by Gene Curtis
Chapter 9
I Think Therefore…
Trouble seeks the unwitting, and finds those unprepared.
The next morning the group made it to breakfast with time to spare. Someone had knocked on their bedroom doors to wake them up.
Tim was there waiting for them as expected. He was his usual bright-eyed self. “Meet me on the top floor of the bookstore at eight. Today we are going to get your telescopes. After that, I am going to take you to the observatory on top of the mountain where you can set it up.”
Mark walked up to Tim. “I was wondering, since we have already been chosen, do we need to attend the choosing event?” Jamal, Nick and Chenoa walked up beside Mark, waiting for Tim’s answer.
“Well, I do not know.” Tim looked down at the floor in thought, and then looked back up. “It has never come up before. I can see no reason that you should have to attend. I would think that you would want to go just to see the folks that get chosen to be in your tribe.”
“Okay, where’s the best place to watch from?”
“I guess you can sit in the bleachers. Best take your binoculars with you.”
“How do you get to the bleachers?”
“Observatory level. You will see how to get there this morning. That is where you will set up your telescope.”
Mark nodded. “Okay, thanks. We’ll see you in the bookstore.”
The group followed Mark. A couple of steps away from Tim, Chenoa leaned toward Jamal and whispered. “I don’t think he has any intention of sitting in the bleachers and watching the choosing.”
Jamal answered, “I think that I agree with you. It would not be my first choice either. What do you think he is going to want to do?”
Nick leaned in and said, “I don’t know about him, but I don’t want to sit in the sun all day. I’d rather be sitting somewhere in the shade with a nice, cool, umbrella drink.” This was very odd for Nick because he always considered umbrella drinks to be adult beverages.
They reached their booth and sat down. Mark said, “I was just thinking. I don’t want to sit in the sun on those bleachers all day. I’d rather find a nice shady spot and watch. Maybe some place where we can get some iced drinks, you know, the kind with the little umbrellas in them. My grandfather used to make them for me, lemonade, a splash of cherry, a couple of pieces of pineapple tossed in and a little umbrella as a decoration.”
Chenoa leaned toward Mark with a surprised look on her face. “You heard us talking, didn’t you?”
Mark was puzzled. He hadn’t heard them talking. “No, I didn’t hear you talking. What were you saying?”
“We, the three of us, were just speculating on what you would want to do. I mean, I just thought that you wouldn’t want to watch the choosing from the bleachers. Jamal agreed with me and Nick said that he would rather sit in a shady spot with an umbrella drink.”
“That was exactly what I was thinking when we were walking over here. The Council of Elders said I had the ability of spirit speak. They called it… Rooack Dabar. Let’s try something else.” Mark tried to think of the strangest thing that he could. He pictured in his mind, Tim ballet dancing in purple tights and a green tutu.
Chenoa’s face wrinkled up and she squinted her eyes. “That’s absolutely disgusting!”
Nick’s face was in his hands and he was shaking his head. “She’s right. I could have gone my whole life without seeing that and been happy.”
Jamal piped in. “What were you thinking, man? No, wait; I know what you were thinking. I just don’t know why.”
Tim walked up, leaned over and put his hands on the table. “That was not very nice. I guess that I am lucky that not many people are here.”
Mark blushed and looked down at the table. He was trying real hard to suppress a grin. “I’m sorry, Tim. I just tried to think of something where I could be sure that these guys were reading my thoughts. It just popped into my head.” When Mark looked back up he saw that Nick, Jamal and Chenoa had their hands over their mouths, trying to keep from laughing.
“Well, I reckon that it was funny. I have never thought of myself as a ballet dancer. I guess that is a good thing. At any rate, you need to be careful with what you think, at least up front, anyway.”
Mark’s expression changed to a serious tone. “How can I control what I think? I mean, what I think is what I think.”
Tim knelt beside the table. “Only what you think in the front of your mind is what people can hear. It works best in the morning when everybody’s mind is usually clear. I will say something to Mr. Diefenderfer about this. He can give you some exercises to help you control it. Just be careful of what you think up front until you get the hang of it.”
Shana walked up to the table grinning at Tim. She put her hands over her head so that her fingertips touched. Then she tiptoed a couple of quick steps, still grinning at Tim.
Tim shook his head. “It is going to take a long time to live this one down. You got me. I guess that I should award you a couple of points for a practical joke, even though you did not mean to do it.” He stood up and walked back to his post at the door, all the while slowly shaking his head.
Shana looked at Mark. “Tim’s right you know. What you think can be used against you.”
Mark looked at her and said, “I see what you mean.” He was thinking of how his thoughts would telegraph his intentions to an opponent.
Shana understood what Mark was thinking. She nodded her head. “That’s right. And there are more subtle ways to use it against you.”
Mark tried thinking the question to her. How do you mean?
“Well, for example, Chenoa already knows that you think that she is cute. She could use that knowledge to manipulate you into doing things. Nick already knows that you think he is smart. He could use that to give you bad information at a critical moment. Jamal knows that you think he is wise. He could give you bad advice. Mind you, I’m not saying that this will happen. I’m just using these examples to show you how subtle treachery can be. I don’t, in any way, mean to imply anything against your friends. Things like I have just described have happened in the past though. Just be on guard with what you think.”
“How far does it reach?”
“I was in the back room getting ready to come out when I picked it up. That’s about fifty yards from here. You do have one thing going in your favor though. Most freshmen and first level sophomores will think that what they pick up from you are their own thoughts. It takes a bit of training and experience to recognize foreign thoughts.”
“What do you mean, foreign thoughts?”
“Well, your thoughts are foreign to your friends. I mean, they are not their thoughts; they’re yours. There are other kinds of foreign thoughts too. For example, have you ever had an idea for an invention or a way of doing something just pop into your head and then sometime in the future see that same thing being done by someone else? You thought that it was an original idea, but it wasn’t.”
“Yeah! One time I had invented a new trick on my bicycle. I didn’t show or tell anyone. Two months later, everyone was doing it.”
“That’s it. You’ll learn about that kind of thing in your communications classes. Okay, enough of that. What would you guys like for breakfast?”
Shana took their orders and left. Mark looked at his friends one by one. “That explains a lot of things.”
Nick said, “Yeah… When you helped me with Ralph, I thought it was me thinking what I would like to see you do to him. But… you must have been thinking what you would like to do to him. I liked thinking of him huddled on the ground with you standing over him with that staff. He must have picked up your thoughts and that was why he was so scared. He must have thought that you were going to beat him ugly.” Nick paused and grinned at Mark. “Not that he needs any help.”
“I guess he did. Do you remember his face when I twirled the staff?”
“Y
eah, I do. And about what you’re thinking now. That doesn’t make you a bully, just because you scared the crap out of him. He was the bully. It was three against one. If you hadn’t of showed up when you did, well, I probably would have been beaten up pretty good.”
Mark looked at Chenoa. It was a little awkward, but he said, “Yes, Chenoa, I think you’re pretty.” He remembered the first time that he had seen her sitting at the table waiting for Nick and himself to show up. He remembered how the light had reflected off her hair. Then he remembered seeing her mount that horse with such form and grace, her hair in the sunlight. He saw her smile and blush slightly. He knew that she was picking up his thoughts. He knew everyone else was too, but he didn’t care at the moment.
He turned and looked at Jamal. He remembered how Jamal told the story of how his grandfather had instructed him on the importance of family. In his mind he brought his fingers together, as in plucking an invisible grape. Jamal made the same motion. Then he thought of something that his dad had once told him. He thought, Curiosity brings knowledge, knowledge brings understanding, and understanding brings wisdom. Your grandfather has an understanding of how important family is. You, accepting that knowledge and sharing it with your friends; that is wisdom.
“It’s strange knowing other people know what you’re thinking.”
Breakfast was solemn after that. No one hardly said another word until it was almost time to leave.
Nick folded the cloth napkin that had been in his lap and wiped his mouth. “I guess we had better get a move on.” He tossed his napkin onto his plate, punctuating his sentence.
* * *
The seventh level in the bookstore displayed all kinds of optical instruments. There were display racks full of binoculars, sextants, spotting scopes and all kinds of instruments that Mark had never seen or heard of before.
Tim walked up to Mark. “If you see something that you like, then you can take it out onto the balcony and check it out.” Tim motioned toward the binoculars and spotting scopes.
Mark looked at Tim as he took a pair of binoculars off of the display. “Thanks. What kind should I get?”
“It all depends on what you like. Myself, I use a five to thirty power zoom scope. Anything over thirty power is too hard to hold still. Although, you could use a tripod to hold it still, but that kind of defeats the purpose.”
Tim reached in front of himself and then slowly brought his hand back toward himself. A long spotting scope appeared in his hand out of nowhere.
“This is it if you want to look at it.”
Marks eyes widened with surprise. “How’d you do that?”
“How did I do what? Oh, you mean Aaron’s Grasp. You will learn to do that this year. It is not hard. First, you need to understand the connections between your mind, your body and your spirit. I tell you, it is a lot easier than learning to remanifest. Now that was hard.”
Mark motioned toward the spotting scope. “Can I check it out?”
“Okay, I will go out on the balcony with you.”
Out on the balcony, Tim handed Mark his scope. “Here you go. I will be back in a minute. If I remember right, you like lemonade.”
“Yes or iced tea.”
Mark surveyed the vista that stretched beyond the wall. Three distinct and very different areas were separated by walls that were as tall as the wall that separated the school grounds from the rest of the world.
Off to the left was an expanse of green grass as far as the eye could see. The binoculars showed it to be rolling hills and sections of woods. Straight ahead was a jumble of tans, beiges, browns and yellows that dominated the landscape beyond the wall. This was the area that he had already seen. To the right was a patchwork of farm fields looking very much like pictures that he had seen, of farmland taken from high above. Everything that was visible was too far away to make out any detail, even with the binoculars.
Mark held the spotting scope to his eye. He pushed the zoom lever to the maximum zoom position. He scanned the wall in the distance. He knew that it was about a mile away. He was looking for other places that could be doorways. He thought that if there was one doorway that there were probably others.
The wall was too far away for him to notice any subtle discrepancies that might indicate where another door might be. He tried the binoculars. He couldn’t tell any difference between the binoculars and the scope except that with the binoculars he was using two eyes.
He scanned the wall as far around to the left as he could, without moving, when a bit of movement caught his eye. He steadied the binoculars on the balcony wall and saw that the motion was Mr. Thorpe emerging from the doorway that led to the game preserve. Mr. Thorpe was heading straight back to the school. His stride was stiff and pronounced as if he were angry at something and then he just disappeared, remanifesting to a different location.
Tim walked back up. He was carrying two drinks. They both had little umbrellas stuck in the top of the glass. Tim smiled at Mark.
“Yeah, I heard your thoughts about the umbrella drinks, too.”
He handed Mark the iced tea. “You and your friends can watch the choosing from up here tomorrow. If Harmonious Thorpe tries to run you off,
just tell him that I gave you permission. If I see him before tomorrow, then I will tell him myself.”
“Why would Mr. Thorpe try to run us off?”
“Well, I cannot tell you what I think of Harmonious. It is not polite and it is quite improper for a counselor to say anything about a teacher. But, at any rate, Harmonious had this balcony built. You see, he owns the concession on optical instruments here. That is part of how he wanted to be paid for teaching here. He got tired of having to walk down seven levels to The Oasis whenever he wanted something to eat or drink. There was no place to put a concession up here for food or drinks so he built the balcony. He lets teachers, instructors and staff use it to watch flags matches and stuff, and they do since they can buy food or drinks up here, and it is shaded. The roof is the platform for the bleachers. He also lets students use it if they intend to buy an optical instrument. Now, if you four do not happen to find binoculars or scopes that you are pleased with today, well, you can always come back tomorrow. And while you are up here, The Choosing will be going on right down there.” He pointed to indicate the place where The Choosing would take place.
“That’s downright sneaky, Tim.”
Tim grinned and said, “Yeah, I am not very good at being sneaky. Never have been. But I figured that I could do you guys a good turn since I knew what you wanted.”
“Well, I need to ask your advice on something. I’m going to think about something that happened yesterday. I want you to tell me what you think.”
“All right, have at it.”
Mark brought vivid memories of himself encountering the lioness in the corridor to the front of his mind. He remembered the entire incident until he left from the wall. “Well, what do you think that I should do?”
“Well, Albert is sure in trouble. That lioness should not have been anywhere near the school.”
“I don’t want to get anyone in trouble. I just want to know if being able to talk to animals is normal for a Magi.”
“No… no, Balaam’s Tongue is a very rare ability. I should inform the Council of Elders at once. They are trying to piece together what all this stuff about you means. Every piece of information helps.”
“Does everyone need to know? I mean, everybody already knows that I’m kind of strange and Shana has already told Mrs. Shadowitz.”
“I will tell them how you feel about it. I am pretty sure that they will keep it quiet if you want them to.”
“Yeah, I do.”
“Well, all right then. You go back in and tell your friends what the plan is. And, by the way, the best telescope to get for your group is the Astrotron, the twelve-inch model. It is best to get one telescope to share. And one more thing, you are right about there being other doors in the wall. I am supposed to tell you that th
ey are off limits to students. So, you will get in trouble if you get caught on the other side of the wall. Do you understand?”
Mark said, “Yes. Thanks,” and handed Tim back his scope. He went back inside carrying his umbrella drink. He put the binoculars back on the display. His friends weren’t hard to find.
Back on the balcony he explained to the group what had just transpired between Tim and himself.
Jamal smiled and said, “I think that telling Tim and Shana about your ability with animals is a good thing. Someone is bound to pick up your thoughts on it and figure it out. Now, it won’t bother you.”
Mark said, “You’re right. It was a bad idea to try and keep it a secret from the Council of Elders.”
Chenoa said, “You’re still thinking about the wall, aren’t you? You want to explore the wall and map the doors.”
Mark grinned. “A nice, leisurely horseback ride around the wall can’t hurt anything.”
Jamal was shaking his head, “You’re asking for trouble.”
Nick put his hand on Jamal’s shoulder. “Where’s your sense of adventure. Aren’t you curious about what’s outside the wall?”
“You know I am. But you know too, that once we are out there, we will have to look through the doors. You can’t be that close and not look.”
Mark said, “Okay… I’ll see if I can get permission to just look through the doors.”
No one had noticed the lady dressed in a black tunic with silver trim, standing just outside the door on the balcony. When she spoke, it startled the group.
“That’s the right decision.” She was a tall lady and overly thin. Her gray hair was done up in a bun with a silver spike through it. The end of the spike had a largish, orange stone on it. “Hello, I’m Theresa Shadowitz, Commander of Jasper Tribe and Chief Elder of this school.”
Mark recognized the voice. It was the voice that had spoken to him in the council chambers. Mark started to speak but was cut off by Mrs. Shadowitz.
“Mark, Shana has told me about your encounter with the lioness yesterday. I will inform the Council of Elders only, of this ability, if that is your wish. It is customary that I hear that request directly from you.”
“Yes ma’am. That is my wish, only except Gerod. I think Gerod should be told. I think I owe him that, seeing what he did to help my mother and all when I was being born.”
“Very well then.” She turned and started to leave. She paused with her hand on the door. She had picked up Mark’s thoughts just before he was about to speak. “No… you may not have permission to look through those doors in the outer wall. You must be accompanied by a teacher or school staff to do that. Therefore… I will accompany you this afternoon at, shall we say, two. I could do with a nice, leisurely ride. I will meet you at the stables. I will bring a map with me and you can decide where you want to go, from there.” She continued through the door without having turned to face the group again.
This turn of events had taken the group by surprise.
Jamal chuckled and said, “I just realized something. So far, everything that we have asked for has been granted in one way or another. It hasn’t always happened the way that we might have expected it to; but it happened none-the-less.”
Nick rubbed his chin and said, “I think you’re right and it makes sense. This is a school. Everything that we have done so far has been related to learning new things.”
Chenoa said, “It is kind of strange. It’s as if every time that we were thinking about doing something, someone has shown up and kind of guided us the right way.”
Mark shook his head. “Don’t you get it? It’s because of me. They are keeping a close eye on me because I’m different. They know what I’m thinking.”
Tim walked up to them from the door that Mrs. Shadowitz had just left by. “That is true to some extent. We are curious about you, not because of your abilities but because there was no foreknowledge about what this is all about. AlHufus Diefenderfer only sang about its happening, not what it was about. You have not gotten any special treatment. All students are curious and want to explore and do new things. It is natural. We accommodate this whenever possible, even if it is inconvenient. That is one of the most important things about being a Magi, helping other people whenever possible. It is so important, that you will start searching for people to help. Over the next eight years you will learn why.”
Mark looked at Tim. “Are you saying that this is inconvenient for Mrs. Shadowitz?”
“Not at all. As a matter of fact, she is looking forward to it. She says that she has wanted to find an excuse to go riding. It is one of the things that she enjoys, but seldom gets the chance to do.”
“We are supposed to meet her at the stables. Where are they?”
“First door to the left of where the lioness took you. Wait for her by the door. Do not go in without her.”
“Okay, thanks.”
“You guys need to select a telescope. It is almost time to go topside to the observatory.” With that said, Tim started to walk off toward the concession window.
The door to the balcony burst open and Harmonious Thorpe stormed out. “TIM… TIM FAIRBANKS, WHERE ARE YOU?” His profoundly bass voice reverberated off the walls.
Tim turned to face Mr. Thorpe. “I am right here, Harmonious. There is no need to yell.”
Mr. Thorpe lowered his tone to a simmering whisper. Mark noticed that his fists were clenched and a vein was bulging on his forehead. “If I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a hundred times, you will address me as sir, Teacher or Mr. Thorpe.”
“Yes sir. But that was as a student. I am not any longer a student. I have been a counselor for twenty-eight years now.”
“You are still subordinate to me. You will address me as such. Understood?”
Tim was obviously surprised by this public display of temper. “Yes sir. I understand. You wanted to see me?”
Mr. Thorpe’s tone was still seething. “Do you know what one of your little brats has done?”
“I do not know what you are referring to, sir.”
“I found lion tracks leading up to and away from the school. The tracks had human tracks going away from the school with them. I followed the tracks to the game preserve. Do you know what that game keeper, what’s his name… told me?”
“Albert, sir. Albert is his name. And yes sir, I think I know just about what he told you.”
“He told me that the boy with the staff found the lioness and brought her back! Do you have any idea what that means?”
“Yes sir. I do. Mrs. Shadowitz has already been informed.”
Evidently Mr. Thorp wasn’t listening or didn’t care about what Tim had said. “It means that this boy… this prodigy… this… this… this special boy… has no regard for safety, his or anyone else’s for that matter.”
“Mr. Thorpe, I wish you would not do this here. This is a public place.”
“Do you know what else Albert said?”
“Please, Mr. Thorpe. Do not do this here.”
“He said that the boy with the staff tried to make him promise to feed the lioness some gazelle… tried to make him promise to give her some gazelle, like he knew what she wanted.”
Tim changed his tone from pleading to resolute. “Mr. Thorpe. It is very improper for you to do this here.”
Mr. Thorpe ignored Tim and turned to face Mark. He patted his lips with his index finger. His tone was threatening. “That could mean only one thing.” He pointed at Mark and shouted. “You knew what the lioness wanted, didn’t you boy?” His voice penetrated Mark’s every organ.
Mark looked down at his feet and didn’t answer Mr. Thorpe.
“Answer me, boy! Answer me, now!”
Mark gathered his resolve. He looked Mr. Thorpe straight in the eye and didn’t say a word.
“Boy… I told you to answer me!”
Mark looked at Tim. Tim frowned and nodded his head yes, slightly.
“Yes sir.”
“I knew it. You hav
e Balaam’s Tongue, don’t you boy? You can talk to animals, right?”
“Yes sir.”
“Why haven’t you told anybody about this? Do you think that you’re too special to let anyone know about this?”
Tim saw his chance and broke in. “He has told! Mrs. Shadowitz just has not told you yet.”
Mr. Thorpe turned to face Tim. “You knew! Why didn’t you tell me?”
“It is not my place, sir. Mr. Young has asked that only the Council of Elders be informed with the exception of Gerod and myself.”
Mr. Thorpe wheeled on Mark and aimed his finger at him. “Is this true, boy?”
“Yes, sir.”
“I’m sorry to hear you say that, boy. That means that I have unknowingly violated a trust.” He turned to face Tim again. “And you let me do it, Tim.”
“I beg your pardon… sir. I tried to stop you. You just would not listen.”
“I don’t listen, huh. You will report to the Council of Elders tomorrow at 9 a.m. for a disciplinary hearing. We’ll see who listens.”
Tim bowed his head. “Yes sir.”
“I’m afraid that won’t be necessary… Harmonious.” Mrs. Shadowitz stood up from behind Chenoa, Nick and Jamal. “I’m afraid that you have pronounced your own fate. I will see you in the Council Chambers tomorrow at 9 a.m. You will face a disciplinary hearing.”
“But, ma’am. I didn’t mean…”
Mrs. Shadowitz cut him off with a whisper. “Harmonious, do you dare to argue with me?”
“But…” Mr. Thorpe lowered his head. “No ma’am.”
Mr. Thorpe turned and started to walk away.
Tim interrupted him. “Ah, Mr. Thorpe. Since these four have been pre-chosen, they have tomorrow off. I have given them permission to return here tomorrow and finish their selection of optics. I just thought that you should know.”
After pausing to hear what Tim had to say, he continued walking.
Tim turned to Mark. “I figured that it was a good time to tell him. I do not think that I could have made him any madder.”
“Why was he so mad?”
“Well, I am not taking up for him, but you should have told someone as soon as you could have or at least have called for help. A lioness in the school is pretty serious business.”
“I guess so. But still, that shouldn’t have made him as mad as all that. That was downright mean, what he just did.”
“Yeah, but I understand him, the way he thinks. You see, everything to him is black and white, right or wrong. To him, there is no in between, no mitigation and, he is a strict disciplinarian.”
“That doesn’t make it right.”
“I do not think that what he did was wrong. It was no more wrong than that lioness trying to find something to eat. I think that where he chose to do it was wrong. Mrs. Shadowitz is going to take care of that.”
“Do you think that he is in a lot of trouble?”
“It is not proper for me to speculate on that. I just know that I would not want to be in his shoes.”
Mark gave him a halfhearted smile. “Thanks, Tim.”
“You are welcome. Now, you guys can go ahead and get a telescope. We need to get topside and set them up. After you get them set up, you can have the rest of the day to do whatever you like.”