World Walker 1: The World Walker (30 page)

"All those miraculous cancer remissions? Disappearing tumors?" said Bob.

"Yes," said Lo, taking Meera's hand and gently pulling her down to sit with them. "Luckily, the human brain is hard-wired to provide explanations when presented with insufficient data, so no one has ever come looking for us."

"Carrot juice every morning?" said Mee.

"The power of prayer?" said Bob.

"Amongst others," said Diane. "There are so few of us that we can only make a tiny contribution toward the alleviation of hunger and sickness, but we do what we can."

"Many of the so-called witches burned alive in the seventieth century were members of the Order who'd got a little careless," said Lo.

"People fear what they don't understand," said Diane. "It's a cliche for a reason."

Mee fidgeted a little. "So Manna is what? Magic?" she said, her mistrust still obvious in the tone of her voice.

"Many Users think so," said Diane. "The Order has been far more hesitant about labeling it, although there is speculation even among us. We are taught to think of it as a natural resource. Just one that is little known or understood. We had no way of comprehending what it is we were encountering until the 1940s, when one possible explanation became a clear frontrunner."

"What explanation?" said Bob at the same time as Meera said, "What happened in the 1940s?"

"Advanced technology," said Lo to Bob then turned to Meera. "You've heard of the Roswell crash?"

"Aliens?" said Mee, snorting. "You get your power from aliens?"

"Well. Not exactly," said Diane. "Manna was around before humans crawled out of the slime, so far as we can tell. As I said, we've always treated it as a natural resource. But in 1947, the conspiracy theorists had it right for a change. There was an event of some kind. We know because of what was left behind after the crash at Roswell."

"Which was?" said Bob.

"A new thin place," said Diane. "The first time it's ever happened, we believe. And it caused a stir among users of Manna worldwide. Whatever the beliefs of Users, we all felt this event take place. It was like an earthquake felt globally, we were all shaken up by it. Some Users found a way of fitting this new development into their existing world view. Many found themselves scared and confused by what had happened."

"Why?" said Mee. "If you've been using this stuff for centuries, what real difference does it make if some new place shows up full of it?"

"Three reasons, really," said Diane. "First, as I said, this was apparently an unique event in human history as far as anyone knows. Second, everything pointed to extraterrestrial involvement."

"But I thought all that was discredited pretty quickly," said Bob. "I remember the military report saying it was a barrage balloon. If anything bigger than that had landed in Roswell, someone would have found some hard evidence by now."

"The government covered it up quickly and thoroughly," said Diane. "No trace of any extraterrestrial was ever found. Most users of Manna are only vaguely aware of other Users, but the Order has always been extremely sensitive in this way. We can even sense those who have been touched by Users recently. It's how Lo found you."

Bob and Meera exchanged a look. This wasn't getting any less weird.

"If an alien carrying a new supply of Manna had arrived on Earth, we'd expect to know about it. It would be like every car alarm in your street going off simultaneously. Not something you could miss. We sensed a brief flare, a fraction of a second, so we knew where to head for. And we went."

"To Roswell," said Meera.

"Yes," said Diane. Thousands of Users made their way to Roswell the first few months after the event. Blended in with the sight-seers and alien spotters. They wanted to absorb Manna from this fresh thin place, they were inexorably drawn to it."

"You said there were three reasons people were scared," said Mee. "What was the third?"

Diane's hands were absently smoothing the dirt. Tiny blades of bright green grass pushed up between her fingers as she spoke. "The third reason was the most disconcerting of all," she said. "No one could use the new thin place. Not a single User. The most powerful people tried, the oldest and holiest member of the Order tried. Nothing. We could all feel the potential, the energy waiting. It was as if the ground itself were humming with power. But not a single soul could access it."

"It's like an itch we can't scratch," said Lo, "but it feels far worse than that. Imagine going without water in the desert for a couple days then finding an ice box full of bottles of cold water. But there's a huge padlock on the door and no way to get to the water. That's how it feels."

"An unfortunate result of Roswell was that the factions of Users hardened their positions, stopped talking to each other," said Diane. "Threats were made, there were skirmishes. For a while it looked like open fighting would break out, but the main players saw sense in the end. There's still a lingering suspicion among many Users that Roswell is being secretly controlled by one of the groups."

"Which groups? What factions?" said Bob. "Who the hell are these people and what do they want with Seb?"

"Users of Manna suffer from the same frailties as everyone else," said Diane. "Although many are loners by nature, they like the security of belonging to a group, something that provides a belief system making sense of what they can do. There are many such groups around the world. Most are harmless."

"Most?" said Mee.

"There are some factions that believe Manna is an evil power, so they must commit evil acts to keep using it," said Diane. "The Order believes that whatever we bring to our encounters with Manna taints it somehow. That's why we try to bring so little. We want to be part of Manna, not bend it to our will. Other belief systems employ complex rituals in their quest to control Manna. We have anecdotal evidence of animal sacrifices, perhaps even human sacrifices. Outside America, many such groups have grown over the centuries."

"But not here? Why not?" said Bob.

"Oh, there are groups, but they are kept small by the faction that pretty much runs the country."

"What?" said Bob and Meera together.

"This country has a proud history of striving for freedom, with some serious missteps along the way," said Diane. "But we have a concurrent history of corruption and organized crime. Our political system and these criminal groupss grew in a symbiotic way over the last few centuries."

"In other words, the mafia and the rest of them always had politicians in their pockets," said Bob.

"Exactly. Then, in the 1970s, someone carefully and systematically took overall control of all notable crime syndicates. It was an unprecedented and audacious move by a group with enough information and resources to bury every politician or gang boss of note in America."

"Oh, come on," said Meera, "no one could get away with that. What is this? The Illuminati? The Knights Templar, some shadowy group pulling the strings of puppet governments?"

"Not quite," said Diane.

"Then what?" said Bob.

"One man controls this faction," said Diane. "He has no real interest in power in the traditional sense. He is only interested in finding out more about Manna. Eventually, controlling it. He is so powerful that no one has been able to stand against him, and every User in America, sooner or later, has to pledge loyalty to him or be eliminated."

"Eliminated?" said Bob.

"Killed," said Diane. "He doesn't make idle threats. He doesn't tolerate disobedience. And his use of Manna is unmatched, anywhere. Or was."

"So you pledged loyalty?" said Mee.

"No,"said Diane. "We think he doesn't see us as a threat. Or, more significantly, as an opportunity. He can't use us in any way so he lets us be. Or, at least, he has done so far. But everything has changed now."
 

"What's changed? And what do you mean this loser's use of Manna
was
unmatched," said Mee.

Diane and Lo stood up, as co-ordinated in their movements as two dancers. They walked to the middle of the garden. Mee looked at Bob. He shrugged and followed them, Mee trailing behind.

The women had stopped by the stone words. Diane pointed at the last word: π
εριμένετε
.

" 'Wait'," she said. "That's what the Order has done for nearly 2,000 years. Waited. Learned, yes, taught, yes, but mostly waited. In 1947, some of us thought the wait was over, but it was a false alarm. Then, early morning, three days ago in Los Angeles..." Her voice faded. For the first time, she seemed unsure which words to choose.

Bob stepped closer to her. "What happened to Seb?"

"We don't know," said Diane, "but we know he feels different to us. Unlike any other User we've ever come across."

"Different how?" said Mee.

"The way Manna forms within him," said Diane, "we recognize it. And if we recognize it, everyone, every User worldwide recognizes it."

"Recognizes what?" said Mee.

"The Manna he carries," said Diane, "it's similar to the earthquake we felt in 1947. Somehow, your friend is using something like the Roswell Manna."

Bob was silent, thinking. Eventually he looked up. "What exactly have you been waiting for for 1800 years?" he said. Diane didn't answer, but Lo turned toward him, eyes shining with tears.

"The Messiah," she said.

Chapter 30

Waking in a king-sized bed with three sleeping naked women draped across him while a fourth snorted cocaine from the surface of an antique roll-top desk, Seb couldn't help smiling. He slid out of bed and padded over to the bathroom, turning the power on full in the massive shower. As he grabbed the body wash, he heard the door open. And two other bodies joined him in the steam.
 

"Looks like we're going to need more soap," he said, "'cause you girls are very, very dirty."

Later, the house empty apart from Walt who was preparing salad in the kitchen, Seb looked at himself in the mirror, marveling again at the way nothing seemed to have an impact on his appearance or mental state. He should look like hell, really, not like a poster boy for male grooming products. It seemed he wouldn't have to worry too much about living a healthy lifestyle any more. Up to now, he had always tried to take care of himself. The rest of the band had teased him about the relatively early nights - "it's not even 3am, man, where ya going?" - and the post-soundcheck run he'd always take before a gig. And he played it safe in other ways, never quite going as far as the others with alcohol, pot and pills he didn't even know the name of. He had partied, sure, but he'd didn't like to lose control. He remembered Mee - after their brief fling - telling him he should live a little more dangerously. "If you let yourself go a little," she said, "I think you might find you have a real gift for hedonism, Seb Varden. Go out there and get yourself laid more, say yes more, don't be so uptight." He had looked at her gentle brown eyes offset by that permanently slightly-mocking smile and decided this might not be the time to tell her he thought he was in love with her.

"Come and get it," called Walt from the kitchen. "You need your strength. Advanced training this afternoon."

Advanced training turned out to be more than an afternoon's work. Seb and Walt spent the rest of the day and all of the next working on the same thing. Walt explained what they would be doing after they walked out to the yard at the back of his property. The yard was a surprise. Seb was expecting fountains, Greek columns, a maze. Something. Not this, just a square, fenced off patch of dirt and nothing more, apart from an old punchbag hanging by the back step.

"No near neighbors," said Walt, "so no awkward questions."
 

There was a bench set against the fence on one side. They sat.

"This is not my area of expertise," said Walt, "but I'm not bad at it. There are at least four Users I know who specialize in this, but even they are very careful about when and where. It takes a great deal of power and a hell of a lot of concentration to do it well. We'll have to refill at Red Rock after a few tries." He shot a look at Seb. "Well, I will, anyhow."

Seb just nodded. He was a way off getting used to the idea of Manna at all, let alone the knowledge that he was carrying it - whatever it was - in his own body. Now he had a little time to relax and think, he'd half wondered why he wasn't more scared about what had happened. He wasn't an anxious person by nature, but the most laid-back guy in the world would surely expect to feel some stress about the events of the past few days. His usual calmness appeared to have been augmented by Manna, meaning he felt effortlessly present in each moment, aware of what was around him. It wasn't that he was ignoring the past or the future, he just seemed to have it in perspective. And each moment opened up many possibilities, all of which seemed to be present in his consciousness without any real effort. He felt his personality had changed. He just wasn't sure whether the change was good or bad, because there was no way to stand outside himself and make that call. He was different. But he was alive and that was enough for now.

On the bench next to him, Walt slowed his breath and Seb felt the hairs on his arms stand up as the Manna began to build. Walt's eyes unfocussed and he gazed unseeingly into the middle of the yard. Then he brought his concentration to bear on a patch of dirt about six feet in front of them. The earth moved slightly, like a stew coming to the boil.