This Place Only

Chapter Ten - Applewhite

Chapter Ten

Applewhite

The first thing I noticed in this grand, circular room was the artwork. There had to be at least sixty paintings adorning the continuous wall. All appeared to be originals, presented beneath soft display lamps. There were no overhead lights. The flickering I had noticed from the hallway came from several dark candles sitting on a low, uncluttered desk at the back of the room, three burning on each end.

I couldn’t breathe, but sensors picked up trace odors, probably given off by the candle smoke. Paraffin. Frankincense.

The absolute last thing I noticed in the room, oddly, was Applewhite himself. Only the top half of his head was visible above the desk.

“Ahh,” he breathed. “There you are. How strange I’ve finally found you. Or, perhaps you are the one who has found me, no?” Laughing, the squat man rose from his seat and walked around the desk to shake my hand. His hair was fine and snow-white, receding at an aggressive rate from his deeply lined brow. He wore dark, finely rimmed spectacles that concealed his eyes, but not his expression, which poured through with the slightest gesture.

Not wanting to hover above him, I sat down in one of the many low chairs before the desk. In an unplanned motion, I reached forward and took his hand in my own. We were almost eye-to-eye when he examined my proffered hand, turning it over in both of his own.

“Magnificent,” he whispered. Still holding my cybernetic digits, his face grew serious and his voice solemn.

“Such beauty and mystery, as well, in how we’ve come to be together.”

“Who are you?” were the only words I seemed able to speak.

“I am known to many as Applewhite. I am Chief Director of Security on Earth.

Somehow, I knew this was a lie, though said nothing. Something else about him jumped to the forefront of my mind and I said, “You’re not human.”

Another grandfatherly smile washed over his face.

“And how much human is there left inside you, my fried? The hollow man? The Mind Forever Voyaging!”

This struck me as an odd choice of words. He laughed again, more at himself than my obvious confusion.

“Here you are, Sire. Near the end of your journey, it seems.” He cocked his head playfully and tugged distractedly at his right earlobe. “No doubt you desire answers. I’ve monitored your queries since your arrival in the 36th century. It appears that you and I are searching for the same man.”

“David?” I asked, surprised. “You know about David?”

“I’ve been searching for him for quite some time now.”

Digging at my last memories of David, I said, “David… did something to me.”

“Indeed. I’d like to find out what it was as much as you, I think, but he covered his tracks well. Your goal was to restore a group of scientists trapped in a matrix of closed realities, correct?”

“Yes,” I said, knowing already that David had deceived me on this point.

“Much of what he told you, I’m certain, was false. Misleading. He used you… why?”

“Please help me understand,” my words were dry, without inflection, but I felt more impossible emotions stirring deep within me.

“Young man,” Applewhite began, as if introducing a lengthy bedtime story. “The scientists were not, nor are they now, trapped. They escaped and are well hidden. David and the people he controls appear to be collecting information. His ultimate goal is still unknown to us, but the damage he has caused is awesome.