Simon comes through Daniel’s door. « I’ve just been downstairs to see my apartment. I’m a little weirded out. »
That’s potentially disturbing. After all, Simon is Davy’s brother. Could his flat be even stranger than Davy’s? I ask if there is anything wrong.
« Oh – nothing’s wrong with the house! It’s an absolutely precious three-bedroom Victorian with a heavenly English garden. The problem is that it is a house – and it’s in New Merenis. »
« Are you certain? »
Simon nods. « It’s across town, in a nice residential district. I could see the Yggdrasil Tower in the distance – it’s enormous – and so I walked back here. »
« But the hilift… »
« The hilift takes you to the cutest little nook with a gossip bench. Go downstairs and out the front – or, for that matter, out the garden gate in the back – and you’re in New Merenis. »
« Wormholes, » says Cüinn. « I knew it. »
« I doubt that, » Solomon replies. « Because our physical form – the grove – is spread out between galaxies, it makes sense that there are ra’aabit holes where that body touches Universe Prime. But as the pleroma itself is a mental space, why would we need wormholes? »
« If we think of the pleroma as the mind of the grove, » says Tarlach, « We’re talking about associations. Networks of neural pathways which connect one idea to the other. It’s the reason why a scent or image sometimes triggers a recollection. It’s one of the foundations of human creativity – the ability to associate two disparate things and then leverage that similarity. »
« Correspondences, » says Seth. « The root of all magick. »
« The problem with correspondence charts is that they’re a rigid system, » says Dermot. « We’re talking about something much more fluid. »
« Of course, the grove won’t have a neural network per se, » Tarlach continues. « But there must be something performing that function, or we wouldn’t be able to string two thoughts together. »
« We’re off topic again, » says Mickey. « After all the problems with the holes in the pleroma, doesn’t it seem like something potentially dangerous if you enter your home through the hilift in the towers, and you emerge someplace totally random? »
« Does any branch on Atlas have a similar situation? »
« My apartment is an apartment, » says Tommy. « There’s a balcony – it looks out on the Sea of Illusion. »
We take a quick survey. Of the Atlas emanations, Daniel, Sloane, Whirljack, Tommy, Jamey, Owen, Driscoll, Tarlach, Blackjack, Chase and Dermot have apartments which don’t seem to exactly fit into the appropriate space of the tower layout, but their windows all overlook either New Merenis or the Sea of Illusion. Mickey, Cüinn, Davy, Callum and Hurley don’t know because they don’t have windows. Evan and Lorcan haven’t fully explored their very large multi-level spaces; Cillian has never bothered to look out the windows of his apartment; Sloane and Patrick have stairs going to a basement level they’ve never seen. Wynne and Ross have never been to their apartments.
There are three known anomalies. The first is that Suibhne and Lugh have a central courtyard. In Suibhne’s case, it opens into Exploitation Era Moscow. Lugh’s patio is on Dolparessa, under the sun of the Domha’vei. But these are minor concerns – although those spaces are “outside,” they are enclosed – you can’t get anywhere from them.
The second anomaly is that Suibhne’s side door leads to the dock where Canopus puts into harbor. It seems to be at ground level, but Suibhne’s apartment is on the 19th floor. The third anomaly – the most perplexing – is my own. The hilift leads into the interior of my temple, which then leads to my viewing pool – a ra’aabit hole back into Universe Prime that is used when I and I wants to send an emanation either to Dolparessa or to wherever Canopus happens to be at the time. The garden, perpetually frozen in a perfect summer’s day, is surrounded by a woodland into which I’ve never ventured.
« Both incorrect and imprecise, » says Suibhne, looking agitated. « Suibhne has several courtyards. The door to the tourists’ food court leads to the High Exploitation Era. But the door from the basement stair leads to 11:59pm on the night of December 16th, 1916, Old System, the night of Rasputin’s death. And the time at your temple is 11:59am on June 24th. Sometimes you are at Earth’s Solstice, but not always. And Suibhne never is. Do you know why? »
I don’t know why. But I doubt knowing will get us anywhere.
« It is because Sol Invictus, the Victorious Sun, returns on the Winter Solstice, » says Suibhne. « And he conspires with Mithras to kill Rasputin. »
I knew it would be something like that.
« We could try an experiment. Someone could put on a jet pack and fly over Lugh’s house to see what’s outside, » says Cüinn, only slightly less absurdly.
« Ailann’s temple is frozen on June 24th because it is St. John’s Day, » says Suibhne.
Wait, what? As in Edom St. John?
« A more practical experiment might be if we’d all fully explore our apartments, » says Mickey.
« Sure, why not? » says Wynne.
Ross shakes his head. « Not happening, » Lorcan concurs.
« I guess I could check the basement, » says Sloane. «Are you in, Pat? »
« I don’t know what Ailann is talking about, » he replies. « There’s no basement in my home. It’s a normal two-level apartment. »
« There is so a basement, » says Selby. « I have to go into it to get to the wine cellar. There’s some kind of library too, but I haven’t really looked around. »
« I’ll check my place, but it could take a while, » says Evan. « There’s a courtyard, but my house is so big, I haven’t figured out how to get to it yet. »
« I can’t believe we’ve never explored the whole thing, » says Benbow.
« When we get off the hilift, the bathroom and dining room are right there, and the bedroom is down the hall, » Quennel replies. « Why look any further? »
I cast my gaze on Cillian. « What about you? »
« I don’t really see the point of looking out the windows, » he replies.
« The point would be to document this phenomenon, » says Cüinn.
Cillian stares at me. « Is that an order? »
I nod. He mutters something under his breath, but he goes.
« We can eliminate Ophion – all the houses clearly enter and exit in Ophionia. »
« Are we certain of that? » asks Solomon. « We haven’t explored all of them. They might have tunnels or doors leading elsewhere. »
« I’ve been in every room in Ashvattha, » says Balin. « Not only do all the passageways lead onto Ashvattha Isle, the size and shape of the rooms match the footprint of the palace. » He says that with pride – as though there were some congruence between what is rational and what is ethical. Balin can be annoying sometimes.
« That leaves Canopus and Yggdrasil. Any anomalies there? »
« None, » says Lens. « We searched thoroughly the time Rainier went missing. »
« That can’t be true, » says Theo. « I have a house and a yard. »
« The search was conducted before Theo emanated, » says Solomon.
« That’s important, » says Dermot. « The apartments must start out generic and morph to fit the inhabitant. In other words, the inhabitant’s personality isn’t determined before emanation. »
« Benbow told me that the captain’s quarters on the Swan Boat looked a lot different before I emanated, » says Nash.
« Any anomalies? »
Nash shrugs. « Dunno. I’ve never been out in the garage. Lemme go check. »
There isn’t even a point in discussing how there could possibly be a garage on an 18th century sailing vessel. It would be like asking why there is a 19th century Russian palace – or, for that matter, a 5th century BCE Athenian temple – inside of a 36th century Dolparessan apartment building.
« But they change even after emanation, » says Cüinn. « I was just thinking that I needed more space to relax, and poof, a door appeared. It’s a hilift to a basement area. Besides a hot tub and holoprojection zone, it’s also a radiation-proof shelter in case one of my experiments goes bad. »
« For some reason, that makes me a little nervous, » says Mickey.
« A hot tub, » says Solomon. « You’re learning, big bro. »
« Well, I’d take you down there, but it’s a little dark, » Cüinn replies.
« The pleroma can be strange like that, » says Rand. « Remember how there weren’t any lights in the access tunnel to Ashvattha Isle, and then there were? »
« That’s not what I mean, » says Cüinn uncomfortably. « There’s also a lab down there, and it’s kind of disturbing. »
« So you caved in and decided to do the unethical experiments? » says Davy.
Do I want to hear this?
« NBAI sales are dropping, » says Ross. « It’s because javajuice although caffeinated and delicious, always tastes the same. Lately there’s been a resurgence in rival chains reviving ancient brewing methods and heirloom coffee varietals. »
« We need new strains of javamelon, » says Davy. « But in order to make it work, we’ve got to do the research. »
Cüinn looks away shamefacedly. « A coffee lab. »
« You mean you’re torturing those beans, » Callum murmurs with a little smile. « Roasting them alive. »
« Oh good grief, » says Ari. « A coffee bush is no more intelligent than a chik-henn, and you eat eggs. »
I can confirm that the apartments change, says Cillian. There’s a staircase that wasn’t here before. Gonna do some recon.
« Getting back to the Canopus branches, my situation is similar to Simon’s, » says Quennel. « Somehow , you can go through a trap door into a house surrounded by a garden. I think all the Canopus emanations have homes like that. »
Yves nods in agreement. « Like all Canopus residences, I have an anteroom on the Swan Boat which leads to my dwelling. My front door, however, exits out onto a stone path through a hedgerow too tall to see over. The path leads under a bramble arch and into a dense wood. There are a number of peculiar features in the wood – sculptures, assemblages of leaves and twigs, trees webbed with colored yarn – but if I stray too far from the path, everything is obscured by fog. It’s impossible to see beyond it, but I followed the path to the end – it passes through a river and finally around to the rear entrance. »
« You mean over the river, right? » says Tommy.
Yves shakes his head. « The walkway first goes through a tunnel, then loops back to a reinforced passage which, despite being open to the sky, is beneath the water level. I think it’s because a bridge would give me a vantage point, but as it is, I can’t see anything beyond the walls. In short, I can get outside of my house, but I can’t get outside of my head. »
« A profound observation, » murmurs Tarlach.
A chatburl from Wynne cuts into the conversation. This is incredible! There’s a casino in my apartment!
Somehow that seems less like “incredible” and more like “absolutely predictable.” « Any anomalies? »
Can’t tell. Casinos never have windows. The house wants the patrons to lose track of time.
In retrospect, my situation was predictable, too, says Sloane. My apartment is pretty much the same one I had in Vuernaco. It was above the stables. Well, guess what? There are stables here as well – five stalls, but they’re empty.
« Three of the horses are in Renfaire, » says Vassali. « I stabled mine in New Merenis – but it would be much more convenient to leave it at Sloane’s. »
Sure, why not? It’s been a long time since I took care of a horse – I miss it. I’ll just bet the fifth stall houses a horse for Tara.
« I can’t fit my horse through the front door of the treedominium, » says Vassali.
No problem. You can get to the stables through the service entrance in the back of the building. It isn’t what Ailann would call an anomaly, though – my flat is on the third floor, and the stable has a high ceiling, so it makes a sort of sense.
I found a penguin in the coat-check room, says Evan. She says she’ll call the butler to take me around. I didn’t even know I had a butler!
« A castle usually has servants, » says Vassali.
« A penguin would make a perfect butler, » says Tommy.
Suibhne frowns. « Penguins are versatile and provide a wide range of services in the pleroma. Only chinstrap penguins are suitable for household help. »
This place is enormous, says Quennel. As it turns out, we hadn’t found the dining room. It was the “high hall.” The real dining room is the “great hall.” It could seat at least a dozen.
The courtyard is enclosed. It has a gate to a garden which is also enclosed, says Evan.
« But then, how did the penguins get in? »
Through the servants’ entry, says Evan. Which is through the larder. But the penguins won’t let me go in there.
« Historically, servants would congregate in the buttery, where they would have access to ale, » Suibhne replies. « But penguins are more interested in the ice house, which is why they’re in the larder. »
Hey, there’s a bomb shelter in my basement! says Cillian. Now there’s something I can use.
« The windows, Cillian, the windows. And how about Goliath? We already know that Simon has experienced an anomaly, and that the hole in Daniel’s wall leads to Ari’s cave – which also connects to the cenote. »
« My apartment’s normal, » says Ace.
« My dwelling is quite large and includes a basement level, but it is impossible to get outside, » says Seth. « The windows are frosted glass, as is the roof of the conservatory. »
« The floorplan of my apartment is exactly the same as Tommy’s, even though the décor is totally different, » says Thomas. « Which is an anomaly because my apartment is on the 5th basement level. How can I have a balcony overlooking the ocean? »
« Yeah, my lab doesn’t have any windows, » says Barnabas. « Which is kind of expected when you’re underground. »
« I have a yard, » says Stephen. « It’s got really high hedges that I can’t see over. My driveway leads straight to a tunnel that emerges in front of the Atlas-Goliath Tower. »
And that, unsettlingly, was that for the Goliath emanations – most of them had never bothered to visit their own dwellings. I contemplate ordering them all to do so, but there’s something about the set of Aran’s jaw – if I do, he’ll challenge me on it. Most likely because he doesn’t want to look himself.
Inside of the pleroma, everything is symbolic, chatburls Tarlach. Those emanations – Ross, Lorcan, Aran – there’s something about themselves that they are afraid to face. It’s the opposite of Gwion, who was desperately looking for some clue about the man he will become.
Woo-hoo! shouts Nash. There’s a car in this garage! A convertible!
« I’m sure that’s exciting, but I’m more concerned with what’s outside of the garage than in it. »
Oh, right. I’ll take a look-see.
It seems more efficient to just pop into his branch memory rather than to wait for him to chatburl. He opens the garage and steps outside. He’s in front of an ancient service station positioned on a lonesome highway in an endless desert.
« Where is he? » I murmur.
« It doesn’t even make sense, » says Solomon. « I mean, so far…Stephen needs a place to park his bike, so he has a garage. Reality gets bent a little so he can have a driveway, but not a lot – he can’t actually see outside of his yard. The same thing is true of your temple, Lugh’s patio, Yves…the exterior spaces are enclosed. Simon needs a whole house, so it ends up in New Merenis. But going into a boat and coming out in a desert… »
« It’s a ship, » says Benbow peevishly.
The conversation is interrupted by a sound like a bell or a xylophone, deep, resonant, not unpleasant, yet still setting my teeth on edge. It’s Julian’s tuning fork. « Right now, Nash is located in the State of Emergency, » Julian informs us. « He’s a bit southwest of Noir. »
« Got it, » says Benbow. « It just appeared on the map. »
He hands me a map of the pleroma, indicating an area marked – of course – Nashville.
« Could his remote location be linked to Canopus’ mobility? » queries Dermot. « Maybe Quennel should try going to his house, too. »
In all likelihood, it’s in Oakley City, Quennel replies.
Compost, chatburls Cillian. Steaming compost straight from the ass of the bull of Mithras.
« What’s out the window, Cillian? »
It’s not an apartment. It’s a house in New Merenis, a pretty nice one actually, like something Frank Lloyd Wright mighta built. Tiffany lamps, Stickley furniture, it’s even got Eastlake hardware on the doors. Be worth a fortune if it weren’t imaginary. But when you go outside, there’s…there’s a garden, Ailann.
« Horrors, » says Simon dryly.
Dammit, Ailann, I’m a soldier. I can’t grow anything!
It’s terrible, I know, but the tone of despair in his voice – I can’t help laughing. And there’s only one thing I can think of to say, those ancient words of human wisdom which tell us there’s no comfort in the universe, ever: « Dost thou know the ordinances of heaven? »