In Egypt, Number-Three and three male Cylons were sitting at a table in an eating establishment. They were casually eating their meal while discussing their plans when a local policeman carrying the wanted bulletins of all twelve model Cylons had dragged a chair to their table and sat down.
Each Cylon gave the man a look as if he had lost his mind before one of the male Cylons said, "You weren't invited to sit with us."
The policeman threw the wanted bulletins on the table and said, "I invite myself."
Number-Three saw the picture on the top page and as she picked the papers up, the male Cylon said, "You don't have an idea as to who you're dealing with."
As Number-Three flip through each bulletin, the policeman said, "I know that the Americans had put out a sizeable bounty on each of your heads and that each one of you is worth more to the Americans alive. You must have valuable information that they want."
Number-Three handed the papers to the Cylon on her left as she asked the policeman, "You think that the Americans want us because of what we know?"
"Why else would you be worth ten times more alive than dead?" asked the policeman.
"Are you here in an effort to collect the bounties?" asked one of the male Cylons.
"I have no desire to help the Americans no matter how sizable the bounty is," said the policeman.
"Then why are you here?" asked Number-Three.
"There are people who would be more than happy to turn each one of you over for the bounty; however, I know where you can go to be safe," said the policeman.
"Why would you want to help us?" asked one of the male Cylons.
"I believe that we can help each other," said the policeman. He then stood up. "Most likely the four of you will want to talk among yourselves, so I'll give all of you some time to do that. I'll be at the bar when you four are done talking."
As the policeman was walking away, Number-Three said, "The Americans know about us."
"How did they find out?" asked the Cylon who was looking at the wanted bulletin.
"How they found out is unimportant and for now, it might benefit us to go along with that policeman," said another male Cylon.
"I agree that we should go along with him," said Number-Three. "At least until we can figure out who might want to collect on the bounties." Number-Three stood up. "I'll let our new friend know that we'll go with him." She then walked away.
In Beth's apartment, Beth was adding her dirty clothes with Spence's clothes. Alicia was logging on the Internet again to check the site. As Alicia was clicking onto the site, she heard Beth calling out, "Hey, answer my phone for me."
Alicia stood up and reached for the phone as it began to ring. She then answered with, "You reached the phone number of Beth O'Brian's. I'm Alicia."
"Alicia, this is Dr. Rebecca Eisen, Dr. O'Brian's supervisor," she said. "Is Dr. O'Brian available?"
Beth was stepping into the kitchen before Alicia was able to respond. While staring at Beth she said, "Beth is walking into the room now, Dr. Eisen. Hold on a second."
Beth put down the basket on a chair before taking the phone and saying, "Dr. Eisen, please tell me that you're calling to wish me a Merry Christmas and not calling me into work early."
Rebecca slightly laughed and said, "You're safe. I'm not calling you into work. I am having car trouble and I was hoping that you can come and give me a ride."
"Of course, Dr. Eisen," said Beth. "Where are you?"
"I'm at the airport's parking lot," said Rebecca.
Alicia saw the slight confused expression on Beth's face just before Beth said, "I'll be there as soon as I can. Bye."
As Beth was hanging up the phone Alicia asked, "What's going on?"
"My supervisor is at the airport and her car won't start…" Beth was able to get out.
"Did she leave town for Christmas?" asked Alicia.
"I don't see how she had time to go anywhere," said Beth. "Anyway, I told her that I'll come and get her. Do you want to come with me?"
"Sure, I'll come," said Alicia.
Forty-five minutes later, Beth had stopped her Jeep behind Rebecca's car. Rebecca saw that Beth had blocked the driveway. Although there wasn't anyone who wanted to drive passed Beth, Rebecca stepped up to the driver's door and gestured for Beth to roll down the window.
Once the window was down, Rebecca said, "I'm waiting on my sister and her daughter to get back from the bathroom so you should park your vehicle."
Alicia saw an available parking space a few spots up and said as she gestured to it, "There's a spot over there."
"I'll be waiting over there," said Beth. She then drive to the spot and parked her car.
Beth and Alicia were only waiting for a short time when Rebecca, Rebecca's sister and her eleven-year-old niece were approaching Beth's Jeep. Beth saw that Rebecca and her sister were carrying suitcases. She got out and opened up the very back for the suitcases.
Once the suitcases were in the back and everyone were in the vehicle with their seatbelts on, Rebecca said as she pointed to her sister, "Dr. O'Brian, this is my sister, Stacy and her daughter, Brandy."
"Most people call me Beth, and this is my friend, Alicia," she said.
Beth saw the strange stare that Brandy was giving her as Stacy said, "It's nice to meet you two." Stacy faced Brandy before she continued to say. "Brandy, say hi to Dr. O'Brian and her friend."
Beth saw that something else was on Brandy's mind when she just said, "Hi."
"Sweetie, you look as though you want to say or ask me something," said Beth.
"When I get old enough, can join yours and Alicia's group?" asked Brandy.
"What group is that?" asked Alicia.
"The group that you and Dr. O'Brian will be forming," said Brandy.
"Sweetheart, what did I tell you while we were in the bathroom?" asked Stacy.
"It's okay, Mom, Dr. O'Brian and Alicia won't become bothered by me," said Brandy.
"Dr. O'Brian, when I told you that I believe in psychics through a personal experience… well, my niece Brandy is also a psychic."
"Also?" Stacy questioned in a shocked manner. "Dr. O'Brian, are you or your friend a psychic?"
Before anyone was able to respond, Brandy said, "They're both are psychics, Mom."
"I don't consider myself a psychic," said Alicia.
"The president of the United States will," said Brandy. "You'll have to register along with the other psychics in the coming year."
Alicia saw that the expression on Beth's face was as if the cat was out of the bag. Alicia gave Beth a serious look and asked, "What is Brandy talking about, Beth? And don't tell me that you don't know because I can see it in your eyes that you do."
Beth sighed before saying, "The people in the house and senate are seeing a growing number of psychics throughout the U.S. and they're concerned that we'll start committing criminal acts while using our ability. To help prevent that, all the psychics in the U.S. will be required to register their ability in the near future. I learned about that last night when I went to Washington D.C. and I didn't say anything because of that non-disclosure agreement that I signed. I'm only telling you now because Brandy had already told you most of it."
"Brandy, what group will Beth and I be forming?" asked Alicia.
"Dr. O'Brian doesn't trust the politicians to do the right thing and you and she will form a group to keep the government from using us as puppets," said Brandy. Beth slightly grinned. "And I want to be part of that group."
Alicia grinned and said, "That's definitely sounds like Beth."
"I have to agree that it does sound like me, but I wouldn't put running a group over my medical career," said Beth.
"You do help form it, Dr. O'Brian, but Alicia will be the one to take charge of it and helps it to grow," said Brandy. "So can I join your group when I'm old enough?"
"It seems to me that you would also be one of the cofounders, Brandy," said Alicia. Brandy just grinned. "Beth and I can't very well keep out a cofounder."
"Brandy, with you and your mom living in Seattle, it's going to be difficult for you to join any group that Dr. O'Brian and Alicia will be forming," said Rebecca.
"Rebecca, that's what I was about ready to discuss with you when your car wouldn't start," said Stacy.
"You and Brandy are moving here?" Rebecca quickly questioned.
"I want your okay before we do," said Stacy.
"Of course you have my okay," said Rebecca. "What about your job, though?"
"I'm just a veterinarian's assistant and I can apply for a similar job here," said Stacy.
"Well, I'm going to start the Jeep and go," said Beth.
Rebecca nodded to Beth and as Beth was starting the Jeep, Rebecca said, "Stacy, you and Brandy will stay with me until you can find a job and a place of your own."
Stacy grinned and said, "I accept your offer." Beth pulled out of her spot and drove away. "Alicia, why don't you consider yourself as a psychic if you have a psychic ability?"
"I define a psychic as seeing future or past events and I can't do either one," said Alicia. "The only things I see are spirits that haven't crossed over into the light."
"You're a medium?" Rebecca questioned.
"I am," said Alicia. "And although Beth is my best friend, you'll never see me visiting her at the hospital."
"I can see ghosts too and I also hate hospitals," said Brandy.
"Dr O'Brian, you do consider yourself as a psychic though?" Stacy questioned.
"I do," said Beth. "I don't see ghosts… well not normally anyway, but I do get visions of the past or future from touching items or people."
"There's something else you can do too, but I'm having trouble understanding to what it is," said Brandy.
"I actually have the ability to astral project," said Beth.
"What is that?" asked Brandy.
Before Beth had a chance to answer, Stacy said, "It is similar to an out of body experience, sweetheart; except that the out of body experience is done on purpose."
"But you don't come close to dying though?" Brandy questioned.
"No," said Beth. "I do it through meditation."
"Can you teach me how to do it?" asked Brandy.
"I'm not sure if it's something that I can be taught," said Beth.
"Can you try?" asked Brandy.
"Not without your mom and your aunt's agreed upon permission," said Beth.
"You don't do anything dangerous to astral project, do you, Dr. O'Brian?" asked Rebecca.
"I just meditate in a quiet location," said Beth. "All I can do for Brandy is show her how to meditate and what I do to astral project. For Brandy to astral project, she first has to be capable of doing it."
"How did you learn how to astral project?" asked Brandy.
"I learned that I was able to astral project by accident when I was eighteen," said Beth. "I was attempting to help out the police to find a kidnapped five-year-old boy. I wasn't able to get a vision and someone suggested that I meditate to get one. So as I was meditating along with holding a recent picture of the boy I astral projected to him."
"Mom, will you allow Dr. O'Brian to show me what she does to astral project?" asked Brandy.
"As long as Dr. O'Brian is okay with it, I'm okay with it," said Stacy.
"I'll be happy to do it, but I would like for at least Brandy to call me Beth and not Dr. O'Brian," she said. "Also I can't do it today."
Brandy slightly grinned and said, "Okay, Beth."
"The way that you rather be called Beth over Dr. O'Brian, I'm surprise that you don't insist that the patients call you Beth," said Rebecca.
"Dr. Lopez saw as to how emotionally attach I can become with the patients and he basically made me promise him that I wouldn't get too informal with the patients," said Beth.
"Smart move on his part," said Rebecca.
"Well, I pretty well use to be calling Dr. O'Brian at the hospital, but I still prefer to be called Beth outside the hospital," she said. "Anyway, Dr. Eisen, were do you live?"
After Rebecca told Beth her address, Alicia quickly said, "You live down the road from Beth's Aunt Melissa's house."
"How far am I from your aunt's house?" asked Rebecca.
"Your house is about twelve houses north from my aunt's house," said Beth.
The drive to Rebecca's house took forty minutes from the airport and the series of conversations they had, had remained general. Once Rebecca, Stacy and Brandy were walking toward Rebecca's house with their suitcases, Beth and Alicia waved bye to them just before Beth drove off.
Within twenty minutes, Beth returned home. Alicia accompanied Beth to her apartment and then to the laundry room as Beth carried her basket. Beth had her cell phone clipped to her pants.
Kelly was alone in the laundry room while doing her laundry and didn't see or hear when Beth and Alicia walked in. Beth was the first to notice in Kelly's face that she was concentrating on a disturbing thought while running on automatic as she folded her freshly clean clothes.
Alicia noticed Kelly's face just as Beth was asking, "Kelly, are you okay?"
Kelly slightly jumped from before startled. She quickly turned towards Beth. She glanced at Alicia for only a second before resting her stare on Beth and asking, "I'm sorry, what?"
"What's wrong?" asked Beth.
"Carrie, my sister, was told the test results of her second opinion," said Kelly. "The doctor echoed the first doctor's diagnoses, but continued to say that the odds of her surviving were less than forty percent. The first doctor said that the odds were in Carrie's favor and now Carrie's and I don't know what to do. Should we get a third opinion?"
"Are both doctors saying the same thing as for treatment?" asked Beth.
"They are," said Kelly.
"Getting a third opinion is up to you, but if there're two doctors telling you the same thing as for treatment then most likely the third doctor will tell you the same thing as for treatment," said Beth. "I don't know that for sure though. May I ask what the treatment is?"
"Surgery to remove the tumor followed by chemotherapy," said Kelly. "Beth, I know you're an intern, but is there anyway that you can get in on that operation?"
"At what hospital is your sister in?" asked Beth.
"She in county hospital," said Kelly.
"At county, they might allow me to sit up in the gallery and watch, but I doubt that they would allow me to scrub in," said Beth. "Has the surgery been scheduled?"
"It is; it's scheduled for December twenty-eighth for ten in the morning," said Kelly.
"I'll talk to my supervisor to get that morning off so I can be at the county hospital during the operation," said Beth.
Kelly nodded and said, "Thanks."
"You're welcome," said Beth. She slightly raised the basket. "Anyway, I'm here to do my laundry."
"Of course," said Kelly. "I'll be done once I get the last of these clothes folded and put in the basket."
Beth walked over to two available washers and loaded them. As she was putting in the detergent, her cell phone began ringing. As she was finishing with the detergent, she looked at the number on the cell phone and recognized the number as being from the precinct. From the number she wasn't sure if it was Brandon or Spence so she answered with, "Hello."
"Hey, beautiful, it's me, Spence," he said.
"Hey, honey, what's up?" asked Beth as she started the two washers.
"Well, I just got off the phone with Wyatt and he a little worried about coming to Christmas dinner without a jock cup," said Spence as Beth was walking away from the machines to get away from the noise.
Beth questioned in a defensive manner, "Did he tell you why?"
"He did and he does have a habit of speaking inappropriately to woman," said Spence. "By no means am I condoning Wyatt's behavior, but he had apologized to me for it and then asked me to try to persuade an acquittal in his behalf."
"Well I felt that he was disrespecting you more than anything, so confessing and apologizing to you for what he said to me is a good start for that acquittal," said Beth.
"Well if this helps, I believe that he is sorry and he knows not to talk to you inappropriately again," said Spence.
"It does help and if you talk to him before me, tell him that the verdict is in and he has been acquitted," said Beth.
"I'll let him know," said Spence as Beth noticed Kelly leaving the room with her clean laundry. Spence then started a casual conversation.
Once Kelly had reached her floor, she saw a well-dressed man who was in his mid-thirties knocking on Beth's door. As she was approaching the man, she said, "She's not in her apartment."
The man faced Kelly and immediately saw her holding a laundry basket. He then politely asked, "Where can I found Ms. Kimberly O'Brian?"
"Why are you looking for her?" asked Kelly.
"That's a private matter," said the man.
"By you calling her Ms. Kimberly O'Brian, I know that you two had never met before," Kelly was able to get out.
"What makes you so sure," the man quickly questioned.
"She goes by Beth so if you two have met then you would have known that," said Kelly. "She's also a doctor… a surgical intern and you called her Ms. instead of doctor."
The man slightly grinned and said, "You're right, we haven't met, but it is important that I talk with her. So please if you know where she's at, will you tell me?"
"Her brother and boyfriend are cops," said Kelly.
"I swear, I'm not here to harm her, and if this helps, my name is William Starling the third," said the man as he was taking out a business card from his wallet. "Here's my card."
Kelly looked at the card and quickly questioned, "You're a president of an internet company that's located in Canada?"
"I am," said William as he flipped to a picture ID from his wallet. "Here's my ID and I have other prove of identification if you would like to see another one."
"That won't be necessary," said Kelly. "She's in the laundry room. The laundry room is in the basement."
"Thank you," said William.
Kelly just nodded. She and William then went their respective ways.
Beth had been off the phone for only a few seconds and had begun a conversation with Alicia when William walked into the laundry room. Alicia was the first one to see William walking in and gazing the room as if he was a lost child while looking for anything familiar.
Beth turned to see what Alicia was curiously staring at and as she did, William asked as he approached, "Which one of you lovely ladies is Dr. O'Brian?"
Beth gave William and curious look before saying, "That would be me." She gestured towards Alicia. "This is Alicia Baxter and you are?"
"I'm William Starling the third," he said. "Can we talk in private?"
"If Prof. Greenwood sent you then you can tell him that my answer is still no," said Beth.
"I don't know a Prof. Greenwood and no one had sent me," said William as he pulled out another business card from his wallet. He held out his card for Beth to take. "Here's is my card." As Beth was taking the card she was given a vision. William saw her in the trance like state. "Dr. O'Brian, are you okay?"
Alicia looked at Beth and said, "Give her a few seconds."
"What's happening to her?" asked William. William saw Beth coming out of her vision before Alicia had a chance to answer. "Dr. O'Brian, are you okay?"
Beth nodded and said, "I'm okay."
"Why did you freeze the way you did?" asked William.
"I'm a psychic," said Beth. "I get visions from time to time and I got one of you carrying your daughter into a hospital after she got hit by a car."
William had a stunned expression for a brief moment before shaking it off and saying, "That day was the scariest time of my life. Luckily her injuries weren't as bad as it appeared."
"It's a relief to hear that your daughter is fine," said Beth.
William slightly grinned and said, "She is. Anyway can we talk in private about why I'm here?"
"Alicia is my best friend so what you want to say to me can be said in front of her," Beth said just as she glanced at the business card. "You're from Canada?"
"I am, and I'm here about you responding to a discussion thread on an Internet with the screen name of PureZodia," said William.
"You traveled from Canada just because she responded to a discussion thread?" Alicia questioned
"Actually I was in Chicago Illinois on a business meeting a few hours ago and I came here straight from there," said William.
"A business meeting on Christmas day?" Beth quickly questioned.
"It's true," said William. "I had a meeting with Carroll Yates and if it wasn't for the fact that he was born after Charles Dickens had wrote his famous Christmas Carol, I would swear that the Christmas Carol was about him."
Beth grinned as Alicia asked, "How were you able to track Beth's IP address so quickly?"
Beth held out the business card for Alicia to take and said, "He a president of an Internet company." Alicia took the card. "He's capable of getting that information at his whim in matter of minutes "
William grinned and said, "You had over simplified the ease I can get that information, but yes I do have access to certain information. Anyway, that thread you responded to was one that I started. Now, are you still willing to discuss this in front of your friend?"
"Alicia knows about it and why I responded the way I did," said Beth. "Since you tracked me down and inquiring about it, I actually have a question for you, but the questioned will sound a little bizarre if you don't know anything about it."
"What's your question?" asked William.
"First of all, you should know that something was discovered in the arctic underneath the snow," said Beth.
"I know all about it, Dr. O'Brian," said William. "It was one of my company's satellites that found it. The satellite was also designed from the information that was given to the military by the friendly voice from the twelve colonies of Kobol. So what is your question, Dr. O'Brian?"
"I'm pretty certain that what was found is a crashed battlestar," said Beth. "Are you a descendant from a survivor of that battlestar?"
William grinned and said, "I am. To prove it, I have journals of my Great-great-great grandfather that were written before and after the crash."
Beth grinned and said, "I don't need proof."
"Dr. O'Brian, you are from the colonies, aren't you?" asked William.
"You can call me Beth and you're wrong about that assumption," she said. "I'm half Irish from my dad's side and on my mom's side, I'm French, Italian, German…"
"You don't have to tell me each nationality, Beth," said William. "And if you're not from the colonies then how do you know what you know?"
"Eleven years ago I was abducted and cloned by aliens," Beth began. William just gave her a worried look. "After I was released, these aliens were involved in an accident that killed the aliens and left my clone and six other clones in stasis for ten years. One year and three weeks ago, the crew of the Battlestar Galactica found that alien ship and revived the clones…"
"How do you know this?" asked William.
"Have you heard of astral projection?" asked Beth.
William said in a slightly skeptical tone, "I have."
"Well, I'm able to astral project and spiritually I have visited Kim… my clone while she was on the Galactica," said Beth. "Kim has the same psychic ability that I have and we can see each other's spirit."
"That's incredible," said William. Beth just grinned. "So am I right to say that you are the friendly voice from the twelve colonies of Kobol and there is no one from the colonies on Earth?"
"True to both, but the commander of the Battlestar Galactica is leading refugees of the twelve colonies to Earth as we speak," said Beth.
"Refugees?" Williams quickly questioned.
"In those journals that you have, were there any wars mentioned?" asked Beth.
"There is something in the first journal of rebellious robots known as the Cylons, but there was no mention of any wars," said William.
"That was a war and the Cylons destroyed the colonies," said Beth. William looked at Beth in a shocked manner. "Cmdr. Adama is now attempting to lead the survivors of the colonies to Earth."
"My god," said William.
"To top that off, there are human-like Cylons on Earth," Alicia added.
Beth just gave Alicia a look as if not to be so free with information as Williams questioned, "Cylons are now created to look human?"
"The short answer is yes," said Beth.
"What's the long answer," asked William.
"Cylons are now organic and it is difficult to distinguish between them and humans unless you know what to look for," said Beth. "By them appearing human was how they were able to infiltrate the colonies and destroyed them before they knew what hit them."
"How long ago?" asked William.
"Six years ago," said Beth. "They're now blindly searching for Earth."
"They don't know how to find Earth?" William questioned.
"They don't," said Beth.
"And you can communicate with your clone by way of astral projection?" William again questioned.
Beth gave William a curious look and said, "Her name is Kim and yes."
"I have to recheck my Great-great-great grandfather's journals, but I think that I recall seeing a set of coordinates of Earth in one of them," said William.
"So you can give me the coordinates of Earth in terms that Cmdr. Adama will understand so I can pass it onto Kim," said Beth.
William grinned and said, "That's my thoughts."
"Cool," said Beth.
"Once I get home, I'll reread the journals," said Williams. "So I can get you that information, how can I privately reach you?" Williams stored Beth's cell phone number and the phone number to her apartment into his cell phone as Beth told him the numbers "Well, it was a pleasure and slightly educational to meet you two lovely ladies…"
"Wait, I have a few questions," said Alicia.
"What kind of questions?" asked William.
"My first questioned is, how long has that battlestar been in the arctic?" asked Alicia.
"And what is the battlestar's proper name?" Beth added.
"I believe that the ship was the Battlestar Exes," said William. "It crashed on Earth in the year of 1877."
"Were the Wright brothers descendants of the survivors?" Alicia questioned.
"Oh, you think that my Great-great-great grandfather and the other survivors had a hand on certain technology, don't you?" asked Williams. Alicia just grinned. "Well, as far as I know, the development of planes, cars and computers were all created by people on Earth; however, they were able to nudge certain technology ideas in certain directions."
"What do you mean that they nudged things in a certain direction?" asked Beth.
"Three piece suits for an example," said William. "I know suits are not considered as a technology, but the designs for the suits and certain dresses starting from the year 1910 were from the colonies. And today's modern cars are modeled after the cars from the colonies. So although the descendants of the survivors of the Exes didn't have a hand in giving the people of Earth their technologies, they did have a hand on certain items' appearances. Oh and I do believe that small items such as the toasters and other appliances were created by a survivor's descendant… that or a descendant sold the idea to someone with money. I'm not sure which."
"That's interesting, and you did answer the questions that I had," said Alicia.
"I doubt that this is considered to be technology also, but I have heard that certain survivors and their descendants who had trickled down into the California area had a hand in the beginning developments of Hollywood and its movie studios," said William.
"That's interesting," said Beth.
"Anymore questions?" asked William.
"This is probably none of my business, but is your bloodline purely from the twelve colonies?" asked Beth.
William slightly grinned and said, "No. Like you I can name off a list of nations of where my ancestors are from." Beth just grinned. "I'm just going by what is written in my Great-great-great grandfather's journals after being on Earth for about five years, but I believe that the people from the Battlestar Exes are not the first group of humans from the colonies to stumble across Earth by accident."
"Why do you believe that?" asked Alicia.
"The designed of the Spanish war galleon closely mocks a type of ship that sailed the oceans on Kobol when human life was confine to Kobol," said William.
"That could be just an odd coincidence," said Alicia.
"They say given enough time that millions of monkeys typing randomly could reproduce Shakespeare's work, but what are the odds of that being the case with the design of the war galleon?" William questioned.
"Point taken," said Alicia.
"Anyway, all of my questions had been answered, so if you two don't have anymore questions then I'm going to return to Canada and spend what's left of Christmas day with my family," said Williams.
"I'm good," said Beth.
"I'm good too," said Alicia.
"Well, I'll look forward to your call on the Earth coordinates and until then, Merry Christmas," said Beth.
"Merry Christmas," said William as he waved. He then hesitated to leave. "Oh here's a small piece of tidbit that you might fine interesting to know. Although there has been a fair share of gold found in Alaska, someone panning for gold isn't what caused the Alaskan gold rush."
"Are you saying that your Great-great-great grandfather and his crewmates began the gold rush?" Alicia questioned.
William smiled and said, "According to my Great-great-great grandfather's journals there are components in a battlestar that are made of gold. When they first arrived, they weren't aware as to how precious gold was on this planet. Once they learn of its value, they went back to the battlestar and salvaged it; however, before they cashed it in, they took the time to remold it to where it looked more like raw gold. A few people had a slight idea of which direction that they had come from and rumors spread as to where to find gold and the rest is history."
"I do find that tidbit of information interesting," said Alicia.
"Anyway, again Merry Christmas," said William.
"Merry Christmas," Beth and Alicia said before William turned to leave.
As William was walking out Alicia said, "Okay, just before that interesting bit of information was added to the mix from William, I believe we had began talking about getting Angela, Carla and Jeannie over here and begin that group we are to form."
"Actually you began that topic," said Beth "I was getting ready to politely change the subject." Beth then showed a smirked.
"Beth, Brandy had predicted that we form a group of psychics in order to keep the government from taking advantage of us," said Alicia. "Why don't you want to form the group now?"
"The only thing I know about Angela, Carla and Jeannie is what you have told me and what you told me is that they dabble in witchcraft," said Beth. "I don't want to start a witches' coven."
"If this makes you feel better, I promise that I'll personally frisk them for bat wings, toad legs and eye of newts before stepping foot in your apartment, okay?" Alicia commented.
Beth smirked and said, "Ha-ha, very funny."
"Well, I don't know any other psychics other than you, Angela, Carla, Jeannie and now Brandy to begin our group, and posting flyers or creating a web site is not really practical," said Alicia.
"You're not even sure if Angela, Carla and Jeannie are true psychics," said Beth. "So this might be a waste of time to attempt to form any type of group before the president makes his announcement."
"Waiting might hurt our cause," said Alicia. "I feel that we need to start the group now. And to make sure that Angela, Carla and Jeannie are true psychics we can test their ability."
Beth sighed and said, "Okay, fine. I'm not going to resist this, but I am laying down rules. Our group will not promote or condone violence, witchcraft and… and any type of disturbance of the law of any kind. In fact our group will promote obeying any decree that is presented to the psychics commuting. And I'm going to get with my mom to put these rules into drafted contracts to be signed by all members of the group as each psychic joins."
"This is good," said Alicia. Beth gave Alicia a curious look. "You establish the rules and make sure that the group remains within the legal bounds and I'll go out find our members."
"Well, just make sure that the potential members know that we are not extremists," said Beth. "If anything we are just an auditing group to make sure that the government is obeying the law while dealing with the psychic community and that our rights are not being violated. And that is all what we are."
Alicia gave Beth the thumbs up and said, "You got it. Now that, that's settled, I'm going to the Mystic Eye bookstore to find our first three members."
"Although I don't patronize the Mystic Eye, I'm pretty sure that the store would be close today," said Beth.
"Crystal, the owner lives over the bookstore," said Alicia. "She should be home and there's no reason for her not to give me their home addresses. So we could start our first meeting in an hour or so."
Beth gave a cocky expression and said in a sarcastic manner, "Mmmm, I can't wait for the joy of that meeting."
"Yeah, I can tell from your enthusiasm," said Alicia. Beth just gave an amused grinned as Alicia was moving towards the exit. "Anyway, I'll be back as soon as I can."
"Well, you don't have to hurry back," Beth called out. "And devil worshipers are not allowed." Alicia waved without looking back just before exiting the room. Beth gazed over the room in a bored manner. "I should've brought a book down here to read. In fact I'll go get one." She then left the room. Within minutes, Beth had grabbed a thick novel that she had recently bought and once she was back in the laundry room, she began reading from page one.