Flight of Fancy

“Welcome, David,” said a voice faintly familiar to David. “Nice to have you here.”

David didn’t exactly know where here was, but he was slowly getting accustomed to the place and was actually moving his feet ever so lightly on the ground.

Ground? If you can call it that.

“I can understand your apprehension,” the voice replied to his thoughts. “But don’t worry, you’re not in danger.”

David was beginning to feel that was indeed the case, but was still feeling slightly uneasy.

“Once you get used to your surroundings, you’ll feel right at home,” said the voice, again replying to his concerns. “I am here to answer any questions you might have.”

David had plenty of questions, in fact there were so many that he didn’t know how to begin.

I’ll give it a shot anyway: “What is this place?”

The voice answered: “That is an excellent first question David and a good starting point. As you already feel, it all started with the book we left for you. We needed somebody to assemble the device for us.”

“Why me?” came the natural question.

“Ha ha,” laughed the voice. “I was expecting that question. I could flatter you and tell you that you were the chosen one, but I won’t give you any false illusions or delusions. We were looking for a person who could keep the device hidden from the public eye until it became self-sustainable. After studying your character, we came to the conclusion you were one of the right people for the job.”

“One of the right people?” asked David.

“Yes,” replied the voice. “There were more of you. There were several people throughout the globe, building devices and making everything possible.”

“Everything?” David was intrigued.

“Hold on,” laughed the voice. “You’re skipping ahead. I’ll tell you everything in good time, but the big picture will have to wait until the end.”

“Fine,” compromised David. “Then tell me who you are. You keep saying ‘we’. Who is ‘we’?”

“As you’ve probably realised, ‘we’ are not of your world. We are what you would call aliens, though we prefer to think of all creatures in the universe as simply living beings. This includes plants, animals, sentient beings, water, mountains, the soil… basically anything made up of the matter from the universe. It is all connected and nothings matters more than anything else.”

“What kind of aliens are you?” David was curious. “I mean you can obviously do some fantastic things, like making walls disappear.”

“Ha ha,” laughed the voice. “I’m sure, like with everything else, you feel that there are beings in the universe that have different capabilities to your species. That doesn’t make anyone better, it’s just the way it is. Your species has a lot of potential to develop beyond its current capabilities.”

“Yes,” replied David. “I somehow always knew that.”

“Indeed,” responded the voice. “There are many like you who believe that human are imposing limitations on themselves by worshipping false idols, whether that is religion or science. Even science, despite the best intentions, is full of people who cannot see beyond the tiny scope of current scientific dogma. Everything is energy. And humanity knows so little about it, yet acts as if it knows all the answers.”

David had always felt this was the case and was getting confirmation.

“Even though we can achieve things humans can’t,” said the voice, “that doesn’t make us better and it doesn’t mean we know everything there is to know. We’re not foolish enough to believe that we are at the peak of evolution. Besides, it doesn’t matter, we’re all one with the universe, regardless of our current stage of evolution.”

David was liking this being more and more and its voice was getting more and more familiar. He was trying to put his finger on it when the voice interrupted him: “It’s not important, David, however I can understand human curiosity. In a way, I am the same. I will let you work it out on your own.”

David knew he’d heard that voice before, its soothing tone and velvety sound. Then the realisation came to him: “Wolf!”

“Ha ha,” laughed the voice now recognised as Wolf. “Well done David. Your curiosity has been satisfied, now let’s return to the matters at hand.”

David thought about his next question. He didn’t feel a sense of urgency. It was as if time didn’t exist in this place.

I think time is probably standing still on Earth.

“Not exactly,” responded Wolf. “But we have enough time – for now.”

“So, you can hear my thoughts?” asked David.

“Yes,” answered Wolf. “Though I prefer not to, as it makes some people uneasy. Most enjoy talking in the usual sense. I mean ‘usual’ for your planet.”

“Yes,” said David. “I would probably prefer to talk, somebody listening in on your thoughts seems like an invasion of your privacy.”

“We will talk normally then. Though I can’t help listening to your thoughts. It would be like telling you not to listen to somebody speaking. It is one of our senses. We can’t simply shut it off.”

“Fine,” conceded David. “But I’d still prefer to talk.”

“Okay;” said Wolf. “What is your next question?”

It took some time to think about that, but David eventually found the next logical question: “What is the device I was building? The agents seemed to think it was a weapon of some sort.”

“Not to worry, David,” responded Wolf. “It’s not a weapon. It was, in a sense, both a portal to another dimension and a spaceship.”

David had a sense that it might be some kind of portal, but a spaceship? “What kind of spaceship? For what? For whom?”

“I think you already know the answer to that, David,” was Wolf’s reply. “We don’t require spaceships to travel and we can cross dimensions and realities in other ways.

“For us?” was David’s tentative answer / question.

“Yes, David,” said Wolf. “It is for you and others like you. In fact, you’re on board your own spaceship as we speak.”

“You mean this is a spaceship?”

“Indeed,” replied Wolf. “I know it doesn’t look like any spaceship that you would imagine, but it is one, I can assure you of that. It is self-sustainable and is still growing.”

“Growing?” asked David. “You mean like an organism?”

“Like I said,” replied Wolf, “everything in the universe has a purpose and energy. A spaceship is no different. This is a fully functional bio ship, where you can grow your own food, it can provide you with entertainment and a habitat for living.”

“You mean it’s meant for people to live in?”

“You’re skipping ahead again, but yes. Some people will live on the bio ship. I wasn’t going to tell you this now, David, but I suppose it’s as good a time as any.”

David had a feeling Wolf was going to say something important, so he braced himself for the worst. Then Wolf continued: “Humankind is at a key point in its history. Some people are waking up to certain realisation that are familiar to you, however some people refuse to believe it and refuse to part ways with a system of oppression. They would rather be slaves to the systems than part with the material things it offers them. I’m not speaking merely of the financially rich people, there are plenty of moor poverty stricken people who could never imagine living in any other ways and could never part with their own enslavement. Therefore, these ships are only intended for the awakened ones. It sounds so privileged, doesn’t it? However, that wasn’t out intention. We only wanted people that would advance the future of humanity and not cause it to decay. Unfortunately, some people aren’t ready for this adventure, as you very well know.”

David knew what Wolf was saying was true, but it still seemed sad to him.

“In fact, continued Wolf. “Most people would remain on the planet. Only a minority will travel with us. That is the way people want it. We have studied this and we will not go against it. Humankind will eventually die out. These are its final moments on Earth. It may take decades or centuries, but there’s no overturning it. Humanity’s future on Earth is doomed. So, you and others like you must find your place elsewhere.”

“But where?” was David’s natural response.

“Don’t worry David,” Wolf consoled him. “There are plenty of places out there much more hospitable than your Earth is currently. First, the bio ship will provide you with everything you need. Then, you can decide to go anywhere in the galaxy that you wish. You don’t need to remain as a group. You can break up into smaller groups if you wish. The ship will take you wherever you want to go. It comes equipped with detailed maps of many solar systems, many of them suitable for human life. The ship will also provide you with all the necessities you need to survive on your next home.”

“Is there really no way to remain on Earth?” David was already feeling nostalgic. “I know it’s not the best place to be, but this is where we come from, where we grew up, all our memories are here.”

“I’m afraid there’s no other way,” Wolf replied with regret in his voice. “Our species doesn’t usually interfere with matters of other species, however we made an exception in your case when it became evident that the human race was destroying itself.”

“Not all of us,” complained David.

“Enough of people are complicit,” said Wolf. “Even the ones who are most oppressed by the system would rather remain. It’s hard to tell people to escape from prison when they don’t realise they’re wearing shackles.”

“Why us? Why are we so interesting to you?” David was curious again.

“Like I already said,” Wolf replied calmly, “humanity has great potential, at least part of humanity. There are individuals who have special gifts that may eventually develop into something magnificent. However, if they remain on Earth, these gifts would not be able to develop and would even be supressed or exploited.”

“Yes, I’ve heard of these individuals,” admitted David. “I think my wife is one of them. But what about the rest of us with no special abilities, so to speak. Why do you need us?”

“This is not about us,” replied Wolf. “It is not about what we need. This is about your species. Anyone who is willing to escape the prison of their own mind is welcome to join you on your new adventure. You don’t need special abilities. But the people with special abilities will be able to flourish without fearing repercussions.

Our race first came to your world many millennia ago. We contacted some of the most spiritual members of your species. Our first point of contact was ancient Egypt. There were many spiritual people present there, however there were also people to keen on acquiring power. Still, we felt very positive that the goodness of men would remain and we tried to instil the positive attitudes in the majority of people. As you may or may not know, it didn’t work out very well in Egypt as the power hungry prevailed. We couldn’t intercede because that is not how we work. We hoped that eventually good would prevail and the spiritual would flourish. We had seen it on so many other planets and usually the species will find their path in the end. So, we had high hopes in that case as well. In Egypt, their empire of power and gold crumbled because they placed too much faith on material possessions. However, many of the spiritual entities remained. They were hidden, but continued to share their knowledge.

After Egypt, we contacted the Native American tribes of both South and North America. There, we were even more hopeful as the vast majority of peoples seemed to accept and share our views. There were some who were violent and sought power, but we were confident they would not prevail. In this case, we were right. Most of the tribes were on their way to spiritual enlightenment and peace between the many peoples living there, then there was the unfortunate arrival of the materialistic empires from Europe, which changed the course of Native American development. The Natives at that time were already quite enlightened and thus accepted the Europeans with open arms, not knowing the fate in store for them. The new settlers ravaged and destroyed both the land and the people. There were still warriors among the Natives, who wished to reclaim back their land and freedom, but violence never ends violence and they were brutally destroyed by the Europeans, who had spent most of their time on perfecting or stealing weapons of war and less time on spiritual pursuits.”

Wolf remained quiet for a while and David felt he could ask another question: “So you never returned to Earth again?”

“We have been keeping an eye on Earth,” admitted Wolf. “But we never had official physical contact with its people again. For a while, we were hopeful that things would improve, however the power hungry have taken complete control and even the spiritual ones have no power to fight them. Or maybe it’s better to say that they don’t yet have the power to fight them. But once that power is theirs, it will be too late.”

“What is the matter with humans?” David was furious. “We have this beautiful planet and all this potential, but all we do is fight among each other and strive for power.”

“This duality is present in most species,” replied Wolf. “However, in many cases the spiritual side eventually prevails. It will prevail in your species as well, you only needed a little bit of help. The right people shall move on to a brighter future. We already know who is joining you on your ship. It is only a matter of time and effort to get them all here.”

“And how are they getting here?” asked David.

“Take a guess.” Wolf was being playful.

“Me?” said David.

“Yes,” replied Wolf. “You will be one of the ones responsible for carrying this out. However, once more people are aboard, each will be responsible for bringing more people here, usually their friends and / or relatives.”

“How many people is that?” David was curious.

“Several millions,” came the honest reply.

“What!?” David couldn’t believe his ears.

“You have to understand,” explained Wolf. “This is not the only ship in orbit. There were many people building ships all over the world and they are now all in position. All the ships are still expanding, making enough room for all the inhabitant.”

“Expanding? You mean, like growing?” asked David.

“Yes,” replied Wolf, “exactly like growing. The ship will comfortably accommodate all the people on our list.”

“What if someone doesn’t want to come?” It was a pertinent question.

“That is their choice. Nobody will be forced to leave their home.” David was satisfied with Wolf’s explanation, however couldn’t really see himself convincing anyone to join him on some alien ship. They would think he was crazy or that aliens had brainwashed him.

“You’d be surprised,” said Wolf. “Most of these people are willing to believe in many things, including an alien ship carrying them to a better future.”

“I suppose you’re right,” conceded David.

“I think that’s enough for the time being,” said Wolf. “I can tell you’re a bit tired, so I suggest you get some rest. We will talk some more when you wake up.”

David didn’t feel the need to reply. For a moment, he merely stood there, trying to let everything soak in. It was just so unbelievable. Still, even if it was all just a crazy dream or an illusion, Wolf was right about one thing – David was indeed feeling tired. He lay on the floor, or at least what felt like the floor and tried to get comfortable. As soon as his body stretched out on the ground, the floor seemed to become more comfortable and even soft and conformed to his body, just like a memory mattress.

Strange.

With that thought, David’s consciousness drifted away and brought thought of Ana.

***************************************

David woke up. His body was laid flat on a big king-size double bed, the mattress firm and supportive under his body. He hadn’t felt this relaxed in a long time. Looking at the other side of the bed, he couldn’t help noticing that Ana was gone. If she woke up before him, she usually waited for him to wake up, so they could have breakfast together. She was probably preparing a surprise in the kitchen for him. The sheets and the duvet were different to what they usually had, but maybe they’d bought new things and he hadn’t been paying attention. Oh you men, Ana would say. He felt like enjoying the comfort of the bed for a bit longer. It wasn’t as if he had to be anywhere. That was one of the perks of being unemployed. He turned in bed, taking in the scents of the fresh bed linen and loving how it felt against his body.

His brain needed to wake up. It usually took a while before his whole mechanism was functioning properly, unless he had to get up for work – in that case, he would shoot up like an arrow out of bed and get ready as soon as was humanly possible. Lying in this comfortable bed, certain thoughts came flooding back to him. He remembered the previous day and then all the days before that.

Thank God, it was all a dream.

Lying in the bed, it seemed like a distant nightmare – the device, the American agents, the arrest, the prison and then the strange journey and standing in the middle of space.

It couldn’t be true.

Looking around him, the room had a homely feel to it, with walls painted in the same colours as their home and with the same photo wallpaper that Ana had put up with lots of cursing and shouting. There were the same windows as back home, with thick curtains blocking out the sunlight. Still, something didn’t feel quite right.

“Ana.” David almost whispered the words, expecting Ana to almost sense that he was awake, as she so often did. There was no reply and the house felt ghostly empty, as if it was merely an empty shell, a poor replica of the home David and Ana had created for themselves.

“Ana!” He now raised his voice to a level she would undoubtedly here, even above the boiling of a kettle or frying of eggs.

No reply.

There was also no sound of any water boiling or any other kitchen noises, which would reveal the presence of another person in the abode.

Maybe she’s gone out for a walk.

It wasn’t unusual for Ana to sometimes wake up and go out for a brisk early morning walk if he felt like lying in for a while. It didn’t happen often, but it wasn’t out of the question.

David decided to get up. He started putting on clothes, without even looking what was on the chair. As long as it was something comfortable, it didn’t matter. That was his motto. It was also probably why he couldn’t keep a job or lately even get a job. It probably looked like he didn’t give a damn about anything. But why would you need to wear uncomfortable clothes to make yourself appear better and more trustworthy? As far as David was concerned, it was the other way round. Bankers and politicians always wore fancy clothes and most of them were horrific crooks.

David walked to the bedroom door and opened it. He was greeted by a flash of light and then the entire scene changed. Left, right and above him was nothing but stars, while below there actually was a floor now, though he couldn’t quite make out the material. The illusion that it had all merely been a dream had now vanished.

I’m on the ship.

“Good morning, David,” greeted a friendly voice that David now recognised as Wolf’s. It was now obvious the horrible nightmare was actually a reality and David was separated from his family.

“Oh come on, it’s not that bad,” complained Wolf.

“I didn’t mean the whole ship experience,” replied David. “It’s what happened before this and being away from my family.”

“Not to worry,” said Wolf. “If things go according to plan, you’ll see them soon enough.”

It was nice to hear the optimism in Wolf’s voice, even if David wasn’t as confident himself. With the way things had been going recently, it was hard to see past the run of bad luck.

“Right,” continued Wolf. “Do you want the tour of the ship?”

“Yes! Very much!” was David’s excited response.

“Okay,” Wolf said. “You’re now on the main habitat corridor and where you came from were your quarters. There’s habitats on each side of this corridor, most of them self-sufficient with toilets, kitchens, dining areas, bedrooms and living quarters. They come in various sizes, depending on the size of the family inhabiting it.”

David was walking down the corridor and looking at the many doors on both sides. The walls had now changed from translucent to solid, so David was able to see all the doors and the flat shape of the walls.

“The interior of the rooms can be adapted to individual tastes. All the waste that is produced, either from food, water consumption or bio waste is recycled. Nothing goes to waste. The ship has devices which takes atoms and molecules and puts them to productive use.”

“So it’s like a 3-D printer?” inquired David.

“Yes, it’s very much like that but very sophisticated,” replied Wolf. “Our devices can print anything from food, machines, papers, tools – you name it. As long as we have the atoms for it, there’s nothing that cannot be reproduced. We take the matter from many sources – comets, planets, or any other source in the universe. However, there’s always the greatest care taken not to disturb the natural equilibrium of a planet when restocking the ship.”

David was coming towards the end of the corridor and there was a big door at the end of it.

I wonder where that leads to?

“That door leads to the main bridge,” replied Wolf, reading David’s thoughts yet again. “Do you want to have a look at it?”

“Yes,” came David’s eager response.

As soon as David came close to the big door, it opened silently and revealed an empty expanse of space. David could make out the floor underneath his feet, but everything else was translucent.

“As you can see,” continued Wolf, answering David’s unuttered thoughts, “it’s not exactly the kind of bridge you’d expect. It’s more or less just an observation deck. Once the ship is in motion, this is the front part. That’s the only reason why it’s called the bridge. It serves no other function. The ship replies to verbal and telepathic command, so there’s no need for any fiddly buttons. Commands can be given from any part of the ship.”

“What about a backup system, a failsafe in case something goes wrong?” inquired David.

“The ship has so many backups in terms of energy sources and auxiliary systems, that any manual overrides are completely unnecessary. The ship’s potential energy sources are so many that running out of energy is almost a theoretical impossibility.”

Almost.

“If something happens that destroys all the backups, you’ll probably be in a thousand pieces, scattered around space,” replied Wolf.

“That’s very reassuring,” complained David.

“This ship is equipped with state-of-the art technology,” reassured Wolf. “There are energy shields protecting the ship and the ship itself is invisible to normal sensors and can’t be seen with the naked eye.”

“What about the energy source?” inquired David. “Would that be picked up by sensors?”

“No,” came the quick response. “We have never met a species that can pick up the energy source of this kind of ship. That does not, however, mean that a race like that doesn’t exist. Still, if a race like that existed, chances are they wouldn’t be hostile.”

To a certain degree, David was satisfied with that. It would have to do. If part of humanity was going to leave Earth, this seemed as good a place as any to become a home for the time being. Eventually, they could settle somewhere and create a permanent colony, creating new lineages and a heritage humanity would finally be proud of. It seemed that humanity would never let go of its violent past and lust for power and according to Wolf it would never happen if the next generation of humans remained on Earth, serving as slaves to the people who would rather see humanity destroyed than let go of their hold on the natural resources and the people of Earth.

“Come,” said Wolf. “I’ll show you the gardens and the entertainment room.”

As David was walking, there were white arrows showing him where to go.

“If you ever get lost,” explained Wolf, “just ask the computer and it’ll show you the way.”

First, they walked to the gardens, where everything appeared to be ready for planting. There were troughs already filled with soil and aquaponics bays. The size of the place was also impressive – maybe the size of two large fields – but the space was better utilised.

“This is just one of the many gardens on this ship,” explained Wolf. “There’s several more. Once the planting begins, there will be enough crops to feed the whole ship. However, the 3-D printing devices, as you call them, will also be able to provide you with food. The gardens, though, serve also a communal purpose of bringing people together to work and enjoy themselves. Also, we have noticed that a lot of people who are coming on the ship would prefer their food to come straight from the source, instead of it just being a collection of atoms and molecules.”

After the visit to the impressive gardens section, Wolf suggested they go to one of the entertainment units and David agreed. When they walked in, it seemed to be just a normal room.

“The entertainment units aren’t different to any habitat rooms, apart from their purpose as entertainment units. They can be made to look like anything you want, same as your quarters and serve any purpose – sport, games, sex; whatever you like.”

This seemed like a good idea to David, but he did think these might get a bit crowded once all the people were on board.

“Like I said,” explained Wolf, “these units serve merely as entertainment units. However, if all the units are occupied, any other room, such as your quarters, may be used as an entertainment unit.”

“Wow, that sounds amazing!” exclaimed David.

“I’m glad you like it,” said Wolf. “There’s not really much else to show you at the moment and I believe I’ve explained the main things to you. I suggest you either enjoy the advantages of our entertainment units or go relax in your room.”

This didn’t sit well with David. While the ship was impressive and a great distraction, it hardly seemed like the right time to lounge about.

“What about Ana and my family?” David voiced his concerns. “When are we going to see them?”

“I know you’re worried about them,” Wolf was sympathetic. “But it’s not time yet. I will let you know when.”

There was nothing else for it but to wait. Although David didn’t like it, he realised that he might as well enjoy the benefits of the entertainment unit and get some exercise.

A round of tennis would do just nicely.