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1 If you are in need of help, you need but ask....
2 ************************* INSTALLED: 1 MAR 85 **********************
3 Welcome to BWMS (BackWater Message System) Mike Day System operator
4 ************************************************************
5 GENERAL DISCLAIMER: BWMS IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY INFORMATION
6 PLACED ON THIS SYSTEM.
7 BWMS was created as an electronic bill board. BWMS is a privately owned
8 and operated system which is currently open for use by the general public.
9 No restrictions are placed on the use of the system. As the system is
10 privately owned, I retain the right to remove any and all messages which
11 I may find offensive. Because of the limited size of the system, it will be
12 periodically purged of messages. (only 629 lines of data can be saved)
13 To leave a message, type 'ENTER' and use ctrl/C or break to get out of the
14 ENTER mode. The message is automatically stored. If after entering the
15 message you find you made a mistake, use the replace command to replace
16 the line. To exit from the system, type 'OFF' then hang up.
17 Type 'HELP' to see other commands that are available on the system.
18 *****************************************************************
19
20 Leonard: I haven't found the Pied Piper info yet, I'll let you know
21 as soon as I do.
22 L'homme: Interesting results. Is the AT really as variable as you seem
23 to indicate by the figures stated? That could get nasty in some cases.
24 Maybe that's why they recommend not to use software timing loops.
25 Pam: I like it so far, when's the next installment? (I assume there is one.)
26 ************************* CISTOP MIKEY ***********************************
27 #$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$#
28 En LA CIMA!
29 (For those of you who don't have Spanish dictionaries nearby, 'At THE TOP!'.)
30 #$##$##$##$#
31 "Would ANYONE like to PLEASE tell me what's going on?", I asked. I didn't like the effect the man's words had on
32 L'homme. And why was Gaudy yelling, "Don't kill him"?
33 I didn't get an answer for a long moment, then "An old friend, Farley." said L'homme weakly.
34 I looked carefully at L'homme. Yes, he probably was an old friend- but the tension level here was much too high for
35 this to be a normal reunion. I decided I didn't know enough, and waited patiently for the story to continue.
36 #$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$#
37 Allow me to stop a moment to share a small achievement of mine.
38 Clackamas County Skills Contest, held at Clackamas Community College, has a Computer Math division in their Mathematics
39 Skills contests. The competition was Februray 28, 1985.
40 My partner and I, just two people instead of the usual three, competed and won- first place.
41 I received the news today, and haven't stopped babbling about it yet. "Overjoyed" isn't a strong enough word
42 to describe my happiness at this moment.
43 Since happiness contained does only one person good, I'm sharing it. If you can not find a reason to be happy today,
44 be happy for (and with) me.
45 #$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$# Farley #$##$##$##$##$##$##$# 22:40 - 03/01/1985 #$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$#
46 Farley--that's no small accomplishment. You have every reason to be proud. CONGRATULATIONS!!(now you have everybody's
47 official permission to gloat, strut, and act cocky.) ---G.M.
48 TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT
49 Farley was clearly mystified by L'homme's hesitation in light of his pre-
50 vious injunctions to leap into action never doubting your mission or your
51 nerve. Who was this melancholy stranger and how had he brought doubt to
52 the infallible L'homme? Unfortunately, Farley had encountered rather early
53 on in his career a dilemma which even seasoned agents, not to mention
54 philosophers and kings, could not lay to rest. Does the end justify the
55 means? Is one exonerated for the killing, lying, manipulation done for what-
56 ever great cause? Considering this problem is like staring into an abyss
57 and talking about it can take forever so when Kosta sat on the cot and began
58 recounting his story as L'homme justified the ways of NET my head throbbed
59 in anticipation of an evening of heavy fruitless debate. I deftly twisted
60 to a standing position, whacking the cot in the middle where it folded and
61 collapsing it around Kosta. I kicked his gun aside as Farley and Fellows
62 roared with laughter. Kosta was doubled up with his limbs sticking out of
63 the cot frame flopping on either side like a great bony fish with a beet
64 red face. He yelled and flopped helplessly trying to kick and hit us. At
65 least he didn't look serious and sad anymore. He looked silly>
66 "Gaudy, what the hell is this, Laurel and Hardy meets James Bond?" L'homme
67 doesn't have much of a sense of humor sometimes.
68 "Look, it's ME he's trying to replace. I figured we should take him into
69 custody and get him some kind of debriefing as soon as possible."
70 "Let's take him to the hideout on Mt.Hood," suggested Farley, "It's quiet
71 and Ian can meet us there to decide what to do with him."
72 Kosta was now lying on the floor trembling quietly. L'homme leaned over
73 to release him and found that he was laughing silently. As Fellows tied
74 his wrists, Kosta looked at me and said "So, you "cot" me."
75 "Aaauuggghh!! Why did you talk me out of shooting him?"
76 We loaded into the Fiat (a pert peppy plucky practical machine perfect
77 for our purposes) As we went up the mountain, the seasons went into reverse.
78 It was early spring in the valley with a few buds and a crop of winter grass
79 but the low hills were brown, the branches bare. Soon patches of snow could
80 be seen hugging the banks of the river we followed intermittently, then more
81 snow, the trees here all firs, all dusted with white.
82 as we proceeded I told L'homme about the chip still in my pocket.
83 "What do you make of it?"
84 He looked thoughtful. "It could be industrial espionage, but it's impossible
85 to tell without a blowup of the contents. I don't get the Rajneeshie connec-
86 tion. Yet."
87
We left the main road at Wemme and went on a secondary road then put on
88 chains for the last bit of dirt road. We had to slog the last half-mile
89 in our flatlander shoes and were grateful for the warm clothes and wood
90 NET had cached in the cozy stone cottage.
91 "There's one thing I don't understand," I said. "Who was supposed to have
92 brought Kosta in from the BUlgaria assignment, and why didn't he?"
93 "Fleming," said L'homme. "He didn't want to bring him in until he had
94 finished off the Red leaders. When NET Central found out the whole situation
95 they realized that Kosta was right, but by then he had gone underground."
96 "Fleming's too damned rigid," I snapped. "The last time I saw him he was
97 galloping off to report me for treason."
98 The others looked surprised. "We haven't heard anything about it," said
99 Farley looking puzzled. "It should have been an APB by now."
100 L'homme froze. "Listen. Motor."
101 A vehicle approached, unhampered by the snow.
102 TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT Gaudy Minsky TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT
103
104 -_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-
105 "Would you mind putting a little more backbone into moving this Module,
106 Billy?" wheezed Taggart (not Trager) to Rosewood (not Rosemount) with just a
107 little bit of effort. The chore of having to move such a cumbersome box was
108 wearing thin the patience of at least one of the three fellows carrying it.
109 "Oh, sorry Sarge. I was thinking about the notebook again," said Rosewood.
110 "Would you forget about that thing? Like I told you, It was only a plant to
111 throw us off of the Module," gasped Taggart. "And stop calling me 'Sarge.'"
112 "Sure,... " he replied as his eyes started to become a tad wider due to his
113 increasing confusion. Things seemed so clear to him. Why couldn't Taggart under-
114 stand it? The Modules were left behind by the Thrike operatives to scoff at
115 NET its inability to aquire sufficient materials for all its top agents. It was
116 a way of saying 'nya-nya-nya-nya-nyaaaaa!' The Modules DIDN'T mean a thing,
117 once used they were useless to either side, a 'one shot deal.' Why hide some-
118 thing that is useless if only just to hide it? Wouldn't it be more confusing
119 to leave a piece of junk out in the open so as to make them think that it was
120 important? [Following a premise of "Where is the best place to hide an object
121 of great value?" Reverse-psychology played heavy in these nasty jokes.]
122 Rosewood had the distinct impression that the Module was left in the open to
123 make them think that it was important, thereby causing NET to waste the man-
124 power of its lesser agents on the artifact. [It worked didn't it?]
125 What wasn't fully comprehended was just how important the recently discovered
126 notebook would be in the location of this Semplers character. In this case,
127 psychology would have been better left to the men in the little white jackets-
128 and NOT to these two...
129 "C'mon... Just how much farther do you guys want to lug this crate anyways?"
130 asked the third fellow that was suckered into helping in the transportation of
131 the Module.
132 "Only a few more steps. We're going to take it away in this Green Van. The
133 brains back at The Lab will want to take a look at this thing," said Taggart.
134 "'The Lab.' You make it sound so, so... 'clinical.' It's just an office.
135 You'd think that they had nothing better to do than look into a box..."
136 "Try to keep your mouth shut, will you Billy?" Taggart barked back.
137 "Oh, yea... The ever impression of omnipotance," wisecracked Rosewood.
138 "And you don't believe that?" said Taggart in the most serious voice.
139 "Hey, just joking... You know that I know we're the best. I mean...
140 We control the 'Phone Companies' don't we?" said Rosewood with a wide grin.
141 "And about that notebook..."
142 _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_abacab_-_-_-_-_-_-_"Su- Sussudio!"_-_-_-_-_
143
144
145 -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+-
146 I awoke this morning curled up into a little tiny ball from my
147 sleep, like I used to do when I was a child of a small number of years.
148 The fact that my pillow wasn't on my bed didn't call my attention
149 so much as the fact that I had my arms wrapped tightly around myself. My
150 arms were empty, but in the dream I had just left behind they had held
151 someone. Someone that I wished were with me now. Feelings of love and doubt
152 came flooding back to me. I didn't notice the stains on the pillow.
153 As I began to dry myself after having taken my customary late
154 morning shower, water dripped from my hair and ran down my face. I didn't
155 think much of it until one drop slowly worked its way downmy nose and stopped
156 there forcing me to notice it there. Why? Because it felt so much like a tear,
157 those things I tryed so hard to ignore. It couldn't be ignored, I noticed it.
158 The shower was off, but the stream continued down my face.
159 -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- --+ JUGGLER +-- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+- -+-
160 + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
161 There is a knock on my door. A single, soft blow from a small fist. It
162 catches me in the center of the room and stops me in a heart beat. I can
163 feel the sweat on my hands, the pull of my brow, as I watch the flicker of a
164 thousand memories pour through my mind, tainted pearls on the necklace of
165 my past.
166 As I open the door I feel the walls of my studio creep up behind me. I
167 hear dirt growing in every crack and crevice. Strange, how I can see with
168 her eyes, think with her thoughts.
169 When she sits, I stand farthest away, pacing for a moment, like a moth
170 before a flame. I sit on the end table as she starts the small talk she has
171 been taught is necessary. I have learned when to nod my head, when to make
172 some small noises to show I'm listening. The social dance. A dance she will
173 always, did always, lead.
174 She stands and begins to move around the room. I sit on my perch, and move
175 my head from side to side, like some fixated owl. She comments on the bed and
176 lightly touches its side. My seat is becoming uncomfortable. She places her
177 hands on the side of the bed and sits on the edge, her legs dangling over the
178 side. She has taken off her shoes. I look and see them lying on the floor at
179 the base of the bed, one tipped on its side.
180 I am forced to stand, the end table proves itself an unworthy chair. I
181 move to another seat.
182 We sit and talk about nothing for what seems like hours. I remind her I
183 have an appointment soon, she nods and lies back on the bed, turning to look
184 at me from the foot. I look at the clock, it has been twelve minutes.
185 Soon the small talk ends, along with it my occasional nod and grunt. The
186 tempo of the dance changes. It is the second movement, cue the percussion
187 and the base. Soon I am caught up in the rhythm of the music; comment,
188 rebuttal; parry, repost.
189 Suddenly I find myself pacing, my hands in fists, my jestures intense, my
190 voice strained. I feel like a puppet, a harlequin, and I can see my strings
191 run across the floor to the foot of the bed. I throw myself into the chair.
192 It creaks under my violent movement. I lean forward, my face in my hands.
193 Her feet appear in my view. I know the next movement, like the puppet I wait
194 for the down-beat.
195 She touches my down-turned head and speaks with violins, soft and warm are
196 their notes. Her hand moves to my shoulder and she kneels in front of me, eyes
197 looking up into mine. Puppy eyes. I have seen them look up from below me
198 before.
199 I can see my strings, her strings, running towards her shoes, towards the
200 bed.
201 She touches my leg with a warm hand. I feel the blood keeping beat in my
202 ears, I feel the music in my groin.
203 The hands of the conductor.
204 I stand and throw off the spell of the dance. I speak quickly of my
205 appointment, my voice cracking. I get my coat and point her to her shoes. I
206 open the door as she speaks again, but all I hear is the noise of the street
207 and the soft patter of rain. A cleansing sound. The rain must have just
208 started, for it has not started making the little rivers on the hood of my
209 car.
210 She passes and I close the door behind me. I walk to my car and manage a
211 sincere smile. I climb in and start the car. I wait for it to warm up. I let
212 her pull out and wave through the raindrops on my window.
213 At the sign she turns and disappears.
214 Eventually I lean forward and take the keys from the car. I fall into the
215 chair inside and throw the keys on the bed.
216
217 The Harlequin
218 + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
219 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?/MiG/? ? ? ? ? ? ?
220 Harlequin:It is rare thease days that I make an entry here. but I find myself
221 strangely moved by the shear emotional intensity of that entry. I have met a
222 very few authors with the ability to write that well, please tell me, was
223 that fiction?
224 Film Fan:where did you obtain your education? Those points you covered were in
225 close order to my old film study notes, almost too close.
226 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?`? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?/MiG/? ? ? ? ? ? ?
227
228 [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][]

229 The sun has begun its slow retreat beyond the western horizon in
230 preparation for its return in the morning, but whether I will be here to
231 greet it is a question for which I have no answer as yet. It is warm
232 indeed for this time of year, but that qualification is important: it is
233 still winter, and the evening temperature will quickly drop toward
234 freezing. I simply am not prepared for spending the night in the great
235 outdoors, and if I try to I fear that the morning sun will illuminate my
236 frozen corpse.

237 I am dressed for a warm spring day, I have no food, no shelter, no
238 supplies whatsoever, and know absolutely nothing about this world I now
239 find myself in. Things might be worse, I muse, but right now I'm in no
240 mood to exercise my imagination attempting to discern how. Hostile natives
241 perhaps. Looking up, I examine the statue with its pointing arm, and again
242 wonder what the signifigance of it might be. Well, whatever it is, I
243 suppose that I should follow its lead. In that direction lay (or did in
244 the previous reality) the river, and if food, shelter, or settlements are
245 to be found it is there I should look. I lean my bike against the statue
246 (it will do me no good, it was made for paved roads and civilization, as
247 was I), and begin marching in the direction suggested by my graven
248 companion.

249 The march is harder than I at first thought it would be; branches grab
250 at me with wooden determination, undergrowth trips me, wild berry bushes
251 tear at my clothing like lovers too long denied an embrace. Very soon I
252 find that am nearing exhaustion from fatigue and hunger and I must stop; a
253 quick look shows that I've gone perhaps fifty yards. I'm not accomplishing
254 anything! But I can't stop, I've got to find a sheltered spot for the
255 night at the least. So I continue, even though I'd prefer to just lay down
256 here and sleep. A good sleep it would be, and final as well.

257 After an eternity of floral abuse I break through to a clearing, and
258 ahead I see... a house? I'm still on the Mountain, I haven't even begun
259 the climb down, so this discovery is a bit of a surprise. Its upper
260 windows stare at me with broken glass eyes under moss covered brows, the
261 front door hangs open from one hinge as if slack-jawed with surprise at my
262 visit, but it is shelter! A place to hide from the elements, and if not
263 warmth then at least a roof over my head!

264 I knock on the frame at the doorway, fearing that the door might
265 complete its collapse if I used it, and hesitantly call out, "Hello? Is
266 anyone home?" No response of course, from all appearances the house has
267 been abandoned for a long time, so I ask the house's pardon for my trespass
268 and enter. Dust everywhere! What a mess! But I resist the impulse to
269 begin cleaning and instead concentrate on making a place to sleep. I block
270 the doors to the room so as not to present an hors d'oeuvre for some
271 passing animal, find an old blanket covered with grime, and curl up in a
272 corner. The blanket is disgustingly dirty, but while cleanliness is next
273 to godliness, it comes up a poor second next to warmth.

274 The morning sun shining brightly through the window awakens me, and I
275 stretch to try to work out the kinks that the cold night air has worked
276 into my joints while wondering what I'm going to do for food today. The
277 sunlight also reminds me that my previous eve's preparations didn't include
278 the windows, so my safety from the creatures of the night was mostly an
279 imaginary thing.

280 As I stand, a voice speaks softly from the other side of the room,
281 "Good morning, I hope that you slept well. Welcome to my home."

282 [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][]PAM.[][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][]
283
284 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ (VERY interesting...)
285 It seemed somewhat proper to use the device at my means to make the contact
286 I thought would not be possible. It was possible, it did work, and the way
287 with which contact was established is available. Some might be interested to
288 know how now that the machinery has changed...
289 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
290 If I make my entries before the sun rises, wouldn't the rooms around me
291 be empty? The companion was almost correct, but what I had not mentioned
292 was that the rooms were LITERALLY empty. Nice try, but we aren't telling.
293 Members of the Legion are feeling a new breath fill their lungs.
294 The Innkeeper just shakes his head at all the comotion and mutters
295 "Whatever." The companion and I had stirred him from his sleep. We apologize.
296 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ --->the Guardian of the chance meeting/61:07
297
298 pppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp
299 From a silent table at the rear of the inn, the piper listened with awe.
300 He had seen the inn go through massive changes -- the group efforts of all
301 the storytellers has ranged over the spectrum. We've seen good times and
302 bad, twits and welcome guests. But, as the cycle rolls on, the only constant
303 is change. We're seeing a time of good writing, people are developing their
304 entries and the quality of the writing has rarely been higher. Let's rejoice,
305 and remember this time to aid us in the inevitable troughs to come.
306 ppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp
307 film fan film fan film fan film fan film fan film fan film fan
308 ? ? MiG ? ? : Where did I go to school? University of Common Sense.
309 Ever hear of it? Notes. You speak of notes. Maybe your 'teacher'
310 went to the same school as I. These things are universal constants
311 to all film fans. We don't need classes and lectures to learn them.
312 They become obvious. A fluke of coincidence? Maybe. Perhaps the
313 biggest fluke wasn't my message at all, but yours.
314 film fan film fan film fan film fan film fan film fan film fan
315 TICK TOCK TICK TOCK TICK TOCK TICK TOCK TICK TOCK TICK TOCK TICK TOCK TICK TOCK
316 "REPENT HARLEQUIN!" SAID THE TICKTOCKMAN
317 TICK TOCK TICK TOCK TICK TOCK TICK TOCK TICK TOCK TICK TOCK TICK TOCK TICK TOCK
318 PAM: You frequent the Mt. Tabor area? I live in that area (near Franklin).
319 Hmmmmm....
320 ___________________________________Leonard_________________________________
321 As I. A mere hop and skip. Pleasant with fair skies.
322 A harsh, cruel light has shun on one of The New Creators. Reply via PCS!
323 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ --->the pacing Guardian 61:15
324 ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
325 I, too, was at the Clackamas County Skills Contests. Although I was in the
326 Advanced Mechanical Drafting Contest, I saw the computer contest. Farley
327 did do most of the work involved, but he did have a partner. His partner
328 didn't do much, but he did spot a few bugs and was a good copier...
329 Must give credit where credit is due...mostly to Farley, though.
330 Other scores: Architectural Drafting;1st team,2nd,3rd,4th,5th,and 7th ind.;
331 Advanced Mechanical;2nd team,6th,10th,11th,12th,and 14th ind.;Drafting
332 Fundamentals;3rd ind.
333 Welding;2nd ind.:Mechanics;1st team:Math;bombed:and Business;bombed...
334 That's the scores for the Estacada teams that participated.
335 ?????????????????? The Doctor ???????????????????? 04:13 on 03/02/85 ??????????
336 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
337 I relaxed, and listened to more of the stories of the Inn. The quality and
338 frequency of the stories was increasing rapidly, and I could not help but
339 to clap at a few of them.
340 A light by my side distracted me. The travelling book I had carried with me
341 cast off an odd, silvery glow. I was being summoned by another mage, someone
342 who needed my help.
343 I touched the cover gently, in order to find out more. My fingers tingled for
344 a moment as the contact became firm. #Milchar! Attack....many dead! Too much
345 for me...come quickly...# was all I got before the contact faded entirely.
346 I picked up my book and bade everyone farewell. I tried to match the voice
347 with a face or a name, but nothing came of it. Walking out of the Inn into the
348 brisk cold of the winter day, I struggled harder to connect the voice to a
349 face. Travelling book in hand, I stood in a clearing nearby.
350 "I don't know what the name of the place I'm going is, so....," I said aloud.
351 I took a bit of normal-looking dust and proceeded to sprinkle it about in
352 a circle around me. Reciting words I knew well, an argent flame sprang up
353 from the dust. Higher and higher it rose, soon blocking my view of my
354 surroundings. The flame died, and I was no longer at the Inn.
355 A rocky, twisted landscape met my eyes. The beauty this spot once held was
356 obvious to the onlooker, but the horrible power required to lay this area
357 to waste boggled the mind. Flames still rose from some of the farther
358 mangled trees; the smoke limited vision to a few feet. Large chunks of
359 earth were overturned, others merely disintergrated into small piles of ash.
360 "Milchar?" a voice called.
361 At last, I recognised the voice.
362 "Dimat, my mentor? What has attacked Celene so?"
363 ++++++++++++++++++++++++ Milchar +++++++++++++++++ 03/02/85 - 4:31pm ++++++++
364 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
365 With our tools we worked devotedly. In vain, we worked. We found so little
366 gain for our efforts. Our efforts' prize was stolden by those who did not work.
367 Those who never held a tool in their grip. We remained emaciated skeletons with
368 hollow cheeks and wide eyes. Our hunger drove us to death; our wide eyes shed
369 the tears.
370 With our scythes we reaped grain, we reaped lives. At first it was only
371 soundless grain, and we withdrew a gleaming blade. Then, through pain and anger
372 it became a weak cry, and we withdrew a blade marked red.
373 Our blood spilled on the ground. It was like the splashes of wine we were
374 allowed to see from afar. The redness covered the earth. It consumed the earth.
375 With our cries and the sound of blades, it fell silently. Our hearts bleed un-
376 lovingly as we fell into death.
377 They, with tools transformed to weapons like ours, drank our blood from the
378 earth. They drank our blood from our dead. They drank our life, to give them-
379 selves life. They were thieves. They stold from us.
380 Savages, we thought of them. It was a truth but unjustly thought in our
381 minds. If we had been the victors, we had have acted as they. We would have
382 become vamperic in out want for life.
383 We were they.
384 It was only chance which caused us to fall. Chance which caused they to be
385 the savages and not we. It was not merciful sleep or peace to which we fell.
386 We fell into a heap of tooth-picked bones, bare of red stains and flesh.
387 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . -Tanya
388 :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
389
390 "I was under the impression we might have resident philosopher and sage on
391 the habits of the dragon. I was wrong, I can see tha-" The Former turned quick
392 to see the girl stalking back into the room. He left his sentence unfinished
393 and unheeded. The girl limpened and fell into the chair with a commotion of
394 rustling clothes, without saying a word she aimed her eyes at the Former, who
395 proceded to squirm.
396 "What did the dragon think about? What did the dragon think about after it
397 had eaten the pigeon that spoke? Tell me!" Cried the little girl in demand.
398
399 "The dragon never told me, I never thought to ask. I am sorry, shall we go
400 and ask him now"?" Said the Former, trying to sound as complementary as he
401 could. It may be that complements mean something to the girl, he thought.
402
403 "I should like to do that, when could we go and ask him?" Demanded the
404 wisp of a girl, with a charisma and power to her voice that virtually told him
405 that they must leave whenever the girl could make it.
406 "We might leave now, my dear um, um, yes, we can leave now. Can't we?"
407 Asked the Former, speaking loudly that a parent might hear him and stop this.
408
409 "I can'T" Admitted the girl slowly. "My nanny would not like that one bit
410 at all." Said the girl, realizing this dependance weakened her position.
411 "Well then, perhaps when your nanny decides you are old enough, we may go
412 and visit the old dragon, lazily sitting on a rocky spire. Blinking only when a
413 rock bounces of his tough scales with a thud. Maybe in another few years he
414 may decide to stand slowly on his feet, and stretch his wings out for practice.
415 And maybe then, after looking tiredly to every detail, he might take aflight
416 and come to you. Maybe he will swoop in the skies above you one day and decide
417 to explain his dreams to you, my dear girl, maybe then you might ask him. Till
418 then, you're stuck."
419
420 The Former realized what these words of whimsy and fany were doing to the
421 porr girl. She would rust inside until she had gone after this dragon. It was
422 less than nice, but it instilled that thing inside her that might search for
423 the lazy dragons or the whispering mosquito, or whatever. She would treasure
424 other people after all. Provided she was allowed to try, and with her will, I
425 really do not doubt that she will be allowed. Or that she will allow herself.
426
427 :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
428
429 I may not be nearly as precise or nifty as other writers, but I do enjoy
430 writing stories. Please do not become annoyed that I waste your time, I am
431 only wandering in search of the lazy dragons...
432
433 SageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSage
434
435 The sun was flaring red streams of light through the rustling leaves. On
436 autumn trees. The breeze was light, and felt the last warmth of an afternoon
437 in autumn. The winter and the night were oncoming soon, and they both brought
438 the cold.
439
440 The Sage stepped out onto the white marble floors of his terrace, out from
441 his den and watched the leaves rustle for a moment. The autumn reminded him
442 of seeing a year go by without any friends, anyone to hold in his arms. A
443 friend of the sense that you could act cute around, and mimic a child with. Who
444 was soft and pretty, and did not mind a stolen kiss. I knew no such friends.
445
446 Sometheing in the Sage stirred to the past and his warm and cuddling days
447 while being cute, and stealing kisses from the girl. A sly smile stole across
448 the Sage's chin, and his eyes crinkled for the joy of those days bygone.
449
450 The Sage saw several leaves fall to the cold dirt, and then blown over the
451 n by a chilling breeze. As he saw them tumble across the grass, then fall,
452 then lift again, the Sage though of the oncoming night, nd winter, they brought
453 the cold.
454
455 The Sage turned on his heel and wandered into his den, passing through the
456 drapes which swayed in the sunny breezes. He stood next to his desk, and began
457 to reflect on his writings. He did not enter into the plethora of details, and
458 he avoided deciding on thse details for now. In this rd light of the dying sun
459 he chose not to think about the pages striped in the sun's glow. He instead
460 thought about why he wrote it, and when he did. And about for whom it would be
461 read by. The Sage decided this work could be shelved for now, there were other
462 writings and other tomes to be written. Other things to do which interested
463 him much more. And perhaps his guest and the forthcoming guests were deserving
464 of plenty more of his attention. The Sage picked up a roll of vellum, and two
465 sacks and ran down his carpetted halls to where the Odd One was. In search of
466 another player for his game, and this one the Sage was good at.
467
468 SageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSageSage
469 ^*&_@#*%@#)%*_!#)*%_)!^&_)$#&^)_!#$^&*_)#*&^+!*&+_!)*$#)+(!#$+&*+#_$)*&+!#$*&)_
470 Mikey: Yes, the AT fluctuated just about every time I ran the program. You
471 said COPYLINK was coming UPS, but I got two disks in the mail today. Is the
472 manual still on the way, or will I need a manual? I'll be able to run the
473 PCjr tests Monday. Do you want me to mail the stuff back to you, or give
474 it to you at Thursday's PCS social?
475 Piper: Progress! Yes progress is being made in the great PLOT10 hunt. I am
476 now trying to get in contact with a lady in Marketing who supposedly takes
477 care of such requests. Since PSU got the terminal as a donation, we are
478 trying to do the same with the support software.
479 Gaudy: What can I say? Sad, not mad. I could never be mad. Je suis desole'!
480 Farley: Let me also congratulate you on your accomplishments. Well done! I
481 bet old Tom was surprised, you being from 'Estacada' and all! Have you ever
482 taken part in the physics Olympics? Check in at PCS for private mail.
483 *%_*@#_)%*#@_)%!*_)%!_)%*!@_)% L'homme sans Parity *%_)#@*%_@#)*!_)%*_%*_)*%*%*
484 ::::::::::__________::::::::::__________::::::::::__________::::::::::________
485 Alas, I see that the Inn is being filled with the sweet sounds of stories
486 once again! All I feel that I can say is, "Hooray!"
487
488 Pam.- Hmmmm.....your story is really good. I like the fresh approach to the
489 idea, and it is good to have somehing besides another spy story here!!!!!
490 ::::::::::__________:::::::::: The Jiz /// __________::::::::::________
491
492 P.S.--- TO The Film Fan: Perhaps you should also remember that if a person is
493 trained to watch a film critically, (s)he will tend to notice a certain
494 shot of a scene that was obviously edited MORE SO than a person who was
495 watching for enjoyment only and not paying attention to the quality of the
496 picture. I know that in my case, after playing with film editing for a few
497 years, I can watch a film and almost notice each splice.....but that dosn't
498 necessarily mean that the film has been poorly edited, just not masterfuly
499 edited...... J ///.......
500
501 JoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshua
502 Gaudy: is there any regular time/day you are at the place on Macadam?
503 I look for your Fiat every night when I drive by on my way home, but haven't
504 noticed you yet.
505 L'homme: I finally got it (more-or-less) set up. You know how touchy my
506 original system is - it didn't like being shifted two feet to the right.
507 I finally convinced it to cooperate, though, which is how this message is
508 being entered. The arrangement isn't great yet, since I can't get too
509 permanent until I get all the cable, but in the meantime, I'm operative.
510 Since I don't want to fill up our beloved BackWater with non-story stuff,
511 I'll get off and leave more elsewhere. This just happened to be the first
512 board I was able to get on while testing.
513 JoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshua
514 Man this BBS is weird! -JQB
515
516 -+- -+-
517 PAM: It looks as if you have quite a bit of "cleaning up"
518 ahead of you here. ENJOY!
519 -+- -+- --+ JUGGLER +-- -+- -+-
520
521 ********************************************************
522 L'homme: Hmmm, I knew I should have walked that order through,
523 it was a bit abnormal, and of course they screwed it up. Grrr.
524 Ok, for now just use the help command. I'll bring you a manual
525 at the social. The social will be fine for the information on
526 the computers, I'll be interested in seeing how it turns out.
527 I am still intreged at the inconsistant results of the AT.
528 I could see it being consitantly inconsistant, but inconsistantly
529 inconsistant? I wonder why? The picture was taken over a one
530 second time slice, I can't imagine what could cause such a wild
531 variation, unless the clock itself isn't accurate.
532 Leonard: If I can find it, I'll bring that Pied Piper info Thrusday
533 too.
534 ************************** CISTOP MIKEY ***************************
535 SOMETHING I HAVE ALWAYS WONDERED, "WELL
536 NOT REALLY, BUT EVER SINCE I HAVE KNOWN
537 ABOUT BWMS", WHAT TYPE OF COMPUTER DOES
538 THIS BOARD RUN FROM AND HOW COME ONLY
539 629 LINES CAN BE SAVED? WHAT TYPE OF A
540 DISK DRIVE DOES IT HAVE THAT ONLY HOLDS
541 629 LINES OR IS THE INFORMATION STORED
542 IN SOME OTHER WAY?
543 WHY DO BIRDS FLY? HOW FAR IS IT TO THE
544 MOON? WHY DOES THE POWER STEERING ON A
545 CAR ALWAYS SQUEEL IF YOU TURN IT TO FAR?
546 HOW MANY DROPS OF WATER ARE THERE IN THE
547 SEA? WHICH DIRECTION DOES A DISK DRIVE
548 SPIN? DOES ELECTRICITY FLOW OR MOVE?
549 I HAVE MANY OTHER QUESTIONS IF YOU WOULD
550 LIKE SOME MORE WRITE TO...
551 QUESTIONS GALORE
552 ????? ?.?. ?????? ??.
553 ?????? ??. ?????
554 QUESTIONS QUESTIONS QUESTIONS QUESTIONS
555 ANSWER ANSWER ANSWER:
556 THE ANSWER TO YOUR QUESTIONS, MY FRIEND, IS WRITTEN ON THE WIND!!!
557 ANSWERTY ANSWERTY ANSWERAK
558 THANKS!
559 BUT I'M SURE SYSOP KNOWS THE ANSWER TO SOME OF THEM ANYWAY!, (I HOPE)
560 QUESTIONS QUESTIONS QUESTIONS QUESTIONS
561 Some answer: One part of knowledge consists of being ignorant of such thingd
562 as are not worthy to be known. ef
563 BWMS isn't a computer, it's a text storage device converted to BBS usage
564 when it reached the end of its useful life in the other incarnation, it
565 just works out to 629 lines (isn't that enough?), birds fly to escape silly
566 questions, power steering squeaks out of mortification at reaching its
567 limits, there are enough drops to make the sea wet (but no more than that
568 due to the principle of conservation of drips), it depends on which side of
569 the drive you're looking at (though a good response might be 'forward'),
570 electricity is just a figment of your imagination. Next question?
571
572 ^^^^^ which side? in relation to what? the door? the floor? the 'top' of
573 ^^^^^ the infernal contraption? prehaps 'down onto it' would do, assuming
574 ^^^^^ that it is flat (in relation to the floor) when you look at it.
575 ^^^^^ but then again, who's ever heard of one that was round as opposed to
576 ^^^^^ flat? i guess you're right, it all depends on which side of the drive
577 ^^^^^ your looking at... wow, deja vous.
578 ^^^^^ your looking at... wow, deja vous.
579 ^^^^^ your looking at... wow, deja vous.
580 ^^^^^ what? did i sleep type again? i really must stop...
581 ^^^^^ o.k. i'll stop! i'll stop! i'll stop!
582 ^^^^^ ... but only if you give me a cookie first.
583 ^^^^^ ---the wierded out guardian of lower case 64:06 cleaning the b.
584

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