“Mark, bury this obscenity. I think we know who he is. Don’t mark the grave and dig it deep. I don’t want any animals digging it up and getting sick.”
“Yes, sir.” Captain Mark Lipton bawled for his top sergeant, and they dragged Holly away.
The prisoners stood in line, eyes darting, hands empty and in plain sight. Six of Cielo’s men stared back defiantly, red feathers in their hats. Derek went down the line slowly, studying them closely. One made as if to spit. Derek’s rifle butt slammed into his solar plexus. The man sat down hard, fighting to breathe. Derek smiled thinly at the others, waiting. Bunched fists and angry eyes. Derek didn’t say a word, and resumed his slow walk.
“What’s your name?” Derek planted himself in front of a solid middle-aged Hispanic man with thick grey hair hanging to his shoulders, and a short grizzly beard.
“Harry Garcia.”
“Cielo’s second?” Derek was incredulous.
“Si. I was sent to... how you say ‘test the waters’.”
“Sharks in these waters.” Suddenly Derek turned to an old white-bearded man next to Harry. “You’re Abraham Cielo.” The man started to bolt. Derek collared the man and jerked him around. “Bugger. You guard your anonymity well, but before I left Western Command I got a firsthand description. You grew a beard and took off weight.” He turned Cielo’s face to the right. A half moon scar showed front of his left ear. Derek turned to his commanders. “Gentlemen, General Carson will be pleased. Very pleased.”
“He’ll hang us,” Harry said, beginning to shake.
“Count on it,” Derek agreed.
“Don’t go to begging, Harry.” The old man turned to his second. “You knew what would happen if you got caught.”
“Goddammit, it’s my life, Abe.”
Cielo smiled thinly. “Why beg for a life already forfeit years ago? You’ve been a good and loyal second. I thank you for that. Let’s not end it like cowering dogs.”
Harry face relaxed a little. “You always were a gutsy bastard, padrone.”
A satisfied grin spread over Cielo’s cold features. He chuckled and spat on the ground, crows-feet prominent on his face. Then he turned to me, lips wrinkled. “I’d have burned you in the town square. Unnatural creature.”
“Always good to meet the management,” I said. But he had a point. In another time and circumstances, it could have, would have happened. I smiled. “How lucky I am to have the circumstances I’m in.”
“Chain them,” Randolph ordered. Twenty fighters were chained to Cielo and Harry. Then Randolph directed the razing of Zig’s Hole.
Houses were systematically searched, then burned, and the solid remains blown up. Weapons and ammunition destroyed and buried. While the town died in flames and dynamite, the slaves were interviewed. Thirty-eight men, women, and children had their freedom again and some for the first time. Captain Lipton sat interviewing some of them.
“Hey, Jamie,” he called. “Wasn’t a Clara Williams and her daughter at the fort?”
“Yeah. She’s out at Cheshire now. Who’d you have?”
“Buck Williams. Claims he was taken at the Heber community disaster. Says he was captured and brought here. Been worked digging out latrines. Kinda sick.” A ragged cough broke the air.
Buck Williams looked bad - bent over, lined face on an over - thin body with graying hair. He looked at me like an beaten dog waiting to be kicked. His new freedom hadn’t sunk in yet.
“Mr. Williams, your wife and daughter are safe at Cheshire getting medical attention. We’ll take you there.”
“They’re alive?” His eyes held stunned disbelief.
“Very much so.”
Then he began to sob. Deep things, shaking and coming from the core of his Being. Mark and I moved away.
Four former slave families chose to settle in the Verde Valley and the canyons of Sedona. Derek made it plain the military could afford them only minimal protection, but they still decided to stay. Outfitting them from Zig’s stores proved no problem. He must have had fantastic sources for we came across things we’d only read about. Scary.
It took six days to make the fort and say goodbye to the soldiers. Walking back to Cheshire, Buck turned to me and said, “I saw what you did with the Pillar of Fire, the healings you did. You’re really a Wizard.”
“I’m a man,” I said. “Just a man.”
“How did you do it?”
“Thank you, Buck. That’s what I like to hear. How did you do it? Not you’re a miracle worker or some sort of prophet. I’m not. Just a man who had some experiences that opened doors of knowledge that lets me do what I do.”
“The soldiers and everyone saw the Pillar of Fire. Did you know everything stopped, everyone stopped, watching what you did? I could feel this energy, and you were in this fire, part of the fire. Untouched and then it was gone.” He shook his head. “Must be a hell of ’va body of knowledge you’ve gotten into.”
I laughed. “Yeah. You could say that. But it’s nothing like people think.”
“Is there a God that you communicate with? That directs you. A superior Being of some type?” We walked up Highway 180, stopping at the Whipple Street turn off to admire the Peaks.
“Is there a God?” Tricky stuff. Not as easy as it seems. People want simple answers. Something comforting. “There is a Creative Force whose energy makes up Everything. If you want to call this God, you can. We all are part of large wholes within larger wholes and on and on which is part of the Greater Whole which is Everything. But in all my searching of the Other side, I’ve never found a human Sunday School type God or Old Testament God that keeps score and provides justice as we think of it. But you are part of a larger whole who created you out of its energy. Call it a Soul or Entity. This is what responds to you when you pray for help and understanding.” I smiled. “Now, you have often prayed that you and Clara and your daughter get back together. And this time your prayer is answered in a positive way.”
“Think you can do anything for my chest and back, Jamie?” Dried specks of brownish blood peppered the corner of his mouth.
“I think so,” I said, studying him. “You were whipped too.”
“Yeah, Zig had his whipping post. The first day I was auctioned off, he hung me from the post, tore my shirt off and moved up playing the Blacksnake - his bullwhip. Never believed so much pain was possible. Five times he brought me back just for the fun of it. If I hadn’t had the possibility, the hope, of seeing Clara and Janet again, I would have given up and died. Hope. Amazing what hope can do.” He lifted his shirt and saw the dismay on my face. His entire back was a rut of white scar tissue. I shook my head.
“We’ll help heal you. Just having you and your family in a secure place together is the biggest plus. Hot baths, nutritional therapy, massage, hypnosis, lots of things.” We walked in silence taking in and enjoying the day. It struck me that Buck had never mentioned the aliens. “What do you think of them?” I pointed to the spacecraft.
He looked over, surprised. “Oh, those. I dreamed of them years ago,” he said carelessly, pleased with himself. “Who would believe me? So I kept it to myself.”
By this time we could see the ruins of the Museum of Northern Arizona. Laith saw us and shouted. It amazed me to see anyone in the ruins. The place gave people the creeps, and most everyone gave it a wide berth. He raced up and we hugged, sharing information. “How is Janet?” I asked.
Laith cocked his head and looked at Williams. “Buck Williams?” he said and they shook hands.
“Yes. How did you know?”
Laith shrugged. “Saw a picture of you in your wife’s mind, but didn’t expect the grey hair. Janet is fine. So is your wife.” Laith paused briefly. “Excuse me. I’m Jamie’s oldest son, Laith.”
“What’s up?” I asked.
“Lots of disturbances,” he said. “From the ones killed here.”
“Ghosts?” Buck’s eyes widened.
“These personalities are quite alive, Buck. Just not in
the physical body,” I said. “Kind of like spinning their wheels you might say. Like a nightmare over and over. Except for them, they do it constantly, sometimes for many years.”
“Dad, we need to do some work here.” He closed his eyes a moment. “Nine men and six women died here. Five men and three women went on. The rest need help.” I’d never mentioned the exact number of people killed. Laith opened his eyes. “Thanks for helping the others go on.”
I nodded. “Everyone else had an impenetrable energy wall around them.”
“The energy wall is starting to break down.” We headed back to Cheshire.
“Perhaps you could call a meeting of the Dream Makers this evening.”
“Speak of the devil,” Laith said. Helen stood at the outer perimeter gate waiting for us.
“Be polite,” I admonished. “That’s my future daughter-in-law you’re speaking about.”
“Count on that,” Laith said.
I saw Victoria coming toward us, holding a little girl’s hand. I recognized Janet.
Buck saw her. “Janet?”
The girl turned at her name, and stared at Buck. “Haddy?” she said, slurring the word.
Buck knelt holding out his hands. Janet ran into his arms. Then Clara was flying down the road and into their arms. Never seen such a reunion. “You did a good job, Laith.”
Laith frowned. “Funny thing, Dad. I felt this electric shock and Janet could hear perfectly. Never happened like that before.” Helen and Judith exchanged glances.
“It’s part of the puzzle. You might get more information from your Grandpa Charles.” I pointed to him in the root crop area hoeing out weeds. Laith headed in his direction.
I turned to Victoria. “How is our friend Eli?”
“Coming along,” Victoria said. “Spends a lot of time with Baldy. He was fascinated by the hot springs so he’s helping with maintenance. Good with his hands. Mario wants him with the house maintenance crew. We’ll see what happens.”
“How’s Baldy?”
“Just underfed and not groomed.” Victoria smiled. “A bit like Eli’s beliefs on many things. The two complement each other very nicely. Excellent living symbolism.”
I laughed. Victoria didn’t miss much. No ordinary child. Helen turned to me. “I’ll call a meeting of the Dream Makers for tonight.
“Thank you. It will be memorable.”
6
Most people think the ‘Other side’ is some type of spiritual netherworld without structure and substance. Nothing is further from the truth. Everything is part of a spectrum of conscious energy. Our physical world is a tiny portion of this energy ... The Dream Makers meeting started with Laith outlining his discovery. “I felt drawn to the museum. There are seven people still reliving the nightmare of their deaths nearly twelve years ago. This repetitive energy has become so ingrown it’s breaking down and giving us the opportunity to end a collective nightmare.” Laith sat, straddling a stool. “We can get into their dreams.”
“Projecting into someone’s nightmare isn’t for the faint at heart,” Helen said. “These nightmares are intense energy fields. We will be dealing with purely mental constructs of the people involved. They can be manipulated.”
It took seven long days. Meeting another individual in an out-of-the-body experience is far different from any physical encounter. The personality can take any form or forms it wishes. The personality is literally the landscape and experience it finds itself in.
I projected into an exploding grenade. Shrapnel tearing flesh, the blood and the pain. The mental anguish worked far worse than any physical pain. Here the helpless anger and grief shattered the psychic atmosphere over and over again. It played on in the ruins in ways no horror movie could. The people died over and over again in screaming terror and agony. It took several hours before I learned to manipulate within it without being consumed by the pain. I increased my personal energy field, creating a safety envelope around me.
The first manipulation stopped the grenade from exploding. This slowed the frantic momentum of energy. Next, I knew my subject Arnie ‘Bigfoot’ Jacobs listened to one member of his band - Bernie Ogten. Bernie died early in the fighting and went on. Arnie wasn’t aware of this. I made myself into the form of Bernie. I called to Arnie who turned around just before the an exploding mortar shell. I put an energy block around the explosion and felt it hold better than I expected.
The energy momentum slowed again. Arnie turned to face me as Bernie Ogten. “Bernie. Where you been?”
“I got knocked out, Bigfoot.” I nodded to some rocks I knew he’d ignored.
“Think we can get outta here?” he asked.
“Maybe. I saw a place up by the dam we might sneak through. Let’s get the others.” We turned around and those Arnie felt most emotionally attached to came over. “This is the best time to get out,” I said. The day had melted into uneven twilight. The firing died down.
We made our way belly down through the strewn and exploded wreckage of the museum to the dam. There we worked our way east skirting the perimeter of Cheshire until we circled it and went up the hill. It made a hair-raising escape: avoiding military patrols, a narrow escape from a soldier that ‘heard’ something, and the satisfaction of knowing everyone made it out alive.
It took some doing, but we managed to explain to Arnie what had happened and his situation, so he could go on. Eventually all the individuals ended up freed to go on. All the problems of the former jay hawkers weren’t solved by any means, but they could now make conscious decisions about what they wanted to do.
A great sense of satisfaction ran through the community. Now the museum need not be avoided. The change in atmosphere was palatable. Clean. Our family spent the evening together. Cookies and tea. Simple. Sitting around the living room. Charles and Mary. Helen’s father, Mike Roseman joined us.
“Do you get anything on working with the aliens?” Abe asked, looking at me.
“Things usually unfold in a natural fashion. You might ask your Grandpa Charles.”
“Grandpa?”
Charles looked at Abe with a straight face. “There was a time ... ”
Abe covered his ears and groaned. “Not you, too.”
We all laughed. Then Victoria said, “Oh boy, a story. Tell us a story, Grandpa.” More laughter.
“I’ll tell you a true story,” Charles said. “Long long ago there existed a great civilization on a planet far from your solar system. These people traveled and traded with other planets, and the knowledge they possessed would make anything we have seem less than kindergarten. They were ruled by a queen whose powers were so great she was forbidden to marry lest she create factions that could upset the political stability of the planet. There were many factions. She was advised by a scientist-priest whom everyone respected. Not liked, but respected. Eventually, they became secret lovers. They hid this relationship from everyone.
“Any rate, like us, these people’s spiritual maturity lagged far behind their technical knowledge. Through hate, envy, fear and a host of other aberrant problems, they destroyed their planet. The federation of planets they belonged to drove them out. Eventually, they arrived on our planet and settled. But the factions still existed that had caused the disasters. Finally, a third leader, the advisor to the queen, seeing the carnage to come, gathered his followers and left.” He looked at me.
Charles cleared his throat. “Shortly after that the factions fought. Now, this was not your modern day fighting with guns, missiles, nuclear weapons, lasers and such. They used their minds to make war. These personalities knew a vast amount about light and sound. Indeed, they used a Sound Language to manipulate molecular structure.” He stopped a moment, choosing his words carefully. “Everyone has an energy frequency, and they sought out each others, killing and maiming. You can’t imagine how horrendous that is. Everyone died except the most widely followed leader. He had violated his most sacred oath.”
“Oath?” Mike blinked.
“He had sworn
an oath to himself never to abuse the Sound Language. So he laid a task that he would help shepherd the development of this planet and its Beings to its point of greatest potential. We are at that point. He asked the leader who led his people away to come back.” Charles gestured to the aliens. “They have come back. ”
“And the leader who left?” Judith asked.
“He’s here. Welcoming committee so to speak. The aliens know who he is,” Charles said, sipping his tea.
Laith said, “Does he know who he is?” He passed a plate of cookies.
“Fair question. He will. These were not pleasant people. It will not be a fun experience to understand who he is, and where he’s coming from.”
“So, how about religion and science?” Mary asked, shifting in her oversized chair. “How did these aliens divide the two,”
Charles chuckled. “We are such a peculiar people, aren’t we? Insisting we compartmentalize our knowledge. They would find what we do very difficult to believe. They see all knowledge as one, part of a larger whole. The Earth is a very basic school system.”
An hour later we called it good and went to bed. As I melted into sleep I felt myself pulled in a direction I’d never been before. Like a fluid shift to an identity that had been deliberately masked - hidden long ago. We were truly giants then and vastly sure of ourselves. Space travel between planets made trading alliances. A small group of us belonged to a special cadre of scientist-priests who used a Sound Language that could literally change one molecular structure into another using tonal complexes. We were sworn never to abuse this language, but that didn’t hold for everyone. Though I was invited, I never joined a faction. There was always something within me that kept me from violating my oath. That set me apart. Eventually competing factions grew into warring factions. But not before I met with the other scientist-priests and told them I was leaving. I knew of the carnage to come, and dreaded the devastation to this new planet.
I was there in my dream. We sat around a great oval table, all thirty-five of us. Our energy levels dwarfed those of normal people. We’d learned to forge a close and strong energy link with our core selves as part of activating this vast knowledge. Because of this we could and did live hundreds of years. Our followers lived normal life spans. We took great care with our thoughts as we knew their true power. With our knowledge, the lag time between thinking and creating physically was very very short. “I’m taking my people away,” I said.
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