Update on Series One
If you read the first book, Frozen Time; then you know it was about a seventeen-year-old boy who discovered an amulet/orb while out digging in Africa with his father, looking for artifacts. His whole life changed. At first, he used the orb, which stopped time, to help people. Later, he moved to New York City where he used it for his own gain. He met an old gambler, named Slim who he cheated and embarrassed in a Cassio. Slim threatened him, and told him he was as good as dead.
Timmy became angry at himself for all the evil things he was doing, and wanted to die.
Here is the last chapter in first series~
Timmy stood still with the handgun pointed at his temple. He waited for death to claim him, but his fingers defied him and became frozen on the trigger. The flash that was supposed to send him off into blackness, out of pain, that god awful forbidden agony he couldn’t run away from anymore. He couldn’t stop that emotional ache. Anguish tore at his heart until it bled tears of horrible sickening misery. Timmy dropped to the ground, and pressed his face to the soil so hard it felt as if it was at one with the grime. He sensed he was floating in the heavens. He looked over to the park benches, and saw a kitten wiping his face with its paws looking at him. He felt connected to the kitten. The kitten stopped wiping its face, stood up and walked over to Timmy, and then lay next to his body. Timmy burst into tears. He sobbed and felt an endless darkness of pain. Was the kitten real or was he dreaming, he wondered. Was he dead? All at once he saw a brilliant light far above, and he felt himself floating with gravity, a
sedateness that reclaimed his body. His pain was fading, and just
before ceasing to be – a bright light was shining in his eye, and he heard someone saying to him, “Mister… Mister- come back to us. Mister LOOK at us.” The voice continued trying to entice Timmy back until he became agitated, and opened his eyes. He saw nurses and doctors standing over and around him, looking vexed and concerned.
“He’s awake!” A heavy-set nurse said with relief in her voice.
The doctor bent down closer to Timmy’s ear and whispered, “Mister you’ve been shot, but you are going to be okay. Stay with us. Come on, stay with us.”
Everything looked blurred to Timmy, and his body felt numb, except for his head, which throbbed. He no longer could feel his toes, or legs, and when he asked the nurses where he had been shot, he blacked out before they told him.
In his blackness, he dreamed that he was floating on a fluffy white cloud somewhere in the heavens. He looked down and saw earth, and then his father. He asked him if he had gotten the letter he had mailed to him; telling him where he had buried the orb in Manhattan and the box of orbs he had buried in Sara’s garden. His father was crying while Sara held him. She was crying too. Timmy tried to get them to look at him, and talk to him, but they didn’t acknowledge him. They only cried while holding on to one another.
“Dad! Sara! Sara! Dad!! Listen to me.”
Richard let go of Sara, moved over to the door, and then turned around before going outside. He looked at Sara and Cecil, and then said, “I’m going to the excavation site – it always seems to calm me.”
Timmy screamed out, “Get the mail Dad. Go get my letter!”
It was almost as if Sara had sensed or heard Timmy subconsciously, because she said, “Richard before you go, did you see this letter you got today? It’s from Timmy – maybe you should open it. It might be important.” She held the letter up.
Richard puckered his brow, then shook his head and said, “I will read it as soon as I get back, but I need to clear my mind. I need to feel Timmy, and I always do so when I’m digging.”
Sara said, “But Richard…”
Before Sara could finish her sentence, Richard closed the door and walked the two blocks to his site, picked up the hand shovel and
pick – then began digging. He dug slowly and gently while thinking,
and then he felt something hard against his shovel. He laid down the hand shovel and smoothed the dusty sand aside until his hand grasped
something hard, like a rock except it wasn’t. He tugged gently and pulled out a tablet and after he dusted it off, he could see pictures on it. He stood up excited, and then ran back to the house with it in his hand. After entering in through the door he rushed over to Cecil and said, “Cecil…Look!” all the while holding up the tablet. “These pictures are making a statement of some kind. Look! It says something about aliens. Look at the spaceship and these pictures…what do they mean?”
Cecil and Sara moved over closer to Richard, and looked at the yellowish looking tablet. Cecil held out his hand to take it. Richard laid the tablet down on the table instead, so they could all view it. Each gathered around the table, closer, sat down in chairs, and began trying to figure it out. Within minutes of doing this Richard reached over, grabbed Timmy’s letter and opened it. He read the first page as Sara looked on, and they both jumped up from the table and screamed. Sara first, “Oh my God Richard, I knew Timmy had found something that day at the site when I went to help him get that box you asked him to go get. He had a little marble-like ball around his neck on a chain, after that too, and I always felt he had found that in the box that day. Oh my God! No wonder he changed so much after that find.”
“Hold on Sara. Hold on. What in the hell are you talking about?”
When Sara explained the happenings of that long ago day, Richard looked stone- faced and said, “Oh, how I wished you had come to me, Sara. Let’s finish the letter.”
By the time they finished reading Timmy’s letter, they felt saddened by it so much that the three of them held on to one another and cried.
Richard yelled out, “We have to go to New York, right after the memorial, and find that orb Timmy said he buried in Manhattan. He also says he left money in a savings account in my name, and wants me to use it to help the people in Africa.”
Timmy had the foresight from his troubled past to leave detailed instructions for his father, Cecil and Sara that should anything happen to him, from whatever cause, they must catch a flight to New York and recover the treasures he had collected during his stay. He also
made certain that he not only told them where he had hidden the
amulet or orb, but that they approach it with great fear and trepidation for although it could be used for good, however, there was an overwhelming urge to use it for evil. Timmy carefully wrote about the
operation of the small buttons, and was quick to point out that he never experimented with the north or south buttons, mostly out of fear
of the unknown. Timmy pointed out that he loved all of his friends and relatives dearly, and was unable to help himself when he became evil and mean. He thanked Sara for always being there when he needed her. He also in the letter thanked Cecil for his understanding of him. To his father he wrote he loved him and appreciated him as a
good father. Although, his mother had been killed, he still missed her, and would always miss and love her. He confessed he was a troubled- soul who got caught up in money, and killing people and for that he
was very sorry. He finally ended his letter by saying it would be good for the natives to continue to believe that it was good spirits that protected the people by killing the bad men. One last thing, Father, I ask that you bury the orb, and leave a telepathic note for me to find when I am able to return back to earth and bring about all the goodness those people in need deserved.
Timmy heard their last words – the tablet’s pictures were saying that the aliens had altered the DNA to survive on earth, which birthed humans on the planet, and the gifts they left in the Orbs, were there true and real powers- they only hoped that their operation would be understood and used for the good of mankind rather than the evil they were capable of transmitting. Timmy’s spirit and soul faded into the heavens, up at the highest level of the clouds, no longer seeing earth after one last time looking down to see his body on the operating table lying still; perhaps dead. He heard in the distance above the clouds that he would return, be reincarnated to see the next gift demonstrated on earth. The orb would be there waiting for him and when he found it, and then it would make the world a better place.
Timmy was conscious of everything that was happening to him, but he was unable to alert anyone as to his condition. The nurse was confused as she held his right wrist, feeling for a pulse; she was surprised to find it pulsing away. As she left to alert a doctor, Timmy forced his left arm over to the night stand. He summoned the orb to his fingers as if by some spiritual force until he felt for the buttons.
Being very careful as his fingers scanned the panel he felt the center
button, and passed it by knowing he didn’t want to stop time. He felt to the east knowing this button would allow him to vanish and he wasn’t interested in it either. The west button would allow items in or
around him to be unseen, and it too was of little value to him at this time, but it was the north and south buttons that held the greatest
promise or disappointment to him as he was never able to allow himself to activate either. As I am in this awful state of affairs, what would I have to lose by activating either button? Timmy, having no other alternative, depressed the north button and instantly he vanished from the hospital bed…he was gone. The strangest thing of all was that he couldn’t find himself anywhere. He knew he was alive, he just didn’t know where he was, but he had to go bury the orb so when his father received the letter, he’d know where to go. As he forced his mind to comprehend what had just happened, he could hear voices and he recognized them as coming from the hospital room where he was resting a short time before. There was a scramble by the hospital staff to locate Timmy. They knew he was unable to ambulate on his own, so he couldn’t have gotten too far, but how could he have gotten anywhere? After a desperate search, Timmy was declared missing with no clear explanation; in fact they didn’t even have a vague explanation. The records clearly showed that Timmy, by whatever means, had simply vanished from the hospital.
I must send word to my father and tell him what I just did, but how do I do that? I know I am somewhere near the hospital because I could hear the staff struggling to find me, but I can’t see where I am, thought Timmy, feeling like a little boy again. Daddy, please find me and help me. You must read my letter and know that I am alive. You must figure out the mystery of the orb and somehow get me back…please Daddy. Timmy was struck with fear of the unknown. He couldn’t imagine existing where he was because he was nowhere. As he tried to rationalize his status, his head jerked to one side. Something was a stir in his mind and it wasn’t a good feeling. It left and just as quickly resurfaced. It didn’t feel normal, whatever it was. Timmy tried to force his mind elsewhere but without success. Then the fear struck with full force for somewhere in the primordial, darkest regions of the human psyche awakened a force hidden since the beginning of time. It was awakening in Timmy’s mind and it was
real and growing. My goodness, what do I do? Can I escape my own
evil thoughts? Are these even my thoughts? Daddy, please help. I am so sorry for what I have done. Nothing; no response from anyone, not that Timmy really expected anyone or anything to visit his mind; he was lost. Again, that force from deep within the bowels of the darkest
regions of his mind, something was advancing. Timmy tried to cry, but no tears would come. He screamed out, but to no avail. His lungs
turned traitor and refused to let him draw a proper breath. He was so afraid that fear set his heart hammering, pounding, trying to fly free of his ribs. Was this to be the final consequence of all that Timmy had done since his discovery of the orb? Timmy was gripped with a fear unwritten, because this fear was not from this earth, but from where? As it advanced to an uncontrollable level, Timmy knew now that HE WAS NOT ALONE!
Chapter One
It was an early morning and a day before Timmy’s funeral. Slim had arrived in Africa two weeks earlier and watched Timmy’s father’s
house faithfully until he discovered that Timmy was dead. They were preparing a funeral for the next day. Slim watched Richard carrying two boxes into the house, and a pretty young woman carrying a third. He overheard Richard and Cecil telling someone that the funeral was at eleven the next morning. Slim grinned because he knew that would give him enough time to explore Richard’s house. He had once heard Timmy boasting about artifacts and how valuable they were. He’d find them, he thought, and then he will be as rich as Timmy was before he ended his crazy life. What Slim didn’t realize was that there wasn’t a body in the casket, because Timmy was never found. The funeral was a memorial to his young life and his mysterious disappearance.
The question now remains whether or not Timmy’s father, along with Cecil and Sara could solve the riddle of the orb, and somehow bring Timmy back from wherever he was being held captive – that is if he was.
Later, that night, Richard and Cecil went through the boxes that Timmy had alerted them to. They placed them on the table, and soon after Sara arrived to help. “Look, Richard, this one is the same ball that Timmy had around his neck on a chain. In fact, look, there are three more here.”
Richard hurried over beside Sara and said, “These are very dangerous. I think we’d better hide these very carefully, and with much thought.”
“Perhaps in the wall behind the sheet rock, and then put the paneling we have in the bedroom that we were going to panel in there?” Cecil suggested.
“Cecil, that’s an excellent idea. Let’s get to work,” Richard said.
Richard began tearing the sheet rock carefully off the wall, so that he could nail it back on, and put the paneling over it. Then he and Cecil would have to fly to New York and find the orb where Timmy had buried it, and go get the money out of the checking to help the African people, and also in the deposit box he had mentioned in his letter – was a note and more money.
Cecil and Richard dressed to attend Timmy’s memorial, and hurried out the door, jumped in Richard’s jeep, and sped off. Slim was hiding behind a tree, and as soon as he saw the jeep turn the roundabout, and head toward the little town of Meadow, he rushed up to the door, and tried the knob, and was surprised because it opened. Slim peeked in and looked around. He saw the three boxes on the table. He rushed over to them, and peered inside them, digging his hands into the almost empty boxes, and found nothing of any interest. He rubbed his head in confusion, but didn’t give up. He went into all the rooms, pulling out dressers drawers, and even in closets, but found nothing. He mumbled to himself, “F—k! The little cheater is smarter than I had thought. Where in the hell did he hide the artifacts that he said he had?” He left in anger, promising himself that he would find them, but where? He’d stake out the house with a couple hired Africans, and maybe even have some try to work for Timmy’s father.
Timmy’s memorial started with his favorite song, Everybody’s Everything, as people stood and listened. His casket was closed, of course, because there wasn’t a body inside, but there was a note left inside the wooden box that Richard had made” just in case Timmy came back to look for the Amulet. There was a moment of silence, sending a chill through Sara’s heart. She missed Timmy, and somehow felt she should have stayed in New York with Timmy when he wanted her to. However, as Richard told her when she had said that
to him; it wouldn’t have made any difference because he was already into iniquity much too far.
The atmosphere was eerie toward the end of the service; almost as if Timmy was there somewhere watching his own service. Sara began sobbing, and Richard wrapped his arm around her and whispered, “Shhh, it’s almost over honey.”
As everybody walked out to the graveside, and when they lowered Timmy’s casket into the ground, a man stood about a hundred feet away, looking at the crowd. Their community was small and not a person knew who the man was. Richard wondered if he was connected to Timmy in some way. He walked over to the man, and asked him if he knew Timmy. Slim nodded, turned and walked away.
Richard wondered if he was a friend from New York, had to be, and if so, then he knew the man was up to no good. He didn’t look like a nice man. He looked on the rough-side. Therefore, Richard would keep an eye on him. However, he had to go to New York to find the Orb, and get the money out of the checking and savings account that Timmy put in his name, as well as the contents in the safe-deposit box.
Tuesday of the following week, Richard, Cecil and Sara caught their flight to New York City. Upon arriving and hailing a taxi, the first thing they did was to go to Timmy’s high-riser apartment, and was shocked how luxurious it was. They saw how unhappy Timmy had been because there were beer cans thrown everywhere; on the table, in the corner of his bed, couch, kitchen, and even in the bathroom. There was cash thrown around in each room; almost like it was play money. Cecil began to collect it all, counting as he went, and the total was over 3,000 dollars. Sara saw letters he had written to her and never mailed. She slipped them into her handbag for a later read, and continued walking around Timmy’s apartment feeling lost, and mighty sad. She sat down at his desk, and reached in the middle drawer, and withdrew more money, notes, which said, pay attention to detail, plans on his evil ways, and more letters to her. She picked up the opened bottle of red wine, setting on the desk, and took a gulp of it. It was smooth, and she knew it was fine wine. Her heart was aching and her mind was confused, while her patience was fading.
How could Timmy have done all that he did, she questioned; the question sent a chill throughout her being.
He killed people, and stole from stores, casinos and people. This was not the Timmy she knew. She found enough courage to toss the wine bottle in the trash. Wandering around in his apartment, oddly, she felt him, and even though his presence was still here, she turned away and wanted to forget he ever found that damn orb. She hated that day. Curse that day. She wanted to plow her fist into the wall, and scream.
Richard quickly collected the deed to the apartment, and amazed that Timmy had a quick-deed in his top drawer, signing it over to him. He would have to call a realtor to get it sold, but before that he’d have to have the furniture moved, and his personal things shipped to Africa. He stood at the tall window, looking out into the city, thinking that his son had stood there and saw the same view. His heart dropped a notch, and he felt saddened. He turned around, and told Sara and Cecil it was time to go.
Within the hour, Richard stood in the bank waiting for the teller to get the information he requested, and when she came back with the balance of his account Timmy had put in his name; he was shocked with the amount of money Timmy had stashed away. He knew it would certainly help a lot of people in Africa; just as Timmy had requested. Richard walked out of the bank with his heart full, and his mind spinning. Climbing back into the taxi with his friends, he told the cabbie to take them to the Starlight Graveside. Upon arriving, Richard leaped from the vehicle, and hurried over to the tall statue of an angel. He measured two feet to the right of the bottom of it, pulled out his hand shovel, and dug until he found a small box. He opened the box, and inside, set the orb. He tucked the box into his bag, and replaced the soil over the top, smoothing it, and then stood up. He took in a deep breath, knowing his job in New York was done for now. He hurried back to the cab, and told the cabbie to drive them to the airport.
The flight went well, and after arriving back to Richard’s house, they saw police cars surrounding the buildings. Richard paid the driver, and the three of them slowly walked toward the house, when a police officer that Richard knew, hurried over to him. He told Richard that the house had been broken into and it looked like someone was
looking for something because of the way things were thrown everywhere. He further stated that the couches and chair cushions had been cut, as were the mattresses. Right away, Richard told the officer about the man he had seen at Timmy’s memorial. “I think he was someone Timmy knew in New York because he wasn’t anyone from around here.”
“Call me if you see him again, and I will investigate it,” stated the officer.
Chapter Two
Timmy
Timmy was ascending through space, not knowing where he was, or where he was going. With him was a flashing ball that seemed to be beside him wherever he went. Was he dead, and going to hell? He didn’t know, but he feared, he was lost somewhere on his way to an inferno where he would pay for his evilness. Flashes of his sins appeared in pictures before him. He saw people he had killed, stole from, and treated horribly. He looked at his hands, but he couldn’t feel them. He tried touching his face, but couldn’t touch anything but thin air. He screamed, cried, and begged forgiveness for all the evil things he had done. He was in a whirlwind of fear – a nightmare.
Suddenly he felt bizarreness rip through him, and within seconds he began to spin in a circle so fast that his head touched his feet. He bawled out, “Please forgive me. Forgive me.” He stopped spinning, and the magnetic field of Earth seemed to connect to the magnetic field of another place which was bright and leading to something unknown to him; something dark, then a dim light appeared in the distance. He felt himself entering into a door, to the unknown, where tons of energetic particles were flowing through openings that went in many different directions. He looked back and saw the heating of Earth’s upper atmosphere – storms and igniting bright polar auroras.
Timmy began to feel his toes and fingers move. A light from them began to shower out to an opening, bending his body – his hands fumbling toward his feet. A magnetic portal? Vortexes in space? He didn’t know, but he could now feel the air around him, the extraordinary energy, and saw an unique opening, almost as if he was about to enter a spinning hole.
He entered into the spiraling hole. Darkness with massive flashes of energy splayed, and then it was as if a giant spit him out of his mouth, and he landed on an alter with a gold monarch’s chair setting before him. He pushed himself up into a sitting position on the altar, and stared at the tall slender creature in front of him. He had a head that was in the shape of an oval egg, with no hair, big round eyes that flowed green, and skin that looked to be as smooth as silk. His eyes seemed to glow with such energy that Timmy could feel it, and when he spoke the glowing stopped. “Timmy, you have landed here to go through the purifying process.”
Timmy twisted his mouth to one side, and said, “What does that mean?”
“Questions are not allowed. You must devote your attention to my words.”
“Who are you?”
“Questions are not allowed.” The creature pointed to Timmy with his large greenish fingers, and an electrical shock went through Timmy’s body; knocking him off the altar.
He got up, stunned, and sat on the altar once again, and lowered his head.
“You have brought evil to the world. All those who you hurt, stole from, and killed – will suffer anguish that they will have to overcome, which puts them behind following their purpose. Those you killed will now have to drift around as a ghost on earth, until someone helps them understand that it was your evilness, your loss, and learn that anger will only cause them to steer away from their earthly purpose. They are lost, not knowing where they are, and the reason no one can see them – why they are confused and suffering. You caused that Timmy. Now, it goes even deeper than just those you killed because, you see, those that they spook will suffer losses too. They will allow fear to enter into their being – again, coxswaining them away from their path. So you see, Timmy, you brought many more than just those you killed, to the depths of their suffering, and the slowing down of their purpose for being on earth. Earth is a school, to learn all the different emotions, to overcome them, and not let them set one off in an iniquitous direction. Not reacting to your emotions, shows strength, and allows you to separate what is real, and what is just an emotion. Earthly beings encounter many happenings in their life in order to learn in their big world of lessons. That’s why they are sent to earth; to understand.”
When the creature’s words stopped, Timmy looked up into his kind and loving face. He didn’t speak because he didn’t want to cause the loving face to disappear, so he just sat and stared into the creature’s eyes.
Timmy heard the creature’s message without his words. He sent a telepathic message to Timmy. “I’m Menus. Venus is my wife. She was named after our brightly shining planet. Our planet is love. We have many muses here, along with teachers to help those who land in darkness, and give in to evil. I am here to guide and direct you back to earth after we have cleansed your soul. You may speak if you get my message.”
Timmy smiled as he looked into Menus’ kind eyes, and said, “Thank you Menus.”
“Very well, Timmy. You do still have some good in parts of your soul, or you would not have gotten my message, so we shall begin our lessons at the first sun light.”
A young woman came into the room, and lead Timmy to a beautiful spiritual garden where he was told to sit on the bench and observe the glimmering waters in the pond. Before walking away and leaving him, she said, “We are a terrestrial planet and known as Earth’s sister planet, but we are a planet that is here to help those on earth who need us.”
Timmy thanked her, sat on the bench and looked at the glimmering water, and when he did, he saw a killing that he did in New York. His calm expression left him, as his face showed he was anxious and insecure. He saw blood vessels torn apart and hanging out while blood dripped down a man’s neck that he killed, and how the man’s life flashed before him, and he couldn’t enter through death’s door because he was lost and confused. His body floated around the building in which he was killed, and he continued to linger while going in circles. Within days, his ghost-like whiteness appeared in front of people, near the building, trying to get them to help him, however, it only caused them to run in terror. One elderly man dropped hard on the ground while having a heart attack and died. Some people who ran in terror, later became withdrawn, not wanting to go outside their homes, while some became so fearful that they became ill. Timmy felt horribly saddened by the scene, and wished he had never misused the Orb – not only because he had caused a death, but it was like a domino effect where it also affected others.
Timmy leaned his cheek against his knee, and asked for forgiveness. Moments later, a young girl appeared, and offered Timmy her hand. He took it, and she led him into a room with a small bed. She pointed at it and then left.
Timmy stretched out on the bed, turned on his back and thought about his father, and murmured, “Oh Father, I am so ashamed of the things I did for gain. I don’t think I’ll be coming back as myself, as the Timmy you know, as your son, to get the Orb, to repair my evil doings on earth. I, however, will be coming back, I know, because Menus told me so.”
When Timmy opened his eyes at the first light, something was different; something in the light. It was purer somehow. His excitement jumped heights, as the dark veiling was lifting.
Chapter Three
Africa
Slim was in a state of anger after going into Richard’s house, and finding nothing. He knew the treasure was hidden somewhere; that thing that caused Timmy to know his hand. He cheated! But how? Guessing he had some artifact, he would continue to search for it. He’d search until he found it, and when he did, he would become rich and run this world.
As Slim followed Richard to Timmy’s grave, he hid behind a big rock and watched. He saw him digging beside the headstone and burying something. Placing a slab of granite on top where he dug and filled back with soil; he stood on it and continued to push down with his feet. Slim chuckled a got ya! He leaned against the rock, waiting for Richard to leave, and when he finally walked away, Slim moved over to the rock, looking all around, and then lifted the granite and threw it to the side. He dug into the loose soil with his fingers and when he saw the little box, he lifted it up and laughed so hard his insides hurt. He opened the box, and saw a marble-like metal item. He looked at it in his hand, and said, “What the hell?” He let the marble move around on his hand as he tilted his hand one way and then the other. He couldn’t figure it out, but then he saw the buttons, and said, “Okay, Timmy, let’s see what happens when I push that red button. He hesitated, and he decided to push another button, and when he did he looked around and nothing seemed to happen. He said, “Hum, nothing happened.”
Of course, nothing happened, as far as Slim knew, because no one was around to see them frozen in time. He slipped the marble inside his pocket and walked away disappointed. While climbing into his car, he decided to go back to New York and forget about Timmy.
“Timmy, you f—er, you got away with my money. I will curse you
for the rest of my life. I hope you’re in hell with your flesh burning off your bones.”
Richard pulled up in front of the village, got out and opened the trunk of his jeep, and grabbed one of the many boxes he had for the villagers. All the little children were running toward him, curious to what he had in the box. He laughed while holding on to the box, and said, “Take me to your leader.”
They grabbed onto his pant leg and pulled him toward the biggest shack that looked like it was going to fall down at any minute. About twenty families lived in the village, with several thrown-together shacks. Some had holes in the roof while others had no doors on them. The children were dirty, and their feet were hardened from not having shoes to wear, and clothed in rags. It was December, and knowing that Christmas was celebrated throughout the African continent by Christian communities large and small, Richard had gotten the idea to reward them with gifts in celebration of the holiday. Earlier in the week, he had sent three of his African employees over to count all the children and roughly their sizes in shoes and clothing. He looked around as he neared the biggest shack and realized his employees had done well with their sizes and approximating how many lived in the village. The children let go of his pants when he got to the door, and as he stood ready to tap on the baobab door, a husky man opened the door and stood tall in wonderment as to who and what Richard wanted. Richard right away, said, “You are the chief of the village?”
The man turned his head in a positive nod, and then looked at the box. Richard handed him the box filled with shoes and socks for the children and said, “Merry Christmas. If you will come to my jeep, I have more boxes for you.”
A big smile appeared on the man’s face. He took the box and went inside to put the box down, and then came back to the door, and followed Richard to his vehicle. The two of them carried another ten boxes to the man’s shack; filled with clothing and shoes. Just as Richard and the man had finished with the boxes, a big truck turned onto the dirt road and stopped in front of the villagers’ shacks; Shortly afterward, another two large trucks arrived. The drivers leaped out of
their trucks, and Richard told the Village Man that he had brought, food, seeds, soil, and beds, among other things. The man’s wife ran out and asked what was going on, and when she was told, she wrapped her chubby arms around Richard and cried, “Thank you Mister, thank you.”
Richard nodded, and said, “These men have come to do repairs on your houses, and in some cases, add windows, and doors so you will have better protection.
The man looked at the lumber the truckers were unloading and said, “Thes’ woods are fum baobab trees.”
The driver said, “Yes, we brought these because as the legend goes, the baobab was planted in the earth upside down by a disgruntled hyena who was angry because the gods had given each animal a seed to plant – in order to green the world – and he was left until last.”
Richard added, “The baobab is easy to recognize because of its large swollen truck and branches, and shiny smooth grey bark, wrinkled in parts like an elephant’s skin. In the summer, green finger-like leaves cover the baobab’s bare branches; known as the hand with five fingers.”
The man nodded happily, and said, “Goood fruit too. Goood wod.”
The driver said as he turned to look at Richard, “Yes, the fruit resembles a velvety brown mini-mango.”
The children were running around in circles hugging each other, jumping up and down in excitement, but when they saw one of the drivers unload farming tools, they leaped in the air with excitement. It was better than toys to them because they knew they could grow things with the seeds and never have to go hungry again. Several of the ladies were giggling as they ran to the bucket filled with ribbons for them, long kaftans, and also called caftan robes. They were colorful with bright reds, yellows, oranges, and pinks. They women were grabbing and pulling out the kaftans all the way screaming with excitement.
Chapter Three
Africa
Richard was pleased with what he had done in his son’s honor. He hoped that somehow Timmy was aware of what was happening. He had a strange feeling that the orb was involved, and that its magical powers were working, was alive and well. He hoped the spell cast-out out by his son would continue. As he glanced around watching the workers happily engaged in their reconstruction projects, the children happy at opening their gifts, and the women enjoying the new robes. Many children were trying out their new tools; they all knew what they were for and knew how they worked. Even if the children never got to master the fun things given them, it wasn’t the idea of how they worked as it was at having received something they never knew about, and the excitement of just watching their progress as they made a simple discovery that to a more prosperous child in a modern civilization would be a routine operation, Richard also informed the head of the tribe of people that he had set aside an account with a secured agency where money could be used if and when something vital was needed, with a particular inference to medicine that might help save some innocent person’s life. When Richard felt that he had done what he had set out to do, and was satisfied with his accomplishments, thanks to his son, he offered his goodbye’s to the people, asked for no thanks, and merely said, to please use what was given for the betterment of the people. He then left with a very light heart, and returned to his familiar surroundings. As he was resettling himself around his equipment and digging sites, he couldn’t help but feel troubled. Something or someone was trying to alert him, to signal him that he was not alone. Richard stood and looked all around, carefully scrutinizing the familiar surroundings, but could not sense anything out of the ordinary. Despite his assurance to himself that all was normal, the normal, in this case, was just for the physical area. Richard was not yet prepared to even think about the ethereal passageways. And although his life’s work and devotion was
toward exposing the secrets of the ancient artifacts and messages, somehow he got lost in the hands-on, physical artifacts one could hold
in one’s hands. Somewhere along the way he lost sight of the fact that so many of those artifacts consisted of lines of writing, misunderstood, or never understood carvings, wall carvings that depicted objects unidentified or misidentified by those who studied the works of art.
Richard was struggling with his thoughts; he felt tortured by some inner gnawing, trying as best as it could to produce a coherent message he could understand. Fortunately Richard did not give up because only he knew what was going on within the depths of his thoughts, and he would be damned if he gave up without a more clear idea of what was inside, trying to get out. Suddenly, as if he was hit by a falling object from out in space, Richard realized that it was Timmy who was trying to make contact with him. Timmy was trying to get his father to forget, for now, the physical aspects of his search and concentrate on the meanings of all the messages written and carved, for they would tell the real story of when and how they were built, the people who were responsible for their construction, and the out in the open illustrations clearly indicating that all that could be seen did not originate on the land on which he was standing.
Richard began to reflect that somewhere along the way he had abandoned his search for extra meanings of those things on the earth he knew, or suspected, could not have come from those residents of the planet Earth, but rather from some other worlds surrounding the Earth. The supposition was that somewhere far back in history, travelers being thrust through the vastness of space happened to view the orb known as Earth to its inhabitants, as having certain aspects possibly favorable to the travelers. The travelers bided their time, watching and learning, until they saw an opportunity to introduce one of their own kind into the environment to implant their vast knowledge on those who they saw as struggling. The being they created, of course, had to resemble those familiar to the surrounding inhabitants, so, as it is suspected today, with modern scientific thought, there was an artificial insemination injected into a sound female specimen, with the resulting birth being of superior intelligence, and with special knowledge totally unknown to any living being on the planet. That could very well have been the onset
of a changing of the world for the better with advanced thinkers, in
the design of the normal human being, but being, instead, a transplant from worlds far away in outer space.
As this message became clearer to Richard, he could now see that his son was alerting him to the realities of what was out there and needed to be examined and studied. As Richard thought about his troubled mind, he could see that he needed to change his thinking to more digging, and instead, studying what was already there.
Although, he didn’t know where Timmy was, somehow felt that in all his efforts to make contact with his father were becoming successful. Richard felt Timmy continuing to struggle, mostly in his effort to free himself from the unknown restrictions holding him captive, so he could focus his attention on alerting his father that things were not as they seem to be. He needed his father to realize that history was all wrong, that there were too many important things left out, whether on purpose or not was not important. What was important was that finally someone would make the discovery that those on the planet Earth were not alone, or at least, come to realize that all of them were not the originals, that they had help from far more intellectual universes either seeking to help, or, at least, to find a better existence for their own people from their lands far out in space. Certainly many early settlers sought good for all, but along with the good, there is always the bad, the evil, and this aspect of life and living have always existed, and probably would have to continue, in the conflict of the good and the not so good for as long as humans exist.
Happily Richard was receiving a more clear vision of what was being transmitted to him, and his happiness grew because the message being sent could only be from his son, Timmy. He tried very hard to return the message, perhaps by doing so, allowed Timmy to discover where he was, being held captive or not, in the hopes that he might find a way back to his familiar surroundings. Not understanding fully what he was doing, he nevertheless continued his transmissions through whatever wavelengths were out there, and then he’d have to wait to see whether or not Timmy was on the receiving end. Richard’s energy was an all-time high, as he had never in his life had such an experience such as this, and he was certain he wasn’t going to
lose it. He would remain where he was for as long as it took in order for him to understand what was happening to him.
On the other side of wherever he was, Timmy was feeling a strange sense of energy allowing him to force his mind to reveal his whereabouts. He needed to know where he was in order to know how to escape – if there was such a thing as escaping. This was as yet to be discovered, but try he would. He could somehow sense that his father was making a great effort to understand the workings of the universe, far from how it has always been presented, and if by any discovery, he could understand more clearly what was happening, perhaps he could better understand what was happening to him. How long must he be confined to this unknown torture? How long must he suffer for what he had done, for the troubles he had caused, for the unhappiness he had caused. Surely he was not the only evildoer on the planet, for he knew better, yet he could see no others; he was totally alone. He could not even see things familiar to him. All he could see was a nothingness he could not describe, and it was maddening. There had to be an end somewhere to his suffering. There had to be a resolution. There had to be forgiveness. After all, he did his best to allow his father to bring happiness to the people he visited and showered with gifts, building materials, money, medicines; didn’t that count for something? His anguish tried to overwhelm him to give up, to surrender, but he fought this urge, but how was he able to even fight? He didn’t know what he was fighting? He didn’t know who he was fighting? He didn’t even know if he was fighting, or just being locked in this abyss of unknown nothingness; he just didn’t know.
Early in the morning hour, Cecil walked out to the site and saw Richard lying on the ground, asleep. He sat down beside him and waited, and when Richard woke up and sat up, he saw Cecil, and said, “I had the strangest dream, or was it real? In any case, Cecil, I feel that Timmy will return one day.”
Chapter Four
Timmy & Slim
Timmy waited for Menus to come to him as he had promised, for his cleansing lesson; at the first sun light. His face twisted as he thought of his father, and mumbled to him, “Father, I will return. I will. I will see you one day.”
“And who says you will see him again?” Menus asked as he motioned for Timmy to follow him.
Timmy looked up, shocked that Menus heard him speaking to his father. He lowered his head and said nothing.
Menus smiled, and then send him a message with his mind, as they walked to the gold throne, “How do you know you will see your father again, Timmy?”
Timmy answered, “I don’t know, but I desire.”
Menus thought, “You desire, then why do you get your father’s hopes up; that is if he gets your message?”
Timmy responded with his mind, “I regret that I sent him the message.”
“Very well, Timmy. You still have a lot to learn. Close your eyes and you will see how it affected your father.”
Timmy did as he was told, and closed his eyes, but nothing happened. Menus said, “Walk with me, Timmy.”
As they walked through the garden, suddenly, a brilliant light appeared in front of them, and Timmy could see his father kneeled to the ground, suffering Timmy’s loss. He felt his son was struggling to free himself but being held captive. However, in another scene Timmy could see the message that Menus had sent to Richard when he had seen him confused and suffering. Your history that has been told to you is wrong. Many things were not told to you. What is important is for you to know, now. Your son is going through a
cleansing process, and when he has finished his lessons, and knows truth about earth, he will return. The Orb was left to better the people on earth and connect to us, but your son used it incorrectly and therefore he had to come to our planet to learn what he did and how he affected earth peoples. There is good on earth, but what you need to know without doubt that there is evil too. There are other planets that want earth to be destroyed. We on the planet of Venus want wholesomeness for people on earth – you are our ancestors, but some are the ancestors of the evil planet. Protect the Orbs you found, and wait for your son’s return.
Timmy could see his father going to Timmy’s graveside to dig up the Orb he had buried for Timmy. He saw that his father was alarmed when he discovered it was gone. He screamed out, “Timmy is doomed. Oh Timmy, if you can hear me, you must come back to get the Orb. You must.”
When the images stopped, and the light faded, Timmy screamed out, “Oh no, Menus. Now what?”
Menus took Timmy’s hand and led him back to his gold throne, sat on it, and then gestured for Timmy to sit on the pillow and listen closely, “You cannot return until you have gone through the cleansing process, but I intend on sending your father a message to not worry over the Orb he buried because it will be found. Now, Timmy, you must not try to communicate with your father anymore – until you are pure at heart again. Go to the garden, and sit for the rest of the day, without thought, without communicating with anyone except your teacher here on Venus.”
Slim cursed Timmy all the way home, back to New York. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the Orb. He wondered why Richard had buried it at Timmy’s gravesite. He slipped it back into his pocket and got ready to get off the plane.
Once home, Slim threw his jacket over the chair, and it fell to the floor, and when it did, the Orb fell out and rolled across the room. Slim stepped over and picked it up. He was holding it when his gambling buddy knocked at the door, and when he opened the door, and his friend came in, he told him about the Orb. He said, I was just getting ready to push in this button when you knocked on the door. Let me try it again. He pushed the button again as he had before, and this time he saw that his friend was frozen with his mouth open ready to speak. “Harry, do you hear me? Move Harry.”
So Slim pushed it again and his friend’s mouth closed and he stepped over to Slim to see the Orb in his hand, and said, “What is that crazy marble-like thing?”
Slim jump up in the air, and screamed, “It stops time! Can you believe it, Harry – just think what we could do with this?”
“Yeah, what should we do first?” Harry asked as he smiled his crooked smile.
Slim twisted his body toward the window and stared out thinking about his life, and said, “I had more than my share of near-death experiences, and don’t wish to suffer any more in my lifetime. I say, we go to the casino where they kicked me out, and stop time, and take all the money in the place.”
“I say, let’s go. I mean when life offers you a prize of a little marble, a gift bigger than you’ve ever dreamed – isn’t it reasonable to go with it?” Harry said as he licked his lips together and headed to the door.
“Shit, I say you’re right, let’s go,” Slim said as he put the marble in his pocket and headed out the door with his friend.
It wasn’t long before they entered inside the casino, and Slim immediately pulled out his Orb and stopped time. They stood there sniggering while they talk about where to go first. Both agreed to go to the cashier near the door, first. Slim let out a wicked laugh as he grabbed the money from four drawers, stuffing the biggest bills in his jacket and then the smaller ones in his pant pockets. After he had all of his pockets filled, he looked over at Harry, and saw that he too had his pockets filled, so he squealed out, “you crazy people, we’ve robbed you. We can do anything we want to you. Let me show you,” he said, as he took one of the cashiers’ blouse off; leaving her wearing only a bra. He laughed wickedly as they ran out the door to go put the money in their apartments, so they could come back later to get more.
When Slim started time, the cashier screamed when she looked down at herself. She grabbed her blouse thrown over the counter, and asked her co-worker what had happened. The poor girl simply shook her head in puzzlement. “It baffles me. Look! All the money drawers are empty. What the hell?”
Within minutes, the two left their stations feeling ill. When they told their boss about it, he fired them, and told them if they didn’t return the money, he’d have them arrested. They began crying, and told him that they didn’t take the money. He called security and had them escorted into his office while he called the police.
“Tell me where the f—–n money is. If you do, I will let you go without having you arrested.”
“We didn’t take the money,” one of them said.
When the police came, they were arrested and sent to jail. Later, when their boss was telling some of his employees about it, they conveyed that something indeed had happened – just like the cashiers said.
“What do you mean?”
“I was standing in front of a table while on break, and my purse was on my arm, and then the next thing I knew, it was gone. It was almost like I had fallen asleep and awakened.”
“Well, I’ll be damn,” He said as he walked away wondering if he should report it to the police. “Naw, they’d never believe me.
Chapter Five
Timmy
Timmy did as Menus told him to do. He sat on the bench under the beautiful Lilac shrubs, spreading branches developing a somewhat oval-rounded to vase-shaped crown. Large lavender flowers hung over his head as he sat in meditation.
He didn’t think about anything, just as Menus told him to do. His mind was blank, and after an hour, he began to feel himself floating, weightless, with a wonderful feeling of happiness. Seconds later, he raised his arms up to the soft fluffy clouds, and thanked the planet for sending him such harmony. His feelings and emotions were pure, and at that point he began to think about returning to earth. He hoped he would remain clean with the feeling of such love within.
He opened his eyes when the young girl sat down beside him, and said, “These bushes are in its purest form. They even turn into small trees, like these have. They are a native of Venus. The foliage is always lavender, its color is a rare occurring color in nature and as a
result is often seen as having sacred meaning. Lavender has long been the favorite flower and color of genteel ladies. Its shade of color, suggest refinement along with grace, elegance, and something special. They are delicate and considered precious. So, as you sit in this magical garden, under the umbrella of this sacred tree, I am sure you will feel the power of its purity.”
Timmy didn’t want to stop the wonderful ambiance he was experiencing, nor did he know whether he was to speak to this young girl, so he remained silent. He turned his head and looked into her eyes, and saw that she wanted a response. He lowered his head, and said, “I feel light and fluffy, with a wonderful feeling of pureness.”
“You have learned this lesson well, Pupil Timmy. You now must strive toward strength; forte to turn away from wrong, and might to know your place in life.”
“I will strive for strength, Teacher. Show me the way.”
“I could, but it’s better for you to search for the way to strength, Pupil Timmy.” She got up, and walked away.
Timmy was left alone, with a feeling of uncertainty. He knew he had allowed greed to take him into the evil dungeons of hell. Remembering the disgruntled emotions he had after killing and harming people on earth led him down the blaze of vehemence; this he knew. Death was easier than living. Hate was eating him alive. Hate of self. Hate for finding the Orb. He blamed the Orb. Yes, instead of seeing his greed for money, for luxury, for fame, and most of all to achieve it all without working for it. He stole. He killed. He was evil. He didn’t care for good, or love – he had even turned away from Sarah; the one person who had warned him, and loved him. Now, here he was, trying to cleanse himself, but would he ever reach that goal?
He closed his eyes, and asked for forgiveness. “Oh worthy one, I have done terribly shameless things, and for that I am repentant. Release me from this stained soul. Standing before you, I plead for the nasty rotten smell that has attached itself to me, to be wiped away, cleaned; leaving me fresh and clean.”
When Timmy opened his eyes, something was different. Something in the light was clearer somehow. His excitement leaped pinnacles as the dark veiling began to lift. Instantly, a lighter feeling came within, animating the deepest part in his soul. That was pleasing, with a breathtaking sense stirring inside of him, but the best part was, a layer of darkness was destroyed, leaving his coated heart cleaner. He felt it. He tasted it, and he smelled it. He knew he had indeed passed his first lesson. The young girl knew – even before she got up and left. However, even with one layer of darkness extinguished, Timmy could feel his heart racing, blood pushing hot and fast through his veins. He knew there was more; more to learn, and to clean. He recognized the gushing of his excitement when he had pushed the knife into the man’s stomach and saw his guts oozing out. He was inside his boiling hate for those who had killed his mother, therefore, he wanted to push in the sharp-bladed knife to cause the greatest amount of pain to the organs of the murderer; the rapist who harmed all the women in the village. He could feel his hatred growing tall and strong, as his memories went back to that day in the village, when he had gone insane with dripping hate. Its power overwhelmed his common-sense. He beat one man with a pipe until his head was a flattened mass of blood, with his brains discharged on the dirty ground. He kicked the brains, sending them scattered and gory. He lifted his pipe to another man, another who was frozen in time, and stuck the end of it into his eyes until they popped out and hung on his cheeks, and blood dripping, oozing down his neck. He felt a thrill of genuine happiness when he stood and looked at what he had done. He felt satisfied, but moments later, he ran, and couldn’t believe what he had done. He fell, to the ground, and sobbed, yet soon after, he got up and continued on with his hate. His roaring abhorrence – which kept him moving toward evilness, was only the beginning of his demise. He had tasted it, and wanted more of that familiar thrill.
He lifted himself off the bench, realizing he had so much more to clean. His head was spinning and his heart racing. He stood, surveying the garden, its beauty, its sacredness, and then walked through the door and entered inside the temple. He hurried to Menus. He knew he needed his spirit, his guidance, because he could still smell the blood he had shed; the nasty smell of the dead men he wiped from the face of earth.
Chapter Six
Slim and Harry
Later, back at Slim’s apartment, he and Harry emptied their pockets of the bills, as they laughed and squealed in excitement while looking at all the money spread across the bed.
“Look at all this money,” Harry hollered out while piling the money in stacks on the table.”
“Let’s count it, and put in that metal truck over there in the corner,” Slim said.
They began to count the money into thousand-dollar stacks, and then put rubber-bands around each one, and threw them into the trunk. After they finished, and locked it with a pad-lock that Slim got out of his desk drawer, they slipped the remaining money into their wallets and pockets and decided to go to the finest restaurant in Queens, New York.
“Hey, Slim, let’s go buy some clothes before going to eat. You know; fine clothes that a gentleman would wear.”
Slim snickered evilly, and said, “I think I’d like to get a haircut and shave first – what ya say?”
“Let’s go, and then a nice massage.”
“Okay, but we’ll have to come back here afterward to shower and put our gentlemen’s clothes on before going to eat.”
The two walked into the hair salon, and immediately asked for a haircut and shave. The beautician gave the two a once over, and said there weren’t any appointments available until next week. Slim reached into his pocket and pulled a bill and said, “I bet this hundred-dollar bill will change your mind.”
The young woman looked over at her partner, and asked her if she could do a haircut and shave as she held up the hundred. Her partner nodded, and said, “Yes I can, but both will cost $75.00 on top of that hundred. Slim nodded a positive and she waved him over and led him over to get a shampoo first. Harry snorted, “Here’s my bill – can you do me?”
The beautician nodded and took him over to the chair where she shampooed his hair.
An hour later, Slim and Harry, walked out of the salon feeling proud. They walked around the corner to the massage salon, and a tall full-figured lady told them to un-robe behind the curtain, and then lay upon the tables in the same room, and she and her friend would be right with them.
Feeling like kings, they headed to the fine restaurant they had looked up online; all showered and dressed in their thousand-dollar suits. They stepped inside the fancy candle-lite restaurant, looked around, and the hostesses told them they’d have to have a reservation in order to dine in their restaurant.
“Say what? A reservation?” Slim asked, and then catching on, he pulled out two hundred-dollar bills and said, “Will this do for us to eat here tonight?”
The hostess excused herself, telling Slim, she’d be right back. She returned and said, “I can put you over there in the corner, near the window. Will that do?”
Slim smiled his half grin, handed her the bills, and he and Harry followed her over to the table. After being seated, and settled in, the cocktail waitress came over, and asked if they’d like a drink. Slim right away asked what the most expensive drink was, and when she replied, he said, “I’ll take that one.”
“The bottle or two glasses?” She asked.
“Oh hell, bring two bottles for now.”
A while later, a waitress came over, and took their order, and was surprised when they ordered Steak and Lobster, Shrimp, and Crab. She grinned, wrote it all down and later returned with the huge three plates of food, and then again with three more. She smiled and said, “This is a lot for two men.”
“Yeah, well, we are two big men with empty stomachs. Oh, and bring another bottle of wine, won’t you?” Slim said.
After eating almost all of their meal, and feeling tipsy, as well as, full, Slim threw down six one-hundred dollar bills, and walked toward the door, with Harry right behind him. Before they got out the door, the waitress ran over and said, “You didn’t get your bill and you have chance coming back; in fact, quite a bit of chance.”
Slim smiled widely and said, “Oh honey, go enjoy yourself with the whatever is left over after the bill and tip.”
Harry hurried up to catch up with Slim and said, “Hey, wanna go back to the casino and get more money? I could eat like this every day; and by the way, I’ve been thinking we should go to Paris. What ya say?”
Slim snickered and said, “We are rich and will get richer, so we can do whatever we want to do. We own the world. Don’t you realize that we are going to buy planet earth, and run it the way we want to. What do you say about that fact?”
Harry leaped high in the air, and said, “Yippee, then let’s go get a lady – the best, most beautiful and screw the hell out of her.”
“First, let’s go get another load of money, except this time, let’s bring two large bags.”
By the end of the month, Slim and Harry had so much money that they bought a big estate, with a vault in it to put all their dough in. Within the first week of being handed the keys to the house, and summer house, they hired a butler, housekeeper, cook, gardener, and driver. They then went out and purchased a limo and two of the most expensive cars they could find; a Zenvo ST1 which cost $1.2M, and a Ferrari La Ferrari which cost over one million plus.
Slim rubbed the red slick paint on the Ferrari, and said, “This is much more than transportation, Harry. These rolling art pieces encapsulate the priorities of the one percent, and in that universe, flamboyance and swagger take precedence over practically and efficiency. These are the mean mind-boggling machines of the world.”
Harry stopped in his tracks and said, “How’d you learn to talk like that, Slim?”
Slim laughed and said, “I’m reading it right here.”
They both laughed as they went inside to shower and go out on the town to do some murderous things. “Ya know Slim, I wanna do more than pile up more money. No, I want to do some exciting things, like stop time and tear up stuff, and then stand back when we start time and see what they do and how they are shocked.”
Chapter Seven
Richard
“Richard, come on in; you have been sleeping out here for hours. Let me fix you a magnificent dinner of pasta that my Mom used to fix, and even won a contest with it. Sara is coming over with her friend, Tally and her baby. She is the woman whom Sara has talked about for weeks. She is a best seller author who writes children stories. Her husband died of lung cancer right after she found out she was going to have her daughter.”
Richard looked up to the sky, and said, “Oh, no, I can’t Cecil. I would be no good with company. Can we do it another night?”
Cecil took hold of Richard’s arm and lifted him up, and said, “No, you must pull yourself out of this, buddy. You must. I wouldn’t be much of a friend to you if I didn’t insist that you snap out of this depression that you are in.”
Richard dusted the dirt off his pants, and followed Cecil back into the house. Soon after, he showered, shaved, and dressed in casual clothes before he went into the kitchen to see if Cecil needed help. He opened a bottle of wine, and sat at the table and said, “Thanks, Cecil, I do feel better. You’re a good friend. While showering, I promised myself that I will snap out of this; Timmy wouldn’t want me to suffer with depression.”
“No, he wouldn’t, Richard. Okay, good. Pour me a glass and we’ll talk about happier things for the rest of the night. Is that a plan?”
“Yep,” Richard said as he handed Cecil his wine. “Let’s go out to the site we were working on before I got into this hell hole, and continue with our digging.”
After a full glass of wine, Richard felt relaxed and more willing to greet their guest, and show them a good time. He moved over to the refrigerator, pulled out the salad makings and brought it back to the table, grabbed a knife, sat down at the table, and began cutting up lettuce and tossing it into the large bowl, all the while talking to Cecil about Tally and her baby. “How old is Tally’s daughter?”
“I think she is nine months or maybe ten now. She is a doll. Her mom calls her Sam, short for Samantha. She took her first step last week, Sara told me last week.”
“I am eager to meet her, and Tally too, of course. I know you’ve meet them both. I’m sorry I’ve been in such a funk,” Richard said as he pulled a ripe tomato out of the plastic bag and began slicing it into small pieces. He tossed it in the salad, and then began cutting up a cucumber when Cecil sit down at the table.
“I was putting the music on. I didn’t hear what you said,”
“Oh, nothing really, mainly mumbling to myself. What time is Sara bringing her friend over?”
“She should be here any minute. She called earlier and said Tally is really looking forward to meeting you.”
“Good. I am her too,” Richard said, and stopped cutting because he felt an odd feeling go through him. He rested his head in his head and told himself, to let it go, and work toward living again. He stood up when he heard someone knocking on the door, and put the salad in the refrigerator, and took a gulp of his second glass of wine. Cecil hurried to open the door, and there stood Sara, dressed in jeans and a plaid shirt, and Tally in jeans and a sweater holding her daughter in her arms. Sam giggled and pointed to Cecil. “Come on in, and pour yourself a glass of wine – that’s what Richard and I are doing.”
As soon as Sam saw Richard, she held her arms out to him. He laughed as he took her into his arms. He looked down and said, “Hello there Sam. You’re a cutie.” Looking over at Tally, he smiled and said he was happy to meet her. She smiled, and said, “here let me take that bundle of love. I need to change her.”
Sara immediate gestured her toward the bedroom where she could change her daughter, and told Richard to pour her a glass of wine too.
While they were eating Cecil’s mom’s pasta, they talked about Tally and how she ended up in Africa. Tally said, “ Never in a million years did I think I’d move here, but my deceased husband came here to open a construction business, and of course I came along.
You know, being pregnant and all, but within weeks, we discovered he had lung cancer. He died soon after. I think he had it long before he knew. Meeting Sara has been a real uplift.”
“I’m sorry Tally. I know how it feels to lose someone,” Richard said as he reached for another slice of French bread at the same time Tally did. Both felt the electricity go through their hands, and jerked back and laughed. Tally looked into Richard’s eyes and felt her stomach churning.
Cecil noticing the attraction between his friend and Tally, and said, “Listen, Tally, if Sara can babysit Sam, how would you like to go to the sites with us tomorrow? Richard and I have found many artifacts, and think you might enjoy the experience.
Tally grinned, and said, “I think I might like that, Cecil. What time?”
“Oh,” Cecil said, and looked at Richard, and as Richard nodded, he said, “Let’s make it at nine in the morning. Is that good for you?”
Before she could answer, Sara said, “I’d be more than happy to babysit this lovely little girl.” She patted Sam’s shoulder and leaned over where she was sitting on the floor between Sara and Tally, and said, “Yes, we’ll have fun, won’t we Sam?”
The rest of the evening went well, laughing and teasing, and playing with Sam. By the time Sara, Tally and Sam left, Richard was feeling great. He told Cecil that he valued him as a friend, and especially appreciated him forcing him to attend the dinner party.
Cecil thought it was too soon to tease Richard about Tally, but knew he liked her.
The next morning, Tally appeared early at Richard’s door, dressed in faded jeans, boots, flowered shirt, and a straw hat. Richard took one look at her and smiled. He thought she was adorable in her attire. “My, don’t you look ready for the digging fun.”
She looked down at herself embarrassed, and said, “Am I dressed appropriately?”
“You are, and once you get to the site, I’ll give you some gloves, pick, shovel, and you can join in on the fun.”
Cecil came out of the kitchen and hollered, “Okay, are we ready?” He saw Tally and said, “Oh, sorry, didn’t know you were here.”
The three of them walked to the site and soon after they arrived, Tally slipped on her gloves, and accepted the pick and shovel. She sat on the ground where Richard gestured for her to position herself, and she laughed with excitement as she scooted over, and began gently digging. It was just before they were going to break for lunch when she felt something on her shovel. She did as Richard had told her to, and dig with her hands to pull up the artifact in a small metal box with paintings of lions on it. It was old, but beautiful. She opened the box with Cecil’s help, and when she did, she saw a little book. It was yellowed from age, so she was careful when she opened the first page. On the first page was a picture, and it looked so much like herself that she gasped. Richard leaned over and said, “Knockout! It looks like you Tally.”
Cecil scooted over and viewed the painting and said, “It does. I mean…it is a double of you. Perhaps it is one of your relatives.”
The three of them sat viewing it for a few minutes before Tally turned the page, and when she did she saw letters that she wasn’t familiar with. Richard said, “I’ll be damn. We should take this to the house and figure out the words. Cecil and I have books with different ancient writings that we can use to sifter these words. The three stood up, and Tally carefully placed the book back in the box. Arriving back at the house, Cecil cleared off the table and place wax paper over it, and then went to get the box. Tally cautiously took out the book and held it in her hands as she noticed it was tied together with something like strings, but knew it was some kind of old vine. She opened it, and turned to the page after the painting, and laid it on the table for all to view as Cecil placed several books with different writings; ancient writings. Right away they began to translate. Cecil found one of the books with the same type of writings. Together, they figured out the first page of the writings, with Tally writing down the matching words.
These words long unspoiled
Future for our footsteps on earth,
echoing with a pure heart
You who finds,
These Ancient words teach.
of Life, of Hope
Offer strength,
help cope
Earth from the skies, where e’er roam
Ancient elements model thee
to your just place.
.Not realizing how long they had been working on the translations, until Sara tapped on the door and entered with Sam, and said, “It’s starting to get dark outside, so I came over because I was worried.”
Tally jumped up and cried out, “Oh Sara, I’m so sorry, but come here, and see what we’ve found.”
Sara moved over to the table after sitting Sam on the floor, and looked at the painting, and screamed out, “Oh, my, gosh, that’s you, Tally, or it looks just like you.”
Cecil stood up, picked up Sam, and said, “Little one, should we start dinner for these hungry friends?” He placed her in the highchair that Sara had brought over before the dinner party last night, and she giggled as Cecil handed her a slice of apple. “Okay, friends, let’s put the artifacts away for now, and get something prepared for dinner.”
“Look! Look at this Cecil. On the next page is a painting of the planet Venus. Oh, oh, wait, we have Venus’ description in one of our books. Let me find it.” Richard reaches over and pulls out one of the books, and thumbs through it until he finds what he was looking for. ”Listen to this – The word Venusian” is simply a combination of the name of the planet Venus and the suffix -ian, formed on the analogy of “Martian” (as if = “Marsian”). It is usually pronounced /vɨˈnjuːʒən/ or /vɨˈnjuːʃən/. Based on the latter pronunciation, the spelling “Venutian” is sometimes found.
Venus, the second planet from the sun, is named for the Roman goddess of love and beauty. The planet — the only planet named after a female — may have been named for the most beautiful deity of her pantheon because it shone the brightest of the five planets known to ancient astronomers.
In ancient times, Venus was often thought to be two different stars, the evening star and the morning star — that is, the ones that first appeared at sunset and sunrise.
“Isn’t that where Superman lived? You know – that movie about him? He wore a blue costume, red cape, and stylized red-and-yellow S shield on his chest. The shield was used in myriad of media to symbolize the character. Remember? His father was a scientist and when he came to earth, he was raised by a Kansas farmer and his wife. You know the child was raised as Clark Kent and imbued with a strong moral compass. He had superhuman abilities,” Sara asked.
“Superman was from the planet Krypton, before being rocketed to earth as an infant by his scientist father – moments before Krypton’s destruction, and yes, he was adopted by a Kansas farmer and his wife,” Richard said as he stood up, closed his book, and began to help Tabby clear the table.
They all gathered around the kitchen, preparing tacos and re-fried beans for their super – except for Sara, and she made an apple pie. Apples from her tree, she boasted. The conversation was about their find, and all that they would translate and learn.
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