home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search
- ==========================================================================
- == ==
- == If you enjoy these please feel free to contact me and say hello. I ==
- == can be reached at Sun via the Arpanet or the USENET. My email addr- ==
- == esses are: ==
- == ==
- == {ucbvax, decwrl, allegro}!sun!dbercel!toto ==
- == ==
- == or ==
- == ==
- == dbercel@sun.com or dbercel@sun.arpa ==
- ==========================================================================
- Episode 2 - The Flamers
-
- (The Infinity's scanners are showing the Flamer's ships approaching fast.
- Arnold Lint and Rod Perfect are frantically scurrying about. Xaphod is
- trying to figure out how to fly the node, and Gillian is fixing her
- makeup. Martin the android is off on a corner moping about how he's too
- young to die.)
-
- Xaphod: This is the node Infinity, we are on a peaceful, although a
- bit mercenary, mission. Hold your fire.
-
- (The commander of the Flamer's fleet appears on the screen. He appears to
- be a normal human, except for a small silver halo stapled to his head.)
-
- Flamer: I am Adolf Riteyus, commander of the Flaming Queen. You have
- violated Flaming space and must be blasted. You will be given
- a fair and drawn out hearing before you are found guilty.
- Rod: We didn't know this was Flaming space!
-
- Adolf: Ignorance is no excuse. Do you think that just because you
- don't know something you shouldn't be responsible for it? Why,
- if we didn't go around blasting people who thought they were
- innocent, there'd be no order. The whole power structure of
- the Net is based on the inalienable right to flame. He who
- flames the loudest and strongest will prevail, for he will
- have maintained purity of essence by not compromising his
- principles. It doesn't matter what one flames about, as long
- as one comes out a winner. Winning the argument for mandatory
- retroactive birth control is one of our greatest victories.
- We Flamers always win because we never give up. No, things are
- either our way or they're WRONG.
-
- [The "Hitch Hikers Guide to the Net" lists the Flamers as one of the most
- argumentative races in the Net. History shows that the Flamers went to war
- over the right to keep and bear tongue depressors. They also had a violent
- and bloody discussion over the morality of Odor Eaters. The only time the
- Flamers can be easily beaten in combat is on Sunday mornings when they all
- watch evangelist shows, or during Ronco "Mr. Microphone" commercials
- (their symbol of worship).]
-
- Gillian: What should we do?
-
- Xaphod: How 'bout evasive actions?
-
- Marvin: It won't help.
-
- Rod: Oh shut up! evasive action!
-
- Adolf: Where do you come from?
-
- Xaphod: Not from around here.
-
- Adolf: Where are you headed?
-
- Rod: Left.
-
- Gillian: That's telling him?
-
- Adolf: What is your favorite color?
-
- Arnold Lint:My what?
-
- Adolf: Your favorite color!
-
- Rod: White!
-
- Adolf: What is the maximum warp speed of a ladened Swaldrel?
-
- Xaphod: Denebian or Rigelian?
-
- Adolf: I don't know that . . . all right, enough evading, if you
- don't surrender in the next five seconds I'll blast you right
- out of existence.
-
- Rod: Well, now what.
-
- Adolf: Five!
-
- Arnold Lint:What's this button do?
-
- Adolf: Four!
-
- Xaphod: That's the Illogical Drive. It propels the node on power from
- hard drugs and acid rock. It's kind of dangerous though.
-
- Adolf: Three!
-
- Arnold Lint:Should we try it?
-
- Adolf: Two!
-
- Rod: Well, lets not . . . Four!
-
- Adolf: Four!
-
- Arnold Lint:So this is it, we're all going to die.
-
- Adolf: Three!
-
- Martin: I warned you about this trip.
-
- Adolf: Two!
-
- Xaphod: All right, all right, engage the Illogical Drive!
-
- Adolf: One!
-
- (Arnold Lint engages the Illogical drive. Images of the movie "Easy Rider"
- float across the view port. "In-a-gadda-da-vida" starts coming across the
- radio. The 12" CRT on Xaphod's shoulder starts scrolling "Wow man, what a
- trip!". The scanners show that the Flamers couldn't handle the sudden
- flood of sensory excitation and burst their brains. This only made their
- reactions a bit slower though as the Flamer's brain is remarkably small.
- The Infinity, charged up with Liquid Super Duetrillium, was able to make
- warp speed and turn the corner before the Highway patrol picked them up on
- radar. This was fortunate for it meant that they wouldn't be caught by
- Spiny Norman, the 45 foot blue hedgehog that had been following them.)
-
- Gillian: We made it.
-
- Rod: Yah, where are we Martin.
-
- Martin: We're way out man.
-
- Xaphod: Oh, he's useless now - it'll take a while before he comes
- down.
-
- Arnold Lint:At least he isn't so gloomy.
-
- Martin: Nooo body knows, the trouble I've see . . . have any of you
- ever contemplated the death of a grain of salt?
-
- [The "Hitch Hikers Guide to the Net" points out that the life and death of
- a grain of salt can have amazing importance in the course of life on the
- Net. On particular grain of salt (named Nigel) was responsible for the
- overthrow of an entire government. Nigel gave his
-
- . <- Nigel
-
- life by falling into the barrel of a shotgun that was aimed at the planets
- dictator. Thanks to lousy marksmanship on the part of the rebels, only
- Nigel was able to hit the dictator. The rest of the buck shot killed the
- dictator's pet salmon, Eric. Nigel, however, penetrated the dictators eye
- and eventually killed him 8 months later just before a firing squad cut
- the dictator in two.]
-
- Rod: Shut Up!
-
- Xaphod: Well, lets get back on course.
-
- Arnold Lint:What are those?
-
- (The scanners now show a dozen ships shaped like the number one heading
- toward the Infinity.)
-
- Xaphod: Those are Singularan ships. They're worse than flamers!
-
- Rod: Oh yeah, they're worse than a visit from an insurance
- salesman.
-
- Gillian: They're normally mild mannered computer scientists. But
- when they get on the Net, they become endowed with a
- superhuman ability to talk about incredibly personal things,
- things they couldn't otherwise discuss.
-
- Arnold Lint:Sounds awful.
-
- Martin: That's what I keep telling you.
-
- Rod: Shut up!
-
- Xaphod: If we don't get out of here fast, we'll end up
- debating which finger a divorced person should
- wear his or her ring on when going to homosexual
- orgies - or worse, have to go to a Pot Luck Dinner
- where all that the people do is talk.
-
- ******************** End Of Part 2 ********************
-
- Will the crew of the infinity avoid the clutches of the Singularans? Or
- will they end up exchanging recipes for onion dip. For the answers to
- these and several other amazingly unimportant questions . . . Tune in next
- time . . . same Net-time . . . same Net-channel.
-
-
-
- toto 37: