The Xidoran Prophecy

by Elaine Bassett

  James was sixteen when he began his adventures. He was rather nervous about going through the Passageway when it was time. He actually hesitated and almost didn’t go through to the other side. He wrote that he tried to think of an excuse, any excuse not to go, but his dad had insisted. James described his experience: once he went through the Passageway he felt very strange. The Passageway seemed like a long distorted, rounded tunnel. He saw iridescent silver with flashes of color overtones that extended through the corridor until finally he reached a large heavy door. Once they went through the door he realized they had reached their destination in the Hub.

  Once they had exited from the Passageway and carefully closed the door, they found themselves in a stall that had an ample balcony overlooking the Hub’s floor. At the end of the balcony was an intricate beautifully detailed wrought iron half wall that had in the center of it the family’s seal in gold. He went over to the edge of the balcony and looked up. He had read the Hub always had a deep blue sky with clouds that looked like they belonged in a master painter’s sunset, and that the sun always shone during the day. He confirmed that’s what it looked like. Day and night the stars can be seen. James had heard from his dad that the night sky looked similar to the aurora borealis on Earth with the exception that the stars are more prominent in the Hub at night. The other dimension has two moons that can be visually seen in the night sky. One is larger than the other. The larger of the two moons is gray in color. The other is a deep purple.

  James could see from the balcony faint laser lights creating what appeared to be markings of boundaries of some sort. Then he gazed down and could see a flow of pedestrians not far from where they stood, on the Hub floor. The streets were lit with large black wrought iron street lamps. The balcony was not on the bottom row but certainly not on the very top either. James couldn’t tell from where he stood how high the wall extended upward. Phil came to stand beside him and asked how he was feeling. James admitted that he felt queasy. His dad took a cookie out of his pocket and had James eat it. Once he had finished, within seconds he felt better. James looked around the stall as Phil pointed out different things.

  A flame from a large black wrought iron light fixture lit the balcony. An arched black metal door covered the Passageway entrance. In the center of it was the family seal in gold, identical to the one that was on the half wall. Around the large arched door, painted in black was a flowing font of continuous words in a foreign language that James couldn’t read. Next to the door was a lit up combination lock on the wall that James thought might be used to unlock the door. The walls of the stall were textured in an off white cream color. They looked as if they were very old but were well maintained. The ceiling had a dome that was illuminated blue by a hidden light source. The floor was a beautiful dark brown wood. He breathed through his nose and decided the air smelled pure like rain.

  Phil motioned for James to follow him down a very long corridor with stalls that looked similar to theirs, until they reached a platform that had steps in the same black wrought iron metal. On the other side of the stairway was a continuous corridor of more stalls. The wall beside them had a beautifully painted mural. It was a landscape with creatures that didn’t look like anything he’d ever seen before. Phil commented, “The murals you will see in the Hub are paintings of the natural Hub before it was cleared.”

  Phil began the walk down the steps to the Hub floor. James followed. Once he stepped out from under the covered entryway James looked around at his surroundings. He was amazed! The whole entire length of the Hub, for as far as he could see, consisted of rows upon rows of nothing but balconies where Sojourners’ stalls were located.

  The floor of the Hub was a cobblestone brick of a brownish-red color. In the center of the large street was a track. While they were standing on the Hub floor, a pod large enough for two people to stand in buzzed by them on the track. It was followed shortly thereafter by a string of pods carrying people to different destinations around the Hub. Across the walkway, on the other side, was an assortment of buildings of different heights that went on for miles. At the end of the street was a huge marketplace of kiosks. Beyond that were other streets that extended like a well-planned metropolis with: restaurants, businesses, government buildings, housing, etc.

  James looked up and noticed some people were on flying disks. He figured that the laser lights he saw from the balcony, which he couldn’t see from the ground floor of the Hub, must have been designating lanes for those travelers.

  It looked like an endless sea of people at a masquerade ball wearing unique glasses. As James stood there looking around he noticed that he couldn’t read the signs that were flashing messages. He saw Phil put his Sojourner glasses on. James did the same, and instantly he could decode the signs.

  It was so crowded in the marketplace that James had to follow closely behind Phil to keep from being separated. The kiosks were strategically placed throughout the market floor. The people conducting their business were allowed to solicit to the people passing by. This made it a little more challenging to get around the small crowds that would sometimes stop to see what was being offered at a popular kiosk.

  This was the first sighting James had of the Passageway Authorities in the Hub.

  Phil pointed them out. “The people dressed in black over there are the Authorities. They have several jobs: making sure everyone is safe and following the rules, crowd control, and making sure no one litters. These are just a few of their jobs. If a Sojourner breaks the rules, the fines and punishments are extraordinarily strict. If they catch an ‘Unknown’ being unlawful they go to the Sojourners’ Council for trial.”

  Phil kept walking making his way through the crowd to the other side of the marketplace. He found a place to stop that was out of the way of the main flow of people. They sat at a black iron table at the edge of another sector. Phil pulled a map of the Hub from his pocket. He showed James where they were on the map. He told James, “This is where we will eat dinner.” As they sat James noticed the wonderful smells from the restaurants that were carried by the gentle breeze.

  Charles looked over the map that was in the journal. It seemed that the Hub was divided into sections referred to as sectors. Charles went back to reading the journal.

  James looked up at the sky. Phil glanced up too. “Pretty huh?” James nodded.

  Phil continued, “The daytime sky is a blue aura. The twinkling lights you see in the sky are the multitude of stars in this universe. There are clouds but it never rains here and it never gets completely dark. The temperature here is approximately 75 degrees with a warm gentle breeze day and night. The most violent weather here is a cool gust of wind. Where we are located in the Hub metropolis the water is located in underground wells. The outer limits have what is referred to as a sea. I don’t know of anyone who has ever actually seen it. There are renditions of it in the Hub paintings.”

  The colors around them were so vivid and the details were very sharp when looking through their glasses. He could hear a multitude of precise sounds around him that on Earth he wouldn’t have necessarily been able to hear.

  Phil pointed out the maintenance people working on the buildings and the Hub floor. They had on dark green outfits. He also pointed out that they could see all of the different streets to the various sectors from where they sat. James checked the map to see where the various streets led.

  James noticed they were sitting at the beginning of the sector that had restaurants. Their waitress came and gave them menus. After looking over the menu they placed an order.

  Then they studied the map and planned where they would go to explore after they finished eating. James looked over the sectors on the map. He noticed several things about the map. “Why are there sectors that are color coded on here, and what is beyond this point on the map?”

  Phil changed the subject. “The sectors that are over here in this block are the ones we can explore today.”

  James paused for a moment and pointed on th
e map. “Okay, but what are these areas?”

  Phil sighed and sat back in his chair. He tried once again, “The sectors that we discussed will be plenty for us today. Exploring these areas will give you a pretty good idea what the Hub looks like.”

  “Is the Hub larger than what is depicted on this map?”

  “Much larger.” The waitress came with their drinks. Phil thanked her, and then took a sip.

  James tried again. “What’s out there?”

  Phil observed the people walking on the sidewalk and answered, “The ‘Unknown’ sectors, James.”

  James straightened up in his chair. Then he leaned in and whispered, “You know, don’t you?”

  Phil smiled and shook his head.

  “Come on and tell me.”

  Phil nodded. “I do, and I’ll tell you about them later. This isn’t the time or location to have that discussion. Not many people have been to the places I’ve observed. The places I’ve been are not sectors rational people would want to go either. That is why various sectors are not shown on the map.” He pointed to the designated area. “Please trust me when I tell you it’s safer to remain in the sectors depicted on this particular map.”

  Once the meal came, Phil put the map away and they ate. They kept the conversation to small talk. After they finished James said, “The meal was phenomenal.”

  “This is one of my favorite places to eat.” Phil paid for the meals with an identification card and they left to explore the Hub.

  James couldn’t cease thinking of the conversation they had had before their meal arrived. He planned to resume the discussion when the time was right.

  From the restaurant they went to view the residential sector of the Hub. Phil explained that only certain people were allowed to live in the Hub. Individuals living in this sector had to be government officials or serve a specific function in the Hub to be able to maintain a residence. Time was not an aging factor in the Hub. The people living in the Hub do not seem to be affected by the normal aging process that people on Earth go through. They merged back into the sea of people and walked along the street that went into the heart of the residential sector.

  Once they arrived, Phil and James walked through a green grassy park that had unusual sculptures. James noted the trails for walking to get to the residential area. He also noticed lit fountains that had unusual flowers in beds around them. The crowd became thinner through this area. The park sector smelled strongly of fresh cut grass. James noticed there were no trees in the park. He asked, “Do they have trees?”

  Phil said, “No, not planted trees, only grass. You will see a potted tree from time to time in the Hub.”

  They continued walking. Eventually they came to the heart of the residential sector. They stood at an intersection and Phil pointed out the details on the facades of the buildings. The homes were drab in color. The main colors were: beige, gray and light blue-green. They were similar to row houses that all had a unique but complementary style to them. They were all well maintained. Every house had the same gray pointed roofline. Each had a distinct ornate black wrought iron half wall on its balcony. As they walked farther down the street James noticed the houses became more elaborate. At the end of the street was a circle drive with the most elegant mansion James had ever seen. It was gated with the same black wrought iron that was found throughout the Hub. In the middle of the circle drive was a large fountain that was unique and beautiful. It had an eternal flame at the top and below that were tiers of flowing colored water. The entire fountain was lit up.

  Phil said, “This is the home of the Prime Minister.” It looked like a French Chateau and sat at a distance from the gate. It had a lengthy driveway leading to the back of the residence. The landscaped grounds were stunning. “The backyard has an elaborate maze and fountains.”

  James said, “This is more beautiful than any castle I have ever seen.”

  Phil agreed with him. They spent a moment longer before Phil urged James that they needed to move on. There was more of the Hub to explore. They walked back the way they had come until they reached an intersection that led to the business sector. As they neared the area, it became more populated. Once they arrived at the street corner in the middle of the business district, Phil pointed out that to the right was the way back to the main part of the Hub.

  He said, “Since it is getting close to the time when the auction begins, I believe we should save the rest of the tour for later.” James nodded in agreement. They decided to turn right and head for the auction. James noticed that every building along the way was occupied with a business. There was a lot of hustle and bustle, with the flow of people trying to get where they were going. He looked at the three story buildings that lined the street and the signs projected onto them. A majority of the businesses had people going in and out. Advertisements played on large screens up and down the street. Some of them gathered crowds.

  On the next block James noticed a brushed gold building with many steps leading to a grand entrance with multiple doorways. On the sidewalk in front of the building were spotlights that were lighting up the sky beckoning people to see what was going on at the auction. Across the front of the building was a huge designated area used for advertising. A long line of people stood out front watching the screen, waiting for the doors to open. They didn’t stand there long before the doors opened and the lines began slowly moving. Greeters appeared in the doorways dressed in uniforms checking the IDs of everyone trying to enter. They directed the entering people to the various auctions of the day. Once people passed the greeter, they entered the building into a large foyer. Off of the foyer were doors along the walls that led to rooms.

  Phil and James entered the room that held the auction in which they were interested. A beautiful lady in a navy blue evening gown informed them that her name was Scarlett and she would be their hostess for the evening. She had a red flower in her auburn hair. She provided them with a program and asked if they wanted something to drink. Phil ordered for them and provided his ID to pay for it. She came back with the drinks and an itinerary that was personalized. It informed them that they were one of three bidders to answer the riddle correctly. They were allowed access to participate in the private auction for the coin they were interested in for their collection. James was excited. He and his dad had spent days researching the coin’s riddle. Now they were finally at the auction and would very soon have the opportunity to bid on the coin.

  Phil commented, “It must have been luck that we solved the riddle. It was one of the harder ones. I was worried that we may have missed something. I’m glad to see we were correct.” They hoped to take home the coin they had come for, only to be disappointed when another bidder outbid them. They left the auction empty handed that night.

  As they were leaving Phil asked James if he still wanted to explore the Hub since they were already there in the business sector. James replied in the affirmative, so they headed down the street from the auction. Along the way they discussed the whole experience and decided they would try to learn more about the gentleman who outbid them. As they walked along James took pictures of where they went and what they observed along the way.

  **********

  Charles observed that James had a good eye for photography. Their tour of the Hub had been well documented. Charles was anxious to see if those places were still there when he visited the Hub.

  **********

  After James and Phil had walked for blocks the surroundings began to noticeably change. Phil pointed out that it was getting late and time to return home. James looked farther down the road and made an observation that the businesses from that point on were not as well taken care of.

  Phil agreed and said, “It is even more obvious when there is more light.”

  James’ instinct told him that now was not the time to go any farther down this road.

  They turned around and headed back to where it was still crowded. Phil pointed out that the Hub was always populated, and everything
stayed open continuously.

  James was beginning to get homesick. It wasn’t that he didn’t like it in the Hub; it was just different and seemed far away from what he considered reality.

  Even after walking away from where they had been, he still had a bad feeling that he couldn’t shake about the end of this particular street. He decided he needed time to consider how he’d share those thoughts with his dad when they got home. By the time they arrived home and settled he’d figured out what had bothered him. He decided, when the opportunity presented itself, to talk to his dad about it.

  Later James shared his intuition about where they had stopped at the end of the business street. Phil acknowledged that his intuition was correct. He withdrew the Hub map from his pocket and showed James where they had been. He said, “Not too much farther down from where we were, the area gets really rough. Everything changes. Once the business sector ends, the road is gated off. It used to be just like the rest of the Hub before a conflict of sorts broke out and that was the result. It’s where the ‘Unknowns’ come from. Farther down in the heart of this area is where the criminal activity takes place. The criminals are very elusive and they have been known to roam the Hub, often going undetected. Then past that area is the border. The lawless ‘Unknowns’ conduct their business in a place called the Stygian Market. They have their own rules and have the means to be very secretive about their activity. It’s an extremely dangerous place. The Sojourners have Passageway Authorities that go into the area to patrol it, but they do a lousy job. No one wants that sector to manage. When absolutely needed, the Authorities will cross the border but they fear what is in that sector. They get in and out as quickly as possible. They conduct most of their work using air and land drones.”

  Phil perused the map and pointed out landmarks in other sectors: the Sojourners’ Council building, the government and their secret buildings, The Hub Library, The Sojourners’ Society Buildings, The Journeymen’s Charter, the prison, etc. He admitted to James that he hadn’t traveled to all of the places in the Hub; he didn’t want to either. Phil told him that there are specialty guides for hire; for example, the Journeymen that are specially trained to take individuals who needed to travel to those uncharted places. He explained the Time Warp Tunnel’s grid-- how to navigate all the corridors and how to exit it. James felt better about going to the Hub now after his dad had explained the sectors to him.