I nod and move away from him. I thought this might be a place I could call home, but I can’t live among people who have the ability to better themselves and others, but choose to wait. What exactly are they waiting for?
Purity looks at me for a moment longer than opens a door. There are at least twenty people sitting with their legs crossed in front of them and their hands resting on their legs. They do not speak or see, but sit in total silence. Purity whispers, “This is the temple. We come here to spend time with the Universe, and seek guidance.” Purity backs away and slides the door shut. “What we see and hear, we tell the Seers and they decipher the meaning.”
“Can’t you do that yourself?” I ask.
“No, it’s too intricate for us. We would interpret it wrong.” I wonder who told them that. As we walk back through the halls decorated with pictures of people with whiter faces than mine and symbols of strange lines, I can’t help but feel apart. There is some measure of me that has settled in, but the remainder isn’t quite connecting. They should finish the boat, I feel it in my heart, that they will soon need it.
Purity slides open the door to agriculture zone. We walk by the large living complexes when the ground begins to shake. The vibrations rattle the buildings and we are thrown off of our feet. My head smashes into the ground as the infrastructure crumbles around us. Blurs of visions appear and then I’m lost in another world.
Chapter 8
Purity’s brown eyes are the first thing I see before I notice the rubble caked around us. The boy is lying flat on his stomach, he doesn’t move. Tears are racing down his face, but he doesn’t speak or cry out. I wipe away bits of rubble and scoot over to him. My body is too battered to actually get up.
I run my hand through his hair. “What is it Purity?” I ask him. No words or movements come from him. I run my hand down his back, but he does not respond to my touch. I knock the rubble off and still he does not respond.
Rushing feet grabs my attention. I see Dr. Nu hurrying over to us. He drops down to Purity’s side and replaces my hand. “Purity!” Again silence only comes from him.
Dr. Nu looks up at me. “Where is Kintin?”
“We left her with Roark in the picture room. That was about an hour ago,” I say.
“Good, good she’s up high,” Dr. Nu says still rubbing his son down. I’m not sure he heard what I said. He’s having a hard time holding back his tears.
Naveen screams and tosses her body over Purity. “What’s wrong with him?”
Dr. Nu’s eyes glaze over before he pulls Naveen into his arms. They stay like that for a while longer and then he greets her eyes. “There is nothing anyone can do Naveen. He’s paralyzed; the elders are going to take his life.”
“No!” She shouts and pushes away from Dr. Nu and puts her body over her son again. Tears continue to stream down his face. I hold onto his hand and rock. “There was a time when a simple procedure would have healed him.” Mama used to tell me stories of how the world was so advanced that no one remained ill longer than two hours.
This society has the equipment and the past knowledge to help their people. Why wouldn’t they use it? Then I look around and I see people gathering in the center. They’re on their hands and knees rocking and screaming something to the sky.
“What are they doing?” I ask them.
“Preparing their chi to return to the Universe,” Dr. Nu says. His face is down cast and every now and again he looks at his son. “That was the worst quake yet; they’re coming more and more frequent now.” Just like Garden Home.
Kintin shows up and screams when she sees her brother. I pay no heed to her pain and watch the astonishing event. They are preparing to die instead of doing anything and everything in their power to save themselves.
“This is madness,” I say a little too loudly. Somehow, through slow movements I get to my feet. “You have everything you need to get out of this place, but all you do is sit around waiting for the Universe to reveal the things that you’ve have already seen.” My mind is reeling now. “You said you are here to be of use to the Universe. You are the Universe. What have you done in regards to its prosperity? Nothing, not a single thing.”
“What would you have us do Saved?” The woman speaks. “We cannot breathe outside like you do.”
“But you have machines that can filter in oxygen from the plants, and half a boat waiting to be completed. You just have to figure out how.” I move away from them. “There is an island that I am going to find.” I point to my chest. “When I find it, I will come back for each one of you, not because I have to, but because I am able to. That is what I’ve learned from you and your Universe. I am able to.” The voice continues to chant my course. Feed me, love me, live for me.
Aches riddle every centimeter of me, but I hobble away with confidence holding me upright. I know, no, I feel, that their belief in the Universe holds some truths, but so does God. The Universe is me, is us, it prospers on purpose, on love. And God’s bible gives me moral commandments that staunch suffering, not a guaranteed ride to the afterlife. Together they fill a void that I didn’t realize was empty.
These people thought impasse was their answer, but now they have lost several servants because they allowed another to rule the voice in their head. Not me, until I cannot muster another breath, I will not stop living for my God the Universe. This world is dying but the one of the island might be vibrant. Somehow I will deliver his servants to his home, and there we will begin a new, more conscious life.
“Saved?” Naveen calls out to me. “Take Purity with you.” I look to see her holding a mask in her hand. The first sign of a new dawn. “I can’t watch him slip away.”
The boat barely holds me, but I will not deny her wish. Purity will sail away in search of the island with me, even if it’s the last thing he does. Dr. Nu lifts his son and we ascend to the surface. All is quiet now, all is peaceful inside. I know that God is not in a book or ethereal place, but all around me. His words of feed me, love me, live for me repeat joyously in my head. My chi is now wide open.
Chapter 9
We drift in the water for hours, maybe days, the food is nearly gone, and Purity has been making weird guttural noises since this morning. I adjust his position and still the cries persist. I’m almost out of options when something bumps us. We’ve hit land and I never noticed. The boat nearly tumbles on its side before I hop out and right it. I look around but all I see is black smog. The air is thicker here; it’s almost hard for me to breathe as well.
“Don’t move!” A voice shouts. I freeze and raise my hands in the air. “Slowly lower yourself to your knees.” I do as the voice says. Rough hands lock my arms behind my back and tie them together. They drag me off my feet and away from the boat.
“No!” I scream. “Purity, you must help Purity. He is paralyzed in the boat.” I kick and struggle, but they hold onto me.
“If you follow us we will help your friend,” the voice says. I immediately calm down and settle to a walk. I can barely make out the others hoisting Purity out of the boat before someone from behind shoves me forward.
The door makes a hissing sound and we walk into whiteness. The floors are pristine, the lights are too bright, and the suits the captors are wearing resemble the great white bears of Garden Home. Only, these bears walk up right.
No décor litters the walls, it’s just blazing white. Another door hisses open and we walk into a large circular space. There are a plethora of chairs outlining the place, rising so high I can barely see the top. The floor is made of some hard brown material I’ve never seen before. It has many small circles etched into it.