Tale from Pentapia, Chapter Three

Tale from Pentapia
An Alternative Childhood

J. E. McCarty

Chapter Three
The Time Has Come

         Midday energy break at school is an unpredictable experience. Once the students reach their table, they are free to leave Alpha plane for any plane they wish. They do not need to be in Alpha until they get up from their table. That can be tricky, however. If one is not paying attention, you may suddenly find yourself too close to another person.


         Angela finds George at a table, by himself, in all planes. When she sits down at his table, they go to Beta plane.

         “Hi, George,” she says.

         “Hi, Angela. How was your morning?”

         “It has been okay. However, it seemed that almost every time I entered a room the teaching staff had a little meeting.”

         “I noticed a little of that too, Angela. And, the staffs in Beta seem to be watching us.”

         “They probably are, but don’t get paranoid, George. They’re just checking to see that we are behaving ourselves.”

         “Yea, so, what energy did you find in Beta, Angela?”


         After consuming their energy, George says to Angela, “Angela, yesterday you said you know why Kappa has such changeable weather. Is there enough time to explain that now?”

         “I can explain the basic reason. But, it would be a good idea to look it up at the library when we have a chance.

         “In Kappa plane, Pentapia has a lot of water. It is the water that makes the weather so crazy there. That is also why the life there is so different. And, that seems to be why adults discourage young people from going to Kappa plane.”

         “I have noticed that they always have something unpleasant to say about Kappa,” George remarks, “but why would the water there be the reason?”

         “A lot of water isn’t good for us. It causes us to lose energy faster. Some people have come apart in Kappa. But, it is a very interesting plane. If you go there for very long you need to bring plenty of energy and avoid bodies of water.”

         “Have you ever seen a body of water, Angela?”

         “Yes, a couple of times. It looks strange. It is in the lowlands, another place they do not want you to go.”

         “Why is that?”

         “If you go to Kappa in the lowlands, you may find yourself in water. You do not want to be in water for very long. You will lose too much energy and come apart.”

         “Oh, I guess this was not the best time to ask that question. But, I would like to look all that up sometime.”

         “We can do that,” she replies. “But, it is time to be getting back to class.”

         They look at each other for a moment. Angela starts to raise her hand. She stops, and says, “This is not a good time, George. See you after school.”

         “Yes, I will see you. Thanks for telling me about Kappa, Angela.”

         “You’re welcome, George.”

         They go to Alpha plane, get up from the table and return their trays.

* * * * *

         Angela arrives at her afternoon classroom. As she sits down, an instructor comes to her desk. “Hello, Angela,” the woman says.

         Angela looks up and responds, “Hello, ma’am.”

         “I am one of the instructors for the ‘Relationships’ class. You will be starting the class tomorrow. I need to discuss something with you for a few minutes, Angela.”

         “Okay, ma’am.”

         Angela gets up and follows the instructor into a small office connected to the classroom.

         Once they are seated, the woman says, “I am Barbara. Before students begin our class, we always discuss the code of reproduction with each student. Are you familiar with it, Angela?”

         “Yes, basically,” she answers. “We do not have a child with anyone that is in our direct line of descent, or siblings, or less than two lines deference laterally. And, we are expected not to have more than two children every sixty years.”

         “That is not bad, Angela. However, I would like to add—not with anyone with whom you have a common parent. What do you know about age and the time and place to engage in the reproductive act?”

         “I know you should be at least fourteen, and have been declared emancipated. I have heard a little about time and place from the older girls. It may be a good idea for you to explain that, ma’am.”

         “I was told that you are very smart for ten. I hope George is a smart one, also,” remarks Barbara. “The reproductive act is not wished to be a public display. We just prefer that young people are properly schooled and matured before they know just how it is done. I might add, it gives off a lot more light than a touch. Please keep that in mind. Angela, do you know how it is done?”

         “Yes, ma’am, I do.”

         “Does George know how it is done?”

         “I don’t think so.”

         “If, or when he does know, do you think you may experiment with the act before you two are at least thirteen?”

         “No, I feel we can behave ourselves, ma’am. But, I am surprised that you said, ‘before…thirteen.’”

         “We do not expect people to be perfect. We hope you wait longer than that. If you and George are still together when you are thirteen and we do not feel that it would be a wise idea for the two of you to produce a child, we would separate you. However, that has seldom happened.”

         “Oh, I see. Is there anything else you need to tell me, ma’am?”

         “We noticed that you and George were well behaved during the energy break. As long as you continue this pattern, we just ask that you do not touch excessively with George, and not during any class together, or an organized school activity.”

* * * * *

         George meets Danny at the main school entrance at the end of school. As they walk out the door, George asks Danny, “Did you stay out of trouble today?”

         “Yah, I was a little mellow today. How about you, George?”

         “Yes, I think so, Danny.”

         “You think so?”

         They find Angela standing at the bottom of the steps. Danny watches while George asks Angela, “Hi, Angela. Did anyone talk to you this afternoon?”

         “Hello, George. Yes, an instructor talked to me right after I got back to class. Someone must have talked to you, too.”

         “Yes, I guess we both got the same talk.”

         Danny interjects, “George, you said you did not get into any trouble today.”

         “Just because the staff talked to you does not mean that you are in trouble, Danny,”

         “What were the staff talking to you and Angela about?”

         “Older kids’ stuff.”

         “Like making babies?”

         “Yes, things like that, Danny.”

         “Are you and Angela going to make a baby?”

         “We don’t know; we are not old enough yet. Can you wait and see, Danny?”

         “Yes, guys, I can wait.”

         Angela asks Danny, “Are all these changes making you nervous, Danny?”

         “Yah, something like that.”

         “You’re not the only one, Danny. But, don’t worry; it will all work out okay.”

         “I hope so.”

         They begin their walk home. As they reach the turn where Angela goes home, she says, “Sorry, but I need to be home early. See you two tomorrow.”

         George says, “Yes, bye, Angela.”

         “Bye, Angela,” says Danny.

         George and Angela reach out and touch two fingers. Danny looks a little uneasy as Angela turns, goes to Delta plane, and walks off as a flat image.

* * * * *

         George and Danny reach their house, go to Theta plane and walk inside. Their parents are in the energy preparation area. They see them come in and drop their bags on the couch. George sits down to think, and Danny goes to see what they are preparing in the energy area.

         Their father says to Danny, “Don’t forget to put away your bag, Danny.”

         “Okay, Dad. You are fixing evening energy a little early. How come?”

         “We thought we would make it special tonight.”

         “Oh. Can I play with my Geo-builders until we have energy?”

         His dad exchanges glances with his mother, and says, “Yes, Danny.”

         Danny goes into the living room, picks up his bag and goes to his room. George has looked up and noticed what has taken place in the energy area.

         His mother says, “George, would you like to give us a hand?”

         “Okay, sure,” he answers. He goes to the energy area and puts on digitation gloves.

         His mother places a tray on the counter in front of him. She tells him, “This will be the starter tray.”

         George begins to arrange items on the tray. As he is arranging energy sources on the tray, his mother asks, “How did things go at school today, George?”

         “I guess it was okay. But, we¾Angela and I¾had talks with instructors from the ‘Relationships’ class. We start tomorrow.”

         “Did that surprise you?”

         “Being told that I was starting the class was not surprising, but being pulled out of my afternoon class, having such a discussion, and being told that we start tomorrow was.”

         “Well, you two surprised a lot of us, too.”

         “I hadn’t thought of it that way, Mom.”

         “How did Angela react, George?”

         “She seems to be handling it okay. Oh, she was given an early curfew for a week for sneaking in yesterday.”

         “She must have talked fairly smooth to have only been given a short curfew.”

         “Well, I don’t know. We didn’t talk about that part.”

         “So, what now, George?”

         “As long as we take the class and behave ourselves I guess it will be okay.”

         “Are you ready for the ‘Relationships’ class?”

         “I am not sure. He talked about the code of reproduction. I understood what he was saying, but I don’t know very much about reproduction.”

         His father asks, “Are you ready to have that explained, George?”

         “It might help, Dad.”

         “We are about finished here. Let’s have a seat it the living room.” The three of them go to some chairs in the living room. They position them so that they are in a small triangle.

         His father states, “Like any process in the lives of our kind, it involves the movement of energy. The touch experience, which you have discovered with your friend Angela, is basically an exchange of personal energy. It is also the first part of the reproductive process.

         “When we engage in touching, we draw more trans-matter to ourselves than we normally do. This happens even more with women than with men. It also causes energy to collect, mostly in the back area of the head for men and in the sides of the head for women.

         “When a couple is preparing to engage in the reproductive act, they touch maybe ten times or more. This makes a build-up of energy in the head and free trans-matter in the oral cavity. This trans-matter and energy mixes from both partners during the reproductive act.

         “The reproductive act happens when the couple does a crossover touch of the lips. The lips may be the organ with which we consume energy, but playing a part in the reproductive process is their second function. You experience a much greater exchange of energy than with a simple crossover touch. If you can remember it, you do not just experience yours and your partner’s experience, but a field of energy that forms around both of you.

         “At the end of the act, the mix of energy and matter from both partners drops down into the women’s body. And, if the woman’s body is ready, it begins to form a baby.”

         George replies, “It sounds like quite an experience. But, how do you experience an energy field around you?”

         “It seems like an extension of your bodies. And, it feels like a lot of energy.”

         “Okay, when do all the changes start to happen in the body for all that to happen?”

         “You should notice changes beginning in the next year or two.”

         His mother adds, “Angela may have already noticed her body changing.”

         “What should I expect to happen?” George asks.

         His father says, “You begin to respond more to girls, including your touch experience responses. And, the back of your head will get a little longer.”

         His mother says, “With the girls, their head gets a little wider. The stronger responses are about the same. Angela may be thinking of you as a possible partner a few years from now. Could you handle that idea, George?”

         “I’ll wait and see when it may come. I do like Angela, but I have not really thought much about having a partner. How did the two of you become partners?”

         His dad answers, “We met about eighty years ago. We both had had other partners and many children before. You are the third child we have had together, and David is the fourth.

         “My last partner and I chose to go our separate ways about ten years earlier. We met while I was involved in the planning of this city.”

         His mother replies, “My last partner chose to go to another region of the world about twelve years earlier. As I am now, I was involved in city logistics. Your father was one of the many superintendents I had contact with. The name William Zeta-Beta-Kappa somehow seemed to catch my eye. We saw each other for nearly a year before becoming domestic.”

         “Is that how relationships are supposed to work?” George asks.

         She answers, “All relationships are different. There are at least as many ways for relationships to work as there are relationships. We think of relationships as being in a number of circles around each person. The male/female/domestic relationships are in one of those circles. You even have a relationship with your bag that you left on the couch. That would be in another circle, of course. But, you are about to discover that all of that is a subject in itself, son.”