CHAPTER 2- CONNECSHUN
(Todd)
Professor Hill beams at me in expectayshun. "Well, what are you waiting for?" He says encouragingly.
I slowly and carefully take the complicated helmet-thing and put it on my worried head, having no idea if it will electrocute me or what. A red light starts flashing on the top of the helmet. I see it in my reflecshun on the polished floor.
"Well, that's not meant to happen" says the professor, showing his knowledge of machine repairs by whacking the helmet hard, almost knocking me over. I can see Viola with a grim expreshun behind Professor Hill.
The professor insistent whacking seems to do its job, and the worrying light changes to a safe-looking green.
"Okay. Now, we just change this dial to 'human/animal', as Manchee is, after all, a dog." He fiddles with a knob, which has the settings, 'human/animal', 'Spackle', 'plant' and 'other'. He points it to 'animal' and my head is instantly filled with the Noise of hundreds, thousands, millions of animals; dogs, frogs, cows, sows, bears, hares, bats, rats, everything imaginable- I can even hear a platypus thinking its tail looks sexy in the moonlight. But that small piece of Noise is soon swept away in the wave of thoughts.
I focus on Manchee, his stubby too-short tail, his endless optimism (Viola's been teaching me new cool words. My favourite is 'apocalypse'). I grit my teeth and continue with renewed determinayshun.
It's hard to find anything specific, any one voice twixt all the others in the endless mush of Noise. I'm searching and searching, but can only find moths, flies, eagles, even a few squirrels hearing new Noise and saying over and over "Whirler Boy, Whirler Boy." There are men dreaming of women's bodies, women dreaming of cutting off private parts of men's bodies, soldiers showing evil thoughts and much more, but the human Noise is hard to find in the midst of the animal Noise. Animals far outnumber humans.
Suddenly an idea bounces into my head. A good one. Instead of me finding Manchee, why can't Manchee find me? So I broadcast my memories of our adventures, our friendship, and wait. And hope. And pray, but stop quite quickly, not wanting to attract the attenshun of Aaron's Noise.
And then I hear it.
"Todd."
It's about as clear as swamp-water, but still…
"Todd?"
A bit louder now, and there's no mistaking him.
"Todd? Manchee, Todd."
I cry, I laugh, I dance, I cry again. It's him. Manchee. The best effing bloody dog in the whole effing bloody New World.
"Todd."
