The Garbage Chronicles Read Online Free PDF Page A

people, more radius—and vice versa.”
    After the meckie moved on to another crew, Javik lifted the necklace pendant. It was octagonal and ruby red, with four rainbow-hue stylized faces on it: one round, one square, one triangular, one rectangular. Javik knew they were representative of different cultures and races that might be encountered in deep space. He touched a button on one side, causing the faces to spin in a blur. The mechanism beeped and flashed a green light, indicating it was operating properly. Javik shut it off and tucked it beneath his shirt.
    “The President!” Evans said excitedly.
    Javik glanced quickly at Evans, then followed the gaze of her large olive green eyes to the west. Autocopter One banked over the General Oxygen Factory, then began its descent toward Robespierre Field.
    The craft was white, with the red, yellow, and blue markings of the American Federation of Freeness. Javik saw a large presidential seal on the underside and smaller ones on each side of the cabin. The copter descended rapidly and set down in a cloud of dust, As it had dark-tinted windows, Javik could not see the President. Javik smelled dust and rubbed a speck out of one eye.
    Presently, President Euripides Ogg short-stepped from the copter to a lift, followed by two aides. The lift dropped slowly.
    President Ogg was an immense, hulking black man in a bright yellow leisure suit with green lapels. He brushed his hand through a wave of long, golden hair that he combed straight back from a widow’s peak. The aides spoke to him nervously and constantly, one in each ear. The President and his aides moved quickly to a stage that had been erected for the occasion.
    “He looks tired,” Evans said.
    Javik heard low tones from the clusters of crewmen nearby.
    As President Ogg reached the top of the stage, Javik watched the aides brush dust from the President’s suit. Then Ogg rolled to the microphone.
    The crews fell silent.
    “I’ll make this short and sweet,” Ogg said, addressing the crewmen. “Get out there and find where our catapulted garbage went!”
    “Yes, sir!” the crewmen responded. Javik felt the patriotism of the moment as he spoke in unison with the others.
    “And when you find it,” President Ogg continued, “see if the garbage can do us any goddamned harm!” He coughed.
    “Yes, sir!”
    One of the aides was a tail blond man whom Javik recognized as Chief of Staff Billie Birdbright. Birdbright leaned close to Ogg’s ear and whispered something.
    Ogg nodded, looked flustered. “Uh,” Ogg said, returning to the microphone. “I mean, report back any unusual activity.”
    “Yes, sir!”
    Without warning, a great wind swept across the field. Javik shuddered and closed his eyes as dust blew in his face and filled his nostrils. He smelled grit and sulfur. He tried to open his eyes, but a blinding flash covered the sky.
    ‘The comet!” someone yelled.
    Javik opened his eyes to slits and held his hands over them. Through his fingers, he saw an immense blue and orange fireball streaking horizontally across the sky, disrespectfully shoving aside the Bu-Tech clouds.
    “Be careful, Papa!” Wizzy squealed, peeking his head out of Javik’s pocket. “There’s water in those clouds!”
    “What are you talking about?” Javik asked.
    “Water can be terrible for a comet,” Wizzy said. “Papa is taking a big risk!” After a moment’s thought, he added, “Papa Sidney is very large, however. Perhaps a few clouds are of no concern to him.”
    Javik pushed Wizzy back in the pocket and zipped it shut. A muffled cry came from the pocket. Sid’s a comet? Javik thought.
    On the stage, President Ogg was very agitated. “Get away!” he screamed at the comet, jumping up and down and waving his arms wildly. “Get away!”
    Without Javik noticing it, his pocket zipped open. Little Wizzy leaped out and dashed across the asphalt landing field in the same direction taken by the Great Comet. “Wait, Papa Sidney!” he