Okay, Corona said. She was wondering about so many things - all the DNA experiments they’d done leading up to her being born, and whom the others are who occupy the different dimensions. Now she was curious about the sparkle in the air.
You want to know how you came about, don’t you? Flora guessed. The Hybrids always want to know about that.
Yes. How did my mother conceive me if she didn’t have a relationship with a male? No one ever told me that, but I know there were questions about how I came to be.
We felt bad about the sorrow your conception brought for your mother, Flora answered. Grace was a nice Hybrid. Intelligent and polite. And, she was criticized by some humans who were sure she’d done something bad to cause your existence. The reality is, we planted the carefully-chosen cells of our own making into your mother to cause you to be conceived. Your biological father was a genius of great proportions. A little something special was added to your chromosomes, too. We were sure the pairing of the male’s genetic material with your mother’s would result in the creation of that for which we had been striving - the ultimate Hybrid with immeasurable intelligence. And in possession of special gifts. This is the goal of our program. To bring into existence a human who’d not only help your space, but also ours and the other universes you can pass through. For some reason, whenever we try to hybrid In Situs, something bad happens. There’ve been serious accidents and mistakes when In Situs try to create Hybrids from themselves. It just doesn’t work. Some of the other dimensions genes don’t Hybrid well either. So, we need you to help us solve some of our problems. We know that’s a lot to ask of you and we don’t want to rush anything. For now, we’ll first acquaint you with our homes and community. We don’t want to overload you on your first visit. We have your interests at heart.
Flora chose not to discuss the extra addition to Corona’s DNA because she wasn’t sure what it was that their leader Marva, had put in. She only knew it was something never done before to humans.
You’re not going to do that to me, someday, are you? Corona asked. Put a baby inside me? I wouldn’t like that.
We’d never do that to you, Flora said. Her eyeband pulsed with a sky blue tone. You can trust us.
Corona strained to read Flora’s mind to find out if she was telling the truth, but was unable to do it. She frowned and vowed to work harder on that gift.
There’s much we want to show you, Corona, Fancy said. We only have a small window of time during the night to do so, but with your gifts, we’ll be able to stretch that time out. You mark time by the passage of events. Einstein got that one right. We take no notice of time unless we’re in your dimension, as we have no need for it. In your space, we can control it a little.
We worked with some other Hybrids many decades ago who were brilliant in their own way, Flora said. One of the problems we had with them was their musical abilities were great such as yours are, and those Hybrids insisted on pursuing a musical career. Some of the greatest all time artists, singers and musicians in your dimension were Hybrids. We couldn’t get them to focus on studies that were scientific and specific for what we wanted. That was a big flaw for that group. So, we had to erase their In Situ memories and stop seeing them.
Fancy added, Name the biggest and most successful musicians and singers you can think of and we can tell you they used to be our Hybrids or are related to them. A couple of our Hybrids were considered to be among the greatest artists who ever lived. They were marvelously gifted. Distastefully undisciplined and egocentric, but gifted. They only thought of themselves and what enjoyment they were getting out of their special selves. Their flaws caused them much hardship and many of their lives to be cut short.
Flora changed the subject by revealing something she knew would captivate Corona’s attention. It’s time we show you around. I live in this home alone, she said, getting up from her chair. Come, we’ll familiarize you with our way of life.
Bob-Boy groaned and the others looked at him. He was squinting and pressing his hands into his chest.
Are you all right? Flora asked. She went to him.
I need to go to the Common House, he said, still clutching his body.
Flora inspected his nasal passages carefully for any tendrils or worms. Finding none, she backed off.
When we go outside, you can do that, Fancy said.
Bob-Boy, having cleared his nasal passages earlier, rubbed his nose and nodded in return. He coughed and groaned.
Corona and Fancy got up from their seats and stood near Flora. The chairs they’d occupied slid back to being tiny bits and took their placement on their own, almost unseen, waiting to be needed.
Our homes have only one large room, Flora said. Unless you’re part of our government. She gestured grandly to take in the area. This domicile is of my choosing and was a gift from the All for my service to them. It used to belong to another In Situ, but because I had greater loyalty and service, I became more valuable to our leader. So she gave it to me. It worked out well for passing over to you and your family. It was a nice gesture on the leadership’s part to move me here.
Flora believed it was time Corona knew how her garden was always groomed so thoroughly. You remember we enjoy ingesting the lilies from your garden. All In Situs love flowers as a treat and they nourish our bodies. The lily is our favorite. That’s why your family was encouraged by us to grow them. They taste delicious to In Situs so we go through your gardens when we’re in your dimension and eat our fill of your dead and dying blossoms. Due to diseases that can come with the flowers, we’re unable to grow the lily here.
That’s why we don’t have to remove the dead blossoms so often, Corona exclaimed. You deadhead them for us! That’s awesome!
Yes, Fancy said. Since they’re considered waste to you, we didn’t think it was wrong for us to take them. But ‘deadhead’ is a coarse term for it, I think.
I never thought about that term being coarse. That’s what we’ve always called it, Corona said. Take all the lilies you want when you come to us. Your removing them saves us a lot of work.
We will, Flora said, her eyeband sparkling.
Do you eat meat? Corona asked.
Fancy squinted her eyes. We have no animals here to eat. And if we did, we certainly wouldn’t eat them. Long ago, species other than In Situs were destroyed because they’re inferior to us. Some of us are allergic to certain animals. And bugs, too. Our leaders decided they had no practical use here so the All had everything exterminated. Every bug, every bird, every creature is gone, except In Situs, of course.
Here, we raise the food items we want or need in community gardens, Flora said. Each inhabitant is permitted to pick food whenever they need it. In Situs bag enough provisions for at least a week and place them in what you would call a pantry. Since I have status in the community, the All delivers to me, the amount of sustenance they think I need, considering my size and other data.
Flora tapped on the wall and a small door opened, revealing suspended bags. I don’t want to leave this open long because the food is kept fresh through a process in there. She closed the door. It’ll stay fresh until I’ve eaten it all.
I can’t imagine not having meat to eat, Corona said. Some of our population don’t eat it, but most do and going without it would take getting used to. I’d miss a good hamburger, for sure.
The All determines the food items we’re permitted. They allow us to have the ones that are the best for us, in the amounts they think we need, Flora said We’re never without enough to eat because of our storage methods. Well, we’re never without the amount the All says we need.
Your pantry food preserver is something else our world could use, Corona said. It would help with world hunger. We have many people who die of starvation because of poverty, war, and governmental problems. Especially those who are our most vulnerable. If they could have something like you use, the food they’re given would last a long time - long enough until they’re able to get more.
There’ll al
ways be starvation in all the dimensions and universes, Flora said, finding Corona’s altruism both boring and worrisome. It doesn’t directly correlate to the possession of technology. Unfortunately, with the free will we have, beings in all the universes choose to seek power and riches over and above the comfort and needs of others. We have that here, too. So, there’s always a struggle of some kind going on. We’ve seen it everywhere. So predictable, yet, so necessary.
I understand, Corona said. But I find it unacceptable for anyone to be hungry.
She looked at the room and asked where the bathroom was.
Fancy snorted. Now that’s a good question which is easily answered. We don’t dispose of our waste as you do nor do we put ourselves under water and use products all over our bodies to clean with. Touch my skin, she said to Corona, holding her arm out.
The teenager did as she was told, avoiding the infected areas. She placed her fingers on Fancy’s arm and rubbed it. Why, your skin is soft and moist. It feels good.
Except for the bumps where the fungus infection is, my skin is like that of all In Situ females, Fancy said. The males are not quite as soft, but their skin cleans itself just as ours does. From the inside out. We slough off dirt and debris and moisturize ourselves from within. The discarded debris is picked up from the air by our home’s filtering system and recycled for use. So we never have to bathe nor do we have to clean our homes. It’s all done for us and takes little time.
Flora showed Corona the roll of shifts from which she can pull a fresh one to wear anytime she chooses. We repurpose the soiled garments, Flora explained.
Corona laughed out loud. That’s great. You’re not slaves to style or the latest fashion and colors. I love it! Oh my gosh! If my world would do this, it’d change everything for us. Especially women who do most of the laundry and ironing and putting the clothes away. That’s awesome. I want my clothes to be like these. We can make them colorful with beads and lace. Maybe add some long pants too.
Now there’s where you start having problems, Flora said. No one needs to have beads and lace and long pants, too. The All told us so. A simple shift is good enough for everyone. That way, no one looks better than any other. For equality and the good of the majority, the All provides our clothes. Fancy handed Corona a garment to touch.
It’s soft. And it smells good, too. Like flowers. This is great, Corona said, feeling the fabric and then holding it up in front of her. How much does this cost?
Flora struggled to explain the simple yet sometimes complex concept of economics, business, supply and demand and the workforce.
We have places where these things are made but machines do most of the labor. In Situs really don’t work much here in our dimension. Some of us must put in minimal time getting plant food. Most don’t, though. We have pack members who oversee the production of what we need so we don’t really have typical work and jobs here. When work must be done, each of us in the community takes their turn. Everything is automated just as the production phase is. If one of our regions has more than is asked for, those products are moved to another place. Just like the diamonds in the wall that power our home. They’re mined by machines and brought to the homes as needed but that’s rare. Mostly, we have other methods of getting them. We don’t have money here. There’s no need for it. Of course, if the All needs us to do something for them, we are immediately to be at their service.
Corona was puzzled. Don’t you ever want to have something just because it’s pretty or interesting?
‘Pretty’ and ‘interesting’ don’t factor into our lives, Flora said. Those kinds of items are just distractions and serve to set one being at a higher level than another. We’re above doing that. However, our leader and her trusted aides may own as much of anything they want because they’re our leaders and have to have what they need in order to govern. The rest of us must follow the rules of ownership. Still, even though we’re permitted enough supplies for each family member, some go without.
That’s what we meant when we said earlier that there’d always be starvation or poverty, Fancy said. We have In Situs whose offspring have been malnourished or died of hunger, but it wasn’t because food wasn’t available. Sometimes, they regret having the little ones and don’t feed them, so the little ones die. Or parents neglect their offspring because they’re selfish. There’s no punishment for that. No one worries about the little ones. They come and they go. We don’t keep track of how their demise came about. It’s no concern to anyone. What your world calls cruelty is accepted in all communities we know, Corona. It’s just the way it is. Those who are permitted to live and are strongest, get to make choices for the weakest who cannot make the choices themselves. The votes are in favor of what’s best for the strongest.
Corona was disturbed by their expressed callousness of their little ones and the weakest. She decided to save that discussion for another visit.
Where’s your husband? Do you have one? Corona asked Flora.
I don’t have one. I used to have a mate but he got old and feeble. By choice, because there was nothing he could contribute to In Situ, he went to the Goodbye Room. It’s a place where the old or infirm can go to experience demise. He accepted his fate as we all do. It doesn’t do any good to refuse to go. Once the All finds out one of us is getting old and unable to contribute anything to society, that one is forced to go. Since my mate left, I live alone because I want to. I still have a full life and enjoy working with the Hybrids. It brings me a good feeling about myself. She shifted her focus away from the obvious other gains she wants and will make.
Do you have a picture of him? To remember him by? Corona asked, looking around. I’d like to see him. Photos of my family are comforting to me at home.
We don’t do that here. Everything we know or want to see is up here. She tapped her head. “Or, placed on our communication boards if we want that. We don’t really need documentation much because it’s all in our brains or on our boards. Here, I’ll send you a mind picture of what he looked like.
Corona smiled as the image of a short creature with a large green eyeband appeared. He looks nice, she said.
He was. We enjoyed living together, Flora answered. I’m sorry he’s gone. Briefly after he left, I would hear him call me or I would feel his presence, but that’s stopped. While Flora missed him, she knew he wouldn’t have approved of the new path she is taking.
We never did what was necessary to have a little one, Flora communicated. Neither of us wanted one. The meager extras given to those who have one weren’t worth the effort. There’s no point to it.
Corona attempted again to read their minds but was unable.
Do you have something here in your house for entertainment, Corona said. Something we could listen to or watch?
Flora tapped her own head again. Our music and entertainment is in there, what little we do of that. We don’t go outside of our minds for much of anything. If someone has something they want us to review, they put it on the communication board. If we want to watch it with someone, we make the board larger and watch it. The All determines what’s appropriate for us to see and do and what isn’t. They monitor everything spoken or written. Everything. It’s for the good of everyone.
I’d miss not being able to play instruments, Corona said. Especially the Russian theremin.
Playing the theremin’s good for you, isn’t it? Fancy asked I mean, it creates great oscillations which assist your brain to function.
As I was saying, Flora interrupted. We’re not allowed such things. Your world does whatever it wants. It publishes everything and people pay for it. There’s no real reward for it here. Why bother expending the energy and time when nothing is earned from it? The only way to get anything is by doing it for the All. They reward their friends as they see fit. The communication and display board we have is here, she said, pointing to an air sparkle. You were wondering what these are. I’ll show you.
Flora tapped midair where a twinkling air sparkle floated. A bla
nk screen appeared. She touched the board out it went, into the room in front of them. This is the sparkly thing you asked about. It’s used for all kinds of things such as communications posted outside of our minds for gathered groups.
Fancy manipulated the board, pulling on it to make it taller and wider to show Corona how it worked. She stretched it around so one side met the other and it turned into a 360 degree hologram.
Flora gazed down at the floor, shrieked, and tapped a larger air sparkle.
Corona and the others looked to where Flora was gesturing.
A cockroach skittered past them heading for the pantry. Its antennae moved from side to side.
An air sparkle intercepted the wriggling insect and sent a signal to the filtering system. The bug was sucked up into the ceiling receptacle for evacuation.
I thought you told us there were no other creatures here, Corona said.
Once in awhile a horrible, crawly thing gets through, Flora said. But, as you can see, we have ways to handle it. Now, back to the communication board. She looked up at the vacuum where the cockroach had gone and grimaced.
For a brief moment, no one said anything, but when the board began to shine with notices and comments, they paid attention.
That’s great, Corona said. It’s sorta like a computer. I’d love to have one for myself. Could I take one of those back with me?
Someday, we’ll give you one, Fancy said.
We can intercept your internet or other communications whenever we want. The All keeps track of everything the Hybrids say or text on their cell phones and everything they write. See. Flora pulled up some of the popular web sites used by humans and chuckled at their writings. She intercepted the downloads of the Hybrid’s communications. Here’s the last text you sent to one of your friends. And here’s one from our Hybrid Stanley to a friend of his. We’ve got them all.
A posting crawled across the screen, “In remembrance of Sunni, who gave his all for the All, who abandoned him to a Valers’ murderous death.”
WATCHING CORONA: From Our Dimension to Yours Page 9
