Unison (The Spheral) (34 page)

I was interrupted by a knock on the door. Wilfrid and Michael entered, and Shisa ran to Michael.

“Hi Damon. Why are you back so soon?” Michael asked as he leaned down to pet Shisa.

“To give you a surprise test. I want to make sure you’re keeping up with your studies.”

“It’s not a surprise anymore. You just told me about it.”

I checked my holologue for the time. “You have until the morning to prepare.”

“We’ll be by the riverside until then. It’s too noisy to study around here.” He looked at Shisa. “Let’s go, girl.” Shisa followed Michael outside.

“Are you up for a game of gin rummy?” Wilfrid scanned the room as though looking for something.

“Maybe later. I’d like to rest for a while.”

“Rest well. Genevieve is preparing a feast for you tonight. We’ll all be waiting for you in the circle.”

“I don’t want to sound ungrateful, but I’m not up for a celebration tonight.” I lay on my cot.

“I’m sorry for your loss,” Wilfrid said.

“Did the cards reveal that to you?”

“I did have an unfavorable reading.” Wilfrid placed his hand over his heart. “But I don’t need the cards to tell me the obvious.”

“Genevieve told you,” I said with a smile.

“It’s difficult to trick you, Nomad.” Wilfrid’s eyes widened when he spotted a holologue I left on the table. “How come you never told us about her?”

“I’d rather not talk about this now.”

“I understand.” He picked up the holologue.

“It’s yours.”

“Thank you, Nomad.” Wilfrid excitedly clasped the holologue around his wrist. He looked at it with the most bewildered expression I’d ever seen on him.

“How come I don’t see anything?” he asked.

“Stare into the delivery optic.”

“What’s a delivery optic?”

“The small clear circle towards the—”

“Ah, I see it…but I still don’t
see
anything.”

I smiled at Wilfrid’s childlike fascination. “Speak your request, and your retinas will receive the image.”

“Pictures of Unity.” Seconds later, Wilfrid laughed. “Oh my! This is a machine of miracles!” He looked at me. “How come I never hear you speaking to it?”

“I do…with my implant.”

Wilfrid’s eyes widened. “It
knows
what you’re thinking?”

I nodded.

“Oh my, my, my.” He looked back at the holologue. “It’s hard to believe something so beautiful is as horrible as you described. Unity looks like a place I’d like to visit.”

“Once inside, you’d be ready to leave.”

“I feel the same way about Littlefield. My grandfather told me never to feel settled anywhere because it makes it difficult to leave when trouble comes through the gate.”

I sat up. “Are you and the rest of the villagers planning to abandon Littlefield?”

Wilfrid looked at me. “No. Why?”

“I was here before.”

“Of course, you were here before.” Wilfrid returned his attention to his holologue. “Almost twenty-five suns set since your last visit. Don’t you remember?”

“I was here…in a previous incarnation.”

I pointed at Wilfrid as he lowered his forearm and widened his eyes.

“And before you go on about me being your Nomad—that’s not what this is about,” I said.

“Oh? What is it about then?”

I told Wilfrid about my past incarnations, and he became more steadfast in his assertion that I was Nomad.

“If you didn’t find us here, that could only mean you led us somewhere else, exactly as it was foretold to me,” he said.

“I never met you yet when I first passed by Littlefield.”

“But now you have.”

“I don’t think I led you anywhere.” I rubbed my chin while running through my visual memory of that day. “Maybe I arrived here during tranquil time. I wish there was a way I could be certain.”

“Don’t worry, Nomad. This is a reason to celebrate…even though you may not think so now.” He walked towards the door. “Rest, and I’m sure you’ll agree with me in the morning.”

Wilfrid’s calm demeanor made me place my concerns about Littlefield’s fate aside. The rest of the night I lay restless thinking about Flora. I’d seen her die in five lifetimes, and all her deaths returned every time I closed my eyes. I needed a distraction and thought about returning to New Athenia. It wasn’t the panacea I dreamed of, but I missed the Alexandrian Repository and playing in the orchestra.

Shisa and I left Littlefield three days later, and Wilfrid gave me one of his horses for my trip. When I had full view of village, I took out my camcorder and recorded a movie. “PC 1332-156th day, fifth incarnation, on way to New Athenia.” The text of my time stamp presented on the screen as well as a recording of my voice. Since I couldn’t remember when I first passed Littlefield, I thought visual images might help me remember more in my next incarnation.

MIRROR

I
inspected Flora’s holologue. Some of files had been erased when her vital signs ceased. My attempt to retrieve them failed. I had no way of proving they had anything to do with her being a Striker or that if our never meeting in Unity somehow altered events in her own life. I reread Flora’s stories, looking for anything that might help me understand why she went from being a dissenter to a defender of the Corporate Hierarchy. I was surprised to find all of them were unchanged. They still depicted Unity being defeated by the brave unnamed captain.

The uplifting stories cheered me up and made me laugh, particularly when Kai was involved. In one farce, the captain arrived and used a weapon that was given to her by her alien mentor. It slurped off Kai’s clothes in the middle of the Overseer’s assembly, where he stood naked in front of a laughing audience. The weapon stretched into a long tube and siphoned up Kai along with the Corporate Hierarchy. They were regurgitated onto the deathlands where they were used as fertilizer to help grow flowers and trees. The stories all had the theme of personal empowerment and the liberation of the oppressed. Then I understood…the unnamed captain was Flora. I reread the stories with that awareness. Through her fiction, I got to know her better than I ever had. They proved she was still the same Flora I loved from my first incarnation. What I couldn’t fathom was why she fought against me when we desired the same thing…a free Unity.

When I arrived at the gate, the guards were mystified by my fluent Knosian. Since My penchant for Ancient myths led me to season my history with a hint of mysticism. I told the guard who questioned me that an old female sage traveled to my homeland and taught me the language, art, and music of New Athenia. Wade would’ve enjoyed my performance, but the guard had no interest in my brand of humor and stuck to procedure. After a few hours of questioning, I vowed to play ignorant in my next incarnation.

I was granted an immediate visitation pass and auditioned for the Orchestra. Manolis was impressed when I played the Mozart violin sonata.

“The sage you studied with taught you well,” he said.

“Does that mean I’m in?” I put away my violin while thinking about my favorite Mediterranean restaurant as I hadn’t eaten all day.

“Rehearsal is tonight at seven thirty.”

“And not one moment past,” I said as the phantom smell of chicken smothered in lemon garlic sauce activated my salivary glands.

Manolis elevated both his brows. “I think I’m going to like you, Damon.” He smiled. “Continue on like that, and I’ll sponsor you for your residence pass.”

The cafes weren’t to open for another hour, so I took Shisa out for a walk in the central park. I sat on my favorite bench in front of the duck pond with a bag of stale bread I’d brought along. One of the ducks approached me without fear and snatched a piece from my hand. There was an area on his left outer wing where no feathers grew, and judging from his aggressive temperament, I surmised it was from a fight. I tore off another morsel of bread, and the trouble-making duck chased away the other ducks and waddled towards me. I stomped my foot to scare him away so that the rest of the ducks would get a chance to eat, but the feathered hooligan returned when he spied another piece of food in my hand.

“You’d make a great Overseer.” I bowed and tossed the remaining bread to him. “But don’t expect me to be a feather-worshipper.”

I got out my violin and started to play “Rain Dance,” a lively song inspired by a memory of Flora from my first incarnation. We had returned from horseback riding and on our way back to the dome, we got caught in the rain. When I arrived at the access, Flora wasn’t with me. I glanced back and saw her twirling around and dancing. Recalling her smile saddened me because that was the last time I saw her truly happy.

As I continued to play, a crowd had gathered around to listen. Their appreciation for my music made me eager to perform again until I ran into Lidian at the entrance of the amphitheater.

“Damon!” He shook my hand. “When Manolis couldn’t remember your surname because it was a number like mine, I knew it was you. What brings you to New Athenia?”

“Unity was starting to bore me.” I smiled as I thought of various ways to escape. “How long have you been here?”

“A little over two years. My wife and I have a large flat. Come over after rehearsal. We’ll have more time to talk there. You can also tell me how the slock you picked up Knosian so fast.”

I was surprised Lidian got all those sentences out without stuttering. “Learned it in a past life, along with how to play the violin and read cards.”

“Card reading…you mean as in fortune telling?” Lidian laughed. “What’s my future?”

“You’ll find out when it happens.”

Lidian laughed again. “Looks as if leaving Unity helped you find your sense of humor.”

I got to my chair, and after a few introductions I tuned my violin. Lidian waved his trumpet at me, and I extended my bow towards him.
This time I’m ready. I won’t let you slock up my life again.

We opened with Mozart’s
Symphony No. 40 in G minor
, just the right selection to soothe my tense mood. Hearing all the strings singing along with mine made me forget about Lidian. By the time we got to the fourth movement, I was in a relaxed enough state to deal with another exchange with him. He was the most difficult individual to read as he seemed to change drastically from incarnation to incarnation: a mediocre musician and murderer in one life, a victim of suicide in the next, and now a married trumpet virtuoso.
Expect everything and assume nothing when you’re aware you’re reliving the same lifetime, Damon
.

I almost dropped my violin case when Holly received us at the door. Lidian embraced her, and I squeezed the handle of my case, feeling my nails dig into my skin.

“This is my wife, Holly,” Lidian said.

“Hi, Damon and welcome to New Athenia.” She extended her hand out to me.

“Hello…Holly,” I said softly as I shook her hand. I was too stunned to form any other words.

“You’re just in time for dinner,” she said.

“Excellent,” Lidian said. “In the meantime, we’ll continue our discussion on the veranda. We have an excellent view of the central park.

Lidian and I drank wine and played cards as Holly prepared dinner. The smell of cumin, curry, and turmeric told me she still seasoned Athenian dishes with exotic spices from the Far East. My favorite Athenian food was pastitso, a pasta dish with chopped lamb covered in a rich cream sauce. Holly added her own twist using a secret variety of spices, which she wouldn’t even reveal to me. She opened a cafe at my suggestion. Her business did very well, especially with the Athenian dignitaries and artists who were regulars.

Tonight, Holly made
keftedes
, meatballs made with ground lamb. The aroma traveled up through my nostrils, triggering memories of our life together. I recognized the familiar hint of cinnamon after sampling a bite.

“Delicious. You should start your own business,” I said after having my first bite.

“I cook only for my husband and friends.”

Lidian kissed her cheek. “I suggested she open a cafe. Some of the ingredients she uses are ingenious.”

“What kind of ingredients?” I asked.