What Post Is This? What Body Is This? What War Is This? (02/03) Date/Time: Sat, July 14; early afternoon By: Knighties Katrinka and Brooksie All Knighties used with permission. ________________________________ The first thing to hit Beth when she walked into the Loft was the vast number of books scattered around. The Loft now resembled the Narnes & Bobles bookstore she had just been to. Several Knighties sat around reading the books. Katrinka was sitting at the kitchen table. She pulled a pen out of her hair and made a note on a piece of paper. "Is school back in session?" Beth asked idly fingering one of the books on the table. Katrinka glared at the woman. "Don't use the 'S' word." "What's the 'S' word?" Nancy lifted her head from her seat on the coach. "School! I don't want to talk about school!" Katrinka hissed. "But you're a teacher," Beth tried to reason. "I'm on vacation. I don't want to think about teaching!" Beth picked up a book. "_The Biography of Lurco_?" Maria handed Katrinka a piece of paper. The woman looked at it. "That's great! Keep up the good work, Maria." "Sure thing Kat." Maria took the book from Beth and went back to the couch. She sat down. "What are you doing?" Beth demanded. "Trying to find the answer to the body switch problems." "Where did you get the books? You didn't buy all of these, did you?" "They're Nick's." said Marla. "Nick doesn't usually have tons of books in his Loft." "He usually keeps them in the library, one floor down." Katrinka looked at Beth. "Why don't you stop talking and help out." "How can I do that?" Beth plopped down in the chair next to Kat. "Look for anything strange." Eowyn piped up from the floor in front of the wide-screen TV. "Can I have an example?" Katrinka picked up a book. "See this book? It's the biography of the former French president and WWII Resistance Fighter, René Artois." "Yes, I've heard of him." "World facts are wrong in this book!" exclaimed Kat. "Name one," asked Beth, crossing her arms. "It says that World War Two lasted until 1949." "Perhaps it's a typo," shrugged Beth. Katrinka picked up another book. "This is the biography of artist Frank Pike. It also states that the war lasted until 1949. And this," Kat waved a third book at Beth, "this is the autobiography of Captain Marring. It agrees with the other two; World War Two lasted until 1949," she concluded triumphantly. "How do the books say that the war ended?" "That Russia took over Europe," Said Eowyn, sitting up cross-legged on the floor. "You mean the Soviet Union." Beth corrected. "No! Russia!" Katrinka showed Beth a map, labeled clearly "Republic of Russia." The date of printing was 1951. "History has changed!" "How can history just change like that?" Beth couldn't keep the disbelief out of her voice. "Look at the map again, Beth. It also shows the Roman Empire." "We need to tell Nick!" Beth said, finally convinced. The Knighties all just rolled their eyes at her. "He's tired. He hasn't had much sleep," said Kat wearily. "He only made it to the Loft just as it was sunrise," said Eowyn. "He was smoking," added Maria breathlessly. "And he had globs of pigeon poop all over him, too!" laughed Marla. "Nick took himself upstairs, with a few bottles of blood, for our own protection. He said he had some important news for us. But meanwhile we should start to look through the history books in his library downstairs for some klews," said Nancy. Just then Nick Knight came out of his bedroom and bounded down the stairs. His hair was still damp from the shower. Stopping at the kitchen table he surveyed the Loft and the studious Knighties. "How's the hunt going?" "We found something, something big." Katrinka told him excitedly. "What did you find?" Nick asked damply. "I think we've entered an alternate universe." "Why do you think that? Wasn’t that in another War?" Katrinka held out the map. Nick glanced at it. "What has this got to do with anything?" "Look at it, Nick! The Roman Empire never fell!" "And World War Two didn't end until 1949!" Beth added. "Whatever gave you that idea?" Nick looked askance at his Knighties. "We found several biographies, and one history book!" "Show them to me," he commanded. Katrinka handed the books to Nick. The vampire had an unexpected reaction. He grinned. Then he began to laugh. And laugh. And laugh. His laugh was so infectious that some of the other Knighties began to giggle along with him. "What's wrong?" asked the slightly deflated Knightie leader. "These are science fiction books!" Nick said holding his sides. "I was a fan of the author, so I collected all of his 'New World' collection." "Science fiction." the woman seemed very upset. "If you look, the books all have the same publisher, and the same author." Nick said gently. Realizing that Kat’s was hiding her face from him, he knelt down gave Katrinka a hug. "Keep on trying Kat. You'll find the truth eventually." "What *is* that truth, Nick?" Kat said shakily. "'I am he as you are he as you are me and we are all together.'"(1) Nick recited. "Goo-Goo, Goo-Goob?" Nancy added. A klew hit the Knightie leader like a hammer. "Lewis Carroll! We can find the answer in the books of Lewis Carroll." "What do you mean?" Beth felt as if the leader had gone around the bend again. Kat rolled her eyes at her. "Nick quoted from "I Am the Walrus." The song's based on a poem by Lewis Carroll, 'The Walrus and the Carpenter.'" Katrinka dug for a book. Finding it she began to quote the poem. "'The time has come,' The Walrus said, 'To talk of many things: Of shoes - and ships - and sealing-wax - Of cabbages - and kings - And why the sea is boiling hot - And whether pigs have wings.'" The Knighties sat on the leather sofa and chairs and pondered another Lewis Carroll reference. Nick ambled over to the refrigerator and took out a wine bottle. "Somebody going to restock my fridge?" he asked. "Sure isn't a lot of moo juice left in here after our last visitor!" Kat threw some popcorn at his head. --------------------------------- (1) Lyrics from "I Am The Walrus ('No, you're not.' said Little Nicola)", Lennon/McCartney, copyright 1967 Northern Songs, Ltd. **** END Part 02/03 *****