Growth (GAIA Trilogy Book 2)

by Morton Chalfy

"I saw the Director earlier," he said when he had control of himself. "I do believe he's mad and I think very dangerous." He related his conversation to which Mme. Albana said, "Fou!"

  Helene added, "If Rejuvenao is as big a success as he says I can see a lot of new problems ahead."

  "My thoughts exactly," said Harrison. "Turnover among the elite will slow to a crawl and that's never good."

  Mme. Albana checked the time and announced, "I have to leave for another class. Thank you, mon cheries."

  She leaned over Helene and kissed her cheeks. Harrison, the gentleman, had stood to wish her goodbye and she stepped into his arms, pressing her body against his, and planting a wet, tongue filled kiss on his mouth. "Later," she said, and was gone.

  "Not fair," said Harrison.

  "You'll be rewarded," said Helene smiling. "Relax and enjoy it."

  Chapter 65

  The main auditorium, which held three thousand people, was full. Around the venue giant screens showed the stage. This was the beginning of the Awards ceremonies which extended over two days. The first day's awards were for a long list of accomplishments interspersed with awards for Best Practices.

  In a way it was the Gaian's intellectual swap meet since public recognition of the Best Practices served to spread them throughout the community. In the background, and all through the venue, the songs up for Best Music provided a sound track.

  Occasionally a Best Practice or a Best Re-Wilding drew enthusiastic applause with some cheering from the group who had provided it. Every once in a while an award drew such a loud response that everyone in the venue had to turn and see what it was. When a Best Practice drew such a response it immediately spread throughout the Gaian world.

  After lunch on Award Day Helene, Harrison, Mishi and Lowell walked to a good observation spot to watch the parade of awardees go up to the podium to receive their award while a short precis of their work overlay the screens. Helene watched and listened with absorbed attention and commented when she felt the reception of a particular idea was not as robust as she thought it deserved. At those times she directed Mishi to make note of it and include it in the next newsletter.

  The mood throughout the Gathering was upbeat though by the end of each day it was a tired sort of upbeat. Most late meals were accompanied by liquor and the loosening of shoes, belts and among some, inhibitions. Shortly before the close of the Awards' first day Lucas received a troubling message from Fran. She had spent her recovery time monitoring the feed from the Gathering and occasionally monitoring its security channels.

  "I think someone has crashed the party," she wrote. "A person reported a stolen ID code in Michigan and that ID is in the venue."

  "Name?" asked Lucas.

  "Vivian Blake," she replied, and Lucas quickly found the image and information. The imposter was posing as a middle-aged woman of medium everything - medium height, weight, length of hair and taste in clothing. He quickly disseminated the information with a note to Sam to find Helene and that he would go to Maeve. As he ran out of the security control room followed by two aides Sam barreled down the corridor to Helene. He had a squad with him who took up stations at every exit they passed. He knew where Helene was, her communicator showed on his screen as a blip of light and he hurried toward her. In his mind was the thought that if the unknown intruder had been sent by Axel Radnich the target would be Helene.

  He could see the group she was in about a hundred yards ahead watching the Awards ceremony begin to wrap up. Around them was a crowd of Gaians, all turned to the screen overhead. A roar went up from the auditorium signaling the end of the presentations and the people around Helene all stood and began to disperse.

  There was a sudden shriek and Sam broke into a lumbering run. The crowd was pulling back from what he feared would be a scene of horror, but what confronted him when panting, he pushed through the crowd, was not as bad as he'd feared.

  A woman, clearly the imposter, was lying on the floor moaning. Her arm was bent in a way no arm could naturally bend and Mishi was kneeling at her head whispering and holding something to the woman's neck. When his breath slowed Sam heard Mishi say, "If you move again I'll slit your carotid artery and you'll bleed out right here."

  "What happened?" Sam almost shouted at Helene.

  "Tell you in a minute," she said calmly, "but first, search this person for more weapons, place her under control and then get some medical attention for her."

  Sam detailed his squad and quickly a security ambulance arrived to carry out the orders. When the intruder had been carted off Helene turned to Lowell and said, "Thanks. That probably saved me a nasty hurt if not saved my life. Thank you."

  To Sam she said, "I didn't see it but I felt the breeze. She had this," she pointed with her toe to a long, thin blade, its edges honed to razor sharpness, that lay between Lowell's feet. "She tried to slash me with that but somehow Lowell saw her and I guess he broke her arm."

  Sam bent to retrieve the weapon safely and wrapped it for examination and asked Lowell, "What happened?"

  "I'll tell you," said Mishi taking Lowell's arm. "My hero saw her coming and, as she slashed at the Boss, he snatched her by the wrist and did some jiu jitsu move or something and the next thing I know she's on the floor moaning. He was great."

  Sam looked at Lowell inquiringly.

  "I was just idly looking over the crowd and the roar went up and everyone was looking at the screen except her. She was staring at Helene and edging closer. When I started to move she started to speed up. I had to knock some lady down to get there in time."

  Sam sat down heavily, "I'm sorry," he said to Helene. "All that screening and we missed her."

  "Fortunately," said Helene soothingly, "there was no harm done except to her. And your insistence on security worked. I haven't gone anywhere without Lowell and Mishi today and they were quite up to the task."

  Sam's look showed he was still feeling deficient but he squared his shoulders and clasped Lowell's hand for a long time. "Good work, son. I owe you a big one." He turned to Mishi, "Where did you learn that little carotid artery trick and how did you get that blade past the screeners?"

  Mishi laughed. "The blade's ceramic and I packed it in Helene's bags. No one was going to screen them. And Down Below I had to deal with some people who didn't understand the meaning of No! The artery threat works wonders when you're holding a blade to their neck."

  "Don't mess with Mishi," Lowell said, his voice betraying the aftermath of the adrenaline rush.

  "Or with you," Sam muttered to himself. "I'll see about our intruder."

  Chapter 66

  Lucas, as abashed as Sam at the breach of security, rushed to meet him and question the would-be assassin. They watched through one-way glass as two Sheriff's deputies stripped the prisoner and were astonished when the removal of clothing revealed a compact muscular male body. The deputies, who were not astonished, removed the wig and with a wet sponge scrubbed the make up off his face. The prisoner stoically endured the handling and only showed a glimmer of emotion when his uplifted arm revealed an A4A tattoo under his bicep.

  Sam and the Sheriff conferred for a moment and then Sam led Lucas away. "They'll get further statements from the witnesses and Lowell and Mishi but as far as they're concerned they have him dead to rights and won't need us."

  Lucas nodded, "How'd he do it?"

  "Let's go find out," said Sam.

  It took several hours of questioning but revealed a simple and highly effective strategy. Two days before she left for the Gathering his prey had been involved in an accident, no doubt staged, that put her in the hospital without any ID. That had given the intruder enough time to get registered and accredited at the venue before the victim could realize her identity had been stolen, and even then no one realized the reason for the theft until nearly too late.

  "Chalk another one up to Fran being awake with nothing better to do than watch over us," said Sam. "She needs to be acknowledged and rewarded."

  "How can we p
revent this in the future?" demanded Lucas. "It's like we built a fortress and didn't lock the doors."

  "Chipping, I'm sorry to say," answered Sam. "That would have stopped him. If everyone had to be chipped to enter. Face recognition will never be one hundred per cent accurate."

  Lucas shook his head in despair. "I hate that idea."

  "Me too. Got a better one?"

  "No, but we better have a better one before the next Gathering."

  He went back to Maeve telling Sam that he'd be by her side for the duration.

  Harrison was holding Helene's hand seated on the couch in their rooms above the venue, sipping brandy and trying to shake the many emotions that flooded them both after the event. Lowell and Mishi were there as well, Mishi exultant and Lowell thoughtful. Harrison's communicator alerted him to an incoming message from the Director. He read it through idly and shook his head, "Listen to this," he said and began reading. "My dear Professor, I wish to thank you for your friendship and hospitality and to express my admiration, as from one organizer to another, for your wife's masterful handling of the Gaia movement. She displays the most remarkable acumen and I doff my hat to her prowess. That said, dear friend, I'm sure you know that all her efforts and yours are in vain. Humanity will continue to dig and pave, build and pollute, and make war on the rest of the living world and each other until we either explode, implode or choke on our own garbage.

  Territoriality is in our DNA and its pernicious effects will continue as long as there are people. Trying to bend that curve will, I'm afraid, prove impossible. Which is why my plans to seed the heavens with our species is the only hope for humanity. My desire would be for you and yours to see that and perhaps participate. As ever, your friend, Jorge."

  Harrison looked around and said, "He may be mad but, I'm afraid, very possibly correct. Still, there's no alternative to our trying to continue to bend the curve as he says."

  Lowell and Mishi looked solemn but Helene laughed. "We humans are shits, that's true, but not all of us. We've always been a monkey see monkey do species and at least half of us follow the good monkeys. The more children we educate the more will follow the positive path. He's cynical because it serves his purposes, not because he's right."

  The mood in the room lightened considerably and rose even more when Mishi said, "He's right about the Boss. She's a genius at this organizing."

  Harrison nodded and squeezed her hand, "He's probably secretly worried that your work will produce a practical utopia while he's off sailing through empty space."

  "Let's hope he really does go," said Helene. "That's the best place for him."

  Chapter 67

  Maeve was preparing for the big finale. It was tradition for the High Priestess to deliver a closing prayer invoking the love of Gaia along with any statement she wished to make. The lines at the Reception Room had essentially been never ending. They started to form hours before her arrival and went on until the day was over. The waiters-in-line typically included many mothers with children from babies in arms to teenagers and frustration with the long waits could get out of hand.

  To deal with the children's frustration a cadre of Gaia Grads constantly worked the line handing out treats, playing games and generally amusing everyone through the waiting period. A play area was set up near the middle of the line where mothers with toddlers could wait safely, and chairs were provided for the folks who couldn't stand for the length of time it took.

  It was a grueling ordeal for Maeve who had to maintain a cheerful and gracious attitude throughout. Fortunately the visits from the children helped keep her mood upbeat. Watching her own children interact with the visitors was also a source of joy. They were patient, caring and empathetic and made Maeve proud to be their parent.

  The line was closed down an hour before she was scheduled to deliver the invocation to give her time to prepare herself. She would deliver her remarks from the stage of the auditorium while her holographic representations would simultaneously echo her throughout the venue. Behind her on stage were the Gaian Chorus and the Gaian Children's Choir who would preface her remarks with renditions of the finalists for the Gaian Song of the Year.

  The auditorium was filled with chatting people carrying bags of "goodies" from the vendors and when the choruses began their program the talk quieted down in the room and slowly throughout the venue. When Maeve appeared on stage she was dressed in the High Priestess' robes and her entrance was greeted by a roar from the crowd.

  "This, my dear friends, has been a glorious week," she began, "and I want to thank you all for making it so. I know you've all seen the charts of our progress over the past years, the growth in re-wilded lands, the rise in numbers of young people receiving a Gaian education, the growth, the ongoing growth, in the number of Gaian Meetings, and the progress being made in cleaning up old pollution and forestalling new sources of it. The work is challenging and your dedication is uplifting to me and all of us who work in the name and spirit of Gaia."

  She paused for a few seconds, "It is especially uplifting to me to meet with you in person, most especially with the children who continue to inspire me, sustain me and to motivate me. Our work is for them, for all the children on into the future. We need to remember," she said solemnly, "that the care of the Earth is a never-ending occupation and we must remain supple and resilient in our efforts. The price is hard work but the results are the maintenance of a livable world for generations to come. Love Gaia."

  She stretched her arms out when she intoned "Love Gaia" and behind her the choruses began the oldest of Gaian hymns which was just the word Gaia repeated in a throbbing, pulsating rhythm that flowed along a lush musical river.

  First the people inside the auditorium picked it up and sang along and then people throughout the venue joined in. The music swelled and the voices rose in heartfelt harmony and went on for several minutes. Maeve could be seen throughout the building standing with arms out-stretched and weeping tears of joy.

  Off stage Harrison stood with Helene watching and listening until he turned to her and said, "I think you've done it. We held a Gathering and just look at it. I do believe a religion has broken out."

  The story of the Gaia movement concludes in Book III: Glory.

  READING BONUS

  THE CAVE OF LOST LOVE

  Strange Particle Press

  Copyright 2009 Morton Chalfy

  CHAPTER I

  "When the star in an unnamed distant galaxy went nova, Homo Erectus searched the African savanna for edible grubs. When the light from the nova finally reached Earth, a million years had passed, and Homo Sapiens had already established pockets of its presence on every continent.

  The night sky was a brilliant array of points of light inviting contemplation, explanation, awe, and epiphanies. Even without an awareness of the unthinkable speed of light, the stars were clearly objects in a fourth dimension. Eternity and eternal were concepts born of the stars.

  The nova had, in an instant, consumed the material of a sun a dozen times the size of Earth’s, and its light would have rivaled the moon’s had the moon not been dark when it arrived.

  Muta was in a glen in the forest near the tribe’s summer camp. She was gathering certain plants whose properties were strongest when they were gathered at the time of the new moon by the light of the stars. Muta was practicing her craft as herbalist to the tribe. This was an important position including as it did elements of medicine, spiritualism and cuisine. From puberty onward Muta had apprenticed, along with two others, with the previous Gatherer, an apprenticeship that lasted for decades. She learned the plants, their properties, their seasons, their habitats, and their uses, as well as the times to gather, the times to shun, the incantations to utter. The amount of knowledge to be absorbed was staggering.

  The Gatherer had always emphasized that more important than the knowledge was the state of mind and the attitude of approach. Nature was the teacher and no amount of knowledge could ever be thought to be complete. Constant obse
rvation and thoughtfulness were necessary if one was to continue to gather knowledge or hope to attain the wise use of it.

  “We are all students of the Great Mother,” was one of the Gatherer’s favorite statements, and, “One cannot learn with a closed mind or heal with a heavy hand,” was another.

  Muta had learned well and over the years had gradually been given the place of inheritance among the apprentices. Now she was the Gatherer, and the other apprentices who had learned alongside her were also practicing. They all consulted freely with each other, though deferring to her opinion at times when they felt unsure of their own. New, young apprentices had taken their places. Two of them were with Muta in the clearing when the nova appeared.

  Muta was kneeling, with her arms upraised towards the heavens. She was about to intone the prayers to the spirits of the woods before she dug up the root she had come for when the nova burst forth in blinding brilliance. Muta was transfixed, her lips parted to speak, but her body frozen by the awesome sight.

  Her two acolytes had been kneeling, watching Muta, and waiting to repeat her prayers. As the moments wore on and the nova neither waned nor disappeared , Muta neither moved nor spoke.

  Muta’s attitude of supplication did not change for a long while. The two girls sidled closer to one another and clasped each other’s hands for comfort. They alternately looked to the burning star and back to Muta for some signal.

  At last Muta slowly lowered her arms to her side and sat back on her heels with her hands in her lap. Her face relaxed into one of attention, but her eyes stayed fixed on the star. As the night wore on and the Earth turned towards day, the nova gradually fell below the horizon. With the setting of the star Muta stirred and rose stiffly to her feet. The girls, who had finally dozed off leaning against each other, woke with a start.