Story Without End

By Marcus Tempus

Marcus recently left a senior executive position and is adjusting to his new life as what a friend has labeled him: a Renaissance man. During this period of adjustment from profit- and process-driven, almost manic, activity to a more leisurely pace, he is researching many interests to keep his brain active in order to maintain his sanity. Among other things, he is traveling extensively, with his camera, finding and enjoying many different experiences.
He is based in downtown Chicago and from there stays busy by working for some local charities and remains in touch with the world of business through the almost compulsory consultancy work expected from retired executives. This aspect of his life is as near as he ever is likely to get to the state of normal. His friends keep reminding him about the need to become grounded, a condition he never wants to be in full time.
He finds travel and writing pleasurable ways to pass the time, but do they feed the inner man? As a financially independent and self-labeled man of the world, he thinks not. He has therefore set out on a quest to see if true love exists and if there is a soul mate out there just for him. He has been close to true love a few times, but so far he has not experienced the really deep emotional connection with another person that he believes exists. He has yet to see it or find it, which is why he has set out on a mission to see if he can find real deep, true love.
To record his adventures and emotions, he decided to write three books to help him find what he is looking for. The first book, 21 Days to Love, has been published. It explains the beginning of his mission, which started with an intense and powerful love affair with Tina. That relationship ended, and shortly afterward he met Anastasia. They went on a twenty-one day journey and fell in love with each other a little, or maybe a lot. This second book details his confusion at deciding who he is and where he is going, as reflected in the titleStory Without End. The third book will be written in 2014 to document the outcome of this journey and if he did indeed find the love he is seeking.
The travel aspects of the first two books are largely actual and factual. 21 Days to Love includes visits to Paris, Ireland, London, Marrakech, New Orleans, Santorini, and Malaysia. Story Without End contains travel to Madeira, the Canary Islands, Spain, Key West, Grand Cayman, New Orleans, Wales, Rome, Rio de Janeiro, and the Brazilian Amazon. Some of the characters in the books are real, but most are not. They have been created in the imagination of Marcus. Along with the love relationships and passionate encounters, they are part of his delusional quest for a soul mate.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Aug 30, 2013
• ISBN: 9781491808207

Marcus Tempus

Marcus Tempus is the pen name for an English Businessman based in Chicago USA. After leaving a Senior Executive Job he has written some professional management books under his real name and also provides mentoring services and consultancy services for “Executive development”. In the process of writing he has developed a more creative interest in Photography, Poetry and Short story writing and has self published several books. This is the first novel by Marcus who intends to follow it up with sequels following the life of the main characters. He also plans to write other books including some novels about the world of business.

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© 2013 by Marcus Tempus. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 08/27/2013

ISBN: 978-1-4918-0822-1 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4918-0821-4 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4918-0820-7 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2013914604

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Contents

Thank You

Imagination

Synchronicity

About This Book

To Start

Reentry to Chicago

Who Is This Calling?

The Late-Night Call

Last Day of 2012 in the USA

Alone at Sea

Winter Sun

Day Two: Grand Cayman—a Nothing Sort of Day

Day Three: Back to Business

Just What Are You Doing?

Birthday Wishes: a Trip to New Orleans

The Flight from New Orleans

Key West

Last Day in Key West

The Ride Back to Chicago

The Second Phone Call

Me and the Elephant

Another Nothing Type of Day

A Strange E-mail: Amazon Calling

A Day with Sheraya

Preparation Time

A Day in Rio with Neyla

Good-Bye, Rio; Hello, Manaus

Up the Amazon

The Ceremony Deep in the Jungle

Back to Life on the Tucano

On the Way Back

Back to Manaus: the Meeting of the Waters

Good-Bye, Shipmates: Time to Go Home

Back in Chicago

Monkey Man Calling

A Small Question with a Big Answer

Au Revior, Angelique?

Cooking Day

In Search of Malin: a Visit to Caerwent, Wales

Lost Again

Road to Rome

Rome

Chasing around Rome

Con Te Partirò

Long Ride Home

About the Author

Words

Words are released, a thought is born

A life created, maybe neatly shorn.

They travel beyond where I see,

Reflecting everything about me.

A word has a life of its own,

Indiscriminately out to roam.

Can we decide where they go?

Where they end, will we know?

It helps to move thought to sound.

Hopefully it will be profound.

Just anything will not do.

How can I be sure I reach you?

Thousands of words come your way.

You never have anything to say.

No questions about what I do?

Are these emotions reaching you?

Am I now all alone

My restless spirit

To never find a home?

Thank You

M any people have helped me write this book. Most of them knowingly made a helpful contribution, and others influenced my writing by being a part of my life. I have a few people to thank: Alison, Anastasia, Angelica, Angelique, Claire, Jane, Susan, Marcia, High Priestess Miriam, Monkey Man, Neyla, and Tina (for making this possible).

The Door

There is a door.

I search for the key;

No door do I see.

I just keep looking

For the key.

Imagination

U se it well, for it can create fears that do not exist. It can create false optimism based upon unrealistic beliefs. Above all it can create a vision that inspires and uplifts you. Make sure your vision is real and you follow it.

Synchronicity

W hen a number of positive coincidences happen in your life, this is synchronicity. Go with the flow and trust it.

About This Book

M arcus recently left a senior executive position and is adjusting to his new life as what a friend has labeled him: a Renaissance man. During this period of adjustment from profit—and process-driven, almost manic, activity to a more leisurely pace, he is researching many interests to keep his brain active in order to maintain his sanity. Among other things, he is traveling extensively, with his camera, finding and enjoying many different experiences.

He is based in downtown Chicago and from there stays busy by working for some local charities and remains in touch with the world of business through the almost compulsory consultancy work expected from retired executives. This aspect of his life is as near as he ever is likely to get to the state of normal. His friends keep reminding him about the need to become grounded, a condition he never wants to be in full time.

He finds travel and writing pleasurable ways to pass the time, but do they feed the inner man? As a financially independent and self-labeled man of the world, he thinks not. He has therefore set out on a quest to see if true love exists and if there is a soul mate out there just for him. He has been close to true love a few times, but so far he has not experienced the really deep emotional connection with another person that he believes exists. He has yet to see it or find it, which is why he has set out on a mission to see if he can find real deep, true love.

To record his adventures and emotions, he decided to write three books to help him find what he is looking for. The first book, 21 Days to Love, has been published. It explains the beginning of his mission, which started with an intense and powerful love affair with Tina. That relationship ended, and shortly afterward he met Anastasia. They went on a twenty-one day journey and fell in love with each other a little, or maybe a lot. This second book details his confusion at deciding who he is and where he is going, as reflected in the title—Story Without End. The third book will be written in 2014 to document the outcome of this journey and if he did indeed find the love he is seeking.

The travel aspects of the first two books are largely actual and factual. 21 Days to Love includes visits to Paris, Ireland, London, Marrakech, New Orleans, Santorini, and Malaysia. Story Without End contains travel to Madeira, the Canary Islands, Spain, Key West, Grand Cayman, New Orleans, Wales, Rome, Rio de Janeiro, and the Brazilian Amazon. Some of the characters in the books are real, but most are not. They have been created in the imagination of Marcus. Along with the love relationships and passionate encounters, they are part of his delusional quest for a soul mate.

To Start

T his story starts in the middle. It will go back to the beginning but will have no end. It is a tale about life, about the joys of living in the now, along with the challenges of dealing with the past. Above all it is a story of a life fully lived and the definition of success. It is about love, all the forms and all the stages of love. Falling in love, being in love, staying in love, and inevitably failing in love. It is about fears, insecurities, and the future. It will cover the rain that falls into every life and how to deal with disappointment and failure. It will deal with relationships—their joys and disappointments—and how, in the final analysis, life is a solitary journey. Above all it is a tale about the joys and tribulations of living a complicated life.

Marcus is a writer on a journey. He doesn’t know where he is going or even with whom, if anyone, he is going. Where he has come from is clear. Well, the facts are clear. The reasons and his emotional journey are not so clear. He is a victim, a victim on two counts. The more he knows and experiences, the more he realizes what he does not know and consequently fails to understand. This leads to his primary victim status as possibly the ultimate victim of the paradox of choice. He has so much yet has nothing. He can obtain many things except the one thing that he believes he really wants, maybe even needs: true love.

He had been a successful businessman, creating the financial independence that supports his traveling life of adventure and searching. A doomed love affair, with Tina, was the catalyst for him to move from the clinical and relative safety of business to this emotionally charged world of fantasy and delusion. He fully recognizes that his lifestyle is delusional, a touch self-obsessed, and definitely crazy, but he enjoys it, so case closed. In his discovery of what it is like to be a Renaissance man, he has tried many things. Spiritual readers told him about his destiny and where he came from many thousands of years ago. He wrote a few books as a means of passing the time, some serious and some just for fun. In the process he met Anastasia, and they agreed to travel together as playmates.

He went on a magnificent journey of joy with the fantastic Anastasia. It took them to several romantic places. To Paris, to watch the ballet Swan Lake; to Ireland to experience the wild coast of the Dingle Peninsula, to London to enjoy the cockney experience and to see The Phantom of the Opera. They went to Marrakech to feel connected with those ancient Arabic times, and finally to Malaysia for some ancient Chinese wisdom away from the day-to-day excitement of modern life. The journey was a great travel experience heightened by superb food and drink, almost to the point of overconsumption. Above all the trip developed into a close and loving experience; they made love and fell in love, a little. They became superb playmates and instinctive bedfellows, metaphorically and literally.

But! Why is there nearly always a but? Their journey raised issues of a deep and spiritual nature in Marcus’s mind and soul. Visits to spiritual readers, fortunetellers, and a voodoo priestess revealed something about a previous life that was deeply troubling. Exciting, but deeply troubling. He was a lost soul from a previous life searching for his soul mate.

This is why we have to go back to the beginning. The beginning was several hundred years ago.

Malin was born into a tribe of warriors. The day he was born he was passed to the warrior elder within minutes of his birth, as were all newborn boys. The elder evaluated the male babies and decided if they should live and be trained as fighters. Babies who did not meet his immediate and brutal criteria were left on waste grounds at the edge of the village with no attention, which usually resulted in death that first night. If in the morning the boy was still alive, he was saved and considered blessed and to have inner strength. They were called the Chosen Ones. Malin was a Chosen One.

What followed for the boys was a childhood totally devoted to being a warrior, like his father, like his grandfather, like all the males in his family. The time in which he was born formed his life, his attitude toward death, and the need to become fearless. Not by choice; it was a matter of survival.

Every day he was either training to fight, planning to fight, or fighting. Fighting was what everyone did. Not for any high moral reasons. Fighting was fighting and winning was everything. No second place, just death.

Life was hard, cheap, usually short, and brutal. It was very simple: kill or be killed. Who you fought did not matter. Anyone would do, and that included friends and family. Occasionally a common enemy galvanized the village into collective action, but that was rare.

Once in a while a warrior prince would pass through Malin’s village to harvest fighters for some faraway war. Some villagers welcomed the chance to go and fight; others had worked out that this was a one-way trip and hid. Survival of the fittest sometimes meant hiding quickly.

The women were intended for procreation, to service the warriors, and most importantly, to produce more warrior boys. By any standards it was a hard and soulless life without much respite. Emotions were unwanted and an alien concept to most of the villagers. Sentiment was a sign of weakness.

Malin was tough but different. He enjoyed talking to the women and enjoyed their company, which he masked well with indifferent behavior toward them. Liking women was only partially true. He really liked only one woman.

Alesia was different, one of the youngest in the village, with striking black hair that hung well below her shoulders. Even the way she moved was different. He felt strange urges of passion when he was with her. Her hips swayed in way that Malin found attractive, almost intoxicating. In any other world Malin and Alesia would be lovers, totally devoted to each other and inseparable. But this was not any other world; and lovers not only did not exist, they were not even understood. Women were to be impregnated so they could give birth to children, warrior children.

This coldness shaped Malin into a brutal, callous fighting machine. Yet somehow, despite all this matter-of-fact brutality, a bond developed between Malin and Alesia. He hoped that one day he would be strong and powerful enough to claim one of the women as his own. When that day came, it would be Alesia.

The day that Malin was taken away to fight was a complete surprise. He had just completed the morning ritual of striking the largest trees with his sword to strengthen his muscles and was on the way back to the village for food. Suddenly he was surrounded by at least twenty heavily armed warriors, none of whom he recognized. Their leader was grotesquely scarred, and the coldness in his eyes scared even Malin.

We need warriors to come with us, he said. We are leaving now.

That was it. Malin was gone. No argument, no opportunity for discussion, and certainly no good-byes. It would be some time before Alesia realized Malin was no longer there. She was told he had been killed and shortly thereafter one of the other warriors chose her as an exclusive partner. Malin had not been killed, and when he returned to find Alesia spoken for, they were both distraught at this unfortunate twist of fate. Marlin turned to drink and eventually killed himself.

Since those early days, Malin and Alesia have been traveling the world in their subsequent lives, trying to find each other. One spiritual reader told Marcus that the strong love he had felt for Tina was because they were Malin and Alesia connecting as soul mates.

No fewer than three spiritualist readers told Marcus this story. Well, the outline of the story. Marcus had originally believed that his long lost soul mate was Tina but the visit to the fortune teller in Malaysian with Anastasia had resulted in them creating the names Alesia and Malin after hearing the warrior story for the third time. They declared themselves the current reincarnations of these two soul mates that had been trying to find each other since they parted several hundred years ago. Marcus was not sure who the real Alesia was, Anastasia or Tina or ?

Marcus was a writer based in Chicago, a vocation he had recently discovered after a long time working in the business world, which he largely enjoyed. He had been successful and this allowed him a life of travel and personal freedom without the pressure of having to earn money. He wrote books, and though he didn’t necessarily sell them, he enjoyed the process of writing. It was a therapeutic pastime that helped him get over his failed love affair with Tina, whom he had met on business in New Orleans. After a short, intense affair, she was no longer in his life. To understand the intensity of his feelings for Tina, Marcus had visited several spiritual advisors and they all told him the same thing. Tina was his soul mate from a time long ago trying to reconnect, and she would keep trying to find him. Marcus realized Tina was Alesia, trying to contact his former self, Malin. As Tina was not to be, he was on a quest to find the real Alesia. He was consequently traveling the world meeting women, driven by Malin to find the love of his life, the elusive Alesia,

Anastasia was a successful businesswoman in Chicago, and she met Marcus when he was writing a book called Do Not Get between a Woman and Her Chocolate, which was about how women compared sex to chocolate. She was a remarkable woman who had left school at sixteen and created a business of beauty salons, twice. Her education on life had been from behind a hairdresser’s chair as hundreds of women, and men, had given her the most comprehensive insight into the human psyche. She had graduated with honors. She and Marcus began a deep friendship, which resulted in Anastasia making a contribution to the book. They became playmates and lovers.

The Journey of Joy trip finished in Malaysia, where they parted. Anastasia flew back to Chicago but Marcus, originally from Britain, routed through London to attend to business. He returned to Chicago to continue with his quest to find the love of his life, the elusive Alesia, wherever and whoever she might be. On the long flight from London to Chicago, Marcus decided that when he returned to his home he would make two telephone calls to determine what his next step would be in his quest for Alesia.

Reentry to Chicago

M arcus returned to his nest in the sky, which was a condominium in a high-rise building in downtown Chicago. His arrival had started well with a prompt exit through a line-less immigration hall and a cheery immigration officer who said, Welcome home. He liked that as a Brit, he had adopted this great country to be his long-term home. The taxi ride downtown was also unusually quick, taking just under thirty minutes, and he was soon exchanging pleasantries with the doorman and then on the way up to his condo, where he would start the reentry process into his downtown life. He traveled a lot so this was a frequent, almost ritualistic, process that he took great comfort from. He was home and wanted to follow the procedure that ensured he would be fully acclimated. A strange American word that he had learned, liked, and used, regardless of its odd difference from the English version, acclimatised.

Arrival day was always the same. He checked his mail, discarding most of it as rubbish and setting aside the small pile of correspondence that required his attention—and usually his checkbook. That was a job for the next day. He listened to messages on the answering machine, unpacked his bags, and set aside clothing either for the dry cleaner or the washing machine. Other items that he might have taken, like his cameras, were reunited with their little homes in his apartment. A quick walk to Trader Joe’s, on the same block, to buy a light meal, usually a salad. A long, hot, relaxing shower helped him to transition to his welcoming bed and hopefully a sleep of at least eight hours.

Day two was always an early start as the six-hour time difference kicked in. so at three a.m. he was up and writing. It usually took him three to four days to align his sleeping pattern. Working from three a.m. until nine a.m. was usually productive, as Marcus was rested and interruptions were unusual. At nine he shaved, showered, and dressed, ready for the things he always tried to do the first day back in town. Starbucks for coffee, cash from the bank, the barber for a trim, and the workout room for exercise and a swim. This was as predictable as the dog that marks its territory on the same lamppost. Animalistic, predictable, and repetitive behavior at its most basic. He was prepared for whatever the universe had decided to send his way. Of course he hoped it would be good, and usually his expectations were met. It was good to be alive. This was the day to adjust and return to the swing of his normal life, whatever that was.

The other highlight of the second day was a visit to Shaw’s Crab House, another ritual where he was required to partake in oysters and king crab claws. He always sat in the Oyster Bar, a no-reservations, walk-in place full of atmosphere and a decor that dated the place and helped create that atmosphere that he enjoyed.

Who Is This Calling?

M arcus had a plan. When he returned to Chicago after the Journey of Joy with Anastasia, he would make two phone calls. The outcome of those calls would dictate what he would do next. As with so many plans, events overtook intention. The phone rang before he could make either call. It was Sheraya, asking if he remembered her.

No, he answered honestly. Give me a clue?

You came to see me a few months ago for a reading.

Okay, he replied with a vague level of confidence.

Michigan Avenue, and we talked about your past life.

Got it. Hello, how are you?

His mind was racing back to his visit to Michigan Avenue when he had met Sheraya, a beautiful, young Indian woman who had given him a crystal and advised him to meditate in order to find out if the love of his live was real or imaginary. She gave him the rose quartz crystal to meditate with every night, saying this would be the road to illumination about this woman and if she really had been the love of his life. It was like establishing a call to the universe. She told Marcus to hold the crystal in his right hand every night before sleeping and say the name and date of birth of his loved one three times. They would then be connected in the universe, after which he could meditate and send her energy. Marcus used the crystal a few times, but the results were inconclusive. He had surprised himself even going along with the idea in the first place. When he first met the Indian woman, she had dismissed Tina as irrelevant, but she gave him the crystal process in order for him to see if any energy came back. In dismissing his love for Tina, she had defined him as being addicted to intimacy.

He had been confused by her saying over the phone that her name was Sheraya. When they had met she had not told him her name was Sheraya, or at least he had no recollection of it. He was intrigued. Why was this beautiful woman calling him? Then he gave himself a reality check. He recalled that she had suggested further soul cleansing at the bargain price of $34,000. So that was it, a follow-up sales call, or whatever the equivalent was in the spiritual world. His excitement started to power down. It was his money, not his body, she was after. He had definitely been here before.

What can I do for you? he asked.

I have been thinking about you a lot and your energy is in my field.

Marcus was impressed with this spiritual speak. His excitement started to rise again. Really?.

During my meditations I visited your past life and met Malin. It was so powerful that I needed to speak to you.

Marcus’s excitement was now turbocharged. How could she have possibly known the name Malin. As far as he was aware, he and Anastasia had just invented that name in Malaysia, when he had been to a reading with her and they had been told about the previous life and that they were soul mates. This had happened after he’d met Sheraya. He was confused, but his brain remained engaged and at a rapid speed.

Really, he said again. It was all he could manage to say.

We have to meet, Sheraya said in a way that indicated that it was not a suggestion.

Why not? How about a coffee?

No. Come to my room in one hour.

With that, the phone line went dead.

Silence and thought can be so powerful. Marcus fell onto his couch and used both. What on earth was that all about? Should I go? It must be about money. These things do not happen to me. This is crazy. Then an image of the beautiful Indian woman came into his head and all logic evaporated out of his mind. Another adventure was about to start. Maybe?

The walk to see Sheraya was far from quiet and reflective. Head down, Marcus faced the ten-below-freezing headwind blowing up Michigan Avenue, which was more than enough to dispel any feelings of well-being and spiritual contentment. The walk was about survival and keeping his body heat intact. It was over in less than twenty minutes, and he was in the elevator for the short ride up to the spiritual spa. When the elevator stopped, the door opened with a clunk to reveal Sheraya waiting with a huge smile and open arms.

The hug was more than friendly but just short of intimate. Her piercing brown eyes went straight through him and rendered him powerless. She turned, walked into her quiet sanctuary, and sat. Marcus followed and sat opposite her. The silence enabled him to take in the room and remind himself of his previous visit. The religious symbolism was powerful; this was a woman with strong religious convictions and great faith. He noted the tarot cards neatly stacked on a side table and gestured to them.

May I? he asked.

Of course, she replied.

Marcus picked up the cards and shuffled them for several minutes, holding her gaze the whole time. He handed her the pack.

Cut the cards into two piles please, he said. He knew the process and had been on the other side many times.

Sheraya cut the pack and placed two piles onto the table.

Which pack? he asked.

She touched one of them. Marcus picked it up and shuffled it several times, and then fanned it open and asked Sheraya to select three cards He carefully laid them face down on the table.

He turned over the first card—the emperor. He leaned toward Sheraya and, in a low voice, spoke.

The emperor card. This is me and I have come back into your life for a purpose. I have the power to shape the world. I am here to help balance your mind and body. The emperor has a strong and powerful heart and means you no harm. I rule like King Arthur, who brought together the warring powers of England and created the greatest empire the world had ever known. The emperor card indicates energy that can manifest itself in you, to help you. If you have any difficult decisions to make, I can help you to maintain your concentration and focus.

He smiled and turned over the second card. It was the picture of a woman, the high priestess. He explained its meaning. Well,