Man versus ?¿
He stared at the piles of paperwork that needed to be completed. The sounds of cars flying around the city made him want to scream. He had told his guardians he would be moving to the Megalopolis to start a new life, a new job/career, & hopefully even find a new wife. Although the latter was something he was trying to not find right away, not with the current state of the economy! He had kept sharing slides with his own virtual projection of himself in the living room to his guardians about the total cost of starting a family— not to mention the other unexpected bills for an emergency to the hospital if either him, or his loved one(s) fell ill with a virus…
His mind stopped to focus back on his work. More random cases, audios, & videos that were like finding a single button in a roll of lint! His secretary stepped into the room. He took a quick look at her, even if she was not a real human…every other person in the company always had to do a double-take. She had such a warm smile, one that felt like being at home. A thought ran through his mind, maybe he could take her to meet his folks. Would they be glad at least he has a companion for life? She was perfect…and he did not need to worry about any costs for a future bany, or babies with her.
She told him there was someone in the lobby area waiting to see him. He whispered to her, “Tell them I’m on vacation…”
She waltzed out of his office, her stride placing him in a trance. He did wonder who had created her & if the inventor had been inspired by someone famous, or local.
The sound of the door being slammed startled him. He leaned back in his chair and faced his guest.
Suddenly, the office room felt like a Hurricane was about to hit. The papers went flying into the air. His drawers were opened by a gust of wind, but all the windows were tightly sealed shut. To make things even more odd, there were some dark clouds gathering in his office.
His guest still did not speak. Then he was whisked away in a tornado, and tossed right into an alley.
He was bemused. What had just taken place? He tried to find his belongings that were in the pockets of his suit. Every pocket was empty.
He heard the sound of someone call out, “Taxi!” Taxi? He had not used one in well…had it been decades..the current fad was flying cars. Who wanted to book, or ride a taxi when a flying car could be much more accessible to use…anytime, anywhere in the world!
Someone had been standing behind him, and they scooted past him. He felt sheepish…and then called out, “Hold on…I’ll ride with you.”
The taxi driver hummed as he drove. He did not stop at any of the red lights. This made his passengers alarmed. The taxi driver swerved from one lane to the next, not even checking his blind spots!
As they continued to drive around town, the young professional scratched his head. He was not sure what part of town he was in.
The taxi driver made a quick stop. His passengers nearly fell out of their seats.
The young professional reached for his wallet, & realized he did not have it— he forgot about that. The young lady who had been sitting by his side paid the fare- his & her own.
He promised to pay her back. She smiled at him. He slowly smiled back.
She stepped out of the taxi, and he followed her. She picked up her pace as she walked, & he picked up his pace as he followed her tail.
Then he stopped for a second. Why did she have a tail anyway? Or was he just too beat and seeing things?
She stopped in her tracks, too.
By this time they were surrounded by a garden of plants. He waved at her seeing her turn to face his way.
She did not wave back. He cleared his throat. Why had he followed her all the way here? He needed to find his way back home.
He started to turn around back in the direction the taxi had dropped them off. As he began his march toward the main road, he felt a sudden weight on his shoulders, and back.
He screamed. The lady had jumped on him. He felt drops of something fall on to him. His skin started to burn!
She was hissing, and her tongue stuck out into the cool air. He waved his arms— trying to get her off his back, but it was as if she was glued to his body.
He felt her teeth sink into his neck. He tumbled to the ground spinning like a tumbleweed in the Sahara desert.
She spat something at him like a dilophosaurus. Her neck looked quite like something straight from a Dinosaur exhibit.
He felt dizzy, and lost all control of his body. His fingers could not even flick.
His eyes began to close. He looked on at the young lady. Her face…it was the same one her had seen in his office. Except he had thought it looked quite much less feminine in his room, here he had thought he’d been following a young woman. Whatever this thing was it was definitely not human!
It roared and he felt the ground begin to quake. Was it an earthquake? A horde of similar creatures arrived in formation. Each staring down at the young man.
He shut his eyes, ready to meet his final fate. The creatures ripped the flesh off his bones using their shark like razor canines.
Meanwhile, back at his office the secretary was on a call. She was typing away at lightning speed. Once she was done…she hit send.
TO: “jurassic” <jurassic@zed.zam>
CC: AllCreaturesGreat&Small
From: The Shadow Man’s outreach coordinator
Subject: Welcome to The Shadow Man’s Megaverse!
Dear Recruits,
’Tis a pleasure to have you join us, ‘n’ be a part of The Shadow Man’s army! Feel free to rampage whenever, wherever, any day, any time. But please be advised not to create a time loop of mayhem with another group caught in the same pocket of space.
Thank you.
P.S. My human “boss” is going to be send to the Dino quadrant by a dear friend of The Shadow Man. Please, do not rush as you have him (over) for dinner.
P.P.S. Also, remember to carefully wrap his heart and send it to The Shadow Man as a token of gratitude.
Regards,
Secrétaire Extraordinaire
Outreach Unit
#Manversus?¿ (c) 09.10.2022