[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

woman born" stuff all came true the witches were as surprised as anyone. So
never fall for their little scams  it'll drain your wallet before you know
it. Who are you, anyway?'
'Thursday Next,' I said, 'I'm standing in for '
'Ah!' he muttered thoughtfully. 'The Outlander. Tell me, how do escalators
work? Do they have one long staircase that is wound up on a huge drum and then
rewound every night, or are they a continuous belt that just goes round and
round?'
'An  um  continuous belt.'
'Really?' he replied reflectively. 'I've always wondered about that. Welcome
to
Caversham Heights
. I am
Captain Nemo. I have some coffee on the stove  I wonder whether you would
grant me the honour of your company?'
I thanked him and we continued to walk along the lake's edge.
'A beautiful morning, would you not agree?' he asked, sweeping a hand towards
the lake and the puffy clouds.
'It usually is,' I replied.
'For a terrestrial view it is almost passable,' added Nemo quickly. 'It is
nothing but a passing fancy to the beauty of the deep, but in retirement we
all have to make sacrifices.'
'I have read your book many times,' I said as courteously as I could, 'and
have found much pleasure in its narrative.'
'Jules Verne was not simply my author but also a good friend,' said Nemo
sadly. 'I was sorrowful on his passing, an emotion I do not share with many
others of my kind.'
We had arrived at Nemo's home. No longer the sleek and dangerous craft from
20,000 Leagues under the
Sea
, the riveted iron submarine was a shabby wreck streaked with rust, a thick
green line of algae growing on the glass of the two large viewing windows. She
belonged to a redolent age of high-
technological expectation. She was the
Nautilus
.
We made our way up the gangplank and Nemo helped me aboard.
'Thank you,' I said, walking down the outer casing to the small conning tower
where he had set up a chair and table upon which stood a glass hookah. He
pulled up another folding chair and bade me sit down.
'You are here, like me,' he asked, 'resting  between engagements?'
'Maternity leave  of a sort,' I explained.
file:///G|/Program%20Files/eMule/Incoming/Ja...Well%20Of%20Lost%20Plots%20(v1.
1%20htm).html (92 of 212) [10/15/2004 12:52:28 AM]
Jasper Fforde - Thursday Next 03 - The Well of Lost Plots
'Of these matters I know nothing,' he said gravely, pouring out a cup of
coffee; the porcelain was White
Star Line.
I took a sip and accepted the proffered biscuit. The coffee was excellent.
'Good, is it not?' he asked, a smile upon his lips.
'Indeed!' I replied. 'Better than I have ever tasted. What is it?'
'From the Guiana Basin,' he explained, 'an area of sea scattered with
subterranean mountains and hills every bit as beautiful as the Andes. In a
deep valley in this region I discovered an aquatic plant whose seeds, when
dried and ground, make a coffee to match any that land can offer.'
His face fell for a moment and he looked into his cup, swirling the brown
liquid around.
Page 93
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
'As soon as this coffee is drunk, that will be the end of it. I have been
moved around the Well of Lost
Plots for almost a century now. I was to be in a sequel, you know  Jules
Verne had written half of it when he died. The manuscript, alas, was thrown
out after his death, and destroyed. I appealed to the
Council of Genres against the enforced demolition order, and I  and the
Nautilus
, of course  was reprieved.'
He sighed.
'We have survived numerous moves from book to book within the Well. Now, as
you see, I am marooned here. The voltaic piles, the source of the
Nautilus's power, are almost worn out. The sodium, which I
extract from sea water, is exhausted. For many years I have been the subject
of a preservation order, but preservation without expenditure is worthless.
The
Nautilus needs only a few thousand words to be as good as new  yet I have no
money, nor influence. I am only an eccentric loner awaiting a sequel that I
fear will never be written.'
'I & I wish I could do something,' I replied, 'but Jurisfiction only keeps
fiction in order  it does not dictate policy, nor choose which books are to
be written. You have, I trust, advertised yourself?'
'For many years. Here, see for yourself.'
He handed me a copy of
The Word
. The 'Situations Sought' page took up half the newspaper and I read where
Nemo pointed it out.
Eccentric and autocratic sea dog (ex-Verne) requires exciting and morally
superior tale to exercise knowledge of the oceans and discuss man's place
within his enviornment.
t
French spoken, has own submarine. Apply: Captain Nemo, c/o
Caversham Heights
, sub-
basement six, WOLP.
'Every week for over a century,' he grumbled, 'but not one sensible offer.'
I doubted that his idea of a sensible offer would be like anyone else's 
20,000 Leagues under the Sea was a tough act to follow.
'You have read
Caversham Heights
?' he asked.
I nodded.
'Then you will know that the scrapping is not only inevitable, but quite
necessary. When the book goes to the breaker's yard, I will not apply for a
transfer. The
Nautilus
, and I too, will be broken down into text 
and long have I wished for it!'
He scowled at the floor and poured another cup of coffee.
file:///G|/Program%20Files/eMule/Incoming/Ja...Well%20Of%20Lost%20Plots%20(v1.
1%20htm).html (93 of 212) [10/15/2004 12:52:28 AM]
Jasper Fforde - Thursday Next 03 - The Well of Lost Plots
'Unless,' he added, suddenly perking up, 'you thought I should have the advert
in a box, with a picture? It costs extra but it might make it more eye
catching.'
'It is worth a try, of course,' I replied.
Nemo rose to his feet and went below without another word. I thought he might
return, but after twenty minutes had elapsed I decided to go home. I was
ambling back along the lakeside path when I got a call from Havisham on the
Page 94
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
footnoterphone.
12
'As always, Miss Havisham.'
13
'Perkins must be annoyed about that [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]