Ninth Millennium Navigator

17

One mind wondered what was going through her mind as she waited. 

Marie sat quietly behind Matthias as he directed the new probe. For much of the time, she had watched him move through the tight maze, but now she simply sat and watched Matthias – withholding her thoughts. Over the years, she had continued to be his preferred client. He found himself waiting after each visitation, hoping she would return. He enjoyed her presence nearly as much as he enjoyed her art. It was, in fact, an art.

Her grateful contact with him this last time had been a surprise. A painfully long span passed beyond the presumed time-frame. Her sequence should have completed before this interval. Presumably, she abandoned this part of the world for another. He fathomed she would not return to the uninspiring sequences. They had no appeal to her and could not fulfill her demands. While it was possible she found another guide, he doubted this. Most people returned to their original guide or they did not return. She was too smooth to be caught in such an inappropriate ending.

A long interval had passed since his last visit. He stopped visiting in anticipation of the end. It was his policy not to visit as they aged. This truth was applicable for every single client; though, missing climaxes was pure frustration. As tempting as seeing the conclusions would be, Matthias was determined not to be caught. He did not want to mess up this one or others. There was a particular fear from this woman—she manipulated her many worlds so unusually that he could not imagine how she would respond. He presumed it would not be to his advantage. Regardless of the initial outcome of discovery, he would never see the woman again. She would move the entire unit to some other pod. The opportunity to see her at least once more was worth any worrisome wait and all frustration.

Waiting for her in the Commons had been pleasant. He had been observing two fellow humans converse. The young couple spoke excitedly to each other. Matthias was still trying to understand the sequence from which the young, pale-faced man had survived. The long thick hair of the woman bounced freely as she described her life in exhaustive elaboration. She had been a member in the minor family in Egypt during a century in which a pyramid was being built. She was observant enough to focus on a critical time around which everything in life seemed to revolve. Her large family had been almost exiled in violence. A series of events beyond their control forced matters. Circumstances had descended into a grave situation.

Matthias noted how the man unwittingly leaned toward the woman. The tilt was so much that he had to rebalance his weight several times. The slow blinking and fidgeting fingers also indicated some uneasy interest in the woman.

The listening man's dire attraction was clear. Was it just as clear to the ranting woman? 

Was she conscious of her impact on this unaware being? Was she intentionally roping him in or was it accidental? Perhaps it was an unconsciously intentional act of mind. The mind was manipulating actions on behalf of the body, knowing full well what the highly needy body would want.

Moments before Marie had arrived, he concluded on his assessment. While the Egyptian heiress was unaware of her mind's acts, her touse was enabling some form of subconscious manipulation like a strong attractive scent or preening of the body to arouse another.

Marie's lome was a long distance from the Commons. Matthias performed his normal checks on the material. He scanned the console and chamber for any blemishes –anything that indicated stress, strain, or abnormality. He did not want anything that would harm his client, but there was always the concern for himself as well. 

Matthias pushed away thoughts, even from his free mind. He did not want to continue supposing where Marie had gone to acquire such powerful tools. In pockets of intense curiosity, he considered asking her.