|| -------- -- -----  A E R I E   O B L I V I A N A . singular book of text wandertainment by Frank Edward Nora ------------------- ----------- THE MILDRED CORK--CUP 7--"DAYSTAB" <-------  ||  Severe Repair  ||  The Mildred Cork  ||  -------> (Cup SRmc007, Created v2 (6/7/99), Copyright 1999) = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = As our little get-together wore on, I became more and more aware of the approaching dawn. Around 4:45 I started to feel really drained. Looking outside, the first faint glow of dawn could be seen. I dreaded that glow. I felt that I couldn't stand in the face of it. For a while, I didn't let it bother me, but soon I started to panic a little--there was no way I could deal with the light of day--I had to do something--but what? Hide. I had to hide my nightbody away, shelter it from the light of the Sun. But how? "Guys," I said, "I don't think I can take the light out there. I have to--I have to try and do something. Okay--if this works, I'll be a... a ball of light--a little ball of light, like I told you. I probably won't be able to communicate with you, but you have to lead me back to my room! I can't move through solid objects, but..." My breathing was getting strained. I couldn't take much more. "...but if you open the door to the dorm, I can... I can fit under my door, and hopefully get back into my... my human body... I..." A little bit of sun was just making its way to the horizon, and I had to act. I shut my night eyelids and willed myself back into my energy ball form. It worked--I WAS my eyes. Quickly, I merged the two eyes into one ball of fire, and surveyed the situation with the nightbody. Yes... It was clear to me what had to happen, so I made it happen. The nightbody shifted in an instant and was a two-dimensional plane, bisecting me. Then it shifted again, and it was a 1-D line, going straight through me. Then, in its final shift, it became a point, at the center of me. After that I felt better. The sunlight didn't bother me as much in this form, but I wanted desperately to be back in my human belly, protected from the harsh daystab. My senses were again diminished to visions and impressions. But my friends did lead me out of the dorm and back to my dorm, thank goodness. I shot underneath the door, and headed right for my human bellybutton. It was easy to squirm back in and get settled. It felt so good to be back inside there. And before I knew it, my consciousness slipped back into to my human form. I opened my non-glowing, human eyes, looked at the painfully familiar surroundings of my room, with the posters of guys and stuff, and then went right to sleep. I was awakened soon thereafter by a knocking on my door, and I knew it must have been my friends. So I got up, and--holy crap--every muscle in my body was shot through with exquisite pain. It was as if I did the world's most exercise the day before. I winced and limped over to the door. Through the peephole, I saw that it was indeed my friends, so I let them in. "You made it back?" Ala asked. "Yes." I said, my voice weak and broken. I cleared my throat, but even this simple acted was trying and painful. "You look terrible!" Tovo said. "Thanks." I replied, as I turned and headed back to bed. "No," he said, "I mean, you look really tired and, and, and worn out." "I know this body is ugly." I said as I crawled back into bed. "No it's not." Tovo replied. I winced again as I found myself a comfortable position in bed. "So you're back?" Ala asked. "Yeah. Back in... this belly... here." "So what was that that happened?" Tovo asked. "When you folded up or something?" "Yeah, that was intense!" F'jinjy added. "I don't know really." I said, coughing. "A way to... collapse... that body... down to a single point. For storage." Ala sat down on the bed and put her hand on my side. "Are you sure you're okay?" she said. "No. I feel like I just got beat up by a gang of thugs. I hurt all over." Ala stared down at me with her big, wide eyes. "You want to go to the infirmary?" "No!" I yelled, then fell into a coughing fit. "I know... I pretty much know what this is. My body and spirit are out of synch. Pretty traumatic switching bodies, you know?" "So where is the body now?" F'jinjy asked. "In my belly." I said. "At the center of the... the fireball that is the real me." "Can you bring it back?" Tovo asked. "We'll find out tomorrow night." I said. "Do you think," F'jinjy said slowly, "that I might have a fireball in me?" I regarded her. "I don't think so... but there's definitely something weird... or strange... going on with you." "There is." she said, then she looked around at the others. "I've been keeping this secret too long. I've been dying to tell someone, and now... well, here goes. Have you ever heard of a place called Felptash...?" -------> ------------------- ----------- -------- -- -----