by Leia Howard
First Auraria filled up, then Albuquerque, then the four other large settler towns in other conservatorships were filled one-by-one. Due to overwhelming application demand, Auraria was filled within the first year, in three large batches. Albuquerque took closer to three years with numerous smaller waves and we have the most residents. In total, it took about eight years to settle almost all resident requests. We recently opened a seventh Psycept residential area due to a slew of new residency applications. I heard if the seventh settlement of La Loche in the Western Subarctic fills up, then either a second settlement in the Central Plains Conservatorship or Kalaallit Nunaat of the Arctic Conservatorship will likely be the next options. Only the conservatorships of Cochise, which borders Mexico and has our single largest military base; Llano Estacado, the smallest conservatorship; Plateau which is the narrowest and borders Canada; and the Arctic are without any Psycept presence.
Cases are not assigned by proximity but by specialty. The category of TouchVoyant includes PsyChometrists, Blood and Bone Sages, and PsyMemori like me. PsyChometrists can read an object’s history and were the most numerous of our category. Sages consume either blood or bones, a small portion was usually enough, and could then answer questions about the blood or bone originator. Sages tended to work in pairs as questions were required, not for their abilities to work, but for them to focus on specific things and not drift in the sensations provided by the blood or bones. As there is a reluctance to send blood and bone samples never to be returned, their criminal case work was lighter. Sages can also do other things, so many of their cases are civilian. Bone Sages tend to work in funeral homes or bind bones to the earth, thus freeing the spirit. They worked well against haunts that might dwell but require bone to enact a binding ceremony. Blood Sages are gaining in popularity, performing sowing and harvest rituals. Usually a shaman or medicine person accompanied them in the ritual to reassure the participants that the ritual was not harmful to the land or the people who donated the blood.
PsyMemori are the least abundant of our group, we connected with memories of a person, not an object. I’m not aware of any others in SWACon, which is odd since we are the largest Psycept refuge. In fact, I only know of a few dozen PsyMemori on other conservatorships. We don’t interact much with each other, but from what I understand, most of the others use a living person to connect with the memories. They tend to be mental health or neuro specialists working within the conservatorships they live in, alongside PsyPaths like empaths and telepaths. I work mostly missing person cases, which PsyChometrists also tend to work.
After reviewing my recent consultations, I conclude I’ve not worked a case for Canada in a few weeks. However, today’s consultation was for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Astoria, Oregon, Cascadia Province. No matter, I quickly read the case to refresh my memory, but realize that this was assigned to me as secondary which means I have no prior case knowledge. Though Psycepts accept our primary cases, secondary cases are assigned on an as needed basis. We can refuse the case once we receive the material, but acceptance is only needed from the primary Psycept. For now, I give the consultation a cursory read. I then put on my gloves and walk to the conference room.
Either Lowell or Detective Tamez prepared the PlateauCon representatives on the etiquette of meeting me as neither tried to shake my hand. I nodded hello to Liaison Lowell, a man in his mid-fifties with light brown hair, which had mostly turned grey in the past couple of years. Detective Tamez, a short woman in her mid-forties of Latinx origin, introduced me to the two representatives.
“Gray, this is Ranger Pallaton Tyeeson and Detective Wakiza Sahkonteicson of the Plateau Conservatorship. They are here to discuss identifying a body they found on their conservatorship. Gentlemen, this is Gray Graham, the PsyMemore you asked to speak with.”
“Hello, Ms. Graham. I’m Detective Wakiza. First, is it PsyMemore or PsyMemori? I am not sure of the distinction for our report.”
“PsyMemore is singular, so I am a PsyMemore. PsyMemori is plural, so I am one of dozens of PsyMemori. Latin, what a trip. And please, call me Gray.”
“Thank you, Gray. Five nights ago, we discovered a body twenty miles within our territorial border with Canada. There was no identification on the body, nothing in the pockets, and nothing around the body. We ran fingerprints and dental x-rays through our national and international databases and found no hits. We have contacted two PsyChometrists, one on the Subarctic West conservatorship and the other in Auraria. Neither could get a reading on the clothes, jacket, gloves, hat, or watch. It seems that the items were brand new, just out of the package, and were donned just on the other side of our border. The PsyChometrists said that the clothes did not have any impressions of names or locations, there were no spoken words that they could hear.”
“Both PsyChometrists recommended that we speak with a Bone or Blood Sage, or you,” Ranger Pallaton continued. “They said you could bespeak the dead, while other PsyMemori worked on live individuals. We are reluctant to involve Bone or Blood Sages. Frankly, we find it a bit obscene that they would consume a dead body to obtain answers. Therefore, they are our last resort. The cause of death was a brain aneurysm, I hope that will not interfere with your ability to read the body.”
“Do you have the body here on SWACon, or will I need to travel to Plateau? In either case, Saturday is best for me to do the reading. There are things that need to be done to prepare the body, and I have my work schedule to consider. And, no, the aneurysm should not interfere.”
“We took the liberty of bringing the body with us in expectation that either you would say yes, or we would need to consult a sage,” Detective Wakiza replied. “Will the preparations take two days to complete?”
“No,” I answered. “Maybe only half a day total to complete. I need whoever is handling the body to wear PPE, personal protective equipment. This is to include a hair cap, booties, eye protection, disposable coveralls, a mask, and latex or nitrile gloves. They are to wash the body in an antiseptic wash, like Chlorhexidine or Iodine. This includes the face and hair. I also need the mouth rinsed out with mouthwash. Then, the body is to be placed on a gurney covered by new sheet that is opened by a person wearing fresh PPE. A new pillowcase is to be placed over the body’s head, I don’t want to see their face, nor do I wish to see any images associated with the head. A separate clean sheet is then to be draped over the entire body. To minimize anyone being in contact with the body, this should be done Saturday morning as I will perform the reading after twelve noon.”
“Is that all the preparation that is needed, Gray?” Detective Tamez asked with slight sarcasm. With Sully out, Detective Tamez is my back up handler and will be responsible for seeing the preparation carried out.
“Nope,” I grinned in reply. “The room that the reading is to be performed in needs to be cleaned with bleach, from the ceiling to the floor and all the cabinetry and walls in between. I will not do the reading in the police morgue. Instead, I suggest that the hospital be contacted to see if we can use a room in the lower west wing. The wing should be closed and available as they only open it during periods of overfill. The hospital has a morgue entrance that can be used to transport the body to and from the hospital. It would probably be a good idea to wash the body in the hospital morgue and then transport it to the room.
“Finally, no observers for the reading, either in the room or outside the room, no direct cameras feeds, and no video recording. I will use my voice recorder as it’s dedicated and not capable of doing anything else. These are non-negotiable terms. If the room at the hospital is unavailable, then we’ll think of somewhere else, but it will not be at the police morgue. Too many dead bodies in proximity may affect my reading. And Detective Tamez, this will take the place of my usual Saturday consultation, so only one package should be delivered tomorrow. A petition for this case should be created in the Psycept system, if it hasn’t already been. No headshots attached to the file yet, please. I know I’ll have to give verbal informat
ion of body at receipt. I’ll sign off just before the reading. Any questions?”
“Why can’t we record or observe this? We may need this as evidence in our investigation,” Ranger Pallaton asked.
“In order to safeguard my identity, I do not allow my face to be recorded during my sessions. Since I’ll be in direct contact with the body, I won’t allow the body to be recorded in the reading session either. So, not even a camera recording just my hands touching the body is approved by me. Though you are the petitioners, my ultimate informant is the person this body belongs to and their privacy must be preserved as much as possible. No observers, I never allow anyone to observe my readings. The voice recorder will have to be sufficient.” Since I have no idea if the person would welcome me staying after death or be easily offended, I always err on the side of caution with regards to banning most recording and observers. Plus, I don’t like people looking at me like a zoo exhibit or a documentary subject.
Liaison Lowell jumped in, “Gray has an impeccable record of closing cases. That is why the PsyChometrists recommended her by name. If Gray’s requests are not to your satisfaction, then we can recommend reputable Bone or Blood Sages here on SWACon. They will only require a small amount of tissue sample. A little bit of untreated blood would be best. Or a small scrape of bone that can be obtained from a needle bore should be sufficient.”
Ranger Pallaton and Detective Wakiza looked at each other and seemed to reach an accord. “We agree to the terms set forth by Gray,” Detective Wakiza said.
“Are you able to help with the arrangements, Detective Tamez?” asked Ranger Pallaton.
“Yes, I can help with the arrangements. Also, Gray, I went ahead and brought your consultation packages with me today. Just work whichever this week and I’ll let Sully know to only bring two packages on Monday. Also, can you send me an email list of preparations. I think that will be easier to work from than my memory.”
“Sure,” I replied. I quickly used my tablet to type up a project task list and sent it to Detective Tamez. She checked her phone and confirmed receipt, then shared it with Detective Wakiza and Ranger Pallaton. “Is that all you need me for? I should return to work.” I asked.
“Looks like that is all for now. I will talk to you tomorrow on the conference call with Helki and I might see you when I come to grab Dani for lunch,” Liaison Lowell replied.
“Great. It was nice meeting you two and I look forward to working with you Saturday. Thank you for working on the arrangements, Detective Tamez.”
CHAPTER NINE
I hurry back to my office and read the case in depth prior to the afternoon reading. The petitioner was the RCMP, thus the details of the report were very thorough. Remnants of a small boat and a few articles of clothing had washed ashore near Astoria. There was no way to identify the boat, no markings were found on the scant pieces of wood. The clothes were also not identifiable. An alert went out to other coastal towns along the northern Pacific to see if any other debris had washed ashore. While other clothing and small bits of boat were found, still nothing that could be used as identification. The Canadian Coast Guard was sent out to likely points of origin based on reverse drift analysis, but nothing was seen. The Psycept case was a last-ditch effort to try to get a reading off the few pieces of clothing.
The primary case number was assigned to a PsyChometrist on the Great Basin Conservatorship, and I was the secondary to maximize the likelihood of a positive reading. We had both received several articles of clothing. I may not get a reading if the clothes were not valued and the PsyChometrist might have interference from the salt. Some minerals disrupted the psychic emissions of objects and it’s difficult to remove salt imbedded in cotton weave. With a sense of dread, I realized both cases were created Sunday early afternoon and my package had arrived via special military courier Sunday night. I kicked myself for not looking more carefully at the case when I logged it received on Monday. I hadn’t looked over the details, nor did I notice the little icon indicating it was linked to another case.
I performed my normal ritual on the table in my consultation corner. I used the time to quiet my mind. Trying to do a reading while feeling anxious is not helpful. The first and second fragments of shirt did not yield a clear lake. Instead, I’m on a frozen block of ice with fog rising and swirling in the cold air and there are no memory threads to be found. My brain certainly had a dramatic way of translating the classic “the reading/future is cloudy” schtick of old. Quieting down my mind again, I continue with the next object reading.
The impression from the third article of clothing, part of a shoe, is very faint, but I can capture one fleeting thought, “I’m glad that Marnie couldn’t come with me. She has little sailing experience and I’d feel awful if something happened to her. Damn squall. Psycept speaking, end of impression. I am not even able to get a glimpse of Marnie from the person’s mind. No prior memories arose, but I can say that the mind voice is male. I’m sorry I cannot get more; the person’s mind is very chaotic and hazy.” What I didn’t say is that the article was too light in sentimentality to carry me to the heavier thoughts. The mind lake was slow to appear, and the memory thread was a gossamer short ribbon, and this was the only memory on it. That led me to believe that the shoe is not well-loved, but maybe he was wearing it when a significant event happened. This little part of a shoe was trying its best to link me to the weightier memories but is unable to forge the path.
The fourth and final piece, the bill of a ballcap, hit the jackpot. There’s a delay between me touching the cloth and speaking as I’m wading through the memory rope trying to consolidate pertinent bits of information. Growing up in northern Texas and now living in Albuquerque, I have no nautical experience. On the other hand, the memory holder has extensive sailing experience. There is a slight period of adjustment as I take a crash course on sailing to ascertain useful bits of information from gibberish.
“I’m on my father’s small, sturdy sailing vessel, an open water catamaran, or cat. It is night and the boat is set up with a windvane to steer. I wake every hour or so to check the trim, weather, heading, and a brief lookout for other ships.
“I went out for a three-day deep-sea fishing excursion and was heading into my final day before returning to port. The cat is not comfortable for long distance sailing but can easily be operated by one sailor. There’s a small cabin; it houses a captains’ chair, one bunk, a dinette table with two small bench chairs, a pocket galley, some radio equipment on a wall shelf, and a hand-operated head. Dad and I usually only go thirty or so miles offshore to fish.
“This time, I was alone, though. I planned on surprising my girlfriend, Marnie, who loves to freshwater fish but does not sail much. We had both originally taken the week off from work, and the sailing was to be a getaway, but she was asked to fill in last-minute at some work conference. My usual off-shore fishing buddies were working, and my parents were on a European vacation. I decided to go fishing alone but planned to return to take Marnie out for the weekend. Stupidly, I had not told anyone of my solo plans.
“I awake from a light slumber as I register a sudden plunge in temperature. I make a cursory check of the navigation unit, then go on deck and saw a squall line behind me, bearing down fast. I try to see if I should attempt to go behind the line and steer clear of the squall, or if I should heave-to and ride it out. As I am checking the squall line to determine the cloud margins and maybe make out the rain direction, a deadhead collides with the port hull and jolts me overboard. Unfortunately, I get tangled in the deadhead and dragged from the boat.
“Psycept speaking, I’ve written down the coordinates, time, and date and will call the Canadian Coast Guard with it. This happened six days ago, but I do not yet sense death. The person’s name is Gregory Sammons and the name of the catamaran is Betty Rose. Signing off now, written report to follow.”
I feel sick to my stomach, the package has been with me since Monday, but it is Wednesday, and I am just now reading the materials
sent. I did not originally approve the petition so did not know to expect the package. The PsyChometrist was the primary, I received the package and just placed it in the order of oldest case number first. When I logged all the case numbers as received on Monday, the case was not marked urgent. I pulled up the Psycept database from my consultation laptop, hoping to see that the PsyChometrist read the package and provided the necessary information for rescue. My case was linked to the PsyChometrist case, which allowed me to bypass the usual firewall and view the originating case number. No luck, the PsyChometrist was unable to get anything through the salt interference.
I quickly carried my laptop and notepad to the desk to place a call to the Canadian Coast Guard number listed as a secondary point of contact on the case. Normally, any interaction with the petitioner was through our police division to protect Psycept anonymity and to follow proper notification and other protocols. But there’s no time to bring Detective Tamez up to speed nor for her to call RCMP and them to call the Canadian Coast Guard.
“Hello. I am with the Psycept unit of the Bosque region of the Southwestern Alliance Conservatorship. I have urgent information to convey regarding a possible six-day survivor of a man overboard incident. May I please speak with Lieutenant Commander Bedard?”
While I was waiting for LCDR Bedard, I sent a quick text to Detective Tamez.
URGENT: Case number 02-032-241-6975-01. The person is in distress/still alive. I am on hold with the Canadian Coast Guard. I got the package Monday, but just read it today. No urgent flag listed on the case in the Psycept system and I am only the secondary. Can you see why this wasn’t marked urgent or that no one contacted me to try to get an early read? I’ll call you after I get off the phone with the Coast Guard.