Spreading the News
AKA - The Secret Got Out
Subreality Series - 2
By:
SLWatson
KRWalker
- --------- - --
The cold snap had definite effects on the Northeastern states. And particularly in Westchester, New York, where a group of some of the most diverse people in existence dwelled. Yes, it was cold... those with thinner skins stayed inside, and those more acclimated to the lower temperatures ventured out, not letting the wind chill keep them from their traditional routine.
And speaking of existence, that was the question that dwelled in Mike's mind as he sat on the dock he had almost claimed as his own. A fishing bobber floated lazily in the clear water, but he knew that nothing would bite. One because there weren't any fish and two because he never used a hook to begin with. Smiling to himself, he contemplated the absurdity of fishing for absolutely no reason, but then his thoughts slipped back to existence.
That was a funny thing. Afterall, what is real life and what's fiction? He's read more books in his time than most people can claim... does that make him real and the books fiction?
Now that line between Reality and Unreality was more blurred than ever. He had actually faced up to the fact that he was nothing more than someone else's dream... but he still didn't feel that way. He felt as alive and real as ever.
He stood up, pacing the length of the dock and leaving the fishing pole behind. It wasn't going anywhere in his absence, unless the Oreo fish struck. The thought of that made him smile... it seemed like so much longer than a few months ago. Well, a few months ago in an entirely different universe.
Okay, now he had given himself a headache. Mike was never one to question Fate and Destiny all that much... even when he had been shot into space, he hadn't let it phase him. He had gotten a bit more insane, sure, but then he didn't have a whole lot of choice. The only way to survive was to go a bit crazy. But now he actually had to think, and sometimes he found it a bit more troublesome than he would have liked.
Scott had left, and now Mike was the only one to know. He didn't want to be, though. He wanted at least someone else to contemplate the laws of Reality and Unreality with. Someone he trusted, someone he knew wouldn't wig out.
He already knew who. Grinning, he finally decided to let someone else in on the world of Characters and Writers. His best friend, and the one person the Writers didn't expect him to make friends with, oddly enough.
It was a good half an hour later, when he had stowed his fishing gear away and gotten himself a cup of coffee, that he headed up the steps and down the hallway, knocking on Joel's door.
Even before the knock had come to his door, Joel Robinson had been mulling over his life. Sundays seemed to be not only the day of rest, but also the day of reason for those at the mansion, Joel included. Everyone would either think about their past or their future, but no one usually thought about the present.
As he sat on his bed, he looked over some pictures the 'bots had given him. Most are crude stick drawings that Tom had done, but they still had the quality that Joel enjoyed so much. He had wanted to know how they liked their time on the Satellite of Love after he had left, and they had submitted pictures to him instead of having to bear their feelings in public.
He had remembered when he was first shot into space. Everything was so hard for him at first, being alone and not having anything to do. Then, he started to build, and before he knew it, Gypsy was running around, working on the crucial systems while Joel had some time to relax.
At first, she had been a remarkable thing, but then came Crow. Painted in his nice, metallic gold color, he was witty, smart, and most of all, he gave Joel someone to talk to when Gypsy was busy. Still, there had to be someone else for them to talk to in case one of the others were busy, so Joel went back to the building block.
This time a shiny red robot with a bubbled head, slinky-like arms and singing voice like nothing in existence was "born." He hovered around on his hoverskirt, basically causing mischief with Crow. Joel had meant them to be like brothers, and half the time they acted like brothers, but he wasn't exactly sure how they thought of each other.
Perched on the edge of his bed, he remembered when he had left the SOL, and a pang of sadness ran with the shivers up his spine. Had he really been the same person when he left as he was when he created the 'bots? How could he have been? No good father would have left his children behind. Still, what's done was done and he does his best to made amends.
So, when the knock came on his door, he was happy to come out of his thoughts and look up. And he smiled a bit, knowing Mike was behind the door. Some unseen force had connected their minds in an odd sense... he just knew. "Come in, Mike."
Mike stepped inside, closing the door behind him and flopping down in a chair. He had that look of semi-mischief on his face. "Okay, I have this problem. Well, not quite problem, but it's weird."
Joel sat back and crossed his legs Indian-style on the bed. "What kind of a not quite weird problem?
Mike looked up at the ceiling for a moment, somewhat wishing the answer would be there. "It's the metaphysical kind."
Blinking, Joel looked at his friend. "Oooh... that doesn't sound too good."
"Actually, I don't think it's bad bad, just kinda weird," Mike mused, still looking at the ceiling. "And did you know that there's this monster mosquito buzzing around up there?"
With a sharp glance up, Joel looked and then dove over his bed. "NASA's spying on me!!"
Mike snickered, looking around for a handy piece of paper to swat it with. "Wonder how it got in here..."
Joel peeked out. "Probably got in through the window for some research... or maybe on your back."
Mike gasped in mock horror, rolling up an old copy of the Salem Center Review and he took a flying leap towards the ceiling and the mosquito. Joel watched the scene unfold in slow motion. The leap, the swat, the splat and the return to earth, leaving a red splotch on the ceiling.
Mike landed, triumphantly sporting his newspaper. "Ah ha! I got the blighter!" He sat back down, smugly. "God I'm good."
Joel crawled out, grinning. "Thanks, Chief."
"Welcome!" Mike chuckled, then grinned himself at the splotch on the white ceiling. "Well, maybe no one'll notice..."
"Might want to get rid of the evidence." Taking the paper, Joel opened the window, threw it out and then closed the window again, whistling.
Below, heading back to the shed, Logan looked up just in time to get a face full of newspaper.
"Long as there's no one out there." Mike crossed his arms, whistling himself.
As Joel edged over and looked down out of the window, he swallowed slightly and stepped back. "Uuuh... I think it'll be okay."
Mike raised an eyebrow, standing. "Was someone down there?"
Nodding, Joel whispered, "Logan..."
Mike's eyes grew wide for a moment, and he inched over the window, looking out just in time to see Logan rounding the corner for the front door. Laughing nervously, he glanced at Joel, "Think we should... uh... hide?"
"No matter what we do, he'll find us..."
"Never hurts to try."
Joel ran out of the room, looking for some place to hide, and Mike was hot on his heels.
The boys managed to sneak out, both of them snickering. Deep down they knew Logan probably wouldn't kill them, but they could never predict what mood he would be in, so it didn't hurt to do a little clever evasion.
In all truth, Mike and Joel were the loons of the X-Mansion. One could guarantee they would get into some sort of trouble in their crazy adventures. On some occasions they had the capacity to be thoughtful, mature adults. And then they got some idea or another... one of the most memorable was driving to Ohio just for hot-dogs. That wasn't all. Oh no, there was a flying, flaming Lawnboy that soared for 3 miles over the Xavier Estate. A jaunt out onto the ocean in Scott's sailboat, without the Field Commander knowing. And then the paintball war.
They finally stopped down at the dock, both still grinning from their quick getaway. Not that Logan couldn't track them down, but as Mike had said, it never hurts to try. The farmboy leaned against a post, chuckling a bit, "Well, we got away..."
Joel smiled, resting back into his spot. "That we did."
Mike nodded, looking out over the water for a moment. "Hey Joel?"
"Yea, Mike?"
What if we were all just fictional? Like someone mapped out everything? I mean, would that freak you out?" Mike asked, looking back at Joel.
Joel looked down at the ground, playing with a stone, "Not really. It's possible, isn't it?"
Mike chuckled, "Well, I have a few universal facts I am absolutely positive of."
"What're they?"
"First of all, whenever you look for a fork in the utensil cabinet, you're gonna find the spoon you wanted yesterday when all there was left were forks."
Joel laughed, "Or the same way with anything you lose."
Mike nodded, solemnly. "And that whenever you lose the remote, it's because it slipped into an alternate dimension. So it could be in plain view, but you won't see it."
Snickering, Joel tossed the stone into the water.
"Well, and then there's something Scott told me..." Mike said, watching the ripples from the stone.
"That there's someone else out there?"
Mike grinned, "Yea. But it's neat, 'cause there's this other world. And these people kinda control some things here, but I think we can control some things there too."
Smiling, Joel thought for a moment, catching on. "So, we're kind of characters controlling characters?" It wasn't hard for him to believe it, in a world of paradoxes and mutants, of being shot into space, sentient robots, and other such things.
Mike tilted his head, watching the water again. "I think it's like that. Actually, Scott told me they're the Writers and we're the Characters. But I think they're Characters too."
Robinson nodded, snickering, "I get it."
"So," Mike got that mischievous look again, that signaled the birth of another great idea, "What do you say we try to do a little in return?"
"Sounds like a plan."
- --------- - --
Disclaimers: Mike, Joel and the 'bots belong to BBI. Logan is Marvel's, along with Scott and the X-Mansion in general. Subreality and the concepts of were Kielle's incredible invention. The lunacy we come up with... it's spreading! Bwahahahaha!
AKA - The Secret Got Out
Subreality Series - 2
By:
SLWatson
KRWalker
- --------- - --
The cold snap had definite effects on the Northeastern states. And particularly in Westchester, New York, where a group of some of the most diverse people in existence dwelled. Yes, it was cold... those with thinner skins stayed inside, and those more acclimated to the lower temperatures ventured out, not letting the wind chill keep them from their traditional routine.
And speaking of existence, that was the question that dwelled in Mike's mind as he sat on the dock he had almost claimed as his own. A fishing bobber floated lazily in the clear water, but he knew that nothing would bite. One because there weren't any fish and two because he never used a hook to begin with. Smiling to himself, he contemplated the absurdity of fishing for absolutely no reason, but then his thoughts slipped back to existence.
That was a funny thing. Afterall, what is real life and what's fiction? He's read more books in his time than most people can claim... does that make him real and the books fiction?
Now that line between Reality and Unreality was more blurred than ever. He had actually faced up to the fact that he was nothing more than someone else's dream... but he still didn't feel that way. He felt as alive and real as ever.
He stood up, pacing the length of the dock and leaving the fishing pole behind. It wasn't going anywhere in his absence, unless the Oreo fish struck. The thought of that made him smile... it seemed like so much longer than a few months ago. Well, a few months ago in an entirely different universe.
Okay, now he had given himself a headache. Mike was never one to question Fate and Destiny all that much... even when he had been shot into space, he hadn't let it phase him. He had gotten a bit more insane, sure, but then he didn't have a whole lot of choice. The only way to survive was to go a bit crazy. But now he actually had to think, and sometimes he found it a bit more troublesome than he would have liked.
Scott had left, and now Mike was the only one to know. He didn't want to be, though. He wanted at least someone else to contemplate the laws of Reality and Unreality with. Someone he trusted, someone he knew wouldn't wig out.
He already knew who. Grinning, he finally decided to let someone else in on the world of Characters and Writers. His best friend, and the one person the Writers didn't expect him to make friends with, oddly enough.
It was a good half an hour later, when he had stowed his fishing gear away and gotten himself a cup of coffee, that he headed up the steps and down the hallway, knocking on Joel's door.
Even before the knock had come to his door, Joel Robinson had been mulling over his life. Sundays seemed to be not only the day of rest, but also the day of reason for those at the mansion, Joel included. Everyone would either think about their past or their future, but no one usually thought about the present.
As he sat on his bed, he looked over some pictures the 'bots had given him. Most are crude stick drawings that Tom had done, but they still had the quality that Joel enjoyed so much. He had wanted to know how they liked their time on the Satellite of Love after he had left, and they had submitted pictures to him instead of having to bear their feelings in public.
He had remembered when he was first shot into space. Everything was so hard for him at first, being alone and not having anything to do. Then, he started to build, and before he knew it, Gypsy was running around, working on the crucial systems while Joel had some time to relax.
At first, she had been a remarkable thing, but then came Crow. Painted in his nice, metallic gold color, he was witty, smart, and most of all, he gave Joel someone to talk to when Gypsy was busy. Still, there had to be someone else for them to talk to in case one of the others were busy, so Joel went back to the building block.
This time a shiny red robot with a bubbled head, slinky-like arms and singing voice like nothing in existence was "born." He hovered around on his hoverskirt, basically causing mischief with Crow. Joel had meant them to be like brothers, and half the time they acted like brothers, but he wasn't exactly sure how they thought of each other.
Perched on the edge of his bed, he remembered when he had left the SOL, and a pang of sadness ran with the shivers up his spine. Had he really been the same person when he left as he was when he created the 'bots? How could he have been? No good father would have left his children behind. Still, what's done was done and he does his best to made amends.
So, when the knock came on his door, he was happy to come out of his thoughts and look up. And he smiled a bit, knowing Mike was behind the door. Some unseen force had connected their minds in an odd sense... he just knew. "Come in, Mike."
Mike stepped inside, closing the door behind him and flopping down in a chair. He had that look of semi-mischief on his face. "Okay, I have this problem. Well, not quite problem, but it's weird."
Joel sat back and crossed his legs Indian-style on the bed. "What kind of a not quite weird problem?
Mike looked up at the ceiling for a moment, somewhat wishing the answer would be there. "It's the metaphysical kind."
Blinking, Joel looked at his friend. "Oooh... that doesn't sound too good."
"Actually, I don't think it's bad bad, just kinda weird," Mike mused, still looking at the ceiling. "And did you know that there's this monster mosquito buzzing around up there?"
With a sharp glance up, Joel looked and then dove over his bed. "NASA's spying on me!!"
Mike snickered, looking around for a handy piece of paper to swat it with. "Wonder how it got in here..."
Joel peeked out. "Probably got in through the window for some research... or maybe on your back."
Mike gasped in mock horror, rolling up an old copy of the Salem Center Review and he took a flying leap towards the ceiling and the mosquito. Joel watched the scene unfold in slow motion. The leap, the swat, the splat and the return to earth, leaving a red splotch on the ceiling.
Mike landed, triumphantly sporting his newspaper. "Ah ha! I got the blighter!" He sat back down, smugly. "God I'm good."
Joel crawled out, grinning. "Thanks, Chief."
"Welcome!" Mike chuckled, then grinned himself at the splotch on the white ceiling. "Well, maybe no one'll notice..."
"Might want to get rid of the evidence." Taking the paper, Joel opened the window, threw it out and then closed the window again, whistling.
Below, heading back to the shed, Logan looked up just in time to get a face full of newspaper.
"Long as there's no one out there." Mike crossed his arms, whistling himself.
As Joel edged over and looked down out of the window, he swallowed slightly and stepped back. "Uuuh... I think it'll be okay."
Mike raised an eyebrow, standing. "Was someone down there?"
Nodding, Joel whispered, "Logan..."
Mike's eyes grew wide for a moment, and he inched over the window, looking out just in time to see Logan rounding the corner for the front door. Laughing nervously, he glanced at Joel, "Think we should... uh... hide?"
"No matter what we do, he'll find us..."
"Never hurts to try."
Joel ran out of the room, looking for some place to hide, and Mike was hot on his heels.
The boys managed to sneak out, both of them snickering. Deep down they knew Logan probably wouldn't kill them, but they could never predict what mood he would be in, so it didn't hurt to do a little clever evasion.
In all truth, Mike and Joel were the loons of the X-Mansion. One could guarantee they would get into some sort of trouble in their crazy adventures. On some occasions they had the capacity to be thoughtful, mature adults. And then they got some idea or another... one of the most memorable was driving to Ohio just for hot-dogs. That wasn't all. Oh no, there was a flying, flaming Lawnboy that soared for 3 miles over the Xavier Estate. A jaunt out onto the ocean in Scott's sailboat, without the Field Commander knowing. And then the paintball war.
They finally stopped down at the dock, both still grinning from their quick getaway. Not that Logan couldn't track them down, but as Mike had said, it never hurts to try. The farmboy leaned against a post, chuckling a bit, "Well, we got away..."
Joel smiled, resting back into his spot. "That we did."
Mike nodded, looking out over the water for a moment. "Hey Joel?"
"Yea, Mike?"
What if we were all just fictional? Like someone mapped out everything? I mean, would that freak you out?" Mike asked, looking back at Joel.
Joel looked down at the ground, playing with a stone, "Not really. It's possible, isn't it?"
Mike chuckled, "Well, I have a few universal facts I am absolutely positive of."
"What're they?"
"First of all, whenever you look for a fork in the utensil cabinet, you're gonna find the spoon you wanted yesterday when all there was left were forks."
Joel laughed, "Or the same way with anything you lose."
Mike nodded, solemnly. "And that whenever you lose the remote, it's because it slipped into an alternate dimension. So it could be in plain view, but you won't see it."
Snickering, Joel tossed the stone into the water.
"Well, and then there's something Scott told me..." Mike said, watching the ripples from the stone.
"That there's someone else out there?"
Mike grinned, "Yea. But it's neat, 'cause there's this other world. And these people kinda control some things here, but I think we can control some things there too."
Smiling, Joel thought for a moment, catching on. "So, we're kind of characters controlling characters?" It wasn't hard for him to believe it, in a world of paradoxes and mutants, of being shot into space, sentient robots, and other such things.
Mike tilted his head, watching the water again. "I think it's like that. Actually, Scott told me they're the Writers and we're the Characters. But I think they're Characters too."
Robinson nodded, snickering, "I get it."
"So," Mike got that mischievous look again, that signaled the birth of another great idea, "What do you say we try to do a little in return?"
"Sounds like a plan."
- --------- - --
Disclaimers: Mike, Joel and the 'bots belong to BBI. Logan is Marvel's, along with Scott and the X-Mansion in general. Subreality and the concepts of were Kielle's incredible invention. The lunacy we come up with... it's spreading! Bwahahahaha!