by John M Grier
Cave Town
Jack said “Before we do anything crazy, I suggest we do a little recon. Suzie, you are probably the best suited for this task. I suggest we go down to the cave town under us to see what we can find out. You can blend into their society like you did before and I will remain close by, but try to stay out of sight. Hopefully, these two soldiers were acting on their own, like they said, and we can simply stash them somewhere safe until we have time to deal with them.”
Suzie said “How about I go alone so you guys won’t arouse suspicion.”
Turning to look at Janet, Paul asked “She can’t possibly project herself that far, through all this rock, can she?”
“Although I don’t yet know the full range of my mobility,” interjected Suzie, “I would have to agree. However, one thing you may not know is that this new case really does allow me freedom of movement. Watch this!” She walked over to the case in question and reached down and picked it up just like anyone else would have, then proceeded to walk away with it! She continued “It would seem that my mobility should no longer be an issue.” She returned and sat the case back down. “Janet, this is really cool! Thank you so much for my new-found freedom!”
Janet said “You are certainly welcome. I thought you might like it. It has many functions that I am unaware of as well. I’m sure you’ll have fun finding them all.”
Suzie said “Jack, with this new freedom of movement, I can go do a recon of the cave town all by myself. I’ll simply stash the case in the elevator, and see how much movement I have. If it comes in question, I’ll find another hiding place for it.”
“Well, I still don’t like the idea of you going off on your own like this, but I have to agree it is the best option at the moment.”
Smiling, Suzie said “Trust me, Jack.”
Rolling his eyes, Jack said “Where have I heard that one before?”
Everyone had a great laugh, and Suzie made her way to the elevator. When she got there, she sat her case down, turned around with a grin and raising her arms in the air; she snapped her fingers and instantly changed into the uniform of the military personnel in the cave town beneath them.
She rode the elevator to the bottom as before and made her exit quietly. In order for her plan to work, she would need to approach the town without being seen.
She crept out of the elevator and silently made her way to the intersection that led to the lake. She found a crevice in the rock that made up the cavern that housed the lake and stashed her case there. Satisfied that it would remain unseen, she approached the lake.
Her thoughts were that if she were seen by the lake, she could simply appear to be taking a stroll by the water. She tried to look as casual as she could manage while slowly making her way to the town.
After walking around the near side of the lake, and thankful that her luck was holding out, she left the cavern that housed the lake and approached the town. She was nearly to the town when she was spotted by a group of male soldiers. Remembering what she had seen before, she instantly put on an expression that would make these poor guys cringe. “Just how long were you going to let me walk up here like this without so much as a challenge? You know we need to tighten up security around here!”
The three guys came to rigid attention. The senior of the three said “I’m very sorry ma’am. It most certainly will not happen again.”
“See that it doesn’t” she said while walking away. She walked as if she had a purpose in mind so the three men would not become suspicious about her. She walked toward the only building she had any experience with. She entered the building and made her way to the area she was near before. That particular area was full of female military personnel that were apparently either off duty or in a relaxed mode for some reason.
She walked around the large room appearing to mingle, but carefully avoiding everyone. She listened to the conversations around her for any sign of knowledge of the two men they were holding prisoner above in Freedom Base.
After two hours she still had heard nothing and was getting a bit antsy about being there, so she made her way out. She paused to consider how best to leave with no one seeing her. While thinking, she accidentally discovered one of those little ‘extra’ gifts her new case offered her. There was a recall function that would bring her projected self instantly back to the case. Looking around to ensure no one was watching, she utilized the recall function. Instantly, she was standing next to the case. She simply picked it up and returned to the elevator.
While rising to the primary level of Freedom Base, she contemplated the possibilities she now had with her new found freedom. The possibilities seemed endless! When the elevator doors opened, Jack, Paul and Janet were waiting with guns drawn and pointed at the doors. Adopting an innocent schoolgirl like manner, complete with a southern drawl, Suzie said “Easy guys, it’s just little ole me.”
Easily slipping into her newly adopted ‘rapid change pose’ Suzie snapped her fingers and returned to something more befitting her personality. She chose a pink skirt and frilly blouse with tennis shoes. Jack laughed and said “Are you sure you have never seen ‘I dream of Jeannie’?”
Paul and Janet gave him a strange look. Jack didn’t bother to explain. Instead he said “Did you find out anything about our two guests?”
“It doesn’t look like they are aware of what these two guys were up to. I would suggest we simply lock them in the brig here and supply them with several days’ worth of MREs. There is already water piped into the cells, so there should be no worries.”
Janet said “What’s an ‘MRE’?”
Jack spoke up and said “MRE stands for ‘meal ready to eat’. There are cases of the stuff lying around here. I have never tried any of them, but understand that they last just about forever and are about as appetizing as soggy cardboard.”
Paul said “At least we won’t be starving them. I say we go for it. We need to get back on track with this dig.”
Again, Suzie adopted her change pose with a smile on her face, raised her hands in the air and snapped her fingers, instantly changing back into the outfit she was wearing when she encountered the intruders. She and Jack retrieved the two prisoners from the workshop where they had been handcuffed to a pole and escorted them down to the level that had a few jail cells, locking them in with enough MREs to last two weeks.
The two prisoners were so afraid of Suzie and the fact that their weapons had no effect on her that they said nothing on their way to the cells. Once locked in, they simply sat with their heads down in a very resigned pose. Apparently, in their world prisoners must be treated badly and they obviously anticipated such punishment here as well.
Suzie spoke up and said “Now you boys behave yourselves down here. We’re going to be leaving you alone for a few days, and have allowed for two weeks of meals for you. We plan to be gone only a few days at most, but it never hurts to be careful, wouldn’t you agree? While we are gone, I would like you to think about what you are doing here, why you came here to begin with, and what you would suggest we do with you.” She then turned and walked out without looking back.
Once out of earshot, Jack asked “Do you really think they’ll suggest a punishment for themselves?”
“Yes, I think they just might” said Suzie. “In their world, women are in charge and never questioned.”
Jack said “Well, it certainly will be interesting to see what they come up with.” They made their way back to the living room where they had left Janet and Paul. They walked in and found the two of them in a quiet conversation and decided to leave them alone. Jack quietly made his way to the kitchen and began preparing steaks for everyone.
In no time at all, the smell and sound of steak cooking brought Paul and Janet out of their conversation. Paul said “I still can’t believe that we have lived our entire lives without eating meat. Even the smell of it cooking is wonderful!”
Janet’s personal communication device ch
irped just then and, after looking at it momentarily, she said “The dig is approved and ready to undertake whenever we are. I suggest we get an early start in the morning and head out as soon as we can to avoid someone else wanting to attach themselves to us.”
They ate in silence and got to bed early. The next morning, they set out for Harmony and prepared lists of equipment they would need. Janet arranged for it to be gathered and waiting for them when they arrived back at Harmony.
By the time they arrived, everything was ready for them. Jack parked his hovercraft in his usual place. Janet fell back into her role of government official with ease. She eventually drove everyone around her away so the small group of companions would have the opportunity to travel alone. They picked up the loaded government hovercraft and started out for the ice. Three short hours later, they were back where they started this adventure what seemed like years ago.
