Napa
King of the Zadok
Seth pulled into the Oak Barrel parking area and saw Jovel getting out of his car. He rolled down his window and stopped beside him. “What’s up Jovel?”
“Hey Seth. Good timing, I just got off break.”
“Did you get something to eat in family dining?”
Jovel feigned a laugh. “Yeah right. Today was pork ribs.”
Seth winced. “Oooh, I never liked those. I can’t stand the smell, and even the sauce sucks.”
“I usually just grab a soda and say hi. I prefer to spend my break driving around the back roads.”
“Funny huh… They wouldn’t serve that food to their family or guests, but they will serve it to you and tell you you’re the lucky one.”
“Have you ever noticed how much of that gets tossed out each night?”
Seth shook his head. “When I first got here I thought this was the closest thing to the environment I had at Disney. The intro program really got me excited about going to work. Ask Cruz. We were in the same intro class.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, I remember him. He wore his forty-niner jersey, a white one.”
Jovel’s face turned serious. “Hey, speaking of Cruz, did you hear about Maria’s dad?”
“No. What happened?”
“He went into the hospital yesterday.”
Seth put the truck in park. “No way. Why?”
“I’m not sure of the details, but Maria left work and went straight to the hospital. She’s still there.”
“Is he going to be okay?”
“You’ll have to ask Cruz. He’s inside. You might want to ease into it though. He hasn’t said much about it.”
Seth put the car back in gear. “Okay, I’ll see you inside.”
“Racer today?”
Seth took a deep breath and blew out his air. “Maybe two.”
Jovel started walking. “See you inside.”
Seth parked and entered the first door by the bathrooms. He saw Cruz walk around the kitchen corner with a tub in his hands. “Hey Cruz.”
“What’s up Seth… Corner!” Cruz took the tub of silverware over to the bar, and set them beside a stack of napkins.
“Rollups, huh.”
“Yeah. I have to bust out about twenty-five special ones for a cake cutting later tonight.”
Seth took a sip of beer. “Mmmmm. Thanks Jovel. I tell you, beer has become my new coffee.”
Jovel laughed. “You have been pretty regular.”
Seth laughed. “I didn’t mean that way. I still get my caffeine fix every morning. What I mean is, well, Megumi and I used to work in a coffee shop together in San Francisco. We had a great time. We also drank a lot of coffee in many different styles. Megumi used to make her own mix of the three beans we used, and man, could she make the perfect cup. I’m talking aroma, flavor, everything.”
Cruz looked at Seth. “Hey, it’s coffee. There’s not much more to it.”
“There is for me. I normally drink mine straight, but there are endless combinations that you can choose from. It can be more of an art than bartending if you consider many coffee shops roast their own beans.”
“Hey man!” Jovel reached for Seth’s beer. “Am I going to have to cut you off already?”
Seth grabbed his beer. “Dude. You’re a true mixologist, trust me. I’m just saying the morning caffeine gets me going. I also enjoy the different types of beer. The microbrew gave independents an opening, and now look how many awesome beers we have. They’re all different.”
Cruz stopped in the middle of rolling silverware. “Seth, you only drink Racer. What are you talking about?”
Seth shrugged his shoulders. “I only drink Racer here. It’s the best one you have.” He took a sip.” So, Cruz, can I ask how Maria’s dad is doing?”
Cruz continued his rolling. “Maria said he’ll be in the hospital for a few days. They want to run some tests.”
“Are you going to visit?”
“I was there all night.”
“What happened?”
“He collapsed at home. Maria is freaking out. We talked for hours last night. I think we’re going to move our wedding to this summer.”
Jovel grabbed a wine glass to polish. “Really? That’s great. When?”
“Probably late August. I don’t know. I love her, and I want to be together, but I don’t want to feel rushed for any reason.”
Seth nodded his head. “I understand. You’ll do what you feel is right in your heart Cruz. I know that.”
“Well it might be a wedding, or it might not.”
“Maybe when her dad gets out you can go ask him for Maria’s hand in marriage? You asked Maria last month, but you didn’t involve him did you?”
Cruz paused. “No. I just asked her so she could relax.”
Seth reached in his pocket and pulled out his phone. “Maybe she can if you get her dad involved. Hey, speaking of wives, mine just sent me a text and told me she’s ready to eat, so I got to go early today.”
*****
Megumi picked up the plates and took them to the sink. “If you ask me, Cruz will get married in August. I also like your idea about talking to her dad.”
Seth grabbed the condiments. “Family is very important to her.”
“Family is important to me too.”
Seth opened the fridge. “As soon as we get stable, we’ll have as many kids as you want. Kid’s are expensive you know.”
Megumi wiped the table. “My mom keeps asking me about it. Do you want some wine?”
“Why not? That was a great dinner. I’ll be out back.”
A few minutes later, she brought him a glass of wine. “What time is everyone coming over tonight?”
“Sundays have been slow at work, so they could get here around nine-thirty or ten. Erica gave me some Christian DVD. It has extras for game machines. I was gong to check it out… unless you have something else you need me to do?”
“Go right ahead. I’m going to lay in bed and read a book.” Megumi got up and walked back inside.
Seth took one more deep drag and held it for a minute, before blowing a stream of smoke high into the night sky. He walked inside to the kitchen where he stopped long enough to top off his wine. “I thought you were going to read a book. Just rinse the plates and leave them on the counter. I’ll get it.” He picked up the CD from the middle of his Bible study pile and waved it in front of her.
Megumi shook her head. “It’s probably some Christian crusade or something. I bet I hear Rock Band real soon.”
Seth fired up the X-Box, settling on the couch with his wine. The disc started with a simple white screen, followed by a series of questions. What’s your mom’s maiden name? What are the last four digits of your social security number? Who was your first love?
“What? How would a game know that?” Seth typed in her name and pressed enter.
The screen turned black. Seth waited, but nothing happened. He shook the controller. “Did I hit a wrong button or something?”
He tapped the back button several times, finally tossing the controller beside him on the couch in disgust. Blowing out a deep breath of air to relax, he looked over to his Rock Band drums, but before he could move to change the game his X-Box started humming. The green ring of light circling the power button cycled through a variety of colors. The quadrants of the circle flashed through different sequences, faster and faster until it became a single bright glow that didn’t really have a color.
Seth leaned back on the couch with his hands on his face. “Aaaugh! That’s why I never put other people’s games in my box.”
Megumi poked her head through the curtains in the kitchen doorway. “What’s going on?”
Seth shrugged his shoulders. “I think this game fried my box. I can’t get it to turn off. And this back button is doing nothing to help! I hate this…”
Before he finished his sentence, the power to the house shut off for a brief instant. The lights dimmed to a low glow, while the television flickered a few times between a dark blue and fiery orange… then back to black. The X-Box slowed to a normal spin, and the color of the ring settled back to it’s radiant green.
Seth looked at Megumi and held his arms in the air. He shrugged and let out a sarcastic. “Okaaaay?”
Megumi nodded toward the television. “It’s working now.” She pulled her head back through the curtains and withdrew to the kitchen.
Seth picked up the controller. “Let’s try this again…”
The television showed bellowing black clouds approaching from the distance. Three small letters zoomed from the clouds to the front of the screen: a red R, white P, and a blue G.
“RPG… Okay, now we’re cooking with gas.” He took the controller and moved to his drum seat, grabbed his cordless headphones, and pressed start. The television started to take on the same brilliant color the X-Box did a few minutes ago. “No!” He pressed the back button several times.
The letters and clouds disappeared, and a calm sexy female voice came through the headphones. “Hi Seth. Welcome to your game. You have to stop trying to go back. It’s too late. You can’t go back from here.”
The screen transitioned from black to a light blue. Seth looked around to make sure he was alone. He heard her voice again… “What are you looking for? Relax. Now let’s get started. Just tell me what you want to play?”
“Hmmm. It must use voice recognition?” Seth spotted the mic by the light and fog machine, and reached down under the drums to grab it.
“Come on Seth. What do you want to play?”
Seth shook his head. “I’ll be right there. Just let me get my mic and we’ll do this.”
“Why do you want a mic? I can hear you fine. You hear me don’t you?”
The hair on the back of Seth’s neck stood up. He pulled back, bumping his head on a drum pad, and knocking his headphones to the ground. He froze, except for his eyes, which darted around the room looking for something rational. He saw Megumi walk by the kitchen door to put food in the fridge, but he could find nothing in the living room out of the ordinary.
Seth picked up the headphones, fumbling around trying to put them back on. “How can you hear me?”
“I’m RPG. I hear everything. That’s all you need to know.”
Seth started snooping around the room, thinking it must be Cruz pulling a prank with his new police toys. “Cruz, is that you? Come on out man. You got me good with this one.”
The television turned a light green. “I’m not Cruz. He’s at work for at least another hour. Just relax Seth. RPG is a very complex game and technology. It’s not simple enough to put in a fifteen-page booklet. It needs volumes of paper to adequately address your experience. The same goes for every individual who plays.”
“My experience?” Seth pulled the shade back a little with his finger to look outside?
“Your ultimate game experience Seth. It’s different for everyone.”
“So how do I play? There’s nothing here for me to go on.”
The television changed to a canary yellow, RPG’s voice more firm. “I asked you a couple of times what you wanted to do?”
Seth shrugged his shoulders. “Just like that?”
“Yes. Just like that.”
Seth rubbed his chin. “Hmmm… Do you have any music like in Rock Band or Guitar Hero?”
The screen turned to a deep and powerful blue. “I’ve got better! There’s a new pair of drumsticks behind your guitar… Let’s play.”
Seth turned to look behind his guitar and found a pair of orange sticks with glowing white tips. “What the…”
In the center of the television screen, a pink glowing circle appeared briefly before dissolving back into the blue background. RPG giggled. “I thought you would like them.”
Seth spun the sticks in his fingers. “These are the perfect weight, and they’re… energetic. How did these get here?”
The screen turned to a fiery red, her voice stern. “Let RPG take care of the details Seth. You never know who’s playing. There are people around you I’ve been talking to for a long time.”
“Sorry.”
“I knew you would get your game this week. Don’t you think I could have had those sticks placed there anytime?”
“Okay, okay. I didn’t mean any disrespect. You have to understand, I’m not a gamer like these guys you see playing video games all day. I only play Rock Band. Something like this is new to me. I’m just trying to grasp this whole experience.”
The screen calmed to a soft yellow. “Of course you are Seth. Everyone is. That’s why RPG happens at a different pace, with different scenarios, and at different times for those who play. Even with all that diversity, everyone has a common game logic they must deal with. We make sure your version of the game will be specific for you, and as you develop your skills, you will be introduced to other players around you. Be patient, but stay alert.”
“Others around me are playing?”
The screen turned a medium blue, halfway between the previous shades, and answered a little sarcastically. “Since about two days before Adam… if you’re counting. Now are you ready to play drums, or do you want to continue with your inquisition?”
Seth twirled the sticks in his fingers. “Let’s do it!”
“Okay. First, I noticed your Rock Band drums have the triple symbol kit. That’s great! Your drum set on screen will be exactly like it. You have four drums, three symbols, plus your bass pedal. That’s a solid set up Seth. I can’t wait to hear you play, but I have to show you a few things first. Our version is a little more advanced than what you are used to. You might say it’s more lifelike. In RPG you play from a first person’s perspective. You don’t see yourself as some other character on a stage. You are on the stage, and you see the world through your character’s eyes. You can only get reflections and glimpses of the true you from others. Like I said, it’s lifelike.”
“Alright. Let’s live.”
“Tonight you will play from a drummer’s view. But don’t dream of being a drummer Seth. Be the hottest drummer on the planet! It’s your RPG…”
The entire room and television faded to black. Seth heard somebody moving around, bumping into a few things. The pops of a few breakers echoed one by one in the silence as they were flipped.
With the first pop a few lights revealed an empty stage with a mesh screen across the front. Seth sat behind the drums at the back of the stage. All of the pieces matched his kit. He looked around at the other instruments on stage, but the lights quickly dimmed and colored spotlights above him cycled through a short test pattern.
A second breaker popped, lighting an empty arena on the other side of the screen. The stage was on the end of the arena floor. Artificial grass covered the rest of the floor, and the rink wall had glass panels like you see at a hockey game.
RPG pulled Seth out of his daze. “Hey, wake up! This will be full soon. Your show sold out months ago. Everyone knew you were about to login and play.”
Another breaker popped. A series of flat screens around the arena turned on, followed by the overhead scoreboard. They all cycled through a short test pattern together, then changed to the black bellowing clouds with the RPG letters in front.
RPG explained. “These are where the game notes appear. You can read any of the screens around the arena. Guitarists love it because they can walk around the crowd and still see their notes. You’re pretty stuck where you are, drummer.”
Seth soaked in the view. “I’m happy from right here.”
The stage lights came on enough to block Seth’s view past the screen.
“Why don’t you bang around a little while I get the rest of the band?”
Seth reached to adjust a symbol. At the same time, he saw an arm like his on television holding the same orange stick, and moving toward the symbol with him. He quickly pulled back, and so did the hand on the television. “Whoa. This is pretty deep.”
He turned and looked around for a sensor or something that could be watching him. Slowly he put his hand up and waved it around. The hand on television followed perfectly. He tried to trick it a few times, but nothing worked.
Seth played a simple beat. It sounded unbelievable. There was no noise from the sticks hitting plastic pads like on his game drums. There was no clicking of a cheap toy bass pedal. Seth carried himself away in digital percussion bliss, filling the arena with his beat.
After a short time, the RPG interrupted. “The band’s here Seth. Do you think you’re ready?”
Seth held his sticks high in the air and spun around on his stool. “Now this is really, really hot!”
Jovel walked on stage toward his guitar. “Of course he’s ready.”
From the other side of the stage Seth heard. “You’re going to love this man!” Cruz walked on stage toward his guitar. He pointed to Jovel, and they both did a little air guitar move as if deep in a song together.
Seth pulled back. “I didn’t know you guys got a copy of RPG?”
Cruz adjusted his guitar. “My brother gave it to me.”
Jovel jumped and karate kicked his feet in the air. “Mine was in my mailbox.”
“Nice kick! I’ve never seen you jump like that before.”
Jovel kicked his foot up in the air and held it, turning his body slowly toward Seth. “I feel great man. RPG is the best. I’m vivacious.”
Seth watched them do their little air guitar move. “What are we going to play?”
A voice off to the side said with humble unction. “Are You Gonna Go My Way?”
“I love Lenny Kravits.” Seth turned to the right side of the stage when a man, maybe thirty to thirty-five, came walking into view. He stood tall, but not too tall. Long golden hair flowed around a cheerful face, with large and soft blue eyes. He and Jovel did the band handshake.
Everyone wore the same clothes: light blue jeans, a red shirt, and a white sport coat with a golden circle surrounded by silver circles on the back. Seth looked down to notice he had light blue jean shorts, and a jacket matching the others in the band was hanging behind him.
The man looked at Seth while walking over to Cruz. “This is quite a little band you put together.” They did the band handshake. He turned and started to walk toward Seth. Cruz and Jovel squeezed in another air guitar move.
Seth shook his head. “Man, these guys are happy tonight.”
“These two are always happy. Hi. I’m Mel.” He reached out and did the band handshake. “It will be fun to sing with you guys.”
Seth smiled. He couldn’t help but notice a magnetic simplicity about this guy. “I guess that would make your last name ‘Chisedec’?”
Mel smiled back. “I hope your sticks are as quick as your mind. I have a lot of friends coming tonight. Are you guys plugged in and set up?”
Cruz and Jovel answered together. “Yes Chef!”
“Great. Let us get this party started. Everything is a go. They’re already starting to let people in. Hey Seth.”
“Yes.”
“Don’t drop your sticks.”
Cruz and Jovel started laughing. Cruz turned to Seth. “He’s seen you play.”
The crowd started to roar when the lights dimmed. Fog poured from the back of the stage, only this time it wasn’t the fake smoke the fog machine puffs out. Instead, a thick white river with nothing over knee high poured past Seth and the rest of the band, off the front of the stage, and started to fill the grassy area.
Colorful lights projected down from the suspended scoreboard, swirling dots on the fog like a movie in a theater. They ricocheted around, following the fog across the grass. When the fog reached the far side, it filled the rink to the top of the glass panels. All the swirling colors organized in groups with similar colors. On the far side of the rink they aligned into a rainbow, and started working back toward the stage.
Seth started to say under his breath. “What the…”
RPG’s sexy voice cut him off. “Hey. Careful Seth. Mel wrote the game.”
Seth noticed a stir in the colored fog. The floor filled with people wearing white graduation caps and gowns. The colors on the main floor mixed as the people walked through them. Swirls of blue and yellow turned green, but quickly settled back to their original colors. People moved about the floor keeping a psychedelic flow of liquid color. Their white gowns and caps blended with the fog to create a surreal 3-D display.
People in the stands held fake lighters with colored light bulb tops. Thousands of red, yellow, green, blue, and orange pinpoints surrounded the arena like the deepest parts of outer space.
The fog from the back of the stage started pouring in a bright illuminated white. It reached the edge of the stage and stopped. The colors flowing in the psychedelic mix from the people started a frenzied scramble. A thin white wave rippled across the arena floor, sending all the colors behind it to their exact numerical value on the color wheel.
At three quarters of the way across, the crowd started screaming with anticipation. Following the white ripple, they didn’t notice the screen in front of the band slowly start to rise. It finished by the time the ripple reached the other side. Everyone around the arena stared at the color wheel, in perfect order, each illuminated from within.
A flash of bright lights filled the stage, and dots started flowing down the scoreboard screens. Seth played the drum intro. Cruz followed on guitar, and Jovel started bouncing around the stage thumping his base to the beat.
Seth hit every note, but they didn’t disappear off the screen. Instead, they fell to the illuminated blanket of fog and people in the middle of the arena. They bounced around like colored globes, keeping the beat of the song.
The crowd bounced and sang along with them, and tonight the Bud Break Band became rock stars.
*****
Megumi walked from the kitchen to the bedroom. She closed the door a little harder than usual tonight. Seth whaled on those cheap plastic drums. Although she did have to admit, she never heard him play like that before.