Ascension: Invocation (6 page)

"Hello, space man, I'm actually glad to hear from you today."

"This is most fortunate."

"Yeah, it would seem that you've caused an even larger stir than normal. You're starting to annoy more people than just me."

"The intention is not to disturb you although this is, we are afraid, an inevitable consequence."              

"Sure. You don't mean to be a pain in the ass. You just are."

"Charles is with you today."

With this, Graham and Charles looked at each other incredulously. Each seemed to be briefly accusing the other of being involved in the prank in some way. Graham also thought about the conversation he had earlier with Chris. Was he involved in the stunt? Maybe it was Mike? Regardless, it was all going too far.

"Dr. Charles Trumboldt is with me this afternoon, space man. How did you know that?"

"It is predetermined."

"Uh huh. Of course. Well, he's taken an interest in your equation. It would seem that a great many scientists have as well."

"This is understandable. This represents a great leap forward. It is irrelevant, however."

"He wants to ask you a few questions."

"This is acceptable."

"Go ahead, Doctor.”

"Um. Yes. This is Charles...”

"Hello, Charles."

"Hello. What is your name?"

"We have many names, as do you."

"No seriously," Charles said. "What you've come up with here is nothing short of extaordinary. We'd like to know who to attribute this equation to. So, what is your name?"

"Regrettably, your question is irrelevant, Doctor."

"While I'm impressed with your modesty, you should really accept credit."

"There are a great many more things that you will learn in a short time. The knowledge in this equation will not serve you. It will not be relevant to your world."

"Then, why share it with us?" Graham asked.

"It was your request."

"So, all we have to do is ask? Maybe the doctor should quiz you." Graham smiled at Charles.              

"This is acceptable."

"Okay, Doc. Hit him with your most pressing questions."

The Doctor paused for a moment and thought. He didn't want to embarrass the broadcaster. After all, he was clearly a formidable scientific mind or, worse, a very clever, deviant mind. Either way, he didn't want this person as an enemy. He thought going vague might be his best option.

"Well, what is the origin of our universe?"

"Eons ago, under spiritual guidance of the masters of wisdom, the creators of your universe, prepared your plane for the development of higher forms of biological life and for the reincarnation of the souls of Lucifer."

"What?" Graham interrupted. "Lucifer? You mean the Devil? Satan? We're the spawn of Satan?"              

"You have asked three questions."

"Well, what are the answers?" Graham asked.

"The answer is that it will be best to refer to the world of Lucifer as Maloan. Your mythology dictates this."

"We are the descendants of souls from the planet Maloan?" asked Charles

"It is best that you refer to Maloan as a world; not a planet. You are not the descendants. Your world is of your creation. It is one and the same." Graham's phone lines began to light up. This was trouble. Certain topics were always off limits on the radio. Religion, especially in the Bible belt, was never a proper topic to breach. "In the beginning, the divine hierarchy's mysteries were known, and you were aware of your planet's inner logos whose consciousness gave birth to unique soul groups, each able to incarnate at different times. You possess within you the great universal records of your genesis. You were once before called upon to release your amnesia, but this was not to be. Now, it is of paramount importance that you progress forward. It will soon be time for your great awakening, and we very much anticipate your return."

"So, if I understand you correctly," said Charles, "you want us to join you in your world?"

"It is predetermined."

"You said we failed before. What makes you think we're ready now?"

"It is different now. You will not proceed in your entirety, this much is true. Regrettably, only you may determine your ascension. We may only facilitate your awakening."

"What role do you play in our world? Who are you? Are you God?"

"We are no more God than you are God. We no less you than you are us. We are of the same kind."

At this point, Mike flung open the door to the studio and promptly gave the "cut" sign. Graham and Charles could hear the office phone lines ringing in the hall. Graham had been down this road before, and it usually ended with him renting a U-Haul. He fired off a song.

"All right. I think that's just about enough out of you for today, law breaker," he said over the ramp of the song. "Snow Patrol, Dave Matthews coming up next. Right now, it's Arcade Fire on the Point."

Graham and Charles took off their headphones and turned around to face Mike.

"What's all this new age bullshit?" he wanted to know.

"Apparently, this guy is some sort of cult leader. I don't know," Graham shrugged.

"For the record, some of the things he referenced have been written about before. The planet Lucifer or Maloan, for example," Charles offered. "According to some mythologies, it was a planet that once existed between Mars and Jupiter. It was supposedly destroyed in an atomic explosion. The remnants of the planet are said to be the asteroid belt that exists between the two planets in the solar system as we know it today. Some have theorized that this is where the Bible story of Genesis originates; that the Bible scripture was influenced by this tale."

"All I know is I got advertisers threatening to pull spots," Mike said. "We've got some angry listeners."

Charles requested copies of all of the previous broadcasts featuring the voice and returned to his hotel to listen. Graham completed his show without further incident but stayed clear of the phones. Mike, meanwhile, dealt with an avalanche of phone calls from angry listeners, clients and the local newspaper. Toward the end of the day, he entertained a visit from the local police chief.

"Mike, I'm going to have to arrest him if he doesn't quit."

"Oh hell, Dewey, arrest him for what?"

"Disturbing the peace, inciting a riot...”

"Graham is doing nothing of the kind. That's a load of crap."

"Look, Mike, I'm getting phone calls at all hours of the night complaining about this. People are riled."

"The Church of Christ people are who's riled."

"It ain't just them. I've got a stack of complaints a mile high down at the office. They want him to stop."

"Dewey, how many times have I got to tell you? Graham ain't the one doing this. Our broadcast has been hijacked. I've filed a complaint with the FCC. You want to see it?"

"I don't need to see it. I believe you. How long is it going to take them to fix this?"

"Well, they got to find the guy illegally broadcasting first. We haven't been able to track him down."

"If you take Graham off the air, will the hijacker in question go away?"

"I don't know and why would I want to do that? Think about it. I should just hand over the frequency to the nut job you want me to silence? If Graham's doing anything, he's preventing this lunatic from going full bore."

Dewey now hushed his tone. "Mike, are you sure Graham ain't involved in this in some way?"

"Yes, I'm sure. He's just as alarmed about this as you are."

"He sure don't sound alarmed on the radio."

"That's his job. He's a professional. Professionals don't sound rattled even when they are."

"That may be, but look... we all know his history."

"Now, I'm gonna stop you right there, Dewey...”

"I'm just saying that he's had a problem with the liquor...”

"So did your Mama, Dewey, God rest her soul, and I don't recall her ever inciting no riot."

"I'm only asking if you're sure this ain't some kind of on air play he dreamed up. I been listening to his tapes on the internet."

"That was a long time ago. He don't do stuff like that no more. I can't believe we're talking about this. You know the man, for crying out loud. He’s a member of your church. Hell, go ask him yourself."

"I'm an officer of the law and these are questions I got to ask. You're his employer, so I'm askin' you."

"He's a good man, Dewey. A family man. He's taken to that little girl just like she was his own. Graham Barry is an upstanding member of this community. You ain’t ever found him in any trouble around here. Last year alone, he raised over five thousand dollars for your battered women’s shelter. You really think he just now went off the deep end for no good reason?"

"I don't, Mike. The truth is I don't. It's just that a lot of people are thinking that maybe he did."

"Well, I know that better than any of you. I'm losing a lot of money right now."

"I'm sorry to hear that, Mike."

"Jimmy even pulled his advertising for the new car lot."

"That ain't right. Y'all got history."

"Well, he can't be associated with this kind of talk and I understand that."

Dewey paused for a moment and then reached out to shake Mike's hand. "All right, Mike. I'll keep them at bay, but I'm going to need you to keep me updated on the FCC. Let me know what they find out. It also wouldn't hurt you to take those calls from the paper. Tell your side of the story. Explain what's really happening here."

"I'm thinkin' I might have to."

"The whole town's havin' a come apart. I don't want you to lose any more business."

Mike walked Dewey toward the door. "I appreciate that, Dewey, and I will keep you in touch."

"Thank you, Mike. You think Bama's gonna do it again this year?"

"Lord willin' and the quarterback don't choke."

"I hear ya. Roll tide, Mikey."

"Roll tide, Dew."



The next day, Graham and Mike awoke as the most unpopular men in town. Typically, Graham would stop by a local gas station on his way in to the office to purchase a cup of coffee. He was accustomed to being greeted with a warm smile and even a bit of small talk. Today, the mood was inside was decidedly different. When he walked in the shop, the room, typically abuzz with conversation, fell quiet. Graham stood awkwardly in line and waited to pay for his coffee. "Guitar lessons. Free cats. Donate your pennies for baby Lucinda." Graham read every flier on the cashier's wall in an effort to avoid eye contact. The clerk coldly handed him his change, and as he left, he could feel their stares upon him. This was familiar, but in the past when he had angered a city, Graham had been far too hung-over to notice or even care. On this day, he finally felt disapproval in the icy chill of sobriety. When he arrived at the station, things were different, though. Mike greeted him at the door and had obviously been waiting for him to arrive.

"Is everything okay?" Graham asked.

"Well, I’d say we got ourselves another situation,” Mike said, beaming.

"Is the station off the air? I didn’t see any missed calls."

"No, no. Everything's fine. Just fine. We've got us a visitor that you're going to want to see!"

"Another scientist?"

"Just come up to my office for some excitin' news, son!"

Graham followed Mike upstairs to his office. Inside, a guy in a suit sat chatting on his cell phone. He smiled when he saw the two of them and quickly wrapped up his conversation. He hung up the phone and met Graham in the doorway.

"Graham! How are you, man? I'm not sure if you remember me...”

"I'm sorry...”

"Steve Seagal. Steve. I was V.P. of Programming for Northstar!"

"In Phoenix?"

"Yeah! We were competitors. Well, technically, I went head to head with your V.P., Pugs Kelly, but, hey, you gave us a hell of a fight, bro."

"Thanks."

"Going against you in morning drive sucked, dude! You know Ramirez had a nervous breakdown, didn't you?"

"What? No. I didn't know that."

"Fuck yeah. That week during the fall book when Chase, the night guy, took over mornings?"

"Oh. Yeah. I thought that was weird."

"You put him in the fucking hospital, he was so stressed out. He was convinced that we were going to can his ass," Steve laughed.

"Shit. I'm sorry to hear that."

"It's a shame your run ended the way it did. You weren't given a fair shake in the papers out there, man. That was brutal.”

"Yeah. I know."

"We almost called you when we cut Ramirez but you were pretty fucked up back then."

"Yep."

"Hey, anyway, have a seat. Did Mike tell you why I'm here?"

"Well, he said it was 'excitin' news'," Graham gave a smile to Mike, who gave him a fist bump. Steve became quite serious. "I think it is. Graham, what would you say right this moment if I were to offer you national syndication?"