John Agostino

Number 2 in a series of excerpts from my first, (and still not finished) novel, “Cosmic Clutter.”

Frederick Sanford loved comic books. His collection included a handful dating back to the late twentieth century. His passion for comics, combined with incessant analytical tendencies was the very reason life endures. Life preserved by polymer, sunless, with splintered spirit. The prophecy that destroyed civilization derived from a comic book. A glorious comic book and a nerd with passion for theory, nemesis and savior.

“Captain Jack‘s Space Marauders” was an obscure comic series published during the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. Frederick determined eleven volumes were in print, 132 issues. Each full of Captain Jack, a renegade space cowboy, and his band of merry men romping throughout the universe in the name of intergalactic goodwill. Frederick stumbled upon an issue at a vintage bookstore. With books already obscure, data discs emerged as the preferred format for most media. The tiny discs played on a variety of devices. Books and magazines served as decoration, conversation pieces, or stored away as family heirlooms. Intrigued with the ancient medium,  Frederick spent hours at vintage bookshops searching for these entertaining artifacts of past centuries. It wasn’t long before The Brainy Bunch was also hooked on Captain Jack. They tracked down as many issues as possible. The Brainy Bunch, some of the most influential minds in the universe, scavenged for comic books.
Frederick Sanford’s most trusted colleague was Gene Brewster, Ph.D. Gene, also a molecular scientist, was tall and stout with a receding hairline and a slight beer belly. Referred to as a God-fearing atheist. Gene vehemently denied a supreme being since his wife died at age thirty-six. When the prophecy became known, Gene tried to keep up his atheistic beliefs, however wavering. Gene was a good person, a stellar scientist, and a dependable friend when Frederick needed one most.

Bill “Lefty” McGowan, contrary to his nickname, was not left-handed. Medium frame with dirty blonde hair and a disproportionate mustache longer on the right side of his face than the left. Lefty was extremely analytical, even for a nerd. He favored the left part of his brain, the side used for analyzing and reasoning. He lacked even the first drop of creativity, but he was good with numbers, the statistician of the group.

Jacob Armpreister, a tall lanky gent, wasn’t afraid to say what was on his mind. A lawyer bored with his profession, Jack went back to school and became a mechanical engineer. Immediately hired by NASA, many say with the help of government contacts he knew from his lawyer days. He became a top-notch engineer responsible for constructing the dome.

Nicholas Corsagio was the computer guru of the pack. He could write code better than he could write his own name. Nicky was a natural, he always came through in the clutch. The youngest member of the group, most susceptible to trouble. Six feet tall with a muscular build, dark hair and blue eyes. Nicky was a lady’s man, he loved the nightlife. Nicky was a hacker’s hacker. He could find data on anyone or anything, skills useful in the search for the “Captain Jack” issues.

Nicky’s sidekick was André Granitowski. Also debonair, André spoke with a European accent. A great astronomer, André descendrd from a famous polish immigrant, Otto Granitowski. His grandfather, Otto, discovered the Nebulon galaxy in the early twenty-first century. The Nebulon galaxy runs parallel with the Milky Way. A macrocosm similar in size and composition with only seven planets. André followed his grandfather’s footsteps and searched for new worlds. Nicky was his best friend. Both single, they searched for the opposite sex, too.

The last member of the Brainy Bunch was the smartest. Chauncey started life as a protocol android, a robotic butler for an élite socialite. Programmed to do a multitude of functions, preparation of gourmet meals, domestic services, and secretarial and administration capacities. In his day, Chauncey was a technological marvel. His supercomputer brain reprogrammed itself as many as two thousand times per minute enabling Chauncey to acquire input from his surroundings and use such data. For example, he could watch a cooking show and then prepare the recipes he assimilated. Frederick discovered him in a remote warehouse at N.A.S.A., abandoned and deteriorating, dormant for the better part of a century.

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• The Brainy Bunch (jagostino.com)