The Epochracy Files

by Chele Pedersen Smith

  Muffled music in the hall told her the festivities were still thumping. As they shuffled in, students were doing “the bump” to the last lines of “Brick House” by The Commodores while Wild Cherry’s “Play that Funky Music” seamlessly followed.

  “Do you see Janet or Marcie?” Inot asked, scanning sets of kids.

  “No, everyone looks the same again!” Lyr shouted over the din. She scrutinized see-through couples getting down to the beat. It was catchy, affecting the future gals as they snaked through the crowd.

  No one was talking much, just laughing and having a good time.

  “I wonder which ones are Rose and Tommy,” Inot asked, assessing the couples around the room.

  “And what is she holding over Janet?” Lyr mused, grooving along.

  “Let’s pay a haunt and see,” Inot said. “I bet they won’t be hard to find. Just look for sneers and distaste. Like Detiecnoc and her entourage.”

  Suddenly the music stopped before it was over and a clanking of instruments clashed as a band set up.

  A high pitch screech from the microphone pierced their eardrums worse than metal on flash drives. A woman spoke. “Students, the prom is winding down in thirty minutes but before we close, here are a few tunes by our talent show winners, Gray Matter!”

  Shrill shouts and whistles of “Whoo Hoo…Grayson! Craig!” caused them to crane their necks to see Janet and Marcie smitten with their rock dates.

  “Found them,” Inot joked.

  They hovered close, but not literally.

  Gray Matter jammed to a shorter cover of Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven.”

  “They’re so good,” Marcie yelled to her friend.

  “Grayson’s taught himself guitar!” Janet gushed as the band cut into “Fire” by Ohio Players with Grayson’s brother Lance on vocals.

  “Craig writes his own songs! They’re going to play them at the town fair this summer,” Marcie lauded.

  The girls swooned, lucky to be with the crew.

  Inot and Lyrehc soon found eavesdropping futile. The amplifiers and distraction shut everyone up. Instead the crowd danced and cheered on their musical friends as they hailed song master Joni Mitchell’s “Big Yellow Taxi” before slipping into the thought-provoking riffs of Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On.” Billy Joel’s “Only the Good Die Young” followed before ending with Johnny Cash’s full number, “Don’t Go Near the Water.”

  The announcer returned. “Thank you Gray Matter, for that uh, eclectic tour of our decade. Let’s hear it for Grayson Matthews, Craig Rogetti and Lance Matthews.”

  The band bowed a few times before disassembling their equipment. The DJ stepped in and spun “I will Survive,” by Gloria Gaynor.

  “Now what?” Inot asked.

  “I think we just got handed a clue,” Lyr mulled.

  “Just standing here?”

  “Yep, and listening.”

  “But they didn’t say anything,” Inot objected.

  “Oh, they spoke volumes.”

  Inot puzzled over this as the guys joined their dates, offering cups of punch.

  “You were fantastic,” Janet murmured, wiping beads of perspiration off Grayson’s forehead.

  “Thanks,” he smiled, self-conscious. “It sure roasts playing in front a crowd.”

  “Plus it’s already hot in here, with so many bodies breathing,” Craig wilted.

  “You’re the hot one,” Marcie flirted and it wasn’t long before they were making out.

  Lance, a senior, was seated with a girl on his lap, nuzzling her neck.

  Grayson and Janet shared a nervous fidget and were grateful when the DJ announced, “Alright, as we close the night, let’s make this a slow one.”

  Sweeping her into his arms, they swayed to “How Deep is your Love” by the Bee Gees.

  Inot and Lyr perused the dance floor as couples clung to one another. Girls sighed, dreamy-eyed while the boys seemed to enjoy the closeness without repercussions.

  “Uh, this seems so…”

  “Personal?” Inot predicted.

  “Yes, I think we wore out our welcome.”

  They made their way to the rest room.

  “It was beyond words meeting her,” Lyr sighed. “Now when we read the rest of the diary we can picture everything.”

  “Yes, what an amazing day, or night,” Inot agreed. “Too bad we didn’t see Rose though. At least she didn’t make any trouble.”

  “None that we saw anyway.”

  Pushing the door open to the lavatory, clouds of nicotine hung in the air and to their dismay, a blonde boy with feathered hair was in the midst of a ring of girls.

  “I feel a draft,” one whined, snuggling closer.

  “Yeah, I’m cold all of a sudden too,” another shivered.

  A third rubbed her arms.

  “Ladies, no need for excuses. You can take turns,” he said, slipping off his tux jacket and draping it around the bare shoulders of the first chick. He passed the next one the cigarette.

  “We’re not making it up,” scoffed the second, sucking in a drag. “A breeze blew in, like a ghost or something.”

  “Yeah,” goosebumps echoed. “Did they suddenly install an air conditioner or is this place haunted?”

  “It’s just my coolness,” the player boasted.

  “Sure, Tommy,” the girls laughed, their titter contagious as he joined in.

  The future girls groaned at the mention of his name.

  “What is he smoking?” Lyrehc coughed, fanning the air. “He didn’t even notice they shaded him.”

  Inot stepped closer to read the logo. “Winston! Hey, do you think one of the girls is Rose?”

  “Somehow I don’t think she’s the sharing type.”

  “So, she just took off? Do you think she caught him in here?” Inot wondered.

  “Maybe she just wanted the loot and had no use for him. For all we know she didn’t even come here tonight. Janet probably made that up too,” Lyrehc said, feeling betrayed.

  “Yeah! Oh wait, Marcie did say Rose was giving Janet dirty looks, so she must have made an appearance, for a short time anyway.”

  “Just like the snobby clique at school. They get what they want and disappear. I guess a hundred years didn’t change that.”

  “Hey, maybe that’s why Janet gave her the diamonds. To get her off her back.”

  “I’m sure. Sometimes I give in to my little sister just so she’ll stop bugging me. But then she knows I’m an easy target to get her way so it really doesn’t solve anything. Besides, if Rose’s family is steeped in tobacco, she can’t be hurting for money. So there must be another reason she wanted the stick pin,” Lyrehc fretted.

  “Envy or just plain ol’ bullying.”

  “Or she knows something. It must be pretty big because earlier Janet mentioned a plan. She must have elaborated on it in the book. I can’t wait to get home and read more. By the way, how do you suppose we’ll get there? Last time we broke a sink. I hope we don’t have to again.”

  “On the contrary, lets. Looks like Tommy could use a cold shower.”

  Staring at the obstacles leaning against the basins, the puffing posse hadn’t budged. In fact, each girl felt so honored to be in his presence, they draped around him like they won a prize. And he was just as bad, egging them on.

  “It’s prom night, ladies. Which one of you fine gals will get lucky tonight?”

  The fawning girls began arguing over who should be deemed most worthy. When they couldn’t decide, they told him to pick. He got greedy and tried for all three.

  “Have you girls ever heard of a ménage a trois?”

  Inot poked her friend’s arm. “Lyrehc, if there’s ever a time to split and be a wet blanket, it’s now.”

  “Yeah, Janet wanted to foil him for the sake of women’s lib. We should help her with that,” Lyr giggled.

  “Follow my lead.” Inot squeezed into the herd, slithering a chilling ribbon between each body. Lyrech did the same, concentrat
ing on Tommy. Then rather destroy property, she and Inot turned on the faucets, drenching the snugglers in copious handfuls, turning lover boy and his prospects into an icy pool party. Annoyed, the horrified juniors separated.

  “Look what you did to my dress, Tommy!” one wailed.

  “It wasn’t me, honest!” he protested, looking around. “It-it came out of nowhere!”

  “Ooh, you can keep your jacket. It’s not helping one bit,” the first girl chattered, peeling off the clammy tux.

  “It’s like Siberia in here,” the third griped.

  “You mean more like Seattle,” goosebumps argued, dripping wet.

  “Ladies, the Tom Man can warm you up. I promise it’s cozy in my car.”

  “Forget it. We aren’t falling for your splash zone act. Pajamas and coffee are the only cozy I’m looking for tonight. Come on girls,” the third one said.

  “Yeah. And for the record, genius, a ménage a trois is with three people total, not four,” the first retorted.

  “But you’re three people,” Tommy pleaded, counting the girls as they filed out the door. With a quick glance at the streaming sink, he scampered out too. “Did one of you say ghost?”

  Inot and Lyr fist bumped.

  “What a creep. Let’s get out of here.”

  “Yeah, we’ll turn into disco balls any minute now,” Inot chuckled. “Hey, what about these? Souvenirs?” she asked, waving her ticket.

  “I think they belong in this century,” Lyr said.

  As soon as they tore the envelopes in half the place dimmed to monochrome. Tossing them into the wastebasket, the girls searched for the secret entrance and found it hidden behind the center mirror.

  “None of this makes any sense,” Inot muttered as they climbed through the portal back to 2078.

  Emerging through the realm, they were relieved the bathroom had not flooded. However, they came face to face with the janitor setting up yellow caution marquees. He had already shut off the water but truth be told, not much trickled out anyway.

  “Where have you girls been?” ancient Mr. Naelc lectured, leaning on his mop. “Mrs. Rethom and Mr. Ekib sent out a search party. Your families are very worried.”

  “Weird thing,” Inot began. “When I fell against the sink, a magic door opened.”

  “Did you hit your head, Lass? You and your tall tales. You can save it for the truant officer. She’s pacing the principal’s office.”

  Lyrehc gulped. So much for her perfect record. “Will they really suspend us two days before school is out?”

  “That’s for Mrs. Reppiks and Mrs. Rethom to decide. Follow me, please.”

  Mr. Naelc led them to the dreaded office. “I found them. Apparently they’ve been hiding in the bathroom this whole time.”

  “How can that be? We checked the stalls,” their mothers said, almost in unison.

  “What’s going on, girls?” Mrs. Rethom asked.

  “Ma’am, you know I am always truthful,” Lyrehc began, painting the scene in their favor. “It’s this diary from the time capsule. I knew it was special and well, it’s odd too.”

  “You stole something from the time capsule?” Mrs. Rethom scolded. Their parents and truant officer murmured in surprise.

  “No, Mr. Ekib gave us permission,” Inot put in. They all turned to the V.P, who nodded.

  “With promise that it’s returned Thursday,” he stipulated.

  “Yes, and it will be. But you see, there’s a problem going on,” Lyr explained. “We came to school early to help search for this very expensive owl pin that was lost.”

  “You skipped school for a one hundred-year-old treasure hunt?” Lyrehc’s father Ssor inquired.

  “No, we didn’t mean to blow off school,” Inot defended. “Quite the opposite. We got here early so we can check some places. But I accidentally sat on the sink too hard and busted it. I’m sorry,” she directed the last bit at the janitor. “But when we did, a secret door opened. We only were going to check for a few minutes, I swear! But we found ourselves back in 1978.”

  “What? Preposterous!” Mrs. Rethom exclaimed. “Nobody can really time travel!”

  “Actually there’s been scientific strides recently that say otherwise,” threw in Nelg Mahgirb. “Piggybacked studies of Einstein’s theory of relativity and his work with Rosen about space and time linking shortcut tunnels in black holes …” His words were met with skeptic glares so he dropped them.

  “Check her head for injuries,” Mr. Naelc suggested. “Her dad too.”

  “Obviously these troublemakers are lying,” the truant officer chirped in. She looked ready to clink the cuffs on them.

  “We’re fine. And we’re not lying,” Inot defied, freckles flaming neon.

  “A portal really did open and we walked into the past. I know it sounds out there. Even we think it’s far-fetched and we lived it!” Lyrehc admitted.

  “I think the word you want is far-out!” Inot quipped, but no one laughed.

  “Let’s all have a look. We can prove we’re not making this up. Maybe it’s still open,” Lyr offered.

  “Nobody is breaking another sink,” Mr. Naelc snapped.

  “We know Lyrehc’s character well. She’s never lied so far,” her father, Ssor Ssom, offered. Her mother Lehcar agreed, nervously wringing her hands. They weren’t accustomed to being called to the principal’s office on their daughter’s account.

  “True. I can vouch for that in her school career,” Mrs. Rethom conceded. The V.P. attested the same.

  “So did you find what you were looking for?” Mr. Ekib asked, curiosity winning.

  A murmuring of agreement rose among the grownups. Obviously, they would accept the diamond brooch as proof.

  “Yes and no. We didn’t see the actual accessory but we did meet the writer of the journal, sort of,” Lyr fumbled.

  “It was like another universe,” Inot backed. “We were at this prom where the pin was lost. They couldn’t see us and we couldn’t interact. It was all very ghostly. But we did overhear what really happened to it.”

  “So, the mystery is solved then. Very well, put the diary back in the box and there will be no charges,” Mrs. Rethom stated in her no-no nonsense tone. “Mrs. Reppiks, you may go, now.”

  The truant officer left in a huff, disappointed at not meeting her quota. The parents rose too, eager to return to work.

  “The case is not solved yet. It goes way deeper,” Lyrehc admitted. “I need to read further to fill in the blanks. But the answer is environmental. I’m sure of it.”

  The adults sighed, the usual response when dealing with strong-minded children.

  “Lyrehc, how are you getting that out of a missing piece of jewelry?” Inot was impressed but confused.

  “I was wondering the same thing,” Mr. Ssom echoed as the others chimed in.

  “Innie, remember the band’s playlist? All the clues were in the song titles. And in the diary, Janet mentioned she and Grayson were ecology club members and then we overheard Janet tell Marcie she didn’t want her dad’s dirty money. I think his company was hazardous in some way. Some way that affects our time now.”

  “Interesting. Do you think it’s traced to why we don’t have traditional food sources or much water now,” Nelg Mahgirb asked.

  “I’m sure of it!” Lyrehc pledged. “I think it’s why the book was left in the time capsule. It’s a warning, or heads up, except it arrived too late. And it appears the missing diamond pin was given to a girl named Rose as moon dust to shut her crater.”

  “You don’t mean extortion?” Mrs. Mahgirb inhaled.

  “Exactly, Mom!” Inot smiled, glad her mother was following. “We think Rose must know something important.”

  “That’s what we’re trying to figure out next. We need this book to further our investigation,” Lyr said.

  The adults seemed convinced, or at the very least, concerned.

  “Ladies, this is a serious matter you’ve uncovered,” Mrs. Rethom said. “You have until Thursday
as Mr. Ekib granted. Be sure to keep us informed. We’re hopeful it will bring answers to help in the future.” The principal looked at Mrs. Ssom and Inot’s father who nodded their collaboration.

  The parents huddled around the girls.

  “This could have been dangerous,” Inot’s mother fretted, rubbing Inot’s arm.

  “What if you couldn’t get back?” Lyrehc’s mom agreed, kissing her daughter’s head.

  “Promise us; the next time you go chasing after mysteries in a diary, finish reading them first,” Lyrehc’s father reprimanded.

  “Divad ratted us out,” Inot muttered. The grownups chuckled at the girls’ expense.

  Missing only their first class, it felt like a whole day had gone by. When they met up for lunch, they were exhausted.

  “That’s what I get for waking us before the crack of dawn,” Lyr yawned.

  “And partying all night,” Inot added.

  They sleepily ordered lunch from the tabletop touchscreen.

  “I’m trying Shakespeare’s Spamlet shavings. It must be inspired by the time capsule. What are you getting?” Lyr asked.

  “The Pepperazzi Pizzazz powder. Janet’s jokes got me jonesing but I’m sure it doesn’t live up to the real thing.”

  “Or the name. They try to make this stuff sound tastier than it really is,” Lyrehc agreed.

  Selecting their choices, two metal tubes rolled out from the dispenser. The girls opened their prospective thermoses of premixed mush, grateful for the vitamin boost. They dug in heartily.

  “Ugh,” Lyr grimaced. “I think they may have used the actual can Mr. Ekib found.”

  “Salty!” Inot agreed of her phony pepperoni pie. She pressed the icon of a hydrofruit box and received a half-pint. Lyr did the same.

  “Well, bad taste certainly woke us up,” Lyr snarked, sipping her straw.

  “Speaking of bad taste, do you think Mr. Marsh’s company wasted a lot of resources?” Inot asked.

  “Something like that. Hey, we’re free for twenty minutes, let’s take a look.” Lyr pulled the diary from her bag and backtracked from the fake entry. Scanning, she tried to find any upset regarding the family fortune.