she thought to herself. Too many biscuits had gotten to her brain. To think that Flower had almost taken Madame S’s prediction seriously, but African Hedgehogs? That’s it, she thought. Enough of these loony psychics.
At the bottom of the stairwell, she came upon a man who had just come in from the outside. He wore a dapper business suit and, as she passed, he spoke some words that she couldn’t quite hear. Flower turned towards him and was momentarily struck by a startlingly wild look in his hazel eyes.
“Pardon me?” she stammered.
The man reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a leaflet that had a large black shadow depicted on the cover.
“The End of Days is coming to this planet…would you care to read about it?”
She looked at him skeptically for a moment. Had the world gone mad this morning, or was it just Americans.
“No thank you. If it’s not here by Tuesday night, I won’t be around to see it anyway,” she said flinging her blond hair to one side and turning to leave. The man reached after her and grabbed her arm.
“It may be here before then miss,” he said raising his eyebrows. She stared at the hand holding her arm until the man removed it.
“I see. Well, I’m still not interested. I’ve already had my maximum of one apocalyptic prophecy today. Perhaps tomorrow.”
Flower left the building without another word. Fishing in her purse for a stick of gum, she came across Jude’s keys. Absently, she tossed them into a nearby garbage can.
Boy, thought Flower. I could really go for a massage.
Chapter 6
Many galaxies away in a remote part of the universe, some two million millennia before Flower had her craving, the planet Fresseria Beta played host to a terrible war. Two tribes known as the Ari and the Osto were in the midst of a bitter century-long dispute over a small cluster of mines that were the only known source of Fresserian spice. Both tribes coveted the rare treasure but each for an entirely different reason.
The Ari were a group of thrill seekers who deeply enjoyed the more earthly pleasures in life. While they weren’t spending time in elaborate amusement parks and hopping discotheques, the Ari engaged in the timeless art of seduction or, as they preferred, in fantastic giant orgies that lasted for weeks on end. These events resulted in euphoric sounds that could be heard clearly for miles in every direction. The consensus was that the key to the success of one of these romps was the small amount of spice mixed into each Ari’s tea. This provided their bodies with the stamina and their vocal chords with the fortitude to bring the whole affair to its proper, glorious pinnacle.
The Osto couldn’t have been more different from the Ari. Collectively, they were among the stuffiest, most cerebral and boring individuals known to inhabit the universe. The Osto spent most of their time trying to design the perfect sport utility vehicle. Of course, since they were exceedingly dull and tedious people, they were never invited anywhere and their matchless fuel injection system spent most of its time along with their SUVs in Osto garages. Over the years, as the Ari parties got louder and more fun-sounding, the Osto became increasingly testy. One day, when an Osto scientist discovered that adding spice to an SUV’s gas tank improved its fuel efficiency by ten percent, the king of the Osto finally had a pretext to declare war on the Ari since it was the Ari who controlled all of the spice mines on Fresseria Beta.
Unfortunately for the Ari, they were having too much fun to take the Osto’s declaration of war seriously; and, insipid as the Osto were, they did have a knack for planning things. In the end, despite a valiant last-ditch effort, the Ari were decimated, their society left in tatters. Worst of all, without the spice, the surviving Ari were extraordinarily horny, even for a species that had seventeen horns
At the bottom of the stairwell, she came upon a man who had just come in from the outside. He wore a dapper business suit and, as she passed, he spoke some words that she couldn’t quite hear. Flower turned towards him and was momentarily struck by a startlingly wild look in his hazel eyes.
“Pardon me?” she stammered.
The man reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a leaflet that had a large black shadow depicted on the cover.
“The End of Days is coming to this planet…would you care to read about it?”
She looked at him skeptically for a moment. Had the world gone mad this morning, or was it just Americans.
“No thank you. If it’s not here by Tuesday night, I won’t be around to see it anyway,” she said flinging her blond hair to one side and turning to leave. The man reached after her and grabbed her arm.
“It may be here before then miss,” he said raising his eyebrows. She stared at the hand holding her arm until the man removed it.
“I see. Well, I’m still not interested. I’ve already had my maximum of one apocalyptic prophecy today. Perhaps tomorrow.”
Flower left the building without another word. Fishing in her purse for a stick of gum, she came across Jude’s keys. Absently, she tossed them into a nearby garbage can.
Boy, thought Flower. I could really go for a massage.
Chapter 6
Many galaxies away in a remote part of the universe, some two million millennia before Flower had her craving, the planet Fresseria Beta played host to a terrible war. Two tribes known as the Ari and the Osto were in the midst of a bitter century-long dispute over a small cluster of mines that were the only known source of Fresserian spice. Both tribes coveted the rare treasure but each for an entirely different reason.
The Ari were a group of thrill seekers who deeply enjoyed the more earthly pleasures in life. While they weren’t spending time in elaborate amusement parks and hopping discotheques, the Ari engaged in the timeless art of seduction or, as they preferred, in fantastic giant orgies that lasted for weeks on end. These events resulted in euphoric sounds that could be heard clearly for miles in every direction. The consensus was that the key to the success of one of these romps was the small amount of spice mixed into each Ari’s tea. This provided their bodies with the stamina and their vocal chords with the fortitude to bring the whole affair to its proper, glorious pinnacle.
The Osto couldn’t have been more different from the Ari. Collectively, they were among the stuffiest, most cerebral and boring individuals known to inhabit the universe. The Osto spent most of their time trying to design the perfect sport utility vehicle. Of course, since they were exceedingly dull and tedious people, they were never invited anywhere and their matchless fuel injection system spent most of its time along with their SUVs in Osto garages. Over the years, as the Ari parties got louder and more fun-sounding, the Osto became increasingly testy. One day, when an Osto scientist discovered that adding spice to an SUV’s gas tank improved its fuel efficiency by ten percent, the king of the Osto finally had a pretext to declare war on the Ari since it was the Ari who controlled all of the spice mines on Fresseria Beta.
Unfortunately for the Ari, they were having too much fun to take the Osto’s declaration of war seriously; and, insipid as the Osto were, they did have a knack for planning things. In the end, despite a valiant last-ditch effort, the Ari were decimated, their society left in tatters. Worst of all, without the spice, the surviving Ari were extraordinarily horny, even for a species that had seventeen horns
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