I opened the box, and saw cloud cover over a lighthouse as the waves broke against the rocks. I saw a group gathered at the base, and then I saw one of them answer his phone...

---

Mike answered the phone. “Hello?”

“Jesus Christ, Mike! Where the hell are you?” Sarah’s voice burst through the receiver. “I’ve been calling for two days straight!”

“Sarah? I... where are you?”

“Where am I? Where are you? You’ve been missing for two days. You left for work Tuesday morning and just vanished. Your captain called me at ten asking where you were.”

“Two days?”

“Mike, you’re scaring me. Where are you? Are you hurt? Are you with someone?”

“I’m... I’m standing next to a lighthouse. In Maine, I think.”

“Maine? MAINE? What the hell are you doing in Maine? We live in Iowa.”

“My part is done. Rativa is in place.”

“Rativa? What is that? What part? What are you talking about? Mike, you’re not making any sense.”

“I had to drive here. I couldn’t stop myself. I remember I paid tolls, Sarah. Four different tolls. I remember paying them, but it’s like watching someone else do it.”

“Tolls? Mike, you’ve never driven east of Davenport in your life.”

“First one was New York. Then the Mass Pike. Then New Hampshire and finally Maine.”

“You remember the tolls but not to call me?”

“I remember everything and nothing. I know I stopped for gas. I know I didn’t eat anything. I’m starving now, but I wasn’t hungry then. And my phone... did you call me?”

“Did I call you? Mike, I called you a hundred times. I left at least fourteen voicemails. The phone just kept ringing.”

“I never heard it ring.”

“Mike, I need you to listen to me. Something’s wrong. Really wrong. People don’t just leave like that. Are you having an affair? Is there someone else?”

“No, Sarah. No. There are other people here, and they all look as confused as I feel.”

“Other people? What other people?”

“There’s a man in a business suit. Still has his name tag from some conference. A woman in scrubs, looks like she works at a hospital. An old man with paint on his hands. A teenage girl still in her school uniform. And a guy in work boots covered in sawdust.”

“Mike, you’re not making sense. Why are these people there?”

“We all have... had... pieces. Metal pieces shaped like pie slices. Mine’s already in place. That’s when I could think clearly again, when I put it where it belonged.”

“Pieces of what?”

“I don’t know. Something old. Something that needed to be whole again. It’s built into the base of the lighthouse, like a circle in the rock. Six pieces fit perfectly. We’ve apparently been carrying them our whole lives, Sarah. I think I had it buried in the backyard.”

“It looks like you dug a hole and just left the shovel there. I’ve been trying to figure out what you were doing. You’re hiding things?”

“I didn’t realize I was doing it. It’s all becoming clear now, but I don’t remember ever seeing this before.”

“You’re digging up something you didn’t even know you had?”

“Same with all of them. We’ve all been hanging on to them. None of us knew what they really were. But something called us here to put them back together.”

“Called you? Mike, listen to yourself. You sound...”

“Crazy? Yeah, I know how it sounds. But I’m looking at it right now. This perfect circle. Six of the seven pieces are in place. The pattern is almost complete.”

“Seven pieces? You said six people.”

“There’s supposed to be seven pieces total. We’re waiting for Ititha.”

“What?”

“Wait. Someone else just arrived.”

“Mike, I want you to get in your car right now and come home. Whatever this is...”

“It’s a woman. She’s got a baby with her, crying in the backseat. She’s walking toward us, but Sarah, she’s not looking at any of us. Her eyes are completely blank.”

“A baby? Mike, if there’s a baby involved, you need to call the police right now.”

“I am the police, Sarah. And she’s holding something. The seventh piece.”

“Mike, please. Just come home. We can figure this out together.”

“She’s putting it in place. The last piece. It fits perfectly, just like the others. The circle is complete now.”

“What circle? Mike, you’re frightening me.”

“The whole thing is starting to... oh my God, Sarah. It’s glowing. The entire base of the lighthouse is glowing like it’s alive.”

“Glowing? Mike, that’s not possible.”

“The woman is shaking her head like she’s coming out of a trance. The baby’s still crying. The businessman is backing away. We’re all backing away, but Sarah, I can feel something happening.”

“Feel what? Mike, talk to me.”

“The light at the top of the lighthouse just turned on by itself. It’s not the normal light. It’s shining straight up. The glow from the base is getting stronger.”

“Mike, please, just get out of there. Get in your car and drive away.”

“I don’t think I can leave now. None of us can. Whatever we came here to do, it’s happening. Something, something in the light with claws is pulling the clouds back. The gateway is opening.”

“What’s happening? Mike, what’s happening?”

“Something’s coming, Sarah. I can see it in the light.”

“Now what? MIKE, NOW WHAT?”

“It’s happening. I have to go.”

Click.

---

The clouds moved back in and the scene was lost to me. Maybe it will reappear to me one day.

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