by A. E. Albert
Billy watched in horror as Jeanie’s skin began to turn a bluish, green color and scaly before his eyes. Jeanie tore her eyes from her own mutating flesh to look up at him.
“Oh my God! Billy, your face!”
Instantly, Billy’s hand flew to his face. The right side of it was grotesquely puffed out and it was still growing. He felt his ear and he thought it might be half a foot long. His eye was as big as a baseball.
A gasp from Jeanie brought his attention back to her. She was now lying on the ground, her legs no longer legs, but a long and scaly fish tale flopping around in her dress. Billy looked to Dickens, who seemed to be curiously observing his hands. His fingers were now about two feet long. A loud bang returned Billy’s thoughts back to whoever was after them.
“We need to get out of this room now!” he shouted.
Billy and Dickens hoisted Jeanie up onto their shoulders, each carrying an end and ran through the opposite door. Billy had to use his left side, because the right side of his face was now past his shoulder. Dickens had a hard time holding Jeanie with his long fingers, but he managed.
They raced through a room about the size of a football field. Red lights were flashing along the wall and there was a half built framed structure spanning the length of the enormous chamber. As they approached the door, men in black uniforms entered the room on the opposite side.
The door before them slid open to reveal a long silver paneled hallway. As they raced down the corridor, men in white coats stopped to stare at them as they ran by. Their expressions turned to horror as they watched Billy’s distorted face jiggle as he ran.
They escaped through a doorway leading into another room. As he entered, Billy frantically looked for an exit, but there was none.
He looked around the odd space and decided they were in some kind of laboratory. There was computer equipment everywhere and large monitors covered the long tables on each side of the great room. There were small machines that looked like some type of microscope, scattered about the tables. Enormous copper piping came out high on the wall, leading into the floor. The floor and wall paneling was the same metallic material as the hallway.
In the center of the room was a large, black circular chamber with cables and piping protruding from it. Billy couldn’t guess what it was for.
Yet, the most amazing part of the room was the ceiling. Billy couldn’t tell if there was one at all. The entire length and width of the room was open to the night sky.
Jeanie gazed around the room, in wonder, sitting on the metal floor as her tail unconsciously waved back and forth.
When Billy glanced at Dickens, the old man just sat in a nearby chair, seeming uninterested in his surroundings. Oh, ya, he’s already been here, he thought as he turned away, refusing to give any more attention to the old man then he needed to.
As Billy continued to think of some way to escape, the door burst open and three men wearing black uniforms entered the room. Before Billy and the others could utter a word, the men held out silver circular objects. All Billy saw was a burst of purple light and then everything went black.
Chapter 35
Billy opened his eyes and found himself staring at the ceiling. He attempted to get up, but the most severe headache he had ever had held him to his cot. Well, if you could call it a cot. As he slowly sat up, he saw four black slabs jutting out of the wall.
“Are you ok, Billy?” Jeanie asked, as she sat at the end of his cot.
“I’m ok. What about you?”
He held the side of his head, a grimace etched into his features. Billy then noticed that Jeanie was back to normal. His hand flew to his face and it was back to its original size.
“They must have fixed us while we were asleep,” she said.
“Ya, well, I wished they could have fixed this headache,” he complained.
“Don’t concern yourself with the pain. They only used a mind stunner on us. Quite painful, but ultimately harmless,” stated Dickens in a nonchalant voice, who was lying down on a cot with his arms folded beneath his head.
Billy looked about the room, “Where are we?”
“In the laboratory’s penal cell. They found they needed one due to the high number of break-ins. Your father does work with very sensitive and potentially profitable projects, now doesn’t he?” he replied.
“Great! Another jail cell; I’m really sick of the jail cells!” yelled Billy, as he stood up and kicked the metal wall.
Suddenly, a silver square panel flickered. It revealed a man who seemed to be sitting in the laboratory where the men in black found them. The man had short blond hair slicked back on his head and a trim beard. He wore the traditional white lab coat.
He leaned forward in his seat and squinted into the monitor. “Who are you? What are you doing here?” he demanded.
Billy looked to Dickens, who always took the reins in these situations. However, he appeared to have no intention of saying anything or moving from his comfortable position.
Billy stared at Jeanie with panic in his eyes and then returned his attention to the screen. “Um, I, um we’re here to talk to Preston Thorn, the scientist.”
“Why? What do you want with him?” The man further narrowed his eyes and his manner was becoming increasingly hostile.
“We need to talk with him. It’s very important,” pleaded Billy.
The man just smirked into the screen. “You can tell me.”
Billy really didn’t want to talk to this guy, but he seemed to be the only way to get to his father. “It’s about the future. Something bad is going to happen!”
The pointed face dweeb just waved his hand in the air. “Oh, I’ve heard that one before! Some old kook came here claiming the end of the world. Ooooo, I’m so scared!” The man wiggled his fingers in the air, as he said this. “We deal with science here, not science fiction!”
“No, listen! We’ve come a real long way to talk to Preston Thorn, please!” implored Billy.
He was really starting to get scared. What would happen if no one believed the real reason they were there and he was getting nowhere with this guy.
The blond dweeb huffed impatiently and rolled his eyes. “He doesn’t speak with anyone. Well, not since the unpleasant occurrence. And don’t think to try and fool me! The only one reason why anyone would be in the lab without explicit authorization, is theft or to tamper with our top secret projects. We have encountered saboteurs before,” he stuck his face closer to the screen and said in a low voice, “and we know how to deal with them.” The screen then abruptly changed back to the original silver paneling on the wall.
“How obnoxious!” exclaimed Jeanie.
Billy flopped himself onto the nearest prison cot. “Well, we were just found in a top secret lab.” Billy threw a dirty look directed at Dickens. “You couldn’t have just brought us to the parking lot now couldn’t you?”
“Quite impossible,” he said, while lying on the cot with his eyes closed.
“Why?”
“This lab is located at the bottom of Mariana’s Trench.”
“The bottom of the Pacific Ocean!” exclaimed Jeanie.
“Actually, it’s the lowest point of any ocean, almost seven miles deep. You could easily fit Mount Everest down here with room to spare,” replied Dickens in a casual and almost pleasant manner, which was really starting to get on Billy’s nerves.
The hours slowly passed and the trio sat in silence, each occupying their own hard cot. Billy didn’t know how much time had passed exactly; all he knew was that he was actually thinking about eating his own shoe. Just then the cell door opened, shifting horizontally into the wall. A black rectangular box rolled into the room, the door shutting behind it. As Billy watched it approach, he noticed that it had no wheels. It hovered about an inch off the ground and reached Billy’s waist. The casing on the top rolled away, revealing three small pink pills.
As Billy and Jeanie gazed down at them, Dickens casually walked over, popped one in his mouth and returned
to lie back down on his cot. Billy and Jeanie looked at each other and cautiously reached in and each took a pill. Instantly, the lid replaced itself and the robot quickly left the cell.
Billy and Jeanie slowly placed the odd little pill in their mouths and swallowed. Within seconds, Billy was overcome with the feeling of having just eaten the largest turkey dinner he ever had. Also, he had the most ridiculous urge to undo his pants and lay down. So, he just gave into the desire and went to sleep feeling as satisfied as if he had just eaten Christmas dinner.
The passing days were boring and slow. Actually, they couldn’t tell how much time had passed, there being no windows. Billy guessed that three pills meant one day. The only thing that passed the time was waiting for their odd meals and taking a nap afterward.
Conversation was limited; no one really wanted to talk, anyway.
Of course, Billy looked forward to their daily conversations with the blond dweeb. But every day was the same thing. “I know you know something, I don’t mind leaving you in there forever, and I want to know who you work for.” Blah, blah, blah!
Billy tried repeatedly to convince the man that they only wanted to talk to Preston Thorn, but they were refused every time. The snotty little man was even starting to threaten ‘aggressive interrogations.’ Billy didn’t want to know what that meant.
Unfortunately, they were going to find out sooner rather than later. On the third day, the cell door opened and in marched two uniformed guards. They only had to hold up the silver orbs and the three intruders immediately put up their hands and obediently followed them out of the room.
They were taken to a dark room. The only light was hovering over the center of a circular table. The guards motioned for them to sit down, when suddenly a disembodied voice could be heard throughout the chamber.
“Take the rings before you and place them on your heads,” stated a deep and resonating voice.
Billy was frightened out of his wits, but all he could think of was now he knew how Dorothy felt when she was standing before the Wizard of Oz. On the table, there was a golden ring placed in front of each of them. They were big enough to fit a person’s head. Billy and Jeanie looked uneasily at each other as they carefully put them on.
Instantly, Billy heard a ringing in his ears. It wasn’t exactly painful, but the feeling was very uncomfortable. Very slowly voices began to gradually get louder, like tuning in a radio. Billy thought that maybe these rings were for telepathy or something. Then the voices became more distinct and he could make out words. As Billy focused on trying to figure out what the voices were saying, he heard, ‘I hate you!’ Billy’s eyes widened with the realization that the voice was his. He glanced at Jeanie, whose expression must have mimicked his own. They were both hearing their own words, conversations and memories.
Billy instantly attempted to rip the apparatus off of his head. However, an electrical charge surged through his hands and arms, forcing him to release it. With tears stinging his eyes, he frantically looked around the room, instinctively trying to locate the person responsible.
However, the voices increasingly became louder and louder and all he could do was shut his eyes and wait for it to be over.
Billy didn’t know how long they were forced to endure their ‘aggressive interrogation,’ but finally it was done and they were led back to their cell. All three were so exhausted; they just laid down on their cots and went to sleep.
The days continued to pass, and the rings were used on them daily. Usually, they spent their time sleeping, since the ringed devices sapped all their energy. Even when awake, Billy could barely think, much less talk. When his mind did clear, his thoughts dwelled on how they were going to contact his father.
One evening, Billy was as usual lying on his cot. But his restless mind refused to allow his exhausted body to sleep. As the days passed, too many questions began to bombard his fragile mind. He just didn’t understand why he couldn’t talk with his father. It didn’t make any sense why his father didn’t seem to know about their arrival into his supposed secret laboratory. Wasn’t he supposed to be a big shot around here! Billy silently demanded. Well, he is responsible for the destruction of the planet, Billy reminded himself dryly.
Dickens said that this was supposed to be the way things were meant to happen, but nothing was happening! How could he make his father understand what the Device was going to do if he’s in prison and that snot nosed idiot refused to believe anything they said. Billy pursed his lips when he thought about the blond man on the screen. This guy now knows everything, but he still won’t believe them.
He wracked his brain trying to think of anything that could convince their jailer to let them speak with his father. But nothing came. Finally, Billy felt his eyes begin to droop and his body relax, preparing itself for another long slumber.
On their tenth day of imprisonment, the dweeb once again appeared on the screen in their cell. He was wearing his customary smirk when he said, “I told you to talk, but you didn’t believe me, did you?”
“We don’t know anything, but I think you already know that,” retorted Jeanie. Billy noticed for the first time how pale and gaunt she looked.
“Your simple minds didn’t have very much to tell, well, other than you’re all crazier then loons. Time travel, aliens, ooooo scary stuff. Unfortunately, for you nut bars, it’s either the United World Prison on Pluto or a mental hospital in Nebraska. But either way, you’ll all be out of my hair soon.”
The dweeb suddenly turned his head and began talking to a colleague suddenly standing behind him. “…..no, sir, oh no, they’re just crazy…..what ….the rings?..well of course that’s standard procedure…now! ….But …oh, all right.”
The dweeb turned back to the screen, his expression one of annoyance, but quickly reverted back to his usual sneer. He then said with delight in his eyes, “Well, I guess it’s your lucky day. You get one more interrogation.”
Chapter 36
Billy, Jeanie and Dickens once again returned to the dark room with the circular table. As they sat down, Billy noticed that the rings were absent and no sooner had this thought gone through his head, the lights were turned on.
The door at the far end of the room opened and in walked a man. He was dressed in a generic lab coat, but he was disheveled and weary looking. His thinning brown hair was in bad need of a cut and it looked like he had a three day beard on his cheeks and chin.
As he approached the table, he looked to each of its occupants. When his eyes reached Dickens, there was a sharp intake of breath. The man began to shake and “you” was all he could say.
Dickens looked back at the man, his calm countenance revealing no surprise.
“Why are you back here?” the man said. His anger was contained, but it was evident that he was trying to control his volatile emotions.
As Billy looked back and forth between each man, he began to notice a familiarity between them. The scientist looked like a younger version of Dickens. Billy’s head snapped up, comprehending why. Billy was looking at the man who was his father, Preston Thorn.
“I said, why are you back here! Where is he? What did you do with him?” he shouted.
Dickens remained calm and with a level stare, he said, “I kept him safe, Preston.”
“Safe from what? There is no danger, I tell you! Wars on Earth stem from every nation fighting over land, resources and power. The Device will end all that!”
“The war will not come from man, but from something else far from here.”
“I am not concerned with anything but Earth’s problems, much less your fantasies! We’ll soon be able to find terra class planets like that with the Device. We are on the verge of creating the means to populate them in months. Months! This will end war, not create it!”
“We’re not ready to expand into space. You’re a man of science, but please, listen from a historical perspective. Technological advancement does not denote a specie’s maturity. Read your history books. In fact, it only giv
es us the means to further our own greedy ends.”
The man straightened himself and looked down at Dickens. Suddenly, he slammed his hands on Dickens’ arm rests and shouted into his face. “Where is my son? For five long years I have lived with not knowing where he is! Tell me!” he yelled with fury in his eyes.
As the old man lowered his gaze, the man bellowed again, “Tell me!” he yelled, as he banged his fist against the nearby table.
Dickens just silently stared at Preston. Finally, he turned to look at Billy for the first time in days. He then turned back to Preston, slowly nodding his head. Preston fearfully looked at the young boy sitting there.
“No, my son would be no more than five years old!”
“When I retrieved him, Preston, I chose a time when he would be older, to tell you what I cannot, what you refuse to believe.”
Preston turned back to the young man, his eyes filled with disbelief and his mouth set in a defiant frown. As he continued to gaze at Billy, very slowly he began to recognize the similar mouth and nose. But what truly convinced him was, what he would later tell Billy, were the eyes of his mother staring back at him.
Preston’s eyes became warm and a slow smile formed on his lips, “William?” he said in a whisper.
Billy was starting to feel uncomfortable. “Um, most people just call me Billy.”
Preston looked upon his son with a love that Billy had never experienced in his whole life. He never dwelled on what he was going to say to his father when they got here. He just considered him the crazy scientist and never really associated himself with him. He thought that it didn’t really matter because he didn’t know him anyway, or their lives were in mortal danger at the time.
A feeling came over Billy that he had never before experienced. In that moment of connection, he instantly knew that this man loved him and he was the missing piece of the puzzle that he had been looking for. Billy decided then and there that he was not returning to his time. Nothing was going to make him leave the very thing he craved his whole life. A real family.
