Marianne, the Matchbox and the Malachite Mouse by Sheri S. Tepper

Author:Sheri S. Tepper [Tepper, Sheri S.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fantasy, zz
ISBN: 9780441519644
Publisher: Ace
Published: 1989-08-01T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER ELEVEN

When Mouse arrived at the Dinosaur Zoo, she was relieved to find herself behind bars. An onlooker peered at her with a large and saurian eye, one which inevitably reminded her of that vast, moonlike orb which had been about to spy her as she so precipitously left G’nop, and she cowered timorously for a moment until she realized both that the bars were stout and that the creature staring at her was a civilized being. The first observer turned away to be replaced by two bonneted saurians, and when they noticed her discomfort, they politely averted their gaze and moved on. The dinosaurs were certainly courteous. A sign just inside her own cage made it clear that the zoo cages were occupied by transients. The sign read, ‘Time of transit, Dinosaur Zoo, from three to twenty-two hours.’ Next to this notice was a map of the game with a red arrow marked, ‘You are here,’ pointing to the zoo and a number of cards which Marianne did not bother to examine.

A large, furry pig in the next cage asked, rather breathlessly, ‘Where from, dearie?’

‘G’nop, most recently,’ replied the mouse.

‘Oh, by my own blessed piglets,’ the pig cried. ‘I spent the worst three minutes of my entire existence at G’nop. Lost three out of the litter and would have been gone, myself, if the time hadn’t run out.’

‘Do you know the game well?’ Marianne asked politely.

‘As well as anyone. They change it from time to time, but I’ve been around three times, including all the sidings except Moebius, thank the Alltime Boar, and take my word for it, avoid Banjog’s Mooring if you possibly can.’

Mouse nodded thoughtfully. ‘Let’s suppose I hadn’t thrown the dice, there at G’nop. What would have happened?’

‘Why, you’d have had another three minutes, dearie. I thought everyone knew that.’

‘And, if I were in the Illusion Fields, and ten thousand years passed, and I didn’t throw?’

‘You’d be in for another ten millennia. You want to watch your step there. Along about nine thousand and eight hundred years, you want to start paying very close attention to the passage of time! If you want out, that is.’

‘And if you throw a square where you’ve already been?’

‘Automatic skip over to the next square where you haven’t. Unless it’s a junction, of course. It’s all very simple, really.’

‘What if that square’s a Forever?’

‘If you land on a Forever, we all say ta-ta. Ta-ta, dearie, and it’s been nice to play with you. Forever’s pretty well gone and lost forever, dreadful sorry, pal of mine.’

‘It sounds to me as though the safest bet is just to stay in the Illusion Fields time after time,’ the mouse remarked in a depressed voice.

‘Oh, but so dull! I hate to say it about my own kind, but piggishly dull, dearie. Somnolent, slovenly, sluggardly, lie-about, do-nothing, dreadfully dull. One gets so sick of special effects! Along about the seven thousandth year, one gets absolutely fed up!’

The mouse sighed. ‘I didn’t intend to play this game just now.

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