Czytaj książkę: «Advanced Beings and a Fork in the Road of Evolution»
Editor Anna Feliksova
Proofreader Sergey Kim
Illustrator Xenon
Cover Designer Maria Bangert
© Fidess, 2021
ISBN 978-5-0055-0004-5
Created with Ridero smart publishing system
The first book in the Advanced beings series unveils a unique story. The story that will let you look at the things you are used to, the inviolable truths from a completely new and unexpected perspective. The boundaries between the reality and fiction are somewhat blurred in the narrative, so you will have to define them for yourself.
Disclaimer: This book may transform your understanding of the world forever.
During the creation of this book, the predominance of the higher vibrations over the low ones in the narrative was provided for and ensured, as indicated by the V+ marking on the book cover. In other words, the author took care that the events described in the book trigger the feelings within the spectrum of positive emotions in its readers.
Part I. An Accidental Finding
High up in the snow-capped Alps, a cozy restaurant was filled with live music: A jazz band was enthusiastically playing Christmas songs in the soft light of vintage chandeliers. The small wooden building was situated within the territory of a luxury hotel boasting magnificent mountain slopes that are favored by wealthy skiers from all over the world and breathtaking views.
The restaurant was full, which was not uncommon for the Christmas and New Year season, the time of great hopes and faith in a better future. Lively conversations and lots of laughter could be heard at every table, so the room was filled with chaotic noise that was not unlike an orchestra rehearsal for a concert and was occasionally interrupted by a long delicate solo of clinking crystal glasses.
Outside the enormous picture windows surrounding the guests of the restaurant who were absorbed in the vibrant restaurant atmosphere, large snowflakes were dancing slowly in the air.
The snow covered the land in a fluffy blanket, sparkling like millions of tiny diamonds in the streetlight, and wrapped the fir trees in radiant white coats, getting the size just right for each of them. All this snowy bliss gave unspeakable joy to both children and adults spending their time outside.
Although it was getting late, there were still lots of people. Enchanted by the magic of the white winter, they kept running and jumping around, having fun, dressed in their cozy warm overalls and hats. Over here, right by the restaurant, children were diligently building a man-sized snowman. A little further away, joyous cries resounded in the air. A snowball fight was in full swing. Snow angel imprints were seen on the snow here and there. And of course, there was a constant flow of local mountain pilgrims. Tired but satisfied, these skiers saw it as their duty to devote a few hours a day to the ski slopes. The shepherd dog of the hotel owner, extremely social and acquainted with all the guests, was barking loudly and running around in circles as if it was not sure who it should play with. The atmosphere of the place was fantastic.
Surrounded by this amazing panorama behind the restaurant windows (the one you could contemplate eternally), a small group of men was sitting in comfortable armchairs at one of the tables located by the invitingly crackling fireplace. The men had various foreign accents.
They had the most ordinary looks; however, the content of their conversation was quite exceptional. No one could ever guess, even in their wildest dreams, who these people were and why their meeting that looked like a routine for them was far from being a usual business from the point of view of the rest of the humankind.
«What a wonderful winter, with all this snow,» a short stocky man with dark glasses said, looking through the windows and enjoying the view. «We have met here so many times and the local mountain scenery still gets me.»
«The peace, incredible landscapes, great food,» one of his companions chimed in. «All that one can wish for.»
«The Alps, that’s love,» another man at the table said.
«Alright, enough with lyrical digressions. We have gathered here again in good health, which means it’s time to review the preliminary pragmatic annual results,» the man with the glasses said in a calm confident voice. No one knew his real name, they all called him «Boss».
«Right, Boss. As for the implementation of the experiment, as we can see, it all turned out even better than we expected. And, therefore, the profit exceeded our grandest expectations. We are speaking of trillions.»
«Very good! I was impressed with the report on the deposit redistribution, these new trillion-strong commitments from the governments are beyond all praise. Brilliant!»
«The stock manipulations worked perfectly.»
«Great job!» Boss was really pleased and so were his companions.
«Your fish, sir,» a waiter brought over a plate with a steaming grilled fish fillet garnished with thin green asparagus spears and a slice of sour lemon and put it carefully on the table in front of Boss.
Boss drizzled the hot fish with a fair amount of lemon juice and began to cut off appetizing light-pink pieces of the fish, the fork in his left hand and the knife in his right, eating with zest and using his fork nimbly.
Meanwhile, other waiters brought over various delicious dishes to all Boss’s companions, and the life seemed even sweeter than ever.
«The poor get poorer and the rich get richer. This social gap will never cease to exist,» Boss said, elevating his fork with a bit of the freshly-cooked juicy fish on the top of it towards the ceiling. «Even if all the money was divided equally amongst the world population, it would be back to square one after a while: The big money would be back in the hands of the same people. However, the best is yet to come.» Boss paused, savoring the great taste of the dish, and gave his companions a look, with an air of mystery around him. «Scientists say that the Earth has been spinning around its axis faster lately. Does any of you have a faint idea of what it means?!» Boss peered at the men sharply, as if he was trying to read in their faces whether they understood the gravity of the situation.
«The energy’s intensifying! It means that the gap between people will increase even more dramatically: The hard lives of some people will get even worse, while the nice lives of others will get better; there will be growing awareness of the world order among some people, while the rest of them will be drowned in incomprehension. In other words, the contrasts will be expressed like never before.»
«Well, these are great and remarkable days we are living. A new age unlike anything we have ever seen,» one of the companions said.
«There’s one more thing. In addition to the two opposing groups of people I have already mentioned, there is a third one.»
«A third one? The wavering ones?»
«Exactly! Those who are kind of standing at a fork in the road but will inevitably join the ranks of the first or second group. There is currently a battle underway for this third group of people, mainly through the swamping of the public sources with various kinds of information. But the forces are unequal. The truly valuable information, or, rather tiny nuggets of it, is blended into the sea of delusions, rigmaroles, nonsense, and outright harmful pieces of content. Plus, then there are not the most progressive traditions of elder generations. And here you are, sucked into the swamp you will never be able to get out of.»
«Those seeking the right way have a greater chance of joining the back seat group.»
«I’d say they have every chance,» after a brief silence, Boss heaved a deep sigh, took a small book out of his bag, and put it on the table. «I’ve engaged in some creative work lately. I want to write a book series, literary works, you know. Why not? I want to try something new, discover new facets of my personality.
But what can I write about? It should be something I know well…» he cast a meaningful glance at the men at the table. «I present to you the first book. It’s my copy. I’m not sure yet if I should publish it.»
«That’s great!» all the men at the table exclaimed. «You have decided to contribute to the development of society in the end, haven’t you? To try and help those who are stumbling through the darkness find the right path?»
«Well, again, my book is a drop in the ocean. Even if it or other books do get published, they won’t be able to alter the general course. People will take them as pure fiction.»
«Which they are not!»
«We are the only ones who know it,» Boss resettled his glasses on his nose.
A short pause was followed by the talking of the Boss’s companions over each other:
«Creative work is admirable!» the companions flipped through the book in turns. «You should definitely publish it!»
Meanwhile, the waiters took the empty plates away.
«Bring us some green tea,» Boss said to one of the waiters casually. «That beautiful tea, the one that unfurls into a big flower. And would you kindly add some hot water to the teapot each time we finish the tea?»
«Coming right up, sir,» the waiter made a polite bow.
A moment later, small elegant cups and saucers as well as two glass teapots appeared on the wooden table. Each teapot had a little bundle of tea leaves inside that were slowly opening and «blooming» into big flowers of incredible beauty: One was white, the other was red.
It was fascinating! The tea was served with two cake stands featuring devastatingly delicious and beautiful fine pastry.
When the men got to dessert, the music faded away: The musicians left. It was almost eleven, the time when the restaurant closed, and the only guests left at the restaurant were the same group of men. The staff of the restaurant seemed to know them well and let them stay late. Needless to say, all the restaurant workers who had to stay were lavishly rewarded for such a long shift.
As the men were animatedly discussing something while enjoying the wonderful pastry and drinking the tea with a subtle, delicate flavor, some of the bored waiters and the owner of the restaurant went quiet, hoping to hear at least something of what the mysterious guests were talking about over the monotonous crackling of fire.
It was the middle of the night when, satisfied and a little sleepy, the men decided to leave. They left a rather generous tip and headed for the expensive cars that reflected the lights of the street lamps with their shiny curves. The drivers had already been waiting for the men. After long hours in the restaurant, it was especially nice to breathe in the crisp and crystal-clear air of the Alps.
The men got into their cars with spacious interiors without further ado, and the cars drove them away into the dark of night, slowly and gently, as if knowing the special value of their passengers. Only tire tracks remained in the squeaky snow but soon a blizzard hid them.
And in the meantime, the waiters in the cozy restaurant were hastily clearing the table which was so recently occupied by the generous men, hurrying home to get at least some rest and sleep.
When one of the waiters finally came to get a wipe down on the table, he suddenly stepped on something. The young man stepped back, bent down, and saw a book lying on the floor. There was not a single word on the dark-green leather binding. The waiter flipped through some pages but they turned out to be empty. Frustrated, he put his finding on one of the armchairs and took the cloth again but suddenly noticed the gold lettering glistening on the book cover: «Advanced beings and a Fork in the Road of Evolution». He opened the book again in disbelief: All the pages were covered with text.
«It seems I should have some rest,» the young man thought with a shake of his head. «The book though seems interesting, I’ve never heard of it,» he fiddled with it pensively. «I have just been thinking about reading something new and unusual, and here it is, getting right into my hands. Of course, I will give it back later… However, I’d better see if I can find anything about it. It’s so intriguing to learn what such serious gentlemen read,» the waiter put the book into his pocket, took out his phone, and began to slide his fingers across the phone screen routinely but, surprisingly enough, without success. «The book doesn’t seem to exist.
Curious. Maybe it hasn’t been published yet?» the thought struck the young man. «Then I will quickly read it tonight and report the find tomorrow. Nothing bad will happen. Right, that’s what I am going to do.»
«Hey, Adam! What’s taking you so long? We are leaving,» his colleagues, wrapped up in warm winter clothes, were already heading towards the exit. «There’s going to be a boxing competition tonight, the transmission is about to start!»
«Okay, okay, I’m coming,» Adam shouted back and rushed to the dressing room.
«It’s either sleeping or watching box live. I bet Adam will choose the second option, so don’t expect him to get here on time tomorrow,» one of the waiters concluded.
When Adam, tired but satisfied, finally got home, into bed, he first looked around for some reason, listened to the silence but neither saw nor heard anything suspicious. Only then he got his today’s trophy out of the nightstand drawer where he had thoughtfully hidden it upon returning home. The book was yet unpublished but it definitely contained some valuable information, since it had had the attention of the great and the good.
The young man turned on the lamp over his head, switching the rest of the lights off, made himself comfortable, placed a pillow behind his back, pulled a soft cozy blanket over his chest, and heaved a deep sigh, as if preparing himself for a possible shock.
With the increased interest, he carefully opened the book. Of course, he was very tired but you don’t lay your hands on something like this every day. That was a million-to-one chance and he had to give it back tomorrow. Adam was looking forward to learning something jaw-dropping and he was somehow sure that his expectations will be justified.
«Chapter One. The Curious Incident,» Adam only had a chance to read the title of the chapter when a cat suddenly jumped onto his bed.
The young man gave a cry but realized it was his own Sphynx cat and breathed a sigh of relief.
«You startled me! Look what I’ve found today. Are you curious? I am too,» Adam was talking to the cat as if it was able to understand him. It was a hairless Sphynx with pink skin and huge green eyes on the tiny chiseled head. The cat stared at Adam, meowed as if giving a positive answer, purred, and curled up in a ball on the blanket.
«Thousands of years ago, in the part of the world that is covered with impassable hot sands…» Adam swallowed the words as if fearing that something would stop him from reading the book, the accidentally found book that had mysteriously slipped from the firm grasp of its owner, to the end. The young man’s imagination was slowly carrying him into some alternate reality.
Part II. Advanced beings and a Fork in the Road of Evolution
Chapter One. The Curious Incident
Thousands of years ago, in the part of the world that is covered with impassable hot sands stretching for hundreds of kilometers, one of the first civilizations was born. Plenty of misconceptions have accumulated about its great achievements while very few know the truth. It’s time to lift the curtain of secrecy for those who are ready.
As is often the case, the great was born from the ordinary. You might argue: «How’s that?! It is not uncommon for the ordinary to remain ordinary unless it is not wiped off the face of the earth yet. But what would undoubtedly result in the Great?» You are right, there is a very important ingredient. It is known to one and all since the dawn of time and yet it doesn’t come easy.
But let us talk first about the events of the bygone history and you will find the answer to your question yourself.
It was the end of a sultry day. The outlines of several slowly moving human figures could be seen against the fiery horizon. We don’t know where they came from and what made them travel such an arduous path. By the look of them, it was likely they had been traveling for days and were exhausted.
«I can’t believe it! We’ve found it! We’ve finally found it!» Pharoum, the most athletic of the travelers, yelled as he saw a thin blue line in the distance. «A river!»
The word «river» seemed to be the sweetest and dearest sound in the world for the travelers. It filled their hearts with joy, overshadowed the sense of fatigue caused by the grueling journey, and gave them quite unexpected strength. The travelers ran as fast as they could. The large and deep river was rich with fish. The travelers were saved.
After they quenched their thirst, washed their bodies, and bathed in cool waters to their hearts’ content, they got back to the shore. They hadn’t felt so happy in a long time. For a while they all just sat on the sand, enjoying the view.
«There’s no point in further wandering,» Pharoum broke the silence. «This place is the best we can find.
From now on, this place is our home. This is our land and our river. We are staying to live here.»
Pharoum was supported by all the travelers. He was their leader and he held such a position due to his wisdom and strength.
One of the women, Noana, who was Pharoum’s beloved one, was pregnant and went into labor, apparently due to the surge of emotions.
The day seemed to be already filled to the brim with happiness but the joy that Pharoum and Noana felt was even more overwhelming now that their baby was born. However, the happy parents had no idea that once their son grew up and reached manhood, he would not be satisfied with the little he had. His desire for greater power and self-confidence would become extremely powerful and soon would be able to get him much farther than his parents had ever gone, so far away from them that a fork would appear in the road of the evolution of humankind (a fork no one saw coming). His name was Pharaon, it was an elaborate combination of the names of his loving parents.
Pharoum and Noana could not stop looking at the cute face of their son under the last golden streaks of the sunset.
«Pharaon, we love you! You were born on a happy day and it means you will be happy. That’s what your father and I want for you very much,» Noana whispered to her son, looking into his beautiful eyes that looked like two jewels, iridescent in the sunlight.
«Mark my words, Noana! He will be happy,» Pharoum said with confidence. «Our son will grow strong, and fortune will favor him because you and I want the very best for him with all our hearts.»
As Pharaon grew older, he hardly ever cried. He was a cheerful, affable, and very curious child. He enjoyed playing with other children of their settlement. They competed to see who could catch the biggest fish, run or swim faster, hold their breath underwater for a longer time, and so on and so forth.
As Pharaon’s parents watched him play, they dreamt that when he grew up, he would easily provide food and water for himself, have decent clothes instead of rags, and become strong and brave. Pharoum and Noana enjoyed those dreams, they helped them take their minds off the pains of their lives.
One day the boy’s parents noticed something strange in his behavior. Pharaon was running around in the sand as if he was playing catch-up with someone and they heard him talking loudly and laughing as if he was in someone’s company rather than alone. But no one else was there.
«Pharoum, have a look. Who is he talking to?» Noana asked, sounding very anxious. Pharoum watched his son closely.
«It’s not fair, you are faster than me!» little Pharaon shouted joyfully, trying to dodge something. He moved his little legs quickly and shrieked with excitement.
«It’s alright,» Pharoum said to his beloved Noana. «Many children have imaginary friends. It’s ok, as long as it goes away eventually.»
Pharoum was right. Soon those games were forgotten and the parents’ concerns melted away.
Nineteen years have passed since Pharaon’s birth. One evening, while the women were taking care of the children, the men of the settlement went to the river to have some man time, telling astonishing stories and trying to guess whether they were true.
Here’s what Pharoum, Pharaon’s father, said at that meeting:
«I once met a man who told me about snow, i.e. cold white sand falling from the sky. Every single one of the snowflakes has its own unique pattern. When snow is warmed by the sun, it turns into a river. Do you believe it?»
«That’s impossible!» the men, sitting around the head of the settlement, were saying.
«And yet it is absolutely true!» Pharoum exclaimed.
«It is hard to believe. Tell us something else,» the listeners asked.
«Those cold lands are infested by fantastic beasts,» Pharoum continued. «According to the story of this man, his father once came face to face with a huge cat. It was a mountain lion. It had huge paws, sword-like claws, a strong club-like tail, and a massive jaw. And his fangs were as big as my thumb,» the men were open-mouthed with astonishment. «It was a very strong and fast beast. There was no escape from it!»
«But how on earth did the man survive?!» the men of the settlement were excited to learn the outcome.
«The mountain lion roared and bared its fangs like this,» Pharoum imitated the roar and fangs, which scared the gathered men. «No man with bare hands would ever stand a chance against the beast. That man’s father had no choice but to try and placate the wild cat in spite of his fear. He talked to it gently and tried not to move.»
The listeners didn’t dare to move or make a sound, in anticipation of the attack. The most impatient ones asked: «Did it attack him all the same?»
«The brave man kept on talking to it. Slowly, the mountain lion closed its mouth and headed towards him.»
«That’s it! It’s going to attack him! That’s for sure!» the listeners tried to shout one another down.
«That man’s father held onto the hope. The mountain lion was slowly approaching him,» Pharoum’s voice fell to a whisper.
«That’s it! It’s over!» someone let out a desperate scream.
«You will never guess what it did!» Pharoum said in a teasing way.
«What?! What did it do? Get on with it!» the shouts came from all directions.
«It began licking his hand, purring loudly,» all the men were amazed at such a development. «And that man’s father took it home, tamed it, and they lived together ever since. The puma even protected him from other predators,» Pharoum said self-contentedly. «Do you believe it?»
«No!» a wave of indignation rippled through the gathered men. «You can’t tame a predator! And they can’t purr!»
In the meantime, while the men were shouting, trying to figure out whether the story was true, a small group of strangers was energetically approaching the settlement, using the cover of darkness. They had heard the voices and were now following them.
«It’s the truth!» Pharoum kept saying but no one believed him.
«I’ve also heard a story about taming wild cats and it’s even more improbable!» they heard the loud jolly voice of Etan, a young man with raven-black curly hair that reached his shoulders. He was one of the two Pharaon’s close friends. «Somewhere in the hot lands, people managed not only to tame cheetahs but also to turn them into their hounds.»
«What is that supposed to mean?» someone asked.
«It means that those cheetahs were taught to hunt on command of a man and give their kill away instead of eating it themselves,» Etan said so proudly as if he was the one who tamed the cheetahs.
«That’s impossible! A predator that gives away its kill to a man?! That will never happen!»
A ripple of laughter ran through the men.
«Shush!» Pharaon suddenly said, stretching out his hand and showing everyone his broad palm.
That got everyone’s attention.
«What’s going on?» someone asked after a while.
«It seems we are not alone,» Pharaon replied quietly.
All the men could hear was silence, however, it did not last long. The next instant they were attacked by robbers who were screaming and waving their clubs. There was a fight. The attackers were well-trained and, a few minutes later, most of the men of the settlement were lying on the ground, unable to move.
«You shall not go any further!» Pharaon yelled to his opponent in a dreadful voice. He was punched in the stomach pretty hard but bounced back quickly and hit the robber over his head with enough force to knock him off his feet.
Pharaon came rushing up to his friend, Etan, who was holding one of the attackers back with his last bit of strength. Together they knocked the enemy out with hard and swift blows.
Pharoum and Noumat were trying to hold off several strangers at once. Noumat was the other one of Pharaon’s two close friends and the same age as he was.
Suddenly, something flashed in the darkness. The robbers’ faces were wreathed in smirks: They were holding knives in their hands. There remaining attackers turned out twice as numerous as the men of the settlement. Before Pharoum, Pharaon, Etan, and Noumat knew it, the robbers threw the knives at them. The faces of the men froze with terror. Time seemed to stop. They did not have a chance to survive and protect their women and children.
At that very moment, something inexplicable happened. Pharaon’s desire to fight back got so strong and filled his heart with such a powerful energy that he let out a horrendous shriek, unable to contain the energy inside.
The next instant, all the strangers with their knives were thrown away for about a hundred meters as if knocked out by an air blast. The landing was hard, many of the robbers suffered various fractures. Silence fell. Everyone who witnessed the entire thing was appalled. The strangers quickly came to their senses and ran away like mad with cries of horror.
Pharoum, Pharaon, Etan, and Noumat rushed to the aid of their friends.
On the following day, Pharoum, the head of the settlement, addressed his people with a speech. He devolved his powers upon his son who proved it in the fight of the previous day that he was mature enough and ready to replace his aging father for the benefit of the people.
Pharaon took his new position very seriously and began to think about the future of their small settlement.
Since no one could explain what had happened to the strangers, the entire story was soon forgotten. Our memory has a tendency for order and gets rid of all things that are out of whack with our traditional views of the world, incendiary or discomfiting.
However, Pharaon would secretly think back to that night again and again. Somehow, he felt that it was he who released the power that threw the strangers back. From that moment on, Pharaon began wondering who he really was.
«I clearly remember the overwhelming feeling of the energy burning inside me,» Pharaon would contemplate each night before going to bed. «It made me shout.
And then that energy seemed to splash out of me and I saw something. I saw a wave that was sort of powdered with glittering colorful dust. It swooped down to those villains. I could have sworn I’ve already seen something like this. But what actually happened? What else don’t I know about myself? Will I be able to do it again?»
After that fateful day, Pharaon’s eyes, iridescent just like colored pieces of glass in a kaleidoscope, began glowing even brighter from under his thick prominent brows. His dark oval face with a chiseled jaw and strong neck made the effect quite striking. He had a blatantly masculine face and build, his movements were steady and precise, he spoke coherently and rather bluntly. Pharaon usually pulled back his black long hair, shining in the sun, into a tail to keep it out of his face and eyes.
Back in those early days, people had relatively short lives, no one had a full understanding of illnesses, there were no medicines. Death rates in the settlement exceeded birth rates. Pharaon wanted to increase the population of the settlement but the number of his people was not his only concern.
Pharaon chose Etan and Noumat, men of strong build and great fighters, who were almost identical, both in appearance and in character, for a journey. Only Pharaon’s closest friends could be entrusted with such a difficult mission.
«My dear friends,» Pharaon began in a firm, naturally tuned voice. «Our life is a constant struggle. We barely have enough food, our clothes wear out too quickly, our shoes that protect our feet from the burning sand are too uncomfortable, we have nowhere to sleep.
We can’t go on like this. Living every new day, granted to us by the gods, in the same way as the one before, not striving for more. Go to the nearest lands. You are likely to meet people who lead lives much different from ours. Bring the best of them with you to help us change our way of life. I know in my gut that we miss something big, something important. We have to get a hold of it.»
«Pharaon,» Noumat said, without hesitating, his large hands clenched. «We promise you that we will find such people, learn their customs, and bring their masters to you. No matter what it takes and how difficult it may be.»
«Yes!» Etan nodded, swinging his curly hair. His eyes shone with determination. «We will do it. We want a better life for our people. So be it!»
