The Hallucigenia Project

by Darren Kasenkow

“So that’s the inspiration for the office view huh?”

  “No,” the man laughed, “my father was an alcoholic and used to beat the shit out of me when I was a kid. I used to hide out at an aquarium store a couple of blocks away. The old guy who owned it knew something was up but didn’t mind me hanging around until it closed, so it became my little oasis. I’d just sit and dream about living in an underwater city. Funny how things turn out isn’t it?” He sat at the desk with his back to the ocean and palms locked across his chest. “I’m Hendrix.”

  John had suspected as much, but the reveal still managed to carry an impact and it wasn’t just because of his name. He seemed fit enough, with broad shoulders and veins rising from his neck that assured excellent circulation and arms that weren’t shy of a curl or two. His hair, silver grey with remnants of black still showing through, looked as though it hadn’t been brushed in a week and a three day growth speckled his jaw line. But it was his eyes though, that grabbed John’s attention. Or, more to the point, his right eye, which was in fact a glass replacement. It took a few seconds to focus but he soon saw that on the inside of the glass eye sat a laser etched dragon, its image a tiny replication of the statue in the centre of the room. It made looking back across the desk at Hendrix strangely awkward.

  “I’m John, but I guess you already knew that.”

  “Of course I did, otherwise you wouldn’t be here. Klementina assures me you have the type of fortitude we can depend on, so the least I could do was meet with you.”

  “We don’t exactly know each other very well but I’ll take the compliment,” John said while deciding not to wait for an invitation and stepping up to the empty chair.

  “How well do we really know anyone?” Hendrix asked with a strained smile. “In your case, we have the advantage of being able to access conduct reports.”

  “Funny that, considering they were supposed to be sealed.”

  “We live in a digital age,” Hendrix emphasized, “and whether we like it or not there’s little that can’t be accessed, assuming its touched electricity of course. Besides, what you were willing to do to try to protect children from monsters is hardly something to be kept hidden. If you ask me you should have received a medal, not get your badge plucked away by insidious little worms.”

  “Not much I can do about it now.”

  “And yet here you are on the other side of the world where, I would suggest, there is something that can be done, or more to the point someone to be protected.”

  “This is a big fucking city with millions of people,” John stated, “so I gotta be honest here and let you know that I don’t understand why you think I’m good for the job when you’ve got so many people here that know this area a whole lot better.”

  “It’s not about knowing the area,” Hendrix said with a wave of his hand, “it’s about willing to do whatever it takes to protect the innocent, something you’ve proven to be important exceptionally well. And you were once a cop which means you can anticipate certain responses we might have to face, without having to worry about seeing something so very familiar torn apart. I guess you could say we’re counting on you keeping focussed where others might not.”

  John tried not to stare at the etched dragon but wasn’t exactly doing a good job. “No offence,” he said as casually as he could, “but things would sure be a lot easier if we can just get to the point. I mean, I’m here aren’t I? No use beating around the bush.”

  Hendrix reached forward and tapped at one of the displays built into the desk. Seconds later, on the other side of the glass, unseen pipes released another round of food. The fish went crazy, snapping at each other and flapping their tales in the battle to eat more and send new streams of bubbles to dance up to the surface.

  “I think that’s fair,” Hendrix replied. “I guess you could say you’ve spent enough time floating in the darkness so why not stir the water and let the light in?”

  “Sounds like a damn good idea if you ask me,” John replied.

  “Then I’ll get to the point.” He leaned forward on his elbows as the blue hue of the room reflected in his glass eye. “Talitha was born with a very special ability. She’s unlike anyone else on the planet, that we know of anyway, and even though she’s safe right here for the moment it’s important we get her to one of the secure houses at the edge of the city. When it comes to the impact we’ve got a rough idea but the reality is it could happen any day. If hell shows up earlier than expected it’s going to be next to impossible to get her to the launch point, so that’s why tomorrow we need to you help get her out.”

  The fish had just about sucked the water clean of food, and John had to wonder if the night was going to be topped off with a visit from a shark.

  “This girl must know something pretty fucking important,” he remarked with a slight hint of frustration.

  “Talitha doesn’t just know something important, she is something important. She’s the prophet of the new dawn.”

  “I’m sure that makes sense to you,” John assured him, “but for me I’m still hanging in the dark and the fish haven’t come to play yet.”

  Hendrix rubbed at the stubble on his chin and stared back at his guest with curiosity. “A smart man like you has probably had enough already of the dramatic mysteries and constant promises of the truth, would I be right?”

  John folded his arms across his chest as a large jellyfish gracefully floated into view. “Considering I’ve come across politicians that were willing to reveal more yeah, you could say that.”

  “Up until now though you haven’t spoken with me,” Hendrix offered. “Now we sit here eye to eye, you and I, and I won’t disrespect you with any more secrets. That’s assuming of course that you’re ready to dive deep into the abyss to face the monsters.”

  “You’re right,” John said, “we are sitting here eye to eye, and that should be evidence enough that I’m not planning on running anywhere with my tail between my legs. As for hanging out with monsters, I’ve already hung around my fair share believe me, so you don’t have to worry about whatever it is you want to tell me. I can handle it.”

  “Oh I’ve no doubt you can probably handle it. But handling something is a lot different to accepting something, even for the bravest amongst us.”

  “I guess there’s only one way to find out,” John said.

  “Indeed,” Hendrix remarked with a slap of his hands against the desk. “Better to burn in the light than wither in the darkness, so I’ll tell you what needs to be known.” He moved his head slightly so that his glass eye reflected the images splashing along the ceiling mirrors. “The world as we know it is going to end, and in a strange kind of way you could say I’m responsible.”

  “That’s one hell of an admission.”

  “Possibly, but then I’m the one that discovered the ancient code hidden in our DNA.”

  “I’m not what you call a science geek,” John said honestly, “if it this code or whatever it is has been there this whole time then how is it that nobody’s found before you did?”

  “Things always become obvious once you see them,” Hendrix replied with a slight shake of his head. “But as far as your question’s concerned I can only guess that it was a case of not seeing the forest for the trees. Science has the ability to reveal so much but at times we only see what we want to see. I would have missed it as well, if it wasn’t for the voices in her head.”

  John couldn’t help but throw a confused look across the desk. “If you’re waiting for me to make a connection between voices in someone’s head and a computer code hidden in blood, you might be waiting for a while.”

  “Progression might be a more fitting word. Before being drawn into the federal machine I was in the private sector and split my time between a handful of clinics across the state. Besides a detour here or there I mainly concentrated on neurologically based diseases, mostly the ones that have no cure and leave sufferers in a flesh and blood ticking time bomb. Talitha was one of my patients, although
she soon became my only patient until it was time to jump ship.” He fanned his fingers towards the ceiling. “Her parents abandoned her when she was two and has lived in an institution ever since. As for her condition, at first I thought it was motor neuron disease but tests cancelled that out. I looked for any sign of tumours or severe neurological damage and ran a river of blood tests but couldn’t determine what was causing her body to shut down.”

  The last traces of food had dissolved now and the water on the other side of the glass had become calm, the fish no longer in battle for sustenance. Hendrix studied the tips of his fingers as if examining for damage and then continued.

  “The truth is I still don’t know. Brain activity seems to be accelerating and yet at the same time there’s physiological corruption, not exactly something you come across every day. Tell me John, would you consider yourself a religious man?”

  The question was a jarring bolt from as left of field as you could get, and John couldn’t help but jerk back slightly in the chair as he wondered how the hell he was supposed to answer.

  “If you’re asking me if I’ve found anything that makes me think there’s someone watching over us who actually gives a shit the answer’s no. If you’re talking about snakes and demons in hell well, I’ve been close enough to smell their putrid breath.”

  “Perhaps it’s true that the devil has a face while an angel has a voice that can be drowned by the wind,” Hendrix suggested. “The thing about religion is when you follow the trail back to the source you’ll always find a vision of some description, but it’s never really a shared discovery and nearly always an event born of isolation. It makes you wonder, doesn’t it, how many spiritual awakenings embedded in our history were neurological events triggered by bad wiring? Today we tend to approach someone who’s sure they have a message from God, or in some cases the devil, with intellectual caution and a long list of medications to chip away at the voices, and yet when texts were written by candlelight the masses could be swayed with a transcript and promises that the other world had been glimpsed.”

  “To be honest I don’t think things have changed too much,” John declared. “The old books seem to still hold the kind of power that would make a government drool, and there’s new crackpots bubbling to the surface every day. When push comes to shove though, we tend to only worry about the dangerous ones.”

  “Perhaps so, but what if these visions that have shaped so much of humanity are a symptom of something we all carry inside of us? What if the ramblings of the mad and the writings of the blessed come from the same place?”

  “It doesn’t matter. People who want to believe will believe and those who don’t won’t, and either way the day comes for each of us sooner or later when we’ll find out if there’s anything on the other side. If you ask me death is for dying and life is for living, and we can’t even seem to get that right.”

  “Living is definitely its own puzzle, no doubt about it.” The doctor stood from the chair and stepped up to the glass, leaving John to look at his blue tinged reflection as he continued. “Talitha wasn’t just having visions, she was communicating with signatures of an intelligence whose whispers have kept alive the flames of imagination throughout our evolution, and she is nothing less than the alpha human to guide the next leap forward. The code hidden in our blood has left trace signals over the centuries, signals that have erupted into our consciousness as grandiose art and religious ideals, but nobody has truly understood the voice deep inside. That is, until now. She understands, and for that reason will become the key to the stars.” He pressed a hand against the glass and turned to face John. “You were right when you said death was for dying and life is for living. Soon though, we’ll have the opportunity to learn of a place that transcends both. Talitha has been chosen to guide the way and that’s why we have to keep her safe until the meeting is ready to take place.”

  John was doing his best to follow but felt his grasp slipping. “Okay I get it, this girl’s important to you, but what I don’t get is why anyone would be looking to hurt her.”

  “Oh they won’t be looking to hurt her, not yet anyway, but I can assure you they’ll be turning every stone to find her. Today we completed her initial upload which logistically could only be done right here, and now we need to move her so that she’s ready for the next stage. First though I think it’s only fitting that you have the chance to say hello.”

  John stiffened in the chair. “You mean she’s here? Now?”

  “Where did you think she would be?”

  “I don’t know, I guess I thought she might be tucked away somewhere nearby but I wasn’t expecting to meet her straight away.”

  “I can understand that,” Hendrix said as the light flickered across the glass eye, “but I’m quite sure she wants to meet you.”

  He took slow purposeful steps to where the wall met the ocean and reached his hand out to the scanner and a door that John hadn’t noticed began to slide open. A soft yet rich blood orange light began to flood into the room. Hendrix greeted the light with a familiar smile and swept his arms in welcome. Then, accompanied by the whirring of a motor, Talitha rolled into the room and any apprehension that John had been harbouring was swiftly stolen by the expression she beamed across to him.

  The metal of the wheelchair seemed to extenuate her small and fragile appearance, and yet there was something powerful in the way she was instantly able to become the centre of attention in such an eccentric room. Brown hair on the edge of curly hung just below her shoulders and emerald green eyes peered wide with an innocent wonder that also promised deeper knowing. Her small frame was dressed in blue jeans and a pink t-shirt showing several characters of a cartoon John didn’t recognize, and her brittle arms rested awkwardly on the chair with hands that were clearly contorted. A smile beautiful enough to light up the darkest of skies appeared even though damaged nerves left the corner of her mouth to droop, and as he was about to jump to his feet she manoeuvred the controls and whirred her way to him before he had the chance.

  “Hey there,” Talitha said with a curious tilt of her head.

  “Hey there yourself,” John said with a grin, leaning forward to match eye level.

  “Are you the man that’s going to drive me tomorrow?”

  “Word travels fast around here huh?”

  “I thought you’d be bigger,” she giggled. “I’ve never met an Australian before. You talk kinda funny.”

  “That’s what happens when you get punched by kangaroos too many times.”

  “I don’t think so,” Talitha laughed with a jerk of her head. “I’ve seen a kangaroo before and they wouldn’t do that.” Her brow furrowed and head steadied. “Klementina told me you have a cat, and that you brought your cat with you all the way here. Is that really true?”

  John nodded that it was. “His name’s Bobbie, and right now he’s curled up back in my hotel room. Maybe you’ll get the chance to meet him one day. I’m sure he’d like that.”

  “I’ve never met an Australian cat before. I bet they’re bigger and tougher than our cats.”

  “I don’t know about tougher, but he’s definitely a little bigger than most.”

  “Did Doctor Hendrix tell you why we have to move tomorrow?”

  “Sort of,” he replied with a quick glance across the desk.

  Talitha seemed to be struggling to get comfortable but it was just damaged nerves causing her body to continuously move. “The Star People taught me how to talk with computers today,” she said. “Now lots of people are going to be looking for me but I can’t stay here. If I do, I might not have the chance to see them. The Star People won’t be happy if I can’t see them.”

  “I don’t know who these Star People are but if getting you out of here means keeping you safe then I’ll do my best to get you where you need to be.”

  Hendrix walked around the desk and stood beside the electric dragon. “Down here we have a good chance of making it through the impact, but movement on the surface is
going to be next to impossible once the city’s been turned upside down and Talitha has an appointment that must be kept. Now that certain things have been set in motion it’s time for her to prepare for the next stage.”

  “The Star People won’t be here for long,” Talitha explained, “so I don’t want to be late.”

  John indulged in a moment of hesitation but was never not going to ask. “Do you feel like telling me who these Star People are?”

  “That’s easy,” she replied, “they’re my friends from the inside, my special friends.”

  “I’m confused,” he admitted. “If you’re special friends are on the inside, why would you worry about being late? I mean, aren’t they with you already?”

  Talitha’s head rocked with a burst of laughter and her arms banged against the chair. “Of course they’re with me already! But inside I talk with the dreams they left behind, and now it’s time to see the ones that dream.” The smile on her face softened as she observed John’s confusion. “The dreams are inside you too if you listen closely.”

  Hendrix stepped forward and rested a hand on her shoulder. “This little girl here is all the proof you need that angels don’t always come with wings, and when she talks about making friends with dreams she’s speaking so eloquently about something so very powerful.”

  A playful twinkle glistened in his eye as bubbles washed overhead. “Throughout history,” he continued, “there’s been many a conversation only, humans being human, things can get lost in translation. Still, between insane ramblings, self mutilation and spectacular artwork, those whispered conversations have dropped way points on our progression as a species, and who knows how many triggers there are? The burning bush may have been psychoactive for all we know, and from that we have Moses talking to and being anointed by God. Was the same bush at the top of the mountain that gave us the ten commandments? Or what about the inner reflections and paths to self enlightenment so treasured by Buddhists? From what well do Hindu’s draw more than three hundred million gods from?”