Maya - Chapter 1

Maya

Chapter 1 - Again

The church was filled with people, some familiar, others not. Quiet sobbing could be heard here and there, and in a few minutes the bells would ring, ending the ceremony. But this wasn't quite like any other funeral. Among those present were large, intimidating men in suits and dark sunglasses. Some of the guests seemed put off by the sight of them, but it couldn't be helped, and in ways served as a reminder of what a "big shot" Benjamin Thane had been. Quite a crowd had gathered that day, to see him one final time.

The priest uttered some kind words about him, but spent most of his time mumbling about God and faith, to the point you'd almost think it was God who had died. Everyone seemed to nod in agreement as he went on and on.

"And it is in moments like this that each and every one of us should take a look at our own faith, and embrace it fully, just as Benjamin did during his lifetime. As a devoted Christian, he stood by his beliefs to the very end, and I advise you all to do the same. For paradise awaits those that do... and punishment awaits those that don't."

They nodded again. Everyone except for a young, dark-haired man in his late teens sitting in the front row. He'd been avoiding eye contact with the priest since he came in, and had carried a cold, stoic expression on his face during the entire ceremony. The priest looked in his direction and smiled.

"And now I believe Benjamin's son would like to say a few words."

The young man nodded. He stood up slowly, with his fists clenched and his shoulders appearing somewhat tense. He stepped quietly towards his father's grave by the altar and laid eyes on the picture next to his coffin. The picture showed a middle-aged man with a kind, sincere smile and a gentle aura about him. The young man smiled, and turned around to face the family, friends and occasional complete strangers who had gathered.

"Thank you for coming, everyone."

He paused for a second, seemingly in deep thought.

"It isn't easy to come up with something to say that would do my father justice. Of course, it helps now that I know I'm so comfortable speaking in front of people."

The young man's mother smiled, a few people chuckled quietly and one drunk uncle laughed out loud. After the noise had died down, he continued.

"But I do want to say something. To all of you who have bothered to come here today to see him off and offer your condolences, I'm really grateful. It's wonderful to see my father had so many close and loyal friends."

There was more smiling and nodding.

"And to those of you in charge of arranging this ceremony, I just want you to know that it completely and fully flies in the face of everything he believed in."

The crowd gasped. The young man's mother rose from her seat.

"Lucas!"

He seemed unaffected by his mother's words, and continued. He made sure to speak louder, to deafen all the loud whispering now going on inside the church.

"My father lived for his work, and was a legend in his field. His dream was to change the world through his research. And a few years ago, he believed that dream came true."

Lucas's mother trembled with anger.

"That's enough!"

"He discovered something! Something so groundbreaking it led him to cast off his Christian faith. None of us know just what that discovery was, but ignoring it is an insult to my father's memory!"

The shifty looking men in the room stared sharply at him, ready to do whatever they normally did when things got out of hand. Lucas's mother tried her best to hold back her tears.

"Your father was under a lot of stress, Lucas! These last few years, he hasn't been himsel-"

"Bullshit."

Complete silence filled the church. Lucas stared into the crowd, looking fiercely determined.

"He was never crazy! You just chose to believe he was because it seemed easier! If you'd bothered to talk to him instead of turning your backs on him, you'd know. Instead, you threw him away after he no longer fit into your perfect little worlds. And like a bunch of fucking hypocrites you're sitting here today honoring a man who never existed."

"Please, Lucas, sit down!"

His mother was now yelling at him to stop. He paused for a moment, looking out at the speechless, shocked group of people in front of him.

"Enjoy the rest of the ceremony. I've seen enough."

He slowly stepped down with his head held high, ignoring the dirty looks the others gave him, and walked quietly out of the church.

---

HERE LIES BENJAMIN THANE
21.12.1975 - 20.02.2028
HE DREAMT OF MAKING THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE,
AND DID JUST THAT FOR EVERYONE WHO KNEW HIM

The ceremony had ended, and Lucas was now the only one left outside the church. He stared blankly at his father's tombstone, which was already partly covered by the thick snow that had gently been falling since that morning. Benjamin had been more than a father to him. He'd been a friend, and a confidant, someone to trust after everyone else had turned their backs on them. With his death, Lucas felt he'd lost his sense of purpose in life. All he could think about was how much he wanted to prove whatever it was his father had discovered, to show everyone else how wrong they were.

But he wasn't a scientist. He'd already failed both math and biology, and trying to learn it always seemed hopeless. He was a natural when it came to music, art and writing, but he could never wrap his mind around the heavy theoretical stuff. His brain just didn't work that way. But now his genius father had left him, leaving behind a great big mystery for him to solve. Lucas didn't know where to begin, or if he had it in him to begin at all. That day, all he could do was stare silently at the tombstone of a man who could have changed the world, if only he'd been given more time.

"He was a great man."

The silence was broken as Lucas heard a voice behind him. He turned around and saw a blonde-haired young woman, roughly his age in a light blue winter jacket, walking towards him. He immediately recognized her from the funeral, as she'd been the only person not dressed in black.

"I'm sorry, have we met?"

Lucas tried to come up with a time and place he might have seen her before, but couldn't seem to place her. She shook her head and smiled.

"I'm from out of town. You could say I'm kind of a fan of your dad's. Came a pretty long way to be here today."

Lucas smiled sarcastically.

"I wasn't aware that advanced human biology had such a dedicated fan base."

The girl chuckled.

"He asked the right questions, and had the guts to stand for what he believed in. I admired that a lot."

Lucas nodded, trying to hide how weird he felt about a complete stranger striking up a conversation with him by his father's grave. The girl smiled shyly at him.

"I'm Maya."

"Lucas."

"That's a nice name. It suits you."

Lucas smiled awkwardly, not quite knowing what to make of the strange girl. Feeling somewhat uncomfortable, he decided it was time to head back.

"Listen, it was nice meeting you, but... I buried my father today, and I'm... really not too great at small talk with strangers."

"Oh, yeah, sure."

"No offense."

She nodded understandingly.

"I know, it's alright."

Lucas smiled apologetically at her and began walking out of the churchyard. Maya turned her head and watched as he slowly disappeared down the road. She stared down at the spot where he'd just stood for a moment, then raised her head and looked up at the cloudy sky, smiling nostalgically.

"You never were."