Went in to see Lucas the other day at the FANTASTIC NAME Elderly Care Center where they house the man, Lucas Vell Grandiothorpe The Third. Though he'd always say "turd" before I could get to it. He's faster than me like that despite his AGE.
So anyway, I walk down in there and catch him hunched over forward, working something furiously, with his chair facing the window. On account of his angle, even though the curtains were drawn, with the shitty weather, so many plants in there, and none of his lights on, it was dark enough that I couldn't see what he was doing. And I thought that knowing Lucas, there's a good chance I wouldn't want to see what he was doing anyways. Then he POPs up like a friggin JACK IN THE BOX, wood sticking straight up in the air and blade in the other hand, also stuck up into the air; and he blurts out that he was whittlin for chrissakes. Then he called me a sick fuck. The stunt shocked me senseless since I hadn't made a noise over his wheelchair squeaking. Then he said for me to shut up and sit down. So even though I still hadn't said anything, I did and he got back to work with his tool.
On account of his hands were occupied both with the holding and also the shaving of the stick in his lap, he used his chin like a finger to point at his activities as he talked. Said how he was taking the extra skin off of that GIBBOUS as he called it. And then he said some other things I didn't quite get, but who knows with him right? He says a lot of weird shit, which is fine. But then he found out I thought he was talking about carving the monkey and he called me a simple fuck and a dumb ignore-amos. But I don't mind him like that because he's been through a lot, you know? You do what he's done and try not coming out the other side a fucking grump at least. Yeah.
Anyhow, after he pops off like that, I usually give him some space and let him get back into his groove. So we sat there a little while... Sometimes I watched him, sometimes I looked around at his place. Even before this particular time I'm talking about, I always wondered how he could get away with having so many plants in there. Or why it always smelled like vinegar. It wasn't bad, just usual, you know? It stands out obviously, and usual, so I wondered about it.
So one day, a completely different time than this, I asked him about it. He said it was the only thing that worked on his nightmares. I thought he was making jokes, but he made this face at me, then he told me about them. He said they were as serious as could be. Always the same. First were the sea devils that comes as he was floating alone deep down. They would swim out of the black water with smooth eerie faces and needles for teeth and look at him like he was food, he said. With seaweed all over them. Covered all over, he would say, even over their heads. Knowing he couldn't get away. Then the fire people, who he said I would know, though I don't get why. Then total war, total chaos. Like people were volcanoes, he said. He said, for them, the people in his dreams, there was a small group of them. There was one guy who would always try to lead, real determined-like, though not very sure of himself. Not very confident. And Lucas would say how he- that guy- goes out and gets himself and some other people killed. But he comes back wearing a different body and tries to charm Lucas' dream wife away from him, so he has to beat him off. Which was not good. He said they were terrible. A close call- could have been, he said to me. Whatever that means.
At the time, I figured it was just flashbacks or something from the war, but then I got that last bit in my head, and I never know with him. So anyway, he found out the plants helped a little, I don't know where. Then later, someone told him about the vinegar. He never told me who. and I never thought about it until now, but I can see how it might help with the thing. Maybe I'll find out next time for you.
So anyways, I'm sitting there, thinking about that, and Lucas was whittling away over there, with his wheelchair squeaking, and I'm wondering why I didn't call first. Then out of the frickin BLUE, he says to me right then, that there would have been peace- basically forever- weren't for the conspiracy in between the worlds. Then he said there were FOUR. Brought the wrong kind of people coming around, he said. If you could call them that, he meant. At least, wrong for where we are, he said. Our side of the fence, he told me. And then he corrected himself saying he meant to say bubble. Inside of our bubble. Okay.
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