Cloud Cuckoo Land

There is a short circuit... Rather, an exposed wire, fully charged, sending sparks flying. Jack uses caution. He whispers and sips rather than screaming and gulping. He will leave that to others. For now, Jack pretends at attraction, maintains a low profile; lumbering gracefully around the perimeter. Getting his feet wet. Gray ... Jack thinks he knows what he's doing ... he looks the part -- wide eyed, tongue out, leaning forward just a bit; sometimes his face shows what appears to be the hint of grin, childish almost, that of an expert dilettante. He lost his way. Jack enters the wrong neighborhood and is met at dawn by harpies disguised as muses. Throwing caution to the wind, Jack joins the carnival. He knows it won't last, carnivals never do. They are untenable as monuments... Blockades that cause detours ... vortices ... within vortices. Jack joins this circus, gets his feet wet. There is no shortcut.

PARABASIS

Execestides (Jack) had already made his exit, leaving the warzone for higher ground, carried aloft by the harpies disguised as muses. First there were three -- the dove, the pigeon, the swallow... Then there were four -- the owl, the kestrel, the osprey, the falcon... Then there were nine -- made up of these original seven with the addition of the buzzard, and finally the cuckoo.

Execestides tried his best to fit in but was always at odds with the sky-circus harpies. He never liked taking orders and quickly grew annoyed with the constant pecking. He decided to put his foot down. He demanded from the harpies that he have his own room. Execestides put a deadbolt on the door to keep the harpies out but this lead to a different annoyance,

(knock, knock)
Who's there?

(knock, knock)
Who's there?

(knock, knock)
Who's there?

Everyone got a big kick out of annoying Execestides.

Jack took it in stride and the nonchalance began to pay off. HA!