Have generations of self-gratification left them amazed by the simple concept of “love”?
“Master this and you’ll understand why sex with Jocie would have been nothing but a disappointment for me.”
Then without any cue or dismissal from my hosts I get up and walk off the stage.
***
“I’ve been creating and shaping the news for years and I’ve never seen anything like it,” Janet says when we arrive back in the tube car. “Your face is everywhere, your books are selling so fast your publisher’s system keeps crashing and it’s all because you refused to have sex. Some other major movie stars are now refusing sex offers just to ride on your wave. Oh, and speaking of movie stars you have a message from Jocie.”
She pulls the video message up onto the screen. Jocie is staring straight into the camera. “Look into my eyes professor. Know that you’re going to pay.”
“Charming. Does this mean she’s off the book tour?” I ask.
“You think? You’ve ruined all of my plans you know. By now you two were supposed to be an item and next week after she crushed you she was set to launch a major anti-cult public service campaign. Oh well, those plans were nothing compared to what you’ve delivered. You can expect a huge audience for the class you teach this afternoon.”
“Speaking of classes, when is Martha going to arrive? I teach her class this afternoon and I thought I could talk it through with her.”
“I thought you might want to talk privately with Ms. McLeod. She should be here soon. By the way, did you mean what you said about love?”
There they are again, the saddest doll eyes I’ve ever seen.
“Every word.”
“I thought so. Maybe you could tell me more about it sometime?”
“Sure.”
Janet says something in response but I don’t hear it because Martha comes into view behind her. I think my heart skips a beat when our eyes meet. Janet looks back and forth at us in amazement as we continue to just smile and stare then shakes her head and leaves us.
This is more than just needing a Christian. I really am falling in love with her.
“We don’t have much time. I go back to the studio to teach World Religion soon.”
“I know. I’m in the audience.”
“The tour goes to Dallas next, can you ride with us and then catch a late tube up to Colorado?”
“I can stay in Dallas if you want. I have an aunt who lives there,” she replies.
We stand in silence for a moment.
“Did you read my essay?” she asks.
“I completely forgot about it. Jocie isn’t exactly the sit down and read together type.”
Martha looks hurt that I dropped the ball.
“I’ll read it tonight on the ride to Dallas, I promise.”
“I’m glad you got my messages, all of them.”
“I was scared to open the last one. I was afraid the whole Jocie thing would keep you from coming here. Did you look carefully at the media shots? Could you tell they altered my face so I’d be smiling, leering, whatever they thought fit the story they wanted to tell?”
“No way. I didn’t look that carefully, I guess I was too upset. Look, I know I have no right to lay claim to you. We’re all free to do whatever we want, but…”
Don’t be afraid Martha, lay claim to me.
“But what?” I ask. “But you do want me all to yourself?”
“Yes. And I’m sorry.”
“Sorry? For what?”
“The allure of someone like Jocie is very powerful. I’m sorry for assuming you’d be overcome by it. I should have had more faith that even she couldn’t ruin you.”
“I’m already ruined Martha. I’m starting to think we all come into this world ruined.”
She can’t help herself, her eyelids go up slightly in response to the Biblical reference.
“As for having me all to yourself, you have it. And I now have the topic for today’s class.”
If everything works out as I’m planning I won’t have to worry about the Christians killing me. I’ll have to worry about the corps beating them too it.
Chapter Fourteen
The studio Janet borrowed for my lecture is much larger than the one at the University, it seats at least five-hundred people and all seats are full. There are even people standing. Janet saved seats for herself and Martha in the front row.
The introduction sequence is even more outrageous than before and I walk onto the stage to loud applause. When I get to my podium screen I see that all of my registered students are watching live and fifty-thousand guests were authorized. The system could easily handle millions of guest viewers but Janet’s trying to create a “hot ticket” event. There are over four-thousand offers for sex and when I delete them the live audience cheers.
“I see we have a larger audience than usual. I assume our guests have watched the last few lectures so I don’t need to review. Please note that I will not be taking questions relating to Jocie.”
“In our previous classes we discussed how the First Amendment guarantees freedom from religious influence and how the Sunspot Initiative largely released man from working to survive. This gives us time to pursue the pleasures that we choose to pursue. In the fifty years following the completion of Sunspot Three, mankind experienced a period which we now call ‘The Second Renaissance’. There was an explosion of art and science in which all major diseases were cured and technology and art leaped forward.”
I pause for a moment.
“The next generation didn’t continue on that path. Advances since the waning of the Second Renaissance have been minor in comparison. The occupants of this room today are the great grandchildren of that second generation.
That makes you the fourth generation to choose to wander and stagnate without any sort of driving force, no sort of compass telling you where to go next.
“So there’s a quick review for all the guests we have watching today. Let’s switch gears now. Earlier I had an idea that I think might make for an interesting discussion. It’s not in the book or syllabus, but I thought we might discuss some of the ancient religious rituals that mankind no longer observes. In particular, let’s think about the concept of marriage. Who can describe marriage for me?”
I choose Rolf in Sweden. “Marriage was an ancient form of slavery in which men made exclusive sexual claims over women.”
“Okay, give me another.”
I choose Nikki in Toronto who’s wearing more clothing than usual. “Marriage was also a method by which women claimed sexual exclusivity over men in exchange for the resources he could provide. In biological terms it was an evolved method by which women tried to ensure survival of their offspring.”
Clever aren’t they? Making marriage an ‘evolved’ trait rather than a blessing of God.
“Those are good answers but you’re viewing the world through our modern standards. Try to think more like an ancient religious person.”
I choose Martha.
“To an ancient religious person, marriage signified a spiritual bond between a man and woman.”
“Exactly. Thank you Martha.”
“The key words in Martha’s answer are ‘spiritual bond’. Let’s see how this played out in the eventual end of marriage worldwide. Using the United States as an example, the first few decades of the 2000’s saw a hot political battle where attempts were made to open the definition of marriage to include marriage between people of the same gender. From 2015 to 2025 the U.S. Supreme court shifted its stance on the legality of homosexual marriage four different times as the political winds that drove it shifted back and forth, fueled by religious extremism.
With the Supreme Court unable to settle on an answer the country sought a legislative solution and activists on both sides engaged in fierce lobbying to influence federal law. Those efforts came to a head in 2025 when a homosexual marriage bill was defeated by a single vote in the U.S. Senate. To echo Martha, the
opponents of the law argued that marriage is a matter of spiritual tradition rather than a legal issue and therefore the U.S. government should not impose its own definitions over long held religious doctrines.”
I wait a moment for the information to sink into their heads.
“While the traditional religious activists celebrated their victory, the people behind the Equalization of Religion movement saw this as an opportunity rather than a defeat. Through the late 2020’s and the early 2030’s the movement turned the argument around. They did this by arguing that in the absence of a government definition of marriage, the equal recognition of all religions required that each religion could define marriage as it saw fit.”
My screen lights up to indicate Martha has a question.
“Are you saying one of the purposes of Religious Equalization was the abolition of marriage?”
“Some would say abolish, some would say dilute it to the point of becoming meaningless, but the end effect was the same, traditional religious marriage was over. A few years later the Final Holy War began and the world had more important issues to address. Fifty years later, in the 2080’s a short-lived movement began calling to legally abolish marriage altogether. Who knows what group started that movement?”
Nobody offers the answer.
“Ironically, it was homosexuals. After their parents and grandparents fought so hard fifty years earlier for the recognition of homosexual marriage, once the term ‘marriage’ was made meaningless by Equalization the next generation wanted it gone completely. So why don’t we have an amendment or even laws that officially abolish marriage?”
I choose Alice back in Colorado. “Because of Sunspot.”
“Exactly. To bring many of the concepts back together, ancient partnerships were no longer needed to ensure survival of offspring and so arguing over the definition of marriage died off as irrelevant.”
My screen indicates Martha has another question.
“So to echo what Oscar said about religion in general in another class, marriage was also ‘bought off’ when Sunspot came online?”
“That sums it up but it does bring us back to the sticky concept you raised earlier Martha. There are no evolutionary or economic reasons remaining for marriage, but is there a spiritual reason? Do people still want to be spiritually connected to each other? I’ll leave you with that thought and this. I said the marriage abolition movement died out without a change in the law. Although there are no longer legal or economic reasons for getting married, there’s also no law against it.”
After that, Martha and every Christian watching should be confused as to where I stand on religion. They don’t have enough puzzle pieces to know what’s really going on here.
At that moment I see Janet lean forward and her eyes widen to look at the screen at her seat. My podium screen flashes and I call on her.
“Professor, you may want to see this news feed.”
She transfers it to the big screens behind me.
Jocie is on the screen holding a news conference and no matter where she walks on the stage she’s covered by the number four.
***
“That was clever,” Janet says as the private tube car departs for Dallas. “We were so busy watching for a hack attack on your appearances they were able to make a splash on an even bigger audience.”
“Did anyone try to communicate with them this time?” Martha asks.
“If by ‘communicate’ you mean shriek insults, then Jocie did a good job of it.”
“If they have a message or an agenda, why aren’t they getting it out?” I think aloud. “Just flashing a four doesn’t tell anyone what they want or why.”
“Maybe they’re waiting,” Martha says.
“Waiting for what?” I ask.
“They know,” Janet says. “The Fours know about the project.”
“What project?” Martha asks.
She doesn’t know, I’m sure of it. Could it be that this Four group is better informed than the Christians?
“Sorry, it’s classified,” Janet replies to Martha while giving me a warning look then bustles off to the room with the top secret electronic gadgets.
“You know what she’s talking about, don’t you?” Martha asks. “This whole book tour never made any sense. Please tell me Cephas. What’s going on?”
“If I tell you, Janet won’t let you go back to Colorado Springs. You’ll have to stay secluded until the project becomes public.”
“It’s only an issue for one day. We go public tomorrow morning,” Janet says as she returns to the room. “You’ll be spending the night with us Martha. Your com is now jammed and don’t try to leave this car.”
“And here I was hoping we’d end up secluded for a week,” I say.
Janet gives Martha a brief overview of the time travel project, including the fact that I’ve already been chosen to go.
“This is crazy,” Martha says when Janet finishes. “You’re going to time travel to prove the foundation of a dying religion wasn’t the son of God?”
“It turns out Christianity isn’t as dead as most believe,” I say. “In fact it appears to be growing rapidly. Add in this new group ‘Four’ and you can see why the government wants to stop religion once and for all. What if the Christians and the Fours don’t get along? Does the world need another full scale holy war or even years of religious terrorism?”
I expect Martha to argue but instead she unexpectedly hugs me tight.
“Please don’t go. I can’t lose you. I just can’t.”
Is she trying to protect me? Or is she protecting her religion?
“He no longer has a choice,” Janet says. “He’s the only one who speaks and reads the ancient languages.”
“How can I pass up the adventure of a lifetime?” I ask Martha. “I’ll come back to you, I promise.”
That’s an easy promise to keep considering I have no intention of going.
***
Although Janet can’t seem to understand why anyone would choose to sleep alone, she agrees to give Martha the extra stateroom in the tube car.
Once Martha is asleep I try to sort through the messages on my com. There are thousands of them so I give up and decide to read Martha’s essay as I promised I would. The title is “Man needs to believe in something.” Her central theme is happiness. She talks about the accumulation of wealth and power and how it doesn’t bring happiness. She talks about worldly pleasures like sex and drugs and how they don’t bring happiness. She talks about hard work and knowledge and how that doesn’t bring happiness. She wraps it all up by talking about hope and how mankind needs to feel they’re part of something greater than their own creations.
The last line states “That’s why there are still Christians walking around in ‘Man’s Eden’. You said in class that Sunspot ‘eliminated economic inequality and fulfills all of man’s needs’, apparently you’re wrong. Apparently there are some needs that man can’t fulfill himself.”
If this essay doesn’t prove Martha’s a Christian, then I don’t know what will. Everything is coming into place.
I hear a shuffling sound at my open door and look up to see Martha. She’s dressed in a very modest nightgown but I’m still able to see the curves of her body. Maybe there is a God. Sometimes it’s hard to believe a creature this beautiful came about through random mutations and evolution.
“Couldn’t sleep?” I ask.
“Nightmare.”
“Sometimes it helps to tell someone.”
“A friend was in trouble. He was asked to go somewhere he didn’t belong and to meddle with things that no man should meddle with.”
“A good friend?” I ask.
“Someone I’ve come care about deeply even if I haven’t shown him yet.”
“How did the nightmare end?”
“It hasn’t.”
Martha crosses my room and lies on the bed.
“Will you hold me while I fall back to sleep?”
You??
?d think I’d be having thoughts about sex as I snuggle up behind her and put my arm around her, but I don’t.
***
We arrive in Dallas sometime in the middle of the night but Janet lets us sleep in. The public announcement of the time travel project will be made from bureau headquarters so we plan to watch it in the private car while we eat breakfast. The President himself opens the press conference with a rambling and incoherent speech about the recent attacks of cultists worldwide. He implies it’s only a matter of time before there’s a return to religious violence and then hands the podium to Ray Lewis to describe the time travel project. Ray explains the need to protect the public safety and says it’s for the good of all mankind that we grow beyond belief in God and rely on ourselves to build a perfect world. I recognize key phrases that tell me the speech was written by Henry.
What he says next is the greatest shock the world has had in a generation. He explains the power requirements needed to send three travelers and their equipment through time will require the combined output of all three Sunspot reactors. The entire world will know when the travelers have left and when they return because for the first time in generations the power will go out for everyone on earth at the same time. It’ll only last a minute, but the earth will go dark. He wraps it all up by saying the three travelers will be chosen soon and their identities will be announced in a week.
When the press conference is over Martha asks, “Who’s the Christian they plan to send back?”
“I have no clue. I suppose they have Christians in a prison somewhere but there aren’t any high profile Christians I know of. They’ll need someone who’s recognizable.”
I’ve never heard of a jailed Christian. When arrests are made they simply disappear.
“That’s not for you to worry about,” Janet says as she re-enters the room. “I have it from high sources that the Christian traveler is being worked out as we speak. Get dressed, you do another show in an hour and then it’s back to Colorado. The rest of the book tour is no longer necessary due to the schedule changes. You get a week off and then you start a traveler’s tour the day we announce the traveler’s identities.”
Chapter Fifteen