Wednesday April 18th, 2012

The exercise:

Let us see what we can do with: the box.

Just to warn you of what's coming, I unintentionally ended up with a connection between today's, tomorrow's, and Friday's prompts. What I started today just didn't want to be left alone, I guess. Consider it sort of a themed three days, if you will.

The Canucks managed to stave off elimination tonight with a big win. So they're heading back to Vancouver, down 3 games to 1, but still alive and kicking. 

And the drama continues...

Mine:

Over the course of three days, identical metal boxes were delivered to every home in the village. A brief note accompanied each package, informing the recipients that the box would unlock when the electronic countdown affixed to its side reached zero.

It didn't take long for the entire village to discover that zero hour was the same for everyone: Monday morning at eight o'clock.

Several homes tried to get a sneak peak, bringing hammers, drills, crowbars, and, in one case, explosives to bear. None were successful.

As the moment edged nearer, tensions and questions increased. Who had sent them? Why had their village been chosen? Was it a lottery of some sort? A contest?

Of course one was put forth most often, threatening to drown out the rest.

What's inside?

4 comments:

Cathryn Leigh said...

Gee you made me look up the properties of copper wire. Which means you get to learn about Transium, the wonderful metal I invented for my Science Fiction universe. :}

The Box - from the files of the Nueri-Nin-Ni

“What is that?” Rachael eyed the box being loaded onto her ship.

“Transium container,” the technician grunted.

Rachael eyed him as he pushed it along with the tip of one gloved finger. Sure the anti-gravity sled made it easy to do that but the expression on his face was laughable. You’d have thought the thing was poisonous. Well, it was rumored to cause insanity after prolonged exposure, but the thing was in a gigantic shielded container. The man had as much chance of going insane from that as he did of getting Mercury poisoning from replicated fish!

“And how much is in that monstrosity?” Rachael asked.

“About 7 pounds.” The technician gingerly pushed it form the anti gravity sled to the its spot in the cargo hold.

“So roughly 92 thousand feet of 36 gauge Transium wire and it takes up the same amount of space as that length of 16 gauge wire?” Rachael raiser her eyebrows at him.

“Well with the shielding and everything...” He hurried past her, obviously eager to get out of Rachael’s Transium filled ship.

Shrugging Rachael walked up to the box and opened its lid. There was at least a foot thick of shielding around the inside of the box. She frowned at the coils of the thin Transium wire that made communications while traveling faster than light speed possible.

“What are you doing?” Michael peered over her shoulder into the box.

Rachael slammed the lid shut making her partner jump back. “All that f’ing packaging is going to make my side business hard.” She stormed past him heading to the bridge. “Taking up at least twice as much f’ing space as it f’ing should.”

“Yes but...”

“Insanity, I know, but,” Rachael spun about to face him planting a kiss upon his lips before continuing, “why not shield one of the cargo holds and keep one of those monstrous boxes for loading and deliveries in the cargo bay?”

She smiled, her eyes twinkling as she turned back to get the ship ready for takeoff.


@Marc - oh my, I'm afraid of what's in there. I think I'd be running for the hills and watching those boxes from afar... though it could just be that I've watch too many movies. :}

it's weird to be the first poster so late in the next day. :}

Anonymous said...

the box

Back in the 70s, they made a soapie on B&W TV called The Box.
It was a seething, sexy morass of nonsense that suited the era of ball-breaking feminism and freed up, sexual expression.
It lasted through the decade until the more innocent Grease inspired 80s took over, just before gangsta rap spoiled the airwaves for ever.
I watched it maybe twice, not having had the stamina nor stomach for that kind of tripe.
Never have, actually.
You'll catch me sitting on a box, reading, or packing a box, for moving, or maybe even playing a box with my hands late on a Friday night in an Irish pub in Galway, but you'll not catch me watching The Box, nor "the box" unless it's a doco.
Like the box, I guess I'm just square.

Krystin Scott said...

Faith Hope walked the litter strewn sidewalk of a New York city street. Stopping on the busy corner of an intersection she placed a wooden box upon the ground and climbed aboard. Raising a bible high above her head she began to shout out to the cities inhabitants as they passed by "repent the end is near!" She pleaded, begged, and demanded for the morning commuters to understand and take action. "Get right with God while there is still time." No one seemed to notice, they just walked by as if she was invisible. An hour later Faith's voice was hoarse. Feeling as though she had accomplished nothing she lowered her arm and slid down off the box. Taking the box up in her hands Faith Hope continued alone down the litter strewn sidewalk of the same New York City street.


<>
ill try the 3 day with this weird start. 1. 2. 3. Here we go!

Marc said...

Cathryn - hah, I like your technician.

And yeah, it's strange not having Greg around, isn't it?

Writebite - sounds to me like passing on that show is a wise move. Great last line, by the way :)

Krystin - sweet! I'm curious to see where you'll take this with the next prompt to guide you.