I've written the first half of a good story. But I'm stuck as to what happens next. So I've decided to post what I have and see if anyone can suggest where to go now.
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Someone up there loves us all Part 1-of-2
By Richard Frantz Jr.
[Disclaimer: Clark Kent, etc, are not my property and are used solely for noncommercial purposes.]
The world was a blue marble with swirling white streaks, peaceful and beautiful from here. The sunlight glinted off its atmosphere. The moon continued her eternal graceful course over it, making the tides wax and wane and the winds blow. If you looked carefully from here you could see the crust creep and fold, a mountain growing here and a valley subsiding there. It looked so peaceful...
But somewhere on that lovely marble there were humans whose lives were in turmoil. There were humans who didn't know that wonderful things were possible. A tear would have glittered in an eye if tears could exist here. It was so tragic: A young woman named Lois Lane was on that marble, not realizing that love was right next to her in a mild mannered disguise. And a young man name Clark Kent trembled with fear that his love was unrequited and feared to take that little step that would make it live.
There was a ripple in existence behind the watching figure. She turned to see Mike there, trying to comfort her. Mike was practicing his multi-existence. Not practicing in the sense that he needed to hone his skill. Multi-existing was something that an angel just did. To one type of perception Mike was a short, slightly chubby, slightly balding man with a twinkle in his eyes and a comforting voice. But if you knew to feel for it you could sense another Mike, a giant presence that could frighten dragons and tame storms. And behind that, a presence that filled all space, but then all angels did that, just Mike was better than most at it.
Mike flexed a wing in silent greeting, and Angel Marie returned the gesture, and then turned her sorrowful gaze back to the surface of the planet. "It's so sad... I wish, I wish I could do something."
"No! You know better. We cannot `DO SOMETHING'. We may offer hope. We may offer guidance. But we may not decide to intervene. Humans must make their own decisions. For this they have free will. We cannot intervene because we do not have free will. We must leave that to their own choices."
"But they don't see what is there. They can pass up so many wonderful chances. They can even miss something that would make the whole world better," she protested, but her heart wasn't in her argument, she understood the rules as well as he did.
Mike considered Marie as she hung in two of the three modes of existence. In one mode she was an angel with glowing white wings and the bright tight halo of a young (a few millennia at most) angel. In the other mode she filled all space, a little skimpy here and there, a little thick elsewhere, she'd learn. Mike knew that if she tried to manifest the third mode she'd appear as a young woman with an intense heart and soulful eyes.
"Marie," he said, "we guide. We offer hope and help. But humans must be allowed to make their own choices, even their own mistakes. Without that freedom, being human becomes meaningless." He paused hovering there, drawing solace from the beauty of the universe. "Marie," he continued softly, "we do not interfere as our gift to humans, as much as hope or peace, though there is a way we COULD interfere, to help-"
"Oh, if there truly was a away to actually help, I'd do it. I swear I'd do anything to be able to help them-" And she vanished from the space over the small blue marble.
Mike made a bit of a face, he'd wanted to explain before she did that. "To quote Charlie Brown, `Rats!'" which is the closest an angel comes to cursing. Then he adjusted the location of the first two of his presences. Being an angel has an advantage in travel: you're already everywhere so wherever you want to go, you've already arrived.
* * *
Mike reappeared (in a place he already was) in a deserted alley in Metropolis. It wasn't a good part of town, but at the moment it was empty and quiet (a miracle, technically, since any time the Creator intervenes it is a miracle, but a minor one). He paused for a fraction of a second to adjust his appearance to his short, slightly stout, friendly figure, and to put on a friendly smile. He suspected a friendly smile would be needed.
He stepped over to the young woman unconscious on the ground and knelt. She was dressed in a conservative suit and skirt, slightly mussed but clean for all that she was lying in a dirty alley. He lightly brushed her face to wake her.
Marie felt the brush of a hand across her face, started, woke and tried to sit up.
"Easy, easy, don't get up too fast," cautioned Mike.
Marie turned her head and looked at a comfortable, friendly Mike kneeling there.
"Let your heart rate stabilize and catch your breath before getting up," he continued.
"My breath, but... Hey! I'm breathing! And my heart is, is, is going. What is that word?"
"Beating," supplied Mike.
"But I don't breath! And I don't have a heart beat! I don't need them."
"Um, that's something I was trying to tell you. You now breathe and have a heart beat because...because you're human. That's the exception I was trying to explain to you- the only way an angel can `do something' is by becoming human and gaining a human's free will." He continued softly, "you volunteered before I had a chance to explain the details of volunteering."
"But I can't be human! I don't know how to be human!"
"It isn't that hard. A lot of what you have to do to be human you already know. And you have been watching humans for a while."
"I'm an angel," she wailed, "I don't want to be human."
"Being human isn't that bad. It will be very educational. And as I recall, it's actually very pleasant at times."
"Recall?" she asked.
"Well, it has been a while since I've done it, but on occasion I have been human. Purely as research or for necessary intervention, you understand" he hastened to explain, not entirely convincingly.
"As opposed to?" she asked.
He looked embarrassed, "some angels do become so fond of being human that they are almost addicted to it. Others of us can stop any time we please." He still looked a little uncomfortable.
Marie stared at him. He almost seemed to be saying he `enjoyed' human limitations. As an angel he couldn't lie... but then he hadn't actually said it, he'd just conveyed the impression and let her draw her own inference. So there was no way to know if he meant it. It dawned on her that Mike, a very experienced angel, might have intended her to have this line of thought all along. It was a comforting thought.
"I think I'm ready to stand up," she said, "if I can figure out how."
Mike stood up and offered her a hand standing. "You'll find that certain human activities, like standing, walking, and talking are automatic for you, even though a human needs years of practice as an infant to learn how."
"Now, you're going to have to stay human long enough to `help out' but I don't know how long that is going to take. Figure out what you need to do and do it. You have the advantage of all the insights you gained while observing humans so you have an idea where to start."
"I - I can help? I can interfere?"
"Yes, you're human now, it's permitted. Be careful, being human does have its pit falls but have some confidence. You've been a good angel and as a new human the world will sort of bend for you a bit, almost look out for you. But it will not just roll over for you!"
Mike looked at her fondly (hiding his concern and unease). "I'll be around and...and God be with you, child." He stood on tiptoe to kiss her on the forehead and then vanished.
Marie gulped and then squared her shoulders and walked out of the alley, out to help people who really needed it.
Mike, who hadn't really gone anywhere but had merely stopped manifesting himself as humans see things, watched her walk to the opening of the alley. Then he yelled, "Celeste!"
Angel Celeste appeared before the echoes, which weren't real since he hadn't made any real sound, faded away. "Yes, Mike?" she asked silently, bending a wing tip in greeting.
Mike returned the greeting without taking any time from speaking. "Celeste, I've got a new job for you. Guardian angel work."
Celeste smiled in anticipation. "Lovely. Who is the new soul?"
Mike pointed at Marie who was looking perplexed having just realized that not only did she not know where to go, but she didn't know where she was (never having been in just one place before).
"Where? She's not even pregnant yet. Is this one of those `be ready long in advance' sort of jobs?"
"No, Celeste, that IS the new soul."
"No, Mike, that's an adult, how can she be...Hey, she doesn't have any sin/virtue history! She is a new soul."
"If you look a little closer you may recognize her."
"I don't know many humans by sight," she demurred. "Hey, that looks like, that looks like Angel Marie!"
"That is Angel Marie, she volunteered to be a human to help out. I want you to look after her, without her knowing you're doing it. Remember, she is confused by suddenly being human, and she can't see you when you aren't manifesting to humans, but she knows how things work. You'll have to be subtle for her not to notice."
"Oh my. I'm surprised you don't want to handle something so delicate yourself."
"I'll be around. I'm going to try to make it easy on Marie by nudging people to go to her so she doesn't have to go to them. But please look after her."
"Of course."
Mike moved his presence, to somewhere where he already was.
Marie decided that since she wanted to help Lois and Clark that the best place to be at this time of day was the Daily Planet and set off to find it.
Angel Celeste followed after her.
* * *
Half an hour later Marie stood across the street from the Daily planet. She looked up at the spinning globe on the roof, decided it wasn't as nice as the real thing, and walked across the street and into the planet.
Angel Celeste, who was starting to look a little frazzled, caused a car to stall out thus preventing Marie from being run over (for the third time today, since Marie hadn't quite gotten the hang of traffic yet). There was also the poor sewer worker that Celeste had motivated to stick the top of his head level with the street above his manhole, allowing Marie to blithely leave a foot print on his hardhat. (Celeste wouldn't let him be hurt, but since he was wearing a hardhat it had been the easiest way to protect the innocent Marie.)
Several other minor instances had happened on Marie's walk to the Daily Planet with out her noticing them.
Marie walked up the front steps and was puzzling over the door (Angels don't normally use doors, they walk through solid matter, which isn't very solid after all) when someone conveniently opened it. "Thank you," said the polite Marie, to the young woman who had opened the door as part of storming out of the building. The storming young woman didn't pause to say you're welcome, or anything else.
Marie was about to enter the building when Perry White followed out, his finger held in the air as he argued with the storming young woman. "You listen here, Megan. We will work this out but you have to realize that when I gave you a chance as a Daily Planet Researcher-"
"'Work'?" demanded Megan. "I will NOT work here! Your demands are unreasonable. I quit!"
"Now see here," said Perry, "I only demand excellence and your best. That is not unreasonable." Megan continued to walk away. Perry noticed Marie. "Could you be looking for a job?" he asked her.
"I could," answered Marie, who was suddenly aware she could be many things.
"Could you be looking for a job as a researcher?"
"I could," again responded Marie.
"I'll give you a trial." He handed her three slips of paper from his pocket. "Research these, be fast but accurate. Do a good job and you're hired. We've just had an opening." He looked after the fast walking Megan.
Marie took the slips of paper, glanced at them and realized they required checking the Daily Planet's newspaper morgue. She knew where that was, both Lois Lane and Clark Kent spent a lot of time there and she had spent a lot of time watching them. "Accurate but fast," she repeated, changing the order. And then turned and ran into the building, through the door that was still open from someone else leaving the building.
Perry looked after her for a few seconds, impressed. Most rookies didn't hustle like that any more. It wasn't like when he'd been starting out. He shook his head and went back to his desk.
***
Perry was on the telephone, talking to Megan trying to coax her back, when Marie entered his office 10 minutes later. He asked Megan to hold a minute. He was a little disappointed, his high hopes dashed, if she was back so soon it had to mean she didn't know how to do the job, and he'd had high hopes for her. But, instead of telling him how she couldn't do the job she instead placed a slim sheaf of papers on his desk and paused to catch her breath (she wasn't quite used to this different rates of breathing yet). "What's this?" he asked.
"The research you wanted," she replied.
Perry was flabbergasted, those three researches would have taken an hour to do properly. But he picked up the papers and checked them. And discovered that, much to his surprise, they were correct and complete. He looked up to meet her eyes.
She looked back and said, "You did say `fast but accurate'."
Perry picked up the phone. "Megan? I'll be glad to write you an adequate reference but I've just found a more capable researcher." He hung up.
He stood up and extended his hand. It took Marie a couple of seconds to recognize the gesture as roughly equivalent to an Angel's wing flex. She shook his hand (inexpertly but acceptably, Perry made a note to teach her the proper way to shake hands, but that could wait). "Welcome to the Daily Planet, Researcher, do you know where HR is?"
"Two floors down," she answered. (She remembered when Clark had had to go to HR when he was hired.)
"How do you know that?" asked Perry.
"There's a sign next to the elevator," she answered, which was true even if not how she had known the answer.
"Well, report to HR. I'll call and tell them you're hired." She turned to leave but Perry interrupted her. "One more thing..."
"More research?" she asked.
"Well, it does involve your giving me information...what is your name?"
"Marie."
"Well, Marie, looks like this is your lucky day, and the Daily Planet's. I don't think we've ever filled a position faster."
Marie wondered if this was a case of the world looking out for her as she headed for HR.
***
Three hours later Marie was hired and had done five more researches. But she still hadn't met Lois Lane or Clark Kent who were out doing research of their own and weren't expect in until about an hour before deadline. She also had a new last name, Marie Angelus, Mike had slipped her a pack of papers while she was alone in the elevator on the way to HR. Apparently when she'd volunteered to be human it had been taken care of that she had a history to go with her current existence. Marie was finding her job actually not that hard, compared to an angel's job of keeping track of every soul in the universe it was really very simple, but it did involve a lot more running. She was really coming to appreciate an Angel's advantage of already being everywhere.
She was talking to Jimmy Olsen between research jobs, trying to get an idea how to help Lois Lane and Clark Kent. She was also trying to ignore the strange sensations coming from her abdomen (all sensations were pretty odd). Suddenly she released an unexpected sound. Jimmy heard her stomach grumble and immediately looked at his wristwatch. "Lunch time," he declared. He looked at her. "You've been running around all morning and I bet you haven't had anything to eat yet today, have you?" taking an educated guess based on other women he'd known.
"No," she admitted, never having eaten anything.
"We could go grab a Jumboburger," he offered. Then he immediately tried to extemporize, "If you'd like to go with me. I mean, if you like Jumboburgers. I mean...if you eat meat. We could get something else. If you'd be willing to go with me-"
She decided to stop this immediately. "What's a Jumbobuger? And will it stop these strange sounds I'm emitting and this funny sensation in my abdomen?"
"er, it's a big hamburger at Jumbo Pete's down the block. And if you'd like to- be willing to- we could go get-"
"Yes."
"ah, yes what? Or actually, yes which, I've been-"
"Yes let us go find this Jumboburger at Jumbo Pete's." "Now," she added for emphasis.
"Right. I guess if I kept talking we could spend our entire lunch break listening to me-"
Marie began walking, in the direction of Jumbo Pete's. She'd actually been trying to move there without walking for several seconds before she'd remembered she now had to walk. "Exactly," she said over her shoulder, "you'll get more done if you leave out the alternates until you find out if there is something wrong with your first suggestion."
Jimmy caught up with her and even remembered to open the door for her, which she seemed to be grateful for, but he was busy thinking. What she'd said about more doing and less thinking about alternatives seemed very sensible. Words to live by as it were. The words kept going around in his head as they walked to Jumbo Pete's, stood in line, ordered, collected their food and found a seat. He decided, about the time he took the first sip of his cola, that he was going to turn over a new leaf and begin living like that: do it and not dwell on fears as much.
"You know, Marie, you're right! I'm going to start saying to heck with the self-doubt and just do it. I'm going to go to ask the Chief, again, to give me a chance to prove myself as a reporter, and this time I'm not taking no for an answer!"
Marie considered for a few seconds. "Let me ask you something. Who at the Planet do you respect?"
"er, Perry White, of course. And Lois Lane- and Clark Kent-"
"He'll do," said Marie. "Did he go to Mr. White and ask for something when he came to the Planet?"
"Yes. Ah, as a matter of fact he did, he asked for a job and Perry turned him down."
"What'd he do then?"
"He went out, wrote a story the Chief wanted and handed it in."
"So," continued Marie, "if you respect Clark Kent shouldn't you also respect his method?"
"So you mean `don't ask, just tell'?"
"Or show. Do it, don't ask for it to be given to you."
"Sounds good, but it also sounds like a lot of hard work."
"I never said it wouldn't be."
Jimmy took another sip of his cola and considered. What Marie had said made sense. It was just a matter of doing it. He unwrapped his lunch while contemplating how to just do it.
Meanwhile Marie was a little overwhelmed by the Jumboburger. Not only was it very large but never having eaten before she had no idea what to do with it. She had to watch Jimmy tuck into his to get an idea what to do. But once she had gotten up the nerve to take a bite, and gotten past the sudden burst of new sensation, it had been strangely satisfying. While the Jumboburger was too much for her (she'd copied Jimmy's order) she discovered a real affection for french fries.
While they ate, and in part to distract Jimmy so he wouldn't notice her inexperience at eating, they'd talked about people at work. Marie had asked Jimmy about Lois Lane and Clark Kent and Jimmy had been willing to describe his friends. He was almost as aware about the trouble they were giving themselves as Marie was, and just as uncertain about how to improve things.
[end part 1]
