If we stay, they concentrate more on us and try to make light of the pain that still tortures their lives as they fear it might seem ungrateful of them to show their pain to us. All those of you who consider yourselves our friends, please spend time with our new friends and help them adjust to belonging to such a large and varied family.
7751
The last time we gathered here it was to celebrate my freedom from fear thanks to Arthur. For some it may seem that the purpose of this gathering is less dramatic and yet, if you think about it, what could be more dramatic than the gathering of so many species from so many realities for the express purpose of finding and saving their creator - or author as he prefers to be called.
What we are attempting best characterises what being a Cherinian is. If Arthur were some kind of superior being, godlike and powerful, then our attempts would be admirable but not as symbolically important. Arthur is an ordinary man of the Terran species. As he says of himself, he wrote our story because he was not successful in his own life and needed something to occupy his mind. Because he had nothing else to do he immersed himself totally in his story so that his characters became real to him - and we took form and became real to ourselves and started to communicate with him.
Arthur is an ordinary man in his world and the only gift he has that distinguishes him for those of our realities is his almost childish imagination that has allowed him to bring us to life. In his own reality and, so he claims, once he is here, he has and will have no powers. Why then do we consider it so important that we find him and bring him to us? Is it only because of a debt we all owe him? He claims we owe him nothing, but we, on our side, acknowledge such a debt, but do not accept it as the main motivating reason. Is it because we have come to know and love him? To a large extent that is also true, but it is not an exclusive truth. Is it because we are Cherinians, as I claimed earlier? How many lives do we know of that need to be saved and yet we hold back? I personally would happily spend my life travelling from reality to reality saving all those of my wives who suffered before I found them. To save another million Wendy’s, it would not be a worthwhile way for me to spend my life? We do not do so as we have to accept that we must not focus only on one part of our dream, we must look at the overall picture and work for a future that includes as many species as possible within the family of humans who name themselves Cherinians.
Yet, here we are, individuals gathering in vast numbers representing species and civilisations that are willing to use incredible amounts of energy and wealth to save one man. You must not think of him as a god, for when we succeed and he is among us and stands before you as an ordinary man, needing the link of Cherine to survive, you will feel let down and wonder that we made such sacrifices to save him. Think of him as a friend and a human who needs our help and as a man who has earned our loyalty and love because that is what he offered us without any hope of us reciprocating.
The powers Arthur has over us are stunning, powers that even a god should not hold. He only has to assume a truth for us and it becomes true - sometimes even without him writing it and…even worse, sometimes without him even realising he assumed. Some have asked that we find and bring him to our realities where he will not have powers over us as a self-defensive measure. Others suggest that we stop communicating with him so that he dies without affecting us again with his assuming. Even as a Normal I would not have found either of the suggestions ethically sound. Arthur himself has posed a few questions that show we should not take anything for granted. He is worried that should we bring him here, he arrives with the same powers he has over us at this time. His other worry is that he should not be brought to us, as his soul, when he dies, will go on to become our mother soul. My family and I do not believe either of the possibilities he has outlined should stop us.
Our most frustrating problem with Arthur is that he seems to have a negative extra sensory ability. He can assume for us because we are in what he thinks of as an imaginary reality or set of realities. He cannot assume anything for his own realities - as a matter of fact, he cannot even assume that his cosmos has more than one reality. He even frightened us by questioning whether people in his reality really have souls.
Arthur offered to send Freddie and Cherise on a honeymoon that would offer them the opportunity to help others, make friends and enjoy an adventure of their own. The couple were puzzled to discover he had sent them to a reality where they are not real. It did seem rather callow of Arthur that he should send them on such a trip when Freddie has spent over a century not being real in a physical sense. Two discoveries came out of that trip. The first is that as they stayed in that reality and interacted with those native to it, they began to grow real enough to be sensed by others. They have brought one soul from that reality and she is living with us in Freddie The Ship as a four year old girl. The second fact that has changed the lives of Freddie and Cherise? While they were not real to the reality they were in, they did remain real to each other and were able to touch and make love. It opened Freddie to the idea and they discovered that they can do the same while Freddie runs the ship - I just hope they don’t crash us into anything. As usually is the case with Arthur, he assumed something good for the two of them, but this time he took - or sneaked - things one step further. He cannot assume that any of us find him in his reality. To even try to do so, if it could lead to us finding him, would turn his assuming into the negative of whatever he wants. As if to tease us while ‘knowing’ it was impossible for us to use it for finding him, thus making such a reality possible because it is only imaginary, it seems Arthur assumed Freddie and Cherise went to an alternate reality that belongs to his set of cosmi - to his Syncosmi.
7752
We have crossed the barrier from our realities to his!!
Remember, he did need to assume that it would be impossible for us to find his reality. He assumed, but did not make his assumption a rigid rule of nature, just a complicated fact that would demand bigger sacrifices than he thought we’d be willing to make for bringing him to us. How impossible is it for us to find his reality since it must surely be the prime reality of his cosmi? First of all, god Lusalith has asked that we assume his reality is the prime reality. She claims that as Arthur’s assuming affects us, so can our assuming affect his reality. Let us, for argument’s sake say it is so and look for a simpler solution, how would any of us find the prime reality of our set of realities if we did not know where it is? Assuming, as Lusalith asks, may help in the long run, but we still have to contend with the immediate problems we have to solve. For instance, Samantha asks whether it is possible to create a map of our realities. Can we show where each reality split off from, thus working our way back to the prime reality? Sadly the answer is that we cannot. There are just too many variables and even when we think there is a direct link between two realities, we cannot know how many may stand between the two.
Let us take an example. In what we’ve come to call the Cherise reality, India went to war with Pakistan. India won the war, but both countries are in desperate need for help or else hundreds of millions could end up dying. We know that in the reality of Arthur there has been no such war, but they had other wars. So, we jump in all directions from the reality of Cherise, until we arrive at a reality where India and Pakistan do not go to war. If that reality does not have any other major positive difference from the reality of Arthur, we’ll call that reality a node. From that node we jump in all directions looking for the next node, which should be a reality where something we know has happened in the reality of Arthur has also occurred. A positive difference is where something has happened that did not in the prime reality. A negative difference will be a reality that is missing a feature of the prime reality, such as a war for example.
Even with our newest computers we cannot search on a micro node basis, only macro. It does mean that we accept a reality as a node because we only see major negative differences and yet, for example, in some village twenty people died in a clash with the neighbouring village which in effect means this is a reality of positive difference but we ignore it as in the macro sense it should not affect our search to any great extent - if we keep in mind that our search is likely to carry us through thousands of realities. Am I giving you a headache?” Robbie grinned. “Sorry, my apologies for puzzling those who don’t have heads or suffer from headaches. The very complexity of the search we have to undertake demands that we do not start jumping without a plan. We must first spend time examining ideas and the most promising ones will have to be implemented since we cannot depend on only one being the right one.
As the discussions begin, keep in mind that it seems to take about a year to eighteen months for our bodies to adjust to the first reality. We do not know whether it will take as long to adjust at each subsequent reality or will the first adjustment apply to all the realities of that cosmi? Will the same periods apply to all the species? The Sparklers are able to visit the local void, but none of the species that joined Freddie on the second visit succeeded. Will we find we can once our bodies have fully adjusted? In case you are wondering, would you risk leaving your body if it has not fully adjusted to that reality? If you leave, can you enter it again? If you’ve been out of your body for a time, will it have adjusted further and now be alien to your soul? Not likely, but I don’t want anyone taking chances.”
Everything discussed that outlines a plan for finding Arthur has been declared ‘private’ and I am not allowed to write of it. I may write of generalities that do not give him a way to block us with his negative presumptions. In other words, it seems I will only write of our failures! Arthur, please do not allow these failures to depress you.
7753
Lusalith nearly gave all of us a heart attack. First thing she said upon returning from her initial visit was ‘It is not the reality of Arthur, he has never existed there’. She explained that she only meant the reality she had visited, not the entire set. She is eager to return so as to jump to another reality, but has to wait as Robbie insists (asks) that nobody do so until he and or Vincent can go with.
Originally we had split into twenty five teams, not counting those who’d already been and us. Freddie took the first two teams and after that they took turns in helping the next teams. Each team stayed there a full two years, but returned exactly one week after leaving. In the beginning it was amusing sensing the teams. They each hoped that Robbie and us would wait until they’ve been and returned. Each of them felt flattered that Robbie was allowing them to venture where he as the protector has not been, so we had to wait for the last of them before going. We’re leaving in the morning after breakfast (since it will be the last meal we’ll have for two years). I’ll write about it on our return.
We’re stuck between a rock and a very hard place but let me start from our arrival there, for Robbie made that our first moment of anxiety. As soon as we started to make sense of what we were experiencing, Robbie pulled Cherine and Dommi to him. “I’m going to the void. My loves, don’t let anyone follow me as I don’t intend staying there, I’m returning as soon as I can as the void.” Before the two of them could argue, his body became a dead weight. Neither of them dared let him go, fearing that if he could not return to his body and they could not re-establish contact with it, we’d lose his body (how could we be certain his body without a soul would not become ‘ghostly’ and non-tangible?) - we were confident that as the void he can return to our realities.
He did not give us much time to worry, first appearing as an energy and then taking his normal aspect. “I’m finding it difficult to control these energies, but at least we know that I can do it. I’ll be right back.”
He was not. We waited for four hours and by the time he reappeared many of us were weeping or about to as we imagined the worst. Apologetically he pulled those who needed it the most, to him. Once we settled down he explained.
“Some of the souls have been in the void for a very long time and have extended their influence over others. Luckily most souls who arrive in the void are there for only seconds, but there are those who are able to resist to a small degree, they delay the void, giving the others time to join them and prevent the void from sending them on. Those who help, in return demand loyalty, pretending their continuous protection is needed. Most of them are trying to establish family groups and those I left alone, for the Sparklers told me that they do end up growing wiser and moving on. Those who use their powers to hurt others, those the Sparklers found it hard to deal with, deliberately hurting a soul is still too alien for them, so I took care of a few of the worst cases, but did not realise how much time had passed here.”
We earnestly told him it was worth worrying and crying if it means he took care of the bullies and once we’d convinced him we meant it, we then demanded to know why couldn’t he have first returned to warn us so that we don’t worry.
7754
I’ve mentioned the periods each team spent in the Cherise reality growing real, what I did not mention is that all of us arrive here on the same date (this reality) and leave on the same date, returning to our own arrival date. We needed to find a way to save lives in Asia so we could not afford to visit here consecutively. By unspoken agreement we mostly avoided other teams and tried not to distract each other. Our family mostly prefers to spend our time in Athens while other teams choose other countries. For us, the best way to learn about life here is by going to shops that sell television sets. We’ll watch the news broadcasts plus chat shows and documentaries. Reading the front page of newspapers is easy, but the rest of the pages more often than not we find very frustrating, as people tend to only read articles that interest them and then skip on ahead.
Our big problem was that we needed to bring tens of millions of food machines, but they would all be ghost machines, too insubstantial to help the locals. We needed to commit some time paradoxes and our reluctance to do so delayed us a few days. Robbie with Claudia disappeared for a few minutes. They told us they’d returned to Freddie, collected a food machine and delivered it three years ago to a hidden spot for us to find and test. This posed an interesting problem. Let us say that three years has given the machine enough substance for it to convert the usual soil, twigs, leaves and so on into a lovely plate of grilled lamb chops with fried potatoes. How do we test it if we do not have enough substance to affect matter? Another worry, what if the machine is just slightly out of kilter with this reality and we press the on button. Could it explode and how powerful could the explosion be? We had to break our social rule and approach a team of Anadir scientists and explain our dilemma. They became very perturbed as they did their calculations mentally. Their warning was very clear: the explosion could be powerful enough to strip the planet of its atmosphere.
We thanked them and returned to Freddie at the allotted time, even though we’d barely spent two months in the other reality. Robbie lit a cigarette as he paced up and down.
“We’ve assumed we should not go there at a date prior to Arthur sending Freddie and Cherise. Since we know we can, we’ll have to, though we must travel there and leave long before they arrive on their honeymoon. We have a number of important experiments to conduct as we’re crippling ourselves by sticking to the rules we agreed upon. We must travel to an area between solar systems so that any explosion, however powerful it is cannot cause any loss of life. We’ll give the food machines five years to become real before testing them. We also have to transfer a small bubble of energy across which I’ll do as a soul. If that does not explode then I’ll create a big platform and if that survives then we can try to move FTS across. Freddie will not be taken across until Vincent, Freddie and I are all in agreement that it is safe and we do not have any misgivings from our protector instincts.”
Robbie realised that with the vast distances to be travelled it would be inconvenient not having a platform. We also had the problem of carrying across millions of food machines; carrying them individually was not an alternative to be contemplated. In the hopes of taking a shortcut, Robbie created a small platform with a food machine inside and he jumped to a space just outside our galaxy. He had to spend the equivalent of five days fighting the energy of the platform before it settled down and behaved like the energies of our realities. Even then the platform ‘bled’ its energies about twenty times faster so we could not be absent for long periods.
Robbie created a platform big enough to carry half a million food machines and with Vincent to help him they jumped. They were back within minutes, returning directly to their bodies. Cherine was instantly on Robbie, clinging to him and murmuring her thoughts of love directly into his mind. Kirsten likewise held Vincent, but he seemed less ‘hurt’ than Robbie. As for me, I froze, tears running down my cheeks as I tried to understand how anything could hurt Robbie when he is the void. If something could, then how did Vincent survive?
“We’ll never be able to take FTS across. A platform of sixty centimetres I can take across and control it. With Vincent helping we can manage a platform of eighty centimetres. To control the energies of our outer shields would need a huge number of us, in the millions - all as the void.” He paused to light a cigarette. “We know that matter is a form of energy, but I think we need to evolve new definitions. For instance, could we call matter dormant energy - relatively dormant that is. How about matter being thought of as captured energy - imprisoned for a time? I’ve heard of matter being described as frozen energy. None of the descriptions are entirely correct for matter is not a single state of being, it is in flux, emitting and absorbing energy continually.
7755
I don’t understand why the differences in our realities allow material and minds to cross, but not pure energy. I’m guessing that the vibration of energy is more susceptible to other vibrations or the vibration of the universe in general than that of matter. By muting the vibrations of energy by changing it into matter it seems to be easier for the vibration rates to adjust without causing great damage.”
“In that case we must warn the Sparklers, they must return to our realities.”
Robbie nodded. “I’ll do so on our next visit there. Of more immediate concern to me is, how do we help the starving millions?”
“We cannot grow food in our realities since we cannot take it across without using platforms. We are going to have to grow the food on virgin Earths in their realities. Our only problem will be carrying across seed that has to remain protected for as many years as it takes for them to become real. Once we harvest the food it can be jumped across in platforms we create on that side.”
“Actually,” Diana interrupted me, “it might not be necessary for the seed to wait until it is completely real there. As long as it is real enough to draw from the soil the moisture and nutrients it needs, the process of growing from local matter should make it completely real to their realities.”
“We can’t take across agricultural equipment, we’ll have to use our Cherinian gifts for planting and reaping.”
Aganthi smiled, “It looks like the POL agents will have to join us.”
Dommi laughed, “Either that or else we’ll have to join POL and become agents. Roberto, if energy is that susceptible to the differences between our realities, how is it that aliens can spend years on the Earth there sheathed in energy suits?” They had discovered they could and abandoned using their space suits which are cumbersome and uncomfortable when used for such lengthy periods.
“The amount of energy the sheathing requires is tiny. Ten thousand of them would use less energy than a platform bubble of thee hundred centimetres.”
The idea of going across without our Freddie world made me feel vulnerable. Not vulnerable in the sense of being in peril, more of a need to have our home with us. Desperately I tried to think of a way to make it possible for us to travel there in Freddie.
Each Earth donated seeds while Robbie, Cherine, Lynda, Vincent and Kirsten went to the Cherise reality and Lynda concentrated on finding a virgin Earth. On her eleventh try she succeeded! They returned to begin carrying the seed across and once the seeds had acclimatised hundreds of Cherinians joined them to use their healing gifts to help the corn, rice, potatoes, barley, lentils and various kinds of beans grow. We did not introduce ourselves. As far as the governments were concerned their warehouses suddenly filled up with foodstuffs and the worst of their crisis was over. We’ll provide food until they can grow their own which means some Cherinians will have to handle it for the next two years.
The Sparklers have decided to leave a hundred million of themselves (including enough Thinkers to create their own Solomon) in the Cherise reality void. As they grow in numbers they will send out groups to alternate realities, so that some day there will be millions or billions of realities in this set of realities with Sparklers living in their void and helping the local humans. It is awesome to think of so many realities belonging to Arthur’s set of realities to be filled with Cherinians! I bet he never imagined what he started would be spilling over into his Syncosmi. God, it makes me feel wonderful!
This is Robert. Arthur, none of us can write of these times in a way that would make sense to you. We’ve had to face problems we solved in our early days and the answers we have to find are so different that often they can only be solved by minds that were not around when we solved those problems the first times. With each positive step we take, we know we have taken a step closer to you - perhaps that step is infinitesimally small, but they do add up and the day will come when we’ll knock on your door. Each tiny step forward, every soul we are able to help, they each bring a great joy to us (‘us’ being everyone of all species) but in particular for me, feeling how my loves rejoice is one of the most wonderful gifts you could ever have given me if it had been by design. Our Samantha feels like a child whose heart and soul bubble with joy, energy and excitement as she sees that for the first time she may dream of succeeding in finding you without having to fear she will fail.
7756
We are spending our time at different speeds. Hectically at times as we rush to help various teams who are helping realities they have found and though their problems be large and we can only help in small ways, at least we are making a start and with time we are confident we will learn how to adjust ourselves faster and more effectively so that we can tackle the larger problems. At other times we return to the Orati reality or to our Athens home and we try to relax and spend time alone as a family. Our lives had begun to grow a little stale as we dealt with recurring problems and I’d missed the early days of new discoveries and facing challenges. Those days are back and I am grateful - but my biggest debt of gratitude is for the way my loves feel.Wow, Arthur replies and on the same day a visitor arrives with an invitation from the current Dalai Lama. He wants me to visit, but has stressed it must remain a secret. I did not know they find it compatible for their people to be both Cherinians and followers of their faith - many religions are still struggling to come to terms with it.
I’m back and I’m not quite as relaxed and happy as I was. I’ll report on my visit in brief.
The Dalai Lama was fairly modern in appearance, wearing what is fashionable in Europe. I don’t know whether he dressed that way especially for me or whether he does so by preference. His Cherinian jumped me to his office in his home and he turned from the window with a warm and welcoming smile as he gently shook my hand. “Samantha, if I tell you that a debt exists, but that the debt is not a debt, would you understand?”
He wore a gentle smile that said his words were not to be taken too seriously and yet I could sense in the background an amusement, as if he did not expect me to understand - so of course I had to. I tried to imagine a scenario as described and nodded.
“I am in debt to my family because of the happiness their love fills me with and yet I am not in debt to them for two reasons; their love is given freely and my love in turn is given to them freely so the debt that is not a debt is cancelled while still remaining in force.”
“Do you accept such a debt from the people of Tibet?”
“I do not deserve even such a nebulous debt. If I speak openly, will it give offence to those who opened their hearts to me?” He reassured me I should speak my thoughts. “I did not do what I did out of a specific love for your people, I did it out of my love for all humans. Your people were paying an obvious price, so they only saw their own pain and grievances. Can you see that the Chinese were also paying? Any people that make of themselves oppressors must suffer psychic damage, their souls being darkened for at least this lifetime if they do not correct the injustices they inflicted.”
“My people will treasure what you said Samantha, for it shows there is more that is similar between our people and the Cherinians than is often understood. Will you follow me please?”
He led me through rooms and passages until we came to a door and behind that I saw we were in a passage hewn out of the rock. We descended into a circular area divided into two. The outer circle was of cells with monks praying or meditating in them. In the center was a round room that we entered. “The cells you saw, similar exist above us. Those you saw in the cells are concentrating on blocking all minds from sharing what I am about to inform you. Samantha, please be equally careful when sharing with your family.
Throughout our long history, our monks have identified the existence of strong minds whenever they came into existence. We sensed Eddie and Hettie Mansfield when they were young, but only once they had joined as a couple and begun to use their powers. When Cherine was born and until she met Robert, we did not sense her. As her gifts grew and she opened Robert's mind to her, we felt her and rejoiced that our species is growing in the right direction.
7757
During the frequent absences of your family, especially at such times that your son Michael and his family and Arthur Campbell are also not in this reality, a mind manifests and it hints at powers far stronger than any we have ever felt. It guards itself and we dare not try to sense it deliberately or else it will know we are aware of it.
Samantha, we do not know what its intentions are or whether it is friend or enemy of your family, but we felt it was our duty to help you become aware of it. Would you ask your family to leave with all who have powers while you stay here to share with us when that mind betrays itself? If you agree, you must not try to sense it or betray that we are aware of it.”
“Of course I would not wish to place your people in any danger. I’ll return here in two days, jumping to this room directly from Freddie - just before they leave.”
“You may need to stay in here for weeks, please advise us what you would require for your comforts. Samantha, one more thing.” He pointed at my wrist. “Your companion must be left in Freddie, do not bring it with you.”
I nodded. “It makes sense and I’ll see to it that Athene broadcasts as Freddie is leaving. If the mystery mind is able to sense her, it should convince it I am gone with them. How strong do you believe this mind is? For instance, the Wirms, without them knowing where I am could find me within an instant. Could this mind?”
“Let us hope it is not so. If I may repeat my warning, be careful Samantha, we do not know who this mind belongs to, of our species or of another, male or female, friend or foe. It could be someone you know and are close to or it could be a stranger none know.”
I gave him a serious and long look. “In other words, the mind you speak of, it could be me?” I could have laughed out aloud when he betrayed for the first time ever his startled response. He was quick to sense I was indulging my sense of humour, but he also accepted my joke as having a deeper meaning, my pointing out that the possibilities could be beyond even those his open and wise mind had considered. He was wrong, I really was only indulging my sense of humour - even though I admit that I often try to be funny when I am frightened. To make up for it, I told him that Arthur had already given us warning about this mind and that it seems to have interfered in ways that could be termed friendly or at least not hostile.
“For a time we thought this hidden Talent Arthur told us about was Kirsten, but we soon came to realise it was not her. It helped her and that made her think she helped us. What puzzles me is the lack of reaction in Robbie and Vincent - how is it they both do not feel threatened by the existence of a Talent so powerful?” I stared at Cherine as I asked my question.
“I trust their protector instincts Sam.”
I felt her, so I flashed her a grin. “So do I; I mean, it’s not as if we have much choice. If we question him he’ll ask why we don’t trust him and make our lives a misery for days on end as he mopes and…” I was not quick enough and Robbie pulled me to him as if he intended spanking me. I got the giggles and Robbie soon forgot to pretend and pulled me tightly to him as he stared into my eyes.
“The question this time is do we trust you Sam? Whatever your thoughts, whether you are right or wrong, you must honour your promise to the Dalai Lama. You do not have the right to place them at risk.”
“I never would. Once you return, I may demand he confronts us. That is the real reason I’m staying dad, I can’t issue a challenge to someone I’m not a hundred percent certain exists - I’m not Arthur.” As I’d intended that got everyone chuckling and teasing. Robbie turned me around so that I could lean back as his hand softly rubbed up and down my thighs. As I relaxed, I wondered why I do not find the idea of my being an adult and holding an eleven year old Robert on my lap as I caress his tiny thighs as exciting as he finds my childhood size and shapes. My loves glanced at me, looked at each other and then pretended to ignore the thoughts they’d just shared from me. I wonder if they secretly ask themselves the same question - I think Cherine might.
7758
I spent three weeks in the underground chamber with the monks simultaneously trying to mute my presence and enhance any signal from the Talent. I probably bored the Dalai Lama out of his skull with our protracted conversations before letting go of Vincent’s sliver so that my family knew it was time for them to return.
“Either he sensed me or else he just had no reason to exhibit his power. We’ll try it another time or two before we decide whether it is a waste of time trying.”
“The teams have now examined eight a-realities and either we’ve hit a patch of really nasty realities or else Arthur has been telling us the truth about his realities.”
“I doubt it, since Arthur only knows his own reality. As he insists, alternate realities must reflect all possibilities. I’d say we hit a bad stream.” Frustrated I complained, “This is going to take forever, we should have visited at least a hundred realities by now. If every single reality needs help, Arthur will be right, it will take us a million years to get to him.”
“Theoretically we could find him at the next reality we visit. Sam, what I find puzzling is that we have not found his alternate or even his family in any of them up to now.”
“Maybe he exists in half the realities Robyn, and we’re searching the wrong ones. It makes sense, his subconscious would send us to those furthest from him.”
“I hope you are right Sam, but I can’t help wondering why Lynda is not sensing any realities with him existing in them.”
A request came through from David for us to appear on his show. He advised us that he had also invited Michael and family and Campbell. Subject to be discussed was really meant to be an update on our search for Arthur. We agreed to the day and time.
David addressed Robbie first. “Your embassy has done a good job of issuing news as you receive it, but, the bulletins are dry and factual and never include any speculation about the results from yourself or the family. We’re all eager to hear what your thoughts are - we understand that over eight years have passed for you, do you still believe we have a chance of finding Arthur?”
“This is not a short term project David, it is likely to take anything from decades to centuries. We’ve all heard the psychologists explain to us hundreds of times how and why it is that Arthur is being sabotaged by his own subconscious. If they are correct in the ramifications they spell out for us, then it is no surprise that the only way Arthur could help us has to be a difficult and complicated process.
What may seem to be impossible or too long term for any human to commit to, changes as we progress. The possibilities are almost infinite, but we cannot allow that fact to stop us. Let me give you an example - for most of us the possibilities of mapping out our day when we awaken in the morning, if examined in minute detail, is impossible, since the possibilities are in the very high numbers, so high that to us they are similar to being infinite. Does that mean we should not try to plan our lives? Of course not, what we do is ignore the tiny variations and by concentrating on the main possibilities we more often than not succeed in stabilising the possibilities so that they remain within the parameters we have chosen.
It is the same with our search for Arthur. We know there are an infinite number of realities in the a-reality set, but we have no reason for visiting them all. We can exercise logic and intuition so that the shortcuts bring down the number of realities we have to search to manageable proportions.” Robbie smiled. “As to what is considered ‘manageable’ depends on the individual you ask and the degree of commitment to bringing Arthur to us.”
“I’ve heard that the highest commitment belongs to Samantha?”
“I’d say it is evenly spread between Samantha and Cherine - among our family. Do not forget that Lusalith is equally determined to find him.”
“What about you Robert? Don’t you fear finding him? What are the possibilities he could take over as leader of all Cherinians?”
7759
Robbie chuckled. “Your tactics are too transparent for them to be effective David. Arthur take over from me? If he is a good leader I would be the first to acknowledge him as my leader. I do not fear it happening, but unfortunately we have come to know Arthur too well and I can confirm that he has no wish to be a leader. I think he is vainly dreaming of living a very private life with his family.”
“Vainly?”
“Do you see him being allowed what he wishes for?”
“You have been to two a-realities Mr Campbell?”
“Correct. They are very different from ours and they have convinced me that Arthur is responsible for our existence.”
“Would you explain that?”
“If the Teller family will forgive me for referring to their diary, I can illustrate my reasons. Think of the diary as a story, a novel. It holds a large number of characters and species. In what we are calling the a-realities, starting from Arthur himself, he does not exist, his direct and indirect family do not exist. That is not how it should be, and I mention the fact so as to prevent anyone using it to disprove what I am about to say. Consider this important fact: not one of the non-Terran species existing in our realities exist in any of the a-realities. As Samantha says, that is because he created us and imagined the species whereas in his realities the existence of aliens do not depend on his imagination - as a matter of fact, he probably does not know that any of them exist.
Moving closer to home. None of the Teller family have been found. I do not exist there. You do not exist there David. Not one person who is mentioned in the story Arthur wrote and is writing, exist in the a-realities. Other chat show hosts that he has not mentioned by name do exist! Politicians he names do not exist and yet those he does not name do exist. In other words, those he assumed exist here because they exist in his world exist there, but those he made up for the purpose of writing his story, we do not exist there, only here. The coincidence of starting our search from realities where Arthur and his family do not exist actually make sense because of the mentality of our author. The coincidence of finding eight realities up to now with only one single species we know existing there, ours, that is stretching coincidence too far. I believe we will not find any of us there.”
“Do you agree with the theories put forward by Mr Campbell?” David pointedly asked me.
“I’ve had it confirmed by Arthur himself. As an author, he does not feel comfortable using names of people who exist in his reality - ignoring a few that are quoted for indirect reasons. For instance, he speaks of a science fiction writer of his reality and she also exists here. All he did is assume that she wrote the same books and quoted or used her name as part of his story. Most people, of our species and others, find the thought that we exist only in his make believe world disturbing. I don’t. I find it comforting. What would truly frighten me would be the discovery of one alien race from our realities existing within his. We really would not know where we stand in the scheme of things should that happen.”
“Samantha, a guess, we’ll not hold you to it - how long do you think it will take for us to find Arthur?”
I laughed. “David, you know damn well that it would be held against me if I’m wrong - as I definitely will be.” I looked into the cameras as earnestly as I could. “All I’m willing to state unequivocally is that we will find our author Arthur and we will also find a way to bring him here as a Cherinian so that he shares in all he dreamt for us.”
David surprised us by asking Michael whether a new chaos theory could assist us in narrowing the search. He asked a number of our loves questions and even asked Candy whether she knows if the Wirms have tried wishing their way to Arthur. She explained about them not being real enough in the a-reality so we’ve had to ask them not to do any wishing until they become real there.
To help make his show interesting we revealed a mistake we’d made during our first a-reality years. As I’ve explained we split into twenty five teams, each team made up of many species. Experience has taught us that when Terrans first meet another species they are terrified, but their curiosity usually gets the better of them (after they’ve tried to kill the aliens and come to realise the aliens are not retaliating). Not so with the a-reality Terrans. Our first clue (which unfortunately we ignored) was when the ghosts seemed to go insane with terror as our teams began to become real. We thought it was a peculiarity of their condition - the lack of physical bodies. As the locals who were alive, but more sensitive, began to see our teams they either collapsed in a coma or found refuge in insanity or else they killed themselves once their violence was seen to be ineffective. We explained that now all our alien partners project themselves as Terrans and those we affected in the first years we spent time helping, mostly by convincing them they’d hallucinated.
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“The scientists are very interested in the differences between the Terrans of our set of realities - at least those we’ve been to up to now and those of the a-reality. It seems their levels of xenophobia are far more acute than ours - which ironically does not prove that we are better, just that Arthur intended us to meet aliens from day one, so he assumed we would react to them more or less as he thinks he would if he met any in his reality. If our professionals are to be believed, in this respect we are better than Arthur, for, despite his love of science fiction, it is likely he will be just as terrified as the others of his realities.”
“Surely it depends on which aliens he meets first? Who could be afraid of the Wirms?”
“If his mind is blocked to them, he probably would be.”
We could sense that David felt the show had gone well and he was winding it up when there was an interruption. A Talent appeared among us. His emoting spoke of peaceful intentions, so we only increased our alertness without taking any defensive actions.
“This is from what you call the a-reality. Learn from it, or else it will kill you when you meet it there.” He opened his arms wide and we saw a metallic cloth. As he let go and it collapsed towards the floor he vanished. Almost simultaneously many of us were attacked.
Goldi, Candy, Lucy, Spice, Assimé, Alice, Tseri, Nicole, Alexis, Gilli, Annavi, Ashia, Solace, Orshiir and Robbie seemed to be the worst affected. As Goldi screamed and we saw her flesh being torn by some invisible beast, Campbell reacted by throwing a shield of energy around her and jumping with her to Freddie. The only reason he beat Vincent and Kirsten to it was because they had so many of us to protect. All of us were being affected, but not as severely as those I’ve named. Sensing the instant relief in Goldi we grabbed the girls suffering the worst attacks and took them to Freddie. Sobbing with relief they clung to us as their bodies healed.
I handed Gina to Aganthi and in a rage I jumped back to David. I instantly felt myself being attacked by invisible creatures that were trying to tear at my flesh and even began to bleed as wounds appeared, but I refused to react and stared around, keeping my mind cold and logical as I noticed that nobody else, none of the Normals, were being affected. My wounds healed and the attacks ceased. As I relaxed and turned to David with anger blossoming in me again, I was attacked once more, new wounds and tears in my flesh forming. Vincent appeared, wrapped me in his arms and I found myself back in Freddie.
Chapter Two Hundred and Ninety Seven
“Vincent, you are immune to the cloth, collect it and if the Unation are not harmed by it, give it to them to examine. We have to find out what it is and how it attacks us.” I turned to Robbie. “There is no point in you returning in time to find the person who brought the cloth, you won’t find him and he is not as important as his message was. What did he mean about us learning from it?”
“Sam, we have other matters to deal with first. Mr Campbell, would you please return to David and apologise? You may give any explanation you think fit and should you wish to join us in solving this puzzle please do return, you will be welcome. Vincent, please do as Sam asked. Cherine, I’ve already examined their minds - Samantha’s also when she returned and was attacked again. I think the cloth reacts to emotions. We better wait for the Unation scientists to report before making plans.”
Seeing us attacked, especially the delicate beauty of Goldi being torn by lacerations that exposed bones, upset millions, especially the children, so we had to return to David for everyone to see that we have recovered. I watched David as he earnestly tried to deal with asking us the questions he knew his public wanted answered while also dealing with the interruptions from government leaders phoning in to enquire as to our wellbeing and safety and I giggled in my mind at the thought that he was getting a second show within the same day - a first I’m certain for any major chat host.
I hope you enjoy reading this story of fantasy, adventure and love - and should some of it be true for our reality, I hope you will love our Cherine.
- posted: 23rd Jly, 2020
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