Instead of rushing for a hug and kiss as he always does, he stood grinning at us. “Dimitri was born yesterday!”
Even as we screamed with delight, Robert called for Efineh, Irfan and Samuel. He told Efineh that they are coming with and asked Samuel to stay. When they heard why, we had another round of hugs and kisses and then, as soon as Samuel left, we jumped. Over to Samantha.
I cannot say that I recall his feeling any different when Michael was born. They stared into each others eyes and a special bond was formed. This baby boy seems to have a gift for being loved, for we sensed the same had happened with Michael. It seemed like Robbie would hold Dimitri forever, but he finally turned to Candy and let her hold him. She passed him on after a while and then climbed onto Eddie’s lap and buried her face. She was emoting so much love that it melted the wild proud look in his eyes. Hettie then held Candy to her when she sat by her to share her feelings.
There was one surprising turn of events that I still cannot explain. When it was Robyn’s turn to hold Dimitri she emoted happiness and love, but it was nothing special, as it had been from all of us. She handed him over and moved to a corner of the room to sit alone. She’d felt our reaction and was embarrassed. We have noticed that Robyn likes to play with toddlers and slightly older kids, admiring their bubbles and encouraging them to do more. With the really small babies she just pats their cheeks. She wasn’t the same with Michael so we are sort of nonplussed.
We have two birthdays to celebrate on the 22nd, Meli and Rania. We were discussing which club we should go to when Meli came out of her story that was running through her mind. “I forgot to tell you, everybody is invited to our birthday party on Gilli’s world. Her people are preparing a lovely party for us.”
Robbie asked, “What do you mean everybody?”
“Oh.” She blushed. “Not in the thousands…I meant family and close friends.”
Cassie asked Meli, “Can we bring any of the bubble kids?”
“Sure.”
“No.” Robbie smiled apologetically. “I mean, we’d love to come, but I’m sorry, we can’t take any of the kids, we don’t know what the dangers could be.”
Dommi agreed. “We don’t know how it could affect Meli’s mind if they create bubbles in there.”
Their comment brought something to mind. I went there and spoke to Daniel. “Since we first came here, have any children been born, I mean normal births, not brought by Meli?”
“Oh yes! You have not seen them?”
“I have, but I wanted to be certain.” I could see the entire village was working hard preparing for our party so I made my excuses and left. I told Robbie what I’d learnt.
He smacked his forehead. “I’ve also seen the new kids, but didn’t think anything of it because it was so natural. Meli love, do you take the soul to the unborn babies?”
“Not as far as I know. They just suddenly have souls.”
He looked confused. “Are you saying the void senses the need for a soul and sends one there? How?”
“We already have proof that it happens from the soul-eater planet.” Annavi pointed out. “Does it mean our void is connected to other voids?”
“I have no idea. I’ll have to try to sense any such connections next time I become the void.”
Bruce admitted, “Now that he is not posturing as most politicians do, I find that he has an exceptional mind and I like him as a person.”
Sally laughed. “He embarrassed Bruce a number of times while he was president. Perhaps his greatest success was in his immediate acceptance of the Cherinians and aliens. Bruce could not react as quickly since he did not have as much freedom to take decisions and act on them.”
Robbie teased her, “Tell me Sally, would Bruce have made a good dictator?”
“I should hope not! If he was that kind of man I never would have loved him.”
“I did mean a benevolent dictator. I’ve just remembered, an alternate of yours owes me a tea at the White House.” He recounted the meeting and his teasing of them and they were amused.
Dommi worried, “Chung has not become a Cherinian and perhaps should not for a while. Do you think he will respond to a call?”
Bruce saw that there could be a problem, as he explained, “He has remarkable intuition and often acts on it. I don’t know whether he’ll feel comfortable with exposing his mind to something so weird. He’ll think that for him to enter the mind of Meli it will mean his thoughts will be open to her.”
Robbie shrugged. “Explain to him and then invite him. He deserves to see something special and her world is definitely special. The more he is exposed to us as Cherinians, the less fears he’ll have that we represent sinister forces.”
Sally was amused when she told us, “If you really want to impress him, arrange for him to meet a dragon. He is convinced they really did exist in China and he has told me he wishes he had lived in those times.”
Robbie grinned. “We can arrange that.”
“You can!? I want to be with!” Robbie promised her. Of course we all insisted we also wanted to be with. He looked at us thoughtfully. “I don’t know…if it sees so many young maidens it might be too scared to come.”
Chung came with to our cutting of two cakes at our home. Hettie, Eddie and Dimitri plus their kids only stayed for the cake and left. After the presents had been accepted and some of them opened, we all settled down, lying on the carpet with a cushion for a pillow. Chung looked nervous but he did as we did. Luckily Bruce has been sending his healer to Chung so having lost a lot of his fat he did not find it too difficult to lower himself to the floor, though he did find it undignified. We could sense his nervousness.
As expected, Chung did not respond to being called. Robbie entered his mind and after a while he managed to make Chung aware of him. He told him what he was about to do and carried him to the void. Once he settled, after his excitement at this proof of his existing separately from his body, he was more relaxed when Robbie returned him to his body. This time he heard the call and followed it to find himself in Meli’s world. Though the Gillians were there to greet us and the blankets were laid out with food and drink, we first took our guests on a tour. By the time they were returned to the picnic party they were in love with this world.
Robbie always grabs every opportunity to promote Cherinianism and our ideals. “There are times I start to feel that my dreams for all Earths are not practical, that they can never come true. I have been to the future of one Earth and saw much to make it almost impossible to continue believing. At such times I come here, and by the time I leave I am all afire with my dreams again. I sense Meli’s world has affected you the same way. We are here to celebrate the birth of two of our loves, the one of them actually conceived in this world. Enjoy the love being emoted by all and the party, but when we return back to our bodies, do not forget to carry your dreams back with you.”
Hettie and Eddie had asked Dimitri not to age himself for a few weeks. If they did not come to visit, Robbie would phone and they’d give in and invite us to their home or come to us. The first time they came to Freddie, Dimitri was flooded with love by so many aliens that he cried. The next time, even though he was only two weeks old, he pleaded to come as a boy of about four. They gave in just for the visit. When we saw him we expected to lose him to Robbie. Instead, Robbie ended up sitting with a look of happiness in his eyes as he watched Dimitri and Robyn spend almost the entire visit together. For some reason he has given his little heart to Robyn and she adores him.
Dimitri has become fascinated by the bubble kids. Whenever he visits as a four year old he spends a few hours with a group of them. To start off he just sat watching their bubbles, delighted by the little figures inside. Then we noticed the kids make space for him to sit among them. It did not take long for us to realise he was communing with them mentally. We did not question him, stayed out of his mind and waited to see how it would develop. It did not take long for us to see results. It really took a lot of self control to stay out of his mind.
He was sitting with the kids, his little face very serious as he concentrated. Suddenly a tiny bubble of swirling colours formed just in front of his nose. He opened his eyes and stared at it with immense interest. The other kids did not talk, they just patted him to show their approval. It popped and he ran to Robyn to ask her if she had seen. When she asked him how he’d done it he replied, ‘too soon, don’t know’ so we left him alone.
Hettie and Eddie were just as fascinated as we were and now brought him to Freddie every day, unless they had important meetings. Soon, even on those days they’d bring him and leave him with Robyn. He’d spend time with the kids, create a bubble and when it popped he’d play with us for a while. Then he’d clamber onto Robbie’s knees and lie against him, staring in that vague way kids do when they are lost in their thoughts. When he was tired he would go to Robyn to lie against her and he’d snooze a while.
Our friends knew that if they wanted to see us, they had to come to Freddie. It was only natural that Sheena would want Kalliopi and little Roberto to meet Dimitri. The problem was that by the time she could leave work Hettie or Eddie would have collected Dimitri. They were sticking to a strict schedule and insisted he goes to bed from seven o’clock. Hettie told us that he usually lies on his bed (he hates being covered, even if it is cold) and he’ll form a bubble. He’ll play with it until he became drowsy and he’ll let it bump against something and disappear as he falls asleep.
On a Saturday it was arranged that Sheena would collect her ‘son’ and Hettie would bring Dimitri. Luckily Robbie heard and changed our plans. He asked Hettie to bring Dimitri to our house. When they arrived he asked Dimitri to sit on his lap and he explained to him that the younger boy that will be coming to visit is loved by us like a son, but he is not the same as us, he is a real boy of two and can only think like a boy of his age. He pointed out that Dimitri should not make any bubbles while Roberto is with us and if he wants to move around the house he must walk, not jump. Dimitri nodded and promised.
Hettie and Eddie do not go out in public with any of their children if they are children, except for a brief holiday now and then and even at such times they tend to stay at their beach bungalow and play on the sand in front of their house. This means Dimitri has felt from a distance, but never met Normal kids. When Roberto arrived, he was quick to take him by the hand and talk to him. After that, wherever Dimitri went, little Roberto trundled after him. They were playing when suddenly we felt Dimitri emoting grief. He started to cry. Hettie appeared and he ran into her arms. We were all puzzled and concerned as Roberto had not done anything to him.
Goldi kissed his cheek. “His heart is just as beautiful as yours.” He flushed, but he did pull her to him for a hug.
I asked, “Do you think he could be right Eddie?”
“What? Crippled?”
“Yes. What if all minds should be open like ours but, just like the bubble kids have it shocked out of them, life does the same to all Normals.”
He gave me a slight frown as he said, “I’d be careful about airing that view Samantha. If the Normals hear about it they’ll hate you. As for it being a possibility, I don’t think it is likely. I’d say the human mind is born with many potentials that don’t get used unless the correct stimulation happens to awaken the gift.”
Robbie said to Eddie, “I’m presuming you’ve explained to Dimitri. I suggest he meets little Roberto more often so that he learns to not only understand, but also learns to love and need to protect Normals.”
“He won’t be happy with that Robert. He’s already decided it is his duty to ‘waken’ or heal the mind of Roberto so that he can be like him.”
Robbie chuckled. “That’s one thing I love about Cherinian born children, they have minds of their own and stick to their decisions, forcing us to change ours.”
Eddie grinned. “You do? Then you won’t mind that he has confided he wants Robyn to marry him? Do I offer him your blessings?” At the look on his face as he quickly glanced at Robyn we all burst out laughing, even an embarrassed but happy Robyn.
Robbie became excited when he read in the news that a Cherinian who is a spelaeologist claimed that while he was deep underground he sensed a mind. He talked about how crystal pure it was and gave a lot of detail about what this means for our planet now that we know there really is a Gaea. The message went out for the unnamed Cherinian to contact Robbie. Days went by without anyone contacting us. His disappointment angered Robbie. He contacted the news agency who told him they’d promised anonymity. Robbie jumped and returning in time as a soul, he followed the reporter. He watched and listened as the young reporter drank too much with a friend of his and heard their decision to concoct the story. He did not only do it for the story. The two of them are avid ‘green earthers’ and hoped the story would lead to mankind’s treatment of our planet becoming more thoughtful and caring.
Robbie did not make any public comment, but at the next invitation to speak at a University, he discussed his belief that planets have a soul and then made very clear that the only one he has sensed is the Eqkee planetary soul. He explained our theory that the high metallic content of all life there made them all one super organism that led to a planetary awareness coming into existence. It did not make headlines, but his speech was discussed among students on the internet.
It is now about a month since Dimitri was born and he appears more often as an eight year old. He is able to maintain that age for the entire day if he wants to, so Robbie decided it is time to make Chung and everyone else happy. He let our alternates know what we plan to do in their reality, inviting them and their friends to join us, saw to it that Richard and his kids will be present and each of us invited our friends to join us. Of course we made certain that Michael, Ahnì and family come. The eldest of the bubble kids came with their parents, but we made certain they understand they are not to create bubbles or use any paranormal powers they may have. We also made certain that everyone knows that what is to happen is a secret and Chung must not know what we plan. Early on Sunday morning we all met in Freddie and jumped.
“My friend Stargard has kindly agreed to meet with us today. Please keep in mind that he does tend to keep to himself and avoids contact with humans, so today is a special event. You are not likely to ever see him again. I consider it a pity, as I would be happy if he would agree to live in Freddie with us. He does have some old fashioned ideas about us, so please be patient and do not respond to his challenges - unless you are willing to enter a fight to the death. Cherinian gifts and powers only amuse him and you cannot harm him in any way - apart from hurting his feelings, so I would not advise it. Underneath it all he is a real softy, even if he is a bit of a braggart, so please don’t say anything to hurt his feelings. Friends and loved ones, please look to the north, Stargard is on his way to us.”
A speck appeared in the distance. Slowly it grew in size and by the time it was larger than an eagle Chung was sitting with bulging eyes. It was all he could do to remember to stay seated. The kids have seen many impossible things since they were brought to Freddie, so they took it in stride, but as the dragon grew and grew in size we could sense a little bit of fear underneath their excitement. Stargard circled over us and he was awesome! Just under twice as large as an elephant and more than three times as long, his hide a bronze metallic colour that almost seemed to glitter and shimmer under the sun, we could imagine what terror such a creature could inspire. He seems to have a problem with his landings, for he grunted as his feet hit the ground, the thud felt in our bottoms.
“So little man, I see you still fear to meet me alone.” He nodded his head at Cherine. “May I challenge him?”
“He told everyone you are friends.”
“Friends should enjoy a good fight now and then.” He swung his head around and then stretched his neck so that his head (nostrils) were within inches of the face of Chung. “Stand up man, do you have no respect?” Chung clambered to his feet, apologising and bowing.
“Hmm, Chung eh? Chinese? I have a liking for your people.” Their faces were inches apart again, his huge emerald eye staring at Chung. “Go on, touch me.” He sighed, looking miserable, a little smoke escaping his nostrils, making Chung cough. “A human touching a dragon! What I do for friends!” A shudder shook his body, making his tail whip about, barely missing those sitting behind him.
With trembling fingers Chung lightly touched him. Once his fingers felt the solidity of dragon skin he took courage and quickly ran his hand along the snout in front of the eye that continued to stare at him.
“It goes against the grain, you really should pay a price, no human touches a dragon without at least losing a limb. May I at least nibble on some fingers?”
Robbie called out, “Chung, watch out, as the saying goes, give a finger and he’ll take your arm, is true of dragons also.” He snatched back his hand.
Stargard apparently lost interest in Chung, and swung his head from Wendy to Wendy to Wendy to Candy, eyeing each of them from very close up. They stared into his eye and we could feel how it affected them, the sense of a powerful intelligence staring out at them from within that eye awing them. With an aggrieved tone, as if they were playing a trick on him, he asked them, “Which of you maidens was it I met last time?”
“It was me.”
“You shouldn’t keep calling him a little man. His name is Robert.”
“Hah! Robert is a proud name, only a warrior should bear it, someone like a bold knight who dares to challenge a dragon and does not mind providing me with my next meal, not a tiny man who hides behind the powers of his female. No, he is a little man.”
Cherine laughed and pointed at Jade. “What do you make of that little one, Stargard?”
He stared at Cherine for a moment, his mouth opening slightly, as if laughing with or at her. His eye moved close to Jade. “A maiden, but not one I could take back to my nest, the other dragons would laugh at me.”
Jade asked, “What do you do with maidens you take?”
“I hold them for a time in case it provokes a knight into searching me out. If none come, we surround her and calling on the blood of our great mother she is changed into a dragon to be my mate and bear me many eggs.” Mournfully he added, “I have not had a mate for centuries. We are dying out, no baby dragons for so long! I love baby dragons.”
“Don’t you have any female dragons?”
He hung his head, the lower jaw almost touching the ground. “They left.”
“Why? Where did they go?”
His bronze colour deepened with the shame of it. “They watched the human females of that land you call America, listened to them arguing with their males that they are superior to males and they told us that they were going to live there where males are properly subservient to the glorious female. They changed their bodies to human and are now stuck there.”
Samuel King asked, “Are they happy there?”
“How can they be?” There seemed to be a glint of amusement in his eye that did not seem appropriate.
He returned to Chung, seeming to be more comfortable talking to him. “One of your ancestors killed a great uncle of mine. Won’t you fight me? Surely a rematch is due?”
Chung bowed to him. “It is not that I lack the courage, but you are too beautiful for me to bear thinking of harming you.”
“You have courage gallant Chung? Will you then fly with me?” Chung swallowed and nodded. “Climb onto my neck.”
Robbie cautioned Stargard, “Stargard, stay within sight and do not take him in between.”
Stargard snorted, an angry flame licking at Robbie. He spoke to Cherine. “He calls himself a friend! How can he compare me to one of those tame lizards from Pern? It is an insult!”
She giggled and then stood, her face serious. “He does not mean to insult you. He is in love with the dragons of Pern, especially the bronze ones, so he means it as flattery.”
“Hmph! Little man!”
He raised his head and looked over us. “I see you brought food for you, nothing for me?”
He guided Chung onto his neck, told him to hang onto the ridges and flapping his wings he rose into the sky. He soared, flew in a great circle and then dived down at us, just metres above us rising with a strong beat of his wings. He swung around and landed gently this time. Richard went to ostensibly guide Chung’s foot as he climbed down, sensing how shaken the old man was. Once Chung was out of the way, Stargard turned around himself to take a good look at everyone. He turned back to Robbie.
“Have I performed you a service as agreed? Now you owe me.”
“One more thing. Sing a duet with the Wendys.”
Boastfully he replied, “Dragons do not sing for humans to hear them. There is magic in our songs. North where we have retreated to, when we sing, our songs affect the very air we breathe, turning it into dancing curtains of colour!”
Robbie agreed he had offered satisfactory service. Stargard turned to Cherine, his eye staring into hers and she swore later she felt as if a light burnt within it. “No maiden has ever summoned one of dragonkind. When you are powerful enough, call for me.”
She laid her fingers on the ridge under his eye. “If you ever have need, I would be honoured if you call for me.”
His bronze hide lost its shine. “There are few of us and the cold steals our vitality. When the last of us are ready for the end, will you come to witness the end of life’s greatest creatures?”
Cherine’s eyes filled. “I would rather you ask me to help you find a way to survive. Won’t you come to live in Freddie where it is never cold?”
“The truth is, our females were weaker, they have all gone to the long sleep among the stars, there is little point in our continuing. We welcome the end Bright One, life is empty without females and children, so do not grieve for us.”
He lifted his head. “Farewell humans. Remember, dragons and humans are all children of Mother Earth. That means something of dragons is in the best of you. Carry our spirit bravely.” He rose into the sky and there was total silence as he grew distant and disappeared from sight.
Haven had tears in her eyes as she whispered to his mind. *What a mood you have left us in Robert.* She was right, the picnic felt more like a wake than the joyous picnic we’d expected it to be.
Chung was the most deeply affected. He did not regain his good humour by he time we returned him to his home and we wondered what thoughts must be floating within his mind. Courteously he thanked Robbie. “Your gifts are extraordinary. Thank you, you have given back to an old man a dream he’d nearly forgotten.”
Robbie lightly bowed. “Is it not wonderful how our childish dreams affect us so strongly when we are adults? You honoured us with your presence, thank you for coming.”
The mood Stargard left us in actually carried over into the next day. Robbie respected our mood, but there was a warm feeling to his thoughts for the rest of that day.
Three days later Robbie asked me, “Are you ready to return to Efineh’s world?”
“Whenever you want Robbie.”
“Let’s be nice and give everybody a weeks’ notice.”
The word somehow got around about the impending return to Efineh’s world and Normals and Cherinians from all realities wanted to come with. It was soon obvious we would not be returning with an almost empty Freddie. The way we are going, Robbie will soon have to put up the last treehouses, giving Freddie the appearance I saw as Le’sase. It is disconcerting how fast the future is rushing at us. Robbie limited the numbers from each reality and allowed them to solve the problem of who comes. I’m not pleased about it, we have increased the chances that non-Cherinian talents will be able to jump there.
Michael could not come with, but we ensured Gregory and Dimitri did. Having Hettie along just might help in unravelling some of the administration problems we’re trying to deal with. Allan, Eleni and Jessie have decided they want to go camping in the area where Athens should have been. Since there is no Mediterranean Sea, the climate and wildlife are totally different. When I heard he wanted to explore some of the areas that are underwater in our reality, I warned him to be careful, I just might decide to suddenly open the Gibraltar Straits. He pretended enthusiasm for the idea, inciting the girls to help him build a city that he would call Atlantis before I flood the area.
Allan ignored all the adults pestering the kids to submit to psychological tests, give blood samples and so on and went to the eldest and most articulate little boy. “Ardin, would you like to see Freddie from one of those ledges up there?” The child was glad to get away.
As the girls placed a blanket on the surface and covered it with all kinds of sweets, chocolates, biscuits and cold drinks, Allan asked him, “I hope you can eat the same kinds of foods we do. What you see is very bad for your health, but fun to eat. Have you eaten any chocolate?” He had and soon was stuffing his mouth as he stared down at the ground in the distance.
Jess asked him, “I’m a seven year old, how old are you?”
“Six I think, but I will be seven.”
“I saw the last bubble you made, it was beautiful! I wish I could do something so lovely. I bet it must be fun.”
He shrugged, tired of being questioned about it. “It feels nice.”
“I can’t make bubbles, but I can do something I bet you can’t.” She spilt the sweets out of a glass bowl, turned it upside down and covered it with a cloth. “Okay, pick up the cloth.”
He did so and saw a tiny man inside waving at him. Allan spoke softly, “You better take the bowl off him so that he can breath.” Ardin glanced at Jess and she nodded. He picked up the bowl and the little man bowed.
“Thank you Ardin, it was stuffy in there.”
“Where is the bubble?”
The little man shrugged. “She doesn’t know how to make bubbles - anyway, it’s more fun being outside. Put your hand down for me to sit on it and then you can take me far away for us to talk alone.”
He was surprised when he felt the little man climb onto the palm of his hand. “What would happen if I smash you?”
“I would die. You wouldn’t hurt me, would you?”
“He’ll have to go back into my mind when we’re finished. I’m not sure I want a dragon in my mind. What if it forgets and blows fire out of its nose?”
“Oh.” He thought about it a while. “But Robert made the big dragon. Where did it go to?”
When they sensed Ardin was wearying of the little man they returned him to his foster parents. He ran to tell them of what Jess had done without a bubble.
Robbie smiled at Jess. “Did you enjoy yourself?”
“We also learnt something. He could sense my little man was not real, even though he touched him and felt he has weight. Maybe he also sensed your dragon?”
“Are you claiming Stargard is not real!?” At her puzzled look we grinned.
Allan was worried. “I’m more interested in seeing what he’ll do. What if he tries to create the contents of a bubble without the bubble? Could that be how they created those craters?” Alarm bells went off in all our minds.
Robbie urgently let everyone know we are leaving so that nobody tries to jump to us, and fixing an event-timed jump in his mind Freddie jumped. As soon as we arrived he left his body. I thought it made more sense to try something else and with Claudia and Jade, we went to the void. As a soul arrived and it started to suffer we protected it, sending messages to calm it.
Our faces must have looked grim when Robbie returned. “You won’t believe what’s happening down there!”
“We will, we’ve talked to one of them. He’s waiting for you in the void. Dad, we need a platform in normal space, big enough for one man. Put a communication link for us to talk to him.”
“Can you hear and understand us?”
“Yes, thank you Samantha. It is good to be back in my body again. How did you put it back together? I remember it being blown to pieces.”
“It is not your body, it is a temporary body created out of energies.”
“As soon as you let it go I will be returned to the Land of Death?”
“That was not the land of death. Abirov, we need to know the history of your people. For how long have they had those powers that caused your death?”
“How long? Forever - for as long as we have records of.”
“How did you build towns and farm if that is so? From what we see everyone seems to be attacking everyone else.”
“You are talking of the explosions? Not all have the power to do that. We all have powers, but some are more limited than those of others. Three hundred years ago our forebears came together to agree that the stronger powers would never be used again. A madman has unleashed the destruction you see. He wants to become dictator of the world and broke the agreement. As soon as we are rid of him we will return to the agreement.”
“We have come from your future. There only children have powers, the adults cause them pain until they learn to never use any of their powers. Those who do not learn or revert as adults, are medicated and hurt until they cannot use their powers anymore.”
“We will show you pictures from the future.” We explained what he was about to see and why we had brought the leaders to Freddie. He watched up to the time we brought the orphaned kids to Freddie. We sent him food and drink and suggested he think and sleep on it and we’d talk with him the next day.
“This place, it is a bubble you hold me in?”
“Similar but it is real. That really is your planet below you.”
“How can you be more advanced in the future if, as you say, you kill the powers in everybody?”
“We are not from your world Abirov. On our world very few have any powers.”
We talked for a few days. I asked him why he was speaking so openly and he admitted he realised he is at our mercy and does not want to return to the void. He was also influenced by the kids. Whenever we were not communicating, the screen would show them, bubbles and all. He saw the love the kids were given and the encouragement whenever the scenes within their bubbles are improved in detail. He obviously also saw a lot of Freddie and was impressed.
“When you are finished with me, will you kill me again?”
Robbie answered him by asking, “You told us that only a few have the powers to create the explosions. Are you one of them?”
“No, but then it is obvious you are afraid I might be, so I don’t expect you to believe me.”
“Not afraid, just being cautious. You have not explained what is the power used to create the explosions?”
Abirov explained, “What you see in that which you call a bubble is a picture from our minds, it is not real. They have the ability to create a complex picture and then bring it out without a shell to protect it. The explosion comes from the picture being destroyed by the real world. Both cannot exist at the same time.” A man about a foot tall materialised in his platform. He did not react, just stared.
“I am not in a shell, but I will not explode. You have not told us the complete truth Abirov.”
“I do not understand, I have spoken the truth.”
The little man asked him, “If I return you to your world, far from other people so that no one is harmed, can you create such an explosion?”
“I am not one of the gifted ones.”
Our senses told us he was speaking the truth, unless he is gifted at disguising his thoughts and emotions. The way our discussion was headed, we had little choice. We could not return him to his world, just in case he is a danger to others and we could not send him back to the void. Robbie brought his platform into Freddie and he was released.
For two days now we have devoted ourselves to questioning him about everything we can think of. We’ve also allowed time for social interaction with the result that we’ve grown to like him. We sense he is holding something back, but do not feel it poses a danger to us. He allowed Robbie to see the memories of his death and, ignoring what else we saw, he returned, his healer collected cells and after convincing him to return to the void with me, Robbie re-created his body. We gave him a house of his own and asked him to help with the orphans. He spent much of his time with the children, but we sensed him sliding into a depression, so Sol brought him to the taverna for supper.
