The Butterfly Ethic/8

Chapter 8

The thirteenth of March was one of my bad days, I got on Amber’s list quite quickly and she had me copying the dictionary at lunch. To add insult to injury, we had resinated gravy on our potatoes. I sat in hopeless despair, copying the dictionary to no clear destination. I knew I would get nothing from it, other than the definition of the word glabella, but I still reviewed what I wrote. As I looked at the paper, I felt strange. The paper was slightly warped form some moisture, and looking closely, I could almost see the face of Typhos, the demon of the grey forest, burned into the paper. At the bottom of the page, the end of the random strings of thoughts, were the words: Perverse, Sexual, Lust. I couldn’t understand why they were there. If they were from the future, it for sure wasn’t my future. I just wasn’t that kind of person. I put the paper in one of my school books and went to class, singing a song in my head to shake the feeling off.



           Rachel got the picture back that night, to celebrate; she invited me in her room for another game of chess. This time, Freya was lying on her bed with her head hanging off the side. In her hands was a copy of the children’s version of The Time Machine.

           As we played chess, our conversation quickly turned to my recent experiences. Rachel decided it was time to teach me a new skill: Psionics.

           “What is that?” I asked her.

           “The ability to use your mind to influence the world around you.” Rachel said. Freya looked up from her book. [i]

<span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Affect the world around me? I can already do that.” I said as I moved my bishop a few spaces to kill her knight. “See?”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Yes, but you are limited to physical means. I can teach you how to do that with your spirit.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Wow. You mean like on X-Men?” I asked.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Something like that.” She said. “Psionics is a strange talent, but if you want to take on this Istari, you might need it.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Does he know psionics?” I asked.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “I’m not sure, but I think psionics might help against him.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “So you want to teach me to move things with my mind, like Jean Grey.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “No.” Rachel said. “That’s impractical.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “What’s that mean?”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “It means it’s not worth learning. It takes a ludicrous amount of time and effort to move a chess piece with your mind when you can just get up and do it with your hand. What I do intend on teaching you is how to affect the metaphysical world with your mind.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “What do you mean by that?” Freya asked.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “You can use psionics to send a message to another’s mind, or receive information. You can even use it to locate people, including this spirit.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Awesome.” I said. Freya was not impressed.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “How are we to know this is real?” she asked.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “The same way you know Martin’s wizard is real.” Rachel said.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “I do not know that is real either.” She told Rachel.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Then you just have to believe.” Rachel said.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Well, can you explain how it works?” Freya said.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Well, yes. You see, in quantum physics- Oh who am I kidding? It’s magic.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Magic?” Freya asked. “Just like Martin’s time travel.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Time travel?” Rachel asked.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “You didn’t tell her?”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “No, I didn’t think she’d believe it.” I said.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Believe what?” She asked.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Martin claims to have traveled through time.” Freya said.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Is this true?” she asked.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Yes,” I replied. “What I saw wasn’t a dream; it was a memory from the future.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “You went to the future? Do you know who I’m supposed to marry?”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           I explained to her that I went back in time from the future, and how I only had memory of the forest, the painting, and my duel with a mysterious entity called Typhos, though I didn’t tell her about the dictionary pages.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “So.” Rachel said as I finished. “You don’t know who I’m going to marry?”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “No, but I wish I did.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “So do I.” Rachel said.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Rachel” Freya interrupted. “How long will it take you to penetrate these lies?”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “I’m not sure.” Rachel said. “Time travel is impossible, but you knew about the picture, so I don’t know what to believe.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Why does everyone say that!?” I asked. “Why does everyone think time travel is impossible? I mean- you probably thought psionics was impossible.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Psionics obeys the natural order, time travel doesn’t. It’s cheating if you can go back in time and change what you did. That makes it unfair for the rest of us.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Doesn’t it make it unfair for someone to be able to move things with their mind?”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “To do that, you have to devote time to learn it. With time travel, you just get the time back, I’ve heard of psions who can control time, but they can’t change the past.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Where do you hear of this stuff?” I asked.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “I have a pamphlet on the basics, the rest I found from the internet.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Can I see this pamphlet?” I asked.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Sure, it’s on the shelf over there, with the magazines.” I went to the magazines on the bottom shelf. They were sorted by teen, health, and other, which is where I hoped to find her psionics book, but I couldn’t find it.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;text-indent:35.45pt;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">“Rachel, I can’t find it!” I said.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “It’s in the bottom, second section from the left, it’s the middle book.” She said.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Man, why does your bookshelf have to be so complicated?” I asked. I picked out the book where she told me to. “Is this it?” I asked.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Yes, you’ll learn the basics from that.” Rachel said. “It doesn’t teach meditation techniques though, I’ll have to do that myself.” Rachel cleared away the forgotten chessboard and had me sit in a relaxed position and try some breathing exercises. Freya joined in too out of curiosity.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           This feels strangely familiar, I thought as I exercised my lungs.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “They used to teach these at the school.” Rachel said. “But then some kid took the training tape and smashed it.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           Whoops. I thought.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Oh well, that’s their loss.” She said. When we finished, she taught me how to enter the alpha state, an alternate consciousness where pain and time are nonexistent. Through this state, psi, the energy that makes psionics possible, could flow through my body with ease. The only problem was getting it out of here.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           When she pulled me out of the alpha state, I found that thirty-seven minutes passed in what felt like ten.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “I’d have kept you there longer, but I think you have homework.” She said to me. “How’s your book report doing, by the way?”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “I’m about three fourths the way through the book.” I said. “Why? Do you need to give it back to the library?”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Oh, I got it from the library for keeps.” Rachel said.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Did you have to pay for it?” I asked.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “No, I beat them up and took it.” She said with a wicked smile. “So do you like it?” she asked.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Yeah, it’s pretty funny, but I don’t understand the cricket parts.” I said.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Yeah, you can’t understand cricket by just hearing about it.” She said.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Yeah, um, can I borrow this psionics handbook?” I asked.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Sure, you can even try some of these on your own tonight, after your homework’s done.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;text-indent:35.45pt;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">I didn’t wait until my homework was done; I started practicing and went as long as I could. After that, I went to the backyard and found a tree branch fashioned into a staff. With this, I could be a true wizard and take on my adversary. When I got back inside, it was past nine o’clock, and Elijah was in my room. He asked me why I had a staff in my hand, and then rattled off dozens of reasons—most of them involving slugs—why I shouldn’t have it in his room.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;text-indent:35.45pt;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">It was one of those nights, again. I just couldn’t sleep. Never before was Elijah’s heavy breathing so obnoxious, but I was kept awake by something else: that feeling that I wasn’t in my body. I was thinking of my book report book. I forgot about it because I was living a book. When we were younger, Rachel spoke of writing her own fantasy book, with Freya and me coproducing it. She never talked about it anymore, for that was an idea that was lost in the threads of time. I felt nostalgic for those times, a longing to go to the past. Soon I would be in the past: nearly a year from today. I needed to set my mind at ease. I made a psi ball and within a few minutes, I went to dreamland, not knowing that this would be the last time I ever went to sleep in the same league as the rest of my family. Tomorrow, I would leave the Shire for good.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           [ii] In seventh grade, I was the underdog, those days ended when I passed on to eighth grade. At the beginning of the year, Brother Alex Whigfield, the principal, gave us a short message on speaking kindly to others, but that did no more for us than it did for our predecessors.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;text-indent:35.45pt;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">Giovanni graduated from the class of 2003, complete with an award for being the nicest kid in school. Amber was not pleased with that, nor was I, but we were pleased that he was gone. Now we could rule, and we did. This is the story of my ascension to power, on that strange day of February 12, 2004.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           I wore cargo pants that day, I presupposed them to be a status symbol, but the only thing separating them from regular pants was the extra pockets that I knew I wouldn’t use.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           We were in a rush that morning, and we missed the bus. My mom was frustrated that she would have to take the kids to school. To add insult to injury, there was a monstrous traffic jam on one of the first roads. All of the cars were held single file behind a bad accident. Our hopes of getting to school on time were dashed to pieces.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           Lehi was sitting in the front seat alone, until he found something else sharing the seat with him. He let out a loud shriek and bounced out of the seat. Slithering above where his head used to be was a centipede. Lehi kicked the back of the seat until it fell down, and then opened the door, letting the cold wind in, and flicked it out.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Sit down, for heaven’s sake! “My mom said to him. He did so, then shut the door and looked out the window.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           The wreckage was spectacular. The pieces of the back window of a car littered the road; the back of the car was smashed to a point in which I pitied anyone who was sitting there. The police officers spoke to a blonde haired woman wearing a green jacket. She looked very familiar.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Hey! That’s Corinne.” Lehi shouted. We all crowded around the windows. Sure enough, it was our bus that crashed. “Come on, let’s get on the bus!” Lehi said.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Lehi, stay in here.” My mom said.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Kay.” He said. “Oh well, at least now we know everyone’s going to be late.” The police lines were lowered when life flight left with the injured man, creating a miniature blizzard as it flew off to the University Hospital. We took this chance to get out of the van and on to the bus. Before getting on, I went to a police officer who stood behind Corinne, watching her tell another police officer that she was already late.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “What happened?” I asked him. He whirled around and looked down to my level.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Who let you over here?” Corinne and the other officer looked at me.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Martin, what are you doing?” she asked me.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “You know him?” the second officer asked.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “He’s from the bus.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Well get him back on the bus!” The first one said.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Martin, get back on the bus.” She told me.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Okay, Sister Corinne.” I said, not knowing my words caused Corinne to be mistaken for a nun. I went on the bus and waited. It was only about five more minutes before the police cleared out of the area and Corinne was permitted to go to school.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           We were all late, of course, but we had excused absences, not that it meant much to me. When we got to school, Freya’s friend hugged her and told her she heard the bus fell into the river. I tried not to laugh when I saw this, and Freya noticed.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Be quiet.” She said before I had the chance to say anything.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “What, that was hilarious.” I said. “It’s nice that you have a girlfriend that cares for you.” I told her. She hit me with a hairbrush.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           Of our band class, many didn’t show up, including the teacher. We sat in class discussing where everyone might be. [iii]

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Maybe Corinne was driving them to school.” Christopher said. Those who rode the bus laughed at his joke. We were in a good mood because we were having our challenges today, and those who were absent would forfeit their position. There were only two clarinet players: Myself, and Wendy Heatherden. The challenge was simple; we would go into a small room next to the music room. There, we would play a song. The class, who couldn’t see who was playing, would then vote on who played better. I knew I wouldn’t beat Wendy, but I would still catch up to her.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           When Charlotte finally showed up with the cordless phone in her hand and complaints about being stuck to that thing all day, she started class. She asked us for any challenges, and when she got to me, I took the chance.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Why Yes, I’d like to challenge fourth chair.” I said.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “You win.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “And third chair, I’m feeling lucky today.” I won that one today, and decided to press my luck further.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “I want to take Wendy’s former spot, second chair. I win! That’s three in a row! I’m on fire.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Just take the seat, Martin.” Charlotte said.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Okay.” I said. “Can I challenge Wendy now?” Charlotte seemed surprise with that question.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Yes, you may.” She said. Wendy and I went off into the room. Last Halloween, in this room, I was hoodwinked into decimating some candy. In exchange the other player would let me win. She didn’t. I wished I could go back in time and fix that, but I learned by then that time travel wasn’t possible. It was a small, well-kept room with a red carpet, and a brick wall on the western side. Up against the wall was a grand piano. On the other wall were a small bookshelf and next to it, a chair. This chair was where I sat to play my song for the class. The song was Amazing Grace, and if the clarinet could play words, it would do so like this:

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom: .0001pt;mso-add-space:auto;text-align:center;line-height:normal">''<span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">Amazing Grace, how swAAK the sound that saved a wretch like MEEAAAAHHHH!!!!! ''

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom: .0001pt;mso-add-space:auto;text-align:center;line-height:normal">''<span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">I once was loNTLIG, but now I’m FAAAAAANNNNNNDDDD!!!! ''

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom: .0001pt;mso-add-space:auto;text-align:center;line-height:normal">''<span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">Was blSQUEEK, but now I SCREEAAAH!!!!!!! ''

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           The song ended with a high pitch shriek that took my number right out to the dumpster by the road. Perhaps I should reconsider my stance on time travel and make this moment disappear. Afterward, Wendy played her own version of the song that made me wonder why she wasn’t first chair to begin with.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           The result of the challenge was obvious. Wendy was first chair, while I took my undeserved place at second chair. It would remain this way for a week, then I would be usurped by my successors, but until that day, Wendy and I remained king and queen of the clarinet players. Over that week, I played with her, and loved every minute of it. Every time she sat next to me, my heart felt complete. I have often seen Babylon flaunt its “beauty” on TV and in magazines, but the people of Babylon had nothing. There was no denying that I was sitting next to the prettiest girl I had ever met in my entire existence.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           I sat through the next class beating my two index fingers together. I felt like I had my insides burned out and yet lived still. Could it be that I, Martin Carter, was in love? This was all too strange to me; all I was told was that as an unfortunate side effect of growing up I would notice girls more, but I never felt something this heavy. I once heard that we knew our mates before we were born, and that we’ll know when we rediscover that person. Could this be the case, or would it be too soon to jump to such conclusions?

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           These thoughts went through my mind as I entered Magicant that night. The realm was bordered by a river, from which rose a great mist. Flowing down the river was a blessing in the shape of a canoe, stopping at the bank where I stood. There were no oars, but it mattered not, for the moment I sat in it, it propelled me across the river into the unknown.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           On the other side of the foggy river was a wide field of money. In the distance was a cabin where my old friend resided. I walked past the vast wealth until I reached the dwelling of Shiloh, whom I found in the backyard, rubbing an alpaca's fleece while singing a song I was familiar with:

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom: .0001pt;mso-add-space:auto;text-align:center;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">Always, I wanna be with you, 

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom: .0001pt;mso-add-space:auto;text-align:center;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">and make believe with you, 

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom: .0001pt;mso-add-space:auto;text-align:center;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">and live in harmony, harmony oh love 

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           I cleared my throat to make my presence known, Shiloh turned around.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Hello, Martin, you here regarding the alpaca?” he asked.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Is that the one?” I asked.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “It is,” he said. “Born last August, it beheld a strange power on Tuesday, where it grew into the exceedingly fine specimen it is now.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Strange power.” I muttered. “I want to speak with you regarding that. I felt it as well, when I played alongside Wendy Namara.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Ah.” he said. “There are few who match her beauty. I see what you would find in her that would cause you to invoke such strange power.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “It is so.” I said. “The power of love.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Yes, it is.” he said. “You can accomplish great things with this, but it is a dangerous power to wield. The storms of lust sweep many off their feet to unknown destinations.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “I understand.” I said.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Then you would have me terminate this?” He beckoned to the alpaca.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “No.” I said. “You are right in saying that, but it is also capable of good things. I would ask of you to keep this alive, and meekly preside over it. Never let it die, and never let it eat the grass that is not given by you.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “I accept this task.” he said.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “And one more thing, Shiloh. Don't ever sing that song again.”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">            I left him to his duties. When I was out of earshot, he continued singing:

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom: .0001pt;mso-add-space:auto;text-align:center;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">When it's cold outside 

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom: .0001pt;mso-add-space:auto;text-align:center;line-height:normal">''<span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">Am I here in vain? ''

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom: .0001pt;mso-add-space:auto;text-align:center;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">Hold on to the night 

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom: .0001pt;mso-add-space:auto;text-align:center;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">There will be no shame 

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal">''<span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">

''

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           <span style="font-family: "SegoeUI","sans-serif";mso-bidi-font-style:italic">It was still night, but I gradually became more awake. As I did, my infatuation weakened until it was unfelt entirely, but I still acknowledged the existence of Wendy Namara, something I never did. She was now more than a clarinet player, she was a clarinet player who would play a huge part of my future. My thoughts soon turned to the wizard, and I went to sleep in hopes that I would learn more of him.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-style:italic">

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-style:italic">           [iv]  <span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">My next memory was of a subterranean labyrinth of canals. I was in a concrete walkway that sloped steadily downward, carrying a river a half foot deep. I followed the river upwards and found a passageway leading outside blocked by a locked cage. I had no choice but to head deeper into the earth. The deeper I went, the more I smelt a rancid odor. After a certain distance, I found the river to drain into a large pool. Along the side of this pool, there was a path with a spot of daylight near the far wall. It was clear I was in a sewer of some sort, for the light streamed in from a pothole. There was a ladder allowing me to climb out, but there was another cage at the top denying my exit to this horrid place.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           At the foot of the ladder was a sealed plastic bag. I picked it up found it to contain a dismembered dog paw. I threw it into the pool of water, where I found the source of the smell. Floating in the water were the corpses of several very big dogs. Each of them were missing parts of their bodies, ranging from the legs to the heads. Down the path was a chewed up seat that came from a minivan. At the foot of it was the body of a cat. When I walked toward it, I heard a squeaking sound. Away from the corpse ran a mouse. It ran along the path as far from the pool as possible.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;text-indent:35.45pt;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">To my right, right above where most of the corpses floated, was a large pipe that was devoid of any water. This would be my next path to finding a way out of there, but the pipes were a never ending maze that seemed to be built for the sole purpose of getting people lost. Along the way, I found a few points where there were potholes above me, but they were all blocked off. After what seemed like several discouraging hours of feeling along the walls for a way through, I heard the sound of children’s laughter. I followed it and soon saw a flickering light ahead of me. I ran to where the pipe ended. Below it was a wide room with green rivers on both sides. Decked along these rivers were four torches on each side, and between those was a group of children playing with a model airplane. One would throw it, and the others would run and catch it.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           Barely to my right was a walkway that led along several valve and floodgate controls. The platform was close enough that I was able to jump over the railing and land safely on it, but when I did, the children heard me and, upon seeing me, began shouting in a foreign language. I walked along the balcony and found a ladder going down to a narrow strip of land between the wall and the river. The last thing I remember was climbing down and meeting someone at the bottom.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           [v] I was in a strange room with this man. He was dressed in a black robe that covered his body. His head was shaded by a black hat with a narrow, rounded brim. Standing behind him was another man wearing the same type of clothing, but white, and behind him was an Asian man with black hair and a thin, grey beard. Around his neck, he wore a tin crucifix.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           The three figures stood in front of an altar with a cross raised above it, discussing something in the language that the children spoke. The clear words, along with the Asian man, made me realize that the language was oriental, possibly one of the Chinese languages. They counseled with one another until, at last, they turned to me.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “Greetings, Spaniard.” The man in white said. “Are you Martin?” I didn’t know what to say. “Are you?” he asked again after a few seconds.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;text-indent:35.45pt;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">“I am. Who are you?”

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           “I am a <span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif";mso-fareast-language:JA">kiroku <span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">, one who carries my part through the darkness. I am the white alchemist. This is my counterpart, one who carries his part through the light. The black alchemist.” He beckoned toward the one in black. “Today it has been decided that he would be the one who passes judgment unto you, little child.” The black robed figure strode slowly toward me, and I shrunk back in fear. From beneath the hat, a haunting voice said: “Pasunitaizai.” He grabbed my hand, and burning pain shot through my right arm. From out of his cloak stretched a human hand of the finest craft. [vi] As his fingers touched my lower arm, I felt that feeling from the forest. I knew there was something behind me, but I was unable to turn my head to look at it.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           His index finger burned a circle into my wrist, and then a shape that looked like three playing card spades joined at their tips. The pain from his hand slid up my arm and across my body, incinerating my clothes as it spread through me.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;text-indent:35.45pt;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">“The pain is temporary; the mark is permanent. There shall be no forgiveness for you.” The black alchemist said. When he ceased to touch me, I fell backward into oblivion.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;text-indent:35.45pt;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">It was dark, and I felt completely out of balance. A figure materialized over where lay. Typhos stood over me, smoking his Virginia Slims and blowing out the smoke into my face. He had a wicked grin that showed his half rotting teeth as he leaned over me and pressed his cigarette against my shoulder. I tried to scream as it burned a pit in my flesh, but no sound came out. I then woke up from this dream, unsure of what was real and what wasn’t. The smell from the canals was still present, I was still naked, and Elijah was awake on the top bunk, talking quietly to someone as though he were talking on the phone. Though it was dark, I still put the blanket over my body to cover it up, I sat up a bit, and strained my ears to hear what he was saying. Soon it became clear: “I rebuke you in the name of the Holy Spirit.” He said.

<p style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-add-space:auto;line-height:normal"><span style="font-family:"SegoeUI","sans-serif"">           I turned to the door and saw it open ajar. Through my spiritual eyes, I saw something on the other side, watching us from the hall. As I felt its presence, my arm felt the pain of the touch from the alchemist. It was too dark to see it, but as I rubbed the area where the pain was, I felt the indentations from his touch burned into my flesh.