Chapter 47 The Egg
It may be inferred that celestial astronomy is the source and guide of
the inferior astronomy. Before we raise our eyes to heaven, kabbalistically
illuminated by the contemplation of these mysteries, we should perceive very
exactly the construction of our Monad as it is shown to us not only in the
LIGHT but also in life and nature, for it discloses explicitly, by its inner
movement, the most secret mysteries of this physical analysis. We have
contemplated the heavenly and divine functions of this celestial Messenger, and
we now apply this co-ordination to the figure of the egg. – John Dee
The Babe in
the Egg of Blue that sits upon the lotus flower in the Nile – Aliester
Crowley
Stan
had left more things in her room to read, Marie noticed upon their return. With a long sigh she examined the stack of
books on her desk. Among the tomes were
The Annotated Alice in Wonderland, Dion Fortune’s The Mystical Qabbalah, Aleister
Crowley’s 777, a different translation of John Dee’s Monas Hieroglyphica by
Diana Hignutt, and an old hardbound book that contained a book in English,
French, Hebrew, and Arabic, titled, The Veils of Negative Existence, translated
into English and French by S.L. MacGregor Mathers, the founder of the Hermetic
Order of the Golden Dawn. All the books
were mystical or occult in nature. Had
Stan lost his mind? She discovered his
note. It read as follows:
Dear
Marie,
WE
began our experiments with you on Monday, please read the following books
before that time. Also, if possible, it
would be best if you remained in your room in isolation during this preparatory
period. Just call or email whatever you
want or need, and it will be brought up to your room. This is very important. I think you’ll find this other Dee
translation more helpful, and please use great care when reading The Veils, it
is the only copy in the world, and its wisdom with be your guide throughout our
work together. Sorry, for any
inconvience these requests may cause you.
Best
Regards,
Stan
P.S.
– Read VALIS again too.
She
held the rare book aloft once more to examine it more closely. Privately published in 1897, with just this
one copy extant. The book itself
radiated a kind of power similar to that of the inter-dimensional copy of
Dick’s VALIS, yet in some ways exerting an even more powerful tug on her imagination. She flipped through its old yet sturdy pages
sensing something indefinable within.
She set it back down.
That
weekend seemed to last forever. She
paced, and read the books Stan had left … what else was there to do?
When
Monday morning finally came, Marie was still in bed asleep when a knock came on
her door. It was still black as night
outside her windows.
“What
time is it?” she asked rubbing her eyes.
“It’s
six, Marie, sorry” It was Luke’s voice.
“Stan made me do it. He told me
to wake you up and drop off this outfit for you to wear for the
experiment. I’ll leave it out here. I’ll be back in five minutes to bring you
down to the Freezer.”
“Five
minutes, are you people crazy?”
“I
think Stan might be, and Renee sure is,” joked Luke. “But seriously, you have to get up and get
ready. It’s the big day.”
“What
about breakfast?”
“Brunch. After the experiment. Nothing to eat or drink this morning. Sorry.” And he conveyed the sincerity of his
apology in his voice. “Alright, so get
up, get dressed, and I’ll be back in five.”
She
slipped off the covers and pulled herself out of bed, and slipped her slippers
on her feet. She crossed the room and
opened the door to retrieve the ‘outfit’ she was expected to wear. It was a gold metallic yet strangely
translucent body suit with built in footies , much like a futurist and tight-fitting
version of the classic footy pajamas. It
fit her like a glove. She examined
herself in the mirror. Wow, she had lost
a lot of weight in the last three or four weeks since she had left her home,
and gotten into much better physical shape to boot. The healthier food and hiking the mountain
trails and village roads had done her very well indeed. For the first time in a long time, Marie
liked how she looked. Even the little
bit of gray at her temples made her look a little like Bonnie Rait, or better
yet, she thought, Rogue from the X-Men, and with her experimenting clothes she
looked as though she belonged in a comic book.
Another
knock on the door drew her away from the mirror.
“It’s
Luke again. I really am sorry to be a
pain, but it’s time.”
“No
problem, Luke, I’m ready,” she opened the door and stood before him in the
hallway.
“Wow,”
Luke observed, “You look just like Rogue, you know, from the X-Men.”
“Is
everybody in this place a comic book geek?”
“I
think so, except, Jackie, and, who knows what Dr. Jenkins is in into. Come on, they’re waiting for us in the
Dungeon … er … you know.”
She
laughed a little. “Yeah, let’s not keep
them waiting. To the dungeon with us.”
All
of the technical staff and Doctor Who were present in the Freezer, waiting in
anticipation for her arrival. The first
thing she noticed after that was that her clothing protected her completely
from the cold. She was perfectly comfortable. “Good Morning, everyone” she said. An unsynchronized chorus of greetings was
returned to her.
“Through
this door,” waved Stan, who seemed to be in charge of this experiment. Dr. Jenkins held back in the corner
maintaining his quiet reserve.
“She
followed him through the doorway, with Jackie, Barry, and Dr. Who coming in
behind her. In this room was a giant
indigo … egg. Cables and wires ran to
the egg from the Freezer and Mawacky.
Stan touched a button on the wall, and the egg opened in half, revealing
inside a reclined seat.
“The
seat, explained Stan is perfectly designed for your comfort. If you would be kind enough to climb in, we
can get started.”
“Okay,
whatever you say,” she looked as brave as she could muster at each of them, exposing
only a tiny bit of her nervousness to Barry.
She climbed into the Egg and positioned herself on the reclining seat
within.
Stan
looked over at the Doctor. “Doctor, if
you will…”
The
French physician leaned down and explained, “I have to put an IV in your hand
if I can find a good vein there.”
Marie
turned her head, but felt the jab in a vein in the back of her hand. “Viola!” the doctor said.
“Excellent,”
said Stan. Barry and Jackie just stood
there attempting to look as unconcerned as they could. Stan could not contain his exuberance,
however.
“Okay,
Marie, here’s how it’s going to work.
The doctor is going to hook the IV up to the Egg, which will release
small doses of DMT into your system
Nothing like you experienced in the trial. He’ll also hook you up to the biofeedback
sensors embedded in your suit. The video screen you’ll be able to see when we
close the egg, will show you patterns that correspond to the biofeedback data
and to the quantum field. The way we
understand it, this, in addition to the connections to Mawacky and the Freezer will
allow you to traverse the Multiverse.”
“If
you say so, Stan,”
“Well,
I believe, because, many other Stans have told me it works. And many other Maries have successfully
travelled to parallel universes and safety returned. So, there is no reason to be nervous,
whatsoever.”
“Do
you have any idea how crazy that sounds?”
“As
a matter of fact, I do.”
And
then the Egg closed down around her.
copyright 2017 Diana Hignutt
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