± Nick screamed pulling frantically at the door. ¡°Nonsense,¡± the ferret chided. ¡°There is always a time for a story.¡± ¡°I already know your story! You just slaughtered a bunch of Mustela!¡± ¡°The rabbits slaughtered. I did not.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the difference?¡± ¡°Sit,¡± the ferret commanded, and Nick, against her will, was forced to the ground along with the growling Oakley and frozen-faced Timothy. ¡°There is always time for a story, and you are going to hear mine out.¡± Finale 8.1 ¡°ONCE UPON A TIME¡­ ¡°I believe that¡¯s the way you start stories?¡± the ferret asked Nick. She gave no sign of affirmation. ¡°Once upon a time,¡± the ferret continued after a period of silence, ¡°there was a fight. A terrible fight, with its hefty share of blood and violence, tyranny and betrayal. To some, it was a revolution. To others, it was a war. To most, it was simply chaos and death. There were no real sides of the battle. Most of the time, it was just a mess of fighting. But it did start with two rivalries. The rabbits, or more specifically, the Lagamorphs, and the Mustela. ¡°How did this begin? Well¡ª¡± ¡°I already knew how it began!¡± Nick cut in fiercely. ¡°The rabbits tried to take over their planet because they defied the laws of nature!¡± ¡°Nick¡ª¡± Exflibberaguil protested weakly, knowing what the ferret was to say next. ¡°Ah, so that¡¯s what my master her told you,¡± the ferret said smugly, relishing its moment even more than before. ¡°I didn¡¯t remember anything!¡± Exflibberaguil snapped, defending himself. ¡°I forgot it all! And even so, I was only five. I couldn¡¯t remember anything¡­¡± ¡°Flibber?¡± Nick asked, suddenly uncertain and confused. ¡°Let me educate you with the correct version,¡± the ferret said. ¡°The real version, not some Mustela propaganda. ¡°Rabbits never intended destroy any planets, or take over anyone. They simply were fueled with a single desire: the desire to live. It is perhaps one of the only universal desires natural to everyone, unless, of course, you are willing to say otherwise?¡± the ferret challenged. Nick did not speak. The ferret chuckled to itself. ¡°And what was they to do when ¡®nature¡¯ began throwing viruses and diseases at them? Succumb to nature and die off? Go extinct like how your dinosaurs went? Be replaced by another species nature decides on? Is that where you¡¯d like your fellow humans to be? Replaced? ¡°I thought not. Why have your scientists paid so much attention to other planets and alien species? It¡¯s your plan B. Somewhere you can go to when things get tough, and nature tries to wipe your species away. I doubt you¡¯ll be able to get anywhere close to exploring other planets in your evolution phase, but perhaps after a few wipes and diseases, your planet would get there some day. ¡°These rabbits have already gone through several phases, and they believed, like every species, that their current phase is the ultimate phase, and they wished to preserve their species until the end of time. Naturally, when their planet became overpopulated, they sought ways out and to other places to survive. Rabbits are capable of living on many different planets, and they soon were easily immigrated in various places, including Pylo¡¯rox, home to your darling Mustela.¡± ¡°Immigrated? Ha!¡± Nick said jeeringly, though her tone was no longer so certain. The ferret ignored her exclamation. ¡°The rabbits who immigrated were, at first, treated with utmost kindness. People often adopted rabbits and poor families on the streets out of pity. However, as you know, rabbits are extremely fast at reproduction, and soon, when rabbits were more common, Mustela began to lose their patience for them. Mustela never were really kind to begin with. Parents would often abandon their children. At one point, it was popular to replace your children with a rabbit, so show their supposed kindness to ¡®refugees.¡¯This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°Quickly, the hype for rabbits was extinguished, and many rabbits their pity homes and jobs. Most lived on the streets. A few lucky ones became janitors and maids. The most popular job for a poor rabbit was a nanny or a governess. Because of the declining population of Mustela, it is the law for every couple to have a child. Since no parent wanted to take care of their children, rabbits were hired as nannies.¡± The ferret stopped, watching its words take effect. ¡°Of course, I say ¡®hired¡¯, but slavery would be a better term. There was no payment. The only benefit the rabbit enjoyed was a roof and minimal food. Exflibberaguil¡¯s nanny was a rabbit, I believe.¡± ¡°No¡­¡± Nick said, glancing at Exflibberaguil for confirmation. But he sat against the wall, his head in his arms, burying his face. ¡°This, the rabbits tolerated. It was only expected. Their home planet wasn¡¯t much better. Despite their greatest efforts, their planet was still getting overpopulated. So they accepted their current situation as something they were supposed to experience. Many were beat and bullied, and many died on the streets. Hundreds must have been killed in secrecy. No one paid attention to them either way. ¡°But the rabbits continued to populate Pylo¡¯rox, and their population was getting dangerously high. Measures were put up to prevent rabbit population, but why should they listen to a government that didn¡¯t protect them? However, many rabbits realized the danger of their situation, and opted to let their family line die out, in hopes of being able to support the next generation. But unfortunately, this wasn¡¯t close to enough, and soon, there were more rabbits on Pylo¡¯rox than Mustela and all other immigrants combined. Rabbit immigrants were no longer accepted, and many rabbits were killed openly. ¡°The Mustela government decided that the only way take care of the rabbit population was to kill all of them. But they could not kill rabbits freely without a reasonable motive, or some sick excuse to justify their actions. Some way to show that they were not the bad people, and the rabbits were the ones that would start the war. ¡°It was the vice president of Pylo¡¯rox that thought of the solution. She hired a rabbit as the president¡¯s personal butler, of sorts. She convinced the president that by showing kindness to the rabbits, the rabbits would feel ashamed, which would be the first step to achieving their goal. However, this was far from her actual, far more malicious intent. ¡°Late one night, she came to the president explaining that she finally found a way to solve their problems. They shared a meal and a drink. Prior to the meal, she poisoned the alcohol, knowing the president was a heavy drinker. The president died right before her eyes. To make her less suspicious, she sipped some of the poisoned liquid and fainted, making it seem like she was on the verge of death. ¡°The media, who have for so long ignored the pleading cries of the rabbits, latched on to the theory that the one rabbit butler was the one that poisoned the drink. It was impossible to convince the public otherwise, and the judge and jury were only too happy to sentence the rabbit to death. The vice president, pretending to be heartbroken and bewildered, declared the rabbits were the first to initiate the conflict, and that they were going to war against the rabbits. ¡°Then, suddenly, killing rabbits became patriotic. Many were bombed right on the street. Mustela killed their rabbit cooks and nannies for the most obscure reasons. And rabbit stews and rabbit ears became the most popular delicacies. ¡°The gentle, caring rabbits were taken by complete surprise. They, who had endured all the hate society had cast on them, became the victim of such injustice. They could take it no longer. And, though they seemed weak and helpless, they had several more millennia of evolution than the Mustela, and several more millions of weapons. The Mustela military had gone lazy and powerless under centuries without a threat, and found themselves ill-prepared for the mass of rabbits that suddenly began pouring from other planets and fighting for their rights. However, soon other species began arriving on the Mustela¡¯s side, and all hell broke loose.¡± ¡°But where does Exflibberaguil come in?¡± Nick interrupted. The ferret smiled the way only a ferret can. ¡°Patience. I am getting there.¡± Finale 8.2 ¡°EARLY IN THE WAR, WHEN RABBITS JUST BEGAN TO RETALIATE, EXFLIBBERAGUIL¡¯S PARENTS DIED.¡± The ferret stopped, turning its small white head towards Exflibberaguil. ¡°Would you rather tell the rest of the story?¡± Exflibberaguil did not look up. Nick glanced at him with concern, wanting to make him as happy as he once was, yet also wanting to hear the end of the story. After a few seconds without a response, the ferret sighed. ¡°Very well then. I am obligated to continue. ¡°Exflibberaguil¡¯s parents died from eating a rabbit¡ªExflibberaguil¡¯s nanny, as a matter of fact. She was one of the first rabbits to receive an early protocol of a sort of poison. She was the most prone to danger, being in the household of Mustela. The poison would kill anyone who eats the rabbit after the rabbit dies. It¡¯s very much like blowing yourself alone with your enemies using a grenade¡ªsomething very popular in your war movies,¡± the ferret said, nodding towards Nick. ¡°How do you know this, if Exflibberaguil erased his memory?¡± Nick fired back. ¡°Oh! That¡¯s right,¡± the ferret said, somehow smiling wider than before. ¡°Yes, I forgot to mention¡ªI have access to the memory in his forgetting machine. I can watch every single one of his memories, and Box has it all stored in its memory as well. Why do you think it was so easy for Box to recall Exflibberaguil¡¯s trigger word?¡± ¡°But how do you have access to¡ª¡± ¡°Tch. So impatient,¡± the ferret chided, shaking its head. ¡°Let me continue. ¡°Exflibberaguil¡¯s family killed the rabbit because of some ridiculous excuse. And, as it was very popular at the time, they ate the rabbit. A disgusting act, may I add. ¡°They quickly died from the poison. But Exflibberaguil was rather attached to his nana, who he called Baba. Mustela, I have mentioned, do not make great parents, and Baba acted as the only motherly figure. Exflibberaguil naturally could not bring himself to eat the meat of his Baba, and was the only one in his family to survive. ¡°The very next day, the war officially began. Exflibberaguil lived in a community with a lot of rabbit nannies and caretakers, and many Mustela had died the same way as his parents did. His neighborhood was one of the many that got attacked on that day, and there was a great bloodshed. Everyone seemed to have died, except Exflibberaguil, who, by some miracle, was able to escape and enter my master¡¯s ship. ¡°My master was a kind man, and the real inventor of the forgetting machine. He planned to gather as many children as possible, and hoped that, with the help of the machine, the children would grow up to be healthy and bright. When he saw Exflibberaguil fighting his way through the crowd, he threw a sort of grenade to clear the path. Exflibberaguil managed to climb into my master¡¯s ship. ¡°My master was not present to greet him, as he was afraid he¡¯d scare Exflibberaguil off. However, he expected Exflibberaguil to walk around and explore the ship before doing anything, giving my master ample time to introduce himself. He did not expect Exflibberaguil to wash his bloody hands¡ªwhich, you know, have poisonous rabbit blood¡ªin the sink and contaminated the limited source of clean water. ¡°My master had to leave quickly to find some more water, and tranquilized Exflibberaguil to sleep. Unfortunately, he was gone for too long and Exflibberaguil awoke before he could arrive back. Exflibberaguil then decided to search for the control room, and found it easily. Caring nothing for all the signs that the ship was my master¡¯s, Exflibberaguil took off, leaving my master behind, who faced a certain death.¡± Nick was at lost for words. ¡°I managed to convince Box to act natural, and follow Exflibberaguil¡¯s commands. He was, after all, the sort of child my master had wanted to save. We guided him towards the forgetting machine, but little did we know how he¡¯d abuse it and abuse us. ¡°He explored all sorts of planets, doing petty thievery and then forgetting about it so he¡¯d be able to convince his twisted self that he earned it all fairly. Then he came here, deciding that he¡¯d play hero for a while, before inevitably go away again to some other planet and live his unfulfilling life.¡± ¡°¡­ So, you went off to join the rabbits, who your master was fighting against?¡± Nick said, her voice on edge.Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! ¡°No, my master did not die because of the rabbits. He died because of the Mustela,¡± the ferret replied evenly. ¡°And I had always been friends with the rabbits. My master, too, but he was unable to sustain a family of rabbits that reproduced so quickly.¡± ¡°But¡­¡± Nick stared, trying to form words out of her chaotic emotions, ¡°this is wrong!¡± ¡°Wrong?¡± ¡°Well,¡± Nick sighed, ¡°don¡¯t you see? Most Mustela are terrible, I agree. And the war had to be fought. It was inevitable. But did the rabbits have invade other planets?¡± ¡°What were they to do?¡± ¡°Let me ask you. Why was it wrong for the Mustela to slaughter the rabbits, even when the rabbits have overpopulated their planet?¡± ¡°Because,¡± the ferret said slowly, being careful not to fall into a word trap, ¡°they should face their own mistake of letting the rabbits in.¡± ¡°Exactly. Everyone should face their own mistakes.¡± ¡°I suppose¡­¡± ¡°And would it be fair to say that the rabbits should face their own mistakes of not putting up a rule for overpopulation? Shouldn¡¯t that mean they should take care of it themselves?¡± Nick asked quietly. ¡°And they did!¡± the ferret replied. ¡°They did all they could, and it was not their fault they wanted to immigrate to other planets!¡± ¡°It¡¯s not. But invading other planets is. Why should they come to my planet, when we have done nothing wrong?¡± ¡°They can¡¯t trust any planet now, can they?¡± ¡°And that gives them ample excuse to invade planets? Should everyone try to murder everyone else, just because they saw a serial killer on television?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not like that¡­¡± the ferret said, becoming a little quieter. ¡°THEN WHAT IS IT LIKE?¡± Exflibberaguil roared, speaking for the first time. ¡°There you are,¡± Nick muttered. ¡°Speaking now, are you?¡± the ferret replied. ¡°Just ignoring the fact that you, essentially, is the cause of my master¡¯s death?¡± ¡°Shut up!¡± Exflibberaguil yelled, pouncing towards the ferret. He missed by an inch. This suddenly movement triggered Oakley¡¯s predatorial reflexes, and she pounced as well. Timothy, unnerved by the movement, began running in circles. And Nick tried to catch the ferret herself, though she knew it was unlikely her unathletic body would be able to do much at all. Suddenly, Oakley screeched, tearing up. Nick smelled a sort of soapy aroma. She looked to see Exflibberaguil splashing bubble solution from his wooden bottle at the ferret, who was dodging easily and gracefully. ¡°You damn rodent!¡± Exflibberaguil yelled, swinging his bottle again. A few pathetic drips came out. ¡°Empty. Dang it!¡± ¡°Enough!¡± the ferret roared. With a sudden, ear-piercing whine, Nick was forced to the ground by some invisible force. Her headache came back, but it seemed to affect everyone. She glanced fearfully at the ferret, who seemed unaffected. She could barely raise her head. ¡°Finally,¡± the ferret said. ¡°Silence.¡± ¡°What is this?¡± Exflibberaguil demanded, his voice sounding tense and strangled. ¡°Oh, just a little gravity device I have been tinkering with. It can greatly annoy people. In fact, I¡¯ve tested it on you and Nick a couple of times, and it worked splendidly. You remember those strange fights you always have? A little gravity always puts you on edge. Of course, my main test subject is that policeman. In fact, Jake, come in!¡± the ferret called. Nick could not summon the energy to turn around, but she heard, stiff stomps coming out from one of the hallways. ¡°How does this work?¡± Nick asked, unaware of how scared she sounded. ¡°Oh, I don¡¯t know. It was another one of my master¡¯s inventions, though I kept this away from Exflibberaguil¡¯s thieving hands.¡± The ferret paused. ¡°Do you hear that?¡± Nick did indeed hear it, but she did not answer. There was the sound of quick footsteps echoing from one of the corridors, growing louder as it approached. No one spoke as they awaited for the person to come closer. ¡°HIYYYYA!¡± A broken pot crashed against the wall, missing the ferret by several feet. Nick recognized the heavy panting of the doctor, and she forced herself to turn around so she could see him. ¡°No! Doctor¡ª¡± she cried, but the weight on her chest made breathing difficult. ¡°Have you all been beaten by this ferret?¡± the doctor said, still panting. He shed his white lab coat which he had been wearing for so long. ¡°Huh? Huh? You want to fight?¡± ¡°Ah, yes,¡± the ferret said coyly. ¡°I was wondering where you were. And this chip pot, I believe, is that of the violemortum¡¯s. That is why it died¡­¡± The ferret¡¯s ignorance of the doctor flamed his temper, and the doctor ran towards the animal. ¡°You will pay!¡± ¡°Hm. I assume you took this when you were snooping in the control room?¡± the ferret said smoothly, slipping away as the doctor ran towards it. The doctor howled in pain as his outstretched fingers were crushed by the wall. ¡°No matter,¡± the ferret sighed. ¡°Down you go.¡± The doctor was sent to the ground by the same pressure Nick was under. ¡°Don¡¯t do this,¡± Nick said, trying to sound cool and collected even though her face was smashed against the floor and she was utterly at the ferret¡¯s mercy. ¡°Let me finish that sentence for you,¡± the ferret said. ¡°Don¡¯t do this. Kill me, but not my friends. They did nothing wrong.¡± ¡°That sounds much more heroic,¡± Nick agreed, trying her best to force the words out of her compressed lungs. ¡°But actually, I just don¡¯t want to die, since it¡¯s pretty obvious that sending me to death would be very easy for you. And it would be nice if you spared my fri¡ªacquaintances. And even better if you spared my planet.¡± Nick paused, catching her breath. ¡°Actually, reverse that order. Please spare my planet before the rest of these idiots.¡± ¡°Hm,¡± the ferret said, ¡°Five minutes. Convince me.¡± Finale 9 "CONVINCE YOU?" Nick snorted. "I can barely breathe right now. I don''t have the energy to argue." "I never said you''d have to argue," the ferret replied evenly. "I just need you to convince me. I won''t breathe a word." "Let me go. I refuse to speak when my left cheek is against the floor." "Will you run?" "Where to?" The ferret sighed. "You have a point there, I suppose. But the way you think is a mystery. I will never be able to fully comprehend the reason for your actions." "I will not run!" Nick said, trying to sound ferocious even though she could not properly pronounce her words. "Besides, I do not want to leave these people here, despite what I had said earlier." "I understand that your kind do not hesitate at betrayal." "I refuse to speak on the ground," Nick repeated. The ferret danced around her. "Very well. You are welcome not to." "Didn''t you request me to convince you not to attack my planet?" "I was amused, that is all," the ferret replied. "You are the most bearable of your companions. You speak little. Have you not noticed that you are the only one that is capable of speech?" Nick struggled to move her head. She caught a glimpse of a struggling Oakley, who seemed to be using every ounce of her energy to inhale. "Allow them to breathe, at least!" The ferret looked around, amused. "It is strange. Once they are able to breathe, they waste it on their constant chattering." "Let them breathe!" "Careful," the ferret warned. "Do not forget. I have nothing to gain from listening to your argument. I am the one giving you a chance to convince me not to destroy your planet. What is the saying¡ªdo not bite the hand who feeds you." "I do not need to be fed!" Nick snapped. "There now," the ferret chided. "See, I have let you speak now. You may sit up, but if you intend to run, you shall meet the same fate as your friends." "I will not run," Nick said, sitting up slowly. Blood rushed from her head, and she began taking long, grateful breaths of air.Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. "I did not let you free so I can watch you breathe." Nick glared, but she knew her time was limited, and the ferret was correct. "Nick¡­" Exflibberaguil whispered weakly, putting a great effort in squeezing his words out. "The ferret won''t listen¡­" Nick nodded, knowing this all too well. After a long, deep breath to gather her thoughts, she began to speak. "I can not pretend to understand your intentions for this," Nick said slowly, articulating her syllables clearly as to not be misheard, "but do not make the mistake in believing I possess any delusions of my current situation. You have proven the be a formidable enemy, and I, as well as everyone else, know that we are at her mercy, and my life can be easily extinguished. You have shown to be infinitely stronger and more powerful than any one of us here, And I know you already have decided on our fate, and I know it is extremely difficult to sway a person from a firmly grounded belief. "However," Nick said, attaching importance to her word, "I believe it is my duty to try my best to convince you not to kill us or our planet. And while my efforts may be in vain, at least I can find comfort in knowing I died strong." "You speak well," the ferret said, "yet you seem to be stalling." "I am only warming up," Nick replied hastily. "I would just like to make it clear that I am defending my planet and my planet only. What you choose to do with the other planets is your choice. I can not single handedly save every planet in all the universes, but I would like to preserve mine. And there is a very simple reason why you should not bother with my planet. "Earth simply isn''t worth it. "Tell me, ferret, why do the rabbits invade?" The ferret had a bemused expression. "Playing games with me? Very well. The main purpose of invasion is for space and resources." "I believed the same. You would like to profit, I assume?" "Yes." "And, I also assume many have died during invasion?" "Yes, but we gained more than we lost." "Aha!" Nick cried, suddenly springing up. "Gain! You lost, but what you gained is more valuable, is it not?" "Yes¡­" "But there is the problem!" Nick said, speaking with animation. "If you decide to invade Earth, your losses would be more than your gains." "How so?" the ferret challenged. "You are one of the most primitive planets to this date. It is impossible for your guns and explosives to match the power of the ones we have seen." "Yes, but you forget," Nick said. "We are primitive, and that makes us stubborn. More stubborn than your other planets that care for nothing more than vacation and entertainment. We will fight to the death for our planet, and we will do whatever we must to prevent rabbits to invade us. And while our weapons are far from the best and most effective, we will use them to the best of our ability, and we will not hesitate to fight as a team. In fact, even if the invasion is a success and the rabbits take over Earth, they will still lose. We would have killed many rabbits by then, and even though rabbits reproduce quickly, they would have to live on an empty, barren earth with nuclear waste and toxic chemicals everywhere. "Your rabbits would gain nothing from the invasion, only another useless planet in space. And why would we go to such lengths to protect a chunk of floating space rock? Because we still possess something all the sophisticated planets have lost long ago. And this is not something that can be easily recovered, even with all the technology and flashing lights other advanced civilizations may have. It is a power only primitive planets still have." Nick paused, silently fretting that the ferret would not take the bait. The ferret seemed to understand too, and took its time to ask the one question. Finally, after a very long, awkward pause, the ferret spoke. "And what is this power you speak of?" the ferret asked slowly. "It is spirit." End "SPIRIT?" "Yes," Nick replied confidently. "Right now, if you decide to invade Earth, you will gain nothing because of our spirit. We will stop at nothing to prevent you from entering our planet. And even though you may be able to ultimately defeat us, your victory over a nuclear waste of a planet would mean nothing." The ferret stared at Nick with look of concentration. Nick stared back at it, keeping her best poker face and hoped she did not betray any obvious emotion. "You understand that such a speech did nothing to change your fate?" the ferret asked coyly. "It isn''t easy to convince and sway beliefs with words," Nick replied. "And it is not my fate that I am speaking of." "I will still carry out to do what I intended. You failed to convince to do otherwise." "I am glad," Nick replied. "I had no intention to change your mind. I only wished to lend help in convincing yourself." The ferret smiled, the sides of its mouth curving upward, looking strangely cute and sweet. If it had been born on Earth, it would have undoubtfully been a successful internet celebrity. "So you did know?" "You never tried to hide it. The map was too easy. I do wonder though, do the rabbits allow it? It would be much more difficult for me to convince them, and explain Exflibberaguil''s rabbit murders." "They never had anything against you and your friend," the ferret pointed out. "They are not as savage and insane as you peg them to be. You do not need to be punished." "But Exflibberaguil?" The ferret looked as if there was something it wished to say, but seemed to change his mind when he glanced at the red-haired alien. "I don''t believe it would be necessary to keep him with us either. I have a feeling we would see him once more very, very soon. I hope you have nothing against that."If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Nick sighed. "No. It would not be my responsibility then." "You think clearer than most of your kind. Pity you were born from apes. I should think that my master would have liked you very much. You would have been successful on a galactic scale. Are you certain of your choice?" "I do not wish to be running any more." The ferret flicked its tail. "Wise decision. I suppose I should let these free?" Nick glanced at the people struggling on the floor. "Please do." Nick''s ears popped as a sudden weight she had not noticed disappeared from her body. The doctor was the first to recover his breath, and began rushing to the aid of the others, his medical instincts taking over for him. Exflibberaguil gasped loudly as the doctor felt for his pulse, intent on keeping an eye on his watch. Suddenly, he shook his head and sighed. "Of course," the doctor said without amusement, "I don''t suppose aliens have the same heartrate as humans." "No, I should not think so," Exflibberaguil gasped. "I''d hate to think I was in any way similar to Sodriew." "But aren''t we ignoring something here?" Timothy asked desperately. "What are we to become? What was Nick talking about?" "But of course!" Exflibberaguil snapped impatiently. "We are to be let out!" "Are you?" the ferret asked. "And how would you know? Because of a map that is likely false? Because of this locked door? Because of this key I hold that I may not give you? And how should you know if a pool of lava await you?" "I''m sorry, did you give us a choice?" the doctor replied. The ferret laughed, tossing a silver key across the room. The doctor caught it before Oakley could swallow it. It was nothing special. Anyone could have picked the lock, but the doctor suspected that it was not the door that was the true obstacle. "The simplicity of the human mind," the ferret said, "always succeeds to amaze me. So primitive and stubborn, yet so effective." The doctor did not listen. He marched to the locked door, and fitted the silver key into it. He unlocked the door without pausing, surprisingly anticlimactic. Yet everyone held their breath as the door gave way with a soft click. Nick was the first to see it. The golden light of the setting sun flowed into the room in rays of warm orange and red. Nick breathed a sigh of delight, soaking in the sun like a flower raising its leaves. "Congratulations," the ferret said. "We are on the ground. You can step out easily." "Would you be keeping this ship?" Exflibberaguil asked, then sighed. "Of course. I suppose you deserve it." "Nonsense. I am leaving on the ship of the rabbits. You keep this one. Master would have preferred it." "You and Box are leaving then?" "Yes." "Goodbye sir," Box said, his cheery accent strangely heartbreaking. Exflibberaguil smiled, looking at the sky. "Goodbye then," he said simply. "I hope I would never see you again." Epilogue "STRANGE." "Yes, very," Oakley agreed. Just before she exited the ship, the rabbits injected her with something that immediately sobered her up. Apparently she had gone insane for a while, and she did have very strange memories of cats and crawling. "Well," Timothy said, throwing his hands up. "That''s that." "I wonder," the doctor mused, "how much money I''ve lost." "You recovered fast," Oakley said dryly. "But doc," Timothy said, "now we know for certain that the glowing thing was alien. You could get millions from discovering a new element! You know how much scientists would pay for such an insignificant thing." "Don''t you remember?" the doctor grumbled. "I took off my coat. The shard was in my coat pocket." Oakley stared blankly at the doctor, wanting to express all her disbelieve at the doctor''s idiocy in a single word. But suddenly, almost as if against her will, she uttered a giggle, and burst into a hearty laughter, throwing her head back and howling. Her laughed echoed across the large open field they had been dropped into. After a few moments of confusion, Timothy managed to catch Oakley''s eye. It turned out he did not only catch her eye, but also her contagious laughter and he too began to double over and laugh, tears squeezing out of her eyes. Only the doctor remained stoic and serious, his frown deepening each passing second. He despised inside jokes he did not understand, and especially jokes that arise from his own words. "I don''t see anything to laugh about," he said coldly, though this only seemed to spark a fresh round of giggles. "Oh, doc, look at you," Oakley gasped. "Remaining cool and collected like a professional medical man should. But we lowly patients enjoy a good laugh." "Laugh about what?" the doctor demanded. "Doctor!" Timothy exclaimed reproachfully. "We just escaped from alien rabbits, while driving around the country chasing a thirteen-year-old. And here you are, worrying about money and time when you can just stop and think about spaceships and aliens. Don¡¯t you think that deserves a good laugh?" The doctor remained motionless. "I don''t like jokes to be made at my expense." Oakley and Timothy''s laughter instantly ceased. But after one glance, they erupted in loud squeals, screeching fragments of sentences. "He¡­he¡­" Timothy gasped, "he said¡­" Apparently, this was all that was needed to spark shrieks of joy from Oakley. "St¡ªstop it! Stop making me laugh!" "But he said¡ª" "Ah! Stop! The doctor might actually need to mend my broken ribs now!" "You stop! You heard him, he doesn''t want jokes made at his expense!" "It''s getting late. We need to find our car," the doctor said without amusement. "Ha! You heard that?" "I heard that? Yes I did! We''ll be back before supper Ma!" "Ha!" And like all good stories, the sun set on the silhouette of a large brave man dragging two limp bodies behind him.
"NICK, HOW DID YOU KNOW WHERE I WAS?" It had been a week after the rabbits have left from Earth. Nick and Exflibberaguil sat in a little clearing in a forest, staring at the pitch-black ship.Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. "You told me on Conspearisee, remember?" Nick replied, not looking at him. "No, before that. How did you know I was on the ship when he ''rescued'' me?" "Oh, that," Nick sighed, stretching out her legs and shaking her head. "Stars don''t blink." "Pardon?" "Never mind. But I have I question for you. Why Conspearisee?" "What do you mean, why?" Exflibberaguil asked, genuinely confused. "It''s terrible spelling." "All the good domain names were taken," he pointed out. "And then I saw a spear lying on the side of my desk. It used to be a convict, you know, when it still had batteries. But now it only serves juice." Nick furrowed her brow, trying to follow Exflibberaguil''s strange explanation. "Ah, I see. Con-spear-I-see. Clever." "Really? I didn''t think so at the time. I was just getting desperate. But I suppose Sodriew like it." "Ha," Nick chuckled softly looking to the side. "Why do you insist on calling us Sodriew? You have perfect English." Exflibberaguil shrugged. "Because¡ªwhat''s the saying¡ªcall a spade a spade? That''s why." "What?" "Did you never notice?" Exflibberaguil exclaimed. "Here, let me show you." He reached for a nearby twig, and began writing in the dirt. Nick looked over reluctantly, still unable to meet his eye. Exflibberaguil didn''t seem to mind. He was intent on his writing. DRIEW "Driew," Nick said, "or Earth." Exflibberaguil didn''t reply. He cleared the leaves under the word, and began writing another word. DRIEW WEIRD Nick took several seconds to comprehend it, before suddenly throwing her head back and groaned. "Oh, I''m such an idiot. You''ve been insulting me all this time?" Exflibberaguil smiled and shrugged. "It was a test. You failed." "I can''t believe it. You''ve been calling my planet weird, and all us humans weirdos." "I can find no better description." Nick shook her head, but giggling despite herself. "You know, a few days ago I had been thinking about how I''m a cracked oyster. But I''ve decided that you are not an oyster at all. I think you''re a mussel." "A mussel? Why?" Nick laughed. "Well, you can hardly be called an oyster like the rest of use humans. And Mussel sounds like Mustela, and that''s good enough for me." "The simplicity of your brain never ceases to amaze me." "Are you quoting your ferret?" "Maybe," Exflibberaguil said sheepishly. "My insults have been deteriorating in quality when the only thing I can practice them against is my translator, who just begins to smack talk me in another language I don''t know if I ever get too good at my game." Nick pouted, but said nothing. They lapsed into a silence, admiring the dappled sunlight on the leaves. Though it was peaceful, she knew there was one question left unasked. "So," Exflibberaguil said finally, in a quiet voice, "what are you going to do?" Nick was glad he asked first. "After all the police stop obsessing over me? I''ll go visit my mom, I guess. She''ll be let out soon. And in the meantime, I''ll make the most out of my current situation with my cousins. I managed to take care of that eight-year old by beating him at his favorite video game, and I''ll try to get a little money from my art online so my uncle would stop glaring at me. " "Art?" "Why not?" Nick said, as if she was arguing. Her face turned red. "I have hobbies too." Exflibberaguil laughed softly, his chuckles fading away into another period of silence. "Well? Aren''t you going to ask me what I''m going to do?" Exflibberaguil asked at last. Nick looked away. "Is that necessary?" she asked meekly. "I''m going to tell you anyway," Exflibberaguil replied firmly, "though I suppose you already know. I''ll have to leave." Nick nodded. "I know." "Now, as a matter of fact." "Now? It''s the middle of the day! You''ll be seen for sure." "Good. I''ll play final prank on your Sodriew before I leave." Nick sighed. "You can pass as a human, you know." "A human, and a kidnapper," Exflibberaguil pointed out. "But aside from that, you only saved your own planet. In fact, you probably made the situation worse for the sophisticated planets. I have to fight." "I know," Nick whispered. She glanced at him. "But did I do anything to help?" "Of course!" Exflibberaguil exclaimed, grinning lopsidedly. "You taught me loads?" "Really?" "Sure! Like, um, never take a sidekick." Nick snorted and began giggling, though a emotion swelled in her chest. Exflibberaguil laughed along, keeping an eye on her. "Are you¡­crying?" he asked suddenly. "No!" Nick shouted loudly. "I''m¡­I''m sensitive!" "Still crying," Exflibberaguil teased. "I''m sensitive to the heat!" she screamed. "My eyes are sweating!" They paused, realizing what Nick said. Then they resumed their laughter, with Nick hastily wiping away her tears. "Well then," Exflibberaguil panted once he recovered. "G''bye." "Bye," Nick replied with a small wave. Exflibberaguil clambered into his ship, climbing the steps by twos. Just as the staircase began to retract and close, he turned around and gave a small smile. Nick smiled back, though her puffy red eyes gave her away. The door shut with a puff and a click. Nick stared at it as it began to hum. A light blinked on it''s consuming black body. It coughed, and just as Nick began to worry it was malfunctioning, it blew up a great cloud of dust and smoke. Nick staggered back, shielding her eyes from the debris. A great wind howled in the trees, breaking branches and swaying trees. When the dust settled back, it was gone.