Mother calling me in the morning was the worst part of my day. I love to linger in bed until the last second, which triggers Mom a lot.
“Five minutes, Mom!” I shouted back to her while covering my face with the pillow. Not even 7 in the morning, and school was right down the block, so why? Why? Why do I have to get up this early? Okay, maybe helping prepare breakfast was one of the reasons, perhaps a decent one, but I really, really love to linger in bed!
“Sophie O’Sullivan! Get off that bed!” Mom again! Two shouts later, I dragged myself to the bathroom and started my day. In a flash, I was in school uniform and then downstairs to fry bacon.
Sheila, my bestie, would soon be here to walk to school with me. The senior second year of the Leaving Cert was a real pain, but the idea of finally being done with secondary school and moving to college next year was totally what pushed me on.
My day always started like this, which wasn’t too bad. Then, school, homework, and, of course, some hanging with Sheila and the gang. On occasion, I’d even lend a hand in the evening at the pub my family runs. Then finally, ready for bed.
Over the last few weeks, I started to wonder what I should do with my life. I’m 17 now. I can’t spend my life just hanging around and studying. I feel like I’m missing something big, but I can’t put my finger on it. All I know is that I’m steadily growing restless, and I don’t like it one bit.
Hanging with the gang every day reminds me that Sheila’s the wild one, always looking for trouble for the fun of it. Nothing big, but enough to stir the pot.
On the other hand, Aine was our anchor, our moral compass, always trying to fence Sheila’s mess and get us out of trouble.
Niamh was the light one, always brightening up the conversation and steering away from complex or controversial subjects. The girl had a skill for changing topics on the fly without people noticing until it was done.
What about me? Well, if you ask the gang, I am the glue keeping the group together, leading them, mediating choices and the like. If you ask me, I’m the joker of this odd group of friends. I like to run pranks and tell tales once we are done with it. In a way, I’m worse than Sheila in getting us in trouble!
The four of us love to talk about almost anything, and like that goes our time together (when we are not up to pranking people!). We live in an exciting time, so running out of subjects is hard. The world’s big guns are always looking to wage war on each other indirectly, using some small country as a battlefield (God forbid actually to face each other for a change!). Eco-terrorists were active these days, picking every reason to blow something up. Just last week, they burned down a pharmaceutical lab where they tested new drugs on animals.
All in all, we couldn’t possibly run out of important topics to discuss. Until Niamh shifts the subject to her last boyfriend, the jeans she wants to buy, or when we will watch some old classic movie again.
After school, Sheila, Aine, Niamh, and I were hanging around South Park, one of Galway’s loveliest places, if you ask me. This afternoon looks nothing different from any other.
Still, my restlessness grows by the minute. Aine was just telling us how her date went last night, but I was barely paying attention. Instead, my mind jumped randomly from one thought to another, distracting me from the conversation.
“I cannot keep doing this,” I said under my breath.
“What was that?” Sheila asked.
“Nothing, sorry. I was just getting distracted. Can’t concentrate on the conversation.” I said.
“How comes? Is a new lad stealing your thoughts? Who is he? Please, do tell!!” said Niamh, leaning in with a smirk.
“No boy involved. Sorry to disappoint!” I said, “I’m just restless. That’s it.”
“Nonsense!” Sheila said, “You just don’t wanna share!”
“Really! Guys, it’s nothing that I can put my finger on. It’s just a feeling.” I shrugged.
The conversation went on like this for a few minutes; then it shifted to something else, a new subject I didn’t really catch.
I was absent, and my imagination was running wild. Flashing colours filled my mind with images of people I had never met. Then constellations and planets spin out of control around stars I don’t remember having seen in any book before. All these colours and images were reeling fast, making me feel dizzy. I had to get out of this state, so I got up and decided to part ways.
“Gotta go, guys! I just remembered that I didn’t finish the English essay for tomorrow. I really have to get to it and finish it off before dinner. Sorry! See ye all in the morrow!” I said. What a lame excuse that was! But hey, it worked, and I hurried home without giving it a second thought.
I did not take the fastest route home. I walked home slowly and took the longest way. I needed to clear my head, and walking always helped me. Not this time. The odd images kept spinning, colours kept flashing, and I was getting more worried by the minute.
I was no longer in control of my own thoughts! It took me a lot of concentration to keep heading home instead of going in circles. I think I walked around Eyre Square a few times before noticing that I wasn’t going anywhere but rather circling the area. In a way, it was both fun and scary.
“Something is very wrong with me, with my head!” I thought at one point, but going crazy isn’t something I’d be ready to face. Not by a long shot!
Once home, I went straight to my room, barely acknowledging my parents. I told them the same story about the unfinished essay and added a headache on top of it so that I would just stay in my room and go to bed once I was done with the English piece.
“Do you want me to bring you some tea, dear?” Mom offered.
“Nope, but thank you!” I answered without stopping.
My room was comforting. It was my personal bubble. The walls were painted in a light blue but covered with posters of my heroes, a total mix of all ages of music and movies: Red Hurley, Larry Cunningham & Country Blueboys, The Beatles, The Platters, Paul McCartney and Wings, and Suzi Quatro, which totally was my favourite, U2, Enya, Pierce Brosnan, and the like.
I closed the blinds to lessen the burden on my eyes and sat cross-legged on my bed. I closed my eyes and dropped my head, focusing on my breathing trying to listen to my heart.
I’m not sure if I stayed there a minute or an hour. The carnival in my head hid from me the passing of time.
At some point, the mesmerising show in my mind slowed down, gradually fading away. Until there was only a starry sky with a big full moon shining its silvery light upon me. And in my head, I saw myself sitting in a vast grassland, still cross-legged, but my back was straight, and my eyes fixated on the moon.
I could actually smell the grass all around me. I could feel the light breeze on my face. The silence was perfect; I could hear my breathing and my heart beating. It was a strangely relaxing situation.
Then, like it was perfectly natural, I was no longer touching the grass; I was floating about a meter from the ground, and it felt natural. The moonlight began to pulse slowly, in sync with my heartbeat. A halo formed around the moon, pulsating along with it. It was like the moonlight was becoming one with my very soul. What an exhilarating feeling!
Was I absorbing the silvery light? It felt that way, but I was also glowing myself! This was the most fantastic daydream I ever had! I was floating, I felt one with everything around me, and I was the moon extension on Earth! I felt like a goddess! “I am Selene, sister of Helios!” I thought, laughing. I really felt like it was real at that moment! It felt great!
“No, you are not.” A female voice said from behind me.
It felt like a scene in a movie when a piece of beautiful soft music is playing, then suddenly interrupted by a vinyl scratching. My floating ceased abruptly, sending my ass to greet the soil beneath the grass. I did not find myself on my bed as I expected. I was still on the ground. Actually, I was gracelessly sprawled on the ground. I looked back. A woman in her 30s was standing there, arms crossed and a smirk on her face. She wore jeans and a polo, her brown hair pulled back in a long ponytail.
“And who the hell are you? And how are you in my head?” I almost screamed at her.
“Good evening to you as well, young lady.” She said, that smirk still plastered on her face.
This is getting weirder by the second. Am I trapped in my daydream? How do I snap out of this? I really didn’t like it anymore now that Miss Smirky Face 1976 broke the magic.
“Is there something wrong?” Smirky Face asked me.
“Who are you? How comes I’m not awake on my bed?” I asked.
Smirky Face stared at me, clearly amused. But then, she moved, circling to get right in front of me, and she sat in front of me, cross-legged and… floating so as to barely touch the grass.
“You are disappointing me, girl. How can you ask such a question after your ass kissed the ground that hard? How can you still think this is a daydream?” She asked me, with her expression now getting serious, almost grave.
What did she mean by that? If I’m not daydreaming, then where am I? And how? Am I going crazy? Maybe I’m asleep, and this is nothing but a bad dream.
“No, girl. You are not asleep and certainly not dreaming.” She said. Was she reading my thoughts?
“Certainly I am, girl.” She said, answering my unspoken question.
Okay, now I’m getting tired of this dream. Time to wake up and have a shower.
“No waking up, girl, but I can provide the shower!” She said, the smirk back on her face.
She softly gestured towards me, unfolding her hand with her palm facing the sky, and rain suddenly started to pour - only on me. But when I moved, it followed. So now I’m in a comedy, am I not? Is this supposed to be funny?
“I do see a funny side to this!” Miss Smirky Face said.
“Enough with the name-calling, girl. My names are many, but you can just call me Phoebe, which I like better.” She told me as her severe expression returned.
“Okay, so you do have a name. Is that from the old TV series, Charmed? Are you some sort of witch?” I teased her, wearing a smirk of my own just for the fun of it.
“Your ignorance is really something, girl. The name Phoebe is ancient, and it was given to me by the ancient Greeks.” She said with a scowl. “I’m beginning to suspect that choosing you was not wise of me.”
“Okay, lady, this is going too far. Whatever prank you’re playing on me, it’s time to explain yourself and this whole magic trick of yours.” I scowled, feeling somewhere in between angry and scared, two feelings I really didn’t care for.
“This is no prank, girl, and there is no magic trick. I am Phoebe, and on this night, I have chosen you as the human vessel to carry the burden of fighting off the upcoming evil. Again, no jokes, no tricks.” She said and then snapped her fingers.
The whole world around us imploded, and in a flash of light, we were now sitting across each other in Eyre Square.
“What about a coffee? Or a Coke? I will definitely have coffee.” She said, getting up and heading for the diner across the square. I was still putting myself together, so I didn’t even try to answer. I just stood and followed in a state of complete bedazzlement. My face tickled from a drop of cold sweat suddenly rolling towards my cheek.
I wiped it away and took a seat across the table she had selected, still speechless. This was definitely real, but how we got here was totally unreal. I don’t like not understanding what happens around me, so I was moving from a state of confused astonishment to one of focused anger. Guess who the focus of that was?
“What about some answers now?” I raised my voice, trying to ignore my fastening pulse.
“What about you tell me what you would like to have? Just a drink or maybe something to eat as well? You know, on a full belly, I suppose we can have a more productive conversation. My treat!” She said.
“Well, since you’re offering, and I’m famished.” my pulse quietened, and my body cooled. “I’ll have dinner. The lamb stew is delicious here, so I’ll take that with lots of coffee.” I stared at her and asked, “So, can we talk now?”
“Are you always this hasty? Relax a bit and enjoy this nice evening! We have time, and I think you can learn more from a normal conversation than a third-degree.” She said, with a simper now. I suppose I have to play along if I want to get anything out of this lady.
For some mysterious reason, I wasn’t as scared as I probably should have been about all the craziness I had experienced until now. This fact alone was unsettling, in a way. I’m not easily frightened, but all this was way beyond normal and natural. Maybe I was in denial, waiting to wake up in my room. Yes, that has to be why I was feeling so normal. Now ordering my preferred meal while sharing the table with some witch, demon, or whatever else this odd character is. What if this wasn’t a dream? What if all this is actually happening?
“Sure it is, my dear girl!” Phoebe suddenly spoke with a smile on her face, “And yes, I can hear your thoughts if I so wish. And no, that doesn’t prove that this is a dream. It proves that I am who I am.”
“Okay, and who would that be?” I asked her, raising a brow.
“Why, I’m Phoebe! Didn’t I tell you that already?” She said, laughing at me. She’s seriously pissing me off. How can she be like that?
“Do you mind? Either you gimme some serious answers, or I walk out of here right now!” I yelled, slamming my hand on my lap.
“And what makes you think you would be able to walk out on me? Do tell.” Phoebe said, the smirk back on her face.
That was enough, really enough. I got up, and… before I knew it, I was seated again! I tried once more, but again, I kept finding myself sitting.
“Girl, please! People are staring at you now. They will think you had one too many drinks if you keep doing that, don’t you agree?” She asked with the most innocent smile on her face. I really didn’t like this dream. This is closer to a nightmare at this point, not a dream at all.
“Please, girl, try to relax. Answers will come, I promise. Just don’t try to fight it because you just cannot. I’m not an enemy. I do not wish you harm. Actually, I chose you for a high purpose because of your heart, so don’t disappoint me.” She said to me with a tone that sounded sincere. Then she smiled at the waitress coming up with our orders.
I didn’t know what to think anymore, so I concentrated on the food. That was the one thing I knew I could enjoy no matter what. And so I did.
When we got close to finishing our orders, she asked: “Was it that hard to give it a moment?”
“No. But, just to be clear, I’m still pissed at you and this whole thing.” I said. I was enjoying the food, but that doesn’t mean I’m okay with the rest of what’s happening, and I really want her to get that.
“I understand that, but I need you to come to terms with the fact that today, something very special is happening to you. You felt it coming, and it happened. So, while we get to sip our coffee, I’ll drop on you way more than the answers to your questions. I will drop the weight of the whole world on you. And that is not a metaphor!” She said with the most severe expression I’ve ever seen. She was emanating a sense of urgency, a feeling that reached me down to my bones.
That made my anger evaporate, and I felt a strong need to listen to whatever she had to say to me next. How odd was that?
Dinner was over, and we were now sipping coffee. Phoebe pushed her mug away and said: “Here we go. I’m now going to get you up to speed. Keep an open mind, and do not interrupt me. I will allow questions once I’m done explaining the situation to you and your position within what’s going on.”
“You must know that humans are not the only intelligent inhabitants of this universe and not the only ones on this particular planet.” She said, shifting on her bench.
“There are beings known to humans by many names. Gods and demons are the most common definitions; each has many more, most of them pure fantasy. We have spread some of those myths to ensure our privacy: It is not nice to have half of humanity knocking at your door asking for something every day.” She said.
“For those of us who made contact, it has always ended badly, so we had to come up with a way to contain the damage. Humans are not ready to understand other, more evolute sort.”
“Some others among us have come to hate the situation and want just to rid the planet of humans. These are considered criminals in our communities, but our laws only allow us to take steps once the damage is done. We tried to change these laws, but it is not a simple process, and we can’t get a consensus on how this is to happen.”
“We live a very long time compared to humans, and this is why, in human terms, it’s taking ages to tackle the issue. But, unfortunately, centuries are meaningless to us, and that, maybe, is part of our problem.”
“Now, in this human century, a few extremists are planning what you would call an apocalypse, an extinction-level event.”
Phoebe was still talking, but my mind wandered away, imagining gods walking among us without us even noticing. The tale she was telling was mind-blowing. The gods are not really ‘gods’; they are just a different species sharing the planet with us. In a way, it made sense. I always found it quite ridiculous that almighty gods were human-like. But it made sense that our evolution was similar if they were nothing but a different species sharing our planet.
In a way, all made sense to me, but I still was unsure about the reality of all this. It’s likely that I was soundly asleep in my bed and dreaming all this.
“Some of us don’t like the idea of genocide, so we must step in and stop those criminals. The problem is that a direct confrontation would be as damaging as the apocalypse they want to bring on. And this is why we have to bring humans into the fight, you in this particular instance.” She said, with a sad expression, almost of guilt. And she paused, staring at me. I guess it was my clue to ask questions.
“So you say I’d be your foot soldier in your war?” I asked.
“No, girl. This is your war, not ours. These criminals will be taken care of once they do the damage, and it’s only a minor policing thing for us, not a war, not even a bar fight. To make you understand, one of ours creating a human extinction event is like a human deciding to kill all the giant pandas they can find. Would you call that war? No, it’s nothing but a criminal trying to destroy an endangered species. Some of us want to step in and empower one or two giant pandas to defend their kind.” She explained.
That was an example, alright! Giant pandas? She just compared us to animals! And she is the Green Peace activist in this picture? And I’m the panda she wants to train? This is the most fucked up dream I ever had.
“Do you know how fucking patronising and offensive that sounds?” I said, raising a brow while leaning on the table, pointing at her. “So what is this to you? A charity activity you take up in your free time? You apparently have godly powers, so you want to play god using me as your minion?” I said, lowering my hand.
“Well, girl. That surely is a way to put it. Just know that I have no ‘powers’. I just understand the make of the universe, which allows me to exercise some control over it. Humans will get there as well, in time. Your kind focuses more on mechanics, so it’ll take more time for you to get to it, but you will. There is no such thing as a godly power. It’s all quite natural, part of the evolutionary path.” She explained. “Imagine what a Neanderthal would think of your kind today. Imagine that you Homo Sapiens Sapiens had to live among Neanderthals, having to disguise yourselves to avoid shocking them. That is, more or less, the situation between us and humanity. I know that the comparison might sound offensive, but I can assure you, it is not intended as such.”
All things considered, Phoebe’s words made sense, but I was still kinda sure I would wake up in bed, laughing about this bizarre dream I had. I can’t wait to tell the gang about it!
“I’m afraid you won’t tell about this to anybody.” Phoebe said, “Now it’s time to bring you back home, so you can rest.” And while she said so, white flashed before my eyes, and we were back in my room. I was sitting on my bed, and Phoebe was standing in front of me. How weird.
“I take my leave now. You will now realise that you were not asleep, and I suggest you make yourself some camomile tea and head straight to bed. Have a good night of rest. Tomorrow I will call again, and we will talk.” And saying that, she disappeared. Just like that: she was standing there one moment, and the next, she wasn’t.
I decided that the camomile was a good idea, so I went downstairs and made one, thinking about everything that just happened to me. It was all so surreal. I went back to my room and finished my camomile in bed. Oddly, when I laid down, I was asleep in seconds.
