The Iko Effect

Goner sat on the bus, using two pencils as drumsticks tapping out a beat on the empty seat before him. He was bored and really didn't know what to do with his time at the moment, and after all he was on a bus.

At first it was just a random beat; he wasn't truly aware of any song. Then an old song did occur to him - it was a tune his grandmother used to sing to him years ago - and he fell into the beat.

Two young girls sitting on the other side of the aisle glanced over at him and giggled. They were college students and were off to another part of the city to partake in some ritualistic partying. The one sitting by the window had recognized the tune and turned and whispered to her friend.

They began singing, their voices angelic, "My grandma and your grandma were sitting by the fire..."

Like a virus spreading and infecting through contact, others on the bus began to move their heads or clap or stamp their feet...

MORGANFOKKER SAYS THAT THE OUTCOMES ARE NOT MATCHING YOUR EXPECTATIONS

* what is max cube?

version opi8

The Train Kept On A-Rollin'

"What's going on at the moment?" Goner asked. He plopped down on the seat beside Suki. The others were napping or trying to catch some sleep.

"A whole lotta nothin'," Suki replied with a smile. She was sipping on a soda and watching the platforms passing by, merging realities into one plureality. "Just watching the worlds meld before me. It's better than television!"

Goner chuckled. He had begun to miss some of the shows he had grown accustomed too.

"We've been traveling for a long while without any stops," Goner noted.

"I know," Suki said. "And I have to go to the bathroom!"

Monday At Kelly's Dinner

Thunder rumbled across the heavens as the rain continue to fall. This was the third day in a row of rain; it was as if Mother Nature's tears were washing away the sins of the city, which was probably a good thing. The smell of bacon, eggs and home fries cooking on a grill brought his attention back to his surroundings.

Max took a sip from his coffee mug, raised it up signaling to the waitress that he wanted another refill. As he waited, he flipped open the dog-eared journal.  Turning to a page that had the words scribbled in green ink:

 TODAY'S YOUR DAY.

And scribbled underneath it.

Don't let the bastards tell you otherwise. 

 

I Know The Secrets That You Keep When You're Dreaming In Your Sleep...

The train rumbled on.

Max laid across a row of chairs; he couldn't sleep and hadn't been sleeping properly for the past few nights. Though he didn't feel tired at all; he hadn't been since the events that had transpired a few weeks ago. 

If I truly fall asleep I will slip away from here. 

He didn't want that. He was growing into this comfort zone, he was liking the company, the adventure he was having, and he would die if this reality faded away into the nothingness, like a dream after waking. 

He'd grown accustomed to the shunting of the train, and the companions he had met along the way. For the first time in what seemed liked an eternity he felt the feelings of bondship. 

It would be shame if I were to disappear.

Prelude to a Dangerous Moment

"Throckmorton?" Mags asked. She studied his face to see what she could see swimming beyond his eyes. Trying to see what she could read.

"Yeah," Max replied as he drove into the parking lot. He pulled into an empty spot and turned the car off. 

"You sure about this?" Mags wanted to know. She reached into the back and pulled out her katana.

"No," Max said. "But this is the only way that I could do it."

They stepped away from the car, moving in slow motion as the breeze picked up, heading to the entrance of Throckmorton's. 

"You want to do this old school?" Mags asked.

"Of course," he replied.

The Feeling Untrue

Max shifted in his chair, feeling uneasy and lost at the moment. He couldn't make heads or tales of what had just happened, and he had that feeling as if he were Alice falling down a long hole.  

Where am I? 

He blinked and shook his head to clear the cobwebs. The cobwebs weren't abiding by the action and still remained; it was a weird feeling and he didn't know what to do. 

Am I really here? 

He reached for his cellphone and noticed how unfamiliar the action felt, as if he was being controlled by strings like a marionette. He picked up the phone and flicked it on to see that that battery was drained.

Weird, he thought. What the KLF is going on?

RIP Iain M Banks

Night was falling as Max walked down the country road alongside Toby, the man who had picked him up hitch-hiking earlier that day. They were on their way to a pub that overlooked the sea as it ebbed and flowed against the southern coast of Cornwall. For the next two days Max, Toby and Toby's friends would camp in a nearby quarry, overgrown with wildflowers, filled with early electronica ebbing and flowing from speakers they were running off a generator. 

Toby had been driving to the quarry a day early and with a free seat in his small car because of a break-up. Picking up a hitch-hiker had been a nice distraction. After hours of English scenery and philosophical conversations, Toby had invited Max to the annual gathering. 

As they walked that first night, later on the in deepening dark, Max saw a murder of crows perched on one of the old, stone fences that laced the landscape like fossilized veins. Crows had been Max's totem ever since the initiation he underwent at age 18. A few days earlier, when Max had been in London, he found a book called The Crow Road - he had never heard of it or the author before and had no idea what it was about. He bought it for the symbolism; it was in the pack slung over his shoulder.

Walking down the road, watching the crows in the field, thinking about the book, Toby, the man who had happened to pass him on the highway earlier that day, who happened to have room for and need of company, suddenly asking him, "Have you ever read The Crow Road?"

MORGANFOKKER SAYS THAT YOU ARE NOT TRYING HARD ENOUGH

Minotaagwad

mana-junkie-a-unique-sound 

He laid there in the grass, his arms folded and his hands were pillows for his head. He was staring up at the heavens.

"Watchyoo doin?" Amber asked as she approached. 

"Listening to the stars sing," he replied.

Amber decided to join him, laying down on mother earth and looking up into the stars. "And how do they sound?" Amber asked.

"Minotaagwad," he replied. "Meaning, It sounds good."

* how is max cube?

version x.3

3 Minutes To Go

Like ghosts they moved through the huge warehourse. The five of them moving about like digits on a hand. Systematically searching each room, taking mental notes of what they saw and moving on. 

Frank signaled Mags to where a sentry on duty was located. She moved like a beautiful butterfly through a summer breeze; Suki couldn't tell if she was flying or not. The sentry didn't even know what hit him, as he was caught unaware by Maggie's katana. She struck like a cobra and her blade pierced his heart. 

Frank lead them deeper into the building, wearing goggles that made him look like some sort of futuristic bounty hunter. He somehow seemed to know the quickest route, and bypassed all the security. They found what they where looking for in a matter of minutes; Frank pointed at a wooden door as he took off the goggles, nodded at Max, held up two fingers to Maggie. Maggie reached inside a pouch and took out two throwing stars. Max kicked the door open. The time for stealth was over. As the door flew open, Maggie rolled into the room and released the stars, each finding their mark. One sentry by the bed, the other by the window. 

They found their target sitting tied up in a chair, her faced battered and covered in blood, showing fear as if this was the last second of her life, but relaxing when she saw that it was someone other than the angel of death. 

"Dr. Hendy," Max said as he cut her bonds. "It's time to take you home." 

"Damn," Hendy said as she stood up and rushed toward the door. "I wasn't counting on being rescued." 

"This doesn't bode well," Suki muttered. 

"Don't tell me..." Max said to Hendy. Max just shook his head, knowing what he already knew. 

After looking at her watch and calculating something in her head for a brief second, Hendy said, "I timed the warhead to go off in about three minutes.