�� Perki was visibly relieved. � It was as if she had secretly feared all along that I wouldn't go through with it. � She became all business. � "First we need to take you to headquarters. � There we can introduce you to the other members of the resistance, show you the weapons we have stockpiled and give you a look at whatever else you might want to see. � That's always providing, of course, that we can elude the Annunaki long enough to get there."

�� I didn't like the sound of that. � It didn't bode well for our chances, I thought, if we had to take a desperate gamble just to get to their headquarters. � But maybe Perki, being a pacifist, was overstating the danger? � After all, pacifists by their very nature, are timid -- or so I thought then. � I decided not to say anything.� We'd just take the journey and see what happened.

�� By this time Weslee reappeared, coming back into the cottage from whatever errands Perki had sent him on and plopping himself down lackidaisically on the nearest chair. � I didn't question his absence, after all I didn't know enough about the past of this resistance to feel like I was any kind of expert on what needed or didn't need to be done. � Besides, Perki had shown no perfidy up to now and I just wanted to get on with the next phase without any unnecessary foot dragging. �

�� It was still light out. � I did wonder, though, if it might be better to wait for dark to make our move, in light of what Perki had mentioned in regards to the dangers of the journey ahead. � I said so.

�� Weslee and Perki both gave me bemused, amused looks.

�� " WHAT ? � What did I say?"

�� They looked at each other helplessly. � Finally Weslee volunteered an answer. "Uh, Doc, I don't know how to break this to you, but it doesn't ever get night here. I mean, sure, you get a nice long twilight that last for about four hours and that occurs every 12 hours, but --" he shrugged, not sure how to continue. � It was like he was taking exaggerated care, trying to explain night and day to a toddler -- something every one else took for granted.

�� I gaped at him and Perki for a few seconds. � Not ever get night? � What sort of odd orbit had Earth achieved in however many hundreds of years this had been until now?� WAS this even earth after all? � "I thought the day was kinda long," I said, faltering for an understanding. "I mean, I know I'd been here for awhile before I ever left Edgar. � Then it took us a few minutes to get here, we talked awhile, I slept -- it must have been many hours -- and now Perki and I talked for awhile until you reappeared, so I thought that sundown must not be too far away. But -- I ran out steam and just looked at them both helplessly. "Why?" was all I could think to add.

�� Then they gave it away by laughing in delight at my confused, muddled expression. � And I had it. � I had read so much science fiction that the answer should have been obvious. � Had I not been in this "odd" -- to the say the least -- situation, I would have been able to figure it out for myself. � It had to be orbital mirrors. � I said so, giving them both a look of remonstrance. � They verfied my statement. � I was mad at them for a moment, but then I reconsidered, seeing that they were unrepentant. � They had obviously been testing me, wanting to see how well I had adapted and how well I could think on my feet. � It was all very innocent, really, on their part. � Better that than waiting until the heat of battle. � But it also made me realize something else. � It said something more about Perki's pacifism. � If she and the others could not operate covertly, under the shield of darkness, then they were less timid than I'd thought.

�� " DUH!" I said, giving a reasonably good impression, I thought, of a moron. "Now, if you're happy, can we get on with this? � I mean, if it isn't going to get real dark, real soon, what's the plan? � How do we stay out of sight?" � But then, thinking about what I'd just said -- about staying out of sight -- I got the shivers. � I had blissfully walked here with Weslee in plain sight, in broad daylight, totally unaware of the danger I might have been in. � I turned to Weslee with a stern look on my face. "Wait a minute! � Why didn't you tell me that we might have been in danger on the way here?"

�� Weslee gave me a vastly unconcerned look. "You're here, ain't you? � So what's the problem, Doc? � You got pre-battle jitters?"

�� He had a point. � Sort of. � "Yeah, well I suppose I might, if I had ever been in a battle and knew what pre-battle jitters felt like." � And I reached out and gave him a comradely swat. � Had I done that in my pre-enhanced body I am sure that it would have been me who had felt it most. � Weslee was a big, well muscled brute -- despite his predilection towards laziness. � But in this case, to my surprise Weslee went sprawling off the couch! � I had just given him a tap!

�� "Hey Doc! Watch it, will you. � I bruise easy!"

�� "You want more, you lazy oaf?" I asked him, flexing my new found muscles, delighting in their power.

�� Weslee, as he got up from the floor, growled half heartedly as Perki interjected, "Boys! � Let's save it for the Annunaki!"

� I ignored Weslee as I thought about the fact that I WAS ready for the Annunaki, more ready than I'd realized. � To Perki I said, "Forget what I said about the cover of dark. � Let's just get to headquarters, shall we? � Maybe I won't even need those weapons you mentioned?"

�� "Oh, you'll need the weapons. alright, I wish you didn't, but you will." Perki said, grimly.

�� I wasn't going to let Perki's grim attitude slow me down. � Not much, anyway.� Of course I wasn't going to get overconfident, but I felt with my enhanced body and allies like Perki and Weslee and whoever else we were going to meet at headquarters that we stood a very good chance. � In fact because of all that this was the first time that I DID feel confident. � Prior to this, of course, I was simply prepared to give it a try, rather than live the rest of my life in the ignomy of failure by omission.� It was a good feeling, this feeling of confidence and purpose and surety that I had a very good shot and I was not going to let it be dampened down by anybody.

�� I was leading the way to the door of Perki's cottage, when something else occurred to me.� I was real new to this sort of thing or else it might have occurred to me earlier.� I stopped in my tracks and turned to face Perki.� "Uh, Perki, a question?" � I didn't wait for for her permission. � "Um, why didn't you have any weapons stashed here? � I mean, wouldn't it have been an obvious, logical thing to do? � That way we would have been safe on the way to headquarters and could've even defended ourselves here, if the need had arose."

�� "Well, it would've been a good idea except for one thing. � We don't have that many weapons stockpiled and they don't last forever, so we are saving them for the upcoming battle. � The temptation to use them for personal defense would've been too strong. � This way we have to use our wits. � That sharpens them and that is not bad at all." Perki said primly.

�� I was pretty sure I didn't like the sound of that. � It sounded to me like they were seriously underarmed and Perki was just trying to be philosophical about it. � Well, maybe we could do something about that? � In the meantime I was STILL not going to let my spirits be brought down.� I STILL felt good about this.� I didn't make an issue of it. � I simply nodded wisely as if I was in one hundred percent agreement with her and once again headed for the front door, leading by example.

�� Once outside, though, since I didn't know where we were, I let Weslee take the lead. � He stayed off the white sand path that he and I had traveled on in our way here, choosing instead to travel through the cover of the banyan grove for a long as we could. � When that ran out we crossed the road to a small patch of fir trees and traversed that. By this time "twilight" had fallen (the orbital mirrors were turned at an oblique angle for four hours everyday to more or less satisfy the diurnal/ nocturnal cycle of the wild life, so as not to get them too seriously stressed, Weslee explained as we trudged along -- not every life form had been tinkered with) and we made our way through a series of fields containing various sorts of vegetation tall enough to shield us in the uncertain light. When we came to the edge of the last field, in the distance, across a flat, chalky plain, what I saw there I wasn't sure I believed. "Is that what I think it is? � Could that be a gigantic Jack O' Lantern?" I asked, completely bemused.

�� "You're eyes don't deceive you." Perki said, turning to me with a wry grin on her face. "In order to keep the Annunaki distracted, the lengths we've had to go to are incredible."

�� "Yes, but a Jack O' Lantern?" I repeated, still not getting it.� "I thought a Jack O' Lantern was -- "

�� Weslee butted in, "Yeah, well, Doc, you see, the Annunaki aren't sure if it's a shrine or a carnival or something in between. � All they care about is that it seems to keep the people involved and away from unrest. � Of course, "seems" is the operative word since that --" he grinned "bearishly", showing lots and lots of canines, "is headquarters." � He paused a moment to preen proudly and then continued, "Boy, Doc, you should have seen the amount of research we had to do to come up with this. � But it paid off, huh? � Don't you think?"

�� Now I really WAS incredulous!

�� Perki gave Weslee an incredulous look of her own. "What do you mean "WE?" Weslee glared at her defiantly so she ignored him and took up the tale.�� "The mythos of a pyrrhic celebration of maleficent life after death really confounds the Annunaki, since they, like the Tuatha, are immortal and have no concept of life after death, whether it be maleficent OR meritorious. � "Thus --"

�� Weslee, still looking unabashed, butted in again. � "What she means, Doc, is that they just don't dig it! � She do run on, don't she?"

���I stifled a laugh at Weslee's self important act -- no doubt he'd had very little if nothing to do with the "reasearch. � Out loud I retorted � "I know what she means, you amiable oaf." and I gave Weslee another "comradely" punch, but this time pulling it. � I didn't need him sulking at an inopportune moment later on.

�� Perki gave me a sheepish grin. � She gave Weslee an exasperated look. � Weslee for his part exaggeratedly rubbed his arm as if I had really hurt him. � I suspected his feelings were hurt more than anything. �But I ignored them both for the moment. � I was feeling the time travel "lag" again. � They were talking about Halloween as if it were ancient, ancient history and yet in my time Halloween was only a few months away. � Plus, Perki had brought up again the issue of her being immortal. � If she WAS immortal then why did she care for a race that, in her perspective, would be here today and gone tomorrow? � All over again I wondered what chance I would ever have with her -- ESPECIALLY if it turned out that she WAS telling the truth and felt the bitter taste of irony in my mouth. � Why was it that when I FINALLY found the girl of my dreams that she had to be so complex and confounding? � WAS I as shallow as my ex-wife had claimed?� � But then I put it firmly out of mind. It was STILL something that would have to wait until later for resolution and would have to REMAIN that way. � For now we STILL needed to get to headquarters and get on with this revolution.

�� I wanted to run across the plain and get into headquarters and out of sight as quickly as possible. � But Perki pointed out that we should not hurry unduly so as to not attract any possible watchers. � We DID NOT want to seem to be in a hurry. � We just wanted to appear like pilgrims slowly, reverently approaching a holy site. � Or we could make it look like we were carnival goers slowly meandering towards the fun, Weslee added. � I suspected in either case that Weslee would have no problem with it since he didn't have a hurry bone in his body. � In any case I saw the wisdom of their advice and followed them at a slow pace.

�� If there WERE any watchers I never saw them. � Of course we wouldn't have. � But I didn't even feel any one watching me. � And sooner than I thought it possible -- at the pace we were going -- we were standing just a few feet away from the most incredible edifice I had ever seen. � It was incredible because it managed to seem forbidding, enticing and innocuous all at once. � The Jack O' Lantern was imposing up close. � It was easily thirty feet high and 180 feet in circumference. � (I determined the distance around it later, on a walk I took.) � But there was more than it's awesome size that made it seem forbidding. � There was the inexplicable fact that it was out in the middle of nowhere and the fact that it seemed so totally out of place in this world. � It was enticing because of the enigma of the place. � And it seemed innocuous because nothing seemed to be going on other than a pointless, albeit cheerful, celebration. � I could see why the Annunaki were confounded, stymied, bemused and had left it alone other than to watch it. � If I had seen it for the first time -- not in the company I was in -- what would I have made of it? � How much more confused would the Annunaki be?

�� "Ya like it, Doc?" � Weslee asked as he led the way grandly through the ten foot high demonically grinning mouth/door, grinning sarcastically the whole way.

�� The interior was comprised of a space that reached clear to the ceiling. � This "courtyard" was surrounded by rooms looking out and down into it. � The rooms on the ground floor opened directly into the courtyard. � The rooms on the second and third floors had balconies over looking the centr al open space. � There were several figures crossing the courtyard, going about whatever business they had.� The whole scene was lit from above and behind us by two large torches that served as the fiery eyes of the Jack O' Lantern. � But it was not the figures scurrying about nor the interior architecture of the place that caught and held my attention. � Instead it was the "altar" built near the back of the courtyard that was so fascinating. � The top of the altar held, in place of pride, the familiar figure of DEATH, complete with floor length black cloak, cowl and skeletal hand holding a scythe. � Below that and to Death's right was the figure of a witch riding a broom in a black sky against a full orange moon. � (The witch was obviously a hologram, but it was eerie nevertheless.) � Below and to the left of Death was a skull with a cornucopia for a mouth. � Spilling forth from the cornucopia was a cascade of candy.� From somewhere, like over a lost horizon, eerie, sweet music was playing. Arrayed in the front of the altar was a group of individuals which I thought, at first glance, were dressed in skeleton costumes. � But upon closer examination I saw that they had to be, must be individuals who were genetically engineered to wear their skeletons on the outside of the bodies. � I was about to ask Weslee what was up with these skeleton people, but Perki spoke up before I could. � It was like she'd read my mind. �

�� "We have to keep this going all the time. � We never know when the Annunaki might pop in for a visit and it has to look authentic. � Those in front of the altar have volunteered to be be our "priests". � It's not quite the freak show that you think. � Some of them like looking that way. � And about those that don't? � Well, we can always reverse it later." � She gave me an impish smile then and continued. "C'mon. � We need to talk to Hudzabee."

�� "Wait a minute!" � I said, tearing my eyes away from the spectacle in front of me, � "Isn't Hudzabee the traitor you spoke of earlier?"

�� "That's exactly why we need to talk to him," Perki said, smiling as sweetly as sun on a field of flowers.

�� Puzzled not by her remark, but instead by the enigmatic smile that followed it, nevertheless I started trailing after her. � Then I noticed Weslee wasn't following us. � I looked back to where he was still standing. � Weslee was looking like he was going to take a dive into the candy coming from the skull; he was making actual whimpering, longing noises, but Perki gave him a sweet smile too and he followed us.� However he WAS grumbling all the way.