Sway II
(Begin Sway Garland’s Narration)
When I was a junior in high school, I wanted to die.
The spiritual belief of my ancestors and my shaman was that we cannot separate our physical well-being from the spiritual health. There is a delicate balance of both worlds and Hmong thought is that some of my deceased ancestors were influencing my health and welfare in a negative manner. By the same token, deceased ancestors were influencing the abundance of happiness from my earliest memories until the time Banks chose a path that did not include me. I thought happiness was the status quo and that depression was the slide into the abyss and there was no way out.
When my junior year began I was so hoping that if I could not have the friendship, or at least an occasional lunch with Banks, that others would allow me my solitude. Leave me invisible. But the mean junior girls continued with evil text blasts, rumors of my having sexually transmitted diseases and salacious bullying on Facebook. If that weren’t enough, a new group of rich freshman girls joined the onslaught.
I don’t think Tricia Powers recognized me yet. After all it had been over two years since we had seen each other and we were never in close contact and not once did we converse. In addition her thoughts were occupied with Johnny Angelo and maybe her missing brother. She struck me as the type of girl that felt all Indian girls looked alike and therefore they were somewhat invisible to her world...that may have included Banks Blackhorse as well even though they lived under the same roof for months.
My mother knew that I was troubled. The best advice she could give me was, “Everything will get better when you get married.” I went to my room and closed the door. I decided that tonight would be my last night. I was thinking of different ways to end it. Several hours later, there was a knock at my door. My mother came in and said, “Roger wants to see you...now.” I never wanted to go to the shaman. Too embarrassing to seek advice from a man! What could he do? He usually met only with the boys. Mother repeated herself, “Right now, Sway.”
When I got to Roger’s apartment, I saw him and Chief Dan conversing. The Chief left and Roger told me to sit down. He simply said, “Tell me everything.” And so I did. I told him everything in a grade by grade chronological order as he smoked a pipe and never interrupted. It took an hour. And when I finished, he shocked me by saying, “Good.” That was it. I was sort of stunned. I thought he would try to stop me. I said, “Should I go now?” And he responded with a nodding ‘yes’. As I went for the door, he told me not to go to sleep tonight. He wanted me to drink tea and anything caffeinated. He wanted me not to go to school tomorrow. He gave me some herbs to put in the liquids. He didn’t want me to eat anything solid. He wanted me to fight off my sleepiness in the morning and to return to his apartment at this time. He told me to dress lightly but to wear my Chilkats that my mother made me. I asked him why all these instructions and he said, “You are ready for your vision quest. Go home and do exactly as I say. Remember, no sleep.”
When I got home, I drank five Cokes. Put on earbuds and listened to music that I hated. During the day, I watched soap operas standing up. Drank more tea with herbs. Fought off sleepiness with depression. When I was ready to go up to Roger’s apartment, I felt ready for the next step.
Later I would learn that total exhaustion was a release of the physical world which in turn connected one to the spiritual world.
Roger told me that we were going for a ride. He parked at the end of the Perseverance Trail. He told me to take the Mount Juneau Trail to the summit. He gave me a flashlight, some tape and black cloth and told me to cover the Eye of Juneau. The cylinder will open for you, but your animal guide will let you out...don’t fall asleep. I asked him about my animal guide and all he said was get going.
At about the one mile point of the two mile trek up the Mount Juneau Trail, I sat down from exhaustion. Slowly my eyes began to shut. A loud cawing made me open my eyes. Was I dreaming? A raven circled around me and cawed some more. It dove down towards me and I moved upward and kept going. Incredibly, I made it to the summit. I went to the eye and covered it as Shaman Roger Rainwater told me to do. The cylinder appeared and when I found the entrance, the raven flew in and the entrance way closed.
Once I was inside, the giant cylinder was bright. The raven seemed to disappear. Then, I heard a familiar voice, “Are you okay, Sway?” A figure appeared, “Are you ready for your vision quest?” asked Banks Blackhorse.
That was the day I learned about shape-shifting.
May your spirit sparkle.
Skyline Boulevard
“We’ll find your car, don’t worry,” said the accommodating police officer as he opened the back doors to let Mr. and Mrs. Kadet out.
“What about the boy Peyton?” asked Mr. Kadet.
“We’ll find him too.” The police car took off as Mrs. Kadet nagged to her husband, “I told you never to leave your keys in the car like that.” She took off her eye patch as she unlocked their front door.
“Mr. Kadet comforted with, “They’ll find the car. That’s the great thing about living in a city that you can’t leave. Dearest. I’m getting used to looking at that hole in your eye socket...it’s not so bad. You going to wear your strawberry patch tomorrow? Get it? ‘Strawberry Patch.”
Mrs. Kadet groaned the appropriate response, “Ugh!”
As he closed the door, the Powers’ car drove up. Dassi and Murray got out. Julie asked Dassi if she tried to call Ann again. All four cell phones could not reach their daughters. Stan said that he might be able to locate the cell phones. Dassi walked in the Powers’ house as Murray made excuses to go home and lie down.
The threesome went into Stan’s study. Stan asked Dassi for the digits of Ann’s phone. He couldn’t find its location. Same thing happened with Tricia’s cell. Julie added, “What about locating Tricia’s car?”
“Oh yes, I forgot that I had the dealer put a tracker on the car. Oh my God. You won’t believe where it is. I’ll call the police and give them the location...it’s at the end of Perseverance Trail.”
As he called, Julie told Dassi that she thought Peyton might be there too. Dassi gave a positive response and said she wanted to go. When Stan got off the phone with the police, Julie told them she wanted to stay home in case Peyton returned. She also said she’d check in on Murray next door. But what she didn’t tell them was that more than anything...she wanted a drink.
Stan and Dassi beat the police to the end of the Perseverance Trail. He parked the car and found Tricia’s car. Nearby was Banks’ pickup and the Kadet’s sedan. His eyes searched around. The only sound was the breeze hitting the alpines.
Stan told Dassi that he was going to hike up the Mount Juneau Trail—he might have a better view up the slopes. He suggested that she wait here and contact Julie and Murray and give them an update. He believed that there might not be any reception up the trail. She agreed.
At about half way point up the trail, Stan could see several police cars drive up. He sat for a moment and searched around and believed that the young adults were at the summit. After catching his breath, he continued the upward journey.
Stan arrived breathless at the summit and saw the cloud covered giant cylinder. He was shocked. He moved closer and noted that the clouds covered most of the giant cylinder. He walked up to the translucent cylinder and peered inside. He knocked on the cylinder but apparently no one could hear. Then, Ann walked straight towards him. She apparently yelled to others: “It’s Mr. Powers. Tricia, your dad is here.”
Banks came up to the edge and pointed, “Mr. Powers, the entrance is over here...we can’t get out.”
Stan Powers went over to the area where Banks pointed. He tried to find a handle or something that he could push to make entry. But there was nothing available to him. He turned to see several police officers climbing up the trail. He turned to Banks, “What about Peyton? Have you seen Peyton?” Banks shook his head no. Tricia cracked her gum, “Hi, daddy. I want to go home.”
/> And at that instant, the five young adults turned towards a circular staircase near the middle of the cylinder’s interior. Peyton Powers descended without holding the railing. He saw (!) five silent people with their mouths open. Peyton asked, “Who are you people?”
PART II,
“DOUBLE, DOUBLE, TOIL AND TROUBLE”
The Patient Reveals
FOR THE FIRST TIME in his eight years, Peyton Powers had some vision. It was a slow transition to sight. But it was enough that he could discern the railing of the staircase and for the first time in his life he didn’t have to clutch for direction.
Peyton Powers’ first encounter with seeing a human was the bandaged person who kidnapped him. So when he saw the figures of Banks, Tricia, Ann, Johnny and Sway in a state of silence; he could not immediately conclude the group’s genders let alone who they were. But the moment one would speak, things would clear up.
Banks was first to welcome Peyton, “Peyton. What is happening?”
Peyton ran over to Banks and hugged him: “Banks, I’m so sorry how I treated you. It wasn’t me. I was something...else. I had powers that are now gone. I had an evil soul and followed the orders of the Great Spirit. Until I am once again just a boy. I’m so sorry, Banks.”
Tricia cracked her gum louder. Localizing the gum crack, Peyton perked up, “You’re my sister.” He scrutinized her for the first time from head to foot. “You’re even uglier than I thought.” Tricia was about to go into attack mode, but she caught Johnny’s eye and she knew that the one thing she possessed that Johnny admired was her feigned love for her ‘poor younger blind brother.’ So Peyton was saved from scathing remarks which were replaced by the theatrics of his ‘loving sister’: “We were so worried, Peyton. Dad is here to take us home. I am so happy that you can see. Dad is right here.”
Tricia led Peyton to the edge of the cylinder so that Stan could see his children together. Stan pounded on the cylinder and yelled, “Where is the opening, children?”
Banks and Johnny searched for the opening where they entered. Sway knew that it existed and remembered that there was a chant to open it...but she couldn’t remember. She thought, “Roger knows. Then she screamed out, “Get the shaman!”
Stan heard that. He looked around as the number of police increased. Above him was the swirling load noise of a helicopter landing. Once grounded, several fire & rescue people came out holding a laser. Two casually dressed engineers were circling the cylinder and taking pictures. Stan was thrilled that he found his kids and that Peyton could see. But past experiences reminded him that there would be cost for Peyton’s new vision...not only to him, but to the entire city.
Stan was about ready to seek out the shaman when he caught a glimpse of someone, something, walking down the staircase. He motioned to several police officers to watch what he saw.
The group inside turned to the walking bandaged figure. Peyton screamed, “That’s the one. The mummy person. That’s the one that was the voice in my head. But the voice is gone now...I can hear the mummy’s whispers. The mummy person took me here. The mummy person gave me sight! And I think, the mummy person took away my powers.”
The figure stopped several stairs before it reached the bottom. It started to peel off all the bandages. Stan and the officers watched the event through the translucent cylinder. When all bandages were removed, only Stan Powers recognized the person, “Evelyn. Evelyn Sands. Judge Evelyn Sands. What the hell, I thought she was killed on Delivery Day.”
But there was not a trace of missing flesh that the wolves devoured on Delivery Day. Not a mark of evidence. She looked beautiful. No plastic surgeon could ever repair the attack she incurred. It was if she had made some sort of pact. Yes a pact like Banks had made in the past. This was her reward. But what was her obligation?
Evelyn Sands spoke. No whispers this time, “Welcome one and all.”
And Peyton Powers recognized her voice. “I know who you are. You were the lady that came to our house last Christmas. You stayed and you were in my parents’ room.”
Evelyn ignored Peyton and went to the edge. She was face to face with Stan and she said, “Hello, lover boy.”
Stan recoiled in horror. And as Evelyn laughed, the cylinder went from Translucent to transparent. From transparent it went opaque. The cylinder whipped in a circular direction and became a vortex. The stunned crowd watch the cylinder disappear before their eyes.
Court Convened
The millennials wondered what just happened. Luckily they had an adult to answer their questions. Justice Evelyn Sands looked up at the open sky above. It appeared that the view they had when they entered the cylinder was the same as it was now. The top of the cylinder indicated that the sun was going down. Evelyn explained that all of them were in the same location but on a different plane. The people outside the cylinder would simply assume that the cylinder disappeared. At this time the people inside the cylinder simply did not exist to the outside world.
The Judge told all that everything would be made clear at dinner. She further announced that rooms at been arranged for pairs and she took the liberty to choose each pair. Tricia and Peyton were to share a room, Banks and Johnny were to share a room and Sway and Ann would share a room.
The group asked many questions simultaneously and she once again told them that all would be clear at dinner. “If anyone asks me another question I will find you ‘in contempt.’” Sway wondered what the penalty would be. Her thoughts shifted to Stan and hoped that he would contact the shaman.
On the second floor was Tricia and Peyton’s room. Plato stood by the door as they entered. There were twin beds, a bathroom and a change of clothes. Evelyn told them to come down when they heard the gong. To make sure they showered and wore the clothes that were on each of their respective beds.
On the third floor, Sway and Ann entered their room with the same instructions. When Banks and Johnny reached the fourth floor, they could see the open Alaskan sky that was just above them. They could climb out if there were a ladder, but then they would be five or six floor straight up with no way down.
Once Banks and Johnny were in their room, they peered out and saw Evelyn walk down to the first floor. They assumed correctly that was where dinner was to be held when the gong rang.
At the Powers’ house Julie held her cell phone in one hand and her fourth Scotch in the other. There was a ringing sound in one of her hands. Finally, a word from Stan: “Listen, Peyton is fine, the police are there. I will be home later. I need to stop at the compound with Dassi. Let Murray know.”
Cautious not to slur her words, Julie spoke minimally: “Peyton...who took him? Okay, Stan.” She told herself that as soon as she got Peyton back home she would dispose of her alcohol stash. She told her family and AA members that there was no stash. She stumbled next door to Murray.
Murray was out cold on OxyContin to combat the pain from the time Ann stabbed him by the staircase. He realized he was becoming too friendly with prescription drugs. But it soothed the pain. And now and in the future his medicine would soothe the horrors to come.
Julie left him a note by his bedside. As she left the Abrams’ house she saw the black and white ravens atop of her house. “How sweet,” she thought. And as she entered the house, the two ravens took off leaving the nest vulnerable. The egg moved slightly.
At the same time, Dassi and Stan arrived at the shaman’s apartment. Roger listened to the day’s events while smoking his pipe. He let them speak and when Stan told about the situation at the summit of Mount Juneau he raised an eyebrow. Roger walked Dassi and Stan to the door as Stan asked, “What should we do now?” And Roger gave his expert advice, “Go to sleep.”
As Dassi and Stan drove off, Roger stood outside looking at a series of sprites in the sky; flashes of indigo were a warning. Marilyn and Carol walked over to him. The threesome looked up at the sky. The married couple eyed Roger with a questioning look. “It begins, it begins...again.”
Dinner is Served
/> The gong echoed throughout the cylinder. The six millennials were dressed in comfortable robes and slippers. They downed the circular staircase from their respective floors. The circular opening at the top displayed that the sun was setting. Flashes of indigo made it apparent to Banks that forces were once again at work over Juneau.
At the ground floor, the group was met by Justice Evelyn Sands. She was also robed in a similar fashion. All were silent in hopes of not precipitating her ire. She addressed each one my name and escorted them to a preset table filled with vegetables and fruit. Peyton eyed the food and could not relate to the dishes. Finally, Peyton questioned, “Which one is the meat?” Ann explained to Peyton that all the dishes were vegetables and fruit and Tricia sneered under her breath, “Vegan, rabbit food.”
All sat and Evelyn, at the head of the rectangular table, took the first bite. She announced, “Eat, eat, eat. I have some very good news and some...well, some not so good news. First, look at my beautiful skin and my flawless face. When D-Day occurred last August, I was given up for dead. I was ravaged by wolves for food. A helicopter arrived and I was rushed to the hospital. There wasn’t much they could do except attend to my wounds and keep me as comfortable as possible. No plastic surgeon would be able to take care of all the parts missing from my body. Being attractive has always been important to me and after being ravished by wolves my life was over. But as I reached my lowest state, someone—no something entered my consciousness. It spoke—rather communicated that I could be presented with an opportunity. An option that would not only rebuild and repair me, but that I would look and feel stunning once again. With nothing else to do, I listened. I listened while I was awake, when I was asleep and when I was hallucinating on pain drugs. Terms of a compact were presented to me in a most legal manner. They were communicated in a fashion that I understood completely.”
The Day the Sky Shattered Page 3