The Xidoran Prophecy

by Elaine Bassett

  Carson asked Charles, “What happened when you were separated from us? How did you get on Anjoleah’s flying disk?”

  Charles told them about the man jumping out of the crowd and accusing him of stealing his crystal. “Anjoleah saw the circle that had formed around me as the man was making accusations about me being an ‘Unknown.’ I couldn’t understand a word he was saying except he kept calling me an, ‘Unknown’ while pounding his shirt pocket. I was worried the mob would turn on me at any moment. Once the bubbles approached us and the crowd saw Anjoleah they became less hostile. I was relieved when they pulled the man aside. They searched him and found his crystal. Once things were under control she brought me to you.”

  Bev said, “Oh my gosh, we had no idea you were in danger.”

  Carson added, “We were relieved when we saw you were with the Commissioner. She’s the only one who could control a crowd of that magnitude once they were in a frenzy.”

  Bev agreed with Carson and said she was glad Charles was fine. She told them about her experience. “When I was separated from both of you, I maneuvered my way to the side and stopped to observe what was going on around me. A man across the street was yelling at everyone. He would run into the crowd after people and seize their arm, or whatever he could grab, trying to get them to listen to him. The people would, out of reflex, push him to get free of his grasp. Then my attention turned to a fistfight that broke out near me on the sidewalk. The Sojourners standing close to me began pushing each other and arguing. A woman dressed all in black with long pink hair ran from the middle of the crowd toward me. When she spotted the Authorities farther down in the Hub she brushed by me and nearly knocked me down as she escaped into the alley behind me. I turned to observe where she was going. She must have sensed me watching because she turned and glared at me. I thought for a moment she might come back toward me, since she turned and took a couple of steps in my direction. She must have decided I wasn’t worth confronting. I noticed she wore a strange necklace, which at first glance, I thought was an actual snake. She then disappeared from sight.”

  Carson said, “I have to admit I was anxious when I couldn’t see either one of you. I went with the flow of people, scanning the crowd looking for both of you. I could only see people running in different directions, screaming. No one approached me or talked directly to me. I just kept going until I finally saw you, Bev.” They were glad it was over and everyone was safe.

  Carson and then Charles went to change back into the clothes they were wearing earlier. They handed their suits to Bev. She opened the door to leave and found Esmond waiting. Esmond entered the door and hopped around on the floor. Then Carson and Charles put everything away from their adventure.

  He told Charles, “I am so proud of you! The visit with the Master Coin Keeper went perfectly.”

  Charles smiled. He turned to Airabelle and said, “I couldn’t have done it without you. Thank you. We make a good team.”

  “You’re welcome and you are right, we do make a good team.”

  Charles looked at Carson and said, “I was really worried about Dimitrios being in the viewing room. Why do you think he was there?”

  “I think he was curious. He probably found out somehow about our private auction viewing. I think he wanted to speak with you himself prior to the Sojourners’ Council meeting.”

  Airabelle said, “I’ll say he wanted to meet you. Dimitrios doesn’t go out of his way for just anyone.”

  “No he doesn’t. That was no accident.”

  “I think you made a good impression from observing his demeanor,” Airabelle added.

  “My guess is he will be reporting everything to the Prime Minister. I am sure they are already comparing notes and devising a plan on how they are going to go about this entire process. Knowing Dimitrios, he will make sure the process is very thorough. Nothing will be left to chance. He is very methodical about how he goes about things. I’d say it helped your standing tonight with the Sojourners’ Council that you presented yourself as being very knowledgeable about Sojourning today. Even though you have very little experience, your reading and hard work paid off. You answered some very tough questions that would be difficult even for an advanced Sojourner.”

  Airabelle said, “There is no question that Dimitrios will want to present the best possible candidate to the Sojourners’ Council because the Prime Minister has given him that job. Only the best of the elite will make the cuts until he narrows down to just one. He won’t want them to question the individual he presents.”

  “It is no surprise that Dimitrios is going to have some sort of stake in this process as a mentor. I know he turned down being the next Prime Minister, although I can’t figure out why. He’s young enough he could have taken over,” replied Carson.

  Charles sat down and said, “I just hope I don’t mess up.” Airabelle flew over and sat on the back of the chair.

  Bev returned and said, “I believe Dimitrios will be paying us a visit before long. I have no doubt that we will see him sometime before the next interview with the Sojourners’ Council. It’s going to be in our best interest to get started and continue to work hard. Something makes me believe that Charles must be higher on their list than they acknowledged. Why else would they ask the difficult questions they asked him in the Council meeting?”

  She smiled at Charles and asked, “How did you feel when you were in front of the Council? Did they make you nervous or uncomfortable?”

  “No, not at all.”

  He turned to Airabelle and said, “If she hadn’t clued me in to how to handle the incident with Dimitrios, I might have handled it differently. He caught me off guard.”

  “We will go over etiquette in our session. It is important to know how to present yourself in the presence of dignitaries, but I don’t think you have anything to worry about. You did a fantastic job.” She winked at Airabelle.

  Carson said, “Bev, I think we should compile a list of what we think they will be looking for at the next interview. We know that he’s bound to be the youngest candidate chosen. At this point I think it is safe to say he is ahead of the game in some areas considering the journals and manuals he has studied. However, the other young men will have had the experience of being Sojourners for several years. He will be competing with an elite group of individuals already familiar with social protocol. We will have to start over and make sure we have covered everything from A-Z.”

  Bev agreed with him and asked, “When do you want to get started?”

  “Shall we begin immediately?”

  She nodded. “We can do that.” Charles groaned. Bev and Carson put their heads together to make an educated guess about what the following lessons should be after etiquette. After they made their decision Carson and Airabelle began working together. Bev asked Charles to follow her to the house for his first lesson. Charles looked at Carson.

  Carson said, “It’s for your own good.”

  Charles laughed. “Etiquette though?”

  Carson turned to Airabelle and said, “No cheating.”

  Airabelle looked away and said, “Well, I never.” Everyone except Charles laughed.

  She said to Charles privately, “I’m not above bribery.” He didn’t dare laugh at her secret offer. He realized Carson and Bev were watching him. He swallowed hard.

  Charles was trying to block out his nervousness. He now knew Airabelle could sense things about him. That would take some getting used to.

  They walked in through the back door. Charles went to the refrigerator to get drinks. Bev grabbed snacks. They sat down at the kitchen table. Bev explained to Charles, “The candidates you will be competing with have had years of training. I believe a good overview of etiquette will work to your advantage. Dimitrios is smart enough to realize that if you have the basics he can mold you.” They rolled up their sleeves and got started…

  Later Carson came in to check on their progress. He walked in and sat down at the kitchen table. He smiled at Charles and asked
him how the etiquette lessons were going. They looked at each other and laughed.

  Charles admitted, “I had no idea that there would be so much to learn.”

  Bev brought in dinner. They talked as they ate. Carson mentioned that the Hub newspaper reported that Sojourners had their crystals and Sojourner papers stolen by “Unknowns” in the riot.

  Bev shook her head. “Someday, I hope someone captures them and stops them from terrorizing innocent people. They have everyone pointing fingers at one another because no one can clearly identify them.”

  Carson stood up from the table. Bev told Charles they were finished for the day if he also wanted to go. Charles and Carson walked back to the office together. Carson told him that they would be studying the world and how to use maps to his advantage next. The following day would be spent at the auction. Carson thought it was a possibility they would encounter Dimitrios at the auction.

  Esmond hopped up onto the chair and looked at Charles. Airabelle landed on the back of Charles’ chair. They were curious about his etiquette lesson. Charles described the instruction he received from Bev. Airabelle tried not to laugh at his exaggerations.

  Charles smirked as he picked up the London newspaper sitting on the table and began to read. As Airabelle read along with him, he noticed how he was getting used to her presence. It was getting easier to have her thoughts and his thoughts intertwined. He didn’t want to let her know but he was amazed at how smart she was. Charles put his feet up on the footstool and continued to read the newspaper. Finally, he set it down.

  He yawned, closed his eyes and took a catnap. A catnap was a word he never would have dreamed to mention to Airabelle. He smiled as he dozed off.

  Airabelle began quietly saying, “Wake up Charles. You must get up now! Dimitrios is coming!” Charles snapped out of his dream, jumped out of the chair and straightened his clothes. He looked toward the wall. The Passageway was bright purple and a chiming sound was heard all around the room.

  Airabelle said, “That’s the doorbell.”

  Carson looked nervously in Charles’ direction. Noticing he was presentable said, “Good Charles, you are awake. It is Dimitrios at our Passageway. I’ll let him enter.” Carson walked over to the Passageway and spun the sculpture, opening it so Dimitrios could enter. He emerged through the Passageway. Dimitrios greeted everyone including Airabelle. He hesitated briefly when he saw Esmond. He looked at Carson and then at Esmond. Carson explained that Esmond was a pet. Esmond croaked and hopped away.

  Dimitrios nodded and turned to Charles. “Charles, I want to extend an invitation to you personally for a private meeting with myself and the Prime Minister.” He handed the invitation to Charles. Charles without looking at it thanked him. Dimitrios added that Carson and Bev were invited as well. They talked for a moment longer before Dimitrios thanked them for the visit and left.

  Carson came and stood in front of Charles. They looked at each other.

  Charles said, “I think we need to share this with Nana.” Carson agreed. They left Airabelle and Esmond, and briskly walked to the house.

  Bev was working when they barged in on her. Instantly she could tell from the look on their faces Dimitrios had visited. “I knew it!” She walked over to Charles and Carson. Charles showed her the golden envelope. “Well Charles Brookfield, aren’t you going to open it?” He held it out to her. She looked at it and shook her head saying, “Oh Charles, I think you should open it.”

  “No, I want you to have the honors.”

  She looked at Carson, who encouraged her to open it. She reluctantly took it from Charles’ hand. She walked over to a drawer, took out her Sojourner glasses and a letter opener to open the envelope. She took out the invitation and scanned it with her eyes. Then she looked at Carson. Her eyes grew wide.

  “Bev, let me see that…” Carson said. She handed it to him. He pulled his glasses from his pocket and looked it over, then looked at Charles and said, “Charles, I don’t believe this, this is a unique second round invitation. Somehow, they have arranged to have a private meeting with you by waiving the meeting with the Sojourners’ Council. Why would they do that? I wonder if they have eliminated some of the other candidates already?”

  Bev looked shocked. She glanced at the goose bumps on her arm and rubbed it. “This is very unusual Carson. Something must have happened.” She took the invitation back and looked it over again. Carson smiled at Charles. “I’ve never heard of this…” Bev said shaking her head.

  “Well, we are going to have a couple of busy days ahead of us,” Carson said.

  Just then the phone rang and startled them. Bev answered it. It was Molly. She talked to Bev and then Charles. When Charles finished he handed the phone to Carson. They talked and when they were finished Carson hung up the phone. He walked over to where Bev was standing by the kitchen sink. He whispered in her ear and then hugged her.

  Carson said to Charles, “I think we should go and tell Airabelle the exciting news.” Bev returned the invitation to the envelope and handed it to Charles. Carson and Charles walked back to the office.

  When they entered the office Airabelle flew over and landed on Charles’ shoulder. “I can’t wait to hear what happened!” They told Airabelle the good news about the invitation… She immediately said, “I have a good feeling about this. For Dimitrios to hand deliver this invitation is huge!”

  Carson said, “I wasn’t aware they could do that. Bev and I think something must have happened.”

  “Sure something happened. They met Charles and he’s the best candidate. They’re not fools. Anthony is the Prime Minister. He can do whatever he wants.” She winked at Charles.

  Carson said, “I think we should go back and discuss this with Nana some more.”

  Charles handed Carson the invitation. Carson placed it in a secure drawer of his desk. They gathered their things and secured the office. Airabelle went back in to her birdcage. Charles put Esmond into the aquarium. When everything was in its place, they walked back to the house.

  Bev joined them in the living room. They talked about the agenda for the next couple of days. Bev said, “I can’t help but think that the viewing with Rick may have been part of the screening for the interview process.”

  Carson agreed and said, “Some of the candidates must not have made a good first impression on Dimitrios. It may also have been the reason Rick questioned me about Dimitrios’ visit.”

  Charles said, “Thank goodness for Airabelle.”

  They discussed the map lessons Carson had arranged for Charles.

  Bev told Charles, “I am so proud of you and impressed at how quickly you have learned everything.”

  He leaned over and whispered in her ear, “I enjoyed the lessons you gave today, but let’s keep that between the two of us.”

  She smiled and said, “I know you’ve been through a lot in a short amount of time. You just turned fifteen; on your birthday you learned some extraordinary things about our family. Now on top of it all you may have the opportunity of a lifetime. You’re an amazing young man Charles. Believe me, all of your hard work will pay off.”

  He nodded and said, “I just hope I can measure up to the expectations.”

  Carson sat forward in his chair, looked into Charles’ eyes and said, “It doesn’t matter to us what the outcome of all this is Charlie. It won’t change the way we feel about you. We want you to know that we love you. Nana and I are proud of you.”

  Charles thanked them and went upstairs to get ready for bed. He went through his evening routine. He crawled into bed and pulled the cool sheets up under his chin. Charles’ last thought was of Caroline. I wonder how her day has been. He wished he could tell her what had been happening. He turned out the light. It didn’t take long until he fell asleep.

  CHAPTER 29

  That night Charles dreamed of Airabelle and Esmond out in the cool evening air. Even though he was asleep he realized he was seeing what was really occurring. Airabelle was taking Esmond for a ride. They sp
otted Varina and stopped to play in the moonlight. At some point while they were playing Charles’ became unconscious of his dreams until the next morning.

  The morning air was chilly. Charles snuggled down under the covers. He could hear Walter and Carson having their morning meeting. He could smell the coffee brewing in the kitchen. He drifted back to sleep. He would have remained in bed longer if he hadn’t had the sensation he was falling. He awoke with a start. Since he was awake, he figured it was time to get out of his warm comfortable bed and start the day. He quickly sprang from the bed, grabbed his clothes and walked to the bathroom. After he finished getting ready he went downstairs to the kitchen and said good morning to Bev. He helped her get breakfast ready. Walter and Carson joined them. They talked about Gretchen and Molly working at the market.

  Walter said, “I sure get a kick out of seeing them work together. I have never seen Gretchen get out of bed so chipper in the morning to go to work. It’s the funniest thing I have ever seen.” They laughed at Walter’s dramatization.

  “I know Molly is just as excited. I believe she has finally found her niche,” said Bev.

  It wasn’t long after they finished that Walter thanked Bev for the wonderful breakfast and left them to tend to the farm.

  Carson was anxious to get started on the map training. He and Charles decided to head for the office. As they walked out onto the porch Charles picked up the brown paper sack and ran to the garden to search for crickets. It took him a little longer than usual to discover where they were hiding. Finally he gathered several of them. Then he ran to the office to join Carson. When he entered, he greeted Airabelle and Esmond. He placed the crickets in the aquarium. Airabelle was out flying around. She landed on the lectern and waited for him to come join them.

  Carson was sitting at the desk. He turned so that he was facing Charles. He motioned for him to come and stand beside him. A large book was open on the desk showing an ancient map. Carson already had his gloves on and a magnifying glass was in his hand. Carson explained to Charles, “This book is a treasure. It’s the only one in existence that I am aware of. The atlas is just one of many Sojourners’ tools. This atlas automatically updates the names of countries. Yet it keeps a history of names from the past. It has several uses. It is able to show the boundaries of countries through the ages. You can set your crystal on a map and it will illuminate that area showing you events that you enquire about. The following page after each map is blank.” He turned the page and said, “On this blank page you can use your Sojourner pen to write any question and your crystal will respond on the previous map.”