Nano-Sapiens: Carter and Independent Solution
It's America's Independence Day and what better way to celebrate than with fireworks and trouble.
Welcome to July!
It is July! And July means Independence Day, dog shows, and avoiding the outsides in Houston. Because you don’t want to because you don’t want your brain to become a fried from the heat. At least that is how it works for me. (I have been here over 15 years and I am still not used to how hot it can get. I mean, I completely agree with Crokell. When can we get some AC outside?)
July also means Independence day.
The day when we in America celebrate our separation from monarchs, our right to bear arms (show your ripped arm), and our refusal to be taxed (wouldn’t that be cool) without representation (drat I forgot the rest of it). Basically, celebrating being the ultimate rebels that everyone dreams of being at some point. We celebrate becoming the black sheep that stands up to their parents and says we know what we want and we will to get there on our own.
Also, we have fireworks! Who can say no to sky booms?
For Independence day Tod wrote another cute little Carter story which I edited. Enjoy.
Carter and the Independent Solution
The young Newfoundland dog’s voice boomed quizzically across the room. “Benjamin? I think the date on the Declaration of Independence is wrong.”
“Really, Carter?” Benjamin’s dark little face looked up at the large black and white dog. “I think the date on it’s right. This is a photo of the actual document.”
Carter nodded, his big nose coming closer to Benjamin’s face. Then he shook. Drool flew around the room, splattering the walls and ceiling with love.
“Right. And I’ve been working on my reading because Dad says that it’s important to work on things that are hard to do. When I read your history book, it said that the colonies declared independence on July 2. But here on the Declaration of Independence, it says July 4.”
Benjamin laughed and scratched Carter on the top of his head. “You’re the best kind of right, Carter. Technically right. The Continental Congress voted that the colonies ought to be free on July 2. But Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and the others that were working on the declaration to announce it took two days to get a version they actually liked.”
His Newfie companion considered this and shook his head again. The blue LED on his translator collar shone intermittently from his huge dark mane.
“I guess that makes sense. When our parents try to make decisions together, it always takes longer. Throw in the kittens and-- Well, lunch will be late.”
“Well,” Benjamin snickered, “they had to write it out by hand! With no spell check or LLM, and all in one go. I don’t think even Kathy could write something that pretty that fast.”
“Or that hard to read. I mean, it hardly looks like words.” Carter considered things again and indicated the history book with his nose. “What does all of this have to do with the fireworks tonight?”
Always glad to delay schoolwork, even schoolwork he liked, Benjamin flopped down with Carter.
“Okay. One of the other people who worked on the declaration was named John Adams, and he liked the idea of blowing stuff up and setting things on fire to celebrate America’s Independence. And in 1777, a year after independence was declared, he threw a big party and they did all that?”
“And we’re gonna to have fireworks tonight?”
“Absolutely. Kathy’s off with our parents because she’s better at talking them into getting really cool fireworks. And I had my history homework.”
The big Newfie looked down at the book, turning the page. “I want to help set off fireworks. It sounds like fun.”
Scratching his nose, Benjamin replied, “Well, they’re nervous about you around fire because, you know, you’re 99% combustible with all that fur. But let’s figure out how we can make this work.”
That said, the two padded off down the hall, the history book and the copy of the Declaration of Independence lying forgotten. They made a stop in the kitchen where Benjamin went through one of the drawers. But Carter didn’t see what he took.
Once outside, Carter nosed him and Benjamin showed the young Newfie his find, holding up a small glass object with a handle.
“This is a magnifying glass. You can set things on fire with it, without using matches. Timmy - your dad is the coolest - got it for me when he found out that I was interested in science but wasn’t allowed to play with matches anymore.”
Carter nodded. Growing up with a cat for a dad was interesting at times when contrasted with Kathy and Raihana, Benjamin’s human parents. His dad was all for mischief. So, rules were usually fluid and only for things that mattered. Although his mom often thought more things should matter.
He carefully took the magnifying glass from Benjamin. As a result, his voice now came muffled from his collar - Raihana had been experimenting with it again trying to make the voices more real. Both set of parents had been involved in creating Nano-Sapiens: dogs and cats brought to sapiency with nanotech shots.
“An weer do ah stand?”
Benjamin, through equal parts pushing, pulling, and talking, got Carter lined up so the sun would shine through the magnifying glass. Then he carefully twisted it in Carter’s mouth until the light was right, and then pushed Carter’s head down and then back up and then down to focus.
Finally, the human said, “Okay. Hold it right there, Carter.”
Carter desperately tried to look down past his nose where there was a spot of light from the magnifying glass. Benjamin, being experienced with this, had them on the sidewalk, and he put a piece of cotton ball on the ground where the light was focused.
After a few minutes, Carter asked, “Are we der yet?”
Benjamin, having a better view of the cotton than Carter, told him, “Almost.”
Finally, with a slight woof of smoke, the cotton ball caught fire. Benjamin immediately stomped on it to keep it from becoming a problem. Carter handed him the magnifying glass, and once his lips were free, shook once more, sending drool everywhere.
“That was a lot of work. Do you think we can do that tonight?”
They both looked at each other with horror.
The human started, “All that work…”
The Nano-Sapiens finished, “For nothing.”
Carter flopped down, dejected, on the sidewalk. “There’s no sun at night.”
He let the smells of the neighborhood drift over and through his nose for a little bit.
Benjamin leaned back against him. “What can we do?”
“I don’t know.”
After a few seconds, popping to his feet, Benjamin shouted, “I got another idea.”
With that, he ran off at the speed excited young boys of any species use, being 20% faster than any human would consider normal or safe. He came back with a water rifle that his dad had gotten him the previous summer.
“We can fill this with gasoline or lighter fluid, and you can shoot it through a candle. And the gas will catch fire, and then you can spray that on the firework fuse and set it off.”
Carter looked at the rifle. “I’m not sure if I can operate it, but let’s give it a try.”
Finally, by combining Benjamin holding bracing, and Carter using his mouth to hold the top of the rifle, and one paw curled around to pull at the trigger roughly, he was able to send a streak of water out from the squirt gun.
It went all over the yard.
Benjamin bounced up and down.
“Okay. That looks good. Let’s back off a little bit. What do you think? I think Timmy will be happy if you’re 10 feet from the fireworks. So, let’s go over here. Now there’s the cotton ball that you set on fire before. Now let’s try to wet it down with the water gun.”
They got into their contorted positions, and Carter started firing away with the water. Half a liter later, both young boys were reasonably wet. So was the sidewalk. Carter had managed to also wet down the cotton ball, but he looked at the young dripping boy. Then he looked around the yard.
“I don’t think either of our dads are gonna be okay with me spraying gasoline all over the yard, and I know our moms will be totally against it.”
They nodded together. Moms were a little more unreasonable than dads about that sort of thing.
Carter looked up into the sky.
“If only there were Newfie Space Marines. Then I could use Space Marine armor, and I’d be safe from the fire.”
“That’s an awesome idea, Carter.”
The little boy ran into the house at full speed. Coming back, he could hardly be seen behind a mass of cardboard and a big wad of duck tape.
Quickly, he wrapped cardboard around Carter’s legs, then around his torso. Then, using about half the roll of duck tape, he managed to get several pieces around the Nano-Sapiens’ neck in a way that covered most of his mane. And finally, he taped a rolled-up piece over the Nano-Sapiens’ head.
“How does that work?”
Carter moved his head to one side to try to get a view of Benjamin. The big piece of cardboard wrapped around his head whacked into his young friend, who went falling over. Carter tried to move over to check on Benjamin and discovered he couldn’t walk or really move at all in the cardboard. He kind of collapsed in place.
And while Benjamin pulled off the failed armor, he just moaned sadly as Newfies will. “I’ll never get to light any fireworks.”
By the time Benjamin had gotten the last piece of cardboard off, Carter was tired and pretty sad. Benjamin laid down nose to nose with the big Newfie. They sat and thought for a while.
Finally, just as Carter snored, Benjamin popped up again. “I have an idea. Come on. Let’s get everything ready. I know Dad and Timmy will help us.”
That night, when it turned dark, the sun set over a sheet-covered mound in the backyard. Benjamin had kept everyone away while Timmy and Edmund, Benjamin’s father, and Carter worked in the garage.
Finally, dinner was over. The hot dogs and hamburgers and french fries were eaten. Timmy and Veronica, Carter’s adoptive Maine Coon cat parents, came out. They were followed by Benjamin’s parents: Edmund, a large blonde quarterback-looking human, and Raihana, a small dark woman.
Kathy had taken Carter’s kitten siblings over to the park. All four of them wanted to see the ducks and watch the park fireworks.
The rest of the family settled down.
Benjamin walked up to the front. “Tonight, we have a special guest here to light the first firework of the evening and the first firework of his life.”
Timmy and Edmund gave grins, each according to their species. Veronica and Raihana exchanged glances. Seeing their moms’ faces, Benjamin assured them,
“No, it’s okay. It’s safe. Our dads checked it out.”
With that, Benjamin stepped up to the sheet-covered mound and commanded, “Carter, come.”
Carter came running full speed toward Benjamin, who whipped the sheet off and away, revealing a kiddie wading pool. Carter jumped at the last second and belly flopped into the middle of the pool. Fortunately, only about half the water actually left the pool. The parents and Benjamin were pretty wet though.
Carter, though, still had enough water to be mostly covered. His tail went up and started wagging, causing little tsunamis and more waves to overflow the pool.
While Veronica and Raihana dried themselves, Timmy and Edmund brought out a sawed-off broomstick with a burning punk duck taped to it and stuck it into the lawn about ten feet from the pool.
Beyond that, they set up the fireworks for the evening, giving Carter a chance to soak in the water. One rocket was set away from the rest toward the end closest to the pool.
The moms noticed the burning punk finally and exchanged another glance.
Raihana sweetly asked, “Is that my good broom?”
Benjamin, not wanting the discussion to go astray, announced, “It’s time.”
With that, Carter exploded out of the pool, once again showering everyone with water, except the two moms. They had figured things out and grabbed an umbrella to share.
Carter kept moving, soaking wet, so that nothing would burn on him. He grabbed up the punk in his mouth and ran to the first firework. He was so excited and so intent on lighting the fuse. He just kept looking for the next fuse and the next and the next.
In a matter of a few seconds, he’d lit all the fuses of all the rockets that were set up for the evening.
Keeping a hold of the punk so it wouldn’t set anything on fire accidentally, Carter ran back to the pool and jumped into it, dousing the punk.
He rolled over to watch.
All the humans and Maine Coon cats watching were frozen.
Some in anticipation.
The moms in horror.
Finally, the first rocket went off. Beautiful blue sparks filled the sky.
Before the last blue spark faded, the next rocket and the next and the next went off. Soon, the sky above the house was brighter than day.
Later, everyone agreed that while that wasn’t the plan, it was absolutely gorgeous. And while there are benefits to a longer, slower fireworks display, Carter’s super intense display was the most impressive two minutes all year.
Even Carter and Benjamin, from the corner where they were serving their punishment, agreed it was totally worth it. Even sawing Raihana’s good broom in half.
Chaos Tip of the Week
Freedom taste better with beer and fireworks. And if you need a pool to stay cool or safe from fire, that works too!
Critter Question of the Week
What's the most "we probably shouldn't tell grandma" moment you've had with family on Independence Day? (Tod here: there’s got to be a story behind that question.)
~Anna and Tod
More IP Writing on the Way!
Pre-Script: We worked on the edits for this story with Alexander Macris. He’s an awesome editor/publisher. The story is still our story but is greatly improved, both in lore accuracy and entertainment!
Anna and I are please to announce that our story, Family Honor, has earned a spot in the Annals of the Auran Empire anthology. Arbiter of Worlds has a blog post with the complete author list and more details. The anthology is set in the Adventurer Conqueror King System Imperial Imprint RPG universe of the Auran Empire. (Think Fantasy Rome.)
Crowd funding opens this Summer (probably in July). But don’t fret - you can sign up to be reminded via BackerKit now!
https://www.backerkit.com/call_to_action/8b8be898-82a5-4dc9-868d-aa9a9b449f6e/landing
We’re pleased to see our fellow Alpha Mercs joining us: Zane Voss, Sam Robb (the first anthology we were in was also with Sam), B.K. Gibson (who also gave great developmental feedback during edits https://coldlightrpgpress.weebly.com/), and Nathaniel McIntyre.
We think our story has the most interesting one liner in the announcement:
“Family Honor” by A. Kristina Casasent, featuring a Ring Against the Wolf, tells the story of a Tirenean nobleman struggling with the challenge of producing an heir with his new wife.
For more details, checkout the Arbiter of Worlds blog!
