The Theron Residency (Brides of Theron Book 4)

by Anthony Lorino, Rebecca

  The light softly filtered behind the window shades. Not being able to sleep, he walked around the room, finding himself lost in his thoughts. Before lying down he witnessed the rainbow of colors that painted the sky behind the curtain. The darkness may have lasted for a blink of an eye after the setting of Sirius A before the light of the star Sirius B rose over the horizon. Ceran stalked his way over to his bed and was out soon after he closed his eyes. Ceran couldn’t sleep. He missed the warmth that Laura had provided under the shared covers of his bed. It was like she had always been there though this was a relatively new arrangement to him. He closed his eyes and tried to drift off to sleep.

  His dreams were vivid that night. There were images of crystal houses with no roofs and misty skies. He watched her as she slept soundly on the soft bed and kissed her closed rosebud lips. She opened her blue eyes and with all seriousness of the moment watched him as he lay down beside her. She lifted her hand and ran her fingers through his hair which caused him to close his eyes. It felt so real. Before he knew it, he was kissing her hungrily and pulling her toward him with a need so great it hurt. He caressed her breast and she moaned quietly closing her eyes at the feeling of his touch.

  “Quite a dream I reckon.” He heard in his head. It took him a moment to place the voice of the man it belonged to. Zion. “It is time to resume your training. Breakfast is ready so I suggest you be quick about it.” Zion chuckled as the sound of his footsteps got further and further away. Ceran cracked his eyes open and looked over to the counter across the room. Zion was sitting on one of the chairs with a foot extended outward. He had his attention focused on a tablet computer as he emptied the food from his spoon into his beaked mouth.

  “So, if you can speak directly to my mind are you able to see my dreams as well?” Ceran said as he slid his pants on one leg at a time.

  Zion raised what would be his eyebrows if he had them, “Wouldn’t you like to know.” When Ceran gave him a look bursting with frustration, Zion chuckled and said, “Not without your consent. I do have the ability to see what your mind projects when I follow a particular process. It’s a way that I can transfer my conscious thoughts to you directly. There will be an exercise that requires this method of thought transfer later in your training.” He scooped in another mouthful. “It looked like you were having such a good dream. The smile on your face was something to see.”

  “Humph…” Ceran zipped his pants and looked under his cot to find his shoes. He put them on before joining Zion at the counter. “What’s for breakfast?”

  “I didn’t know what you would like.” Zion pushed a tray over to him with a dome cover. When he removed the cover and looked into the bowl in front of him, he was overcome with a state of revulsion. Suspended in a slimy liquid seemed to be brown worm like creatures thrashing about in all directions within the confines of the bowl.

  He wretched, “Is this a joke? This has got to be the most disgusting thing I’ve ever seen.” Zion reached over the counter and dipped his blue fingers into the bowl catching one of the brown, wriggling insects. Ceran almost threw up as he watched the small worm be snatched up by Zion’s powerful beak. He watched as Zion extended his neck three times to force the thing down his throat.

  “These are a delicacy here. You should give it a try.” Zion said reaching for yet another.

  Ceran pushed the bowl his way and said, “Have at them. I would rather starve.”

  Zion chuckled, “Have it your way.” He helped himself to what was left in the bowl. Ceran couldn’t watch him anymore and excused himself to the bathroom. When he came out, the offending creatures in question were gone. In their place was a plate of steaming eggs and cooked vegetables. “Given the fact that you wouldn’t eat the breakfast I had ordered for myself, I went ahead and ordered you this.”

  Ceran’s mouth was watering. He did not realize just how hungry he was. He sat down and tore into the food with haste. He did not waste time talking. He still couldn’t figure out the man sitting across from him. Zion seemed content to watch him eat. This guy’s mannerisms were freakish. When he took the last bite, he asked, “So, what will we be learning today?”

  “I figured we would have a further look at your hand to hand combat skills. I certainly don’t want to have to repeat yesterday and wait for you to conjure up tea instead of a suitable weapon.” Zion smirked.

  Ceran shook his head and pushed his plate away from him, “Well, let’s get to it then.” He walked over to the holographic chamber. Zion seemed to be in no rush as he returned his attention to the tablet in his hand. Ceran took this time to stretch out his body. He was the best in his class when it came to sparring in the academy and Zion should find him a worthy opponent. When Zion was ready, he walked slowly and intently to the box with the crystal slides and picked one that looked opalescent and slid it into the slot. He opened the door and looked at Ceran to enter. Once they were both in the room and the door was shut behind them, Zion activated the program. The appearance of the metal walls started to change into one of a gym of sorts. “Is there a particular fighting style you would like to focus on? I am a master of several forms of hand to hand combat?”

  “Use whatever fighting methods you wish and try to hit me. That is your goal.” Zion stood with his hands clasped behind his back in the center of the circle. Ceran thought about asking how he would defend himself with his hands behind his back but thought better of it. Zion always seemed to know what he was doing. Ceran sprang around on his feet a bit, warming up his body as he threw a couple of punches into the air to loosen up. When Zion made no attempt to move, he walked closer to the edge of the circle on the ground. Zion nodded for him to proceed inside the circle. As Ceran charged him inside the circle, Zion gave him an odd look and Ceran flew backward and fell on his ass on the floor just outside the circle.

  Zion chuckled, “You’re going to have to do better than that. Come on! Hit me!” Ceran gave him a harsh look and pushed himself up off the floor. He entered the circle again and tried to figure out by what means he was pushing him out. Zion’s hands were still held behind his back. Ceran circled him slowly and watched his reaction. He ducked quickly down to the floor and reached to sweep Zion’s legs out from under him. Zion bent over and without touching him, pushed him away again with just a look. Ceran was on all fours as his knees and hands scraped the floor.

  “How are you doing that? How do you expect me to hit you when I can’t even get near you?” Ceran yelled out in frustration. He had hit the ground with a closed fist before he pushed himself off the ground.

  “This is something you must figure out on your own,” Zion said calmly.

  Ceran was starting to think about what he had learned yesterday. Intent. Was that what he must draw on to hit Zion? He wondered if there was a tie to this lesson. Could he conjure a weapon in this simulation? Could he turn his fist into a weapon that had the potential to propel Zion backward? He closed his eyes and opened his hands with palms facing Zion in the center of the circle. When he opened his eyes, he pushed with all his focus and inner power to knock Zion on his ass. Just as he let the force of the focused power go, he flew backward so far that his back hit hard against the wall and he slid down to his knees. The wall was 20 feet from the outer edge of the circle. Breathless, he yelled, “What am I doing wrong?”

  “You can’t win without the intent to do so. My intent is that you do not strike me. I push that intent out in this arena and the harder you try to hit me the harder you fall.” Zion said as he paced back and forth in the center of the circle.

  Ceran realized he must breach Zion’s thoughts to win and tried again and again.

  Chapter 20

  Laura went to bed that night happily exhausted. The events of what seemed to span three days’ Theron time. She was used to the longer days that she had adapted to on Theron so she couldn’t imagine just how many Earth days had passed since she had arrived in Agartha. She would have happily stayed longer at the library to complete her research if she had
been able to stay awake. Her time there was pleasant. It almost reminded her of the first year of medical school, where she spent more time in the library and the Gross Anatomy lab than she did in her dorm room. At least she didn’t leave smelling the traces of formaldehyde on her clothes when she left the spacious building.

  Anora brought her to the library in Porthologos and introduced her to a man named Mikos before she left to take care of some personal business. Mikos was a very handsome man that stood about 15 feet tall. He brought her through intricate gardens of fragrant herbs and flowers that attracted many kinds of winged insects, birds, and other beings of infinite colors that danced around the blooms happily. The gardens surrounded large fountains with water that had all the colors of the rainbow inside of them. The water danced from fountain to fountain with a beautiful song. Many people were outside quietly talking or reading their notes while they relaxed on the many stone benches around the gardens.

  Mikos turned to look down at her and said, “Yes, indeed our water does sing. It is as alive as you and I are. The water in the gardens, as well as the gemstones embedded in the floors and walls, play an important part in using the library. The music you hear is from the fountains that are singing their melodies of deep love. This will harmonize and balance the energy of every single cell in your body. The gemstones do the same thing. The action of both will help you bring your cells to a state of balance so that they will vibrate at the proper frequency that is best for attuning with the chairs in the alcoves. That is where you will review your crystal source materials.”

  They continued to walk along the paths up to one of the largest buildings she had yet to see in Agartha. The library of Porthologos was an architectural marvel. She walked up the granite stairs embedded with diamonds and semi-precious stones such as emeralds, rubies, and, sapphires to name a few, up to the enormous doors that were even taller than Mikos himself. They walked into the Circular alcove that had hallways that branched out in many directions like a gear. In the center of the room was a giant spiral staircase that went on for what seemed like forever. She would swear that if she climbed up the unending flights of steps she would see a door that opened up to the universe. The energy of the room began to overtake her and make her feel more alive.

  He turned to her when she gasped and said, “Our library is vast. It covers 456 square miles of land. It contains the most organized, cataloged historical records that exist in the entire Universe. The storage vault contains an infinite number of crystal slides that are ordered and delivered right to you within minutes so that you can view them on one of our crystal projectors. When you are finished with them, the crystal slides are accurately returned to their storage location. We have yet to misplace any historical record on file here. Many beings from alternate universes come here to access our library due to its completeness and accuracy.”

  They walked onto a hover platform with handrails. He punched in coordinates. “I have arranged for you to have an assistant available to you. I know that your time is short so I have provided an assistant to remain with you until you are finished with your work. I hope that you will find that acceptable.”

  Laura was floored when she entered a circular alcove with a chair similar to one that you might see in a dentist’s office. She was introduced to one of the many assistants that would be helping her. She stayed at the library for longer than she had planned. It was hard not to considering all the knowledge she had at her fingertips. They showed her how to use the chair first, then how to call a record. She had to sit in the chair with two small metallic round disks that were supported by curved brackets that protruded out from the headrest and hovered just over her temples without touching her skin. All she had to do was to relax and think about what she most wanted to know. She thought that the waters from outside must have done a good job because just seconds after she lay back on the soft chair, a record was called from the archive.

  When the record arrived, it was like a holographic screen hovering over her lap. As she focused on the image, it was as if she was drawn inside of it and became an active participant in the memory she was viewing. She had thought about the many former lives that she had lived as described to her by Anora. She wasn’t disappointed in anything she saw as Anora stories were all true. She spent many lifetimes on many other planets before coming and settling on Earth. She was a medicine woman in a Native American Indian tribe, a prostitute in the old west, and several times was a Celtic priestess that performed rituals to keep the veil intact between the realms. She found that many lifetimes where she was awakened by Anora as promised, but several lives she chose not to wake. Instead, she was attracted to the thrill of her life at the time. Her last life was an example of making poor choices. In that life, she was a beatnik hippie flower child who lost her life to a drug overdose. If she hadn’t died of an overdose, she would have died from HIV resulting from the frequent use of shared injection needles.

  She cried, and she laughed. She actively participated in the history she saw on the screen. She was told that once her vibration was tuned to the chair, it connects you directly to the mainframe of the internal library computer. Once she was connected, she was wirelessly operating through thoughts and feelings to take her anywhere she wished to go in the Galaxy. She navigated through the files using her mind by utilizing her thoughts as a compass for coordinates to where she wanted to go. It felt natural to her and the longer she did it, the easier it became. The more memories she uncovered, the more she could recall about her abilities and healing gifts. Now, she knew how to use that indigo light that emanated from her fingertips at her will. When she left her alcove for a short walk in hall to stretch her aching legs, she found that she did not touch the ground as she had when she arrived, but hovered just above it much like she had done in her past.

  Her thirst for knowledge was unquenchable. She would have stayed longer if she could only keep her eyes open. She had written notes in the book that Mikos gave her. It was a bound volume with pages of smooth, line-less paper. Each page was like touching silk and had the added beauty of soft petals from flowers that were embedded in each one. The pages were fragrant with floral and grassy scents. She closed the book and eventually gave into her need for sleep. The assistant led her to a transport craft who set the coordinates of her housing in Telos to her bed. When she arrived at the crystal abode, Anora was waiting for her and woke her up.

  “How did you find the library?” Anora asked.

  Laura stretched her arms above her head and her legs out in front of her and mumbled, “I have never experienced anything so enlightening.” She tucked the book under her arm and walked down the ramp of the craft. Anora hovered over to the house and opened the door. Laura hovered along behind her and smiled when Anora noticed. She stopped at the door and gave Anora a tight hug and kiss on her cheek, “I remember now. Thank you for everything you have ever done for me. I love you, mother.”

  “I love you, too.” She replied with a crack in her typically stable voice. “You’d better get some rest. You look exhausted sweetheart. Off to bed with you.” She pushed her in the direction of her room. Laura slipped under the covers and fell into a deep sleep. Her memories playing in a loop in the background of her subconscious.

  

  Laura woke up to a cacophony of tiny, high pitched, shouting voices. She rubbed her eyes and stretched before swinging her legs over the edge of the bed. Anora must have someone over she thought, and she went to shower and dress. When she was done, she walked toward the kitchen area of the house. As she got closer, the sound of bickering back and forth was getting louder.

  “I did order it Emberli! I told you that I did!” Windy shouted.

  “I just wanted to make sure, Windy. You know just how forgetful you can be. The girl has got to be famished. She spent all that time in the library!” Emberli said.

  “For the last time, Emberli, I ordered the food. Can we talk about something else already?” Windy said as she blew the hair away from
her eyes. Her cheeks were bright with color.

  She heard the voices of two new arrivals in the kitchen space. “I brought the clothes that Anora asked for,” Rainy shouted.

  “And, I have the shoes.” shouted Terra.

  Laura came out from behind the room divider screen to a scene of complete and total disorder. Emberli was shooting flames out from her fingertips to warm the kettle. Windy was putting some tea leaves into a mug and the two new arrivals were struggling to carry the large items that they brought in. It was surprising that something so loud could come from such small, tiny little Barbie doll-sized bodies. They all looked at her at the same time and their jaws dropped as if they were all caught red handed doing something that they weren’t supposed to be doing.

  “Hello,” came a harmony of voices.

  “Hello. I would say that it is very nice to meet you, but I know from my studies at the library that we are all old friends.” That made Windy and Emberli tear up as Fern and Terra dropped what was in their hands onto the long wooden table that served as a counter and grabbed each other’s hands. “Is that tea for me?” She approached the kettle now steaming from Emberli’s efforts.

  Emberli smiled brightly, “Why, yes it is! It should be nice and hot by now.” She hovered over the kettle and struggled to pick it up. The steam escaped the spout with a slosh of hot water following behind. As much as Laura wanted to help by taking the heavy kettle out of her hands, she didn’t. She knew how proud Emberli was of doing things all by herself. If it had been Windy, she would have offered before the little elemental tried to lift it. It is something Windy would have expected from someone larger than herself. Emberli sloshed the water uneasily into the mug with the loose tea leaves and put the kettle back with a look of satisfaction and a swipe of her forearm over her brow.