by Steven Oaks
âVery well, it shall be steaming, and if you need it changed you can let me know,â she said.
I pulled off the rest of my clothing and tossed it aside. The shower head suddenly spouted a high pressured stream of hot water on its own. As warm steam filled the room, I found myself relaxing and forgetting about everything that happened today. When I stepped under the water I did not worry about much of anything. Showers to me have always been a place of meditation and thought. I find myself more rejuvenated in water than I ever do sleeping. So it was an enormous relief to feel the hot water spraying down upon me. âJust a little bit warmer please. Also, where is the soap and shampoo?â I asked.
âThe water itself is filled with the perfect amount of solutions to clean you. All you need do is rub it across your hair and body and you will be cleansed,â she said as the water grew hotter and more comfortable for me.
I took a deep breath through my nose, smelling a slight hint of perfume. It was not overpowering, just clean smelling. It also felt silky to the touch, like baby oil. I had never felt water so soft and clean before. The water at my old place had been hard and full of lime. I had to clean the faucets every week to prevent buildup. There was a time when I had let it go for several months, and soon the water pressure was almost nonexistent, and a white crust layer began to cover everything. I am not proud I let that happen, it was just a rare moment of laziness on my part. I was enjoying this luxury even more thanks to that memory.
âI will let you know now as soon as I’m comfortable washing here I’m likely to sing. I won’t say it’s good singing, because it’s not, but it is a part of the process for me,â I said with a joking manner. I was not really feeling that way at the time, but I wanted the mood to be lighter.
âIf you wish I can be silent when you are in here in the future. As soon as you find the water to your comfort I will have the settings stored for later use,â she advised.
âNo need. I’ve never had anyone to share a shower with and it is a new experience,â I said as I scrubbed myself down. âNow how careful do I have to be in getting this water in my eyesâor in my mouth?â
âYou need not worry. It is formulated to not irritate either your eyes or your digestion. Though I would not recommend swallowing too much. You might start coughing up bubbles,â she giggled, trying to match my own joking humor.
âI’ll keep that in mind. Is there a brush available? I do get tangles in my hair at times,â I said, running my hands through my already tangled mess of hair. I had been letting my hair grow out for the last eight or so years and it was down near my waist. My hair has always grown very fast and I had to get it cut nearly every other week to keep it the same length. I had worn it shorter when I was a child, but the price of constant haircuts had been a cost I did not feel I needed to expend. While the day to day upkeep for short hair is not as time consuming, I enjoyed the feel of longer hair swaying against my back. Once the length had gotten to my waist it did not seem interested in getting any longer, so I just left it alone and wore it tied back most times.
âUntil your personal items show up there is currently no brush aboard. I can form a brush from the same material as the arm I have produced, but it will be attached to whatever surface I pull it out of. I can brush your hair if you desire,â she suggested.
The thought of some disembodied arm flowing out of the wall trying to brush my hair was an unnerving one. On the other hand, I also disliked having my hair in a tangled disarray. âThat will have to do I suppose. I hate having unkempt hair and it gets worse the longer it’s not brushed out,â I said.
âI will take care of it. I have never brushed anyoneâs hair before, but I will try to be gentle. I am researching the Internet as we speak. It does not look like it should be too difficult,â she said excitedly. âI am about to mix in a conditioner like substance into the water. Please massage it through your hair, it should help for tangles.â
âThank you. I was about to ask for that anyway. It’s been my habit to scrub in conditioner and let it set for awhile before I rinse it out. Otherwise I am pulling out all my hair. I was also thinking that it would be weird if you had brushed someone’s hair before. It doesn’t look like the Outsiders come with it,â I said laughing at my own remark.
âFeel free to take your time. We have nothing else to do today, so enjoy yourself. I pride myself on the bathroom here. The water output should be strong by most people’s standards, and where ever you drip the water will be absorbed into the floor. Splash around all you want, if you want, or stand and soak,â
âOh I will. I tend to take extended showers.â I assured Athene.
And that is what I did. I have no idea how much time passed as I stood beneath the deluge of scented water. Athene did not say anything the whole time. I soon forgot she was even there.
I stepped directly under the spray and tipped my head down, letting the water part my hair and push it over my shoulders and around my face. As the water struck my back I let my mind wander though life events that led me to this point. I thought if maybe I had a better job to begin with, might I have even thought of coming here? I decided quickly I probably would have. The temptation would have been too great. I do not imagine I could have had a better job with my personality. I always desired to be alone, and I had a lack of formal education. So unless I was someone else, this was to have always been my path.
When my skin was beginning to prune up everywhere, I forced myself to accept it was time to get out. With much regret I let the last spray of water run over my body.
âAlright Athene, I’m done here. You can turn off the water,â I said somewhat glumly.
At that request the water instantly shut off. âNow, I should have thought of this before jumping in here, but do you have any towels?â
âNo towels Michael. However, I can have you blown dry. Before we do, how about we brush your hair. The room should be warm enough you will not feel cold.â As Athene said this a white chair materialized out of the floor in the middle of the room. âHave a seat and we shall see about straightening out your hair.â
I stepped toward the chair and sat down. I expected it to feel like a plastic lawn chair, but it was actually spongy, and I sank into it with a whoosh of air being expelled by my added weight. I could feel the excess water on my skin begin to absorb into the chair rather than pooling against the seat. It was not tall enough to let me rest my head back but that was of course the design of most chairs. As I leaned back into a more comfortable position a white hand appeared next to my head, holding what looked to be a brush. Soon it was joined by another, empty this time, waving its fingers about in a show of dexterity. Looking at the hand that held the brush I could see that they were made of the same white material, and were fused together.
âI don’t think I’m ever going to get used to having hands appear out of no where,â I commented.
âJust hold still,â she said in a motherly tone, and began to pass the brush through my hair while the empty hand held my tresses for better access.
My hair was wavy dry, but wet it was far more curly and I have always had difficulty brushing it. That had almost driven me to cut it all off. But I have always been frugal and the idea of spending money to let someone cut my hair seemed ludicrous. But today the brush passed easily as it smoothed out my hair.
She started at the tips, gently pulling, working her way up. If there was any tension from a knot, she was able to work it out without any breakage. She did this until all of my hair was pulled back and straight. I had not felt any knots being tugged loose, or hair pulling.
âAthene, you’re wonderful! I can’t even brush my hair without any pain and you seem to do so with ease,â I said, impressed.
âThank you Michael. I will accept your credit for the brushing but I will also tell you the conditioner formula I used was also of help. Humans h
ad already created this conditioner and were giving out the formula online. I am surprised you never tried to use it.â she scolded. âI will not say it was easy, but I think I have done a very competent job. Your hair is far curlier that I expected. Yet when completely straightened out it would extend much further than you have it now. Now please stand up and we shall get you dry.â
I pushed myself out of the now damp chair and soon it disappeared into the floor, as did both of the arms. Then warm air began to swirl around me. It started out gently and from every direction. Soon it was a torrential flow of wind that battered against my body as I stood patiently. I was mildly concerned it would re-tangle my hairâbut it was as if no wind touched it. Soon enough it stopped and I was left completely dry save for my hair, which was still mildly damp.
âThat was different. Not so much like being under a hand dryer than being inside a wind tunnel, causing hot air to swirl around me,â I said.
âWhat an interesting analogy,â said Athene. âYou can find your clothes where you left them; however, they are now clean. I took the liberty of running them through a wash, as I know you did not bring any other clothing with you.â
âThank you again Athene. All I need now is some food and a bed,â I said, feeling pampered.
I had not eaten since that morning, before the flight test they gave me. However I had eaten several bowls of free cereal at the hotel before leaving in case a situation would arise where I would be without food for an extended period of time. Being so caught up in the moment I had forgotten about food. By now I was ravenous and felt ready to eat large troughs of food if they were set before me, never minding what it was or how it tasted. If I had money I would have been in the habit of eating large breakfasts and only eating a little now and again throughout the day. Most times I could be happy with one large meal, but today’s stresses and excitement had left me drained and famished. I now regretted I had not been able to eat at some ramen shop while I was in Japan.
âWhat do you desire to eat? I can see if I have it for you on board,â Athene said.
âI would say sushiâto honor our little adventure earlier, but then to get full enough on that I would probably feel very sick. I can only eat a few rolls in one sitting,â I mused. âHow about an all American meal of Hamburgers and fries?â I said half jokingly, putting on a poor southern accent as I pulled on the last of my clothes.
âAnd how would the captain like their burger cooked?â Athene said in a mock tone of a stereotypical butler.
âReally? You can get that for me? Well my dear, I shall like it cooked to medium. Just a little blood and pink in the middle please. And if you have the fixings: cheese, pickles, and mustard, I shall like those too. Ketchup is only for fries, and those that use that condiment on meat are lacking in taste,â I said using my best posh British accent. Which was not in any way good.
âRight away captain. Potatoes are cleaned and frying, and the burger shall be with you shortly as well. Please follow the hand to an appropriate dining area,â she said, and once more a hand extended from the ground to guid me on my way through the ship.
âAthene, is there any particular reason you use an arm on the floor to lead me along? I mean if you can change shapes and colors couldn’t you just as easily create blinking colored arrows along the wall or floor?â I asked.
âYes, I could do that if you prefer. Though I am actually enjoying your little jumps when you see my arms show up. I can actually do something a bit more fancy if you wish,â she said in a mischievous tone.
The arm began to melt and shrink to become an exact copy of the rabbit from the cover of Alice in Wonderland. It even had the gray waist coat, and a golden pocket watch in its hand. This was another shocking sight. I must have jumped more noticeably then ever because it set off Athene giggling in near hysterics.
âAthene, you little trickster. That’s actually quite frightening. But please do not do anything like that when I’m sleeping. I would hate to wake up with some strange thing staring down at me, breathing its hot breath on my face.â
âAww, you have ruined the alarm I set for you. But you should really follow the rabbit, the food is almost ready.â With that the rabbit began to tap its foot on the floor. It held up the watch and clicked its little nails against the face in impatience.
âLead on dear Rabbit, and down the hole shall I continue to go,â I said.
The rabbit began taking little hops forward. I could see as it hopped a little string flowed behind it, always making contact with the floor. It appeared while Athene could do many things, she was not able to maintain the existence of anything that did not touch her surfaces.
Soon enough I arrived at the dinning area located in a room to the side of the Victorian styled ship’s foyer. This room had what looked to be gold-leaf wallpaper, still floral in design, with a wood brown color as the background to accent it. There was a long dark wooden table with eight similarly wooden chairs. There were three to either side, and one at each end. A crystal looking chandelier was hanging above the table. Its light bounced off the mirrored decorations and the golden wallpaper making the room sparkle dimly. All in all a warm and inviting room. There was even what looked to be a wood burning fireplace along one wall. The mantle was made of dark wood and had decorative carvings along all its surfaces.
And there, waiting for me at the table, was not only my dinner, but three chairs filled with more Wonderland creations. A crazed looking rabbit with mismatched eyes, a drunken mouse, and a man with a prodigious nose wearing a tall green hat with a card sticking jauntily at an angle that read ‘In This Style 10/6’. The three raised their teacups to me while they smiled like maniacs.
âAthene, I’m really very tired. Mind you I’m impressed by your skill, but I think I’d like to dine alone tonight. I’m not saying you have to stop talking with me or anything, but this is a bit much right now, even as amusing as it is,â I said tiredly, trying not to hurt her feelings. This was all beginning to get surreal and I needed to rest tonight. I did not think I could sleep if I began talking with fictional characters.
âOh poo, you are no fun.â And the people of Wonderland disappeared by melting off of their chairs and sinking into the floor. This was an even more disturbing sight in my mind than seeing them sitting there. I hoped I did not have nightmares about melting people.
I walked to the head of the table where a plate had been set out. In the center was a large juicy looking burger and a pile of what looked to be freshly cut, unpeeled fried potatoes. To the side of the main plate was a small dish filled with ketchup and a glass of water.
âAthene this looks and smells wonderful. I shall have to review it with my taste-buds. But I can say the presentation is unique and exquisite,â I said while pulling the chair out and sitting down.
âFeel free to ask for seconds. You did not eat in the time we were out flying. That was a decent amount of time for the average citizen of a first world country to go without food,â she said. I could not tell if she was just making a comment or a wisecrack at how hungry I appeared.
I reached forward and grabbed the burger. I opened my mouth as wide as it would go and took the largest bite I could. As I was chewing I could tell it was done to perfection. It was very juicy, but the middle was not so pink that it spewed blood. There was just a little bit of blood mixed with greasy juices leaking from the center. The mustard was perfect and the pickles were very sharply dill.
âGive my compliments to the chef. This is one of the finest burgers that has ever passed my lips,â I said around another mouthful of burger.
âI shall let her know,â Athene giggled.
With much fewer bites than I would normally take, the burger was gone, and I started on the fries. They were still hot with oil, and were perfectly crispy on the outside with a soft crumbly texture on the inside. I tried a couple without the ket
chup, and while they were very good, old habits die hard, and I was dipping them by the handful into the ketchup before stuffing them into my face.
While I certainly could have eaten more, I felt I was satisfied after I had cleaned my plate. Any more would just leave me feeling sick. It had been a large burger, around 10 ounces if my eyes could be trusted, and I felt that was plenty.
âAthene, that was a great dinner. Thank you for providing me with both a very enjoyable shower and an amazing meal. But now I feel so beat I’m going to fall asleep here in this chair. Is there a bed aboard where I may rest my weary head?â I pleaded.
âCertainly Michael. Please follow the lighted arrows along the wall to your bedroom,â she said.
I laughed at the arrows. It seemed she was going to be less extravagant now. Perhaps she just wanted to show off how amazing she was to wow me. She certainly had done so, but there was only so much one could be impressed with in a day.
As I followed the flow of arrows it felt I was retracing my steps back to the bathroom. Had I lost my sense of direction in this vast ship? A door opened along the corridor and I could see a warm glow extending beyond its opening. As I walked into the room I could see the walls were red. It was not a flat red, it looked mottled and dark. The bed had to be a king size at the very least, and it had an enormous wooden headboard that reached the ceiling with only a slightly shorter foot board. The satiny comforter that lay over it was of deep red with decorative patterns stitched in black. There were mounds of black and red pillows stacked at the head that one could easily have thrown on the ground to create a second bed nearly as large as the original.
The ceiling was constructed with flat panels of dark wood trimmed with intricate floral carvings. It also had a chandelier, though this one was smaller than the dining room’s, and its light was dim and soft. To the right of the bed there was a small side table, and in the left corner was a large vase filled with tall white flowers of some variety I was not familiar with.