My subconscious read my mind. “Oh, yes… slavery has been around forever.”
I looked him over and said to Giddeon, “Poor guy… he should be in high school, flirting with all the girls.”
“I’m sure he does alright. Some slaves in this era had more free time than you would expect. Many were basically considered part of the family… in the end, we’re all slaves to something. You know that, don’t you? Freedom’s just the ability to choose your master.”
“Now you are becoming a philosopher.”
“Notice it was quick? Five seconds or less.”
“I thought freedom’s just another word for nothing left to lose.”
Gid grinned. “Oh, yeah… that was a good line… Kris Kristofferson. Quite right, you know. But, one word can have multiple meanings. Sort of like quantum physics… multiple places, multiple times…” he spread his hands wide, “… all the same.”
I looked around at the ancient city. He did make a strong argument.
“What year is this?”
“37 B.C. The empire is in full swing. Roads and bridges are being built, also, aqueducts and coliseums.”
“Amazing… how can they do all of this with no internet?” I queried.
Giddeon chuckled. “Probably got more done without all of the distractions. Speaking of distractions…”
I followed his gaze. A beautiful young woman in a white dress was walking between the tables, a basket full of apples, radishes and grapes cradled in her left arm. Her hair flowed down around her shoulders in a cascade of dark, shining curls.
The lovely female had a simple gold necklace around her neck and a matching bracelet on her right wrist. Leather sandals covered her feet, and she moved with a fluid grace that also hinted at athletic ability. I had never seen Giddeon speechless, before… I watched with interest as he circled the vision of loveliness inspecting lemons at a kiosk.
She held a yellow specimen up into the sunlight, more as if she was admiring the fruit rather than looking for imperfections. When satisfied, it was placed reverently in her basket. This ritual happened five more times. She then spoke to the merchant, produced a little purse, and handed over a small, copper colored coin. He took it gratefully and kissed her hand. She smiled a dazzling smile, turned her attention to a table of tomatoes a few feet away, and moved in her slow motion, seductive way towards a new goal. Giddeon followed close behind; I could see him smelling her fragrance as he went. He looked for all the world like a cat overdosed on cat nip… his eyes were heavy-lidded on a ridiculously contented face. I came up behind him. After a few seconds, he noticed my presence.
“Isn’t she something?”
“Yes, she is.”
“I know that for you, Melody is perfect, but I’ve always been partial to brunettes.”
“I totally understand… she’s lovely.”
“God, I wish I could touch her. I wish I could talk to her.”
“Do you speak Italian?”
“Oh, yes… somewhat. We could probably understand each other.”
He continued to gaze at the maiden, totally mesmerized.
“I think someone once told me that looks aren’t everything,” I said.
“I take it back.”
I laughed out loud. “My, my… one pretty face and your words of wisdom fall apart like a cheap suit.”
“She smells divine.”
I shrugged my shoulders. “Well… at least it isn’t totally looks. She stimulates your olfactory receptors, too.”
“The way she moves… so lithe and graceful,” said my infatuated alter ego.
“I guess we can add balance and posture…”
“And, look at the way she admires the produce… it’s like she’s in love with the bounty of the earth.”
“Now, that, I understand.” I thought back to the way Melody had been at the restaurant.
Giddeon took one final inhalation of her aroma, and then turned to me. “Mama Mia… we should move along before I can’t tear myself away.”
“That’s your Italian? Mama Mia?”
“I know more… but, it’s all from the television.”
“Come on, then. At least you know her time and place. You can moon over her, later.” I started down the aisle, headed away from the market and towards what I took to be the main part of the city.
“Ciao, my love, ciao!” Giddeon trailed behind me, looking back over his shoulder until the crowds of people blocked his view. He started quoting poetry from the Romantic Era.
Lord Byron, I think.
__________
We found ourselves outside of an art school… at least that’s what it seemed to be. Through the open door we could see groups of people gathered around marble statues that were in various stages of completion. Older men were directing younger men in the intricacies of chipping away the white stone, and, also, in the various ways to polish and smooth the material. On one side of the room were male and female students working with clay; they were shaping pots and ornaments from the wet, pliable material. An oven was in the back, and slaves kept the fire stoked as its heat turned the art into nearly finished products. In another room, colors were added to the hardened pieces of art with brushes dipped in various pigments, and then, it was back into the oven for a final glaze.
The activity inside the building was continuous, and although everyone involved looked serious, they also looked happy. Even the slaves. It was like they were all engaged in a grand task, and were simply grateful for the opportunity to bring forth beauty and splendor from raw materials provided by Mother Gaia.
“Industrious, aren’t they?” I observed.
“When you love your job, it’s not really work, I suppose,” said Giddeon.
We watched the sculptors for a few minutes. Their concentration was intense.
“Humph… I like mowing greens, but I’m not really passionate about it,” I said.
Giddeon grinned. “There’s something to be said for a beautifully manicured golf course, not to mention free green fees… however, I think in the long run, you’ll get bored. Maybe you should branch out.”
We made our way towards an exit.
“What do you suggest?”
“It’s not a good sign if you have to ask… that means you don’t really know.”
“Humph,” I grunted, again. “You’re my subconscious. I figured you might have an inside track.”
“Fair enough.” We left the art school through a side door and stepped out into the gathering heat. The sky was solid blue and provided a dramatic backdrop against the white of the stone buildings all around.
“Well…?”
“I’m thinking.”
We walked down a small alley in silence. A group of young children ran through us, chasing a puppy. Finally, Giddeon spoke. “The only thing I’ve ever seen you really passionate about is Melody.”
“Hard not to be.” I thought for a moment. “Hey… I like playing golf.”
“You don’t dream about it.”
“I dreamed about it last night.”
“You know what I mean.”
“Yeah… I know. It’s fun, but, I don’t sit around thinking about it.” We turned a corner and stepped onto a main thoroughfare. “So, I guess club pro is out.”
“Hmmm… let me think,” said Giddeon. I could see his brow was furrowed in profile. Then, his face lit up. “You have a way with words…why don’t you combine the two?”
“Write about Melody?”
“Write about the way she makes you feel. Everyone loves a love story.”
“I don’t know…”
“You’ve already got some songs about it… love, that is… that’s pretty much poetry. Just expand on the words and cut out the rhymes and music.”
“Write about Melody without the melodies?”
He smiled, broadly. “See… you do have a way with words.”
“Why don’t I just stick to music? I like that.”
“Pays to have a Plan B.”
I pondered his advice, and then said, “Doesn’t seem like there would be much money in it.”
“You’d be surprised. Plus, you don’t do it for the money. Did those artists back there look like they were worried about money?”
“I guess not.” Several men carrying ancient tools filed past.
“Anyway, you don’t even have to quit your day job… just work on broadening your creative horizons.”
“I don’t have a day job… I’m in a coma, you know.”
“Excuses, excuses…”
“I would ask for a note from my doctor… but, I’m in a coma. If I get back over there, I’ll work on it.”
Gid smiled. “You’ve done more over here in ten months than you have in the past 24 years, combined,” replied my counselor.
I couldn’t argue with him, there.
I had learned tons of scales on the guitar, not to mention on the keyboard. In some ways, I think my piano skills had actually surpassed my abilities on the guitar. It probably helped that I found the synthesizer to be a great instrument for composing songs… so many sounds and rhythms. In addition, I had even taken up the cello, mainly because I always had loved the sound. Everything was coming easier to me at that time than it did in the first part of my unconscious existence. I had learned to surf and to sail, and was pretty much a scratch golfer. Maybe Giddeon had spilled over into my limited domain.
I gave in a little bit. “Okay… I’ll consider it. I’ll stick to songs for now, though. I can’t carry a whole book back in my head.”
My time traveling companion glanced around at the young city. “Just jot down memorable scenes of what happens over here… it’ll help you remember them. Plus, it’ll help you recall how you felt about her when it comes time for you to go back.”
“If it comes time for me to go back.”
“Oh, ye of little faith.”
“Didn’t they throw Christians to the lions around here?”
Giddeon shook his head in the negative. “Too early for that… but, there is something I’ve always been curious about… let’s go check it out!” He grabbed my elbow and the tunnel of light flashed around us, again.
Turns out Giddeon was right. Writing down my experiences over there did help me recall how I felt on this side. I started with this one, first:
__________
I had the feeling we were no longer in Italy, but judging from the attire of the people in the stands, I was pretty sure we were in the same general time period.
Giddeon and I were outside of a wooden gate, peering into a stadium of some type. On the inside of the arena was a man being escorted to the center of the dirt area by two strong-looking men with military bearing. The captive had his wrists bound with a leather thong, and when they all reached the middle of the space, one of the guards undid that leather and freed up the hands of their charge; the other guard then stood face to face with the disheveled prisoner and did something that to me seemed out of character for a person in his position. He put out a hand and held the captive by the shoulder… he spoke to him and nodded, almost as if in the way of an apology. The two held a look between them, and finally, the prisoner returned the nod; oddly, it was accompanied by what seemed to be a compassionate smile.
The two martial escorts then left the stadium by one of six gates around the periphery, identical to the one that we were behind.
Giddeon quickly undid the complicated knot on the rope latch of our entryway, and swung it open.
“Come on… I want a closer look.”
Hesitantly, I followed him, not bothering to close the alternate gate behind us. We made our way into the middle of the open expanse and I looked around. The crowd was hushed… it seemed to me as if it was an anticipatory hush. After a long minute, or, so, another one of the gates swung open.
My eyes grew wide as two male lions slowly made their way into the arena. A cheer went up from the people in the stands.
One of the animals let out a huge roar, much to the delight of the spectators, turned, and came in our direction. The other lion followed. Then, from the still open wooden barrier came a female lioness… smaller, but, somehow, more menacing. She trotted to catch up with her companions.
I glanced to the man standing erect in the center of the ring. He showed no fear. A look that can only be described as mild curiosity was there upon his face. The lions came closer, and, to my surprise, showed no interest in their offered meal. The largest male went straight over to Gid, who was standing about ten feet away from the man. The other two came towards me. The male on my side of the man was hesitant, but the female was more inquisitive; she sniffed the air at my knees, a rumble in her throat.
Tentatively, I reached out my hand and let her smell of me as best she could. Then, I passed my fingers through her jaws, briefly feeling the outline of her fur, teeth and tongue. She, like Boris and Melody’s cat, seemed to understand. The lioness turned and gave her companion a look; in a few seconds, he cautiously approached me.
He was old and had a limp, but the power in his forelegs was evident.
Even though I knew I was insubstantial, it was still very disconcerting being so close to that much dangerous muscle and sharpened claws. He gave a half-hearted roar, and then began to sniff, also. I buried my hand in his mane and did my best to ‘scratch’ him behind the ears… the female came in closer, as if jealous of the attention I was paying to her friend.
I looked over and saw that Giddeon had completely won over his cat. The huge male was trying to mark him with the scent glands on his cheeks… and my subconscious was having the time of his life. He was grinning from ear to ear. The lion finally gave up his quest to rub against Gid, and began to roll in the dirt at his feet. My two lions were similarly entranced. The big, crippled male sat slowly on his haunches, as if arthritic, and then stretched out prone in the dust and settled onto his side. I gave him a pat and turned my attention to the female. She attempted to reach a paw behind my back and bring me closer to her. Eventually, she abandoned that approach and began to roll on the ground in front of me, also. I sat down right between them and took turns giving them ‘strokes’.
After a few seconds, I looked up to see the prisoner standing over me. His eyes were hypnotic, and I found it hard to look away. He crouched down, gave the female lion a tender rub on the shoulder, and then stood back up. The man turned, and very slowly made his way to the gate from which he had been forced to enter. Only then did I notice the silence. I could actually hear the wind blowing past in little gusts, kicking up dust as it swirled in the arena at his feet.
The guards, with a look of veneration on their faces, opened the wooden barrier and allowed him passage.
__________
With a flash, we were back in the Italian market. Giddeon was ecstatic.
“That was awesome! Totally radical! Those lions were huge!!”
“I’ve never been that close to one, before… I’m surprised my underwear is still clean!” I exclaimed.
“Oh, we weren’t in any danger. You should know that by now,” he said, with a grin plastered on his face.
“Whew! Old habits die hard… my sympathetic nervous system was kicked in, big time,” I admitted. “The guy that was supposed to be lunch was cool as a cucumber, though… lucky for him, we were there!”
Giddeon said, “Yeah… that was lucky… wasn’t it?”
Something about his hesitant inflections perked my interest.
“Who was that guy? What did he do to get thrown in with the lions?”
Giddeon looked off for a moment, as if seeing the scene before him, again. The wind blew his light brown hair back away from his suntanned forehead. He then looked at me with those deep, blue eyes, and answered,
“That, was Daniel.”
Chapter 44
Back on the boat, Boris seemed diminutive, even though he was big for a Domestic Shorthair. He was quite interested in my clothes and hands, and sniffed and sniffed like he had never done before. Finally,
he meowed, went over to the far end of the couch and lay down. He stared at me with his big, unblinking, yellow eyes; Giddeon was seated at the small table.
“Correct me if I’m wrong… but, didn’t we just tamper with a timeline or something?” I inquired.
“Hard to say,” he replied while looking around and closely inspecting our domain. After a few moments, Giddeon added, “Everything here seems pretty normal.”
I found his answer unsettling and furled my brow. “Isn’t what we did against some kind of rule?”
Coronado Dreaming (The Silver Strand Series) Page 17