by David Rhodes
It grew quiet and Ben went around checking bandages again and giving everyone some pain medication. Then he told Charles, “I still have the one DOPE that I stored in my backpack. It was in the top of the tree where no animals got at it. You’re going to sleep in it tonight and I’m going to position it tight against that entrance, so nothing can get past it.”
“Me?” Charles asked. “No. Let’s put Stoney in there or Lisa or Danny. Even you if you want, but not me.”
“It has to be you,” Stoney said.
“Why?”
“Because you are the most important person in the world right now. Don’t you understand that? None of us can do what you can do. Save us. Save us all. If somehow something gets in tonight you have to stay alive. So, it has to be you.”
Charles tried to say something but couldn’t. “Okay,” he finally agreed, “but I’m not going to like it.”
“I don’t need you to like it,” Ben said. “I just need you to still be alive in the morning.”
“As you go to sleep we need to think about one last thing,” Ben said. “Every second may be the last time we see each other. Either from animals or Charles taking care of the time machine. One way or another, to the rest of the world, we will have never existed.”
As they fell asleep each one of them thought about each other and all those that were gone. And Lisa couldn’t stop the tears rolling down her cheeks.
Ben woke up first and began quietly moving around. He lit the fire again and thought about what he had said. What should he do? There was only one answer.
As Charles came out of the DOPE he asked Ben, “Is everyone still alive?”
“Yes,” he replied as he stirred the burning embers of the fire.
Danny and Stoney were the last to wake up and they looked worse. After a few minutes Danny said, “I can’t go any farther. I know last night I thought I could but I can’t. I’m played out. I don’t have any energy and what’s more I’m to the point I don’t really want to go on.” He held up his hand as Lisa started to say something and continued, “This is where I want to stay. I do want to get out of this place though so that there isn’t any chance that I’ll be found in the future.”
“We can’t leave you here by yourself,” Lisa said. “We need to - ”
“He won’t be alone,” Stoney cut in. “I’ve decided to stay too. I thought about what Danny said yesterday and I feel the same. I’m dying. I can feel it. There’s too much of me gone and I know that there isn’t any reason to go back. I don’t want to argue about it, it’s what I want to do.”
Ben looked up from the fire and said, “Actually, it’s what we have to do.”
“What do you mean?” Lisa asked.
“The more of us that go back, the more we could accidentally cause problems before the timeline is changed. We need to be left here where we will not change history in any way.”
“But Charles will need our help,” Lisa pointed out. “At least try to get him to the time machine. If you can’t, well then you can’t. But please, try.”
Danny took a deep breath and said, “I’ll try.”
Charles put his hand on Danny’s shoulder and said, “Thanks.”
“I’ll try too,” Stoney said.
Then Ben jumped in with, “Then let’s get this train rolling. We have a half mile to go and we don’t know the conditions or the company we’ll meet along the way. It’s early morning and I doubt if it’s going to get any cooler than it is right now.” When everyone nodded he quickly checked their bandages then started taking the sled apart and laying the pieces off to the side.
Everyone, including Stoney, crawled slowly toward the entrance and as they left the tunnel they had to blink their eyes several times as they got used to the bright sunlight. It was immediately hot, but Danny said, “Not as hot as yesterday.”
They moved south for a few minutes and then Charles told them, “Let’s move east.” Ahead of them were some low hills and the ground was mostly bare, with only a few trees and tall green brush scattered around. They stayed away from the thicker vegetation and whatever might be hiding in it.
Within 200 yards Stoney said, “I’m bleeding again. I’m not stopping but I will probably start drawing something after us.”
Danny turned around and said, “That’s good.”
“What?” Ben asked. “How can that be good?”
“Let’s go up this hill and I’ll tell you.” When they got to the top Danny panted, “You know I could have walked up this in a minute a year ago. It probably took us ten minutes today.” He dropped his hands to his knees for a few seconds as Stoney laid down on the ground. Then Danny slowly pushed himself up and said, “Now we are up here where a lot of things can see us. Any predators will see a couple of wounded animals headed to the southwest.” He turned to Charles and continued, “Away from you.”
Charles couldn’t answer for a minute; as he started to tear up he asked, “Is this it then?”
“It is, my friend. I can’t do anything else for you except this.” Then he held out his hand and Charles pushed it out of the way as he hugged Danny close to him. “Thank you,” Danny whispered, “for letting me see my Dad again.”
“I’ll miss you,” Charles said as he wiped the tears from his face.
Then Danny hugged Lisa and told her, “I’m very glad I got to meet you. I hope you have learned you are stronger than you ever thought you could be.”
“But I’m going with you,” she told him.
“No,” he shook his head. “Not yet. Charles will still need you to get him through. Remember, you’re the smart one.” Then she hugged him back and started to cry.
Ben helped Stoney up from the ground and as they both shook hands with Charles and Lisa, Ben said, “I’m going with them. See if I can keep them out of trouble.”
“Here,” Stoney said as she handed Lisa the rifle, “I think you may need this more than us.”
“That reminds me,” Danny said as he untied his boots and handed them to Charles. “We’re the same size, you might need these. Remember, they still have a jump in each one.”
Ben picked up a piece of wood from the ground and said, “Didn’t someone say that in the end all we would have were sharp sticks?” Then Stoney put an arm around Ben’s shoulders and they began limping down the hill.
Before they turned away, Charles called out, “Danny, you ripped your pants again.”
Danny smiled as he looked down and replied, “And I said it wasn’t going to happen again.”
Charles stood there for a moment then Lisa pulled on his arm and said, “Let’s go.” They went quickly down the hill and began walking quicker as they knew with every step they were getting closer to the time machine. But the terrain continued dropping in front of them and as they entered a forest that was across their path they noticed the ground was becoming marshier and soon they were walking through mud. As they crested a hill, Charles said, “Damn.” Below them was a small lake.
“Right in the middle?” Lisa asked.
“Of course,” Charles told her. “Stand on my boots.”
“What?”
“Stand on my boots, I’m only using them for this jump. That way we still have your boots and Danny’s boots to jump with.”
Lisa stepped on his boots and as Charles started the jump she asked, “Did the cells get enough charge yesterday?”
“Probably not a full twelve hours but we’ll still jump a few hundred thousand years.”
“I hate jumping,” Lisa confessed. “I always feel like we’re in a vacuum or something. I’m afraid we’re going to run out of air or the walls will close in on us.”
“Why didn’t you say something?”
“You know me, I’m not a squeaky wheel. I just go along with whatever.”
“Not recently. You seem to have found your voice, you’re a little more authoritative and take charge.”
“I’m sorry, I - ”
“No, that’s a good thing. Express yourself. You ha
ve good ideas and know how to lead. You just don’t do it very often.”
She nodded and said, “I will. I was hoping I wasn’t coming across as bossy or a know it all.”
“That’s my job,” Charles replied.
Then the jump ended, and they found they were on dry ground covered with sparse vegetation and only a few scattered trees. There were still some low hills around them, but Charles told her, “This looks much better. This way, up over the hill and we’ll be there.” But Lisa didn’t move and when Charles turned around, she was crying. “What’s wrong?” he asked.
“They’re dead. Danny, Stoney and Ben. They’re already dead. Hundreds of thousands of years ago. They’re dead and we don’t even know how it happened.” Then there was a roar and she took a deep breath and continued, “But that doesn’t matter now. Let’s get to the time machine. How much farther? And where was that roar from?”
“I don’t know. Down here, surrounded by these hills, the sound probably echoes around so it could have been from anywhere. But we’re within a hundred yards of the machine. Let’s get over this hill.”
They walked past some trees and a rocky outcropping then started up the hill. As they came to the top, they paused. The terrain was different, the ground was still bare in some spots but much of it was covered with waist high ferns. There were a few scattered trees that slowly turned into a dense forest a hundred feet. “I hope one of those trees isn’t - ” Charles started and then the time machine appeared in an open spot. It was similar to the elevator shaft machine that had rescued them before, but it had a walled exterior.
“I guess you didn’t want anything jumping in with us again,” Lisa said as they started down the hill.
“No extra passengers or any of their body parts,” Charles agreed. “Remember how we had to dig that boulder and bushes up?”
“Yes, and then they weren’t even in the landing spot. We did all that work for nothing.”
“Nothing to worry about this time,” Charles said. Then the T-rex walked out of the trees. It was about fifteen feet tall and looked too much like all of the other Rexes they had seen. Nothing but teeth and a bad attitude.
“Are you seeing these guys?” Ben asked.
“Yes. Four or five on each side of us.”
“Yeah, and a few more behind us too,” Ben said. “They are definitely stalking us but even though we are wounded we are still bigger than they are.”
“They’re waiting for us to stop or lay down or something,” Danny said.
“That won’t be much longer,” Stoney whispered. “I can’t go much farther.”
Danny stumbled and as he did a small multi-colored predator, not even two feet tall, rushed in. Ben took a quick step and kicked the animal and it disappeared rolling into some brush. “I’m with Stoney,” Danny said. “I can feel my heart beating and, and my chest is hurting. Let’s sit down by this rock.”
Ben knew they shouldn’t but there wasn’t anything he could do as Danny sank down and Stoney sat down beside him. Four of the animals immediately jumped up on the rock and he knocked one of them off as the other three jumped out of sight. He could hear them chirping to each other but felt he could handle the group if they started in again. But he had to get Danny and Stoney moving again. Maybe they should work their way back to the tunnel. No, they had to keep leading these things away from Lisa and Charles.
As he walked over to Danny he saw him let go of Stoney’s hand. “She’s dead,” Danny gasped.
Ben took a deep breath and realized that Danny wasn’t going to last much longer either. Still, he wasn’t going to leave him behind. “Danny,” he said softly, “we need to start moving again.”
Danny looked up at Ben then up at the sun. Then Danny said, “Dad, throw me the ball, Grandpa’s watching.” Then he leaned back against the rock and his eyes closed. But he didn’t stop smiling.
Ben felt for a pulse and then stood up and decided the ‘saurs would have to earn their meal today. He began running and he could hear them coming after him. Suddenly he stopped and before they could scatter he turned and began beating them with his stick. Though a few got past it for a few bites, more of them were left lying in the dirt or limping away.
Then he heard something moving behind him, something larger. The smaller animals were darting away as he turned around and saw it. Eight feet tall, maybe nine, its red and yellow body was slowly moving side to side as it stared at him. If only he had a rifle with an explosive round. Instead he just had a stick. And it wasn’t even sharp.
Ben took a deep breath and then he looked up at the sun. He smiled and said, “I’m sorry, for everything.” Then he ran right at it.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
DINO CITY
“I hate it when I’m wrong,” Charles said under his breath. They stood completely still as the Rex walked toward the time machine. Then Charles added, “We can’t let it get near the machine or it might damage it.”
Lisa threw her hands up in the air and started shouting and the Rex snapped its head and stopped. Then it launched forward, and Lisa shouted, “This way, come on.” She turned and ran back down the hill then cut to her left and into the trees at the bottom. She kept moving and when they got to the rocks she moved in close to the wall as she continued to move sideways. “Stay close to the wall,” she told Charles.
They could hear the Rex coming down the hill and then it grew quiet and they hoped it had lost them. Lisa put a finger to her lips and then they heard the Rex snort and begin moving again. It sounded like it was moving away so Lisa peeked out just enough to confirm it. She motioned for Charles to follow her and they kept moving quietly away from the Rex.
Charles whispered, “I was just going to send the time machine away. We could have just snuck back down the hill.”
“I didn’t think of that.”
“That’s okay, I didn’t think about using the rifle. So, we’re even.”
“Do you have the explosive rounds in it?”
“No.”
“Well you better load them otherwise if you shoot that Rex you’ll just make it mad.”
Charles nodded as he changed rounds and they slowly continued moving. It took them about twenty minutes as they skirted the base of the hill until they were back in position to see the machine. They crouched down and didn’t move for several minutes as they watched the area. “What do you think?” Lisa asked.
“I don’t know. Why was the Rex even here? We weren’t on a trail and I haven’t seen any water. We can’t be that unlucky.”
“I would agree with you if I hadn’t seen it. In any case though, it went one way and we went the other. I say let’s get to the machine.”
“My thought too,” Charles agreed. “Still, let’s stay as low in these ferns as we can until we are right next to the time machine. All we have to do is jump in and hit the big red button.”
“That sounds easy.”
“After the last time, I made it as easy as I could. Still, we’re a couple of hundred yards away.”
It took them twenty minutes to creep half way to the machine and they were well hidden in the ferns when they heard rocks being moved behind them. They slowly turned and saw the Rex had turned around and followed them. As it lifted up its head and began sniffing the air, Lisa said, “Our blood.”
They both looked at the machine and Lisa asked, “We can’t make it, can we?”
“No, and it won’t have a hard time finding us in this stuff. We need to either run for the trees and hope we can lose it or I’m going to have to shoot it.”
“Plan B, stay low and shoot it.”
Charles slowly brought the rifle up and put its head right in the middle of the scope. He tried to pull the trigger, but it wouldn’t move. “It won’t shoot,” he said.
“Take off the safety,” Lisa told him and reached over and flipped the lever on the side of the gun. The Rex saw the movement and turned and lowered its head to charge just as Charles fired. The bullet skipped off the angled skull
of the Rex and ricocheted off toward the hill where it exploded a second later. The Rex glanced at the explosion and then back at where Charles and Lisa were hidden. As it stepped forward they both jumped up and Lisa shouted, “Plan A”, as they ran for the tree line the Rex had stepped out of to begin with.
The trees were fairly close together and slowed the Rex down just enough that they were able to stay ahead of it. Lisa shouted, “Jump”, and Charles blindly followed as they cleared a six-foot-wide ravine, but the Rex didn’t slow down and crossed it easily. “This time let’s jump down into it,” Lisa shouted.
“How deep is it?” Charles shouted back and then it was too late, he was already plunging down. Fortunately, the ravine was only eight feet deep and even better only four or five feet wide. As Charles followed Lisa, the Rex tracked them along the sides of the ravine but couldn’t step in after them or get his head close enough to snap at them.
Lisa jumped over a partial skeleton and as she glanced down at the bones she slowed and said, “Something’s wrong.”
Charles ran into her and started pushing her as he shouted, “Yes, I know, there’s a Rex after us.” She tried to say something else, but a loud roar made her realize the ravine was getting wider and it wasn’t as deep. Just ahead, the ravine suddenly split with part of it making a sharp turn to the left. Lisa followed and ducked under a barrier and as Charles followed, he looked up and almost stopped. Then he ducked under the barrier and looked back. Then he did stop.
“Lisa,” he shouted, “come back.”
“Are you kidding?” she shouted as she looked back at him. Then she followed his gaze to the left and right and stopped too. “It’s a…it’s a…”
“It’s a fence,” Charles finished for her. He looked down at his feet and continued, “And we’re standing on concrete.”
As she walked back to Charles, the Rex stopped on the other side of the fence and roared for a few seconds and then it turned away. “I don’t understand,” Lisa said. “Where did all of this come from?”