Stories Page Three

     At the turn of the century, that old tyrant Moammar al-Qadhafi died.  Right away Libya began to democratize  and westernize. It was like a cork being let out of champainge bottle. The Libyan people quickly began to accept things would have been unthinkable before. They welcomed in fast food, coca cola, equal rights for women, less restrained ways of dressing, and American rock music - even heavy metal. The rock group Marilyn Manson became popular all over Libya.
     Out of this new cultural mingling of America and Libya came a shock rocker, Virgo Nidal, and his band, The Zodiacs.  Virgo was tall, slimly muscled, had curly black hair(which he often dyed green or chartreuse), had a tawny complexion, and had a very narrow face with fine, beautiful features that lean towards the feminine. His past was a mystery, no one really knew where he came from.
      Nidal quickly became very popular in his country and elsewhere. This was because he had a superb voice and he could play piano, synthesizer, and guitar with a truly hypnotic dazzingly wild beauty.  He would spin, whirl, and shriek like a magical dervish. He strutted and preened with the exotic sex appeal of the mysterious east. As a beautiful Arab drag queen he was magnificent. But he could also spit hate and venom like a butane cobra. His style was originally retro shock rock, but before long he began incorporating goth heavy metal and glamrock into his acts. Some say this seemed a little phoney. Even so, he would continue to put on spectacular shows.
     Another one of his drawing cards was his demon act. Nidal was an Assani or Arab Devil Worshipper. He was also a powerful black sorcerer who could conjuer up demons, and horrible, ferocious ones at that. He would then wade into them with a chair, a whip, a gun, or just the right magic words and they would climb up on drums, jump through firey hoops, and do all kinds of other tricks for him. He has even been  known to stick his head in their fanged, brimstone breathing mouths. And  because he knew of the magic words he needed to control them, he never got injured. He was on good terms with the Devil and sold his soul a long time ago.
     Nidal could also do other things. He was a shape shifter who could change his form at will. He could become either a beautiful woman, a handsome man, a bird, a cat, a monstrous demon, a scaley green dragon, or an ameoba-like crawling mass of green slime.
     His band members are also unique. Like Nidal himself, whose real name was Momar al-Qaffi, his band members also had chosen names that were a combination of first names that are signs of the zodiac and last names that are the last names of notorious terrorists.
       The Zodiacs were unique in other ways too. Nidal's keyboardist, Leo Habash, liked to have sex with dead bodies. While his lead guitarist, Aries Guevara, once served a jail sen- tence for having taken part in an act of terrorism, his bass guitarist, Geminii Ramirez, who dressed like an escapee from a Saudi harem, often wore fake (?) grenades in the front of his costume to make it look like he had boobs, and his drummer, Pisces Baader-Meinhof, had spikey blue hair and did spells from the black magic tome, "The Necronomicon". All of them did drugs, especially hashish and acid.
       Nidal's own appetite for drugs was prodigious. Besides doing acid and hashish, which he smoked in a long cigarette holder, he also was a frequent cocaine user.  However, being a proper Moslem, he scorns alcohol in any form as improper.
     He found both men and women desireable and didn't care who knew this. However, to begin with, he was very reserved about all things sexual and scorned any degree of public nudity. He was so full of false modesty that he wouldn't even go on stage without his shirt. But contact with Marilyn Manson soon got him over that and he could display his body with the best of them.
     He was haughty, arrogant, supercilious, and when he was with other performers, took an I'm a better rockstar than you attitude.
     He songs dealt with war, carnage, terrorism, drugs, the need for social change, and sex and the language he used was quite hard-hitting.
      Inspite of his quirks, Virgo really was a great entertainer. He became known as the Arab world's answer to Marilyn Manson. He was also called Psychedaffi, 100% crazy and possessed by the Devil, and Libya's revenge on America for America having bombed Libya in 1986.
      Even though there were many interesting similarities between the two shock rocker stars and indeed Nidal did always admire Manson(although he was too egotistical to admit it to begin with), it would be a mistake to say that the Libyan patterned his career on Manson's style. It would be more accurate to say that Nidal is a Manson-like performer whose style evolved independantly of Manson and along entirely different cultural lines.
       For these reasons it was perhaps inevitable that the two firey voiced singers would eventually meet. And they did on the British luxary liner, The Queen Mab.
       The Queen Mab was an enormous, lavishly furnished ship which featured gambling casinos and only the creme de' la creme of the entertainment world. It was owned and managed by Entrepreneur Leonard Ferris, who was a billionaire from London, England, and who personally hired and fired every entertainer who signed on board his ship.
Actually, Manson and his group were on The Queen Mab before Nidal and his Zodiacs arrived on the scene. But Ferris knew that the Marilyn Manson group needed someone to share their billing with. Nine Inch Nails had long ago parted company with them, while Courtney Love had a cat fight with Manson and then cancelled her tour with him. What better replacement could there have been than daffy Nidal and his band of musical terrors. So Ferris had an agent contact the Arab and his group and they were signed on in a twenty year performing contract with the five freaks from florida.
      When he first met Nidal, Manson thought he was interesting and amusing. After all, a singer who liked to be plastered with spit and make-up, who once kneeled with angle worms wriggling across his bare thighs, and who still often used live and loose chickens as part of his stage acts, would naturally see a brother spirit in a guy who would eat only with his fingers, sleep in his suite with his pet camel beside him, and frequently bring the same lanky beast into the onboard recording studio with him. Manson also thought Nidal was charming as he can very well be when he wants to be. He also felt the other Zodiacs were regular enough fellows. While Nidal felt the deepest admiration for Manson, but he took great pains to hide it under a haughty manner. He also liked the members of his group, especially little dark-haired Twiggy, the bass guitarist, whom he thought was cute and told him so.
    "You are as adorable as five white camels." He said.
    Twiggy giggled and thanked him, knowing that strange as the expression sounded, it was really meant to be flattering. And indeed the dimiuative bass guitarist was looking fetching in his pink debutante's dress and blue-tinted pigtails.
     Indeed, Manson and Nidal had much in common besides wierdness. Both of them were the same age, were exactly the same height(6 foot 3), were skinny, and preferred coca cola to pepsi. They were on the same billing because both of them were loud, sang socially relevent songs, and exhibited an andrygonous male demon slut stage persona. Furthermore, Nidal sometimes wore green or yellow contact lenses with slitted cat-like pupils which are anologous to Manson's mismatched and sometimes scarlet irised eyes.
    Yes, Manson initially liked the Arab rocker, inspite of his snobbish manner. All of that changed with the pale, fine-featured performer discovered Nidal's less appetizing traits, namely his terrorist and racist posturings and also his love-hate attitude towards the US.
     "Eeeew! I think I'll get some more bodyguards. No, I'll get bodyguards for my body- guards. No, forget the bodyguards, I'm hiring the Navy Seals." Said Manson to his bald, goateed keyboardist, Pogo.
     There were order things about Nidal. As he settled into his new life as part of a traveling globe-spanning showboat, the more obnoxious he became to his billing partner. He was always coming up to Manson and while gesturing daintily with his long hash-filled cigarette holder would make some insulting remark in the most superior tone of voice, usually about Manson's being an American.
    "You damned Yanks think you invented music." He would sneer.
    "No we didn't, you friggin' Ayrab, WE perfected it." Would be Manson's quick retort.
    "I hate you and I hate your vile superpower country." The Arab would remark nastily.
    "Aww, go back to your sandpile of a country and sit in the camel shit." Would be Manson's thrust back.
    Sometimes, their bantering hinged on less national topics but was caustic nevertheless.
    "Oh, if it isn't Lilly Munster." Nidal would day to the American rocker, referring to the female star in the early sixties horror-comedy series who had long black hair, a deathly pale face, and black painted lips and eyelids just as Manson had when he was in his goth-ghoul mode.
    "Why thank you", Manson would say with a toss of his long sootty mane, "Lilly Munster was one of the prettiest, sexiest ladies on TV during the 60's."
    "Only a ghoul like you would feel that way." would be the Libyan's snide return.
     "Only a monster like you would say that." Manson would say.
     Once Nidal bumped into Manson as he was headed for the ship's bar with his date for the night who happened to be a lovely blonde that belonged to the Australian anti-terrorist TAG Squad. Manson was wearing his beautiful glamrock he-hellsiren look with crimson hair, scarlet eyes, very pale complexion, and a shroud-like pant suit of satin and red sequins.
      "Do you sleep in a casket?" Asked Nidal snidely.
      "No, but if you don't leave us alone, man, you may end up in one." Was Manson's jibe back.
      "Who are you going with these days, Dracula's daughter?" Asked Nidal on another occasion.
      "No, I heard she prefers Arab men." Would be Manson's shot back.
      And the two rockers would go at each other like that nearly every day. But even though Manson often felt like taking Nidal's fancy cigarette holder away from him and shoving it, lighted end first, up his pompous ass, their exchanges seldom ever went beyond verbal and when they did it was more comical than threatening.
     Once Nidal came into Ferris' office to find Manson sitting on the edge of the Entrepreneur's desk talking with him while drinking from a paper cup full of coke. Manson was wearing a little black slip that barely covered him and was held up with thin satin straps. He was also wearing black garters, black nylons, and black pumps with stilleto heels. Nidal strode imperiously into the room wearing a caftan of jade green silk that was trimmed with ermine and real diamonds and emeralds. In his slender green nailed fingers was his ostentatous cigarette holder. Manson and he saw each other and began bantering. Suddenly, Nidal went over to Manson, pulled open the top of his scanty slip, stared down at his chest briefly, and knocked ashes from his hash cigarette down his neckline.
The American's response was immediate.
      "Now you've asked for it, you asshole Libyan." Snarled Manson as he reached into his paper cup, scooped up a handful of tiny ice cubes, and rammed them down the front of Nidal's elegant caftan. Nidal squealed and left the room. Desert Arabs hate ice more than anything.
      One day Manson had gone to the ship's concessionary and come back with a bag full of fritos to the corner of the lounge where Twiggy, Pogo, and the rest were hanging out.
       "Hey, will somebody help me get these open." He said.
       His blond lead guitarist, John 5, obliged him, but just as the five of them were ready to dig into the fritos, who should come along but Nidal, the Sultan of Snob.
       "Oh, damned yankee imperialist junk food! May I have some?" Asked  the Libyan as he grinned and began to reach into Manson's bag with his pea-green nailed fingers.
       "Keep your grubby Bedouin hands out of my chips," snapped Manson as he slapped Nidal's hand, "you didn't ask for them nice."
       Another thing they inevitably clashed over, that is, until Nidal changed his attitude and perspective on the subject, was Manson's boldness with his beautiful skinny body. Often he would appear on stage wearing only a G-string or sometimes just a pasty tastefully covering his dick. This naturally horrified the prissy Libyan who felt that going on stage in an outfit that exposed his arms and a bit of his chest was daring. Whenever he would see Manson thus exposed, Nidal would call him a "slut boy" or "dirty white boy", to which Manson would say something like "Get a clue, Virgo, you have a man's body just like mine under all your shitty finery. Why are you so ashamed of it?" Often, the boldness of Manson's retorts on the subject caused the then prudish Arab to visibly recoil.
    "You have beautiful nipples, Virgo. I know I've seen them. They're like little brown berries. You really should go without your shirt once and let people see them. I know they would enjoy them." Said Manson to Nidal after the Libyan had given him a particularly rough time over a flimsy nylon nothing he was almost wearing. At that Nidal crossed his hands over his thoroughly clothed chest, turned red in the face, gasped, and turned away.
     Once Nidal threw a blanket over Manson's shoulders when he saw the American rocker come out of his dressing room in his "slut boy" G-string garters, nylons, and platform boots.
     "You really aren't going on stage in THAT. It's so immodest." Gasped Nidal.
     "Take your friggin blanket and put it back on your friggin' camel. Whaddya went me to wear, a veil?" Snapped Manson as he flung the blanket back at the Arab and climbed up onto the stage to do his number.
      Yes, the friction between them was intense, but as Manson himself began to notice, Nidal treated him very differently at different times. Whenever they were in public together, the Libyan always dropped his better rockstar than you attitude and instead treated Manson with the greatest kindness and respect. He never teased nor taunted him, but showed him almost defference. He called him "Lord Manson". The same held true later when they started appearing in rock operas as co-stars and Nidal always insisted that Manson be his co-star. When they rehearsed together, Nidal was not only co-operative, but generally let Manson take the lead.
    And there were other inconsistancies. Manson knew that for all of his prissiness, Nidal enjoyed secretly spying on him and watching him while he undressed. He also knew that everytime he went out with someone or even put his arm around Twiggy that the tears ran down the Libyan's tawny painted cheeks and that he would go back to his suite, throw himself across his green silk covered bed, and cry into his pillow about it. He also knew that his near nude acts made the Libyan want him so much that his balls ached.
    So why was Nidal so hostile, so insulting, so haughty towards him. Why didn't he just approach Manson and ask him politely to give him a blow job. Manson, who was really quite casual about such things, would have obliged him without a moment's hesitation.
    So why was Nidal making so much pain for himself. Manson understood why. To begin with, that was the Arab's way of trying to get his attention, very childish, of course, but Arabs can be. Also, he saw Manson as an American authority symbol and this made him as terrifying to him as he was desireable. Being a prominent American rockstar was enough to make Nidal equate Manson as an American authority figure in his mind. But his worst problem was his pride. Nidal was too proud to admit how much Manson inspired him in his own career, how much he wanted to emulate him, even that he liked him. When Manson understood this, he ceased loathing him and began to pity him. He also planned to rid the Libyan of his arrogence, somehow.
     The opportunity for him to do so came with Nidal's Kismet concert. It was to be a lavish, spectacular event with, as its title suggested, a heavy mid-eastern flavor. It was to be an affair full of not only Nidal's own newly penned rock songs, but his hair-raising demon taming act as well.  Of course, Nidal wanted Manson to co-star in it with him.
     "Lord Manson, I need you to dress in this little outfit and hold my hoops and other equipment for me while I put my demons through their routine." Begged Nidal as he held up the pro-offered costume before Manson. It consisted of a very short green nylon shift with glittery half-moons spangling the crotch, buttocks, and nipple areas. Very daring for Nidal indeed!
      "Do I get to sing?" Asked Manson as he eyed the green costume skeptically.
      "Of course you do, Lord Manson. You get to drape yourself across the arms of one of my giant demons and sing that song about cake and you know what." Grinned Nidal.
     "Sodomy! And the song is called "White Trash".  Now I hope you won't honestly expect me to do THAT with your pet!" Said Manson who noticed that the Libyan winced at the word "sodomy".
     "Why not? I do." Replied Nidal who was trying to sound blythe.
     "Eeeew." Said Manson.
     "Have no fear, Lord Manson, I won't expect you to do that. But you will be expected to kiss Pazuzu." Said Nidal with a wink of his heavily lashed eyelid.
    "Pazuzu!" Exclaimed Manson. "Isn't he that Mesopotamian demon that possessed that little girl in "The Exorsist"?
     "He sure is", Said Nidal proudly, "I have him on loan from Saddam Hussein."
     "I might have known." Sighed Manson. "Okay, I'll do Kismet with you. I'll were that lepercon negligee and hold you stuff while you work your pet monsters. And I'll lay myself across the arms of your demon and let him drool all over me as I sing "White Trash". And I'll even kiss(yuch!)Pazuzu, if you agree to one thing."
    "What's that, Lord Manson?" Nidal asked eagerly.
      "That when I do another concert of my own you will co-star in it with me. And that you will do everything I say no matter what it is. Agreed?" Asked Manson.
     "Yes, Lord Manson, whatever you say, Lord Manson." Agreed the Lidyan as he squeezed Manson's hand.
     For the next few weeks, the Libyan and American rockstars went through the rehearsals for Kismet. Everything went well except when they did the scene where Manson lays in the demon's arms and sings "White Trash". When they first went through that segment, the demon, who must have been ten feet tall and looked like something right out of one thou- sand and one Arabian Nightmares, tried to put his claws down the front of Manson's black leather pants. Manson screamed and gave the demon a strong bop on the end of his ughly nose.
      "Keep your hands to yourself, you monster!" He shrieked as the demon put him down on the floor of the stage and ran whimpering back down to Hell. It was all that Nidal would do to conjure him back after that.
      Finally, the rehearsals were done and it was time for the big gala event of Kismet to open for its premeire performance. The seats in the audience section had sold out every one, because every one knew that if Manson and Nidal were doing a show together it had to be good. They were always a performing duo of peerless excellence.
      The show opened with Manson, dressed as Cleopatra, rubbing a large ornate bottle with mysterious oriental music flowing through the background. Suddenly, there was a poof! and Nidal emerged from it wearing a mint green harem outfit. The two of them then did a belly dancing routine, while Nidal sang rousingly about "Selling Your Soul". Then came a quick costume change, Manson into the little green outfit and Nidal into his gold spangled, epulotted, demon tamer's costume with whip and all. Manson smiled and acted as the Libyan's assistant while he had them jump through hoops, form pyramids, and so forth. Then came Manson's "White Trash" scene. Of course, the much-chastised demon behaved himself like a gentleman this time. Then came another costume change for the scene where Manson was Cleopatra again and did a stirring duet with Nidal, who was wearing a sleeveless pea green jumpsuit. The scene ended with Nidal kissing Manson very tenderly and with obvious pleasure. Then came the grand climax, the scene where Manson kissed Pazuzu, while Nidal sang "The Glories Of Hell". Inspite of whatever revulsion Manson may have felt over having to be so close to the lupine-faced horror, he hid it well and not only kissed the formnible demon, but rubbed his lithe body all over him as he did so.
     The crowd was thrilled and the rock opera made Manson and Nidal more popular than ever. Then three weeks later, Manson announced that it was his turn.
     "Virgo, remember how you promised me that you would do a concert with me if I did a concert with you?" He asked Nidal slyly.
     "Yes, Lord Manson. Of course, I'd be glad to do it." Replied Nidal gleefully.
     "Really? That's good because I'm doing an update of my Anti-Christ Superstar concert and you are going to be my co-star in it."Manson informed him.
     "Anti-Christ!" Blurted out the Arab."  I can't be in something like that. In my culture we have no place for Christ, much less for an Anti-Christ!"
     "Alright, you heathen, but you did promise to do my next show with me." Said Manson sternly.
     "Okay, Lord Manson. Anything you say. Now tell me what my part calls for." Sighed Nidal resignedly.
     "It calls for you to spend the whole duration of the show kneeling on the stage completely naked and holding a Bible over your dick. I will also put a chicken on your head and now and then I and the members of my band will come over and spit on you. Before the show is over, I will have the whole audience come over and spit on you." Explained Manson ominously.
     "But I can't hold a Bible over my dick. Can't I use The Koran instead?" Protested the Libyan.
     "No, you infidel. This is my show and besides, it's Anti-Christ Superstar, not Anti-Mohammed Superstar." Said Manson severely.
    The Libyan gasped and looked flustered, but he agreed to do the show exactly Manson's way. And when the big night arrived he really did endure several hours of being naked, being spat on, and even having a chicken shit on him, without him moving a muscle.
    After that, poor Nidal was sooo humiliated that he went on an acid trip and didn't come back for a whole week. But he did finally recover and did a rock opera version of "Tosca" with Manson being Tosca.
    Everyone agreed that it was their most knock out performance ever!