By Benjamin Duke
Located in Chicago, IL
Story Short-story
Once upon a time, five women met up at an outdoor café. They sat around the table sipping their coffee and chatting, one caught everyone's attention, because she was dressed up in a metallic suit, complete with robotic wings, resembling a robot bee. The others were impressed by her outfit and asked her about it. She explained that she was a performance artist and was on her way to a show.
Another woman pulled out a cigarette and started smoking, ignoring the "no smoking" sign. The others frowned at her, but she just shrugged and continued puffing away. The third woman had a dead bird. She explained that she had found it on her way to the café and had brought it along to see if anyone could identify the species.
Just as they were about to order their food, a swarm of bees suddenly descended on the café, buzzing around the tables and chairs. The women panicked, swatting at the bees and ducking for cover wondering why they had worn so many flowers.
But then something surprising happened. The woman dressed as a robot bee stood up and raised her arms, and the bees suddenly started swarming around her, as if she were their queen. She calmly led the bees away from the café, and soon they disappeared into the distance.
The other women were amazed, and the smoker even stubbed out her cigarette in awe. They all thanked the robot bee woman and chatted excitedly about what had just happened.
The time traveler was fascinated by the scene in front of her and watched the women with interest. She noticed the woman with the dead bird and wondered how she had come to possess it. As she continued to observe, she realized that the woman had found the bird on a time-traveling expedition and had accidentally brought it back to the present.
As the time traveler watched...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Figurative Paintings