Sliptime

by Jeffrey Grode

  Caliban helped Patrick out of the hole. “You coming into work today?”

  “Looks like my work came to me. I may be in later, as soon as I get my house in order. I’ll be submittin’ a repair claim for me front door and you’re goin’ to sign it.”

  Caliban frowned. “Where’s your long-range detector and the schema I asked for? You best follow through this time or you’ll regret what happens next.”

  Patrick shrugged. “Looks like Dr. Simmons already has a detector. Congratulations on findin’ the model #7 robot. Wish you had found it earlier.” Patrick glanced from Caliban to Agent Gendrick. “I’d like a copy of your search warrant for my attorney.”

  Gendrick blinked. “Yes, Sir.”

  Caliban shook his head. “Be careful, Patrick. You may think the search was unfair, but I don’t believe you’ve been entirely truthful with us. There’s too much at stake to play games now. Eventually, you will get what you deserve.”

  Patrick’s eyes bore into his. “For all our sakes, Phylo, let’s hope you don’t.” Patrick turned his back on Caliban and his compatriots, and walked toward the house without a goodbye.

  Caliban shivered. “Simmons, stay here with the excavation. I’ve pressing work back at the office.” He trudged through the drifting snow toward his car. He hoped the green-eyed Robot #7 would produce the quick breakthrough he needed for Homeland in time to free him up for his annual family vacation in Sarasota.

  Patrick trudged back to his home through the snow, entered through the patio door, and locked it. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a gray metal orb the size of a peach pit. The microprocessor looked identical to Amo’s original, but if activated may threaten the entire world.

  Once the green eyed robot reaches the S&T lab, Simmons will realize the microprocessor is missing, but Patrick could not risk Simmons discovering the phasic properties of a model #7. As much as he liked Simmons, he could not trust anyone from the S&T lab, or the FBI, to keep it secret. Not yet anyway. Not until he knew the danger this new robot represented. Amo will know.

  Outside the window, the men continued digging. Patrick washed his hands, grabbed an Italian hoagie and Guinness from the fridge, and slid back into the phased lab. He found himself alone in the room. “Are you here?” He hurried over to the table where he’d last seen his injured metal friend and ran his hand over the surface. Nothing.

  Amo was gone.

  Chapter 15

  Ben and Jack traveled back in time to Terra, arriving just before their previous meeting in the Moonlight Pies’ parking lot. Jack held onto Ben’s shoulder so they could both remain i-phased and invisible. Only Ben carried a bronze t-medallion. They moved nearer to the kitchen entrance and stopped beside an already parked vehicle. Don’t want to get run over by another car while invisible.

  “We’re a little early.” Jack scratched his nose with his free hand.

  “Amo traveled ahead of me the first time I crossed,” Ben said. “I hope to see him before our other-selves arrive.” He scanned the lot and the adjoining alley.

  “How can we find Amo if we’re both invisible?”

  “Good question,” Ben said. “I can see you. I hope we’ll be able to see Amo if we are all i-phased.”

  “How do we know we’re invisible now?”

  Ben tilted his head. “There’s a kinda fuzzy feeling. Like I can feel my hair through my scalp.”

  “My nose itches.” Jack scratched his face again.

  “Mine too.” Ben’s eyes gleamed. “Look inside this car.”

  Jack did. “What’re we looking for? I don’t see anything.”

  “Not even your reflection?”

  “Ahh. You’re right,” Jack smiled. “We are invisible.”

  Vsshhhh-click.

  The boys jumped and turned around. Jack’s arm fell from Ben’s shoulder.

  “Master Ben. Why are you here ahead of me?”

  “Amo!” Ben caught his breath. “You scared the shit out of me.”

  “My apologies. I did not intend for you to excrete waste.”

  “Hey. Where are you?” Jack held out his hand and looked bewildered.

  Ben touched Jack’s arm and brought him back into i-phase.

  “Thanks,” Jack said looking relieved. “Hello, Amo. Good to see you.”

  Amo’s blue eyes blinked and made a whirring noise. “I did not expect to find you here already.”

  “This is our second trip back to this time,” Ben said.

  “You have come from the future.” Amo scanned the parking lot. “What happened?”

  Ben told Amo about the van, the accident, and their decision to reset their past visit. A garbage truck rolled into the lot and backed up to the dumpster. Ben and Jack stood still and watched their previous-selves arrive and enter Moonlight Pies.

  Jack shivered in the parking lot and glanced at Ben and Amo. “Okay, that was weird. What do we do now?”

  “We need to call the police and warn them about the kidnappers,” Ben said.

  “There’s a phone booth one block down.” Jack fished change from his pocket as a chill wind whipped his hair. “It’ll be safer if I call from there.”

  Ben squinted in the bright sunshine. “After you make the call, meet Amo and me by the blue mailbox in front of Moonlight Pies. We’ll still be invisible.”

  Jack nodded. “See you in about ten minutes.”

  “Do you have the license number?”

  “Yep.” Jack removed his hand from Ben, phased back to visibility, and jogged down the sidewalk.

  “Amo, follow me.” Ben took a step toward the street.

  Vsshhhh-click.

  “What?” Ben turned and saw Amo hadn’t moved.

  “Master Ben, who should I protect? You, or your earlier-self in the restaurant.”

  “Me.” Ben pointed his thumb towards his chest. “Since I’m a later version, we know the earlier-me will be safe.”

  Amo blinked. “There are two Jacks and two Bens currently in this timeline. Once you prevent my injury and the little girl is saved, you and Jack will have negated the necessity for your return trip here. Your original-selves may continue their plans unheeded. What will happen to the current you and Jack?”

  “I don’t know.” Ben scratched his head. “What are the options?”

  Amo explained as they walked. “Option 1: Should we all stay here, six of us will remain in this timeline, two Bens, two Jacks, myself, and an injured Amorphous back on Earth.

  “Option 2: You and Jack return to Earth and leave your other-selves here. This action may create a timeline branch when you arrive home. Your other-selves may return to their own timeline, or share yours— similar to Option 1. I will remain here, because I was never injured. I am unclear if my injured-self back on Earth will survive, or be erased from existence because I was never injured.

  “Option 3: If you prevent my injury, there will be no need for your early-selves to have time travelled to save me. You and Jack will have resolved your mission. The universe will conserve the energy, rather than create a timeline branch. You, Jack, and the damaged Amorphous waiting in the phased lab may cease to exist, while your earlier-selves continue their visit on Terra.”

  Ben and Amo stopped across from the front entrance of Moonlight Pies near the big blue mailbox and kept themselves invisible. Ben recognized the infamous white van parked across from them. Two men sat in the front seats.

  “Amo, you’re making my head hurt. Which option do you think is most probable?” Ben saw Jack run across the street toward the mailbox.

  “I cannot be sure without data. Option 3 may be the most plausible.”

  Shit and double shit. Ben frowned. “If the other version of me lives, it still won’t be me. I don’t want to . . . die.”

  Vsssshh-click.

  Jack slowed to a stop near their mail box rendezvous site. “Are you guys here yet? I can’t see you.”

  Ben waited as two pedestrians walked past, then touched his friend on the arm.

&nb
sp; Jack started. “There you are. The police are on the way.” All three were now invisible to passerbys.

  Across the street, a woman and her young daughter walked hand-in-hand along the sidewalk and caught the attention of the men in the van.

  Visshhhh-click. “Do not worry, Master. I have sworn to protect you, but only one outcome resolves the paradox.”

  A bearded man jumped out of the van and grabbed the young girl. He ripped her from the woman’s arm and shoved her into the vehicle. The woman tried to follow, but slipped on the icy sidewalk. “Chelsea! No, no, no,” the woman screamed. Her cries rose on fragile puffs of vapor and disappeared as the van took flight.

  Amo sprinted off the curb and into the street. The van struck him and came to a jarring halt.

  “Amo, no!” called Ben, as he held Jack back.

  “He needs our help!” Jack tried to twist out of Ben’s vise-like grip.

  “Bro, stay. We can’t interfere.”

  “Why not?” Jack tried to break free. “Amo is hurt.”

  “Trust me.” Ben refused to let go. “We need to let this play out.”

  Amo limped around the truck, pulled off the side door, and grabbed the bearded man by the arm. The little girl jumped out of the van and raced into her mother’s arms. The green robot lifted the vehicle and tipped the van onto its side. Broken and no longer invisible, Amo fell down in the street. The driver escaped the van and fled—his dreadlocks swayed like angry snakes.

  A police siren sounded from far away. The boys watched as their earlier-selves ran out of the restaurant and crouched near an injured Amo. A tall thin police officer arrived on foot, saw the downed robot, and pulled his handgun. Their other-selves disappeared in a greenish mist of light.

  “What the fuck?” said the policeman. The lanky officer lowered his weapon and scanned the street as if searching for a witness. His eyes roved over the woman, child, bearded man down, and the driver racing away on foot. The officer hurried to assist the woman and her daughter, as well as check on the unconscious man.

  “Hang on and follow me, “Ben said. He and Jack stayed invisible for several blocks as they jogged toward the park. Once among the trees they materialized.

  “Dip me in gas and set me on fire!” Jack said. “Why did Amo step in front of the van? He knew we came back to save him.”

  Ben sighed. “I think he did it for us.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “Not sure I do either.” He took a breath. “He may have sacrificed himself to preserve our timeline.” Ben explained the possible outcomes Amo had explained earlier.

  “What do we do now? Return to the future?” Jack rubbed his hands together to warm them.

  “No, our earlier-selves did that. We stay and ride out this timeline. Amo made sure we had a path forward without . . . ‘ceasing to exist.’ We owe him.”

  “There he is!” shouted a man from the street.

  “I see him,” called a stocky policeman in a full sprint. The officer ran within fifty feet of the boys, and flushed out the dreadlocked man who had been hiding behind a large oak tree. The officer almost caught him, but tripped on something hidden under the snow.

  “It’s the van driver,” Ben said.

  “I got this.” Jack sprinted through the snow and tackled the fugitive from behind. They landed in a drift a yard from the park fountain. The statue of the Green Apostle loomed above, silent and frozen.

  The stocky police officer crawled back to his feet, limped over, and handcuffed the van driver. “Thanks, son, for your help.”

  “Just doing my duty, sir.” Jack said, brushing the snow off his legs.

  “I know you. Jack Fuller, right? Played football at the high school last year. MVP?”

  “Yes, Sir.” Jack beamed.

  “Go fuck yourselves,” the man in handcuffs sneered. “Didn’t do nothing wrong.”

  Ben saw the second officer, tall and thin, approach. “Time to go,” Ben whispered to Jack. The boys left in the opposite direction. Had enough excitement for today.

  Patrick finished his sandwich and beer at his computer desk in the phased lab. He hoped Ben and Jack had been successful. After washing his hands, he put the excavated model #7’s microprocessor under a magnifying lens for closer inspection. At first glance, Green Eye’s microprocessor looked similar to that of the blue-eyed Amorphous, but the devil was in the programming. “Amo, where are you when I need you?”

  Visshhhh-click.

  “You are here!” Patrick turned with a smile and watched his blue-eyed bot materialize on the table. “My friend, I have me an idea where I can find you a new set of legs.”

  Chapter 16

  Jack led Ben through the Carlston neighborhoods on Terra toward his home on Keiser Avenue. Ben rambled on about high school and described his latest wrestling match, but Jack wasn’t really paying attention. Was he glad to be back home from Pitt? He wasn’t so sure. Walking with his head down, Jack’s thoughts sank deep inside himself.

  “Nice. Like the yellow,” Ben said.

  “What?” Jack raised his head.

  “The house,” Ben said. “You painted it yellow since my last visit. Looks good.”

  “Yea. Thanks. Pop-Pop gave my mom some money to fix up the place. She renovated the inside too.” Jack wore a ghost of a smile as he studied the house. His home. His sanctuary. But everything seemed out-of-whack, since . . . the love of his life dumped him for Brandon. How could they fucking do this to me?

  Jack’s eyes strayed to his doppel-brother. If I could use Ben’s t-medallion, maybe I could go back in time and fix things. He tilted his head and closed his eyes. How far back would he have to go? As last summer ended, she had already seemed different. What had he done wrong other than go away to college? Just two weeks after he’d left, Brandon had dumped Trudy for Lori. Had they planned this before he’d left?

  Jack’s mind whirled through the possibilities. If I travel back in time to Carlston, just before I left for Pitt, could I convince her to stay true? If I tell Brandon how much I love Lori, would he step aside? Doubtful. Brandon already knows how much I love her. Some friend.

  “Bro. You okay?” Ben said, as they climbed the snow-laden steps to the front door.

  “Huh?”

  “You’re spacing out on me.”

  “I’m trying to wrap my head around this time travel stuff.” Jack swallowed. “Can you show me how the new medallion works?”

  “Sure, once we go inside. My fingers are frozen.”

  Jack reached for the doorknob.

  “Wait.” Ben held up his hand. “Can we talk openly inside, or does CSD still have the house bugged?”

  “CSD backed off the surveillance as part of a deal Pop-Pop made with the Commonwealth. He’s a big wheel now in the government. Besides, he swept the place for electronic bugs when we remodeled the house. We even have secure cell phones.”

  “You’re lucky,” Ben said. “The FBI still watches my family back on Earth.”

  The curtains moved and a large brown nose pressed against the window from inside the house. Jack opened the door and his dog, Ginger, greeted them. “Hey, girl.” Her nails clicked on the new ceramic floor tiles as she pranced around the foyer.

  Ben glanced into the living room. “Is your mom home?”

  “She’s probably still at work, but let’s not stay long. We’ll see her later.”

  They sat at the kitchen table, and Ginger lay at Jack’s feet. Ben described the t-medallion functions several times, and asked Jack to repeat what he’d learned. Jack did successfully. Ben warned him that changing the past could mess up the future.

  “Like creating more than one active timeline.” Jack said. “I get it. That’s why Amo stepped in front of the van the second time?”

  “Yep. He protected us from the probability of being erased, although we really don’t know for sure how it works.” Ben’s hands moved as he spoke. “How could we know if we had ‘other-selves’ that never existed, or if we create new timelin
es every time we sneeze?”

  Jack’s forehead furrowed. “What if you, your past, and all your worries vanished? Would it hurt?”

  Ben shrugged. “Fuck if I know.”

  “Balls up.” Jack’s eyes watered. “We owe the big metal dude.”

  “Big time,” Ben nodded. “Let’s be careful to stay out of the past.”

  Jack scowled. So much for changing Lori’s past. “What if we peek into the future?”

  “And do what?” Ben’s eyebrows knit together.

  “But we might run into our future-selves. That could be bad for the timeline.”

  “Not if we’re careful. We drop in, scout the party, and come right back. Then we’ll know who’s there and what to watch out for.”

  “Bad idea, Jack. We could seriously f—”

  “C’mon, Ben, this is important to me. I need to know. Besides, think of this as an experiment. You want to be a scientist someday, so let’s use our minds and our cajones to learn how this medallion works.” He had Ben’s full attention. “In the name of science.”

  “Okay, Jack.” Ben said. “But we go in slow, stay invisible, and leave on my call. No physical interaction with the guests. We’ll just be observers.”

  “Good. Let’s do it.” Jack stood up and pushed the kitchen chair back with his legs. Ginger jumped to her feet and wagged her tail.

  “Alright.” Ben stood. “Hey, I thought you were going to check in with Lori first.”

  His shoulders drooped. “I can’t.” He began to pace. “I don’t know what to say. I can’t pretend I don’t know. She’ll hear it in my voice.” His hand touched his throat.

  Ben shook his head. “Since I have the only t-medallion, you’ll have to keep your hand on my shoulder. If you break contact, they’ll see you. Do you have the coordinates?”

  “Yes. I traveled there a few times in the past.” Jack read the coordinates from his portal medallion. Ben set the date, place, and time on the t-medallion—Brandon’s back yard, outside the sliding patio door, 10:00 p.m. tonight.

  Jack ground his jaw. “Let’s do this.” He put his hand on Ben’s shoulder and felt the tingle as they switched to i-phase. Ginger barked, but sniffed until she found his feet, then barked again. “Not this time, Ginger,” Jack said as he shooed her away.