Unison (The Spheral) (51 page)

During the rest of my journey, I cogitated over Flora’s remark about living in a world without justice. The baby lived in that world, the same world I lived in. Justice was uncovered as another illusion—inspiring to believe in—but not a required feature of humanity. Notwithstanding, Flora saw colors, and that shined a light over the possibility that we’d move forward together.

SKETCHED IN LINEN

S
eeing Holly and Lidian again inspired me to remain in New Athenia. The wine, late-night card games on the balcony, and trips to the jazz club cleared away the darkness that surrounded me during my journey. I continued my position with the orchestra and resurrected my Mozart versus Chopin feud with Manolis—only this time, I didn’t take my fame seriously. I didn’t take
anything
seriously. Towards the end of the year, everything felt worn and old and my restlessness returned. I needed a deeper connection to something, but I couldn’t fathom what that something was. Every person I met here reminded me of what I used to be, which made it difficult to build relationships. When I spoke, I said nothing meaningful; when I worked, I kept mostly to myself, and when I joined, I never committed. I refused to place myself in a position where I’d have to censor myself again. Around Lidian and Holly, I was more relaxed, but I still couldn’t reveal the true nature of my existence. All that made me an Outsider in the truest meaning of the term. Keeping the real part of myself hidden was exhausting and apart from playing with the orchestra, the only other place where I found solace was the duck pond. It was here where I decided to give up my residence pass.

While feeding Gadfly and going over an internal recitation of my departure speech to Manolis, a tall man with light brown skin and long slender limbs stopped in front of me. His white kurta caught my attention, and I tried to remember where I’d seen him before.

“You are a compassionate soul.” He slithered away without waiting for a response.

Later, as I approached the edge of the park, I noticed the same man sitting in a lotus position on the grass. His eyes were closed, and his hands rested, palms up, on his thighs. His peaceful expression never changed, even when a few children ran in front of him playing chase. I still found no connection and surmised it was his exotic features and clothing that caught my attention. When I returned to the duck pond the next day, the man appeared again as I played my violin.

“You are a compassionate soul,” he said.

“What have I done to deserve such a virtuous title?”

“Your music of veneration flows from the highest sphere.”

“Who am I venerating?”

“No one,” he laughed. “It is nothing but superstitious nonsense. I just like how it sounds.”

“I play mostly for myself anyway.”

“That is more virtuous than you make it sound,” he laughed.

I threw a piece of bread to Gadfly, and the last few pieces into the pond. A legion of ducks raced over to stake their claim.

“I see self-interest as necessary. It shed all the layers of nonsense my mind accumulated since birth,” he said.

“I have too many layers to shed in this lifetime.” I laughed. “Where are you from?”

“Middle Crest.”

“Where is that?”

“Deep within the Himalayas.”

“You’re far from home.”

“I like long travel. It accelerates the shedding process.” He extended his hand. “I am Vivek.”

Vivek and I spent the rest of the afternoon talking and continued our discussion at a nearby cafe. He was well traveled and spoke quietly, yet he spiritedly gestured with his hands and arms as he answered my questions about the places he visited. I was disappointed to learn this was his last week in New Athenia.

“I visit here every three years to exercise my Knosian and explore the new exhibits in the repository,” Vivek said.

“I’m leaving soon as well.” I poured some sugar into my cup. “There are still many mountains I’ve yet to climb.”

“Which one do you plan to climb next?”

“The Himalayas sounds challenging.”

“If you’d like to join me, you are more than welcome…but life in the mountains is difficult. We have no electricity, no running water, and we grow our own food.”

“Had my own farm before I came here.”

Vivek squinted his eyes. “You have an appealing life here. Why would you want to exchange it for yak manure, treacherous weather, and isolation?”

“Sounds exciting. When do we leave?” I took a sip of tea.

“I find there is always a reason behind every action I take, even when I am not consciously aware of one.”

“How can you know that if you’re not conscious of it?” I asked.

“It eventually presents itself…and when it does, I raise my finger in the air and say, ‘ah, now I see.’” He took a sip of tea. “Which is it for you then?”

“You ask a lot of questions.”

“I do not normally extend an invitation to Middle Crest without knowing my guest.”

I decided to leave New Athenia because I no longer wanted to censor myself, and I refused to do so during my hike to the Himalayas. If I were to go with Vivek, I had to know I could be open with him. “I want to learn about the keeper of past, present, and future.”

“You think you will find this
keeper
within the Himalayas?”

“I hope to.”

“Why?”

“So I can discover why I remember.”

He eyed me curiously. “Remember what?”

“My previous incarnations.”

Vivek appeared startled by my disclosure.

“I thought your people had special insight about reincarnation,” I said.

All of Vivek’s facial muscles contorted. “Pah! Everyone thinks they hold the key to some divinely inspired knowledge, and I have yet to see any proof of their assertions.”

“I thought you were a mystic.”

“I am more of a scientist than sage. I do not seek out supernatural explanations to define the natural world. Mysticism is nothing but balderdash.”

“If you’re right, I’m either insane or lying in a reintegration chamber believing I’m reliving the same life.”

Vivek widened his eyes. “She was right.”

I stared at Vivek puzzled.

“Forgive my deception, but I had to be sure. My approaching you is not a coincidence.” Vivek reached into his pocket and removed a piece of worn linen and handed it to me. Sketched into the fabric was a face that looked very similar to mine.

“My niece, Suti, is highly revered in Middle Crest. She sent me here to bring you to her.”

“Suti?”

“Do you know about her?”

“Sutara?”

Vivek’s eyes widened further than I thought was humanly possible.

“She comes to me in my dreams! Why didn’t you tell me this sooner?”

“I did not believe any of this,” he said more to himself. “Even after I found you where she told me I would, I still thought there was a more rational explanation.”

I showed him the sketch of me. “Did you come up with one?”

“Not as yet. However, that does not negate a logical explanation.” Vivek nervously poured sugar into his cup. “There are other abilities that could explain her visions of you. The human brain is not fully understood.” He picked up a spoon and stirred his tea. “Perhaps there is something in our biology that allows us to see things at great distances. That would make more sense than—”

“Did she tell you about the Six?”

Vivek dropped the spoon.

On my last night in New Athenia, Holly gave birth to Katerina. It was the perfect going-away gift—to witness new life brought into this world as nature willed. I held Katerina in my arms. “Bye, little one. Be sure to take good care of your mother.” I handed Katerina back to Holly.

“Why are you leaving, Damon?” Holly asked. “You’ve made a great life for yourself here.”

“I’m looking for something beyond great, and I hope to find it.”

“Maybe you need companionship. I can introduce you to my friend. She’s—”

“A woman is the last thing I want right now.”

Holly reached out with her free hand and placed it over mine. When I gazed at her face, I was again reminded that Aaron and James would never exist in this lifetime, but being here for Katerina’s birth, I felt only happiness.

“What do you want then?” Lidian stood by the door holding two cups of coffee.

“Caffeine. I’m not going to get any sleep tonight.” After I finished my coffee and exchanged farewells, I left for one last lap around the labyrinth with Shisa. As the sun rose, I gazed at the Parthenon and thought about how some of my most joyous moments were spent alone. This was one of those moments. I sat in silence and took in the beauty of the environment without analyzing it. I planned to carry this with me on the road to Middle Crest.

ANCIENT CHANT

W
e caught our first glimpse of the Black Sea after one-hundred and fifty kilometers of travel. No borders survived the Great Cataclysm, but I longed to experience the landmarks through the eyes of an Ancient. I persuaded Vivek to follow an antiquated map I scanned into my holologue. On the periphery of Old Istanbul, we stopped to feed Shisa and the horses. Vivek and I needed to eat as well, so we went to the open-air market in town. The crowds overwhelmed the stands where merchants sold everything from pottery and exotic spices to rugs and furniture. “My nose just told me what I’m having,” I said as I smelled lamb spiced with cardamom and cinnamon.

We ate our meal on stairs that led to an old collapsed cement building. Most of the city is littered with these old structures. For those who live here, it’s a constant reminder of what the Great Cataclysm stole from them. Small shrines with candles lined the streets as though paying reverence to the once thriving land that bridged two continents.

I closed my eyes, smelled the smells and listened to the voices. Yes, I was really here, connecting to a world long forgotten.

Vivek tapped his fork on my plate, pulling me out of my exaltation of the Ancients. “Enjoy your meals along the way because everyone in the Crossings is a vegetarian.”

“Including yourself?”

Vivek lifted his plate of chickpeas and rice. “My housemaid, Tanzin, is an excellent cook. I promise your taste-buds will be satisfied.”

After our bellies were full, we strolled over to the Hagia Sophia. It’s one of the few buildings from the Ancients' world that remain standing. If it were possible for a building to be alive, the Hagia Sophia would be the apotheosis of a beating heart. All the pictures I’d seen of this sacred edifice failed to communicate the faith it drew and emitted towards its worshippers. Several of them were out in front, praying alongside a few beggars who outstretched their hands towards each visitor that entered the building.

“Why are we following an Ancient map?” Vivek asked. “It is generations out of date.”

I stared out at the sea and imagined what the Ancient devotees thought about when they stood on this hollowed ground. “I know exactly where I am.” I got out my camcorder and captured some images for my journal.

“The Ancients do not deserve your admiration. They almost destroyed our world.”

“That’s still debatable. There’s no consensus over what caused the Great Cataclysm. It very well could’ve been a natural event.”