Portal

by Fred Alvrez

  Chapter Sixteen

  Kevin, Casey, and Nathan moved quickly to the walls by the windows facing out from the café.

  Casey called across to Nathan. “I’m really scared. I shouldn’t be, but what if they stop? What if they see us?”

  “We run to the back of the café at the first sign of anything like that happening, then run down the side road. I saw a fire station down there a hundred yards or so. We run around the back and meet there.”

  The engine noise grew until they saw an army Land Rover slowly driving past.

  The vehicle drove on, never slowing for them or their car parked outside the café.

  “Okay, that was freaky,” Casey said. “Was it like that for you guys in Waiouru?”

  Kevin looked at Casey. “Yeah. We had a bad feeling about those cars when they drove past. This was another army truck, though. I wonder if it was one of the same ones that passed us or another one. Nate?”

  “I have no idea. They all look the same. But they’ve gone. I’m not sure what we do now. If we keep driving north, we may run into them.”

  Casey turned to Nathan. “But really, our only option is to double back and take another road. And then there might be army trucks on that road, too. I say stick to State Highway 1 and keep a sharp eye out for them.”

  The three sat in silence, contemplating the indecision.

  Nathan spoke up. “I don’t think there’s any easy answer. Like you say, Casey, the back roads might be full of army trucks, too. Then again, who knows? That one that drove past might turn off a hundred yards up the road. I don’t think there’s any point changing our route now. Kev?”

  “I’m easy either way. I could just run anyway and leave you guys to them. They won’t take much notice of a dog.”

  “Such loyalty. A true dog, then.”

  Kevin looked to Nathan. “Hey, I’m sort of half human, remember? That’s the human side coming out in me. So that’s it—we drive on?”

  “It’s a yes from me,” said Casey.

  “Same here. Let’s go,” Nathan said.

  “Not so fast,” Kevin said. “Why don’t we at least wait a while? I don’t want to catch up with those guys too quick.”

  “Good thinking. Casey, you okay with staying for longer? Say, a couple of hours?”

  “Yes, I think that’s a good idea.”

  Kevin turned counterclockwise three times, then lay back down on the floor and closed his eyes.

  Casey went back to her bench and lay down, and Nathan did the same.

  “Sergeant, how long till we get back to the rest of the unit, do you think?”

  “ETA fifteen minutes, sir.”

  Brian checked his watch, adding up the time in his head. “Okay, so that’s fifteen plus, say, thirty minutes tops to see if we can get the other Land Rover going or not. If not, another hour to move the test equipment to another Land Rover. So worst case scenario, we’re back on the road by 1600 hours.”

  “Does that mean we delay portal reentry for today, sir?”

  “Yes, it does. There’s no way we should be attempting it at night. I’d get shot by the project leads for doing that. We’ll make camp just south of Auckland, then we won’t be far from getting to Devonport tomorrow.”

  Brian and Kahi arrived back at the broken-down vehicle. He handed over the parts to the corporal.

  “Here you go, Corporal. Fast as you can one way or the other. I want this car running in fifteen minutes or we start moving test equipment over at that point.”

  “Roger, sir. I’m on it.”

  Brian went to the back of the vehicle and opened it up to look at the test equipment. It’d be an hour to move everything, if not longer. This was not going to plan.

  But at least after this there’d be no more surprises.

  He went to the passenger’s side of the Land Rover and got in the front. After starting his laptop and logging in, Brian checked out the progress so far on the TIGER application.

  A big red line bordered the application—they were overdue and over time. Brian acknowledged the lateness and the red line disappeared.

  While they had no communications to Base World from here, he could still monitor their progress via the TIGER app. Yes, they were late, but so far no other warning signs had appeared and there were no signs of any glitches other than the one he and Stu witnessed in the JET. He made a note of it in the app.

  He checked the last known status of the portal in Devonport, Auckland. All good. If they could count vehicle breakdowns as their only problems, then the project would move onto the next phase of traveling between countries. After that he’d put in for retirement.

  Brian opened the last test’s report. Yes, they had lost a soldier three years ago—a good one—but other than that, no real issues. The last test portal, well and truly buried secretly in the hills of Waiouru, showed they could move from Trentham to Waiouru without issue. This next test, moving from Wellington to Auckland, was a much bigger ask, but Brian couldn’t see any reason why it wouldn’t work.

  Losing Wiremu on that last test still bugged him. It was the not knowing that was the killer. One minute they were traveling in convoy, they stopped at some toilets, and then Wiremu disappeared. They searched for twenty-four hours for him, combing the small town he had disappeared in, but there was no trace.

  Nothing.

  He didn’t tell Kahi, but sometimes he had nightmares about Wiremu returning out of the blue and rocking up to his parents’ house in Wellington.

  That would not do. Orders were orders, and Brian followed them. He had done so his whole working life in the army.

  Corporal Phillips came to Brian’s door, wiping his hands on a rag.

  “All done, sir.”

  “So it’s going?”

  “Uh, I haven’t tried it, sir. Sorry. I’ll do that now.”

  Corporal Phillips went to the driver’s door, reached in, and turned the ignition key. The Land Rover roared into life.

  “Excellent!” Brian called out. “Right, let’s move out!”

  The teams took to their Land Rovers and hit the road north.

  Nathan and Casey lay on their benches in amicable silence while Kevin slept on the floor.

  “How long has it been?” Casey asked.

  “Only an hour. We said two.”

  Casey played with her hair, passing time. “Okay, thanks.”

  “How’s your wound?”

  “It’s getting better all the time. I must seem like a real drama queen. It’s just a graze, really.”

  Nathan let out a sigh. “No way. No one gets shot a little bit. What a story to tell your kids—the time some idiot shot you.”

  “On that: why did you ask me if I could see in the dark that morning?”

  “Well, since Kev can talk, I thought maybe you had put your head in a portal and could see in the dark. It was my mind playing tricks on me. It looks like only Kev can talk, and that’s it. I don’t have any special powers and neither do you. Do you?”

  Casey paused before replying. “Of course not. Nothing special.”

  “Wouldn’t it be cool, though, to be able to have some special powers?”

  “Sure would. Maybe you have a power and you don’t know it yet, Nate.”

  Nathan lay there, thinking about this. “I think if I did, I’d know about it by now. Kev could talk as soon as his head came out of the portal the first time.”

  “Ah, okay. Well, who knows? How long has it been now?”

  Nathan checked his Star Wars watch.

  “An hour and five minutes. Do you want to hit the road now?”

  “No, I guess not. We aren’t exactly running to any schedules at the moment.”

  “I might need to check my calendar,” Nathan said.

  Casey smiled.

  “Casey?”

  “Yes.”

  “It’s funny—in the other world, I was terrified talking to women. But in this world, it’s easy with you.”

  “You didn’t have a girlfriend
, did you?”

  Nathan sat up and looked over her way. “No. How would you know that?”

  “Uh, just a guess. I don’t mean you shouldn’t have one or couldn’t, but I thought you didn’t. I’ll shut up now before my mouth runs away even more.”

  “Did you have a boyfriend?”

  “Yes, but I found out at the weekend that he cheated on me. So, no.”

  He lay back down on the bench seat again. “Bummer. Idiot.”

  “That’s what I thought. Change of subject. Let’s say we’re driving along and we see the army guys. We should have a plan. What do we do?”

  “A plan would be good, but I don’t know. Floor it and try to drag them off? Those Land Rovers are pretty slow. Your truck would easily beat them.”

  He sat up again and put his elbows on the table. “Yes, that’s one plan. But you assume they don’t shoot at us and that we can get past them. What say we come around a corner and—bam!—road blocked?”

  “I hadn’t thought of that.”

  Casey sat up to face him. “I hate to say it, but what would Han Zulu do?”

  “Han Solo.”

  “Yes. That one.”

  “He’d shoot his way through the bunch of them. But with my shooting skills, that’s not gonna fly.”

  Casey sighed. “So do we have a plan if they’ve blocked the road? Might not happen, but I’d like to know what we would do.”

  “I think we’re going to have to wing it. I don’t know. Unless you have an idea?”

  “I don’t. Winging it sounds like all we have, unless Kevin comes up with something,” Casey said.

  Nathan got up to go to the toilet, while Casey lay back down on her bench seat. Things were good, and things were bad. The food was good, and the outlook bad.

  Kevin got up and stretched, arching his back up.

  “That was a great sleep after all those patties. Thanks, Casey.”

  “My pleasure. Glad you enjoyed them.”

  Kevin’s stance changed to Downward Facing Dog. “Where’s Nate?”

  “In the men’s room. I’m ready to hit the road, though. What about you?”

  “Why not? Surely it’s been long enough for those soldiers to get ahead of us.”

  Nathan returned to hear them talking. “So you guys want to go? I’m up for it.”

  “Let’s grab that fruit on the way out, though,” Casey said.

  They left the café with the fruit, grabbed Daisy, and hopped into the truck.

  Nathan drove them north.

  “Casey,” said Kevin. “What do you miss the most? I know it’s only been days, but what do you miss that you desperately want?”

  “I guess my mum. Although she lived in Whanganui, I saw her quite a bit. We’re like best friends. What about you, Kevin?”

  “Hmmm. You know, I can’t answer that. I was stuck in a house most of the day, two walks a day at the most, and no walks in winter. Also I couldn’t talk. I don’t think there’s anything I miss at all. Nate?”

  Casey turned to see Nathan looking straight ahead, driving and thinking.

  “I think I’m in the same boat as Kev. We talked about this in Waiouru, and I said I’d miss the movies. But now I don’t miss them at all. After only a few days I sort of realize how pointless the things I really wanted were.”

  They sat in silence while the miles ticked by, with Nathan driving slowly around crashed trucks as they went.

  Casey shut her eyes. So much to consider, and so little they could really do. Sleep took her away from reality.

  “Shit!” Nathan yelled.

  Casey’s eyes shot open.

  As Nathan had rounded a corner, three army Land Rovers blocked the road ahead.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Brian had to admit, Lake Karapiro looked absolutely stunning in the late afternoon sun. The water was glistening in the sun, slight ripples moving along with the gentle breeze. Poplar trees lined the far side of the lake. It was like a postcard photo.

  If only they weren’t broken down again.

  He walked over to Corporal Phillips, who had his head under the open hood of the same Land Rover as before.

  “Corporal, update. Be direct.”

  “I think it’s that new coil, sir. I’m going to switch it out for one of the other ones you brought back. Give me ten minutes tops, sir.”

  Brian patted him on the back. “Very good, soldier. If that doesn’t work, tell me and we’ll move the test gear straight away. No more mucking around with broken-down vehicles.”

  “Roger that, sir.”

  The three Land Rovers were side by side on State Highway 1, with the broken-down one in the middle. On any ordinary day in Base World, there’d be a huge traffic jam by now. Not so much here, today.

  Brian lifted his head.

  Surely that isn’t…a fucking car?

  He was sure it was. The other soldiers were perking up too, their heads rising like meerkats.

  There was no way this could be happening. Things were tied down in this world so that only those with the correct DNA string could be here. How could someone be driving a car here?

  Wiremu?

  Using his loudest voice, Brian called out. “Men, draw weapons and run south as quick as you can. I don’t want to lose whoever it is because they turn and drive away from us. No firing, but draw and be ready.”

  The four remaining soldiers ran southward, guns at the ready.

  He ran over to Corporal Phillips.

  “Phillips, don’t stop what you are doing. Don’t ignore what’s happening, but I want this vehicle running.”

  “Got it, sir.”

  Brian sprinted as fast as he could, south toward his men. They’d already made it seventy-five yards from the Land Rovers as the noise of an engine got closer.

  “Everyone stop! Move to the sides and get out of sight. Once the vehicle is close enough, we move out to the road and stand armed and ready. No one fires unless ordered to by me.”

  The soldiers scampered into the bushes at the side of the road, as did Brian.

  Seconds seemed like minutes, when at last a black SUV rounded the bend, fifty yards from their position.

  Brian could see the driver, a male, mouthing ‘Shit!’ as he slammed on the brakes. The SUV stopped twenty yards from the hidden soldiers.

  “Move out!”

  Brian and his men moved quickly to the center of the highway, guns trained on the SUV.

  “What do we do?!”

  “Casey, don’t yell. It’s bad, yes, but let’s keep our heads,” Nathan said.

  “But they are pointing fucking guns at us. What do we do?”

  “Well, we don’t start backing up or they’ll shoot us. I don’t see anything we can do. Kev?”

  “Agree. It’s bad, but let’s see how it pans out. I’m thinking, though, there’s a distinct possibility you guys are going to be poked and prodded at some army hospital somewhere.”

  “Shit,” Casey said under her breath.

  Nathan turned to face Kevin. “Right—you don’t talk; you’re a dog. We keep that to ourselves unless absolutely necessary, okay?”

  “Woof it is, Nate.”

  “We need to have a story,” Casey said. “Are we going to tell the truth or make something up quickly on the spot?”

  Nathan turned back to Casey. “I think the truth will do it, but leaving out Kev talking, of course. We don’t have anything to hide, and none of us have done anything wrong. Let’s not tell them we’re going to the Far North, though. I want to keep something to ourselves. Just say Raglan then Auckland if they ask.”

  “Okay. I’m still freaking out. What are they waiting for?”

  Nathan put his hand on her arm. “Try to stay calm. I’ll get out and see what they want.”

  “Nate, no! They might shoot you,” Casey said.

  “We don’t have any choice. Maybe if I do that they’ll see we aren’t a threat. Here goes.”

  Brian saw the driver’s door open and the driver exit the vehicl
e with his hands in the air.

  “Good boy,” he said under his breath.

  All guns were trained on the male.

  “We aren’t going to hurt you,” Brian called out.

  “Then why are you all pointing guns at me?”

  Brian started walking closer to the driver

  “Well, we just want to talk to you.”

  “I’ve seen too many movies. Those are some famous last words right there.”

  “Fair enough. Tell you what, if you get all your passengers out of your vehicle and let us check you for weapons, we’ll lower the guns down. Deal?”

  The male paused before responding. “Deal. But let me check with my friends, uh, friend, first. Oh, and I do have a pistol, so there’s no surprises. I’ll get it slowly out of my jacket, okay?”

  “Stop right there! We’ll remove it from your jacket. You keep your hands in the air. Milton, take this man’s pistol.”

  Corporal Milton walked to Nathan, who had his hands in the air, and opened his jacket slowly. He removed Nathan’s gun and carried it away.

  “All right, now go talk to your friend, and then we can discuss why you had a pistol concealed on your person.”

  Nathan opened the door of the truck.

  “Did you guys hear that?”

  “Yes,” Casey answered. “Can you get in so we can discuss it?”

  “I don’t want to make it look like I’m getting inside. They might see that as a threat, or think we are going to try and make a getaway.”

  “Okay. Kevin, what’s your thoughts?”

  He poked his head between the front seats. “We have to follow their orders. But do I stay in here or get out as well?”

  “You get out, too, I think, Kevin. If we all stick together I’d feel much better,” Casey said.

  “Right, then,” said Nathan. “We are doing it.”

  The driver went back to the vehicle and conferred with his passenger.

  Brian was still in shock. How could this happen? How could at least two people without DNA matching be here? All he could see was this project going on longer than ever as the code was ripped apart to check for this anomaly.