Digital Daydreams
by Arthur Sanchez
Here's a sample story from Digital Daydreams:
INVASION
Professor Graham, may I speak to you, please!”
The tall figure in the filthy lab coat turned furtively. His wild eyes and unkempt hair made him look
more like a feral cat than a Nobel Prize winner – but it
was definitely him. “No interviews,” Graham mumbled as
he began walking away.
“Professor,” Catherine said, falling into step
with him, “you’re going to have to speak to someone. The
media isn’t giving up until somebody gets an interview
-- and it might as well be me.”
“Go to hell,” Graham snapped back.
Catherine gave him a mock look of dismay. “Go to
hell? You don’t really want me to broadcast
that.”
“Yes! Yes, I do!”
Catherine arched an eyebrow. “I’m sensing you’re
not happy with your new found fame. Aren’t you proud to
be the discoverer of the dragons?” At the word, Graham
cringed as if expecting one of the pigeon-sized reptiles
to come swooping down on him.
“I
was going for a velociraptor,” he answered.
Catherine reached into her pocket and turned on
her tape recorder. “So, you never intended to breed the
delightful little creatures who are presently taking the
world by storm?”
Graham looked at her. “If you’re going to tape
what I have to say, you could at least offer to buy me a
drink.”
Catherine didn’t blink. “Ok, so where can we get
a drink at two in the afternoon?” Graham nodded across
the street and began to move like a man with a purpose.
“So, you were trying to make a dinosaur?” Catherine
asked as she jogged along.
“Yup,” Graham answered tersely. “The military
would have paid millions for it.”
“Ok, the dragons were an accident. But why
aren’t you glad you created the sweet, eco-friendly,
creatures who are bringing happiness to
millions?”
Graham rolled his eyes. “Eco-friendly? The damn
things are a plague. They breed like rabbits, choose
their own owners, and –“ he paused to look up and down
the street, “are single-handedly responsible for the
disappearance of pigeons. Nobody seems to care that an
entire species may become extinct because of them.” He
stopped in front of a local tavern. “In here.” He held
the door open for her. Catherine entered the dark smoky
interior of the bar. “But they’re intelligent, clean,
and incredibly civic-minded. Crime is down and several
wars have been halted because the dragons won’t let
people hurt each other. The dragons are quite impressive
when they’re riled up.”
Graham stepped up to the bar. “Whiskey. A
double.”
The bartender, a thin balding middle-aged man
looked at Catherine expectantly. “Nothing for me,” she
said, “thanks.” The bartender shrugged and then went to
pour Graham his drink.
“That’s just it,” Graham said, “they’re starting
to take away our rights.”
Catherine frowned. “What rights, exactly, are
you talking about?”
The bartender handed Graham his drink. “The
right to be miserable. Look, it’s all fun and games now
but the little bastards have a plan. I know they
do.”
Catherine wondered how much of this interview
her producer would let her air. It had started out fine,
but now the good doctor was just coming off as a nut.
“The dragons,” she said slowly, “have a plan?”
Graham slurped his drink. “You said it yourself
-- they’re smart. The first one learned to open his
cage. But he didn’t try to escape until I’d made six of
them. Noooo, he waited until there were enough to start
a breeding colony and then they took off like a shot. By
the time we found the nest there were hundreds of them.
People think the dragons just want to be loved -- that
they just want to be held. But nobody is that cute.
They’ve got an agenda. The dragons have successfully
worked themselves into our lives and now there’s no
getting rid of them. Did you know that dragons actually
purr?”
Catherine sheepishly nodded her head. “Ah, yeah,
I do. I own a purple one. His name is Grape Juice. And
when you scratch him under the chin, he purrs so loud
you’d swear he was a motorboat.” She found herself
grinning stupidly at the thought.
Graham’s eyes went wide. “You -You’re a dragon
lover?”
Catherine tried to look innocent. “Yeah but that
doesn’t affect my objectivity.”
Graham wasn’t listening. He looked around as if
he was expecting to be attacked. “They know I’m here.
They’re coming, aren’t they?” With a scream he spun on
his heel and fled out the door. Catherine watched
through the window as he first ran one way and then the
other.
“What a nut case,” she said to herself as she
thumbed the off button on her tape recorder. Turning,
she found the bartender standing behind her.
The older man was holding an emerald-green
dragon in the crook of one arm and was scratching her
diligently under the chin. “Yeah,” he said to her, “the
Professor is always ranting and raving about something.”
The bartender noticed her looking at his dragon. “This
here is Ginny. Get it? Gin instead of Jen. She wandered
in here a couple of weeks ago and I sort of adopted
her.” The little dragon opened one eye to look at
Catherine.
“She’s a beauty,” Catherine said as she began to
pet the creature’s head. “I own a purple one. His name
is Grape Juice. Would you like to see some pictures?”
The bartender’s face beamed. “Would I? I hear
the purple ones are really rare.”
“Oh, I don’t know about that. He just dropped in
through the sunroof one day like he was expected.” She
started giggling. “Sometimes, he has the cutest
expressions.”
The two of them began to chat as if they were
old friends. All talk of agendas was forgotten as their
love of dragons brought them together. Nobody even
noticed the smile on the little green dragon’s
face.
Critical comment on Digital Daydreams:
DIGITAL DAYDREAMS
Reviewed by Barry Hunter, editor, Baryon Online review ezine.
I don't know if Arthur Sanchez was one of Jean Goldstrom's discoveries when she was editing Anotherealm.com(No, I can't take the credit. He was Gary Markette's find, and well found! -- Jean) but her picks for Whortleberry Press's ebooks have been very competent and this one is no exception.
Sanchez presents nineteen short stories of fantasy, horror and science fiction and is equally at home in each genre. "The Game" is a poker game where you truly must know when to hold 'em and when to fold 'em. A thief, a beggar and a Caliph play "The Game of the Phoenix". A boy looks for a hero in "Idols of Clay". Who really knows "The Things a Man Would Fear"? "The Wrecker" lures boats to their death on shore until he meets his own wrecker. Old folks in a nursing home play "Bingo" for medical treatment.
These and other stories are available here to amuse and entertain you in this latest offering from Whortleberry Press. Be sure to check their other offerings as well.
--Barry Hunter
http://www.baryon-online.com
DIGITAL DAYDREAMS
reviewed by Gary Markette, editor, Anotherealm ezine.
Read any good short stories lately? No. I mean really good short
stories. Short stories that make you think. Short stories that raise the
hairs on the back of your neck. Short stories that bring tears to your
lips or smiles to your eyes. (And, no, I didn't mix that up.)
Well, I
have. I've just finished Arthur Sanchez's terrific collection Digital
daydreams (now available through Whortleberry press) and the only regret
I have is that I didn't get to read them sooner. The Fantasy tales will
amaze and wondify, the Horror stories'll keep you awake at night, and
the Science Fiction yarns will give you hope for the future of the
field.
A great job by Mr. Sanchez and a coup for Whortleberry Press,
this collection rivals the best that e-fiction has to offer and
approaches the quality of the great compilations of the 70s and 80s.
Read the stories. They're outstanding. But make sure you don't start
them when you have to get up for work the next morning.
Trust me. You won't be able to put them down.
--Gary Markette, editor
http://Anotherealm.com
This book comes in both 6x9 inch paperback form and ebook (3 1/2 inch floppy) form. For details on the 6x9 paperback form, click here. For details on the ebook version, click here.
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