##@£%^*~.. ..~*^%£@##
@@£^~..... .....~^£@@
@%%*~..... .....~*%%@
£^~....... .......~^£
#£%%%^*~.. ..~*^%%%£#
##@£%^*~.. Orange-Clad Train-Climber Crew, Moving ..~*^%£@##
##@£%^*~.. Along The Rusty Cargo Cars Like Some ..~*^%£@##
#@£^~..... Species Of Ferrophage Insect. Up And .....~^£@#
##@£%^*~.. Down The Train, Checking Bolts, Oiling ..~*^%£@##
@%%**~.... Joints, Drinking Coffee, Smoking ....~**%%@
##@£%^*~.. Cigarettes. ..~*^%£@##
##@£%^*~.. ..~*^%£@##
#£%^^~.... @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ ....~^^%£#
@@@£%^*~.. ..~*^%£@@@
##@£%^*~.. We Were Going South Through Finland At ..~*^%£@##
###@£%*~.. The Time, Sleeping Close To The ..~*%£@###
###@£^*~.. Furnace, Watching The Aurora borealis. ..~*^£@###
##@£%^*~.. Twenty-Something Members Of The Crew, ..~*^%£@##
@@£^~~~... Most Of Which Were Mechanics, Or ...~~~^£@@
#@%%**~... Loaders, With Large And Hairy Hands ...~**%%@#
@@%***.... That Could Swallow My Entire Body. And ....***%@@
##@£%^*~.. Me Featuring As The Cute And Asocial ..~*^%£@##
##@£%^*~.. Radio Operator, Stationed In The Back ..~*^%£@##
@£^~...... Of The Kilometer-Long Train, Which ......~^£@
££%^^~.... Served Me Good And Well. ....~^^%££
##@£%^*~.. ..~*^%£@##
##@£%^*~.. And Then One Night, There'S A Missile. ..~*^%£@##
#@£^^~.... We Would Routinely Pick Up New Cars At ....~^^£@#
##@£%^*~.. The Tail, And Drop Some Off, As A Way ..~*^%£@##
##@£%^*~.. Of Earning Some Extra Money. But A ..~*^%£@##
#@@£%^*~.. Missile, And Appearing Silently In The ..~*^%£@@#
##@£%^*~.. Middle Of The Night At That? Not ..~*^%£@##
££%^~..... Entirely... Comfortable. .....~^%££
###@%^*~.. ..~*^%@###
£^*~...... I Call It In On The Walkie-Talkie. Not ......~*^£
##@£%^*~.. Many Others Awake, They Know Nothing ..~*^%£@##
£%*~~~~... About It, And Appear Concerned As Well. ...~~~~*%£
##@£%^*~.. ..~*^%£@##
£%^~~..... @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ .....~~^%£
£%^~...... ......~^%£
@%*~~..... When I Fall Awake In The Afternoon, .....~~*%@
@@£^^^*~.. Karl Is There, Smiling At Me. "Hey ..~*^^^£@@
##@£%^*~.. Boy," He Says, "Wanna Help Me Make A ..~*^%£@##
##@£%^*~.. Call?" ..~*^%£@##
###@£%^*~. .~*^%£@###
###@£%^*~. After He'S Brought Me Coffee, I Dial .~*^%£@###
££^*...... The Frequency From His Notebook, And ......*^££
£%%^~~~... After A While There'S A Reply In ...~~~^%%£
@%^^^~.... Pan-Slavic. Karl Laughs And Makes A ....~^^^%@
@£%^*~.... Reply In The Same Language. Even Though ....~*^%£@
##@£%^*~.. We Both Have Headphones I Can'T Follow ..~*^%£@##
#@£^^*~... At All, But I Hear The Word "Missile" A ...~*^^£@#
@@@£%^*~.. Few Times. ..~*^%£@@@
##@£%^*~.. ..~*^%£@##
##@£%^*~.. I'M Almost Snoozing Again At The Time ..~*^%£@##
£^*....... Karl Puts Down The Headphones And Slaps .......*^£
##@£%^*~.. Me On My Back. "Allright Boy. I Just ..~*^%£@##
£^^*~..... Sold A Missile." He Practically Beams .....~*^^£
##@£%^*~.. At Me, Teeth Filed Sharp. "Wanna Make A ..~*^%£@##
@%%%*..... Detour?" .....*%%%@
#@£^**.... ....**^£@#
#@££%^*~.. ..~*^%££@#
##@£%^*~.. ..~*^%£@##
##@£%^*~.. ..~*^%£@##
@@£^*~~... ...~~*^£@@