THE METROGNOME AND OTHER STORIES.

Alan Dean Foster.

INTRODUCTION.

GYRO GEARLOOSE, the ultimate inventor created by the immortal Carl Barks, one day invents a machine that can answer any question. Deciding to start it out with something simple, he points to a small bird outside his window and inquires of the device, "Why is that bird singing?" Whereupon the machine replies, "Oh, maybe he"s glad, maybe he"s sad, maybe he"s a little mad. "

The great Gearloose was not expecting lack of precision. He promptly embarks on a series of attempts to best his own creation by learning exactly why the bird is singing. Repeatedly frustrated, he is forced to invent an entirely new machine to translate the bird"s voice so he can ask it the question directly. At which point it declaims, "Maybe I"m sad, maybe I"m glad, maybe I"m a little mad."

Which is not a bad reply for an author to give when asked why one writes short stories.

There"s certainly no practical reason to do so. Only a handful of writers can make any kind of living from writing short science fiction today. The rewards are in novels. The financial rewards, that is. There are other kinds.

When readers get together, they seem to spend most of their time discussing novels. Short fiction rates a mention only in pa.s.sing, if at all. But when they"re alone and reminiscing, I have this hunch it might be an author"s short fiction that they remember most fondly. Something about a short piece"s very brevity helps it linger in the mind.

Ideas tend to get lost in a novel, overwhelmed by character or drained by the need to support the plot. In a short story the idea is paramount, not the hero or alien menace. The idea is the story. Brevity lets the author concentrate on the idea to the exclusion of all else. Nor are there considerations of length to worry about. A novel must be a certain length to be acceptable. In short fiction the development of the idea determines the length.

That"s why it"s so difficult to create real characters in a short tale, where the luxury of time is not present. Where the idea is paramount, the writer must accomplish the task of character description quickly. There"s no time for idle chatter or a profusion of florid adjectives. In one story Eric Frank Russell identifies a minor character thus: "He was a real ladies" man; big, handsome, stupid." There you have character created, described, slotted, and dismissed in less than ten words. Not an easy trick to perform. It takes work.

There"s something unmatchably satisfying about a good short story. It offers rewards a novel can"t duplicate. That"s why we order large steaks and small chocolates." The steak may be more nourishing but not necessarily more rewarding. Sometimes we just crave chocolate.

Just as a writer will find himself compelled to write short fiction even though it may not be practical to do so. I think it makes short stories a purer form of storytelling. Odds are, any short fiction you read was written not because the author thought he or she could make a lot of money from it but because it was a story he or she really wanted to tell or a story that forced itself to be told.

Short fiction is also the abode of today"s most interesting fiction. In ten or twenty pages the writer can play without concern, can experiment or try something utterly absurd. Conformity and familiarity are not vital to the success of a four thousand word story. A good idea is. If the tale works, well and good. If not, the author has had fun trying. Writers of novels turn to the short form for recreation. I think you"re also much more likely to find that an author has written short stories for himself, with less of an eye on potential markets, than is the case with novels. In the end, of course, the readers judge for themselves.

A collection is usually about the same length as a novel. The Metrognome and Other Stories contains tales designed to frighten, to make the reader laugh, to make one wonder or think or just smile. Few novels permit such versatility in so few pages. It"s one time when the writer hopes that the whole is not greater than the sum of its parts.

ALAN DEAN FOSTER.

Prescott, Arizona

OPERATOR a.s.sISTED.

CALLS ARE CHARGED AT.

A HIGHER RATE.

The telephone company is a living organism, a gigantic single celled animal that the historic breakup into regional companies called Baby Bells hasn"t changed. Like some vast gelatinous creature reemerging from the primordial economic ooze, it is slowly reforming itself. Baby Bells are already starting to form alliances against each other. Sooner or later we will once again live in a society dominated by a single communications network, because the inevitable end product of deregulated free enterprise is a monopoly. The strong exist to eliminate the weak and inefficient in search of greater profit, until there are no weak left. Monopoly is monopoly whether accomplished by merger or by collusion.

Whoa, wait a minute. You mean this isn"t the book on late twentieth century economic theory? It"s science fiction and fantasy?

Shoot. The introduction still stands.

Actually, things were better when the original AT&T was in charge. You knew your call was going to go through, just as you knew the pay phone would return your quarter if asked and the handset wouldn"t pull free in your fingers. The downside, of course, was that you had no alternatives before the breakup. If you used the phone, you had to use Ma Bell. It"s a good thing those voices on the other end were trained to be polite.

Oh, so polite . . .

Parworthy slammed the receiver into the floor and followed up by kicking it as hard as he could. It bounced off the near wall, rolled over several times, and lay still, bright and limp as a" dead centipede. Working to get himself under control, Parworthy took long, deep breaths. Several minutes later he, bent to retrieve the battered instrument.

Still no dial tone. He jabbed insistently at the disconnect b.u.t.ton, but no siren song of service trilled back at him. He might as well have been cupping a seash.e.l.l to his ear.

Angry and frustrated, he yanked the cord out of the wall socket. As far as he was concerned, the single plug connection was the only sensible advance the telephone company had made in ten years. A quick trip to the kitchen produced a paper sack, in which phone and cord were promptly entombed.

It was terribly aggravating to a man of Parworthy"s temperament. The worst thing about it was that you couldn"t call and complain when the subject of your complaint was the telephone itself. Parworthy prided himself on the neatness and efficiency of his new home. Everything else worked. Should he expect less of the phone system? It was no excuse that his retreat was five miles from the nearest branch line, a small fortress of cedar and native stone perched atop a granite outcrop on the western slope of the Sierra Nevadas. He generated his own power, drew water from his own well, heated his house with wood and solar. The phone company was the one utility he couldn"t do without.

When the house was finished, he tried doing without it, subst.i.tuting two way radio and CB instead. They turned out to be inadequate replacements for access to the international electronic ganglion monopolized by the phone company. No, he was stuck with it, just like everyone else who wanted to be in touch with the rest of the civilized world.

If he"d been running the phone company, problems like this would never crop up. Too much laxity in management today, as far as he was concerned. Uncertainty in decision making, too much willingness to let blue collars dictate company policy and direction, and an inability to adjust to government restrictions all combined to weaken the resolve of even the largest corporations. Bunch of pansies at the top, Parworthy was convinced. He"d run several companies prior to his retirement. True, turnover was high, but so were profits. That was the way to run a business.

He tossed the bag into the back of the Mercedes, pulled out of the garage, and started down the private drive leading to the highway. It was nearly an hour"s drive down into Fresno, to the nearest office worth complaining to. Parworthy deeply resented the waste of his valuable time, retired or not. He also hated driving on city streets, even in a relatively small metropolitan area like Fresno. Above everything else he valued his privacy, which was why he"d retired to the isolation of his new mountain villa.

People got out of Parworthy"s way even when he was in a good mood. A big man, Parworthy was used to bulling his way past or over those he couldn"t outtalk. When he stormed into a building the way he did into the telephone company"s office, the other customers instinctively made a path for him.

Turning the sack upside down, he dumped the flip-phone onto the counter in front of the clerk. She was a pretty young thing, easy on the makeup, ruffled blouse and businesslike brown skirt. Parworthy picked up the phone and thrust it under her nose.

"This is the sixth time I"ve had service go out on me; and I"m G.o.dd.a.m.n sick and tired of it!"

"I"m sorry, sir. If you"ll just calm down a little and tell me what"s "

"What"s wrong? You bet I"ll tell you what"s wrong! I"ve replaced phones all month in my new house, and it doesn"t matter what color or model they are because none of "em are worth the plastic they"re made of! I"m lucky if I can get three days worth of service before something else goes out on me. That"s what happens when any outfit gets a virtual monopoly on any business. Sloppy service, sloppy manufacturing. Be better for the country when the whole stinking system is decentralized."

"Sir, I apologize, but "

"I don"t want your apologies, woman, I want the service I"ve been paying for and not getting! I can"t even get a lousy local call through to the neighborhood grocery store, let alone place a call back east."

The clerk was near tears now, uncertain how to proceed and thoroughly intimidated by the roaring, bl.u.s.tering apparition that was Parworthy.

"What"s the trouble here, Mildred?"

She turned gratefully to the newcomer. "Oh, Mr. Stapleton, it"s this gentleman. He "

Parworthy immediately jumped on the newcomer, a thin young man with a wide tie, retreating hair, and gla.s.ses.

"It"s your d.a.m.ned excuse for a communications system! Do you know how much I had to pay per hundred meters of line just to get service at my house? Outrageous! Now I can"t even call my doctor."

"I see . . . Mr. Parworthy, isn"t it?" The man extended a hand. "If you"ll just let me have a look at your phone, maybe we can locate the trouble."

Parworthy handed over the flip phone. The supervisor looked it over, then extracted a screwdriver from the rank of small tools lining his shirt pocket and undid the base. After a short inspection he looked over the counter and spoke softly.

"Mr. Parworthy, this telephone has been subject to more than normal household use."

"You trying to tell me it"s my fault?"

"I"m not saying that you haven"t had difficulties with your service, sir, only that this unit shows signs of non-factory damage. It takes quite a lot to affect the insides of these new solid state units, yet this one has more than several pieces broken or loose."

"What am I supposed to say to that? Can I help it if you can"t make a st.u.r.dy piece of equipment?" Parworthy kept his gaze squarely on the supervisor. "All right, so maybe I lost my temper a little and tapped it a couple of times. I was doing so in the faint hope I might get it to work. Can you blame me? A whole month I"ve been trying to phone out from my house. I might as well be trying to talk to the moon."

"I"ll take over here, Mildred." The clerk beat a hasty retreat to another counter. Stapleton smiled thinly at his irate visitor, activated the screen of a nearby computer terminal. He took a moment to study the readout, spoke without glancing away from the screen.

"This isn"t the first damaged phone you"ve brought into this office, Mr. Parworthy."

"Junk. Plastic. Cheap components. Corner cutting at the plant. I used to be in manufacturing, and I know garbage when I see it. Maybe you can pan this dreck off on the general public, but I won"t stand for it in my house."

"It"s not just a question of inoperative units, sir," the supervisor went on, still studying the information displayed on the green screen. "I see from this report that running a line to your house was unusually difficult. The terrain is steep and rocky. On any tertiary line as long as yours there are always problems with moisture, wildlife, falling tree limbs, and such."

"I paid for service, not excuses."

"The point is, sir, that on any private line of that length interruptions in service are to be expected, especially during the first several months. We"re doing our best to correct the problems. I"m sure you understand that we can"t keep a whole field crew on call simply to work on your line. If you"ll just be patient, I"m sure that by the end of next month at the latest these troubles will iron themselves out."

"I understand that I"m paying for service I"m not getting."

The supervisor sighed. "Don"t worry about that, sir. You won"t be charged for any time service is interrupted."

"I don"t think you understand me, young man. I am not interested in being patient. I am interested in receiving the service I paid for. I have friends on the California Utilities Board, and I don"t think they"d understand, either. If you couldn"t supply proper service, you never should have agreed to run the line."

"That was our feeling here when your request for connection came in, sir. We were overruled, however, by orders from the regional office in Los Angeles."

Parworthy allowed himself a knowing smirk. "You bet you were. You"ll be hearing from that office again real soon, too, if the trouble with my line isn"t fixed immediately." Many people owed him favors from his days in industry.

Stapleton bit back the reply he wanted to make, forced himself to maintain a deferential att.i.tude. "Take a replacement phone from the display rack, sir. I"ll record your complaint and enter it into the computer"s trouble file . . . along with the others." That was something of an understatement. Parworthy had a file all to himself.

The retired industrialist turned to take his leave, not bothering to lower his voice. "I want it fixed by tonight, understand? Work in the dark if you have to, but let"s see some action around here!" He departed, waving his new phone around like the head of some decapitated enemy.

The first thing he did after finishing supper was try out the kitchen phone. It was scratched and dented from previous a.s.saults but, having escaped the bulk of Parworthy"s fury, was still intact.

To his considerable surprise he got a dial tone right away. It had been his intention to fire off an angry letter to his Los Angeles contacts first thing in the morning, describing his treatment at the incompetent hands of the local b.u.mpkins. Now he could call it in.

That would be poetic justice. Despite the fact that the Fresno office had sent a work crew up the dangerous mountainside after dark, it would still be worthwhile to file a formal complaint concerning all the delays and trouble he"d experienced. Keep the natives on their toes. He grinned at the thought. The next time they saw him coming, they"d jump to it. And there would be a next time. He was sure of that. Past experience had shown that service wasn"t likely to last more than a few days at best.

He flipped through a tattered notebook until he found the private number he wanted. Wexler wouldn"t enjoy filing the complaint, but the man owed Parworthy several times over for favors granted as long as ten years ago. Parworthy never forgot a debt. He dialed the numbers.

The phone rang at the other end. He started to say, "Andrew Wexler, please, tell him it"s " but a mechanical voice, familiar and indifferent to interruption, broke in on his request.

"I"m sorry, but that number has been changed, and there is no new number."

That wasn"t what Parworthy wanted to hear. Must have mis-dialed, he thought. He tried again. Ring and click.

"I"m sorry, bat that number has been changed, and there is no new number."

Frowning, Parworthy checked his book. It was possible Wexler had changed his number during the past year. Maybe he"d gone public. Parworthy dialed Los Angeles information -213 555 1212- and waited impatiently for a response.

"I"m sorry, but that number has been changed, and there is no new number."

"Now wait a minute," he shouted, "this is information. There has to be " Click and dead at the other end.

He sat there in the kitchen chair and considered, finally smiling and nodding knowingly. They"d fouled it up again, by heaven. The crew that had obviously worked on his line had done nothing more than subst.i.tute a new problem for the old one. Shaking his head, he dialed the night number of the Fresno office.

"I"m sorry, but that number has been changed, and there is no new number. "

"Hey, wait!" He gripped the phone so hard, his knuckles whitened. He was about to slam it against the leg of the kitchen table when he thought better of it. There was one more possibility. He dialed the operator.

"May I help you, sir?"

Well that was something, he grudgingly admitted.

"Indeed you can, woman. I"ve been having service trouble on this line for nearly a month. My name is Max Parworthy, 556 9928. I"ve been trying to dial a friend in Los Angeles, and all I can get is a recording saying the number has been changed. Not only that, but I get the same recording when I dial Los Angeles information. I wish you people would get your act together. "

"I"m sorry you"ve been having trouble reaching your party, sir. If you"ll give me the Los Angeles number, I"ll try it for you."

"That"s better," he said curtly, providing the information. He could hear the system dialing. There were a number of peculiar clicks and beeps, followed by a replay of the same recording he"d heard before.

"Explain that one," he challenged the operator.

"I am sorry you"ve been having trouble, sir. Perhaps you wouldn"t be experiencing these difficulties if you treated your line with a little more respect."

Parworthy gaped speechlessly at the receiver. It took him several seconds to regain control of his larynx. Even so, he was so outraged, he could barely sputter into the phone.

"Now see here, young woman, I what"s your name? By G.o.d, you give me your name! I"m going to report you to your supervisor. I"ve never heard such arrogance, such downright discourtesy, in "

"There, sir, you see what I mean?" the voice interrupted. The speaker was evidently unimpressed by Parworthy"s tirade. "If anyone on this line has a corner on arrogance, it isn"t me."

"You you " He got himself under control, frowned at the receiver. "Wait a minute. How do you know how I treat my phone line? I"ve never talked to you before this, have I?"

"Your actions have become common knowledge throughout the system, Mr. Parworthy."

That made him feel better. His complaints had reached all the way down to the rank and file. He felt a perverse pride at the extent of his reach. It was something he"d missed since retiring, that feeling of power over others. It made him feel so good, he lowered his voice.

"I can imagine that, young woman. My actions, however, have nothing to do with the lack of service I have been getting."

"On the contrary, sir, you have been receiving constant attention and the best service available. It is your continual destruction and abuse of telephone company equipment which has resulted in your multiple interruptions of service. Take, for example, that day when you knocked over the pole nearest your house. Really, sir, I do not see how you can blame that on the company."

"That was an accident, d.a.m.n it!" he shouted, his momentary understanding as brief as it was unusual. "I missed the driveway in the dark and hit the d.a.m.n pole. They put it in too close to the pavement in the first pace. I warned them about that."

"No, sir, you did not. When that pole was installed, you said nothing about its proximity to the. driveway or anything else. All you could talk about that day was how glad you were to at last be the recipient of telephone service. "

What is she doing? Parworthy wondered bemusedly. Sitting there at the operator"s station perusing some file containing a personal history? That was a specter he"d have to deal with later.

"I said it was an accident. Your office accepted it as such."