Page 6

As you walk down the dirt road, an overwhelming smell suddenly strikes you. You hear a deep voice cry out, "Gruntnuggets! Hot, barbecued gruntnuggets, fresh off the grill! Get 'em while they last!"

You see a large crowd gathered around the gruntnugget booth. Well, they sound gross, but they must be pretty good, you figure, if they're that popular with the crowd. So you wait in line and then bravely step up to the counter.

"Hey, my name's Zuba," a giant man speaks to you. His is the gruff voice that was advertising the gruntnuggets. "You're not from around here, are you?" he asks.

"No, sir, I'm not..."

"You ever eat a gruntnugget before?"

"Well, no, sir..."

"Ah, we can't have that! Londy, serve this kid double!"

"But sir, I don't have any money," you protest.

"No money, eh?" Zuba scratches his bald head. "That's alright, first taste is on the house! I'm sure one bite'll have you runnin' back for more!"

With that, he shoves in front of you a heaping plate of steaming brown nuggets covered in a red sauce. "Eat up, kid! Next!" Zuba shouts, and you walk away balancing the plate.

The nuggets are quite messy, especially without the aid of silverware or napkins, but they're not half bad. They taste like chicken.

You walk around as you eat your gruntnuggets. Watching the fairgoers, the merchants, the children, you start to think, this place isn't all that bad. Not even all that different from home. You sit down near some scraggly bushes to finish your meal.

Suddenly you hear a rustling in the bushes and realize that you are not alone.

"Can�t a woman get a little privacy in this wretched fair?" a voice asks from behind you. You turn around and see a middle-aged woman dressed in elaborate purple robes, settling a gray wig on her head. She stands up, and you're shocked to recognize the fortune teller you'd met earlier.

"Madam Sharalinda!" you cry. "I'm sorry, I didn't know you were..."

"Oh, save it," the woman snaps. "At least I'd my robes on before you happened over."

"Madam," you begin, "If you don't mind, I was hoping to talk to you some more about the fortune you told for me."

She throws her head back and laughs. "Oh, my poor stupid child," she says. She takes your head in her hands. "You have to understand, child, fortunes are not real. I simply make them up as people come along. I don't even remember what I told you."

"So...so I'm not from another dimension? And I don't have to fight the gods?" Somehow you feel keenly disappointed.

"Ha ha! Of course not, child. I'm sorry I put such ridiculous ideas into your head. Please, pay nothing I told you any mind." And with that, she leaves to head back to her booth.

"But...but..." you stammer as she walks away. She doesn't hear you though, and you don�t get a chance to ask the rest of your questions. "So where does that leave me?" you mutter to no one. You've lost your appetite for the food. So you begin to wander around the fair again.