Mr. Eternity by Aaron Thier Page A

or dissolved into a stew by a demon plant that enticed them by making sweet sounds, like a woman. Everyone was dead and Daniel de Fo had no foot and they were taken captive and dragged through the forest and that’s when they came to El Dorado.
    “But your foot,” said the alcalde, suddenly aggrieved. “How can I ignore this? It was Indian magic.”
    “It was the will of God,” said Daniel de Fo. “It was the will of God that my foot should heal, that I should return here and tell you about El Dorado, that we should then mount a new expedition to take the city and bring the Pirahao to a knowledge of Him. For this reason God preserves me from death. Look around you. Here I am, and here is Maria, who will be our translator, because I know only a phrase or two of her language. And here you are, with the power to authorize the expedition.”
    The alcalde nods once. The air hums. The sea is like a group of whores whispering over breakfast.
    “Then tell me about the city.”
    “It is the white city,” says Daniel de Fo. “It is the city of El Dorado. The houses are roofed with gold and the people crush pearls and snort them up their noses.”

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    Pearls said Old Dan such torments and all for pearls which have no value they are no good even for salting your bread. Why do you talk about pearls I said. He did not hear me. Also he said also anyway you cannot roof houses in gold it is too heavy did no one ever think of that.
    He talked and talked he never stopped talking I didn’t know what he were talking about and neither did he. Meanwhile we was still floating in the water. We was floating many hours clung to a treetrunk in the cold water of Hampton Roads. But finally when I thought oh well I will just go to sleep drown die whatever who cares finally it were a fishing boat sliding over the sea to rescue us. It were four five maybe six fishermen aboard I don’t remember I was stupid from the water and tiredness. It didn’t have so many fish in the sea but they had caught squids and jellyfish. You could call them squidmen not fishermen you could also call them jellyfishermen. They was salting the squids down while we was aboard. I will never die said Old Dan to the fishermen. Okay they said. I will never die he said I don’t understand why God has selected me for eternal life it is vexing in the extreme maybe I am a prophet. Then he seen what the men were doing he could not stop himself he said squid is not good for salting. Later we tried some from their stores he were right if you have never ate salted squid don’t start.
    Norfolk harbor were drowned though formerly said Old Dan it were a good port. Therefore we come up the Chesapeake to Baltimore. This is a great city said Old Dan pay attention you are truly seeing the world now. One of the squidmen said Baltimore were home to almost two hundred thousand persons a city of booze thieves whores malaria fried pork. They use to say you could of got robbed any time any day by any citizen of Baltimore even a grandma even a young kid. It were torchlight by theharbor torchlight in the sailor’s district yet elsewhere upon the federal hill you could see a great moonglow of electronic light. We did not visit that part of the city for there was guards plus a wall to keep us poor people out.
    I were very excited to see this city. They was recently having a war with Virginia but you couldn’t have known it there was so much prosperity. It had everything in the world for sale in Baltimore. It had teethbrushes hacksaws kneepads boots bicycles watches even a cell phone very expensive everything it had everything much more than in Boston. There was a water cleaner it run off sun panels plus there was sun creme they said you smeared it on your face it protected from sunburn. There was beautiful women everywhere and horses and cabcarts rushing past so much noise so much activity. Old Dan said maybe we can even find you a new Barbie doll. He knew I had lost my idol in the