Your Dream Campground by D.A.Sanford - HTML preview

Hellana takes over

We opened the door and in walked what I could only describe as Felicity’s twin. The only way I could tell them apart is Hellana likes gold. Same dress but gold trim. Arm bands and such.

She went from banging on the door sounding pissed off to a heavy, very heavily sweet bouncing person pouncing on the three women. Whether she knew or did not, she ignored Gloria. Gloria was uncommonly quiet.

Being ignored, for the moment, I went to the driver’s seat and plugged in my head set. That way I could listen to my music without disrupting their reunion. The real reason was to let Goria talk to me.

All she said was for me to be careful. No song, no music, she said that she would be quiet and observe.

I have a very bad feeling that Hellana is going to be a problem.

Looking at Karla, she was giving me the look that said I needed to be back there. I hung up the headset and walked back.

She is just as they tried to tell me. Her demeaner is overpowering. Felicity said that she was too clingy. I do believe that there is something deeper that she is hiding. Sometimes a false face is overpowering and the true face will come pouring out like a tidal wave wiping out a whole village killing all

Felicity is showing signs of being overwhelmed. Hellana, after she smothered Jaylin and Karla, came over to me and I can see it in her eyes. She is offering a cursory hug but there is anger behind it. I notice that the others feel it through the red thread.

The look on their faces shows that they feel uncomfortable about that hug. Almost a cross between envy and hatred.

“So nice to meet you Craig,” She said in a now almost air head tone. Doing her best to live up to the stereo type of a blond. It, to me, was too fake but now is not the time to show it.

“Why don’t we all sit down so I can get to know you.” Hellana says as she grabs my hand tightly, leading me to the sofa. She is leaning against me. I feel the tension the others are feeling as she is purposely rubbing against me.

I excuse myself, “I’ll get us something to drink. Why don’t you women catch up on what you all have been up to since the last time you saw each other.” I go into the kitchen while they talk.

The tray I brought had a little of everything. From water to wine. Hellana took the sipping whiskey. That is what I had hoped for. Loosens the tongue.

“Since you are here Jaylin, I take it that he has all the cards. Karla, has he started on those gems you peddle? Both are useless. Old nonsense that we have to peddle.”

“They have helped me in some tough situations.” I tell her. “They all depend on how you see them. To you they may seem useless. Could that be because you do not understand them?”

Oops, that struck a nerve. “If they are that important, why did my Stanley get dice and chess pieces? They did not help him. He is in the final life.”

We could tell that some truth came out just then. All of us knew that this is not the time to push the subject. I need to change directions so I suggest that we go to the diner to get supper.

My three like the idea. Hellana tells us that she is going to sleep. Falicity shows her to her bedroom. The RV is moving and we arrive at the diner. Hellana is asked once again to join us but there is no answer.

I do have Felicity open the door and see if she is alright. She is sleeping.

We are greeted and seated. Since we usually come for breakfast, the waitress is different. Making sure that we look and ask about proportions, each of us take the fried chicken with fries.

“Was she always like this?” I ask.

The three tell me that she has always been outgoing but this time, there is something off with her. Jaylin says that it is like she has come to a decision about what is bothering her.

“You see, sorry Felicity, her existence is only to be with her one. Felicity’s one is you. Hellana’s was Stanley. She should have faded away and returned to the dream she was after Stanly died. She has not. Her existence is wrong and I feel that she is turning towards evil intensions.”

Something I heard stopped me. Something I am not processing. “What do you mean, fade away. When I die, Felicity…”

Felicity is looking sad as she says that her kind, spirits, are created just for the one. “I do not want to exist if you are not here.”

“Karla, when can I take the last gem? I need that divine power. Only then will I be able to do what I need for Felicity and you two. I won’t say right now but I will not lose the four of you. That includes Gloria. She knows what I need to do but she will not say. Touch your ring. I feel her and I know you can too.”

They do and they feel Gloria. Gloria is thinking, “trust our man. When the time comes, Craig will know exactly what to do. Right now he is a hair’s thickness away from the divine power he needs. Karla, trust him. Unlike Stanley, he knows the hidden meanings. With the last gem, Hellana will cry for joy.”

Now I see my women. That look that they are giving me is only one word, confidence.

I don’t know what I will do for Hellana but I do know that, Just like Jed and Bee, I will trust what I feel is right. Isn’t that the real reason Jed could only see that destructive power?

The meal was wonderful. The trip resumed. I feel that Gloria knows where to go. Out into the wastelands of this dimension. This is the place where a potential explosion would have the least effect.

All know that this pocket dimension would protect the real world from what could be a cataclysmic destruction. Gloria’s song echoed through our minds. It’s the end of the world as we know it.

What exactly is Hellana now?

I did not sleep well that night. As when Bee was here, we slept in different rooms.

The morning came and Hellana was back to the bubbly façade. It was very hard to play along with it but play along we did. We had a good breakfast. It was then that part of that façade cracked.

“Why are we in the middle of nowhere?” There is both surprise and annoyance in that question. “We should be out in the real world.”

Leave it to Gloria. She now is letting herself being known but now she sounds like those monotone GPS voices. “We have arrived at a location that fits the test precaution parameters as required by the gem holder.”

Karla, red ring knowledge, “I programed the parameters I need to make sure we do not endanger the real world. The last gem is the most powerful and could be the most destructive.”

She looks at me and I also know her intension. Our red tether together. Karla says to me, “This is one step that you need to keep calm and concentrate. Felicity, none of your distractions.”

I could not help but notice Hellana grabbed hold of that tidbit.

When you go fishing, you bate the hook, cast it out and then you need to make it move to entice the fish to bite. She has seen the movement. It only is a matter of timing as to when she takes the bait.

A fish bites at the hook

After breakfast we find that Gloria has set up chairs and a table outside. There is a shade awning that has been extended. She has put out both ice water and lemonade.

All that would make all of us comfortable for the day. Felicity, Hellana and Jaylin sit and watch but Karla and I are in the sunshine. This area is a desert. Nothing but the paved road that Gloria is parked on obstructs the windblown sand from drifting. Of course there is the occasional cliché, a tumbleweed scurrying down the sand.

Perfect for any minor mishap.

We planned this last night before going to bed. Karla has me pull out the sapphire.

“Concentrate. Sweep the area for any restless spirit.”

Before I start, Hellana starts to taunt Karla.

In that annoying sweet voice she says that that one is of no use. “I am a…”

She can’t or won’t continue. Without me having to do anything, I channel the sapphires power. My body turns and the hand holding the sapphire is directly pointing at her like a compass needle finding which way is north.

Hellana is frozen in place but recovers when Karla pulls the gem from my hand. “Hellana, please, no distractions. This is serious. He needs to know just what the powers are. Did you do the same thing when your Stanley was learning?”

That really struck a nerve. For a second, Hellana looked like she was going to leap from her chair and go physical with Karla but I got in between them. “Both of you just calm down. This is exactly why we are in this sand box landscape. I actually welcome the distraction. I find that I need that so in the actual battle, I can think straight in the distraction of that battle.”

Now Karla, knowing what I really mean has a pout on and Hellana is grinning.

I need to try something. Thinking of the emerald and its ability to seek out evil and try to change it, I suddenly see Hellana change from smug to looking like she is going to be sick.

She looks at me and runs to her room in the RV.

Gloria says that we will need to clean that bathroom. She does say that Hellana is now nowhere in this area. She is on the other side of the pocket dimension. I now know what I need to do.

“Karla, I now know that I need the last gem. I am close to being where I need to be and the Lapis Lazuli with the divine connection is exactly what I need.”

Reluctantly she takes it out and has me hold it in my upturned palm.

It is beautiful. A very dark shade of blue but with a mottled shade of lighter blue. It looks like the clouds in a moon lit night time sky. Karla now tells me to place my other hand over the gem and, with a clear mind, put my cupped hands up to my eye and just look at the gem through an opening.

I look through a gap in my thumbs. The last thing I hear is her saying “Tell me what you see.”

I look and was enraptured by the sight. I now was standing on land underneath that night time sky. Watching those clouds drift by. Then I watched as the moon shown bright but it was not the moon. It looked like a being.

That being came down and stood in front of me. “You now are elevated to the role of one of the gods but your power is second only to me.” He reaches out and touches my forehead.

A light touch but I went numb from it. I now feel the power that I need. I, deep down, really did not want it but I know that I need the power I was just given.

“You have shown that you will always take the nonviolent path but know this, you will always defend your family. This power will be used sometimes in a destructive manner but I know that you will only use that as a last resort. You now will have the knowledge to do some great things and yes, you are allowed to do some selfish things that your heart knows is right. Love those four women of yours.”

Next thing I see is that desert sky from under the canopy. Felicity has me in a lap pillow and the three are crying. Karla was chastising herself for giving me the last gem. I rise and pull her into a very loving hug.

“Thank you Karla. I now have everything I need. I love you.”

I do the same thing for Jaylin. With Felicity I hold her the longest.

“You are my first. I will never let anyone of you go. You are mine forever.” I tell them that I have been told that I am now complete. “I will know just what to do at the right time. I was told that I will be nonviolent with the exception of defending all of you.”

They are stunned but I am able to play what I saw. They saw what was like one of those short videos. Gloria is just humming Amazing Grace. The other three are silent at the sight.

I now let my thoughts leak so that Hellana will come back.

“Gloria, do we have a barbeque? I have a great hankering for steak over a charcoal grill. I’ll cook at least five. We need to have one ready for Hellana if she is feeling better. I’ll try again on that last gem since I could not grasp how to use it.”

Imagin that, Hellana is now coming out of the RV at the smell of steak. “You going to have mushrooms and onions with that?” The now bubbly woman asks.

“Those with grilled potatoes.” I tell her.

Confronting Hellana

Over the short time that Hellana has been with us, I can see that she is trying too hard to present herself as just that bubbly person. Too bubbly, too clingy. Sometimes you will give away things that you should not. Information or gestures leak out.

A look of irritation comes over her then just as suddenly the air head persona comes out. We can all see the fake personality take over.

I do feel that this is the real challenge of this run. Get to the root of Hellana’s problem. What is she hiding? I don’t know what the others feel but I get the feeling that what ever is bottled up inside her is just going to explode sometime soon.

With what I can wield, I still get the feeling that I need to go carefully. Why do I hear, in my mind the song, “Tip toe through the tulips.” Gloria must be electronically trying to tell me to be careful. Now I am hearing myself singing to myself “Tip toe through the minefield.”

After her disappearance in the desert when I tried the emerald skill on her, she has been exploring, looking for something. I feel that the danger is increasing every time she leaves. I do not know what she is up to but there is almost a feeling of desperation but also a deep seated revenge.

Hellana is again here and her false face is present. I ask the others to step outside the RV while I have her sit down. The direct route is needed here. I ask her what is wrong? I am told that there is nothing wrong.

“Everything is fucking wonderful in this love fest you call a home!” She now lets the real Hellana emerge. “You all get to act like a wonderful blissful family. It makes me want to puke.”

There is now real anger on her face, She is only one step from trying to rip my beating heart out of me and show the women it as she crushes it before my eyes. The three see this and come back into the RV.

“You three and this fucking RV. Don’t you realize that none of you exist! Once he decides that he no longer needs you, he will just chuck you out like a greasy hamburger wrapper. He may feel even better if he just throws it out the window as he drives. You’ll bounce and get run over by the car behind. Carried off by some crow to get the last vestiges of your greasy soul. It happened to me.”

There is a deep tension in the air as she says that the crows wouldn’t even pick up her wrapper when her love tossed her aside.

She is now far from that fake person she was trying to fool us with. She tells of her lost love. Stanley was her mate, companion, her life. All that she really had. “I’m truly lonely and lost without him.”

She looks right in my eyes and tells me that I will never replace him.

“Of course not” I tell her, “It would not have been true love if you could replace him. He is in your heart until he welcomes you to the final life. I’m here to give you that hug when you need one. I’m here to lend an ear when you want to unburden yourself. Also there are three others that can comfort you when needed. Especially Karla”

I look at Karla and tell her to pick up what she just threw at me,

Hellana now drops something that she would not have if she wasn’t getting so worked up. “That bastard Stanley. If there is anyway to get ahold of him, I’ll crush the after life out of him. Son of a bitch deserted me. HOW DARE HE!”

She is like a very wild version of Felicity. I need to sit later with Felicity and discuss this matter with her. There may still be a way to ease Hellana’s pain.

Their species are not tied to time. They exist for their true one that they were created for. Most just fade out after that loved one dies. Hellana is the only one that has not. Her will is stronger than any that has been created.

Felicity mentally tells me to just clear my mind and concentrate on Hellana. I do and get knocked over. She looks at me and with hatred, venom spits out of her mouth, “Keep out of my head you fucken bastard. Try that again and you will just cease to exist after I destroy those three in front of your broken body. NOT EVEN THE GODS WOULD BE ABLE TO STOP ME!”

She disappears.

The three come over, Felicity is trembling, “Sorry I suggested that. All of you will die because of me.”

We hear Gloria say, “Felicity, Hellana will not win against you. Deep in your heart, you know exactly what to do. “ then she plays “I won't never give up, no, never give up, no, no.”

Felicity now remembers the simple lyrics of that song. She now just speaks softly “She keeps getting up when knocked down but she really is trying to find her way home to Stanley. She may be trying to find how to open that door that is the barrier keeping her from Stanley.”

Jaylin is in horror. Karla is also. “She does not realize that if she was able to forcibly break that barrier, this world would perish. This world does not matter. The final life would violently implode. All there would,” She is broken. Jaylin has to say it.

“All in the final life would meet the final death. Eternity would end in an instant. We have to find her and find a way of either calming her down or eliminating her.”

I now think I know a way. “What would happen if we fixed her problem. Not in those two ways but, if we were able to go back into the time that they were together and happy.”

Then the last gem hits me with what needs to happen. I tell my four “I’m going to try something better. Violence is not the solution.”

Now that I have control of the cards, control of the gems. With the last gem, I am complete. No longer that tormented man who was running away, I am as close to god hood as I want to come. I am not and never want to be close to challenging the Supreme Creator’s power. What I have now scares me but Hellana is wrong. I now know how to stop her.

Gloria wears the gems. She seems to know. “Open the door let her in” the radio plays.

I now have the ability, I call out. “Stanley, Hellana needs to talk to you desperately. Please open the door. We need to talk.”

After a few minutes, there is a shimmering and we see a man appear.

“Are you Stanley?” I ask. He just smiles at us. “Hellana!” He shouts “Get your beautiful butt here.”

She is here and cannot believe that her love is here. She is crying her eyes out as Stanley opens his arms. Hellana almost takes him off his feet but just as suddenly collapses in his arms. She is crying her eyes out.

Stanley just says to her, “You were always stubborn. It is time for you to come home.”

He just takes her hand and escorts her through the door. The shimmering disappears.

I turn to the three women. “I love each of you and cannot imagine not having the four of you with me for eternity. Felicity, Jaylin, Karla and Gloria, there is something I now know, I am now able to open that door. That was only after I was changed to immortal by a touch of his finger. First I need to do something.”

Concentrating, there now is a woman appearing. She is as tall as the other three but she has long straight black hair. Average build, but in jeans and a white tee shirt, she is very attractive.

“Gloria awake!” She is startled. “I can still feel the RV. What the hell?”

The three are in awe but I have Gloria sit with the three. Karla was going to say something but needed to run to the sink and spit out the mouthful of bad beer. She gives Gloria the stink eye.

“I still control all aspects of the RV” and we hear the radio play “R E S P E C T.”

We, now five people, laugh. I again get their attention. “What I can do now is make everyone immortal. We can go until we decide that it is time to go hand in hand to that final life.

They did not realize that I did just that when I made Gloria’s physical body. It was not until we hear Gloria tell us that we have arrived at “Your Dream Camp Ground.”

Felicity asks, “Now that we are home, I want that immortality. I don’t want to just fade away or change to the point that Hellana was. I want to be with you forever.”

The other three express the same. I decide and tell them that I had already done just that. “I could not and don’t want to live one second longer than the four of you. I am sorry that I am greedy and did not ask first.”

Gloria says something that causes all of us to need towels to mop up pee. “I have made our room extra large but now it has its own self cleaning feature. Even if we are still going at it, the room’s self cleaning will start. We’ll all get very wet when that happens.”

“Why are you laughing?” She asks.

Their adventures continue. Situations arise. People come and go but the five never increase. Sometimes there are guests but the five are family. Like any family, we have our squabbles but making up is fun.

By the way, the sign for the campgrounds now reads “Nudists only.” Only the invited can enter the blueberry pocket dimension. A few times a week, we do enjoy a diner breakfast. Those truckers still have not returned to get their rigs.

Authors note:

I had fun with this one. The sentient RV was from articles about just that. AI’s becoming sentient. I started the rivalry between Karla and Gloria by having Gloria talk through the radio with songs and movie clips. I used search to find songs that matched what I wanted Gloria to answer Karla but the squirrels in my mind had to direct me to skunk beer. I, in real life have had just that experience. A beer that has gone bad. It was those squirrels that made me think of the “Kit Kat Clock”

This one just wrote itself. I went along for the ride. I hope you enjoy.

I now am working on few different ones. The one that piques my interest is one that shown the missing part of reducing greenhouse gas. I want to go into space again.