by Steve LeBel
Lenny pointed. “See the life forms on this one? I have a pet universe with creatures that look just like them.”
“Did you make them the same on purpose?”
“Nope. I just happened to notice the similarity one day when I was wandering around the plaza. Mine aren’t smart enough to have built a fountain. Well, they might be if I let them evolve, but that isn’t what they’re there for.”
“Why do you have them?”
“They’re just one of the feeder species I have on one of my planets. My main life form is carnivorous, and it needs a lot to eat, so I transplanted these guys along with a few species from other universes to make sure my carnivores had a healthy diet.”
Bernie struggled not to betray the discomfort he felt when a god showed such a callous attitude toward other life forms. He didn’t want anything to undermine his budding friendship with Lenny.
* * *
Bernie never understood the disregard the gods showed for their creations. They considered their own lives precious, but that attitude never extended to the life they created.
Several years ago Bernie had made unsuccessful attempts to recruit friends to join him at a “Save the Lookies” rally. A goddess named Agnes had brought one of her creations to town, as most people did from time to time. It was just to show them off, really. Initially, the lookies were very popular because they were cute and playful and fun to watch.
But after a century or two, there were so many lookies, people started complaining. The Town Council issued orders for the Refugee Squad to round them up and dispatch them. By the time the rally got any traction, half of the lookie population had been destroyed.
The Town Council gave in to the protestors and ordered the remaining lookies to be captured and turned over to Agnes, who was instructed to return them to their planet of origin.
Although Bernie was not a leader in the campaign, he took some pride in helping save the little creatures.
* * *
“Bernie! Come here, please.” A woman waved at Bernie from one of the restaurants.
Lenny asked, “Is that your mom?”
“Yes,” Bernie said as they walked over to her.
Bernie’s mom was an attractive woman, slight of frame, with long flowing hair and a light, playful shimmer. It was impossible to guess her age, because after a god becomes an adult, they no longer show any signs of aging. Her voice had none of the resonating qualities she would develop as she aged. She wore a simple dress, and her only jewelry was a pair of earrings.
“I wanted to tell you I have to work late tonight. We have a birthday party to host. Can you fix yourself something to eat?”
“Sure, Mom. Let me introduce someone,” said Bernie. “Mom, this is my friend Lenny. We work together. Lenny, this is my mom, Hannah.” He liked the way it sounded when he called Lenny his friend.
“Pleased to meet you, Lenny,” said Hannah. “Are you Saul and Ruth’s boy?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“They come in here all the time. Your dad’s a good tipper,” she said with a smile. “Your mom and I served on some PTA committees together when you boys were in school.
“So where are you off to?” she asked.
“We’re going to my place to hang out,” Lenny said.
“Please say hello to your parents for me.”
“Actually, they’re going to be gone for another week. They’re visiting retired relatives. They haven’t made the rounds for a while, so they’ve got a lot of catching up to do.”
“I know how that can be. You have the family album at your place?” she asked.
“Yes. They borrowed it from my Grandpa Titus. It was like pulling teeth. He doesn’t like the album out of his hands. He wants to be able to pop in and visit people whenever he feels like it. I had to promise I would take good care of it and that he could stop by whenever he wanted.”
“I understand. Well, run along, boys, and have fun. Nice meeting you, Lenny.” Hannah flashed a smile before turning back to the restaurant.
When they got out of earshot, Lenny said, “Bernie, you didn’t tell me your mom is such a fox! It was everything I could do to keep my charms in my pocket!”
Bernie looked at Lenny, but he had no idea what to say, so he just shook his head. His shimmer, however, displayed a rare streak of purple and yellow that lasted for almost an hour, and something swirled around his feet, although both boys pretended not to notice.
As they strolled around the plaza, they came to The Museum. Banners flapping in the gentle breeze reminded people of the submission deadline for the next Universe Award Competition. More banners reminded everyone the new winners will be on display immediately after the Award Ceremony.
“I imagine the Awards are a big deal for you, with your dad being a big-shot award winner and all,” Lenny said, nodding in the direction of The Museum banners.
“Well, Dad hasn’t won anything for a while now.”
“Bernie, he won three awards! Hardly anyone ever wins one, let alone three. Haven’t you seen all the books written about him? He’s famous!”
“I’ve seen more of Dad’s books than I have of Dad.”
“I’ve seen him several times. Any time he makes a speech about his work, I try to go.”
“I think his success went to his head. He never used to wear capes and sequin outfits before he got famous. Mom says his clothes do more shimmering than he does. Honestly, I think it’s embarrassing.”
“You gotta cut him some slack, Bernie. People like Simeon are supposed to be eccentric. That’s what makes them so much fun.”
As they strolled along, a large brown mass with two round eyes stared at them with unconcealed fear. If it had arms or legs, they weren’t apparent. It was trying to cross the sidewalk to a grassy section a few feet away, but it had miscalculated how fast the two young gods were walking. It now found itself on a direct collision course. Its movement was too slow to allow for retreat, so it braced itself for impact. This was unnecessary, because no god would have hurt it. Bernie noticed its fear and adjusted his course to steer both himself and Lenny well away from the shivering mass, who now had its eyes tightly closed.
Lenny was still thinking about Simeon and asked, “What’s he like? Does he ever talk about his creations or where he gets his ideas?”
Bernie thought for a moment before saying, “Mom says Dad is a very competent builder, but he is not very creative. The first two ideas were hers, and maybe the third one too.”
“I don’t remember hearing him say where he got his ideas from, although I remember someone asked him recently what his next project would be. He said, ‘I am still searching for my muse.’”
“He and Mom haven’t talked for a long time, so he’s probably run out of ideas.”
“Well, he shouldn’t have any problem finding a new muse. No offense, Bernie, but have you seen the way the girls are all over him? He can have any one he wants.” Lenny thought for a moment. “You don’t think he’s using a charm, do you?”
“No. I don’t think so. I think he and Mom were a good match, but after he got the second award, I think it went to his head, and he decided he didn’t need us anymore.” It was what Bernie told himself and others, although he was never sure.
“Hello, Lenny. Hello, Bernie.”
Bernie looked up to see Beatrice, his favorite teacher, walking toward them. Every time he was around her, he felt more confident. He smiled as he thought about all the stickies in his cubicle. At least half of them were filled with her ideas. Bernie smiled. “Hello, Beatrice.”
“What have you been doing since school, Bernie? Did you get a job with The Business?”
“Yes, I started last month. They have me building my own universe.”
“That’s great, Bernie. Can you tell me about it?”
“I’m still trying to work out the details. It’s a lot harder than in school. They said I can build anything I want. With so many possibilities, it’s hard to know where to start.”
>
“You’ll do fine, Bernie. You’re a lot more talented than you give yourself credit for. Just do your planning, and everything will be fine.” She turned to Lenny and said, “As for you, young man, how have you been? I talked to your mom two weeks ago. She said you’re busy with your OWT collection.”
“Yes. I’ve found some excellent stuff. Lately, I’m focusing on things to make me luckier. I’m going to show Bernie some of it tonight.”
“You know, Lenny, I’m not a big fan of charms and talismans. It seems to me if you want to be luckier, all you need is good planning and extra effort. I’ve found that works better than any lucky charm”
“Maybe you haven’t found the right charm yet.” Lenny laughed.
Beatrice joined in the laughter. “Maybe I haven’t. Well, have fun, boys.”
Bernie and Lenny paused from time to time to chat or wave at friends as they continued around the Plaza. More posters reminded people about the submission deadline for Universe Award Nominations.
“Have you ever submitted anything to the Universe Awards?” Bernie asked.
“No. I have a couple of universes that are really good, but the Committee doesn’t like anything that involves violent combat. I mean, they have categories for it, but when’s the last time you heard of anyone winning an award for their slaughter prowess? No. They’d rather give awards for something that’s politically correct or based on some silly social issue. They’re biased, if you ask me.”
“I read the Committee has more people with Building Arts degrees than with Building Sciences degrees. Maybe that makes them favor more artistic things.”
“That would explain a lot,” said Lenny.
Lenny’s Place
The two young gods completed a full circuit of Central Plaza. They enjoyed the chance to talk about something other than work. Bernie smiled as Lenny slowed occasionally to experiment with another one of his charms and then make a quick note in his book. He seemed to do it without thinking, hardly ever interrupting their conversation. Lenny’s notebook added fourteen new slash marks to the wisdom it contained during their stroll around the plaza.
“Where do you live?” Bernie asked.
“Over in SouthWest-3. We used to be in SouthEast-4, but my parents decided to move in closer.”
“Do you like it?”
“Yeah, it’s okay. You still live over in NorthEast-5?”
“Yes. But as soon as we can save enough money, we’re going to move inward too,” said Bernie. A fleeting thought reminded him of how he would miss the woods. The woods weren’t like the fun house experience of wandering around town, but, for Bernie, they were a special place no farther than his back yard. He would miss them.
“This is my bridge,” said Lenny as they came to the SouthWest Bridge at the edge of the plaza. Traffic on the bridge was light. They stayed toward the right, avoiding the farthest right, which was for people who wanted to exit immediately after crossing the stream. They were going to the Section One district that surrounded Central Plaza. The youths strolled in the center right lane past the Section Two exit, where the stores and other businesses were located. Section Two in the NorthWest quadrant was an exception; NorthWest-2 was an exclusive residential section for The Town’s elite, which naturally included Bernie’s dad. It was also where Billy lived. As they approached the third exit, they moved to the right, and a few steps later, they exited into Lenny’s neighborhood.
* * *
As they turned the corner, something easily half Lenny’s height burst out of the bushes, and raced full-speed at him. Bernie was shocked at the quickness of the attack and unsure of what to do. He looked around for anything to use as a weapon, but there was nothing. All he could do was cry, “Watch out!”
Lenny turned in time to see the furry brute before it was on him. The creature grabbed Lenny’s leg with both arms and squeezed hard.
Bernie expected a scream of pain from his friend, but instead heard Lenny’s laughter, followed by “Hello, boy. Did you miss me today?” A furry head with big eyes looked up at Lenny, nodding an enthusiastic affirmation.
Lenny laughed again. “I call this guy Artie. I don’t think he talks, but he seems to understand me. Artie, this is my friend Bernie.”
Artie unwrapped himself from Lenny’s leg and reached out and shook Bernie’s hand. When Bernie didn’t say anything, Artie shook his hand again.
“Pleased to meet you, Artie,” said Bernie. This satisfied Artie, who smiled and nodded his head. He turned back to Lenny, tilted his head, and raised his eyebrows.
Lenny must have understood because he said, “We’re going back to my place. You’re welcome to come with us, if you like.”
Artie smiled and took one of Lenny’s hands. His other hand was for Bernie as he walked down the street between his two best friends. The natural god-shimmer from the two boys was nearly matched by the joy radiating from their little friend.
Curious plants extended long vines from the safety of nearby gardens to touch them as they passed. Several flowers reached out, offering them smells, which they dutifully sniffed before moving on. Several more creatures waved at them and even more watched them secretly from hidden places along the way. Both boys enjoyed these encounters as they made their way to Lenny’s house. Somewhere along the way, Artie hugged them both goodbye and went off in another direction. A walk through town was always an experience.
“That’s my place,” said Lenny, pointing to a house set back from the street. From the small yard, to the walls, to the roof, plants of every shape and every color vied for attention. “As you can see, Mom likes her plants.” He reached out to clear away the vines blocking the entrance. Interestingly, he didn’t have to touch them. They just needed to be reminded they weren’t supposed to be there. Bernie didn’t notice the vines; he was busy looking back at the large orange flowers that had been watching him since they’d arrived.
Lenny’s house was large on the inside, as were all buildings in town. They found a great room with three large arched doorways leading to other parts of the house. Skylights brightened the room. On a flat table in front of the couch was an open picture album. On each page of the large book were mounted small 12x18 inch viewing windows. Underneath each window was a neatly written tag with the name of the relative(s) who retired there.
Lenny looked at the open page and said, “It looks like my folks are visiting Samuel today. He’s a hoot. I’m not sure what our relationship is because there are so many ‘great great greats’ involved. But he’s always on everyone’s short list to visit.”
“Can I look?”
“Sure. Just don’t touch anything. Samuel gets testy if you change anything on his world. Check the second planet in the dwarf star system. If he isn’t there, he’ll be on the system with the yellow sun, on the third planet.
Bernie slipped into the universe and found the dwarf star. The second planet was mostly land with several large oceans. Bernie saw evidence of an Iron Age culture. He’d expected to see a theocracy with Samuel sitting on a large golden throne surrounded by throngs of worshipers. He didn’t find anything like it. When Bernie came back, he said, “I’m not sure I would want to retire there. What does he see in the place?”
“He doesn’t go in for traditional stuff. He has more fun wandering around disguised as a beggar.”
“Why?”
“He likes to do miracles. For example, if he goes to a village, and they treat him well, even though he looks like a filthy beggar, the village will find their crops are twice as bountiful for the next few years. Or maybe every illness and infirmity in the village has been cured. He customizes his miracles to the people he meets.”
“Do you have to disguise yourself as a beggar to visit him?” Bernie grinned.
“No. He has a huge palace where he lives most of the time. Lives like a king, really. But I guarantee he’ll try to get you to go on a mendicant adventure with him.”
They both laughed at the thought of a god wandering the world disgu
ised as a beggar.
“Come on back to my room.”
Lenny led the way down a corridor until they reached a door with a prominent ‘Keep Out’ sign. That sign must be OWT, thought Bernie. When I look at it, it makes me want to go away. As he turned to ask about it, Lenny said, “I had some boundary issues with my parents. We’re mostly cool now that I’m contributing to the rent.” Lenny chuckled as he held open the door for Bernie.
Bernie was surprised to find Lenny’s ‘room’ was a five-room apartment. It was bigger than the home he shared with his mom. Lenny pointed, “That’s my bedroom. The one next to it is a kitchen. This room is for hanging out and relaxing. That room is for my OWT collection and my books. And that one is for my universes.”
“This is really cool, Lenny. You have a great place here. Show me your collection. I’m dying to see it.”
Lenny brightened as he led the way into the collection room. The walls were lined with shelves and each shelf was full of assorted objects, each with a nametag and detailed notes. Two long rows of shelves, equally full of collectables, ran through the center of the room. In the corner was a built-in desk with more shelves, piled with dozens of notebooks like the one Lenny always carried.
“Oh, my gosh, Lenny. This is beyond anything I imagined. How did you ever do this?” Bernie asked with undisguised awe.
“I collected most of these while I was in school. One of these days, I’m going to reorganize everything. I’m going to have to enlarge the room soon anyway. This section is pure technology. The section over here is charms and talismans. That section—”
“How did you get into charms? It doesn’t seem very scientific for someone like you.”
“Well, it began when I was a kid. I’ve always been ambi-cosmic, you know. You know how you have a dominant chaotic side? It’s because Chaos and Order duked it out for control of your body when you were a kid, and, eventually, Chaos won, which is how you got your chaos cloud.
“In my case, nobody won, which means the war isn’t over. I keep getting hit by one side or the other all the time, usually when I least expect it. It’s like a cosmic tug of war with me in the middle. After a while, I found some charms to thwart one side or the other. I try to carry enough of both to protect me from either side.”
