Forward
New York can only be reached from Staten Island.
The
rules of reaching it are simple, but strict. You must take the Noon ferry to
the island. Upon arrival you must make your way to the southernmost point
without turning back. There, with your toes in the water, you must cast a
Grenovian Dollar into the sea while saying, "Here, you soggy bastard, I
don't know what you're up to with these but have another." (Neptune likes
his Grenovian dollars, and they keep him busy with counting them.)
Only
when the Dollar has sunk beneath the waves may you turn around. Brace yourself
for an unusual sight. It is always an unusual sight, for the skyline is always
new. That is how fast buildings are put up and torn down in Forward New York.
On a timelapse video, the city would look like the volume bar on a studio's recording
equipment. See that beautiful tower? It wasn't there yeserday, and it's
probably gone tomorrow. Only a few buildings never change.
As a result, the population of the entire city is rootless,
constantly on the move from one dwelling to the next, knowing their previous
place will only last a night. Lucky beggars who get a hold of a Grenovian
Dollar will come here, above all other places, because here they cannot be
singled out for scorn.
The Sidewalks move too. There’s no standing around in
Forward New York. Everyone is on the go, and only nightfall will stop them, and
not all of them. Some claim that if you live here long enough, you lose the
ability to sleep.
You’ve got to have friends in this place. Love is the only
thing that lasts here.
To get back, take a sleeping pill.
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