30th Century: Escape (30th Century Trilogy Book 1)

by Mark Kingston Levin

  They took a shower together after, tenderly washing each other’s bodies. Jennifer’s legs shook with exertion and she felt sore all over but the orgasm was worth it. Marty left for home and Jennifer snuggled up to the pillow he’d lain on.

  The next night Marty came to pick her up. He was carrying flower leis for Jules and Eeva to welcome them.

  Jennifer smelled one of the leis. “Beautiful.”

  Marty stroked her cheek with another lei.

  She shivered. “I think I might be falling in love with you.”

  “I admire you and the sex is fantastic, but I’m not sure.” Marty softened the bluntness of the statement with a gentle caress of her hair and neck. “Anyone who has a relationship with me has a relationship with my children, so I have to be careful.”

  “I understand that,” Jennifer felt his words like a knife through her thigh. She was silent as she thought of how to change things with him. He was one of the only people she knew in Hawaii; the thought of him abandoning her an making her way through school alone frightened her.

  They arrived at the airport and waited for Jules and Eeva. Jennifer waved when she saw Jules and he ran over to greet her with Eeva following.

  “Aloha Jennifer!” Jules exclaimed.

  Jennifer hugged him like she used to her father, then she hugged Eeva.

  “Aloha, Eeva!” Jennifer placed a lei on Eeva and then on Jules.

  “Aloha!” Eeva responded. “It is wonderful to see you here, but we did not expect you to meet our flight.”

  “I wanted to surprise you. Eeva and Jules, I want you to meet my boyfriend, Professor Marty Zitonick.”

  “Pleased to meet you, Jules, Eeva,” Marty shook their hands.

  “So you’re a professor?” Jules asked. “About how much do you make?”

  Eeva elbowed him. “Forgive him, he thinks of Jennifer as a daughter and wants to make sure she’s taken care of.”

  Marty shook his head. “I understand—I have daughters of my own.”

  What does that matter? Jennifer thought. Daughter versus son? If I understood how financial transactions worked in this century and Jules would allow it, I’d be fine taking care of the money myself. I’d imagine I have more funds than Marty at this moment.

  Marty dropped off Jules and Eeva at their hotel then drove to where Erita was performing at the Hilton Hawaiian Village. Jennifer and Marty had drinks while they waited for Jules and Eeva to join them. They arrived just before Erita took the stage.

  Erita performed beautifully, wowing the crowd with Tahitian love songs.

  The crowd gave her a standing ovation as she finished with two emotional Hawaiian ballads. Erita bowed and left the stage, walking to join her parents at their table. She hugged Jules and Eeva, wiping tears from Eeva’s face.

  “That was wonderful,” Eeva said.

  “Thanks maman,” Erita said.

  Jules and Eeva claimed jetlag but said they would meet Erita for breakfast. They left her with Marty and Jennifer.

  “Would you like to see my condo?” Jennifer asked. “We can have a drink before you bed down for the night.”

  “Yes, that sounds like fun.”

  * * *

  They walked to Jennifer’s condo, where Jennifer showed Erita the ocean views.

  “This is a fantastic place,” Erita said.

  Jennifer started to make coffee while Erita and Marty spoke.

  “Can you tell me about your family?” Marty asked.

  Erita answered, “My father is French and my mother Tahitian, my husband Ian is a New Zealander. He owns a shop in Papeete called the Black Pearl. His father works for Air New Zealand as a tour guide manager. We have two children: Michelle is eight years old and Michael is six years old. What about you?”

  “My parents are both American for several generations, originally from Poland and Lithuania. I am divorced and have five children. Two girls and three boys. Amanda is the oldest but they are all under fifteen.”

  “What happened to your marriage?” Erita asked.

  Jennifer listened closely. She was not so bold as to ask him about this outright but she wanted to know as well. To her surprise, Marty showed no hesitation in revealing such personal details.

  “I guess we drifted apart when I was in the U.S. Coast Guard as a pilot. She started to change. We were married for fifteen years and when I went back to graduate school to get my PhD on the GI bill, she started to sell real estate and did very well. She decided she didn’t need me and wanted to separate, which ended up in a no-fault divorce.”

  Marty accepted the mug of coffee Jennifer handed him.

  “That’s sad that you divorced, but now you’ve found Jennifer.”

  Marty smiled. “Best thing I ever caught in the sea.”

  Jennifer’s cheeks warmed.

  Erita laughed. “Well I must go. I need rest to perform tomorrow night. Thank you for picking up my parents.”

  “No problem,” Marty said.

  Jennifer looked at Marty after Erita left. “I am happy you are not married now.”

  Marty laughed. “Me too!”

  Jennifer put her arms around him and hugged him tightly. They went to bed that night wrapped in each other’s arms.

  CHAPTER 20

  Dark Energy Project

  Early Sunday afternoon Jennifer began preparing her notes for her paper about dark energy. She was pleased with the depth and scope of the work. She finished her proposal and submitted it to Professor White.

  She dreamed about Alice, about touching her and caressing her. She thought of Alice’s breasts compared to hers. She woke up frustrated and aroused. Did these dreams mean she wanted Alice more than Marty? No, she wanted both but she wanted Marty more. She’d had many threesomes in her younger days. But she did not know how to discuss this with Marty. Would he be angry if she told him about them? She sighed and went back to sleep.

  The next morning, Jennifer hit the snooze button, groaning. She’d worked so hard on the proposal the night before and wanted nothing more than to snuggle in her bed. She decided to order a cab because she’d gotten up so late.

  While waiting downstairs, she saw Eeva was also waiting for a cab.

  “Eeva! Where are you going?”

  “I am headed to the university to meet Jules. He attended an early breakfast at the East West Center.”

  The two women hugged in greeting as Jennifer came near.

  “Come share the cab with me,” Jennifer said. “I got up late so we can go together.”

  Eeva got into the cab next to Jennifer. “Jules wants to buy you a car before we leave. He doesn’t like that you bike so much. He thinks it’s dangerous.”

  “I’m perfectly fine! Though a car would be convenient.” Jennifer had thought more about having a car since Lacy mentioned it, thinking of the additional places on the island she could reach that way.

  “What kind of car would you prefer?” Eeva asked.

  “I like Jeep and the Chevy Suburban, as they can carry lots of kids,” Jennifer said.

  “Are you planning a family soon?” Eeva asked.

  “No, but Marty has five kids,” Jennifer said. “Although, thinking about it now…he already has a car and the expense might be put to better use on the computer modeling I’m proposing. I’m very excited about it and would rather put any funding there.”

  There was a long pause as Eeva thought about it. “I think that can be arranged,” she said. “Marty wants us to tour the university to help promote University of Hawaii to students wanting to study Marine Science in French Polynesia. U of Hawaii will open a local research lab in Tahiti soon.”

  “Marty did not tell me about that yet.”

  “I think Jules just received approval from Papeete today,” Eeva said. “But the university has requested this agreement for several years and has been waiting for an answer.”

  They reached their destination and paid the driver. Jennifer walked along with Eeva, talking about their plans. Anxiety gripped her as she
wondered if Marty would leave Hawaii permanently. No! Marty would not leave his children; thank goodness for those kids.

  Plus, starting up a branch of the University of Hawaii is big-time administration duty. Marty is committed to experimental marine science. Suddenly Jennifer felt she didn’t know Marty. Was he trying to make a bigger salary or help the Tahitian people? Maybe I’m not the only one playing a part and playing with the human heart. If he were serious about marrying me he would not need more money. In this century, some people define their ego with their net worth. How sad if Marty feels that way.

  “Jules and I will return next Monday,” Eeva said.

  “I want to spend more time with you and Jules this week. You are my only contact with my parents and I have many questions.”

  “How about you and Marty having dinner tonight with Erita and us?”

  “Yes, that sounds good! What time?”

  “Around five at Sarento’s,” Eeva said. “Jules and I will see you and Marty later!”

  Jennifer had a meeting later that morning with Professor White about her homework paper and her project proposal entitled Dark Energy. Jennifer was interested in seeing how this field of study would take her. It was so far away from her anthropological interests but finally understanding Zexton’s passion excited her. She outlined her ideas in both words and in math on the white board. Professor White expressed puzzlement at how she arrived at some of her conclusions, and advised her to consider proper derivation before anyone would accept her math in committee. Jennifer cursed her mental blocks on this level of physics that prevented her from knowing how to do that. She hadn’t taken the higher math courses that most physical scientists had. She could verbalize what she knew but showing someone step-by-step using mathematical formulae from today’s known equations to ones she remembered from Zexton’s work would be like explaining a battery to a caveman.

  After the meeting, she met with Marty and Jules for coffee at the University Faculty Club.

  Marty kissed her hello and after she sat he asked, “I read your paper three times and still can’t understand it. Can you explain it to us in layman’s terms? I haven’t had relativity or quantum mechanics.”

  “Oh, me either,” Jules said. “Please help us understand.”

  “I will try.” Jennifer worried her knowledge of physics might turn Marty off, but if so he was not the one for her. I must find out now. “Do you understand what powers the sun?”

  Marty nodded. “It’s my understanding that most stars including our sun are powered by nuclear fusion. Primarily hydrogen is squeezed to form helium.”

  “I can follow that. Please continue,” Jules said.

  Jennifer held up one hand. “That is the overall reaction, but many other reactions or steps take place. We do not have much evidence about what happens in a black hole, so we have to use our imagination to come up with many hypotheses and then test them out based on what we do know.”

  Marty shook his head. “There is too much math and references I can’t follow. What are you trying to explain in your paper?”

  “To explain nuclear fusion one first must assume that the major components of the atoms of hydrogen, deuterium and tritium, helium-three and helium-four are understood. I am trying to explain the components of strings and the components of photons. Have you heard of string theory?”

  “Yes, I saw it on Nova,” Marty answered with a big smile. “The guy explained there is one fundamental particle called string and the way the string vibrates changes it properties.”

  “I saw that program three times and finally started to understand it,” Jules added.

  “I am trying to go one step further into the fundamentals of matter. First, we named atoms as the fundamental particle; next, Rutherford discovered the nucleus and we had neutrons, protons and electrons as the fundamental particles. The big accelerators discovered that protons were made of quarks and many other particles. Now string theory has become popular even though it cannot be tested in any observation or experiment yet.”

  She held up her fingers and gestured to demonstrate. “The simplest string is a circle, such as a photon. If you change the frequency, you change the wavelength of the electromagnetic radiation; however, in my theory, the photon comprises at least three major components. Two are linear and spin in opposite directions while the third does not spin; however, it is used to connect the other two to form an imperfect loop that vibrates to make photons.”

  Marty tipped back in his chair. “How does that relate to the transformation of energy to space?”

  “If in the center of the black hole the density of photons reaches a certain level the photons break apart and reform into their components. If we assume these components form some sort of equilibrium with the photons and the other components of photons, then there is an opportunity for the components to combine in various ways. If an unknown number of connector elements with no mass or momentum combine to form into quantum foam, space is created.”

  Marty appeared to be chewing on this explanation. Jennifer gritted her teeth, hoping she was not talking over his head. If she was, would his attraction to her die?

  “What do the other components make?” Jules asked.

  “I am not sure but I suspect these other two components have opposing temporal fields in the opposite direction of time, then as they combine, time slows down to near zero in a black hole. It may be just gravity warping space-time or the process may be more complex and understanding these processes will eventually lead to greater science and technology such as time travel.” Jennifer took in their incredulous expressions. “Maybe.”

  “That sounds like science fiction!” Jules laughed.

  She returned a tight smile, knowing it to be fact. “Yes, it is so way out I will not even suggest this, as they would label me crazy.”

  “What is space-time?” Marty asked.

  So, he was listening, and appeared interested. She sat up straighter and took a sip of her coffee. “Space-time is made up of a fundamental unit of quantum foam that connects to other units to produce the fabric of space-time. If the space is manufactured inside a black hole and then escapes from the intense gravity because it has zero momentum or it gets pushed out by more space forming, all this new space will eventually cause the universe to expand at an accelerating rate because there is a new black hole formed every second. Eventually the universe will be full of black holes and there will be no stars. One key feature of space-time is that time can travel at slower speeds in high gravity versus low gravity. Einstein worked that out many years ago. Black holes were a prediction but no evidence was yet available.”

  “Okay, I can follow the basic idea,” Marty said. “But what is dark energy?”

  She shrugged. “No one knows and I am just exploring a few hypotheses.”

  “How do you know about these components of the photon?” Jules asked.

  “I applied certain quantum mechanical wave equations, including the Dirac equation, to the back hole and out popped some strange function I interpreted as space. Then trying to imagine how they might be formed, I will put forth several hypotheses and test them to see what fits the data using computer modeling techniques. The photon components are a leading hypothesis at the moment. One apparent problem, hard to explain without them, is why time stands still inside the back hole and slows down more as we approach it.”

  Jules said, “In your paper, you said dark energy is seventy percent of the universe but you just said you don’t know what it is. How do you know that dark energy is seventy percent of the universe?”

  This part wasn’t her own work, so she was more confident they would accept it. “By definition, dark energy is the energy needed to cause the universe to expand at an accelerating rate. If mass can be converted to energy by E=mc2, then energy can be converted to mass—the result is the energy to cause this expansion is seventy percent of total mass. Dark matter is twenty-five percent, which leaves only five percent for the matter we see or can measure in
directly such as stars, black holes, planets, life, and gases.”

  “How do we know the universe is accelerating?” Marty asked.

  “Edwin Hubble and the space telescope bearing his name have given us this information. The discovery by Hubble, Saul Perlmutter, and others that the universe was expanding means that in the distant past, the universe was much smaller, hotter and denser. This led to the Big Bang Theory. I am not making this up.”

  Jules asked, “What evidence supports the theory?”

  “According to current theory, just after the Big Bang our universe was at such a high temperature that electrons could not form from quarks but as the quark soup cooled, electrons and protons formed for the first time including heavy hydrogen nuclei. The cosmic microwave background photons easily scattered off electrons. The accuracy of the shape of the frequency curve and the fact that no alternative theory predicts this energy spectrum is important evidence supporting the Big Bang Theory.”

  “Why do you need money to explore dark energy?” Jules asked.

  “I am proposing to try to model the universe on the computer including black holes as a way to simulate and thus test these hypotheses, since we cannot do experiments on the universe or travel inside a black hole. Computer time costs money.”

  “Can you make any simple calculations?” Marty asked.

  “Yes, I made an estimate for the number of black holes in this galaxy. Multiply by the number of galaxies. See if that correlates with the universe expansion and at what rate black holes might convert electromagnetic radiation into space. Then model the universe at different rates to see what are the boundaries for this hypothesis and if it is feasible.”

  Marty nodded and shifted in his chair, leaning his forearms on the table. He put on his “professor” voice. “How do you apply the scientific method to this problem?”

  “First I define the problem: What is causing the universe to expand and why does this expansion accelerate?”

  “Can you explain the next steps?”

  “Dark energy may be the largest mystery in the universe and most certainly is the biggest mystery in physics today. My goal is to shed light on this expansion force by finding an explanation for this force.