WIP Wednesday: Too Many Tacos

 

Too Many Tacos

The day would have been a hilarious experience to most observers, but not to the Yaddithian wizard Zkauba, who cursed his decision to come to the Jopsan Market in Sakrab in the hopes of purchasing a necessary component for his pilfered soft drink dispenser at a pittance. He had only intended to remain for as long as it took to obtain the part, but before he knew it, he had consumed too many tacos chased by more than a touch too much Jopsan Nectar, a zesty fermented beverage that tasted like a perfect combination of Terran apple cider with cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice.

“Blasted Jopsan Nectar is like drinking a fizzy apple pie!” the tapir-faced, bird-headed, insectoid wizard groaned as he hurried into a clandestine alley where he could empty his bursting bladder behind a waste receptacle. “Curse it all, in my time on Earth, I learned to love Terran foods far too well! I should have stuck to my plan to get the necessary component for the dispenser and get out, but how could I resist a tasty street taco or a dozen with a pint or two of Jopsan Nectar to chase them ever so delightfully down my gullet in a fizzy fountain of flavor?”

The silver key on the black metallic cord around Zkauba’s wattled neck vibrated and glowed.

“Yes, yes, my precious friend, I am aware that they are in pursuit,” Zkauba acknowledged. “I must manipulate my form, so they are not able to spot me as quickly. I shall transmogrify myself into the form of a…”

At that moment, a shepherd walked by the alley with a flock of bleating sheep. Before Zkauba had the chance to hone his spell, he was transmuted into a sheep himself.

“Blast!” Zkauba bleated. “Well, I suppose they won’t be looking for a sheep, so this may be advantageous. Still, I had better hide lest an overly zealous shepherd attempts to integrate me into his flock.”

Zkauba glanced up and spotted a charming vase full of sunflowers sitting in a windowsill. As he looked at the sunflowers, he began to salivate.

“Oh, this is ridiculous,” Zkauba wailed, his complaint bursting forth in an impassioned bleat. “I cannot very well accomplish my mission in the guise of a sheep! What I need is a good night’s sleep. Perhaps this ramshackle building can serve as a hotel. Then again, perhaps I should just return to the base beneath Tfgil and rest for a time before seeking out the component to my drink dispenser in a place that is Nyarlathotep-free. Blast it all, why could I not have turned into a bird? Then I could flutter up and away through the window instead of having to climb stairs on four legs!”

Zkauba was conscious of the clacking of his hooves as he loped up the stairs in the nearly abandoned tenement. He had the odd thought of wondering if his wrists would hurt when he changed back to his normal form, considering that he was not usually a quadruped.

Acknowledgments

Nyarlathotep is the creation of H.P. Lovecraft, initially appearing in his 1920 story of the same name.

Yaddith, the silver key, and the wizard Zkauba appear in the 1934 story “Through the Gates of the Silver Key” by H.P. Lovecraft and E. Hoffmann Price.

The following prompts from https://puttingmyfeetinthedirt.com/ was also utilized in the creation of this story.

Too many tacos

The story utilized the Saturday Mix prompt Mad About Metaphor.

https://mindlovemiserysmenagerie.wordpress.com/2020/11/07/saturday-mix-mad-about-metaphor-7-november-2020/

The story used the 8 November 2020 Sunday Writing Prompt “Creating Context.”

https://mindlovemiserysmenagerie.wordpress.com/2020/11/08/sunday-writing-prompt-8th-november-creating-context/

The story utilized the words from the 9 November 2020 Wordle.

https://mindlovemiserysmenagerie.wordpress.com/2020/11/09/wordle-214-2/

Sortable- someone you can take anywhere without being embarrassed

Sunflowers

Windowsill

Charming

Impassioned

Conscious

Wrists

Salivate

Venus

Sleep

Hotel

Flutter

 The story was also inspired by this prompt from the Reedsy weekly short story contest. (write a space adventure story that features a visit to an alien marketplace.)

https://blog.reedsy.com/creative-writing-prompts/science-fiction/write-a-space-adventure-story-that-features-a-visi/

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https://lbry.tv/@naughtynetherworldpress:d

The Icky, Sticky, Nit-Picky Legalese If You Please (Or Don't Please)


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This chapter is from my WIP, The Key of Eidolon, which is the second book in the Tales from the Dreamlands series. If you enjoyed this chapter, please consider purchasing the first book, Ketil and Yitzy's Adventure in the Xura Dream House.


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1 comment:

  1. I really enjoyed this romp - while feeling for Zkauba. Thank you.

    ReplyDelete

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