by Morris, Chad
He could see them clearer now, but he saw something new in their faces—surprise. There was no way they would have expected this. The distance shortened. They would meet in thirty feet.
More shots. More echoing yells.
Several men fell.
Twenty feet.
Some of the enemy started to turn and run.
Fifteen.
Their shooting was more accurate now, the men so close. Still more of the opposing army pivoted and looked downhill.
Ten.
The charge with bayonets was sweeping the enemy back down from where they had climbed.
Ugh!
Derick fell back, reeling to the right. He hit the ground hard, scratching dirt deep into his forehead. He clutched at his chest and rolled over.
He had been shot.
Derick slowly stood, wincing and gritting his teeth. A ball of metal was somewhere between his ribs. He glanced down at his hand and then his chest. Blood. Dark red everywhere.
He tried to raise his gun, but fell forward. He plunged the bayonet into the dirt and used the musket for a brace. He couldn’t give up now.
7
Stand Back
Grandpa put his key in the console. Abby reached down and once again pulled on the upper rim of her belt buckle. The buckle shifted and she pressed her finger against the metal compartment underneath. It quickly verified the tiny ridges in her fingerprint and opened to reveal her key.
She placed the metal key in the slot next to her grandfather.
Coach Adonavich ran her thumb along the side of her shoe. A slot in the heel opened and she pulled out her key. Grandpa had obviously been very busy helping all those with keys to keep them secret and safe. Abby wondered if he had set up the same system in several different styles of shoes so Coach Adonavich could always have the key with her. He had made Abby several belts for that reason. The coach stepped forward with her key.
• • •
Derick fought to keep the pain from taking over his mind, his whole body. He had to keep going. He had to have the heart of the men around him. It was not whether he was shot or not. It was whether he kept trying.
Derick gritted his teeth and lifted his bayonet in front of him. His mind felt slow and hazy. Maybe it would be better to lay down and rest, hoping someone could give him some medical attention. Pain pulsed through him again. It gripped his mind.
No. His fellow soldiers were still running down the mountain with only bayonets as weapons. They needed him.
He screamed, the sound drowning out the pain. He moved his body down the mountain, each step uneven, but he began to gain momentum.
Then he saw an enemy soldier, his gun pointed at Derick.
This was it.
He could move on with one musket ball to the ribs, but he knew he couldn’t take another.
The only thing Derick knew to do was barrel onward. He took in another breath and screamed again.
The enemy looked up from his gun and looked around. Then he raised his barrel to the sky.
Derick slowed, stumbling.
The soldier was surrendering.
Derick held his bayonet at the man’s chest and looked around to see what he should do next. Surrounding him, men in his matching uniform guarded the captured enemy. They marched them into groups.
They had won.
Derick felt lightheaded. The ground tilted one way and then the other. He was going to collapse.
No! He was too close. He had made it this far—he would not fail again.
He closed his eyes for a moment and tried to right himself, stand tall. His chest felt like mush—mush on fire. His vision started to tunnel.
He breathed deep.
A little more. A little longer.
Derick opened his eyes. His pain was gone.
Where was he? The hill, the soldiers, the muskets were all gone. Now he was in a dimly lit room.
His grandpa stood in front of him. Not his real grandpa but a recorded image of him. “Congratulations on passing such an arduous test,” he said. “You have earned the right to know, and perhaps even use, my secret.”
He made it! Just barely, but he made it. He wouldn’t have to share the “just barely” part with anyone else. He stood and instinctively wiped his forehead, his hand wet with sweat as it glided over his skin. He walked slowly, but his steps felt solid. He had faced a war and made it. Successful Derick was back.
Grandpa continued to explain his secret, though Derick already knew it. He spoke about becoming obsessed with finding the secret to time travel and eventually succeeding. But he also spoke of meeting Muns and learning of the businessman’s dangerous ambitions to change the past. That was why Grandpa had created the shield and the keys to protect history.
After passing through a giant door, Derick climbed down a chilling ladder, noticing other ladders on other sides of the basement. He knew there were other paths to the Bridge; the basement was a very large place.
He walked through another dark, twisting corridor, hearing echoes of people talking. The hall finally opened into a giant room and Derick’s senses ignited. He immediately took in the great metal tree—the original Bridge. Its thick trunk held the main console; its branches split into hundreds of channels and disappeared into the ceiling. People surrounded the trunk—Abby, Grandpa, and Coach Adonavich; Coach Horne and Dr. Mackleprank stood beside them watching something happening in an old town.
Grandpa counted to three and he, Abby, and Coach Adonavich all twisted their keys. To work, they had to all twist at the same time. That way even if someone managed to steal the keys, he couldn’t twist them by himself—no one person could twist three keys at once.
Immediately the view of an old town changed from a faded image of the past to a vivid reality. The dust and wind from the past blew into the basement. The other half of the room in the basement of Cragbridge Hall was now a part of the other side of the world and a century and a half in the past.
Grandpa found the scene of two men walking down a back street. “Let’s bring you in behind them,” he said. Derick’s pulse quickened. Was Dr. Mackleprank going in? Did those two people not belong in the past? Derick began to understand the situation. But there were two of them and only one Dr. Mackleprank. Maybe Derick could help. He slowly stepped forward toward the past.
Grandpa continued, “Unlike other situations, let’s leave the connection to the past open.” Usually, after someone crossed into history, it would be safest to turn the keys and close the Bridge through time. That way no one from the past could accidentally step into the future. “Dr. Mackleprank may need to send these trespassers back through at any moment.”
Derick’s heart beat faster as he watched Dr. Mackleprank approach the line between the present and the past. He was about to see his teacher in action. Sure, it wasn’t in an avatar, but this was better. One-on-two, live and in high-definition color.
Dr. Mackleprank looked one more time at Grandpa and then stepped into history. Once on the other side, he paused, lifted his arm, and looked at it. It was like he was surprised he could still move and breathe. Derick couldn’t blame him; it must be weird to go back in time.
And then he was to the task. It was like watching an action movie. Dr. Mackleprank walked up behind the two men, grabbed one from behind, twisted him around, and pushed him straight through the divide of time. It was that fast. The man’s eyes grew larger as he passed through. The briefcase he carried crashed against the basement floor. Luckily, Coach Horne quickly punched the man and he crumpled to the ground. Ow! There is no way Derick ever wanted to be on the receiving end of a blow from a former weightlifting champion. It must feel like a small car had hit your face.
“Make sure he doesn’t go anywhere,” Grandpa commanded. Derick rushed forward. “Derick, stand back,” Grandpa called out.
“I just want to help,” Derick said.
“Not now,” Grandpa replied.
Coach Horne had already taken it upon himself to stand over the m
an.
Derick ran to the back of the room and retrieved the briefcase.
“And don’t open that briefcase, just to be careful,” Grandpa added, barking orders like the general of an army.
After the man fell, Coach Horne held him down with a foot on his back. The coach couldn’t be light. Derick was glad he wasn’t that man.
On the other side of the room, Dr. Mackleprank fought with the second man. The time intruder whirled around, throwing a punch. Dr. Mackleprank nimbly dodged the strike. The man lunged again; not only did Mackleprank block the blow, but struck the man quickly afterward. The battle continued, each man attacking the other. Yet Mackleprank was far superior. Beyond superior. He was amazing. With that kind of body control there was no way Derick could beat him in an avatar race. His moves were powerful, yet graceful, like a dance. He noticed there was almost a rhythm to the doctor’s movements.
Mackleprank spun into a kick, throttling the man across the backstreet. The teacher picked his opponent up by the collar, threw him through the divide, and then walked back into the basement.
Awesome.
“Close it,” Grandpa commanded.
Immediately, Grandpa, Abby, and Coach Adonavich twisted the keys, closing the gap into the past, just in time for a passerby to appear and look into the empty alleyway. Thank goodness he hadn’t seen one man throw another into the future. That could definitely lead to a trip to the psychiatrist.
They had done it.
Derick exhaled in relief. And then he realized they hadn’t needed him—or his key—at all.
8
Like a Ninja
Dr. Mackleprank hauled one of the time intruders over his shoulder, Derick carrying his feet. At least Derick was doing something.
“Where did you ever learn to fight like that?” Derick asked, half impressed and half jealous. “I stumbled in and you were like a ninja flying around everywhere. You’ve definitely gained 3,000 awesome points in the last few minutes. Not bad for a teacher.”
“I’m glad you were impressed,” Dr. Mackleprank said with a quick glance over his shoulder, “but it isn’t much really. Remember how I told you that I lived in Brazil?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, I picked up something called capoeira. It’s a Brazilian martial art, but it has a little flair, ties to dance and music.”
“I don’t get it,” Derick admitted.
“Well, it is a little difficult to explain. It is a martial art, but the way you practice it is more like playing a game to a beat. One person plays a big stringed instrument that produces a twangy sound and rhythm. You move to the beat. You try to stay in complete control, complete rhythm, and you kick, fling fists, everything, but without actually touching each other.”
“It’s like a dance fight,” Derick said. “Sorry . . . that sounded really wimpy coming out of my mouth.”
“Did it look wimpy?”
“No, no, no, no, no.” Derick tried to cover up. “It was amazing! And it was definitely more than a dance. ”
Dr. Mackleprank looked over at Derick again. “For me, it is a great way to practice body control, which is an essential trait in my line of work.”
That made sense—amazing body control for the avatar teacher. They walked on through the dark corridor, following Grandpa. The legs Derick was carrying were starting to get pretty heavy.
“And speaking of body control, you’re getting better all the time with the avatars. The fact that Rafa wants to ask his club if you can join is a huge compliment.”
“I hope it works out,” Derick said.
“I hope so too. You have a lot of potential, Derick. But you ought to know that they are pretty intense. Racing Rafa is just the beginning.”
“Oh,” Derick said, looking down. “I hadn’t thought that it might just be one more way I can lose to that guy.”
Dr. Mackleprank stopped, which forced Derick to stop as well. “Rafa is quite the prodigy when it comes to avatars. But you realize that learning is not a race against anyone.”
Derick nodded.
“And that if someone is better than you at something, that doesn’t actually decrease what you learned or your abilities at all.”
Derick nodded again. Easy for him to say—the amazing ninja fight-dancing avatar teacher.
“Good,” Dr. Mackleprank said. “Be careful. A little healthy competition is good for just about everyone, but when it becomes only about winning or beating someone else, people tend to make some pretty rash and foolish decisions.” The avatar teacher gestured toward the men they carried. “Like Muns, for instance. I don’t think he’s playing anymore. And this is definitely not a healthy competition.”
• • •
Abby followed Dr. Mackleprank and Derick as they carried a time trespasser through the large metal door. Carol and a gorilla were waiting for them.
“Wow, it isn’t every day you see this, huh?” Carol said, watching them pass. Coaches Horne and Adonavich carried the other man who had entered into the past. “You’d better fill me in here, Abby.”
Abby just smiled. They did it! Despite all of Muns’s threats, they had stopped his efforts to change the past. Abby felt silly for ever having been so worried. Grandpa had been perfectly prepared.
The gorilla rushed over and took the unconscious man from the coaches.
“I can still carry him,” Coach Horne protested.
“We all know that,” Dr. Mackleprank said over his shoulder, panting. The way he struggled for air, Abby thought he might be faking a little. He might be stronger than he let on. Maybe he was trying to ease up on Coach Horne’s pride. Plus, the coach was still recovering from his injury. “But let the avatar take him. Robots are quite useful for carrying large loads.”
“We all know you could carry him,” Abby agreed. “You could carry all of us put together.”
“Yeah,” Carol added. “You’re the buffest old guy I know.”
“Old guy?” Coach Horne said, raising his eyebrow.
“Oh . . . that was probably one of those moments I shouldn’t have just said whatever came into my head, right?” Carol said.
“Right,” Coach Horne agreed.
Grandpa carried the intruder’s briefcase in one hand, his own cane in the other. He led them down another corridor, one Abby had never been in before.
After a minute or so, Grandpa approached another large metal door with the same crossbars and gears of all the other doors in the basement. He hooked his cane over his wrist while he inserted a key and twisted. He nodded and Dr. Mackleprank, Derick, and Rafa dropped the two trespassers on the cold hard ground. In a few moments, both stirred back to consciousness.
“I designed a few rooms as a secure place to store essential equipment. Now they will have to serve as cells,” Grandpa explained.
“You will be treated humanely,” Grandpa said to the trespassers. “Which is perhaps better than you deserve, considering what you intended to do.” He looked down at the men with a look that surprised Abby. She had never seen him that furious. She had seen him stern, but the way his eyebrow bent inward and his lip slightly curled up into a snarl was so much more than stern. “Will Muns never stop?”
He glared at the two prisoners. They didn’t answer.
“Tell me what Muns has planned next before he ruins our entire existence.”
Again, silence.
“Do you have any idea how much trouble you could have caused? Do you think about your own actions, or do you merely follow Muns blindly?” Grandpa shook his cane in the air.
Abby grinned as Grandpa lectured the men on the dangers of meddling with time for the next several minutes. Grandpa never shied away from a chance to teach, but this was more than that. Abby thought perhaps Grandpa was trying to help them understand, even scare them into telling him anything about Muns. “I must know what he plans to do, or everything is at risk,” he said.
No answer.
“I don’t know if he promised you that he would go back in time to b
ring your relatives back from the dead, or give you a chance you never had, or help you rid yourself of some regret,” Grandpa continued, “but it is not worth it. And it wouldn’t solve anything anyway.” Sweat glistened from Grandpa’s bald head in the dim light. “We can’t waste all our energy wishing the past were different—we must learn from it and move forward.”
The prisoners acted like they had heard it all before. Their faces were blank, looking throughout their new cell, looking anywhere but at Oscar Cragbridge.
Grandpa lifted up the briefcase he had been holding. “I don’t suppose you’ll tell me what’s in here.”
The two men looked at each other, but did not reply.
“No matter what it is, it is horrendously dangerous to bring anything from the future to the past.” He handed the case to Coach Horne. “Would you give this to the Trinhouses? Tell them we don’t trust it and want to make sure it’s safe before we open it. Have them keep me informed.”
The coach took the case and nodded. Abby wondered who or what the Trinhouses were.
Grandpa turned to leave, then shifted back. “Did it even occur to you that Muns’s energy bursts can only send you into the past, but cannot bring you back? There is no way he could create one in the right place to stay open long enough to retrieve you. He sent you on a kamikaze mission into the past, and you went!” He pointed at one with his cane and then the other.
Abby hadn’t thought of that before, but it was true. Muns would have left them there whether they succeeded or failed.
“Fine, then,” Grandpa said. “I will have to decide what to do with you.” He stepped back and motioned for Rafa to close the door.
“Naïve cretins!” Grandpa burst out, clanking his cane on the ground as he walked. “Ignorant moldwarps! Do they understand nothing?”
“Wow,” Carol whispered to Abby. “I think his genius undies are in a bunch. He’s angrier than a wolverine with stickers in its paws, pine cones up its nose, and its tail on fire.”
“This time travel stuff is serious,” Derick said.
Grandpa waved the group toward him. “We have much to think about and to decide. I’ll be contacting most of you soon.”