The Eyes and the Impossible by Dave Eggers

Author:Dave Eggers [Eggers, Dave]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Random House Children's Books
Published: 2023-05-09T00:00:00+00:00

TWENTY-ONE

During this low-profile time, even though I couldn’t be the Eyes myself, my reports to the Bison still needed to be made, so for the next few days I skulked to the rounded rock—going slowly, slowly, skulking so slowly it pained me, it ruined me, it was so humiliating to go so slow, but going fast would bring attention. At the rounded rock, I would scamper to the top to meet the Assistant Eyes and ask them for their reports. I would listen to these reports, determine what was important and what was not, and then Bertrand would convey my report to the Bison. It was not a perfect system but it was all we had.

This particular day, I waited at the rounded rock for the Assistant Eyes to arrive. First was Sonja, and as usual, she acted as if she had interrupted a private gathering.

“Oh, hello,” she said. “I’m just here for the meeting. But I can leave if you want…”

I reminded Sonja that she’d been coming to our meetings for six hundred years, that she was a valuable member of the team, and our friend to boot, so there was no need for this shyness. I wanted to tell her that I’d said exactly this to her a million and one times, but didn’t, because already she had begun to smile.

“Okay,” she said. “So I guess I’m here.”

Angus scampered up at that moment, which was startling, because never before had he been close to on time, and by my estimation, this time he was early.

“I got a clock,” he said.

I didn’t know what a clock was. I turned to Sonja, hoping she did, and that she might explain it, but her look was blank.

“It’s a human thing,” Angus said. “It tells you when to do things and go places. I got one, taught myself time, and now I’m always prompt. By the way,” he added, “our meetings are at noon. That’s the time-word for when the Sun is straight above us.”

This was too much information for me to take in all at once. Angus was using a human device and would always be prompt? It seemed against the natural order of things. But then I remembered I was wearing an unsightly human-made sweater, and thought: Hm! Seems we are all going through some significant changes!

And I decided not to say anything more about it.

A great warm shadow swept over us and I knew Yolanda was above. She landed with her usual chaos-clatter of wings and feet. I said hello, and Angus said hello, and Sonja just squinted through her remaining eye in a way that seemed friendly.

We waited for Bertrand on the rounded rock, and I wanted badly to begin. To get our reports out of the way, first, and then begin to plan again for the escape of the Bison.

“Anyone seen him?” I asked.

“Not for a bit,” Yolanda said. “I saw him by the windmill earlier in the morning. But that was some time ago.”

“Speaking of time,”

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