by D. B. Magee
Other activities throughout the park were happening as if by magic. In one area, a group of girls stood around in a circle, pointing and laughing as they magically changed one another’s outfits. In another section, some children stood in front of a large shrub and—without touching it—somehow mysteriously shaped the flowery bush into a replica of a Nabiyali.
As Ryan, Lisa, and Stacy descended into the middle of the merriment, their interests quickly became divided. Ryan was captivated by a string of kids speedily snaking through the air, one after another. In and out of the covered footpaths they streaked. The object of the game, it appeared, was to stay as close to the person in front of them as possible and follow their movements precisely without breaking the chain.
“Woo! Hoo!” Ryan hollered. “Look at ‘em go!”
Suddenly, the leader of the chain, shouted, “Watch out!” And, one by one, the snaking children flashed past Ryan and vanished, right smack into the side of a small knoll. Well, most of them that is; the few that lacked proper concentration bounced off the hillside—laughing. The successful children emerged like gophers, a second later, from the other side of the hill.
Uninterested in these aerial shenanigans, Stacy and Lisa decided to roam the park. Passing a series of little hillocks, the girls smiled to see a few younger children playing tuck-and-roll down the grassy slopes.
Stacy pointed ahead. “What’s going on over there, do you think?”
Lisa looked to see a translucent structure, made of pastel-colored blocks that were changing colors in a rhythmic fashion. Outside the structure’s entrance stood a group of spirit children. “How cool is that?” she exclaimed. “Let’s go see what it is.”
Standing at the entrance to the fluorescent structure, a young girl of about Stacy’s age, with golden hair and a short yellow tunic, noticed Lisa and Stacy approaching. “Hurry!” she called out with cheerful urgency. “The next maze is about to begin.”
“Ooh,” Stacy squeaked, “I love mazes. Come on, let’s try it.”
Lisa and Stacy hustled up to the young girl.
“Hi,” Lisa said, with a quick wave. “I’m Lisa, and this is my friend Stacy.”
“Hi,” the girl greeted back. “My name is Hannah. Is this your first time to the Randommazer?”
“Yes,” Lisa replied. “We just recently arrived here.”
“I thought so,” Hannah said, proud of her assessment. “I could tell by the way you two were looking at the building. I, myself, have only done this once before,” she admitted.
“What exactly is this place?” Lisa asked.
“And, why is the building changing colors like that?” Stacy added.
Hannah laughed. “This is the Randommazer,” she replied, putting her hands up as if presenting the structure to an audience. “It changes colors to indicate that a new labyrinth is in the process of being created.”
“Why is it called the Randommazer?” Stacy asked, looking the building over. It was then that she noticed something very curious about the structure. It had no doors, or windows, anywhere that she could see. Strange, she thought, I wonder how we’re supposed to get in.
“Because,” Hannah said, replying to Stacy’s question, “the building automatically produces random labyrinths.”
“The building — all by itself?” Lisa asked dubiously.
“Yes,” Hannah said simply, as if it were normal for buildings to do these types of things on their own.
“That’s awesome!” Stacy said, her mind quickly trying to figure out how this process might work.
Just then, the structure halted its multicolored presentation and became a solid blue color. In the very next moment, a portion of the wall at the front of the building magically began dissolving, thereby creating the needed entrance.
“Oh,” Hannah said. “It’s ready. Come on, let’s go inside.”
“Wow!” Stacy muttered, looking up and around the vanishing entranceway, “I can’t even imagine how that was done.”
After taking a moment to admire the dissolving door herself, as she entered the Randommazer, Lisa asked, “Hannah? Why did the building suddenly turn blue?”
“Blue,” Hannah replied, “means a new maze is ready. Once everyone enters and begins their quest, the building turns pink, informing those on the outside that a game is underway. Now — let’s hurry and find the others before they start the race. I don’t want to come in last place, like I did before.”
Emerging from the festive forest, Felicity swept high into the sky, allowing William a bird’s-eye view of the island’s massive center.
Looking down, William saw a circular area the size of a small city, looking like a cross between a fancy botanical garden and New York City’s Central Park. Radial footpaths branched out from its center, and at the end of each path, around the area’s perimeter, was a uniquely shaped structure, each different from the next. The whole area, on the ground and in the air, was filled with bustling children.
It looks like a giant Ferris wheel, William thought, examining the garden’s pattern. “Felicity,” he said, “What is that, down there?”
“That, my young friend,” Felicity said, banking around the outskirts of the area, “is Sunny Island’s School of Progression.”
“Wow!” said William, “That sure is one humongous school.”
“Those structures,” Felicity explained, as she glided effortlessly, high above the school, “are the learning centers. Within those halls of learning,” she continued, “students are provided with specialized training in which to prepare them for their progress through eternity.”
“Who would have ever thought that you’d have to attend school after you died,” William said with a grin.
Having finished encircling the entirety of the school’s perimeter, Felicity leveled off, allowing William a looser grip on her mane. “Children here are never forced to learn,” she said over her shoulder. “They can remain free-spirited youths for as long as they choose, and they can decide for themselves when to begin their spiritual progression. Most of them enjoy learning as much as they do playing games,” she admitted. “When they are ready to undertake their education, they are free to choose what and when to study. The only required lessons,” she added, “are the general studies dealing with the hierarchy of the spirit realm.”
She looked back at William again. “Would you like to see some of these learning centers up close?”
“Absolutely!” William blurted out eagerly.
Without warning, Felicity dropped suddenly into a steep dive.
Without thinking, William quickly locked his knees against Felicity’s body and laughed out loud at the feeling of the wind tugging at his hair.
After a few short moments, Felicity slowed and pulled up in front of what appeared to be a huge, futuristic fort of polygonal shape, made from something like translucent alabaster. Inside its walls, throughout the vast space, flourished a myriad of vibrant plant life, species of which exist only in the land of spirit.
“Here,” Felicity said, “we have Botany Hall. This is where students learn all about plants and their benefits. This is also where they begin instruction in the basic art of creation.”
Williams’s forehead wrinkled thoughtfully as he considered, for the first time, the idea that spirits might need to breathe. “Felicity,” he said, curiosity in his tone, “what benefits do plants have in the spirit world? Do they give off oxygen here, as they do on earth?”
Felicity glided slowly within the walls of the fort. Just ahead was a long bed of splendiferous spirit flowers. William’s jaw dropped as he beheld the unbelievable range of superb and vivid colors, some of them not even known on earth.
Continuing, they came to a section of dainty little spirit flowers hued in soft pastels: various shades of pinks, yellows, and soft blues standing out from the rest of the colors. Felicity allowed herself to settle on the ground.
“Oxygen, my young scholar, is an unneeded element here, and therefore unproduced by spir
it flora. However, there are a multitude of benefits that plants do share with spirits. In addition to their aesthetically pleasing qualities,” she added, flapping her wings gently to agitate the air, “their fragrances are truly rejuvenating.” She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, enjoying the newly stirred aromas.
Even William reveled in the euphoric effects of the flowers’ perfume as he inhaled.
Felicity then sailed deeper into the field of flowers, and only stopped when she reached an even more exotic specimen: a large hybrid flower, consisting of three tubular blooms standing bold atop a green trunk made from the flowers’ long, intertwining stems. Each bloom was a different color (red, gold, and blue) with long bright yellow stamen filaments, completing its splendor.
Felicity moved in closer to the flower, and as she did, the plant moved endearingly toward her. She closed her eyes and nuzzled her soft head against one of its blooms. “In addition to the uplifting aromas,” she said, dreamily, “these living plants have other beneficial qualities also. See for yourself.” Peeking back at William with one eye, she said encouragingly, “Go ahead, touch her; she likes it.”
Excited yet cautious, William leaned out and gingerly placed both hands around the flower so as to hold it in a sort of cup. Instantly, he heard a host of soft musical sounds coming from the flower as his hands stroked the colorful petals. At the same moment, William felt a sort of tingling magnetism running up his arms, an energizing stream of power that flooded his whole body. “Whoa! What was that?” he cried, jerking back quickly.
He grinned almost stupidly as his muscles—the muscles in his real body—felt firm and strong. He felt almost superhuman; a feeling he has most definitely never felt before in his life. “I feel like – like, I could lift a mountain,” he stammered, his petite astral frame quivering from the rush of what can only be defined as spirit adrenaline.
Felicity delighted in Williams’s enjoyment of this new sensation. “Water has a similar effect here in the spirit world,” she informed. “In lieu of rest itself, instant rejuvenation can be had simply by interacting with the plant life or bathing in the life-giving waters.” With a gentle downward thrust of her wings, Felicity moved up and away from the exotic flowers.
Williams’s senses were overwhelmed as the tropical scents filled his nostrils and a plethora of color bombarded his vision. Entranced by the floral beauty, William wondered about their creation.
Felicity circled slowly over the immense nursery, “First,” she said, picking up on William’s thoughts, “children are taught about the substances that make up plant life.” She scanned the grounds, evidently looking for something specific. “Then,” she continued. “They are taught flora design. After that they practice mental visualization and focus so that they can create an accurate thought model. The last step is creating the live plant by learning how to call forth the elements required from the ether around us.”
Seeing an outdoor class of young children, Felicity swooped low and hovered quietly a short distance away. The class was conducted in a clamshell configuration, with students positioned on the convex side of curved touchscreen tables made from a sleek, heavenly, blue-gray material resembling slate rock. The rows of tables became progressively shorter, the closer they get to the teacher, who faced the class from the concave side of her short table. In front of each pupil rested a soil-filled container.
“You are in luck, Master William,” Felicity said. “Here, you can witness the process of creation firsthand.”
William watched anxiously as the teacher addressed the class.
“Remember, everyone,” the teacher said, pointing to a full-grown potted flower in front of her. “First, envision your project completed. Next, concentrate on the elements required for your specific plant. You should have each compiled a list of them for reference.” She tapped a finger on her tabletop, prompting some of her students to glance at their holographic lists of elements and constituents. “Then, working from the inside outward,” she said, gesturing with her hands, “begin summoning your elements. Be careful now, summon them slowly and make sure to concentrate on shaping as you go—Okay, you may begin.”
As the students commenced to concentrate and focus their mental energies, a mysterious thing began to happen to the surrounding atmosphere. William’s eyes sparkled with fascination as if by magic, fine, colored, glinting grains and granules begin to materialize right out of thin air.
With nothing more than mind control, the students summoned their desired constituents from the multitude of minute particles emerging from the ether around them.
A young girl with long, black hair, closest to Felicity and William, directed her hands at the planter in front of her, as if inviting someone to sit. Instantly, thousands of golden-brown particles of varying shades floated forward and condensed into what looked like a river of sparkling glitter. A giggle slipped from her lips as she mentally coaxed it toward her round, red planter.
William caught his breath in awe as the shimmering particle stream spiraled upward from the pot, depositing and fusing matter as it went, making him think of a 3D printer. Slick, slender branches snaked out horizontally from a stout and sinewy tree trunk. Progress halted momentarily as the little girl conjured up additional matter streams of various colors. Combining them, she squeaked with delight as she finished up her bonsai tree with scores of shiny, multihued leaves.
William sat agape with wonder. His eyes darted between the once-empty planters, now full and brimming with new species of spirit flora. Full-scale and miniaturized versions of multicolored flowers and exotic trees now lined the students’ tables.
“How was that for a treat?” Felicity asked, taking flight once again.
“I’ve never seen anything that remarkable before in my life!” William exclaimed.
“On a material world,” Felicity said, “I should think not. Now then, how would you like to see a few more of Sunny Island’s favorites?”
“Sure,” William said, shifting position on Felicity’s back. “But I doubt if anything will beat this.”
“Really?” Felicity said playfully. “So, the challenge is to outdo Botany Hall, is it?”
“Yup!” William said, ecstatic at this proposition.
“Well, then, let’s just see if I’m up to the task, shall we?” Felicity flapped her wings swiftly, causing the ground to blur beneath them.
William gasped as his glasses flew from his face. Felicity noticed William’s facial apparatus plummeting speedily downward. With a quick turn, she dove headlong after them. “Gotcha!” she cried happily a moment later, as the claws of her foot closed quickly yet gently around the fragile spectacles. She pulled them up close to her face for a better look. “Young William, what is this peculiar device?” she asked, then raised her leg as close as she could to William to return his strange contraption.
William bent down, retrieved them from her grip, and once again slipped them onto his face. “They are my glasses,” he replied. “I was born with poor eyesight. These improve my vision.”
“Fascinating,” Felicity said. “However, as I’ve never seen anyone else with such a device over here, I wonder if you are truly in need of them in this world.”
Surprised that he had never considered this before, William removed his glasses and looked around far and wide. “You are right, Felicity,” he admitted. “I can see just fine without them.” He peered through the lenses once again, and discovered to his amazement that whatever spirit materials these lenses were made out of, they were not prescription strength. They were no more corrective than regular glass. However, feeling weird without them, he slipped the glasses back on his face and explained to Felicity that he would wear them just the same.
“As you wish,” Felicity said, and with a less forceful flap of her wings than before, she returned to their previous altitude and flight path.
William clamped his legs against her neck, pushed his glasses up tighter to his face, and stuck his arms out to the side, hooting an
d hollering right along with the other children who were in the air on their colorful Nabiyali.
Moments later, after working her way some distance along the academic perimeter, Felicity slowed as she neared a stately structure made of luminous blue marble.
“Prepare to be wowed, my young challenger,” she said as she began traversing the massive building. “Here, we have the Hall of Literature, which I trust will interest you. Have a look!” Felicity dropped slowly into the library’s interior courtyard, where a number of children were lounging about.
“Holy cow!” William blurted out. “What are those?”
“Books,” Felicity replied simply.
“No way!” William exclaimed, leaning forward for a better look. Studying the scene, he saw that each child was engaged with the same type of device, a thin slab of what looked like transparent gypsum. However, the devices were being used in different ways. Some of the children read them; much like children of Earth would read digital tablets or E-readers. Others use them like projectors to view art, 3D graphics and fully animated and lifelike stories in holographic bubbles, called story clouds, which rose out of the futuristic units.
“This is awesome,” William said, watching one boy in particular as a soft tenuous mist seeped from his device. In the next instant, a small cloud formed in the space before him, filled with miniature, three-dimensional, animated characters, complete with landscape. The boy made a motion and the book’s story commenced visually. The boy twisted his hand and the story cloud revolved, providing him with a better point of view. He lay back on the grass with his hands behind his head and proceeded to watch the tale.
“I can’t believe it!” William said. “Holographic—books!” His unblinking eyes, now the size of saucers, were fixed on the cumulus animation. After watching the silent show for a few moments he curiously glanced around at the other children and their soundless story clouds. “Felicity?” he said. “How do they follow the story if they can’t hear anything?”
