Infinite Testament (2 page)

Stephen drove his silver convertible into the garage of his
mansion. A traditional two-story brick structure, it featured six
bedrooms and seven bathrooms, but ironically only housed Stephen and his dog,
Miles. Stephen never got around to filling his house with fancy
decorations, so other than painted walls, tables, and chairs, there was minimal
décor. There was a small lake in the backyard that he shared with one
other house, but he never saw the people who lived there go outside. The
area was isolated and that was exactly the way he liked it.

Stephen stepped out of his car. He could already hear
Miles barking. Miles was either excited to see him or couldn’t wait for
the meal he was about to get. Stephen opened the door and Miles jumped
all over him. Being a little Shih Tzu didn’t allow him to leap too high,
but he did his best. He was an excitable little dog whose bursts of
energy were uncontrollable. Miles forced his little paws on Stephen’s
shin. He hopped around and pushed. Stephen hung his keys on a hook
and picked him up. “Hey Buddy!” Miles returned the hello with a big
lick to the face. Stephen laughed. Miles was great at cheering him
up.

Stephen put the wooden ELPIS box that Kristin gave him on
the kitchen counter. The box begged to be open. It had been years
since he last saw it. Although they weren’t perfect about it, he and
Bruce kept their promise as best they could. It was never really that
important, but it was a nice gesture. He would take care of that later;
it was time for dinner with his friend Miles.

Stephen chewed his juicy steak.
This
restaurant always had a way of cooking it perfectly. The meat was red and
every bite produced a savory, delicious burst of flavor that made his tongue
smile. Across from him was his girlfriend, Lisa Binsby. She looked
especially dazzling in a black dress on this night, their one-year
anniversary. Stephen soaked in the sight of her face, something he never
took for granted. Under her green eyes was a small nose. Her teeth
were perfectly aligned and on her cheeks was a smattering of freckles. To
Stephen, she was gorgeous, like a full-fledged movie star.

It seemed like so long ago that he met her at the theme
park. Her wobbly broken foot had since been healed. Stephen’s first
inhibitions about her that day were right: she was perfect. There was
nothing in the world he enjoyed more than just being with her.

Stephen and Lisa were in their twenties, seniors in
college, and just old enough to enjoy the glasses of champagne that sat in front
of them.

Stephen raised his glass. “To us.”

Lisa followed and gently clanged her glass against
his. “To us.”

The restaurant was low-lit, mostly illuminated by the
generous flickering flames of the candles on every table. The waiters
spoke with eloquence and the whole place oozed with excessiveness. The
restaurant was bustling with people, but it managed to keep away from Stephen
and Lisa. The soft, jazzy dinner music in the background enhanced the
romantic atmosphere. Stephen was no high roller, but with their
anniversary on this day and graduation coming soon for both of them, an
expensive date was in order.

Lisa asked, “How are Bruce and Kristen doing?”

Stephen’s smile disappeared from his face. “I guess
they’re still going out, aren’t they?”

“Last I heard. Don’t you talk to Bruce anymore?”

It was a sore subject. Bruce had abandoned him ever
since he started going out with Kristen. Stephen fidgeted with his
silverware as he tried to politely answer. “Sometimes.”

“How about Vince?”

She knew exactly how Vince was doing. “He’s doing
great,” he said.

Lisa sensed his apprehension. Stephen had been
bothered by Bruce’s apparent abandonment for a while. Life can bring
sudden changes and Stephen wasn’t always accepting of them. Lisa eased
his mind by offering him a smile. It might’ve been lame, but her smile
was always enough to fill Stephen’s spirits. From the day he met her,
there was
something
about it. It was a special smile, one that was
only for him. For everyone else there was a smile, but for Stephen there
was a
smile
. Lisa could never consciously make it happen,
it was just a natural result of the deep affections she had for him. And
it didn’t just involve her lips. Her eyes gained an indescribable twinkle
to them. The dimples on her cheeks and the wrinkles in the corners of her
eyes attributed to the
smile
. Stephen and Lisa both knew it
existed, but never acknowledged it. For Stephen, it was the greatest gift
he could receive. He took her smile and returned one back.

Lisa remarked, “Only one month until graduation.”

Four years of hard work were almost over. The
prospect of moving on from college was thrilling. “One month.”

Lisa’s eyes wandered around the restaurant and oddly became
more reflective. Was she about to cry? The
smile
that
radiated just seconds before was gone, replaced with a smile that bounced
around, struggling to stay upwards. It definitely looked like she was
about to cry. Her eyes began to produce all-out tears. It broke his
heart to see her like this. What did he screw up? His mind
raced. Did something happen in her family? Was she secretly
flunking a class and wouldn’t graduate? As her smile continued to die, he
finally spoke. “Are you okay?”

Lisa’s eyes, without a trace of positivity, locked with
his. “Stephen, there’s something I have to tell you.” The
anticipation was tearing him up. The room spun in his head and his mind
howled with insanity while waiting for her words. He casually responded
to the best of his ability, “Yes?”

“I know you’re against leaving Michigan when we graduate,
but I think I’m going to go to Los Angeles for a little while.” She
continued to talk, but Stephen wasn’t fully paying attention anymore. It
was shocking; his heart folded. They had dated for a year and she never
mentioned moving to Los Angeles. Ever. At least not that he could
remember. He wondered why she would wait until a month before graduation
to tell him. His heart bounced around. There were too many
questions to ask.

“What? I don’t understand,” was all Stephen could
muster up.

Stephen waited for a response.
Miles
continued to sniff around the backyard for a spot to urinate.
“Well? What are you waiting for?” This process took forever every
single night. “Come on Miles, will you pick a spot and piss
already?” Miles turned his little head and looked at Stephen. He
barked a single bark and went back to searching. “Shut up you stupid
man,” was the best translation Stephen could offer. Stephen shook his
head in disdain and continued waiting.

Once Miles’ nightly ritual was over, Stephen took him
inside to watch TV news, his own nightly ritual. It was good to stay
informed, Stephen always figured. He flipped on the TV.

“Tonight, a milestone is reached. The number of
suicides reached since the ILD has reached a staggering 1.5 billion…”

This news frustrated Stephen. 1.5 billion was an
insane number. How can that many people despise their lives that
much? 1.5 billion people have killed themselves since the discovery of
the ILD. 1.5
Billion
. Stephen just turned the TV on, but it
was already enough. He turned it off. “Come on bud,” he called to
Miles.

Together, they headed to bed.

Stephen hated hearing about how many lives he helped to
end.

Stephen looked out the window and saw the tiny world below
him. He never cared much for flying and neither did Miles, who was
patiently sitting on his lap. With all the traveling Stephen was forced
to endure, it was nice to have a plane of his own.

Stephen enjoyed the view of the world below.
Everything looked oddly miniaturized, like they were transformed to toys.
Unfortunately, that vanished as he rose above the clouds. From there,
abstract visions of a million things came to life. The clouds offered
nothing but possibilities that would simply change every few seconds.
What started as an innocent bunny could transform into a golfing
alligator. The clouds were pastels of possibilities. That didn’t
interest him. When the clouds came, Stephen slept and waited for his
destination.

He was en route to Los Angeles to give a lecture on the
ILD. He would be speaking at UCLA to members of the medical
community. The speech would be focused on the theoretical issues and
facts available. Next week, he would be in Washington D.C., where he’d
have to give a
perfect
speech to the members of Congress. After
that he’d meet with the president to discuss the ramifications of the ILD in
American life. The speech to Congress was going to be televised live
nationally. The immediate UCLA speech was more of a preparatory speech
for his big national address.

Stephen was the primary voice and elite thinker in the
field. Everyone had an opinion on what the ILD meant or what properties
surrounded it, but only Stephen’s opinion was treated as canon.

He glanced out the window.

The waves crashed.
Stephen and Bruce
were two 8 year-old kids frolicking in the summertime enjoying their vacation
away from school. Come fall, they would be in third grade. They
played on the not-so-crowded Silver Beach at Saint Joseph, Michigan. They
were covered in sunscreen; their protective mothers (who were busy gossiping
and relaxing) wanted to keep them safe from the strong rays piercing their
young skin.

Stephen was building a sandcastle with the soft white
sand. Armed with only a bucket and a palm sized shovel, he had amassed
quite a structure. He had filled the bucket with sand and water at least
a dozen times. The structure consisted of four tall towers with connecting
walls. In the middle, was a large Tower Of Babel-type structure.
While it wasn’t completely sound, for a six year old, it was impressive.

Bruce, on the other hand, was digging. He had created
enough trenches in the beach to start a war and have plenty of cover space.
Bruce didn’t use any tools, only the hands on his arms. He dug like a
dog, flinging the sand between his legs. Swipe, swipe, swipe. He
was like a machine. He found himself at a particular hole that managed to
get so deep, he wasn’t visible to Stephen anymore.

Stephen yelled, “Bruce!”

“Yeah?” Bruce’s response went straight into the sand
and failed to reach Stephen’s ears. Bruce propped up his head and waited
for a response, receiving none. He resumed digging and continued his
descent.

Stephen yelled again. “Bruce!”

Bruce halted his digging and stormed out of the
trench. “What!?”

“Come here!”

Bruce approached Stephen, who was triumphantly holding his
bucket. “What do you think of my castle?”

Bruce looked at the castle, tempted to kick it over. “It’s
good.”

Stephen observed Bruce’s face and realized what he wanted
to do. “I’ll kill you.”

Bruce laughed. He knew Stephen would be mighty mad if
he knocked it over. He noticed the tall tower in the middle.
“What’s that for?”

Stephen stepped in the castle and gently tapped his tower
with pride.

“This is where they watch over everybody.”

“Who?”

Stephen stopped, confused. He hadn’t entirely thought
it over. “The people in charge.”

Bruce shrugged. What a weird castle. “You want
to see
my
castle?”

The two ran over to Bruce’s freshly deep trench, a crater
on the beach. Stephen pointed out, “That’s a hole.”

“Wanna help?”

“No.”

“Why not?”

Stephen replied, “I want to make my castle.”

“Please?”

Stephen looked back at his castle. It was waiting to
be completed. It would be awesome and only needed a little bit of work be
finished. He looked back at Bruce, who was silently begging him to
help. He couldn’t let his friend down.

“Okay.”

Stephen hopped in the shallow trench. “What do we
do?” Bruce launched his hands into the sand. “We dig ‘til we get to
Australia.” Stephen and Bruce dug and dug. For their tiny bodies,
it became a deep abyss.

Bruce’s hand unexpectedly struck something hard.
“Woah.” Stephen stopped digging and looked at Bruce’s hands.
“What?” Bruce brushed the sand away to uncover something hidden deep
under the surface. Bruce hoped for something fun, like a treasure
box. It became clear what was there: a small, beat-up box with the word
ELPIS indented on the cover.

“Treasure!” Bruce yelped with excitement.

Stephen pulled the box out of the sand and examined
it. It wasn’t especially big and it looked ancient. Bruce was
convinced there was pirate treasure inside.

Bruce begged, “Open it, open it!”

Stephen unlatched the hook and opened the box.

Miles rested on Stephen’s lap.

“Are you ready for this?”

Stephen’s partner and longtime friend Jay Campbell studied
him. Stephen woke to find Campbell staring at him, inches from his
face. Campbell was always the one to freak out about things. At
least someone did. Stephen needed someone who could look over his
shoulder and question him.

“Is everything clear on the speech?” Campbell
nagged. Stephen was tired and wanted to sleep. Half-interested, he
replied, “It’s good.”

The two met shortly after Stephen started his job at the
University of Michigan. Campbell was a lowly student whose social life
consisted of computer games. He donned glasses, a combed over haircut,
and was stickly skinny; he was an all-star nerd. Stephen found it funny;
stereotypes for nerds were always spot-on. Whether it was the looks or
lack of social skills, they were all the same. One day in class, Stephen
felt bad for him and offered him an assistant’s job in the lab just to get him
out of the dorm. Campbell, of course, took it. The two built a good
relationship and Campbell stuck around.

Campbell insisted, “Stephen, we have to discuss this.”

Stephen wearily opened his eyes. “You know, it’s
times like this I really don’t like you.”

Stephen went back to sleep. Campbell leaned in to
nudge him awake but a growl resonated from below. Miles, watching
Campbell’s hand creep forward, did not appreciate the gesture. The top of
his mouth rose to reveal his fangs. Though they weren’t the most
frightening teeth, they would still elicit a shot of pain. Campbell
locked eyes with Miles. Showdown. Campbell was convinced to wake
his boss; Miles was determined to stop him. Campbell inched his hand
toward Stephen’s shoulder. Miles tracked it and moved his eyes with
astute attention. Campbell was about to make it when Miles sprang to
action and bit him.

“Ow!” Campbell yanked back his hand.

Stephen opened one eye to catch a glimpse of Campbell, who
was flailing his hand in the air, trying to shed the pain. Stephen patted
Miles on the head.

“Good boy.”

Miles rested back down on Stephen’s lap with a quiet yelp
of satisfaction. Campbell was not pleased. “No, bad boy! Fine
Stephen. If you think you’re ready then just sleep.”

“Thank you.”

Stephen went back to sleep. He was ready for the
speech. His confidence was never broken. Bruce had rubbed off on
him.