Story # 2.7 Who is Rob?

Rob sat in a dark, dimly lit room with his hands securely hand cuffed behind the back of the chair he was sitting in.  The only problem with this, however, he was sitting there in Jay's body.

This room had no mirror.  It was completely sealed off from outside influence of any kind.  The only people that would be talking or listening in this room would be Rob and his interrogator.

The reason for the room was by design.  No one wanted any leaks of what Rob might have to say, seeing as he was not the actual person that should be occupying the body he was in.  Larry was now in acoma, medically induced to try and allow his body to heal itself after the injury.  Everyone else was on pins and needles.  For the first time, this Rob character had remained in Jay's body for longer than a few hours.  This time, he had been in Jay's body for days.  Being kept in solitary was taking it's toll on Rob, however.

The outer door to the room Rob was in finally openned, and in walked Pat.  He gave Rob his typical smile, toothy greeting, to which Rob had little to know reaction to.

Pat pulled out the chair on the other side of the table in front of Rob, then had a seat.  Rob continued to stare downward at the table before him, unwilling to bend or brake.

"How are you feeling today, Rob?", asked Pat.

"Like a captive, as usual....Pat."

Rob looked up at Pat when he stressed his name.

This prompted a chuckle from Pat as he leaned back in his chair, laying his right hand on the table.

"Same old, Rob."

"Likewise for Pat."

"Can you tell me what you remember before you showed up here, Rob?"

"You know where I came from, Pat.  Why should I have to tell you again?"

"That may be true, but I would like to know for curiosity's sake."

Rob rolled his eyes at Pat, then looked back down at the floor.

"You know, the doctors have all said that the only reason you're still here is because Jay injured himself with the impact into the wall.  Against all odds, you're wide awake here with us in an injured body.  But eventually that could catch up to you."

"We both know that won't happen."

"It won't?"

Rob looked up at Pat and stared at him.

"Are you sure it won't?"

Rob did not answer Pat's question.

"I would hate for the actions of Jay to jeopardize anything going on here, or jeopardize our relationship."

Rob began to laugh hysterically at this statement.

"Relationship?  Seriously?  If you want to call it that, ok."

"We have a...unique relationship, Rob. One that is vitally important."

"Not important enough though, is it?"

"Rob, we did all we could for you."

"YOU DID NOTHING!"

Rob's demeanor changed, and Pat's smile went away. He stared at Rob who was now visibly angry.

"You left me there to die! You didn't even try to help me, Pat. You just did your thing and ran away like you always do. I didn't have a chance. But I beat you! I beat you and your cronies, and soon I'm going to find a way to stay here and be a thorn in the side of this world too. The very thing I know you don't want."

Pat continued to stare at Rob, emotionless.

"If you stay here, you'll never leave this facility, Rob."

"That's better than where I've been, Pat. Anything is."

"But you're partly to blame for what happened there."

Rob leaned forward in his chair, as far as he could with the cuffs on, and looked dead into Pat's eyes, "So are you, Dad!"

That last word from Rob's mouth made Pat cringe.

"I told you never to call me that, Rob?"

"Well, I never thought you'd abandon me, so we're even. How did you get here, anyway, so you could leave me behind?"

"That's classified."

"As always."

"This conversation is over."

"Indeed it is."

Pat stood up and began to exit the room. But before he left, he turned and spoke to Rob one more time.

"By the way, tomorrow we'll be injecting you with an agent to put you in a state of coma, so Jay's body can be allowed to heal. That will put you to sleep and for all intents and purposes render any chance of you returning to Jay impossible unless he is able to come back out of it. So this may be the last time we talk.  I must say, it was...fruitful. When you go to sleep, enjoy the world you wake up to."

"I'll just find another way in, Pat. I always do."

"We'll see about that. Have a nice life,....son."

With that last statement, Pat left the room and closed the door behind him.

Rob kicked the table hard enough to push it forward about a foot.  He hated his father for what he had done.  Rob's only concern was that this could be the last time he ever again awakens to the world of Jay.  It was a peaceful world, filled with life.  Where Rob kept coming from, there was always darkness and death.  A place like that changes a person.  It makes them more survivalist, and less humanist.  Rob could only remember the faces of all those that died before him, whether by his own hand or from circumstances out of their control.  The world he left and Jay entered was always gloomy, trying, hard, and terrifying.  Rob simply wanted it to stop.  He just didn't understand why his own father would leave him in such a place.  Why would he want him there, knowing what was to come.  Knowing that a world would end and eventually take his son with it.  Rob's only hope was to remain inside Jay in the hopes the end would come for that man instead.  He didn't care who Jay was or what he had done.  He just wanted to survive, anyway he could.

But, Rob knew there was something special about this Jay guy.  He had crossed over before, with other people during the experimentations at The Fleece, but something was different with this guy.  For the first time ever, Rob could feel the presence of Jay with him, while he occupied Jay's body.  Unfortunately for Rob, Jay was beginning to wake up.



             

Story # 2.6 The Van

"Well, that looks like the vehicle we've been looking for."

Mike said this then took a sip of his coffee as he and Seth sat in the doughnut shop parking lot.  The same van that had been outside the Crimson lab, and supposedly used to transport their missing eye witnesses, was also in the same parking lot.  Whomever was operating the van was not worried about it standing out, especially with people having recently gone missing from it.

"I just don't get it?  This guy just pulls into the freakin shop like everything is just kosher and doesn't appear to have a care in the world as to whether or not anyone is following them or suspects anything?", Seth said outloud, directly his comments more at the air than at Mike.

"Dude, you're preaching to the choir.  It's kinda arrogant, but we really have to get them somewhere we can question them, other than a doughnut shop.  Don't really want to spook them."

"Yeah, yeah.  I really don't understand that FBI guy either.  And where'd he go?  I mean, it was like he just disappeared into thin air!"

"He probably got beamed up."

"That's not a damn bit, funny, Mike."

Mike was chuckling before he took a sip of his coffee.  Then he spit it out as the driver of the black van came out to get back into his vehicle.

"There's our guy!"

Seth got the keys ready to start the ignition, as he saw the van back up and pull away in the parking lot.

Seth and Mike followed the van out of the lot and down the highway.  The driver of the van did not appear to be in a big hurry.  In fact, Seth had to try really hard to maintain distance between the van and their sedan, worried that the driver might be on to them following him.

Suddenly the van peeled off at the next exit and that's when Seth suspected the driver was indeed on to them.

Seth floored the accelerator to try and keep pace.  Tires were peeling as both vehicles sped down the highway.

"Oh yeah, it's on now", said Mike, who always loved high speed chases.

Seth hated them, but he wasn't about to let this guy get away.

The van took a sharp turn down an alley way, forcing Seth to push the sedan harder to catch up.  By the time Seth reached the alley, however, the van was already stopped and in a parked position.  It appeared as if the driver had left it minutes ago even though seconds had passed.

Seth pulled the sedan directly behind the van and flipped on the blue lights.  He and Mike both got out of the car and withdrew their pistols.  Ducking down somewhat behind the car doors, Seth motioned for the two of them to move towards either side of the van.  Mike acknowledged and the two men began to move slowly down the sides of the van.

Looking into the vehicle from the side mirrors, neither Seth nor Mike could see the driver inside.  However, he could have been hiding in the read of the van, for all they knew.  Both men stopped just before the vehicle doors, still peering inside the vehicle from the mirrors.  Seth slowly worked his way around to see no one sitting in the driver's seat.  Mike inch around as well.  When Mike was in sight, Seth motioned for him to open the passenger door as he opened the driver's side.  Both men, on the count of three, yank the doors open, stayed low, and held their guns up ready for anything.  Looking into the back of the vehicle, there was no one.  Neither Seth nor Mike could believe it.  It was, once again, as if the person had just disappeared.

When the coast was clear, and the men let down their guard, Mike moved back outside of the vehicle.  That's when he was met face-to-face with the driver.  This time, however, the driver was holding a gun to Mike's temple, and didn't hesitate to pull the trigger.

With one swift pull, Mike's head erupted sideways, as his body collapsed to the ground.  This happened so quickly that Seth was not able to react fast enough to shoot the assailant himself before he shot Mike at point blank range.  Seth aimed his gun at the driver's head, and readied himself to pull the trigger.  But before he could, the driver shot Seth in the chest, flinging him backwards onto the pavement below.

When Seth impacted the ground, his gun flung away.  Seth was now laying there, clutching his chest where the bullet had just entered.  Blood was spurting upward and outward, as if the artery had been severed.  In fact, Seth's aorta had been cut from the shot, and he only had moments to live if he did not reach a surgeon quickly.

The driver came around the front of the van and stood over Seth, who was mortally wounded.  Seth was beginning to lose consciousness as he was losing large amounts of blood very quickly.  The driver just stared down at him, then he began to spoke.

"If you and your partner want to live, you'll need to come with me."

Seth was perplexed by this statement.  He had seen the driver shoot his partner in the head, a clean kill shot for any human being.  There was no living from that type of wound.  Seth was bleeding to death, so unless this guy was a highly skilled surgeon his chances were grim.  Still, Seth felt a calming effect in the presence of the man.  Maybe it was because his life force was slipping away quickly?  Seth didn't understand what was happening, but he really had no choice anymore.

The driver quickly picked up Seth and carried him to the back of the van.  He laid Seth on the hood of the sedan long enough to open the rear doors of the van, and then picked Seth back up placing him in the rear of the vehicle.  A few seconds went by again and Mike's now deceased body flopped down beside a dying Seth.  As Seth began to blackout, a strange white luminescence filled the van, with a loud hum filling the silence.  Seth thought to himself, Is this the end?

For Seth and Mike, it was only the beginning.

Story # 2.5 How do we go on?

Jay sat, his knees close to his chest and arms draped over them.  He had been in that position for hours now.  He couldn't talk, wouldn't eat, and presumably shouldn't sleep.

All eyes were passively on Jay, as each tried to muttle about while their friend, their colleague, their love sat in solemness by himself.

The kids had long since gone to sleep.  Dana had even crashed on a cot nearby, as had Dr. Blake.  Larry and Linda sat at the table, each taking glances at Jay in the hopes he would begin to show signs of living.

This revelation was almost too much to bear for Jay.  He had contemplated suicide in the moments since, but knew his friends would never allow it.  Nor would Pat or anyone else he assumed at The Fleece.  He was important Pat had told him.  But, Pat had also told him he was a murderer.  How important could a murderer actually be?

Jay took a deep, long sigh, which prompted both Larry and Linda to look up at him from the table.  They were hoping he was finally coming around.  With something like this slapping you in the face, the usually crass Larry had little to say.  No quip could undermind this issue.  Linda was speechless.

How could I have killed her?, Jay thought.

This has to be a dream?  All of this has to be one big, awful dream.  Please God, let it be a dream!  I just can't take this.  I can't take knowing this could be true, is true.  Please God, don't let this be true!

Jay brought his knees up closer to him, and embrace them with his arms tightly.  He was curling himself up into the fetal position as he sat there against the wall.  This brought tears to Linda's eyes, as she looked back down at the table.  She closed her eyes, allowing the drops to hit the reflective surface beneath.  She knew she had been afraid of her husband now for some time, but never really believed he could kill someone.  At least, not her husband.  She believed it had to be his alter ego instead.  But that still doesn't explain how or when Jay, in either form, was in the room with Britton.

"How do I go on", muttered Jay.

Linda and Larry looked at him again.  Their eyes brightened a little, at the thought that Jay might be coming around.

"What did you say, honey?", asked Linda.

Jay looked up from his knees, directly at Linda, "How do I go on from here?"

Linda's jaw began to quiver as she saw the pure sadness on her husband's face.  Tears streamed down her face, as she was unable to answer.

Larry looked down and mumbled, "You get back up."

Linda looked across the table at Larry.  Jay continued to look at Linda.

Larry looked over at his friend, "You just stand up, accept it, and move on."

Linda spoke up, "That's easy to say when you're not the one that was just told..."

"Oh come on, told what?!"

Larry stared at Linda, stopping her midstream.

He looked down at Jay, who was now paying attention to him.

"What have you been told, Jay?  And what proof do you have of that?"

"I had a dream...", Jay replied.

"That's right, a dream", Larry said.  "Just a dream.  People everywhere have dreams like that, and they aren't murderers, nor do they consider themselves such.  Most of them wake up from a dream like that relieved it was in fact a dream.  But it isn't who they are, Jay!"

"This is who I am, Larry."

"Based on what?  What one man says that you hardly know?  That kidnaps you and drags you and everyone you've ever cared about to some blanket plant for all you know, telling you wild stories?  I personally think the meds have messed you up."

"You saw what happened in that room, Larry."

"I don't know what happened in that room, Jay!  No one does."

"How can you deny that?"

"Because there's one obvious possibility.  This is a dream."

"What?"

"You're still in that room, you're still under sedation.  We've never left and none of this is real."

Jay stared at his friend for a while.

Linda stared at Larry too.

"Jay, I study these kind of things all the time.  I'm a psychologist for Pete's sakes.  This has to be a dream that you have manifested us all in.  It can't be real."

"It is real, Larry."

"If it's real, then test it!"

Jay looked at him again, after looking down at the floor.

"Test if it's real.  Do something to prove you're not sleeping."

"Like what?"

"I don't know?  Pinch yourself."

Jay continued to just stare at Larry.

"Pinch yourself really hard", Larry said.

"Would you please STOP!", demanded Linda.

"Well what else can he do?  It's better than him sitting there having a pity party for another four or five hours", replied Larry.

"Pity party?"

"Yes, I said pity party, Linda!  It's time for Larry to stand up and take this like a man.  If you did kill someone, it's happened, own up to it and move on.  Stop making the whole world stop just for you because you can't take knowing the truth about yourself."

"Stop it!"

"If you want to feel sorry for yourself, then do something about it instead of moping.  Stand up and throw yourself out a window!"

"STOP IT!"

"Throw yourself down the stairs!  Break every bone in your body!  Do something about yourself!  That's why you lost your job!  That's why you're losing your wife!  That's why you're losing your kids!"

"YOU'RE GOING TOO FAR, LARRY!"

Linda was about to come over the table at Larry now.

Jay just continued to listen, his breathing increasing with every word Larry said.

"Let's just own up to the truth here, shall we Jay?  You're a quiter, plain and simple.  You gave up on your family, on your job, on your life, and on ME!"

"FINE!!!!"

Jay jumped up to his feet staring at Larry.  Larry and Linda were now fixated on Jay.  Dana and Dr. Blake woke up due to the commotion.

"You want me to do something, I'll do it!", said Jay.

With that, Jay took a running start towards the table, jumping up on it.  He ran across the table, prompting everyone else in the room to jump to their feet.  Jay then dove head first at the window with his arms up to protect his head some.  He dove clean through the glass, shattering it into a million pieces on the floor outside the room.  Jay landed on the floor since the room outside and the room they were in were on the same level.  With blood streaming down from his forehead, Jay jumped back up to his feet and proceeded to run through the white room.  Larry, Linda, and the rest were following very quickly behind.

Some of the nurses and techs were trying to stop Jay, but their efforts were futile.  Jay had a full head of steam and was bent on proving his friend wrong.  He ran faster and faster towards the adjacent wall, as fast as his legs would take him.  Larry was close behind, but was having trouble catching Jay.

Finally, Jay reached the adjacent wall and dove head first again.  As he dove, Jay yelled, "WAKE UP!!!"

With that utterance, Jay crashed into the adjacent wall.  His now limp body fell to the ground in a thud, as he had knocked himself unconscious.  Everyone went down to the ground to check on Jay and make sure he hadn't just killed himself in the process, after slamming into the wall so bluntly.

Jay was still breathing, his heart was still beating.  He was for all intents and purposes asleep now.

Larry looked up from his friend to see Linda hovering over him.  A scowl was draped across her face.  If looks could kill, Larry would already be dead, twice over.  With this event, Larry had to concede a truth they had all just discovered.

"Ok, so maybe this wasn't a dream."

Just then, a hand reached up and grabbed Larry around the throat.  As Larry tried to turn to see who had just grabbed him, he came face to face with a now fully awake Jay, with bright green eyes.  It was Rob, and he wasn't happy.

"You ain't seen nuthin yet, honky!"

Rob then whipped Larry backwards toward the wall, slamming his head into it.  A splatter of blood shot out in all directions as Larry now laid their limp.  The blow had fractured Larry's skull at the base, and he had begun to bleed out.

Everyone backed away from Rob and the now limp body of Larry.  Rob stood up slowly and stared all of them down, a menacing grin coming across his face.  Pat entered the room in the distance, stone faced as ever.  Rob took notice of him, almost acting surprised to see him.

Finally, Pat spoke.

"Rob, it's good to see you again."

Everyone turned and looked at Pat.  He knows this lunatic by name? thought Linda.

"Likewise", replied Rob.

"It's been a very long time", Pat said, finishing with his patented smile.

Story # 2.4 The Room

The group at The Fleece was now inside a room adjacent to the area Jay walked into after Pat insisted.  Inside this room, which had a white, ethereal glow, with glass walls, Linda was tending to her two children.  As Pat had said, they were safe and sound at The Fleece.  Dana was helping Linda tend to the kids, while Larry, Dr. Blake, Pat, and Jay discussed the implications that just been revealed.

"This room is amazing," said Dr. Blake, still in awe over what he was seeing.

The room was also white, with medical bays every 10 feet.  In each bay was a person lying in the bed.  Multiple electrodes were attached to each person.  Some of the people were asleep, some awake.  None, however, looked in distress, as a tech or nurse of some sort monitored their station.

"Who are all of these people?", asked Larry, pointing out into the room.

"Those are volunteers.  They are people, just like Jay, that are struggling with the issues they have been experiencing.  We are simply trying to assist them in coping, if not controlling their condition," said Pat.

"Controlling?  What do you mean by that?", asked Jay.

"Take your experience for instance, Jay. You entered a world in your dream state that allowed you to bring a creature from that world into this reality. You even brought a weapon with you. That's the type of control we are trying to harness. Manipulation of not only that reality, but this one as well for the betterment of all parties involved", said Pat.

"Why don't we talk about this whole other reality thing," said Larry.

"You mean the alternate reality?", replied Dr. Blake, turning to face them all.

"Yeah, let's talk about that."

"Well, we've discussed the possibility of 'supernatural' things.  This is metaphysics at its best.  If what Pat is saying is absolutely true, then when Jay goes to sleep at night he's literally entering another world outside of the one he knows," said Dr. Blake.

"Precisely," said Pat, with a big smile.

"But how?  Why?", asked Jay.

"We have a theory...," started Pat.

All three of them were pressing now, with this acknowledgement.

"...but I am not at liberty to discuss it at this time," said Pat.

"I thought you said no deception?", said Larry.

"There is none," replied Pat.

"Then why are you lying?  If you know, you need to tell us, now," said Larry, stressing the last words determinedly at Pat.

"Easy, man," replied Jay.

"You're really buying into this crap, man?", asked Larry.  "You really believe this alternate reality stuff?  I mean how do you know you're not still lying on that slab in the lab sound asleep right now?  What if this is like that movie a few years ago, where they go to different levels of a dream?  I mean he's telling you that you're entering another world and bringing stuff out, and you just accept it?"

"Nobody is ruling anything out, man.  But we can't afford to go off half-cocked here.  We don't know what we're dealing with anymore than what my condition was.  So just take a chill pill!", replied Jay.

"That brings up another valid point, along with the discussions of alternate realities and dreams.  Your condition, Jay...," said Dr. Blake.

Jay looked at Dr. Blake.

"I think we have proven that was a farse," Dr. Blake finished.

"I wouldn't speak so quickly, doctor," replied Pat.

"What do you mean?", asked Jay.

Linda looked up at this statement from the kids playing, Dana as well.

"Jay, your alter ego that your group encountered, that is a real person.  That's not a psychosis, that much we are sure of.  But there's more to it," said Pat.

Jay was listening intently now.

"Does the name Britton mean anything to you?"

Jay had a bad feeling about what Pat was about to say.

"As you know, Britton died due to 'unusual circumstances' that were deemed a suicide, correct?"

Jay nodded at Pat.  Linda was listening intently now.

"But I believe you think something else happened, am I wrong?"

Larry and Dr. Blake looked at Jay, who was staring down at the floor now.  Linda stood up, looking straight at Jay.

The words were hard for Jay as he began to speak, but he knew he had to answer.

"I had a dream...I dreamed something very bad happened to Britton."

Jay looked up from the floor, directly at Pat.

Pat's face was more serious, no smile this time.  He knew this was hard for Jay.

"In my dream, I was responsible for her death. Then a few weeks later I learned she had died. Needless to say, that started my downward spiral."

"Jay," Pat began.  "I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but that was no dream."

Tears began to well up in Linda's eyes.

"What are you talking about? Are you saying Jay actually killed her?", asked Larry.

"Not Jay, his alter ego did," replied Pat.

"Did I do it with my hands?", asked Jay of Pat.

"We don't know for a fact, Jay. But all signs point to someone having been in that room with her that night.  Somehow, you both shared the same dream and were in the same world at the same time. But your alter ego was not so kind to her as you were. He brutally raped and murdered her...," said Pat.

"Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!!!", demanded Linda, stepping towards the four men.

"Don't you dare accuse my husband of something so horrible!"

"I'm not accusing, Mrs. Trent. Jay knows the facts for himself," replied Pat.

Jay turned and looked at his wife, tears welling up in his eyes now.

Linda saw the fear in his eyes, as well as the truth. She walked passed Larry who had attempted to restrain her.  Jay looked back down as he began to cry, mournfully. He was crying for himself, for Britton, for everything that had happened. He was at the same time sad and relieved.  Sad over the truth, but relieved he was not crazy. He was relieved that those events had happened. At least it let him know where he stood.

The two embraced as Pat excused himself to give them alone time with the rest of the group.

Jay and Linda both were crying as Jay dragged her down to the floor.  He was now blubbering, unable to control his crying at all now.  He was terrified of what he had become.  He just couldn't believe he was a killer, but the dream had told him that he was.  This was a new reality that Jay only wished he could wake up from.

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

Pat entered an office where a man was looking through a television screen at the scene in the glass room, Jay and the group were occupying. Pat walked up to the man's desk, the serious expression still on his face. He was staring at the television as the man behind the desk, who was well-kept, continued to peer.

"So tell me," began Pat.  "Are we now complete with phase one?"

The man turned off the television and rotated in his chair to face Pat.

"Yes, that is complete.  You can initiate phase two," the well-kept man said.

"You believe we will have his full cooperation then?"

"Undoubtedly."

"And if we don't?"

There was a long pause.

Finally, the well-kept man spoke, "We must have his cooperation.  There's a lot more than his sanity riding on this. We have to determine the cause and a measure to defend against. It must be successful, or else his reality could become our own."

"You know, that was only one possible scenario that unfolded?"

"I am aware of that. But there are billions of other possibilities we haven't considered. And if someone like Jay were to fall into the wrong hands, what reality we are in would be of little consequence."

"You do realize what phase two requires?"

"Yes. I am well aware it reveals the nature of this reality."

"You know what happened the last time we attempted something like this?

"Don't remind me about RC. You, I, we don't have time for it."

"I'm just saying, once they have the ability, we lose control."

"That's a risk I'm willing to take. Based on Dr. Trent's profile, he's one we can handle. You just make sure it stays that way."

"Will do."

Pat turned and exited the room.  The well-kept man sat in his chair and looked at the tablet in front of him. He pulled up the file for R.C. In the file were images of a Stonehenge-like structure, freestanding in the middle of a field. The structure came to be known as The Georgia Guidestones, and the man Pat was referring to went by the assumed alias, R.C. Christian.

Story # 2.3 Where are they?

"You have no idea where our eye witnesses are at?"

Seth was livid.  Mike was trying to keep his partner together, but even he was having issues with this turn of events.

"I'm sorry, we just don't know where they are", said the dispatcher over the radio.

Seth and Mike were still outside the lab at Crimson, Seth launching the CB back into the squad car.  He walked down the street away from the lab.  Mike was close behind.

"Where you goin, man?", Mike asked.

"I need to blow off some steam", Seth replied.

"This I can see."

"I don't understand it, Mike.  How do five people and a corpse, in custody, just DISAPPEAR?"

"Maybe we should ask a magician?  Copperfield comes to mind."

"Can you just take this seriously for five minutes, Mike?"

"Whoa, Seth," he motions for Seth to stop, which Seth abliges.  "I am taking this serious.  I'm just not going off half cocked about this."

"And why not?  Our case is missing!"

"There has to be a reasonable explanation that makes since here.  Now have you tried raising the car they were in?"

"Dispatch couldn't get them, said all they received was static."

"Tried the phone?"

"No signal."

"Who took them in?"

Seth stared at Mike on that one.

"I can't recall," Seth replied.

"Have you checked any squad car cameras yet?"

Seth pointed at Mike and the two men headed back to the bevy of police automobiles that littered the street.  They found one with a clear view of the location of the lab, where the car that picked up the witnesses would have been located.

Seth opened the door and sat in the driver's seat, pulling up the video files of the camera on the in-car computer console.  He found the most recent files and click the link to open them.  Video began to play, showing the front of the lab with a black and white, unmarked police van present.  Seth fast forwarded to a point where the witnesses were being brought out.  He could see them all clearly entering the van.

"Can you read the license plate?", asked Mike.

"Hardly, we're going to need to enhance it," replied Seth.

"Well, that's a start."

Back at the department the video was being enhanced by the forensics videographer.  He was able to zoom in on the license plate of the van to get a clearer picture of the plate itself, and its lettering.  Finally, they had a break.

"That's T-C-L...", said the videographer.

"Yes...," continued Seth, impatiently.

"...5-4-6.  TCL-546.  South Augustina plates."

Seth began moving away, jotting down the plate number.  Mike thanked the videographer and apologized for his impatient partner.

"Run this plate, get me any and all matches," said Seth, handing his pad to Mike.

"Aye, capt'n!", said Mike, giving Seth a mocking salute.

"You're not funny, Mike."

"I'm hysterical, and you know it!"

Seth actually produced a smile, despite his obsessive compulsive demeanor at the moment.

"Gentlemen!"

A man stopped Seth and Mike in their tracks.  Both men took notice of the bald-headed man now standing before them smiling.  The man had a grin from ear to ear, with no teeth showing.  He bore a striking resemblance to Pat from The Fleece that was currently with Jay and the others.

"My name is Agent Paul, FBI."

"Agent Paul?", asked Seth, staring at the man.

"Yes, I believe you have something I need."

"Oh really?"

"Yes.  I need to confiscate your pad and any tapes you have of the scene at Crimson from earlier this morning, along with any other recording equipment that was used.  This investigation has now fallen under federal jurisdiction, and your captain has assured me your full cooperation."

Agent Paul continued to smile at the two men.

Neither Seth or Mike could speak at the moment.  They were a little in shock.

Agent Paul continued to smile.

"You smile a lot," said Mike.

"I hear it's my defining characteristic," replied Agent Paul.

"Yeah, why don't we go talk to our captain, right now," said Seth, motioning towards the captain's office.

Seth didn't hesitate, he made a b-line for the office, highly perturbed.  Seth and Mike walked in, with Agent Paul close behind.  The captain looked up from his paper work and stared at the three men.

"Come in," said the captain, sarcastically.

"What's going on here, captain?", asked Seth.

"Isn't it obvious?  Agent Paul is taking over the investigation.  A few hours ago the feds came in and reported that this activity this morning was consistent with a string of suspicisious incidents they have been observing for months."

"Did they take our eye-witnesses?"

"Your witnesses whereabouts are still...," started Agent Paul.

"I am addressing my captain, thank you," interrupted Seth.

Agent Paul stopped speaking and smiled at Seth.

"Don't start with me this morning, Jennings.  I'm in no mood.  You hand over whatever Agent Paul wants, without hesitation.  Is that clear?", said the captain.

Seth looked at Agent Paul, who was still smiling.  Perhaps more of a smirk now.  That did no amuse Seth.

Seth looked back at his captain, "Crystal."

Seth slapped his pad in Agent Paul's chest.  Paul caught it before it hit the floor.  Seth and Mike then exited the office.  After Seth and Mike left, Agent Paul expressed his gratitude.  The captain responded with his usual banter of policy and regulations.

Agent Paul agreed with him and made his way out the door.

As Agent Paul went over to the main desk of the station to acquire the necessary information he asked for, Seth and Mike could only watch.

"That's amazing.  Feds just come on in and take our case right out from under us," said Mike.

"Now you're fired up?", said Seth.

"Well, that pisses me off, man.  I was looking forward to finding that van."

"We will."

Mike looked back around at his partner, a smile beginning to form on his face.

"That's what I love about you, man.  Never give up, never say die."

"Never say never either."

"Well, what we waiting for?"

"After he leaves, we'll pull up the back-up files of the scene and still run the plate.  We'll start our own investigation, with or without the captain's approval."

"That will piss him off.  I'm in."

Seth smiled at Mike.

Agent Paul turned to exit the building.  Mike darted towards the door to get a look at the car Agent Paul was in.  Seth urged him not to, but Mike did it anyway.  The only bizarre thing, no car other than those that should be present was out there.  There had not been enough time for Agent Paul to climb into a car, start it, pull off and out into traffic before Mike reached the front door.  It was as if Agent Paul had simply disappeared into thin air, without a trace.  Mike looked around the parking lot, but unless Agent Paul did 100 and squealed the tires the whole way out of the lot, there was no way he could have left in that amount of time.  Mike, disgusted, proceeded back inside.

Story # 2.2 The Fleece

"Where are we?", Jay asked, as he stepped through the doorway, into the larger building beyond.

Outside what Jay thought was the interrogation room, was a massive complex.  The roof was some three hundred feet above him, and a series of cat walk structures littered the compound, taking a person to parts unknown within.  The building resembled one of the newer dome stadiums some major cities now sported for their athletic teams.  But this was something much more than an ordinary dome.

Jay, still enthralled with what he was seeing, turned back to Pat, who was smiling at him.

"What did you call this place again?"

"The Fleece", Pat said.

"Is that some sort of codename, or something?", asked Dr. Blake, who had finally decided to speak.

"No, no codenames.  No deception here.  What you see is what you get", replied Pat.

"So how did we get here?", asked Linda.

"What do you remember about coming here, Mrs. Trent", asked Pat.

"I remember being put in a squad car...", she paused for a moment.  "...and that's it."

"That's all I remember too", added Dana.

"Same here", said Larry.

"Did you drug us?  Some sort of sleep inducing agent?", asked Dr. Blake.

"Do you remember going to sleep?", asked Pat.

They all thought for a moment, but none could recall actually losing consciousness.  It was just as if their minds had all drawn a blank on the whole trip.

"I don't remember anything after getting into the car", said Jay.

"It's called Pense", Pat stated, matter of factly.

"Pense?", replied Dr. Blake.

"Yes, an amnesia drug administered topically.  More powerful than conscious sedation could ever be.  Only instead of sedating...", Pat was interrupted by Dana.

"It immobilizes the subject.  They can still move freely, but have no recollection of the events occurring around them", Dana finished.

"You've done your homework", Pat smiled at her.

"Wait, wait, wait?  So you drugged us and brought us to this feast?", said Larry.

"Fleece, THE Fleece", replied Pat.

"Call it what you want, but that's kidnapping, pal."

Everyone else agreed with Larry, but Jay stood silent, staring at the floor below in deep thought.

"Would you rather have us leave you in the custody of the police that, at this very minute, are trying to compile a fraud case against you all?", said Pat.

Everyone got quiet with that remark.

"They think you're all in on some scheme to acquire further funding for Dr. Blake's research and that this 'deadman walking' fiasco was just a hoax, for publicity's sake."

"It was no hoax", replied Jay, looking dead at Pat now.

Pat looked over at him and smiled, "We know that, Jay.  That's why you're here."

"How do you know?"

"Because we've been keeping an eye on you and this whole situation you have succumbed to.  We were quite curious to see what the scans may reveal and got much more than we bargained for.  Your condition, shall we say, is...unique."

"What do you mean by 'unique'?", asked Jay, moving towards Pat.

"And who's 'we'?", asked Larry.

"Gentlemen, if it's answers you seek, they are right outside this room.  We're not hiding anything from you.  So please, shall we?"

Pat motioned for the others to leave the room and join himself and Jay in the rest of the complex.  Pat seemed more than willing to provide comfort and answers, something that made them all a little on edge.  But they were willing to tempt fate and take Pat at his word.

"Jay, if you would please proceed down the catwalk, I'll tell you which way to go as we move along", said Pat.

Jay hesitated only for a minute, then turned and proceeded in the direction Pat suggested.  They all began moving that way.

"The Fleece...", Pat began an almost tour-like narration, "...is a research facility, in the purest form.  There is no military backing, or government involvement.  No fabled hypocrisy to conceal an absolute truth.  All we are interested in is truth and how to understand it, nothing more.  The Fleece is a consortium of international servitude to the grandest truth of all, human existence and unknown possibilities that lie at the very heart of that existence.  The facility is run by physcists, theologians, scientists, doctors, right down to everyday people like yourself.  Truly a land of the free in the most genuine sense.  Because all of the people running this facility have the common goal seeking truth, they came up with a name for themselves, known only as Jason, spelled with a G."

"Wouldn't that be Gayson?", asked Larry, as they pressed on.

"Turn left, Jay.  No Larry, it's Jason, but the G is symbolic.  It stands for a profound wisdom beyond our reach, that we can only hope to obtain", said Pat.

"You mean like God?", asked Linda.

"Perhaps, Mrs. Trent. Of course, they try to refer to that using something less...stereotypical", said Pat.

"Don't tell me, 'The Force'?", said Larry, turning to face Pat.

Pat just smiled at Larry again, "No, too many fair use issues there. Jay, go left and down the stairs now."

They all followed Jay through the endless maze of corridors it seemed.

"No, we believe in a higher influence, if you will, that can set everyone and everything on whatever path is intended. Because of interconnectedness, or the 'Laws of Attraction', everything requires all things to journey down the chosen path.  It's inevitable and irreversible.

"But lately, we've been seeing something...different."

Jay stopped and turned to look in Pat's direction, who was at the end of the group.  Some of the others walked into one another because of Jay's sudden stop.

"I'm not much for interconnectedness when I crash into things", said Larry.

"What's different, Pat?", asked Jay.

Pat moved towards the front of the line, right in front of Jay, as they all stood in the corridor.

"Well, put simply, Jay, you happened."

"Me?"

"Yes, you, Jay.  You see, for some time we have been studying others with the same issues you have been experiencing. That's why we've been monitoring you, to choose a certain point when to bring you in."

"Bring me in for what?"

"You're not alone, Jay, the others like you are here as well, experiencing similar issues to the 'dreams' you have been having."

"Like my dreams?  Like I'm in some other place?"

"Yes.  Except, as you and your friends, colleagues, and family have discovered now, these 'dreams' aren't dreams at all. They are real places, just as real as the reality you currently perceive."

"Wait, reality?  Like alternate reality?", asked Dr. Blake.

"In a manner of speaking, yes, Dr. Blake. But it exist only inches away from us.  Again, it's that interconnectedness that binds, Jay.  This is not some far off universe in a deep, distant cosmos that might take thousands, even millions or billions of years to reach.  They are all right here, as one.  You, Jay, along with these others have found a way to tap into those realities, but you have done something even more profound."

"What's that?", asked Jay.

"You brought something back with you."

"How did I do that?"

"That's the real question here, Jay, and the only one I can't give you an answer to. We're hoping you can help us figure that part out."

Jay was beside himself, trying to take in what Pat just said. Pat could see the wheels turning in Jay's mind. The rest were quiet, unsure what to say or do. Then Linda spoke up.

"Wait, before we go any further, what are we talking about here?  Dead things that live?  Other worlds?  What about our lives?  What about our...", Linda put her hand to her mouth, completely having forgotten one important thing, "Our children! We have to get back to our children!"

"Mrs. Trent, I assure you, your children are fine", Pat said, looking at her smiling.

Linda just stared at him, tears had welled up in her eyes.

"In fact", said Pat, turning to look back at Jay, "They are right through this door."

Jay turned to his right to see a door with a handle barely visible.  In the lighting of the hall, he had missed it.

"All you need do is open it, Jay. Then you'll receive even more answers."

Jay looked at Pat for a few moments.  Pat continued to grin at him.  Jay saw no maliciousness on this man's face.  He seemed genuine to him, as genuine as the words he had spoken so far.  Jay immediately reached for the door, pulled the handle, and opened it up.

When the door opened Jay walked inside the room, his mouth now agape.  What he was seeing was beyond his imagining.  As he walked in all he could utter was, "Oh my God."

Story #2.1 What just happened?

"Would you run that by me again?"

Right outside the lab Dr. Blake, Larry, Linda, Dana, and Jay, presumably, had just had the experience of a lifetime, a police detective was attempting to understand the forensics specialist's assessment of the scene.  Frankly, if you explained it to him one hundred times he probably still could not have understood exactly what had taken place inside the lab.

"I have already explained this five times...", said the crime scene investigator.

"And I'm asking you...again.  I will continue to keep asking you until I get an answer that makes sense to me", replied the detective.

"Well, good luck with that, because if you can figure that out you're doing better than I am, man."

The crime scene investigator walked back to his van as the now exasperated detective turned to stare him down as his back was now to him.

The scowl on his face was more than enough for his partner to chuckle a bit.

"I don't see a damn thing funny going on here, Mike", said the detective.

Mike, his partner, replied, "It's funny every time you get mad, Seth.  You look like a troll hiding under a bridge when you make that face.  It's really not becoming."

Mike sipped his coffee.  He handed Seth his cup as well.  Both men took a sip as Mike attempted to recount the scene of the crime.

"So we have one dead body, that the coroner claims had been dead for about...how long was it, again?", said Mike.

Seth grinned as he stared down at his cup of coffee, "Six weeks, she says."

"Six weeks, but this whole thing only happened two hours ago inside this lab.  According to any witnesses that were in ear shot of the gun going off, no one knows where this 'dead' person came from, how they got in, or even how a gun got on the premises.  Even the eye-witnesses in the room that saw this 'professor' shoot the victim are completely unsure where the gun, or the 'dead' person, came from.  Even the 'professor' has no idea where the gun came from, that he himself used.  And to top it all off, the 'professor' has a personality disorder that led him here to this facility to have a scan to possibly explain his condition, and then this happens.  Make sense?"

"Yep!"

Mike laughed, "Yeah, I'm clueless too, if you listen to that crap and don't read between the lines."

"So you're thinking what I'm thinking then?"

Mike looked at Seth, "Enablers?  Covering for the 'professor' and his condition?"

"Could be, but that still doesn't explain the coroner's initial assessment of the body.  She said it literally had decaying flesh on it's person.  Decomposition that looked like a period of six to seven weeks, as if the body were already dead when the 'professor' shot it.  Now, how the hell do you pull that one off?"

"She is going to do an autopsy, right?"

"Of course, but there's not much to look at and it's pretty cut and dry what killed this thing in the room.  No one is questioning that or denying it.  Only thing I can assume is we're dealing with a potential fraud case here."

"Fraud?"

"Think about it.  The doctor over this facility might be losing money, maybe losing grants for his research.  So, if you can't convince people to send you the money the right way..."

"You create a situation."

"A publicity stunt."

"Something to maybe cash in on the insurance claim for damages?"

"Exactly!"

"And with a stunt like that, you could have a corpse, and a gun handy with a group..."

"Looking for their cut."

"I'm with ya, Seth.  Then use a crazy person who may not know any better, keep them off  their meds for a few days, they'll believe anything you put into their brain if it will make them think for even one moment they aren't crazy..."

"Then go out there telling the right people what happened as well..."

"Maybe get an endorsement from those producers just up the highway filming that television show as well..."

"Hey, easy money!  Then vuala, you're back in business.  That's how you commit fraud."

"Detective Jennings!"

Seth turned his head in the direction of the person yelling  his professional name.

A young woman was running towards him, continuing to yell for him and his partner Mike.

"Detective...", the woman said with gasping breaths, stopping in front of him.

"Slow down now, what's going on, Lucy?"

"The body is gone!", Lucy replied, righting herself.

"What body, the dead one?"

Lucy nodded, "And the gun."

Seth and Mike looked at each other, then darted over towards the coroner's van.  Lucy, the coroner, was fast on their trail and thoroughly winded from  her initial running, yelling trip.

When Seth and Mike arrived at the open rear of the van, the body was indeed gone.

"Was this door open like this?", Mike asked.

"No!  I had just opened it.  When I did, the body just wasn't there.  Then the forensics guy said the gun was missing too, so I ran over to you."

Seth turned around and surveyed the area.  He couldn't believe a body could just disappear in broad daylight with hundreds of people around.

"I want a complete account of who is currently working this case; I want all non-essential personnel cleared out and all civilians removed from the area to a distance of one hundred yards.  Detain anyone in that perimeter that will not cooperate for questioning.  Someone get me the station, we need to confirm the whereabouts of our eye-witnesses.  Let's move people, this body did not get up and walk away", said Seth.

Mike cleared his throat.  This grabbed the gaze of Seth, who had an ickling of what Mike was about to say.

"Technically, it already did once, according to our eye-witnesses", said Mike.

Seth was not amused.

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

Jay, Larry, Dr. Blake, Dana, and Linda were all sitting in an interrogation room at the police headquarters.  No police officer or detective was currently in the room.  Only a camera kept a watchful eye on them, as well as the two way mirror.  All of them sat slumped in their chairs, utterly whipped by the chain of events that occurred in the lab.  Dana had not spoken sense the event.  Dr. Blake was staring at the table, still somewhat mesmorized himself.  Linda had obviously been crying at times, but currently she was sitting there with her eyes closed.  Larry was fiddling with his shirt button with both hands.  Jay was resting his head in his hands on the table.  Finally, Larry broke the silence.

"So..."

No one responded to Larry, as he brushed off his shirt and leaned back forward, resting his arms on the table.

"...anybody else hungry?"

Dana, sitting to Larry's right, turned her head slowly toward him.  Larry looked at her, astonished by her response, somewhat, but acted normally.  Dana gave him a "go to hell" look, then looked back in the direction she had been.  Neither Dr. Blake or Linda responded.  But Jay began to laugh.

Jay leaned back and looked at his friend, "You're thinking about food at a time like this?"

"Dude, I'm starving!  I haven't had anything since last night because I was worried about you, man.  And this whole scan thing was supposed to be simple, in and out, back by lunchtime.  It's almost four o'clock now, man.  I mean, aren't they supposed to bring us something?  Anything?"

Jay just continued to stare at Larry, a slight smirk on his face.

No one else responded to Larry at all.

"Let's not go there right now, Lar", Jay said.

"I think we should.  It's a common need for survival we all share and I'm sure everyone in this room is hungry right now."

"I don't know if I can ever eat again", said Dana.

Larry looked her way, "Oh, she can speak, and from what I can tell you could probably use a few extra sandwiches every now and then."

"Screw you!"

"Love to honey, but I love a little extra cushion, you know what I mean."

"SHUT UP, YOU..."

"ALL RIGHT, KNOCK IT OFF!  Both of ya!  That's just pointless.  You'll both go round and round until you bring us all into a feud that ends up with us all still sitting right here, waiting.  On what, none of us know.  So why don't we just save the energy and see what happens next?", said Jay.

After Jay said this, the door to the room opened.  This grabbed everyone's attention.  With all eyes on the door, a bald man in a dark gray suit walked in.

"Good afternoon", the gray suit man said.

No one responded.

The man closed the door, then proceeded to smile.  He casually approached the table, sitting in the interrogator's chair.  He crossed his fingers together and politely addressed them all again.  It was obvious to everyone already in the room that this man was not a regular cop, if he was a cop at all.  He looked more like a salesman.  His three piece suit was tailor made, with a perfectly pressed white shirt.  The only thing that stood out was the tie.  The tie was multiple colors and not indicative of a man that worked for the government or any other agency.  They had no idea who this guy was, but they were all about to find out.

"So, you all had a very crazy situation unfold this morning?"

Still no one responded.

"Well, I can assure you,..."

The man leaned in a little closer.

"...you're not crazy."

He looked directly at Jay, then looked at everyone else smiling.

"We'd like to take you somewhere, somewhere that you can all clear the air.  Would you all be up for a trip?"

Again, no one responded, but the looks the man was receiving had changed.  They had gone from looks of confusion to curiosity, mixed with confusion.  Finally, someone asked the question that needed to be asked.

"Who are you?", asked Larry.

"Forgive me for not identifying myself.  I'm Pat."

"Pat?"

"Short for Patrick."

"And where are you wanting to take us?"

"Some place where all your questions will be answered."

Larry started laughing at that response.  Pat continued to sit there and smile, then he began laughing with Larry.

"Are you a cop?", asked Larry, still laughing.

"Oh no, I'm no cop", replied Pat.

"Of course not.  So where you gonna take us then?  Maybe Area 51?"

"Oh no, that place is too commercial these days."

Larry laughed even louder now.  Pat laughed with him again.

"Of course, what was I thinking.  There's been too many shows and movies about it.  Maybe it'll be some fantastic island, with a midget.  Or maybe where some mysterious power exists that no one knows about?"

"I've actually been to an island like that before."

"Of course you have, cause you've probably been everywhere..."

"...man", Pat finished Larry's sentence.

That made both men laugh hysterically.

Larry looked over at Jay, "This guy is a riot!  You should try it, man."

"I think I will.  Does anyone else know you're in here?", asked Jay.

"No, no one else does, and no one else knows you're in here as well."

"What are you talking about?  The police put us in here and left us waiting for hours."

"Did they now?"

With that statement Pat stood up and walked back over towards the door.  He opened the door, took a step to the side, and left it open.  He motioned towards the door with his left hand, "Have a look."

Larry was no longer laughing, his laugh had slowly disappeared since Pat's final response to Jay.  Jay looked at Larry, then proceeded to leave his seat.  He walked around the table over to the man standing in front of him.  Pat still continued to smile, his left arm extended towards the door.

Jay peaked around the open door.  What he saw outside was unbelievable.  He stood there, his mouth hanging open.  This had the attention of everyone else in the room now.  Linda finally spoke.

"Jay, what do you see?", Linda asked.

"We're not at the police station anymore", Jay replied.

Everyone else in the room stood up, to join Jay and Pat.

"Of course you're not, Jay.  None of you are", Pat said, continuing to smile.

Jay looked at Pat.

"You're at The Fleece, and I'd be glad and honored to show you around.  We've been expecting you."