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Authors: Niccolo Grovinci
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almighty.
“Yellow sun,” he mumbled, blinking upward.
“Whadja expect?” asked the man. “I think you got a better look than I did.”
Albert shielded his eyes. “What do you mean?”
“You got fired. Fired into space. We watched you go!”
Albert remembered looking down at the roof. At the Roofers below. “And then I crashed here…. On the roof.”
The man shook his head. “No, man. We watched you go. Up, up, and away – helluva show. And then you disappeared into the wild blue. That was eight, nine months ago now, maybe more. And then, about 30 minutes ago, you came crashing back down again. Made a big goddam racket. We all came running and found your space-pod in a helluva goddam mess and you sitting here and talking about Pogs and a message for Omega-Mart and a bright new future of change or something-er-other.”
Albert’s head was spinning like a top. “I don’t remember any of that. Did I say anything else?”
The man nodded. “Yeah. You said, ‘My name is Albert Zim of Omega-Mart. Take me to your leader’. What the hell happened to you up there?”
Albert rubbed his temples and looked behind him at the pile of smoldering metal that used to be his space capsule. “I don’t know. I don’t remember.”
But he did remember. He remembered something. He had a message. The message was important, but it wasn’t for them – they were already lost.
The man leaned over and pulled down Albert’s eyelid with his thumb, staring into his pupil. “Well, you don’t have a scratch on you. Must be some sort of post-traumatic stress-induced amnesia or something,” he mumbled. “I think I read about that in a medical journal somewhere. Come on. Let’s get him up.”
The Roofers lifted Albert up by his arms, balancing him on unsteady feet. Their leader introduced himself.
“My name is Doctor Zayus, Doctor Robert Zayus.” He shook Albert’s limp hand. “Welcome to the roof.”
Albert quickly broke off the handshake, instinctively repulsed by the outcast’s touch. “I don’t have time to talk,” he said urgently, stabbing a finger downward. “I have to get down there right away.”
The Doctor grinned. “Funny, that’s exactly what I said when I first got here.” There came a murmur of agreement from his gathered comrades.
“You don’t understand – I belong down there,” Albert explained.
“Yep,” said the Doctor knowingly.
“I can save the world.” Albert’s head was spinning faster now. The heat of the sun was stifling.
Dr. Zayus scratched his bearded chin. “I don’t think I ever went that far. You sure you’re okay?”
Albert stumbled forward, wobbling like a newborn calf. “I really have to go.”
The Doctor grabbed his shoulder. “You can’t go wandering alone out there, Zim. You’ll die.”
“But I have to get back inside.” Albert made a futile attempt to shrug him off.
Dr. Zayus stepped in front of him, clutching him by both arms. “You don’t understand, Zim. You can’t. There’s no way back.”
Albert shook his head furiously. “But I have to…” He was blind-sided by a not-too-gentle smack across the face.
“You’re delirious, Zim,” said the Doctor firmly. “Snap out of it. We need to get you out of the sun. Okay?”
Albert nodded slowly.
“Good. Now come with me.”
The Doctor unwrapped the towel from his own head and draped it over Albert’s, shading his dazed companion’s brain from the sun’s cruel rays as he pulled him along gently by the arm, steering for some unseen point on the horizon. The world around them was a gray concrete sea, dead and empty except for a handful of giant, boxy metal ventilators scattered in the distance – Omega-Mart’s only lifeline to the outside world. Albert could see the world curving away from him at every
“Yellow sun,” he mumbled, blinking upward.
“Whadja expect?” asked the man. “I think you got a better look than I did.”
Albert shielded his eyes. “What do you mean?”
“You got fired. Fired into space. We watched you go!”
Albert remembered looking down at the roof. At the Roofers below. “And then I crashed here…. On the roof.”
The man shook his head. “No, man. We watched you go. Up, up, and away – helluva show. And then you disappeared into the wild blue. That was eight, nine months ago now, maybe more. And then, about 30 minutes ago, you came crashing back down again. Made a big goddam racket. We all came running and found your space-pod in a helluva goddam mess and you sitting here and talking about Pogs and a message for Omega-Mart and a bright new future of change or something-er-other.”
Albert’s head was spinning like a top. “I don’t remember any of that. Did I say anything else?”
The man nodded. “Yeah. You said, ‘My name is Albert Zim of Omega-Mart. Take me to your leader’. What the hell happened to you up there?”
Albert rubbed his temples and looked behind him at the pile of smoldering metal that used to be his space capsule. “I don’t know. I don’t remember.”
But he did remember. He remembered something. He had a message. The message was important, but it wasn’t for them – they were already lost.
The man leaned over and pulled down Albert’s eyelid with his thumb, staring into his pupil. “Well, you don’t have a scratch on you. Must be some sort of post-traumatic stress-induced amnesia or something,” he mumbled. “I think I read about that in a medical journal somewhere. Come on. Let’s get him up.”
The Roofers lifted Albert up by his arms, balancing him on unsteady feet. Their leader introduced himself.
“My name is Doctor Zayus, Doctor Robert Zayus.” He shook Albert’s limp hand. “Welcome to the roof.”
Albert quickly broke off the handshake, instinctively repulsed by the outcast’s touch. “I don’t have time to talk,” he said urgently, stabbing a finger downward. “I have to get down there right away.”
The Doctor grinned. “Funny, that’s exactly what I said when I first got here.” There came a murmur of agreement from his gathered comrades.
“You don’t understand – I belong down there,” Albert explained.
“Yep,” said the Doctor knowingly.
“I can save the world.” Albert’s head was spinning faster now. The heat of the sun was stifling.
Dr. Zayus scratched his bearded chin. “I don’t think I ever went that far. You sure you’re okay?”
Albert stumbled forward, wobbling like a newborn calf. “I really have to go.”
The Doctor grabbed his shoulder. “You can’t go wandering alone out there, Zim. You’ll die.”
“But I have to get back inside.” Albert made a futile attempt to shrug him off.
Dr. Zayus stepped in front of him, clutching him by both arms. “You don’t understand, Zim. You can’t. There’s no way back.”
Albert shook his head furiously. “But I have to…” He was blind-sided by a not-too-gentle smack across the face.
“You’re delirious, Zim,” said the Doctor firmly. “Snap out of it. We need to get you out of the sun. Okay?”
Albert nodded slowly.
“Good. Now come with me.”
The Doctor unwrapped the towel from his own head and draped it over Albert’s, shading his dazed companion’s brain from the sun’s cruel rays as he pulled him along gently by the arm, steering for some unseen point on the horizon. The world around them was a gray concrete sea, dead and empty except for a handful of giant, boxy metal ventilators scattered in the distance – Omega-Mart’s only lifeline to the outside world. Albert could see the world curving away from him at every
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