The Seventh Mountain by Gene Curtis

and Nick chose one of the unoccupied booths. Mark
leaned the staff against the wall and slid in behind it. Nick sat
on the opposite side.
    There were four large books on the booth’s
black marble table and four sets of silverware wrapped in gray
napkins at the four places. Mark examined one of the large books.
It was a menu the size of a large phone book. Countries were listed
alphabetically and had their own sections. Foods were listed
according to category.
    Mark said, “They must have a huge kitchen
here. Tim said that you could get anything you want to eat or drink
from any place in the world in here.”
    Nick said, “We haven’t got our signets yet.
You have to have your signet registered at The Good Steward so that
they know which account to charge. You can’t buy anything without
your signet.” Nick sounded as if everyone should know this.
    “Tim told me that you could sign for stuff
until you got your signet. He didn’t say anything about needing any
spending money or anything.”
    “My brother, Ivan, told me that you need a
signet for everything in school. He says that you can’t even get a
toothpick without your signet.”
    A voice interrupted from the end of the
table. The young waitress was tall and slender. Bright green eyes
greeted Mark and Nick when they looked up at her. Her red hair was
done up in a bun. She was wearing a white blouse and black slacks.
Her nametag read, “Shana O’Riley.”
    “Freshmen are the exception to that rule
during orientation. They can sign or use a signet for orientation
only. You guys ready to order?”
    Mark said, “Lemonade, please, and chicken
fried rice.”
    Shana asked, “Which country?”
    Mark thought for a moment and said,
“China.”
    “China is closed right now. It’s the middle
of the night there. You have to order from a country that is
awake.” Shana used her pencil and pointed to the cover of one of
the menus. The cover had a map of the world and the different time
zones.
    Mark said, “Sorry, I don’t know which time
zone we’re in.”
    “Number eight.”
    “Well then, how about the U.S.” Mark was
confident that this would be available.
    “Each state in the U.S. is considered a
separate country for food purchases.”
    “California.”
    Nick had been following this. “I’ll have
iced tea from Georgia and a club sandwich.”
    Shana chuckled a little and asked, “The
state or the country?”
    Nick blushed. “The state please.”
    She wrote on her order book. “I’ll be back
in a few minutes.”
    Before she left, Mark asked her, “Why do you
have to order from a country that is awake?”
    “Because there aren’t any shops open if
everyone is asleep.”
    “You mean you actually have to go there to
get what we order?”
    “Well, yeah, one of us does. You really are
new to this aren’t you?”
    Mark said, “I guess it shows.”
    Shana smiled, turned and walked away.
    Nick said, “They remanifest, like Tim did
when he brought you here. They can go anywhere they have ever been
before. It’s really neat. If you concentrate really hard on
something that you have seen, then you just automatically go to
wherever that thing is. Remanifestation is something that all
seniors learn. Ivan says that he heard that it’s hard to
learn.”
    “I don’t mean to sound stupid or anything,
but what is a Magi?”
    “You’re joking, right?”
    “No. All of this is very strange to me. I’ve
never seen or heard of anything like it.”
    “How did you get to be a Magi then? I mean,
my mother and father were Magi and so were their parents. Their
parents were too. Anyone can become a Magi, but you have to be
recommended by a Magi. My parents recommended me.”
    “I don’t know how I became a Magi. Tim says
that I was chosen. He didn’t say by who or why. He said my great,
great, great, great grandfather was a Magi.”
    “You were chosen?”
    “Yeah, that’s what Tim said.”
    “Wow! That’s awesome! Do you know what your
destiny is?”
    “I