Energence

Mariss waited, foot-tapping with impatience on the cement. Glancing to her left, she noticed her partner, Sira, sitting cross-legged on the ground, eyes closed, palms faced upwards, fingertips touching. Mariss looked once again at her timepiece. The agent was running late.

 A motor sounded in the distance. A car flew over the apex of the hill, coming to a sudden stop before the couple. The engine turned off. An elderly woman stepped out from the driver’s side. “Ah, I’m sorry, I was running late. Things, you know. I’m Wonna. You must be Mariss.” Wonna’s thin, boney hand jutted from before her.

A frown crossed Mariss’s face. Turning towards Sira, she whispered, “Stand up Sira. The estate lady is here. She needs to see you.” Mariss thrust her hand into Wonna’s. Indicating her head towards Sira, she mentioned, “This is Sira, my partner.”

Wonna looked past Mariss. There was a slight haze, a fuzz, in the atmosphere next to Mariss. Though she could see the trees, apartment building, and other scenery, it reminded Wonna of when the reception on television gets interference. As Mariss released Wonna’s hand, the haze shifted, enveloping Wonna’s still outstretched hand. Without any conscious thought, Wonna’s hand was pumped up and down, then released.

Wonna stared hard at Mariss, trying to understand what had just happened. Taking a deep swallow, Wonna spoke with haste, “I guess I should show you through.” Wonna went to move forward, into the haze and found something stopping her. “Excuse me, please, um, Sira?” The haze moved aside, allowing Wonna to walk towards the building.

Mariss fell into step just behind Wonna. “So, the advertisement said that the building is all environmentally friendly. There is no external connection to electricity? Everything is solar-powered and off the grid?”

“Yes, yes. The owner, who built this building, was adamant that there should be as little dependence as possible on the outer world.”

“Would this mean that the electrical field for the building is minimal?” Mariss queried, glancing toward Sira, giving her partner an encouraging smile.

“Yes,” Wonna replied, giving Mariss a curious look. “How did you know about that? None of that information has been released to the public.”

“Oh.”

Wonna continued, “The owner was specific about the kind of people who would be renting the units.” Wonna unlocked the front door to the building. A thoughtful look crossed her face. “The owner said the building was for certain kinds of energies, less so than for people.”

Wonna and Mariss entered the building, Wonna closing and locking the door behind her. The door became a haze for a moment, and Wonna was forcefully pushed back. The haze had become less of a haze and more of an outline of a humanoid, gender undiscernible. A bewildered look settled on Wonna’s face.

Mariss caught Wonna’s expression and turned towards the doorway. “Ah, Sira. You’re gaining cohesion.”

Sira gave a slight nod to Mariss.

Wonna turned away from the silhouette. “If you would care to follow me up the ramp. To keep in line with the owner’s wishes of having a low-impact electrical field, there were no elevators installed. For ease of access of whoever may reside here in the future, instead of stairs, ramps were put in. There are no units on the ground floor, it is filled with an indoor garden. Each apartment is self-contained, with an environmentally friendly garden on each balcony.”

“All good,” Mariss replied.

“So, uh, how long have you and Sira been together?” Wonna queried, refusing to look behind her. When they had entered the building, Wonna had only heard her steps and Mariss’s. As they elevated up the ramp, a third pair of footsteps could be heard following them close.

“Oh, my entire life. People used to think she was my imaginary friend, but as our connection grew in strength and I studied matters of the spirit, Sira was able to manifest in my life in a more tangible way. See, it’s about electrical fields. Sira has a hard time keeping herself together when there is too much of an electrical field around.”

Wonna mentioned, “I used to have an imaginary friend. She stayed with me until my mid-teens.”

Wonna came to the doorway at the top of the final flight of stairs. There was a keypad next to the lintel. Wonna tapped the code in. The door swung open. “You’re the first person, erm, couple, that has been to have a look at the apartment building. The owner vets everyone who has applied. Though each unit is a two-bedroom, he only wants single people in.”

“Where does the owner live?” Mariss questioned.

“In the penthouse.”

The unit was compact, yet spacious, fully furnished, with plenty of greenery, and very little in the way of electrical interference. The door closed behind Wonna with vigor, of its own accord. Startled Wonna turned around. There, standing next to Mariss, was a man. This man looked like the twin of Mariss.

“What on Earth is Sira? Are you related?”

Mariss shook her head, smiling. “What on Earth? Ah, Sira. Sira isn’t from Earth. Sira is an Energence. No, we aren’t related. An Energence takes its physical form from its chosen partner.”

A look of confusion settled on Wonna’s face. “What is an Energence?”

“It’s a being made up of frequency only. They don’t have DNA like us. They come from, well, the sun. But not the sun we know, the sun within the sun. It’s a consciousness, that can send parts of itself to Earth, if necessary, for the eventual benefit of all humankind. An Energence needs a physical being to partner with. An Energence can only partner with someone who can hear the frequency of the sun because we are the only ones able to see and hear them.”

“Ah,” said Wonna, realization crossing her face. “It’s why you want to move here, isn’t it?”

“Yes. The less electrical interference, the easier it is for an Energence to manifest in the physical. It’s too early, still, for humanity to understand and accept these beings, so they need a special place to be.”

“How did you find out about this place?” Wonna asked with growing suspicion.

“Somebody named only Thrisuj. I received an email from him saying that there was a special apartment building built for the needs of Energence’s.”

Wonna’s hand flew to her mouth, “That’s the owner.”

A high-pitched buzz swelled in the room, “Mariss, look.” Sira waved his hand in the direction of the lounge. A haze had appeared. This one was the size of a child. “Who is that?”

Wonna gazed towards the haze. She dropped both her hands and stepped towards the rapidly materialising Energence. “It can’t be,” she gasped. “Wnna!”

The small Energence nodded its head. Within seconds, the haze had transformed into a being, that looked like how Wonna had as a child.

At the same moment, an email alert went off on Wonna’s phone. Checking her email, she noticed that Thrisuj had sent her a message. It read: You will be taking the unit in the building, then, after all, and be the caretaker as well? Wnna is welcome here. Please welcome, also Mariss and Sira.

Wonna answered in the affirmative. “That is that, then. You have the place. And apparently, I’ll be living in the building, too. With my Energence.”

Mariss, Sira, and Wnna all smiled at Wonna.

“I guess then, sometimes, imaginary friends are real.”