The Adventures of Lance the Lizard

By Ronald Anthony Cross

"The bald fact of the matter is that there are few writers who can pull off utter confusion the way Cross can. And yet we are given to understand that Cross is an upright, reasonable sort, who, judging from the stories that have appeared under his name, turns onto writing the way a flower child turns onto psychedelics. For that matter few writers would dare commit a story like this to paper—who but Cross would have guessed that the adventures of a star-crossed lizard would make such exciting reading?

Sometimes the best fiction is inexplicable. We think you’ll find “The Adventures of Lance the Lizard” inexplicably joyful. —And that is a recommendation we seldom make."

• Language: English
• Publisher: Wildside Press
• Release date: Apr 18, 2021
• ISBN: 9781479458714

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COPYRIGHT INFORMATION

THE ADVENTURES OF LANCE THE LIZARD

COPYRIGHT INFORMATION

Copyright © 1980 by Ronald Anthony Cross.

Originally published in The Berkley Showcase: New Writings in Science Fiction and Fantasy, Vol. 1.

Published by Wildside Press LLC.

wildsidepress.com | bcmystery.com

THE ADVENTURES OF LANCE THE LIZARD

by RONALD ANTHONY CROSS

I

I

drift.

Half

asleep,

half

awake,

half

of

something

else.

Too many halves

splitting myself into fragments

until I behold,

through myriad eyes ... what?

I try to wake up. He is standing in the corner of my room, lost in the shadows. I can almost see him, but I am sleepy, so sleepy. He holds a double-edged sword that gleams with its own light. His expression is up to me. Power emanates from his body. He never moves; he never rests: he hovers. Is he my guardian? Is he my executioner? Now I begin to feel a nagging fear. Go ahead with it! I want to shout. Get it over with, whatever it is. End it. But somehow I know it will not end. It is the middle that counts. Now I feel more secure. Nothing I can do about it. I sleep.

II

Last night I awoke to the chattering of the stars. For a long time I pretended that I didn’t hear it. Finally I rose and went to the window. I looked out and out. They chattered and sparkled and fizzed. Their little silver voices were incomprehensible and myriad beyond the imagination. They tinkled, buzzed and hissed. They were like