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CHAPTER ONE: PREPARATIONS

They met Reges Questar in Ennis’ office on the first floor of the Schwarzwald Hotel.

“We are taking a vacation on Earth,” Ennis explained. “We will be there three days, at least. I will be delegating most of my responsibilities here on Jahnson’s World, but will need to return for a couple of hours for Un-Transformations and Transformations; so we will be having you do quite a bit of hopping back and forth. Is that a problem?”

“No problem at all,” said Reges Questar. “Draw up a schedule of times and locations, and I will be there to transport you. Where on Earth are you going?”

“We will be visiting the City of Qaryah,” said Ennis.

“Don’t know it,” said Reges Questar. “I’ll need better directions than that.”

“25.2O degrees North Latitude, 64.65 degrees East Longitude,” said Ennis Jahnson. “Is that precise enough?”

“Wait-- you know the geographic coordinates of your parent’s home town off the top of your head?” asked Dori.

“Yes,” said Ennis. “As well as those of my children on Earth, and the Ishtagraphic coordinates of my ex-wife and her husband. And the coordinates of each Park hotel on Jahnson’s World. It’s a little peculiarity of mine. I suppose I don’t completely trust the navi-comps.”

Reges Questar nodded his head. “I understand perfectly,” he said. “We were each given brains, we might as well use them.”

“I’ll draw up the transportation schedule,” said Dori. “It will do me good to coordinate Earth-time with local time, and get the specific locations for transport. I wouldn’t want the two of you to think I can’t keep up.” She turned to Ennis. “Do you have a way to contact your family to tell them we’re coming?”

“Oh, certainly,” said Ennis. “They are not such Luddites that they are not on the communications grid.”

After Reges Questar had gone, Ennis pulled out a package and presented it to Dori. It seemed to be a pile of scarves.

“We will be staying in the desert, with no environmental controls,” he explained. “This is local clothing, which will allow you to blend in with the natives, and will also keep you cool during the day, and warm at night, once you know how to use them. You will need to get used to using a cowl; it keeps off the sun, which can be brutal at times. If you need help figuring out how to pull it all together, I will be happy to help you.”

“Thank you,” said Dori. “I wondered what I was going to wear.”

“I would guess that this is not an environment you are used to; I would suggest that you wear an environmental trans-suit underneath the robes, just in case. It should be inconspicuous enough.”

“You know, I’m starting to get a little nervous about this trip,” said Dori. “I hope I can make a good impression on your parents.”

“Oh, don’t worry about that,” said Ennis. “There is no chance of either of us being able to do that.”

CHAPTER TWO: CONTACT

It was Earth as Dori had never seen it. They were standing on the border between green fields that stretched for miles, and a small residential area of perhaps a hundred simple houses. On the horizon, barren, rocky hills rose.Nearby, to the south, Dori knew, was the Arabian sea. They were not positioned to see it, but there was an oppressive humidity in the air which indicated a great deal of water somewhere nearby.

Although they had left the Schwarzwald Hotel in the early morning, it was mid-day here. A man was was walking out of the city toward them, dressed in sand-colored robes similar to the ones both Ennis and Dori were wearing. As he approached, he lowered his hood in greeting. He appeared middle-aged, but his blonde hair was bleached nearly pure white by the sun. His skin was red and mottled, the effect of a permanent sunburn. He was about as tall as Dori: that is, a full head shorter than Ennis Jahnson.

“Dori, may I introduce my brother Mitch,” said Ennis. “Mitch, this is Dori Aandraison, my…”

“Financée, yes, I know,” said Mitch Jahnson. “Welcome to Qaryah City. May your stay be enjoyable and enlightening.” His face carried no expression of sincerity. They began the walk into the town.

“When my father resigns, Mitch will replace him as First Elder,” Ennis explained. “As such, he is an important member of the Assembly. It is an honor for him to come out to greet us.”

“Ennis would have been First Elder, had he not departed in the Assembly,” said Mitch Jahnson. He turned toward his brother. “But I do not begrudge you that you have left me with this responsibility. Belief is not volitional, and you must follow your own destiny.”

“You left the Assembly to marry?” Dori asked.

“I left the Assembly to join the Legion of Super-Heroes,” said Ennis. “I was misinformed, however. I was in my early twenties by that time, and not eligible for Legion membership. Even if the Legion had not been a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Legion of Super-Villains at the time.”

“Had we wished, Qaryah could have fielded its own team of super-teens,” said Mitch Jahnson. “But it is against our creed to interfere in the natural development of the human race. We hope, of course, that the next evolution of man will come from among our ranks, but we welcome its rise anywhere.”

“Our people are frequently meta-genetic,” Ennis explained. “Mitch is as gifted a precognitive as any Naltoran.”

“Moreso,” Mitch replied. “For I can foresee not only the inevitable future, but possible paths as yet uncertain as well. Thus is it possible to choose the path now which leads to the most appealing future.”

They came to a small house, indistinguishable from any others they had passed. A woman somewhat with the same bleached hair and sunburned skin stood in the doorway.

“This is my consort, Pearl Waid,” Mitch said by way of introduction. “You are welcome to stay with us while you are here in Qaryah. Unfortunately, neither my father nor Ennis’ mother are unable to accommodate you at this time. Or, Qaryah has a small hotel nearer the center of town you may stay at, if you prefer more privacy.”

Ennis looked at Dori, she nodded affirmatively.”Here would be fine,” she said. “I appreciate your hospitality.”

Shortly thereafter, Ennis needed to return to Jahnson’s World for Transformations, and Mitch accompanied him back to the site of their original appearance. Dori was left in the company of Pearl, a situation she would find not uncommon in the next three days.

“How many of there are you in Qaryah?” asked Dori.

“Less than a hundred thousand,” said Pearl. “And that is all that is left of the Jesine Firmamentalists. There is a great deal of attrition. Mitch and Ennis have another brother, Roy Jahnson, who also left the Assembly. My mother’s son, Marq, and two of my father’s daughters, Heather and Hope, have also departed for the larger world. We do not proselyte, and few there are who enter this difficult life who are not born to it. It is unusual, though for one who is Empowered, as Ennis is, to depart the Assembly.”

“Are you, er, ‘Empowered’, as well?” Dori asked.

“Yes, I am technology sensitive,” said Pearl. “For example, I am aware that you are wearing some sort of environmental device, although it is not activated. A wise precaution, actually. You are from Xolnar, a cold world, is that not correct?”

Dori flushed. “Yes, I didn’t want to embarrass myself if I found I couldn’t take the heat.”

“A wise precaution,” said Pearl. “It is nearing summer here. And there is no need to be embarrassed by your use of technology. We do not expect all humanity to live the life we have chosen. But I am sure you will find the nights here cold enough.”

Pearl was correct. Once the sun set, Qaryah cooled down rapidly. Mitch informed them that the following day, after Ennis had returned from his teleportative trip back to Jahnson’s World, they had all been invited to share an evening meal with Ennis and Mitch’s father.

CHAPTER THREE: FATHER JEREMIAH

Qaryah was small, but even the walk of a couple of kilometers in the stifling, humid mid-day heat made Dori almost activate the trans-suit. They arrived at a house much like Mitch and Pearl’s on the outside. Inside, however, there were no furnishings except several long tables surrounded by perhaps two dozen chairs.

“Dori, my father, Henry Jahnson.” Ennis introduced a man remarkably similar in appearance to his brother, although slimmer, to the point of being gaunt, and with a leathery, lined face. Henry Jahnson escorted them to a table at the back of the house, where an even older man was seated. He was positively skeletal, his skin massively wrinkled, burnt-over by the desert sun. He was completely bald, although tufts of white hair accented his eyebrows and ears.

“My grandfather, Jacob Jahnson,” said Ennis. He then gestured up to the wall, on which a life-sized portrait of another red-skinned, white-haired, blue-eyed gentleman hung. He appeared no older than Ennis in the painted portrait, and had a full beard which reached to his waist. “And my great-grandfather, Jeremiah Jahnson,” said Ennis.

“Ennis, you come from a distinguished pedigree,” said Dori. She felt it might be rude to ask where the portraits of his mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother were.

“I have been learning somewhat about you, Dori,” said Henry Jahnson. “You are yourself distinguished in a number of ways. I recently acquired a copy of your autobiography. Although my time and attention is in great demand in our community, I am pleased to say I have at least finished a couple of chapters.” He pointed to an old-fashioned bookcase, fashioned of cinderblock. Dori had never seen a physical copy of her memoirs before. “And you are an occasional subject of a particular segment of the news cycle here on Earth.”

“Thank you?” Dori ventured.

“I am merely making observations of fact,” said Henry Jahnson. “I am neither expressing approval nor disapproval. However, if my son must re-marry, I will admit to some satisfaction that it is to another meta-human.” He turned to Ennis. “Your siblings, mother, and step-mothers will be attending the dinner tonight, as will the Seven Counselors. I will ask the two of you to stand and be introduced at some point. You and Dori are an extension of the Community, and always welcome here, even if you are not part of the Jesine Assembly per se.”

Henry Jahnson escorted them to seats beside Grandfather Jacob, who sat quietly, eyes half-closed. He might have been dozing, or even sound asleep.

“Why is your father pleased that I am a meta-human?” Dori asked Ennis. “Does he have some bias against ordinary Terrans?”

“It is only in Ennis’ generation that the meta-gene began to manifest strongly,” said Jacob Jahnson, causing the two younger people to startle. “We had begun to fear that old Father Jeremiah’s vision had been in vain. The remarkable abilities that are being expressed now have given Henry new hope that this is the manner in which the New Evolution will be expressed. I am not so certan.”

“There are stable metagenetic Terran populations all over the United Planets,” Dori said. “Saturnians, Braaliens, Zwenites, Kathooni… “

“Yes, but these are mere manifestations of influence over the physical universe,” said Jacob Jahnson.“There has not been a spiritual prodigy arise since the Martian, Bekka Frunt. We look for the coming of a chosen generation of prophets and wise men, to lead humankind to a new philosophical understanding. And hopefully one that is less confusing and contradictory than that left behind by the previous prophets and wise men.”

“You sound like you have your own doubts about the FJA,” Dori observed.

“What is to doubt? What is to believe?” said Jacob Jahnson energetically. “Either Father Jeremiah was correct in his assessments, and we will see success, or he was wrong, and this experiment is destined to fail. Either we will see the Next Evolution of Humankind here, among the Jesine Assembly, or somewhere else in the Universe, or we will not see it at all. But I believe in the experiment. I hope it can continue. There are those who do not believe.” He eyed his grandson. “We have lost many by attrition. At this point, I fear I will not live to see the end of the experiment, but I hope that perhaps Harold or Mitchell or Mitchell’s son may.”

“I haven’t met Mitchell’s son,” said Dori. “Tell me about him.”

“None of us have met him,” said Jacob Jahnson. “Nor his daughter. Mitchell has wandered in the desert for forty years without offspring. Unless something changes, when he is my age, there will be a crisis of leadership in the Assembly.”

Dori had never been to a banquet like this one. It began with a small plate of mixed vegetables. Dori ate quickly, expecting more courses which never came. Everyone else lingered slowly over the paltry fare; fortunately, there was an unending supply of iced water for her, so she had something in her hand all evening.

Dori expended a good deal of her diplomatic skills in conversation with her new extended family, Ennis’ half-siblings and cousins. They were polite and curious, but there were clear undercurrents of unspoken disapproval and resentment.

“I didn’t get a chance to speak with your mother,” Dori told Ennis on the stroll back to Mitch and Pearl’s place.

“She was not there,” said Ennis. “An affront to the office of the First Elder, and to my father personally. She did send a message through one of my cousins, however, and has invited us to breakfast tomorrow morning.”

“Not to criticize the food here,” said Dori, “but I don’t think I have the constitution for spartan asceticism. I’ll be glad to be back home in a couple of days, where I can get a decent meal again.”

Ennis smiled. “You called the Schwarzwald Hotel ‘home’,” he said.

CHAPTER FOUR: MOTHER ALICE

Dori was beginning to believe that the Firmamentalist Jesine Assembly consisted of a single genotype: blonde, blue-eyed descendants of Scandinavian origin who had been baked in the desert for a half-century or more. She was therefore somewhat pleased and surprised to be greeted at Ennis’ mother’s house by a lean, handsome black man.

“Thommi Anders,” he introduced himself. “Alice will be with you shortly. Please make yourself comfortable.”

The little house was like all the others Dori had seen in Qaryah, furnished with simple and utilitarian furniture, which was not entirely comfortable.

“Good morning, Mother,” said Ennis Jahnson. She was wearing what looked like a very comfortable kaftan, and wore a turban. Unlike any of the other women Dori had met in Qaryah, she wore a small amount of makeup: just a little mascara and lipstick. “Dori, my mother, Alice Wilson. Mother, this is Dori Aandraison, my financée.”

“Very pleased to meet you, Dori,” said Mother Alice. “Ennis, I suppose your father and siblings have chastised you sufficiently on your visit here?”

“Not at all, Mother,” said Ennis. “Everyone has been wonderfully hospitable to both Dori and me. Grandfather, or course is an expert at twisting the knife of guilt, but I have grown used to that.”

Dori reflected on how Jacob Jahnson’s little speech on the impending extinction of the Assembly must have affected Ennis. She had not considered it before.

“You did not attend last night’s banquet,” said Ennis. “Father was offended, and the Seven Counselors with him.”

“It could not be helped!” Mother Alice exclaimed. “I have had the most extraordinary couple of days. It may be that we have found the next Evolution.”

Dori was stunned, and Ennis not less. Thommi Anders sat smiling like the Mona Lisa. “Shall we introduce them, Alice?” he asked. “It may offend Jeremiah again if he is not the first to know.”

“Why do you suppose I invited Ennis and Dori here?” Mother Alice asked. “Of course I want to introduce them.” She turned to Ennis. “Our guests were up late last night; let us breakfast until they awaken,” she said.

CHAPTER FIVE: THE QUIET DARKNESS

Thommi Anders proved sensitive to Dori’s growing hunger pangs. After the four had shared the small breakfast of porridge and egg, Thommi provided Dori with a second helping. She was just finishing up when she was distracted by the entrance of a young dark-haired, dark-eyed woman of exceptional, exotic beauty. Her presence seemed to fill the room, radiating… something. Attractiveness? Power? When she spoke Dori heard not merely her voice, but a quiet voice in her mind.

“Dori Aandraison. Ennis Jahnson. I am Aria Campbell, and this is my consort, Brin Londo.”

Dori had not even noticed the nondescript young man standing next to Aria. His hair and eyes were an average brown, his features plain, his build ordinary.

“I knew another Brin Londo once,” said Dori. “He was a Zuunii.”

“I am also-- was also-- a Zuunii,” said Aria Campbell. “And this is the same Brin Londo you know, although from another Universe, in which he never became Timber Wolf.”

“Another Universe?” asked Dori. “Is he another trans-temporal duplicate, like young Legion?”

“No,’ said Brin Londo. “The alternate Universe I come from has a full and actual existence. It is a real place, not merely a quantum potentiality.”

“It is a Universe I created,” said Aria Campbell, “At the desire of the Timberwolf who is of this dimension.”

“Creating Universes is a hazardous undertaking,” said Dori. “How many other Universes did you have to create and then destroy before making one to your liking?”

“You dare to speak to me of things you do not understand?” Aria Campbell radiated an aura of fiery aggression. “I created… nothing was destroyed… it was… beautiful”

Dori seemed incensed at this dismissal, and appeared ready to fight, transcendent being or no.

“Dori understands more than you might think,” Ennis interrupted. “Look at her, Aria Campbell. If you are the demi-god my mother thinks you are, I believe in doing so you will be taking a step closer to omniscience.”

“It is apparent that she is a perfectly ordinary mortal…” said Aria Campbell. “Oh, dear… I see you have powerful friends.”

“Not really my friends,” said Dori. “But I have been around transcendental entities to recognize a godling who doesn’t know her own strength yet. Or weakness.”

Aria Campbell turned to Alice Wilson. “I have been re-thinking our conversation of last evening,” she said. “We would like to stay here in Qaryah for a time, but I am no longer certain that I am the entity you have been seeking. It does seem a place of learning, however.”

Ennis Jahnson addressed his mother as well. “You thought this woman would replace the First Elder,” he said. “And perhaps Brin Londo would replace the Seven Counselors?”

“Your arrival at this time has been rather inauspicious,” said Mother Alice. “But perhaps I was rushing things. I can afford to be patient, I suppose.”

The undercurrent of tension faded as the day progressed. Thommi Anders continued to provide Dori with double-portions at meals. When Ennis returned to Jahnson’s World for the daily Transformations, Thommi and Alice left the house on some sort of errand, and Dori was left alone with Aria and Brin.

“It is wonderful the things one can become accustomed to,” said Dori. “Here I am, sitting with a demi-goddess, and the doppleganger of an acquaintance, having a perfectly ordinary conversation.”

“Have you seen your futures?” asked Aria Campbell.

“No, but evidently there are a number of people who have,” said Dori. “Some of them seem to want to kill me.”

“Perhaps understandable,” said Aria Campbell. “But doing so, I think, would be a mistake. I have looked into my own futures, and they are not all pleasant. I hope to ultimately choose the optimal path.”

“You know, you are the nicest demi-god I have met, with the possible exception of Sayd,” said Dori.

“Sayd is dead,” said Aria Campbell.

“So I’ve been told,” said Dori. “Brin, if you never became Timberwolf, and never joined the Legion, what did you do on your parallel Zuun?”

“I worked for my father’s company,” said Brin. “I was an Android Repair Hotline Dispatcher.”

CHAPTER SIX: INCORRUPTIBLE

Dori was glad to be back with Ennis on Jahnson's World. She really was beginning to see the Schwarzwald Hotel as home.

“You have had a reputation of being ‘incorruptible’ since Command Kid’s Legion of Super-Villains rejected you,” Dori noted. “I suppose that comes from your strict upbringing with the JFA?”

“Indirectly, I suppose,” said Ennis. “As I am considered a heretic by my family— and, I suppose I am-- having been brought up in that group, and rejecting their ethical vision, has forced me to think through and develop my own personal moral code— and I act accordingly. I know what I believe, and while I might re-evaluate those beliefs under a strong rational argument, I do not act against them. It would be like acting against your determination to breathe.”

“I suppose I have never really sat down and formulated a rigid, internally consistent moral code of my own,” said Dori. “I just try to do what feels right. At least, right at the time.”

“Most people are that way,” Ennis agreed. “But if I was to leave the Assembly, and everything I had been taught as a child, I really had to convince myself that I knew what I was doing was truly the right path for me.”

“I wonder if the residents of Takron-Galtos and the other prison worlds are there because they are following their own subjective sense morality?”

“Oh no, I believe it is quite usual for people to believe that something is right and moral— at least, for other people— and act in direct opposition to those beliefs. That is what we call ‘evil’.” Ennis thought a moment. “And then there is Myrnah.”

“Never been there,” said Dori. “Although everyone knows the legend. The super-hero Braino absorbed all the evil in their world into himself, dying in the process. Now it is a paradise of virtue.”

“More or less,” said Ennis. “You might get some argument on the paradisiacal nature of their society from some of its members. Braino was a real person, a native Myrnahn metahuman named Bav Neo. And he did die, in a massive psychic attempt to save his people. But in another sense, his mind, or ‘soul’, never did die. In death, his fantastic psyche impressed itself on the minds of the entire population of Myrnah. He is always there, lurking just in back of the consciousnesses of his people, observing and critiquing their every action. Anyone trying to harm, or act against the interest of another, is thwarted in that effort: paralyzed, by that remnant of Braino’s mind. Even ‘wrong thinking’ is suppressed. Of course, everyone is happy and content; they are required to be, at least on the conscious level. Even new-born Myrnahn infants are infected with the ‘Soul of Braino’—as is anyone who stays on Myrnah very long at all. I imagine that’s why it’s such an unfavorable tourist destination.”

“That is vaguely horrible,” said Dori. “Kind of like acquiring a super-conscience, and not necessarily your own.”

“It is even worse for the Myrnahns,” Ennis continued. “All Myrnahns are in a stage of evolution where they are developing latent psychic abilities. Not yet on the scale of Saturnians, but far more diverse: low-level telepathy, clairvoyance, telekinesis, and so on. Many of the Myrnahns are not only aware of their own psychic discomfort, but aware of the discomfort of their neighbohrs. And some Myrnahs even telepathically broadcast their subconscious grey, disheartening miasma. The population of Myrnah is declining, and not even the Soul of Braino seems able to stop it.”

“Have the Saturnians or other telepaths looked into reversing Braino’s ‘sacrifice’?”

“No one has the heart,” said Ennis. “Myrnah was once a planet of constant warfare, thousands of factions vying for domination of their world, or some piece of it. Criminal elements were not only tolerated, but many were actually employed by some of the Myrnahn warlords. Now the planet is peaceful and prosperous, at least outwardly. No one wants to go back to the days of constant warfare and the occasional nuclear terrorist attack—not even the Myrnahns themselves. So they accept the iron hand of the Soul of Braino dominating their lives.”

Ennis shrugged. “It’s a compromise, sacrificing freedom of the will for security and peace.”

Sacrificing freedom for security. Whew!

And the JFA is an interesting experiment. Looking forward to see where this leads.