Category Archives: Nautilus

December 17, 2024 · 9:28 pm

00450301

Trading her jumping jacks in for jack squats, Fern sensed (and felt and heard) a great disturbance in the force.

“Lichen!” she screamed, intuitively knowing what had caused the castle to suddenly shake as in a quake, her exercising over but her exorcising just begun.

But first there was a problem of revealing herself in a proper way to Fink, who was now grieving over the resulting possession of his beloved Princess Pinky Gumm after the attack, the invading spirit having found the correct body to inhabit. Right now, Fern was just a figment of his imagination stuck in the basement or dungeon, guarded by banana soldiers to the front back side and side. Princess hadn’t said anything; she wasn’t sure it was real herself yet; didn’t want to alarm others until she knew for sure. This story must remain PG’s and not reveal any unrestricted, naked truths. And now she’s paid the price. Lichen needed to contact Fern from the Great Beyond and she’s doing anything in her powers to make this so! Even if it means displacing the soul of another. With Fink (and Jack) in the middle.

“Princess,” calls Fink at the bedside. “Come back to us, PG.” He looked down again at her blue-not-pink face, those slime green pupils set in pitch black corneas, the clammy skin. And she didn’t smell the same either. Not all candy-like but — dare he even think it? — sort of like death. Or at least rotted trees.

“Must talk — to — *Ferrrrnn,*” the spirit hissed within the body.

“Fern?” says puzzled Fink, figuratively if not literally scratching his head at the princess’ utterance, a recurring gesture. “Who’s Fern?”

“Well… I’m guessing it may be you or an alternate version of you since Fink is close to Fern,” Jack chips in from the other side of the bed. “That’s what my dog instincts tell me. I don’t know, hmph. Prob’ly should just stick to licking my butt and other more regular dog stuff. Call it a wild hunch, then.” And he proceeds to get on the floor and lick his behind while he’s thinking about it.

“*Jack*,” reprimanded Fink at the action. “What did we talk about, huh? Not in front of the princess! Especially not *now*.” He looked down and got even more depressed and desperate.

No more words in the script for poor, possessed Pinky Gumm. Now was Fern’s chance.

“Fink,” tried Fern again in a vision over the large, sprawled out body of Susan. “It’s me. Your other half. Remember. Re-mem-ber.”

(to be continued)

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December 17, 2024 · 4:31 pm

00450216 (end (430 (words)))

“This would have probably been Fall 2015, or maybe even back to Spring 2015. But probably Fall 2015. Or even Winter 2015, or at least before the death of Bowie in Jan. 2016. This started several things. It, in a way, started the photo-novels themselves. Bowie *came* to Our Second Life and its Collagesity for a visit on his way to other destinations. This happened right after his death. He flirted with Baker Blinker, even propositioned her to go with him to the stars and leave Collagesity. This would have, of course, null and voided her relationship with Karoz Blogger (occurring just afterwards), so crucial not only to photo-novel 01 but all the photo-novels to come. They may *not* have come, you see.”

“I see.”

“Your double played a part in this. You synchronize further over the death of Bowie and the release of his last album, ‘Black Star’. Playing it right after Bowie’s death, you were amazed at its depth, how good the music was. You’d only known Bowie through his singles before this. Thus the can was opened to explore his oeuvre in a much more thorough way, which you did over the next several years. And your double went right along with you in a way, reliving his own appreciation of the Thin White Duke. After ‘Black Star’, you then moved to ‘The Next Day’, his previous album. As you told your double, there’s not a weak song on the album, which he agreed with. You also gave him a copy of ‘Black Star’ which he didn’t have. More synchronization. You were kind of moving as one. Or at least so you thought.”

“I thought?”

“Even at the start, you were not as synchronized as you thought at the time. You were a damaged soul by then. Your double represented a light in relative darkness, someone you connected to. You, in a way, in a strong way maybe, needed him more than he needed you. He had enough friends. Maybe he had *too* many friends, too many connections. You didn’t have enough, he had too many. And he had ambitions in the library, desired to be a major player there, which finally worked out for him by the time of your retirement in 3/1/22. The date is significant. It represents a place you separate from the double, are born *away* from him and back into your own sphere. You are on your own after that, just in terms of male friends. You thought you could continue that friendship beyond the library. But a wall was built at 3/1. (Photo-novel) 31 — remember that.”

“I will.”

(to be continued)

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December 17, 2024 · 4:08 pm

00450215 (beginning)

“So let’s start with the doppelganger, the green one.”

“Fern.”

“Welll.”

—–

“We first have to get to rhythm and pitch. Opposites. Remove pitch and you still have rhythm. Remove rhythm and you still have pitch. Keyboards (which I play) are pitch. Drums (which he plays) are rhythm.”

“Okay. Good start.”

“These are the musical differences, stark right up front. But then dig just a little deeper and you have similarities within these differences. The Kinks represented the first bonding point, before Bowie.”

“Right.”

“And we liked the same albums by The Kinks. Unlike the guy who worked for Norwegian.”

“Yes, he liked ‘Arthur’ and ‘Muswell Hillbillies.’ You liked ‘Village Green Preservation Society’ and ‘Lola Vs. Powerman’. These albums all line up 4 in a row from ’68 to ’71 (their ‘golden years’, along with ‘Face to Face’ from ’67), subtract the ’70 soundtrack ‘Percy,’ which was considered a more minor work.”

“Right. And my doppelganger also liked ‘Village’ and ‘Lola’. And he expressed difficulty getting into ‘Arthur’ without my prompting. *I* had difficulty getting into ‘Arthur.’ And as I recall we both really dug ‘Village.’ Hard to say they made a better album, although I perhaps like some of the individual songs more on ‘Lola’ than any on ‘Village.’ ‘Village’ is, in a way, a perfect rock album. Better than ‘Sgt. Pepper’s’ I would venture.”

“Yes, so that was kind of an original link. Now you must ask: why? Why the mutual attraction to The Kinks and even the same albums, unlike that dude who worked for Norwegian?”

“The guy who worked for Norwegian represented a contrast. To instead show the similarities between my doppelganger and myself, and how it could be different. We *speak* very easily.”

“Yes, so we have a foothold. Now move to Bowie (and others).”

(to be continued)

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December 16, 2024 · 4:36 pm

00450214

Princess Pinky Gumm had turned her grilling attention now to Fink. “So when did you first meet Fern?” she asked, knowing this was the current crux of the problem. They were still in the basement of her, ahem, castle. She didn’t like to call it a dungeon, although she knew these 2 couldn’t leave until she got some satisfactory answers, banana guards posted at the back front side and side doors. She understood about the 5 and 5 times to make 10 — that added up. She needed to know about the other, the double.

“It was across the sprawling body of Susan,” he explained. “I just looked over the top and there he was. Like me! Except, er, he was a square, and I was a circle.”

“Faces,” clarified Jack for deeply pondering Fink.

“Yeah. And green of course. He came from the grassy sword I found early. That sword combined with my ordinary one to make…” He stopped. He couldn’t continue any longer. The transference had not been complete.

(to be continued)

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December 16, 2024 · 3:32 pm

00450213

Unexpectant, tree-house topping Fern was apparently consumed by the pink, the candy, massing up from below.

Flying mastermind Constance looks down at all the chaos, topped herself by a beanie of the 4 sacred colors looking very much like our Badlands and Tibetian umbrellas from earlier posts of this here photo-novel. Has she harnessed their vast combined powers for evil instead of good? Mighty good guess.

Similarly green, jumpjacking Fern in the basement of our new Nautilus “castle” digs emphasizes that she’s not *this* Fern and that she’s fine, then starts to have second thoughts as 9 turns into 10 as the exercising continues. Think about what could happen when she gets to 45!

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December 15, 2024 · 5:12 pm

00450211 (middle)

“I’m going to have to land here and refuel at this halfway point buddy, in that I’m going to have to eat something! Sugar’s great but the energy runs out quick! Hey?!” he says, not hearing anything from the rear. “You all right back there?! Still with me I hope,” he said more under his breath, remembering the loop-de-loop they had to do to get away from the Vortex Monsters at Mt. Granny on the eastern side of the continent, this Nautilus that also was part of a hypercube of some dimension, some dimension indeed. But the hypercube shape was also the way Princess Pinky Gumm knew where they were all along. Just travel in any direction to 1/2way where you want to be and there you are.

“Yeah. I’m still here.” Fink was a little dizzy but otherwise fine from the adventure so far. “Warm and cozy curled up inside your big doggy belly, ho ho.”

“Yeah, but it’s time to let you go. HUUU WAAAAA!”

“Another really gross moment, Jack! YUCK,” says Fink, now expelled behind the plane and watching Jack shrink back to his regular size and shape before him. He shakes himself dry of the intestinal juice — he *hopes* it’s just intestinal juice — and stands up.

Perfect timing, because just then Princess Pinky Gumm arrives in her gummmobile — er, gummobile. Pink in color obviously, like herself. “Fink, Jack! So it’s *you*.”

“Yeah,” says Jack nonchalantly. “I guess we’ve returned or something.”

“*10* years, fellows. 10… YEARS. Where on God’s pink Earth have you been?”

“Umm,” says Fink, scratching his head.

“Err,” says Jack, scratching somewhere else.

(to be continued)

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December 15, 2024 · 3:59 pm

00450210 (end)

“Warning warning. Destructive couple on the way from the west south north east central.”

Gotta get that internal compass fixed sometime, thinks Princess Pinky Gumm. But she knew it really didn’t matter. Here. “Okay, great candy sentry!” she shouts up. ” You continue to keep watch on the, er, *castle* while I try to meet them 1/2way!”

“No meeting those hell bent on destruction 1/2way,” booms down the sentry. “I sense… the death of candy. Split in two.” And here candy sentry splits himself in two for a brief moment to illustrate his point.

Princess Pinky didn’t explain that by 1/2 way she meant space not negotiating tactics. Candy sentry was rather simple that way. Fixed on things in a rather one dimensional manner. But the death of candy? What was going on here?

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December 5, 2024 · 7:47 pm

00450114

I may have found a home in upper lower right left central Nautilus, continent that is, search at least ended for now. It could be enough, despite being only a room and access to a “collective” basement called The Crypt, spookily enough. Maybe there’s a reason the rent was so cheap!

The candy sentry is still present from photo-novel 25 when the Mosses — Fern, Lichen and, ahem, Redd, the red one — lived here, still looking out for intruders on his land. My Candy Shoppe didn’t make it the last time, existing for only a couple of weeks before deletion. But I have a different plan this time. Maybe the sentry can’t see *in*, as in the house he looms outside of and stares away from. I join the appropriate group so that I can rez objects and set up in my room there, also placing my newly bought barrel in the cellar. Let’s go with wine. Superb; somewhat costly but not too costly, especially for the quality. Gotta start somewhere I figure, and middle is often the safest and wisest choice between upper and lower.

We’ll see if I can stay longer this time.

(to be continued)

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June 15, 2024 · 1:17 pm

00430302

—–

“I’m actually here looking for V, Emeralda. Have you seen him around lately? Horns, you know, like me, except two of them. Like if Benny and I were one again, Horns of Hatton and all. We’re looking to synchronize the left and the right again, two parts of one. Side for you, side for me.”

“V is in a different world,” spoke Emeralda in that strange, smokey voice of hers. Only 1/2 woman at best. 1/2 human actually.

Jer Left Horn waited for more, then had to ask himself. “Okay, *which* world?” Authoritative tone for an authoritative man. Brother Benny’s in contrast was ordinary, even goofy. Like he didn’t give a damn about his high position in the world. Except for the women — low self esteem you see — figures it’s the only way he can get any.

“His own”, she answered, then just vanished from the couch after flashing him some weird sign, he observes. First a V with one hand then a V with the other with the first still held up, then joined together. VW… V or Val’s World? he ponders later.

Great, Jer Left Horn thinks in the present. My only contact in this God forsaken place disappeared into thin air like the green genie she is. He’ll have to poke around himself, see if he can find any more clues concerning the whereabouts of his… well… father. *Supposedly*.

Meanwhile, on a different world, V looks to switch bodies again, knowing new agents were on his trail. This doofus will do, he thinks, seeing the figure superimposed with his letter as he passed him on the streets; determined it was destiny. To prepare the transfer, he’d have to stalk the fellow for a while, learn his habits, figuratively live in his skin before doing so literally. All this coming from the future — shouldn’t be hard since it was preordained. Pieces should fall into place pretty quickly, he thinks. Side for you, side for me.

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March 17, 2024 · 2:34 pm

00420308

She tried to see the town of Morgan’s Gap through the clouds and mist but no go. The snow was falling just too hard. Probably no way to get down there either. They’d have to entertain themselves at home again. How about…

… counting how many elephants there are around the house before going to bed.

—–

Later she had that dream where she was dressed in 2 pepper shirts at once, #s 1 and 2 as it were. She intended to sing The Beatles’ “Strawberry Fields”, always starting with an apology, playing the role of Lennon, that she left it off of the “Sgt. Pepper” album, blaming the omission on Big Business. “If I could only go back… but, after all, that’s what this song is all about.”

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