Matthias and the Sentinel
by Daniel Braum
Cornelius and Matthias sat at Flamingo Airport’s tiny departure gate with the flock of antsy tourists. Cornelius nervously ate crackers out of the box one after another, while watching a sun burnt family play a game of Yatzee in the uncomfortable molded plastic seats as if it were the World Cup. A green blur whizzed past the bar where the security guard was standing. Matthias gripped his case tighter and cursed the Buyer. But it was a false alarm- just two American kids throwing their stuffed toys around.
Sedated and wrapped in damp towels inside Matthias’s carry on bag were three baby yellow headed parrots. The endangered birds were worth a fortune, at least to his Buyer. He and Cornelius had come to Bonaire to track down the nests in the secluded North shore of the island. Only seven hundred remained on the planet. Exactly the sort of thing his buyer liked.
Cornelius was one of the best in trackers. Matthias had the knack for smuggling. Getting things through customs came naturally for him. All they had to worry about were those things… the Sentinels the Buyer called them. These days it seemed every animal they tried to move had one of those mystical protectors. Matthias wasn’t scared of ghosts. But Cornelius was frayed to his core. Matthias had considered passing on this job. But the Buyer said he’d take care of the Sentinels and he had something big lined up for them after this. He couldn’t resist.
#
Pre-boarding for the flight began and Matthias thought they were home free. Then a green blur swooped across the terminal. As it glided toward them it took on the shape of a green parrot. He was glad Cornelius hadn’t seen it; he didn’t need him panicked.
The parrot hovered in front of his face. At least this Sentinel didn’t look so bad. He still had bad dreams about the snakes and spiders from past jobs. So much for the Buyer taking care of things. He braced himself for what came next. Nothing happened. The parrot-god, Sentinel thing was just hovering there. Like an image stuck on pause on a television screen.
“Something wrong?” Cornelius asked.
“Nope,” Matthias said.
He heard the wet rags inside his bag crackle and sizzle. So the concoction and magic words the Buyer had given him weren’t bogus. You came through after all, Matthias thought.
“I’m looking forward to what comes next,” Cornelius said.
Matthias liked the look of the parrot thing, frozen there. Powerless. Taken by surprise and unable to stop them.
“So am I,” Matthias said. “So am I.”
-END-
Misprint
by David
“They recalled the house.”
“What!? What’s wrong with it?”
“Dunno.” Linn said. “It was on the news. 32,000 recalled by NanoBuild. I checked the serial number; this is one of them. And we just moved in!” Her lip quivered.
“Oh honey,” Bell said, taking her hand. “I’m sure it can be repaired. We won’t have to move again.”
She jerked her hand away. “I’ll be in the garden.” She stomped through the kitchen and he heard the back door slam.
Bell looked around. What could be wrong? Shoddy workmanship? He rapped on the walls and doorframes, but nothing happened except his knuckles got sore. He went out the front, walked to the street, turned around and looked back. White frame comfort with nothing out of place.
Bell went back in and sat down in front of the screen.
“On. NanoBuild recall.” Windows flashed; teasers scrolled in and out of view. “That one.”
A blonde, sculpted, talking head. “NanoBuild, the country’s largest provider of quick-grown homes, today announced a recall of more than 30,000 homes planted in the last two years. A defect in instructions has caused some homes to spontaneously resume growth weeks or months after completion. The unwanted growth takes the form of knobby extrusions on walls or ceilings. These extrusions, dubbed house tumors, expand without limit until they fill available space, and resemble broccoli or cauliflower. Biorenovators are scrambling to develop treatment regimes that can be applied without damaging essential elements of the homes. Recalled homes need to be vacated immediately, because cancerous growth could begin without warning and progress extremely rapidly. The Attorney General will issue a statement tomorrow about whether NanoBuild will be charged with a violation of the Safe Business Practices Act. Ironically, Ralph Natter, CEO of NanoBuild, co-sponsored the SBPA when he represented southern Illinois in the House in the early 20s.”
Bell told the screen to shut down, then sat for a minute, stunned. He needed to warn Linn; they had to get out. Just then, something bumped his shoulder. House cancer! Bell jumped up, tripped on the throw rug, and whacked his head on the coffee table.
Linn rushed around the couch and checked Bell’s pulse. Still strong, thank God. She’d never seen him so jumpy. She made him comfortable under a blanket, then stood and stretched. She’d clean up outside and then see how he was doing. On her way out she noticed a bubbly spot on the wall. Have to get that fixed, she thought, but then remembered. The house was no longer their responsibility.
end
