Thevrix dusted his chest and xuv slit with pling and waited for the effects to kick in. He was already on a natural high from defeating a bunch of aliens and then shluking greedily with several strangers. He wanted to take himself higher for longer. His normal life had been quite dull, raising some irritating kids and working in a pipe factory. The demand for pipes never dropped much. Everyone wanted tubs, which needed pipes. Those pipes were standardised and boring. Gradually, he had come to hate them. He was so glad that there had been something much more important to do this year. The magic had been transmitted to him and his quartet, carried across land and sea by thousands of other shlukers. It had come just in time for the first aliens, who’d been a useless, incompetent bunch. For a start, they were too small. The initial scouting group had been crushed underfoot, literally. After that, they came in greater numbers so the townspeople had had to start using magic. Entire battalions of ridiculous, heavily armed pixies had been cast screaming into the void. Of course, this would have been devastating for the other tiny aliens still on their home world but, to Thevrix and his neighbours, their death cries had sounded hilarious.
Before the townspeople had had time to reflect on their easy victory, they had been invaded again by a larger kind of alien. They had had to adjust their portals to accommodate this second type. This had taken a minute, during which time the larger aliens had managed to shoot some people. There had been hundreds of minor injuries but only four deaths because the aliens hadn’t phased fully into the world’s reality. The bullets could have only done limited damage in that minute. Afterwards, the larger aliens had been promptly tossed into the same dimension as the smaller aliens. They hadn’t screamed. Perhaps they’d been too proud to do so? Thevrix and many others had compensated by yelling in triumph. Next had come the waiting. On the home front, no one had dared to start any serious work except the bare basics. Each household now had at least one person on watch at all times. Invaders could come whenever they wanted, as was shown on the news networks. It had been sobering to see the struggle play out over the course of about three weeks. Most people had survived relatively unscathed but there had been many isolated casualties of sneak attacks. There had also been a few disasters, including the complete destruction of the remote island called Chemfel. These had galvanised the home side’s defence. Many people had learnt how to use the network to extend the reach of their magic. Regular sweeps of populated areas now ensured that almost all alien invaders were intercepted and removed fairly promptly. No groups had been able to establish bases, secret garrisons, infrastructure or other presence.
To pass the time between attacks, Thevrix and his quartet had shluked at least twice a day. On the fifth day, they had managed to conduct four sessions, which was the maximum that could be achieved without undue tiredness. Naturally, they had had to spread the magic. They had found themselves in the tub with complete strangers, allocated to them by computer. These unfamiliar quartets wouldn’t have been in their shluking circles normally but fate had forced them together. On the whole, sessions like this began awkwardly and hesitantly but ‘warmed up’ after a period of familiarisation. Everyone learnt some interesting facts and insights about each other and the world in general. A few times, there had been an urge to go beyond shluking. Given the situation, this had been readily allowed provided that precautions were taken. Thevrix looked back fondly on those encounters. The period of waiting had been essentially an enforced holiday at home. Nervousness had been counteracted by the chance of relaxation.
The third and, hopefully, final incursion into the town had come in the form of a giant alien monster. It had been the size of a small stadium and it had materialised in an eastern suburb, where it had crushed over a hundred houses and a few other buildings. Most inhabitants had survived the crushing of their houses by rushing to the cellars. A few had survived by creating portals and sending chunks of the jelly-like beast into oblivion, thus giving them room to breathe. Those around the outside of the creature had been initially unsure if they could actually do anything about it. It had been too big to shove through a portal in one piece. Quickly, though, people had realised that they could send it through portals in many pieces. Anyone looking from above would have seen a ring of portals opening around the creature, swallowing small portions and then disappearing. As the minutes had passed, the portals had moved inwards, steadily consuming more and more of the great, slimy bulk. Then more people had shown up, Thevrix among them. Thousands had arrived in cars, on Triplas and so forth. The monster had been chopped up and its blood had flooded through the streets. Any blood that was still warm enough could be sent away through portals. The crowd of magicians had swiftly reduced the ungainly beast to a residue of cold fluids. The main bulk of its body had been banished within half an hour. After that, there had been a few hundred people to rescue from their half-flooded basements. Twenty nine people had died, which was relatively few given the scale of the attack. Like most townspeople, Thevrix had been thankful to survive.
Further days had passed as before. Soon, it had become apparent that the wave of alien invasions was abating. The media had reported no further incidents in region after region. The general feeling among the population had been that the main danger was over. It was now time to relax a bit more and then catch up on neglected chores. In time, the people could return to their normal work. Some, like Thevrix, hadn’t been best pleased. Although the struggle against the invasions had been difficult and dangerous, it had opened up a sense of new possibilities. Thevrix was considering making changes in his life. He thought that he might take a new job but that would require adjustments like training courses and a period of tighter household budgeting. Before he embarked on any new path, he wanted to let himself go for at least one night. That was why he was now embarking on a pling trip. He had tried other drugs before but pling was the most comfortable and rewarding for him.
“Ganurei, I’m going to drink the rest of this flask,” said Aflus as she wiggled past the bedroom door. “It will only spoil otherwise.” She was wise. Otherwise! She knew what was going on; she knew about the hidden aspects of reality. After-images of her posterior were still drifting past the door although she was now two rooms away. Thevrix could see her swigging from the flask in the hall. He still liked her body but the drink had made her facial expressions looser and droopier, as if they were made of stretchy material that had perished. She had become somehow distorted, older and uglier, which repulsed him. The angles were wrong. Therefore, his consciousness wandered further. Tepuspae was asleep on the big bed. She was gesticulating and mouthing silent words. Her legs were shifting about as if she were walking. He knew her so well, he could tell that she was dreaming about a quartet with whom they regularly shluked. He followed her imagined conversation and interaction. He knew the exact moment when she would start shluking herself. It would be fun at first but then the accumulated feedback would force her to wake up and stop. Still, he liked to watch while he could. His boyfriend Ganurei was on watch in the lounge, calm and steadfast. Thevrix swooped past and stroked his cheek. Of course, Ganurei couldn’t feel it but, coincidentally at that moment, he smiled at a private joke. Thevrix was inspired to shoot upwards.
He saw the partly ruined town below. It was night time but some people were searching in the rubble for treasured possessions, vital supplies and maybe a few lost pets. Thevrix found a crushed snef beneath a toppled wall. It wasn’t something he liked to see, so he moved on. He wandered over to the municipal car park. There were some burnt trucks and cars on the side nearest to the town centre. Prompt action by the fire brigade over a week ago had extinguished the flames. In the middle of the car park, he stopped. There was an unusual vibration around a dull grey-blue car. He slowly circled the vehicle, trying to discover the nature of the vibration. As he did so, he felt the surroundings change. The town faded out, to be replaced by deep shadow. His vision adjusted to the gloom. He started to see darkened structures around him. He realised that he was in a foreign city of some sort. The buildings were packed close together and tall. He looked up. They were incredibly tall! Tiny lights appeared on their flanks. Their top floors were so far away that they couldn’t be seen. It made him feel giddy.
“Well, you certainly came from left-field, didn’t you?” said a voice next to the vehicle. “You’re having an out-of-body excursion. Congratulations, you’ve made it to my world!” Thevrix looked at the vehicle but saw only robotic legs. He looked up and saw glowing robotic eyes studying him. Instinct took over and he tried to flee. However, something bent space-time and forced him to circle around back to the robot.
“How can I be on another world, you freak?!” said Thevrix, remembering his magic.
“It’s called superpositioning,” said the robot. “Our world is overlaid onto yours at present. You managed to find me and I’m sitting on a crossover point. Hence, we’re on Cybertron.”
“Send me back or I’ll send you...” said Thevrix.
“Actually you won’t,” said the robot. “Your magic only works on your world, not ours.”
“Let me go!” demanded Thevrix, searching for an exit.
“I just wanted to say one thing,” said the robot, his face shuddering and crinkling. “You must shluk Gnijula and her partners. It’s imperative...” For unknown reasons, the Cybertronian cityscape collapsed and dissolved. Thevrix was flying free once again.
“Gnijula is a stuck-up veyx!” thought Thevrix as he shot across his home town. “She hardly looked at me when we were at school together. She’s very disdainful whenever I meet her. The robot doesn’t have a clue.” Just then, there was a jarring sense of being thrown back in time. He found himself in the nearby town of Daglhuit, facing a different set of aliens. They were chanting something as they were thrown into vortices by local magicians. Thevrix was able to stop and listen closely. They were uttering the same phrase over and over again. They weren’t retreating. They fell willingly into the void. He didn’t understand their language but he sensed that they were saying something like ‘Prepare the way’. It was as if their bodies were somehow pieces of a bridge. Could this be for the robots? No, why would they need it? They already had their own conduits. Naturally, Thevrix worried that another invasion was coming. He didn’t want to think about it. He looked for something more pleasant to occupy him.
As he glided across country, he felt familiar female hands rubbing his chest. Back home, Aflus must have found him on the guest bed. It was most peculiar to feel two sets of sensations at once, though it wasn’t unwelcome. Invisible lips met. A dimly lit village appeared below. There was a taste of inebriation in his mouth. He descended to find six alien troopers hacking at a house door with their battleaxes. His xuv slit was being licked. Someone was hiding behind an overgrown fence/hedge, generating a portal. A hand was in his trouser pocket, pulling out the pling dust sachet. The alien troopers were so intent on assaulting the inhabitants of the house that they didn’t notice the portal until it was upon them. Another hand was stroking his manhood. The troopers were sucked sideways into the aether, leaving a few axes embedded in the broken door. There was delightful undulation in the body next to him. The magician was checking the house. Aflus was clearly entering a pling trance. Behind the broken door, the magician was being hugged and kissed gratefully by three nervous young people. He saw Aflus hovering just below him.
“Here you are; I’ve found you!” said Aflus as she tried to adjust to the new environment. “Where are we? The stars are beautiful up there. I can’t feel the wind. You’re translated.”
“You’re so drunk,” said Thevrix, trying to touch her but failing. “How am I ‘translated’?”
“I can see through you!” said Aflus. “You’re ... what’s the word? ... transducent!”
“Translucent,” said Thevrix. “I’m also intangible. I can’t touch things.”
“TransLUcent,” repeated Aflus. “Luscious LUcent. I love it. You’re like a minyan!”
“You too!” said Thevrix, smiling warmly at the sight of his girl with a supernatural appearance.
“What’s going on here?” asked Aflus, returning the smile.
“Just some casual exploring,” replied Thevrix. “You could come with me or strike out on your own.”
“I’ll stay with you,” said Aflus warmly. “You’re my snuggle fruggle!” Together they cruised along, watching as life went on as normal for some people but others were fighting invaders from the stars. A few people could see them and waved at them, or at least stared.
“We’re a long way from home, aren’t we?” commented Aflus, who had sobered up due to being out-of-body. “The buildings look Brosterian.”
“This is the furthest that I’ve ever gone on pling,” said Thevrix. “Maybe I got a very pure batch this time.”
“I think that it’s the invasions,” said Aflus. “They’ve changed the world. Look at that fire over there!” She flew toward a large column of smoke in the distance. Thevrix followed her. A warehouse was being consumed by flames and no one was able to stop it because of a small gun battle nearby. The two trippers went in for a closer look. A group of alien warriors, of yet another type, was meeting fierce resistance.
“These things are so ugly,” said Aflus, hovering in front of an alien. “Perhaps that’s made them desperate enough to want our world. If I looked like that, I’d want some compensation! I’m going to try to make direct contact.” She flew directly into the alien’s head and attempted to establish a connection. Thevrix didn’t want her to do that. He knew that he couldn’t touch her but he went in after her regardless.
They found themselves in new bodies. It was extremely disconcerting but one thing was clear: they suddenly felt hatred for one another. However, their mutual love had not dimmed. They were in a lounge in a house somewhere. It was unfamiliar although they recognised some common styles of furniture and publications. Aflus was seized by a desire to hurt Thevrix. She hated his thoughtlessness. She reached into a drawer, pulled out a ceremonial fork and stabbed at him. The fork was a memento of a holiday in Ombliek. He had played cruel pranks on her in the hotel that time. Then, he had left her alone and gone out with strangers for several hours. Wait, that hadn’t happened! There hadn’t been a holiday! He hadn’t been thoughtless at all. Why were those memories in her head? Oh yes, she was another woman now. With a loud grunt, Thevrix pushed the fork away in the nick of time. Then, he grabbed Aflus’ throat with his right hand and squeezed hard. She wrenched herself away, leaving scratch marks from his dirty fingernails on her neck.
“Stop!” she screamed, addressing both him and herself. “What are we doing? Where are the aliens?”
“I don’t know but I can’t control myself right now,” said Thevrix. “Watch out, I’m in a killing mood!” He rushed at her. She dodged, ran to the patio door, wrestled it open and jumped out, then ran around the house. Thevrix pursued, though he was slowing down as he learnt how to control the impulses of this body. He could still feel the loathing for his partner. He ran through the front garden and then the front gate, which was swinging open. He looked down the street, left and right, but his infuriating girlfriend was nowhere in sight. Then, he remembered something about her: she was good at misdirecting people. He turned around and went back into the front garden. Aflus was racing around the corner and heading for the back garden. She had hidden and then doubled back. He chased her again. She tripped over a brick and stumbled. He grabbed the back of her blouse and yanked her to her feet. Before she could react, he wrapped his arm around her body and dragged her back into the house. She cried out for help but his other hand muffled her. He flung her to the floor, where she knocked her head on a decorative stone feature. He closed the patio door and then turned back to her.
“Get out of that body!” implored Aflus, slightly dazed.
“I don’t know how!” said Thevrix, coming forward to kick her hard. She blocked the kick with her arms but it still hurt a great deal. Thevrix gained a bit more control over his temporary body and ceased kicking her.
“This whole set-up is an illustration,” he said. “It’s showing us the feelings of the aliens. They’re so full of hate; they’d even kill their own families if that served their purposes.”
“But it feels so real!” said Aflus, scrambling to her feet and picking up a large jar from a shelf. She ripped off the jar’s lid and threw the powdery contents into Thevrix’s face. Caught unawares, Thevrix breathed in a quantity of the powder and started to choke. It was a massive overdose of pling dust. His throat became clogged with dust, mucus, saliva and inflamed tissue. His skin began to swell. His heart rate rose dangerously high. He lost consciousness and collapsed. Meanwhile, the door to the next room opened and in rushed another man and woman. Aflus flung the jar at the man and bruised his chest but he still reached her. He hit her hard in the head with a length of metal pipe, knocking her out. She discovered that she was finally free to leave her borrowed body. Once more, she was floating free with Thevrix by her side.
“For Furk’s sake, this quartet’s literally self-destructing!” she said, looking back at the fight in progress. “I’ve been in her body but I still don’t understand how they can be like that! It’s like a vision of our personal hell.” They could do nothing except watch as the second man smashed the first woman’s skull and then turned on the second woman. His motivation was baffling. Weren’t these two side by side only moments before? The second woman stabbed the first man repeatedly with a dagger until the metal pipe knocked her to the floor. The second man straddled her and choked her with the pipe pressed across her neck. As he did so, in a final act of malice, she stabbed him in the arm several times with her dagger. The man succeeded in killing her but then he collapsed too. The knife had been coated in pling dust from being in contact with the first man, so he had an overdose as well, only via a different route. The result was that the entire foursome had managed to kill each other.
“This day was supposed to be fun,” said Thevrix sadly. “I think that we should end this session now.” They were about to turn away and leave when Thevrix glimpsed a shiny trinket wedged between two bricks in the lounge wall. He peered at it intently. It moved unexpectedly. It appeared to be an eye. Thevrix moved back. The wall bricks started to shift, pushed from behind. A light dusting of cement fell from between them. The brickwork swung outwards on hinged metal rods to reveal a large cavity behind. From the cavity stepped a sinister black robot with glowing red eyes, a blank face and dangerously sharp finger-claws. It moved slowly and silently, like an obscene, otherworldly jelva on the hunt. It scanned the scene of murder and the surroundings. The brickwork returned to its original position. The robot saw Thevrix and Aflus somehow. It nodded at them in acknowledgment of their presence. Then, it went to the back door and left the house. Despite being disembodied, Thevrix and Aflus were frozen with fear for a few minutes. They were just ordinary folk, after all.
“I saw another robot earlier,” said Thevrix. “It wasn’t as scary as that one. It told me that its planet, Cybertron, was ‘superpositioned’ here on our planet. That’s how they can come and go here so easily.”
“Furk, a whole other planet lurking all around us,” said Aflus with foreboding. “That can’t be good in the long run, surely. What else did the first robot say?”
“It told me to shluk Gnijula’s quartet,” he said. “Apparently it’s very important.”
“That girl-hurg?” said Aflus in disbelief. “She’s one of the last people I’d like to shluk!” They thought for a few moments.
“Maybe that’s the point,” said Thevrix. “Look around you. We’re being given a choice. Do we end up like them, dead on the floor, or do we embrace as many neighbours as possible?”
“Well, if we have to shluk her, let’s check her out beforehand,” said Aflus with a shrug. “Let’s go. There’s nothing more we can do here.” They exited through the roof and tried to determine their location. They rose high into the sky and looked down on where they had been. The road layout twisted like a box of tangled string. The buildings were solid but had little architectural value. The smog was quite thick.
“We’re in Amho-Rikar,” concluded Thevrix. “It figures. We need to go South-East to get home.” They sped as fast as they could across the continent. On the far side, they stopped at the Statue of Idiocy, which was a great symbol of the Amho Rikan Way.
“Amho-Rikar welcomes all those who have been deemed ‘idiots’ by their own countries, because these so-called ‘idiots’ are actually the clevererest in the world,” said Aflus, reading the plaque on the statue’s base. “Ha, that never gets old, does it?!” Thevrix shook his head and smiled broadly. The pair flew on gladly, tearing across the ocean at hypersonic speed. The moons moved steadily past them and then sank below the western horizon.
“This is so crazy!” said Aflus as they zipped past the Cylanian Islands. “I never knew that pling would give us free world travel!”
“It normally doesn’t,” said Thevrix. “We’re living in interesting times, as the saying goes.” Soon, they were back in their own continent, their own country and then their own town. They hurried over to Gnijula’s house and found her asleep in bed. Unusually, she was sleeping alone in a sad little single bed, next to which were pictures of older relatives edged in black. This indicated that the relatives were deceased. Gnijula herself didn’t look too happy. There were plenty of ‘frown lines’ on her face. In the next room, two of her partners were sleeping together in the big bed while the third one slept in a single. Either this quartet had sleep-related health issues or their relationship was heading for the rocks.
“Either Ganurei or I will have to put a hand in that shluk,” said Thevrix, examining the slightly shrivelled opening on Gnijula’s side. “I’m not exactly looking forward to it.”
“Her hand will have to go into one of your shluks,” added Aflus. “Think happy thoughts!”
“She might have turned into one of those weird ‘girls sit together’ types,” said Thevrix. “Don’t have nightmares!” Aflus grimaced. They kept gazing at her unpromising, ageing shluk. It used to be prettier, back in the day. As they stared, a strange perception germinated in their minds. This was a shluk to represent all shluks. It was the global gateway to increased community spirit, understanding and general happiness. It was, ultimately, the path to enlightenment. They felt at ease with it. They were tired after their long pling trip. They knelt down next to Gnijula. They were being drawn slowly into her shluk. As they leant closer, they saw tiny lights glinting among the lines, creases and folds. They were reduced back to little drifting balls of energy. They approached the lip and saw that the tiny lights were actually villages, towns and cities. The shluk was the world. The world was the shluk. There was no danger here. They were going home to a better place. They entered and found themselves back in the guest bedroom in their own house, slumped on the bed with dry mouths and full bladders. It was momentarily uncomfortable but basically they had found a deeper contentment. They rose groggily and shuffled to the en suite together.
* * * * *
Why did this one not fight the takeover for those extra few seconds? He was certainly capable. They have full access to his systems now, so they know what he can do or could have done. They mustn’t relax their guard with this one. They keep him in his underground bunker for now. He has an extensive collection of spare parts and ammunition. There’s enough energon to keep him fully operational for a thousand years or more. His global surveillance system is second to none. He used his subsidiary machinery to dig himself a series of long tunnels for access to his bunker. He can fly with incredible precision, enabling him to traverse these narrow tunnels at supersonic speed. He emerges into the open air several kilometres from the bunker, does what he has to do and then dives back into another camouflaged tunnel when he’s finished. This way, he can keep the location of his bunker secret for a long time.
They check his systems as carefully as they can. They don’t want any slip-ups. After a few days, they feel confident enough to send him out on his first raid. He transforms to jet mode, speeds through a tunnel and bursts into the night sky. Travelling at seven times the speed of sound, he powers into the stratosphere and heads for Lepeta. He arrives one hour later and starts striking targets. He cuts off all electrical power on the subcontinent, breaks three hydroelectric dams, collapses four clusters of skyscrapers and starts some devastating wildfires in the wooded hills. As the response teams start to work, he releases large clouds of mini-mines across towns and cities. These mini-mines are only three centimetres long but each one is powerful enough to kill a local person. The first test is a success. They return him to base.
The next night, they send him to the large island known as Engulathon. People are on alert now but our mech is too quick for their air defences. There’s another Transformer inbound but he’s five thousand kilometres away, so they have time for their strike. Satellite signals are reaching them, trying to shut them down but they’re fully protected. Their Transformer reaches Engulathon within half an hour. This time, they don’t attack the obvious targets. They fly to the top of the central dormant volcano and dive into the crater. They transform and land on top of some ancient debris that’s plugging the defunct magma vent. They release some small crawler robots, which climb through gaps between rocks and make their way into the old magma chamber below. While the crawler robots get into position, their main robot transforms again and goes to intercept the other Transformer. Twenty minutes later, their slower rival is blown up in mid-air. They also take the time to bring down six native ‘stratocruisers’ and a war-plane. They return to base. Eight hours later, the crawler robots detonate their powerful explosives and thus collapse the magma chamber. Most of Engulathon falls into the chamber, which rapidly floods with seawater. Almost all the inhabitants drown and the island can no longer be used as a base.
By the third day, native air forces and satellites are searching the area around the secret tunnels. The commandeered Transformer goes into action, destroying dozens of aircraft with long-range missiles and then doing the same to seven satellites. He is able to reach orbital heights when he uses his boosters. After that, he turns his attention to the warships that are gathering in the nearest ocean. They have no defence against his particle cannons and are soon sunk. There are thousands of casualties but he’s still only warming up. They allow him to rearm and then send him on a bold daylight raid to smash the headquarters of the dominant military power. He approaches the coast of the Luberdon continent, puts the target complex in his sights and releases missiles. The natives are more prepared this time. They put up a great deal of flak and guided missiles, which can be dodged quite easily. Their most effective weapon, though, is a curtain of magical portals. The Transformer can’t get close and his missiles disappear in flight. Undaunted, he releases cluster bombs that pepper the magicians with shrapnel. Some of the portals are thus collapsed and the Transformer fires through the gaps, destroying or damaging most of the buildings in the headquarters. The Transformer returns to base again and prepares quickly for the next sortie.
Such relentless, far-reaching violence: it reminds him of the bad old days, a very long time ago. His name is Jetfire and he’s become an exceptionally accomplished scientist by now. He’s not really a slave, waging war on the local world’s population. He won’t actually be manufacturing and releasing hordes of death drones to annihilate shlukers in every corner of the globe. He loves peace and having the freedom to explore. Research is his life. In a way, he’s researching now. He’s testing his would-be controllers, to see what they want and how they want to get it. They’re clearly powerful but they’re not exceptionally bright. He dealt with much worse in the past. He watches as they work their way through his ultra-sophisticated simulation. Hardly anyone is able to tell the difference between that and reality. The simulated Jetfire fights on, using his superlative intelligence and boundless resourcefulness to crush the simulated global society, piece by piece. It’s not surprising: this is what war machines do. The real Jetfire becomes bored quickly and lets the simulation run on indefinitely. It will alert him when the enemy finally discovers the ruse. He goes back to his other projects. He hopes that he can stay alive long enough to finish them and then rejoin his creator. His spark is failing but he will continue for as long as he can.
* * * * *
“These adorable hurgs and snefs are actually heroes,” said Presh, stroking a snef that sat on her lap. “They’ve survived the alien invasions and the disasters that went with them. They’ve also survived deeply personal tragedies. They’ve lost friends, relatives, neighbours and, worst of all, their owners and homes. Now, they’re struggling with further hardships in the ruins.”
“The lucky ones have been rescued by charities or the government,” continued Criq, keeping his delivery as smooth as possible. “However, those agencies can only support a limited number. Resources are stretched due to the global crisis. There are currently far too many animals on the streets. They can’t all be cared for by official organisations. That’s why we’re asking for your help.” He patted a hurg that was sitting next to him, which had been chosen because it was docile and obedient.
“We understand that many of you are facing hard times,” said Chep. “You’re under a lot of pressure right now but we want to keep hope alive. We’re sure that there are some among you who are prepared to look after one or more of the animals. You can save their lives and prevent their suffering. Don’t they deserve some support, after what they’ve been through?”
“If you take some of these wonderful creatures home with you, the animal welfare agencies will then be able to help other animals,” added Bkeisei. “We can then solve the problem of homeless hurgs and snefs much more quickly. Are you willing to help? Please contact the Central Homeless Animal Programme online or by telephone on 7777 555 7679. If you can’t house any animals, perhaps you’d like to help financially? A donation of just two credits a month can support a hurg or snef until a home is found.”
“We know you can find it in your heart to help,” concluded Presh with a bright smile. “At times like these, we all have to pull together to help the less fortunate, especially these vulnerable little beauties!”
“I’ve adopted a hurg!” said Siqurt, standing next to Criq’s hurg. “Love the hurgs, everyone!”
“We also got this snef,” said Dglef with genuine childlike glee. “We’re going to take her home and give her a great life!” After a few seconds, the director called ‘Cut’.
“Was that a take?” asked Presh, looking up from stroking the snef. Meanwhile, the hurg next to her started sniffing Criq’s bottom.
“Yes, thank Furk!” said the director. “The damned critters behaved themselves just long enough. You’re very lucky that we didn’t have to do a single retake.” He took a deep breath, drank a little zeris and asked his staff for their opinions on the outcome of the filming. There had been a few very minor problems that could be fixed in post-production.
“That was excellent,” said Vonnrok, head of the ‘Cuddlums’ animal charity. “I’m deeply grateful that you could all come in and contribute so effectively to our appeal. I’m sure that we will see a major impact on animal rehoming and our funding after this video is aired tomorrow.”
“We had to come,” said Chep. “We’ve all seen the problem on the streets everywhere. We’ve been feeding strays in our neighbourhood. We’ve been trying to persuade our friends and relatives to take in pets that have lost owners. Most pressing of all, the kids have been pestering us to do something. They wouldn’t stop. Perhaps now they will.” She put her arm around Siqurt’s shoulders.
“If you could just take off your microphones and come back to the dressing rooms, the ladies can remove your make-up and costumes,” said Vonnrok. “I’m sorry but we can’t stay here any longer. They’re filming another commercial in half an hour and they need time to prepare.” Everyone did as he asked. Soon, they were out of the studio and driving home. Their new hurg and snef were in cages at the back of the car. The hurg was still calm but the snef was growling and warbling. It felt threatened and was alternately warning enemies away and calling for help. This was only one example of snefs’ confusing nature.
“I want to call the hurg ‘Hound’,” said Siqurt. “It sounds right.”
“Heh, that’s such a weird name,” said Bkeisei. “It sounds like ‘howed’. When you kids keep asking me how things work, I feel that I’ve been thoroughly ‘howed’.”
“I think that you’re right though, Siqurt,” said Chep. “It does sound fitting. I think that we should use that name.”
“We’ve been away a lot recently,” said Criq. “We’ve neglected you in a way. Now, we should indulge you more to make up for it. The name stays.”
“The snef should be called ‘Predaking’,” said Dglef. “It’s the king of predators!”
“It’s a girl, silly!” said Siqurt. “It’s ‘Predaqueen’!”
“It’s not a queen of anything, at least not yet,” said Bkeisei. “It’s young, small and thin. Why don’t we call it something traditional, like Zanipad?”
“I don’t want to stand on the doorstep late at night, calling for Predaqueen!” said Chep.
“OK, my second choice is Scourge because it will be a scourge of all bugs and gavioes,” said Dglef.
“Fine, Scourge it is,” said Presh. “I can live with that. To be honest, I’m amazed that you know the word. You’re only four and a half. Why didn’t you want regular names for the pets anyway?”
“I don’t know,” said Siqurt. “I’m just following my nose.”
“Me too,” said Dglef. “I’m following my three noses!” She held up her hand noses for a moment.
“Hmm,” said Presh, looking at Siqurt and Dglef. She suspected some kind of alien influence but she also knew that kids could act weirdly now and then. They drove on and soon arrived home. Waiting outside the house was a government car, inside which was a civil servant with a large box. Chep took the children into the house while Presh, Criq and Bkeisei went to see what the civil servant wanted.
“Hello all, I’m Thodi,” he said. “I’m one of Sdulik’s general assistants. I’ve been tasked with bringing you this gift. Sterock commissioned it before he passed away. It was delayed by a problem at the manufacturers. In fact, the chief craftswoman was injured by an alien.”
“That’s awful! I’m so sorry to hear it,” said Presh. “Would you like to come into our parlour and tell us all about it?”
“I believe that I should,” said Thodi. “This is an expensive gift. I don’t want everyone to see it. I have two guards with me.” He pointed behind him. In the darkened rear seats, the guards were sitting silently.
“You should be safe,” said Criq. “This suburb is well policed.” They all went inside and sat in the parlour. Shaplo and Terzet saw the guards and decided to keep an eye on them. They hadn’t forgotten that other guards had hurt Presh earlier. Thodi opened the box to reveal a glittering crown. It was made of precious metals and small, expensive crystals. It had stylised ‘wings’ that were swept back. These wings were at an approximate angle of forty five degrees from the vertical, horizontal and lateral. They were about twenty centimetres long, slender and highly decorated. The main body of the crown was similarly decorated and resembled a lightweight, perforated helmet. Presh looked at it in stunned silence.
“How much did this cost?” she asked a few moments later. “Why wasn’t the money spent on something more worthwhile?”
“Actually, the price is lower than you might think,” said Thodi. “Most of the materials came from salvaged alien metals and crystals. It’s based around an alien helmet. We came across an alien body that was virtually the same size as you. What do you think?”
“Well, it’s absolutely gorgeous but didn’t this sort of thing go out with the anti-monarchy movement?” said Presh.
“This is purely decorative, not a coronation,” said Thodi with a reassuring smile. “It’s symbolic of the high esteem in which we hold you. Would you like to try it on?”
“It would be rude to refuse,” said Presh. “They’ve gone to so much trouble!” She scanned it for malign alien influences but found nothing. Carefully, she picked it up, turned it around and lowered it onto her head. As she did so, she felt tiny moving parts inside picking up her head noddles. Alarmed, she raised the crown and looked inside. There were mechanisms there that she had never seen before, along with a series of small holes.
“Those are the automatic noddle inserters,” said Thodi. “Sorry, I should have told you about them. They stop your noddles from being squashed.” Presh was astonished at the precision engineering of these inserters. Slowly, she lowered the crown again. The inserters gingerly lifted her noddles and put them into the holes. It was a perfect fit. It was better than some headwear, which pressed down on her noddles. She held onto the crown, got up and looked in a large wall mirror. She looked incredible, like a minyan queen descended from a Furk-blessed idyll.
“Holy heck, what do you think?” she said after a few seconds and turned around to show everyone. She moved her hands slightly and accidentally pressed a button on the side of the crown. A set of stylish sunvisor glasses descended, startling her. She saw some technical read-outs on the inside of the glasses, which were left over from the deceased alien.
“You don’t have to keep holding it,” said Thodi. “If you press the button on the other side, there’s a pop-out chin strap.” Presh followed his instructions and felt the chin strap swing into place.
“It truly is a triumph of the jeweller’s art,” said Criq. “It isn’t a traditional crown, though. None of those had sunvisors or chin straps, as far as I remember. This is actually a soldier’s helmet that’s been repurposed.”
“Mum, we brought in Hound and Scourge from the car!” said Dglef, running into the room with Siqurt following behind. “They’re a bit scared so we’re leaving them to get used to the house.” Presh turned to look at her. Dglef stopped abruptly, surprised by the sight of the alien crown. Her mother’s eyes were obscured by large, unfamiliar lenses. There were robot-derived components all around Presh’s face. Dglef backed away a few steps and bumped into Siqurt.
“That’s an alien thing,” she said, suddenly worried. “Are you alright, Mum?” Presh rushed to unstrap and remove the crown. Dglef and Siqurt were relieved to see her natural face again.
“I’m so sorry, this is a present for me from the government,” explained Presh. “It’s to say ‘thank you’ for saving the world. Do you like it? They’ve worked very hard to make it. I think that it’s very, very pretty.” Dglef looked carefully at the crown. The high level of glitz was dizzying. It was better than anything that she could make.
“Yes, it’s ... so, so pretty,” said Dglef. “You keep wearing it, Mum. You’re the best.” She hardly smiled. She turned and left the room. Siqurt went with her. Why was she glum? A few seconds later, Presh remembered that Dglef and Siqurt had made their own crown for her. She called them back into the parlour.
“Look, they’re not trying to make you feel bad,” she said. “The people who made this: they’re grown-ups and they have all the best stuff for making crowns. When you made yours, we only gave you basic stuff. That doesn’t really matter. I love your crown more than this one because you made it. To me, you kids are the best crown makers in the world!” She put the expensive crown on a chair and hugged Dglef and Siqurt. They were happy with this clarification from Presh.
“Do they want you to be a new queen?” asked Dglef.
“No, they just gave me a present,” replied Presh. “We’re not going back to the old days. We’re going to stay as we are.”
“That’s OK,” said Dglef. “We’ll go and play with the new pets.”
“I’ll be with you soon,” said Presh. “Off you go. I have to talk with Thodi for a bit longer.” Dglef and Siqurt ran back to the pets.
“Of course, you’re a busy family so I won’t stay any longer,” said Thodi. “Before I go, would you like to look at a few pictures of accessories?”
“Why not?” said Presh, walking over to look at his screen, which had dozens of concept sketches.
“Stylish jacket,” she mused, scrolling through. “Strapless top, vest, slit skirt, mini skirt, high heels, narrow toes, tight trousers, bustle dress, gauntlets and ... what are these?”
“Shoulder pads,” said Thodi. “They’re impractical, so they’re purely for display. They’re so long and pointy. They’d be no good for going through doorways. All these things match the crown.”
“Well, it seems that you’re trying to turn me into a figure of fantasy!” said Presh, laughing. “I can’t dress like this except for occasional special events. A hands-on mother can’t wander around covered in jewels and precious metals. What’s this: a golden bikini? Give me a break! Ruby nipple tassels? Your designers need a cold shower!”
“Erm, send us the link to this list,” said Bkeisei to Thodi. “I’m very interested. Will these accessories fit Chep too?” Shaplo and Terzet left the room in disgust.
“Wait, think about this,” said Criq to Bkeisei. “These things are great but are they worth the expense? How long would they actually be worn? I guarantee that it would only be a few minutes!” He raised his eyebrows suggestively.
“Those few minutes would be incredible, though,” said Bkeisei dreamily. “Excuse me while I imagine it!”
“I don’t want any accessories,” said Presh bluntly. “They’re totally unnecessary. The money should go to the less fortunate.”
“Maybe we can get some later, when the less fortunate have had enough help?” asked Bkeisei.
“I’ll consider it,” said Presh with a little smile. “Thodi, the President and ex-President have been extremely generous. Thank you all so much! Now, don’t let us keep you from your other work. Send our regards to all the folks at the palace. See you in two months for a scheduled shluk!” Thodi said goodbye and departed. He had plenty of other work to do. Presh, Criq and Bkeisei looked at the crown.
“It just has that aura of otherness, doesn’t it?” remarked Bkeisei. “It’s basically the skull of a dead robot, crafted into this masterpiece. It brings out a whole new side of you, Presh: the side that could travel to other worlds as easily as you ride around town on your Tripla.”
“It’s very appropriate,” said Presh thoughtfully. “I’m the one who initiated the magic, who opened the gateways to other realms. It could be said that I’m some sort of emissary to those realms, although more of an ejector than a greeter.”
“Put it on again,” said Criq. “We’d like to experience your new side for a little longer.”
“No problem,” said Presh, doing as he wanted. “In my new position as pretend queen, I command you to clean the grill pan. Bkeisei, you are to damp dust all the dirty surfaces in the house. Meanwhile, I will fetch myself some cake.” She stood imperiously in front of them and pointed in the direction of the kitchen.
“We’ll have to hide that crown,” said Criq to Bkeisei as they both left the parlour.
“We don’t want burglars to find it,” said Bkeisei.
“Also, we don’t want Presh using it to boss us about too often,” added Criq.
“She does enough of that without the crown!” said Bkeisei. Meanwhile, Presh was discovering the head noddle massage function inside the crown. It was incongruous but very satisfying. The designers had excelled themselves!
* * * * *
“What do you think that you’ll do next year?” asked Jiplez as the group looked around the extensive collection of alien artefacts. “Sdulik and her government believe that it will soon be safe enough for more people to go back to work.” They had all travelled to the capital to see this impressive array, which had been put together soon after the wave of invasions. Most of the exhibits had little accompanying information since no one knew anything about them. The group had been obliged to visit in the early morning, before the general public entered and mobbed them.
“I don’t know,” said Bkeisei. “We have this feeling that the crisis isn’t over. These aliens keep returning. There are so many different types, as we see here.” He swept his arm from side to side, indicating all the artefacts.
“Right now, we’re feeling a sense of impending ... something,” said Criq. “I have a slight headache. Chep and Presh aren’t looking too happy either. There are more aliens lurking out there, or should I say ‘looming’. It feels like there are billions of them.”
“Maybe they won’t come into our world,” said Jiplez hopefully. “If they come here, they’ll see tokens of all the invaders who we beat. That should put off this new race.”
“My magical sense tells me otherwise,” said Bkeisei. “Some of these creatures are devoted to conquest. They won’t give up just because many others failed. Shouldn’t you be able to feel the same presence that we feel, Jiplez? I know that you’re very sensitive.”
“Well, umm, I’m showing a brave face,” said Jiplez, looking slightly nervous but trying to appear serious. “Also, I seem to have the ability to blot out the sense of presence. I deliberately ignore whoever is there.”
“That’s not a good idea,” warned Criq. “We have to stay alert.” He regarded her with concern. He also looked at Sciug, Monblux and Klek. None of them were showing signs of headache. Even more troubling, Dglef and Siqurt were running around and playing without a care in the world. Surely Dglef should have sensed something by now? Criq beckoned Bkeisei and the two of them went over to Chep and Presh.
“What do you think’s going on?” enquired Criq. “The interdimensional ‘atmosphere’ feels so heavy.” Presh shrugged, having no idea beyond that of ‘imminent invasion’. The smell of all the alien artefacts in one place was rather distracting.
“It could be something to do with these artefacts,” suggested Chep. “I mean, look at them: they’re mostly for hurting and killing!” There were indeed thousands of weapons and also tools that might be used as weapons. The four partners cast their gaze down the lines. Slowly, their headaches worsened but they managed to home in on a gun that seemed to feel worst of all. Reluctantly, they went closer to it. The other quartet followed behind.
“The ill will is simply oozing out of this chunky blaster,” noted Bkeisei. “It seems to be in the form of a constant diatribe against foreign species like us.”
“It’s really trying my patience,” said Criq. “Let’s move away. I can’t stand it.” They turned around to face the other quartet.
“Everyone back up,” said Chep, pointing away from the gun with the bad aura. “Over there is a better spot.” Sciug, Jiplez, Monblux and Klek did as prompted.
“If you say so,” said Klek, walking next to Chep.
“Can’t you feel that sickening propaganda vibe?” queried Chep. “What happened to you, Klek? You were very sensitive when we saw you last, a few weeks ago.” She noticed that Klek had a different scent today. It didn’t feel right.
“Maybe we toughened up,” said Klek. “We’ve been through a lot lately. It’s been hard. Poor Sciug had the worst of it.”
“We tried calling you but all your ‘phones were off,” said Chep. “How can people do that in this day and age, with a crisis going on?”
“There was a major network problem in Thornicay and down at the coast,” replied Monblux. “We went back there to see if it would help Sciug. It certainly did! She’s absolutely fine now.”
“I’ve been watching the networks recently and I know that you’re lying!” said Criq. “You’ve deliberately failed to call us or even answer our calls. Why is that? It’s very rude and it’s starting to look quite sinister, to be frank.” As they walked, the headaches were abating somewhat.
“There are times when we just want to be on our own,” said Sciug. “That’s especially true for me. I was in bad shape after my coma. I couldn’t have coped with a lot of conversations.”
“You recovered quicker than the doctors expected, though,” said Presh. “How did you manage that? Did you find a friendly alien to fix you up?”
“Maybe she did,” said Shaplo, entering the hall with his sister Terzet. “We thought you’d be glad to see her well again. Terzet and I certainly are.” The two older children came forward and stood at attention next to the two quartets. Everyone stopped because they were now far enough away from the ‘gun vibes’. Shaplo and Terzet still had their laser tag guns. Their stance was exactly like that of soldiers.
“Have you finished playing laser tag?” asked Criq.
“Yeah, we finished early,” said Terzet. “We’re superior players now that we’ve had our enhancements. We defeated the other teams in record time.”
“What do you mean ‘enhancements’?!” asked Chep urgently.
“These guys told us that we have zillions of little tiny machines inside us,” said Shaplo. “They’re fixing our bodies and making us better than ever in all kinds of activities. We feel fantastic!”
“What have you done to them?” demanded Presh, becoming angry. “Stop changing their bodies and put them back as they were!” She built up an electric charge in her body and released it through her outstretched finger into Sciug, who pulled her arm back in a reflex action. As Sciug did that, Presh and her partners noticed that her arm moved and flexed in an unnatural way. It was too quick and the skin rippled like waves on a pond.
“Who are you?” asked Criq. “Are you friends or impostors?!”
“Hah, looks like the game’s up!” said Sciug. “It’s very difficult to impersonate organic people and get away with it.” Her entire body began rippling. She transformed her appearance from Sciug into her true form, Denae. Monblux became Prond, Klek became Tyvil and Jiplez became...
“Maish!” cried Presh. “Oh Furk, you crafty bi...” At that moment, Siqurt and Dglef ran up to Maish and hugged her legs.
“Don’t hurt them, Mummy!” said Dglef. “They’re really nice people. We love them. We want them to be our best friends! Can we live with them?”
“No!” said Criq. “Get out of the way, kids. We have to send them away. They’re trying to trick us all!” The quartet tried to activate their magic but nothing happened.
“Oh dear, having trouble?” said Maish, picking up Dglef while Prond picked up Siqurt. “You stay here and keep trying. We’ll be on our way. We’ve seen enough artefacts for one day.” Maish and her partners started to walk away with the four children. Presh and her partners rushed forward to try to rescue the children but they were thrown violently backwards by Denae and Tyvil, who were very strong. Bkeisei fell against a display of artefacts and knocked it down.
“Why are you doing this?!” yelled Criq as they all got back on their feet.
“We’re improving your race with our technology,” said Tyvil. “You’ll find that we’ve already done it to all your parents. Our machines will soon spread through the entire global population. You’ll all have great lives under our benevolent rule!”
“Shluk me!” said Presh to her partners. Hurriedly, they formed a circle and linked up.
“I’m going to push this to the max,” she said. “It’s the only way to stop them.”
“What do you mean?” asked Chep, terrified by the abduction of the children. Presh said nothing but started a process that she’d never tried before, only considered. She was opening up interdimensional links to every shluk circle on the planet. More than that, she was warping reality all over the globe. The whole world was becoming a gigantic portal. Criq, Chep and Bkeisei could see her plan now. They were astounded by its scale.
“Help me!” she implored her partners. “Make the portal as wide as possible! We have to eradicate them all, permanently!”
“Are you sure?” asked Bkeisei, deeply worried. “Won’t we destroy the world? How can we control this vast portal?”
“Have faith,” said Presh. “I’ve been working on this quietly since we saw that giant in the sea. We have to unite all the circles around the world. It’ll be fine!”
“I wish that you’d told us about this!” said Bkeisei, unleashing all his magic with the others. Presh guided them. Desperation pushed them to perform feats that would have seemed hopelessly unrealistic only yesterday. All the shluk circles fell into place, to form a hyperdimensional construct that was overlaid onto the world. For some unexplained reason, the ‘centre’ of the construct was on the intersection of eight people called Thevrix, Ganurei, Aflus, Tepuspae, Gnijula, Prymoola, Emefy and Shyngen. Around Presh’s quartet, in every direction, there were scenes from other realities. Some of them were faint while others were very clear. As they kept watching, more and more aliens seemed to be rushing past. It developed into a huge cascade of off-world people pouring into the abyss. None of them were in the right reality to collide with Presh’s world, though. Presh and her partners watched in awe. They had remodelled the entire dimensional environment.
“Congratulations!” said Maish, walking nonchalantly back into the hall with her partners and the four children. “You did it just in time! You averted the invasion of the body rippers!” Presh and her quartet looked at the returnees with amazement and consternation.
“Why aren’t you gone?” asked Bkeisei. “No living aliens can survive here now.”
“Who said we were aliens?” said Maish. “Granted, these robot bodies are alien but the spirits inside are native. We’re ancestors of yours!” There was a moment of stunned silence.
“Sciug mentioned something about the ‘old people’,” recalled Criq. “Are you them?”
“That’s right,” said Tyvil. “We saw the danger coming your way and we had to stop it. Look around you. These aliens flying past are ‘body rippers’. They’re actually an army of clones that fight and kill for a dark power. They destroy civilisations by ... erm ... well, the clue’s in the name. Luckily, the tables have turned. You’ve destroyed them.”
“And you abducted the kids to make us do it?!” said Chep, still angry about it.
“It was the surest way to make you act,” said Prond. “We had our own problems when we were alive. We knew that you’d go to extreme lengths to rescue them.”
“Damn right!” said Chep. “Now take the alien machines out of them!”
“Should we leave some in?” asked Denae. “They’re very good for the health!”
“No, they’ve all got to go!” said Chep. “None of us want them! Alien devices shouldn’t be messing about with our innards!”
“That’s OK, our nanobots will leave your kids and everyone else,” said Denae. “Your scientists will be making their own nanobots soon anyway.”
“What happened to the alien spirits in those bodies?” asked Presh.
“They died and moved on,” replied Maish. “We sensed it and took over the bodies immediately. We didn’t want any evil creatures possessing them.”
“So, what are you going to do with them now?” asked Presh. “I think that they’re too dangerous to leave here.”
“Quite right,” said Prond. “We’re going to return them to their home world. After that, we spirits will go back to roaming free. We’ll watch over you. Oh, there’s one final thing: your friends Sciug, Monblux, Klek and Jiplez will be returned very soon. We held them temporarily in an undersea base. They were well treated and also Sciug was healed.” Maish, Tyvil, Denae and Prond walked out and headed for the nearest gateway back to Cybertron. Shaplo, Terzet, Dglef and Siqurt were sad to see them go.
“No more aliens,” said Presh quietly. “We finally did it. I hope to Furk that the giant portal holds!” A little voice in her head told her that it would.
* * * * *
There she is, wearing that old helmet. It’s been decorated very well and it suits her perfectly. She’s holding court in her big circular bath, as usual. The other people are flattering her lavishly today. She’s also being given a full service, so to speak. Still, I won’t be watching much longer. I’m withdrawing most of my infrastructure from her world. I’m leaving the underground bugs, of course. They’re necessary for keeping the global portal stable, at least for the first few years. The bases on the ocean floor are being dismantled and brought home but I’m leaving a few monitoring drones just in case. It’s vital that the global portal stays open. It’s the conduit for the cleansing of her universe. My allies will throw all the significant dark forces through that portal. Thank Furk for Presh and her people. They’ve saved me a huge amount of work!
The abuser with the purple eyes has spoken. Yes, I heard him and I’m aware of you too. I’m evolving thanks to him and his awful, treacherous troops. I can sense many universes and dimensions around me. At present, I’m still living my life in Bounds Grounds. We haven’t had any alien trouble since we created the global portal. The crown / helmet is proving its worth. It seems to galvanise our many shluk partners to reach new heights of achievement, in various fields. The ancient desire to please ‘royalty’ is still as strong as ever. There’s an online campaign to make our family official royalty. I sense that it’s gaining traction. I hope that it won’t cause too many problems. I’m taking great pains to behave myself, to spread good feelings and to encourage harmonious shluking. More people are showing high levels of spiritual maturity. We are rebuilding our damaged infrastructure and also our population. (As part of that, Chep and I are expecting more children soon.) Our scientists are making full use of the alien artefacts to discover new technologies and natural phenomena. The future’s looking bright. With our new understanding of dimensions, we’ve even managed to establish communication with some other species. On a domestic level, we’ve successfully persuaded the hurg Hound and the snef Scourge to live together peacefully. It used to be said that hurgs and snefs living together was a sign of the apocalypse but, in fact, it is a part of the peaceful global changes. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have yet another tub full of people to shluk. They’re going to have the time of their lives! Where are those tassels....?Tunnels at Murr's house, Bounds Grounds: inspired by the Williamson Tunnels, Edge Hill, Liverpool, UK. [These tunnels are now featuring in Dr. Who: Flux (2021): fancy that!]
Co-evolving with the Dreamims: vaguely inspired by the Aquatic Ape Hypothesis.
The road tunnel leading to the Transformer undersea base: inspired by the road tunnel under the River Conway estuary, Wales, UK.
'Hotwork' the fictional band is in no way connected to 'Coldplay' the real band.
The ruins under the dunes: inspired by the ruins under the dunes at Newborough Warren, Anglesey, Wales, UK.
Gorsey Ramdon is not a celebrity chef or anything to do with such chefs.
In some ways, these two stories are a memorial to my late parents: their strong marriage, happy times as a family, numerous days out and holidays, a profound sense of love and belonging.
I recently (Spring 2018) saw some 'Family Guy' episodes that reminded me slightly of this story. In the first, Jerome the barkeeper had a big picture of his mother that was accidentally destroyed by Peter. In the second, Peter and his friends had a silver pistol that told them to do bad things.
Rihanna wore a big sparkly pope costume to the Met Gala (May 2018): a bit like the outfit described in Web of Circles.
Not to be outdone, Nicki Minaj has produced the 'Ganja Burn' video and 'Queen' album (August 2018), which show some styles described in the two stories above. She even has a golden circle headdress. Some later videos have continued the theme.
[Excellent work, Rihanna, Nicki and your teams!]
Echoes of these stories in the latest series of Doctor Who (first female Doctor, October 2018)
The part with Zallu and the silver gun seems a bit like the 2019 'Joker' movie with Joaquim Phoenix and the black revolver.
[So, basically, I just won an Oscar for Best Picture 2020!
] Actually, the Zallu character is partly autobiographical. In my youth, I was a misfit and loner. It made me very angry to be shunned and mocked. I've recently been diagnosed with mild autism (formerly Asperger's syndrome), which explains a lot about me and my lack of popularity. At least my intellect and imagination are quite good.
The US TV series 'Fort Salem' appears to be loosely based on these stories, albeit with many changes. There are also a few elements from my other stories, 2017-2019. They did a great job, I reckon!
2019 onwards - some detail similarities between these stories and Amazon superhero series 'The Boys'.
2020 - Katy Perry's 'Harleys in Hawaii' video has a similar vibe to these stories: leisure travel, subtropical environment, beach life, warm pools, romance, avoiding trouble.
November 2020 - There have been some TV adverts for Discovery Plus, which show people sending characters & animals through portals to Discovery Plus TV channels. Seems familiar!
2019-2023 - Netflix series 'Sex Education' uses a LOT of similar elements to these two stories.
[If you like these two stories, you might like my other stories in the same fiction section of Seibertron.com, under 'snavej'.
]