#elsewhere

As they travel, Darius does talk about cities, apparently he's been to a lot of them, not just been to, but hung bout for at least a month at each one "Not to disparage your nomadic ventures, my friend, but nothing like hanging out in a city to really get to know the heart of it. For good or ill."

"Oh, I agree. Plenty of places I wish I could have stayed longer in."

After a few minutes, he hums quietly under his breath.

"Which city is your favorite?"

Another soft avalanche "Home." he answers honestly.

Darius does look at him, "yes. I suppose that's the best place for us all in the end. " A smile "Bit of a dreamer, aren't you?"

"You could say that." he agrees "You?"

"Oh very much so" he admits

"I believe there's an energy, a spirit , tied to every city,..which trust me, if I take it to ofar, folks start to scoot away or call for the guys in the white coats." A shake of a his head and a grin "But ANimism is among the oldest belief systems. I just include cities in it"

"I think you've got something there." the trucker nods.

"Oh? You a man of faith of some sort, Frank?"

"I try to be. And I like the idea of places having a soul; it resonates with my experiences."

"mmm " Darius nods "Yeah, mine too. You travel enough, and I know YOU have, you can feel yourself crossing a city limit, or even state sign sometimes without ever seeing the marker"

"The air tastes different. The light hits different, just the angle of the sun sometimes."

"Even the sounds of the traffic, the way the buildings echo what they get back to you... that's why some cities sound angry, and others like they're laughing at you. Each city has a spirit, but a lot of that spirit depends on what we feed it. You get what you give"

Frank nods. "I agree."

"Really wish I could talk to you for an hour or two, but 20 will be a gift" A smile "Where do you live, Frank? I mean, where is home more or less? I get you may not want to give your adress out to a stranger"

"New Jersey. Not the city part."

"Oh hey, the mountains and hills had souls long before the cities that formed near them did" He nods "Some of my best friends prefer small town living or even the wilds"

"There's a beauty to it. Even in New Jersey."

"The Garden state is not fully ironic" A nod "Even if most people think NYC pollution"

"Mmm. 'Nation's Leading Producer of Petrochemical Products' was too long for the license plate."

A laugh "It's all about the soundbite I suppose. More's the pity. " They approach the town he spoke of

"You be ok from here?"

"I will, thank you, Frank. " He offers his hand "I like the way you see the world. Some men cast a big shadow. I get the feeling you cast a lot of light"

Frank takes the offered hand, careful not to hurt it.

"Darius, can I offer you a phone number? Just in case you need a hand on the road sometime."

"Sure... and.. right kind of you. Never know when I'll be in that area"

Frank pulls into a truck stop by the exit and parks, then jots down his cell phone number on a notepad. He tears it out and offers it.

Darius takes it then, pauses "Here, in some cultures, one should trade for such gifts. " He pulls something out of his pocket "This is a worry stone. Rub it for stress, that kind of thing. Feel free to gift it to someone else if your worries are light or it makes you feel silly"

"I thank you." the big man says gravely, and takes the stone, closing a massive fist around it.

And Darius smiles and starts to head towards..well, his contact

Frank holds the stone and watches for a bit.

The stone has a good feeling, almost as if it does dull the banality of his life.

He kenns it.

Odd sort of glamour. Not dark 'mwhahah glamour' but rather glamour's nudist cousin .. that is a bit raw. There is something spiritual about this rock.

Frank makes a note to give it to the Mountain when he gets home, and after a pit stop he gets back on the road.

He gets on, and turns on the radio... a local station is hooked in 'WOOO, welcome to W-ZRD... the Wizard, Jenerik's only radio station that isn't preaching at you. Now, for some real magic.. .Johnny Cash'

Frank can get along with that.

It fades all too soon as the signal is lost, but damn if it wasn't good in the 20 minutes it lasted

That's ok. He has audio books.

he slides an old favorite in...

a sultry female voice croons her narration 'Sylvia Wies presents 'Satyr Day Night Fever', Book 1 of the 'EZ Leigh Detective series'

Frank frowns, pops the CD out, and looks at it again.

Someone has switched Audio books on him

His truck, off limits. His CDs? Not so much

A gesture, a clench and ....ooops. Shoot. Shattered.

About half his CDs have been swapped. He may realize if he checks a few that some of these he's heard his youngest daughter listen to

But that's a challenge for another time. He resumes making good time . Soon he'll be home

He's not wantonly destructive. The rest get left in the CD wallet. He'll find something to listen to from his own selections.