Alec tried to quickly scan the document. The print was about the smallest he had ever seen. The text was strewn with number and letter codes that referred the reader to other sources. "You’ll give me a copy of this right after I sign it tonight?" Alec said loudly, just to make sure that the Omnivore 90 and the other people in the room would hear.

"Yes, yes, yes, Alec. I’ll give you a copy as soon as you sign now."

Alec took up the pen that the general had passed over, signed quickly, and pushed the paper back to the too smiling general.

"Excellent, Alec. A very smart and patriotic move I must say." Then turning toward the man hunched over the computer console, the general snapped. "Stan, give me a standard disk with the last three minutes of the Omni 90."

Almost without delay, the man got up and brought a standard computer disk to the general. "Here we are, Alec, your personal copy," the general said as she slid the disk across the table. The smiling teeth jumped as the general stood up with an audible snap.

"But, but, I wanted a paper copy of the signed agreement. I want, at least, to read it all later…to see if I have any questions."
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"Sorry about that Alec" the general murmured as she began moving to the door. "We didn’t say anything about paper, just a copy. Anyway, paper copies are inefficient. And my legal boys tell me that the multi-channel recordings of my Omnivore 90 qualify as legal documents. Section 99 of the Code…ummm."

Alec lingered in his chair at the table as the general opened the door with an exit gesture. At the same time, the two MPs moved silently to a position directly behind him. Alec stood deliberately, grasped the computer disk, and walked slowly to the door with a fell look on his face and a steady gaze drilling down on the smarmy general.

"Just put that disk in your PC, kid. It’s just like a video game. After you open the files, just use the orientation controls to read that whole form." The general gave Alec a light pat on the shoulder as he left the room.

The two MPs escorted him out the front door of the now-deserted café. Ordinarily, the café would have been humming with lively conversations, laughter, and music at this time of night. But the two formidable MPs who stood at the café’s door were not allowing just anyone to enter.

Driving back to his studio apartment on the outskirts of town, Alec composed himself with a breathing exercise. His mind was in a tumble cycle as he reviewed the day’s events. Why had the general talked about an enemy intruder when all he had experienced was a sense of connection and gentleness from the being? Why did he fall for the general’s excuse for the computer copy of the confidentiality agreement? Why did he still feel he had experienced a rendezvous with a strange but sentient friend? Jumbled thoughts and feelings accompanied him all the way home.

In his modest studio, only a few miles from campus, Alec constructed a fast sandwich, found some Cheese Nibbles, and resolved to not give the strange visitor any more thought until tomorrow after a good night’s sleep. But in bed, with the invigorating, cool night air drifting in through the open window, he could not help but see images of the day’s vivid events flash by again. One thing was sure, Alec decided, the being had been trying to say something, to communicate something good. Somehow, the thing had connected with him, Alec Booner, the Special Grip and Roaming Housekeeper of the Café. "I’ll be back soon little friend," Alec whispered into the darkness just as sleep slipped upon him.
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