by Dean M. Cole
“I can sure try.”
The man began to tap commands into the tablet.
Vaughn once again wondered how the hell US standard hardware and software had found its way into the device. He looked at Monique. “Is there any way that MIL-Standard One-Eighty-Eight hardware and software was being used at CERN?”
In the corner of his eye, he saw Angela shake her head. “I can tell you that it was all based on international standards. All of it, including my gravity wave experiment on the space station, was built using the same standard.”
Mark pointed at the light wave emitter. “Then how did US tech get in this thing?”
Leaning in, Monique looked at Angela. “You said the President sent a plane full of special forces operatives at them. When they beamed the people out of it, the plane crashed. Maybe the Necks recovered some of the equipment from the wreckage and reverse-engineered it.”
“Got it!” Rourke said, nearly shouting the words.
Angela held out a hand. “Let me see.”
The young man handed her the tablet. Angela scrolled through the data. Then she held it up for the robot to look at. “Is this where you adjusted the destination coordinates?”
BOb nodded. “Affirmative, Commander Brown.”
“Good.” She pointed to a cell on the top right of the screen. “I want you to beam us to these coordinates, starting with me.”
Stepping back, the robot raised the modified cannon.
Eyes flying wide, Vaughn held up his hands. “Belay that order.”
Angela turned to him confusedly.
He held his palms out. “Are you crazy?! What if you’re wrong? You could end up somewhere else altogether, like the middle of the ocean or in outer space.”
Remaining frustratingly indifferent to his words, Angela merely shrugged. She looked around and then back at him. “Is staying here any better? Are we any less likely to die?”
Vaughn’s jaw worked, but he had no counter.
Monique stepped up and saved him. “Should we not test it first?”
Blinking, Vaughn nodded. “What she said.”
Angela appeared to consider her words for a moment. Then she gestured at the robot. “BOb, can you beam out both of us simultaneously, like you did last time?”
The robot dipped its head. “Yes, Commander Brown.”
Angela turned to Vaughn, a satisfied look on her face.
He shrugged. “How does that change anything? Then we’re all stuck here.” He shook his head. “Screw it. Maybe Chance has the right idea. Let’s just end it right here.”
Angela grinned wryly. “Not the time for Captain Asshole to make a showing. What I was trying to say is that, if we survive the trip and end up anywhere close to where we anticipate, I will have BOb beam us back here.”
Monique pursed her lips and nodded. “That should suffice. If you can make a round trip, then BOb will be able to beam all of us back home.”
Vaughn stared back at her, trying his utmost to come up with a better plan and failing miserably. Then he raised his eyebrows. “I’ll go. There’s no sense in you taking a chance.”
Smile softening, Angela said, “That’s sweet of you, but what will you do if you need to adjust coordinates?”
“I know how to program coordinates.”
“Astronomical coordinates?”
His mouth closed with a click.
Not waiting for his reply, Angela continued. “Either way, we’ll return or we won’t. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.”
It was Vaughn’s turn to chew on his lip. Finally, he nodded—a lump forming in his throat.
Bill Peterson looked around. “What do you say we get this going? The longer we wait, the more likely some animal or the entire pack catches a whiff and finds us here. The sooner we get out of here, the better.”
Monique pointed at the modified cannon. “Where are those coordinates going to take you? Did you shift them away from ATLAS?”
Angela nodded appreciably. “Good point.” She looked at BOb. “Change the coordinates to the center of the field where we left the tiltrotor.”
Again, the robot paused for a beat and then nodded. “Adjustment complete.”
Mark looked at her, fresh concern on his face. “You could end up inside the mountain.”
Vaughn’s eyes widened and his already tight throat constricted further.
Angela shook her head. “The light has never left us even ankle-deep in the surface. It always deposits us on top of the ground.” She gestured at the tablet. “There are some digits here adjacent to a symbol that I don’t recognize. It must be a variable that identifies the elevation or top of the dimension’s solid surface. Otherwise, the light wave would’ve deposited Vaughn and me inside the mountain of dead, not on top of it. Same for the rest of us this time.”
Chance Bingham emerged from the periphery. He tossed Vaughn a contrite glance and then looked at Angela. “You know, you’re betting your life on that?”
Angela shrugged. “Anyone got a better idea?”
No one did—not even Vaughn.
All but he began to slowly back away from BOb and Angela.
Teddy pulled a Roscosmos hat from his backpack and pushed it down over his wild tangles of curly, red hair. He held out a thumb. “Hurry back to us, Command-Oh.”
Vaughn hugged her tightly. Then he backed away and finally found his voice. “Yeah, Command-Oh, hur—” Voice cracking, he coughed. “Hurry back to us.”
She held up a finger and gave a hopeful smile. “I’ll be right back.”
With his long arm held high, BOb positioned the muzzle just as he’d done with Vaughn and Rourke. The bot pointed the weapon at himself at an angle such that the light beam would sweep across itself and Angela.
The robot looked down at her. “Are you ready, Commander Brown?”
Angela glanced over at Vaughn and winked. Her next words made him realize that she hadn’t led quite the sheltered life he’d thought.
Smiling nervously, Angela nodded. “Beam me up, Scotty.”
Chapter 38
Vaughn paced back and forth. Now that the blood had dried, his stiff pant legs scraped together noisily.
A full moon had risen shortly after Angela and BOb had vanished. It had climbed a good way above the eastern mountains since.
Scanning the land illuminated by its pale light, Vaughn searched for any sign of them. Even using the zoom capability of his night-vision goggles, he’d seen no evidence of Angela since she and the robot left.
“Wh-Where are they?!” he stuttered, failing to hide his apprehension. Apprehension, hell. He was on the verge of full-blown panic. Every second seemed to stretch into a minute—every minute an hour. The anticipation and expectation that any moment now he’d turn and find her standing right behind him were drawing out the night painfully. “Where are they?” he said again, this time in barely a whisper.
Rourke shifted on his feet. “I’m sure it’s just the quantum variability.”
Vaughn spun on him. “What the hell does that even mean?”
The young man looked from him to Monique and then back. “It means that, at the atomic level and below, nothing is set in stone.”
“Were not operating at anything close to that level.”
Rourke nodded. “You’re right, but for that device to work as it does, it must manipulate matter at the plank level.”
Vaughn’s eyebrows stitched together.
Monique spoke up. “It is the smallest scale we have. Suffice it to say it is firmly in the realm of quantum variability. At that level, particles pop in and out of existence. Time does not even exist as we perceive it.”
“Yeah, of course. You’re talking about Ant-Man space.”
Rourke nodded, but Monique stared her confusion back at him.
Vaughn rolled his eyes. “You know, the realm where Ant-Man got lost for a long time, like between-movies long?” He held out his hands. “But what does that have to do with them not being back yet?”
Monique continued to stare at him. Finally, she shook her head. “The churn of particles popping in and out of existence in Ant-Man space introduces variables for which no calculation can completely compensate.”
Teddy, who appeared just as miserable as Vaughn felt, looked at Monique, concern twisting his face. “What would this variability do to Angela?”
Monique released a frustrated growl and looked at Rourke.
The young man started to speak, but Vaughn held up a hand. “English, please.”
Rourke appeared to consider his words for a moment. Then he continued. “Quantum variability—”
Vaughn gave the man a hard look.
He held up his hands in surrender. “Ant-Man-churn can screw up the calculations, cause them to end up in a slightly different position than what was targeted.”
Eyes widening, Vaughn stared at the man. He felt the color drain from his face. He looked around, searching the horizon. “You picked a hell of a time to mention this. She could be back on that mountain of decaying bodies, trying to fight off Hell’s guard dogs.”
“No,” Monique said. “I do not think the error would be that large.”
Vaughn turned toward her. “Thanks, Data. I am so happy to hear you do not think so.”
She stared back at him from beneath scrunched eyebrows. “My name is not Data.”
“Are you sure it isn’t?” Vaughn said, emphasizing the last word. “You sure as hell sound like him, what with your seeming inability to use a goddamn contraction.”
“Vaughn, that’s enough!”
Turning, he saw Mark looking back at him disapprovingly.
After a moment, Vaughn’s chin dropped to his chest. He released a long sigh. “Sorry, Lieutenant Gheist, you didn’t deserve that.”
The woman glared at him, her mouth pressed into a thin line. Finally, she dipped her head.
Struggling mightily, Vaughn managed to keep his tone level as he continued. “Why do you think the error wouldn’t be that big?”
“When you were beamed here by the Taters, did you ever end up somewhere other than on the mountain of the dead?”
As understanding dawned on him, Vaughn began to nod slowly. “You’re right. We always returned to it. Wasn’t the same exact spot every time, but close enough.”
A new realization struck Vaughn. “Wait. If it’s quantum variability, then how did we all end up right here, together?”
Both Monique and Rourke stared back at him, struck dumb by his question. After a moment, the young doctor shook his head. “Shit. I don’t know.”
Vaughn would have taken pride in his ability to stump the two scientists, but unfortunately, it just meant they were no closer to figuring out the mystery.
He released a long growl and laced his fingers through his hair as if trying to pull it out. Turning from them, he looked across the dusty plane. “It may not be that, but it doesn’t mean you’re wrong. They could be here already, just not close enough to see us in the dark.”
He cupped his hands around his mouth. “Angela!”
“What the hell are you doing?!” Bill Peterson said in a harsh whisper. “You trying to get us eaten?” He stormed over and grabbed Vaughn by the shoulder and spun him around. He pointed toward the distant mountain of the dead. “May as well walk out there and shout ‘dinner is served!’” Looking over Vaughn’s shoulder, the man paused. His eyes went round. “Oh, shit …!”
Behind Bill, Mark craned his neck. “Something’s coming.”
Major Peterson released him. “Now you’ve done it.”
Vaughn turned and immediately spotted the movement.
A faint voice drifted across the dark plane. “Vaughn?”
“Oh, thank God. Angela! Hang on. I’m coming.” He sprinted past Bill and ran toward the movement. A few steps later, the twinned silhouettes of Angela and BOb resolved from the desert gloom.
Vaughn crossed the gap and scooped up Angela. “I was so worried.” He kissed her dusty forehead and then lowered her to the ground. “What happened?”
“What happened is that it works!” Angela leaned back and smiled up at him. “We’re not stuck here. More importantly, we’re not beaten.”
The knot in Vaughn’s gut eased a bit, but it seemed too good to be true. “Where have you been? Why have you been gone so long?”
Turning, Angela waved for him to follow as she continued walking toward their makeshift camp. “Come on. I’ll tell everyone at once.”
Chapter 39
Vaughn glanced at BOb. The robot continued watching for wild animals. The bot had assured them that it would be able to beam threats elsewhere should they approach.
BOb’s giant backpack looked full to bursting point. Angela had returned with hers stuffed full of munitions as well.
Vaughn turned from the image and looked at Angela.
He felt the knot in his gut relax another notch.
She wasn’t lost to him.
Angela had returned.
The hug she’d given him upon her arrival had awoken something within Vaughn, reminding him what they were fighting for.
He smiled inwardly as Angela shared the story of her and BOb’s trek.
The light wave emitter had beamed the two of them to a field about a mile from the tiltrotor, leaving them with a lengthy hike to get back to the aircraft.
Hearing Monique and Rourke’s theory about quantum variability causing the error, Angela rocked her head equivocally. “That would account for the irregular shape of the mountain of the dead. If everyone had been beamed to precisely the same point, it would've been cone-shaped.”
Teddy shook his head and pointed to Vaughn. “I think El Capitan is right. That can’t be it. When he had BOb beam us off Mont de Los Muertos, we ended up in one place.” He gestured at the group. “If it were Ant-Man-churn, all of us would end up in different locations, no?”
“Ant-Man?”
Vaughn held up a hand. “Long story.”
Rourke glanced at him and then looked at Angela. “He means quantum variability.”
Smiling, she scoffed. “I get it.” Then Angela shrugged. “I think it’s more likely that the interface between our EMP cannon and their bastardized One-Eighty-Eight hardware is introducing calibration errors.”
Vaughn nodded as a realization struck. “That’s why we never saw any of the Taters that BOb hit with the light. We only found the dead one that another Tater beamed out.”
“What do you mean, El Capitan?”
“I was starting to think Bill might be right, that those Taters had flown away, but they might have simply ended up elsewhere.”
Angela waved dismissively. “None of that matters now. It works well enough, and from what happened when BOb beamed us here, it looks like you stay in close proximity to each other if you do the shots in short order.” She gave them all a significant look. “We still have a chance to reset the timeline.”
Bill glanced into the dusty night sky and wrinkled his nose. “I’ll take anything over this place.”
Monique faced the man. “William, have we decided there are worse things than monster caterpillar bots?”
He cast a nervous glance at the outline of Teddy’s Mont de Los Muertos. The man shivered visibly and then nodded. “Yes … yes, we have.”
Mark looked at Angela. “What did you do when you got to the tiltrotor?”
“When we reached the edge of the field, we held back for a bit, making sure there were no robots around. Then I sent BOb in to check it out. He didn’t find anything, and nothing had been disturbed, so we dug through the crates in the cargo bay and loaded up.” She patted the backpack that sat next to her. “We brought as much ammo as we could carry.” She paused and stared across the land. Her eyes lost focus. “It’s a good thing we did. Ended up having to leave some of it behind.” She shook her head, and her eyes cleared. “I’ll go into that in a minute.”
“That’s okay, Command-Oh,” Teddy interrupted. He gestured toward the group. “We can all stock u
p on ammo when we go back.”
Angela shook her head. “I don't think that’s a good idea.”
Bill scoffed. “Since when is too much ammo a bad thing?”
“It's not that. It’s the uncertainty thing. The device dropped us only a few feet from the Balcony.”
“What balcony?” Monique asked.
A chill ran down Vaughn’s spine as understanding washed over him. “The cliff?”
Angela looked at him, soberly. “Yeah, we emerged just a couple of meters from the drop-off. A few feet farther left, and we would have ended up somewhere on that cliff … or over it. Even if I somehow managed to hang on and not to fall, I would’ve been stuck. It’s not like I had ropes or climbing gear. BOb might have been able to scale it, but I would've been stranded.”
That sobering image silenced everyone for a moment.
“Anyway,” Angela continued, “after we finished loading up, I had BOb beam us back here. Initially, I had planned to shift the coordinates so that we didn’t end up right on top of you, but once I saw the variability, I realized right here,” she pointed at the ground, “was the best place to aim. It was the one spot we were least likely to hit.” She shrugged. “Of course, we ended up a pretty good way north of here, a couple of miles according to BOb’s estimation. He offered to beam us the last bit back to here.”
“Why the hell didn’t you?” Bill asked.
“Same problem. We could have ended up just as far off, maybe even more. Besides …” Angela paused and gave Vaughn a meaningful look. “I saw something I recognized … from before.”
Staring back at her, he tilted his head. “What?”
“That tall rock, the one that marked the location of the alien ship.”
A stream of mental images suddenly flowed through Vaughn’s mind. A broken alien vessel. An equally shattered exoskeleton of a large, lobster-like creature. He and Angela had spent countless nights there, often shivering and on the verge of death. He recalled splitting headaches, something he was already beginning to re-experience now.
He released his breath in a long, hissing sigh. “Yeah, I remember it alright. Don’t care if I never see the place again.”