‘PHOTOSYNTHESIS’

Michael Christopher Contreras is a chicano fine art photographer & award-winning filmmaker from the Inland Empire, Ca. Michael's love for photography is shared through his visual expression of the world around him. With a keen eye to capture unique photos, Michael specializes in abstract, landscape, b&w, and candid photography. The majority of photos taken by Michael are from his travels around the united states while working as a freelancer. Contreras has a fascination with using film and natural lighting for his subjects.

PHOTOSYNTHESIS

Everyone in the crowd was practically on the edge of their seats as Adam Williams paced on the stage, spewing his self proclaimed wisdom. A baby blue turtleneck wrapped perfectly tailored to his body and a Rolex was snug on his wrist. The frail Black man smiled and absorbed the validation from the engaging crowd. In every event, no matter how long or how little he spoke for, he made sure to spark, hurt, or baffle his audience's brains.

Today he twisted the crowd’s brains.

“Although we’ve built this artificial world around us, as humans we are a form of pure nature.” he stated. “Our bodies know how to create, repair, and replace their own parts. Even without knowledge of how it does so. How many of you can come up here and tell me the exact process that heals your finger when you get a papercut? Sprain your ankle? Break your shoulder?”

A few apprehensive hands raised halfway up into the air.

“Yet despite this, each cell does precisely what it needs when deemed necessary. Could you imagine if our brains had to understand how a broken bone heals before it could start healing? It would be barbaric and gruesome, and some of you would be in here today with twenty-year old complex fractures.”

The crowd let out a collective laugh.

“We are the very essence of nature. We are one with this earth and we are this earth, down to even the soil. The only difference is we’ve built a barrier between us and nature. We’ve built on top of our natural surroundings. You know what organism doesn’t do that? Plants. They get everything they need from their environment, the same environment that they originated from.”

He paused to let the crowd catch up.

“Humans are the only species on earth that define their environment by things composed artificially—made by ourselves. If you ask someone about their living environment, they’ll mention their man-made house, and man-made possessions in said house, and their man-made accomplishments. However, if you ask someone what a plant’s living environment is,” he paused dramatically, “they’ll mention the nutrient-rich soil, or the mineral filled flowing water, the pigment of the chlorophyll. They’ll bring up the crisp oxygen, they’ll describe the radiant sun. And we have strayed from that.”

There were shocked gasps from the crowd.

“We used to get everything we needed from the ground around us. And yes, I know we invented numerous tools and improved and improved and improved for ages to reach where we are. But look at what it’s done. It’s taken us so far from what we used to be. And, let’s be honest, don’t you think about how complicated things are made to be most of the time?”

Agreeing nods went around.

“But now, what if I told you there was a way to get back to our roots? No more killing two birds with one and some, let’s try to feed two birds with one loaf.” He continued.

There were confused murmurs from the crowd.

Adam Williams took their confusion as interest, and their interest as praise. He waited for everyone to pause from their bewilderment and refocus back on him. He lifted his hand and the room fell silent. He pointed at a screen behind him, and a picture appeared.

“Ooh’s” and “ahh’s” filled the crowd.

“I have created a way.” He boasted. “A way to be one with the earth once again. A way to reconnect to our roots.”

The lights dimmed and the crowd watched with eyes wide and jaws collectively on the floor. A seductive ad faded in. A tall light-skinned male and a wavy-haired brunette walked onto screen in beach attire. The ad then cut to a scene where the two models were in slow-motion and exiting the pool, splashing water in an alluring way. It cut once again to the models laying on the individual chairs with edited, visible steam coming out their bodies. The screen darkened to black, casting the room into a full shadow. Then a six-letter word in all caps faded in.

ROOTED

The lights faded in and Adam Williams was impatient.

“Ladies and gentlemen!” He proclaimed loudly. “Rooted! The world’s newest technological advancement, providing human photosynthesis!”

Gasps mixed with the “ooh’s”, the “ahh’s”, and the confusion.

“With a one-time operation in the base of the medulla, any human will now have the ability to harvest and sustain life purely on sunlight. Eliminating the need for the consumption of any type of food while completely emitting the risk of dermal cancers.”

The over-stimulated crowd began to murmur amongst themselves once again. He didn’t wait for them to quiet down before speaking again.

“My staff hasn’t eaten in many, many months. And I, myself, haven’t touched food in sixty-five months.”

He smiled at the fact that his words had made the room so silent. He felt as though he could hear a sigh even from someone in the last row. “I have been filming my weekly, daily, hourly moments to document the progress of the biggest life-changing technology in human history. It contains the results of many tests and an analysis of my vitals at the end of each day and the beginning of every new morning. It shows us the key to our future.”

He had captured the mind and spirit of every person in the room.

“Now, although you will no longer have to eat after the operation, I highly suggest you continue with your normal consuming patterns and slowly decrease after three months. That’s something me and my team had figured out the hard way.”

He smiled at his own quip as he did a quick victory count to see how many minds he had rattled.

The crowd had questions they wanted answered.

“This chip has the potential to save the world. Here lies the power to eradicate world hunger, anxiety, depression, fatigue, insomnia, joint pain, need I go on?” He said. “In times like these, this country can use some progression. The world can use a lot of progression. Progress with me!”

The crowd stood to their feet and erupted in applause.

Adam Williams let the crowd cheer.

The ringing had not stopped in either of Adam Williams’ phones the whole ride back to his home.

Publishers, politicians, and every top media station wanted to get in contact with him immediately. A snippet of his presentation had been posted on social media and had already gone viral, making him the number one trending topic in thirty-seven states.

The next name that rang on his work phone was a name he admired.

He picked it up.

“Jeremiah! How are you?” He said with a wide smile.

“Never—and I don’t use that word lightly—have I felt better in my fifty-two years of living.” Jeremiah said on the other end. “How about yourself? I heard your premier went ‘greater than great’—and yes, I’m quoting that.”

“It would be easier for me to tell you a list of people that haven’t called me today. To be honest, I want to turn off both of my phones, but I just love the sound of success.” Jeremiah laughed wholeheartedly.

“Oh, and before I forget, I heard someone hit sixty months going full-photosynthesis today.” Adam Williams mentioned. “Congratulations brother. I’m proud of you, and I’m still very appreciative of your commitment to stand by my side the whole way through this tedious process. You’ve boosted me to the pinnacle of mankind through your support and I know I wouldn’t be here if not for you.”

“Have you been drinking?” Jeremiah said with a laugh. “Don’t get all sentimental and cry-baby with me. You built this! All I did was stand there and believe in you. You always told me that one day you would create something. What kind of person would I be to try to tear that dream away from you?”

“Just take the appreciation.” Adam Williams said with a smile.

“I’ve been hearing your other phone ringing throughout this whole phone call. You really weren’t lying.” Jeremiah chuckled.

Adam Williams grabbed his personal phone and immediately dropped it with a groan.

“Oh, why’d you grumble like that? Who was calling you?” Jeremiah asked.

“Mia.”

“The crazy but gorgeous one? I couldn’t forget her if I tried.” He joked.

“You know, I don’t I told you but she sent another request to remove her chip.”

“She started calling you about the procedure?”

“Every day, around noon. This is the latest she’s reached out.”

“Just answer. What’s the worst she can do over the phone? Probably talk your ear off, but that’s it. And you don’t even have to listen, just make confirming sounds of you agreeing with whatever she’s saying every two or three sentences. That’s what I’ve been doing to my wife for the last ten years.”

Jeremiah cackled, admiring his own humor.

“I’ll talk to her later.” Adam Williams replied. “I’m already on the phone.”

“Well, you’re not anymore. Just talk to her.” Jeremiah said and hung up before Adam Williams could reply.

He put his work phone down and stared at his personal phone until it stopped vibrating. And after two seconds of silence, a new name appeared, and the vibrating continued. He glanced back to his work phone and saw Mia’s name again.

He slid his finger across the screen and put the phone up to his ear.

“Miss Mia, I—”

“Why have you been avoiding me?” She interjected. “I’ve been nothing but calm each time I’ve approached you. But now you’ve made yourself scarce when I already told you that you need you to help me.”

“Miss Mia.” Adam Williams repeated. “What happens when you uproot a plant? When you strip it of its source of nutrients? What happens to that plant?”

She took a composing breath before answering.

“It dies—”

“So why would you try to uproot yourself?”

“You’re not listening. I’m already dying.” She whispered.

Adam Williams was silent.

“I’m pregnant and it’s twins. And there isn’t enough sunlight I can intake in a day to provide for me and the two growing babies in me. Please.”

“How often do you actually ea—”

“No, no!” She screamed. “I completely stopped eating months before even getting pregnant and haven’t eaten since. In fact, that’s how I found out I was pregnant with twins. I was feeling fatigued, after not feeling it in the least bit for months. So, I went to my doctor to see if my body was beginning to reject the chip. But instead, an additional two heartbeats were found. And those two need sunlight too, in addition to how much I need. I was practically in the sun all day prior to this, but with how quick night comes, I’ve been extra tired, and just weak. I don’t want to feel like this.”

Adam Williams heard as she moved the phone away from her face to sniffle back her snot and tears.

“You know, I went back to my doctor earlier today.” she continued. “He looked me in the eyes and told me that both of my babies are beginning to show signs of malnutrition. I can’t take in enough sunlight in the time that the sun is out. And everything I try to consume comes right back up and makes my body ache for hours. Please! You want to save the future of mankind? Here’s your chance! For these two in me right now! So please do us all a favor and keep your word! Save manki—”

He hung up and slowly dropped the phone back down, placing it right beside his personal phone.

With both thumbs on each phone, he held the side button for three seconds. Then he swiped the top of both screens at the same time.

He stared at the screens as they individually loaded then simultaneously shut to black.

David "Dapeki" King is a Black fiction writer who loves spending hours upon hours spinning thriller stories into a web of creative chaos. He lets his mind bleed onto the page which opens an interesting and eerie door that just compels readers to continue down a path full of unimaginable experiences. Works like “Killer Beauty” (in Untold Phantoms) and “Blood & Water” (TheYard Crime Blog) have proven Dapeki’s aptitude for insanity integrated into his tasteful, horrifying shorts.