They both laughed at the last statement, and Dr. Price agreed to all the terms, except for letting them meet the children. She explained that it was hospital policy to allow only attending physicians and family to meet with someone coming out of such a state. The only exception would be a meeting requested explicitly by the patient. And Dr. Price was confident that none of her nineteen-year-old patients knew anyone in this math club six years ago.”
The adults came out of the kitchen much more relaxed than when they went in. Even Tyler was calmer after his Mom promised him that she wouldn’t talk to any Mearth Agents. The club broke up for the evening after that. We hadn’t studied any math or science, but it was one of the most exciting meetings we’d ever had.
✽✽✽
We were approaching winter break, so there wasn’t much going on at school other than our end-of-term tests. I wished that Ms. Datta had told Mr. Urtish about how to be remembered here on Earth. Maybe my History teacher would give me some slack if he remembered Mearth. On second thought. Nah, he probably wouldn’t.
I did get invited to Terry Halligan’s holiday party, which was pretty awesome. I know I was only asked because I’ve been seen hanging around with Nancy and Veronica. But it was still exciting to be invited to one of the major parties of the year.
The party wasn’t as amazing as I expected, though. I was finally mixing with the popular kids, but everyone seemed to be having a better time than me. Veronica and Nancy were busy with their friends, and I didn’t have much to say to the other guests. I hung out for about a half-hour before calling my parents for a ride home. I crashed the Magic Spelz game Tyler was hosting at his house and had a great time, even after the grief they gave me for bailing on them to be with the popular crowd.
I was, however, looking forward to Christmas Day. For one thing, I had recently doubted that I was going to be alive for Christmas. That might sound a bit dramatic, but it is accurate, and it made me appreciate my family, despite some of their odd quirks. For example, we have a Christmas tree, sang carols last night, and will open presents in the morning. We will have a big, turkey Christmas dinner tonight, but we also have an illuminated boat on our front lawn. Don’t ask me why. Dad insists that it’s a tradition, but I think it’s just embarrassing.
The big difference I was really looking forward to this year was being able to sleep in. My sister is eleven and agrees that there is no need to race down to open presents before sunrise. We planned to sleep late and wander down to open our gifts while eating donuts and drinking orange juice.
Notice I said that was our plan.
It was still dark when I heard the doorbell ring. I glanced at my clock, saw that it was 5:58am, and rolled over to go back to sleep. No such luck, though. Two minutes later, Dad is walking into my room, asking me why Tyler’s mother wants me to go to the hospital with her. I kicked him out of my room, threw on some clothes, and tried to eavesdrop on the conversation downstairs.
Dr. Price was explaining that some kids who had been in comas had awakened this morning. She was kind of vague about why she needed me to go with her on Christmas morning, of all times, but mentioned similarities between my coma case and theirs. She wanted me to be there when she met with them.
My parents weren’t convinced, but let me go when they saw me bound down the stairs, fully dressed. I don’t think they’ve ever seen me that full of energy so early in the morning. I told them that our Science and Math Club had taken an interest in the coma kids, as we called them, after my episode and that Dr. Price agreed to let me meet them if they woke up.
Dad argued that this could wait until the afternoon. After all, it was Christmas morning. Mom saw the pleading look in my eyes, however. She relented that I could leave and open my gifts later, but warned that the rest of them wouldn’t wait.
I kissed both of them, which really surprised them, and ran out the door with Dr. Price. Tyler was already in the car.
Chapter 4
Awakening
We arrived at the hospital in no time because there were no other cars on the road, and Dr. Price drove faster than I’ve ever seen her drive before. She signed us in at the receptionist, who said that only family members were permitted to visit the patients. Dr. Price explained that she was their attending physician and that we were her kids. She was not about to leave us alone at home on Christmas morning. She spoke with such authority and intensity that the receptionist didn’t dare ask how this very Caucasian kid was a member of a very African-American family. She just said, “Of course, Dr. Price” and let us through.
We were just outside the patients’ room when I asked Dr. Price why I was there. After all, she had been very clear that only their family members could visit them.
Dr. Price turned to me and said, “That is an excellent question, Mark, and I would like an answer before we go in.”
I just stood there with my mouth agape, not knowing what to say.
”I haven’t even called their families to inform them that their children are awake because I want to examine them first. However, the first words out of their mouths were that they needed to see Mark Panagopoulos. I sincerely doubt that four kids from various neighborhoods around the city met you six years ago when they were thirteen, and you were only seven. I demand to know what is going on. Tell me how you knew they’d wake up and tell me how they know you.”
I gulped, “I promise I’ll explain it later, but it’s going to take more time than we have now. I need to get in there and talk with those guys.”
Tyler added, “It’s just like we told you, Mom. Watch out for Mearth Agents. They’re going to be coming soon.”
Dr. Price shook her head and put her arm around her son to reassure him. Then we went into the room.
We heard hushed voices whispering when we opened the door, but the room went silent as soon as we entered.
A girl looked at Tyler and asked, “Are you, Mark?”
Tyler shook his head and pointed at me without saying anything.
I said, “Hi, I’m Mark, who are you?”
The girl said, “I’m Venique Haines,” but it came out as more of a question than an answer.
I nervously looked at Dr. Price and decided to go for it. I said, “Hi, Lakelle; I’m Stavius.”
The boy patient looked scared and whispered, “Can we trust them?” as he pointed at Dr. Price and Tyler.
I looked at Dr. Price, who nodded her head but appeared totally confused.
“Yeah, they’re cool. This is the doctor who has been caring for you, and this is her son Tyler. Tyler knows all about Mearth, and his mom is trustworthy. You must be Kerrs, or Martin Taylor, here on Earth.”
The room suddenly became a cacophony of voices. Everyone was talking at once. Laura and Lakeshia introduced themselves, and all of them were asking me questions. When Laura asked if they really had been asleep for six years, Lakeshia grabbed her sizeable breasts and said, “Honey, I did not have these when I went to sleep last night!”
There were several minutes of laughing and hugging, although they could barely raise their arms from being immobile for six years. Dr. Price finally shouted, “Enough,” and insisted that Tyler and I leave the room. As we left, I reminded them not to mention anything about Mearth to anyone. They agreed, and Tyler added, “That goes double for you, Mom!”
Dr. Price gave them a preliminary exam and declared them fit enough to meet their parents. Venique asked to see me one more time, and Dr. Price let me in to say goodbye. Venique’s arms were spread open, and tears were streaming down her face as she cried, “Thank you for saving us, Stavius.” I hurried over and gave her another hug, and the others in the room echoed her thanks.
Dr. Price looked on in disbelief as the others repeated her message until she told them that we had to leave and call their parents. The first call she made, however, was to ask my mom to pick up Tyler and me. She told Mom that everything was fine and that we would be waiting in the lobby. Then she walked us back down to sit by the receptioni
st, whom she wished a Merry Christmas and thanked for bending the rules. She informed us that we would be explaining everything to her later, before rushing back to her patients.
Dad picked us up and wanted to know what was going on, but we said we couldn’t tell him. Tyler giggled something about patient-doctor confidentiality, and Dad just shook his head and drove us home in silence.
The rest of Christmas Day was pretty non-eventful until Shontelle called just before dinner and told me to turn on the news. We were just about to sit down for our meal, and my family has strict rules about no television while we’re eating. Dad relented, though, complaining that today seemed to be a day for breaking the rules.
We turned on the news and saw Dr. Price in the background with the announcer talking about the Christmas miracle. Four, unrelated children, who had slipped into comas on the same night nearly six-and-a-half years ago, had suddenly awakened together this Christmas morning.
The video expanded to show Dr. Price fielding questions at a podium in front of a group of stunned, and disheveled parents. She talked about the children, their health, her expectations for their recovery, and how she had never given up hope. She paused when a reporter asked why she thought they woke up today, after all these years. She thought for several seconds before saying that she wasn’t sure, but that she had tried a procedure just last night and that, perhaps, it had an effect. Another reporter suggested that maybe it was their families’ prayers to Jesus on this holiest of days. Dr. Price looked relieved and admitted, “You are probably right. That is as good of a reason as any I can give.”
Dad turned off the television, but my family spent the rest of the meal trying to pry information out of me. I kept saying that I didn’t know anything and that I was sworn not to say anything, even if I did. I’m not sure they entirely believed me, but eventually, the conversation and our family returned to normal. Dad complained about overeating. Mom fussed about what to do with all the leftovers. And my sister was chastised for playing games on her phone under the table.
Dr. Price stopped by after dinner. She looked exhausted but wanted me to tell her everything I knew about the four kids. I said that we were having an emergency meeting of Club S&M at Ms. Datta’s house tomorrow at noon. She agreed to come and even offered to drive Tyler and me to the meeting.
✽✽✽
Everyone was at Ms. Datta’s house when we arrived, including Mr. Narwani. I gave Ms. Datta a questioning look, and she just smiled and nodded. I kind of expected her to tell Urtish how to remember Mearth when Mr. Narwani awoke on Earth and wait for him to arrive. I guess she took Veronica’s advice to heart.
Mr. Narwani was taking Dr. Price’s coat when she demanded that he tell her what was going on. She wanted to know about Mearth, Stavius, the four kids in the hospital, the secret agents, and the danger they posed.
Mr. Narwani looked shocked and answered that he didn’t know any of those things but offered to get her a cup of chai. I don’t think she believed him, but she accepted his offer for the hot drink and collapsed on the sofa. She told us that the kids in the hospital were improving, that their parents were ecstatic, and that everyone wanted to know what she had done. She had been giving endless interviews to reporters from around the world because “The Cincinnati Christmas Miracle” was one of the few positive stories in the news this week.
Ms. Datta brought a few more chairs into the room so we could all sit and then stood in front of us with an expression I instantly recognized. Her face looked exactly like the way I felt when I had to tell Dr. Price about the comatose kids the first time. I gave her a thumbs-up sign, and she smiled at me before beginning.
Ms. Datta spent nearly an hour explaining how there are thirteen-year-olds who dream of a magical world we call Mearth and that their dreams are genuine. She spoke about The Prophecy and about our adventures with various embellishments interjected by us. Our teacher explained that Mearth was in the middle of a war. She then added that the other side might have people who visit Earth in their Mearth dreams. She wasn’t convinced of this but, if they did, those people would not hesitate to abduct or even kill children here to win their war.
The room was silent when she finished. Dr. Price had stared at Ms. Datta the entire time and never said a single word. She set down her now-cold, chai, and began to speak.
“So, you actually believe this, Sarra? And you’re teaching these children these beliefs? Is this some kind of a cult?” she asked with growing panic in her voice.
Ms. Datta quickly clarified that this wasn’t a cult and that she didn’t know we were having these dreams until the club was already formed. I stated that the club was our idea and that I had been having these dreams long before I had even heard of Ms. Datta. Then I pulled out my journals as proof, and Tyler, Ethan, and Malik all confirmed my story.
Dr. Price seemed somewhat relieved for a moment, but then her eyes flashed with panic, and she quickly asked, “So, everyone in this room is a dreamer?”
Tyler spoke up to say, “No, Mom. Malik, Ethan, and I don’t have these dreams. We wanted to help Mark, so we formed Team Stavius, Earth Division.”
I groaned when I heard that old name again, but nobody else seemed to notice because Ms. Datta quickly added, “But my husband and I do.”
Mr. Narwani’s mouth popped open, and he exclaimed, “No, I don’t. I have never heard any of this before.”
Ms. Datta patted his hand and replied, “Yes, you do, Dear. You just don’t remember your dreams. That’s pretty common.”
Nancy and Veronica giggled as Mr. Narwani stuttered, “No, I don’t have dreams like that! And, if I did, how would you know? And, if you knew, why didn’t you tell me?”
Nancy interjected, “Your name is Mr. Urtish on Mearth. We’ve all known who you are for a long time, but we didn’t tell Terra, Ms. Datta, until a few days ago.”
Veronica added, “Besides, Terra hates Urtish. In fact, we all do.”
Neither Ms. Datta nor Mr. Narwani knew how to respond to that, but it didn’t matter. Dr. Price was still on her mission for information.
“I honestly don’t care about all this. Tell me how the comatose children know you, and how you knew when they would awaken.”
I was ready to answer, but Ethan spoke up first.
“Mr. Urtish told Stavius, um, Mark, that the last set of four heroes disappeared six years ago and he assumed they were captured and killed. Then, Mark slipped into a coma because Stavius lost his magical energy. After that, we guessed that those other kids were probably trapped somewhere without enough magical energy to wake up here. Then Tyler found them.”
Tyler added, “I’m sorry I hacked your accounts, Mom. We had to find them, and I did. Those kids all slipped into comas the night they were captured on Mearth. They were all taken to a slave camp with no magical energy where they were stuck for six years until these guys freed them. We knew they’d be able to wake up once they were reenergized. I am really sorry about using your account, Mom.”
“That’s all right, Tyler. Just don’t do it again,” answered Dr. Price.
“But that’s not all,” continued Tyler. “I also found out that lots of thirteen-year-old kids die in their sleep around the same time of the year going way back in time. We think that people die here if they’re killed on Mearth. That’s why we’re so scared.”
“You’re scared?” asked Nancy. “What about us? Versera, Elisa and I were this close to being executed!”
Dr. Price said, “Well, if you really believe this, then you should all get as far away as you can from this prophecy and whatever war is going on.”
Malik replied, “Yeah, we considered that, but you don’t know the Septumcolans. Those people will never stop searching for all of us on Mearth and here. Mark and the others will either wind up dead or in a coma if they try to run, and we might be killed too. Besides, we have a real chance of fulfilling The Prophecy, which means that no more kids will ever have to die for it.”
The rest of our friends
nodded and grunted, “Yeah,” when he finished.
Dr. Price said, “You keep mentioning secret agents looking for you here on Earth. What, exactly, do you mean by that, and why would they be searching for you here?”
Malik answered, “We know that some people on Earth travel to Mearth in their dreams. What if there are people on Mearth who visit Earth in their dreams? If that’s possible, then the Septumcolans might find it easier to kill an unsuspecting kid here than a battle-hardened warrior on Mearth.”
I could tell Dr. Price did not like this thinking, but she boldly asked, “And, what would these Mearth Agents look like?”
Ms. Datta answered, “Oh, they’d look like anyone else, but we have a theory about some things which would make them seem suspicious. Mark and his friends asked to start this Science and Math Club when they learned that stronger mathematical and scientific understanding here on Earth increases magical abilities on Mearth. They don’t have much math or science on Mearth since they rely on magic instead of technology.
“While the reverse might occur to Mearth dreamers on Earth, we suspect that it is not precisely the same. We think that the magical abilities of Mearth dreamers would manifest themselves as charisma and leadership on Earth. So, Mearth dreamers are more likely to be people with dominant personalities like politicians, elected officials, bureaucrats, or even religious leaders than scientists.
“They would certainly be searching for the current set of heroes. They would also likely be attempting to reduce the scientific and mathematical abilities of our early teenagers to weaken these and future heroes.”
Dr. Price tested, “You mean like the New America movement, which is blaming technology for everything from crime, to autism, war, and divorce. They’re always protesting outside the hospital, claiming that we are defying God’s plan whenever we save someone’s life.”
Prophecy Page 5
