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Lpnet3 Sci-shorts-01
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| Lpnet3-100 Day of the Mystikon Chapter 1: The Martian Landlords Chapter 2: The Post Neutronic Era Chapter 3: The NYC and the EMDA Chapter 4: Stranded at Toyland Chapter 5: A Gem for a Raygun Chapter 6: An Isotope for an Engine Chapter 7: A Sublime Portent Chapter 8: A Hard Rain Chapter 9: Against the Wind Chapter 10. The Monster Tank Chapter 11: The Secret Agent Chapter 12: The NDX Unit Chapter 13: Fort Granite Chapter 14: Contact with the Natives |
Day
of the Mystikon
7. A Sublime Portent That night, I slept in my old bed and had a very strange dream. I and my stepbrother, who was a sibling rival during my adolescent years, were having an argument, but managing to cooperate somehow without too much difficulty, when suddenly the bedside alarm clock began emitting a very strange noise. It was emitting a subsonic monotone that really got to my nerves. Unable to contain the nervous-tension, I picked the clock up and threw it against the wall. It smashed into several pieces but the monotone continued. I traced the monotone to a single fragment of the shattered clock and looked closely at it with wonder. As I looked closely, the dream ended and I awoke in the dark. Much to my surprise, however, the monotone continued, even though I was fully conscious. I lay still in the bed and listened, with a growing sense of mystery. It seemed to be coming from the next room but I had no idea what it was. As I listened, the persistence of the monotone began to annoy me somewhat, but I knew not why. It persisted; a long, endless, subsonic monotone, reminiscent of a buzz, and it was causing my nerves to get on edge. I wondered, with suspended mystery, what it was, unable to do anything but lay still and listen. Then quite suddenly, there was a mechanical clank, and it stopped. Never before, in all my years as a resident of the house, had I ever heard anything like it, and it led me to wonder if perhaps it had something to do with Exo and Xik. The next day, I wondered about the strange ‘buzz-monotone’. It was a mystery that would not leave the back of my mind. I checked the other rooms and found nothing unusual. One thing, however, struck me as quite interesting. Years ago I’d hung a smooth, round, shiny silver ornament from the central-ceiling light-fixture, and it was still there. At the time, I was simply fascinated by the reflective beauty of it. Now, however, after learning about the intricacies of high technology with such things as lasers and electromagnetic armaments, I looked at the silver sphere and realized it actually had a technical reference. Except for the fact that it was composed of a much lighter silicon shell, it resembled what high-tek referred to as an ICFP, an Inverse Convex Focal Point. It was a device used to focus light and, in conjunction with a magnet, amplify it. It could also do so with sound. But there had to be an energy source, and so far as I could see, there was no source anywhere in the room, or house. So it was still a mystery. I let the mystery go and recalled my next move. It was late May when I met Exo and Xik. Now, it was July 10th. I had just 2 weeks to get to Lisa and protect her. Exo and Xik expected me to meet them on July 27. If I didn’t meet them and agree to do their dirty work, they planned to snatch Lisa. It was possible that I could protect her with the laser-pistol and the armor. I had to try, as I had no desire to do their dirty work again. So, with the info provided by my old buddy, I did some necessary spy-work. I rented a cheap, common-type blue vehicle from a dealer that accepted cash-money without too many questions, and checked out Lisa’s working place. I wasn’t too surprised to see that Lisa and the greaser she was dating both worked at the same company, a small, brick office-building in the suburbs known as Kinko Inc. that apparently had something to do with Realty and home-owner’s Insurance. What did surprise me however, was the fact that Lisa appeared to be the personal secretary to the same man she was dating. What an arrangement. I thought it was considered unsound ethics for a secretary to date her own boss. Later that day, I watched them leave the office, get in separate cars, and drive away without as much as a kiss. I followed the greaser, who for some reason was not driving the same sexy, sporty vehicle as I’d seen originally parked at Lisa’s house. He drove to a high-class residential section of Mawaga and parked across the street, a couple of houses away, and spied with the apex as he parked outside the garage, then drove in as it opened. Inside, there was the sporty corvette he had with Lisa over a month ago. I spied through the kitchen window and saw him kissing another girl. How many girls did this guy have? I decided to wait and see if he was going out again, but a cop-car appeared in the rear-view mirror, so I decided to split the scene. What was going on? Was the greaser married and using Lisa as a mistress? Did Lisa know about the other woman? I drove away after the cop-car passed and headed back to check on Lisa. That was fairly easy, because the driveway and backdoor could be seen from my own back yard and driveway. So I simply sat in the rented car, in my driveway, and spied with the spex. About an hour later, the greaser arrived in the corvette; Lisa left the back door, and climbed in beside him. Together, they drove away. I drove out on the road and followed. They went to a nightclub on the other side of town, and I hesitated, wondering if I should go in. I decided against it. It was very private and unfamiliar. As I observed the people coming and going, it appeared to be the kind of ‘joint’ frequented by a ‘gang’ of high-class people that knew each other. In such a place, I realized, I’d stick like a sore thumb. So what was going on? What was this guy, some kind of two-timing Romeo that kept one bird in the shack and another at the office? What was Lisa, some kind of high-class hussy that liked to fool around with wealthy, married men? The more I thought about it, the more I tended to dislike the greaser. Lisa deserved better. I sat in the vehicle, across the street from the club, and checked the time. As I sat there counting the minutes, I decided it wasn’t really necessary to wait all night. It was unlikely that Exo and Xik would pick her up at this early date. I decided to call it a night and drove back home. I had a track on the ‘field’ of the case, such that I knew enough to pick up on it again at any time in the near future, so long as they did nothing unexpected. Later, I sat at home, nursing my emotional pains with a bottle of rum, and passed out on the living-room couch, with the television going. The next day, I awoke with a vicious hangover. As I drank a cup of coffee, I couldn’t shake the image of Lisa and the greaser at the nightclub. It led me to imagine them having sex in some sleazy hotel, I don’t know why. I was disturbed by it all and my guts told me to act. Was this guy using Lisa for sex? If so, then I felt as though I should rescue her from him, but how? True, I had already broken the law twice and got away with it. Why not use force? No, no. What the hell was I thinking; a kidnapping, an abduction? Hell, that might cause her to hate me, if she didn’t already. No. I had to use a more civilized approach. Like an accidental meeting. Yeah, that was it. Like bumping into her at the mall. Yeah, that was perfect. One of these days, she was bound to go to the mall. All women did, it was in their nature. Two days later, she did exactly that, and I had my chance. But it didn’t go very well. I met her in the clothing store, with one of her sisters. “Lisa? What’s happening?” I said, “Long time, no see.” “Excuse me,” she said, “do I know you?” “Ren, from High-school,” I said. “Remember, it’s been years.” She shook her head and smiled neutrally. “Sorry, you must be mistaken.” “No chance,” I insisted. “Remember Ren? Leo’s old buddy?” Suddenly she recognized me but didn’t smile. “Oh, sure,” she said, frowning with sudden coldness. “What’s your problem? Listen, creep, go jump in a lake!” She turned, took her sister by the arm, and walked directly away. All the confidence I had built up was destroyed in less than a minute. I watched her leave with suspended confusion. Why did she hate me so? I tried to follow her but my legs went limp and I had to sit down. After I found a bench in the mall’s central promenade, I had the urge to get drunk; I lost all sense of the time, returned to the car, drove to the city, and located a bar. |
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