A Shattered Future

by Joel Adrian

  The plane ride bored Emersyn, and this time she opted to sleep, much like Tanner did. She found herself back in her counterpart’s timeline, thrashing through the jungle, a Time Regulator hot on her heels. She woke in a cold sweat, swearing up and down how real it had felt.

  “Did she ever tell you what happened in her universe with us?” Tanner asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

  She shook her head, grabbing a water bottle off the tray in front of her and twisting the cap. “No, can’t say she did.” Emersyn took a long swig of water, the liquid quenching the thirst clawing at her throat. “Why, what did she say?”

  Tanner thought for a moment. “Nothing. I asked, and she wouldn’t tell me. I just figured she might have told you since you were, you know, her.” He stretched, smirking. “I guess we’ll just have to see what happens.”

  Emersyn glanced out the window at the pillow-like clouds below them. “We’ll have to make our own path.”

  The plane landed hours later, and though she’d managed to fall back asleep, Emersyn woke up more tired than when she’d left. The sight of Fort Ashen was a welcome relief that washed over her. She’d finally made it back. The trip to the future and back had succeeded, and somehow, she was still standing after it was all said and done.

  The Atlanta heat hit them as they departed the plane. Tanner rolled the sleeves up on his fatigues, and Emersyn reached a hand back, tying her hair into a ponytail. With no wind in sight, and the sun drifting towards the high point in the sky, she figured this to be another scorched-earth day.

  They both marched towards one of the offices, Emersyn more than ready to take in another round of air conditioning. She squinted when she saw a portly figure heading towards them.

  “Is that—”

  “Yep,” Tanner replied.

  Wayne Baron waddled towards them, one hand shielding his eyes from the sun and the other holding a stack of papers. His blue suit was darkened with sweat stains at the collar and underarms. His forehead was flecked with specks of sweat. He offered them both a grin as they neared one another.

  “Well, children, you’ve done it. Time travelers alive and in my midst. Mama, I wish you could see me now!” He chuckled.

  Tanner reached a hand out. Wayne took it and shook it vehemently. “It’s good to see you,”

  The oval-shaped man turned and shook Emersyn’s hand. “And you, child. By the grace of God, you’ve become one heck of a soldier these last couple days.”

  “Thank you,” Emersyn managed. Seeing the scientist’s infectious smiled caused her to return it with one of her own.

  He pointed towards the office behind him. “Let’s get inside. I have some forms for you both to sign, then we’ll get ya both fed, showered, and rested.”

  The rest of the day sped by quick for Emersyn. She and Tanner were forced to sign at least two dozen papers stating they’d follow up with a debrief the next day, they’d never speak about the mission unless asked by direct military personnel, and they may be called on to oversee future missions regarding the Requiem or the activator.

  Emersyn reluctantly relinquished the activator and the Requiem to Wayne Baron. He promised to take care of it and assured her that because casualties were sustained, it would be a long time before it was used to time travel again.

  She was escorted to the scientist barracks once again, where she was able to shower. She washed herself of the crazy adventure she had. Flashes of Catalina and Mona broke into her mind as she showered, and she felt faint and dizzy, remembering they weren’t here. She put a hand on the tiled shower wall, steadying herself. The dizziness was quick to onset. It passed a moment later, and she tried to push the painful memories from her head.

  Wayne Baron brought a tray of food to her in her quarters. She’d asked if she could eat with Tanner, but the stout man advised her that he was undergoing a mental evaluation and offered her a complimentary one on-site. She politely declined and sat eating her mock meatloaf and flaky potatoes alone.

  Once she’d finished her lunch, she pulled her phone out. One thing she’d been excited about was the prospect of taking photos and videos in the other universe, and she’d never even gotten the opportunity. Everything had happened so fast. Guilt started tugging at the edges of her mind, criticizing her for not taking it in more.

  She turned on her phone screen and saw 92 missed text messages from Ollie, and 30 missed calls. 12 of the missed calls had voicemails to go with them.

  Emersyn clutched the phone in her hand. She sighed and pressed the on-screen icon to call Ollie.

  She brought the phone up to her ear. Her heart hammered in her chest as the line trilled. After the second ring, Ollie picked up. “Hello?” she could feel the emotion in his voice. She hadn’t heard anything of the sort in so long.

  You can’t let his emotions cloud you now, she told herself. “Ollie?”

  “Oh my god, you’re alive!” His voice rang into her ear, overburdened with joy. “My god, why didn’t you tell me what was going on? Emersyn, I’m so sorry about—”

  “Ollie?” she interrupted him.

  The line went dead. She could almost see him, his smile frozen and petrified with fear because of the tone she was using. The dread was clawing at her innards. She wanted to stop, she wanted to quit, hang up, and forget it. But she couldn’t.

  She knew this had to be done.

  “I can’t see you anymore,” she said, her voice shaky and afraid.

  He sounded like he was trying to find some word to say but was unsuccessful. “W-what?”

  Emersyn Berg cleared her throat and knew this was the moment she was taking charge of her life. “I’m done with you, Ollie.” Her voice was growing, the shakiness fading. “I’m not happy with you, you’re not the guy for me. I’m sorry it took me so long to do this.” She ended the call a second later and tossed the phone to the bed.

  Guilt and happiness struggled equally within her. She hated knowing that she was the cause of someone else’s agony and pain. She’d been through break-ups before. They hurt like hell, and Ollie was going to get nasty, she knew it. But she’d persevere, she always did.

  Knowing that in some alternate reality, she had the guts to successfully navigate boot camp and become a respected soldier gave her courage and hope for the future. She didn’t need to be afraid of what lay in front of her. Destiny was hers, and the sky was the limit.

  Night settled in on Fort Ashen and she was content to lay in bed and sleep. She wished she could see Tanner. The two had shared something nobody else in this universe had encountered. He was the only other one who would understand what she had gone through, and maybe he could give her some advice on how to deal with the loss of Catalina, Joey, and Mona.

  Her thoughts drifted to Joey Del Core. She wondered what became of the Italian mobster—what the Time Regulators did with him. None of the soldiers made mention of him. She assumed he’d been transported to another realm or time to be held prisoner. She tried to subdue her anger at the regulators.

  Emersyn snatched her phone from the bed and pulled it back up. She opened her messages and typed a quick message to her father. She felt strange sending it. The two hadn’t talked in forever. But she refused to wait until he was old and sick, and then regret not trying to reconnect with him sooner. She knew it might not work, hell, it probably wouldn’t result in anything. But it was worth a shot.

  The tiredness overcame her, and shortly after she sent the message, the phone spilled onto her stomach. Emersyn drifted off to sleep and dreamt of Mona’s world.

  Chapter 15

  Emersyn and Tanner stood at the foot of Sergeant Major Bravon Pearson’s gurney. He was stationed in a room with other wounded and sick soldiers, though most of the gurneys were empty. There was more life in his face, and he looked better. If Emersyn looked hard enough, she could just make out shallow breaths through the movement of his chest.

  “Think he can hear us?” Tanner asked.

  Emersyn cracked a smirk. “I doubt it. He�
�s too old.”

  “What was that, Private?” Bravon said, not a slur of sleep in his words.

  Chuckling, Emersyn walked to one side of the gurney. Tanner approached from the other. They both looked the Sergeant over.

  “How are you, sir?” Tanner asked.

  Bravon glanced around the medical area. There was a heart rate monitor hooked up to him, a tray of assorted instruments, and a window to his right. “Ready to get the hell out of this bed and back to work.”

  Tanner nodded. “Well, we’re ready to have you back, sir.”

  “You,” Bravon said, sticking a finger up towards Emersyn. “I’m hoping we’ll see you sign up soon.”

  She tilted her head. “I’m definitely thinking about it, but there’s some stuff I’ve got to do first.”

  Bravon closed his eyes. “Ah. I get it. If it’s family stuff, by all means. I understand.”

  “Speaking of,” Emersyn said, “your family’s on their way. Tanner and I got ahold of Tracey. She’ll be here in 3 hours.”

  Bravon’s face lightened, and it was as if a weight had been lifted off the old man’s shoulders. “No kidding?”

  Tanner put a hand on the Sergeant’s shoulder. “Never, sir.” He smiled, his pearly whites gleaming. “She’s looking forward to seeing you.”

  Emersyn and Tanner both started to leave after conversing with the Sergeant for a bit.

  “Hey!” he called after them.

  They both turned over their shoulder, glancing back.

  “I’m proud of you both,” he said. Emersyn could tell it wasn’t praise from a Sergeant to a Private, but a man who’d seen two people endure something nobody thought possible and survive.

  She smiled. “We’re proud of you too, sir.”

  Outside the hospital building, Tanner and Emersyn stepped out into the blistering heat. There was a cover extending past the entrance of the building, shielding them from the harsh rays of the sun. He put a hand on her shoulder, and she turned towards him.

  “Hey, so you’re heading back?”

  Emersyn shrugged. “Maybe. Haven’t completely decided yet.”

  Tanner frowned. “Look, before you leave, I’d like to . . . take you out to dinner, or lunch, or just sit down and talk with you for a bit. Not as soldiers, not as geared-up time travelers—” they both chuckled, “—but as people.”

  She smiled. Now that things with Ollie were over, the new possibilities scared her, but they excited her equally the same. “I’d love to.”

  “Great. You free tonight?”

  She glanced at an invisible watch on her wrist. “I suppose I can make time.” She smiled coyly and gave him a playful shove.

  He wrapped an arm around her and the two started back towards the barracks. “Come on, Berg, I’ll show you to the scientist’s barracks. Don’t ever travel on a military base alone. Too many good-looking guys like me.”

  Emersyn and Tanner conversed the entire way back and agreed to dinner around 1400 hours. He took his leave of her, and she started getting ready. It was always better to get ready early, she didn’t want to keep him waiting.

  She dipped into the bathroom and started running some hot water. She shedded the plain gray t-shirt she had been wearing and snagged a black v-neck from her bag. She turned and looked up into the mirror.

  Mona was screaming, pounding on the mirror.

  The image disappeared a second later. Emersyn fell back, tripping and knocking the wastebin over. The image had only lasted for a moment, but it was burned into her brain. Mona had cuts along her face and blood all over her hands.

  Somehow, it was like she knew she was reaching Emersyn. She had pounded on the other side of the mirror. Was she trying to beg for help? Was she warning Emersyn? She only had a second of the scene to go based off.

  Emersyn stood, trying to gather her bearings. Her hands started to shake. She felt like something had twisted inside her. Seeing her older self, even for that one second, stirred something in her.

  Mona knows me, I’m her, she told herself. She knew if I saw her appear, especially in that state, I would want to help.

  She hurriedly got dressed, tossing the face moisturizer she was going to use back into her bag. She slipped on the same pair of jeans she’d been wearing earlier that day and snagged her cell phone from the table.

  Emersyn spun and headed for the door. A familiar ‘whoosh’ cracked through the air and standing before her was the Russian man from Mona’s world. Her jaw fell open. She could see the outline of several bandages on his stomach beneath his shirt.

  The phone spilled from her hand, clattering to the floor. Her stomach tightened in harsh knots. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing. “How—”

  The Russian man held a hand up, silencing her.

  “Always make sure that your enemy is dead. You remember me, yes? My name is Vetrov Rodinovich. I’m here to warn you.”

  The Russian man had on a long-sleeve polo with the hourglass emblem sewn into the left breast. He wore a worn brown leather jacket over it, and his left arm was in a sling from where she’d shot him. “Don’t go after her. She’s fighting against governance. She’s illegally contacting you.”

  Emersyn could feel her cheeks flushing red. “You bastard, what did you do to her?”

  Vetrov’s mouth curled into a sick smile. “She committed the crime, not me.”

  She reared her arm back and grabbed the lamp next to her bed. She chucked it at Vetrov, but his hand was already on the pendant he wore. He vanished a second before the lamp made contact. It smashed into the door behind him, breaking into a shower of grey-and-red pieces.

  Emersyn rushed forward, but he was gone. She tried to slow her breathing, but she couldn’t contain herself. Turning, she smashed a balled fist in the door as hot tears started running down her face. She yelped in pain and crumbled to the ground, holding her hand as she bawled.

  Tanner found her about an hour later. She’d stopped crying, and now had her mind set on one thing: fixing this mess of a situation.

  She was in the middle of packing her bag, stuffing all the clothes and personal items she had into it when Tanner grabbed her arm.

  “Emersyn?” he asked, “where the hell are you going?”

  She forcefully shoved a bottle of conditioner into the bag. “I saw her, Tanner. I saw Mona.” She turned to face him, looking up into his eyes. “She needs help. Then that Russian man appeared. His name’s Vetrov Rodinovich. He threatened me. Told me not to come after her, that she was violating laws by reaching out to me.”

  “How’s he still alive?”

  Emersyn dug her fingernails into her palm. “We were stupid, didn’t shoot him in the head.”

  Spinning on his heel, Tanner followed Emersyn into the bathroom, avoiding the shattered glass on the ground. “Jesus, what happened? Did you two fight in here?”

  She snagged several more bottles and stuffed them into the crook of her arm. “I wish. He vanished. I’m so sick of that damn trick.” She tossed the mess of bottles onto the bed and exhaled.

  Tanner grabbed her arm and pulled her so she came face-to-face with him. “Listen, I don’t care what the deal is, okay? I’m going to help you.”

  She stood ready to pound him away and defiantly turn in his face to continue packing, but the words had her at a loss. “Y-you . . . you want to help me? Why?”

  Releasing her arm, Tanner motioned to the bag. “Look, this is important to you. I spent time with Mona, and I would never want anything bad to befall her. To hell with that. Let’s do what needs to be done.”

  Emersyn thought for a moment. She shook her head and spun. “No, no, you can’t. God only knows what this is going to do to my status. I’ve got to get that Requiem gemstone and the activator. That alone could brand me a terrorist here.”

  She heard Tanner sit on the bed behind her, the springs creaking. “So be it,” he said. “The military’s always been my family’s blood. It’s my blood, this is who I am. But I’m not going to let Mona get to
rtured by these Regulator bastards. No. I don’t care what the cost is.”

  She stopped throwing things into her bag. Holding a bottle of shampoo, she tapped the lid on her hand. She trusted Tanner, and he was saying all the right things. But was he going to back her up when it came time? His family had a long history in the military. She couldn’t fathom him throwing it all away, least of all for her. “I can’t ask you to do this.”

  He shook his head. “I’m not asking you to. I’m doing this for me. This isn’t right, what’s happened.”

  Emersyn took a deep breath. Some of the weight shifted from her, relief washed over her mind. It was nice to have someone on board, standing by her side. She reached up and wrapped Tanner in a hug, and he enthusiastically reciprocated.

  She didn’t know what was going on with Mona, but she was going to find out. She was going to save herself.

  Thank you for finishing A Shattered Future. This novel has been an ocean of ups and downs to complete, and I hope you enjoyed it. I value any feedback you can possibly give, and if you would consider leaving me a review I would appreciate it. Thank you again for reading this book.

  By Joel Adrian