Armageddon ch6
(And lo, Jim and Blair did venture out from Cascade, even unto the very
reaches of the Antipodes, and from there did they journey, via Moby
Dick, unto the Mysterious Island which they do now inhabit, Lost in the
Mists of Time, and from here will they journey further, even unto the
Jungles of Peru.)
Chapter Six
*********
"Hey, Chief, you look wiped!"
"I am wiped, Jim-Love. That was some hard Wizard-work, there. Begging
the Spirit of the Future to grace us with her presence. Whew!"
"What now, Blair?"
"Well, now we wait. I'm just going to put my head in your lap for a
rest."
"Sure thing, Chief."
"What do you think she'll look like?"
"Good question. Maybe like the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come? Long
black cloak and hood. Face hidden. Silent and mysterious."
"Sounds reasonable.... Hey, what's that noise? Wow! Cover your eyes Jim.
Bright light coming our way. Must be the Future.... Uhh, Jim? You can
look now!"
"Okay, Chief. Chief? Blair? That's the Future? The Future looks like
RuPaul?"
***********************************************
"Oof! What a wild trip! Oh, Darlings, if I'd known the road was so
rough, I'd NEVER have worn high heels. Too dangerous!"
"O--kay! So... you're the Spirit of the Future?"
"That's me, HoneyBunch. Well, one of me anyway. Oh, this is just TOO
confusing. There was I, sitting around doing my nails, when
suddenly
I get a desperate call for help. All the other mes were
busy. So it
was left to ME. Look, the trip spoiled my nail polish. Must've been that
big wind storm half way through. Never mind. What can I do you for?"
"Um.... We have a problem."
"Well, of course, HoneyBunch. Otherwise I wouldn't be here. Oh WOW! What
HAVE we here? Who is this GORGEOUS man?"
"Um.... He's mine."
"Yours?"
"Mine! And you're a Spirit. Aren't you sort of... above all that?"
"Ha ha ha. I'd prefer to be below all that... but I'm never averse to a
little dalliance with the right person."
"Well, Jim isn't available. He's not your right person, he's my right
person. And I'm averse to sharing, so keep your dalliance in your
pants!"
"Well, well. Keep your claws in. I get the picture. Let's forget this
ever happened and get to work, okay?"
"Cheep cheep chirp?"
"What's this?"
"Oh, it's Tictic and Toctoc. They want to know where you got your
shoes."
***********************************************
"So, Darlings, all you want to do is bring a device from the Future to
this Island. Change the Future, just for you. Is that right?"
"Essentially, yes. How do we do it?"
"Whoa, HoneyBunch! When I asked: 'Is that right?', I meant: 'Is it
right to do this?'. Why should the Future be changed just for you?"
"Well, Spirit, I don't know. Maybe because we're already caught up in
events we don't understand, and can't begin to handle without some
expert help. People from another galaxy are here, using their superior
technology to change our future. Anything I can do in that department is
a mere ripple, compared to that storm."
"True. I'm seeing this from my perspective, which is always the Future,
always becoming, never the Past or the Present. I am always in flux,
always changing, always being changed. Someone tugs on a thread here,
someone else on another thread there. Everyone wants the Future to be
for THEM. Why should I choose one petition over another? Why should I
choose you over them?"
"You don't have to. Just give us something resembling a level playing
field. At the moment, it's a done deal. They have superior technology,
superior numbers, superior propaganda. What we have, you can see around
you."
"Suppose the Future comes to you, and changes the Present? Then the
Future will no longer be the Future. It will have changed. What then?"
"Who cares? We may not have a future."
"Hey, Spirit. We know all this about changing the future. We've all seen
the Sci-Fi movies. But this is real life."
"Listen, Gorgeous, I am Real Life. I'm not raising these issues because
of some Sci-Fi movie. This is my job, okay? If people tug on one thread
of the Future it affects another, and on and on. Imagine if you'd never
met HoneyBunch here..."
"....................................."
"Jim. Jim? Jim! Come back to me. Follow my voice! Jim.... Spirit! What
did you do to him?"
"I? Nothing. I am the Spirit of the Future. All possible futures. When
you converse with me, you may catch a glimpse of some of those futures."
"Jim-Love? Come back to me."
"Ahhh! Blair? You here?"
"Yes, I'm here. Always."
"Chief, I was in this other world for a moment. It was terrible. We have
to help them. All those Other Mes, without you. They were lost. We have
to find them, and help them find you."
"Okay. We'll do that. As soon as we have a moment. After we win this
Intergalactic War. Speaking of which...."
"We're working on it. I haven't decided to refuse your petition yet.
This is a very complex and serious issue, so I've called a friend of
mine to help me decide. Look! Here she comes. Sarah! Over here,
Darling!"
"An... an Elephant?"
"Yes. She'll be very helpful. An Elephant never forgets."
*************************************************
"Over here, Sarah! That's my beautiful Princess. How are you, Darling?"
"oooooh."
"Sarah doesn't care much for strangers, so don't pay any atten.... Well!
That's unusual!"
"whoooooo?"
"Who am I, Sarah? Blair Sandburg, at your service. Oh. Thankyou. I'd
like to shake your trunk. Hmmm. Very nice.... Psst! Spirit? Why are her
eyes closed?"
"That's a long story, but..."
"Oh! She opened them!"
"I'd be wary about looking in them if I were.... Too late!"
"Oh! Oh! Her eyes. They're empty. No. Now I can see. Oh!"
"What's the matter, Chief?"
"Jim. Her eyes! I'm falling into them. Hold me!"
"I've got you, Chief. What's wrong?"
"I see a vast plain. Dry. Dust. And bones. Hundreds, thousands, millions
of bones. They're elephant bones, aren't they? I'm seeing the Burial
Place of the Elephants."
"Yes, HoneyBunch. The Burial Place of the Elephants... otherwise known
as Africa!"
***************
"Oof! What happened? Sarah? Where are we?"
"hooome."
"Home? Africa?"
"Looks like it, Chief."
"Jim? You here too? You were supposed to hold onto me. Keep something
like this from happening."
"Sorry about that, Chief. I looked into her eyes too, and the next thing
I knew..."
"You were falling in and landing on the Serengeti Plain beside me."
"That's about the size of it. What's this all about, do you know?"
"Beats me, but maybe we're on some sort of spirit walk."
"But Chief, we were already living in the Spirit World. Isn't this a bit
like taking coals to Newcastle?"
"Well, maybe this is a higher level of Spirit World. The Spirits' Spirit
World. I don't know, I'm making this up as I go along. I know! Let's ask
Sarah. Sarah? Where are we?"
"hooome."
"Yes, Sarah. You said that. But is this the Real World or the Spirit
World? I'm confused."
"cooome."
"Okay. We're following your lead. Come on, Jim."
"I'm with you, Chief."
**********************************************
"Well, Sarah, we've been walking for some time. Where are we going,
hmm?"
"heeeere."
"Okay. Where's here? Oh. More bones?"
"boooones."
"Bones. Whose bones, Sarah?"
"booones... daaauuuughter."
"Your daughter's bones. Oh, Sarah. Whose bones were they, back there?
The first ones we saw?"
"moooother... siiiiister."
"Oh, God. Sarah. I'm so sorry."
"hoooold."
"You want me to hold this bone? Okay. Sarah? This is your bone isn't it?
You died here too. With your daughter..."
"Jim? Are you zoning on me? Or are you seeing ghosts again?"
**********************************************
"Okay, okay, okay, let's keep calm here. What am I going to do? What am
I going to do? I'm going to keep calm, that's what I'm going to do. Keep
calm. Find your centre. This is no time to have an anxiety attack....
"Why not? This is a perfect time for anxiety. What the hell's going on?
No. No. Sit down, and think... There's no where TO sit down, I'm in the
middle of the Serengeti Plain! Find a rock, then....
"Okay. Here we are. Now, think. Why am I falling apart NOW? I've managed
to keep my head through everything. Alien Eggs. Invading Aliens from
another Galaxy. Flying Carpets. Discovering I'm a Sorcerer. Spirits all
over the place. Mysterious Islands. Moby Dick, for Heaven's sake....
"Okay, I'm just being myself. Jim and I are reacting typically. Jim
tries to deny everything at the start, but then he accepts it and goes
on from there. I act like I know it all, but later I go off by myself
and fall apart....
"This is the first time in all this that I've been alone. Alone with a
zoned-out Sentinel, and a spaced-out Spirit Elephant. Standing there
holding onto some bone, rocking back and forth and crying....
"For hours, I think. I don't know, because my watch isn't working. Is
that because I'm in the Spirit World, or is it just broken? I don't even
know THAT! Here we are, out on the Serengeti Plain. Maybe... maybe the
Real World. Maybe the Spirit World. Unarmed. What if a lion comes up and
attacks us. That'd be just my luck. And is it safe to let Jim go on like
that? Would it be safe to try and bring him out of it? I don't know. Is
this a typical zone-out? It started when he took the bone Sarah handed
him. I could kill him, or injure him. No. But should I leave him like
this? Stand guard? For how long? What's going on....
"Okay. I have to find out. Can't wait any longer. Just jump right in.
What do I do? Just take hold of the bone and..."
*************************************************
"... take hold of the bone and... bone and...bone and... ugh! What just
happened here? Growf! That felt strange. Jim? You okay? I felt really
odd for a minute, like the world tilted on its axis or something? You
okay, Jim?"
"Mrow!"
"That's good. Guess it was just me. Maybe I didn't have enough lunch.
Have to go hunting later, okay?"
"Mmmrroww!"
"I know, I know, after we get this job done. But I'm hungry! And I still
think something's weird. Hmm. Your whiskers are crooked. I'll just lick
them into place. Hold still. There! Can't have you going around looking
like you have no one to look after you. Oh, thanks. Were my whiskers
crooked too, or did you just want to lick me? Well, enough of this, what
do we do now? My brain's a bit fried, I think."
"Prrr. Mrow mrow."
"Oh, yes. Now I remember. We're here to save a Spirit from the Island of
Lost Souls. Got it!"
************
"Dum dedee dum dedee dum! Watch the Great Spirit Wolf Blair, racing off
on a Mission to Save an Innocent Spirit, with his Trusty Sidekick,
Spirit Panther Jim, beside him!"
"Grrrrr!"
"Okay, okay! The Great Spirit Wolf Blair AND the Great Spirit Panther
Jim, racing off TOGETHER to save an Innocent Spirit. How's that?"
"Mrow."
"Just get in front if there's any danger! What's our Game Plan here?"
"Mrow mrow."
"Sounds logical. Wait for the right moment to strike. When's that? Huh?
When we see the whites of their eyes?"
"Grrr."
"Okay, okay. I'll be quiet. It's hard for me, you know. I'm a Wolf. We
like to make noise."
"Grrr."
"Okay, okay. Listen! Is that Them?"
"Mrow."
"Good. I'm ready. Oh, look. There They are. It IS Them. Sarah and her
Baby. Ah, Jim. Ah, Jim. I can't watch. Arooooo!"
"Grrr."
"Sorry, sorry! But... ah, Jim. It's so heartwrenching!"
"Mrow?"
"Yes. I'm here. Just lean against me. There. Better? Okay. Sarah's Baby
is leading Sarah past us, now. Ah, Jim. Sarah's eyes are bleeding. She's
getting weaker, but she's so brave. Now she sinks to her knees and dies.
Sarah's Baby is all alone, with no mother to defend her. The Lionesses
close in."
"Mrow mrow!"
"I know! It's only Nature, and it's a better way to die than starvation.
But..."
"GRRRR. RRRAAAAA!"
"Jim? What do you hear? Is it them? The Evil Ones?"
"RRRRAAAA!"
"JIM! I'm with you. ARRROOOOO! The Avenging Spirits are upon you!"
********************************************
"GGGRRRRAAA! RRRAAAAA!"
"AARRROOOOOOOO! JIM! LOOK OUT BEHIND YOU! ARROOO!"
"Back away from the little Elephant Spirit, Furfaces! She's our
legitimate prey."
"RRRAAAA!"
"Put down your pitchforks, tuck your tails between your legs, and leave.
Now. Before Jim gets really angry."
"Ha ha ha. Last time we heard that one, we fell off our dinosaurs."
"Oh, please. Enough with the adolescent jokes, already. Go, while you
still can."
"RRRRAAAA!"
"Can he not talk? Or can he just roar?"
"Oh, Jim can talk, but he prefers not to. He's the original Panther of
Few Words. I, on the other hand, am the Wolf of Many Words, so I do most
of his talking for him."
"All your many words will avail you naught, Furface. If you leave now,
we will let you live."
"Go to Hell."
"Been there. Done that. Wearing the T-shirt. See!"
"Ha! 'I Am a Demon From Hell and All I Get For Torturing Innocent
Spirits on the Island of Lost Souls Is This Stupid T-Shirt!' Funny! What
do you think, Jim?"
"RRRRAAAA!"
"Jim thinks you should get out while the getting is good."
"Not a chance in Hell."
"Okay. Jim?"
"RRRRAAAA. RRRRAAAA."
"Right! AAAARROOOoooooOOOOO! That's one of them. Good for
you,
Jim. There's another. Look out, Jim. Aacck! Demon blood. Eeeww.
Aaarrroooo!"
"We've got you surrounded, Furfaces. Give up?"
"Never! And who's got who surrounded?"
"What do you mean?"
THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD
"What's that?"
"That's a herd of elephants. This little baby's Mommy, and Grannie, and
Aunts. Charging up behind you."
"OOOPS! AAARRRGGHH!"
SQUASH!
"Hi everyone. How's it going? Look Baby, here's your mommy."
"Maaamaaa."
"Ah, Jim. Isn't that sweet? Now they can be together forever. And all
the Demons are squashed."
"Prrrr."
"Okay, Furface. What's up next?"
"Prrrrrrrrr."
"Yeah. Let's go off to our cave for awhile. Lick each other's wounds
and..."
********************************************
"Prrrr."
"Mmm. Got any more wounds I can lick, Jim?"
"Mrrp!"
"Me neither. Dang it all. Just when I could use some, they're all licked
better. Ah well, we'll just have to get into another Battle, won't we."
"Grrr."
"Yeah, you were just great, Tiger!"
"Grrp!"
"Okay -- you were just great, Jaguar. Picky, picky. Anyways, you stood
up to those Evil Ones like nobody's business. My Hero."
"Mmrrow mrrow, prrp!"
"Ah, thanks. That's sweet. I just followed your lead. But we make a good
team, don't we?"
"Mrrrow."
"Yeah! Let's have a little nap. I'm really beat...."
"Mrrr...."
..............................................
".... Ooof! Hey! Jim! We're back on the Serengeti Plain. What
happened to our nice cozy cave? I was really into that. Oh! We're back
in our Human bodies again, too. Well, that's useful. Though it was
really interesting being a Wolf. And you as a Panther! Unreal, Man! Boy
were you ever flexible! Anyway, how do we get back to our Island? Any
ideas, Detective?"
"Mrrow?"
"Jim? Jim! Stop that!"
"Mrrow, mrrow!"
"Quit joking around, Man! It's not funny! You're Human again. I'm
looking right at you, okay?"
"Grrr! Mrow mrow, mrrroww!"
"Okay! Houston, we have a problem!"
********************************************
"Okay, Pussycat, we can't hang around the Serengeti like this. Though,
in your condition you could try talking the Lionesses out of eating us.
But let's get home. Sound good?"
"Mrrow!"
"Right! Now, how do we get home?"
"Mrow meow mrrr."
"Well, that's an idea, Jim. We look into Sarah's eyes, and see if it
takes us home. Easy enough to test. Sarah? Oh. Look! I didn't notice
before. Guess I was too worried about your lack of Human language
skills. Sarah's Baby is with her, now. Isn't that wonderful?"
"Prrrrr."
"Sarah? Could we look into your eyes again. We want to see if that will
send us home."
"hhoooommme!"
"Yes. Home. To our Island."
"gooooo."
"Oh, Sarah! Your eyes. They aren't empty any more. I can see Stars. And
the Moon. And..."
*****
"Jim! Jiiiim! Hang on. It's like a Roller Coaster. I don't think we're
heading for the Island. Jim?"
"Mmmrrrooowww!"
"Yeah. I know, Pussycat. Oomph! Well, the Eagle has landed. Hey! This
looks like where we came in. The Serengeti. But at night. And what's
that noise?"
THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD
"MROEW!"
"Yes. Sounds like a herd of Elephants, doesn't it?"
THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD........... etc.
"Mrow mrow meow!"
"Uh, Jim. I don't know how to say this, but you're an Elephant, too.
That makes us both Elephants. And this is clearly some sort of Elephant
conclave, which makes us party-crashers in a big way. Try and not talk
like a cat, huh? It might get us killed in this crowd."
"mrrp?"
"I don't know how to talk Elephant, either. Let's just keep our voices
down. Wonder what's going on? We seem to be walking round and round in a
circle."
"mrrp mrow!"
"Yeah. We're walking round an Elephant. What's happening? Ah, Jim. It's
a mommy Elephant. She's having a baby Elephant! The baby just got born.
Wow! Now it's time to... what? Scream with joy of course! Hurray!
Hurray! Hurray! A new baby Elephant is here!"
"ROAR!"
"Ooops! Jim... uh... I think you just let the cat out of the bag!"
************************************************
"Hoo boy! Don't panic, Jim! Hoo boy! Man, that Mother Elephant is a big
one. Especially up close. What do I say? What do I say?"
"whooooo?"
"This is familiar. Hi! I'm Blair Sandburg, and this is my friend Jim
Ellison. We were sent here by a friend of ours. Maybe you know her? An
Elephant named Sarah?"
"saaarraaah?"
"That's right! Sarah. She, um, wanted us to say hi to you and the new
baby, so now we have. Nice meeting you. We'll be on our way now. Bye!"
"nooooo."
"Um... okay... whatever you say.... Psst! Jim! Do the Elephants seem
kind of... agitated to you?"
"Mrrrp!"
"Hmm. They seem to be getting ready to move out. Wonder if we can slip
away in the confus... oops! No go.... Ah, we're relegated to somewhere
near the end of the line, with big Elephants on each side. The big Mommy
Elephant takes the lead. If I remember rightly, that means she's the
Matriarch. Wonder where we're off to. Hey, Jim?"
"Mrrp?"
"Mind if I hang on to your tail? I'm feeling kind of lonely here?"
"Prrr."'
**************************************************
"Mrr meow mrow mrow?"
"Blame you? No! Why would I blame you? None of this is your fault, Jim.
It's my fault, if it's anyone's. I mean, it was my idea to go on this
vacation to Antarctica in the first place. And here we are, in the most
bizarre adventure anyone has ever been in."
"Mrow mrow meow mrrp."
"Well, you should blame me. Here you are, a Human, in an Elephant's
body, talking like a Jaguar. What sense does that make? How much more
confusing can things get?"
"Mrrrrp!"
"Yeah, you're right. Sorry, Jim! Hey, whoever is listening -- I didn't
mean it. We don't want to know how much more confusing you can make our
lives. This is just fine, thanks. There! Think that'll help, Jim? No?
Well, me neither. But it was worth a try. Hey! How long have we been
walking. Seems like weeks."
"Mrr mrr."
"Well, okay, days.... Jim! Look up ahead! Elephants! LOTS of Elephants!
Millions of Elephants! More Elephants than anyone has ever seen, I'm
sure! Jim! Look!"
"Mrow!"
"Where did they all come from, Jim? Elephants are an endangered species.
There aren't this many Elephants in one place any more. Why aren't there
camera crews filming this? We could be on National Geographic. Hey! That
reminds me. I don't remember seeing another Human in all this time.
Where are they all?"
"Mrrrp!"
"Yeah, Jim. Beats me, too."
**************************************************
"Jim! Jim! Look! These Elephants that we're walking amongst! Some of
them aren't just Elephants!"
"Mreow?"
"No! Look at them! They're... they're furry! Woolly. They're Woolly
Mammoths! Do you know what this means? Oh, Man! Jim! We've gone far back
in Time. Thousands of years in Time. Mammoths have been extinct for...
oh I'm too excited to remember, but thousands of years. And they never
lived in Africa that I remember, so why are they here now? This is so
exciting, Jim. No Human has seen a Mammoth since the Pleistocene. In
fact, I'm down with the theory that it was Humans that hunted them to
extinction. Hey! We seem to be moving toward some sort of central group.
Isn't everyone humming or singing, somehow? Do you get that impression,
Jim?"
"Mrow."
"Me too. What are they singing?"
"hooooome. hooome. hoooome."
"Something about home, Jim."
"Mrow?"
"Yeah. Home. Let's sing along."
"Mreow mrow?"
"O give me a home, where the Elephants roam, and the Gnu and the
Antelope play. Where seldom is heard a discouraging word, and the skies
are not cloudy all day. Home, home on the Plain.... Why's everyone
staring at me?"
*****
"Jim! Omigod! We're being pushed forward. I think I got us into trouble
here. Sorry, Jim-Love. If they eat us for dinner, I love you, okay?"
"Mrow mrow!"
"Thanks. That's good to know. It really does make a difference, you
know. To die knowing I've been loved, I mean. And at least we'll
be together forever. Ooof! Hey! We're moving here. We're moving,
okay! Even if we are in no hurry to meet your
Leader."
"Meow prrp prrp."
"Okay, Jim-Love. I'm calm. I'm calm. Oh Boy! These Elephants are HUGE!
They're like the Mommies and Daddies of all the Elephants. And there in
the middle is... Sarah! OUR Sarah? Uh... Hi, Sarah! Nice to see you
again!"
"blllaaaiiiir."
"Yeah, that's me."
"jiiiimm."
"Yeah. Jim's here too. Um... Just exactly why ARE we here, if you
don't mind my asking?"
"hooome."
"Okay. You wanted us to see your home? It's very... interesting. Lots of
Elephants. There aren't this many Elephants around, um..."
"noooo... dead... kiiiilled."
"Yes. I know, Sarah. Um, Humans killed lots of Elephants, didn't they?"
"kiiiilled meeee... kiiiiilled Baabyyy."
"I'm so sorry, Sarah. I've never killed an Elephant, but I feel guilty.
If I could stop it, I would."
"iiii knoooow... treatyyy."
"Treaty?"
"yesss... treatyyy... allllies... usss... fight together."
"Yes. Allies. You, me, Jim, and... all these Elephants?"
"yesss... allllies... forever... fiiight aaalll enemiesss... allll."
"Ah! You help us, and we help you."
"YESSSSS!"
"YESSS! YESSS! YESSS!"
"Hey, Jim? Are you getting the impression that these Elephants and
Mammoths like this treaty idea? A lot?"
"Mreow mreow, mrrp!"
"Oh, boy! What have I gotten us into now? Oh, Man, Jim! Now we not only
have to defeat those Aliens from another Galaxy, but stop all killing of
Elephants by our fellow humans. I don't know which is easier. Or should
I say, which is harder?"
"Mrrrooww. Prrr."
"Ah, Jim. You're such a wonderful, supportive Partner. I don't know what
I'd do without you. You're right. All we can do is give it our best
shot. We defeated the evil demons from Hell, didn't we?"
"yesss. bllairr. sooorrcerrer. pooowerrr."
"Okay. I'm a powerful Sorcerer. Right. I'll keep trying to remember
that, Sarah. In the meantime we should be getting home to our Island to
plan out all these campaigns."
"thennn gooo."
"Um... Hey! I'm a Sorcerer. I'll just whisk us home like this:
Abracadabra! Take us Home....
.........................................................
Whoa! My head's spinning. Jim? Are you okay?"
"Mrow!"
"Well, we seem to be home.... Where is everyone?"
**********************************************
"Jim, this is definitely our Island, but it's deserted. There's no one
here but us."
"Prrr."
"Yeah, it IS nice to be all alone for a change, especially after that
Trek Through the Serengeti With the Herd of Elephants. But... what if
something happened to the others while we were gone? What if we never
find them again? What if... mmmmff. Mmmmm......"
"Prrrrr!"
..............................................
"Okay. I feel much more relaxed now. But Jim-Love, we DO have to figure
out what's going on. You know, the last time I remember feeling in
control was when we were in our Wolf and Panther mode. I knew where I
was, and who I was, and what I was doing, and why, and how to do it.
Now, I don't know anything."
"Mrrp?"
"Well, of course, I know that I'm with you, and that I love you. That's
the most important thing of all. So, yes, okay, I DO know something.
But... everything else is so confusing lately. This adventure with the
Elephants... it makes no sense. Were we in the Spirit World or the Real
World? Why did we keep going around in circles? Why are we back on our
own Island, without the others? You see... I need to understand these
things."
"Mreow mrow mrrp!"
"Yeah. And why are YOU still talking like a Cat?"
"Mrr mreow mrow mrr."
"Okay. All life IS confusing. Life IS chaos. But... we like to put our
own lives in order, in our own minds, according to our own rules. Well,
actually the rules are created by our culture. For example? The
Australian Aboriginal People saw the World in a certain way. It had been
created by The Ancestors. Only what The Ancestors had created really
existed. Everything else was Illusion. So, when the first White People
arrived, the Australians didn't see them. They weren't there, because
The Ancestors hadn't created them. Eventually, of course, they were
forced to modify that assessment."
"Mrrow mrr mreow."
"What has this to do with our situation? Well, Darling, all my life I've
believed that everything can be known and analyzed and labelled, with
the aid of logic. But I can't logic this out at all. As Mencken said,
there the unknowable sits, calmly licking its chops."
"Prrrrr."
"But I can put things into order in my own mind, can't I? It doesn't
matter whether or not I'm right, so long as it makes sense to me. Isn't
that what everyone does? So... let's see. We were on a Spirit Journey,
and we saved Sarah's Baby from the Demons. Then we entered Sarah's mind,
and visited her Home. I tried to Sorcery us back to the Island, but... I
know! I didn't specify when. So we're home, on our Island but in another
time, without the others. How's that?"
"Mrow mreow."
"Hey! Maybe we're in your mind now, because you wanted to be alone with
me? And maybe you're still talking like a Cat because you want to?"
"Prrr."
"Yes. You're just a Beast inside, and you want to be alone with your
mate. Mmmmm."
"Prrr."
*********************************************
"Jim... I've been thinking..."
"Prrrr."
..............................................
"Jim-Love. Now I'm serious. We have to talk. We..."
"Prrrr."
"Okay. Now Jim. We've been here for... I've lost count for how long.
Now, I know we never had a proper Holiday together. We were going to be
alone at Antarctica, but then Penguins, and Alien Eggs, Naomi, Moby
Dick, and Spirits too numerous to mention, all interfered. But now we've
HAD that time alone, and it's been wonderful. But... now it's time to
get back to Reality. Well, what passes for Reality on our Island. Okay?"
"Okay."
"I mean we can't go on like this while our family is off somewhere alone
worrying and.... Did you say okay?"
"Yeah."
"Well! It seems you're back to normal. Or what passes for normal with
you."
"Grrr."
"Okay, okay. Well, as I tried to say some time ago, I've been thinking,
and I've come up with a whole lot of ideas."
"Of course."
"I'm going to try a new kind of spell to get us back with the others.
And then, when the time comes to rejoin the rest of the world, I have
some more ideas on how to fight the Aliens, and maybe help our Elephant
Allies as well. Are you game."
"Oh, I'm with you. For better or for worse. For richer or for poorer."
"Mmmm... Hey, enough of this or we'll never leave. Now, here's what I'm
going to do. We need a nice smooth expanse of sand. Help me smooth out a
big wide area, okay?"
"Prrr."
"Behave.... There! That should do it. Thanks."
"Now what, Chief?"
"Now... let's see. Hmmm. Yes. First of all --"
<spell>
*****
"What exactly are we doing here, Chief?"
"Well, I'm trying a new form of making a spell. I figure it's less
likely to cause confusion in the Spirit World. Nothing else I've tried
has worked so far -- so what the Hell?"
"What if the Spirits don't read html-type language?"
"Now, this is pretty simple html. Watch!"
<spell><location=3Dhere><time=3D1 hour after we left on
our spirit journey=
to rescue sarah's baby></location></time>
"Why the time-lapse? To ensure we don't run into ourselves?"
"You got it! I figure that since the Island is lost in Time, that not
much Time has passed since we left. But I want to be on the safe side,
and give ourselves some leeway. If I'm wrong -- well, I'm wrong. Okay.
Here goes. The finishing touch --"
</spell>
*********************************************
"Whoa! Jim-Love. This is some ride. Where are we going NOW!?"
"Yuck. There's some god-awful so-called music playing, wherever it is."
"Really? I don't hear anything."
"Of course not. You never do. Why did this Sentinel business have to
happen to ME? Never mind. Hang on."
"Oof! Well, we're there. Wherever THERE is. I'm going to bravely open my
eyes now."
"You're more of a man than I am, Chief!"
"Ha! Knew THAT already.... Ah! Jim! We seem to be in the right place at
last. Um. Hi, everyone!"
"Daddy Blair! Daddy Jim! You're back!"
"Looks like it. How long have we been gone, Serendipity?"
"About an hour, Daddies."
"Hey! My spell worked."
"Yes, it did, HoneyBunch. And so did your Mission. Which has decided me.
I'm going to agree to your request for a EMH Doctor from the Future."
"Oh. Good. Thanks, Spirit of the Future. Just like that, huh? Easy few
days work, right Jim?"
"Yep, Pardner. No sweat. Any time."
***********************************************
"So... where is everyone?"
"They all got tired of waiting for you to get back, HoneyBunch, so they
took off."
"Oh."
"Naomi, Tic and Toc went to the cave, Daddy Blair. They said they were
going to pray to the Ancestors, or something. Moby Dick said you were
plenty tough, so he wasn't worried. He and his friends went for a swim."
"Ah."
"The cave, Chief. That god-awful music is coming from the cave."
"Must be part of their prayers, Jim."
"Yeah, Sandburg. Sounds like some of your favourite stuff."
"What Incacha called 'Earth Music'?"
"I guess."
"Well, what now, Spirit of the Future?"
"Whatever you like, HoneyBunch. Want to summon the EMH Doctor now?"
"Might as well. Why wait. You never know."
"Okay. Let's get cracking, Sugar."
..............................................
"CHEEP cheep cheep. CHEEP cheep cheep. CHEEP cheep cheep. CHEEP cheep
cheep...."
"Ancestral Spirits come to us. Ancestral Spirits come to us. Ancestral
Spirits come to us...."
"CHEEP cheep cheep. CHEEP cheep cheep. =A0 CHEEP cheep cheep. CHEEP
cheep cheep...."
THUMP thump thump. THUMP thump thump. THUMP thump thump. THUMP thump
thump. THUMP thump thump. THUMP thump thump...
***************************************************
"Um... Spirit of the Future?"
"Yes, HoneyBunch?"
"I've been wondering... did Jim and I actually leave the Island? And how
could we? I thought no Living Being could leave here, while we're Lost
in Time."
"Well, you left in Spirit form, through a Spirit Elephant's eyes."
"Sarah's eyes? They can turn Living Beings into Spirits? Brrr."
"Well, you are a Shaman and a Sorcerer. Jim is a Sentinel, which is a
bit of both. So you are closer to the Spirit World than most Living
Beings."
"Ah. So Jim is a kind of Shaman and Sorcerer too, is he? You hear that,
Jim? Jim? Yo, Jim? Wake up. You zoning on something? Jim! Follow my
voice. Come back to me, Jim."
"I'm not zoning, Sandburg."
"Then what's wrong? You were staring off into space and ignoring me.
Something's wrong."
"It's that ceremony up at the cave."
"Ah. They still chanting?"
"Yeah. But it's something more. I just sensed a disturbance in the
Force."
************
Chapter Seven
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