by J J Perry
“One?” Porliche asked.
“Yeah.”
“See what you do with your pad.”
“We’re trapped in here. There’s no way out.”
Porliche looked up. The ceiling was dotted with LED lights that she had thought looked like stars. “Lean against the wall and let me get up on your shoulder.”
Sparks took a deep, noisy breath. Palfrey did as she directed. She stepped on his thigh, his forearm, and then his shoulder. She pushed on a ceiling panel, and it gave way. She moved it away, and the lights within it extinguished. She poked her head into the small space. “I’m going to see if I can get to the soffit from here. If I can, I’ll get outside and divert the attention of the guard, and you should be able to get out the side door in a few seconds.”
“I don’t think you’ll be able to get out.”
“You don’t know me well.” Porliche disappeared into the narrow space. She poked her head back through the opening. “Are there guards outside?”
“No. Security will be coming in trucks with humans, dogs, and bots.”
“When?”
“You’ll hear ’em approach.”
She pulled away and crawled toward the side of the building where attention to appearance was less. It was pitch-black, and she had to feel for safe places to place her hands and knees. It was not long before she came to the outside wall. She removed a batt of insulation. There was a tiny opening. She took her coat off. She squeezed her head and one arm through it and almost got stuck. Her injured arm and chest were too big. Undeterred, she pulled back and, with her functional arm, pushed and twisted flimsy supporting struts to weaken the area. She bent some aluminum sheets, enlarging the hold then dived back in. She kept pushing, twisting, adjusting and squeezing, pushing the pain back as she had learned to do until her top half popped free. She hung upside down with her hips still in the building and her injured arm flailing limp below her. She managed to pull her coat through and drop on the ground. She pulled the rest of her body out, hung on to a beam for a second before she dropped the three meters to a hard landing on gravel. No injuries other than the bloody burn on her forearm and a few scratches she found with a quick self-assessment.
She ran to the front door and pounded. Lights approached, and she soon made out the form of a guard. She moved away, picked up a rock, and threw it at the door, hitting the solid frame, not glass. The bot fired a bolt that hit the pane and died there. She heard the side door open, a welcome sound of escape. She threw another rock, but the guard-bot wheeled about, presumably in search of the escapees. Porliche bolted with all the speed she could muster.
Palfrey had Sparks on his shoulders in a fireman’s carry. Quan hopped, touching the toes of his injured leg as they hurried away from the building. Porliche latched the side door as it was hit with another bolt. It gave her an unpleasant buzz, but she quickly caught up with the trio. They hurried along the side of the road until the sound of engines and a hum of a hovercraft became audible. They moved into the woods where movement was a lot slower. Several vehicles passed with bright lights piercing the forest in search of intruders. None slowed or stopped. A few minutes later, they returned to the roadway and made good time back to the lodge.
By the time they arrived, Sparks was moaning and moving. Quan’s leg was functioning almost normally. They stopped outside, not wanting to be seen by the young woman at front desk. Porliche approached slowly, leaving Palfrey panting and sweating and the two injured men improving. The woman was not at the desk. Porliche knew the front door would signal the clerk. She went to a side door, which opened with her access key. She went back to the lobby. Dark hair was visible in the office, apparently resting on the desk, asleep.
Porliche went out the side door and guided the trio into the lodge. She fished through Sparks’s pocket and found a room key. Palfrey helped him stagger to the room. Porliche opened the door. Nin sat up in bed, in alarm. She wiped sleep from her eyes and squinted in the light that Porliche turned on.
“What happened?” Nin asked in alarm, pulling the sheets up over her chest.
“Sparks caught a few bolts,” Palfrey said as he dumped him into the bed next to Nin. Nin slipped out naked and quickly put on a robe.
“You got caught?”
“Kinda,” Porliche said. “If we were, we would not be here.”
“We will be,” Palfrey said. “We left the power on to 23. No one but us was working there. The guard-bot will ID us. We’ll be apprehended before sunrise.”
Sparks moaned.
“Are you OK?” Nin asked.
“I need a drink.” His speech was slurred.
“He’s fine,” she said. “Back to normal.”
“Here’s the card,” Porliche said as she extended it to Palfrey. “You and Quan should get to work on it right away and away from here. This is our only chance of staying free.”
Palfrey took it. “Did you get hit?” Palfrey pointed at her arm.
“It was nothing.”
He left the room, rejoining Quan, who had stayed in the hall. Hope hung on these two strange men.
“You found something,” Nin said.
“That wafer thing was in the machine. If we’re lucky, and I mean real lucky, it’ll have the signal information, Palfrey will read it, the government will embrace it, and we’ll go home.”
“That seems like asking a lot.”
“One chance in a million.”
15.5
Porliche left the lodge in the darkness through the same door where she entered a few minutes before. She was bundled in the warmest coat she had. She went into the forest and wandered. As the eastern sky began to lighten, a single siren sounded in the distance. From the direction, she assumed it was from the lodge. Nin was going to be in trouble, although, Porliche hoped, absence of proof of her involvement would keep her out of custody. In the quiet of the nascent dawn, she regretted starting on the quest, getting these other people in trouble. She feared going to jail and not seeing Bhat again. She hated cold. It was never like this at home. She castigated herself for being so idealistic, so unrealistic, so ignorant of how harsh a government could be. She was alone, possibly for the last time in years, if she were apprehended. Her arm began to throb and, with the discomfort, came the ability to move her fingers and shoulder. On she walked.
When the sun was up, she had most of the function restored to her limb. She came out of the forest and found a shop where she bought some packaged food and juice for breakfast. She disappeared again into the woods. She ate, thought, wandered, thought, and looked at trees, plants, rocks, lichen, soil, and animals. She continued blaming herself and seeking ways to escape.
The shadows began to lengthen, and her hunger grew. She returned to the little shop for more sustenance. The TV was on. Palfrey’s face was there, and she inhaled in fear.
He was smiling. He spoke, but the sound was too low for her to hear.
“Do you know what that is all about?” she asked the clerk, a blonde-going-gray woman with sagging bags under hopeless eyes.
She turned up the sound. “They made discovery over at tourist trap.” She struggled with Universal.
“We found no evidence of any signal on any of the boxes in the REAP bunker at any time, past or present. However, in collaboration with the University of Borigine, we used a different approach. It seemed illogical that a machine of this nature would be designed without a memory function. We had never been able to access the memory until we applied technology from the same era, using a memory device that plugs into the big box and extracts recorded data. We then worked for hours on a little chip such as this,” he said as he held it up, “until we found a way to read and translate the information.”
The screen showed the name of Professor Palfrey Poincare beneath him. Behind him was the smiling face of Quan. “This is a monumental finding. We express our profound gratitude to
the state of Atlantica for its tremendous moral and financial support without which this never would have been possible.”
Porliche began to laugh. It grew louder and more intense. The clerk looked at her as if she were crazy. “Support?” She had to sit.
A reporter appeared on the screen. “It’s hoped that this event and the cooperation demonstrated by the central and provincial governments will help dispel the bias against our country, the perception that we are opposed to science and advancement of humanity.”
“Yeah, it’ll go a long way until I start talking,” Porliche said as she exited the building, drinking from a large bottle of water, “when I get out of hellish France and back to civilization.”
She was in no hurry to get back to the lodge, still worried she could get arrested. She spent the day wasting time, thinking of her life, love, attitudes, and so much more until she knew that a change in her had occurred. It was barely dark when Porliche entered the lodge. In the pub, she saw Nin just a fraction of second before she was spotted. Nin waved, seated with Sparks. He turned briefly to see. He was sipping amber liquid.
Nin stood and gave her a long, tight embrace.
“Did I get you in trouble?” Porliche asked.
“They arrested ol’ Sparky, here, early this morning. They left a guard with me and confiscated my passport.”
“What happened, Sparks?” Porliche asked.
He grunted.
“He spent a few hours in interrogation. It must have been harsh,” she said, pointing at his chafed wrists and neck with fresh scabs where he had bled. “When Palf and Quan announced—Did you know what they found?”
“I heard a bit. Go on.”
“Anyway, they offered Sparky money every month as long as he made no comments about his friendly little chat with the authorities.”
That brought a wry smile to his face. He drained his glass.
“I need another drink and a doobie.” He got up and painfully hobbled outside, pulling a dark-yellow cigarette from a small pack.
“It looks like he has had a bad day,” Porliche observed after he left. “Is that a joint?”
“Part of his negotiation.”
The television screen showed Palfrey again. Porliche walked over to hear the audio.
15.6
“. . . slits where this inserts are small and had previously been assumed to be ventilation ports. Next question.” A group of reporters was then shown on screen holding up hands or fingers, waiting for a nod or other indication to speak.
“Nin, I’m glad that I’m not part of the attention.”
“Don’t be.”
“Why now, you ask? The team from Australia presented a fresh approach. We are indebted to Mr. Quan Wong here,”—the camera panned to show Quan in a new form-fitting pale green outfit—“and Dr. Aulaaona, who has been in contact via satellite during the process. Next question.”
“What is going to happen as a result of this amazing discovery?”
“Amazing is an understatement. When you think that our ancestors in the dawn of space exploration found a habitable planet after an eight-thousand-year journey, it is both humbling and awe-inspiring. Now as we approach and enter the era of exploration with ships that bend space-time, this gives us a target that could be reached in days of travel. Our brothers and sisters, descendants from our common ancestors may be living in another world, one that we could also potentially share if our planet is threatened. The possibilities and promises are immense. I am humbled, indeed, to be the discoverer. Fortune smiles on the prepared mind.”
“He just took credit for my work,” Porliche said. “He left both of us out.”
“He’ll pay,” Nin said. “The academic community, including Aulaaona, will expose the bastard.”
Porliche continued to stare at the spectacle until the image blurred behind a layer of anger and awe. Wiping her eyes, she sent Bhat a brief text message.
15.7
The following day, at ten minutes after one, the flatbed cart was loaded with bags and trunks. Sparky sat sipping an amber liquid out of a clear disposable cup on the third row of seats. Nin and Porliche were seated together on the first row. Less than ten meters away, Quan was surrounded by a host of people in the station asking him questions and wanting his autograph. He kept looking nervously over his shoulder.
“I’d like to leave him here,” said Nin.
“I’m not going to wait, and I’m not going to call him when we depart,” replied Porliche. “On the other hand, I would like to be in UB when he and Aulaaona have a little chat.”
“I will be there if possible,” Nin said. “Like I said, Aula was furious, livid. He sounded almost violent. I like that kind of passion in a man.” She growled and narrowed her eyes in a feline grin.
“Oh, Nin, I am going to miss you.”
“If I come to visit, are you going to show me the kind of hospitality that we do down under?”
“If you mean letting you sleep with Bhat, then no. I mean it depends on him, I guess. I don’t know. Don’t count on it.” She reached her arm around Nin and hug-squeezed her shoulders. “I like you.”
“I’m going to miss you too. I want to visit you. We have bonded.”
“What do you think this is going to do for your religion?”
“I bet we have thousands join, maybe millions. Proof is a good thing to have when it comes to belief. I talked to my captain, and he hooked me up to his commander. When I get back, I’ll have a meeting with the Joint Chiefs. I’m going to be famous in my church.”
“As you should be.”
“You should look into it, poor girl. You will be more famous than me. You should join. You started this whole thing. We owe you.”
“Do I have to sleep with guests and visitors?”
“That’s cultural. It’s not part of the belief system.”
“In other words, it’s permitted but not required.”
“Yes, but doesn’t it sound like fun?”
The noise from the group of reporters increased suddenly. Palf was jogging into the station, beautiful white hair flowing behind him. His suit was beige, almost making him look naked. He reached the group and grabbed Quan’s shoulders with both hands and then hugged him. They kissed as flashes fired and cameras rolled. It was hot passion and great press. Nin was fixated by Palfrey’s physique. Porliche turned away. Sparky never bothered to look away from his shrinking ice cubes.
Palf and Quan moved away from the throng and to the vehicle. They kissed once more when they arrived.
“Sorry about the press conference,” Palf said, standing next to Porliche, his groin at her eye level. She turned toward him as Quan took a seat alone in the second row. She pulled her eyes up to find Palf’s looking at her. “It was poor judgment. I will issue a statement later today giving a clarification about what happened. Otherwise, it might foul up your dissertation.”
“I would appreciate that.”
“Only one of the three cards from 23 had data from the signal. It was the card that was in the machine the whole time. The other two cards had power failure warnings and such that had probably overwritten the signal. We could have missed the whole thing. Porliche, we were very lucky.”
The doors came up, and the windows came down as a soft warning sounded. Palf stepped away. “It was your discovery. I’ll make sure you get all the credit. I’m sorry.”
In a few seconds, the cart started moving. Porliche took her eyes away from Palf and looked straight ahead. She put both hands palms together, placed them between her legs and squeezed.
“Are you OK?” Nin asked.
“I am not acclimated to the clothing this guy wears,” she whispered to Nin.
“It won’t bother you after a while. I rather like the style.”
“You and I are different in that way.”
“I don’t know. I b
et you really want to be with Bhat right now, don’t you?”
Porliche smiled without showing her teeth and gave her signature single laugh through her nose. She looked at Nin through growing misty eyes. “I’m going to miss you” was all she could say.
Quan tried to engage some conversation and offered apologies but could get no one to respond in the two-hour trip.
When they arrived at the airport on the coast, a news ticker flashed overhead: “Human Colony on Distant Planet Likely.” There were pictures of Palf, Quan, and Porliche displayed.
“Wow,” said Nin. “He has made it right. Your picture is there. It was taken when we left.”
“It’s a terrible picture.”
“Your mouth is open, your eyes are wide open, and your pupils are dilated,” Nin observed.
“I was probably looking at Palf’s, umm, uh.”
“It was a real jaw-dropper.” Nin laughed.
“Tell that to Quan,” Porliche whispered. They convulsed in laughter.
Their equipment was separated. Porliche’s bag was going to Yucatan and the rest of the luggage to Australia. Their flights left an hour apart. “I’ll be in touch,” Nin said. “I’ll need some information for my paper.”
“It’s been great, Nin.”
“Our life waves intersected. My course has been forever changed.”
“Me too. In just a week, my whole outlook and my future seem so different. Your wave has a big effect on people.”
“Not on everyone. You and I are different but fit well together, like the pure harmonics of a chord.”
“I was so afraid I had ruined everyone’s life. I thought we’d all be in prison on some rocky island lashed by icy waves.”
“It didn’t happen because it wasn’t meant to be.”
“There you go again.”
Nin laughed and then hugged her long and firm. Porliche embraced with equal ardor. “I hate to leave. Diverging curves are so painful,” she said with a hand over her chest. “Good-bye, poor girl. I’ll miss you.”