And the Words return, plunging to
Tell the stories withheld for the
Mysteries…Hidden in places that eyes
Denied and were afraid to look.
There was a hum, a rattle and
Roaring sound. The light was bright
Yet dim, lifeless…underground?
He was lying on a table, his arms
And legs strapped down, drugged?
Half asleep? Powerless. “Where am I?

What is this?’ Mumbling, “Is this a subway station?”

There was a person, (a woman –
-maybe?) standing nearby. “He’s waking up.”
She nodded at something numbly, then
Leaned above. “You’re dreaming.”

‘Huh?”

There was this long needle, a
Syringe in hand, held it up, squeezed
Out a drop.

“What is that? This doesn’t feel like
A dream…”

The needle was jammed forcefully right
Right into the gut, below the belly button.
“No, Don’t! Oh GOD! What is that?”

“This is a matter of…security…”
That Person said coldly, no emotions.

Dizziness, Darkness…OUT.

No thoughts, no dreaming, just adrift,
Blindly, deeply…

“Wake, Jon.” A voice said…a confident
Female tone.

His eyes opened, he was strapped to a
Table vertically, his arms and legs firmly
Bound at the wrists and ankles,
So, they could barely wiggle.
Such a heaviness in his head, but
He was there…and his eyes shot open
Without blinking. “What is – “He mumbled.

This person was standing there in
Front of him, watching him intensely.
Slicked back dark hair, The Person had
Sharp, drastic make-up on their face…
Painted pale on olive skin…
They stood very strongly
Despite their modest, medium tall frame,
In a dark shiny suit. “Are you
Comfortable?” They asked in a way that
Sounded eerie.

He started to blink, senses coming around then
Began to feel…He looked down, something
Didn’t feel right. All that he had on were
These loose-fitting sky-blue pajama-type
Clothes, no shoes or socks. His skin felt
Airy, raw…like he had been cleaned and
Dressed by someone. And right there, he forced
His mind to stop thinking of how
That happened. He looked straight
At this person nervously.

“Do you like your clothes, Jon?”
They said with a carefree tilt of the
Head… “I like them a lot.”

“What?” He grew nervous.

OH Jon, stop it, Silly. It’s just a
DREAM, that’s all. Silly.” This person
Smiled.

“What’s going on?”

“Tell me, Jon, do you know anything
About the brain?” They asked.

“What?”

“Did you know, that a Man’s brain
Is 20% larger than a Woman’s brain, Jon?
Did you know that?” They asked playfully.
“That doesn’t seem fair, now does it, Jon?”

“What?”

“Come now Jon,” They said casually, the
Light illuminating their face of this…
Dark room like a ghost. “I know you’re
In there. Think for me please…”

He only blinked, didn’t want to speak, couldn’t.

“Fine then, I’ll do the talking.” They said
With an arched brow over dark eyes; the
Irises looked completely black. “A man’s
Brain…hardly fair for a woman. Well,
Your average woman…The women you know
Jon. Don’t you think that’s unfair, especially
Seeing how most waste their potential? Now
What if that could be…corrected?”

This person was making him more nervous
Each second… “I – “

“Don’t try to think, Jon, don’t hurt
Yourself.” They went on. “I’m talking
About evolution, Jon…A new species…
Look at me,” They said, stepping back
Proudly. “How old do you think I am?”

A nervous pause. “I don’t know. 30? Late
30’s maybe?”

They smiled amused. ‘I am 135 years
Old, Jon. 135. Now what do you think
About that?”

“What?? What are – “

“Don’t try and think about it, Jon, don’t
Hurt yourself.” They said. “You’re so
Young, and so cute…so cute. Youth is
Always wasted on the young.” They
Reached to touch his face and he shivered
Back. “What a shame. Oh well.”

“What are you – “

‘Shh, stop thinking Jon. Stop thinking.”
They said. “Don’t try and think about
It, don’t hurt yourself. You’ll only
Scare yourself. And that’s pointless, Jon.
Pointless.”

“But- “

“Now Jon, if you keep interrupting like
A child, I will only have to discipline
You. Don’t make me do that, please Jon?”
They snapped their fingers fast…and
2 giant towering Men with severe features
Dressed in black uniforms entered the
Room and stepped into the light…
Making it so that he could CLEARLY
See them.

His eyes froze on them, on their faces.
Fear truly filled him then. Their
Expressions were focused, eyes plotting. Each
Of them had to be at least 10 or 11 feet
Tall, or more.

“These are some of us.” This person said
With a smile. ‘You will learn to respect
Them.” A pause as they probed his face.
“I can see you have an idea…”

A blink, a flash. Jon turned his head
To the right. There at the side of the
Room, about 5 feet off the floor was
A small boxed window with bars in it.
Behind the bars, in another room next
To his, watching, stood…this guy. He
Had blondish, brown hair, short…A
Friendly face, but his expression was
Full of shock, worry, fear…curiosity…
And intensity, he was studying everything.
But he wasn’t like THEM…he was
Another prisoner.

“Oh him?” The person said of the guy
Behind the barred window. “Yes, I want
Him to see this, hear this.”

Jon pinched his eyes shut tight.

“Now Jon,” This person said. “Don’t hurt yourself.
Just don’t think about it. We’re going
To be great friends one day Jon. Very
Close. Trust me.”

Jon shivered, then looked again
Nervously to the guy behind the barred
Window…begging, pleading for help silently.
And the guy whispered hard, “Jon, turn
Off your emotions okay. Listen to me, please?
Box it. “Don’t think about it!”

“You!” The person pointed to the guy in
The window… “Watch.” They snapped their
Fingers to the 2 giant men. “Teach Jon.”
And then this person turned fast and
Walked quickly out of the room, watching
The guy in the window…over the loud
Clicking sounds of their high-heeled shoes.

Jon started to whimper…No further words
Why.

The guy in the window breathed hard
With panic…watching…then backed away
His eyes in a daze as he pressed himself
Back to the far wall of his room, as
Far away from THAT window as he
Could get.

But his room was different, the
Front of his room had bars on it…
Then this person in black appeared
Slowly in front of the bars to his
Room…watching him with that raised
Brow, and that slight smile. “Did
You watch that? Go watch Jeff…go
Watch!”

“What the hell is wrong with you? What
Are you?” The guy said. “My name’s not
Jeff.”

“Yes, it is Jeff.” The person said quite calmly.

“Shut up. Stop talking to me. What are you?
What is this?”

“You’re dreaming Sweetie.” This person said.
“You haven’t figured it out yet?”

There was a cry from Jon’s room.
“Oh God,” The guy moaned hearing it.

“Don’t play dumb with me.” This person
Instructed.

“Why not? I’m just a stupid little gym boy,
Remember?”

“Don’t.” This person said firmly. “You’re
Going to talk to me…”

“No, no I’m not. I’m too stupid to talk. I’m
Too stupid to do anything. I need someone
To guide me. I’m a little dumb mouse, I
Don’t know anything about nothing…”

“Don’t play dumb.” They said again.

“Nope. I’m dumb. Dopey, Dopey, dumb, dumb,
Dumb.”

“You’re going to talk to me.” They said.

“Why? How? What for? What do you want
Me for?”

“You’re going to tell me what happened.” This
Person said.

“What happened?”

“Do I look stupid to you?” This person said.

“Stupid? No that’s mean.”

They curled their lips and grinned. “Sweetie…”

“Bitch.”

“Now Jeff…Sweetie…” They smiled.
“My name’s not Jeff. And don’t call me Sweetie…
Bitch.”

There was a pause, maybe a few minutes…
A staring match.

“Alright then…” They smiled.

“Yes?”

“Tell me, do you know how stupid the
Public is?” They asked with an arrogant
Smile. “We’ve been around for a LONG time…
A VERY LONG TIME…we know, believe me…”

Just an expression of curiosity response.

“They analyze everything to death, trying
To prove how smart they are…For themselves.
How unimpressive…Analyzing Fragments…
That we offer…on things we provide…It’s
Amusing actually. Endless upon endless
Hours of analyzing Fragments…True
Fragments…and nonsense fragments…
Every time. EVERY TIME. By the time
They figure things out…it will be far
Too late…Far too late. Even the best
Don’t really know…that’s how convincing
We are.”

“Okay…”

“The Age of the Divine Feminine…HA!
They haven’t got a clue. Those women?
Please…And they will analyze it, and
Argue it endlessly. Their egos are so huge…
No, no, no…it’s not about you, it’s about
Me! They will argue blindly, senselessly…
Until it’s far too late…It is too late.
Every time. Every time.”

“Not everyone is that stupid.”

“Oh yes, they are…JEFF.” They said proudly.
“Every time.”

“Every time?”

“Every time,” They said strongly. “No one’s
Going to help you. They would rather analyze
Themselves to death. Too late. Far too late.”

“Not everyone is like that.”

“Ha! Oh yes, they are!” This person said.
“Assumptions. And then analyzing assumptions…
Priceless…Every time.”

“So, you built this Fake world, to what?
Make fools of them all along? To make
Monsters? To make more of them, more of you?
Monster.”

“It’s the best way to find what we’re looking
For…” This person said, revealed…mysteriously.

“Ah, huh…Whatever…”

“Bubbles will burst…things will implode…
Then we can start all over…again…” They
Said confidently.

“You are assuming a lot, just like everyone else.”

“Really?” This person asked. “Then why is this
Happening? Why am I here with you?”

“Because you don’t know something and
It’s driving you nuts.”

This person smiled. “You’re going to tell me
How…what, why?”

“How, how stupid? Well how many different
Kinds of stupid people are there? A lot apparently…
What, why? I couldn’t explain that with
Words if I tried or wanted to.”

“hmm…” This person sighed. “Interesting.
Clearly there’s a lot more going on here.”

“Well DUH!”

“Alright then,” This person said with a nod,
“Let me show you something to think
About.” They snapped their fingers and the
Door to the cell opened. “Come with me.
Don’t worry Sweetie, no one is going to touch
You…come with me.”

Rolling eyes. “Yeah, like that’s imaginable.”

“Come on Sweetie, Come, Come.” They
Turned, waving their hand casually to
Guide as thy walked down the corridor.

What choice but to follow. Groan…
And of course, there were these tall
Giant men dressed in black uniforms
Positioned along the hallway, strategically
Beneath red lights…beside more rooms,
More cells…some with bars, some with
Doors…each, maybe, with someone inside;
Mostly men…mostly.

“What is going on here” This person asked
Leading the way. “If you’re thinking…aliens?
You would be wrong…and you would be right.”
A fast laugh. “If you are thinking it has
Anything to do with the surface…you
Would be very wrong as well…”

“If? So many Ifs, can’t read my
Mind, hmm. But you can read theirs, can’t you…”

This person turned back slightly with a half-smile.
(caught that) They resumed walking, leading
The way to the end of the hall where
There was a large glass window to a
Grim looking room full of what looked
Like some kind of science or medical
Teams working at computers around a
Table…with a man on it…an exact
Replica of this guy.

A dead stop before the window.

“So, what do you think?” This person asked
Calmly, looking back and forth between
The man on the table and this guy. “It’s
Your clone…Sweetie. What do you think?”

A long angry pause. “What do I think? I
Don’t know what to think. I’m stupid, remember?”

“You’re afraid…He frightens you?” This person asked.
Wild-eyed. “Doesn’t he?”

“That’s not me…” It was a younger version
Though.

“True. We can make the bodies, but we
Can not make the souls.” This person
Said. “Or I should say, their character,
Their personality. Thai is always…different.
Always different.”

“Okay.” Numb and dumb. Their statement
Was very TRUE however.

“When bubbles burst…And everything they
Wasted time on proves pointless. They will
Desperately grab at any comfort we offer.
And we will begin again.”

They sighed. “Perspective. But it will
Come. You see, we can wait…Cooperate Please.”
They snapped their fingers and the technicians
Inside electrocuted the clone. Dead. “Bring him
Back again please.” They instructed…watching,
Studying expressions carefully.

“Again?! How many times have you done this?”

“Oh, quite a lot, actually.” This person
Sighed. “Maybe 6 times with THIS clone…
More with the others…They never last
Long.”

“My God, you are sick!”

“Do it again.” They instructed calmly,
Again, watching expressions closely.

“My God, stop it! It’s sick! What are
You doing to him? Why?”

“You know why.” They said calmly. “Talk
To me.”

Horrified. Numb. Dumb. “That’s not me.
There’s no point to this. It’s pointless.”

“Tell me.” The said.

“I ain’t telling you SHIT.”

They snapped their fingers, instructing the
Technicians, “Do it again!”

Sick and DISGUSTING! Pointless! Monsters,
All monsters.

“So, what do you think?” They asked.

“Nothing. I’m not saying anything.”

This person studied closely. “There is nothing
There, no connection. Why?”

A bridge? A clone could never process that.
“You’re SICK.”

“Do it again.” They instructed. And they did,
Then brought him back. The look on the clone’s
Face was awful, horrifying. He was completely
Out of his mind…There was nothing there.
Nothing but some ghost of a soul reaching
For purpose, for cohesion, to pull himself in
Some way together.

“Stop it!”

“You feel for him though!” They asked slowly.

“Because it’s SICK and DISGUSTING!”

“And life is a gift, a blessing? The questions
You ask, that they ask…” This person
Said mysteriously. “Are what? A quest to
Find answers? Who put them there? Why do
You ask them? To believe in…The Masks
Are OFF…Everyone was carefully bred. Now
It’s just a matter of seeing what’s there…
What’s useful and what isn’t.”

??? No comment.

“Yes, that’s right.” They said. “Don’t play dumb.
“Now talk to Me…”
A pause. Nervous. Anxious. Strong. Calm.
“I couldn’t if I wanted to. That’s not how it
Works…They wouldn’t let me.”

Their eyes went wide. That sure caught their
Interest. “I see…” They thought
Quietly for a while, eyes wandering around.
“Alright, put him back…” They leaned
Forward closely. “Just think about it…
Don’t worry, it’s just a dream…Sweetie.”

A slow solemn release…or walk away?
It doesn’t matter…humor all sides.

And of course, The Charming Apollo has
To say afterwards… “And the Mighty
Below impart a message, revealed and
Received…with no surprise to the least.
Only the timing catches interest, to their
Date, 2017… Interesting. Well, interject
And reply 1 year later… (1 year) …There
Is always something bigger watching. ALWAYS…
Above the below. Above the surface. Above
The Above…And Above the Beyond. That’s
Enough for now.

Valiant, for Apollo.