“Oh sure, that would be wonderful!” said Erin.
After Daniel asked Amber if she would like a tea, he disappeared into the kitchen, and then returned with a platter of teacups, a large tea diffuser, and a carafe full of what she presumed was tea, along with some German rock sugar.
Amber breathed in the aroma and knew instantly that Daniel had brought out one of her favorites. It was ginseng and peppermint tea from the Republic of Tea. “They certainly know their teas. This is excellent for digestion, mental clarity, and tastes amazing. Check!”
When Amber sat down, Erin sat down right next to her. She immediately trusted Amber without hesitation. It felt good to Amber to engender the instantaneous trust from others, and she appreciated Erin’s vibrant and innocent spirit. Erin was gentle and pleasant.
It was sad, however, to see the fullness of what the progerin had done to her cells as it expressed itself profoundly in her prematurely aging presence, but her spirit oozed out in such a way that anyone who saw her would wish to give her a hug, and they probably would, if they weren’t afraid of damaging her fragile bones.
Beverly and Daniel settled down on the love seat, slightly facing the couch that Amber and Erin were sitting on. Light music was playing, and enjoying what she heard, even though she could have looked it up using her link, Amber asked, “The sound in the air, I love it. Who is it?”
Beverly answered, “This is Amethystium. They are a New Age group with mixed media and a lot of cultural richness to it. We’ve followed them for years and appreciate their music.”
“I can see why. It’s beautiful,” replied Amber, as the music continued to put her at ease.
The conversation took off from there about walks in the parks nearby, looking up at the stars at night, and many other activities that were both healthy and informative. At one point, Amber brought up a conversation about her sister and how looking at the Scrabble board on the table before she reminded her of how they always used to play a digital version of Scrabble with each other. “We would play Scrabble using our computers, in the same room where we were separated by a plastic barrier, due to a series of physiological complications. Unfortunately, she passed away long before Eliza came around in my life. I am sure that if Sarah were alive now, she would have been happy to meet you, and she would have completely approved of any treatments available via Pathway. She loved life and was always so whimsical about traveling through the Universe. She was so smart, so sweet, and so fun to be with. We did home-school together until she passed away. She was such a wonderful sister and I miss her very much. Erin, you kind of remind me of her in so many good ways. I hope you don’t mind?”
“Of course, it’s okay with me, Amber. I guess that means we’re more like sisters,” said Erin with a smile. She put her tiny arms around Amber’s left forearm and rested her head on her left breast without even thinking anything other than she trusted Amber fully, she smelled good, and it was comfortable being nearby her.
Amber felt aglow and almost as if she would cry. “This young girl, what a wonderful spirit and a beautiful human being,” she thought.
The family talked with Amber, and she could already tell Erin was not only a sweet girl, but she was a genius with the type of personality and strength of character that was ideal for Pathway. She understood now why Eliza, Yesha, and James had completely approved of her. There was no doubt why Eliza had made resources available to her family, especially for a procedure that would optimize Erin’s physiology and neurology. Erin’s parents also seemed to have the kind of personality and nobility of character that would make them amazing friends and citizens of Pathway as well. They were a very well-balanced family.
As the night grew late, and the excitement of the day grew thin, Erin asked if Amber could sleep in her room. Amber looked toward Beverly and Daniel, and they approved.
Erin was so excited to meet her new friend and talk with her late and into the night. It was wonderful having someone she could now view as a sister, like Amber. Erin was impressed with Amber instantly upon meeting her, but every moment that passed by, her impressions of Amber increased in a positive and trusting way. Erin was always good at reading people. She had a twin bunk bed, so with both beds filled, they talked for a while and then slept well through to the morning. One by one, they got up, yet interestingly everyone seemed to have a similar internal clock because Amber and the Carters were up at the same time.
Daniel prepared breakfast, Beverly showered up and got ready for the big day, Erin did the same as her Mom in her own bathroom, and Amber allowed herself to stay a little disheveled from sleeping and sat and talked with Daniel while he prepared the meal.
“Good morning. If I understand correctly, you’re from Georgia, Dan or Daniel? Do you miss your home state and your family?” asked Amber.
“You can call me Dan, or Daniel. Whichever you prefer. My family? Oh, of course, I miss my family. But, we’re about our lives; we each forged ahead and are on our own. Every once in a while, I hear from my brothers and sisters, my Mom and my Dad, and even my first boss, and I am proud of them for all of their efforts. They are all wonderful people in their own way.
“I suppose moving here, I grew committed to Beverly, the people here, and of course our sweet daughter, Erin. I enjoy it here, and I have invested in our little family one hundred percent of the way, and in every way that matters. Whatever Beverly and Erin decide to do, I support it. We’re looking forward to going to Massachusetts, and we truly appreciate your desire to help.”
Amber saw a good man in Daniel and appreciated his soft and noble demeanor. “I may be just as excited to help Erin as you two are for us to help her. She is a wonderful young girl and you have both done well by her. I can tell there is a lot of love in your hearts for each other. You’re a wonderful family. Dan, I also want to assure you, that you will all be in safe hands at Pathway. I promise that life is soon to become much more amazing than is possible to describe. I am consistently impressed with Eliza’s ideas, her care for humanity, and her inventions.
“Mm, mm, that smells good, Dan,” Amber finished, as the smell of Sourdough French Toast, real butter, and true maple syrup was warming while permeating the room.
Erin stepped into view from the hallway, looking freshly showered and nicely dressed, walked into the kitchen and dining area and sat next to Amber, after smiling and saying, “Thank you for coming and spending the night with us. The bathroom is ready whenever you are.”
“I shouldn’t take too long,” said Amber. She then got up, went to the bathroom with her bag, and closed the door. After turning the shower on she got into it for a few minutes. “Ah, the warm water always feels good, optimized or not,” thought Amber, it was actually soothing and reduced that seemingly uncontrollable glow she had. In five minutes, she stepped out fully clothed, smelling amazing, and looking like the model she had been for years.
Stepping back out to the kitchen and dining area, Beverly looked splendid and had taken over for Daniel who was also quickly getting ready.
“Would you like a morning tea?” asked Beverly, “It’s a ground Matcha and green tea powder combination. A wonderful way to start the day, while we wait for Dan,” Beverly said with a smile of a person who had rested well and was enthusiastic about the day ahead.
Once ready, they ate together, and then the family explored the town, showed Amber the art center, the museum, the Platte River, and then Amber took them home to drop off their car. Their property manager was there as scheduled. He took the keys and wished them well.
Amber’s rental car was big enough to take their luggage and the three family members to the municipal airport. “This should be an interesting thing, but here we go. First, I will turn in the rental. And then, we will take your bags with us, and go right over there.” Amber pointed toward a grove of trees with an empty and clear space between them.
“I’m not sure I understand,” said Beverly, in a state of awkward disbelief.
“Trust me. You’ll
understand soon,” Amber looked at each family member with all the sincerity she could muster and tried to soothe their concerns, as she parked the car. They followed her into the rental building, where she turned in the keys and made the necessary payments using her Pathway Travel Card. Afterward, she walked out the door, looked toward the family with a look that suggested they follow her, and then walked toward the trees she had previously pointed out. From there, after turning around and smiling at them once more, she took another step into the clearing between the trees and disappeared.
“Follow me,” said Erin, thrilled. This reminded her of something she’d only seen in movies or read in books. Erin hadn’t packed much, just a little bag with a change of clothes, a little toothbrush, a few other personal hygiene items, and her medication. Her little frame picked up the little bag and she walked as fast as she could and then disappeared through the trees.
Chapter 22: Erin Carter, Section 4
“Where did she go?” asked Daniel, looking at his wife concerned and in disbelief.
“Let’s find out,” said Beverly, who was quickly figuring out this girl was for real.
Amber smiled, as she saw Erin’s face brighten as she reached her from the other side of the jump gate. She then looked through the portal and saw Beverly readying to make her way through it. Before she did, she looked back at Daniel with her own look that said, “Common!” After which, Daniel followed them and was quite breath-taken with what he saw after passing through what he thought was merely a space between two trees.
“What was that?” Asked Daniel, once he had caught up to Amber.
“We just went through a jump gate. There are a lot of those around here, but you’ll learn more about them soon. Common, Daniel, follow me,” Answered Amber, with a smile that suggested that she understood his situation of awe and being struck with endless questions.
There they were. Erin, Beverly, and Amber standing in a large white room, with huge windows around the circumference of the place. Looking through the windows he saw all sorts of animals sitting on benches of various sizes; they were apparently holding newspapers and engaging in conversation. He also saw a forest of beautiful flowers, fruits, and all sorts of vegetation. All of a sudden, Eliza appeared through another donut-shaped, white object, with purple, turquoise, blue, and black accent colors on buttons laden hither and thither all over it. Dan saw her come through a portal of sorts from a different location than they had come from, but he couldn’t tell from where. It didn’t matter, she was enigmatic in every sense, and he was tongue-tied, breath-taken, and searching for words to say.
“I couldn’t miss meeting you guys. It’s so great to see you! What do you think?” expressed Eliza. “Yesha would have been here, but she is otherwise engaged in other parts of the world. She is a wonderful friend, and you’ll no doubt meet her soon.”
“Wow! How did you do that?” was all that Daniel could muster, as he looked around in a state of disbelief.
“Is everything okay?” asked Amber, looking toward Daniel, thinking back to how she felt just two months before when she first beheld the place.
“Oh, yes, everything is okay. It is… it’s… I am just amazed is all,” Daniel was clearly trying to pull himself together, just as his wife already had, who seemed very well-composed.
“Come with me,” said Eliza.
Amber and the Carter family followed Eliza into a spacious auditorium, and when she looked, there was Yesha waiting for them, apparently back from her trip around the World. “Now I know that jump gates truly rock!” thought Amber.
In the auditorium were several other groups of people, Daniel noticed they were speaking in different languages sitting and waiting. This large room appeared to be a very posh looking movie theater. He, his family, and Amber followed Eliza to where Yesha was waiting for them. Eliza took a seat beside Yesha after introducing her to everyone, and everyone else took up seats beside Yesha and Eliza, with Erin and Amber to their left, and Beverly and Dan to their right.
After the same briefing that Amber had received when she first arrived, they were shown to their quarters and introduced to their biopods. In a very short period of time after the completion of Pathway’s infrastructure worldwide in 2008, more than two years had gone by, with a huge influx of refugees and people from all over the world and throughout the country who had been victims of their environment. In this particular training session, more than one-hundred candidate citizens were in attendance and had agreed to be fully read-in. With training complete, the various groups were shown their quarters by their delegates, and then the biopods within their guest suites. Erin and her parents were accompanied by Amber, Eliza, and Yesha to the biopods in a group biopod room, after going through a jump gate and a brief tour of their suite.
“These look like glowing white tanning beds, but they look comfortable and fluffy inside,” said Erin, giddy as could be, excited to experience what they had just learned about.
“Ha! Yes, I get that a lot,” said Eliza, with a humble sense of humor.
“That’s what I told them the first time I saw them!” chuckled Amber, almost awkwardly.
Erin looked toward Amber, who happened to be looking toward Eliza as if having a private and mental conversation with her and Yesha. Eliza, Yesha, and Amber had pursed their lips, and, in a few moments, they looked toward each of the Carters and when Eliza shook her head, “yes,” Amber began to talk to the family. Erin knew they had just had a conversation that had to have been mind-to-mind. She listened as Amber spoke.
“The choice is yours. What you saw in the auditorium is what I saw when I first arrived here. I chose to accompany Eliza and Yesha in a room like this and each of us used a biopod like these. There is one here for each of us. When I went in, they showed me things I never knew existed or had even cared or worried about. Now I know and although I cared a great deal about the well-being of others then, there is so much more depth to it all that I had never before even considered, and I believe I care more now than I did then about so much more than I did before. When I came out of the biopod, I had crystal clear clarity on so many things and I felt a special bond between myself and anyone who had ever been in there before. We all learned from each other and understood each other more completely than we could have by any other means.
“I had been physiologically and neurologically optimized and imbued with what we call nanos. These nanos and our smart suits allow us to do a lot of things we were never able to do before. While I am still getting used to my glow, the experiences I have had over the last couple of months have been exhilarating! Ultimately, Erin, this will heal you entirely and when you come back out of the biopod, you may not recognize yourself. What you’ll see in the mirror from that point on is how you view yourself within the Virtual Universe, mixed with what you would have looked like had all of your cells fired in a way that would have led to you not having Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome, or any ailment or disease for that matter, and most likely as your body would express itself at your current age. Your body will mature into what you will see in there until you reach the age of eighteen. From there you will be able to adjust your physiology to express itself in all manners between the ages of twenty to thirty-five, as you choose at that time or at any time thereafter.
“You have a beautiful spirit, Erin, I can tell, and I imagine that your mind will reflect that in the way that it expresses your image very creatively. In the Virtual Universe, you will be able to express yourself in any way that you please. You could be a mermaid, or an angel, or a fairy, and you may even appear as a full-grown version of you, whatever your imagination lets fly.
“Would you like to explore the Virtual Universe and go on a journey with your parents, Eliza, Yesha, and me?”
Erin looked at her parents, her face was lit up, and she asked, “Will this heal me?”
Amber looked at her parents, then toward Erin again, and answered, “Yes, it will.”
“I always knew you had to be some sort
of angel. I noticed a glow about you, Eliza, when I met you on Elena’s talk show, and again when I saw Amber enter in through the door. Each time I saw you, you glowed like angels from heaven, and now, I see that same glow in Yesha and the other delegates and citizens. If it’s okay with my parents, I would love to accompany you.”
Her parents looked at Erin, then at Eliza, and then at Amber. Then Daniel looked at Beverly, and Beverly spoke up, “Of course, we approve, and if possible, all three of us would like to go with you, Amber, Eliza, and Yesha.”
“Absolutely, Beverly,” said Eliza. “You didn’t think we’d go there with your daughter, but without you, did you?” Eliza joked to put her at ease with a genuine smile, and then turned the training opportunity back over to Amber, and not for reasons of authority, but to avoid hogging all of the attention. Besides, this was Amber’s first opportunity as a delegate.
“It is more fascinating if we have people close to us take the journey with us because we’ll all be able to share things that are in our minds and are difficult to share in any other way. Now, before we go in, remember that once we are done, you will have your own smart suit.
“As far as smart suits are concerned, when you climb out, your current attire will have been converted into the only outfit you’ll ever need. We’ll train you how to categorize your wardrobe and control what you are wearing by using your wardrobe compartmentalizations and your neural identification in the Virtual Universe and when we return, you’ll be able to do the same in the real world.” Amber motioned toward the biopods, “There are at least six of these here, more than enough for each of us. We’ll want to get in and once we do, we’ll pull our own lids down, then when you’re ready we’ll each say, ‘Link 1, 2, 3, 5 minutes, 20 years.’”
Further than Before- Pathway to the Stars Page 46