∞ Chapter 1 - Yesterday Had 48 Hours (Extract)

Some would say these streets were empty, forgotten, but that isn’t so; amongst the dark, burnt brickwork of a forsaken, microwaved metropolis there was a different war raging. The majority had been evacuated on the promise of a better life; the paving stones for a peaceful tomorrow in a brighter future, it was false; the war didn’t end, it escalated; every day delivered more casualties, more bombs, more chemical weapons, more destruction and it was unending. Still, some believed in the future, they had the power of hope, the ever optimistic, these people were the only ones that Whoopee had ever enjoyed being in company with, there was always the exceptions of the miserable ones, that could be swayed with a smile, a romantic gesture or a friendly ear to bend, ending in that all important smile, the only currency that Whoopee cared about. He lived off the optimism; it was his drive; his clarity, an anchor to some sort of sanity. This was important when you have the ability to time travel between realms, slowly driven to the edge of extroversion and then over that edge and into the dark realms of psychosis; yes then maybe you would be one with Whoopee, who recently decided that he is the original clown, the inventor of comic timing and humour. He was, at present discussing this theory with a fellow colleague…

“…obvious before me, everyone was dull, serious and cautious, what…”

“How would you know what was before you? You weren’t there,” Whoopee was cut short by Mary’s stolid interruption. A classic poker face expression shaped the skin around the front of his skull. This expression rarely changed from day to day. Mary Slinger had very little need for expression; he feared no one and cared very little for anything. However, he was a slave to good values and strong morals, the two principles instilled in him from birth by his dear departed parents. These two principles he would refuse to let go of at ANY time.

“I know, I’ve been back there, it’s very grey, everyone was an accountant, bread for breakfast, dinner, tea, water for a good time; I invented Whiskey to stir it up a bit, don’t be fooled by the monks either, they know how to…” Mary switched off and set his gaze on the armoured security van they had acquired earlier that day.

“Why’d you show up? Why now?”

“…party. You were having far too much fun and I got a proposition for all this hardware.”

“You were at a loose end then?” Mary lit a cigarette. “Thought you’d bother me.” He turned and grinned at Whoopee. It was a rare and momentous occasion.

“Well? It’s been awhile.”

“For you maybe, but I saw you yesterday.”

“Yesterday’s a long time for me Maria darling; my yesterday wasn’t quite the yesterday you had.”

“Thought you were gonna cut that shit for a while?...

...

Mary and Whoopee will return... With friends.