The DeFacto of Anomolea Part 1: The Disappearance of aaron and Mordechai

Aga burst into ‘Pintos Pint’, her eyes frantically scanning the room. ‘Ok Pinto…what have you done with them?…I’m gonna kill ‘em. Zig and Lennard are worried sick!’ aaron and Mordechai had now been missing for more than 2 weeks.

The last time, when they returned to the land of the real after 6 days (the longest they had ever disappeared), it was discovered they had spent the entire time in Pintos Pint partaking in a very long game of poker with a 15ft Lizard and a talking shrimp named Heidi, while sampling a new range of Belgian Beers Pinto had just bought in. ‘I no see them...uhooo…in weeks Aga!’ barked Pinto in his usual, slightly deranged tone, ‘Last time I see them they with small hooded man in corner there…uhooo…they leave together.’

At the mention of a ‘small hooded man’, Aga became very frantic. She had heard tales of this man before…leading imaginary friend off in the middle of the night, never to be seen again. Some said he was pure evil, others said he used to be called Steve…and that is how he came to be known these days as Stevil, the most notorious henchman of The DeFacto.

I must at this point divulge some information we have not until this point revealed. Life in Anomelea (the land of the imaginary) is no bed of roses. For years, a dark cloud has hung over most of the land…literally, a dark cloud, pulsating with flashes of light and swirling vapor, very mysterious, know only as The DeFacto and every year it gets steadily bigger, sucking up whole continents of Anomelea as it goes.

Many theories have been presented toward the origins of The DeFacto…some say it has always been there; others say it formed around the same time as such things as television, computers and sedative drugs formed in the land of the real…but no one is entirely sure. But as The DeFacto has no solid physical attributes in Anomelea, it must use mind control over a select few ‘Henchmen’ to carry out its dirty work…mostly the kidnapping and assassination of high profile Imaginary Friends.

‘Kidnapping and assassination’…

‘Shit!’ thought Aga and sped out of the bar on her roller-skates. She didn’t quite know what she was going to do, but knew she had to it fast. To get too close to The DeFacto would be very risky but then, aaron and Mordechai had saved her life only a matter of months ago by introducing her to Sylvia and thus giving her a reason to continue to exist...she needed a plan…and fast.

Somewhere in a dark tower far, far away, strung up by very tight chains attached to a cold, damp stonewall, aaron awoke. Mordechai, who had miraculously managed to get a cigarette into his mouth and light it without the use of his hands, had come too only a few minutes before; ‘Well…this is another fine mess you have got us into.’ ‘Easy Mordy! You were the one that insisted on playing cards with a shrimp!’ aaron tried to shake his bony wrists through his shackles to no avail. ‘Where the hell do you think we are anyway?’

But before Mordechai could have a chance to answer, the huge wall opposite them began to slide very slowly open, the sound of stone rubbing against stone was near deafening. Flashes of light could be seen around the sides of the frame as it slid open to reveal the horrible truth of what lay beyond. ‘You have got to be kidding me…’ shuddered Mordechai.

Before them, sprawling and writhing as far as the eye could see, lay The DeFacto…

To be continued…

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