Cheney was crying. Weeping. She buried her face in the scales of Reese's riverfish costume and cried. He patted her consolingly with his left fin. It was, Cheney thought, more strange than consoling.
Rob's ribbons fluttered cheerfully in the breeze, oblivious to the distress on her face. Selfish, unfeeling ribbons. Skip sighed.
Kivrin clung to Yugioh's hand and bit her lip. Tasha and Anakin stared forlornly into Sobe bottles. Princess opened her mouth and said, " ." GODCHILD stalked a teenager. BC-Angel drowned herself in a swimming pool, as Lily gave birth to a new life in a hospital maternity ward somewhere in Tennessee. Mieke folded and unfolded a map of Atlantis nervously. Leah blew her nose on her evil villain's cape.
Bono sniffled. Behind blue glasses, his eyes filled with tears. This indicated that he was crying. It was the way of things.
This was the beginning. Of the end.
Mac McCullum scanned the Petra perimeter with high-powered field glasses. Cheney glared, a bit put out that she had never been given any high-powered field glasses. And after all her years of dedication, too.
Rayford should have reached him by now.
Mac's watch showed 1300 hours -- one in the afternoon, Carpathia Time. Which, strangely enough, was no different from normal time. Imagine that.
"Where were the other hours?" Reese wondered.
"I stole them!" Leah perked up. "I STOLE THEM AND HID THEM AWAY! YOU WILL NEVER GET THEM BACK! FOWHAHAHAHA!" She threw her head back and laughed an evil laugh. It was almost as evil as Carpathia, but not quite, because nothing was allowed to be as or more evil than Carpathia. Not even the lipgloss that Aly was carefully applying, although it came close.
It had to be more than a hundred degrees Fahrenheit. Sweat ran down his neck from the grayish red hair peeking out from under his cap, soaking his shirt. Mac detected not even a wisp of wind and wondered what his freckled, leathery face would look like in a few days. He also wondered how his hair had earned such a description as "grayish red." This rather disturbed him, and did a small amount of damage to his self-esteem.
"It will look HOTTTT," Tasha announced, inching closer to Mac. She couldn't remember what had happened to her previous boyfriends, or even who they were. Mac, she decided, would do. After all, he was a boy. That was all that mattered.
Without taking his eyes from the lenses, Mac unholstered his phone and punched in the connection to Chang Wong in the computer center. "Where's Ray?"
"I stole him too," Leah said, but no one heard.
"I was about to ask you," Chang said. "He left here forty-five minutes ago, and no one else has seen him either."
"I know!" Cheney realized that she knew. "I KNOW, I KNOW! He's CAMOFLAUGED! WE CAN'T SEE HIM! He might be right - HERE!" She pointed
Rayford cried out in pain. "OW! THAT WAS MY EYE!"
"What do we hear from Buck?"
"That he would like a cookie," Skip said. "He told me that he would like a cookie." She sighed dreamily.
Mac glared at her; noticed the hesitation. "Nothing new."
"Since when?"
"Yesterday," Bono said in a monotone.
"Since yesterday?" Cheney stated.
"Yes."
"Shall we continue to speak with unidentified lines of dialogue?"
"Yes. We shall."
"That is a good plan."
"Uh, Rayford heard from him late this morning." Mac refused to surrender control of the conversation.
"And?"
"He would like a cookie," Kivrin repeated.
Another beat. "Nothing to speak of."
"What're you sayin', Chang?"
"Nothing."
"Same as everyone else," Reese sighed. "Couldn't we speed things up? This fish costume is hot."
"So are YOU," Aly said slyly. They made out.
"Someday," Rob mused, "If we are cool, and hip enough, can we speak in odd contractions, to make ourselves sound casual and laid-back?"
Skip raised an eyebrow. "What're you sayin', Rob?"
Mac took over again."I gathered. What's wrong?"
"Nothing that won't be cured in a little--"
"IN A LITTLE WHILE," Bono sang, which for some reason needs capitals, to indicate singing. Almost like YELLING, but with a bit more melody.
"I don't need double-talk, buddy." Mac continued surveying the rocky slopes, feeling his pulse quicken despite his years and experience. "If you won't tell me, I'll call him myself." The audience may be proud of Mac's intiative.
"Buck?"
"Well, who else?"
"Me!" Tasha said, hopping up and down. "You can call ME, Mac! You can call me anytime you want! You can call me and ask me out, and then I will say yes, and then --"
"I've tried. My sensor shows his phone inoperable."
"Turned off?"
"Unlikely, Mr. McCullum."
"Maybe," Kivrin said, "Maybe, he doesn't like you."
"Well, I should guess so. Malfunctioning? Damaged?"
"I'm hoping the former, sir."
"I think she's right," Cheney said. "I think he doesn't like you."
"Global Positioning System active, at least?"
"No, sir."
Rob's ribbons fluttered cheerfully in the breeze, oblivious to the distress on her face. Selfish, unfeeling ribbons. Skip sighed.
Kivrin clung to Yugioh's hand and bit her lip. Tasha and Anakin stared forlornly into Sobe bottles. Princess opened her mouth and said, " ." GODCHILD stalked a teenager. BC-Angel drowned herself in a swimming pool, as Lily gave birth to a new life in a hospital maternity ward somewhere in Tennessee. Mieke folded and unfolded a map of Atlantis nervously. Leah blew her nose on her evil villain's cape.
Bono sniffled. Behind blue glasses, his eyes filled with tears. This indicated that he was crying. It was the way of things.
This was the beginning. Of the end.
Mac McCullum scanned the Petra perimeter with high-powered field glasses. Cheney glared, a bit put out that she had never been given any high-powered field glasses. And after all her years of dedication, too.
Rayford should have reached him by now.
Mac's watch showed 1300 hours -- one in the afternoon, Carpathia Time. Which, strangely enough, was no different from normal time. Imagine that.
"Where were the other hours?" Reese wondered.
"I stole them!" Leah perked up. "I STOLE THEM AND HID THEM AWAY! YOU WILL NEVER GET THEM BACK! FOWHAHAHAHA!" She threw her head back and laughed an evil laugh. It was almost as evil as Carpathia, but not quite, because nothing was allowed to be as or more evil than Carpathia. Not even the lipgloss that Aly was carefully applying, although it came close.
It had to be more than a hundred degrees Fahrenheit. Sweat ran down his neck from the grayish red hair peeking out from under his cap, soaking his shirt. Mac detected not even a wisp of wind and wondered what his freckled, leathery face would look like in a few days. He also wondered how his hair had earned such a description as "grayish red." This rather disturbed him, and did a small amount of damage to his self-esteem.
"It will look HOTTTT," Tasha announced, inching closer to Mac. She couldn't remember what had happened to her previous boyfriends, or even who they were. Mac, she decided, would do. After all, he was a boy. That was all that mattered.
Without taking his eyes from the lenses, Mac unholstered his phone and punched in the connection to Chang Wong in the computer center. "Where's Ray?"
"I stole him too," Leah said, but no one heard.
"I was about to ask you," Chang said. "He left here forty-five minutes ago, and no one else has seen him either."
"I know!" Cheney realized that she knew. "I KNOW, I KNOW! He's CAMOFLAUGED! WE CAN'T SEE HIM! He might be right - HERE!" She pointed
Rayford cried out in pain. "OW! THAT WAS MY EYE!"
"What do we hear from Buck?"
"That he would like a cookie," Skip said. "He told me that he would like a cookie." She sighed dreamily.
Mac glared at her; noticed the hesitation. "Nothing new."
"Since when?"
"Yesterday," Bono said in a monotone.
"Since yesterday?" Cheney stated.
"Yes."
"Shall we continue to speak with unidentified lines of dialogue?"
"Yes. We shall."
"That is a good plan."
"Uh, Rayford heard from him late this morning." Mac refused to surrender control of the conversation.
"And?"
"He would like a cookie," Kivrin repeated.
Another beat. "Nothing to speak of."
"What're you sayin', Chang?"
"Nothing."
"Same as everyone else," Reese sighed. "Couldn't we speed things up? This fish costume is hot."
"So are YOU," Aly said slyly. They made out.
"Someday," Rob mused, "If we are cool, and hip enough, can we speak in odd contractions, to make ourselves sound casual and laid-back?"
Skip raised an eyebrow. "What're you sayin', Rob?"
Mac took over again."I gathered. What's wrong?"
"Nothing that won't be cured in a little--"
"IN A LITTLE WHILE," Bono sang, which for some reason needs capitals, to indicate singing. Almost like YELLING, but with a bit more melody.
"I don't need double-talk, buddy." Mac continued surveying the rocky slopes, feeling his pulse quicken despite his years and experience. "If you won't tell me, I'll call him myself." The audience may be proud of Mac's intiative.
"Buck?"
"Well, who else?"
"Me!" Tasha said, hopping up and down. "You can call ME, Mac! You can call me anytime you want! You can call me and ask me out, and then I will say yes, and then --"
"I've tried. My sensor shows his phone inoperable."
"Turned off?"
"Unlikely, Mr. McCullum."
"Maybe," Kivrin said, "Maybe, he doesn't like you."
"Well, I should guess so. Malfunctioning? Damaged?"
"I'm hoping the former, sir."
"I think she's right," Cheney said. "I think he doesn't like you."
"Global Positioning System active, at least?"
"No, sir."
