Lost Marbles

Joel Tabb
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<5,387> words.










Lost Marbles
by Joel Tabb






The Merits of Punctuality


         ..."7:30..."
         He was not a morning person, But he did what he was required to do. Most days he would get up whenever he wanted, today was not at all like most days. Today David Furrough was going to die. However; he was completely unaware of this fact, and it had absolutely no bearing whatsoever on his decision to get out of bed. If he had known of the events that were to transpire that day he would most undoubtedly have stayed in his bed and still been all the wiser. Sadly David was not one blessed visions, and glimpses of the future. His choice to get up and start his day was based solely on the fact that he wanted to look his best for his birthday.
         David had celebrated his birthday twenty five times already, And he had loved every event. At each occasion he had been lucky enough to celebrate with family and friends. There had been dances, dinners, Bar nights with the guys, and everything from cake to blow up dolls had been awarded him for simply being the person that he was for another year. David Furrough was a truly blessed individual. No one was more deserving of such loving kinship. David epitomized joy and compassion. He greeted everyone he met with an endearing smile and wonderfully fitting remark. David was the kind of man that everyone wanted as an older brother. Fate however does not care for the moral fiber of those it claims, It merely seeks its mark.
         "8:30, Ced should have been here... Not that i'd be ready" He cursed as he put on his shoes. David took a long time to get ready for anything. He claimed to care very little for others judgments, but he took great care in his personal appearance. His slacks were pressed and creased, his shirt had the look and smell of something that grew on an apple tree, and his shoes were the newest things he owned. He had even combed his hair back in a swooping motion to give himself a more adult look. His wavy black hair made it an almost impossible task to accomplish, but he was satisfied with his results.
         There was the sound of a baby elephant being kicked in the side by a very large man from the other side of the door. "And that would be Ced. He has to get that horn fixed..."
         "Yo Dave, get ya' old wrinkly ass out here! You can't be late for your own party man!" followed through the windows in a smothered by a pillow kind of way. David grabbed his jacket, checked for his wallet, phone, keys, and glasses then made for the door. He had barely reached the knob when the elephant man honked again.
         "Do you have to be so impatient I do have neighbors Ced!" He shouted back as he closed and locked the door.
         "Man, we have to go to another state just to get to the place you wanted your damn party. And I am not taken' any shit for you if Carrie flips out. That girls crazy as hell, and I cannot afford to go to the hospital again!"
         "You don't know the half of it." David replied as he got into the car. Ced had a very, very odd car. The kind of car that doesn't seem like it should work. If a spider, a horse, and a mountain had a love child, this car would still be stranger. Strange, and original; however, are all the rage in society today, and so its also a very expensive car. "Carrie doesn't like the idea of birthdays, I swear she was raised a witness...She just doesn't get it... I like to make these things as memorable as possible. I just like to celebrate the fact that i actually lived another year on this planet, and having all the people I love, enjoying this life with me, just makes it that much better. Holidays in general seem to piss that girl off. So I am not expecting her to be exactly happy either way."
         "Man its just wrong to be late for your own party. Thats all I'm sayin"
         "Dude, you seriously just got here. You haven't been here more then five minutes. We still have ten minutes till we absolutely had to leave anyway."
         "What, so now its my fault we're gonna be late?"
         "If you keep sitting in my driveway. Yes. Can we go now?"
         "...Shut up." Ced loved to argue, But he hated to loose. He pulled the car out of the driveway, and peeled down the street. David could only glare at him in disapproval. Arguing was indeed fruitless when it came to Ced.
         "Okay Mr. I like far away places. Where am I go...."
         They had only just left the neighborhood. The world was still rising with the sun. Life everywhere was beginning to move and mill about. The birds scattered from their trees, people rushed out their doors, even the squirrels stopped and looked on. No body knew how it happened. No body saw what caused the freak of a car to fly thirty yards and fold itself around a tree, ten feet off the ground. There had been no sounds other then the wrenching of metal and wood. No explosions, or collisions had been evidenced anywhere in the vicinity. The only clues were the tread marks leading to the tree, and hundreds upon hundreds of marbles covering the area.
         "9:00"
         Carrie was only just opening her eyes. She had arrived the day before in order to help set up the Beach house they had rented for the party. Carrie and Mrs. Furrough had spent many hours the night before making all of the necessary arrangements to ensure that everything would go off without a hitch. Carrie was intent on giving David the absolute best party he had ever been to, let alone had in his honor. She knew she hadn't been exactly ecstatic about holidays in general, she didn't even celebrate her own birthday. She just didn't see the point in repeatedly celebrating the same thing over and over again every year. She found it annoying that others held holidays in such high regard. However, she knew how much David loved birthdays, and how much it meant to him that everyone be happy. Even her, and she loved David with all of her heart. So she decided things would be very different this year, she was going to make sure that everything was perfect for her husband. That way she could be happy that she made him happy, and that at least would be something to smile about.
         
         Inside every living creature there is a very small, yet immensely overused part of the subconscious, which is the only thing that absolutely every conscious thing has in common. This part is what any good neurologist would  say is responsible for the imagination, and the uniqueness of each individual. The good doctor could not be less accurate. Nothing ever left it during the life of any mind. No bursts of ideas escaped it, nor were any dreams created from its impulses. The very same doctor that will propose this idea of imaginary self realism, could not even point out its location in the brain. He could perhaps point out supposed effects that it has on certain areas of the brain, and generalize its area to not be in those areas, but it cannot be pinpointed. This of course is not without good reason, being as this Imagination station doesn't even truly exist in a physical sense. Some would even go so far as to call it more of a place then a piece, and as David was finding out, It was a place that is much more tangible upon death. This part of the subconscious is where everything that is seen, heard, touched, tasted, smelled, or even thought about minutely is stored. But it is not stored for the use of its owner, It is kept for judgement and evaluation. 
         "MORTIMOR! There are two of them...Why are there two of them!? You were only supposed to recall the younger one. Who is this other man"
         "He is called David Furrogh sir. He was in the automobile with the other when i claimed him. It couldn't be helped sir. The accident would have killed him anyway." Responded a desolate voice.
         "Mortimor. You are not a doctor, You don’t know that he would have died, and you cannot just go around claiming those who are not yet due. It can have very complicated results, and we haven't the time to clean up after such mistakes."
         "I know sir. I was behind in my duties and rushed the job... The young one should have died on his own, and never have left the driveway. That is where the cards told me he would be, but I didn’t find them till they were down the street. I don’t know why he didn’t die sir. All I knew was that I was late and needed the claim. So… I caused the accident."
         "Tardiness is not acceptable here, and this is exactly the reason why. Had you been on time you most likely would have found your man siting in the driveway as he should have been. Death can be tricky, and if the consciousness remains past a certain point it can seem as if it was merely a phase. Like a seizure that stops the heart… You really botched things up this time Mort... Take the this one to Epoch for evaluation and redistribution."
         "Yes sir..."
         "and, Mortimor."
         "sir?" Mortimor responded as he knelt to take hold his newest burden.
         "Do be quick about it! We have to bring this...David, around and get him back before things start to get out of hand."
         "...Yes sir." Mortimor slowly raised and stalked off towards what could only be assumed was the direction of a door. If there were any doors. There was hardly any light in the area and any direction could quite possibly have lead to either anywhere or nowhere or both. This was the realm of Death, and the one erect being left just so happened to be a Death. Mortimor was also a Death, albeit a bit wet behind the hood. He had only come into existence a short while ago, and still hadn't gotten the hang of reaping.
         The remaining Death was far older, he had been around in the time of Charlamagne and was reputed to even have claimed the emperor himself. Death kicked at David. "Get up. I know you can hear me."
         "Aren't I dead? How can I move?" David managed to speak.
         "Not all there yet, eh kid? You just move. Like you always have before. Happens to everyone." Death said with a wry chuckle. David slowly sat up, raised his hands to his face for a moment, Then got to his feet. He did not want to look Death in the face. "You are indeed dead my friend. Not rightly so, but dead all the same. The problem we face now is getting you back, "
         "Back? Back where? Home?... Where am I?" David asked in a panic.
         "This, is as you would put it, The home of Death... Actually its the version of home that is what you would believe it would be, and we must return you to your home  as soon as we possibly can. "
         "Wait, this is what? A version of your home as i would believe it... How is that possible. I've never seen Deaths home before."
         "Well, you have indeed thought of death correct?"
         "Yea, who hasn't"
         "And you visualize Death as something of a skeletal figure, dark cloak, wielding a scythe?" Death leaned heavily on his scythe, Which had been in-evident moments before.
         "Yea, I'd say you fit the bill" David responded sarcastically.
         "So you mean to tell me you never pictured Death, the Grim Reaper, in a dark void with smoke all over the ground, that is somehow lit despite the lack of any visible light-source?"
         "Ah, well... now that ya mention it." David looked around the dark landscape. It didn't take long. There was nothing there. "So what do we have to do?"
         "First, we have to get out of here. Come with me." Death extended his hand, and david reached for it. He hesitated for a moment, but decided that there wasn't much more that anyone, even Death could do to him now.
         They started off in what seemed to be a random direction, that was leading nowhere. There was no change whatsoever in any of the surroundings. It was as if they were walking on and on yet they were never moving from the same spot. David couldn't help but think of the light at the end of the tunnel. He wondered if he was going to see it, or if he had already missed it. He thought of everything he had been taught all his life about the after life. He was afraid to ask the one question that was at the forefront of his mind. He was afraid to ask about God. He was suddenly aware of a small light in the distance, and became suspicious of the fact that Death may be able to read his mind. He assumed as much due to the fact that his present location was apparently from inside his own head.  The light grew much quicker then they were traveling and gave David the impression that if this were indeed a tunnel, then this was indeed a train coming straight at them. The light was upon them almost as soon as he had seen it, and instead of being destroyed by a train, David found himself in an old Englishman's library. He looked squarely at death. "And I suppose I believe that Death is also a very well read, pipe, and brandy kinda guy?"
         "No, this is how I believe my home should be, and made it so..."
         "ah, sorry."
         "Have a seat David. Make yourself comfortable."
         "Thank you." David made his way to the only chair he could see in the room. He glanced at Death and sat down. David had sat in many chairs in his life, and none had been less comfortable than this one. Death saw the discomfort in his face and jeered "You don't need much padding, when you haven't got flesh!" heartily.  "I am sorry David, now we are even." David stood up and stretched his back as best he could. Odd that he could still feel so acutely. He apparently was not aware of what it really meant to die.
         "What exactly happened to me?" David asked.
         "You died."
         "Yes, but how did I die? The last thing i remember is getting in the car with Ced and him peeling out. Oh my god! Wheres Ced?" he questioned suddenly realizing his friends absence.
         "He is dead as well. You were both in a car accident. A rather odd, quickly thrown together type of accident, but that is the best way to describe it. Your friend Was supposed to die this day. You, as i have said, were not."
         "Where is he? can I see him?"
         "I would think not, He was taken to evaluation, and has most likely been redistributed by now."
         "Evaluation? Redistributed how? What are you talking about?" David was beginning to get aggravated. None of this sounded anything like what he had been taught all his life. What was going on? He was worried about Ced and what this redistribution meant. Did it hurt?
         "When any living thing dies, it is brought to our realm by a Death. It is our job to claim the appropriate lives and bring them to  Epoch for evaluation. They are then redistributed accordingly."
         " I still don't get it. Whose is Epoch? is he like God or something?!" David was raising his voice now, shouting at an incarnation of death. He knew right away that he had stepped to far. He knew he was not ready for the answer.
         "...We know nothing of God. Epoch is like us. Though he is not a Death, he is the embodiment of what you would call Justice and the stork, and he is actually a she"
         "So your telling me there is no God? Then who created you?"
         "I didn't say there is no God, I only said we know nothing of such an entity. As far as we know a new Death comes into existence when life on earth exceeds the abilities of the current Deaths. We do not know where we come from, or where we go when we die. We don't even know if we die or just cease to be. All we know is that the Powers created us to do our job. We don’t know who or what these powers are though." Death said coldly. "Death comes to all forms of life, we however are not alive, and so we do not know what happens to us."
         "How can you be so calm about this! Don't you want to know why your here? I sure as hell know I do! I was expecting to get some kind of meaning out of all this mess!
         "We know why we are here, We are the collectors of the dead, we bring them all for judgement. I have told you this many times."
         "Don't you have any aspirations beyond that!"
         "No. Why would we? We are Death. This is what we were meant to do, and we do it. We know nothing beyond this, and that is okay with us."
         "Well that is not enough for me, Simply knowing that I live to live is not enough."
         "Why not? That is the one thing we have never understood about you humans. You are the only living things with the ability to recognize that you are happy, and to take joy in the happiness of each other. Yet you are the only creatures in existence that are never happy with what you are given, and oppress each other in order to gain more."
         "... It... it just doesn't seem right. We can't all just be here to die, and be… redistributed... Wait, What do you mean redistributed? Like reincarnated?"
         "To an extent, yes. All your experiences, every moment of your life are stored in your consciousness. Epoch Judges what is and what is not worth keeping. Then distributes the knowledge and wisdom amongst the Flow."
         "The Flow?"
         "It is merely our name for the origin of life on earth. All living things in your world come from it, and all will return it. Gala would be another name for it."
         "So Ced is going to be put back into this Flow?"
         "Yes as will you one day."
         "So what happens to our soul, or consciousness or whatever?"
         "...It is split as well. It does not exist again as one."
         "So there is no afterlife? No heaven or hell? Then what is the point of living a good morale life?"
         " I haven’t seen them if they do exist, And not having to live with the guilt of all the things you've done wrong should be a reward in itself."
         "And who is to say who is wrong and who is right?"
         "Only you can decide that... The life of a human is very short David Furrogh. You and all humans are cursed with this realization almost from birth, but this is also what makes humans altogether the most beautiful of all life on earth. Everything mankind has done is a testament to their undying need to accomplish something while they are alive, and with the belief that their offspring would reap more of a benefit then they themselves. The rest of the living things on earth only ever think about eating and mating really." Death seemed to smile. as much as a face with out lips can smile. "The choice of what life means is a choice left entirely to each individual, but most life accepts that knowing it is alive is enough." The conversation ended there. Not because there was nothing left to say, David could talk with death his entire life and still have more questions. The conversation ended because there was another presence in the room, another Death.
         "Sameal, sir. Please excuse me." Mortimor said as he approached. Sameal? David had not thought of the Deaths as having names. He didn't think there would really be much need. Death was death in his opinion. "Redistribution has been completed, Epoch is ready for this one now." David flinched at the mention of his friend being scattered as if he were  only so much seed in a field.
         "David, this is Mortimor. He is the one who killed you."
         "I didn't kill him! I just collected him!"
         "You had to orchestrate the entire accident Mortimor, His body may still live, but you most definitely have killed this man... By the way marbles Mort? Why marbles?"
         "Like I told you before, I was running late. It was the first thing I could think of."
         "I swear, you watch entirely to many cartoons on earth." Sameal looked at David. "I am sorry you had to witness that… Mortimor is our newest Death, and he is still learning. He tends to be a bit reckless at times, but gets the job done with a little encouragement. He has only been with us for twenty six years today."
         "Oh yea? It's my birthday too!" David said with sudden excitement, Forgetting what he had learned about Death not being born. "Or was rather..."
         "David, do not worry. You will be returned to the time you died. As long as things don't continue to go wrong you should be completely fine, and not mangled in a steel trap. But we must hurry. If you are absent from life to long, The Flow will begin to distort and fall apart. It is a very delicate balancing act. Not to mention it would be hard to explain why you came back to life in a morgue." Sameal stood then, and motioned for David to do the same. He asked Mortimor to lead the way. Epoch would be waiting, and she did not like the idea of the wrongfully dead man to begin with. The sooner this was all done with the better.
         "But won't I just die again if the car accident is what killed me?" David asked hesitantly.
         "The accident should not have killed you, your body is still alive, Just empty of anything that would actually define it as you. It will seem as though you are permanently unconscious. Your actual consciousness, or soul if you are a religious man, is here. Once returned you may have some minor wounds, but otherwise you’ll be fine and dandy. As I have said, Mortimor should not have claimed you."
         "I guess its not that much of a problem. Not like I can press charges, or have him fired or anything." He said jokingly. The two deaths turned and looked at him. He could not tell if they were looking at him sternly or not. He began to form  an apology for his rudeness when Mortimor interrupted him.
         "I can't quit either." They all laughed then, David relieved that he had not offended them.
         The short trip to Epoch was even stranger then his arrival in the Reapers library, Beginning with the farthest bookshelf, getting further away as they approached it. David realized however, that it was not moving further away, the books at the edges were still where they had been originally. Only the center of the bookshelf was moving. It receded into the wall as if physics had changed the direction of gravity, and cared very little for the solidity of  old oak shelves. The wall continued to recede more and more with every step they took, The Deaths seemed unaware of the phenomenon. He thought it was more that they did not find it odd, then they did not see it. This would probably just stretch into another dark tunnel, with the same approaching light. He would be ready for it this time he thought, as he made the last few steps toward the book ringed funnel. When they reached the first line of books and went to place their feet, the Funnel came rushing back. It happened so fast that David had no time to react, or even think to react. He wasn't even sure it had happened. He was on his back when Mortimor bent to lend him a hand. He had been knocked back by the shock of the thing, and he cursed the transit system as he took Mort's hand and stood.
         They were standing on a marble dais with pillars of varying materials at equal intervals around the perimeter. The Dais was bordered by a wall of trees that had grown into each other in order to from what would be a living barrier. There was no covering or canopy of any sort, but the sky itself had been replaced. It had the effect of looking straight up into a mirror and seeing yourself look right back down at you.
         "Is this him" came a very monotonous female voice from behind them.
         "Yes, Epoch, this is David Furrough. The wrongfully claimed man we need you to put back. Sameal said as they all turned around.
         "Hello, ma'am." David said courteously, however, he was thinking Oh my god, its my civics teacher! Epoch was not known for her beauty, but who did she need to impress. She liked her dark matted hair, it stayed out of her face while she worked. She wasn't necessarily the fittest of women, and admittedly only ate junk food. But she liked herself, and her treats, and no one was going to change that.
         "Well lets get this over with. Can't have people popping in and out of life like this. Its just not natural." She was also not a very friendly person, but she was fair.
         "okay, okay. What do i need to do?"
         "Go stand in the center the Dais."
         "Thats it?"
         "Thats most certainly not it! this is not some simple task! However, you will not be doing anything other then standing in the center dais, I have to do all the work!"
         "Wow, chill out lady. sheesh." David turned to the Deaths, "Well fellas, Its been...uh, well. Its been informative... Your not gonna brainwash me or anything are ya?"
         "We can't do that, we just do the reaping thing. You humans play with your minds." Mortimor said with a dry wit.
         "Well, no offense, but I hope i don't see you guys again for a long time. Thanks for helping me."
         "You've got time David, but we will see each other again… Call it a gut feeling" Sameal extended his hand, And david gripped the bones firmly. He was actually gonna miss these guys, and there bad jokes. Somehow that felt very wrong. Longing for death...what a morbid thought.
         David turned to Epoch, who was frowning and tapping her foot, then made his was to the center. He thought about everything he had seen and heard while he was here. He wondered why he had never heard anything of any of this. Why had humans created such an alternate form of death and the afterlife? or had he just not completely died? His body was still living, and he had not been "Redistributed," maybe when Ced's consciousness was evaluated and cut up by that shrew back there his soul made it out. Perhaps that was the true point of death. He prayed for Ced's sake that this was the case. Though David himself was not a religious man, Ced had made a point of going to church every sunday. It would seem a terrible fate for him to receive oblivion after a life of such dedication... He reached the center.
         "Now what?"
         "Now you just stand there and wait! Like I said, I do all the work!" Epoch walked over to the pillar nearest her. It was seemingly made of a mix of jade and cobalt, appearing as a cylindrical globe. She reached and grabbed the top lever of two on the backside and flipped it closed. The sky began to swirl and distort until the image that was there became that of earth. And a very specific part of earth, The suburban hospital in his hometown. The image changed again, and now David was staring himself in the face. He almost collapsed from the intensity of it all, but regained himself when he saw his wife. She was sitting next to him in the hospital. The accident couldn't have been more then a few hours past, and already she had gotten to him. He thought about how Sameal had told him he would be returned to the same time he had died, and was glad that he had not meant the exact time. He would rather not see the wreckage and his broken dead friend. He was ready to be home now. He could not wait to go home.
         "Anyday now Epoch!" David called out.
         "Do you know how to bend space and time to get life back into lifeless beings? No? Then shut up! I know how to do my job!" She flipped the second switch, and the sky fell. Well, part of the sky fell. And it was more like it bulged, dropped, Absorbed David, then bounced back up, and rejoined the rest of the sky. "Rude, little prick. If either of you ever mess up like this again, i will make you living...then kill you!"
         "Can she do that?"Mort whispered to Sameal.
         "I don't know, and I don't want to." Sameal responded gazing up at their visitor, now returned home. "Think he'll be okay?"
         "I'm sure he will. We should go, before she gets upset."
         "Your right... Do you think he will tell anyone about what happened here?"
         "He may sir, but what would it change? and who would believe him?"
         "I just feel odd about that one Mort thats all. Like he left something of himself here, and took something of us away with him."
         "Sir?"
         "Nothing, just a feeling. Lets get going." He turned to find Epoch, but saw no one. "Good bye Epoch, thank you for your help!" he called to wherever she may have gone.
         "Don't do it again!" came the echoing reply. and at that the Deaths left and returned to their duties. Life must go on, and death comes to all. They are very busy individuals.

         David woke up in the hospital bed and had never felt worse. Hs body ached all over and he couldn't feel his left leg at all. He tried to move his head and found it braced, he tried to call out but the oxygen tube choked his voice away. He began to panic and thrash about as much as he could. He was barely even moving or making any sound at all, but It was enough to wake Carrie. She jumped to her feet and called for the doctor right away fearing he was having a seizure. She rushed to his side, put her hands against his face, and suddenly realized his eyes were open. She couldn't help but start to cry, she thought she had lost him forever. The paramedics came in just in time to save misses Furrough from falling back and smashing her head on the glass table. David couldn't help but smile at the situation. It was still his birthday, and it was the most memorable one yet. The funniest part that was when david died, and faced death He kept his cool the entire time. Upon coming back he caused so much panic and confusion that he had put both he and his wife in jeopardy as a result. Fate as it would seem does have a sense of humor.