Beyond Reality : the beginning of the end : Ethan path

The morning was gray. Rain fell gently through the trees of the forest, and fog shrouded the remains of the Blackwood Hotel. Ethan Cole stood before the ruins, staring at the place where he had spent the previous night. He no longer knew what to think. The hotel hadn't been normal. The guests hadn't been human. Clark Johnson had a scythe whose purpose he didn't understand. And the owner... had vanished before his eyes. Ethan sighed.

"I just want to go home."

Clark was standing nearby, silently smoking his cigarette. Ethan didn't notice the man who had appeared beside them. He was standing a few steps away. The same coat. The same watch. The same face he'd seen in photographs. But Ethan only realized he was there when he said, "A bad morning, isn't it?"

Ethan turned quickly. He froze. The man of nowhere. He stood calmly before him, looking at the burnt-out hotel as if he were taking in a beautiful view. He said, "Before anything else... I want to apologize."

Ethan just stared at him.

"For what?"

"For last time." The Man of Nowhere pointed to the wall.

"When I pushed you," he added. "I didn't mean to hit you so hard."

Ethan looked at him, puzzled.

"You stopped time."

Trevor smiled.

"I noticed."

"And you told me things I didn't half understand."

"I was in a hurry."

He paused. Then he said, "My name is Trevor Anderson."

This was the first time Ethan had heard the name of the man who had been haunting him since the beginning of the case. Ethan said, "So you're the Man of Nowhere."

"That's one of the names they gave me."

Trevor looked up at the distant fire.

"We're a bunch of humans." Ethan looked at him questioningly.

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"Humans?"

"Yes."

"After everything you saw last night, that's not the word I expected to hear."

Trevor laughed.

"The difference between us and ordinary humans is that we have talents." He paused.

"Talents that make us far superior to the average human." Ethan glanced at Clark. He was still smoking, seemingly oblivious to the conversation. Trevor said, "We're trying to become the most powerful beings on the planet."

"Trying?"

"Because we're not alone." He looked out at the forest.

"There are other sentient beings in this world."

Ethan didn't speak.

"Creatures to whom what you saw last night is commonplace. Some of them possess power beyond human comprehension." Then Trevor looked directly at him.

"And that's why we need people like you." Ethan said,

"What does that have to do with me?" Trevor smiled.

"Because you're one of them."

Ethan remained silent.

"Me?"

"Yes."

"And what is my power?"

Trevor didn't answer directly. "You've been using it for years." Ethan began to think. He reviewed his life. All the cases he'd solved. All the decisions he'd made. All the times he'd chosen a path without knowing why. Every time he'd said something and couldn't explain how he'd come to know it. Then he felt something strange. His intuition. He always arrived at the right conclusion. Not often. Always. Ethan said slowly,

—My intuition… Trevor looked at him.

—Go on.

—Is my intuition my ability?

Trevor smiled.

—I was going to say that.

Ethan paused. For the first time, he began to see his life differently. He wasn't just a good detective. There was something in his consciousness. Something that connected things without him knowing how. Trevor said,

—You have a very rare ability.

—And what's the use of it?

— The truth. Ethan didn't understand. Trevor explained:

"There are people throughout history you might know who possessed powers similar to yours. They almost changed history, but they were killed. They were considered a threat to other beings because they would have placed humans at the top of the species, even though humans are the weakest. For example, Nikola Tesla, and others with different stories, like Hitler and Hercules." Ethan was silent. Then he said, "Are you sure it will come to assassinating me?"

"Assassinating you?"

"I said that people like us could become a threat."

Trevor thought for a moment.

"Most likely not."

"Why?"

"Because you haven't done anything yet that would make you a threat."

Then he smiled.

"You're just a private investigator." Ethan looked down at the ground.

Then he asked, "And what's the purpose of this power anyway?"

"I don't have a single purpose."

"What do you mean?"

"If you join us, you won't be as constrained as you were."

"By money?"

"Money." —And the law?

—Also.

—And the responsibilities?

—You'll have more freedom than you can imagine.

Ethan paused.

He should have felt the offer was bad. A normal person would have considered it a clear danger. But something strange happened. His intuition didn't say it was good. And it didn't say it was bad. For the first time...he felt somewhere in between. No warning. No approval. Just a possibility. And that confused Ethan more than anything. He looked at Trevor.

—I think I'll accept.

Trevor laughed.

—You didn't really have much of a choice if you'd refused. We'd just leave you here. Ethan looked at the rain. —What?

—The trains aren't running today because of the weather.

Trevor pointed to the road.

—And the town is far away. Then he looked at Ethan.

—You'd have to walk back alone in this cold and rain.

Ethan fell silent. Then he gritted his teeth. "Fucking..." he muttered to himself. Clark was still standing nearby. Trevor said, "I'll ask Clark to give you a ride." Ethan glanced at Clark. Clark calmly took out his phone.

"Looks like I'm a driver now, too." Ethan gave him a cold look.

"Great."

Clark smiled.

"Don't thank me."

Then Trevor turned to Ethan.

"I'll come to your office tomorrow. At 10:00 a.m."

Then he added,

"We'll talk about everything." Ethan looked at Trevor, then at the burning hotel, then back at Clark. He had far more questions now than before. But he knew one thing. This was no longer just a case of a homeless man. He had stepped into a world he never knew existed. And when he left with Clark, he didn't know that Trevor hadn't chosen him just because of some unknown power, but because Ethan's ability... was something the group desperately needed.

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