LI NUMBER OF LINES: 629 1 If you are in need of help, you need but ask... 2 ************************* INSTALLED: 17 JUL 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 Well...well...well...first time I log on to this system in about 3 weeks and I 21 amwarmly greeted by being at the top of the drive today! Well...I was only 22 checking in, but hello to all out there. I love your stories. Please keep 23 writing them! 24 -> The Warrior 25 ******************************************************************* 26 HELLO DUDES WHAT I REALLY WANT TO KNOW TODAY IS DO ANY OF YOU MODEM 27 USERS HAVE ANY NUMBERS THAT ARE WORTH WHILE CALLING BECAUSE ALL THE 28 NUMBERS I HAVE DONT WORK EXEPT THIS ONE AND I WOULD LIKE TO BE ABLE TO CALL 29 30 MORE PEOPLE . 31 THANK YOU 32 FRED 33 *********************************************************** 34 ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: 35 From Hawthorne; Ever so helpfull 36 Why, Fred, I'm glad you asked that question. There are quite a few 37 systems in town, and I'm sure you will like them. 38 There is Alternate World for example (777-xxxx) which is now an AE line, 39 or you can call the Bit Bucket where a current list of all the boards is kept. 40 The Bit Bucket requires your real name, and a little time in order to 41 have full access. But after you get it, there will be a lot of ther boards 42 for you to call. 43 The phone number is 254-xxxx. 44 ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: 45 THANK YOU DUDE IF YOU KNOW ANY MORE WRITE THEM IN!!!!! 46 THANK YOU 47 FRED 48 ************************************************************ 49 ]Y][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][ 50 51 It was a darkened time upon the once bountiful land. The land that once 52 held such promise now resembled barren dessert devoid of life. Those who 53 had inhabited the land were swept away in the torrent of destruction. Only 54 Trainor to tell the story, and in so telling, the story may never be 55 forgotten. It was up rainor to cross the known realities with his pell- 56 mell device, searching for anyone who would listen to his story, and heed 57 his warning. 58 59 - - - - 60 61 "A danger so great as |o rip the very fabric of time asundar exists now, 62 and soon it will return to anotxer reality to rend is destruction. My homeland 63 is now nothing more than ruins. I weep for xhose I have lost, but weeping 64 will not fight this danger or keep it from hurtling through the cosmos on 65 diabolical wings. I search out for adventurers, perhaps like yourselves, to 66 ******DARN LINE NOISE******** 67 diabolical wings. I search out for adventurers, perhaps like yourselves, to 68 help me hunt this evil down and destroy it. So far my search has been futile, 69 for all turn their backs when they hear my tale of woe. Will you turn your 70 backs?" 71 So went Trainor to the patrons of the Backwater Inn at Inisfal. No face 72 betrayed fear, unlike so many other inns and cantinas across Trainor's travels. 73 A single clear voice broke the silence. Its tone was cautious, but a bit 74 of eagerness could be detected. "You are looking for help then? Help against 75 this 'danger' as you call it. You have remained vague about this 'danger.' 76 I speak for everyone when I say that none of us is foolish enough to go 77 along with you until we know more about this 'danger.' But some of us, in 78 fact many of us may be foolish to accompany you after you tell us more about 79 the quest and the 'danger' you seek." 80 Nods and murmurs of approval swept over the assemblage. The other 81 patrons were obviously interested, and wanted to hear more about what 82 Trainor's plea. 83 "I would be more than happy to relate to you all I know. Already you 84 have shown more interest than the previous score of so-called hardy adventure- 85 types I have encountered in my travels. The time grows near for action, ask 86 me any questions you like. Details may be sketchy, but I will do my best." 87 Trainor's voice revealed his excitement at the prospect of help in 88 his quest. He knew he could not continue alone. He had already wasted 89 too much time casting his story on innumerable the oaken table tops the 90 pell-mell had to offer. He would not pass up this chance, even in the 91 light of extensive questioning. Trainor could see in the eyes of all 92 txose around him the gaze of hardened and experienced questors. These 93 men and women were not new to the ways of high adventure and extreme 94 danger. Perhaps among them there would be enough willing souls to go 95 with Trainor, and if successful, save the Galactic Reality! 96 "Please step forward! Ask me what you will. Oh you brave and wonderful 97 people, you have given me new hope..." 98 99 - - - - 100 101 Yes fellow patrons, are you up for an adventure? Are you willing to 102 sacrifice the time needed to read and write and partake of a story, a quest 103 of goodness and honor? Are you reading to face unknown challenges? Are you 104 prepared for the rigors of writer's block? Please let me know, or better still, 105 begin writing. I am asking for a multi-authored round-robin story of old, will 106 I get one? 107 108 OMNI - Not the magazine, the feeling. OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI 109 1000 Pardons for a not very well proof-read entry. Fixes follow: should be "Only Trainor was left to tell the 110 story" ch /up rainor/up to Trainor/ ch /as |o rip/as to rip/ ch /on innumerable the/on the innumerable/ 111 ch /reading to face/ready to face/ ch/darn 'x's/proper 'h's/ - Some of these were my goofs and some were line 112 noise. I hope the point got across regardless of the presentation. 113 OMNI 114 (*{(*{(* L'oeuf *)}*)}*) 115 From back in the corners where he had been sitting for quite some time now, 116 Fencer raised his awareness to this newcomer's plea. He had hung his head in ** DISK ERR IN LINE 117 ** 117 118 the prospect of redeeming himself- ah, wasn't that always the way of a drunkard though- at this new chance for 119 adventure perked his brain from its current state of vegetation. "Trainor." 120 , he shouted slurrenly, "tell us more about this Galactic business. I'd like 121 to know a littl' more before I, before I go off tramping off tramping into 122 nothing that I know." Fencer raised his drunken head to the window- caught 123 a glance of the once-pround, now dullard face, and shouted to the barmaid- 124 "Missy- Send another mug of al...black coffee this way, would'y dear?" 125 (*{(*{}*)}*) Oh boy- a comeback! 126 ============================================================================== 127 A MODERN DAY PARABLE FOLLOWS 128 fingers... 129 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 130 .-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-. 131 132 L'homme: if you are interested in using the 4107, look in my files 133 under ~/info/4107.codes. Some of the possibly useful codes are there. If 134 you need more info, let me know. 135 136 Zephyr: why do you think that I'm a chair? 137 138 Mark: I have also found those certain letters. Notice that it is not case 139 sensitive? Try the commands that I found: status, sstat, done. Also, 140 when you try sstat, notice the unit number? Try CALL n where n is that 141 unit number; you should get something like "unit busy". I haven't tried 142 calling lately, maybe tonight I'll try some more. Let me know what you 143 come up with. 144 145 .-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-. 146 "Sir Trainor!" called a figure in the back, known to some simply as 147 Emu. I've not been on an adventure for more that a year now. The life 148 of a farmer is getting me down. I want to get back into the spirit, and 149 the Inn has been a great place to be on the edge. However, I'm tired of 150 lurking in the corner, and would like to sharpen my skills as a hunter and 151 tracker. Before I make any foolhardy commitments, though, can you tell 152 us all what you seek?" 153 Others joined in agreement to the question. A dwarf by the fireside 154 called out, "More importantly, why do you seek it?" All were hoping for 155 a new story to be told, this one about one man's search. Will he tell it? 156 .-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.Emu 157 158 ****************************************************************** 159 Steve: I fixed the bug about 15 minutes after you left. The change I made 160 wasn't saving the DX register, which points tto the number to dial. 161 So it was pointing to who knows where in memory. Sheesh! We can either 162 meet again sometime to get you the update, or give me a call, and I'll 163 send it to you. 164 *************************** CISTOP MIKEY ****************************** 165 CRASH BANG WALLOP!!!!!!!!!!! 166 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ 167 DON'T BE A SMARTASS 168 888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888 169 COKE is them..... 170 88888888888888888888888888888888888807/17/85888820:448888888888888 171 A figure dressed in medieval tunic & trews, with 20th century combat 172 boots, and a pack that looked to be from yet farther in the future spoke 173 up. "Considering the 'vehicle' you arrived in, I don't suppose you have 174 any idea what the multiversal co-ordinates of your world are?" 175 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 176 If this is at all 177 interesting I think I'll go along, it's been kinda quiet around here. 178 And if I don't make it back, well... 179 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 180 ALTAIR 5 Pat Stanley, Jani Hicks & Linda Stoops, et al. 181 MUSIC: Forest Lawn 182 183 Oh, lay me down on Altair Five in a lithium casket 184 Crystal flowers over my head in a silver basket. 185 Let a Vulcan bugle corps play "Taps" while blasters roar; 186 Sixteen Federation employees sell souvenirs from the hucksters' store. 187 I want to go fannish when I go. 188 They'll give me a proper funeral there, I know. 189 With a casket lined in fleece, 190 And elf-runes spelling out "Rest in Peace". 191 Oh, take me when I gone to Altair Five. 192 193 Oh, lay me down on Altair Five, they understand there. 194 They have a galactic choir and a Martian band there. 195 Just put me in their care, 196 I'll find some comfort there. 197 Four starships in a last salute; 198 They'll drop Spielberg from a parachute. 199 I want to go fannish when I go. 200 They'll give me a proper funeral there, I know. 201 With a thousand spacy things 202 And elven dancers with golden wings. 203 Oh, take me when I'm gone to Altair Five. 204 205 Oh cone --- 206 Come to the woods of Lothlorien 207 Where songs of the Shire we will sing. 208 Be as simple and as trusting as a hobbit would, 209 And have Gandalf bury me with The Ring. 210 211 To find an offworld resting place is my desire. 212 To have John Williams do the score comes a little higher. 213 The Doctor cast in brass will stand in plastic grass, 214 Tossing jelly babies from his hat to the mourners filing past. 215 I want to go "Jedi" when I go. 216 They'll give me a proper funeral there, I know. 217 They'll bury this old fan 218 With eulogy by desert Ben. 219 Oh, take me when I'm gone to Altair Five. 220 221 Lords of Kobol, pray for me. 222 Reassignment, *finally* ! 223 224 Oh, take me when I'm gone to Altair Five. 225 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 226 sorry, but I already had it in the buffer (& it *almost* fits...) 227 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~BARD~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 228 &'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'& 229 Bard, I do believe you ought to be much more conscious of space and time. 230 Lately there has been a great deal of marvel from you, and yourself, but 231 you might do well to choose shorter marvels for us. 232 &'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'& 233 As mutterings filled the halls and rafters a few solitary voices 234 hailed the newest quest proposed and quite a few more hailed for more ale. 235 At the time, I was no more than a simple ranger who knew a few more 236 tricks than the competition. And of course, the tricks were always a little 237 more than unfair. Most of them involved simple mimickery, and illusions. 238 As the innkeeper was drafting more ales than he should have, everyone 239 proceded to drink a little more than they should have. 240 Finally, after a small ruckus which is best described as a war of the 241 great egos, the halls began to empty of people, trying to find some means 242 of transport. Fearing for my mount, I hopped out the open window and fell 243 rather softly onto the ground. Tthe morning frost cracked as I landed and 244 my breath became a fume of white air. It was indeed a winter morning as we 245 left that day. 246 &'&'&'&'&'&'M'U'R'D'E'R'&'&'&'&'C'O'N'S'E'Q'U'E'N'T'I'A'L'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'&'& 247 248 I don't mind the 'wasted' space, bard. It's much more pleasant and 249 enjoyable reading than what we've been saving the disks for lately. 250 (this disk is a definite improvement, however). 251 :::::::::::::::::O O::::::::::::voyeur::::::::::::::::O O:::::::::::::::::: 252 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& 253 fine, be that way. take my words and twist them, but you won't get me 254 mixed up in all of this until i get a little more justification out of 255 you. maybe even then... but who knows? when i read your words, they 256 seemed so alien, so strange, yet i grew aware. 257 and on another note by the by, you now have what you have been waiting 258 for. before you return it, i wish to explain what is still missing. 259 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& the scarlet lion &&&&&&& 260 tonight of all nights i wished for someone else to be strong. how 261 did it come to pass that when he came into the room, looking for me, 262 that i felt so much more alone now that he was here with me? he was 263 here to take care of me and still i wanted him to go away. damn, 264 damn, damn. i loved someone that i was no longer in love with. and 265 what was worse, there was no one to replace him. no wait, there was 266 someone else. but that someone only existed on the other end of the 267 phone line, alwayys handy but never at hand. remembering where i am, 268 i turned back to him and smiled as i pulled the hair away from my face 269 to say hello. his warm smile proved that i lied all too well. damn. 270 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& the scarlet lion &&&&&&& 271 272 .-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-. 273 sniff...sniff...I never know what everyone is talking about...the pictures 274 never show up on my terminal 275 .-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.Emu 276 OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI 277 "Hardy adventurers! I hear your pleas, and you have heard mine. Cast me a 278 drink good innkeeper, toss me a chair might warrior, so that I may sit and drink 279 and tell you the tale of the evil that lurks the known realities and then, and 280 only then, will I ask you, good patrons, will you accompany me on this great 281 adventure." 282 The requested deeds done, Trainor took a long draw from the earthware 283 mug. Wiping the fine head from his bearded chin, he glanced around at the 284 assemblage before him. Oh what a lot I have fallen into, he thought, while 285 the eyes and ears of the patrons poised to hear his words. But these more 286 than any other are capable of defeating the enemy, and restoring order to 287 impending chaos. Trainor began....... 288 "As Bard pointed out, my Pell-mell vehicle is not the normal means of 289 transport in the ever-more complicated world of multi-reality travel. Pell- 290 mell is the work of my lands greatest minds. The blood sweat and tears that 291 went into the design and construction of this machine would be payed back 292 in magnitudes, or so our leaders thought. It offers an economical non-magical 293 way of spreading the fabric of the time-space continuum, delivering accurate 294 destinational convergences for up to three people at the time. It was intended 295 to market the Pell-mell through Galactic Mail-order, thereby cutting out the 296 middle man, and keeping costs low. Oh our ideas were grand, perhaps too grand, 297 and therein lies the rub. In the rush to get the Pell-mell to the masses who 298 unlike most of you are stuck in a single reality, the testing phase of the 299 project was shortened. We did do some testing certainly, but not nearly as 300 much as a continuum device such as the Pell-mell should get. Understand that 301 highly advanced mechanical instruments can be much more susceptible to the 302 entropic forces of nature than human powers of skill and magic. We didn't 303 understand this concept, and now, as a race, we have paid for it." 304 Trainor paused here and raised his mug once more. The seemingly captive 305 audience did not shift; they were transfixed by the story Trainor laid 306 before them. He continued. 307 "It is ironic that I, the only survivor of our land, was partly 308 responsible for the destruction that followed. I was in the testing 309 program, in fact I was testing the same Pell-mell I used to get here 310 today. I was testing multi-shifts, that is jumping reality bands in 311 increments larger that one..." 312 A gasp from the rear of the assemblage stopped Trainor cold in mid- 313 sentence. "Ah ha, I see someone understands something about what we were doing. 314 Anyway, I was approaching the ZEB end of the reality scale, and my increments 315 were set to ten. It didn't hit me until after I broke the barrier that de- 316 creasing incremental jumps must be done one at a time. I heard the ZEB warning 317 claxon, but combined with my high increment and my close proximity to the 318 ZEB, the Pell-mell crashed through! I was thrown into a vortex of unbelievable 319 dimensions, and it is only due to the fine construction of the Pell-mell that 320 I survived the initial pass-through. But I was through, and I quickly 321 realized I had gone where no living reality-traveller had gone before, into 322 the ZEB zone. I knew I must get out quick, for the laws of surreality did 323 not hold anywhere but the known reality spectrum. I hit the auto return 324 panel which would immediately return me to a preprogrammed initial point. 325 The next few moments are a bit sketchy, but what I guess happened is that 326 I cut out of ZEB, I took a piece of ZEB with me, the ZEB space that I had 327 inhabited while I was there. When the exterior image cleared, and I realized 328 I was back home, I simultaneously realized that something was amiss. The 329 image in the viewport shimmered, and a black void started to engulf everything 330 in sight. I saw the black tracers coming at me, and near-panic stricken I 331 jabbed the control panel and shifted to another near-by reality. There the 332 shock of what happened must of caught up with me, for I don't remember 333 anything until I was awoken by a creature from the new reality knocking on 334 the Pell-mell, which had apparently landed somewhere near its settlement." 335 "What about your homeland?" someone piped in. 336 "Yes, I returned a couple days later, and I found what I told you as 337 I first came in. Barren waste-land. No life, no trace of my people. Everything 338 gone. The space from ZEB destroyed everything, that is the only thing I can 339 figure. It too has vanished, but it is sure to return and destroy another 340 reality. You must help me stop it! I can not forget that I am the executioner 341 of my race, and I am the only survivor!" 342 With this cry, Trainor hung his head and was silent. He knew he must 343 let the others contemplate what he had told them. Would they help him? He knew 344 not what they would think. Only time could tell him that. 345 OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI 346 347 *(_%*$#_*%^_)*@)_*^)_@*^@)_*^@)_^*@)_^*)_#*^_@)#*^_)#*^)_#@*^)_*#^_)@#)^_#@^ 348 Mike: Good! I can run out there again sometime soon. I need to visit another 349 person in the neighborhood anyway. No luck on the VT100 stuff yet, I will 350 continue to search. 351 Emu: I will 'call u' heh heh. Thanks for the message. 352 )_^*#$_)^*)_^*#$)_^*)_#$^* L'homme sans Parity *%_)*%@_#)%*@)_#%*@)_#*%@_)%* 353 354 update***update*** 355 Rumor has it that the alleged spray-painting duo are in the payroll of a notorious 356 Jewish hockshop/salvage yard/appliance store owner who also owned a sizable chunk 357 of a hardware chain which hoards gray spray paint stocks. 358 It is also reported that the fugitive pair is now under the care of the 359 Jewish mobsters in either Atlantic City or Las Vegas. 360 ***Jim d' Rake *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** 361 THIS IS HOME... 362 ---------------- 363 THIS WAS HOME 364 ------------- 365 THIS IS NOW HOME..... 366 367 368 - / - / - / - / - / - / - / - / - / - / 369 370 It was terrible when I started remem- 371 bering back when I got in my accident. It was really terrible. It all happenedone day when I was strolling through 372 the woods and saw a deer not to far in 373 the distance. I started for my attack 374 the deer saw me and starting taking off 375 I couldn't do without food another day. I had to catch this one. But I just 376 couldn't get that movie Bambi out of 377 my mind. I was finally catching up 378 with the deer, I was just a few feet 379 away when I was suddenly hit and thrown 380 a few hundred feet into the air. I 381 fell straight on the pavement. It 382 was a state highway, and I was hit 383 with a car going about 80 mph. I 384 couldn't think straight for a while. 385 Then when I finally came to my senses 386 I realized that the deer was also hit 387 and lying on the other side of the 388 road. As I tried to get onto my feet 389 I realized my right front leg was gone 390 I just couldn't believe it. I finally 391 managed to get to me three remaining 392 feet and slowly crossed the highway 393 to the deer. The deer was not moving 394 and I really felt bad because I was 395 the one that caused the accident to 396 happen in the first place. I tried 397 all I could do to help the deer but 398 it looks as though he was really hurt 399 so I pulled him across the highway 400 and pulled him to my den. The deer 401 was now coming to his senses. I was 402 thinking that the deer would think 403 I was going to hurt him but he 404 anxiously started licking me. I was 405 his best friend. I decided to call 406 him Buck, and he called me Three. 407 We nursed each other back to health 408 and were both ready to go on with 409 our lives. The next day me and 410 Buck were going to get some food.... 411 412 Will be continued Tommorow... 413 414 415 The Three-Legged Cougar 416 417 - / - / - / - / - / - / - / - / - / - / 418 419 420 MOSHE MOSHE MOSHE MOSHE MOSHE: 421 Tell Katherine D to meet Menachem at the Shaarie Torah Fryeday. 422 Bring gefilte and matzos. 423 :GOLDA GOLDA GOLDA GOLDA GOLDA GOLDA 424 UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE 425 I can't believe how damn boring this has gotten to be! Some of the 426 entries above would be nice to read, only if they were something less 427 than 100+ lines, my god, who can sit through that? Did I hear someone 428 talking about brain damaged people? Reminds me of the 40 column entry 429 a few lines up...brain damage! 430 This board needs something, I don't know what, but something that will 431 catch the interest of people. Something that everyone can take part 432 in and understand, not just a small group of people. We are not all 433 perfect. Or is that we are all not brain damaged... 434 UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE 435 I think this writing stories that are long are boring should stop also. Who wants to read 200 lines of almost nothing. 436 I am tired of it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 437 438 439 to all.............. 440 just purchased a c-300 (my first modem) 441 and i cannot get it to auto dial 442 is it something i should be doing im not or is it the modem 443 list 444 run 445 @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ 446 TO ABOVE: "C-300"? 447 @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ 448 :::::=====:::::=====:::::=====:::::=====:::::=====:::::=====:::::= 449 I streached out as I woke from my calm and peaceful sleep atop 450 one of the tables in the Inn. I shook all the cricks out of myself 451 as I listened to someone talking about a "pell-mell" of sorts., and 452 INTEERGALAKTICK travel through the DEeEEMENSHONS. (I'm not all that 453 familiar with Common Tongue.) But I could tell, from listening to h 454 his plea for help, that here was someone who REALLY needed aid. I 455 got up and once again streached out. I xad been sleeping for, oh 456 how long had it been, maybe 3 days, and it felt good to get out of my 457 my dormant state. 458 My ears flipped up to their full height as the potency of this 459 newcomer's words seeped into my sleepy mind. I yawned and wondered if I had 460 really been asleep for 3 days, because I was still tired. 461 Then the newcomer finished his tale. By this time my mind had recoverfrom 462 it's state of what I called "Jell-o dormancy." and I heard this new face 463 to the Inn ask for help. 464 "I'm iNn!" I said, hopping onto the shoulder of the man who had spoken. 465 The man looked at me curiously. Then, lowly, he stroked my head. 466 Trainer: I'm in. I need some spark. All work and no adventure makes Zephyr 467 a dull rabbit! Count this furball into the story. I'll try to help. I know 468 lots about the forest, so you can count on me! 469 Emu: I thought you were a chair because someone *said* you were a chair. Don't look at me! 470 :::::=====:::::=====:::::=====:::::==Zephyr:::=====:::::=====:::::=====:::::===== 471 i said he was a chair. a beach chair to be exact. on a patio to be more exact. 472 473 .-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-. 474 Them that's calling me beach-chair: Je ne te comprend pas! Pourquoi je suis 475 (pardonez moi, je detest "entre seulement") Pourquoi tu m'appelle une chaise? 476 Je suis confuse. 477 Tres confuse. 478 Toujours confuse. 479 Est-ce que parce que tu es une/un "acid freak" comme moi? 480 R.S.V.P 481 .-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.Emu 482 #$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$# 483 *********************************************************** 484 huh? 485 ****************************kathyd************************* 486 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& 487 this is fr too late for me to be here. i ought to sleep, yet to lie 488 down alone causes my mind to drift along a thousand paths. all of 489 them keep my eyes open, staring at the walls of white that i have 490 tryed to cover with something i can say i created. there they stand, 491 my drawings of bi-planes and my knack for dragons, and. 492 he gave me that picture. it doesn't much look like him as i last 493 saw him for it was taken four years before i met him, but it is still 494 him in that picture. what i said of not being in love was false, it 495 is only the state he projects to me. i want to reach out and hold on 496 to him. the thousand paths become one, it is the way out of my 497 miserable little studio... down the hall, out the door and off to 498 pray that he will visit me again. but it's been so long.............. 499 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& the scarlet lion &&&&&&& 500 yes, all in the point of view tsl 501 502 ppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp 503 just curious -- No, I do not live in the Milwaukie area, it's not my pipes 504 that you hear. However, this Saturday the Portland Highland Games will be 505 taking place out at David Douglas school -- it's worth a try if you like the 506 sound of the pipes. 507 pppppppppppppppppppppp 508 The piper inspected the reed he was carving with a critical eye. Just a 509 small change -- he applied the razor-sharp knife to the critical throat of 510 the reed -- DAMN! Sucking his bloody thumb, the piper left the remains of 511 the ruined reed on the table, his skean dubh in his stocking top, and moved 512 out of the shadows to the group surrounding the newcomer and his strange 513 machine. Walking up to his friend Bard, the piper carefully inspected the 514 strange machine that had brought a new sense of purpose to the inn. 515 "Why do I hesitate?" he thought to himself. Abruptly he spun and faced 516 the assembled group. 517 "Aren't we the bunch of heros though?" he asked abruptly. "A person needs 518 help -- do we rush to his aid? The very existence of his home is destroyed 519 do we avenge the wrong? The prospect of an adventure no longer makes your 520 heart dance in eagerness?" 521 He lowered his head a moment then raised his eyes to the shocked gaze 522 of those not used to such an outburst. 523 "I apologize." The words fell flatly from the piper's lips. "Something 524 within me cannot recognize the prudence of weighing the merits of a quest." 525 Turning to Trainor he spoke the sacred words of comitment: 526 "Count me in." 527 ppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp 528 THIS MY FRIENDS IS HOME 529 `'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`' 530 "NET SCMEDT!" The angry words erupted from the mouth of Kyle Brackford 531 as he examined yet another report on the success of yet another NET mission in 532 southern California. 533 "But sir!", squeaked Brackford's assistant Jim Dunderson, "Our reports 534 show that this NET activity is merely a camouflage maneuver while some of 535 their top agents are off pursuing a 'Falcon.'" 536 "Falcon? Net's top agents are chasing after a bird? Come now Dunderson, 537 you can do better than that." 538 "Not a bird sir, Falcon is a literary term meaning central theme or 539 objective. NET is definitely after a Falcon, but as yet we haven't figured 540 out what the Falcon is. We do know that the Falcon exists in the Bay area 541 though. We also know that three agents were dispatched to retrieve this 542 Falcon. That is all we can determine from the decoded messages and other 543 intelligence gathering sources." 544 "I see, a Falcon. I take it we do not know the names of the three 545 agents? Just that there are three agents?" 546 "That is correct sir. We do know something about who is not present on 547 the mission though. Agent Joshua, one of NET's top men seems to be in a 548 bit of disfavor with Ian Machinery. We learned this from an undercover bellboy 549 at NET's exclusive Nirvana health club. It seems as if Joshua has acted with 550 little regard for decorum lately, and Ian doesn't like it at all. Joshua is 551 still at Nirvana, awaiting orders from Machinery that may not come in the 552 near future..." 553 "Or until an emergency requires his special services." 554 "Sir?" 555 "Yes, don't you see, SAD could send in some men into the Bay area, and 556 perhaps they could stumble onto NET's Falcon before NET does. Ian would have to 557 call in all of his big guns. Joshua would make a bee-line from Nirvana to NET's 558 Bay area offices. We of course, would follow." 559 "Brilliant sir! Shall I begin preparations?" 560 "Yes, and the next voice I want to hear will be telling me that all operations are go, and t 561 "Of course sir." Dunderson barely whispered. 562 ERROR IN UPLOAD. RETRY. 563 "Yes, and the next voice I want to hear will be telling me that all 564 operations are go, and the SAD agents are already on their way to California. 565 You have the information. You know the logistics. Send a half-dozen class G 566 agents. Now snap to it!" 567 "Of course sir." Dunderson barely whispered. 568 Alone in his office, Brackford had a moment to reflect. "I have you 569 now Machinery. You have crossed SAD to many times in your long and illustrious 570 career. No longer will you be kicking sand in our faces. It is SAD's turn to 571 do some kicking! I can hardly wait..." 572 573 SAD - Specialists Against Democracy 574 `'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`' 575 576 GO NET! 577 Oh great, yet another group of terminal jockeys going after the bright, 578 night life with their snappy spy stories with Maxwell Smart, Agent 86, and 579 580 Well... I should be kinder, it only seems that the NET characters are just 581 as three dimensional as the Chief/Lucy/Rickey/Anyone else from any sitcom. 582 Yeah. 583 <-------------------------- 584 I DON'T KNOW WHAT THIS WORLD IS COMMING TO BUT WHEN WILL WE EVER 585 LEARN THAT WE ARE PEOPLE NOT ANIMALS NOT MACHINES NOT BETA UNITS NOT DOGS, NOT C 586 ATS, NOT TERMINATORS, NOT ROBOTS, NOT COMPUTERS,NOT ANYTHIING ELSE WE ARE HUMANS 587 AND WE ARE ONE WE WILL JOIN ONE FORCE AND THEN UNITE WITH OTHER 588 CREATURES (YOU KNOW E.T.) AND THEN WE WILL BRING PEACE THROUGHOUT THE UNIVERSE 589 UNITED UNIVERSE WE WILL TRADE AND WE WILL LEARN THINGS FROM 590 OTHER CULTURES AND WE WILL BRING GOOD TO ALL MANKIND AND ALL 591 ALLIENS WE ARE HUMANS ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHH!!! 592 593 -- = -- = -- = -- = -- = -- = -- = -- = -- = -- = -- = -- = -- = 594 CRASH,BING,BANG,PING,PONG,PANG,DANG,DING,DONG,RING,RANG,HANG,DANG,DONG, DING,WRI 595 NG , WING,STING,SHING,PLING,PLANG,PLOCK,PLICK,STICK,QUICK,KICK,CRAB,GRAB,BAB,SHM 596 AB,BLAB,BAB,JKAB,OIAB,8,9,1,2,3,4,5,,6,7,7,8,8,8,8, 597 598 THAT WAS VERY WELL SAID DON'T YOU THINK SO, AND NO I AM NOT 599 sir unite with whom you will but i catch 600 you messing with my old lady and ill 601 rephrase your orenitation 602 bob 603 list 604 Sage: Originally there was a pigeon on my shoulder, then it became trendy to have. Who ruined my favored plot element? Who? 605 606 607 608 A better question to ask might be one asking where our Inspiration has gone... 609 It has been a long time since those last known words. Where has she gone? 610 611 -=*=- Asks a silken voice from the shadows: "Where is she, indeed?" -=*=- 612 -+- Not to fear... The words shall come when does the proper time. -+- 613 -+- This we know, but still... Is it not enjoyable waiting? -+- 614 -+- Or even wondering? Emptying a flagon, my gaze meets with the -+- 615 -+- Innkeeper and we both know what is on our minds. In matched -+- 616 -+- rhythm we both turn our heads to look at the closed door. -+- 617 -+- On both sides of the counter a sigh is issued from our lungs. -+- 618 -+- With the precision of trained hands, another drink is poured by -+- 619 -+- our generous host. Words accompany the push on the flagon. -+- 620 -+- "Do you think it too much of me to expect her return?" -+- 621 -+- "Nay. Although not shared by all, you expectaions are felt -+- 622 -+- within me as well." I take a slow drink and continue. "Do you -+- 623 -+- not know that there are some of us that hear your words when -+- 624 -+- even only whispered softly? And do you not know that they make -+- 625 -+- their way unto her ears as well? Oh, she knows... she knows." -+- 626 -+- The Innkeeper looks back at me as if about to turn red. -+- 627 -+- "Not to fear, friend, you are indeed in good company still..." -+- 628 -+- My words of calming seem to have little effect on him although -+- 629 -+- know that we shall always wait. And wonder... -+- -Juggler- -+- >