> A little esoteric fun as we delve into consciousness and see what
> surfaces. Where is MRI when you want it?
>
> ~ ~ ~
>
> "Another Tale of the Dragon, the Final Saga,"
>                     Or:
> "Dinosaurs Have Been Extinct for 65 Million Years!"
>
> The bone chilling scream split the warm summer night in two.  I was
> sipping
>
> My fourth cup when I heard it.  I slid off the seat and onto my feet,
> the
> cool handle already in my hand.
>
> "Damn!" I thought, "Here it comes!"
>
> Slipping out the door I could feel the eyes of the cook on me, she had
>
> Become suspicious after the third cup.  The warm night air reached my
> nostrils with the subtle odor of the city.  There they were!  Across
> the
> street three men
>
> were struggling with my contact, trying to get into a car.
>
> "Hold it!" I yelled, as I dashed behind the car parked in front of
> mine.
>
> "Shit, trouble," one of them said, his voice carrying in the air,
> "Come
> on!"
>
> Quickly the struggle ended as my contact was half dragged, half pushed
> into
>
> the back seat of the car, which took off like a shot, tires squealing
> and
> doors slamming on the move.
>
> It seemed to take ages to get my keys.  I had left the door unlocked,
> and
>
> With gun in pocket I took off.  The taillights were a favorite pattern
> of
> mine, no trouble to recognize from a distance. They turned a corner
> and I
> gave them a
>
> good nighttime lead, then stuck on their tail.  Traffic wasn't heavy
> and I
>
> didn't lose them.  My contact told me to expect trouble, and here it
> was.
> I had brought four full clips and a box of shells for my 9mm. In the
> trunk
> I had put a
>
> shot gun, just to be on the safe side, for those creeps that play for
> keeps.
>
> I'm glad I did, with that came three boxes
>
> of shells and a flare gun, and my cell phone has one button 911!
>
> Up to the water front they went, and stopped next to a big black
> sedan.  I
>
> stopped behind a car that I hoped was a safe distance away.  Good,
> they had
> taken no notice.  Staying low to the ground, I climbed out of my car
> and
> opened
>
> the trunk.  I poured some shells into my pocket and took my shot gun--
> I
>
> was ready.  Parked trucks giving me cover, I slipped up to them.
>
> Three were eight of them with my contact, two of them had her off to
> the
>
> side, and an animated discussion was being pursued.  The other six
> were at
> the far end, with the two cars between them and the hushed talking.  I
> was
> far from
>
> their minds crawling underneath the big rigs.  I had my shoulder right
> up
>
> against a wall, with a rig right in front of me, and I took a deep
> breath.
>
> "I said hold it!"  With shot gun at ready, I bellowed, whipping around
> the
>
> corner firing two shots over their heads.
>
> There was an appropriate scramble as they were ducking for cover,
> while my
>
> contact headed straight for me.  Two more shots kept heads down as she
> reached me.
>
> "Oh my goodness, that was close," she said to me breathlessly.
>
> "I'm parked right down the street," I hissed to her, "Get Going!"
>
> "OK," she said, and ran crouching down the sidewalk.
>
> "Stay put damn-it," I cried, as one more round roared into the night.
> I
>
> followed her, with only one sharp crack in answer behind me.
>
> Both of us in my car, I started it up, slammed it into reverse and
> spun it
>
> around, then made tracks.  With no lights, I cut two corners and
> pulled
>
> into a parking lot, shutting off the engine.
>
> "Get down," I said, and we ducked.  Three minutes, five, seven, safe.
>
> "All right," I said after a deep breath.  "Here's the trouble you
>
> predicted. What are we going to do next?"
>
> She directed me to a project's steam house.  This whole affair was
> over a
>
> priceless Egyptian artifact, what we were doing here escaped me, but I
>
> followed her into the building with only the 9mm.
>
> Machinery throbbed around us as we headed for the back of the
> building, and
>
> then down some steep metal stairs.  At the bottom was a dirt floor.
> Overhead, plumbing and machinery surrounded us. In a clear area on the
> floor there was a
>
> manhole cover that stated to glow with a faint blue light when we
> approached
>
> it.  She had been unwrapping a velvet bundle.
>
> "What the Hell is that?"  I asked.
>
> "What the Hell indeed."  Said a voice above us, as six armed men with
> dark
>
> glasses on, broke from the shadows, and
>
> two men came down the stairs.  "It seems as if we have found what we
> were
>
> looking for."
>
> "Put it on," she whispered to me, as she handed me a gold ring with a
> large
>
> scarab on it.
>
> "Yes, put it on," said the man who had been doing the talking, "And
> touch
>
> it to middle of that cover."
>
> I put the ring on, and the cover flashed a blinding blue.  When the
> glow
>
> faded, the cover now had hieroglyphs embossed in it, with a scarab
> shaped
> depression in the middle.  I fitted the ring into the cover, there was
> a
> click, and
>
> they started to glow red, but there was no heat. As I stood up, I was
> frisked and relieved of my 9mm.  Meanwhile the cover had started to
> unscrew
> all by itself.
>
> "Me and you my friend," said the talker to me.  To the others he said,
>
> "Lift that lid."
>
> Three of the armed henchmen bent over and seized the cover and
> strained to
>
> Lift it.  Then suddenly it gave way with a thunder, throwing the lid
> over
> to one side.  Black flames burst out, rising nine feet into the air
> before
> they cleared.
>
> "Jesus Christ!"  I said as I leaped backwards, bumping into hands that
> grabbed me.
>
> "Holy Shit!" cried another voice.
>
> "Calm down," said the talker.  Then to me, "She has chosen well I see,
>
> you're the perfect man for the job!"
>
> "That ring only works for certain genetic types, you should be proud
> of
>
> Your heritage.  Your line can be traced to the ancient Egyptians.  Now
> jump!"
>
> Into the pit I jumped followed by someone that I didn't notice who it
> was.
>
> The drop was about 7 feet, the area was made of a cobblestone covered
> by a
> glowing blue moss, and stretched into the distance with no walls in
> sight.
> I started running.  In front of me, to the right, it seemed as if the
> moss
> had a lane where the glow was dimmer. Meanwhile the ring tugged at my
> finger as if it would fly on its own if I
>
> Let it go, and it tugged to the right.  Having no where else to go at
> this
> point, to the right I went.  The sound of my feet was muffled by the
> moss.
> The ring pulled with
>
> an urgency that was quite frightening.  Up ahead, there was a dark
> round
> patch
>
> that grew into another manhole lid.  In the center of that was another
> indentation.
>
> "Well, how scared are you?"
>
> I turned around, and it was the man who had done all of the talking,
> but he
>
> Was unarmed now.
>
> "We have entered the wells of Thoth!"  he exclaimed.
>
> "Throughout the ages, men have searched for the secret of true
> mystical
>
> might! Some who reach this far do not survive!  Some never reach
> anywhere
> close, and still die not knowing how much blood they wasted in a vain
> attempt
>
> at trying to reach the light of the moon-- And here we are !!  There's
> no
>
> turning back now my friend, we must go down or perish where we are!
> I'm
> sure that at least you would like this mystery solved my friend, and
> the
> solution is
>
> in that well!"
>
> I believed him.  The ring alone was enough to convince me, let alone
> where
>
> We were!  So in answer, I placed the ring in the depression.  This
> time
> after the click, they started to glow greenish-white.  And as the
> cover
> turned, there was a
>
> sound just at the threshold of hearing.  It was a deep sound that was
> almost
>
> felt more than heard, behind it seemed an implied threat to any who
> would
> dare to tamper with the unknown of the Cosmos, someone like myself.
>
> And it happened!  The lid burst up with green flames, and the sound
>
> Increased to painful pressure.  We backed away from the well and the
> sound
> became
>
> Louder still.  Then the source of the sound emerged from the well!  It
> was
> a
>
> dragon! This lizard was huge and I mean it!  It had scales that were
> metallic
>
> blue-green, red whiskers and needle sharp teeth in a head the size of
> a
> large
>
> tiger's.  And it looked hungry to me!  I could understand now!  The
> sound
>
> was the roar of the dragon.  It pulled its feet out of the well and
> started
> to
>
> lift its body up.  The ring had my fist tingling like an electrical
> charge
> was building, and it pulled to the dragon like iron to a powerful
> magnet.
> Charges were building!
>
> A high pitched tone started to clash with the low roar of the dragon,
> and I
>
> knew it was the ring.  So I pointed my fist towards the climbing
> reptilian
> beast.  There was a spark!  The discharge exploded the head of the
> dragon,
> and the
>
> body just consumed itself in the green flame.  The well was now clear.
>
> I jumped down unmindful of my "buddy."  I was going to be first
> whatever
>
> happened, and if I went, maybe the ring would go with me, or why else
> would
> I be here?
>
> This time the drop was about ten feet, my legs throbbed a bit, and my
> soles
>
> smarted as I landed.  It was pitch black and I was apprehensive.  The
> ring
> continued to give off a green light and a tug, so off I went.  I could
> see
> the floor for
>
> a pretty fair distance around me, it was flat stone tiles as near as I
> could
>
> guess, and as I ran, hieroglyphs appeared to be carved into the stone,
> and
> they were covered with some kind of glaze. The glaze colored most of
> the
> glyphs, but
>
> there were some spots that were clear.  The pathway this time was a
> line of
>
> men that had the head of some kind of bird with a long curved beak.
> They
> were almost life sized, carved into the floor, flanked by smaller
> glyphs on
> either side.
>
> It was easier to follow this path to the well, I left my "buddy" far
> behind.
>
> When I reached the well, I didn't hesitate to insert the ring.  This
> one
> was made of smooth stone, and just quietly started to revolve.  I
> stepped
> back and waited.
>
> Soon a cinnamon smoke odor reached my nostrils, then the lid gently
> flipped
>
> open.  A normal looking fire filled the opening, and the odor of
> cinnamon
> filled my mind as well as my lungs. Slowly white smoke billowed from
> the
> well,
>
> and a shape emerged cloaked in its thickness.  I backed up again, the
> ring
>
> at ready.  The smoke rushed at me, and I pointed the ring at the
> figure.
> An invisible bubble seemed to surround me, and the smoke pushed up
> against
> it as it
>
> flowed around me.  I could feel a rubbery hardness pressing the front
> of my
>
> body, though nothing was there.  It cut off my breath for what was a
> long
> moment for me, then the smoke cleared.  I stood facing the Sphinx!  We
> looked at
>
> each other eye to eye, and again my mind filled with cinnamon smoke.
> I
>
> pointed my ring at it, and it didn't budge. Nothing seemed to happen
> except
> that my head wanted to explode into cinnamon. It took one massive step
> forward. My head wanted to disintegrate.  And then with a soft pop,
> the
> Sphinx evaporated...
>
> This time when I jumped into the well, I could immediately feel
> something
> different. I was strongly aware of the awe of my very own life/death.
> It
> was mixed with a powerful sense of sublime bliss and reverence, and of
> my
> own unworthiness. The emotions were so overwhelming that I fell to my
> knees, for the moment unable to move. This is what I was here for of
> course, so I forced myself to my feet. With my mind reeling, and my
> vision
> blurred with gushing tears, I staggered in the direction that the ring
> was
> tugging, each unsteady step taking a mighty effort. After a while,
> with
> time losing its meaning to me, I now felt irresistibly drawn forward.
>
> So forward I went. Step by step I fought the emotions that washed over
> me.
> As powerful as these emotions were, I wanted to know what the end of
> this
> process was. Why was I here? What was going on? The answers lie
> straight
> ahead. I felt more than saw my destination as I approached it. It was
> a
> simple stone altar. All of the emanations came from it, or rather from
> a
> crystal ball that rested on it. This was what was pulling me to it. I
> seized the crystal and all that I felt, all of my life itself, was now
> concentrated in this very object that I held in my hands. There was
> only
> one thing to do, and I did it! I raised the crystal up with both
> hands, and
> threw it down, shattering it on the floor!
>
> These indeed were strange goings on for our hero. When he shattered
> the
> crystal, his entire being was shattered also. He felt himself torn
> away
> from his body on Earth, and rise up towards the sun itself. Away from
> his
> mundane existence, there was a new life awaiting him. Into the heart
> of the
> star he went, becoming one with it, becoming something more
> extraordinary
> than will ever be the fate for other humans. As he rejoiced in his new
> status, he felt something else, something more ominous. He felt
> hungry.
> What would a star eat? Why other stars of course. His decision made,
> he
> left his position as it were and took off to find another star to eat.
> He
> released all of the planets and other flotsam that orbited him from
> his
> gravitational influence, and left them behind. As he traveled away,
> the
> Earth's atmosphere froze solid, now devoid of the life giving energy
> it
> once had. He searched until he found a suitable candidate, and
> consumed it.
> With this new input he grew larger and stronger, but in the end, he
> hungered again. Once more he moved through the interstellar distances
> to
> find more food. Once more he found a likely star and ravaged it. Once
> more
> he grew larger and stronger. Once more, he was unsatisfied. Again and
> again
> this happened to him, he was a rogue star out of control. Larger and
> larger
> he grew, like an interstellar Pacman, he consumed stars one after
> another,
> with no end in sight. Finally it happened. He had grown so large after
> his
> last meal, he couldn't hold himself together. He went supernova. Now,
> now,
> he found peace. After lighting up the entire galaxy, his consciousness
> became one with the entire universe. He had no focal point anymore, he
> was
> just aware of everything at once. If he tried, he could perceive all
> of the
> galaxies at once as tiny specks of his existence, but it was just as
> blissful to just know that he was alive and conscious, totally
> idyllic.
>
> --
> meltdarokhttp://hometown.aol.com/meltdarok/http://www.mediafire.com/?9bmgyggtlx7