Calling From Somewhere Else - Judy Albietz

Bakari had a perfect flash memory of the scene stored on a special shelf in his brain. Those were the last moments he’d had with his mother. Whenever he was lonely, he re-played that scene. It always felt like it was happening all over again.

He’d found her in a deep crevasse that had opened up in the ground. She was pinned under a landslide of rocks. The volcano was shaking the very core of the island. The boiling river of lava poured down from the cone, separating her from everyone else. There was no hope of rescue.

“Mother!” he called. He could see her two-dimensional version as she looked up to him.

“Bakari, oh Bakari, my sweet boy! I can see you … your image. How is this happening?” Tears glistened in her eyes. She reached out to try to hold his face in her hands.

“They let me use the Time Portal to project my mind-voice and image to you. They … they gave me this time to say … goodbye,” he sobbed. “We have only a minute.”

“Bakari, quick … tell me … did your father and your brothers all make it through the Time Portal?” She winked one eye and cocked her head to the side, like she always did when she was checking if everyone had done their chores.

“Yes, mother … they are all safe … are you in much pain?” Bakari asked. He tried to keep his mind-voice steady. He didn’t want to totally fall apart. He only had these few precious moments.

“Tell me about your training. Are you paying attention? Are you working hard?” she asked. Bakari knew she wanted to have a normal conversation, as if she had all the time in the world.

“Yes, I work really hard, but it is fun too. I am learning how to control my visions of the future. And I have work assignments. I am on the team that will control and maintain the Time Portal. “

“Bakari, I love you.”

“I love you too,” he croaked just as the connection switched off. He had one last glimpse at the warm beaming smile that lit up her beautiful face.