A Timeless Journey (18 page)

22

Our Emze landed on a huge platform outside a five story state of the art building, next to three other Emzes already parked there.

“I see my parents are already here.” Luna noticed.

“Is this the Terminal Facility where your grandfather is?” I asked confused by the size of the building which didn’t look like a house.

“Oh no, a Terminal Facility is a lot bigger than this building. This is my grandfather’s house and also a research centre. This is where I grew up.”

“All this is just a house?” I reacted surprised by the size of the building.

“Top two floors, the rest is a research centre for the team that studies animal behaviour. My grandfather was the one who decided to put a large team of naturalists together and use his house as their headquarters. Most of the research is done in nature and here they do the rest of their research work. This is why he was allowed to build this house here on the edge of the natural park.” She explained.

We went in from a side entrance and the cube took us to the top floor. A very large and modern living space appeared in front of me. People of different ages were scattered around the living space talking in low voices. I tried to guess who Luna’s parents were, without success.

A few moments later I saw a man and a woman walking towards us from two different directions. There was no doubt in my mind they were her parents and instinctively I grabbed Luna’s hand as to show my support. She looked at me, released a thank you smile and greeted her parents with a bow of her head.

“Mum, dad, this is Scott.”

Her father nodded politely before he fixed his eyes on me, while her mother appeared more cheerful and actually made an effort to talk.

“Nice to finally meet you Scott, Luna has told me a lot about you, although we haven’t had the pleasure of talking face to face on Holo.” She then gave Luna one of those blaming looks which turned the situation into a dire one.

After a little awkward pause Luna asked her father about grandfather’s health. Apparently, he has had a heart attack and the geneticist had recommended him to a Terminal Facility since his heart had become very weak. According to the geneticist, he wasn’t expected to live more than a couple of days or maximum a week. Luna started to cry and her father took her to one side and tried to comfort her.

Later in the evening, we all went to see him at the facility and I decided to wait outside his room and let the family say its goodbyes. Sometimes later, his room’s door slid open and Luna appeared with red rings around her eyes from crying. She asked me to go in with her and meet her grandfather. Her parents left the room as soon as I walked in and I found myself in front of his bed without knowing what to say.

For a ninety one year old, he looked remarkably in a good physical shape and if it wasn’t for his heart, he probably would have been out and about still working on his projects. A little apparatus attached to his chest was all what kept him alive while he said his goodbyes.

I greeted him and then I expressed my sorrow to see him in such circumstances. He managed a smile and turned his eyes to Luna giving his approval with a feeble move of his head.

That was the first and the last time I met the man who had raised Luna to be the fine woman that she had become. After the visit, we returned to the grandfather’s house and she had a long talk with her parents alone.

Her father and his partner had decided to return to work for her grandfather a year ago due to grandfather’s limited ability to travel around the reservation. Her father’s partner offered to show me around the natural resort, since Luna needed some time alone with her parents to talk things through. I accepted her stepfather’s offer and we flew in panoramic mode around the resort in his Emze for the next two hours.

The natural resort ran for miles upon miles in the heart of Africa and under the Emze’s lights I managed to see herds of different animals in their own habitat. By the time we had travelled across the resort and back, I had seen lions, elephants, zebras and a lot more species that seemed to be disturbed by the strong light from above. 

Later that night Luna’s grandfather, struggling to breathe freely, had decided to detach the machine that kept his heart working and accept his fate. He passed away in the early hours of the morning. Luna cried for most of that day and I felt powerless to comfort her.

I had no idea how they organised funerals in the 26
th
century and since each funeral was different, my Link device was unable to give me any specific information. Luna stayed mostly locked in her old rest space and I didn’t want to disturb her with questions about the very thing that she was upset. From what I gathered, her father and his work colleagues were planning the funeral. I didn’t fancy asking him for the details either since his cold approach towards me earlier.

Luna’s mother seemed to be in the same situation as I was, clueless and alone. Politely, she asked my permission if she could sit next to me and I approved with a nod.

“Would you like a drink of the African organic tea Scott, or anything for that matter?”

As much as I wanted to find out what the organic African tea tasted like, I declined. All I wanted was information about the funeral.

“No thank you, I am not thirsty. I wonder if you can help me, I need some answers.”

“Ask away, if I know the answer I will share it with you.”

“What happens next? I have never been to a funeral in this reality before and I wonder if there is anything I need to be aware.”

“I see, you need information about the funeral and what you are supposed to do in cases like this.”

She said this with some kind of disappointment. Perhaps she expected some other kind of question. I ignored her disappointment and eagerly nodded. She gave me another of her serious looks and continued.

“The funeral is tomorrow at ten in the morning. The body is prepared for the funeral today at the Terminal Facility and tomorrow morning will be delivered to the memorial park for the farewell ceremony.”

“So we will go directly to this memorial park and the coffin will be there?”

“Coffin? We don’t use coffins, we use body preservation shells. Allow me to explain.”

“Please do.”

“The person who is admitted into a Terminal Facility arranges his funeral depending on the amount of VC he has left. After death the body is thoroughly examined, a Holo report is sent to the local and main AI systems and stored there indefinitely. Once this process is over, the body is measured and a preservation shell is made to store the body.”

“Pardon me, what is a preservation shell?” I asked pushed by curiosity.

“A preservation shell is a hermetic material which shrinks to the body’s shape and preserves it, thanks to an application with self-generating unlimited power supply. To put it in simple words, it mummifies the body, just in case it is needed in the future. The funeral is held at the memorial park, which is not the same concept as the cemeteries in your timeline. The memorial parks here are in tall buildings. Think of a storage place with big walls with square holes in it, just like the wall burials. Depending on how much credit you have, you can buy a family space and keep the loved one that pass away all in one room.”

“I have an idea now, thank you Mrs. Sanchez.”

“Oh, I haven’t been Mrs. Sanchez for quite some years now. Luna maybe hasn’t told you, but I have had a long-term partner since Luna was eight years old. I am known as Mrs. Khan now, but of course you can call me Flora.”

“I will call you Mrs. Khan until we are in more familiar terms.” I replied, feeling uncomfortable calling Luna’s mother on first name basis.

“Flora is fine, I won’t be offended. Tell me have you read the book yet?”

“What book?” I asked, puzzled by her bizarre question.

Before Mrs. Khan had a chance to answer, Luna came out of nowhere and with a persistent tone of voice called her mother. “Mother, may I have a word in private please? I am so sorry Scott, it is a family matter.”

“Go ahead,” I replied still wondering about the reaction Mrs. Khan’s question had caused on Luna. They went away and I witnessed a heated argument while they both kept pointing on my direction constantly. Mrs. Khan walked away disappointed about something and I rushed to speak with Luna about her bizarre intervention.

“What was that all about?” I asked.

“It is nothing.” She answered swiftly.

“It appeared you were talking about me.”

“No, as I said, it was just a family matter. Pardon me! I am going to talk to my father about the funeral.”

Luna looked down and walked away towards her father. The presence of her parents in the same space and the death of her grandfather had taken its toll on Luna and, at the time, I thought this was the reason for her being very agitated. I forgot this bizarre incident as the days went by and little did I know that I was going to recall this episode again, in another time.

The day of the funeral arrived. Luna’s brother, Leon had managed to take a compassionate leave and travel back to Earth after hearing the news. He was just in time for the funeral. His arrival was the only thing that made Luna smile. She seemed to take some courage from her brother’s presence and felt a little better compared to a day before.

It was half past nine in the morning when we made our way to the memorial park building. The body of her grandfather lay in the middle of a sizeable room in the 26
th
floor of the memorial park. I never got to learn why it was called memorial park when it was in fact a tall building.

After the farewell speeches by his work colleagues and Luna’s father, the body was put to rest in an opening on the wall similar to those in a morgue fridge. The lid on the wall slid close and on its surface on a virtual screen appeared his name, Nile Sanchez and the date of birth and death. After the funeral service, everyone went back to the house where Luna’s dad had arranged drinks and some buffet food. In his memory, his friends and family shared memorable personal stories.

In the following morning Luna informed me that we were going to have lunch with her brother, mother, father and their partners. Seeing the tense relationship and the grief Luna had towards her parents, I didn’t look forward to sit in an eating booth with her parents and their partners. We normally told each other the truth, but that time, I knew it wasn’t the right moment and kept this concern to myself.

Despite my worries the lunch tuned out to be a pleasant one thanks to her brother. In an astute way he took care of the tension with his timely unrelated questions and his charm, changing the subject of the conversation when it risked turning awkward. For the first time since my arrival, I felt the joy of being part of a family again and although it wasn’t my family, it still felt really good.

It was late afternoon when Luna and I set on our way back home. Luna kept quiet for most of the journey home and this gave me time to reflect on what I had observed in the past few days. The grief for her grandfather’s death apart, there were some real trust issues between Luna and her parents and I had been in the middle of it all. For a brief moment, I thought of that peculiar moment when Mrs. Khan asked me about a book I was supposed to have read and Luna interrupting abruptly with evident panic on her face. Was it all a misunderstanding from my part or Luna was hiding something from me? Given the circumstances, I thought it would be better to wait when Luna had dealt with her grief.

23

We arrived home at half past ten in the morning despite setting off after five o’clock in the afternoon. Given the seven hour time difference between Kenya and Laguna City, Luna and I had to relive Thursday afternoon all over again. Feeling tired and emotionally drained, Luna decided to make use of the extra hours by having some rest. I joined her in the private restroom. She must have been really tired, for she slept through the next four hours and never heard me getting up only two hours later.

I sat in one of the gravity-free rest chairs meditating about the last three days and an idea came to mind. After what Luna had gone through with losing her grandfather and facing her parents, I thought it would be nice to surprise her by booking a special weekend away. I had a major obstacle in choosing where to take her. My knowledge about this world was limited to what we had already seen.

Excited by the idea and nervous at the same time if I was going to be able to surprise her, I started to search on Holo for a holiday destination nearby. I searched for the top ten places to spend the weekend. The top destination was a water park in the Florida Keys. Water Works Park was more of a big city rather than a park and had some really scary rides. For the next ten minutes I was left speechless by what I saw. Seeing what Water Works offered, I needed to visit this amazing place more than Luna needing a break.

Despite being a last minute decision, I managed to book a guest space in one of the hotels for the next two days. Once I had secured a place to stay, I purchased two weekend E-passes worth 200VC each. I thought the passes were a little expensive for only one weekend, but with Luna needing to take her mind off recent events and with my childish urge to try this amazing place, saving credit for the space holiday was the last thing on my mind. My personal Link confirmed the check-in and check-out times and dates and all was set up nicely to surprise Luna.

With the weekend away trip organized and paid for, I went to the kitchen to prepare a comfort meal for Luna as part of my efforts to pamper her. I was just about ready to serve the meal when Luna appeared in the kitchen, as moody as I had never seen her since we first met. She saw me putting the plates on the table and managed to release a light smile.

“You have prepared lunch, how nice.” She smiled again, but I knew her mind was somewhere else.

“Are you ready to have lunch again?” I asked her in a soft tone of voice.

“To think that we already had lunch ones, yes, I feel a little hungry.”

“Good, take a seat please and let us have some time to ourselves.”

“Thank you Scott, I know you are trying hard to make me happy again and I do apologise if I am not complying, but dealing with the loss of my grandfather and facing my parents hasn’t been easy for me.”

“I know. This is why I want us to spend some time together so you can take your mind off, even for a little while.”

“You are kind, thank you.” Luna gave a critic gaze at my food, tried it and then complimented me. “This tastes nice, I am impressed.”

She released another smile. Seeing her smile made me happy. My mission to cheer her up was working perfectly.

“I am a quick learner what can I say. Luna, may I ask a favour from you?”

“What is it?”

“I have organised something for the weekend and I need your unconditional cooperation.”

“My cooperation to do what, exactly?”

“I have organised a surprise trip, you know to distract your mind with everything that’s gone on.”     

“You’re taking me on a surprise trip to where? What kind of clothes do I need?”

“You will need summer wear and this is all you need to know. The whole point of the surprise is for the destination to remain a secret.” I tried to keep a mysterious look, but there was no hiding the proud grin from my face.

“I am intrigued. I wonder where a guy from the past, who knows very little about this reality, is going to take me.”

“The guy who knows very little about this world may actually surprise you,” I replied with a light know-it-all smile.

Luna started to ask several indirect questions trying to trick me in revealing the destination. Thanks to the strict privacy laws in this future world, she was unable to access my Holo history since it was connected to my personal Link and only I alone was allowed to access it. All her sorrows were replaced by the eagerness to know more about the mystery trip. My efforts to take her mind away from the loss of her grandfather resulted in success, as Luna spent the entire evening trying to guess the destination out of me.

Friday morning arrived and after a breakfast of vitamin pills, we were ready to travel. I entered the Emze and with the help of Link secretly added the destination. We were approaching the Water Works Park when Luna realised where we were going.

“You are taking me to the Water Works! I have to admit I am surprised. How much have you spent for this?”

“It is my turn to treat you, don’t spoil it!” I replied a little disappointed by her reaction.

Somehow she didn’t look as surprised as I would have imagined. It was as if she already knew and her surprised reaction seemed more false than genuine. Perhaps it was I who read her grief in a wrong way, although her concern about the credit I had spent seemed more genuine that her reaction of surprise.

“We are staying here until Sunday afternoon and I have bought two E-passes for the weekend. Once again, the cost is not important, what is important is to have fun.” I hadn’t meant my last words to come out as a rebuke, but clearly Luna took them seriously and insisted on the cost.

“You are aware we are trying to save for the space holiday?”

“Yes and I have calculated what we need. There is no reason for you to worry. I need you to stop worrying about credit and enjoy the next couple of days.”

“I apologise, didn’t mean to be ungrateful.”

“No need to apologise, you have gone through a bad time and I just hope you will enjoy it here.”

“Thank you Scott! I love this place and you are going to love it too. I can’t believe you found one of my favourite places on earth to surprise me. I really love you.”

Luna’s eyes shone from happiness and despite my doubts that she knew already about this trip, I was happy that my plan to return the smile on Luna’s face had worked.

We left our possessions in our guest space and, since Luna had been in this place many times before, she offered to take me on a tour around the park. The Water Works Park ran across three little islands in a stretch of twenty or so miles. The most exciting feature of this park was the rollercoaster that ran the whole length of the park and back. This ride was able to reach speeds of 100 miles an hour in some parts of the journey and circled the islands high and low, even went underwater for short periods. The giant waterslides, the water tunnels, the marine natural aquarium and other water features around the park made this place truly unique and I intend to describe everything I saw in detail.

Luna and I, after spending most of the day walking around the water park and trying a few amusements and small rides, decided to stop at an underwater fish restaurant. We dined surrounded by the different species of amphibians swimming around us on the other side of the protection shield. This place reminded us the first day we met. I couldn’t help gloating to Luna that it was my turn to treat her after what she did for me on our first day.

Only twenty four hours ago, Luna was in a dire state mourning the loss of her grandfather and now, her mood had taken a different turn thanks to my efforts. She found her happiness again and our relationship returned to where it used to be before the unfortunate events of the past few days.

It was a warm and glorious Saturday morning in the Florida Keys and I couldn’t wait to leave our guest space and be out there enjoying the day with Luna by my side.  Although it was I who had booked the holiday as a surprise for Luna, she took charge and started to plan the best route we were going to follow.

I had been impressed yesterday by the look of the rollercoaster and couldn’t wait to start the day by riding this adrenaline-pumping machine. The rollercoaster was slower than an Emze of course, however, travelling inside the Emze regardless of its speed, was completely a different experience compare to the rollercoaster. Emze went hundred times faster than the rollercoaster, but being sat in a gravity chair with no wind on your face and an unchanged horizontal movement wasn’t the same as riding up, down and underwater with wind and water hitting your face and your body unprotected by the gravity defying chair.

After twenty minutes wait, we scanned our Link devices, agreed to the rules and regulation by thumbprint, put a small breathing device over mouth and nose as well as some kind of contact lenses to protect our eyes and took our seats on ‘the beast’. The rollercoaster resembled a giant spinal cord, or better to say a giant snake and had only one seat per row. The space between the seats was flexible and the whole carriage had no difficulty to bend in steep and sharp corners and bends. The use of the protective lenses and the breathing gadget was mandatory since we were travelling underwater, as well as to protect the mouth from insects or any other debris that might fly around.

The safety leg-lock turned on and we were seconds away from starting the most exciting ride ever to exist. The leg-lock was a sort of protective shield that captured the legs from the thigh down to keep the rider safely inside the carriage in case the rider decided to stand up for a more thrilling ride. The rollercoaster started to move up in moderate speed and in no time I found myself one thousand feet up. After fifty yards of straight ride it started to plunge towards the ground with a speed of over hundred miles per hour and it was then when my fear and excitement mixed up into a screamer cocktail of emotions. The ride reached the shore and submersed under the sea for thirty seconds before it merged back on the surface and started to swerve left and right around the tall buildings as it took scary heights again. It turned sideways for a while as it reached the second island and drove through some giant water fountains before it submersed again under water.

When it finally stopped at the starting point, I was unable to stand up. My legs were badly shaking and the adrenaline my body had produced in the last half an hour was more than my brain could handle. The back of my head was in pins and needles and a buzzing noise rang loudly in my ears. I wanted to scream with excitement, but my voice was lost somewhere inside my chest and only the hands of Luna helping me out of my seat were able to guide me towards the exit. She went and purchased a cold drink from a GNP nearby and told me to sit on a bench next to the GNP and rest until I got my breath back. Everything I had imagined this ride to be had just multiplied infinitely. My mind couldn’t apprehend what my body had just gone through.

We walked for a while around on the pathways covered by a water tunnel, as it was called, with my legs still shaking until I felt ready for the next challenge. The water tunnels were nothing else but some pipes throwing water up and forming a continuous arch over the pathway thanks to some advanced hydro-technology. It protected us from the heat of sun and also kept the pathway cool in those tropical weather conditions.

Next ride was the biggest water slide I have ever seen up to this moment of my life. It started from the top of a hundred and fifty stories building in the outskirts of the residential area of the park and run in between other skyscrapers as it crossed paths with the rollercoaster before ending past the sandy shore into a protected deep section of the sea.

The water slide tube was see-through, with enough space to fit four average people at the same time. We had to put on some kind of wet suit and head gear to protect us from friction and unpredictable impacts. I slid down towards the sea at some considerable speed. The height, the speed and my body circling uncontrollably around the slide’s inner surface, made my mind spin and I lost sense of direction completely. Before my eyes, the outside view changed constantly and fast. One moment I was looking hundreds of feet down and the next, I was staring at the top of the skyscrapers. My body was on an unstoppable free fall swerving around the wet inner tube while it rolled upside down. I was afraid that if I continued sliding with this kind of speed, my body will make more than a splash in the sea. However, near the end of the ride, the slide took a little ascent which slowed most of the speed down before sharply descending into the sea.

This ride was equally scary as the rollercoaster, but by then I was getting used to the thrill of the extra adrenaline that my body was producing.

Luna and I tried other water slides and rides as the day went on, maybe not as big as the first two, but just as scary. When we returned to the guest space my head was still buzzing from the best rides I had ever been on and I felt high as a kite due to the extra amount of adrenaline my body had produced during the day.

I had booked this weekend break for Luna and when the day ended, it felt I was the one who had needed this weekend away the most. Nevertheless, this break had helped Luna cast away her sorrows. She really loved the Water Works since she was as excited from the experience as I was.

The second day of our stay in Florida Keys had been a total success and to top this up, the evening turned out to be just as exciting. We went to the hotel eatery, chose an eating booth and stayed there until we couldn’t buy alcohol anymore. It was the only time I saw Luna being slightly drunk.