The Bridge | Bots 'R Us

Chapter 28 | Message in a Bottle

"You understand, Kawika; those are the last people we trust. Yet, they've started communicating with Higher Spirits! Up to that moment, Sarah's video sounded like an old woman's crazy tale. But over the last generation, more and more things happened that made her prophecy more likely."

"What made you think the time had come?" I asked.

"The Theist threat on your life; it made us think you could find yourself in the position you are today, one step removed from meeting Chad again."

"So, what are we supposed to do now?"

"Contact Chad and invite him to a virtual chat," Sarah answered. "Tomiko, could you ask him to join us and give him a channel?"

"Let me try." Tomiko walked to a stack of cushions in a corner of the room, picked one, assumed her lotus position, palms on her knees, and closed her eyes on her way to connect with her Higher Spirit.

It may only have been a minute later, but it felt much longer when Tomiko opened her eyes with a big smile on her face.

"I got a 'Yes'! I guess all we have to do now is wait for him to call."

"How does it work?" I asked. "Is he just going to return your call? Do you know what you want to talk about? Do you have a plan of action?"

"It's a little more complicated than that," Diana said. "Tomiko's call is more like a message in a bottle with Chad's name on it. Unless or until the other person meditates and communicates with the Higher Spirit realm, they will not be aware of that call. We just have to hope Chad reaches out often enough to his higher self." She gave one of her enigmatic smiles before affirming with more resolve: "In the meantime, let's review our plan of action!"

"The first thing we need is their logistic help." I volunteered. "They have made tremendous progress since they were banned and should be able to help us stem the Czarist onslaught."

My first thought was that we should ask for his help to push back against the Czarists, but Diana said no. She reminded me that humans of the 7th Century A.E. didn't see Transcendents as part of the human family like Andros of the 2nd Century did. "They are freaking robots from Mars," she bluntly told me. Having them rescue The Bridge would seal the fate of the Council System and make Andros and Landers evil collaborators in the mind of most Originals, including Humanists. "All those would rally with the Czarists just to stay on the side of Humanity, against the Machines," Diana explained. "The kind of help we should get from Chad and his 'people' must remain discreet, invisible for now." She showed me the end of the video with this cryptic plea from Sarah, ending the recording: "David and Chad will have to bring to life a new generation of humans, able to unite our peoples once again."

"First, we need to invite him to meet us on Earth," Tomiko said, "but not on the island. There is too much scrutiny on this region right now. We thought of Kalama, the small archipelago you used to call Johnston Atoll."

"What about it?" I asked.

"It's only a few hours away by submarine. Gossamer is very loose on that area, and it's a forgotten marine sanctuary facility we have refurbished recently. Off the radar."

"Sounds like a plan. Any news from Simone?"

"Well, your cousin Hector from Portland sent us information about his gathering with Simone and her aide, Vic," Diana said. "They were on their way to borrow a hopter and come to your rescue. Should we direct them to Kalama, too?"

"Talk about a family reunion, hey?" I was getting very excited and anxious at the idea of seeing Simone again, our faithful Vic, and Hector, whom I hadn't seen since his graduation from the Institute of Technology and Humanities of Oregon. And nervous about a first encounter 'in the flesh' with Chad. The last thing I wanted was to start blushing and babbling like a teenager. I signed an armistice with him, after all. I could hold my own! And Sarah's insights could well give me the upper hand. "Let's do it!" I finally said.

"I'll pass the coordinates of our Kalama base to Hector while we wait for Chad's call," Diana said.

The Higher Spirit Telegraph was working very well because a message from Chad landed on Diana's slate in the next half hour. She sent him instructions and pulled three little pasties from a drawer in her desk. One by one, she applied them to our foreheads.

"This is Sarah's Osmosis, a limited opening to personal virtual worlds. We will each meet in our favorite environments; it's fun!"

We all materialized in a circle, each seeing the others in a place we could call home.

"Hi! What are we doing on my deck by sunset?" Chad asked, a bit puzzled.

"This is Sarah's favorite mode of communication. She combined your Osmosis research and her discoveries on the brain and shamanic practice to create this virtual world made of the meeting of our minds. I see you on top of Mauna Kea; it's my most uplifting place on the island."

"We're on my favorite beach on the Kona Coast," Tomiko said.

"In the First Councilor's living room in the White House, the one with the big arched windows," I said laughing.

"Hello Chad, I'm Diana, Director of H3, the Hawaii Humanist Headquarters. We are the keepers of Sarah's legacy, and we reached out to you today via my colleague, Tomiko," Diana gestured towards Tomiko, who bowed her head, "because we believe it's time for you and David to realize Sarah's prophecy."

That last sentence left Chad dumbfounded: Sarah, David, and who was that fourth person? I could barely listen to them, practically hypnotized by the sight of him. As David, I found him looking better than I could remember from the last time we met, some three hundred years ago. And from Sarah's body's signals, I could tell Chad looked better than he ever did.

"Hello Diana, thank you for reaching out to me; I have been waiting for this day!" Chad was talking to Diana but looking at me with questioning eyes.

"I have to be honest, I'm still surprised time has come," Diana. "But there's no denying it; the stars are aligned. As it happens, we have a star here we would like you to meet. Kawika, please introduce yourself."

"Hello again, Chad!" I was trying to stay cool, but my voice was trembling. He gasped, recognizing his long-lost love's voice.

"Who, who are you?" he asked, shaken. "A great, great-granddaughter of Sarah's? You're looking exactly like her! Apart from that strange haircut, I'm sorry." We all laughed, agreeing to my lack of self-styling talents. "I thought David was Sarah's one and only progeny!"

"They named me Kawika, Hawaiian for David, son of Sarah's, First Councilor of the CS, back to flesh and blood in a copy of my mother's body."

"Whoa, guess I should say 'Long time no see, Kawika,'" Chad said. And I felt the catch in his breath.

"Third time's a charm, they say. And let me tell you, this body talks!"

He let go of an embarrassed "Oh..." and would have blushed if he could.

"But let's cut to the chase, Chad. My world, the CS, is falling apart, and I need help. We all need help because what's coming ahead is darker than what we've ever known. I get from Diana that some kind of enlightenment has reached your end of the world, and we should meet in person. How about coming to meet us on Earth as soon as you can? Diana's group maintains a sweet little hideout where we could plan our next steps together. Would you care to join?"

"Tell me where and when, and I'll be there!" For a machine, he had a hard time hiding his anticipation.

"Tomiko will send you the coordinates via secure beam," Diana said. "She and Kawika should be there in a dozen hours or so, led by their pilot, Richard Kamaka. We've also invited Simone Allegre, who will join with her cabinet secretary Vic Muñoz, and Hector Hawthorne, a very talented young cousin of Kawika's, worthy of our attention. How fast can you join them?"

"I'm not that far. I could feel you'd be calling, so I left as soon as I heard of the attack on David. I will be waiting for you on Kalama, Kawika. And I'm bringing Martian Champagne. See you there!" And with sparkles in his smile, Chad signed off.

"Martian Champagne! That sounds like fun. I haven't had any Champagne, Martian or otherwise, in... centuries!" I thought aloud. Both Diana and Tomiko now had that enigmatic smile on their lips. I guessed everything was going according to plan.