LiTTLE CHERiNE Book 02 - post258

I don’t really know anything, I’m usually just guessing. After all, another answer could be that she has learnt all she knows about her worlds from her future self - one who still lives billions of years in the future? I find my first answer easier to believe.

Previous Post 257

1349

Cherine: Sam, please explain about the future Meli, how would it work? Since our now Meli already has all the knowledge of past, present and future, in her mind worlds, it means she must have already returned to share…must have done so even before Meli was born! Wouldn’t we have sensed her, whether she returned here or in the void?

I am certain Meli has not been to visit the futures of her worlds; I think she meant what she said, when she told us that she can sense their futures, but that she only will should something happen and she is needed. There is one way she could have done so without anyone sensing her (by the way Cher, if the Meli who returns is billions of years older than us, could we really claim she could not return without us sensing her, if she chose to not be sensed?). Do you see why I don’t want to even think of the possibility? It does not answer questions, all it does is pose even more impossible questions.

That spider woman is very unfair. She attacked us while we were asleep, forcing us to wake up three hours earlier than we usually do! The sensations, I imagine, could drive anyone crazy if they last long enough. I looked it up on the internet and found that there are people who suffer from the same symptoms, and the dictionary name and description is as follows:

Paraesthesia (Abnormal skin sensations (as tingling or tickling or itching or burning) usually associated with peripheral nerve damage)

Our protector took about four minutes to block the attack and he let us know that he thinks it emanated from the spider herself, for the Sparklers were not able to enter her mind…or to even sense where she is. While she was distracting us with this attack, she tried to send tiny bombs into our bodies, but could not ‘aim’ them since she cannot see us and has never been in our home - that we know of. A few of the mini bombs arrived in and around our home, but after the first one exploded in our kitchen, the protector prevented the others from exploding by instantly sending them into space. Afterwards, Keith asked the protector whether he blindly sends such attacks into space, or does he check to avoid blowing up satellites? We were relieved to hear he sends them far beyond any satellite orbits.

Socrati was mainly speaking to Savva, but the rest of us listened. “This war is ridiculous. Even when she had thousands in her organisation, she only attacks us with one or a few each time and we sit here waiting for them, playing at being children. Why hasn’t she sent in the army?

You know, it reminds me of my days in EOKA, when we hid in the mountains and villages, striking without warning and disappearing again. Now that I’ve had a taste of what it is like from the other side, I must say it was much better being an EOKA member, rather than a British soldier waiting for a snipers’ bullet to come out of nowhere.”

Savva nodded. “As a young man I did my two and a half years in the army, but I was lucky, we were not at war during that time. I’ve always wondered whether they managed to change me to the point of taking the life of a stranger just because I am told I am supposed to. Because of the heightened feelings during a war, they might have succeeded, but I do not think I would have been able to forgive myself afterwards. At least, as a policeman, I have not had to face killing at someone else’s orders; I’d only do so if I felt it was necessary so as to save lives.”

Michaeli drew a chair to sit with them and he felt he is welcome to speak. “When the world learns about this war of ours, only those who still have a conscience will understand Roberto. He weakened his position drastically by refusing to kill and yet, somehow he made me feel much stronger because of it. I’ve been wondering whether he has prevented us from fighting at his side because he feared we might get carried away by our anger and kill.”

Savva laughed. “His only reasons were those he gave - he cannot bear the thought of risking the life of another. I wish it were for the reason you gave, for then I would feel good about his not allowing me to help.”

There have been a number of such conversations which Robbie will share from our minds when he returns. I hope he senses the love and admiration behind their words and can be proud of inspiring such men and women by his example.

After supper, Tina said, “I have a feeling that our days without Robert will soon end and then nobody will feel like sitting to listen to stories about Akleet and Reveena, so why don’t you carry on, now, while we are bored and happy to hear you?” She was giving Meli a naughty grin and Meli responded to it.

“Are you certain? I’d been thinking that until Robert returns, none of you can concentrate on the story, since you are all obsessed with thoughts of him, so I should wait until after he has returned and we are more relaxed.”

Cherine, sounding just as naughty, answered Meli, “I wouldn’t do that if I were you - it is going to take us a very long time to relax…with so many of us and only one of him.”

Candy moved to sit next to Meli, so she returned in her mind to the last scenes narrated, and continued the tale.

“I have tried to imagine what it must be like to live with a constant awareness of time, second by second, but I have not succeeded. I am ill-equipped for that kind of understanding because of the way I lose myself in the stories I am shown for me to write. The stories, they present themselves in all their raw reality and emotions, in their ugliness and beauty, in their own kind of keen-edged truth, and they demand of me that I find the correct sequence of words to write of them so that they can be honestly transferred from my mind to the mind of each of my readers. I am not that good a writer, so I end up losing myself in my search for the best I can achieve. This means that sometimes hours and sometimes even most of a day can go by without my realising it.”

Dr Maria asked, “What you write, are the stories taken from what you have shared from the people living in your mind?”

Meli shook her head. “I do not know where my stories come from, but they are not memories - mine or borrowed. It is said that all authors use scenes from their own lives - or from the lives of others, but I am not aware of it being so with my stories. They feel to me as if they are born whole within some deeper part of me. Maria, some of them have an awful beauty that frightens me and because I know I cannot do them justice, they become more of a curse, blighting my soul, rather than delighting me. Still, I would rather die than lose the ability to paint them with words for others to share.”

Theresa, who was cradling a snoozing Lucy on her lap, softly asked, “Do the people of Reveena make up stories like our people do?”

1350

Meli grinned. “If you are to believe what they say, they don’t make up stories. However, if you travelled around their world, staying overnight to visit and talk and each household tells you the same story, you would not realise it is the same story. They love to decorate their tales with fanciful interpretations and such embellishments are not considered lies - as our fiction is; they only consider them unique ways of seeing what others have seen in their own unique ways. It is fun when a number of families come together to celebrate and they compete in the telling of the same story, with the listeners voting which version was the most unique. Perhaps, if I could stay there long enough for a few bright kids to grow up with me, they could develop brilliant storytellers - but they would not be admired by their people.

There is one version of storytelling permitted, though it must be understood from before what it is to be about. For instance, if Reveena sits by Akleet, leaning against him, and she makes up stories of what it could be like for the two of them to work on one island and live on another, although it is imaginary, it is seen as healthy, as it is exploratory and can lead to the avoidance of harmful errors.

Now, how about you exercising the same kind of imagination. What do you think their nights are like?”

Nobody was keen to be the first to speak, so Cherine asked, “Can they see lots of islands?”

“Yes. If you keep in mind that there are thousands of islands, some no bigger than this house, and some much bigger than the Peloponnesian Peninsula, though all smaller than the island of the Puerpep, with always at least one side facing the sun, plus the atmosphere between the islands is itself also bathed in sunlight and further brightened by the glow from the sun-side of the islands. Their nights are different from their days in that the sun does not shine directly on them. The air between the islands glows because of a very light sprinkling of dust - luckily not heavy enough to limit the view of their universe to a greater degree than our atmosphere does.

If we had evolved under such conditions, I think we would be terrified of the dark. Not so with the Puerpep, for they have the habit of creating total darkness for sleeping in - a left over instinct from the days their island was a full planet, with normal day and night periods? Although darkness seems to be acceptable in their homes, they do not like it outside of their homes, where it is not controlled by them.

Because the two of them were fully relaxed and happy with each other and their dreams, Akleet found it easier to speak of what troubled him. ‘The first cavern I found, the one I fell into, I found tunnels which branched off into more tunnels. The tunnel I took was narrow and when I decided it was not a good tunnel to be in, I found it difficult to get out of as I could not turn and the rocks and roots seemed to hinder me as I tried to back out, as if I was only meant to continue the other way. We do not have much fuel for our lamps, so I did not light it, except for a brief look whenever I needed to make a decision.
Onn-Revee, at the time I was only concerned with returning to you, but for these many nights since then, I find my mind returning to those hours in the dark and I feel fear!’
‘It was a home-darkness?’
‘Yes, but it felt heavier.’
She stared at him, her eyes brooding. ‘Yes, that is how it would feel inside me if you should stop loving me. Promise you won’t let me make you stop.’
He felt her request strange, for the possibility had never occurred to him. But he needed to feel her happy again, so he replied as earnestly as he could, ‘I promise.’
She then reassured him. ‘When you feel that heavy darkness, imagine me with you. I promise my love will be the light you need.’
Akleet said, ‘This island is making us talk funny - I’ve never thought this way before.’
Reveena smiled teasingly. ‘Perhaps it is that you are becoming an adult?’

Whenever they crossed to the other side of the island, Reveena stared at the sky with fascination, for the minor discrepancies in the view grew larger as their own island approached, so that she felt as if her universe was suddenly wrong in some way she could not easily pinpoint, as there were too many angles which seemed to be askew and perspective seemed to play tricks with her eyes - I assume she suffered this way because of her mathematical instincts which needed to adjust. Whatever the cause, I will jump forward in time to tell you that once she was settled and expecting her first child, she asked to be taught higher mathematics. It seemed wrong to me, since it is Akleet whose instinct is more finely honed, yet he hardly paid any attention to the real world messing with his senses, so he did not question why the discrepancy. It would appear to be that sometimes curiosity is a greater influence on our lives and growth, than ability.

By the time they landed on their home island, the rest of the people knew about their trip and why they had taken the risk. Learning that there is so much space available, enabling future generations to do more than just survive, has filled them with ideas and ambition once more. When Akleet and Reveena, as a couple, moved to their new home islands, they were accompanied by another thirty seven families and more joined them each time it was possible to glide across. However, Akleet and Reveena remained the only couple to build their home on the small rocky island for almost all the years of their lives.
Should we visit their worlds within our time, we’ll find the Puerpep now occupy four islands, but their population has only doubled over the centuries since our explorers aged and died. At this time they do not feel the need to expand their numbers and occupying more land just for the sake of doing so does not tempt them.”

None of us understand the need Robbie has for remaining in contact with the spider, and by telling us during his phone call from the ship that he wants her to know where he is, we are once more living with a constant slight feeling of panic. We no longer count the days; hour by hour is how we drag ourselves through the days, and the hours just seem to stretch out, refusing to pass - or so it feels.

The adults are trying to help us girls by finding other subjects to discuss, but even that is only possible for a few hours each day. Each of my loves, myself included, reach a point where we need someone to hold us, and when that need is satisfied, then it is our turn to hold those who now feel they need to be held. The children of the other families are more keenly affected by us and their families are also having to spend a lot of time holding them.

Nobody asks the four girls, Wendy, Wendy, Candy and Lua, to sing for us, for they would only break our hearts and our resolve. They also tend to be the ones who most often need to be held. The one who is hardly ever held by us is Theresa; she spends most of her time with her daughter in her arms, or else watching her as she crawls around or plays.

Next Post 259

I hope you enjoy reading this long, long story of fantasy, adventure and love.

Αλέξανδρος Ζήνον Ευσταθίου

(Alexander Zenon Eustace)
^{5th June, 2019}

* posted on Steemit: 5th June, 2019



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