Previously on TM:

–That close JT, but it not movie, it reality. We live in three dimension but there are many dimensions, all stacked up against each other. Like movies at video store, ownry you cannot choose which movie you watch.
–No time to waste, gotta pick out my best clothes and get cleaned up, I’m going on a date that is about to change my plot.

Follow Or Fall Behind
J. T. Hilltpop

To say the plot of my destiny changed because of Shay is an understatement. We have been together three nights in a row and tonight she wants me to come over and watch a movie because she needs to get up early tomorrow but still wants to see me. And man oh man do I want to see her, she’s on my mind like 24/7. I think about her at work, during lunch, in the shower, …well you get it, all the friggen time. And when she calls me Justin I melt, it sounds so incredible. Who would have thought a chance meeting on the street, with me being a clumsy oaf, could end up a serious relationship overnight? Not me, that’s for sure, but I remain convinced this is more than just a chance meeting. Call it Karma, or Kismet, or fate but the fact that her name is Shay, I met her a few hours after the most enlightening experience in my life so far, and that our chemistry was instantaneous and quite similar to what I feel for my whatever it is for Ambrosina from my “trip” is not random coincidence. Like Kha says, sometimes the universe jut conspires in our favor and balances everything out for us. But I need to remember she isn’t Ambrosina, she’s Shay and the depth of my Transcendental Medication adventures should probably remain secret going to the grave with me. I not only want to make love to Shay I want to be with her and some weird convoluted story of a mystery lover, paradise island, and hallucinations the doc calls reality may scare her off. I’ve been afraid to rush it, I don’t want Shay thinking I’m like a vulture boyfriend just looking for a quick jump in the waterfall pool but tonight felt like it may just be the right time. Tonight is the night I will literally knock her socks off. Or at least take them off.
After spending over an hour attempting to get every hair in place, remove all possible body odors, and actually ironing my shirt I was ready. I had stopped off and purchased a nice Chateneuf Du Pape burgundy and a wheel of Camembert which I found out was her favorite cheese. When she let me in my anticipation gene kicked in and the nervousness ensued. “Oh wow, nice choice there Justin, come on in and make yourself comfortable, I’ll open the wine to let it breathe. I picked out a movie, hope you like it.” I made my way to the couch and looked at the movie she chose. The Notebook! Shit! What exactly does that mean? Romantic? Sexy? Sexy romantic? She either wants to make love or wants to wait until we’re totally ready. WTH? Shay walked into the room and removed all my insane frantic uncertainties. She walked straight over to me and just about threw her mouth over mine as our tongues collided on the oral dancefloor jumping into saliva tango overdrive. In less than a second we were wrapped in each others arms clawing desperately in a passionate embrace. “Justin baby, I was gonna wait till after the movie but I think we better go make love right now!”
The two of us ran towards her bedroom taking off our clothes as we did and by the time I got to her bed she was completely naked and my pants were around my ankles prohibiting me from walking and forcing me to hop. As I bounced clumsily to her bed Shay put both hands on my under shorts an ripped them off. Together we flew onto her bed groping and clutching each others bodies. I remembered the lessons Ambrosina had taught me and immediately applied the experience into pleasing Shay by paying total attention to her sexual needs first. At first she resisted by grabbing my solid erection and stroking it gently but surrendered once I positioned myself between her thighs. Shay had completely surrendered to my touch trusting me to take her on a ride to ecstasy and I dove in head first. Literally. Well figuratively too, I put all my focus on satisfying her completely. We had both surrendered to each other and accepted responsibility for each others complete enjoyment, a perfect unison of sexual pleasure. I had learned my love lesson well and applied it to the one woman who has rocked the shit out of my world. We never watched the movie nor drank the wine, we stayed in the bed until morning.
Over the course of the night, in between the lovemaking sessions, Shay rested her head on my chest in such a way that we were totally unaware that life was going on all around us. I breached the subject of Dr. Kha and the clinic because I knew this relationship was headed somewhere that secrets like that shouldn’t be kept. Shay had heard of the clinic and was a little concerned, it has a reputation of being a little “out there” and many people thought it to be cultish in nature. I assured her it wasn’t anything like that but I know she was a tad uneasy about it. I was due back in the clinic in four days and a much ass I wanted things nice an smooth with me and Shay I didn’t want to end my journey yet. Thankfully Shay understood, or at least said she did so it was set. I was at her apartment every night before my clinic night and promised her I would call her in the morning.
As soon as I arrived Kha knew I was stressed, “Come on JT, come inside room, I see you trouble today my son, maybe best we no use tank.” I followed him into a small room with nothing but impossible geometric figures on the wall, as though it had been decorated by the great MC Escher. There was nothing in the room itself save a small table with four chairs around it, “Sit my son, I prace needles while you have hot cup tea and we talk. Today put needles in paste of Lophophora root from Chihuahuan Desert in Mexico, little stronger than last session but no need tank, ownry music and tea.” A soft melodic tune was seeping from the speakers that sounded like traditional Spanish Flamenco slowed way down. Shondra came in with a steaming cup of what I assume was tea, “Here you are Mr. Hilltop, Coahuila Tea with lime, it’s a special brew used by the Huichol Indians. Its so delicious its all I drink anymore.” She smiled warmly as she placed the steaming mug in front of me. The comfort of steaming tea and soft music put me at ease. Dr. Kha rolled his “tool” cart behind me, “Today feel slight burn but no worry JT, just drink tea and relax. So tell me son, what have you been up to?” He began placing the needles in my back around my shoulders and neck and as promised it burned slightly. “Well Doc, I met a nice woman and we’ve been spending a lot of time together. We talked about you and the clinic a bit.” I expected apprehension but he was calm as a cucumber, “Oh that very good, sound serious if you tell about your medication here. Tell me JT, does this girlfriend approve of you come here?” Here it comes, “Well I have to admit Shay was a little bit concerned, but I explained to her I was just looking for a profound philosophical answers and how it relaxes me completely. Of course I said nothing of my trips.” Kha had finished placing the last of the needles in my back and sat across from me, “Her name Shay? That interesting no? You know no such thing as coincidence in universe balance, eh?” This wasn’t the first time I put it together, Shea and Shay, and he was asking rhetorically, “Let me ask you something JT, when first you come here you ask why something instead of nothing correct?” I merely nodded because my eyelids were getting heavy an my lip were refusing to join in any conversations, “So you think maybe universe come from nothing yes? First was nothing then whether believe in god say let be light or big bang explosion create universe it must come from something right? How god become god or how atoms become bounce around to make explosion? But what not know is universe not first universe.” I continued nodding getting more and more sleepy by the second, “ Truth is my son, universe result not so much of big bang as loud pop. Universe squeeze through giant of black hole from other universe then expand like balloon because it equal and opposite reaction to black hole. It full of other smaller black holes and every black hole in universe will create new mini universe within a universe we call galaxy. That why so many galaxies, alternate dimensions, alternate realities. And law of physics in our solar system not same everywhere. Think about earth my boy, everyone walk same because law of physics allow very low resistance, gravity hold us down but if people need walk under ocean law of physics different. Cannot walk normal walk much slower and against much more resistance. Running underwater impossible for us but many creatures move around ocean very fast. Creature that live in sea must adapt to environment. Same in alternate dimensions and other galaxies, what seem normal right now perhaps completely different in other dimension, but you shall see that when you get to one. Today you will travel to meet Castomar. He will teach you dimensions and four truth, then next session I take you to god as I promise. But remember this my son, not everything what seem all time, if……
I must have trailed off and fallen asleep because I was awoken by the warmth and crackling sound of a small campfire. I was sitting cross legged somewhere outside, surrounded by a forest only Walt Disneys people could create. The crackling fire was in front of me, Dr. Kha across, Shea on the right, and an unkempt large hirsute man on my left. I shook my head in an attempt to iron out all the wrinkles in my mind. Shea noticed I was awake, “Well good morning old friend, how are you?” Shea was genuinely happy to see me and I him, I stood up and we embraced in mutual admiration of each other.
Kha’s voice broke the reunion, “No time for pleasantry JT, time for you to hike into Forest to see truths. This Castomar, he shall be your teacher.” I put my hand out to shake but he just stared at me and spoke in a deep firm voice “First things first boy, I’m not Kha and I’m not Shea. I’m not here to baby-sit you I’m here to teach you so when I talk you just shut up and listen. If I say to go somewhere you go, no questions. I move fast and I have a lot to show you in a small amount of time, if you can’t keep up I’ll leave your ass out there to be dinner to the wolves. Got it?!” My head was spinning a bit and he wasn’t waiting for me to regain my composure. Kha nodded for me to go. Shea shook my hand and said “Good luck buddy, you better get going. Don’t let that fool scare you, he’s a great friend and one of the best teachers you could hope for. But he does have a gruff style so you better hurry up. Just don’t piss him off and you’ll be fine.” I embraced Shea biding him a fond farewell as the voice of this tall thin nature man Castomar called out, “Hope your not afraid of snakes kid.” I followed Castomar into the forest with great trepidation. I hope its not warranted.
Shea called Castomar gruff. To call him gruff was an understatement. Dr. Kha warned me he was tough but this dude was all of six foot six and maybe two hundred and fifty pounds of pure muscle. Even his cheeks looked like they worked out. He wore a sort of long animal cloth robe tied with woven hemp rope. Combat fatigues and engineer boots. His head was covered with a green bandana with stringy brown hair hanging unkempt across his shoulders. It appeared as though it was allergic to shampoo. A strong stern face with a full beard that had gray streaks in it. If you told me he was Moses transported to a southern gun collector convention I wouldn‘t have doubted you for a second. But Grizzly Adams Castomar was my guide and not only that, in this ominous looking forest I would most likely fail to survive a day by myself. The thicket was dense, the tree’s full and humongous, and the ground was littered with dead leaves. I had to ask, “Um, Castomar, where exactly are we going?” He didn’t answer or look back, just kept forging a path through the shrubs until we cam to a huge flat rock. Castomar sat down and motioned to me. “Sit own kiddo, time for a water break. Don’t rink too much or too fast.” He pointed to a large mountain, “Up there is where we are going. That’s our campsite. It’s in a different dimension so the hike up there may seem strange. Here, drink some water.” His words had a sort of rhythmic accompaniment, like the scratching of ten gourds which got progressively louder. I accepted the canteen an listened noticing the ground moving around the rock, the dead leaves in constant motion. He was very tough looking, serious dark eyes but I detected an underlying compassion in his voice, he was talking tough not to scare me but to make me aware of danger. “You will hear strange noises and feel a few chills on the way. Pay no attention to the noises, nothing will harm you in the woods if your with Castomar. The chills you feel will be the passing through dimensions so at times your legs my feel heavy, or unbelievably light. Just keep forging forward, if you fall back you could end up stuck in a different dimension for a long time. Once we get to our cabin We’ll have some tea, find our learning spot an then I will explain the four truths. Right now we need to leave because the snakes are all gathering sensing prey” Snakes? Why does it have to be snakes? I kept my Iniana Jones joke to myelf but the next scene was like the one in the tomb. That rhythmic scratching was comin from hundreds of rattlesnakes which were also what the moving earth was. There were snake everywhere I looked, all sticking their fork ass tongues at me!
“This way boy, follow me quickly and I mean quickly!” We moved forward in double time now following an actual path not a forged by Castomar path. Not twenty feet into it I felt the fit chill he mentioned. I lost my equilibrium for a second, as if dizzy from spinning around. I walked behind Castomar as best I could but something kept pulling me to the right. Then I saw the most amazing thing I have ever seen in my life, A giant hawk, the size of what I would guess a Pterodactyl would have been. First I let out a piercing shriek then this giant hawk thing let out a better shriek that almost knocked me over as it flew right at us talons extended and this huge blue beak wide open. Now it happened really fast so I can’t say for sure but I swear the beak had sharp vampire like teeth but its really unimportant because Castomar actually punched this giant bird of prey in the head and sent it spinning around in mid air. I expected to see feathers flying everywhere but instead of feathers it was some kin of long thin iridescent scales flying as this crazed animal cried out in intense pain. So intense was the cry I felt it tremble down my spine. I followed behind Castomar as he picked up speed. Behind me I could hear what must have been a few dozen more of those giant vultures shrieking and honking. As I approached a large tree fallen across our path Castomar yelled “Jump” to which I did. I floated through the air like Mike Jordan in slow motion traveling over thirty feet before landing softly. I tried to step but couldn’t as Castomar took my hand, “Just jump JT, only jump. You won’t be able to walk in this dimension.
I jumped and hopped motivating easily over great distance literally floating on air. My last hop found me face down in the in a mud. “Sorry JT, I forgot to tell you we were entering another dimension, but this is the last now its just a three mile hike up the mountain from here an its relatively normal.” I got up from the mud expecting to be dripping in wet cold earth but it was like sand on my face and fell away easily. “Man I gotta tell Mr. Castomar, this dimension crossing is some crazy shit. Are you sure its over?” For the first time I heard him laugh, a deep guttural laugh that caused me to instantly forget all I though about him and smile back. “JT, that’s the worst of it I promise. Well for now anyway, the trip back may be rough but we are in a much safer environment. Safe but still have to get to the cabin before the suns go down.” I looked up in the sky and instead of one big bright sun there was four small less bright suns across the sky. I didn’t want Castomar to hear so I mumbled to myself, “Jesus shit this is the weirdest god damn trip I’ve ever been on. And its only started.

TBC