Part 3

Calibration; the instruments are in hopeful anticipation for the overflowing movement of sound.

"Now you are sure this is the right address?" said Amelia as Doug looked over the rap sheet of loosely placed names that he is holding in his hands. He looked up and backs down at the sheet.

"Yes, this has to it this time... I mean, who would believe how many Cavanaugh's there are living in Illinois?" said Doug as he looks over at Amelia who is behind the wheel. "So, how are you going to explain this to them?" Amelia looked over to her assistant and gave him an inquisitive look. As their car pulls up to a large farmhouse just a few hours west of the Chicago city limits, bordering right on the Illinois/Iowa state line. Outside the house, a weathered man is driving his tractor along the edge of their dirt road. He is dressed in a red flannel shirt and blue overalls. The man stops the tractor engine and climbs down the tall rig. The two of them stopped their car opening their doors, as they climb out. He walks over towards them wiping his hands on his pant legs.

"Good afternoon folks. Is there something I can help you with?" said the man. They briefly exchanged handshakes, then Amelia caught a small glimpse of a young boys face that is quickly hidden behind the curtains inside the house.

"We've heard about your troubles lately... That is, that your son was involved in one of those strange storms." said Doug, the man looked around as if people were hiding all around the three of them.

"You were not sent here by some damn tabloid rag?! If so, then I have no comment! Especially, what happened during our family trip! Elijah has no special powers; there is nothing different about him! He is a completely normal four year old!" said the man as he furiously turns away from them and stormed towards the house. Amelia and Doug look at each other and quickly follow behind him walking up to the door; they knock hesitantly, a small girl answers, who could not possibly have been older than six years old that greeting them.

"Hello, and what is your name?" asked Amelia as she crotches down to be on the same level as the girl's.

"Her name's Marianne." said a woman who suddenly appears behind the girl. She gently grabs her by the shoulder and turns her around taking her out of the two's view. "I seem to have heard my husband already talk to you? Or am I mistaken? Elijah has no supernatural powers, he is no different than any other child." said the woman. As Doug begins to open his mouth Amelia quickly steps forward shoving her foot in the door.

"We're not from any tabloid... Actually, we're scientists that work for the United Nations. We have come to examine everyone that was even remotely near the phenomena that happened from 2 years ago. This is the United States and the United Nations way of giving a courtesy call to help the families who are still recuperating from any trauma or medical problems that were in direct correlation resulting from the events that occurred on October 19th, 1992." said Amelia, she glances back at Doug whose mouth is ajar.

"We didn't hear about any compensation effort?" said the woman.

"Well, that's because just like the phenomena itself... the general public hasn't been out rightly informed. Because everyone would claim to have been afflicted in some way. But we are here now so if you would please, we drove several hours to find you." said Amelia with a weary smile. The woman's cold exterior shed slightly as she turns and walks into the dining room. Amelia and Doug proceeded to enter and walked into the house very cautiously. The house was very warm and forthcoming, most of all it gave both of them a sense of ease, even with all the tension that they had met with thus far. The woman waved them into the dining room. Where they all took a seat at the table as the woman then goes into the kitchen for a moment. A few moments later, she returned carrying a pitcher of lemonade and three glasses. She poured them each a glass setting them by the person; she took a seat across from her guest. Now, what kind of compensation are we speaking about? Elijah is a good child," she begins to lean in close. Saying this next portion in a voice barely above a whisper, "but ever since that night he has been acting... well, more and more different? He began to talk to himself, but not in your usually way, like the usual imaginary friend. No, whomever he speaks to is a very serious person or thing, since he won't tell me or my husband what he speaks to... who ever it is, it tells him some very awful and frankly disturbing things. Some business about how all the human race is a doomed people, he says that unless he takes up some kind of mantel and defend the Guarnizioni dello Zoion. I hardly believe anything he is even talking about... I mean, all boy's believe that they want to be Superman or Spider-man, but then he began to act strange when certain people would walk by us, whether it was at our church, or in the grocery store... It happened in almost any place we go together really, he gets this 'tickle', he calls it, and some strange vibe and he goes into seizures. I'm actually at my wits end about this whole thing... and it's not like this doesn't run on my side of the family. There have been many cases of dementia but this is different, I can feel it in my bones. This has something to do with that strange storm. It has taken away my little boy..." she pauses a moment and looks at her daughter who is playing by her self in the family room, "Replacing him with some... someone I don't even recognize." Amelia reached across the table and covered the women's hands with her own.

"It's okay. We are here to assist you. I need to ask now, if you would let him come with us. I know that this is a lot to ask of you. But we are just trying to figure out what exactly has happened too. Your son might very well be the key to solve this mystery, at least I believe. He can help save, not only himself but also the many others who have been affected just the same as him. We actually run a small institute for the purpose of helping people in your son's predicament. If you'd allow it, we could make preparations for him to come and we can do a few small harmless tests." said Amelia, just as the husband comes into an ears shot to them. "But of course all will happen in due course. We definitely would not want to upset or divide your family. We are just here to help you and help your son." The woman looked confused at the two of them.

"You work at an institute for others like my son?" said the woman. Amelia knew this woman was smart and she may have just caught on to her fib.

"Well, we are just starting out. Your son will do more good with us then he could ever do living out here. Our school will help him understand the changes that have taken place in his body but, also, it will help us better understand what has happened to him." said Amelia and the woman took a moment thinking over what she's just been told. Amelia and Doug stand up, assuming the worst they begin to escort themselves out of the Cavanaugh's home. They walked without saying a word past the grim looking husband. The little girl waved to the two of them as they opened the front door.

They were getting into their rental car, as the woman begins to make her way barefoot out to them. She walked right up to Amelia and looked her square in the eye. "I'll speak with my husband... I should also mention that after the incident Elijah seems to have grown smarter? If that is at all possible?" then she turns around and begins to walk back towards the house.

"Wait!" said Amelia as she quickly digs in the car searching for something. She stood up seconds later and was holding a scrap of notebook paper, she pulls out a mechanical pencil from her pocket hastily jotting down something. The woman turned as Amelia handed her the scrap of paper.

"What's?" said the woman as Amelia already cut her off.

"That is my telephone number. When you and your husband have reached a decision, please give me a call and let us know." said Amelia as the woman looks down at the paper and turned back around saying nothing else to the two of them. Amelia held a confidant smile as she got back into the car. Doug was already seat belted in when she noticed his semi-irritated glare, she at him and tries to look as coy as possible.

"So, when were you going to tell me we are a school?" said Doug.

"You know, that we don't... Not at the moment. But we will, very soon." as Amelia starts the car and drives away from the casual looking farmhouse. She reached down and pulled the car phone up dialing as best she could while driving, she held the receiver to her ear as she began to call in some personal favors.

Two months later.

Amelia and Doug stand outside the newly furnished Lewis Dodgeson Carroll Institute. She beamed as a proud mother would over some achievement of her child. The building had been constructed thanks in a large part to the McAllen group; the building would be a nice taxable subsidiary to those that held a great deal of influence, the McAllen group which runs a vast amount of the financial and legal workings in locations all around the world. Professor Hamilton-Carroll is now the acting supervisor to a school she ultimately just made up as a way to comfort a parent who needed consoling. But on this day, it also marked a very large turning point in her late husband's research. Opening the way to a much bigger mystery, which at the moment was being escorted to them. She continued to ideally muse over her own thoughts.

Elijah Ridley Cavanaugh, who would have been celebrating his fourth birthday yesterday, but his parents had cancelled any sort of festivities to make the flight out to California. He looked as scared as a child would when arriving to kindergarten for the very first time. Eli desperately held onto his mother's hand as they were escorted into the meeting room where Amelia and Doug were already waiting. The child's eyes spoke volumes of a loneliness that a child at his age should never have to feel. Amelia knelt and gently touched Eli on the shoulder. "Hello, my name is Amelia. What's your name?" said Amelia. The little boy's eyes never left the floor. Very sheepishly the boy finally replies.

"My name... is Eli..." said the boy as Amelia gently smiles and rubs the tuft of his hair. The boy shyly smiles and looks up for a moment, quickly making eye contact with her before returning his gaze back to the ground.

"Well, if you'd please come this way... We have a lot of things to cover and we'd like to show you as many points about the institute before you have to leave." said Doug. As the woman continued to hold a polite smile, she nods her head graciously, not really caring about what he was saying.

"Yes, I'd like that." said the woman. Amelia stood up and they began to walk down the large hallway. They walked a good twenty feet before Amelia's curiosity got the better of her.

"It was too bad your husband couldn't make the trip out with you?" the woman shook her head as they continued to walk.

"Oh, it wasn't that he couldn't make it he just didn't want to be here to see the school." Amelia caught the surprised glance she saw from Doug. But acted like she had heard this reply before.

Now they sat in a sound proofed room, a tinted piece of glass stood between the three adults and the child that was playing in the other room. Eli was playing with a bright red fire truck and a lime green helicopter the only toys that the waiting room had to offer. Amelia, Doug and the woman sat around a small round table. They each had a mug of coffee. They needed to discuss some other matters with the boy's mother. "So you'll be taking care of all of his needs right, he'll be safe in this place right?" Amelia gave her a reassuring smile as she slide across the table a clipboard with a stack of pages on it.

"Everything will be provided for him. We'll make any arrangements for you to visit at anytime you would like?" the woman read over the first couple pages and signed on the appropriate parts. She flipped through another couple pages and looked up at the two of them shaking her head.

"No, it will be much better. In both my husband and my case if we just cut our ties now or should I saw our losses? He's already grown too attached to me. As of now, we're having all the more trouble trying to break it off. We've been ignoring him for the last few months now... I want him to not ever think of me as his mother. My son vanished the night those damn lightning bolts struck the Earth. I think God wants me to give up my son. Plus I can feel at ease knowing that... that monster will never come near my family again. He'll be fine in your hands. So, I have no further worries." as she slide the clipboard back across the table. "Take care of him." Amelia looked puzzled and stands at the same moment along with the woman.

"Take care of him? He's your son... You're at least going to say goodbye right?" said Amelia. The woman shook her head and began to walk to the door without replying a single word. Doug stood and began to go after the woman. "Doug, please don't go after her."

"Why not? That's the boy's biological mother! She can't treat her own son like that!" Amelia grabbed Doug's shirt.

"Did I ever tell you my mother abandoned me? I was nine... she left with her new boyfriend, leaving my dad and me.

Amelia thought back to when it had all happened. It was a Saturday pretty early at that, she had come down in her nightie and half awake saw her mom dressed in a long leather coat. "Mommy where are you going?" asked the young Amelia. Her mother turned and as she slid on a pair of rose tinted glass, picked up a maroon leather handbag.

"Honey, mommy's going away." said her father, Amelia began to walk towards her mother. But was stopped by her manicured fingernails that pushed her away.

"Mommy, when are you coming back." said the young Amelia the woman smiled as a well built man in very tight closes walked up and began to kiss Amelia's mothers neck.

"I'm not going to be coming back. Mommy doesn't need Daddy anymore. I'm through being with Poi Dexter's." suddenly Amelia's father came barreling down the stairs. He was still in his pajamas with a night coat over him.

"Gia, what are you doing?" he asked. She laughed and shoved him back.

"Get the hint Tom. I don't associate with losers like you! I only married your pathetic ass for the money you were making from that stupid book you wrote. But know your bank accounts dried up like you pathetic sex life. I've got no reason left to stay with such a pathetic man. So Febricio here is taking me to Italy with him." Amelia tried to hug her mother but was pushed back. "Stupid little bitch! You broke one of my nails!" as he leaned forward and backhanded her to the ground.

"Gia! That's your daughter!" said her father. The woman straightened up and sneered at the man.

"Not anymore!" said Gia, as the two turned and left, her father ran after them. They continued to fight as Amelia picked herself up of the carpeted floor. Rubbing her cheek, which still stung with the fresh strike, she had received.

"My dad stopped being a father the day she left... he became so consumed with his research." as before she was rubbing her cheek.

"Professor... I'm..." said Doug. Amelia caught herself and snapped out of the moment. She walked up to the tinted glass and looked out across the large empty room to watch the child, she watched as Eli sat on the floor playing quietly all by himself the light from the afternoon sun flooded the room with light. "What are we going to do?" as he walked up to the window, Amelia looked over at him as he gestured his own head towards the child. Amelia looked back a moment to the table, her eyes falling to the clipboard.

"She's left the care of him up to us. We are his legal guardian's now." said Amelia as they both turned and watched the child as he continues to play ideally alone.