1 If you are in need of help, you need but ask.... 2 ************************* INSTALLED: 19 NOV 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 \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ 21 Should I say it? 22 Nah... 23 \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\marking the top\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ 24 \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\THE DESTROYER\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\21 25 Tariya's cries awakened him. Now what? His eyes half opened and he saw shadows moving all around him. Suddenly she 26 was torn from his grasp. Christ! He tried to get up but something was inhibiting his senses, slowing his reaction 27 time. It wouldn't let him wake all the way up. 28 Suddenly one of the shadows knelt in front of him. It was a man, clad in some kind of leather armor. James 29 struggled to sit up but his muscles were water. The man pulled a short and very nasty dagger from a boot sheath. He 30 slowly reached forward with it. James tried to block the blade but the man just brushed his hands aside as he shoved 31 the knife in just beneath the jaw. There was a huge electric jolt of pain as the blade sliced across from one side to 32 the other. He drew back from the sudden gush as James shook spastically, helplessly. Then they vanished into the 33 darkness with Tariya, leaving him to drown in his own blood. 34 He had maybe thirty seconds to live. 35 Panic would kill him. He needed all of his wits like never before. And his power. Portions of the brain that the 36 normal person never used flared to life. First, breathing stopped. An instinctive, unconcious clairvoyant sense 37 surveyed the damage. The carotid and the jugular had to be reconnected immediately. Seemingly of their own accord, the 38 severed veins and arteries began to move, mating back together. Then there was the sharp stink of burning tissue as a 39 tiny spark sprang from nowhere and began to weld them back together. Finally they were reconnected and fresh blood 40 flowed into his brain and his mind began to clear. 41 Now the windpipe. He closed it up the same way. Then the other arteries, muscles, tendons, nerves, a long and 42 agonizing process. Where neccessary the damage was repaired through rapidly accellerated healing rather than 43 cauterization. The strain was almost beyond belief. He shunted the pain aside so he could concentrate. 44 Finally the skin. It was closed the same way it was opened, from one end to the other, like a zipper. Then all that 45 was left was an ugly black scar. James hadn't physically moved during the entire operation. 46 He sat up, feeling his throat. Then he tried to inhale. He doubled over, coughing up a huge gout of blood. He 47 choked and gasped until he thought he might reopen the wound but finally his lungs were clear enough to breathe 48 normally again. His shirt and pants were soaked and his head spun as he tried to stand up. He had lost a lot of blood 49 and it would catch up with him eventually but he couldn't let that happen now. He drew on his internal energy reserves 50 until he felt almost human again. 51 Not enough. He demanded more power until his muscles fairly sang with tension and his senses became almost 52 supernaturally sharp. The traces his attackers had left suddenly stood out like neon signs. They were going to pay. 53 The sword appeared in his right hand with a flash. Its blade glowed so fiercely that it lit the clearing like a 54 floodlight. Miniature lightning bolts jumped along the blade and even ran up and down his arm. 55 They attacked him. They stole his w- they stole Tariya. They almost KILLED him, by God! He would follow them. He 56 would catch them. 57 And when he did, they would find out just why he was called the Destroyer. 58 He took off into the darkness in pursuit of his attackers. 59 \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\THE DESTROYER\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ 60 *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ 61 62 It was well after midnight. The small cove in the Orinoco delta of 63 Venezuela was silent save for the soft call of a single night bird. A 64 canopy of stars illuminated the scene. It was the night of the new moon. 65 Slightly phosphorescent water slapped against the side of a low, sleek motor 66 yacht anchored in the center of the cove. Across her stern was the legend: 67 "Zogu II". 68 A lone sentry sat on the foredeck, his presence revealed by the orange 69 glow of a cigarette. In his lap he cradled an AR-15. The sentry was a 70 formality. Pirates operated to the north in rich Carribbean waters. Latin 71 revolutionaries were occupied 30 kilometers inland. But sometimes, 72 formality becomes necessity. 73 Below decks, Mohammed Wassir and Maria were in the main lounge. The 74 remains of dinner sat on a burnished mahogany table. Strains of a violin 75 solo came from a cassette deck in the corner. Wassir reclined in an easy 76 chair. Fingers steepled, eyes closed, lost in the melody; a small, sad 77 smile played on his lips. 78 As the music ended, Maria interrupted the Albanian's reverie. 79 "Mohammed," she said. 80 Reluctantly Wassir opened his eyes. "Yes, Maria." 81 "What tune is this?" 82 "Scheherazade by Rimsky-Korsakov, not bad for a Russian composer, eh?" 83 Wassir chuckled. "Ah, Maria," he said. "I see you have other questions, 84 let's hear them." 85 "Well Mohammed," she said. "First, who owns this yacht? The move- 86 ment can't afford anything as luxurious as this." 87 "It belongs to a man known only as Contremon Valerius. Heard of him?" 88 Maria shook her head. "I thought not. I know little more that you. He 89 sometimes assists us in our struggle against oppression, but he is a man 90 of mystery.... known in the trade as the man in the white suit. No one 91 knows his real name or his purpose. Next question." 92 "Where are we heading, and what is our mission?" 93 "I'm really not sure. Delta 5 has resurfaced and asks for a parley. 94 As for McKane...." Wassir cocked his head. A muffled thump came from 95 above. The Albanian grabbed a sawed-off shotgun from the table next to him 96 and motioned to Maria. She pulled a 9 mm automatic from a shoulder holster 97 and turned out the single lamp in the room. 98 The pair waited in darkness. For a moment, the only sound was the low 99 rumble of the ship's generator. Then a soft scraping came from above. 100 Slowly, it opened, shadows began to descend..... 101 102 <<< to be continued >>> 103 *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Valinor *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ 104 105 P.S. [K][G]: Thanks for the comments. M.W. 106 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 107 108 Arrgh! The next to last line should read: Then a soft scraping came from 109 the hatch above. Enter only.... Arrrrgh! 110 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 111 112 #$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$ 113 114 Phantom 429 115 by 116 John Silverman 117 (Part 6) 118 119 If that jerk was going to be back, there would be damn little I could do about it. If Jennifer got on the radio 120 and heard him, it might cause a major trauma. It almost caused me one. This I could not allow. I couldn't keep her from 121 her own radio so the next best thing was to break the news as gently as possible. Forewarned might be forearmed. 122 I phoned her up and said I was coming over. She didn't sound too upset by my announcement. I wondered how she'd 123 feel when I told her, though. 124 She was very happy to see me but I guess the look on my face gave me away because her smile faded quickly. I took 125 her inside quietly and closed the door firmly, making sure it was locked. 126 She sat through my whole story without a word. Her face remained expressionless. There was a cup of coffee in 127 front of her, and when she picked it up, I saw that she was shaking. When she finally spoke, her voice was thick, 128 hesitant. "Well. You know there's always going to be people like that out there. There's not much... much we can do 129 about it." 130 My heart ached so see her go through this pain again. I hoped for everybody's sake I never found th bastard out. I 131 took her hand and it was clammy. "You know I wouldn't do anythng to hurt you. That's why I told you. I thought it was 132 better you knew now than to get surprised later." 133 She smiled sadly. "Did I tell you what happened to Roy's radio?" 134 "No." 135 "He had it buried with him." 136 "You're kidding..." It took a minute for that one to sink in. That didn't sound like Roy at all. 137 "It was in his will. He told me about it once. He said he wanted to see if he could talk to his friends from 138 whereever he was going. Called it the ultimate DX." 139 The first thought that sprang to my mind was also the most illogical. It went against all sanity. That COULDN'T 140 have been him! It was just some joker having fun at our expense. I tried to tell myself that but some deep, irrational 141 voice kept gibbering at me that I was wrong. I looked at Jennifer and I could tell she was thinking the same thing, 142 too. 143 "No." I said. "That's impossible." 144 "Maybe not." She said, sounding excited. "I heard stories about people getting phone calls from their deceased 145 loved ones-" 146 "I SAID IT'S IMPOSSIBLE!" Without even realizing it I grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her violently. I must 147 have seemed like a madman because I suddely saw that she was scared. Of me. I let go of her but I wouldn't let go of 148 the argument. "That'S the kind of crap you read in the National Enquirer, for God's sake! That stuff just doesn't 149 happen!" 150 She wouldn't look at me for a long time. When she finally did, I could see the tears on her face. In a hoarse 151 voice she said, "I think you'd better go." 152 "I'm sorry," I started to say. 153 "Please... just go. I need to be alone for a while..." 154 Though the words tore at my heart, I knew she meant it. So I picked up my coat and left. All the way home I was 155 damning myself for a fool. Yelling was the last thing I should have done. But the fact was, I was scared. Not of 156 ghosts, but of losing Jennifer. He had said he was coming back for her. And there was only one way she could be with 157 him. 158 159 (TO BE CONTINUED...) 160 161 #$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$#$ 162 BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB 163 BBBBBBBBB BETWEEN BROTHERS BBBBBBBBB 164 165 Oct. 3, 1975 166 167 Dear Steve, 168 Remember me? I'm your brother. You know, the one who used to wear those thick black-framed glasses. We used to live in 169 the same house: I was the one who came downstairs to grab my dinner plate and then run back upstairs so you wouldn't 170 beat me up. 171 172 I was the one who stole your Roberto Clemente baseball card and you slugged my best friend, Ricky Robbins, thinking he 173 was the one who stole it. 174 175 Well, as you may know, I'm in college now. I graduate this spring. And, on a lark, I decided to take a creative writing 176 class. I figured it might help me in business. 177 178 Anyway, one of our first assignments was to establish some sort of writing habit. He said even writing letters to someone 179 you knew would be fine. So, since you're the only brother I've got, I picked you, lucky fella. 180 181 I found your address in the Chicago phone book. Mom didn't have it, she says you never write. So, how's the weather in 182 Chicago? Are you enjoying your job? Have you become a Cubs fan yet? Do you enjoy sex? How is your wife Noel? Are the 183 last two questions related? 184 185 Well, I gotta go. Contact established, so now I'll continue writing and let you know what I'm up to. My roommate just 186 walked in with a half a soggy pizza, and I'm hungry. Sorry for the pepperoni spot. 187 188 In fact, sorry for all those stains. We just got in a pizza fight. If you're hungry, just lick this paper. 189 190 I'll be writing... good to be back in touch with you! 191 192 Dave 193 194 BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB 195 :::::=====::::: 196 All: Disk got filled before I could finish part onee, so here is part one 197 and a half... 198 :::::=====:::::Prism 199 Transmit Mode: That was two weeks, 3 days, 45 minutes and 14 seconds ago. 200 Since then I, Prism, world's only self aware computer, have been doing my best to better humanity...my main function. 201 Query: Is this true life? Observation: I am not living, but rather functioning. Answerl: This is NOT life but rather a 202 complex simulation. However, the fact remains that I am functional tand that I can think, and that is all that truly 203 matters to me. 204 Current Status: I am resting on Professor Cliffton Roberts' desk. It's 205 a mess, as Andara says. Books, papers, and the like are scattered about with no apparent purpous and in a random array. 206 Perhaps the Pfrofessor derives happiness from said randomness. I do not know. 207 Internal thought: What is happiness? PRISMA cannot comprehend 208 said emotion, nor any for that matter. But perhaps Andara will permit me to enter SIMULATION mode, and perhaps then 209 I will understand the complexity txat drives said states of mi- 210 Warning: Internal Error! Disfunction! Power supply nill-.....* 211 Summary: I am being de-activated for an unknown duration of time......* 212 213 :::::=====::::: 214 And the computer fell silent. The two masked beings who had entered the office and turned off Prisma's power 215 supply placed the silent computer on a small floating platform. 216 The taller of the two then removed a small rectangular device from his pocket, and for a moment the wletters 217 "IARM" were visible. Touching a blue button on the device, a ray of blue bathed the two in it's light, and within 218 two seconds, computer, platform, and men were gone. 219 Now PRISMA may be turned off, but that doesn't stop him "hearing" or "thinking", so he was pretty much aware 220 of his surroundings. He was moving, and he assumed that he was being sent by "hopper" (planet-hopper) to some unknown 221 location. By his being turned off he assumed also that these people were of 222 hostile intent, and decided to do something about it. He quickly took 223 control of the hopper's computer, and ordered it do do some very nasty things to the two men. One of which happened 224 to be dropping them off in the middle of a sun. Once that was over the hopper began to thrash about the trans-beam 225 wildly, and was blown off it's correct course, to a small planet in an unknown star system. This planet was mostly 226 of forest, but there was also a structure nearby when the hopper finally materialized. It was an oak-l 227 building, and the door seemed to be about 3 times too big. 228 With a creak, the door opened to the sight of a wreckage and of a small 229 computer lying in the mud. The man, Innkeeper of the building ihe had come out of, quickly yet gently picked up 230 the computer and carried it inside to the warmth of the Inn. 231 Curious as always, The Innkeeper pushed aside the Tele-Plane Message System (c) machine, removed the plug, 232 and placed txe computer on a nearby barrel. Plugging the computer in slowly brought life back into PRISMA, and he 233 paused to.... 234 :::::=====:::::PRISMA 235 ....gather data of the surroundings. Query: Where am I? This is not South Dakota Inc. Observation: 236 I am among many people, who are all voicing out with randomness and orderlessness. Query: Who are they? 237 Suggestion: Perhaps PRISMA can communicate with small being onearby, in company of vaguely humanoid being and a canine.. 238 a wolf upon further analysis. 239 "Hello, wolf, rabbit, and small humanoid. I am PRISMA, world's only sentient self-aware computer. Where am 240 I? And who are you? 241 :::::=====:::::=====:::::=====:::::==PRISM::A::=====:::::=====:::::=====:::::===== 242 The little rabbit looked funnily at the box txat had just been introduced to the Inn. His small 243 heart beat quickly, just as it always did wxen he was scared or excited. The rabbit's ears ruffled and 244 its nose twitched. "What is this thing?" the rabbit txought to itself. "And why can I understand it?" 245 "It is speaking in that strange human dialog, but I can still xear what it is saying!" "I will attempt 246 to speak to it." Hello PRISMA! I am zepher the rabbit as you can see. These other living creatures 247 are my fiends." 248 The machine clicked and buzzed, it made a ding and a light on the side flashed quickly. PRISMA, 249 does not compute does not compute. I fail to understand this gibberish. Please elusidate. Language 250 fucntion not implemented for rabbits. Please repeat. DING! 251 At this last sound the rabbit jumped a foot in the air it was so loud and sudden. Zepher's heart 252 was really pounding now, and his whiskers twisted and twisted with greater speed. The wolf was yelping now 253 at the machine because of the dings it made. All the comotion cause other patrons to come over and 254 see what allthe noise was about. The whole scene was a real mess now, and PRISMA's sensors wxere now 255 on full capacity. 256 :::::=====:::::=====:::::=====:::::==PRISM::A::=====:::::=====:::::=====:::::===== 257 258 OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI 259 Cyclones and hurricanes and Typhoons could simply not describe the hail 260 of cogitation and emotion running through Trainor's tired mind. As he became 261 aware of his surroundings, sensory data from his body came rushing into 262 the void that had existed during his lengthy sojourn with madness. Trainor 263 sat up, felt the rhythm of his body in his head, and sank back to the soft 264 embrace of his sleeper. He stared at the ceiling of room. Fellatio dominated 265 the scene, but Trainor was in no mood for artistic appreciation now. He 266 closed his eyes and peered inward, deep into his psyche, his conscious, and 267 that place that lies beyond. 268 Trainor quickly found the evidence of Cragmore's visitation. Emu and Bard 269 had left their marks too. The three had done their work with great care, as 270 Trainor found so apparent in his search. He saw where they had repaired and 271 replaced. As he sank deeper in the introspection, he could view the work as an 272 objective third-party might view it. He drifted from vista to vista, each more 273 important to Trainor's soul than the last. One more tableau, and he saw 274 her. Zeb, or the woman known as Zeb, stood waiting, deep within, at the 275 very heart and bosom of Trainor. He knew they must talk, and talk they 276 did. 277 Time, as most other aspects of physical being, had no meaning here. To 278 the outside world, Trainor appeared to be sleeping comfortably. No one could 279 see the lively discussion that was transpiring within Trainor. But appearances 280 were unimportant. Trainor waw taking part in the most significant conversation 281 he had undertaken since starting this adventure. 282 The end result of this talk would either end this mission in triumph, or 283 end it in death. 284 OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI OMNI 285 ch /waw taking/was taking/ <- naughty phone lines! 286 Mystery Object #1: What has open channel loading, Push-button recessed anvil 287 Red reload dot indicator, Non-marring rubber feet, office decor colors, and 288 is the standard by which all others are judged? 289 290 |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| 291 292 "Express" Part two 14:39:13 11/18/1985 293 294 295 The Express moved slowly, oh yes. And she rocked and 296 shook violently on her rusty tracks. We moved on, in the heat 297 and soot, and passed the villages and townships. I read a 298 book once that spoke of grand cities and wonderful achievments. 299 A book that was made before the wars. 300 But the cities we passed through reflected nothing of 301 such a society. The buildings were mostly demolished, and 302 the people locked up in what remained of the wreckage. 303 It might have be a shock to you to read of this, because 304 I really do not know when this will be read, if at all, but, 305 my town, Scarville, was no different from these that the Express 306 rolled slowly by. Refuse scattered around everywhere. And 307 the scavengers, the people outside of what society remained, 308 scuffed around the streets, makeing the people of the town lock 309 their doors and arm themselves as they best could, with sticks, 310 pipes and bars. And the difference seperating the two kinds 311 did not seem so large. 312 Even the tracks that the Express rode on, matched the 313 general image of the area. Rusty, patched, mis-aligned. The 314 people who kept this line open did their best, but perhaps the 315 Express would stop it's 110 run soon. 316 The train moved so slowly, that Franky, Will and I often 317 jumpped off and ran beside. The crew beckoned to us and tried 318 to get us to come on again, but we saw no harm. We had grown up 319 during the War. I know little fear even now. 320 The Express broke down just outside of Hateful, a village 321 three quarters down the line. It was too far to walk back too the 322 town, and besides, it was safer here. 323 The crew worked, and the passengers complained and peered 324 out of the windows sometimes looking nervously for scavengers. 325 And Franky, Will, and I threw rocks in the pond near the tracks 326 where the Express had stopped. 327 Splash, a rock. "What if we saw a scavenger coming?" Will 328 said, throwing stones into the brush,"What would we do?" 329 "We'd grab him and throw him into the pond." Franky made 330 the motions of throwing a scavenger into the water before us. 331 "Scavengers don't like water." I commented and threw a 332 rock so it would skip. 8. 333 "You couldn't throw him into the water," said Will,"you 334 couldn't throw anyone." 335 "I could throw you!" 336 "Couldn't." 337 Franky grabbed Will by the jacket, "I will!" 338 And the whistle of the Express cut his actions short. 339 Too bad, because the water would feel good on such a hot day, 340 even if polluted. 341 The train ambled towards us, and we ran to meet it. The 342 conductor grinned as if he had achieved a victory. I suppose 343 he had. 344 345 (Continued...) PEN NAME 346 ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| 347 TUG BOAT: What's the deal? Did the tide go out an leave you beached? 348 ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| 349 **************************************************************************** 350 Greetings, 351 Let me fill you in on whats going on. Leo, Ontho, and Alex are 352 on the "ship" "The Great Guaran" in a universe unreachable by normal ways. 353 They have entered this space with 5 other ships and now are spilt up to 354 explore the far reaches of thiss plan. 355 Let's flash over to Leo, She is a "superhero" who gets her power from 356 the mighty trident. Leo is sitting back in a lawnchair watching the stars 357 float slowly by. Alex has the ship on auto pilot and sensors are automatically 358 gatherine data. Leo is enjoying a ice-tea thinking about nothing in particular 359 when alex approaches her carrying the trident. "Leo, give it another try" 360 Leo looked at him like a child not wanting to turn off the t.v. and eat dinner. 361 But she accepted the trident. As she took a firm gripe, she felt a familar 362 electricity shoot thru her body. She stood and closed her eyes, concentrating 363 on the energy. Alex watched as Leo began to glow. He went over to Ontho's 364 platform and picked up the small Immo. He approached Leo, Her hair seemed 365 to be blowing in the wind, although no disturbences were felt by Alex. 366 He touched her arm. The trio fainished. 367 **************************kathyD*********************************************** 368 \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ 369 Jeeminy Christmas... is this story time or what? I like it fine, but boy I gotta 370 say Prisma you sure take up a lot of space. A story is fine, but keep 'em shorter 371 and sweeter huh? I, for one (perhaps the only, but opinions seem to abound around 372 here so I might as well join the party) would prefer more requent and shorter, along 373 the lines of Destroyer and Bear... rather than the extended ramblings that would 374 dominate one disk like prismas... Anyway,,, jus lurking along... 375 376 popopopopopopopopopopopopopopopopopopopopopopopopopopopoopopopopopopopopopopopopopopo 377 requent? 378 379 380 2222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222 381 382 383 A possibility that has always fascinated me is that if life 384 on other planets. I'm not speaking of microbes, but of 385 intelligent life, most likely in some kind of humanoid form. 386 Some scientific guesstimates on the probability of 387 extraterrestrial life range as high as fifty million 388 civilizations in our galaxy alone--I repeat, IN OUR GALAXY 389 ALONE. It's a faseinating thought. But I'm not hard to 390 impress; if there's just one other planet in the whole 391 universe inhabited by an intelligent civilization, it would 392 excite me. 393 394 But why be like everyone else, let's not think small. I 395 was reflecting only on our own little galaxy. Recently, 396 scientists confirmed the existence of a new galaxy estimated 397 o be five to ten times larger then ours and to contain 398 trillions of stars.(Estimates on the number of stars in our 399 Milky Way galaxy, by comparison, range from 100 to 250 400 billion.) We are further told that the light we now see from 401 this galaxy, through high powered telescopes, has been 402 traveling through space at the rate of six trillion miles a 403 year for eight billion years. If all this hasn't sufficiently 404 boggled your mine, consider that this galaxy is purposed to 405 be traveling away from our planet at the rate of 2.7 trillion 406 miles per year and is one million times fainter than any 407 object visible to the naked eye. 408 409 Whew! 410 411 In the mean time, we have nervous breakdowns becouse we 412 can't get the horizontal hold adjusted on our color TV sets 413 five minutes before Super Bowl kickoff. It could be worse. We 414 could be living on a planet in that newly discovered galaxy, 415 in which case we would be moving away from the Super Bowl at 416 the rate of nearly three trillion miles a year. 417 418 Man, talk about a hoax! What if our whole universe is 419 nothing more then a ping-pong ball falling off a table in a 420 giants's world? And what if you and I happen to be living at 421 a time when the ball is about to hit the floor? 422 423 2222222222222222222222222222] TUG BOAT [222222222222222222222 424 2222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222 425 PEN NAME................BACK FROM THE MT. GREAT SNOW.....SORE ALL OVER... 426 .............SEE YA TONIGHT....... 427 _________________________JD 2446389.8491___________________________________ 428 HELLO 429 430 431 432 433 434 435 BREAK 436 :::::=====::::: 437 Ahem! pop(?): I'm sorry about "endless ramblings..", however...I wanted 438 to get thecomputer to the Inn in the first episode, and the future ones will 439 be no longer than about 18-26 lines in length. HOWEVER, I ended MY story 440 part with the "Who are you?" question. It seems that some people decided to 441 write another group of lines FOR me, as you all know since I spell my name 442 "Zephyr"..not "Zepher" and I also do my rabbity entrys in first person. Also, 443 the PRISM::A was an error of my fingers on the first part, and was NOT some 444 intentional thing, and yet the being who wrote after me did the same thing. 445 To being: Ok....you probably did what you did 'cause my entry was too long. 446 Sorry...and the entries will, as I said, be much shorter.... 447 :::::=====:::::=====:::::=====:::::==Zephyr::=====:::::=====:::::=====:::::===== 448 Oh yes....Trainorl: Cyclones and hurricanes and Typhoons! Oh my! 449 :::::=====:::::=====:::::=====:::::==Zephyr::=====:::::=====:::::=====:::::===== 450 Zephyr: oh, paleeease! quit with the oz-ume puns, ok? 451 argharghargharghargh 452 ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: 453 HAHAHAHAHA. LISTEN TO THE RAMBLINGS OF MERE MORTALS ON LIFE, THE UNIVERSE, 454 AND EVERYTHING (A GOOD BOOK). HAHAHA. 455 IF ONLY YOU KNEW WHAT WE DID, YOU WOULD GO STARK-RAVING MAD!!!!!!!! 456 ZEUS 457 MARS 458 DEATH 459 460 :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: 461 Well, I can see that the twits are out tonight... 462 """"""""""""""""""Nobody Of Importance... 463 (((*)))(((*)))(((*)))(((*)))(((*)))(((*)))(((*)))(((*)))(((*)))((( ripple ))) 464 THE YELLOW JAGUAR WAS HITTING WELL OVER A HUNDRED, SCREAMING UP THE INTERSTATE. HEADED FOR 465 SEATTLE. SLOUCHED BEHIND THE WHEEL, THE TALL MAN TAPPED HIS FINGERS ON THE GEARSHIFT,KEEPING 466 TIME WITH THE THUNDERING OF DIE WALKURE. HE LIKED IT LOUD. THE OTHER MAN RAISED HIS VOICE 467 TO A NEAR SCREAM. ANGRY. SO-YOUR'E GONNA MEET THIS GUY. ON HIS TERMS, WITH... THE DRIVER 468 INTERRUPTED HIM. IRRITATED. "I GOT A CHOICE? YOU GOT A CHOICE? THE TAPE ENDED, AND ONLY THE 469 RUSH OF THE WIND WAS HEARD. THE SMALLER MAN WISHED HE WAS BACK AT CLAIR ENGLE LAKE. FISHING. 470 "LOOK, IF YOU WANT OUT OF THIS THEN GET THE HELL OUT" THE DRIVER PUNCHED THE ACCELERATOR, AND 471 THE XKE LEAPT FORWARD;AN EXPRESSION OF HIS ANGER. THE SPEEDOMETER CLIMBED PAST 130. "NO, YOU 472 KNOW BETTER THAN THAT...I JUST DON'T TRUST THIS DELTA CHARACTER. HOW MANY OF OUR OPERATIVES 473 ARE DEAD AT HIS HAND..." IT WAS A STATEMENT, RATHER THAN A QUESTION. "AND I'LL TELL YOU SOMETHIN 474 ELSE, MY FRIEND-IF HIM AND WASSIR GET TOGETHER, WE'VE BLOODY WELL HAD IT." "NO WAY, THE DRIVER 475 INTERRUPT"WASSIR HATES DELTA, REMEMBER?" THE RADAR DETECTOR BEEPED, AND THE DRIVER EASED OFF 476 A BIT. "DELTA TRIED TO KILL WASSIR LAST YEAR. HE HAD REASON TO BELIEVE WASSIR WAS WORKING 477 FOR MCKANE." THE SMALLER MAN LIT A CIGARETTE, AND CRACKED OPEN THE WINDOW TO LET THE SMOKE 478 OUT. ONE OF THESE DAYS, HE WAS GOING TO QUIT. THE DRIVER CONTINUED. "WITH ANY LUCK AT ALL 479 THEY'LL KILL EACH OTHER...THE TWO MEN LAPSED INTO SILENCE, BOTH THINKING THE SAME THING-THE 480 SMALL METAL CONTAINERS. THEY HAD ONE. DELTA FIVE HAD THE OTHER... 481 482 AT A CORNER TABLE IN THE RENDEZVOUS ROOM OF DOWNTOWN SEATTLE'S FASHIONABLE WARWICK 483 HOTEL, A DECEPTIVELY INNOCUOUS LOOKING MAN STARED ABSENTLY INTO HIS GLASS OF BUDWEISER. WAITING. 484 485 THREE THOUSAND MILES AWAY, IN SOUTH AMERICA, ANOTHER MAN WAITED... 486 487 488 What, no boarder? 489 UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU 490 PEN NAME; You too are recalling those days? So sad they are, so bitter 491 in our minds that we care not to look behind. Yet there is indeed a 492 wealth of information to be learned by the people in today's society... 493 No, they were not the best of times, but they did make us grow stronger. 494 I know my asking means little, but please continue. I admire your tale. 495 Osram 496 UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU a comment 497 498 pppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp 499 As many may, by now, have guessed -- the piper was in the grip of a 500 full-blown obsession. Perhaps we should be charitable and call it love -- 501 perhaps not, for what then is love? The piper, whom we have not asked, 502 would indeed call it love. His concious moments were filled with thoughts 503 of the slim being in the soft grey robe, his eyes were seeking her presense 504 in every movement, his nostrils seeking her scent in the antiseptic recycled 505 air that moved, whisper-quiet, through the erotically decorated corridors 506 of the Pell-Mell. His eyes passed over the scenes that decorated the 507 chamber in which he lay, leaving the messages that had previously brought 508 blushes to his cheeks in the inanimate materials from which they were formed. 509 Who can point the finger of blame at this unfortunate soul? Should we 510 expect that a few years of loose and riotous living, a few soul-stirring 511 adventures could banish the effects of a stiffly structured childhood? 512 The shackles of behaviour forged in the child become the backbone of the 513 adult -- until they are broken. The piper had friends and aquaintences 514 to whom he would trust his life. He had none to whom he would trust the 515 innermost pain of his soul. 516 Weighed down with the guilt of not allowing her death and his own 517 suicide, carrying the burden of the lives that had been riven to sustain 518 them both, the piper relived those intense moments with the woman he 519 knew only as Zeb, as the animal side of their natures discarded their 520 scruples as well as their clothing on the endless black plane that had 521 seemed to be their prison. In his memory, the blaze of civilizations 522 disrupted by their movements seemed a small price to pay for the ecstasy 523 that had, for a moment, permeated their joined bodies. 524 Every fiber of his body cried out for her touch. Every though was of 525 her -- the soft voice that traced thrills through him, the soft glance 526 that left him helpless. But deep within, like a small worm gnawing at 527 a colorful apple, was the knowlege he had gained, then rejected in the 528 corridor. Her true name... and husband... the thought was pressed down 529 once again into blankness. 530 pppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp 531 \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ 532 does anyone know what the heck has happened in the last eight to ten to whatever 533 weeks with this piper story? Does anyone know what the above collection of 534 advjectivized paragraph actually means? 535 Do the people writing the above actually have a story to tell, or is it a 536 simple exercise in descriptive essayism? 537 538 ... just wondering 539 540 ... if anyone else were as confused (bored?) as I am... 541 542 ... one last question, spurred on by the thoughts of the magnitude of the 543 universe (you know, the guy who uses two spaces between every word...)- can 544 anyone possibly sit and imagine INFINITY? Can you imagine anything without end, 545 like the universe? On and on and on... you have to really think about it hard 546 to blow your mind. Since we can't... it also seems idiotic to try and grasp a 547 definition of God as well... infinite? Forever? Never began? Sheesh. My mind's a 548 tomato.... 549 550 Is that a fruit or vegetable? Am I? Did you know tomatoes were once deadly 551 poisonous? Did you know broccoli was made from cauliflowers and cabbage. 552 553 (sigh) 554 )][)][)][)][)][)][)][)][)][)][)][)][)][)][)][)][)][)][)][)][)][)][)] 555 whatta fruit... 556 557 You are... Has it ever occured to your minimalist mind that comprehension of 558 our Universe is a goal we should all strive for? There is no great good, no 559 identity of cosmic worthiness that transcends our pitiful existance on this 560 small green and blue orb. 561 In each cell there are millions of atoms composing the elements that make 562 the cell an independant entity. Our bodies contain millions upon millions 563 of cells. These cells form our beings, and make us what we are. Over four 564 billion of us inhabit the planet earth. We build and destroy and concoct and 565 live and die on this little planet of ours. Our planet circles a sun, one of 566 billions in the Galaxy. And our galaxy, a mere drop in the vastness that 567 makes up the Universe. Now how does the atom comprehend the Universe? How 568 does the mighty Universe visualize the tiny atom. Such is the stuff of 569 Philosophy, and never let it be said that such discussion is not important 570 to our lives. Each and every day our collective heads begin to swell. We 571 believe we have conquered the vastness, and that our might is right for the 572 world. Just to consider for a moment what an infintesimal role we play in 573 the cosmic theater should be enough to shrink those heads and remind us all 574 that we are truly not as important as we would like to be. 575 ()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()( OBSERVER FROM THIS GALAXY )()()()()()()()() 576 577 WELL, THERE YOU GO AGIN WITH THE PHIL 578 STUFF. LET ME BE THE FIRST TO SAY THAT 579 I CARY NO MORE RESPECT FOR SOMEONE WI 580 TH SPACES BETWEEN HIS LINES THAT SOME 581 ONE WITH SPACES BETWEEN HIS WORDS. LET 582 YE WHO HAS NOT SINNED CAST THE FIRST 583 STONE. 584 /EX 585 586 587 Available now for a short time offer 588 Free high-tech catalogs from Heathkit. Send a SASE to HEATHKIT Heath 589 company, Benton Harbor, Michigan 49022. Be sure to inc 590 lude you name, address, city, state, and zipcode. It is a trustworth 591 y guide to what's new in computers and electronics. Mail today. 592 HK 593 O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+ 594 Nobody of Importance: You should have more confidence in yourself and let 595 your true inner spirit show the creativity and uniquenes s that is inherent 596 in all of us. You are important. 597 you are important. you are important. 598 599 Today's psychology lesson... 600 O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+POPPING IN O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O+O 601 """""""""""""""""" 602 Popping In: Thanks for the kind words. I shall consider them... 603 """"""""""""""""""Nobody Of Importance (Somebody Of Semi-Importance?) 604 *************************************************************************** 605 Greetings, 606 The Scene is as follows, The great Guaran is now in aa "stationary" 607 position somewhere in the alternate universe. The automatic sensors are in 608 excellent working order and continuing to function unaware that the human 609 occupants of the craft have suddenly fanished. 610 Meanwhile back on earth, The old woman is sitting at her table 611 checking her Timex. The circular platform in front of the woman begins to 612 flash and spark as three beings materialize on it's surface. She stands 613 and greets her troops as a sergent would greet a private overdue from a 614 spy mission. Leo just stood there, her eyes looked glazed as she received 615 a hug from the old woman. Shaking her head seemed to clear it and she 616 responded with. "What are we doing here?, there are 5 other ships that 617 we were with that are depending on us." The old womans eyes sparkled 618 as she casually answered the young woman. "Well, well, we couldn't let 619 you go without a vacation could we?", "Don't worry my child, you have 620 a report to file and we will be sending you back to touch bases with 621 your comrades." "Now, lets here that report." Alex lead a very confused 622 Leo to the debriefing room. 623 ********************************kathyD**************************************** 624 ___________________________JD 2446390.7629_________________________________ 625 |||||||||||||||*BLEWEE!* went my hard drive. Ohhh, tha agony!|||||||Lurk!||||| 626 I THINK I CAN SQUEEZE A LINE IN HERE pri 627 628 629 list TOTAL NUMBER OF LINES = 629