|| -------- -- -----  A E R I E   O B L I V I A N A . singular book of text wandertainment by Frank Edward Nora ------------------- ----------- PECULIAR LATHER--CUP 19--"CHONESTEEZE MAX" <-------  ||  Severe Repair  ||  Peculiar Lather  ||  -------> (Cup SRpl019, Created v2 (6/7/99), Copyright 1999) = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Soon Tanner came to, and the three found a trail leading down into the canyon below. At the bottom, they found Fisher fighting with a gang of weird, skinny, multicolored, angular cats. As they approached, the cats all stopped fighting with Little Fisher and stared at Tanner. As he got closer, they opened their eyes wide in amazement and shied away from him, eventually lurking off. "That's weird." Fluffy said. " The anglecats appear to be scared of you, Tanner." "I'm not surprised, considering what a mess I am." Tanner responded. "No, I mean it. It's not normal for those creatures to act that way." Fluffy said. "Well, at least they're gone." Tanner said. Little Fisher squealed with joy and ran towards the three, jumping up into Fluffy's arms. "Those jerks kidnapped me, but I made them crash." Fisher signed, and Thread translated. "Good for you!" Thread said. The four hiked back up to Fluffy's car and got in. Fluffy got her cellular phone from a belt pouch and dialed it. "Hello?" she said. "--yeah--this is Fluffy--yeah--listen--listen--some more of these damn extremists are crashed and totally killed out here on Highway 4000--okay--will do." Fluffy hung up. They drove back to the parking garage, the car swaying rhythmically from side to side. Finally they got back to Cellar Sixteen. Little Fisher and Little Red Thread bade farewell. "Tanner, you look awfully tired. Would you like to come up to my room and get some sleep?" Fluffy offered. "Yeah, that sounds great." Tanner said, yawning. "But I have to meet my friends soon..." "Don't worry, I'll go and meet them for you and tell them where you are." "You could do that?" "Sure, no problem." "Thanks. And I'm sorry I lost it back there and went into the tree--I was just really shaken up, y'know?" "Don't worry about it--you acted very bravely." They went over to the elevators, and took one up to the 50th floor. Then they entered Fluffy's suite. "Well, this is where I live, Tanner." Fluffy said. "Cool." Tanner remarked, looking around in wonder. "I'm going to take a shower. You can take shower also, if you wish--there's a guest room with a bathroom just over through that door. There should also be some generic bedclothes for you to wear, if you wish." "Gee, thanks." "I'll be in in a little while, so we can figure out what I should tell your friends." "Great." Tanner said. Fluffy went off to the bathroom, and Tanner went over to the guest room. It was a small, cozy room with Fluffy's trademark white and gray motif. Tanner sat down on the bed and just stared off into space. For a few minutes he just sat there, poring over the events of the past twelve-or-so hours. Verily, he could not yet come to terms with the events of the day, so he settled on maintaining his illogical-acceptance and practical-deal-with-it attitudes. Soon Tanner got up, found some suitable bed clothes in a closet, went into the bathroom, and took a long shower. Then he dried himself off, brushed his teeth with a new toothbrush which he found in a cabinet, put on the bed clothes, and walked back into the guest room, thankfully refreshed. He turned on a TV in the room to see what sort of shows they had in Agoopish. The first thing he saw was the end of a commercial with the words "Pay the Toll--At the Bridge" on the screen, and a deep voice also saying the words. Then another commercial came on which depicted a family sitting around a table, dipping little stones into melted cheese, and then trying to move the cheese-covered stones with telekinesis. The game was called "Chonesteeze Max". Tanner shut the TV off. I am in a goddess's hotel room, he thought. And then he wondered if she might want to have sex with him. The thought was obvious--and since he wasn't familiar with Agoopi customs, it might very well be the case that sex was very casual here. But, he reasoned, Fluffy also knew that he was ignorant of Agoopi customs, and judging from her even-keeled personality, she probably wouldn't subject him to further excitement. He figured sex with a goddess must be a singularly exhilarating and draining experience, and he figured he was in no shape at that point, anyway. Still, the thought of the possibility lingered. And Fluffy was so ravishingly beautiful... But Tanner put this thought in the back of his mind and ventured out into the suite proper. He didn't see Fluffy anywhere, so he decided to look around. The main room was large and had a sunken floor. He walked down, and saw that there was a roaring fire going in a fireplace. Walking over to a huge window, he saw an amazing view of Agoopish at dusk--and was surprised at how many colorful lights abounded on the scene. It was magical--much cooler than any Earth city he'd ever seen. -------> ------------------- ----------- -------- -- -----