Legacy

For those of you who haven’t read any of my previous stories or books, a little background to help you focus in on this one.

The Weston’s and descendants had served “He Who Is” quite well for fifteen generations.  Then they were left to their own devices on New Earth for five generations.  Their lives still pleasing “He Who Is”  One of their past main contacts who conveyed to them the wishes of “He Who Is” during the first fifteen generations was an enlightened immortal being named “Tenar”, who looked like you and me, but wasn’t.  His name was always mentioned when Weston’s would gather for family reunions and tell the old stories over and over. Now the two would come together again, sort of.  Same Tenar, different Weston.

I now turn the telling of this tale over to the currently involved Weston, one Wesley Weston, age thirty five.

Hello, Wesley here and this is my tale of how I became the Graviteer, as I called myself, hoping for fame and fortune.  Did I achieve it? well lets hear the story to find that answer.

I am a farmer as was my father and his father and so on all descended from a couple of Missionary brothers here in Kenya, Africa.

My Uncle Martin passed on and since I was his only living relative I inherited his property, consisting of a house, barn, contents and about one hundred and fifty acres of good land. Among the contents portion was an old, very old wooden chest of moderate size.  It was locked, padlocked that is, with a very old iron lock.  It was rusted in place to the hasp and all.  Apparently hadn’t been opened in many decades or more.  There was a good reason for that but I didn’t know what it was until much later.

Of course I wanted to see what was in it, so I busted the lock off and opened it up.  That was not easy either as much, much time had just about made glue out of the old varnish and it was a bit stuck shut; had to pry it open.

Inside was a bit of a surprise.  There was some sort of a harness like affair that looked like it was to be worn by a man.  It was weird.  There was also a letter, diagram of the harness and user instructions. The letter explained the outfit was an anti gravity device.  It had been originally presented to Richard Weston who would have been my great, great, great, great Uncle.  It was presented by one Tenar.  Spooky, the name of Tenar popped up in the old family stories.  I started thinking I’m not seeing this.  Maybe it’s a great Halloween costume thingy; but anti gravity device, get real.

I still was fascinated over it and proceeded to read the user instructions while viewing the diagrams of it.  It was interesting, as the diagram showed and instructions read, the round hand print disc on the right chest area was the  directional control and that very subtle movement of the hand  would cause turns, ups and downs and combos as desired.

Then on the left chest area was two buttons and a bar.  Apparently the left button was on and off for the entire device and the right button was the on and off for the mini fan jet on the backside of the harness.  The bar was push down on one end of the other to rotate body position.  The power source, like a battery was a small rod of what was called coridium.  Supposedly with a two thousand year or billion mile life span.  It was in a small compartment next to the fan jet which wasn’t much bigger than a banana.  I though that should produce a huge thrust ha, ha, ha, but on the other hand if the thrust was for something now weightless for the purpose, it might not need much.

Anyway, I said to myself, well the power source should still be good.  So I put it all on, tongue in cheek, wondering if I’d been pranked real good or what. Oh my, my, my did I get a surprise, it worked.  I wasn’t sure whether or not to feel exhilaration or terror.

I managed to collect my wits and put it through its paces.  It was a bit tricky, but I finally got the hang of it.  Its maximum altitude ability was about two hundred feet and the fan jet speed was about five miles per hour.  I concluded that past being an entertaining toy, it might serve some utilitarian purpose.  Certainly save me getting out the ladder if I needed to repair the barn roof or something.  Even keep me from getting feet wet crossing a shallow stream.

Then like a bolt out of the blue, the idea hit me.  I could wear a shirt over it and go into show business.  People would pay big bucks for a stadium seat in the city to watch me perform.  Now let’s see how to get started. So I used my imagination and said to get free newspaper attention and advertisement I’d do a stunt.  When the lunch hour crowd hit the street in the big city, I’d sound a horn and when they looked up I’d jump off a ten story building.

Of course half way down I’d hit the on button and ease myself on down and as I landed hit the off button. I’d have some kid I hired for an hour to then hand out hand bills extolling me “The Great Wesley, Graviteer Supreme”  The hand bill would claim that I’d mastered the art of molecular body control, mind over matter so to speak, and made my body temporarily lighter than a feather.

Sure they probably think gimmick, wires or something, but they’d still just eat it up.  I’d be more famous and popular and richer than that very famous ancient Magician, Houdini.  I was really getting puffed up with myself.

About then there was a knock at the door.  I answered it and a nice appearing gentlemen whose great deportment radiated from him, said hello Wesley, I’m Tenar, we need to discuss your use of the anti gravity device.

I almost fainted, this person had knowledge and the name he gave rang one scary bell, not that he was scary, but it made me feel like I’d stepped in deep doo doo and was in trouble.  That of course hadn’t been my intent Tenar came in, I’m not sure I invited him or not, I was to rattled to note that; but he came in.

We sat down and he explained the history of the anti gravity device, how he’d acquired it from another off worlder group and gave it to my great, great, great, great, Uncle as a token of affection.  But with the admonishment to not use it if anyone else was nearby by, other than a brother or wife.  Why got to be obvious quickly.  That also explained why it had been undisturbed in that chest for generations.

Tenar said step through the lighted silhouette of a door with me and I will give you a meaningful tour.  I thought that should be good.  I don’t know how he made that silhouette but if he wants to go from one side of my living room to the other, I’ll go along.

Whoa! thats not where it went to, I was suddenly in a space ship getting a quick tour around the surface of the moon and a spectacular view of the earth on the way back.

Well needless to say Tenar now had my fullest attention.  Tenar explained that He Who Is and knows all things at all times had taken note of my intentions. Thus He Who Is dispatched his servant Tenar to suggest I do otherwise.  I was told it would be permitted for me to give the device limited use the same way the Weston who it was originally presented to did, and no more.

I gratefully acknowledged the instruction and fully agreed to it.  Why, because we Weston’s were well acquainted with He Who Is; and it had long been established and inbred into each of us that when there were overtures or instructions emanating from He Who Is. That “No” was never to be part of our vocabulary.  We Weston’s continue to honor He Who Is with that attitude.