Standard disclaimers.
Surprising taste warning; Not bad, just surprising.
Dedicated to my good friend D, who does this sort of thing. He has an electric guitar and a motorbike...would we all be as cool as him when we are 56!
Thanks to JP for Betaing. (He is not a Gatch fan but does like SF and appreciate my warped sense of humour.)
It was a very hot day. The Spectran summer was at its height. But this was a record-breaking day.
Everyone was complaining about the heat. That and finding excuses to go to the beach instead of work.
Zoltar, the Chosen Ruler of Spectra was relaxing in his apartments in the fortress of the Luminous One. He had very little work to do. Review a few reports, that was all. It was now midday. By now his Holy Master should have called him into his chambers for instructing. The Great One had not, and so Zoltar knew he could take the rest of the day off. But what to do?
It was a fine day, he would go jogging. Zoltar paused; It was too fine a day. Hot and uncomfortable. Zoltar decided to wear as little as possible.
But he couldn't run round naked, could he? -Or could he?
Zoltar hit upon an idea. He started rummaging in the cupboard where his painting things were. Zoltar was a keen amateur painter, and technical drawer. He had worked on the design of several mechs. Zoltar found a big can of black poster paint and selecting a big brush took them back to his tiring room.
Soon all his clothes were off, Zoltar wore just his watch, in actually a wrist computer which contained such useful things as the electronic keys to all sorts of places, including the mech hangar, it also had electronic currency details, if he went shopping he did not have to take his wallet. The other item that he wore was his blue eternal flame on a chain round his neck. This was a more arcane item, used by the Spirit to keep track of and communicate with Zoltar in a way only He could. Zoltar had never taken it off since his early teens. It was the symbol of his Chosen status and the too beautiful Spectran would sooner have parted with his fingers than the eternal flame. He wasn't sure if he could remove it anyway.
After tying his genitals back, he painted a big pair of black shorts on his bare behind. Zoltar admired himself in the full length mirror. Wasn't he the pretty boy? His deception was almost perfect, you could see he was naked if you were close, but Zoltar knew from experience that most people would not look that hard.
Zoltar put on his big sunhat over his tied up hair, trainers on his feet; he rubbed all his exposed skin with sun cream. Zoltar had once gone out without such protection when a very little boy, and ended up with badly burnt skin. He had been careful from then on.
Ready for anything he descended in the lifts and sallied out the front gates. The Temple Guards waved cheerily at him. Though observant men, they had not noticed his deception.
Zoltar took the scenic route, down the back streets to the river and following it to the park. It was a little cooler than going round the winding back alleys; Another favourite trip of Zoltars. Still hot though.
Zoltar was sweating, he decided to take a route though the Market. This would be a longer trip but in the safety of an air-conditioned precinct.
Zoltar jogged though the shopping centre; no one took the slightest bit of notice. It was crowded. Everyone was inside out of the sun. He was beginning to think that he had made a bad decision; When who should he bump into but his very own twin sister, Mala Latrois? (Zoltar, of course, was a Latrois, but he had long ago given up all right to a family name when he had been Chosen. He still used it occasionally though, at times when he wanted to annoy the Latrois clan.)
Mala was out spending the publics money on clothes, with her were her two henchgirls, Alisha and Noren.
"Zoltar!" She called. Zoltar had to stop.
"Hello, Mala, hello girls." Zoltar replied non-commitally. "And what are you doing?"
"I'm buying new clothes so my transvestite brother can steal them." Mala replied without a smile. Her henchgirls sniggered; Mala quelled them with a nasty stare.
"I will leave you to it."
"Yes, you leave me." Mala stared at him. "Zoltar has no taste in clothes; This is why he has me dress him." She explained to her gun-toting cronies. They grinned.
"What are you looking at, dear sister?" Zoltar asked innocently.
"Zoltar, if you get paint all over the bathroom, I'll kill you."
"Paint? What do you mean by paint?" Protested Zoltar.
"You know!" And she turned on her heel.