by Dave Corrick
Chapter 20
Pearl’s new Discovery Is Tested.
The next day (Monday) Louie and Lulu were up and about early. There was a lot to do. It was the first day back at the Factory after being away for a week on their honeymoon and they had to meet with Pearl at 11.00 a.m. at the tunnel.
We don’t really have to keep mentioning it, but as good clean bees they both washed their teeth and brushed their bodies.
Today it was Lulu’s turn to make the breakfast and Louie did the dishes afterwards. Although it was early summer it was a coolish cloudy sort of day so both sat inside by the stove.
It was 8.30 a.m. when the two newly married bees headed off for their first day back at work. The two bees were totally inseparable. It was so good that they could work and be together.
The Factory was in full swing when they arrived. The Ten Ants had done a marvellous job of keeping the place running while Louie and Lulu had been away.
Lulu went straight away to phone Arnold at the Reserve Bank to organise the weekly pay for the Ten Ants. She then worked on the weekly production report. Lulu hoped to have this finished for Louie before they went to meet Pearl.
Louie called Import into his office to discuss workload. Yes it was going to be a busy week. White Ant Excavators had fifteen Bulldog Ants arriving for servicing after coming off a major tunnelling project. Louie wanting to do something for the Ten Ants after what they had done for he and Lulu, suggested to Import that if he needed to he could employ some more worker bees.
‘Thanks Mr Louie’, said Import. ‘I wouldn’t mind doing it if that is OK with you’.
‘Feel free to use my office if you want to do any interviewing Import. In fact with the Factory expanding and getting busier, why don’t you organise some carpenter ants from White Ant Excavators to build yourself an office of your own?’
‘Gee thanks Mr Louie can I really?’ said Import all excited.
Yes the Ten Ants were a real asset to the Factory and needed to be rewarded for the initiatives they had shown.
‘Hmmm’, said Louie to himself. ‘What a difference Lulu has made to me, I probably wasn’t a very good boss before she came along’.
Louie got on with tasks at hand and it wasn’t very long before it was time to go and meet Pearl.
Louie told Import that he and Lulu would be with Pearl for most of the day.
Down at the tunnel Pearl had arrived ahead of them and was fluttering around taking in the scenery while she waited.
The excited trio landed at the tunnel entrance and Louie unlocked the door.
As usual Louie lit the beeswax candles along the wall and they headed down to the quartz face. Pearl was happy to have Louie and Lulu with her; it was much better doing these things with others who can share in the experience.
‘Here we are’, said Louie.
The three were now close to the quartz and bathed in the pulsing blue light.
‘When we get to the other side’, said Pearl, ‘we will go to the square by the cake shop and start from there’.
‘You go through first Pearl’, said Louie, ‘Lulu and I will follow’.
‘Right’, said Pearl. ‘See you both on the other side’.
Once the three were in the square, Pearl moved to an area where there were few people. Louie and Lulu followed. It was a strange feeling being back together in the square again. Last time they had done it together had been before the wedding. Where had the time gone?
‘We can sit here and observe for awhile’, said Pearl. ‘I will give you a demonstration first and then you two can try’.
The three sat close together on the grass. Pearl was watching and waiting.
‘First of all’, said Pearl. ‘I will pick a lone person and merge with them. Then I will come to where we are sitting now. Remember I will be able to talk to you but I won’t be able to see you. You will have to make a sound for me to know exactly where you are’.
They waited on the grass a few more minutes then Pearl spotted a young girl coming towards them some distance off.
‘Right, here goes’, said Pearl getting up and heading towards the girl.
Louie and Lulu watched the blue nymph like shape of Pearl move off towards the girl. Pearl held out her arms straight in front of herself and moved closer. Pearl’s fists were glowing blue. Suddenly Pearl disappeared and the girl started moving towards where Louie and Lulu were sitting.
‘Wow’, said Lulu. ‘Look at that! Pearl must now be merged with the girl’.
When the girl was closer to where Louie and Lulu were sitting, the girl said. ‘Louie, Lulu, can you hear me?’
‘Yes over here Pearl’, said Louie. ‘Move to your left slightly then straight ahead. Almost there now. Stop!’
The girl stopped a little distance away right in front of Louie and Lulu.
‘Pearl is that really you?’ said Lulu.
‘Yes’, said Pearl. ‘As you can tell it is not my voice, I am speaking as this girl would’.
‘Lulu’, said Pearl. ‘I can’t see either of you. Can you come and take my hand so I can sit down with you two’.
Lulu moved forward and took Pearl (the girl) by the hand and they sat down by Louie.
‘This really is unbelievable’, said Louie. ‘What’s it like in there Pearl?’
‘Just a moment’, Pearl whispered. ‘I’ll just have to make sure that no people can see me when I am talking as it would look as though I am talking to myself!’
Pearl carefully looked around and made sure she had her back to any people near by.
‘Well’, said Pearl in the girl’s voice in answer to Louie’s question. ‘It is just amazing. The girl, judging by her thoughts, is heading to the High Street to do some shopping. I can also tell that she is a happy person and essentially honest. I can sense that she feels well. She is slightly concerned that she might not have enough money to buy what she really wants. I can feel a slight sensation of being hungry so she will probably have something to eat. In fact she is as bad as we are; she seems to be partial to a bit of chocolate cake!’
‘Louie reach out and touch my face’, said Pearl. Louie did.
‘Yes I can feel that Louie’, said Pearl. ‘Your touch is cold as though you really are a form of quartz as I mentioned. What do you feel when you touch me?’
‘I can feel you as an object’, replied Louie. ‘But there is no feeling as such. It is as if my fingers are numb. If I touch your skin I can feel it “give” if I push it but there is no sensation of hot or cold, roughness, smoothness. Nothing we normally feel’.
‘It’s an interesting point isn’t it’, said Pearl. ‘We obviously have no sense of touch in the state we are in when we have come through the quartz. This is quite strange as other senses are there such as balance, sight, smell, hearing, even laughter! We can feel our breathing, walking, talking and flying as we normally do, our emotions and feelings are all there – I guess we will never know exactly why is we have no sense of touch’.
‘Pearl what would happen if I tried to merge with you?’ said Louie.
‘Good thinking Louie’, said Pearl. ‘We need to know these things. That’s really what we are here to do today. Try it Louie’.
Louie clenched his fists so there was a blue aura around both fists and made contact with the girl. Nothing happened.
‘That’s interesting’, said Pearl. ‘Obviously because the girl’s molecular state has been altered by me. Another merge can’t be accepted’.
Pearl was concerned about stopping the girl from going about doing what she intended.
‘What I will do now’, Pearl explained. ‘I will go back to where I merged and demerge. If I leave her at the original spot, theoretically the only difference will be that time has advanced while she has been my host, she should just carry on walking to the High Street as she did before’.
Louie and Lulu watched the girl walk back. Amazingly, Pearl ‘stepped out’ of the girl and the girl went on her way as if nothing had happened. Pearl c
ould now see where Louie and Lulu were sitting and flew quickly over to them.
‘Isn’t that just amazing!’ said Pearl, ‘I wasn’t dreaming, it’s so good to have you two here to see it!’
Pearl added, ‘You can see that it is important to demerge with a person where they were first originally merged with. That girl would have been confused if I had demerged where we are. She would have wondered how she got here’.
‘Can I have a go now’, said Lulu anxious to try. ‘Look over by the Marigolds is an older man. I will go and try it with him’.
Lulu flew close to where the man was, then walked forward and did exactly as she had seen Pearl do. Sure enough, Lulu disappeared. Louie became a little anxious.
‘It’s alright Louie, Lulu is fine’, said Pearl reassuring Louie.
Lulu (now as the man) started walking over to where Pearl and Louie were sitting. Louie called out anxiously. ‘Lulu, Lulu, over here’. Lulu had heard Louie and moved in the direction of the sound.
‘Stop Lulu’, said Louie. Louie got up and grabbed the man (Lulu) by the hand and led him over to where Pearl was sitting.
‘Can you hear me Lulu?’ said Louie.
Louie just about burst out laughing when Lulu said in an elderly man’s voice, ‘Yes I can my loveable bee!’
‘Louie, Pearl this is just amazing’, said Lulu. ‘I can tell by this man’s thoughts that he was waiting until nobody was looking and then he was going to steal some of the Marigolds. He was going to put them in this bag he is carrying!’
‘Ah ha’, said Pearl, ‘This is where this new ability we have can be so useful. We can determine the intentions of people. Unfortunately Lulu you can’t change the man’s thoughts but what I suggest we do is take his bag off him so he has nothing to put the Marigolds in!’
‘Right’, said Lulu. ‘What I will do is go and put this bag in that rubbish bin over there. Then I will demerge by the Marigolds again’.
Louie still couldn’t believe that his precious Lulu was speaking in such a strange voice; it certainly was a surreal experience.
Lulu stood up and walked over to the rubbish bin she had spotted and buried the bag in it. She then walked over to the Marigolds to the exact spot she had picked up her host. She then demerged. Lulu flew back to Pearl and Louie and they watched to see what the man would do next.
Yes sure enough, the man was looking around for his bag to put the Marigolds in. After looking around for it and not finding it he moved off.
‘Well-done Lulu!’ said Pearl. ‘That’s our first job to help the village community’.
Lulu laughed and said. ‘Gosh that was so interesting. That man has got arthritis in his legs and I could feel it as I walked around. We really do become the person we have merged with’.
‘Your turn Louie’, said Lulu. ‘It’s just an amazing experience. There is nothing to it; I can’t believe how easy it is!’
Louie thought he would be different and picked a young boy who was barely six years old. His Mother had gone into the cake shop and left him to play on the grass by himself.
‘Let’s all move closer’, said Pearl. ‘In case his Mother comes back’.
The three moved closer to the boy who was running around chasing a butterfly. Louie quickly walked up and merged. The boy stopped chasing the butterfly and headed for Lulu and Pearl.
‘Over here Louie’, said Lulu.
Lulu moved forward and took the little boy by the hand. ‘Is that really you in there Louie?’ said Lulu in disbelief.
‘Yes it really is me’, said Louie. ‘It is truly amazing having a host that is so young! The thought patterns are so immature and the extent of knowledge is so small, a bit like me as a bee I guess!’ Louie laughed. Lulu just about lost control with laughing hearing Louie talking in this small boy’s voice.
‘He really is a nice little fellow’, said Louie. ‘He hasn’t got a single nasty thought on his mind. He knows his mother has gone to get some cakes to eat in the square and he can’t wait!’
‘Quick’, said Lulu with some urgency. ‘Here comes his Mother’.
Louie moved away and quickly demerged. The boy ran around looking for the butterfly he had been chasing but of course it had gone. Louie was quickly by Lulu’s side again,
Pearl, keeping an eye on the situation, realised there were more people close by and cautioned Louie and Lulu to move away. It was important not to become complacent and forget where they were. People could hear them if they weren’t careful and maybe cause problems.
Some distance away Louie said. ‘As I was saying, how incredible to have the thoughts of somebody so young. His thoughts were in simple words and images. He loves his parents. I think he must be a much loved child’.
‘Yes it is incredible isn’t it’, said Pearl in response to Louie.
Pearl thought for a moment and then said, ‘What I would like to try now if we can is to find three people who are together. We will then merge and see if we can talk to each other and move about as the people we have selected. What do you reckon team?’
‘Great idea Pearl’, said Lulu.
‘Let’s fly up the High Street and see what we can find’, said Louie.
‘Right let’s go!’ said Pearl.
The three circled above the town for some time before they spotted a suitable target.
‘Look down there’, said Lulu pointing to outside the bank where there were three men standing talking. They didn’t look to be particularly nice people.
‘Maybe they are going to rob the bank!’ said Louie jokingly.
‘Looks interesting’, said Pearl. ‘Let’s fly in and merge, you take the one on the left Lulu, I’ll take the middle one and Louie you take the one on the right’.
‘Ay Ay captain’, said Louie laughing and thrilled at the excitement.
The three men were dirty, scruffy and had heavy tattoos on their arms. On merging, the three conferred amongst each other as to how they felt.
‘These three really are a nasty piece of work’, said Pearl. ‘From what I can tell they have been here sizing up the bank to rob it at some stage’.
‘I am getting the same vibes’, said Louie.
‘Me too’, said Lulu.
‘Let’s go over to that coffee shop over the road and have a coffee and something to eat’, said Louie, ‘I’ve got some money in my pocket’.
It’s interesting how the insects, now merged as humans, didn’t have to learn about money and buying things. It was of course simply the normal behaviour of the human that was their host.
On entering the coffee shop, most of the customers left!
‘We must look really frightening’, Lulu whispered in a gruff voice.
The three ordered coffee and cakes then Louie paid the shop owner. The shop owner was by now cowering behind the counter with fright at the sight of the three thugs.
‘It’s alright we won’t hurt you’, said Pearl in rasping voice ruined by years of smoking.
The three sat down at a table by the window so they could see what was going on down the High Street.
‘I don’t know about you two’, said Lulu, ‘but I seem to have a very painful knife wound in my right leg! The thoughts of the person I am in are definitely about robbing the bank at some time in the future’.
‘My mouth feels and tastes like the bottom of a bird cage’, said Pearl whose host obviously smoked and never brushed his teeth, disgusting!
Louie had picked up something and said excitedly. ‘These guys robbed the jewellers’ shop in the High Street last week and they have done heaps of house burglaries as well!’
‘You are right’, said Pearl. ‘I have even got the address of where all the stolen goods are! It’s at 23 Eagle Street on the outskirts of the village. It must be where these guys live’.
‘What do you think we should do Pearl?’ said Lulu, nervous but excited.
The coffee and cake arrived, Pearl thought about it for awhile.
‘I know what we should do!’ said Pe
arl. ‘I’ve got a great idea. When we have finished our coffee and cake we will walk down to the police station and hand ourselves in! We can tell the police where all the stolen goods are and everything can be returned to the rightful owners!’
‘Brilliant Pearl’, said Louie.
Lulu wanted to give Pearl a big hug for being so clever. Fortunately she stopped herself in time. A thug hug was out of the question, it just wouldn’t look right!
The intrepid trio enjoyed their coffee and cake and laughed about things they might do.
‘When we get to the police station’, said Pearl on a more serious note. ‘We will need to let the situation advance until we feel it is the appropriate time to demerge from our hosts. Just keep close together and act tough! If I feel anything looks risky I will I say to demerge, you both know what to do’.
‘By the way’, said Pearl. ‘My name appears to be Jo, any feelings for what your names might be?’
‘Meat Head comes to mind for me’, said Lulu, ‘I must be the dumb one’.
‘Crafty for me’, said Louie, ‘I can feel it in my fingers; I am an expert at opening safes!’
‘Good’, said Pearl, ‘We might need to use our names at the police station’.
‘When we go’, said Louie, ‘I will leave all the money I have in my pocket as a tip. It will make it up to the shop owner for scaring off the customers!’
The three slouched off out of the coffee shop much to the relief of the owner. Still the huge tip made up for the scary time the owner had experienced.
Walking along the High Street towards the police station it was interesting seeing how people crossed the road to avoid coming anywhere near the three of them. Pearl thought to herself that what they were about to do was exactly the sort of thing that they could do to help the villagers. They were all terrified of these guys.
At the police station the three walked up to the counter behind which was a senior constable studying some papers. The constable looked up and immediately recognised the three.
‘Hello eelo eelo, what have we got ‘ere now. Meathead, Crafty and Jo this is the last place I would expect to see you lot’, said the senior constable looking surprised. ‘What have you lost your mummy or something?’
‘No’, said Pearl who of course was Jo. ‘We have come to confess to the jewellers’ shop robbery and several other burglaries’.
‘Are you having me on sonny?’ said the surprised senior constable.
‘No I mean it, we have all decided we want to change our lives and go straight’, said Pearl.
‘And just how am I supposed to believe you?’ said the senior constable. ‘Especially when I have had nothing but a pack of lies from you lot in the past’.
‘All the proceeds of our burglaries are at 23 Eagle Street under the house’, said Pearl in a gruff but fairly convincing voice. ‘Take us there and we will show you’.
‘Really? Well so there is no nonsense, you lot can prove you mean it by letting me handcuff you all right now’.
‘Go ahead’, said Pearl.
The senior constable handcuffed them all together so they couldn’t move. He then went to get a police car. Another constable took over at the counter.
Pearl whispered to the others, ‘Don’t worry; we can demerge at anytime if things get too rough. The handcuffs don’t have any affect on our ability to demerge. Remember if you need to demerge, just clench your fists and walk away. You won’t be seen’.
It may well be asked how could the insects demerge and escape when they were all handcuffed together? Remember that in any change of state, the insects can’t take anything with them, including handcuffs, which was a bit of a blessing in this situation! Pearl realised this in reassuring Louie and Lulu.
The police car pulled up outside the front of the police station. Louie, Lulu and Pearl were bundled into the back. They all sped off to 23 Eagle Street.
On arrival the senior constable went straight away to look under the house. There was a locked room.
‘Where’s the key?’ the senior constable demanded.
Without even having to think, Pearl (Jo) reached into her pocket and pulled out a bunch of keys. ‘It’s this one’, said Pearl
The senior constable opened the door, he couldn’t believe it. The room was chocker with money, jewellery, household items and clothing of all sorts! There was thousands and thousands of dollars worth of stolen goods right there in front of him.
‘My God! Right-o you lot, you are under arrest’. The senior constable barked.
‘Demerge now!’ Pearl whispered to Louie and Lulu.
Louie, Lulu and Pearl all clenched their fists and walked out of their human hosts.
The thugs now as themselves again couldn’t believe it. They were standing in front of all their stolen goods with the senior constable. They were caught – maybe blue handed?
Louie, Lulu and Pearl flew away as quickly as they could.
‘Yea!’ said Louie. ‘We did it; they won’t trouble the village for a while now!’
‘Enough for today’, said Pearl. ‘Let’s go back through the quartz and we can talk on the other side’.
Three happy insects emerged from the quartz in the tunnel, elated at what they had achieved on the first day with their newly found ability.
Lulu hugged Louie, ‘Wasn’t that just fantastic my bee’. Lulu went over to Pearl and hugged her too.
‘You are just such a wonderful clever Moth Pearl’, said Lulu looking admiringly and smiling at Pearl.
‘Couldn’t have done it without you two’, said Pearl holding them both close to her. ‘We can do a lot of good I believe’.
The three walked arm in arm back up the tunnel talking about their adventure.
‘Doesn’t it feel good’, said Louie. ‘We have prevented a lot of people from suffering at the hands of those rogues in the future. I feel very very happy’.
It was late afternoon when they left the tunnel. Pearl turned to Louie and Lulu and said. ‘Thanks you two. There is a lot to take in after what you saw today. It’s only two weeks to Christmas now and I suggest we put off any more adventures until next year. If you feel like it though, just go and try what we did today for yourselves. The more you two feel comfortable with the merging and demerging process the better’.
Pearl was serious for a moment. ‘In the new year I have an idea for quite a major initiative using what we did today. There are some quite serious issues that I will need to talk to you about then. In the meantime I think we should all relax over these last two weeks before Christmas and enjoy ourselves. No more serious stuff for awhile!’ Pearl laughed.
‘Thanks Pearl’, said Louie. ‘We will catch-up again in the next few days, give Lulu or me a call if anything comes up though’.
‘Will do’, said Pearl, ‘‘Bye for now and thanks again’.
Pearl headed back to her apartment, Louie locked the door to the tunnel then he and Lulu headed home. The sun was setting, the sky was clear and there wasn’t a breath of wind. Even though it was early summer there was a possibility of a light frost overnight.
Once at home with Lulu in their little house by the stream, Louie lit the stove.
Louie broke out some of his favourite honey nectar. He poured a glass for Lulu and himself. The pair sat in front of the stove together, watching the flickering flames. Lulu had her arm around Louie and held him close. They were warm and cosy.
‘I am so glad I don’t live in the human world Louie’, said Lulu. ‘As Pearl has said there is so much greed and dishonesty. We have got everything here in the way of true happiness; it would be terrible to lose what we have’.
‘Yes’, said Louie. ‘We are so fortunate to have Pearl with her foresight to protect us all. This project or whatever it is she mentioned next year must relate to some new threat she feels could be mounting against our community’.
Louie paused, watching the flames in the stove, then continued. ‘The wonderful thing about what we saw and did today is that we can go
through the quartz and deal with threats before they get out of hand. The power we have is almost unbelievable. The scope of what we can do hasn’t been fully realised yet, today was just the beginning’.
‘I think the wonderful thing about what we did today’, said Lulu, ‘is that it has given me a tremendous feeling of security. Within reason we can control our own destiny and not be threatened by the infestation and pollution of the planet by humans’.
Although Lulu didn’t really realise it now, what she had just said was incredibly profound and true, as we shall begin to learn as time goes by!
