Part 11 (1/2)

”I'm lost.”

”OK, follow the metaphor. You're in the restroom, then you're here.

Point A to point B.”

”Uh-huh.”

”You're here, and then you're in a new world. Not another planet, another level of existence. Somewhere you normally can't get to from here. You've gone from point A to point . That's where we're trying to get to. Got it?”

Kurt thought about this.

”So why this conspiracy?”

”It'll take a concerted effort if we're going to take the town with us.”

Kurt's jaw dropped. ”All of it?”

”Every last citizen and every last piece of concrete. A community isn't an easy thing to build, is it? So we'll just bring along what we've got.”

”Including Wildcat Graham?”

”Who?”

”She's a senior at Tranquil High.”

”Yes, if she's in town.”

”What about Wendy Branwell?”

”Yes, her too,” Denny said, placing his head in his hands.

”And --”

The door burst opened. Denny and Kurt turned to see Prof. Sigger enter wearing a white lab coat and holding a clipboard -- a smirk borne of a thousand cut-throat departmental meetings perched cruelly on his lips.

”Allow me,” said the latest recruit. ”Due to recent vacancies I was offered a post... tenure track, of course! Let me interrogate this capitalist.”

”I'm a capitalist,” Denny said, sternly.

”Oh yes, yes,” Prof. Sigger replied. He turned to Kurt. ”Now, when did you first notice that you were being indoctrinated by right-wing ideologues?”

”What?” Kurt asked, scratching his arm.

”When did you become a mind-numbed robot? Why have you become resistant to income redistribution?”

Kurt looked at Denny, who was rubbing the bridge of his nose.

”It's going to be a perfect world with him along?” Kurt asked.

Denny looked up and stared at his colleague for a moment, who then disappeared. The clipboard fell to the floor. Kurt stared at the s.p.a.ce before him that used to occupy Prof. Sigger.