Clive was unable to conceal the surprise from his features. “Oh?”
“We go way back and that’s why I felt like I could entrust him to scope out what was going on at the college. He was probably just playing devil’s advocate when you were there.”
“Good to know. He really ticked me off.” Clive laughed out of relief and to conceal his embarrassment.
There was silence then Zion changed the subject. “There is much more to this calling than I ever imagined.” Zion sighed. “If you had told me when I got into ministry that I would be like a Christian spy, I would have laughed.”
“The good Lord doesn’t give us much choice on what we are called to do.” Clive said reverently.
“True, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Zion then stood. “I am honored to have such an intelligent and god-fearing man on my team like you.”
Clive’s heart warmed at the praise. “Thank you for letting me seek refuge.” Clive stood as well and realized even more strongly how much taller he was than Zion.
“It is a pleasure.” Zion held out his right hand to shake. The doctor Clive was not used to this gesture, but Clive trusted Zion so he shook his hand gratefully. “I recommend you keep your cell phone off and that you only use the internet over our secure network. The police have become much more advanced with their tracking technology. I will do all I can to keep you safe until you plan to leave, but I can only do so much. I believe you are innocent of any crimes.”
“Thank you.” Clive smiled a genuine smile this time as he let go of Zion’s hand.
Zion nodded and then said, “Are you ready to go check on Arrow, Doc?”
“Yes, I would love to.” Clive insisted.
***
“So, my thought is that if we can somehow open up a portal into wherever our data is going, we might be able to discover what is happening.” Zion said on Monday night.
Pat was sitting incorrectly on an ergonomic swivel chair, his gangly legs touching at the knees and calves creating a triangle shape. He was wearing borrowed black slacks, an untucked white button-up shirt, and a thin black tie. His hair still hadn’t been brushed.
“Sounds very sciencey.” Pat said.
“Of course it is.” Zion laughed good-naturedly. Pat marveled at how Zion was able to just take things in stride and continued to be happy.
“How do you propose we do that?” Clive asked, taking the responsibility for moving forward.
“Well, in each chip there is a feature that dissolves the feelings and memories that are causing the mental health issue. However, it doesn’t seem that they are being dissolved, but instead are being sent somewhere. We need to figure out what command is sending this data and where it is sending it so we can prevent that from happening.”
“When we make the microchips, there isn’t a secret command we use to send this stuff elsewhere.” Pat said dismissively.
“Right, that you know of anyway.” Zion clapped his hands together and rubbed them excitedly. “But I think I found the place where some of these apparitions are coming from.”
“Where?” Pat’s demeanor visibly changed. He shuffled in his seat and leaned forward, interest in his eyes.
“Follow me.”
Zion led the men to a back door of the main building where a small carport sat with a few golf carts parked inside. He sat in the driver’s seat of one and gestured for them to join him. As they did, he started it up and began driving further into the backyard. There were pine trees everywhere and a gravel road leading from the carport down a hill. As they exited the trees and crested another hill, Pat could see a brick building in the distance. It looked like a short squat silo with a slit down the center. When they were level with it, it was about as tall as an average one-story home.
Zion unlocked the single door and let them inside. The interior looked like a spaceship command center. Keyboards encircled the space and wires hung down from monitors suspended around the walls. In the very center of the room was a huge telescope that pointed up and out of a slit in the roof. Up close Pat could tell that it wasn’t open to the elements but covered by thick, crystal-clear glass.
“This is my observatory.” Zion said proudly.
“It’s beautiful.” Clive gushed.
“Thank you. That’s high praise coming from a doctor.”
If it had been anybody else, Pat would have assumed it was a sarcastic comment, but Zion never said anything he didn’t mean.
“So, what are we looking at?” Pat asked.
Zion strolled over to a keyboard across the room and began punching in commands for the telescope. It made no sound as it moved itself into the programmed position and stopped after a minute. Zion looked into the eyepiece and a moment later he was smiling like a cat with a canary. He backed up and gestured at Pat to take a look.
Pat obliged and peered into the eyepiece. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust. Because of the daylight, he was unable to see much in the way of constellations and planets, but he saw the tips of a few trees and clouds.
“I’m not sure I see anything.”
“Do you see a thin line?” Zion asked.
Pat peered even harder. He was about to give up when he saw what looked like a crack in the sky.
“I see it.” Pat leaned back and jerked his head to signal Clive to look next.
Clive came over and looked in the eyepiece as well. In a moment he leaned back and nodded.
“I suspect that anomaly in the sky will give us some clues about what has been going on. It doesn’t look like anything I’ve ever seen before and I’ve been studying the skies since I was in high school.” Zion said firmly. “There have also been some news reports about some odd sightings out that way.”
“When do we check it out?” Clive asked, leaning against an empty wall and crossing his arms.
“Soon. I want to observe it for another week and then we can go that way. For now, I want us to do some research on the codes for where these things are being sent.” Zion continued to gesture wildly.
“You really like this stuff, don’t you?” Pat let out a small chuckle.
