NES

There was a storm brewing outside, a storm that drew Tyrean's attention away from the front of her classroom. It held her eyes fast to the darkness and swirling colors …green and orange …just beyond the glass. It was a dry storm, probably electrical. There was no rain. It was heading their way. They had already studied the effects of lightning on nature and human life. They had studied it in earth science. Studied it, but not lived it. A summer squall was not unusual in the region where she lived with her father. Anyone who knew the area …had lived there for any length of time, knew to look for and expect the annual storms. "Tyrean," the teacher called her name mid lecture and stormed over toward the girl near the window and leaned to look out. She was forced to call her name again to push the issue of importance of education over fantasy. "Tyrean!," the girl jerked in her seat, "Yes." The teacher stood and turned to face the blackboard then raised both hands to brush loose tendrils of hair from her face. As she wrapped several loose strands back onto the bun at the back of her head she chided the girl, " I see nothing worth studying out there, Tyrean. Your best focus is on me… is that clear?" Tyrean nodded, not bothering to bring attention to the discolored sky. "Keep your eyes focused towards me lady, I stand where your future goes!" Ms. Marion strode back to the head of the class to stand before the board, "Now, where were we?" Several hands shot into the airspace above the audience of twenty nine. As she picked up her black tipped pointer, Ms. Marion aimed and tipped it once, twice …three times as though she were casting a spell. "Ronnie, where were we?" A young man spoke up, "The sustenance of leaves!" She smiled, "Someone was actually in class. Can you be a little more specific?" The teen straightened himself in his seat and began, "The life we live as supported by leaf life …chlorophyll," he read from a tablet on his desk. Tyrean blushed lightly and raised her hand, "It was …I was distracted by the types of leaves …so many trees and plants outside; we should never have a problem with oxygen." The teacher corrected her, "No, there are many plants with green leaves in some places, but the entire earth is losing its chlorophyll level… the chlorophyll plants - green leaves generate carbon dioxide into oxygen. The plants just outside our window are very meager representation of the sustenance for our life - the regenerator of oxygen." As she turned toward the blackboard to write, Tyrean released a sigh of relief. The storm outside the window had distracted her beyond the original focus on windblown leaves at the window. Ms. Marion's voice began again, pulling the girl's attention outward once again. "The process of generating oxygen from carbon monoxide is natural in the life rhythm of a plant - green leafy plants," Ms. Marion's voice drained away to a more internal voice; a voice that sounded like that of the princess in the Ivory Tower. "But for the process of Time, Tyrean." The voice paused and Tyrean darted quick glances around the classroom at the other students and back toward the blackboard where the teacher was making white and yellow marks to demonstrate her point. When it continued Tyrean blushed. Fantasia had never ventured into her mind outside the privacy of home and a book, The Never Ending Story. It was becoming personal, "…But for the Process of Time, we are - as you have kept us, ALIVE - for the process of Time." The bell rang throwing students from their one hour root spaces around the classroom. The sound drowned Ms. Marion's voice to less than a murmur, a low murmur inaudible to teenagers eager to escape the clenches of science. By the last bell tone only a blur of sneakers and denim amid a wash of color could be identified in one massive rush through the classroom door. Tyrean glanced down at her watch to see that she would have only enough time to dash to her locker to toss in the morning's textbooks before starting through the hallway to her next class. There would be no time for thinking about what she wanted to carry. She would keep her journal and notebook for the next class. The flood of bodies in the hall caused her to struggle in rhythm with their flow in the direction of her locker, then up the flight of stairs toward class. English Literature was always easier for her; it did not require formulas or remembering extinct dates. The distraction caused by the storm outside now left her in a frame of mind that could benefit by her sitting in a class made for creative thinking. As she entered the first door on the second floor the woman standing at the front of the room nodded her head in a gesture of acknowledgment. "Good morning Ms. Brody,” Tyrean tossed a verbal greeting in her direction. A slight smile edged onto the teacher's face as Tyrean slid into the second row seat assigned to the girl on the first day of class. Seat order was the first thing established in her class, more for Ms. Brody's memory of names and faces than for anything else. The students changed so often it was impossible to recall each and every one by the face presented if they were not put in some perfect order. As the room filled, she began to etch on the board:

Literary subject Dante's Inferno

By Dante Aligheri Short summary: a trip through hell

There were snickers from a few students in the back corner; the response was well expected. "Yes, today we will be submerging into the study of Hell. In Dante Aligheri's divine comedy, Hell as presented by the 19th century author takes on a very literary appearance; one that makes the trip more interesting than fearsome." She pressed a button on the computer at her desk and a sheet of words appeared upon the wall at the front of the room. She continued speaking, "Dante had a very creative imagination... creative yet deep with insight. In this book, he paints a picture for us... one that I have never forgotten; and takes us into the preconception of death, death and the things on the other side of wondering. Thinking about the other side, we often wonder what awaits us? What became of those that went on ahead, died before us? Dante takes the trip and allows us to walk each step along with him. We will review sections together and you will study on your own to form ideas of the who, the what and why things occur as they do in his journey. This will be a year long project focus, our only focus. You will learn perception this year. Dante goes to every realm of existence... Hell... In the Inferno, goes to Heaven ...in Paradise and hovers at the in-between, in Purgatory. Now read the page upon the screen... CANTO 1, and be ready to insert an opinion when your name is called." As Tyrean read the wall before her, fantasy slipped into mind under cover of the words played by Aligheri: How I arrived there, it were hard to tell ...so weary was my mind, so filled with sleep, I reeled and wandered from the path of truth. When I had come before a mountain's base... The rugged ending of that steep and rugged valley... "Tyreaaaann". She jumped, startled for the sudden sound at the base of the mountain. It seemed to echo from the below in the valley. Tyrean mumbled in response, "Who's there?" Ms. Brody raised her head to look in Tyrean's direction, and spoke, "There isn't time Tyreannn... Tyreaan." Tyrean nodded. "Yes, there is no time… I remember now." She read on: Like one, who having battled the waves, in safety on the shore... It was almost hypnotizing. As the shore rolled in to where she could actually see what was beyond, there was no valley. There was not even the mountain, but the same glistening white orb in the near distance; the familiar orb that was always FANTASIA. As the craft drifted near, she repeated over and over in her mind, "There is no time... There is no TIME."

She stepped into the familiar crystallized surroundings of the Ivory Tower. "There was nothing that would detain you... Was there?” the princess was as always, interrogating. A smile crept onto her face and Tyrean returned a slightly bewildered smile of her own. It seemed a bit different inside the crystals held an odd glow. Tyrean tilted her head upward gazing at the tainted angles of gemstones above. "They have gone yellowed haven't they?”, she asked her hostess, not waiting for a response. She began to step away still watching overhead, straining to see what the difference was. It was as though the storm outside her window in class had followed her here, "There is a storm?" The answer came in shuddered whisper across the few feet between the girls. "Not a storm, but a failing." The words fell heavy on the ear. A failing at anything was the total summary of the everything involved. It meant that nothing and no one was good enough to be a success. Failing meant that the negative that had pursued Fantasia would win. If it could win here in Fantasia, then it could win anywhere. A fantasmical world, a fantasy, is something that lasts forever; as long as there is a mind to dream. Fantasy is the world outside of fear and danger, the world where everything is pleasant and can be removed at a moment's notice by a simple redirection of ideas. If FANTASIA could fail with its spectacular view of life, then all effort of enduring was in vain. "It must not be for vain that we have come to here and now, Tyrean. For to deal with the vain was unlawful, wasn't it?" Tyrean said nothing. The yellowed walls of crystal tied into yellowed ivory of the tower. It was fading from the something of change. "What is it? Does anyone know yet what is fading the tower...? Your world?” Tyrean expected to hear of efforts made and results gained. "I, as always, am here in the tower. I send and they respond. I call and they come. I know not what is beyond these walls or the realm of this tower... The Ivory Tower ...except to the place below, when last you came. The underworld was a fright and I have been here since," the princess sighed. Tyrean looked across the short distance at her now. The no longer childlike princess took on a faded appearance as did her tower. "Oh Tyrean..." The princess tried to pull her from the blank stare she had fallen into, "Tyrean, there is not time..." Ms. Brody reached out one arm and shook the girl's shoulder, "Tyrean, I've been calling you for your summary of that page on the wall. What have you gotten from the first CANTO of Dante's manuscript?" She looked down into the girl's startled face restraining a smile for having caught one daydreaming. "Oh, I was just um, okay..." Tyrean put her words together as she spoke. "I believe it must be fantasy... It's all fantasy." The teacher smiled, "Yes, as a matter of fact it is just that; fantasy from an era well past our time. Some of us are more familiar with the descriptions and explanations given in the popular religions of our day. Dante takes these, as described there in our Bible or the Quran or the Torah, and paints a never-ending mural of our fears and anxieties. These fears and anxieties are what we will dwell on this year." The buzzer went off and those at the back of the class leapt to their feet eager to escape the final clenches of anticipation at being called. Ms. Brody spoke as they dashed for the door at the front of the room, "That is exactly what I mean, OUR FEARS AND ANXIETIES..." She continued without drawing another breath, “Don't forget to read your books ...Dante's Inferno." She smiled as the remaining students stood to file from the classroom. As Tyrean passed her desk, the teacher spoke again, "It is all fantasy Tyrean. Some more real than others but all fantasy... We make our own end by our efforts made." Tyrean pulled her books close to her chest and ducked her head as though apologizing for being aloof. A responding smile from Ms. Brody let her know that the teacher knew.

The moment's delay had allowed the crowd of other students to thin giving her time to walk at a slower pace. She did not have to struggle among the usual myriad of bodies wrestling to get from one door to the next in their push to make it throughout the end of a day. Each day for each student was dictated by any number of moods and motives. Each was a swale of his or her own apprehensions, denials and shortcomings. Each carried his or her own baggage for the personal recipe of joy. This year, for Tyrean, it was finally getting a spot in the school radio studio. She managed to enroll for the FAA licensing course that rarely came available. Anyone who was enrolled for the class was automatically placed on the list for broadcasting. If she could pass the class, she would receive a broadcaster's certificate that would qualify her for licensing. Winona High School, like others in the region, offered some of the best programming for teens. There was Computer Drafting (A-CAD), Television Network Broadcasting, and Law among other quality class options. Students at Winona High school had the option of attending the local community college for various other Co-op classes toward a license or apprenticeship. The Co-op office at the school offered direct on the job training with enrollment in any of the career courses. Tyrean strolled through the open path before her noticing the faces of classmates and others that were always there but unidentified. Radio Broadcasting, her next class, was a favorite but had its limits. The teacher, Mr. Crass, set rules that determined the outcome of her enrollment. They were never allowed to enjoy the music played but were required to assemble an entertaining schedule of assigned format tunes. Aside from being able to do this, they were required to learn licensing regulations and pass a state exam by the end of the school year. It was a likable but heavy load for high school children, made more of a weight by the instructor. Josh Shenkleman, the boy that sat next to her in class, was already putting together his class project. He was assembling a program for his brother's Bar Mitzvah with the help of his father Arnold. They had become relaxed enough in each other's company since the onset of classes, he no longer teased her about her name, "...Tyrean...TyreEAN? Are you from Tyre? Or does that mean you cry a lot? What!" He had moved to town as a baby when his mother and father fled the civil war in their country. He talked often and as though he missed Israel, their old country. She knew nothing about his country or any other except the one they were in; she had responded with, "My name is in the Bible, Joshua; I can show you if you can't find it ...do you need help?" She did not get into the arguments his fluctuating mood brought on any given day. Instead, today like any other day, she greeted him, "Hey Josh ...how's your project coming along?" He was on a down swing; his family was fasting for lent. He ignored her except for the wave of his hand. Her attention was taken away from the situation by a voice from the front of the room, "Afternoon class, it’s good to have you all at work and hopefully ready to work. We don't get much time to earn a living in this place. I expect you to use the full hour... or half hour wisely. No chit chat. Get into your places and I want to see results on your projects." He walked out of the room to return only at what they had learned to be his norm, the end of class. Tyrean pulled her tablet and a cassette out and began working with the headset in front of her. As she listened, she heard her own voice in a consistent tone telling listeners of her children's story hour. The voice told of a world called FANTASIA, and the immature leader who always needed help. It told of how the leader was never willing to put her own effort forth to solve a problem and of the stronger characters in the world of Fantasia. The stronger characters Atrayo; and an old Indian who had been lost and was found again. Old, but returning to do what he could to continue on. The voice told of people called THE HIPPIES who wasted all effort and put good time on useless things and actions. It was all one continuous story, including a section where a boy during the 1960's had fallen into the fantasy world after opening a book. He had fallen during reading and thinking of his own fear of swimming. He fell into the book with a call from the leader who would do nothing to save her own. The images ran through Tyrean's mind as if they were real. They ran fluid, as she intended them, to the minds of her listeners. It was a tale that came natural for her; as natural as the many distractions she had experienced for most of her youth. By the return of Mr. Crass, she had created a colorful "picturescape" of vivid character actions in words for her radio audience. The presentation would be one anyone could be proud of. "I hope the day did not go to waste students... Be here Monday at the appointed time and I expect to hear progress worthy of my teaching skill. First on call will be Mr. Shenkleman." Josh's head snatched to attention, his ears perked from the mention of his name." And that presentation will be referencing ... What, Mr. Shenkleman?" The boy stammered through his subject title. "I'm doing ... Um, the Projection of Judaic Heraldry, it's going to be read at my brother's Bar Mitzvah too." A blanked stare overcame Mr. Crass's face at the mention of an outside issue to that of his own. "We are not interested in the procedures of your race or religion, Mr. Shenkleman... Please keep random idioms to yourself." The boy's head fell from disappointment. Everyone knew full well what the situation of the Jewish people was, "I don't understand why you people can not appreciate our suffering. We will not forget! And it's best that the rest of you remember what you have done to my people." Mr. Crass stopped him from rambling, "That's enough mister! There are twenty five other people in this room, each with their own set of struggles and histories. We can not spend our lives suffering for your existence!" He redirected his attention to the class, "Now, following Mr. Shenkleman, will be his partner there, Miss Cross... With, I believe she is reiterating... FANTASY? for us." He looked directly at her. "It is FANTASIA: the basis of fantasy in the human mind." She nudged Josh with her foot. "We'll look forward to those on Monday morning then. Class dismissed." Mr. Crass was not known to become submerged in the individual. His concern was the overall education of theory in radio broadcast and the fluidity of presentation; the reproduction of calmness and clarity in the voice and actions of the speaker. He sat at his desk as the army of students marched through the door at the front of the room. As Josh approached him, he reminded the boy, "It is not the persecution we are interested in Mr. Shenkleman, rather it is your elocution of your work. See you on Monday." Josh nodded and stepped into the hall to blend in with the rest of the student population. Tyrean stepped out of the stream of personalities under scrutiny and into the flow of the norm behind Josh, heading for her own next challenge. The other classes scheduled for Friday attendance were on lower scale for mental challenge. She was not required to think of the persecution of the Jewish people nor the ability or inability of another person at adjusting to life in the world populations. Physical education for this year had placed her in an archery class. She would do her best in this and in the following physical challenges presented her for the year. If there came an opportunity to put her skills to use in the future, she may be the better off for having attempted to learn the task. The balance of the day went by with little effort and she was soon standing in line to mount the brief incline that would lead her home.

Hattie James, the bus driver, was always just as indifferent at the close of the day as she was in the morning. She had run through introductions at the beginning of the school year so that now, in the spring, cordial greetings had become dull and routine. It had already been established that she was the aunt of her last year's classmate, Danitra. It had already been established that she was keeping close to family by working for the bus company. It had already been established that she would not be their driver next year. There was nothing new to hear. The bus soon rolled into the block where Tyrean would make her departure for the day. She and two other students stepped off the bus, and on toward their day's destination. As always, her destination promised warm milk and a variety of cakes to finalize the day's perjury of her mind. "I'm home!” she announced her arrival, as always, and dropped bag and books to prepare for the evening's work. The radio broadcasting class was held on two days of the week. She had done enough on her project during the week so that by Monday; she would have enough work done to allow her a presentation that even Mr. Crass would credit. Between the two days, Monday and Thursday, she spent her time in horticulture class learning to grow and arrange plants and flowers. This left plenty of time for the detailed work required by Ms. Marion, Ms Brody and Mr. Crass.

She arrived at the door of her science class on schedule and in time to see Ms. Marion with a uniformed stranger. He was tall brown haired and brown eyed, light tan ...with a reddish under glow that made the uniform appear darker blue in shade. Short curls of the brown hair stuck out around the blue elongated cone cap on his head. As the man gestured in conversation, Tyrean opened the door to slip past. As she entered the room, she tried not to notice the conversation but overheard parts of what he was saying. "Rita, okay honey, I'll be out at the military base if they call us. I'm gonna stop back here before I go back to Massachusetts or anyplace. I'm sure I would have to check back with the old command at Boston before taking a new mission." He leaned over to plant a kiss on her lips causing Tyrean to blush as she slid into her seat. Noticing the stares on her student's faces, Ms. Marion announced, "This is Ronnie, my husband, and yes he is in the Air Force... And no, he is not on display for today's class. Not to worry ...not for you people anyway." She smiled as he waved towards them, and then turned to blow a kiss at his wife before leaving the room. "We do have an interesting subject for today's class; we are going to be looking at Bio-Conservation: The relationship of Biology to the continuation and existence ...conservation of land. That will take us into your chapters on Botany ...the need for plant life for OUR survival on earth. Without it, the atmosphere cannot remain intact. Man has created too many toxins with his advance in technology. The many toxins, of course, deplete the OZONE. The addition of so many unnatural elements to the atmosphere, of course, causes UNNATURAL reactions to the chemical transpirations of our atmosphere. If you recall, the possibility of rain is increased with the presence of sulfur to the existing cloud formations. Dust added to this creates...” the teacher's voice began to fade. After what seemed like only minutes later, she heard the external voice again, "It is the effect of compiled elements that has made such a remarkable change in our environment; and it is the continued loading of these and worse chemical elements that will continue to create the unnatural responses we are finding in nature." "This is the conclusion of today's lesson and this week’s studies be prepared for a test on Monday. Tyrean stepped into the hallway with the mélange of other students allowing them to propel her towards the next destination. Up the stairs and at the door for her next class, Tyrean entered to receive her next issue of knowledge. Ms. Brody had already placed the material upon the wall as the students sat and the bell rang. English class was a repeat of the Dante classic. They were given another page, CANTO 6 on the wall before them by Ms. Brody; then read briefly to by the slim brown skinned woman...

"...My eyes behold, on every side alike, new torments and tormented souls anew. To the third circle of eternal rain, accused, cold and heavy, I am come." She flicked the lights off over the heads of her class and then continued reading... It was code blue for anyone not capable of paying accurate attention, "Thick hail, dark water, and unending snow come pouring down athwart the murky air - their quality and cadence never changing - upon the putrid earth. A monster fierce, the direful CERBERUS with triple throat, barks dog like oe'r the people here submerged. Red are his eyes; his beard befouled and dark, his belly large, his paws with talons armed... He claws the spirits, flays and quarters them." She paused for a breath of air, "...We passed oe'r the shades beaten to earth by rain: Our feet were stepping on their hollow forms which were but shadows, though they seemed like men. All of them were lying on the ground, save one, who painfully arose to sit as soon as he perceived us passing by." Brody changed her voice to mimic the voice of the shade, "Oh you who through this hell are being led, recall me if you can... Your citizens gave me the name CIACCO. For pernicious sin of gluttony I languish as you can see in endless rain." She read the entire CANTO, "...Your science teaches you that true perfection has the greatest sense of pleasure - hence the greatest sense of pain. Though these ill-fated souls cannot arrive at true perfection, yet they will be nearer after the Judgment Day, than now." ...her voice painting images of both horror and immense imagination in the minds of the teens; but she read on without interruption or question, and then subjected them to writing their opinions. As each bowed his or her head in concentration, Ms. Brody sat content with her assault upon youth. She smiled, fuchsia lipstick showing a thin line at the base of her face, thinking "...that should keep them busy for quite a while... now and into the future. None should be able to detract from this lesson!"

Tyrean's mind settled upon the varied levels of the fantasy suffered by Dante. Thinking back to the words heard from the reading, she began her notes, "...If you descend so far, you'll see them there... But if you seek again the world above, bring tidings of me to the others there..." She imagined the speaker sinking away into the mire of mud with the other writhing souls in the river of the gluttonous, had been greedy; wanting more than they were due. They were those who used the strengths of others and the hard worked earnings of the same. Tyrean stopped writing in thought of her own situations. She thought of Fantasia and their misfortunes. The moment she allowed thought of the fantasy world to enter her mind, the image of the princess appeared. The princess had stood long over the world of Fantasia calling to others to enter. She had beckoned the boy, Bastian, and many before him. The princess had beckoned her many times in the midst of important concentration. "Tyrean, are you thinking of us now?", the voice came from no place. Tyrean muttered under her breath, "I'm trying to work." Before the words could leave her mouth, there came a humming from a distance. It was the same hypnotic humming of the forlorn world when first she had met the princess and Atrayo. She listened to the tune as it lulled her into semi-consciousness. She was at a daydreaming frame of mind. When her arm slipped from beneath her chin, Tyrean straightened up then leaned across her desk to think. As she thought, she felt the slight ache from the thump of her chin onto her pencil from the slip. The ache seemed to echo...echo...echo "Tyrean... I am here to help you ..." She looked up and across the foggy distance now and saw a white glow only a short way from her, "Who are you?" "I am your nurse, Pearly, " a figure in white responded; "I came here to help you with your pain." The nurse, a woman in what appeared to be white uniform, appeared slowly clearing to her vision. She wore what looked like a uniform and cap. The cap that sat upon her head had a small red and gold enameled pin in it like those worn by medical people everywhere. "I'm here to guide you out of this level, follow me." Tyrean chided her, "Who are you?" Despite her confusion, the girl tumbled behind her anxious to leave Dante and his world of gluttonous death. The image before her continued speaking, "I am your friend... I would be your mother, but I am the nurse to your illness. I am she who will guide you, the one that will bring you forth and ask nothing of you give is waste, follow me!” Tyrean looked at her in wonderment. It was all so confusing, "But how do I know...." The woman in the white outfit turned sharply to face her, "Don't ask questions, just follow. We don't have time for this." She turned around and walked more intently into the wilderness. Tyrean followed watching the dark that passed them by trying to place an identifying note on each wall, crevice and tree. They walked until they arrived in a place similar to where they had left. It was similar except that from a ledge that was not there, Tyrean could look over into a valley and see where Dante stood with those of the Gluttony River. He and his friend were stepping from a boat onto the opposite side of that river when the nurse touched her arm, "Come now, we must move on ahead... And it is best not to know any of these things we pass. Know none and they can not recall you." Tyrean made a mental note to remember that. Saying nothing, she stepped behind the woman in white... and on toward the solution. The solution that would be found on the higher plane. Following the "nurse" along this trail to the right made Tyrean wonder for what would have awaited them had they gone left. This path, the "right path" was leading them well into the clouds so that Tyrean could no longer see what went on below. As she thought within her own mind, the woman ahead of her stopped. Suddenly all imagination of what lay on the wrong path left her. All ideas of the "souls" and the boat man in the distance behind left with thoughts of the other path. She stopped walking when the woman in white stopped leading her to the high place where they now stood. "You must go on now, I have done this job," the woman in white half whispered to Tyrean. Then without much effort, signaled the girl to move along by flipping a forefinger several times toward a cloudy pass. "This is as far as I go; there is where your answer lies. Go there." Before Tyrean could question the last words, the woman in white drifted back along the path in a direction from which they had come. Before Tyrean could say anything, the clouds enveloped the one that had brought her so far. Tyrean's heart sank. Until now, she did not need to rely upon her self for progress. She had come this far for trust of the one who could lead her. She had followed the right path while wondering about the left and come high above the ones below by focusing upon what lay ahead. For only a short while longer, she peered into the clouded way for some glimpse of movement. She neither saw nor heard anyone or anything. The silence spoke heavily to her, pressing upon her nerves for action. For fear of the pressure alone, she gathered her courage, memory of past successes with Faith and with determination, stepped into the clouded way ahead. As she stepped, her eyes searched for the something that should be inside. The thickness of the clouds and atmosphere around her filled the niches of her mind with the wonders of caution. Caution slowed her pace and caused her to test the invisible pathway before her by a steady tapping of her foot to feel her way forward. Vision did not afford her a way to travel. Tyrean relied only upon what was learned from before, FAITH and determination. Slowly, she walked on.

Soon enough, in the distance, a dim light appeared. Even in the heaviness about her, the flickering light drew her on. It was like a beam from a lighthouse that calls a sailor home. It was the thing that filled the empty spaces of her mind where fear had only moments before, crowded in. The dim light called her on until many steps later, a voice joined it. The voice spoke familiar sounds... "Tyree aaahnnn," and reached to her from beyond the clouds. She stretched her neck oddly, desperately looking right and then left; wincing to try and find that certain place ahead where the voice had come from. As she winced, straining eyes and imagination, blinking to get a clearer view; her eyes opened widely enough to see. It was Ms Brodie. "Class is over, Tyre, and you just missed the second buzzer. I suggest you get up and move on... I can't stay here with you. I need to get out of this room and lock up." Tyrean stood to leave, gathering her books and papers. As she did, her mind poured over the assembly of words for her radio class presentation. Before slipping into the hall, she verified the situation, "We have a test on Monday?" The teacher nodded and repeated, "Test Monday." The door closed behind Tyrean echoing the emptiness of the corridor. Minutes had passed since change of classes and there was little to no one visible outside of a closed door. As she fought her fear of entering Mr. Crass' class late, her legs pulled her toward his room. As she neared the door she could hear music inside. Josh was giving his presentation. The music sounded of the "KOOM BY YA" song she had heard on the television many times over. She had missed the buzzer, missed the first half of Josh's presentation on the Bar Mitzvah. Standing outside the doorway, she could hear his infrequent interjections of imitated party sounds. "He's really roughing it!", a light giggle escaped her, "This must be harder than I thought." When the boy stopped talking Tyrean twisted the door knob and entered the room. A few classmates looked at her but most, including Mr. Crass, were all eyes on Josh. As she slipped into her seat at their desk she faced the studio booth to see that he was doing a dance. Josh was dressed in a short version of a black suit and bowler hat. He had placed a mustache and beard on his face and had a scroll in is hand. The girl at the next desk leaned over to whisper, "He's the father. You missed the best part! Joshua played the roles of everyone... On the radio girl!" Tyrean looked at her informer. Nodding her head, she agreed, "This is radio isn't it." Tyrean watched the boy in front of the classroom acting out the rest of his presentation as he explained his actions and added sound effects vocally and with the radio equipment in the booth. After five minutes of showmanship Joshua came out of the booth and prompted his viewers, "Any questions?" Joshua looked out into the faces of his classmates. There were the usual blank stares and gaping mouths staring back at him. One arm extended above the heads of the crowd. It was Leroi. Leroi Green waved his hand idly in the space above his own head. Joshua pointed at the arm. Leroi stood slowly and asked, "Why ... What did they do it for? ... The Bar?" He sat back down. Joshua blushed. This crowd was really naive, "The boy... My brother is going to be thirteen. Anyone making age thirteen reaches his or her age for mitzvah. That means they are responsible for their own mind and action. Girls have BAT mitzvah... But my sister is nowhere near thirteen yet. She doesn't have to fast or do the prayer. She doesn't have to do TORAH until she catches up with us... Makes age thirteen... If we weren't here, school would just be about religion." He looked around the room for expressions on the faces of the others. Gaping mouths and the same enlarged eyes stared back at him, unchanged. Leroi had joined them in the gaped expression. Joshua added, "It's a religion thing." Mr. Crass relieved his tension by reading the time on the clock above their heads, "That will be all for today, it's 2:40... And the buzzer will go off soon class. Gather your work about you. Mr. Shenkelman, good job." Mr. Crass approached the front of the room and placed a hand on the boy's shoulder repeating, "...good job. We all learned something there, the Hasidic people are RESPONSIBLE from age thirteen." He turned back to the boy, "I wish your brother good judgment and good mentality, Joshua. Take your seat." As Joshua slid into the seat next to her Tyrean offered her encouragement, "I was responsible at age twelve, Josh. My grandma made me be responsible... But I'm not Hasidic. She didn't celebrate and didn't have a ritual. She just told me I couldn't have any more gifts... Unless I bought them BECAUSE I was responsible... I had to buy my own Christmas gift that year... I didn't even have a job... Couldn't get a job! I could not be a burden on her because I made age twelve and became responsible. Actually, I think it's a curse." Joshua looked at her now with the same gaping mouth and blind stare he had seen only moments ago on the faces of his classmates. He had never imagined that others actually had the same rule. The same ruling with no celebration about it. "Bummers, Tyre... That's a real bummer." He gathered his books and, as the buzzer went off, stood to leave the room. Mr. Crass called out to Tyrean, "Monday is your day missy! You're next on the list... You and your FANTASY world! Don't forget... Be prepared." Tyrean waved a half masted salute toward the teacher and marched out of the room behind her desk mate. As the students filed out of the classroom, Mr. Crass watched the busses line up and pull off from the curb outside his window, thinking, "I've got to get outta here myself. Family has a long weekend planned," and noticing one student straggling behind the rest, announced, "...you'd better get out of here, get yourself together and get home." As the student stepped into the hall, the teacher pulled his keys from his pocket, picked up his briefcase and stepped into the hall pulling the door shut behind him. He locked the door and started down the hall in the opposite direction.

Tyrean watched as her bus pulled away from the curb. The other students, all struggling against each other for their preferred seat next to the preferred companion, did not notice that she had not mounted the steps behind them. Instead, she turned to walk the distance ... One half mile home. She needed time to get her story in order for Monday's class. She refused to do a dance and fall into Joshua's situation. It was going to have to be better than his. As she walked, thoughts of the weekend's work churned through her mind. There was to be a test on the reaction of OZONE to man's activity one earth. Mrs. Brodie expected a summary of DANTE and his worlds of confusion; then there was the presentation. The presentation allowed her freedom with her own sense of creativity... Creativity that wasn't happening right now. Tyrean walked along looking deeply at her surroundings. The sky above her head wasn't doing anything openly suggestive of OZONE. It was clouded but for the time of day and time of year, that wasn't unusual. She kicked a stone that lay in path and picked up her pace. It was going to take a little more effort to get this thing done. Normally, imagination was first base in her mind. Normally, she did not have to search for ideas at assembly a FANTASY. NORMALLY, things just showed up. She slung her bag over one shoulder and stepped more intently toward home. Creativity was going to have to happen there, and not in the streets.

(forward projection )

Within minutes, she was at the back door announcing her return home, "I'm back!" With no response, she tossed her books onto the kitchen table and stepped over to the refrigerator. "I'm going to need plenty of brain food for this job!" Leaning forward, Tyrean looked to see what she could use as "think food." Thinking out loud, she read the labeled and unlabeled items inside, "Smoked turkey... Swiss cheese... Corned beef... Honey mustard ...horseradish ...feta cheese ...spinach ...no way ...let's see, tomato ...umm ...last night's leftovers ...and cheesecake! That's enough to think on." She removed the platter which held the cheesecake and cut a wedge that could hold her appetite for at least half an hour then placed it on a saucer. "I gotta get busy," she blurted into the space around her as she grabbed her booty and books then headed for her own room to study. There was no one home except her. Tyrean slipped up the stairs to her bedroom to study. As she placed her armload of books and food on the small desk near the wall at the far end of the room, she glanced up to notice the glowering eyes of the wolf on her window screen. The animal seemed to climb right through the window. The dark shadow of it's form was highlighted by what remained of the sun's rays in the close of the day. Tyrean leaned back to get a better look at it. The swirl of murky green forest around and behind the wolf brought to mind the lady in white who had only moments ago ...in the earlier portion of her day, stepped away from her side and into a replica of the dense woods from which the wolf was leaping. The panel rippled from the light breeze which blew in from the window behind it, causing the wolf to appear even more taunting than usual. It lunged and fell back, lunged again and fell back yet again until Tyrean could not stand to watch. She spun around and into the chair at her desk shutting the wolf from view. The image in her mind was replaced by the vision of decor at the opposite end of her room. The breeze which caused the animal image to leap towards her was blocked from reaching the fabric panels which flowed from above her bed. Instead of billowing about in eerie demonstration of a threat, the netting and vines twined about the top of it presented a more calming view. The soft tones on the wall beyond put her at ease. She lifted a fork and scooped a piece of cheesecake into her mouth. As she savored the texture of the desert, she raised her eyes to follow the vined panel light along the top portion of her wall. Her room was somewhat similar to, although not as elegant as that of the childlike princess or even her sister ...HOPE. It was as if the girls were sharing space over all these years of Tyrean's knowing the story of Fantasia. Three ...one with ever phantasmal fear of the everything and nothing, one with the unending answer to the fear and the third; with the never-ending answer to the terror of their world. Tyrean picked up her Earth Science textbook and began to read the homework section, CHLOROPHYLL: The Foundation of Botany. The assignment given by Mrs. Marion would take the least amount of time for studying, there was no paper to write. Reading the words would give her what she needed for the Monday morning multiple choice test. After only a short while, she began to read aloud to hear herself think. "...the status of Plantae is determined by the availability of two elements within any one organism. Of the varieties Chlorophyll and Chloro ester are the basic boundaries necessary to classify a species. Of the two, chlorophyll contains more Carbon... 55 atoms and Hydrogen 44. The ester has an abundance of other elements... Carbon33, Hydrogen73 and Nitrogen2 including; Magnesium and Oxygen3. The content for normalized air is: Oxygen, Argon, Nitrogen, Carbon Dioxide at the troposphere ...the lowest level of atmosphere. As we climb, we reach the Troposphere then the Stratosphere. Ozone becomes a concern at the at...", Tyrean paused, wondering just how far that nurse had gone. It seemed as though they had walked for miles. She remembered the distance far below her where the traveler of darkness had dismounted his little boat. She could barely see the river they had stepped away from in Dante's search for comedy. She read another line, "The troposphere is an average of twelve miles from earth's sea level. Ozone evolves at the next level... Stratosphere." Making notes on her notepad, Tyrean tried to calculate the time spent following the woman in white. She recalled that fog appeared long after climbing upwards along the mountain trail that seemed to spiral in a tight circle giving frequent glimpses of those still in the small boat below. The forested side of the path on which she and her momentary leader traveled was heavy with greenery of all types. There was greenery of all shades. The forest remained thick even to the point of the woman in white's departure. She had drifted back into the wooded area from which she had appeared just as mysteriously as she had appeared. Tyrean glanced toward the book shelf on her wall where the antique book stood with all the other tales read throughout her youth. It's golden tan leather stood out in contrast to the smaller books... Wizard of Oz ....Little Women ...Little Men ...Call of the Wild ...Grimm's Faery Tales ...Aesop's Fables ...Jungle Book and The White Stallion. Against books like them, The Neverending Story was massive. Black Fury and even the book Old Yeller could not compare. They could hold the attention of child and adult alike but those did not encompass the life of the reader. It had seemed to grow on her, as it had grown upon her father and the old Mr. Coriander; and as told to her by them, enveloped each reader's world as individually as each was within himself. She turned slightly to peek through her window into the sky. Turned to find that it had become somewhat darkened outside. Darkened enough that the auto sensor on the yard light now put the panelized wolf on direct display. She turned to see the wolf lunge toward her, and only a glimpse of the darkened sky before falling. She fell deep; deep into her world of Fantasia. The fog surrounded her as she stepped off the path and away from where the pearly woman had left her. As she stepped, a sudden glimpse of the wolfen threw her into a rush to avoid being snared by him. Stumbling, she dashed blindly and without thought of where she was or how she could escape. She had come back unprepared. She was not certain of her direction and knew only that she should trust her intuition. The wolfen ...hunter for the always oncoming Nothing blew warm breath across her face in the dimly lit space above her. He was upon her. The blind stagger had not pulled her well enough out of is reach; and the stumble only reassured his ease in catching the game. Images raced through her mind as she tried to find an escape from the evil smelling wind brought with him. The turbulence of dark colors swimming about him, even in the dim light showed nothing more than the girth of the beast she lay beneath and the flashing green eyes that loomed above her. The swirl of what fog could come between them served only to confuse the situation. She opened her mouth to yell, "Aaaa...". A blinding light appeared above the wolfen thing. A light so blinding, he all but disappeared. "Honey, what are you doing," her father spoke softly. He glanced across and around the room to see that her books were mounded high on the small desk with the exception of one which lay open, a pencil in it's middle. "Ahhh, wrestling with more homework ehh." He smiled, "I was into a meeting today, seems I've got a big job coming up. Engineering for an overseas company. We may be going there... How'd you like a trip to the Dead Sea.? We've got a salt water issue out there." Tyrean looked up at her window, then over to the door where her father stood. The ceiling light above her bed cast out even the lowest shadows, including those of her imagination. "Sure dad," she smiled back at him, "I was just wondering about getting a break." She leaned forward to stand, "These science courses are really getting heavy ...as usual, it really helps to have you for a dad." As she stood, she picked up the pen dropped earlier as she searched for a pencil to make notes. "Spring break will be coming soon and the Dead Sea could be just the thing we need." She flashed an even larger smile at her father. He flicked a pointed finger in her direction and turned away from the door, "I'll be sure to work that time slot into the plan, kiddo." He stepped away and down the hall toward his office to put his papers away. Tyrean replaced the pen, rescued from the floor, to it's place in the cup on her desk muttering to herself, "Getting away will be a good trick." She picked up the saucer of cheesecake and finished it off. "Yep, getting away is the best trick imaginable." She picked up the science book to finish reading her assigned section on ozone and the atmosphere before sliding it into her book bag.

Over the years, since first having picked up the heavy leather bound book on the Ivory Tower and Fantasia, Tyrean had grown at ease with building up her imagination. It came natural to her now, it was easy to drift into and out of the real world and that of the had been childlike princess. The princess had grown with her for every adventure made into the fantasy world. Like others who were introduced to the story that never ends, Tyrean lived with the story inside her. It was in her mind. It was part of her life. It was part of her dream world, her imagination. Just as Ciacco, of Dante's Inferno was a character of Dante's world; the Ivory Princess ...Hope and the others were characters of her fantasy world. She picked up her English Literature text book and began to read. "THE DIVINE COMEDY-INFERNO, Canto 7: "Pape ...Satan, PapeSatan Aleppe!" Thus Plautus with his clucking voice began, and that benignant sage who all things knew, said , to encourage me, "Let not thy fear harm thee; for any power that be may have , shall not prevent thy going down this crag." Then he turned round unto that bloated lip: and said, "Be silent, thou accursed wolf, consume within thyself with thine own rage. Not causeless is this journey to the abyss; Thus it is milled on high, where Michael wrought vengeance upon the proud adultery. Even as the sails inflated by the wind involved together falls ...when snaps the mast... So fell the cruel monster to the earth. These we descended into the fourth chasm, gaining still farther on the dole some shore which all of the woe of the universe insacks. Justice of God, ah! Who heaps up so many new toils and sufferings as I beheld? ...and why does our transgression waste us so? As doth the billow there upon Charybdis..." Tyrean stopped reading. Looking up from her book, she wondered out loud, "what in the heck is a Charybdis?" Was it an angel...? She had heard of cherub... Cherubs were in everything from valentine's day to Shakespeare. She spoke out again," I'd better read more." She read on for a clue... "As does the billow there upon Charybdis that breaks itself on that which it encounters... So here the folk must dance their round delay." She gazed at the image on the page across from the words in her book. There was a spiraling circle of people who seemed to fly in perfect loop around a whirl pooled center of other people. Around the people, there was a fog; a fog much like that which had stopped her amid confusion at the last onset of FANTASIA. “The round delay. It looks as if they are dancing a slow relaxing dance. A whirlpool ...like water swirling, this one swirls of bodies... Souls waiting to be given a direction.” She read the passage again, thinking deeply about what Dante was saying about his vision, “...as does the billow there upon Charybdis... A whirlpool... So here the folks dance their round delay ...their wait.. She was beginning to understand Dante’s problem. There he was, roaming around in the worst places, looking for his girlfriend, Beatrice. All the spooks in the world could show up just because he was in hell. Tyrean stopped to think now, “Why would he go to hell looking for his girlfriend?” Beatrice must have really been pretty bad. Reading on, she found that more than Beatrice went along the same path. “Here saw I people, more than elsewhere, many, on one side and the other, with great howls, rolling weights forward by main force of chest. They clashed together, and then at that point each one turned backward, rolling retrograde, crying,Why keepest? and,Why squanderest thou? Thus they returned along the lurid circle on either hand unto the opposite point, shouting their shameful metre evermore. Then each, when he arrived there, wheeled about through his half-circle to another joust; And I, who had my heart pierced as it were, exclaimed: My Master, now declare to me what people these are, and if all were clerks, these shaven crowns upon the left of us. And he to me: All of them were asquint in intellect in the first life, so much that there with measure they no spending made. Clerks those were who no hairy covering have on the head, and Popes and Cardinals, in whom doth Avarice* practise its excess.” She stopped reading. As she mindlessly reached for her pen, Tyrean mulled over the words she had read. Bald headed clerks and clergy? In hell? Dante was better at this fantasy thing than she was. Why would there be clergy in hell.... ? Then again, it did say for greed. The Pope or Cardinal was really in his business for money... Or to get what the people had... Not to do the work of God. If it is not that reason, then I’m getting this all wrong. They all hang around... Float around in a whirlpool waiting to be sentenced for their evil. And Dante is running around in the middle of them, looking for a girlfriend. If that isn’t a fantasy... “ She jotted her findings madly on the blank lines of her notebook. After dumping the most of her thoughts onto the study sheet before her, Tyrean leaned back into her seat to think more deeply on the issue. Up until now, Dante had traveled through forests and through river rides with this guy seriously looking for Beatrice. Beatrice must have died, and the guide took him first to hell in their search. She imagined the two of them tumbling oddly through the shadows and darkness of hell beneath the floating images. She could feel the murky air about her and see the fear on Dante’s face. It does stink... If they are here... In hell, it should stink... Shouldn’t it? None of the images would look familiar to Dante... And certainly not to Tyrean. As she gazed into her imagination at the memory of words she had read only moments before, Tyrean did recognize someone. She could make out an image she had seen before.... A glowing image... The nurse angel stood beckoning her to “come.” “W have been waiting for you Tyrean, you must not delay... There is much work for you to do... And no time to spend on wasted issues. You must come ahead of those... You have a purpose for being here; as much purpose as I have in keeping you on the right way.” Tyrean paused, “What are you...” The nurse caught the words before they left the girl’s mind, “...doing here? I am doing that which is ordained for me to do; and in doing so, I must get you on your way. There is no Time. This is a place where things must move or be left behind. What is left behind... Is surely left for dead... All that is dead is motionless.” Tyrean stepped toward the nurse as in her previous meeting. As she moved the scene changed. It was as though they had traveled the long trail up the mountain to the point of the nurse’s departure. Tyrean put her foot down again, and on the path into the fog. She could only hear the voice of the nurse as the nurse vanished into the fog behind her, “Remember Tyrean, there is no Time”, echoing, “...no time ...no time ...time”. She caste a half glance over her shoulder as she placed her foot down into the fogged area. “It is a measure of trust.” The line followed the echo of time in her mind. “It is a measure of trust and trust is the measure of self. Trust yourself to make your way.” Tyrean lifted her other foot from the safety of the solid foundation. “Trust myself...” She echoed the message given her and set the raised foot ahead of the other in the fog. She was inside. Inside of a clouded space that gave her no clearer view of what was ahead than before she entered. Without thinking much further she turned to reach back. In less that an arm’s reach, her hand was met with a smooth flat surface. It was a division in time; now and then. She had acted beyond what was now the past. “We can never repeat the moment that has gone by Tyrean. We must always move ahead. What is done can never be undone,” a voice, unrecognized by Tyrean seemed to try and calm her. “Trust yourself to make your way, and move into the future.” Tyrean peered into the darkness of the gray that surrounded her.Her mind searched for the dimmest glow of the familiar. She looked for the Ivory Tower. Seeing nothing, she stepped once again. And again she placed on foot in front of the other expecting to be rewarded with the slightest vision of what she remembered ...what she hoped would be ahead. As she peered, she noticed individual faces. The were as faint as fog but faces never-the-less. Gray, sallow faces streaked past her in the grayness; each moaning, muttering or sighing in much the same voice. She recognized none, although one or two hovered near her to catch a glimpse in effort at trying to recognize her. A heavy laboured voice spoke once again, “move straight ahead along your own path ...it is the right direction for you ...and no one else.” The sallow image that stopped with the sound spoken to her traveled on as quickly as it had stopped. Tyrean stepped more quickly. She understood now, she was in the Charybdis, the swirl of gray ...images of souls now more clear to her. She stepped on as they encouraged her while keeping their own courage to swim on in their ever widening circle. When she stepped onto what felt like solid footing, Tyrean paused to look around once again into the great fog. She was at the door of the Tower, the Tower of Hope.

Far below her, in some fathom of his own mind, Dante had just arrived at the foot of the Tower himself; he and the “Master” with whom he traveled. Tyrean had not presupposed her purpose for this trip. She was not pre-warned, had no idea up to now, of what her goal would be. She knew only that the air about her was thick, thick with confusion. She stepped upon the solid surface of the tower and confusion fell away. The fog faded for each step she took beyond the precipice of the solid footing. She no longer felt as if she were hanging high on the edge of a very steep cliff, but did not know where she had arrived. Before she could think long upon the issue, there was noise ...a question in the air. “You have arrived, have you not?” A voice found her ear. Tyrean paused again. There was no additional comment, no added instruction. Only the comment in the walls around her. Tyrean looked now, as deeply as her tired mind would allow. There was no fog - of Charybdis. No dim lit rafters or riddles being spoken overhead. Only the tease of instruction with none forthcoming. She took a dare, speaking into the space around her, “Say it again!” For a moment, there was no sound ...no answer. Then suddenly, “You have arrived.” A dim glimmer shown in a distance as if it were shining beyond an opaque wall. It grew larger as it seemed to approach ...straight line ...to where Tyrean stood. When it was just within reach an image appeared, fully visible but hollow all the same. It was Hope, barely visible and as clear as the walls of her tower. “What...”, Tyrean spoke our loud partially from disbelief. “What happened... I mean why are you..?” Her curiosity was met with an answer. “This is the O zone, Tyrean. This is the result. Look about you... But then you have, haven't you? You have seen the lofty spaces. You have traveled through the dimness of that on the surface and now see what remains of that which was known. This is the O Zone.” The image drew a heavy breath and continued, “It is all a struggle now, dear one. A struggle to breath and a struggle to see a difference in that which is and that which is illusion. Even Hope can become a dim measure of reality in the right circumstances ...and I am afraid that circumstance has occurred. That is why you are here. For all Hope to be seen once more ...the O Zone must be balanced.” Tyrean gazed with disbelief. It was Hope. Hope, the most visible element of her life, was fading. “The “O” Zone?”, Tyrean questioned the image before her. “The lofted spaces Tyrean The spaces on high ...these that exist above all else! ...exist above the body of existence. This place where we stand ...like at the head waters of what is below us. The “O” zone is off center. Out of balance. It is lacking a necessary element. If the headwaters are not synchronized ...the all below it will eventually fail away. Like ...” Tyrean stopped her, “Like the return of a NOTHING?” “Yes, you know... It would be a fast road for the Nothing,” Hope responded. The Nothing, a great hollow in the crest of existence ... A missing cover on civilization meant that NOTHING would surely overcome. It was the age old problem, yet again. To find a solution before all would be lost away. The image spoke again, “Tyrean, the others can not be found. That is why your way was made to me ...or what is left of me. If at all possible, the balance must be found so that our world can rebuild itself. The smallest atom out of place has caused a great hole in what would be the future. I will give you this, and you can make the difference.” The faded Hope grasped onto Tyrean, placing a shard of information into her hands. “If I fail, Tyrean, then all else will soon follow.” As Tyrean began to speak the other faded slightly more. It was as though a shadow stood before her now. Hope was fading to nothing. “Just remember Tyrean,” Hope spoke once more with a weakened voice, “It is for the all that you struggle. It is for the whole.” With that, hope faded away. The hollowness of the tower around her sounded more evident now that Hope was gone. There was no quiet comfort in the background. There was no reassurance of direction. There was no base for confidence. Tyrean hung on the last words heard, “It is for the whole.” She looked around her. The towering walls of crystal elements shown dimly in the minimal light. For the swirl of gray just beyond the safety of the inner spaces, even the glitter of the gold rails and silver tiles were faded. They lacked the beauty and luster that had held Tyrean’s attention on her first visit so very long ago. Now, wind howled thru the hollowed halls and high creviced areas all about the place that had been the home of Hope for so long. Tyrean looked at the information given her. She read... As if from memory: The O Zone must be whole at all times if we are to do more than breathe. As she read, the crystals above her faded like the person for whom they existed. Hope’s words spoken by another removed them that much further away from Hope.

Tyrean stepped through the low brush and rocky meandering path intent upon closing her journey. Daylight beginning to show through, she could see the path before her more readily now. The way was highlighted by the old Indian and his choice of elements... like the elements in the pouch at her side. Although the way was steep and narrow, her direction grew more obvious with time. Patience with herself had become inevitable in her battle to reach the peak where she had once stood. Patience and determination would be her winning trail. As she brushed a low branch of leaves away from her line of vision, Tyrean ducked her head low enough to clear the limb, but not take her line of vision. She stepped past the tree and reached out to grasp a stone sitting just beyond. As she did, the slight rustle of dry leaves near her hand startled her. As she reared away, a clear vision of spots took her attention. More slowly in her mind than in her sight, the spots attached themselves to face, whiskers, then teeth. She fell and lay frozen, undetermined of her next move. What could she possibly do and not be harmed? Before her eyes the image began to speak. Whether for fear and subconscious thought or actual skill, a leopard's growl told her in no uncertain words, "If I can know you, and the thing you do in advance; why is it you can not know me. I have known you were here moments before you came; though I did not know what you look like, what you are called or what your cause is. Surely... and you should be certain to be aware... MANKIND, that this is no place to NOT KNOW your place. The growl tucked itself back into the furry ball it was when Tyrean appeared and lept away. Tyrean lay where she was. Undaunted, she clenched her teeth and wrangled her jaw. She raised an eyebrow and cautiously looked around in the fading darkness careful not to move head nor hand, nor any part of herself other than her eyes. That had been too close. Her voice echoed to a height inaudible to her own ears. "I've got to be more careful." Those words closed by an unmoving gulp, then more words; "I am not alone." After a moment of hours, Tyrean's feet found themselves and she stood slowly, being sure to remain beneath the low branches of trees and shrubs in the foothills of the mountain. Seeing in dark cover with even a minimal light is not always seeing the whole. When she felt there was nothing to get her, she stepped out and back onto the path. There was yet the entire mountain to scale before she could step onto the hollow path to which the pearly woman had led her. "I've got to get going, it's getting late," Tyrean whispered to herself as she leaned into each step. The sun was well overhead by the time she stopped again. Leaning onto a large boulder, then sitting; she pulled her feet up onto the length of rock beneath her.

Tyrean rounded the high peak of the mountain’s hills away from the world of agony and lost hope, to look for the way out. She climbed high past the she-wolf which for no explanation, showed only its back to her. She crept past the leopardess obsessed with its own spotted wise and shrubby outland. She climbed until she reached the ledge where the pearly woman had left her. As she did, the fog grew more dense so that she could only see as far as her own hands probing the airspace before her. Tapping with her right and then left toe, she minced her way to the large boulder at the middle of the Gyreon.

Seeing no one, she called out, ”Hello”, but there was no answer. She leaned out to probe the air space once more as if expecting to feel a door, wall or anything that would let her know where her next move would take her. Tyrean’s foot met with what felt like flesh… someone. Someone solid enough to give slightly… “Hey!” the voice above her foot and the fleshy resolve sounded out.”Don’t push! I’m trying to see what that light is. There’s a light out there.” Tyrean stopped, watching her foot space, and looked up. There was a fogged light. The voice cued her to the change in surroundings. The voice of Hope.

Hope had disappeared, sank into the mud among the mire of souls at Cerberus and Gluttony. She hadn’t slowed her pace in the dash to escape the gnashing of Cerberus raking over souls destined to fall deeper into their journey past the River Asheron. They would cross into and beyond the mess of the River Styxx never to return. Hope was lost there. Lost until now. The glowing light revealed itself to be the pearly woman. Tyrean was headed home. Home out of the darkness shown her by Dante’s world. As sure as she was seen again, she turned in gesture to Tyrean nodding her head toward a thicket - a tangle of leaf and limb. Then spake, "We shall pass, this way into the clearing and on thru the way. We pass- like all others, good enough... brave enough... bold and determined enough. We pass." And she pulled lightly on the limbs that parted leaf and timber to show the trail across the way out of Fantasy and back onto the Real. Tyrean went.

THE RETURN

Tyrean gazed into the fogged distance to find any clue that she was on the brink of her return. It was where she had left the nurse. The pearly woman, had given specific instruction that she could call out of frustration. She had only to call out for guidance... call out for help in bringing the bounty back to the aid of a population. She would, once again, rescue the populations of Fantasia. (excerpt)