She heard Teddie think, Okay Ariel, now it’s your turn.
And Lola wondered, What next?
For she and Ariel had shared a secret for decades now. Ariel had never been particularly fascinated by other planets or by outer space, but she knew that her mother was. As Ariel made the difficult decision to settle on Mars, she made her mother an incredible offer.
“I know that you’d love to go instead of me, Mom, and it’s not possible. And I know that you’re going to worry about me like crazy, and I know that communication will be limited. So let’s make this easy all around. Drop in any time.”
“Ariel, I don’t even know if I can find you on Mars,” she had said.
“I bet a telepathic mom can find her child’s mind anywhere in the universe,” Ariel had countered.
“What if it’s, you know, a private moment,” Lola had worried aloud.
Ariel giggled. “You’ve got manners, Mom. If something intimate is going on I trust you to come back later, and I trust you to keep my secrets. So come on over, look around. Study the two moons of Mars overhead and enjoy the stars in an alien sky. Reassure yourself that I’m safe and happy any time you want.”
Good old practical Ariel. Lola had taken her up on the offer, at least every so often, and it had made Lola’s life so much richer, and so much easier. She wished now that she could find a way to thank her child for such a wonderful gift. But here she was, back in her own aching body, in the hospice bed, with hardly the capacity to do anything anymore. She didn’t think that she even had the strength left to find Ariel, so far away. Then in her mind she heard her daughter’s voice, and Ariel spoke with clarity.
“There is something important that I want, no I need you to do for me, Mom,” Ariel said.
Lola flickered her eyes open and saw that Teddie was next to the bed, talking quietly into the com on her wrist. Teddie brought her hand up to her ear to listen privately. She nodded and turned to her mother, speaking in a voice that was unusually loud for Teddie.
“Mom. Listen to me. Ariel really, really needs you to do something for her. Please, can you focus?”
Focus? Now? She would try.
“You’re going to ride with me again. It’s not going to be nearly as long a trip as we just took, and not nearly as difficult. We’re going to Ireland. There is a blind old man there and when you see him, you need to enter his mind. He has given you his permission. You need to go in and see what he sees.”
That was it? Just see it? What good could that possibly do?
“Ariel says that your doing this means the world to her, Mom. Can you manage this for her?”
Lola nodded weakly.
Teddie was right. The trip was quick, and the old man she spoke of sat at a wooden table in a cluttered room, holding his head in his hands. A bottle of Jameson sat on the table next to him, and he looked like he’d consumed a good bit of it.
Lola took her time moving her consciousness from Teddie into the elderly stranger. Once she had settled in, she lost her sight. So the man was blind. Lola gained back the ability to hear, however, a skill that Teddie’s traveling body lacked. She heard Ariel’s voice, coming over some kind of communication device in the room.
“Mom, Teddie has left you there for a bit, so she can go back to her real body and communicate with me. This man is Cillian; you’ve heard of him before. He’s a prophet and my friend and you are hearing me through his mind. He’s going to show you the future now, the far future. Just look at it for me—that’s all I ask. That, and know that I love you.”
Lola wished there was a way to tell her daughter that she loved her too, but there was none. The best way she could show her love was to honor Ariel’s request, so she turned her attention to what this Cillian was seeing.
It was the year 2999. He knew it, so she knew it. They were in a city, but he didn’t know the name of it, only that it was a new place that had been built after the awful times more than six hundred years earlier. Cillian was incredibly happy, because the city was full of people—laughing happy people, most of whom were gathering into a queue of some sort, like they were planning to board public transportation. Were they all going somewhere?
Of course. She knew it as soon as Cillian knew it. It was nearly midnight on New Year’s Eve. They had kept the same calendar, shared that same fascination for watching the nines roll into zeroes. The crowd was as relieved as Lola had been at midnight of 1999 when there were no bombs, no apocalypse, no disaster at all in spite of the many predictions. There was joy as the streets remained devoid of aliens, of vengeful angels, of aggressors of any sorts on this night of special celebration.
On top of a distant stage she saw that a flaming orange torch was being passed from an elder to a child, and the image was recreated on the countless screens lining the street as a group on stage blew into conch shells in some kind of ancient traditional call for love and peace. The sound of a beautiful chanting began, and she and Cillian both knew that is was intended to be a farewell to the pain of the past. The chanting coalesced into what could only be a countdown as tens of thousands of people stared at the screens, yelling in unison as they watched what Lola assumed was some sort of clock.
The counting got even louder and music began to blare. At least she thought it was music—it was rhythmic noise at any rate. There was a good bit of kissing and yelling and jumping around, and people began to link their arms, in some cases, and in others they held onto each other by the shoulders or the waist.
What was this? Cillian knew. It was a very old custom, from the dawn of antiquity, back even before the troubled times. It was one of Earth’s oldest living traditions, the New Year’s dance of joy, believed to have been once used to usher in the year 2000, although, unlike the torch passing and the conch shells, that rumor had never been confirmed.
Lola burst into a grin as the healthy and happy young bodies began moving forward, everyone boogying along in their own impromptu jig. Yes. It was a conga line, a giant conga line. She felt like she was dancing along with these happy people and Cillian too, and they both agreed that this was wonderful. It was the way every millennium should end.
******
The message finally came from Teddie. “She died today at 7:52 p.m. I was in the hospital room holding her hand when she passed. By the time I made it back to Cillian’s there was no Mom to bring home. I knew there wouldn’t be. Cillian seems to have known it too. When I got there he was raising his whiskey in a toast. It was kind of sweet. I’m sending you what you asked for. I think she died happy, but you decide.”
Ariel could feel the sorrow in Teddie’s words. Even at 104, death was an ending, a loss. She pulled up the video Teddie had sent.
There was her ancient mother, emaciated and worn, lying in a hospice bed with a cheerful grin spread across her face. When she started to twitch Ariel worried that the woman was in pain, but in a few seconds it became apparent that she wasn’t twitching at all. She was moving her toes to a rhythm, as she whispered something that sounded for all the world like “dance for joy.” Then her movements stopped, and her breathing followed. The smile on her face remained.
Teddie added in a quiet voiceover, “I don’t know where she was, Ariel, but she looks to me like she was having a great time. How bad can the future be?”
Ariel agreed. Her mother had not only died happy, but against all odds she had done exactly what Ariel had hoped. She had managed to send a message back from the future. Better yet, the information she conveyed was that it was likely to end well after all.
46 Ascending
d4 is part of 46. Ascending, a collection of loosely interrelated novels about five very different family members who each discover that they can do the extraordinary when circumstances require it. These books are designed to be read as stand alone stories or in any order.
If you enjoyed d4, consider c3, the story of Ariel’s younger sister Teddie as she learns to use her innate skills for out of body experiences to save her friends from a human t
rafficking ring. You might also enjoy z2, the tale of Ariel’s father as he learns to use his ability to warp time to protect his students against a threat from a white supremacy movement at his high school. You may prefer to start with y1, the story of Ariel’s brother Zane as he develops an odd ability to alter his appearance, or x0, the story of Ariel’s telepathic mother as she finds herself the unlikely hero in a rescue mission in Nigeria.
Thanks
I have relied on many people and sources of information to weave this tale. I am particularly indebted to eighteen friends, family members, acquaintances and strangers, and to two professionals, who gave of their time and expertise to make this a better book. My appreciation goes to
my husband Kevin, my alpha and omega reader, who feeds me, loves me, encourages me and in this case introduced me to the Irish legends of Colm Cille, thereby shaping much of this story
my sister June, who gives me her witty page by page impressions to aid my rewrites
my son Casey who continues to help me see my writing in a larger context
my daughter Emerald who knows just what to say to help me stay positive about this endeavor
old friend John Ryan, a math professor who supplies links and catches plot holes
Lenore Kaplan, a young engineer with a special feel for Ariel’s life, and whose insights helped throughout with the plot, the facts and the wording
Tyler Wight, new family friend who has provided me with a fresh set of eyes on my stories
Dhivya Balaji of India who played a large role in c3 and has now proved how well her abilities to edit transcend cultures
Shree Janani of India, who first found me when she won a copy of x0 and has been providing editorial expertise and encouragement ever since
Deepika Anandakrishnan, friend of Dhivya and Shree, who volunteered to beta read for the first time and provided me with spot on suggestions and corrections that no one else thought of
Steve Wilcock, an online word game buddy I have never met but who has encouraged my writing from the start, served as a role model for my British telepath Donald, and who has now proved himself to be a highly capable beta reader as well
Terie Beasley, who used her expertise as a retired English teacher to add extra polish to my words
Margit Fernqvist of Denmark, a stranger who offered to share her expertise on Scandinavia and ended up teaching me about skyr, enticing me to write about the northern lights, and sharing her vacation photos of Iceland with me, and thus is a stranger no more
Michelle Willms, second time beta reader, who once again provided me with the insights of a sociologist
Faith O'Dwyer, first time beta reader who particularly helped me with the beginning of this book
Mickey Otterlei of Norway, who has been encouraging me with this collection ever since she read my first book x0 and who added her Scandinavian perspective as well
Henry Bourassa who lent me his expertise on the stock market and investing
Jennifer Fitzgerald, a professional designer who continues to produce beautiful, imaginative book covers
and Joel Handley, a professional editor whose abilities have grown from that of capable line editor to include wonderful plot suggestions and much appreciated fact checking.
Finally and most significantly my thanks go to my daughter Shenandoah. She has been there for me through this whole writing process - editing, commenting, encouraging and involving others, and I appreciate it immensely. However, she played a special role in this novel. The character Ariel is a work of fiction, an amalgamation of people and my own imagination, but the fact is that Shenandoah inspired Ariel. I thank my daughter for letting me borrow bits of her personality and her dreams to create this character, and then for allowing me the freedom to morph Ariel into the fictional person that she needed to be in order to tell this story. It takes a special kind of courage to let someone do that.
Resources
Printed Materials:
I love to read and to research, and all my novels have begun by my devouring fact and fiction on subject matters that interest me. I’d like to thank the following author’s and acknowledge the contributions that their books made to my thought process. It is my intent to be accurate, respectful of all cultures, and open-minded about various points of view. If I have fallen short, even briefly, the fault is mine alone and deeply regretted. Inclusion of a source below in no way implies that source’s endorsement.
All About High-Frequency Trading (All About Series) July 26, 2010 by Michael Durbin. Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 1st edition ISBN-13: 978-0071743440
The Arctic: Enigmas and Myths September 9, 1996 by Simpson-Housley, Paul Simpson-Housley. Publisher: Dundurn Group; First Edition ISBN-13: 978-1550022643
Clairvoyance August 3, 2009 by Charles Webster Leadbeater. Publisher: Merchant Books ISBN-13: 978-1603862417
Lonely Planet Iceland, Greenland & the Faroe Islands May, 2001 by Graeme Cornwallis and Deanna Swaney. Publisher: Lonely Planet Publications; 4th edition (May 2001) ISBN-13: 978-0864426864
The Privatization of Space Exploration: Business, Technology, Law and Policy Paperback December 16, 2011 by Lewis D. Solomon. Publisher: Transaction Publishers; Reprint edition ISBN-13: 978-1412847568
The Problem of HFT - Collected Writings on High Frequency Trading & Stock Market Structure Reform January 18, 2013 by Haim Bodek. Publisher: Create Space Independent Publishing Platform; Reprint edition ISBN-13: 978-1481978354
Seeing Your Future: A Modern Look at Prophecy and Prediction March, 1990 by John E. Ronner. Publisher: Mamre Pr; First Edition ISBN-13: 978-0932945389.
The Story of the Irish Race A Popular History of Ireland 1992 by Seumas MacManus. Publisher: Devin-Adair Company; Forty-Fifth Printing edition (1992) ASIN: B001B1EI96
This Cold Heaven: Seven Seasons in Greenland January 7, 2003 by Gretel Ehrlich. Publisher: Vintage ISBN-13: 978-0679758525
Internet Sources:
My research included far more internet sites than would be practical to link to in this novel. I chose a couple dozen that I thought would most enhance the reader’s experience, and have also provided links to nine of Ariel’s favorite songs. If you are reading this on a device that does not support hypertext, you can find all these links live at the d4 website at dtothepowerof4.org.
Links by Chapter
Chapter 4.
See a slow sunrise in Reykjavik at panoramio.com/photo/61495573.
Chapter 5.
Read Forbes explanation of high frequency trading at forbes.com/sites/billconerly/2014/04/14/high-frequency-trading-explained-simply.
Chapter 6.
Learn more about Greenland at greenland.com/en/about-greenland and even plan a fantasy or real vacation from this website.
Chapter 7.
Enjoy Ellie Goulding performing “Lights” at the 2014 Coachella Music & Arts Festival in California at youtube.com/watch?v=_kMTopHQEH8
See Iceland’s giant Vatnajökull glacier at explorra.com/attractions/vatnajokull-glacier_24804/photos.
Let NASA tell you how long a radio wave is at missionscience.nasa.gov/ems/05_radiowaves.html.
Chapter 9.
Learn more about wealth distribution at cnbc.com/id/100780163.
Chapter 10.
Enjoy Lykke Li performing “I follow Rivers” in this beautifully simple video available on You Tube at youtube.com/watch?v=5_7GpjWTxDg
Chapter 11.
Learn more about black swan events at blackswanevents.org
Chapter 12.
Learn about a group dedicated to considering humanity’s survival into the far future at longnow.org/about.
Chapter 13.
Read about how we are mostly made of empty space at physics.org/featuredetail.asp?id=41. The other three “bonkers” facts included in the article are pretty amazing too.
Chapter 14.
Enjoy Lana Del Ray performing “Summertime Sadness” in Frankfurt on her 2013 Paradise Tour at youtube.com/watch?v=_TF_MskOgio
Learn more abo
ut jerk and snap at preposterousuniverse.com/blog/2008/07/01/waiter-theres-a-derivative-in-my-cereal
Chapter 15.
Enjoy Arcade Fire performing “Sprawl II” at the 2014 Glastonbury Festival at
youtube.com/watch?v=NC4eB3NrIyA
Chapter 16.
Spend a little virtual time at the Blue Lagoon Spa by visiting www.bluelagoon.com. You can even find the current menu for the beautiful LAVA restaurant.
Chapter 17.
Wiki offers a nice list of predictions about the end of the world (or universe). Take a look a them at rationalwiki.org/wiki/List_of_predictions_of_the_end_of_the_world.
Chapter 18.
Enjoy Passion Pit performing “I Get Carried Away” at Lollapalooza Chile 2013 at youtube.com/watch?v=3mVguFktxUU
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