Mark McGinnis - The Simpleton

The fast-approaching star took on a different shape. Not a star at all, it was a being—a Pashier! Cuddy watched as she glided toward them and noted she was beautiful. Her glowing form slowed, then stood suspended, only mere feet from them. Her eyes held steady on Tow’s, and Cuddy knew they were silently communicating. They loved each other—no doubt of that. Eventually, her eyes turned toward Cuddy and he felt like he was being drawn into her. In an instant, he knew who she was, and what she was trying to communicate to him. Not knowing how to properly respond back upset him. She raised her palms in a gesture he understood… all in good time, Cuddy. She took another tentative step forward and he then knew her name was Soweng. Thank you, Cuddy… we all thank you. You are very special. Know this… we have waited an eternity for you. Thank you for what you are about to endure and the sacrifices you will soon face. Know all is worthwhile, and that, in the end… it is just.

Glancing down at Rufus, her bright smile returned. When she turned back toward Tow, they held each other’s gaze for a long moment. Cuddy knew what was being communicated was strictly private, just between them. Eventually, she turned away saddened, as was Tow, and didn’t look back. In due time, she merged into the universe—once again—a distant star.

He heard Tow’s voice alongside him. “We have no right to ask this of you, Cuddy.”

He didn’t need to explain; Cuddy knew what he wanted. “How will I know what to do… when the time comes?”

“Soweng passed that knowledge on to you directly. It will come to you when the time is right. All Pashier instinctively know the Shain ritual of the rejoining .”

Cuddy held up an arm and studied his softly glowing hand. “Am I a Pashier , Tow… have you changed me?”

“Yes… I have changed you. You are no longer human, but you are not a Pashier, either. You are something else. You are something new.”

“Will I come here… when it’s time?”

“Would you like to?”

“I think so. Yes, maybe I would.”

“Then we shall see… won’t we?”

The spinning universe around them had suddenly quickened. Now, the great leaves that formed the heritage pod were rising off the deck and curling inward—slowly transforming back into the same, organic, pod-like shape as before. The fountain of sparkling light now flowed inward, instead of outward. As that whole order of events reversed themselves, Cuddy felt a release within his own heart and, along with it, the weight of his physical life’s reality returning back. The sadness, the new sense of loss he felt, was profound. In that very moment, he understood why Tow rarely visited the heritage pod. It was far too painful.

When Cuddy returned home, Momma was walking back from the mailbox at the end of the drive. Distracted, she glanced up as Cuddy approached, but quickly brought her attention back to the sheets of paper in her hands. He fell into step beside her, noting she’d torn open several envelopes and was reading what looked to be a bill of some sort. He saw the words Final Notice stamped in red at the top of the page—surprised he knew what it said. I can read…

“Hi, Momma… what’s that?”

“It’s a bill, what’s it look like?”

“Where is everybody?”

Momma didn’t answer right away, then said, “Your brother took the car without permission… so I don’t know where he is.”

Cuddy saw Jackie’s bug still parked in front of the house. “And Jackie?”

Momma looked up, irritated. “Um… she took Ellie out for a ride. That poor horse needs exercise. Didn’t I ask you to let her out into the corral this morning?”

“Sorry, Momma.” He looked off toward the horizon and thought he saw Jackie on horseback about a half mile off in an open pasture. He had been debating with himself what he should say to Momma. He didn’t want to break his promise with Tow, but keeping secrets—not telling her—seemed even worse. “Momma, can I talk to you?”

At that very moment, a wailing sound could be heard off in the distance, carried aloft by the warm afternoon breeze. Cuddy knew it was coming from town; from the big metal cone atop the firehouse. Momma stopped reading and looked up, then hurried up the porch steps and flung open the screen door. Cuddy followed her into the house and into the kitchen, where she made a beeline for the little Sony TV, sitting on the counter, and turned it on. Again, Cuddy was surprised by his ability to read the screen’s words. Bold white letters, atop a blue and red banner at the top of the screen, read:

A familiar-looking news reporter—his hair whipping around in the wind—stood with a microphone to his lips. In the distance, a large, concrete, hourglass-shaped structure dominated the background. Momma, momentarily, brought a hand to her mouth then reached for the TV’s volume control.

“…the Soddy-Daisy, Tennessee nuclear power plant has had its share of problems over the years. But nothing like this. Both reactors… Sequoyah Unit 1 and Sequoyah Unit 2… are currently operating within states of emergency, venting caustic radiation into the atmosphere.”

Momma said, “Oh my… that boy needs to get away from that place.” She turned the channel and another reporter, with a slightly different perspective of the Soddy-Daisy nuclear power plant shown in the distance, was saying something similar to the guy beside him. Momma continued to switch channels. Each station broadcasted the same news but this one had a blonde female reporter, wearing bright red lipstick, who urged:

“…it’s very important that everyone stay indoors. If you are outside… stop what you are doing and find shelter immediately. If you are driving, keep your windows rolled up and stay clear of the Soddy-Daisy, Tennessee area.”

Momma looked up and out the kitchen window. “Kyle’s out there… and Jackie!”

Cuddy said, “I’ll go fetch her.”

“No… you’re not leaving this house, boy!”

“But Momma…”

“I said, no!” She hurried to the hallway closet, sliding hangers left and right until she found what she was seeking—a bright yellow rain slicker. “Don’t just stand there, help me on with this!”

Cuddy, grabbing ahold of the rubbery coat, held it open for her as she slid both arms into the sleeves, then tightened the belt snugly around her waist. She fumbled, reaching an arm back over her shoulder, so Cuddy lifted up the oversized hood so she could reach it. When she pulled it over her head, Cuddy almost laughed at her appearance. She rushed for the door, shouting, “Get out of the way, Rufus!” as she swung it open and hurried outside. As the dog ran inside, she said, “Close the inside door, Cuddy, right now!”

Cuddy did as he was told and returned to the kitchen. Like Momma, he spun the TV dial several times, finally coming to rest on CNN. Wolf Blitzer’s bearded face dominated the screen. As Wolf continued reporting on the reactors’ dangerously reduced coolant levels, Cuddy found he easily followed what was being broadcast.

He thought about current events now taking place, and had a new respect for the abilities of Tow’s AI orb. In a matter of several hours, the hovering robot had breached the facilities’ network somehow, riling up nationwide excitement. He wondered if the AI had miscalculated; if the radiation was more dangerous than anticipated. But he didn’t think the AI orb made many mistakes. As he gazed up at the colorful skies out the window, he wondered if the marauding Howsh ships would actually be thrown off the hunt. Leaning sideways to get a better view of the open prairie, he saw Momma waving her arms above her head, yelling something unintelligible into the wind.