Posted: Fri Jan 17, 2014 5:20 pm
Krishna was perched in a tree again, but he was not on top of his hill. This tree was far taller, and he was able to lay down on the thick branch where it curved and kinked to connect to the trunk, and even better, it overlooked one of the huge slag heaps he had wanted to look at. He was idly looking through his things, though he had gotten rid of the red button, as it seemed to do absolutely nothing. Now he was trying the bracelet on, tapping the buttons on it.
A voice started yammering at him. It was unintelligible jabbering, as if someone had taken normal speech and then, after speeding it up, garbled it. He could vaguely make out a few words, and images and numbers appeared in holographic form on his eyes, but he couldn't understand them. Glucose levels? Respiration? Oxygen saturation? Internet connection? What did all those words mean? Another hologram- he didn't know how he knew they were called holograms, but his subconscious seemed to be absolutely boiling with activity as memories grew agitated and swam just beneath the surface.
Krishna frowned and turned the machine off. It was only agitating him to watch the bracelet's display flicker behind his eyes. He felt a slight buzzing behind his right ear and reached back.
And felt something that he immediately knew should not be there. It was a plastic coil, clearly firmly attached to his skin, curved around his ear.
Krishna frowned. The day grew stranger yet again. He picked up the bracelet, putting it back in the small case, and pulled out the short blade and the folding gun, then frowned and put them back, walking along the branch so he could get a better view of the slag heap. The pile of rubble and sand was enormous, shaped at its base like a gently curving hill, but then sharpening and rising like the tip of some immense pagan shrine to stab above the canopy. Around it for almost a hundred yards everything had been cleared, and smaller heaps rose in the barren region.
Krishna looked closer, and noticed that there was movement. He looked again, and began to pick them out.
Tens of thousands of tiny, brightly colored creatures no bigger than his pinky were marching across the area, carrying tiny bundles of food or loads of sand and stone. He kept watching, fascinated, as some began marching up the sides of the huge spire, while others headed inside or into some of the hundreds of tunnel openings that dotted the cleared area.
He snapped a branch off the tree and threw it. It flew for perhaps fifty meters, give or take, and hit directly on one of the lines of marching creatures. Several were crushed, while others scattered. A few dozen swarmed the branch, inspecting it, and then, as if commanded by some unseen superior, they began tearing it apart and carrying it inside.
Krishna raised his eyebrows slightly. I shall make sure to avoid those, I think. He looked up and away, towards where the metal building still glinted, and picked up his things.
It would be a long walk.
A voice started yammering at him. It was unintelligible jabbering, as if someone had taken normal speech and then, after speeding it up, garbled it. He could vaguely make out a few words, and images and numbers appeared in holographic form on his eyes, but he couldn't understand them. Glucose levels? Respiration? Oxygen saturation? Internet connection? What did all those words mean? Another hologram- he didn't know how he knew they were called holograms, but his subconscious seemed to be absolutely boiling with activity as memories grew agitated and swam just beneath the surface.
Krishna frowned and turned the machine off. It was only agitating him to watch the bracelet's display flicker behind his eyes. He felt a slight buzzing behind his right ear and reached back.
And felt something that he immediately knew should not be there. It was a plastic coil, clearly firmly attached to his skin, curved around his ear.
Krishna frowned. The day grew stranger yet again. He picked up the bracelet, putting it back in the small case, and pulled out the short blade and the folding gun, then frowned and put them back, walking along the branch so he could get a better view of the slag heap. The pile of rubble and sand was enormous, shaped at its base like a gently curving hill, but then sharpening and rising like the tip of some immense pagan shrine to stab above the canopy. Around it for almost a hundred yards everything had been cleared, and smaller heaps rose in the barren region.
Krishna looked closer, and noticed that there was movement. He looked again, and began to pick them out.
Tens of thousands of tiny, brightly colored creatures no bigger than his pinky were marching across the area, carrying tiny bundles of food or loads of sand and stone. He kept watching, fascinated, as some began marching up the sides of the huge spire, while others headed inside or into some of the hundreds of tunnel openings that dotted the cleared area.
He snapped a branch off the tree and threw it. It flew for perhaps fifty meters, give or take, and hit directly on one of the lines of marching creatures. Several were crushed, while others scattered. A few dozen swarmed the branch, inspecting it, and then, as if commanded by some unseen superior, they began tearing it apart and carrying it inside.
Krishna raised his eyebrows slightly. I shall make sure to avoid those, I think. He looked up and away, towards where the metal building still glinted, and picked up his things.
It would be a long walk.