Deeply rooted dreams, p.12
Deeply Rooted Dreams, page 12
“And that’s when it was decided that another change was needed for all of us,” Vau said. “It was time to pull back from man.”
“Our roles have evolved and adapted, but all are now more covert,” Ori said. “You met Gabriel. He oversees the humanity side of the equation. Aja’s oversight is Earth itself. And Professor Raziel and others share knowledge here at the Point, with those who are worthy.”
“Where does this team fall?” Jessica asked.
“We don’t fall in one particular place,” Evelyn said. “Whenever a critical mission is needed for the greater balance, we answer the call.”
“And you’re back now, clearly,” Jessica said, addressing this comment to Ori.
“Indeed.”
“What is it that you are back to do?” Jessica asked.
“When you arrived, the professor talked to you about the concept of systems, correct?”
Jessica nodded.
Ori continued, “Man and the Earth are supposed to work together, in harmony. There’s sadly a massive disconnect that has reached a tipping point. If you can’t overcome that, then there could be mutual destruction.”
“What gives you faith that the greater balance can still be achieved?” Jessica asked.
“While my abilities allow me to see a lot of bad,” Ori replied thoughtfully, “I see hope in the consciousness and dreams of the young. If I can see that, we have to try.”
Evelyn then cleared her throat and said, “And this is where we need you. This may seem cryptic for now, as you’re trying to regain your memories, but your role as the scribe is an important part of our mission.”
“I don’t see how my articles can make much of an impact in this way,” replied Jessica.
“But you’re more than your articles,” Evelyn said. “You’ve developed a strong reputation for speaking the truth. And you are helping to plant seeds. The right people will believe you.”
“How are you so sure?” Jessica asked.
Ori picked up a biscuit. “Because people are pretty consistent. An honest person will always be honest.”
As he took a bite, Evelyn stood up. “Speaking of being consistent,” Evelyn said, “you’ve been consistently skipping the council meetings. There’s one today, and you need to attend. We need to get started.”
Everyone stood up from the table.
“Fine,” Ori said with a sly smile. “I’ll be there.”
“It’s also your turn to do the dishes,” Jordan said, grabbing the biscuit out of his hand and walking off the porch down a path that led to the forest.
“Don’t be too long,” Evelyn said as she, Vau, and Tony followed Jordan.
“I’ll stay back and help,” Jessica said.
Chapter 28
Ori Gives Jessica a Quick Overview
Ori smiled. “I hope we haven’t overwhelmed you yet.”
“It’s a lot, for sure,” replied Jessica, “but I think I’m following. I’m starting to think of you guys as system administrators. You’ve got people on the ground, watching, observing behind the scenes. This is headquarters, where you can see the whole picture, and house the history and knowledge.”
“Yep. And those of us on the ground can make a bunch of small impacts that have a ripple effect and add up over time. Maybe we plant an idea in a struggling farmer’s head about a different way to farm. Or we encourage someone to go ahead a make that movie they’ve been dreaming up, which inspires countless other people to think about the world differently.”
“How many of you exist?” Jessica asked.
“Oh, we’re everywhere,” Ori said. “You’ve had several interactions with us. You just haven’t noticed.”
“How is that possible?” Jessica asked.
“We are now meant to always stay in the background,” Ori said. “Remember, this is your human experience. You are the main character of this narrative, and while you choose, more or less, who your supporting cast members are, you should only see what we allow you to see.”
“Here’s where I’m confused,” Jessica confessed. “How is it that you were the CEO of a very successful company and Evelyn was an agent with the FBI? Those sound like main characters to me. On top of that, you both are believed to have been killed in some very dodgy operation gone wrong. That’s not being in the background at all.”
Ori sighed and shook his head. “You know when I decided to leave this work? Well, I went a bit rogue. I bounced around a bit through time, trying to make a bigger impact. In the scenario you’re referring to, I chose to create a large business. In your world, commerce and money impact so many people’s lives that it only made sense to focus my efforts there, trying to get more people to the fourth phase. But someone interfered with my version of reality, or they tried to at least.”
Ori put the last dish away and looked around at the clean kitchen. “I think we are good here. We should get going. We don’t want to be late for Evelyn’s briefing.”
“What do you mean someone interfered with your version of reality?” Jessica asked.
“The universal rules are pretty simple: you get in life what you put out. I was only putting out positive, constructive energy to help people grow and achieve their best. It shouldn’t have led to destructive forces showing up at my door. By that time, our leaders and colleagues had seen the truth in my earlier visions about the nature of man. My team came to find me and bring me back. Once I showed them what I was pursuing, they stayed to help me. We didn’t even realize at that point how much I would need them. And as you’ve noticed, Tony has cleaned up most of the traces left behind on that one.”
Jessica and Ori now left the house and were walking down a path in the garden toward the forest. Jessica prompted Ori further, “You said something about a fourth phase?”
“There are five phases of awareness governing how human beings experience their world. Phase one involves just being aware that you exist and questioning things that pertain to your reality. Thoughts like, ‘Why are we sleeping in an open field when we can hide in a cave?’ Phase two began as people learned about different ways in which other people experienced life. Think of this as reading a book or watching a movie where you can imagine and see how other people live, though you haven’t directly experienced it yourself. Phase three was the dawn of the three-dimensional form of living. People learned to travel and take part in the lives and realities of other cultures. This is a phase of exchanging ideas, philosophies, food, art.” Ori showed a fleeting smile. “This is pretty much where most of you stopped.”
Ori stopped walking for a moment. Jessica hadn’t been paying attention to where they were walking. She looked up and saw they were on a cliff, staring at an enormous mountainside. Jessica tried to see the top, but it vanished in the clouds. “The next phase, the fourth, is when you all are meant to learn how to own your own time. That’s why I started the Singularity Group. I needed to find a way to enable more entrepreneurship for those who sought it.”
“But, entrepreneurs work more than most people who have a corporate job,” Jessica said.
“That’s true,” Ori said. “But if their business aligns with something that they love, something that they are meant to do, then it’s energizing. And they own their time. They don’t answer to anyone but the market. When things are going well, they have time to learn and grow in different ways. They start to move into the fifth phase.”
“What’s the fifth phase?” Jessica asked.
“One’s ability to master multiple things. And only in the fifth phase do you learn how to consciously manifest what you want in the universe.”
“What’s bad about people staying in the third phase?” Jessica asked. “It sounds like people are coming together and sharing ideas.”
“This is true. It was good for a while. But as you can see with the virus, people are at risk of reverting to the second phase of existence, only experiencing other ways of living from the pages of a book or from behind a screen. This is very dangerous because if you can’t experience something for yourself, you run the risk of accepting someone else’s opinion as truth.” Ori continued, “The third phase is also still heavily ego-driven. You aren’t tightly tuned in to your intuition and your energy. It’s about you and your experience. It’s about what you can get from the world. Which is very important. But the fifth phase is more about what you can give to the world when you understand how powerful you are. You have the time and vision to solve some of the problems that threaten the world. And that’s what we need.”
“How do you get more people to move to that higher phase?” Jessica asked.
“People pursue a higher way of life because they receive various seemingly random cues from the universe telling them they are capable of doing and being more. A conversation with a random stranger on a plane. A book recommendation from your barber. A former friend who you respect pursuing a life that seems extraordinary. Those seemingly random interactions and instances can all take someone on an evolution of the mind, body, and spirit. And when a person is open to these cues, the brain rewires itself.
“And now there’s more urgency for people to evolve to this phase?” Jessica asked.
“This period is almost coming to an end. Only those who are at the next level will survive,” Ori said.
“What do you mean?” Jessica asked.
“Earth itself is part of a system that sheds, or stretches, or grows. To make matters more complicated, the version of Earth you know makes up one reality of many.”
“The multiverse?” Jessica asked, half-jokingly.
“You know it?” Ori asked.
“Umm, there was this Spider-Man comic.”
“Well then, you know what happens in your version of Earth has a direct impact on existences in alternate realities. Typically they are minor, but in this instance, it could shut down the entire existence. That’s why we are so focused on getting as many people as possible to a level where they are capable of surviving and thriving in the next phase. The more people at the fifth phase of existence, the more likely you all can come together and create solutions that will save the planet.”
“Like how to fully cure the virus that the world is struggling with?” Jessica asked.
“Exactly,” Ori said. “Think of the virus as a stress test for humanity. What if it was triggered as a mechanism to test how able you are to set aside your perceived differences and come together to solve a problem? Humanity is so fractured that there’s doubt among us. However, our team believes that you can still do this, and we’ve been tasked with proving it.”
“Who is judging us?” Jessica asked.
“Well, Death is the one you need to worry about. Death is the final decision-maker.”
Jessica couldn’t help but ask, “Are we doomed?”
“No,” Ori said. “This virus, it wants to survive as well. If humanity dies, so does it. You need to learn how to coexist before the big event that’s the real threat. The reset.”
“What was the last, um, big event that occurred?” Jessica asked.
“It was the great deluge,” Ori said. “Let’s go; Evelyn’s about to start the brief for another important recruit.”
“Another recruit?” Jessica called after Ori as he walked down a path toward the side of the massive mountain.
They approached a cave-like entrance at the base of the mountain. Ori glanced back. “Are you ready to go even further down the rabbit hole?”
Chapter 29
Travel to the Command Center
“So...” Jessica started to say, but hesitated. I’ve done nothing but ask questions all morning.
“So, what?” Ori encouraged her.
“So why did Evelyn infiltrate the FBI?”
“Each system has a defense mechanism, sometimes multiple defense mechanisms, meant to provide enough protection for the synergy to take place. Evelyn needed to understand how humanity’s defense systems worked. The manmade systems that were intended to keep the population safe weren’t functioning correctly. She had a theory that something was wrong. So she piggybacked into my reality so that she could have a safe place to make observations and perform tests. The Singularity Group is intentionally idealistic. I thought we needed to see what would happen if a company was created that pushed innovation boundaries while creating a healthy, financially independent middle class of people. When people have their basic needs met—shelter, safety, food, and health—they should pursue a higher purpose, if they so choose. It’s a lot to ask, in western capitalist society, for someone to build an infrastructure like this and leave money on the table. So, I decided to do it, and when Evelyn joined, she was able to observe how the system reacted.”
“Which wasn’t well,” Jessica said.
“Let’s just say that there’s a lot of room for improvement.”
As they got to the bottom of the hill, Jessica asked, “Is this a cave?”
“Not quite. It’s the exposed root structure.”
At that moment, Jessica realized this wasn’t the side of the mountain she was looking at, but the base of the biggest tree she had ever seen or even imagined. The earth surrounding the enormous tree was covered with white and yellow mushrooms. Jessica saw no light escaping the dark entrance as they approached. However, once they were inside, the mushrooms covering the floor glowed with a bright green light. As the two walked deeper into the root structure, the green light became bright enough for Jessica to see her surroundings.
“This is our command center,” Ori said.
“It’s an enormous tree.”
“Not just an enormous tree, it’s the tree.”
Jessica knelt. The earth was soft and cool to the touch. It could have been her imagination, but it felt as though the ground was giving her positive energy. Her mind felt at ease. Her muscles felt fresh and relaxed. She stood back up, and as they continued walking, she couldn’t help but inhale as deeply as she could. She filled her lungs. The air was cool, with a pleasantly sweet aroma. The glowing fungi seemed to change shapes and positions. Jessica’s attention was pulled away when the feel of the ground changed beneath her feet.
Jessica’s and Ori’s footsteps now clicked along a solid floor. The bioluminescent walls were replaced by small, precisely organized light bulbs. They then entered what appeared to be an elevator made of all black glass paneling. As she and Ori turned to see the door close, Jessica watched with wonder as she now saw bright pink and white veins illuminate the walls, floor, and ceiling.
Jessica was captivated and simultaneously felt a familiar feeling. She hadn’t even felt them move when the doors opened. She wasn’t sure if they had gone up or down. Jessica felt frozen in place, her natural defenses kicking in. Then Evelyn walked by, glanced over, and said, “Perfect timing.”
Chapter 30
Evelyn’s Report
Jessica followed Evelyn and Ori down a long hall. “We are about to enter our briefing room,” Ori said.
“This is where we prep the team on any major updates or special assignments,” Evelyn added.
Two glass sliding doors opened automatically as the three approached. The briefing room was shaped like an octagon, and all walls were made of glass. At the center of the room was a large round table where Vau, Tony, and Jordan were seated, talking among themselves. Another person was standing next to Vau. He looked familiar, a Latino man with a goatee, wearing a nice charcoal suit. He walked over to them. “Hello Evelyn, Ori.”
“Hi, Carlos.” Ori shook the man’s hand, and then said, “Please meet Jessica.”
“Jessica, yes, it’s a pleasure.” Carlos looked back at Ori. “Is she who you were waiting for at the park?”
“She was,” Ori said.
“Ori, speaking of our little chat,” Carlos said, “do you mind if I speak with you in private? There’s something that you need to know. A request has been made that you should be aware of.”
Ori turned to Jessica. “Excuse me for one moment.” Then he and Carlos vanished behind a glass sliding door.
As Jessica took in more of the briefing room, she saw a large screen covering one wall. The wall featured ten video feeds. One showed a beach where the water was turning red. One had a large map of the African continent covered in a black cloud. The image zoomed in, and Jessica realized that the ominous cloud was a swarm of locusts. Another featured beehives caving in over time. Others showed disease, protests, riots, and war. There were images of tall trees being cut down, massive hurricanes, wildfires, and flooding. Each video feed was equally alarming. There was also text along the bottom of the feeds with years and cities around the world.
“What are these?” Jessica asked.
“Those are your check engine lights,” Evelyn said before she took her position in an open seat at the round table. “All right, listen up.” Jessica noticed the team sit up straight in their seats. She took a chair next to Jordan.
Evelyn continued, “As you all know, through the Singularity operation we were able to contain war and ego and accelerate the proportion of humanity moving into GP4.”
Jessica leaned toward Jordan and whispered, “GP4?”
“Growth phase four,” Jordan explained.
“Oh right, people taking more ownership of their time,” Jessica said. Jordan nodded.
“Of course, there’s much more to contend with. We’ve been making some good headway on the next recruit,” Evelyn continued. “We’ll wait for Ori to get back to provide an update with that.” Evelyn paused. “The other major update for this session is that we have confirmed that the next reset will be via solar flares.”
“C’mon,” Jordan said.
