The Incomprehensible Being

by submission
July 20th, 2008

Author : Cal Glover-Wessel

There is a being, I have witnessed that, through some strange twist of evolutionary fate, is able to move any which way through time, but through space can only move unceasingly forward. It lives a life parallel to our own, one where “day” and “year” and “month” have no meaning, but “wall” and “tree” are the true obstacles. Material possessions mean nothing to it, because when it moves, the object will either cease to exist, or never have been created. Rarely do you see it, and when you do your mind passes it off as little more then a flicker in the light, an optical illusion. I saw it, though, and recognized it for what it was.

“Will you walk with me?” I asked.

The being laughed and said “If I were to walk with you, in the sense that I use the phrase, this conversation would be meaningless to you, seemingly with out order or sense. See, now it is you who must walk with me.”

I did so, making sure to choose a path that would remain clear for the a good long time, so as not to cause the being any distress. We walked for a time at a steady pace, for the being was unable to do anything but.

After a while, I spoke.

“It amazes me that something could be created that could simply travel to any point in time it wishes, a power far greater then I possess.”

“Nonsense,” it replied, “I envy your abilities to step sideways, or even to stop. Ahh to stop! That would be beautiful. You see, I am rarely able to fully appreciate where I am.”

“Much,” I assured it, “Is the same for humans, only slightly different, you see.”

“I suspected as much.”

We walked in silence, broken only by the sounds of the ground underneath our feet.

Suddenly it spoke.

“When you move about as you do, is there ever danger of moving in such a way that could compromise your existence?”

“Of course,” I replied, “if I don’t pay attention, I could slip and injure myself, I could fall down a pit, get struck by another moving object.”

It seemed fascinated at the possibility that two moving objects would ever collide, but before it was able to ask more questions about it, I asked my own.

“Is there a danger for you as well?” an oddly stated question, I know, but its hard to find your words in such a peculiar situation.

“Well, yes, there is always the danger of going to a time when you are not. Or coming to a place when something else already is, because you will cancel each other out.”

“I see…”

“No you don’t, but I will pretend you do, for both our sakes.”

We walked in silence again, this time longer then the last. On our path before us, I spotted a tree. My time was short, and this brought another question to mind.

“How will you get around it?”

“Simple, I will just go to a time when it isn’t there and continue on my way.”

When it said it like that, it was simple.

“I must be going now.” it stated.

“Good luck, then. Will we ever meet again?”

It glanced at me, briefly, for the first time on our walk.

“We always do.”

And with that, it began to fade.