Josef got up and started walking.
“My legs have gone to sleep! I didn’t remember it was so uncomfortable.”
“Continue. I’m having more fun than ever.”
“I went back to the center and I stayed there until I was the legal age and I started university. As an anecdote, I have to say that I took the right decision. Years later I knew that the woman, due to her husband’s so comprehensive behavior, wanted to see if he was as faithful as he claimed to be. She hired a private detective who followed him for several weeks around the country in his trips. In the brief he presented, there were photographs of his husband with different women. The woman asked the detective to go with him in to track her husband, and she saw him entering a motel along with a young girl. Without thinking it twice, she got out of the car and followed them to the room. She knocked the door and everything finished.”
“Surprise me,” he said excited. “Don’t leave me intrigued.”
“Her husband opened the door in underwear. On the bed, a voluptuous half-naked blonde was waiting for him. According to what she told later to the police, the woman was very nervous and she took a gun out of her bag. «Something to say?» She asked him. The man begged her by all means not to do it. Without thinking it twice, she drew it directly to his head and killed him. Immediately after, she killed herself.”
“Thanks goodness you left that house in time.”
“Honestly, that couple never gave me a good hunch. I’m no very fond of those couples who are so materialistic that they only show their affection in public.”
“Maybe you’re right. Look, I was married for thirty-eight years and I truly loved her more than my own life. During that time, we never walked down the street hand in hand. People asked me why I didn’t take her hand. I always answered them the same: our souls are joined in the heart.”
“Great answer,” Josef stretched him his hand. “Mr. Henry, I have to leave.”
The old man stretched his hand and then gave him a warm hug.
“All right. You can call me when you want. We have so many things to talk about!”
“As soon as I get back visiting my brother, I’ll come to see you again.”
“I’ll take your word.”
“See you soon.”
“Have a good trip,” he concluded.
Chapter 19
«In there is the answer to several questions.» Palac thought as he observed the cylinder that guarded his grandfather’s niolar. He walked to the door and he looked out. From the top of the mountain, he had a privileged view. The lights that illuminated the city of Nalactia were projected directly on the gold apexes of the pyramids that walled it, forming a perfect golden ring. They were oriented in such a way to shine strongly and be seen from the space.
«It seems that my father hasn’t realized I’m here.» The young midarian went back inside the Golden Pyramid and leant again on the cylinder decisively. Without hesitation at all, he selected a very recent memory he had chosen before.
The vision started at once. It was Racot, that desert and warm place where the winds were unbearable. His grandfather was surrounded by aborigines. He was trying to make his way through the crowd, which would not stop asking and demanding him all kinds of things.
“It hurts!” One of them shouted as he moved with difficulty dragging his leg. “I need you to heal me."
“God Yewut, my daughter… my daughter is ill,” a woman begged with her hands clasped.
In that moment, the midarian leader continued walking and looking at both sides as the crowd kept on demanding things from him.
“I’m hungry!” Another one who did not look precisely clean shouted. “I need to eat!”
“I’m aware of all your requests, but first I have to deal with more important issues,” Yewut said in a friendly tone.
The crowd ignored his words. They kept on demanding thins from him. He raised his eyes to see one of his assistants approaching him hastily. Everyone moved aside to make way to the four-meter giant.
“Stop disturbing God Yewut!” He shouted angrily. “Go away from here!”
Everyone scattered around quickly, leaving them alone.
“How long have they been behaving like this?”
“Everything began when you healed that blind man. From that moment, the story has been told for generations and every time more of them want us to solve their problems. They need to believe in something and they need it right now,” the midarian said as a reprimand.
“I only wanted to improve that miserable man’s life.”
“I understand it, sir, but we can’t solve the problems of all the inhabitants of the planet.”
Despite being the almighty leader of Mida, would listen to the advice and demands from all his loyal assistants.
“We’ll talk about this later. I need you to gather as many racots as you can. We’ll start building the pyramids!”
“Pyramids?” He asked. “I thought we were going to build only one.”
“No. We’re going to build dozens of them across the planet. Some of them will have inside normal cabins which will allow us to travel. In this particular region we will install the modified one. In order to hide ide, I thought we could build a hundred pyramids. What do you think?”
“As you say, sir.”
Night had started to fall upon the settlement and all the inhabitants were walking to shelter themselves in their houses. Yewut watched the scene without completely understanding what it was happening.
“They’re afraid of the night,” his helper said after having noticed his leader’s interest.
“You’ve been by my side since we started visiting these lands. I still remember the day on which we were attacked by that giant animal and you destroyed it with a ray,” his helper lowered his head embarrassed. “I got furious. Terribly furious. So much as to promise myself that you would never come back here. Some time later, you made me trust in you once again, because you showed loyalty and maturity. I think you’re prepared to carry out the mission I’m going to propose you.”
“Sir, it’s an honor that you’ve considered me. I’ll be very happy to accept the mission.”
“I need you to be in charge of supervising the construction of the pyramids. It’s very important that the racots that help you believe in you. They have to think you’re a god. Even better, their god!” He exclaimed.
The midarian looked at him with illusion. His eyes couldn’t be wider open.
“Do you mean satisfying their demands?”
“No! They need a god with their appearance. In order to be like them, you’ll have to use the occupation power to join your body to a racot’s one. This way, you’ll be able to beget your children with their women and have your own offspring. When you die, your son will inherit such power and he’ll be the new god.”
“But if I join one of the natives, I’ll lose my armor,” he said with worry. “I’ll turn vulnerable to death.”
“Exactly. You’ll be exposed to contract their diseases, and in a case of conflict, only your ability will enable you to get rid of decease. The most important thing is that you beget your own child as soon as possible.”
The soldier remained in silence.
“Maybe you haven’t completely understood your work,” he reflected for some seconds, trying to find the best way to say it. “The mission will start when you die. Your niolar will be in charge of protecting and guaranteeing protection from indignant being’s attacks. To reinforce the midarian force, you’ll have to order them to bury you along with as many gold objects as possible. Once you’ve been buried, the pyramid will be sealed.”
“What will happen if I die before it’s finished?”
“You’ll be buried in it anyway. But we’ll start building a new one to bury you heir. Remember that these pyramids are meant only to confuse them.”
“One last question: what will happen if I died before leaving descent?”
“I understand your worry. You can make me as
many questions as you like. In such case, you shouldn’t worry. Several midarians will fuse in racot’s bodies the same as you will do. They will help you lead and rule the people. They will be very important. If you died, one of them will take you over and will be in charge of protecting the pyramids.”
“I feel honored you’ve considered me for this mission, but I’m afraid of dying so young. Lately, I’ve been seeing that these beings don’t live longer than thirty years.”
«Thirty years?» Palac asked to himself with surprise.
“Think about the fact that you’ll experience feelings and sensations that you will never experience with your actual body.”
“Yes, sir. I’ll be very happy to do it.”
“One more thing. I need you to document on the pyramid walls everything that happens. Show them our alphabet and teach them to draw and interpret it. For obvious reasons, don’t write anything about the construction.”
“What task will the other infiltrated midarians perform?”
“They will be in charge of teaching the agricultures and stockbreeders for them to make use of the astronomy to improve efficiency, as well as of teaching them to make gold sculptures, either of the animals that used to walk on Mida or of our cultural symbols. Do you have any more questions? My helpers are waiting for me in the craft to leave to other regions and build the pyramids which will hold the normal cabins.”
“Why aren’t you going to build the improved cabins in all the pyramids? That way you would be able to travel to Mida from any spot of the planet. It wouldn’t be necessary for you to come to this area.”
“We have to minimize risks. If we install modified cabins all around the planet, we would me multiplying the possibilities of them being discovered, and what would be worse, of them using them against us.”
“I understand”
“When you need stone or any other resource, talk with Grias and he’ll give it to you through the zac. About how to build them, I’ll now show you a…”
Without knowing the reason why, the communication was interrupted and he went back to the Golden Pyramid. In front of him, it was Beiler, who had taken his arm out of the cylinder to take him back to reality. «I’ve been discovered!» He thought terrified.
“I tried by all means to prevent your father from coming here.”
“Where is he?”
“Your grandfather’s midarian force doesn’t allow him to come into,” the captain answered pointing to the door. “He has asked me to come for you.”
Cabolun was shouting his name nonstop.
“What do you think it will happen?” Palac asked with fear.
“I don’t know,” a worried Beiler answered. “Let’s go!” He ordered.
Both went outside. His father approached him by his back without giving him time to defend himself. He had violated one of the strictest orders of the planet.
«By no means can someone enter the Golden Pyramid! That one who violates such rule will be considered insubordinate!» Palac remembered those words he heard his father pronounce in front of all midarian people. Cabolun was carrying his son’s body in the air as he dangerously went closer one of sides of the mountain. The novice tried unsuccessfully to escape. Just when he reached the spot where the small surface of the summit ended and it started a vertical drop of hundreds of meters, he left him on the floor.
“I’m sorry. I’ve disobeyed your orders…” he said as soon as he was able to.
His father’s look was full of rage. His son had disobeyed the rules had now had to be harshly punished.
“What were you doing in there?”
Without letting his son time to justify himself, he hit his son’s helmet throwing him roll down the hillside until he vanished in the shadows.
“You will never ever come back here!” He sentenced.
Beiler went down the steep hill hastily to help him. Buried under several tons of stone, he was lying still. His helmet was broken and the blood was beginning to emerge strongly. The wounds should be healed immediately. Otherwise, he would die in few minutes.
“Come on, resist!” The captain shouted.
Chapter 20
“Where are you?” Margaret asked.
“At the cafeteria,” Josef said after answering the telephone. “What happens?”
“I’m coming. I’ll tell you when I get there.”
The librarian sipped his coffee again and continued reading the newspaper. The headline said:
The WHO declares inept the scientists responsible of mutated cancer.
The image showed two cuffed doctors wearing their coats and covering their faces. « Mutated cancer?»
Today marks the 30th anniversary of the creation of the vaccine that provoked the worst disaster in the history of worldwide medicine. The emulator that could face mutated cancer is still to be found. Four laboratories around the world work restlessly, but none of them has spoken about whether there is or there will be a cure against the disease yet. Some research has revealed…
The golden-haired girl walked to the table and covered the piece of news with her hand. Josef raised his eyes and smiled. Her look had returned to normal. The dark circles around her eyes had disappeared and she was shining again with her fashionable branded clothing.
“I prefer the sweatpants,” he kidded.
She gave him a slight complicity punch on his shoulder and sat down.
“Do you trust in me?” She asked with decision.
“Well…” he hesitated, “…it depends. Why are you asking?”
“Do you or don’t you?” She asked frowning.
The librarian nodded. «She believes in anyone!»
“I’ve been talking with one of my Psychology professors about you.”
Josef startled and blushed.
“Specifically about the trauma you go through when you hear a siren. He found your case interesting and he’d like to help you.”
“I don’t need him to do so,” he answered irascibly. He felt betrayed.
«I tell her private things about me and she shouts them from the roof tops?»
“He told me that in only one hypnosis session he could detect the origin of the problem. According to a recent study, most traumas and phobias are produced when our mind is still building. A one-year-old boy who has had a traumatic situation with… for example, a cat or a dog, could develop a phobia in the future. Do you understand?”
“How long would that session last?”
“One hour,” she answered with no hesitation. “I’ve made an appointment for today at nine o’clock at his practice. Will you pick me up when you close?”
“Have you made an appointment without knowing my opinion?”
Margaret bent forward and smiled showing her perfect denture.
“All right, I’ll go. But I’ll give you back this ambush one day,” he sentenced.
Josef got up and left without finishing having breakfast. He had accepted to go to the session without much conviction. That day, the visits to the library were scarce. The hours passed very slowly and he regretted not having taken his grandfather’s book. At lunchtime, he booked the flight to San Diego. «How is it possible that there are only available flights for tomorrow, Wednesday?» It was her brother Steve’s wife’s birthday. He booked right then or he wouldn’t be able to go. He thought that maybe the former librarian could substitute him for several days. The retired man was very happy to accept. «Of course I can, young lad. I’ll be right there tomorrow! I miss the small of the books very much!» He had told him. He then had to deal with the headmaster. The acceptance was more complicated. «When I’m back, I’ll take you to visit the NASA premises,» Josef promised him ignoring how he would manage to keep that promise. The university foreman was an astrology lover. Maybe it was because of that that he had not showed much reluctance to hire Mike Roger’s grandson.
The car stopped in front of Margaret’s house. She looked out of the window and went downstairs quickly. Her mother’s silhouette peeped out
with stealth, but his presence was intercepted by the young man, who tore his eyes away from her. Fourteen minutes later, they arrived at the fixed address. An ultramodern building made his way to the sky with its forty floors.
Thirty-fourth floor
The lift opened showing a luxurious lobby. White marble covered walls and floor. The room sapwood made a strange contrast with the auburn color of the door that led to the practice.
J. Travis Bachelor
“It’s here.” Margaret muttered.
Before they called the bell, the door opened. A neat man welcomed them. He was shave-headed and he had a goatee. His body, extremely thin, was covered with a purple coat and he had red canvas shoes on his feet. Margaret let out a choked shout at seeing his outfit.
“Here I can dress as I like,” he said with a friendly and effeminate voice. “Society stereotypes don’t allow me to work like this. Come on! Don’t stay there!” He exclaimed without varying his tone at all.
«It’s true what it’s said about psychologists: all of them are a bit crazy,» the librarian thought.
“You must be Josef, right?”
“Yes.”
The exuberance of the consultation left both Margaret and Josef in a puzzle. The color white took ownership of the place once again. Six large Chinese vases embellished the center of the room. The walls, as if it was an arts museum, were full of pictures.
“Is it a genuine Van Gogh?” Margaret asked standing in front of them.
“I wish it was,” the eccentric psychologist answered. “They are all high quality replications.”
“And what about the vases?” Josef asked raising one of them.
Mr. Travis rushed to his spot and put it back on the floor.
“They are faux,” he answered nervously. “These vases belonged to the Ming Dynasty… well, they are replications of the authentic ones. My salary can’t afford them. I wish it could,” he added.
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