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Authors: C.G. Roberts

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I broke the silence, “you mean to say that I already had  this thing floating around my head all these years and didn’t  know it”? I’m sure that you have, and that’s what’s kind of  confusing because somewhere along the way there should  have been some sort of episode, or an inkling that you or  your parents knew about this. Do you remember getting angry a lot when you were young”? Now that I think of it,  no, I was never overly mad or angry as far back as I could  remember. “I’ve always been pretty laid back, never really got  angry except for once, when I first got my Grand Theft Auto  game”. Nurse Mattie sat down in the chair next to my bed,  she seemed a little tired.

“If you could tell me all you can remember about that,  and what was it that happened”? It wasn’t that long ago but  I think I’m going to have to jog my memory a bit. “I do remember my parents going out to a movie, and I stayed home  to play my game. I really sucked at it in the beginning, but  started to get the hang of things, or so I thought. I don’t recall exactly what I was trying to accomplish, but I remember  getting progressively pissed”. I looked towards the window  to try and help my recollection of events for that evening,  not sure why I chose the window, the commode would have  been equal to the task I’m sure, then it hit me. All excited I  hollered, “I told the game to fuck off, and the TV blew up”.

Did I just say I blew up our TV, I didn’t think that I did,

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my parents and I came to the conclusion that the TV just  died of old age, after all it was a 27 year old Zenith, that’s  almost 105 in Samsung years. My dad took it hard, for him  TV was a way to relax after work, for hours at a time. For  him, yeah he knew he had a family, but the Seahawks game  was on so shut up! My Dad actually gave the TV a funeral.  Buried it in the backyard in a spot next to where we buried  my 3 legged dog- Tippy. His name was Sport, but after his  leg got run over by some car he was chasing down the road,  my Dad then christened him-Tippy. I inherited his strange  sense of humor; I wanted to call him tripod.

Nurse Mattie quickly gave me the, be quiet sign by putting her finger over her mouth. I couldn’t help it, I was excited. Quietly she continued, “You yelled at the TV and it quit  working, or exploded”? Looking towards the window again  for guidance, I mulled that one over. “No it didn’t exactly  explode, but as soon as I yelled at it, the screen cracked and  everything on the inside popped along with a lot of smoke,  then kind of a muffled pop, and then nothing, except for the  smoke”. “My parents resigned to the fact that it was old and  left it at that, I don’t recall any other event or instance like  you’re talking about”. Her smile returned, “Well Billy Speer  that is just what I’m looking for. You obviously had this in  you and it took a bit of anger to get some of it to come out”.  Nurse Mattie got up from the chair and paced about the  room. “What it looks like is you’ve always had the ability  knocking on the door to come out, and I believe after you got  hit by lightning, it opened that door ready to gush out. This  is where I come in to help with managing or to help harness  your power, so you can learn how to use it, and remain safe,

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as well as others around you”.

I felt I was handed a Triton and told to be careful and try  not to kill anybody. Watch out, touch me and die, or make  me angry and die, what a horrific cast of options I have at my  disposal. My headache was coming back and I doubted if it  was going to go away anytime soon.

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11

nurse mAttIe stArted
 
taking objects out of her  smock as she walked over to where the mobile tray was and  places them on top. Directly above the tray Criminal Minds  continued on TV though my interest waned. On the tray was  a glass, a ping pong ball, and a bag of nacho cheese Doritos.  Needless to say I was unsure what to make of these items,  and what Nurse Mattie’s intention for them was. She turned

from the tray and made her way along the wall as if not to  get too close to me. Reaching in her smock pocket she pulled  out her smart phone. That made sense, she didn’t want her  phone to fry. Tapping what sounded like Morse code on her  phone she looked up at me.

“I noticed you were able to maneuver the TV when I  came in here, is this the channel that was on”? She was on to  me, or maybe I’m just paranoid, but about what I wasn’t sure.  “You got me, I did change the channel, mainly to get rid of  the News, and I knew what channel Criminal Minds was  on. It took me a couple of tries, but I got it to change”. “Oh,  I also got the overhead lights to go off and on”. Her smile  widened with pleasure. “I see that you’ve been busy, but…..”  she looked down at her phone for a second, “Do you like The  HellRaiser Movies”?

Being a dark soul I perked up for this one. “Definitely, is it the first one”? Even us gore aficionados have our standards for the originals. “It most certainly is and is just now starting

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on channel 49. Remember to focus your attention on the  task at hand, the TV, try to imagine what would make you  angry and channel that energy towards the TV. Remember  you must control the anger”. I replied, “And don’t be seduced  by the dark side”. Nurse Mattie gave me a sneer of disapproval, “I’m not sure what you’re referring to”. “Sorry I try to  throw a Star Wars reference her and there when I can”.

That answer did not remove the sneer. Some people just are not Star Wars fans, oh well. I was able to change the channel on the TV, but it took a couple of tries so maybe  I should try it her way. “Remember to focus all of your at-tention on the TV and nothing else. Block out everything else around you, it’s just you and the TV”. Okay, I got this, focus, focus, channel my anger. It would be tough to think of things that make me angry. Then it came to me, think of Dr.  Bangors face that ought to do it. Here we go, concentrate, focus on the TV, picture the DR’s face in my mind…….
 
TV turn to channel 49 now!
 
And there it was, the opening credits

for Hellraiser, cool.

I was somewhat concerned about what Nurse Mattie was

expecting from me with those items on the mobile tray. It  didn’t seem to make any sense to me about how I could possibly be useful to the Government and what on earth they  would expect me to do, and to what or even worse, whom.  “Looks like you’re going to be a quick study, and I must say  that was quite impressive Billy Speer”. I could argue the  quick study part for I seem to recall it taking me almost two  months before I could take off the training wheels on my  bike. “I don’t know about quick and I did have a question if  you don’t mind”. “You go right ahead, I’m sure you’ll have a

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lot of questions”.

“About this stuff you’re having me do, is it like a test, does  it continue, does it end, do I even have a say in the manner”?  Her smile was replaced with I guess would be a look of disappointment. “You sure did bundle up those questions all  together didn’t you”? “Well to start there is a lot of testing,  and you need to know that we won’t put you through anything you can’t handle. By the way, for a beginner, you show  immense potential. This could be the start of something big  Billy Speer”. I was still uncomfortable with the something  big part, which was a bit vague. “As long as your abilities keep  expanding, the more testing will be needed, so you need not  worry about that, you’ll be taken care of quite nicely”. Again  with a vague synopsis, did that mean I would get feed on a  regular basis, would they compensate me, or pay me in bananas since I will be kind of a test rat.

“What do you mean by, I’ll be taken care of nicely, I  don’t mean to be a smartass, but that sounded rather political? Her smile came back for a return engagement. There’s  no denying that it was a great smile. “Are you asking if you  will be paid while in testing and afterwards, let me just say  in a few years of service, you could retire before you’re 25 if  you so wish”.

Retire, are you kidding me, I haven’t even joined the  work force yet and she has me retiring. On the other hand  some spending money would be nice to have. I suppose this  little bit of testing won’t hurt any, plus I’ll need to keep busy  anyway, if I’m to survive the old Coast Guard housing situation over the next six weeks. So be it I’m game, let’s do this.

“Okay, I’m all your’s, what did you want me to do first”?

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A look of relief came over her, as she let out a sizable breath.  “That’s wonderful Billy Speer, so I guess we can start with that glass on the end of the tray under the TV”. I gave Nurse  Mattie kind of a puzzled look. “Don’t worry it’s a plas-tic glass”. Nodding my approval, I started to concentrate.  Gathering my focus on the glass, then I stopped. “This may sound stupid, but what was it exactly that you wanted me to do with the glass”? “Whoops, a little bit of instruction might be in order. Now hold your hand out like you’re already hold-ing the glass, and make it come to your hand okay”.

Let’s try this again, concentrate, focus, maintain a bit of anger, not much but enough to be forceful.
 
Glass in my hand,
nothing,
 
Glass get in my hand
, Nothing. “Are you attempting the glass yet”? I didn’t know what was wrong. “I’m sorry I’m trying”. She snapped back, “Do, or do not, there is no try”.  I started to get angry when, “Hey wait a minute, that’s from  Star Wars”. “I too like to throw out a good Star wars refer-ence myself, Billy Speer. “I guess it must feel a bit like Yoda training young Luke”, I replied. “Somewhat, but I don’t need a cane, at least not yet”

Looks like we just might make a good team after all.  “Was your focus on the glass, and the glass only”? “Yeah, I just don’t know what happened this time. The TV came on nice and easy, and the channel changed just fine, so I can’t really say”. Nurse Mattie was silent for a moment then said,  “What do you think the difference was between the glass and the TV”? I mulled it over for a second and replied, “The only thing I can think of was I really wanted to watch Criminal  Minds, and Hellraiser, but the glass, not so much”. That’s all  I could come up with knowing that I really didn’t want the

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glass, but the other two things I did.

“I think there may be a pattern here, of things that interest you and those that don’t, so try and remember Billy Speer,  that everything we try is for your growth, so let’s focus the  thought of everything that I ask you to do is something that  you really want okay”. Sounded a little corny, but alright. “So  you want me to fake it”? “Basically yes, now let’s try again,  and focus around the thought that you really want the glass”.

This is starting to become a lot like school, excel in classes I like, and flounder in classes that bore the hell out of me.  Enough of that, time to focus, concentrate, okay hold my  hand out, and focus on the glass, nothing but the glass. So  far so good,
 
I want that glass to get in my hand now!
 
Wow, the  glass jetted towards my hand as if someone had thrown it at  me. It went right in my hand, but I was so startled, I dropped  it before I could get a grip around it.

“Not bad”, Nurse Mattie said giving me the thumbs up  sign. She picked the glass up from the side of the bed where  it landed, and walked it back over to the mobile tray. “Now  this time do the same thing, except don’t become startled”.  Once again I nodded as if mute, but here we go, focus, concentrate, hand out, ready,
 
I want that glass in my hand now!
 
Once again it flew across the room, but this time I was ready  for it. As it made its way to my hand, I waited for the glass  to hit the palm of my hand, then I successfully clamped my  hand around it, almost like a catcher reeling in a fastball, my  Dad would have been proud.

A quiet round of applause from Nurse Mattie was her  way of showing she was pleased with my results, as was I.  “Very nice, very nice indeed”, she held her hand out for the

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glass, I obliged her request and she took the glass and put  it back on the tray. As she turn back towards me, “this time  put the ping pong ball in the glass”. I was going to ask why,  but I’m sure the answer would make my head hurt again, so  onward we go.

“This time put all of your efforts into the ball going  into the cup, be firm, forceful, and focused”. She came back  over by the bed and pulled a pair of rubber gloves out of her  smock. I was beginning to think that her smock was magic for every time she put her hand into one of the pockets,  she always managed to pull something out. She managed  a phone, two cans of Dr. Pepper, countless pairs of gloves,  and of course the glass, ping pong ball, and the bag of nacho  cheese Doritos. The depth of these pockets seemed endless.

Nurse Mattie handed me the gloves to put on which I  did. I wasn’t quite sure who this was supposed to protect, me  or the ball. After snapping the gloves on Nurse Mattie began, “Just to satisfy my own curiosity, if you’re having trouble  with the ball, see if guiding it with your hands will help”. I  must have given her a puzzled look. “Just humor me okay”.

This one might prove to be a bit tricky, but here goes.  Focus, concentrate,
 
Pin Pong ball go into the glass,
 
the ball  rolled back and forth for a second and then nothing.
 
Ping  Pong ball go into the glass now!
 
The ball flew right on the side  of the glass, and bounced around the room for a bit. This was  getting frustrating. “Billy, if you would, use your hand as if it  were a guide to place it in the glass”. Nodding in agreement  as she put the ball back on the tray, I watched the ball the  entire time, trying to get my focus. I wanted that damn ball  in the glass so bad I could taste it.

BOOK: The Road to Round Mountain: The Betrayal by
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