Against the Day Read Online Free PDF Page A

something.”
    “Sounds more like it was all that
Chinese foofooraw you mentioned,” said Darby, “nothing you caused. Here, do you
smoke these?” lighting up a species of cigarette and offering one to Chick.
    “My GreatAunt Petunia!” exclaimed
Chick, “what is that smell?”
    “Say, it’s cubebs. Medicinal use
only. No tobacco allowed on board, as you might recall from your Chums of
Chance Membership Oath.”
    “Did I swear off? I must’ve been all
confused in my mind. No tobacco! Say, it’s the goldurn Keeley Cure around here.
How do you people get through your day?”
    Suddenly what sounded like a whole
kennelful of dogs began to bark furiously. “Pugnax,” explained Darby, noting
Chick’s alarmed expression.
    “Him and what else?”
    “Just ol’ Pugnax. One of his many
talents. Guess we’d better go have a look.”
    They
found Pugnax up on his feet, clenched and alert, watching the outer darkness
intently—from what the boys could tell, poised to launch a massive
counterassault on whatever was now approaching their perimeter.
    “Here you go,” called an invisible
voice, “nice doggy!” Pugnax stood his ground but had ceased barking, apparently
judging the visitors nasally acceptable. As Darby and Chick watched, out of the
evening came a giant beefsteak, soaring in an arc, slowly rotating, and hit the
dirt almost exactly between Pugnax’s front paws, where he regarded it for a
while, a single eyebrow raised, one would have to say, disdainfully.
    “Hey, anybody home?” Into the
firelight emerged two boys and a girl, carrying picnic baskets and wearing
flight uniforms of indigo mohair brilliantine with scarlet pinstripes, and
headgear which had failed to achieve the simpler geometry of the wellknown
Shriner fez, being far more ornate and, even for its era, arguably not in the
best of taste. There was an oversize spike, for example, coming out the top,
German style, and a number of plumes dyed a pale eclipse green. “Howdy, Darb!
What’s up and what’s down?”
    Darby, recognizing them as members of
Bindlestiffs of the Blue A.C., a club of ascensionaries from Oregon, with whom
the Chums of Chance had often flown on joint manœuvres, broke into a welcoming
smile, especially for Miss Penelope (“Penny”) Black, whose elfin appearance
disguised an intrepid spirit and unfaltering will, and on whom he had had a
“case” for as long as he could remember. “Hello, Riley, Zip . . . Penny,” he added shyly.
    “That’s ‘Captain’ to you.” She held
up a sleeve to display four gold stripes, at whose edges could be seen evidence
of recent needlework. The Bindlestiffs were known and respected for granting
the loquacious sex membership on a strictly equal footing with boys, including
full opportunities for promotion. “Yeahp,” Penny grinned, “they gave me the Tzigane —just
brought the old tub in here from Eugene, got her berthed down past that little
grove of trees there, nobody worse for wear.”
    “Wwow! Your first command! That’s
champion!” He found himself shuffling nervously, and with no idea what to do
about his hands.
    “You better kiss me,” she said, “it’s
tradition and all.”
    Even with the chorus of hoots it
evoked from the other boys, Darby found the fleeting brush of her freckled
cheek against his lips more than worth the aggravation. After introductions,
Chick and Darby brought out folding camp chairs, the Bindlestiffs opened their
baskets of delectables, and the colleagues settled down to an evening of
gossip, shop talk, and skystories.
    “Coming in over ‘Egypt,’ downstate
Illinois to you, Darb, we caught us an upriser off a cornfield by Decatur,
thought we’d be onto the dang moon by now—’scuse me”—pausing to
sneeze—“icicles o’ snot down to our belt buckles, goin all blue from the
light of that electric fluid, ’s whirlpoolin round our
heads—ahhpffeugghh!”
    “Oh, Gesundheit, Riley,” said Zip,
“but last time you told that one, it was