Author Part 2
(Chapter 55 of "Senses")
LOS ANGELES
A fuzzy black and white mass, with a yellowish crown, with a grayish background. Wait a moment - does not compute.
"How do you feel?" the mass asked.
Focus! Ah, yes. "I'm all right," I said. I sat up and grabbed my head, expecting a pain that wasn't there. Once I realized I did feel fine I shook my head.
"We're not in Yosemite anymore, are we A.J.?" I asked.
"Very good," the big man responded. "We're in a warehouse in Los Angeles. Do you know why?"
Of course I do asshole! I've seen too much so I'm out of circulation! I just nodded. The man is 19 inches taller than I am for christ's sake!
A.J. nodded in return. "Good. Now you have a photographic memory, correct?"
I nodded again, wondering how he had managed to make that deduction.
A.J. smiled. "Thought so. Now then, I'm going to tell you a story, and you're going to listen. When I'm done, you will have a decision to make. I'll even tell you what the choices are now. You can stay here with our little group, or you can go back to your own life, no strings attached."
"How am I supposed to believe that?" I asked.
"Let me tell you the story, then you answer your own question."
"Are you familiar with the ideas of evolution?" A.J. asked. "Good. I'm glad to see your education isn't lacking. Are you aware that mankind's evolution is accelerating?"
"I don't follow you," I said.
"Why does man dominate? Don't answer, it's rhetorical. Tools, young man, tools. The opposable thumb and the entire ability to use tools has allowed the hairless ape to evolve mentally. We as a race get smarter, new discoveries are made, and still we use only 15% of our brain.
"As I said, however, man is evolving. Some people can use more than their allotted 15%. Far fewer are aware of this. Adding you brings the total to sixteen human beings that we know of. Nice and binary as one of us would put it.
"I am one of those who goes beyond 15%. Exactly by how much I still don't know, but I am aware of some of the side-effects. To start with, your memory is not lying; I can fly."
"How?" I asked.
A.J. lifted both legs to sit in a lotus position 3 1/2 feet above the floor. "It's complicated," he said. "Let me finish the story."
"What makes me a rarity is the fact that I recognize what I do. Most people, and the numbers are surprisingly large, ignore the extra cranial activity because they don't recognize it."
I stopped following what A.J. was saying as I began to concentrate on the warehouse for the first time. The construction was all wrong. The walls didn't look solid and the floor seemed to be canvas in some spots. Along one wall was a large main-frame computer set up with at least a dozen terminals. Not too far from me was a piano, as well as a full gym's worth of exercise gear. In one corner was the kind of medical lab you would normally only see at a high tech facility.
There were people as well. There was a computer tech and a man I knew I should recognize arguing by the computer. A man in his fifties was bouncing in one corner. A small Hispanic woman was at the medical equipment, doing what appeared to be a brain scan on Nicki!
"This is a research facility!" I interrupted.
The man I thought I should recognize shouted, "Awake, is he?"
"Yes," A.J. responded, rolling his eyes. "He's awake."
"Have you filled him in?"
"Not quite, pending further interruptions." A.J. turned back to me. "To answer your statement, yes, this is a research facility, privately funded by ourselves. Not all of us do the wild things I do, but all of us are dedicated as to the why."
I shook my head again, as I was losing the point of all this. "Why did you bring me here?" I asked.
"Several reasons, the most important of which you're not aware of yet. The first was a tactical error on Nicki's part. She knocked you out."
I stood for the first time. "She what?"
A.J. patted me on the shoulder. "Sit back down," he said. I did, as he stopped floating and stood again himself.
"The story is long and involved," he continued, "and others tell it better than I, but Nicki doesn't really have many interpersonal skills. She spent the equivalent of 17 years knowing no one but her parents and a family friend. You may be the first person she's ever really talked to that's the equivalent of her own age."
"Equivalent?" I asked.
A.J. ignored it. "Once you were out I checked out your brain waves, which is the easy way to explain another thing I do. That's how I discovered your memory, and a couple of other things. I think you're aware of what you do, or what the effect is, so I won't bother explaining it to you."
Say what? Now he lost me altogether.
"Now's the part where you'll believe me when I say you can go," A.J. continued. "This research center is privately funded and run, because three of us, including myself, live very public lives and we enjoy our privacy. Word of what we do gets out, goodbye privacy. However, the same holds for you."
I let that soak for a moment, and decided to go with it, whatever it was. "What incentive do I have to stay?" I asked.
"First, we keep our privacy and you keep yours. There we have the edge because, as public figures, we know how to deal with the media. Second, you'd be free to follow your own pursuits here, just as we do. You write, so continue it. In fact, it would save you the money you've been spending at Yosemite because we'd put you up here."
The man I thought I should recognize walked over to us in the interim. "Come on bro', tell him the main reason," he said.
Recognition hit me then. "You're Jim Christopher!" I nearly shouted. "You're involved in this too?"
He laughed. "Slight misunderstanding," he said. "I'm not Jim. My name is Larry Christopher. Don't worry about it, the mistake is common. When you do meet Jim you'll find his hair is longer, and he hasn't begun to gray around the temples."
So all the Christopher brothers were in on this. "What is it that you do?" I asked.
"Oh, I'm just an observer. No powers we've been able to ascertain. I'm just a bookseller from Haight-Ashbury with a knack for deduction." He regarded me for a moment. "You have no idea what it is that you do, do you? No concept of what your own extra normal ability is."
I tried to hide my emotions, because that was my last ace (hell, my only ace in a blind hand), but I must have failed. Upon reflection I realize that Larry is that good.
"A.J.," Larry continued, "you have no hold over this boy."
"You mean I've fucked up?" A.J. responded.
"That's right." Larry turned to me. "You're a catalyst son."
"Catalyst?" I asked.
"You've led an interesting life so far, correct? Thought so. Ever ask yourself why? It's because the random elements of physics, for lack of a better term, seem to follow you around. None of us here knows why, but these random elements seem to follow your commands, apparently at the subconscious level."
"That's ridiculous!"
"No, that's the way it is. A.J. noticed that your patterns have 'strings' attached for some reason. These strings can attach themselves to almost anything, so almost anything can happen."
I said nothing, but I must have looked skeptical (I was) because A.J. added, "You don't believe us. How can we show you? How can we gain your trust?"
That was it. I exploded. "Trust!" I yelled, standing up. "You knock me out and kidnap me from the work and life that I love, and you ask me to trust you! Look bug guy, I'm in an unknown location more than three hundred miles from my own home and I find myself suddenly thrown into an Ian Fleming fantasy! You tell me I have this odd-ball power and decide to make me into one of the X-Men! I'm a writer, for christ's sake!"
"We now. That's why we want you."
I spun to face this new voice to greet a man in his late middle age. He looked like he may have been one of the older hippies during the '60's, but these days it's tough to tell.
"Who the hell are you?" I asked.
"My name is 'drink," he said. "I'm Nicki's father."
Damn it, he looked like it too. "Nothing personal," I said, calming my voice down, "and believe it or not I like Nicki, but you people fucking kidnapped me!"
"True, we did. I know what it's like."
"Bullshit."
"No, real shit. I've been kidnapped once myself. So were my wife and child."
I sat back down and held my head in my hands. "This is getting too strange," I muttered.
"Kid," 'drink said, "you ain't seen nothing yet. It only gets weirder from here."
I looked up. "Why don't I find that reassuring?" I shook my head, again feigning a headache I didn't have. Yet. I looked up at A.J. "You haven't told me the main reason I'm here."
"I'd been wondering when you'd get to that," the big man said. "We need a wordsmith."
Now we're talking. "Tell me more," I said.
Larry spoke, pacing in front of me. "Jace," he began, "I took the liberty of reading your fiction."
I stood again and shouted, "What?"
Larry raised an eyebrow. "You wrote it to be read, didn't you?"
"Yes but..." I protested.
"No buts! You can control what you write but not who reads it. Any author will tell you that. Anyway, take it from someone who sells this stuff, you're pretty good."
Ah, vanity. "You think so?"
"A bit amateurish, perhaps, but you're what...nineteen years old? Give it some time. Meanwhile we need an historian."
An historian. First time I ever heard someone say it like that.
Larry smiled. "Caught speaking properly, was I?"
I nodded.
"Good. That shows promise. Now you understand we are a secret organization, and you understand why. It can't always be that way. Eventually the world must know about what we're doing here, and what we've accomplished. We are scientists, after all.
"Several of us have interesting stories to tell about our lives and accomplishments. We'd like them written down. We'd like you to write it."
"Like a biography?" I asked.
"Fifteen biographies," A.J. corrected.
"That's a lot of bios."
"True," Larry added.
"What do I get out of it?"
"Room and board, all expenses covered by us. We're wealthy, so you can splurge a bit, and we leave you alone to conduct your business."
"Room and board?" I asked. "Here?"
"Nope," A.J. said. "You'd get an apartment in West L.A. and an office here. We'd also provide you with the credit cards necessary to live around here."
"I could leave at any time?"
"You could, but I don't think you'll want to. Face it Jace, you're interested."
Damn it! He was right. "And I'll be able to pursue my own writing as well?"
"Same as the rest of us pursuing our own careers," Larry said.
I thought it through. "All right," I finally said. "I'm in, but not for the reasons you think."
"That I understand."
I shook my head. "Do you? If I'm this catalyst you all claim I am, then some big shit is about to come down. Larry, you said it yourself about this organization. It can't always be this way."
Larry smiled and looked at A.J. "He figured it out," he said.
"So you're expecting something?"
Larry chuckled. "Remind me to never underestimate that memory again. You're right, we're expecting something, but we don't know what or when, so for the time being we're continuing with our outside interests. You have a point though. The odds of whatever it is happening soon just skyrocketed."
Now I finally smiled. "So you need me for more reasons than you think. We'll find out what that is soon enough I suppose. Now then, if we're to be sixteen, I'll want to meet everybody."
"Three of us are in San Francisco," Larry said.
"Karen will be at work," 'drink added.
"Jim and Mats are probably out drinking by now," A.J. put in.
"Say nine tonight?" I asked, flippantly.
"No problem," A.J. replied. "One of us has an airplane. We can go get them."
"No problem? I was kidding! Larry said that three of us are in San Francisco."
"You're thinking of us as a group including you. Good. I repeat, no problem."
"Good. What time is it now? And can I get something to eat? I'm starving!" I clapped my hand together in anticipation. "No strings, indeed," I muttered to myself.
We all met in the same gym. I had met Larry, A.J., 'drink, and Nicki already, and over the course of the day I met Scott David (the computer tech arguing with Larry), Angie (the med-tech examining Nicki - when I later found out she was "Raven" Rameriz I still wouldn't have recognized her, because I don't read that kind of shit), and 'drink had introduced me to Debbie.
The next three to walk in after the group above had already assembled provided me with a shock, but I smiled at the older of the two women who came in. Morgana was introduced to me, then Rand Weiss, but I beat everyone to the punch on the third.
"Hello Constance," I said.
"Hello Jace," she replied, stunned. "You're the kid Nicki and A.J. discovered?"
I nodded, smiling. "It appears so. How have you been?"
"Fine. Married now."
I looked at Rand. "Suspected as much," I said. It's rare to see a couple that looks that right together.
Finally Rand asked the obvious question. "You two have met?"
Constance laughed. "Remember when I taught English? Jace was one of my students."
Sudden insight hit me then. "You're the guy who left her!" I shouted.
Rand frowned, then began to smile. "You're the kid who helped her through," he said.
There was an embarrassing silence, until I cracked a smile. "It looks like we've done each other favors," I said. I extended my hand. "Glad to finally meet you."
Rand laughed. "You too." It was a solid handshake.
"Where's Paul?" A.J. asked. "I thought he flew you in."
"He's coming," Morgana said. Man, that accent was tasty! "He wanted to check in at flight control before he came in."
Before I had a chance to ask "Paul who" my question was answered. "Hello everyone," came a voice from the door. I turned to see Paul Cynic walk in. The Paul Cynic. There was a gorgeous woman with him, but she ignored Paul as soon as she spotted A.J. She ran and leaped at him and he caught her, holding their bodies at an improbable angle. It was a serious embrace.
Paul walked up to me. "You must be Mr. Wright," he said.
A few people in the room cracked smiled while I answered, "Just call me Jace, Mr. Cynic."
He extended his hand. "Just call me Paul."
"Let me guess. You're the legal team."
"You're sharp, kid. Yes, I'm the legal team, and that's all. The actual number with the talents is ten, including you."
"Let's wait until we're all here before we get the list, all right? Who was that who came in with you?"
The woman broke from her lip lock on A.J. to say, "Carrie Fallon, kid." As if that were explanation enough, she returned her full attention to A.J.
Until the thump on the roof.
A.J. looked up at the sound. "Mats is here," he said.
It wasn't long before a man with incredibly long hair and a huge beard came in. He looked to be in his fifties, and had probably been growing the hair all that time.
"Mats!" Scott called out. "How'd it go?"
Mats held up his thumb. "Checked out, all right!"
I then had to file that quick exchange, as Jim Christopher made his entrance.
Disheveled is a good word. He didn't look very awake, and he held a half empty bottle of Bushmill's in his hand. The appearance fooled no one, however. Jim was easily the most alert person in the room, save for perhaps Larry.
He walked directly to me and handed me the bottle. "Good evening," he said. He wasn't drunk. Although I know better now, I would have pegged him as faking the drinking. "You must be Jace," he said. "A.J. told me about you."
"Mr. Christopher," I returned. "I wasn't told about you, but I had assumed it."
"Hard to miss with both my brothers here." He took the bottle back and drained it, as I watched. He then handed me the empty bottle. "Hold this a moment while I say my hellos." I sniffed the empty bottle and went wide-eyed.
Without another word he walked over to Angie and gave her a big hug. An intense hug. At about the moment I said to myself that there was something wrong with this picture in walked number sixteen.
A short woman, with glasses. She was laughing and looking at me. "Don't worry," she said. "You'll get used to it."
She walked to Jim and Angie and kissed Jim on the neck. Jim, still holding Angie, turned his head and kissed the new woman passionately.
Then the wash hit me and I blacked out.
The group watched as Jace stumbled out of the room. Even the two sets of lovers broke apart somewhat.
"That was unkind," Rand noted. "The kid should know the truth about you three." He pointed a finger at Jim. "The rest of the world can believe whatever they want about you having multitudes of women, but this kid is someone we're trying to make into family."
Larry raised an eyebrow and looked at Karen, who was still kissing Jim. "Sensory overload?" he asked. "The kid sure as hell didn't stumble out of here voluntarily."
Karen stopped kissing Jim. "Seems that way," she replied, "although I've never seen it this strong."
"He's receptive to random elements," A.J. pointed out.
Jim sighed. "And we're an imposing group collectively," he added. "You're right, Rand. It was unkind. We were going to clue him in before he stumbled out of here."
'drink shook his head and looked at his colleagues. "Who knows what effect this is having on him?" he asked. "We'd better find him."
I said blacked out, not passed out.
The next thing I remembered was sitting in the dark in some room, huddled up in a corner. I had a scrape on my right knee, probably from stumbling on the odd-ball floor of that gym. Somewhere along the line my clothes disappeared as well.
I felt like I had just stepped into Equus.
I was alone in the dark for a long time. I just sat there and tried to get myself together, although I didn't do it very well. Mostly I just tried to catch my breath.
"Jace?"
Jesus! I hadn't even noticed the door opening.
"It was quiet. I let myself in."
I had to remind myself that she had read my mind once before. I'm not used to having to need to do that. Okay, so Nicki was one of the super-people. "Why you?" I asked.
"You're in my room," she replied.
I started laughing. "Nicki, have I lost my mind?"
"No."
"Than it's you people who are nuts! Super-men and sex fiends! Jesus!"
I heard Nicki shuffle in place, perhaps a bit nervously. "Jim can be a bit tough to take at first."
"Really!"
"His beliefs on love are a bit different from most. He believes you can love more than one person on a level high enough to be called 'lovers'. So do the two women he sees."
"Angie and that last woman to come in," I observed.
"Her name is Karen," Nicki said. "I'll introduce her later, and she's by far Jim's favorite. They were playing a joke on you. Jim and Karen are monogamous." There was a slight chuckle, and then a long pause. "May I turn on a light?"
"No!" I yelled.
"Okay. You have a reason?"
"Yes. I seem to have misplaced my clothes."
Nicki chuckled in spite of herself. "That explains the nervous edge in your voice."
Nervous edge?
"Where are your clothes?" she asked.
"I haven't the slightest clue."
"I'll go looking."
She was gone a moment, but then was back saying, "found them."
I didn't say anything, but nodded in the dark.
"Jace, may I ask a favor?"
"Sure."
"Make love to me?"
Snap! There went my mind, like a twig in a tornado. "Sure," I said.
She was already naked when she snuggled up to me.
Nicki awoke to an empty bed. She turned on the light in her room and saw it was nearly noon, and smiled. She would have liked for Jace to have been there when she woke up, but considering the time it was okay. She was content enough to have surrendered her virginity to him.
She got dressed and went into the kitchen, where A.J. was making pancakes. "You look dreamy this morning," he said, "all thing considered."
"I am," Nicki replied. "What do you mean, all things considered?"
A.J. took the skillet from the stove. "He didn't tell you?"
Nicki stopped smiling. "Jace left, didn't he?" It was a statement, not a question.
A.J. nodded. "Mats flew him back early this morning."
Nicki didn't say another word. She walked back to her room, and had the longest cry of her life.