*Buzz* *Buzz* *Buzz*
An alarm clock is buzzing loudly. It is very early and the night sky does not yet show a glimmer of light. Quickly a hand escapes from underneath the duvet and is tapping along the headboard until it hits the off button. Following it a sleepy Mar peels himself out of the warmth of the bed and sits up. He lightly slaps his cheeks. As he switches on the bed light as always his eyes are drawn to the wall in front of him.
Stuck to the wall is a poster in a somewhat childish handwriting that spells out the words "Never Again!". Those words have become his mantra and his reason to live ever since a fatal encounter where his best friend Mel died. The pale face of Mel distorted with pain and fear is burned forever into his mind. He felt so weak and powerless as he was forced to watch Mel's life being cut short. With a deep breath he tries to shake of that image that was burned into his mind and sets his focus onto the now and announced "Never again". Although he was able to heal her in the end, he never wants to be this powerless again.
Today is his 10th birthday, but Mar does not take it easy. Because he was weak and his gift failed him that day so many people suffered. And since that disaster he worked diligently on his body and mind to be stronger than anyone else.
He has a complicated feeling as he ponders his birthday. His age has reached double digits. He was born a normal and healthy boy to very loving parents. Then he was blessed with over 4 years of happiness and not a hint of his latent ability. Maybe the fact that he never got ill or even received any cuts or bruises may have been a hint. But his ever optimistic parents were content with being happy to have such a lucky and healthy child and never worried about any deeper meaning.
Then Mar's happy existence ended from one minute to another just over 5 years ago. It took only that long for his ability to burst through quite spectacularly. It was on a hot summer day during the yearly city fest of Tol. On the communal fare ground near the lake, the locals enjoyed thrilling rides, scrumptious foods and exciting competitions. He can still recall his parents, a young couple, resting in the shade with his mother getting a lap pillow from his dad.
"I am exhausted.", his mom said.
A merciless heat burned down all morning and was turning even the grass brown. The family had spent most of their time enjoying the countless rides and delicious smelling foods. Finally, hot and tired out from walking they took refuge in the shade of an old oak tree near the lake side and were just soaking in the atmosphere for a while. The shade and the light cool breeze coming from the lake was refreshing in the early afternoon heat. Yet a certain 4 year old boy with an abundance of energy could not care less about the heat! Envious of his son's stamina, his father watched Mar running around chasing a flock of seagulls that were attracted by the food scraps carelessly thrown about. The sweet smell of popcorn wafted over from the nearby mobile grill selling treats like donuts and ice cream. It was a popular outlet and a long queue of punters had formed attracted by the sweet fragrance and the loud music of the stand.
From the back the traders stand looked like a space station to the curious Mar. The trader's gear included the bottle gas used to feed the deep frying equipment and a small generator powering the refrigerators and freezers. It was arranged like a futuristic space landing pot. By coincidence the backside of the store sign looked like a satellite dish. The stack of powerful sound speakers flanking the store looked like the booster rockets. With those speakers the trader dominated the fairground music and couldn't be outdone by the nearby bumper car and seesaw ride. A group of older boys were waiting impatiently in the long queue. Bored from waiting they started pushing and shoving each other. Mar saw the biggest of the boys sharply pushing a smaller boy after being accidentally hit in the back. Unable to stay upright, the smaller boy fell backwards into the column of speakers.
"Oy! Watch out", the trader shouted at the boys.
But it was already too late! The top tower speaker, a heavy coffin with metal reinforcement swayed precariously forward and backward. Startled by the traders shout the smaller boy panicked. As he got up, he stumbled backwards and bumped into the tower again. The top speaker had too much sway and freed itself from its somewhat flimsy support. It then fell as it followed gravity straight down what must have been of 3 meters height. At the bottom was the fridge and freezer framing a spare yellow liquid petroleum gas bottle lying on its side.
Watching this Mar suddenly had a bad feeling and all the hairs on his body started to stand on end. Like a guillotine, the metal reinforced box sheared off the pressure reducer gear at the head of the gas bottle. Mar stared at the massive speaker as it hit the bottle and released the pressure. Gas spewed out rapidly and quickly accelerated the bottle. The expelled gas hit the trader who screamed in agony as his legs iced over. Suddenly the gas ignited and a plume of hot inferno engulfed everyone at the stand.
Mar watched the fire plume expanding with the bottle riding shotgun. It rapidly got closer and closer. Even though he wanted to run, his feet were frozen on the spot in fear. All he managed in the end was to raise his little arms to protect himself from the bottle. But that bottle was just a bit faster and hit straight into his chest before he could cross his arms. Strangely, he could feel no pain. Yet he was mercilessly pushed backwards with great force. With his body wrapped around the bottle like a doll, he was propelled backwards towards the old oak tree where his parents were resting. At the time his body slammed into the tree. He could see his father's shocked twisted face realising what just happened. After the impact with the tree the air blew out of his lungs. He is jammed between the bottle pushing from the front and the tree trunk in the back. Then the heat of the fire plume rapidly heated the air up. Something broke inside his body and an immense pain prevented him from drawing any air.
After a few moments he noticed his heart had stopped and darkness is falling down on him. The bright heat of life in his body started to dim rapidly. In his last remaining moments of consciousness he had a strange experience. All the three birthdays, all play dates and all days out, each and every day morning through night flew by. Like an epic, crisp and vibrant movie running backwards his life counted down before him. He remembered times already forgotten, smiles smiled and tears shed. Eventually his view became blotchy and he saw just blurry light streaks. But he felt comfortable. He was aware of the warmth of a heart beat and the sensation of floating in water. In the next moment the feeling changed.
Next he realised everything around him was dark. His body suddenly felt very heavy, frail and old. He realised he had died before. And this was that experience. Suddenly all of his previous life flooded into his head. His brain almost exploded as memories stream into him with full force. This 'download' was over in a flash. This previous life was much longer, much richer and he remembered all of it. But that still was not the end. The flashback still kept counting backwards. Meanwhile, more precious seconds have passed and his own life light grew dimmer. Mar still went backwards gaining lifetime after lifetime worth of memories. His head throbbed and hurt as his mind went back to another womb and another death bed. Like a long movie, Mar watched lifetime after lifetime in crisp clear high definition flashbacks. He thanked his deities when it eventually stopped and the pain subsided.
His life light now was on the last flickers. It had already been a minute since his heart stopped. At that moment, it felt like his soul jumped out of his body. Instantly, he felt cold and uncomfortable despite standing in the plume of the fire. In this out of body experience he looked at the site of the carnage from above. But then he was distracted by ripples swirling through space. What initially looked crisp and clear was now wobbly like the reflection on rippling water. Then he noticed a strong plume of ripples extending like a flower through the air. Mar realises that this is the wave the fire is made of and where it originates from.
The colour changed from a bright white to a dark red as it grew out. The colour reflects the change of the flower over time. The younger flower is whiter, the older flower is redder. The change of colour looked beautiful. Intuitively, he noticed that he can experience the flow of time. With this deep understanding of nature he instinctively knew which waves to touch to stop the gas from igniting. He could see all the waves of the events that injured the large number of people. With a snap of his finger he hit the centre of the flower, diverting the ripples and he saw the people flickering and then changing back to healthy bodies. After his own body was fully restored he hovered over it for a bit as he suddenly experienced the irresistible desire to move back into his body. As he slid into his own skin the feeling of comfort and warmth increased and he felt home again.
Two things happened subsequently to those events. Everyone praised the miracle that nobody got hurt thinking the pain since the gas didn't explode. Only Mar seems to remember that flame inferno. The emergency service commander admitted that he was amazed that there was only material damage and now injuries at all. The other thing that happened was many years as paranormal government asset. Unfortunately, he wasn't the only person that saw the flames after all. The other person, his future handler, being placed deliberately on site by a deity made sure of that. Mar did eventually escape his clutches. However, he only barely made it and he had to endure huge losses, namely his parents and friends.
Back in his room and sitting up on the bed, a wave of sadness flew over him. Then he resolutely mutters the mantra he kept saying since then: "Never again". After that he starts his daily regime with vigour.
# # #
A few minutes later in the pitch-black darkness before dawn a flock of distressed birds are screeching and scattering from the trees into the night sky. The cause for this commotion is the thumbing of trainers on the moist ground with the occasional rustling of trees and bushes. The birds are startled by the noise of someone running through the wild woodland. After weaving sometimes skilfully and at other times with brute force through the trees and brushes, a dark shape leaps across a ravine over what is a barely visible gap in the ground of 3 meters or more. Then using a small creek as path Mar heads uphill ignoring the violently splashing water. The creek is gradually leading steeper up. He feels his leg muscles screaming in pain. But he fights forward with ragged breaths. And as if chased by a pack of ravenous wolves he throws all remaining strength into a final sprint to the clearing at the top. On the highest point he slows down and then collapse to the ground. Sprawling out on the wet grass he raises his unsteady arm to look at the wrist watch and nods in approval.
His proficiency is excellent and at the peak of the humanly possible. On closer inspection there are three oddities standing out. One is the immaculate clean and dry track suit that should by all accounts have been shredded from the brush work and soaking wet from the water in the creek. The next one is that physique of the runner. He is a boy only 10 years old yet achieving proficiency unheard of even at the adult level. And then finally, Mar is wearing a blindfold for his exercises. Indeed, he is denying himself the use of his eyes and is relying entirely on his "gift". At the same time he is also manipulating his personal electrical field to repel any physical impact, particles his skin, shoes and clothes yet still evaporates the sweat from his body.
He only needs a short break to recover some of his stamina. Then Mar starts to run downhill greeted by the faintest of light in the sky. Not that this makes much difference as he navigates only using the extra sensory information in the swirling life force of plants and flashes of colours made by the moving insects and other small animals awake at this time. After his leg muscles start to spasm he decides to complete the run and using a bit of space manipulation shortly afterwards arrives back at home. Only then does he take off the blindfold for his meditation in the morning sun coming in through his open bedroom window.
Once the sun has fully emerged from the horizon it is time for him to shower and to start the day. First he is preparing breakfast for Mel and him. Mar's foster parents are out of town on business for a while. This lead to a strange situation where Mel started to move in with Mar to "watch him". He doesn't know how she got her parents to agree to that. But he isn't entirely surprised either given Mel's willpower and determination. Initially, Mel was only meant to stay for the first few nights but then she never left afterwards. She now occupies the spare bedroom and only on occasion drops by her house mainly to fetch more of her stuff. Mar was a bit guarded initially since he wanted to keep his 'gift' a secret. However he got quickly used to Mel's help in cooking and assistance with the household chores.
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Of course, one of his selfish reasons is that he can use her mind sky for his evening meditation. But as a result within a few days of her moving in, he was no longer able to keep using her mind sky a secret. Mel started to complain that for long stretches of time in the evening she did not have any recollection. Mar had no choice but the confess to her about his gift. Mel was a bit apprehensive of this at first. For her those times were like a dream and forgotten as soon as Mar has left her mind sky. However, after a bit of practice in remembering dreams she was also able to remember his visits to her mind sky.
And it took a few more days but Mel learned to recognise Mar's presence. At that point she started to enjoy his 'intrusions'. Now she eagerly looks forward every day to their time together. However, it is far from a 'meeting' in person so to speak. She is only just about to see a wisp with Mar's aura and she can feel some of his emotions. That alone filled Mel with a great satisfaction. In her mind sky she is closer to Mar than anyone else in this world.
Similar to Mar, she also bears the scars of the day of her death. Night terrors, nightmares, various phobias and flashbacks were an all too regular occurrence. Her parents sought advice from doctors, professional counsellors and even alternative medicine practitioners to alleviate her suffering to no avail. The trauma that day made Mel a shut-in, always nervous and afraid. The only time she relaxed was with Mar around. But she kept it hidden from Mar as to not burden him any further. She noticed that he was shaken heavily by the events as well.
Since today is his birthday, Mar decided to make it a full English breakfast for the two of them. With the tasty bacon, egg and sausages frizzling in the pan the house quickly gets doused in delicious smells.
Apparently, Mel woke up a little while ago already. Attracted by the smell of bacon she trots into the kitchen bare feet in her favourite robe. It appears she just came out of the shower. Mar can smell the pleasant scent of soap sneaking up on him. Mel is dressed in her white silk kimono just long enough to cover the top half of her thighs. The golden long hair, her effortless upright posture, her determined yet mild, stern, alluring and yet incredibly kind expression make her look like an angel. Over the last 5 years her beauty has developed in the kind where just talking to her would defile the pure and angelic aura. Just like an angel. This is her most formidable armour, he thought. Effortless she is creating a luxurious wide personal space like a princess.
"Morning", says the angel with a smile.
"Hi, sleepy head!", Mar respond.
"Mmmmmm", Mel complemented the breakfast smell as she sits down.
Of course, Mar's mental experience is well beyond one lifetime and he is well aware of a woman's body's charm from the past. He has memories of being married many times in previous lives and had fathered many children. Therefore, with Mel staying here he mentally prepared himself to start beating down that inner animal until much later in their life. But to his great surprise his animal instincts did hardly flare up at all. Instead he can feel a much more gentle feeling emerge. Maybe it was because of their shared history and trauma, maybe because the two grew up together Mar doesn't know. But he has the strong urge to cherish her and to protect her. To him she is much more like a sister than a girl.
Oblivious to Mar's attention to her Mel busies her at the table. With elegant moves of her long slender fingers she quickly sets the table placing the plates and napkins next to each other. She placed two glasses next to the napkins and she fills them with some fresh orange juice.
Mar was so mesmerised by this elegance, he almost forgot to turn the sausages. He immediately switched the burner off and moves the pan aside.
"Food's ready!", he puts the pan on the table and joins her.
Mel tucks in with gusto and clears her plate in no time.
"Have you been starving ?", Mar asks.
"No. But I can hardly wait to give you your present", she answers.
Mar raised an eyebrow.
"You did not go overboard again?"
Mel's angelic and innocent appearance hides the Tom boy underneath. That side of her normally does not show except when she competes. And her inner Tomboy is also responsible for her preferences in gifts. When her father turned 40, she did not choose cufflinks, a money clip or beauty products for men. Instead she chose a high octane movie box set and spend the next two weeks watching it with him. Not stopping there she managed to get him a race driver course.
Last year Mel got Mar a valuable sword together with sword practice lessons. Of course the lessons were four two. Since that time it has become a weekly routine where both are sparing for several hours.
"So, what have you chosen for me this year?"
Mel puts a small box wrapped in birthday wrapping paper on the table.
"First you need to finish eating".
Whilst she is patiently waiting he quickly finishes his plate. Then they remove the dirty dishes and only then did Mel surrender the mysterious box.
Carefully Matt pulls the paper off to expose a heavy wooden box. Mel is eagerly tapping her fingers on the table. As Mar opens the box and finds 20 highly polished silver shuriken held in a sturdy but lightweight waist belt.
Mar puffs out her chest.
"These are the first samples of a modernised version of this ancient weapon. They are made out of carbon fibre and can be filled with sand for weight. Virtually untraceable with x ray or metal detector they are ideal as a concealed weapon for you.
Mar is baffled. Of all the things he would not have expected something like that.
"How did you get your hands on those ?", Mar asks.
"Oh, connections…"
"Thanks for this. I surely will make use of them eventually".
Then she handed him an envelope. "There is a little bit more".
The envelope contains his birthday card and the receipt for training at a local dojo.
"Thanks bunches, Mel.", Mar smiles. "As expected from you.".
Mar took a shuriken in his hand. Looking at it closely he can see the peculiar triangular pattern it's wave form makes. Then he reaches into the wave and clones it. Mel watches excited as the shuriken stretches wider and eventually divides like an amoeba and then there are two identical shuriken.
"I am not going to run out of ammo", he smirked. He grabbed Mel's shoulders and gives her a tight hug.
"Well, it is more a method for ranged attacks when you are restricted from using your gift. It complements your use of the sword.", she explains. "That's why there is a belt for you to wear".
"Many thanks. You know me so well."
"And … as a thank you, how about you take me somewhere for ice cream ?", she suggests.
# # #
Later this morning Mel and Mar went to search for some much wanted ice cream. Because a good ice cream store is close to their home and the sun was shining on this beautiful Sunday morning the two decided to walk. For a couple of minutes they walk silently side by side. Mel peeks at Mar's somewhat gloomy face.
"Tomorrow is your comp-test. You remember that once you turn 10 you will be tested at the school for your compatibility with the brain machine interface (BMI).", Mel says.
"I know, the gadget they implant at the back of your head that allows a person to interface with machines.", Mar says.
"Yes, I had to go through the same thing 2 months ago. I got an excellent score for my mental and physiological compatibility for the implant. With your skills surely you get a good result too. We might even get one of the direct neurological interfaces rather than the slower motor neurological interface", Mel says.
As they turn around a corner they can hear the screaming of a child nearby. Mel immediately tenses up and grabs hold of Mar's arm. With darting eyes she observes her surroundings.
Mar smells the pleasant faint fragrance of soap again.
"Wow, what are you doing?", Mar looks at her puzzled and tries to separate. But then he understands. Mel still suffered from her death 5 years ago. Despite some intensive treatment she still occasional experiences flashbacks, especially when she hears children screaming and crying.
Mar tries to reassure her. "Look, it is all harmless. The little boy is running after his mom scared to be left behind. His mom has already stopped".
Mel looked somewhat relieved but she won't give up her place at his arm. Mar strokes her hair then gently resumed their way to the store.
Tol's school system is slanted towards technology education. So the first skills are taught after reading, writing and maths is about the brain machine interface or BMI. BMIs come in numerous forms and capability but can be broadly separated into three categories. The highly coveted direct interface that attaches to 10s, 100s or 1000s of neurons of the brain, the indirect interfaces tapping into the sensory or motor nervous system and not attached directly to the brain. And for some disabled individuals a multi function adaptor can be fitted that can both mount a prosthesis or a specialist BMI.
The schools slant is no surprise to anyone. It is well known that Tol's main growth was riding in the embrace of a new computer science discipline called Mnemonics. It is considered the counterpart to cybernetics. The latter is a technology that extends the human body with technology and enhances the human capabilities to compensate for disabilities or enhance the body beyond the biological limits. Mnemonics is the integration of a person into a machine. It is a normal extension of jobs and roles such as machine operators, factory machine operators, etc are known to serve a complex production and service processes. With the BMI it is now possible to connect people much closer to the factory or office. And it was Tol's research institutions that extended the usability and versatility of the BMI to previously unimaginable complexity such as large plants, traffic management systems for cities, remote expedition equipment and other operations that neither human nor machine initially were capable of managing.
During the height of its boom, it was celebrated as the advancement and evolution of the human mind. But where there is light, there is shadow. The flip side of Mnemonics is a brutal mistress. Some humans that were made into machine components experienced debilitating injuries and deaths. During the so called Mnemo-boom all attempts to manage and regulate the risk were perverted by the commercial forces. Just like similar cases in the 20th and 21st century, the truth could not be held back forever. Eventually a vast stream of claims for compensation triggered a consolidation of the market and ending with oligopoly and failed self regulation. However, by then the use of the BMI was so deeply linked with the country's economic health that the government did not have the ability to ban its use outright and the only other option left was to set up tight control of the growth and deployment of the human workforce.
Tol was first in embracing the new technology, grew with it and then suffered greatly during the downturn. However, through some ingenious lateral thinking Tol's council adapted to the times and created a certification as well as a schooling and education system to cater for the needs of the new technology. Only exceptionally suited individuals are now allowed this kind of invasive interface. Thanks to this certification deaths by overclocking the brain and exceeding what the body can sustain have been all but eliminated. Only specialist institutions are now able to issue a legal BMI and this is the sole purpose of mnemonics schools such as the First Mnemonics School or FMS.
Naturally this regulation severely limited the supply of capable BMI users. And market forces pampered those able and propelled certified individuals to social echelons practically overnight. The
When Mar first learned about the BMI and its application, he thought it was a cute idea. The technology that could mimic some of his abilities appeared adorable to him. This is because controlling a machine or his environment was something that was second nature to Mar. To him it is rather like using a stone age tool no matter how skilful an operator can use such an interface. There is potential in a stone age axe to fight, carve, kill and survive. Which is also the limit of its potential.
However, after initially having scoffed and ridiculed the idea he suddenly realised how useful this technology is for him. Not so much in its original purpose but ideal for hiding is natural abilities. Irrespective how well the BMI works on him but with a certification he can use his 'gift' openly with very little scrutiny.
# # #
Author Note: Thank you for reading this far. Subsequent chapters are in progress but my day job is currently unusually demanding. I am working on another chapter for this week at least. Thank you for your patience.