It's My Party

"No, it's just me and Emily now. Hang on, I'll get the others. Lots of new people from Party #5 have joined us. We have a lot to tell you too." Jada threw on her bathrobe and ran off while Emily continued the conversation and carried the phone to the lounge.

Within a few minutes, the entire group had assembled, including all the new members who were living at Green Mall. Mark took the conversation in an unexpected direction.

"First off, the batteries we've been taking from the hardware stores. Do not under any circumstances dispose of one down the trash chutes." Mark was referring to the strange trash chutes in the home complexes and also often seen in the Malls. They seemed to be inky wells of infinite darkness that ate anything. "And don't try to open up a battery either."

"Okay," said Jada. "What would happen if we did?"

"No idea, but I think that would be a really bad idea. Toshi and I have two of the 3.5 volt batteries with us from our white-LED flashlights, you know, the ones that look like fat AA batteries?"

Jada nodded. "Uh huh."

"Well, we've drawn a hundred times the power of what a Lithium-ion battery that size could hold, and they're still going strong. I don't know what the heck is inside these things, but I suspect cutting one open could be extremely hazardous."

"Ah, okay. Is that how you're powering the Leophone now?"

"Yep. It took a lot of thinking how to do this. The phone charges at 10.5 volts. The two batteries in series only get us to 7."

Jada thought for a moment. "So how did you boost the voltage?"

Mark laughed. "Yes, that is the question, isn't it? What a comedy of errors. I had a zinc coated paperclip in my pocket when we got here, and we tried to make a battery with that and some copper from my phone charger and lemon juice."

"Lemon juice?"

"Yeah. There are lemon trees here. But we just couldn't get enough current. It was only yesterday when I finally realized that with an inexhaustible source of seven volts, all I needed to do was build a simple DC voltage booster."

Jada was curious but had almost no practical knowledge of circuits. "How do you do that?"

"All the parts I needed were in my phone charger. I cut it open and took out an inductor, a capacitor, a transistor, and a diode. You set up a simple LC resonance bridge, and in the part of the cycle where the transistor is off, the inductor is discharging and boosting the input voltage. Jada, everybody, let me describe what this diamond complex is like."

Mark spent the next ten minutes describing the pathways in the diamond complex, and then finished with, "Don't you see? The diamond south of the home complex of White Mall is probably a mirror image of this. The people of Party #2 would have seen their diamond as the natural path back to their cars."

Jada's eyes went wide as she realized Mark's point. The diamond of Black Mall was due north of its home complex. The people at Party #5 had no thought that entering the diamond array of hexagons would get them back to their cars at the southern end of Castle Commonwealth. But White Mall was the mirror setup. Entering the diamond there would have made perfect sense. Indeed, to the east, north, and south, there was more than a two-kilometer buffer of open fields. Heading south into the array was almost certainly what Party #2 had done.

And without mushroom locks, did they get trapped in ecosystems similar to Mark's? It was certainly worth investigating. A male voice in the Red Mall lounge spoke out. "I did a little exploring in the array above Black Mall, not much but some. I'll be happy to help search the array at White Mall."

Emily had already filled Mark and Toshi and Frida in on all the new members of their society. "Is that you Chico?" asked Toshi.

The man chuckled. "Hi Toshi. Actually, as of yesterday, I've switched back to Charles, and Toro is back to Tom."

"Congratulations," Toshi replied simply.

The conversation continued. Eventually Mark's group revealed how they had been spending most of their time. "We don't know if you have discovered this yet," said Frida. "Do you know how to set up a three-person mind link?"

"What?!" Jada said in almost a shout.

"Ah, I see that you haven't. Have three people who trust each other very well sit facing each other in a tight triangle. Then each person has to stare into the outside eye of the other two people."

"You don't get dizzy," Emily asked, "splitting your vision like that?"

Toshi answered. "No, surprisingly no. Once the three-way link forms, it's exactly the opposite. You have fantastic stereoscopic vision, peripheral vision covering a full 360 degrees."

"It was our third day here," Frida continued, "when we set up our first three-way resonance. The acceleration of subjective time is much more pronounced, a factor of three to twenty when we try in pairs, and as a triplet the factor of twenty is a minimum. And that's when we're awake."

Mark added. "We think when we link-sleep the acceleration increases to more than a hundred." He saw Frida give him a mildly surprised and amused look after he said this.

There was dead silence in the Red Mall lounge. "This is a lot to take in," Emily said at last. "You say you can link while you're asleep?"

Mark replied, "Toshi and I actually did this as a pair, the first night we were together in the Black Mall closet." He paused for a moment. "It's a very intimate connection. In dream mode, all the high-level executive defenses of the mind are inactive. The amount of sharing… it's difficult to describe."

"Oh, we should announce one more thing," said Frida. "Toshi is definitely pregnant. We are certain."

"Wow Toshi," said Akiko quietly, "how are you feeling?"

"Oh, I'm fine," she replied. "I am not sorry to be pregnant."

"Do you know who the father is?" Akiko asked.

"I am," said Mark happily.

Jada felt as if she'd just been hit with an electric shock. "What?" she whispered.

"What Mark means," Toshi added hastily, "is that we will be a parental couple. The biological father was Gilberto. Mark and I have discussed this in much detail. We will be father and mother to the child." She added softly. "In our dreams, it's a girl."

Emily was fascinated by all the new knowledge. "Mark, may I ask? Subjectively, how much time has passed for you?"

There was an unexpected pause for a few seconds, and then he replied. "Yeah, good question. I know it's only been about a week of real time. Subjectively, with all our linking, it's been more than a month for us, an old Earth month I mean."

There was another pause as Mark's words sank in. Then Lynn tried to start the conversation again. "Can you tell us more about your local ecosystem?"

Toshi answered. "It's very beautiful, the illusion of a vast park. Our home here is filled with edible plants and flowers. And there are bees everywhere. They're huge, almost the size of my thumb, but super docile, almost friendly. We can take their honey at will if we take small amounts. And there is vegetable food everywhere. Lima beans, cucumbers, alfalfa, sunflowers, asparagus, broccoli, carrots, and for protein we catch several different species of fish in the pond."

Frida continued. "Our home here is very simple, three simple rooms, one bed, one bathroom, one very simple kitchen, that's it. We think it is intended to be more of a campsite than a home. It's a refuge to come and relax for a time in utter simplicity."

Akiko giggled. "One bed for the three of you?" She could hear Toshi laughing over the phone.

"It was a little awkward at first, but no longer. The bed is huge, like the ones at the home complexes." Toshi did not elaborate further.

The two groups talked a bit more and then bid each other goodnight. Emily led a late-night work session planning the exploration of the White Mall diamond the following morning. Jada wandered back to her bedroom with the Leophone. After climbing back into bed she redialed Mark. He picked up at once.

"Hi. I was hoping you'd call. Toshi and Frida went for a walk on the other side of the pond."

"Ah. They wanted to give us some privacy?"

"Uh huh. They're okay. The fake moon is almost full right now, and it's very pretty here."

"Wow. Earth's moon? That must bring back memories."

"You have no idea," Mark whispered, and then he gave a deep sigh. "Jada?"

"Yes?"

"It's so strange, to think about all this. All my life, I had no desire for anything outside of monogamy. Well, maybe some boyish fantasies of getting it on with a bunch of cute females. But for real life, I had no thought at all for multiple partners."

"Uh huh. I know."

"And then all this happened. I met you, and you wanted me, and I felt… Oh, it was indescribable. And it still is. And yet…"

"Yes?"

"Toshi and I, we met in a dream, shared hopes and fears at the dream level. Her plea was from her heart. I couldn't say no." Mark paused and added. "And I didn't want to. Dearest?"

Jada blinked. "Am I still dearest to you?"

"Yes. Toshi and I, we haven't had sex together. Emotionally we want to, but Toshi is extremely polite and doesn't want to interfere with us working out our own relationship first."

"And Frida?"

Mark gently laughed. "Ah, Frida, yeah… Well, Frida is more…"

"Horny?"

"I guess that's the word for it. In her dreams she's a bundle of sexy desire. But when she's awake, she's good natured about waiting too."

Jada paused for a moment to take this in. "So you're really waiting for me."

"Yes. Toshi and Frida and I are petting each other a bit, but… well, the mind link really helps. The desire to be considerate overrides everything."

Jada nodded and then decided she felt like talking about something else for a while. "Kiyoko, she thinks it'll be another six or seven days before she's the janitor of the Black Mall area. In the meantime, both Charles and Tom have volunteered to go back to their old home."

"Huh?!"

"Brandi too, even Cassidy if she's needed. I wouldn't send any of the slaves back. That's out of the question."

Mark realized at last what Jada was saying. "Secret agents? Spies?"

"Yes."

"Are they trustworthy?"

"Mark, I've locked eyes with them."

"Oh." Mark paused for a second. "Okay, enough said."

"Yes. I'm not sure at all we're going to do this. If Uno or one of his remaining compadres ever locks eyes with these people…"

Mark took a moment to think. "I remember an old quote. When doing good, avoid notoriety. When doing evil, avoid self awareness."

Jada considered Mark's point. "So you think Uno's people can't form a mind link?"

"Well, I wouldn't say impossible. But I think its no coincidence that we've discovered it and they haven't. The amount of trust involved is profound. And have you noticed the effect? Just as the link starts to form, there's an intense burst of self awareness, right before the image of self is shared with the other mind."

"I've noticed, and I agree. But you linked with Santos."

"Yeah, that's a good point. Extreme emotional content can substitute for trust I guess." Mark yawned. "I don't know. But there's really no reason to rescue us right now. Uno and his people would have to get past the ivy, and then pick the right enclave out of ten. Without the locks, once they enter one, they won't be able to come out."

Jada sighed. "I'm pretty sure that hasn't happened. They've been sending a pair of observers at random times to the edge of the unlocked area of Black Mall. They have ten people now, and we've seen everybody except Uno. I'm guessing he's staying holed up at the home complex and focusing on the Mall. Losing more people in the diamond complex is not high on his list of things to do."

Jada stretched out on her bed, lying on her back and holding the phone to her ear. "I'm also guessing they're keeping a couple of guns in Jacob's Bar and Grill to prevent the place from being locked, and a couple more guns to defend the surface complex. Uno doesn't have the personnel anymore for surface explorations, not if he wants to hold the mall."

Back in his bungalow, Mark nodded. "Yeah, that's what we think too. Uh, Jada? Earlier Emily mentioned you guys have started working on a real government?"

"Well, just a bit. We haven't done much yet. But Allison made a very eloquent speech about holding caucuses rather than elections. Fatima really liked the idea."

"Ah, you mean holding group meetings rather than secret ballots?"

"Exactly. Allison said the word caucus was an Algonquin word for the gathering of tribal chiefs. Her idea was to keep all voting public, that we should elect people in gatherings and not by secret ballots."

Mark yawned. "Sounds like a good idea. With the mind links, there are no secrets anyway." He yawned again. "I should give Toshi and Frida a sign to come back. It's past our bedtime."

Jada giggled. "Are you really avoiding sex just for me?"

Mark could hear the playfulness in her question. "Yep. We only have the clothes we wore into this place, and some bathrobes that were in the linen. They usually all go into the washer for the night. It does get a bit friendly at bedtime. We fall asleep apart and wake up snuggling against each other." Mark sighed. "It's very pleasant, and I love both of these women dearly. What else can I say? Jada, we'll link when we see each other again. You'll understand then."

"Oh, I think I understand now. Mark, it's okay. You did the right thing, accepting Toshi's child as your own. I'm quite proud of you. It just took a little time to get over the shock."

"I love you Jada."

"I know. Go to sleep my love. And don't feel guilty about petting the mother of your child, Frida either for that matter. My time will come. I know it will." After another minute of exchanging endearments, they signed off.

Chapter 36.

A moment after saying goodnight to Jada, a naked Mark walked into the moonlight by the window and waved. Toshi and Frida waved back from across the pond and came and joined him, throwing their clothes into the strange washer and washing their feet before joining Mark under clean sheets. Frida's voice was alive with laughter. "A month?! An old Earth month?! Why didn't you tell them it's been a new-planet year?"

Mark replied playfully. "Well, a new year is only about five of the old months. And I didn't say a month. I said more than a month. Five is more than one."

Toshi understood Mark's reasoning. "Frida, he doesn't want to reveal the new abilities all at once. And I agree with him. Let's break the news slowly."

"Ah. You think the rest will think of us as something less than human?"

Toshi cocked her head slightly and nodded. "Not less than human, something other than human. I don't mean that in a cruel way, but yes." She sighed and sought out Mark's hand under the sheet. "They'll have the same abilities of course, once they start to practice. Let's take it easy how quickly we tell them. There's no need to be rough with our friends."

Frida nodded and then came and lay close to Mark's side, almost touching. Toshi was on the other side, and in the moonlight, Frida could see that as usual Mark and Toshi were holding hands.

They had learned so much this past objective week, this past subjective year. The subjective human mind needed to sleep a third of subjective time, just as the human body needed to sleep one third of objective time. In the tranquil paradise of their ecosystem, it had been so easy to spend several objective hours or more daily in the three-way lock, with each hour close to a week of subjective time.

The quiet sounds of the night drifted in through the screened window. Mark sighed and relaxed, enjoying the warmth and affections of two of his closest and dearest friends. They had shared everything this past week. Mark felt he knew Frida's younger sister as well as she did, their years together growing up as close confidants, the summer they built a tree-house together.

And Toshi… Mark was now fluent in Japanese, as was Frida. The complex system of honorifics had seemed so strange at first, with the verb forms and vocabulary all dancing around the relative social status of speaker, listener, and person being discussed. But it all seemed so natural now, far more so than even a normal year of intense studying could achieve. The mind link had allowed a holistically complete transfer of knowledge and perspective. The language had become a second native tongue to Mark because it was the native tongue of the person who shared it.

Frida's hands came to pet Mark. One cool hand was on his forehead, with soft and gentle pads of fingertips tracing eyes and nose and mouth. Her other hand caressed his leg and hip and ribs, tracing the hard abdominal muscles across his front. As Mark giggled at the ticklish sensations on his lips, the other hand dropped down, brushing aside the limp penis to stroke the soft inside thigh, then returning to cup Mark's testicles.

Mark gulped, but it was difficult to speak with Frida's hand caressing his throat. The cool palm and fingers curling around his sac made him shiver. He could feel his testicles lifting up from the stimulation, and also his penis begin to lengthen. Mark squirmed slightly.

"So," whispered Frida. "Did you get a chance to talk with Jada about us having sex together?" Toshi gave Mark's hand a friendly squeeze. She knew that Frida's question covered the three of them.

"I did."

The cool hand released his sac, and for a moment Mark thought Frida might want to just talk for a while. But then fingertips as light as feathers began brushing against his penis, up and down the shaft. The sensation was exquisite, a delicate touch that Frida had learned from Toshi's culture of patience and discipline. "That's nice," Frida whispered in laughter. "And what did she say?"

"Well, she said… hmmm…"

"She said hmmm?"

"Huh? Uh, no. She said… she said not to worry about us petting each other." Mark gasped. The fingers for a moment had become a vise, a grip so erotically intense his hips had thrust forward into the tightness without need for conscious thought. Mark pulled back to thrust again, and the vise disappeared. He sensed Frida raising her leg under the sheet.

"Frida," asked Toshi, "what are you doing?"

"Nothing we haven't done many times in our dreams!"

"Dreams are fantasies. This is real!"

"Dreams are real too," Frida answered in perfect Japanese. "My speaking like this proves it." Her hand returned to Mark's penis, and as she grasped him again, she felt his body jump as if electrified. She gave swift, hard jerks, up and down, rapidly pumping him to a full erection.

Mark was gasping, completely swept away by Frida's sexual desire. Her hand was slick and moist, and with Frida's raised leg, he didn't have to guess where the moisture was coming from. And his mind felt as if it were caught in a vortex. Toshi and Frida were correct. In their year of subjective time, the three had frolicked together in their dreams. There their playtime was without inhibitions, and their sexual exploits had often left their sheets wet with male and female spent desire.

But always in the week of objective time, while awake they had remained semi-chaste, expressing love and affection to each other but always backing off when anyone would enter sexual arousal. It was Toshi who was guiding this, remembering that all their memories of their missing friends were now a subjective year old. Toshi thought it was unfair for her and Frida to compete against Jada under such conditions.

Toshi sighed heavily in the darkness, feeling Mark's hand tremble as Frida brought him to full erection. Of course Mark wanted Frida, cherished Frida. They had lived together intimately now for a subjective year, and in their dreams there were no lies, no secrets. But they had agreed! "Frida!" Toshi whispered.