“Roberto, why did you stay away? Why could I only see you whenever my mother brought me to you?” He heard the pain she was trying to hide and his heart melted.

Previous: Book 05 - Post 049

3291

“I had to, love. The girls tried to fight me on this decision of mine, but I insisted. I had promised Agapi you will decide which family you feel you belong to. In the beginning I hurt her by insisting you have to belong to our circle. That is why I bent over backwards to give them the opportunity to win your heart. It is also why we find it so difficult to understand your choosing us. Was that honest enough my sweet aptly named Latreia?”

“You decided not to give me a fair choice, you wanted me to love them?”

“Apart from my reaction at the wedding, you will see in my mind nothing to make you feel unwanted or sad. Latreia, your mother is a very special young lady and I love her enough to have welcomed her into our circle if she did not already belong to one. I desperately wanted any child of mine to be in my circle. Not just because of now, this life. Later, when we identify with our Kaleidoscope World, it will hurt me to think of any child of mine not being a part of our World, a part of us. To cause pain to Agapi, that was also unthinkable. You may think of it as sacrificing you, but, if you’d begun your life loving them and been taken into their circle, you would have been happy and seen it as the right choice, whereas, if you join us, your mother suffers. I’m not feeling that impersonal about your decision anymore and we are all hoping you find love for us growing in you as you come to know us.”

“I must hurt my mother you say?”

He hunched lower, having to face the question he’d dreaded, even though he had led her to asking it. “Why haven’t they taken you into their circle?”

“Because all they talk about is you, Cherine and the girls. Especially the two of you are like gods to Tasso and Stella. Each one of them shared their memories of you with me.”

“Your mother too?”

“Yes.”

“Oh god!” He pulled his knees up, wrapping his arms around them. “Why? Why does she want you to come to us? She adores you.”

“I know. It is because she does Roberto. That frightened me. If you can make a mother love you so much that she is willing to lose her child…”

“You have it wrong baby. What your mother did is because of her being the wonderful person she is, not because of anything I am.”

“If that is true, then I should be with her. As she said, it is not my choice.”

“She said that!?”

“Of course. She was right. I cannot decide which circle accepts me, especially with my love divided.”

“Can you return to our bungalow by yourself? I’ll see you in the morning.”

Cherine temporarily, for just a second, dampened her link with Robbie and sent one word to Latreia. *Refuse.*

Latreia did not verbally do as Cherine asked. She did so by staying. She kept silent, staring out at the ripples of the ocean, the silvery moonbeams that danced silently. She also felt Robbie and withdrew even further into herself, trying to understand why he was in so much pain. What had she said to hurt him like this? Cherine sent her a feeling of soothing love, warning her not to try and take the pain of Robbie upon herself; the pain is his and his for reasons of his own. She let her know we only expect her to stay there to be a warm presence that will prevent him from allowing his pain to totally take him over.

*It is a weakness?*

*It is his strength my love.*

That confused Latreia so she stayed silent, studying Robbie.

3292

What she could not see, because of not being deeply linked, as becoming part of our circle will enable her to, was that the pain came from his travelling through his memories, distorting truths because of his seeing those memories through a different perspective now. He had travelled all the way back to Natalie and recalling his hard words, his feelings of guilt made him shrivel up. He was no longer aware of Latreia and his surroundings, his memories clear enough for him to find himself back at home, talking, imposing conditions on Natalie, sweet Natalie who was so desperately feeling the call of the future, demanding she have his child. With deeper empathy now, his mind thought it can see the pain she had felt because of him. It was obvious he was going to torture himself, perhaps withdraw even further, we had to do something.

Cherine and I jumped back to Mount Olympus and collected Natalie and Agapi. We opened them to Robbie’s mind, showed them what he is going through.

“Was it as he sees it?”

“For me, yes, it was Cherine.” Agapi was devastated by what she’d seen Robbie doing to himself, as Natalie was, but she knew she had to speak the truth. “What he is doing, it is wrong! He could not have done anything else. Why is he doing this?”

“Natalie, yourself?”

“He is right and wrong. I suffered, but not as he thinks I did. I’ve also had time to grow in my understanding. Cherine, neither of us were acting only out of our own needs. The future, Samantha herself I think, was a force within us.”

“Agapi, to answer your question. Latreia has been talking with him. Come into my mind, or that of Sam and listen to them.”

After they’d done so, Agapi began to cry. She was weeping for both of them, Robbie and her daughter.

Cherine repeated. “ ‘I must hurt my mother you say?’ Can you see what position Robert finds himself in? He cannot bear the thought of all eternity without Latreia as part of our circle, as part of our soul and yet, he cannot stand to hurt you Agapi. He now sees the pain he caused Natalie and to repeat it he feels is inexcusable. If he continues to tear at himself, blaming himself for the pain he thinks both of you must bear it will damage him. I’m not only talking of the present, it will drain him of his belief in himself.”

“Cherine, beware. In your desperate need to help Roberto, do not cause further pain to these two who have already suffered so much.”

She stared at Dommi for a moment before replying. “I am capable of doing that? Perhaps I am Dommi, I don’t know. I hope not.”

“What was the purpose of bringing them here? What do you expect them to do? The fears Roberto has will only be proven to be real if he is allowed to look into their minds.”

“He must do so Dommi. It is better he knows the truth than allow his imagination and growing sense of empathy to create a one-sided picture. If he looks into their minds he will see the pain, but he will also see the joy having his child brought them.”

“It is not that simple Cherine.” I hated having to say this. “It is not just the past pain that tortures him. That can be dealt with and the two of them can show him there are two sides to their feelings, as you suggest. The awakening of his empathic outlook on this matter has made him realise what he feared facing, of what the two of them will be forced to endure.”

“Endure? Endure what Sam?”

“Eternity without their daughters as part of their Worlds. As the souls of every family grow together he feels they will be tortured by an emptiness where they should be feeling their children. How can they or we reassure him on that? I cannot think of any solution he will accept. Can you?”

The fight went out of her, the spirit that shines out of her eyes fading. Softly she replied, “No, I can’t.”

It will be a valid yet pointless argument to insist that almost every single World will have children and further generations that spread out to other Worlds. It is the natural way for all - except for us. Robbie is not capable yet of seeing that what is true for him is not necessarily true for others. Is that why we also feel the way he does, is our deep empathic union of love forcing us to see as he does? Do we, each of us, do the same to all those we love? Have we also affected Alki by our deep love for him, changing him from a conservative Greek to a Cherinian companion with dreams he never would have dared on his own? There is much to think about - when this problem is done with.

3293

Even as my words brought despair, Cherine opened herself, deepening her connection to Robbie so as to share his pain. Robbie felt her and tried to shut her out, but she merged herself within him - as part of himself he can no longer send her away. She only reserved a part of herself for keeping the link to all of us, the reasoning part though, that was gone in the hope she will be able to shore up the mind of our Robbie.

“I didn’t get a chance to tell her to remind Robert he doesn’t have to worry about my mother. I will not be part of the eternity he worries about anyway.”

My comment only made Dommi and the others look even bleaker. “It is just as well love. He does not need to be reminded of that sorrow right now.”

“Latreia is almost frantic. We can’t just let her sit there alone.” Wendy said. “I’m going to her.”

Dommi agreed. “Go Wendy. I’m staying to watch over Cherine.”

“Dommi, I need to get back to my family.”

“Is it urgent Agapi? I don’t want Sam doing it alone.” The others had all gone, sitting on the beach while Wendy joined Latreia.

“Yes, it is. I have to tell them I’m leaving their circle. If you will have me, I would like to join you.”

“For Roberto’s sake?”

She blushed. “I’ve always wished I was free to join you.”

I spoke up. “I’m sorry Agapi, I can’t take you. What you are suggesting has to be discussed with Robert first. Too many people can be hurt for us to act hastily. Please wait for tomorrow.”

“It will be too late to help him!”

I’d thought so, but did not comment. Robbie will agree with me - we do not break up families and certainly not for such a reason.

She saw Dommi was not about to intercede on her behalf. “Sam, I must go to Roberto now.”

“You don’t have to ask me love. Why though? What are you planning to say to him?”

“That he is wrong. It will not hurt me to have Latreia in your circle. I will be able to prove it to him. Please agree.”

I hugged her. “Agree Agapi? Why me and not Dommi? If you can do as you say, we will all be grateful.”

“Then I will go.”

Dommi and I sat to either side of Cherine. She put her hand over the slow beating heart so I put mine over hers. We sat like that as we watched the others in our minds.

Agapi asked, “Wendy, can he hear me?”

“Ask him.”

“Roberto?” Her daughter took her hand and it comforted her, so that she became a little braver. She touched Robbie’s arm. “Roberto.” When there was no response she shook it and called out loudly. “Roberto, I have to speak to you.”

Slowly he raised his head and then, as he recognised her his eyes came alive. “What are you doing here? Latreia, did you call her?”

“How can I? Across time?”

3294

He looked at Wendy, sensed the others on the beach. *Cherine, get back to your own body. What do you think you are doing in me?* She knew he was not in danger now and withdrew, sitting up soon as she opened her eyes. Silently we continued watching.

“Why are you here. Natalie too.”

“To explain to you. Roberto, you are wrong. We are not the same as you. When I finish you are welcome to look in my mind. You want your children to be a part of your circle, your World when we leave these bodies. Not all of us are like you. We know our children are ours only for a short time and then they must leave and make their own circles. They have to, it is the natural way.”

He gently smiled at her implied insult, knowing she had not meant it as one. “How Agapi? Do not the children of all families bond and join the circle of their parents?”

“You are right. I do not know Roberto, it is an instinct in me that tells me all children will one day grow up and want to create their own circles. Have you not thought so for any sons you have?”

“They will all leave?”

“There will be exceptions, as there are for the Normals.”

I looked at Dommi and Cherine and shook my head in vehement denial. “Not only me! The others won’t either.”

Robbie had brought himself by now back to the present, his mind sharp again. He glanced at Latreia, back at Agapi and then at Latreia again.

“If your mother is right then we must not marry. Latreia, will you join our circle if it is to be without becoming my lover or wife, just our daughter?”

We did not need any sun to show us how white her face was, we felt it. We felt the hollow sick feeling in her, the slight anger at her mother and then resignation as she realised her mother had spoken to save Robbie.

She squared her shoulders. “I refuse to join any circle or share the bed of anyone from now onwards.” She stood up to walk away. Robbie’s hand flashed out and grabbed hers.

“Sit down my little moonlight flower. I spoke for your mother, not you.” He used his other hand to pull Agapi to him. “God, but you look lovelier every time I see you. Your face and your heart. Thank you my love, your words have helped. If everyone stops chattering for a while and nobody invades me again I might be able to find my own answer.” He spoke with a gentle smile and a voice filled with love so no umbrage was taken.

Wendy took Agapi and Latreia by the hand to lead them down to the beach to join the others. Dommi, Cherine and I jumped there to meet them. Robbie put out his hand and stopped Agapi. “Sit by me.”

Flattered, but confused, she did so. “Did you presume to speak for Natalie also Agapi?”

“No. She agrees with me though.”

“She does not Agapi. She does now because you spoke the words and she thinks they are true for her too, but she does not really agree. She never felt the same way you do. She was never in love with me. Her reasons are strictly hers alone. You let me have Latreia because you loved me, you were not thinking of the child as the person she is today. Now you are faced with a personality you adore, your instincts as a mother tie her to you. Your theory was a brave attempt, but does not truly reflect what you feel - maybe what you think, but your feelings are at war with your mind.

I am not trying to put you on the spot my darling, our lives are far more complex than those of the Normals and to take their instincts and use them as our yardstick, trying to solve problems unique to us by theirs is not right. We must not ignore their instincts for to a large extent we share the same ones, but I dare not accept your answer because it will only apply to this particular situation. What if I am to have another child from a mother outside of my family? What if one of my loves does? What if it happens for different reasons? I cannot use one point of view as a nostrum to suit all.

3295

I had to explain this to you so that you understand why I have not dismissed the problem and instantly accepted the green leaf of hope you tried to give me. I think I may accept your words as far as Latreia is concerned - if I decide the pain I feel in you is not real.” Gently he put his hand to her chin and raised her face so that she had to meet his eyes.

“Roberto!” she softly cried.

“I know my love. That is a different problem and we will face it, but not now. This moment belongs to Latreia. If she only yearned for you, we would have to solve your problem now also, but she loves her twin brother and the rest of the family too. I will not have her join us carrying a tiny corner of pain.”

“What will you do?”

“Me? I do not know that I have the right to do anything. It is for Latreia to solve. Perhaps she needs time with your family, or with mine, so that she is able to resign herself to one or the other loss. What that loss will do to her I do not know, but I am not God, Agapi. Neither I nor my loves can do anything for her. All we can do is give her our unconditional love and hope she heals herself.”

They jumped to us. Robbie picked up Latreia and holding her in his arms he walked along the beach.

“Baby, you heard. What do you think we should do? The options I see are, we postpone the wedding, we stay here for as long as it takes you to make a choice without it hurting you or the last, not one I’d like, you choose and bear your pain.”

“You will wait here for me, even if it takes me a long time?”

“However long it takes. Remember, if you take too long, I can collect Freddie and take us on a trip so that we don’t get bored doing nothing. Being a beach bum is only fun for so long.” She stared into his eyes which the paling sky made darker.

“Can we wait here?”

He sighed. “I’m glad. I think you made the right decision. If you choose us, think about what you want. Do we marry you or will you want to be my daughter so that you can look for your own future later.”

Her arms tightened around him, but she did not answer.

“C’mon everybody, time for some sleep.”

As we lay half asleep, at that sweet moment when thoughts are fading away, I heard Cherine softly ask, “What happened, how did you pull yourself back together?”

“Shh, you know Sam has ears like a bat. She’s already woken up waiting for my answer.” He sent me a kiss. “Nothing happened love. I’m not Superman, even if I like to think I am. Hell, even he cannot handle Louis Lane. There are some problems for which there are no answers and we have to learn to live with the pain they bring. As long as Cherinians remain human, that will not change.”

The next day I could not resist teasing him. “You don’t like Lois Lane because she wants to be treated as an equal.”

“Is that so miss smarty-pants? If that was all, why didn’t she love Clark Kent? She had to have a Superman? Actually love, they present her as being a creature full of complexes, she cannot accept that as two separate individuals they each have their strong and weak points, that facet being more important in a love affair than the differences of sex. She felt she has to be equal or superior in everything. Since when have you become knowledgeable about Superman?”

“Since I found out you loved him as a child. Anything you love or hate interests me, since I’m trying to understand what shaped that mixed up psyche of yours. Even your answers, like just now, betray a little more of your inner mind.”

“Cherine, what do you say, are you with me on this? Since we are in the past already, why not go further back and arrange to have a certain baby aborted?”

“Jesus Robert! To have an aborted Sam around all the time! It will drive us crazy.”

3296

“See? Even Cherine knows you can’t get rid of me.” I was laughing and only later looking back sensed the quickly hidden pain. Robbie, you read this diary, I find it easier to write than say this. Please, you must allow me to joke and be natural, stop looking for pain in me and let me live my life with the love, the tears and whatever else I want or am lucky enough to experience.

Chapter One Hundred and Fifty Nine

As Robbie predicted, we were soon fed up of doing nothing. Robbie returned to Freddie and brought it back in time and to the reality we were in. We did not plan to be gone for long, so did not bother with re-stocking the few items we were running low on. We did collect Su’phon and the other Duirphon, Robbie says they should be with us. Agapi and Natalie felt this trip is a bonus for them and were happy to be with (Natalie wished Themis could be with, but was not aching for his presence, so we ignored it, as we cannot bring everyone, the wedding party must continue to exist).

As for Latreia, when she ‘oohed’ and ‘ahhed’ over how beautiful everything is, Freddie turned the inner shell into a flowing display of running, melting colours just for her.

During our first night, as Latreia slept with Agapi, Freddie woke Robbie. *Share the dream I sensed from Latreia.* He did not give Robbie an opportunity to refuse, sending it in one quick burst. *Robert, I have the feeling she sent it to me - as I also sensed how I am supposed to get there.*

“Was there a feeling of urgency?”

*I don’t think so, since we are supposed to go to another reality.*

“Leave it for after breakfast. I also want to sense directly from her how Latreia feels about it.”

Robbie waited until we had finished eating and then shared the dream with Latreia. Her emoting puzzled him.

“Robert, I do not recall having this dream.”

Jade giggled. “Maybe Freddie dreamt that she had the dream?”

Robbie shared the dream with all of us and suddenly it was not so funny. This was definitely a dream from Latreia - and yet, we could just as definitely sense she does not recall having the dream…and as a Cherinian, there is no way she could have forgotten it.

I was asked to check with you; Arthur, was the dream from you?

We have a reason for not mentioning what the dream is, we need to have a clearer idea of how and where the dream came from, before we share with you.

Everyone had shared with me as I spoke to Arthur, so I did not need to pass on the answer. Everybody was determined to be unfair, for they made it obvious that they are waiting for me to find some kind of answer that makes sense. It pissed me off.

“Stop looking to me for answers to everything! For all I know Latreia of the future sent the dream to her last night…”

Before I could finish my sentence, Robbie left his body. When he could no longer be sensed in the void, we knew he is either the void, or else he has travelled in time - either backwards or forwards. I could not believe he is taking what I’d said so as to illustrate how impossible their expectations are…but as I thought about it, I saw that there is a small possibility it happened that way.

As Robbie returned to his body, his face lost all colour. He paused, to give Candy her kiss on the nose, and as he sat up, Maria brought him a cappuccino. He took a sip.

“In one sense you were right Sam, the dream did not originate from Latreia, but I was not able to sense where it came from - or from who or when. It might have been a future Latreia, but then it could also have been anyone else.”

“In other words,” Cherine asked, “it could have come from a future Arthur?”

3297

I decided I’ll have to write what the dream was so that you can understand our reasons for some of our wild speculations. Keep in mind the true age of Latreia and that, as daughter in the family of Tasso, she had no reason to become interested in politics or the religion mentioned and is fairly ignorant about them.

The dream starts with the view, from inside the man, of a person walking down a passage and we can see his ankles are chained so that he has to take small steps and his wrists are chained also, with a chain going to his waist, so that he cannot raise his arms more than a foot or so.

Since we are in his mind, we know who he is and why he is walking down this passage.

He is you, Arthur - not some Allan, but definitely you…and you are on your way to the execution chamber.

You are in a Greek prison and you have been sentenced to death for murdering a minor politician; a man from a small independent party. You killed him because you love his daughter, but the court, the prosecutor and the media refused to believe your stated reasons, for they are certain you had political reasons for assassinating the man. You are partly to blame for their attitude, since you refused to explain yourself for just over a month. Another reason why they don’t believe you is because you are fifty eight years old and the daughter you claim to love is only nineteen years old - being cynical, they automatically assume that you mean you are in love with her.

Here is where things become a bit more ethically blurred for us - the reason you killed the father is because the daughter is sick and can only be saved by having blood transfusions, but she does not have a strong personality and she cannot muster the courage to rebel against her father, who is a Jehovah's Witness. He forbids her the transfusions and because in this reality she is not legally an adult until she has her twenty first birthday, she would have to go to court to secure permission from the court. You offered to pay the expenses, but she refused to act against her fathers’ will. The only way you could save her was by murdering him and then refusing to explain, wanting her to think you did it for political reasons, so that guilt does not prevent her from saving her own life. Only once you were told she has been treated and is likely to survive, did you admit to your attorney your real reasons.

Your claim, that you killed the man for love, and not for political reasons, as everyone knows is the truth, has only served to anger everyone, so that you have no supporters.

Despite it being a dream for which Latreia does not have the knowledge to create such a dream, what else prevents us from dismissing the dream as just a mental fancy, is the fact that Freddie was supplied with the information for taking us to that reality, in the same manner that Lynda helps us travel to realities we’ve never visited.

Arthur, your dream age is wrong and there are too many other details about the dream Arthur which do not tie in with what we know about you. However, this is not an Allan, of that we are certain, and there is no Robert and Cherine in that reality. Arthur, we do not sense that you (he) knows about us! We cannot think up any scenario that makes any of this possible. Can you help? Hello, are you there?

You mean you hate the idea of being in your story? At least you phrased yourself tactfully. We may not link him, but we will keep him young and healthy; it is the least we can do to reward him for helping us find you. Arthur, if he does not know about us, it means he is not of an alternate reality that recently split off from yours and, I’m wondering, how or even why would he send the dream to Latreia? If it is not from him and not from you, then I think it means that some other alternate of yours ‘saw’ what is happening and as he knows about us, sent us the dream so that we save his alternate. This is way too complex Arthur and if it comes from you, it is not going to look good in your story.

3298

Oh dear, it seems I messed up again; I did not expect Arthur to feel so sensitive about my teasing. The truth is, I’m afraid to even try to go to the reality of the dream. To have an actual Arthur here with us, in the Syncosmi an Arthur created, it may be awesome and scary for the Arthur, but it is just as frightening for me. Even if he is only an alternate, it is scary! I know that, whatever he said, our Arthur will not object, for he did not reject the idea of making an Arthur alternate a Cherinian out of jealousy; I think he is genuinely afraid of what such an Arthur could do to us, if he is not as nice and loving of us as our Arthur is. We’ll go for him, there is no question about it, but as I keep saying, it is scary.

By now, those alien friends in Freddie who had not been with us for the wedding, had arrived at the taverna, curious about our emoting. We waited for everyone to arrive and then did a sharing. For those who do not believe in the existence of Arthur, it was hard for them to take the dream seriously. The rest agreed with us, finding the alternate Arthur must be our first priority.

Robert: It is time we tell you, Arthur, that the way you are reacting to the dream, coupled to the explanation of your motivation as provided by Sam, is what has convinced many Cherinians that we are right; that you are a good guy.

Before we had told you what the dream is about, a number of those who are especially close to us, such as (by family), Alki, Themi, Eddie, Savva, Perikli, Luigi and our Chinese family, were brought from the wedding and had gathered in our home (we deliberately left out Allan, since he feels compelled to take a stance against you - I’m not certain why) and we were arguing whether the dream reflects a situation that is real, and if it is, what we can do about it. Not whether we should, just whether we can. Our visitors were convinced that whatever we write in the diary about the dream will remain as we write it, for you will skip it, not wanting to make yourself look like a (possibly) bad guy to your readers.

Their comments put up our backs, especially Sam and Cherine, so Sam wrote about the dream, mostly to prove to them that they are wrong. You changed her words by writing about it and then by chatting with Sam about it, and I can tell you, it felt as if the hearts of my loves were celebrating something very special. I just wish I could understand why the tongue of Samantha grows sharper at such times.

After that, all our friends arrived and, as Sam mentioned, we shared with them.

Arthur, I wonder why dad feels the need to take over from me now and then? Is it supposed to reflect badly on his confidence in me, or does he just need to have his say?

Our jump will be focussed on timing our arrival to his walk in the passage (which leads to the execution chamber), so we have time to prepare ourselves and stock up with everything we’ll need for at least a year. As Robbie says, so many times we think we’ll only be in Freddie for days or weeks and end up staying for a year or more, so he prefers to carry enough stock, in the vacuum below us, to keep us alive for at least two years.

3299

Although Freddie thought of the dream instructions as being similar to the way Lynda guides us to the reality she has found, as Robbie and him concentrated on that part of the dream, they realised that the similarities are only superficial; if we are to hope to find the reality, the instructions and clues must be studied by as many minds as possible, so that we have a hope of interpreting what has been offered us in a correct manner. For instance:

We know that the Syncosmi of Arthur’s realities follow a different time pattern from ours. We wondered whether entering such a reality while we are still part of our own time-pattern, could the ‘tidal’ waves of differing time-rates tear us apart? We have never had a problem jumping to realities where their time rate differs from ours, but the differences are much smaller. In this case, the most important difference being that the reality of Arthur is not slower than ours by a specified rate; the difference in rate is constantly growing, accelerating.

What if our atomic and sub-atomic rules slightly differ, could we trigger an explosion that destroys their entire universe, while also shredding our own atoms? This theory I do not give much credence to, since I know that Arthur created our Syncosmi by assuming we resemble his own reality.

There is another fact (or theory) that the Anadir told us about, which we have never heard of before. Sub-atomic energies vibrate (or pulse) at a rate that does not necessarily match our speed of time. They checked in realities of ours where time differs from ours by at least a few years, which means their time-rate is either faster or slower, yet the vibrating is exactly the same as ours. This sounded promising for the Anadir, until they happened to check a reality where the difference in time, for their Earth, compared to ours, is less than three seconds, but the difference in rate of vibration is at about one point sixteen percent (it sounds tiny, but we are told it is huge).

We sensed that Robbie has come to a decision, one he found difficult to accept, so we fell silent, all looking towards him.

He then said, “The thought crossed my mind that we may need to make a number of attempts. If you all agree with me, I propose we set aside our rule and allow ourselves to be in the same area and time a number of times. The difference in times between ourselves should not be large, so the danger of learning of something important from the future should be almost non-existent. We should also agree to not share with previous copies…versions of ourselves, any information that could tempt them to alter our present. All we need share between each Freddie and ourselves, is any new information or ideas for saving the alt-Arthur.”

Miada, a female Anadir scientist, cut in, “Robert, I suggest we do not even exchange that much knowledge, or else we’ll be less effective at discovering new ways to solve any problems we face.” Everyone agree with her, so Robbie did not need to set any rules and only nodded in agreement.

As we made our decision, we were instantly faced with the consequences of our decision - and it must be the most disconcerting moment I have lived through till now. First one Freddie appeared alongside us and then, it looked like it was instant, but there must have been time differentials, we found ourselves surrounded by another eight Freddies (ten of us altogether)! I am ever so grateful for whatever laws of teleportation that forbid two bodies occupying the same space at the same time.

It seems that all of us are either concentrating too hard on solving a problem, or else none of us want to be distracted even long enough for flashing a greeting. As I looked at them I had the weird thought that as soon as we make our attempt, we will become the second Freddie and then we’ll work our way down the list, so that we become the most experienced Freddie (which also means we will have the greatest list of failures tucked under our belt! I don’t mind, if we ultimately succeed, or else I will feel terrible).

Robbie and Freddie, working as one, concentrated on arriving at our destination, as pictured in the dream (sorry, it may sound like I’m saying we wanted Freddie to arrive within the passage where Arthur is, what I meant is we aim for Freddie arriving within the void of the Earth where and when alt-Arthur is shuffling his way to his execution).

It felt as if a giant dog took us between his teeth and shook us sideways, again and again, until it felt as if something hit us and we arrived back in our reality, next to the previous Freddie. Then the others (our future selves) appeared. For some reason I was less interested in learning what caused the effects of being shaken and then thrown back, than I was in trying to puzzle out how I could have returned from the future to become Samantha, if one of these efforts destroys Freddie and kills us - well, me. You see, it had occurred to me that it is highly unlikely we will only make another nine attempts and then give up. I wondered whether Freddie number eleven has been destroyed - or will be. After all, if Freddie number ten failed or succeeded, why would he return to wait amongst us? Does it mean we will make an eleventh attempt, from which we will not return to this area or reality, for whatever reason?

3300

Luckily nobody was interested in listening to my thoughts. When Maria brought Robbie his cappuccino and I saw she had one for me, I realised he expects me to think hard about what happened. I was thinking of developing a theory for them about how Bitsy was affected in a different way from us and, turning into a giant Pekinese, he thought Freddie is his plastic ball and it was Bitsy who tossed us around; but, sensing how serious everyone is feeling I did what any daddy’s little girl would do, I thought hard about what could have caused the shaking.

I developed my thoughts aloud, “I wonder whether souls are also made of some kind of energy that vibrates according to the rate our universe vibrates? If so, do we automatically adjust according to the subatomic rate of the reality we visit, or do all of our realities more or less vibrate at the same speed because they all started off from our reality? If we cannot adjust, then I cannot prove my theory.”

An Inguel scientist asked me, “What about the Inguel universe?”

“I had not known that the universe vibrates, so it never occurred to me that I should check - and even if I had known, we had too many other problems to deal with. I don’t know if anybody else knew and had the time to make tests.” All those who were with us at the time confirmed they had not.

Bernie asked, “How do we know the universe vibrates? Is there a special machine for measuring the vibration? If yes, how do you stop the machine from vibrating while it is measuring?”

Cherine answered, “You get Robert to give it a stern look and it freezes, not daring to tremble.” Robbie grinned as many eyes turned to look at him.

“Bernie mou,” he told her, “there is no machine, there are two ways you can work out that the universe vibrates. The first is, scientists translate certain things they know about our universe into a very advanced kind of mathematics and it comes out with this strange fact, which nobody had thought of, or else, you provide Samantha with a cappuccino and let her think up her theories.”

It suddenly hit me. “Did everybody experience what I did? For me it felt as if something grabbed hold of Freddie and shaking us, it then seemed to bang Freddie against something and that knocked us back home.”

The way they had ‘explained’ to themselves what we were experiencing and how it felt was different in details and sensations both from me and from each other, but otherwise we agreed on the basics of what happened.

Freddie said, with a hint of amusement in his voice, “Robert wants me to ask whether anyone has any ideas on how we should change our attempt to arrive there this time?”

I answered, “Before we do so, we should take the time to try and work out what could have caused the effects we experienced and why that reality rejected us. If we have a list of possibilities, we may then be able to make attempts that address each of those possibilities in turn - if we can think of a way.”

Robbie nodded. “Obviously your first reason for rejection is the vibration rates you suggested. Sam, what relevance did your comments regarding souls vibrating have? Are you thinking a soul might be able to sense the vibration - somehow - and automatically adjust?”

I nodded, “Same as our bodies adjust to air pressure; when the change is gradual, we don’t sense it happening, but if we suddenly change altitude, our ears hurt us.”

“Hmm, a good example; another one would be returning from the depths too quickly and getting the bends. How is this going to be useful for us Sam?”

I grinned. “We must start with something more prosaic, though it could be fun - if the reaction is anything like I imagine it will be. Basically, I think we should enclose a large rock…asteroid, within a stasis shield. Can you make the shield last for…something between ten to thirty minutes? We send the package and we wait to see how long it takes for the rock to be returned to us. We should not send it from within a solar system, for if the rock returns at some super-hyper speed, if it hits a planet, all life would be wiped out. If it returns immediately, then we know the stasis shield does not help. If there is a delay, then it does help. Of course, if the rock is not returned, then it might mean the alt-Arthur reality does not care about the vibration rate of the rock, or it pulverised it. If we get nothing back, not even dust, then it could mean that the reality is affected by the same power our sets of realities are - by the human mind and its ability to affect reality through our thoughts and imagination, as the Quantum scientists believe.”

Next [Book 05] - Post 051

I hope you enjoy reading this story of fantasy, adventure and love - and should some of it be true for our reality, I hope you will love our Cherine.

Αλέξανδρος Ζήνον Ευσταθίου

(Alexander Zenon Eustace)

^{29th November, 2019}

• posted: 29th November, 2019
  
  
  
  
  

  If you wish to read from an earlier book, from Book 01 to Book 05, use this link button to open the LC Book Index:

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  If you wish to use image, r/click and copy link

  
  
  

  If you agree with my protest, why not make it a habit of upvoting all who have set their post to "Payout Declined"
  (if you do not see they plagiarised or are running a scam)
  The bigger your vote the better, but even a zero value vote shows you support them

  
  
  
  
  

PLEASE NOTE

I am modifying the above notice and have designated @steemchiller as my sole 100% beneficiary - so please upvote for him. With my SP being worth such a little, it is all I can do to reward him for the wonderful work he does for all of us with his https://steemworld.org/