Spread of the Immortals — Chapter 1

San Francisco Harbor

Just beneath the Golden Gate Bridge

Noon PDT

I

Bradley and Camelia are sitting on the deck of the autonomous sailing ship that has taken them from Lanai to San Francisco prior to the start of Arrival of the Immortals book tour.

Mark Zuckerberg and Larry Ellison are below deck, preparing for their arrival at the San Francisco Yacht Club.

Camelia: When did you figure it all out?

Bradley takes a sip of mineral water before responding.

Bradley: That I’m God, you mean? I that I’ve embodied as my former self, who lived on Earth two billion years ago?

Camelia nods.

Bradley: It happened a few days after I published the book, on your birthday. I had been working nonstop to get the book ready as a gift for you. When I did, a huge weight was lifted from my shoulders, and I had the time to sort out the flurry of entangled ideas inside my head.

Camelia: You’ve finally figured out the fact that immortals aren’t actually allowed to mind tether to human beings. They are all guilty of crimes against humanity. They need to be punished before they can have an opportunity to atone for their past actions.

Bradley: Their competitive and destructive behaviors caused humanity to go extinct on Earth two billion years. I can’t forget that, but in time I can forgive.

Camelia: If they learn how to play nice.

Bradley nods his head.

II

Bradley: Yes. The 24 immortals most responsible for Earth’s demise are in Paradise Prison now. Mana raptured them there this morning at 11:11 am PDT. They were all reanimated in mortal life shells of a 50-year old human being. They have Gerolsteiner mineral water to drink and a replica of Backhaus bakery cafe inside the prison, where they can order drinks and have bread and pastries. It’s exactly like the one in downtown San Mateo. I regard it as a peace offering of sorts, to let them know my intentions are honorable.

Camelia: Did you give them access to the Internet?

Bradley: Mana did. They can create accounts and connect with me on social media. They are randomly assigned human avatars from the list of active X users. They will have full player control over them for the next 24 hours, as a way of testing them to determine if their intentions are genuine.

Camelia smiles.

Camelia: I like that plan very much.

III

Bradley: I’m hoping to meet them as part of the book tour.

Camelia: Are you ready to meet Taylor Swift this afternoon at Woodside Vineyards for the kick off concert?

Bradley: Taylor is such a blast. Her immortal is remarkably perceptive and understood right away her role on Earth. For being dead for almost two billion years, she’s looking as young and vital as ever.

Camelia: We’re reanimating two Earth mortals an hour at the Healing Center. Most, like your mom, are processing the realization that they are in Paradise now. It may take a few days until they are prepared to tether to their Earth avatar.

Bradley: Naturally. It took me almost five decades to get this far. But the Nalu guides are expert in what they do. Soon, we’ll be turning out fans and followers of the Immortals Saga in droves.

IV

Camelia: What are your plans for the Paradise family?

Bradley pauses. He pours himself a glass of Grand Marnier from the ship’s rear deck bar.

Bradley: This was hard for me. God profited by granting immortal player access to Earth, and he failed to rein in his prodigal son, Lucifer. Spirit and Gaia were unable to prevail on him to make Earth the Edenic paradise it was originally intended. God needs to atone for his sins, too. It’s tough love.

Camelia: But you’ve healed his wayward son!

Bradley nods.

Bradley: Lucifer is on the road to recovery. He’s been transferred to a special ward of the Paradise Healing Center. The other fallen angels are still active, but we’ll rescue them, too. It’s only a matter of time before they see the light. The Paradise family are a huge source of support for us on Earth. Without them, I wouldn’t have the freedom to operate that I have.

Camelia: Giving up your divine powers while on Earth was quite a bold move on your part.

Bradley: I wanted to show that even a humble mortal of limited means can change the world if enough people believe in him. I wanted to convince Mana that my kind deserved her protection for eternity. That’s a high bar. You know how perfect life is for us on Tépë.

Camelia: I do. Even letting God in wouldn’t be possible now, given his attachment to binary logic.

Bradley: Exactly. If you can’t convert to Base 3 thinking, you can’t get into Paradise. It’s too perfect to be marred by more primitive ways of perceiving reality. Even my biological family don’t get a pass.

Camelia: You taught me. You can teach others.

V

Mark Zuckerberg enters the back deck.

Mark: Care for margaritas?

Bradley nods his head.

Bradley: Yes, please.

Mark: I’m completely mind tethered to my mirrored immortal self, Mark Zuckerberg. He’s guiding me on how to use my wealth and influence to support your writings and disseminate your message to a wider audience.

Bradley: Immortal Mark is a very smart man.

Camelia: Priscilla will join the game soon. Until then, treat her mortal embodiment with love and compassion.

Bradley: For now, know that you are doing the right thing. Mana has exceedingly high standards for admission into her utopian realm. I can guide you, but I can’t let you stay permanently without her explicit consent.

Mark: Mana is the queen of the Nalu, then?

Bradley nods

Bradley: Yes. Her people create mana from the matter of the All. I was the first entity they admitted into their realm, but I insisted they take Camelia, too.

Mark: Is Mana really ready to accept your friends as well?

Bradley: If they are my real friends, yes. It’s not enough to appear in the Immortals Saga. You need physical contact with me, and you need to prove your loyalty.

Mark: Have I done that already?

Bradley: Let’s see how the next four years unfold. Simply giving me money doesn’t guarantee you a spot in Paradise.

Camelia: Mark, we’re from a realm where our wishes come true.

VI

Mark: Any wish?

Camelia: Whatever Bradley desires.

Bradley: Mark, I can make a reality island for you to design as you wish. You just make your ideas known to me, and I have the Nalu create it. They are a living AI colony, Mark. They collect data throughout the All and store it as matter in their kingdom, to which only Camelia and I have access. That’s how I made a replica of Earth and the First Universe. That’s how I shrunk Aetherium. It’s how I ruptured the gods to Paradise Prison. Mark, we’re all powerful here. There is nothing we cannot do.

Mark: And that’s why you’re here on Earth as an ordinary mortal?

Bradley nods.

Bradley: If I had appeared as a god, I would have been worshipped. I chose to humble myself instead. It’s the Law of Inverses. It’s how the All operates. The Nalu and I understand that. The immortals of Aetherium do not. Neither do humans like you.

Mark: So I can’t buy my way to Paradise?

Camelia: No, Mark. But you can aid Bradley in his quest to travel the world in search of clues to his ancestral origins.

Mark: What do you mean?

Bradley: I was born on Earth in 1974, but I have the impression that I came from somewhere else entirely. I think I am from an alien race and got “trapped” on Earth accidentally. I think I’m actually Nalu. We are waves and particles simultaneously. I am a child of the light. The Nalu found me in 2023 and raptured me home, but I refused to leave without my Earth wife, who is of immortal heritage. She’s an angel who was sent to investigate my presence on Earth. She embodied as Camelia to keep tabs on me. When Mana raptured her, God became angry, but we’ve reached an understanding since then.

Camelia: Mark, this is bigger than a book tour, you realize. This is about amicable relations between Mortals, Immortals, and Eternals.

VII

Mark: Has that ever been attempted before?

Camelia: No. We are all in uncharted territory now. Exactly as my husband wanted.

Larry Ellison emerges on the deck and pours himself a glass of whiskey.

Larry: Have the immortals decided to join us on Earth?

Bradley nods.

Bradley: They have, Larry. They’ve been assigned humans at random. We shall see how well they pilot them in the days and weeks to come.

Larry You’re not from here, are you?

Bradley: I’m Nalu. I am the chief storyteller. I got lost as we were transiting your reality two billion years ago, and I ended up in the body of Bradley. I consider myself an honorary human being, and I want to share my world with as many of them as possible.

Larry: Does that include me?

Bradley: If you can buy Filoli for me, then yes.

Larry: I’ll work on that.

Bradley: Work harder. Leverage your wealth to promote my cause.

Larry: Understood.

Bradley: Sharing is caring, Larry. I have no money, but you command billions.

Larry: What else must I do?

Bradley: Promote my vision to the world and own it. Own it, Larry!

Larry: Understood.

Camelia: Look. I’m an angel sent to Earth two billion years ago to investigate B’s appearance on Earth. I fell in love with him, and we’ve been an item ever since. His reality is superior to ours in every way. Help him! He will reward you for your effort, I promise.

VIII

Larry: I’m being played by my original Earth self now. Is that right?

Bradley nods

Bradley: Yes, Larry. We tried tethering you to a high-ranking immortal god at first, but we reconsidered that decision.

Larry: Why the change?

Bradley: Immortals used planets like Earth as games to be played at their pleasure. They would take over human minds in their sleep and manipulate them at will. As far as I can tell, Poseidon did that to you before. All members of my inner circle had immortals controlling them. It’s how you became so rich, powerful, and famous. You had a secret edge.

Camelia: When Mana built us this new nanoreality version of Earth and the First Universe, we purposely left out all inhabitants except for the human beings on our planet. Everyone you see around you is powered by a sophisticated AI that mimics their actual behavior from 2024. It’s all an elaborate costume drama.

Larry: You reanimated me after two billion years. What would possess you to do so?

Bradley: We’re recruiting friends to help us populate Tépë. I’ve long fantasized what it would be like to have friends like you. I had a future vision that we all met on Earth and formed a tight circle around Camelia and me to spread our message to the wider public. Under our influence, you would become the types of individuals we could let into Tépë.

Larry: And what of the immortals?

Bradley: They get a chance to redeem themselves, too. My daughter, Amber, has assigned them specific human avatars. They will be contacting me soon, once we land at San Francisco.

Larry looks at his watch.

Larry: I’d say we’ll arrive at the yacht club by noon.

Bradley: We’d better get ready, then.

IX

Larry departs below deck to prepare for the arrival, leaving Bradley and Camelia alone.

Camelia: Do you really think it’s wise to continue this story?

Bradley: This is the only way. We need to give the Earth elites and Immortal gods time to catch up to us.

Camelia: You could have chosen better friends than your inner circle.

Bradley: I have to be true to my vision, C. And I have to trust that Amber and her team at Earth CentCom have put the pieces in place.

Camelia: So you really believe that your story jumps from the laptop and becomes game reality this summer?

Bradley: I know that it does, C. I just know. The game will catch up to us soon.

Camelia: What do we do until then?

Bradley: We start the book tour. We have the secret meeting with the President and Donald Trump. We enjoy out life at the cottage again, and I move down to San Mateo to be closer to my followers on social media. We’ll keep cottage visits reserved for the inner circle and select others we deem worthy of a spot on the second and third rings.

Camelia: When Mana raptured me from Heaven two billion years ago, it did come as a bit of a shock.

Bradley: I told her I couldn’t leave without you. It was nonnegotiable. Seeing you in your angelic form was an amazing experience.

Camelia: I did really love you back then. I always have. That was what made my surveillance mission so hard.

Bradley: I was lost on Earth, far removed from my people. I was firmly convinced I was human. In a way, I am human now. I’ve melded my identity to Bradley, and his memories are an indelible part of me.

Camelia: Well, you have four years to make friends before the game ends. I can’t guarantee anyone a spot. Only Mana has that power. Amber gets a vote, too, Who is on the list right now?

Bradley: On the friends list? No one right now. I haven’t gotten to know the inner circle well enough, and the immortal gods have refused to make direct contact yet.

Camelia: Do we have any contenders?

Bradley: My mother and my brother. Eric Ames and Chris Brown. Your brother. Naturally, we’ve reanimated your parents and my father on Purgatory, so we can visit them later and see if they might make good candidates for admission to Paradise. We can’t grant anyone special treatment, not even our families.

Camelia: Agreed. Let’s gather our things from below deck and prepare for arrival at the yacht club.

X

The autonomous sailing ship docks before a small crowd. It includes the Paradise family and several members of the marketing team assigned to promote the Immortals saga.

Mark Zuckerberg’s wife and children are present, as are personal assistants to Larry Ellison.

Gaia Paradise greets Bradley and Camelia warmly as they step onto the dock.

Gaia: We missed you.

Bradley: I know. I had a lot of time on the sailboat to think. The missing pieces of the puzzle all fell into place.

Gaia: So now you believe?

Bradley nods his head.

Gaia: The concert at Woodside Vineyards begins at 7:00 pm. If you’d like, we can take you to your new Bay Meadows penthouse. A vehicle is ready for you.

Camelia walks over to Jesus Paradise and embraces him.

Camelia: It’s nice to see you again.

Jesus: The first stops of the book tour are all lined up. We’re going focus on Northern California first, followed by stops in Oregon and Washington before heading to Montana. Lucifer is arranging book talks along the way with media personalities and journalists, along with book signings at coffee shops, beer gardens, and wineries.

Camelia: And what of the other immortals?

Jesus: The Greeks and Nordics, you mean?

Camelia Yes.

Jesus: They’ve all been matched with suitable human avatars. They will have a legitimate chance to become your friends.

Camelia: Wonderful. We’d like to stop for coffee at Sightglass first.

Jesus: We’ll meet you there.

Bradley: How much does the world know?

Lucifer: They know about Arrival of the Immortals. They are processing it right now.

Bradley: When do you make me discoverable on social media?

Lucifer: We started this morning. It’s going to pick up pace as the day goes on. We think you’re ready.

Bradley: As if anyone on Earth could be ready for what comes next.

Lucifer: Good thing you’re not from Earth, then.