The Human Face Smiles

"Years I burrowed through deep soils of red massive earth with concretions
now the human face smiles as I perish
my head smashed in the rubble
of a heterogeneous material
relatively rich in aluminium."

Arthur shows it to Sweezus.

That's cool, says Sweezus. How'd you know that?

Just guessing, says Arthur. From the looks on their faces.

Sweezus looks again at the photo.

You sure one snake's dead?

No, says Arthur. Why don't you call Gaius. Ask him.

Okay, says Sweezus.

He calls Gaius.

Hey Gaius. How's things going in Weipa?

Why is it that I always misplace my pencils, says Gaius.

Dunno, says Sweezus. About the snakes. Which one's the dead one?

The one on the floor in the corner, says Gaius. It's not in the snap.

Brill, says Sweezus. I thought the ones in the photo were live ones. How's Terence doing?

Wonderful, says Gaius. In fact he's been quite helpful. I'll put him on.

Terence: Who is it?

Sweezus: Me.

Terence: Yay! Guess what? We stayed up all night, because the snakes only wake up at night. I'm the king of them. And I grant things. There was this crocodile in the river and it wanted green shoes. I granted them. And now we're waiting for the snakes to wake up so that we can have the plum box they sleep in and make it into a car so that Kobo and Pinky can run on the beach with their clothes off. Ageless is making it.

Sweezus: A car. Good one, little buddy.

Terence: And I had a magic flow ring, but I lost it.

Sweezus: It might be with Gaius's pencils, under the snake.

Terence: The dead one?

Sweezus: Probably. The one in the corner.

Terence: You know everything.

Sweezus: Not everything. How long is it?

Terence: This long.

Sweezus. Can't see you.

Terence: Guess what? Gaius told me where the snake's tail starts.

Sweezus: No kidding? Where does its tail start? It's all tail.

Terence: NO IT ISN'T! 

Sweezus: So I don't know everything. What's the answer?

Terence: At the BUMHOLE!

Sweezus: He didn't say that.

Terence: No, he said......the clacker.

Sweezus: The cloaca. Yeah that makes sense. Useful info, little buddy.

Terence: Bye. I'm going to find all the lost things now.

Sweezus: Adiós niñito!

Terence doesn't answer. He's already lifting the dead snake in the corner.

He is about to realise that Sweezus is fallible.