“Well damn I failed,” I laugh. “I guess I will check out the others.”

I walk outside. I never know what time it is outside in the city. The glow from the building seems to override the light of the sun.

“Computer, where are the other four?” I ask.

“Define other four,” returns the computer.

“Oh gees, I forgot the computer is dumb. Okay where is Tieth and Cliff?” I finally get out flustered.

A line appears and I follow it. Surprisingly some of the route did look familiar. I find the line go in a door. I'm not sure if this is the residence or something else. I debated on knocking, but I doubted that would work.

So I walked in. It is nothing like I expected. I walk into what looks like a very strange and exotic forest. There are plants that look like the ones in the main office. They vary in height, from several inches to several feet high.

Along with the plants are huge trees. They are more like trunks with snake bodies hanging. All the plants and tree hangings move independent of each other. Berg, Peth, Cliff and Tieth are all in here playing with the plants.

Cliff is the first to notice me, “Ben, these places are so awesome. I can't even pronounce the names. I've got to show you the other one.” Cliff looks back at the others, “We are going to see the cloud place, will be back.”

“Oh I'm coming to,” Tieth says and heads over to me.

I see Berg look at Peth wanting. Peth rolls her eyes and nods. “I'll be here,” she says.

They hurry me out the door. But I had enough time to notice the door was in a large tree. We get outside and let the door close.

Cliff turns around to the door. “List of places,” he says and a list of words I do not recognize or can even pronounce appear.

“New,” Cliff says as he presses the fifth from the top.

The door opens and they hurry me in. I stumble as I go in trying to find something to grab. I find myself floating in a sky of clouds.

I can not see any land. All I see is different hewed clouds, floating around me. As one comes at me, I bump it. The whole cloud wobbles and contorts like an odd shaped soap bubble. It stops moving while it wobbles, then slowly reverses direction.

I notice Berg swinging his arm through a cloud and it splits in two. Each part of the separated cloud goes in opposite directions.

“What do you think?” Cliff asks. I have not seen the excitement in their eyes and expressions before.

“Bit freaky at first, but awesome yes,” I say.

Berg laughs, “You should have seen Peth's eyes when we picked this room. She stayed outside.”

“I could imagine. I'm guessing there are other planets?” I ask trying to orientate myself in the sky.

“Yes,” Grass says, “Each planet they have visited is in the list. They had one on earth already, but we didn't think the desert was very interesting.”

“I agree, I like the one you made better,” I say.

“Thanks,” Grass returns.

Berg looks at me seriously, “We need to get back with Peth. We all have some things to discuss.”

“That is disappointing, but you are right. We can come here later,” Tieth says.

They all head out the door easily. I find myself wanting to grab something as I go out. We get outside and let the door close.

“We need the door where Peth is,” Berg says.

The door opens and we walk into the strange forest. Peth is poking one of the tree snakes and watching it curl up into the tree top.

She hears us enter and turns to face us. “Are you boys done for now?” she says with an authority you hear from a mother.

“Yes ma'am,” Cliff says, “We are here to talk.”

“I expected that. It has to be done,” she says with some disappointment in her voice.

“Oh god the talk. I know about the birds and the bees,” I say jokingly.

She looks at me confused, “I don't understand.”

“Oh never mind, Grass can explain it to you later,” I say disappointed.

“Sure,” Grass says with a choked down laugh.

Peth looks at me with a very serious look, “Grass has kept us informed of what has been going on. He says you may have to go away.”

“Oh they did, did they? They forget to inform me,” I say with a stress on the last sentence, and an upward glance.

“Did he not say to you that you may have a greater destiny?” Berg asks.

I look at Berg, “Well kind of, but they didn't inform me I may have to leave. Like I need to get used to a new place.”

“I do not know of where you go, but he said it may not be safe for us,” Peth says, trying to redirect and calm the situation.

I look at Peth sadly, “Oh, they must have missed that part to tell me.”

“Ben we will always be here for you. We will never forget what you have done for us,” Peth says soothingly. “But you are special, whether you like it or not.

For us to keep you from helping others, would go against all that I try to do. I am a healer helper and that is what you are too. Your destiny is to help on a greater scale. We all would be selfish to deny you that.”

Tears start to well in my eyes, “But I thought I had found where I belonged,” I can even hear myself choke on the tears.

“Ben we will always be here for you to return. Berg argued with Grass for a time, trying to convince them he could go. But as Grass said, our limitations would be a liability to you. If any of us were to go, we would just slow you down.

We will be here putting our society back together. We hope when you get back, we will be able to give you a proper welcome and thank you.

Will you grant us this time, so your homecoming will be proper. We owe you so much and want to be able to show this to you.”

I pull myself together and look at Peth, “Thank you for trying Peth. We both know I may never see you again.”

“Neither of us know that,” Peth says, trying hard to hold it together.

“No, but we both know it is more likely. I will never forget any of you wherever I go. You are all the best friends I have ever had. Computer Mesuna's lab.”

I watch as everyone fades. As my vision clears I am in a room with Mesuna at a desk feverishly taping at it. There are a couple of open tables in the room. It seems awfully sparse and small for a lab to me.

She looks up, “How did you? Oh never mind, just be quiet.”

I nod and hear Grass in my head. That wasn't very nice.

I know, but I couldn't take the chance of losing control again. I respond in my head.

Okay I will inform them. Grass says calmly in my head. Peth was trying to follow you, but the computer refused her access.

That is why I choose here. It was the one place I figured was restricted.

How did you know you could get in?

I didn't, I just hoped. Even in my head my voice wavered.

You do know that you shouldn't have been able to?” Grass asks in my head with a bit of trepidation.

I suspected, but I just told the computer in my head to let me.

We suspected as much. Your mind is getting harder and harder to read. We keep getting feedback. We miss the connection.

I miss all of this all ready. I guess in a way I always knew I didn't have a home, but I had hoped.

Great men tend to always be alone. Grass says with a tear in their voice.

So I have heard. I say in my head. “I know you said be quiet, but can I at least try to help?” I ask out loud.

“What can you... Oh I guess I can use you as a bouncing board,” she says and stops to look at me.

“Do you know anything about genetics?”

“No sorry,” I say.

“Good that may help. What would you do if you saw your fellow man changing right before your eyes?”

“I would isolate them to try and keep it from spreading,” I say hesitantly.

“Ah of course why didn't I see that. So you wouldn't try to heal them?”

“No, I don't know how. I would get the healer,” I say.

“That fits. Let's assume the healer starts to do the same thing. What would you do?” she sounds to be getting excited.

“Apologize like crazy and keep them isolated from everyone else, and hope it doesn't spread,” I say a bit nervously.

“You would let them die?” she asks without a hint of remorse.

“Of course not, I would be sure they had food and water.”

“You would give them food and water?”

“Yeah, I would put it at a spot and let them come and get it when I leave.” Just the idea is making me ill.

She looks back at her desk and mumbles, “No that can't be it. They have to have contact. It just doesn't make sense.”

“Um, hate to interrupt your frustration, but how long does the symptoms show after contact?”

Without looking up she says, “I don't know, one minute to an hour I think. It depends on the stability of the recipient's genetics. The person's age is a factor too.”

“How does it spread?” I ask, waiting for a reprimand.

“The chance of transmission is based on type of mutation, and type of transmitter. Some are by touch, others are transmittable by vicinity,” She continues to press and slap at her desk.

“If this is a village, or even town, then it would spread quickly,” I say.

“How? You said you would isolate them.” she says flustered.

“I'm guessing this is an area with little or no technology. And if this assumption is right, then it could spread really fast.

First you have the original carrier. Depending on how long it takes to show, and how much I would guess that at least one if not all in the family had contact with the first.

Then you have the healer. The healer, depending on cautions, might require helpers. The healer may be the only one to touch the victim, but the helpers touch the healer.

And even if you assume that no one touches them after they are contagious, that would not last forever. In a society the children or spouse will break down and have to sneak in and see the victims.

And I don't know how long the contagion lasts, but there is burial. All cultures have a burial ritual. So if they stay contagious after death, then it would spread at the victims burial especially if it is just vicinity contagious.”

Mesuna looks at me disgusted, “They would actually touch the body after death?”

“Well duh, how else do you move it?” I say sarcastically.

“Well the memory does it, how else?” she asks, stunned.

“You know for an advanced culture, you can be really stupid,” I say and she gives me a dirty look. “Not all societies have a computer to shit for them,” I say extremely sarcastic. I hear Grass giggle softly.

“We do not... Oh of course they have no other means to dispose of the body. That is the factor I missed. It stays contagious till the flesh decays.” She looks at the desk again.

“There would also be the non sentient factor. The local life would eat and be close to the body. So if...” her voice trails off as she concentrates.

“Computer main office,” I say and watch the room fade and the office focus in.

“You know if all the scientists think like her and Althoos, no wonder they failed. They all have lived the easy life too long. Don't you ever get like that Grass.”

They chuckle, “We will try not to.”

“Good. Now why did you tell the others I will be leaving?” I ask angrily.

Grass laughs, “We didn't. We told them that you have a great destiny ahead of you. Their concept of destiny is travel. Destiny and destination are linked in their language. We couldn't find an equivalent in the language to the English destiny.

We slipped and missed the possibility they would think you were leaving. See even the ultimate super computer messes up.”

“Well if that is the extent of your mess ups, I think I can deal with that,” I chuckle.

“You are so generous, my liege,” Grass says holding back a laugh.

“Of course, and don't you forget it,” I say, leading on.

“Never my liege, you are the most generous and...” Grass says before I interrupt.

“Oh can it. I guess I better get back and explain things to the others.”

“That would be a good idea. And so you know. We do not know for sure what we see for you. It is just all our calculations and scenarios we put you in. There is always something strange that pops up.”

“Now are you being completely truthful with me?” I ask not expecting it.

“Well as much as we are able,” Grass says distractedly.

“That's what I thought. Computer port me to Peth's location.”

I find all four of them in the exotic forest huddled together talking. When Peth sees me she runs and hugs me. “I'm so sorry.”

I squirm uncomfortably. “It's okay, I just had to leave to think,” I say and Peth lets go and steps back. “It actually turns out helpful in the end. While I was calming down, I was able to inadvertently help Mesuna. With what I don't know.” I relaxed realizing I had gone stiff when Peth hugged me.

“And as for earlier, I found out it was the language barrier again. In my language destiny does not mean I am leaving.”

Peth looks at me strange, “I don't understand, that is what it means.”

“Not in my language. Grass was not able to find a word in your language that means the same thing. Destiny in English means what life or fate have planned for you.”

“So life and fate are the same?” Tieth asks.

“Not really. I used life as a reference. Fate is a myth on earth. It consists of three females that create a tapestry of life with the lives of humans.

There are three aspects of fate which are represented by the three females. Each female has a name, but I can’t remember them.

But one creates the thread of your life. The next measures your life, and the third cuts the thread to indicate your death. With all the threads of everyone’s life, she weaves the tapestry that is life.”

“Sounds confusing,” Berg says.

Peth gives him a sideways glance. “I like the metaphor. Very fitting. I need to study your culture more, when I have time,” Peth says, very satisfied.

“The myths of all earth cultures are very interesting. Each age had their own based on the happenings of the society and area.”

“I look forward to it. So you are not leaving us?” Peth asks hopefully.

“Not that me or Grass are aware of.” I say.

“Agreed,” Grass says.

“Where did your crown go?” Tieth asks.

I reach up and notice that it is gone. I then look at my finger and see the ring is gone. “Hm, I guess the porter doesn't port them. They must be in here somewhere.”

“No, nothing dropped when you transported,” Tieth says.

“Grass is it in transit, or in Mesuna's lab?” I ask, thinking the security may be the culprit.

“Um, Ben, it is nowhere to be found. Both it and the other devices you carried with you, were never registered in the computer when you used the transporter.”

“But I did have the crown when I got here. Wait, the items in my pocket? I remember that I left them in my pants at the shower, “Oh they were left in the shower. But I don't know about the ring and crown,” I say trying to find some answer.

“Ben,” Grass says softly. “When you shower the devices are placed in your new attire. The computer was registering the life device till you ported to Mesuna's lab.”

“Oh did I vaporize them when I got upset?” I am grasping at straws.

“We register no anomalies, but it is possible, you could still have wiped them from existence,” Grass returns very unsure of themselves.

“Gee, make me feel so much better. Now I wipe things from existence,” I say exasperated.

“We would prefer to have that be the case, then what we just got,” Grass says nervously.

“Great now what?” I ask.

“The computer still is receiving info from your crown and life device. But the computer, nor we, are able to find them,” Grass says distracted.

“Great now I eat eternal stone devices. What will the great Ben do next,” I say trying at humor.

“Well, we can never say you are boring,” Peth says. I take a good look at her. Humor is new for her. I'm not sure how to take it.

“Ben could you come to my lab please,” I hear Mesuna's voice in the room.

“Well off I go again. Computer, port me to Mesuna's lab.”

Mesuna is busy pressing her desk. She looks up and stops, “Do you know what era you came from on earth?”

“Um year date is 2011 why?” I ask, confused.

She presses some areas on her desk. “That would be the fourth era. That does not fit. Earth should have already been affected. This doesn't fit, why has the mutation not affected the planet?”

“What do you mean?” I cringe waiting for her to tell me she doesn't have time.

She stops and looks at me with a sullen face. “In my attempt to save us, I have destroyed two planets. Both exploded from the instability, my program created in its acceleration.

I ran a few test runs in the computer of earth to find out why it hadn't exploded either. All the scenarios show it should have. So I ran a slower scenario to find at what stage the planet would stay stable enough for the mutations to sustain sentient life.

My test shows only at the end of the first area. That is why I asked you. I had hoped that I had caught earth in time. But if you are from the time and location you say, that means the planet had to go through at least the fourth era.