What's the Name of That Book??? discussion
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First Contacts
SOLVED: Adult Fiction
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SOLVED. horror short story. butterfly collector in amazon. Read online. [s]
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Does it have the word 'butterflies' in the title?If so, could it possibly be: The Sound of Butterflies: A Novel (P.S.)
Nope, not _The Sound of Butterflies_ (2008) - Too recent, and that one is about the wife, the now mute collector, and what the rubber tycoon did.Pretty sure this was a short story. I *think* I read it in a collection.
MC was not reported as impaired, AFIRecall.
I don't think the MC had a wife (but if so, she maybe got a line - not half the book).
The sponsor was not in-country, and I don't think his profession (if any) was ever mentioned. I *think* it was implied that he was of the nobility/old money.
This is gonna bug the snot out of me, because I read it years ago and really liked it and have absolutely no idea what the title is, who wrote it or what collection I read it in.Scratch that, reverse. "Doomsday Deferred" by Murray Leinster. God, I'm good.
It's available in First Contacts: The Essential Murray Leinster, which is chock full of absolutely fantastic stories.
Hmmm, no description of that story in that link?But, gonna take your word for it, for right now.
I verified with a different website that had a description before I posted. In trying to find that description again I found what seems to be the whole story:http://bookre.org/reader?file=253001&...
I'm always leery when I find full text online but I know that a lot of Leinster's stuff is public domain, so this certainly could be as well.
Btw, what other website? I love learning new ways to find books.I didn't get around to doing a search on this one, but did you use anything than the title and author in your search query?
organizing, nothing to see here.Although I would love Peter to answer that question, maybe I'll PM him
The details of this story are pretty much all spoiler :\
Stories this is NOT:
(view spoiler)[
It is NOT:
"Leiningen versus the Ants" (1938) by Carl Stephenson
It is also NOT:
"G.I. Ants" (1983)
It is also NOT:
_The Sound of Butterflies_ (2008) - Too recent, but thanks for trying iiLov3Yuhh!!
It is also NOT:
"The Empire of the Ants" (1905) by H. G. Wells
However, it is pretty much a take-off/inspired by the Wells story.
(hide spoiler)]
Butterfly collector is hired to go chasing after a super-rare butterfly, perhaps 1 or 2 have ever been collected. (Obviously written about a time (or was written before) anyone cares about endangered species, yeah? :D)
He journeys deep into the heart of the Jungle, and is at a small outpost. He's teaching frontiersmen how to catch, and not damage butterflies, so they can earn the huge reward he's offering. He has pictures and stuff, so if anyone sees his butterfly, they can catch it. He's got 5lbs of highly concentrated, highly toxic bug-killer to preserve specimens with.
He too, is planning on going hunting, but it'll be easier to get a lot of help.
While he's teaching people at the bar, a guy (let's call him Jose - some generic Latin name) comes up to him.
Jose says, Senor - you're a man of the world, and have contacts to people further away, can you exchange this gold for cattle? And holds out large cache of small (like eraser-sized) nuggets of gold. When they MC tells him, No, he's not in the cattle-buying business. Jose gets a panicked look on his face. MC tells him, that he can do anything, if he can get this butterfly. Jose thinks about it, and then asks MC where do butterflies come from? And MC explains cocoons and caterpillars, but that they're very hard to find, and no idea which ones will turn into which butterflies - and Jose says, well, what if my friends can get a whole bunch of different types of those, would you trade those for cattle? MC ponders, and then says yes.
Jose rushes out the door... leaving the gold in MC's hands.
MC is obviously troubled by this. But continues on with what he's doing.
Jose comes back relatively soon. With a HOARD of cocoons of different types. MC is amazed at the variety and type. Nobody that he knows of has ever seen so many types of cocoons outside of years and years worth of collecting.
He salts down some, and lets others mature.
He buys a pig (there are no cattle deep in the jungle) and takes a canoe up to Jose's clearing/homestead as a congratulatory down-payment.
Jose is super-happy, and stakes the pig in the yard. They go into the house. MC spots an insect on the shelf.
Does a double-take.
Snatches Jose's child, and runs rapidly to the river!
Jose calls out after him.
MC turns around, and notes that nothing seems to be threatening, the hut in the clearing is fine...
(view spoiler)[
Jose says, it's a pet. And holds out the ant on his palm, and it does a handstand. The jungle is very quiet. The MC gets very cold, then goes, Yes I see. I must've been mistaken. He sends the child back, and then tells Jose that 500 head of cattle are coming up on barge, and will be there very soon.
He gets in his canoe, and rows away.
He can hear the pig squeal in mortal terror, and then it is silenced.
He shudders.
He grabs his stuff from the bar/inn.
He goes and meets the barge, he tells everyone but the pilot to get off, and pays them. He then starts macheteing all the cattle, and butchering them. The pilot looks at him as if he's crazy, but continues on towards Jose's.
MC then starts dusting the gore with his poison.
They get to Jose's and the smell of blood is overpowering, and MC directs the barge to run aground. The pilot wants to argue, then sees the huge mass of army-ants waiting, and jumps into the river and swims away.
MC jumps but swims to Jose. Gets them into a canoe, and tells them that they're leaving.
Poison will be re-used since army ants eat their dead.
And self-aware and communicating army-ant colony will be destroyed.
World saved.
Maybe.
(hide spoiler)]
Rare butterfly is amongst those that Jose found. But since there are several specimens, and a cocoon form, the price drops a lot, and they weren't considered all that valuable anymore.
But MC has given up being a hired collector.