“Well, that’s easy…” Gem started to say.
“When you are sent back to that time, there’s no guarantee that you’ll remember anything. As you have experienced, each travel has different effects on your memory. Sometimes you remember everything, sometimes just a few things, and there are times you won’t remember at all.”
“Okay, I understand,” Gem agreed, taking a deep breath. “I’ll figure out a way to make myself not go, to remind myself that I should be somewhere else.”
“Remember, you can’t bring anything with you from here. And at that time, you were excited to be picked as the bride,” Serendina told her. “So you must find a way to convince your other self that she’s not supposed to be present at the dome.”
“Other self?” Gem repeated, greatly taken aback.
“Yes, your other self, Gemini,” Serendina emphasized. “Going back into your own past means that you will meet your other self at that time. It makes everything more complicated.”
Gem nodded, her heart pounding fast. “I see…” she whispered in deep thought. “So I guess that means I really need to recall everything before my other self gets to the dome. And that’s just the first step.”
“Unfortunately, yes.”
Gem remembered something else. “What about the watch I’m supposed to get rid of?”
“It doesn’t matter anymore,” Serendina said. “If you’re not chosen as the bride, you will be able to save Cliff’s life.”
Gem took a deep breath, knowing what she had to do and hoping and praying that it would all work out for the best.
*****
Gem woke up early while the entire building where she lived was still quiet. Stretching her arms wide, she yawned in front of the window. The sun was just rising over Mars.
The Big Announcement is today! she thought excitedly as she set out to get ready. She took extra time to make herself look uniquely beautiful. Her long brownish hair with combined orange strands cascaded down to her waist in soft, smooth waves. She had even painted a blend of blue and gold on her eyelids to match her tight-fitting jumpsuit. In the modern society she lived in, eye painting was common among girls who attended special events.
But to her irritation, she was developing a throbbing headache. She pressed her temples and tried to massage the pain away.
As she leaned on the bedroom door, she heard some scuffling outside. Then to her utmost shock, she heard a voice that sounded very much like hers. “This is going to be an amazing day! I can feel it. I’m going to get picked!” the voice said joyously. She heard footsteps, followed by the opening and closing of the front door.
Shit, someone else is inside my apartment! Gem thought in alarm.
She was about to open the door when something caught her attention. On her bedside table was a distinct watch with a blinking light. She looked at the weird numbers on the screen. She did not know why she had woken up wearing it, but perhaps it was a good luck charm from someone that had been given to her the previous night. She could not recall it being given, but she decided to wear it anyway.
Hurriedly, she went out to follow who it was that had been inside her apartment a while ago. There seemed to be nothing missing, though.
A wave of pain passed through her head. She closed her eyes for a while. And as soon as she did, an image of a wooden sculpture of herself came to mind. She opened her eyes immediately, feeling rattled. What was that? And who was that girl who’d been here? Why did she sound like me?
She wanted to believe it was all her imagination. Maybe the migraine had caused it. Perhaps she was coming down with something.
She forced herself to walk the length of the hallway to get to the entrance of her floor , despite feeling faint and anxious. Upon reaching the threshold, another image flashed in her head--- that of a good-looking man with a chiseled face, kind eyes, and dark hair. He was calling out to her.
I know him, she thought, even though she couldn’t seem to recall his name. He’s Terran! Where did I meet him? Why do I know him?
The questions seemed to be swirling around in her head as she threw the entrance door open. To her astonishment, her flying car was gone. Maybe that girl had really been a thief!
She had no choice but to take the elevator to the ground level and get on a flying bus headed to the dome. She was pressured for time, but more bothersome was the nagging feeling deep within her telling her that there was something she had to do and it was somehow connected to that female thief. On the way to the dome, she just kept brushing the feeling away, pushing her thoughts toward the announcement and what it would be like to become the Warrior King’s Queen.
In no time, she arrived at the venue. She had made it on time. Her mother was waiting for her at the entrance. “Are you alright, dear?” she asked with concern. “You look pale.”
For the first time in her life, she recognized the look in her mother’s eyes as one of love. That feeling of weakness which Terrans always succumb to. Why did it seem to affect her so much now?
“I’m okay, thank you,” Gem answered with a convincing smile.
They joined the crowd of women heading inside the enormous glass dome. There were also other spectators who simply came to witness the event which only happened once every decade.
All of a sudden, an old woman she recognized as her aunt grabbed her hand. “Gem! How’d you get down here again so fast? I was just talking to you in the bleachers!”
“What?” Gem asked, bewildered.
Her mother was also baffled. “What are you talking about, Mena? We’re just about to go up to the center.”
“No,” Aunt Mena insisted, shaking her head and looking confounded as well. “I was here early and I saw Gem about an hour ago. You even told me you were excited to get picked! And just now, I was talking to you!”
Gem’s migraine was returning full force. And this time, she felt like throwing up. “Uh, excuse me…” she murmured, leaving them and making her way toward the nearest comfort room.
As she splashed water on her face, she heard the program starting. She could hear music playing. She listened quietly, closing her eyes again and rubbing her temples. At that moment, she felt like she did not care anymore about becoming the next queen.
After several minutes, her headache finally subsided, but her heart seemed to be beating way too fast. What’s wrong with me? she asked herself in panic. As she made her way to the bleachers, searching the crowd for her mother, everybody was focused on the video being shown about the Warrior King. It included the recent projects that had been done by the reigning queen who was about to step down from the throne and be replaced by a new one.
Gem finally saw her mom sitting with her aunt and--- herself! Were her eyes playing tricks on her? At that moment, she found it quite difficult to breathe as she stared at the young woman who looked exactly like her but was wearing that gold dress she had actually been looking for earlier.
Suddenly, a flood of memories came back to her. With wide-eyed panic, she pushed through those seated to get to her other self quickly. She was making a bit of a commotion, but she didn’t care. She now knew what she had to do.
Her mom looked in her direction then. She did a double-take, before grabbing the daughter beside her and pointing. The two of them suddenly sprang out of their seats to meet her half-way.
It was a good thing the people in the area were too focused on the ongoing video, so they did not notice that there were actually two Gems!
Gem backtracked, dashing toward the steps leading away from the dome’s main area.
“Wait! Who are you?” she heard her mom shout once they were far from the crowd.
She did not turn around. Instead she kept on running toward the exit, hoping they would follow her outside.
“Who are you?” her own voice screamed. She could hear the fright and confusion in the voice.
When they were all outside the dome, she finally stopped and turned around to face them.
Her other self
gasped.
“Who are you?” her mom breathed with a scared expression on her face.
“I’m Gem from the future,” Gem answered with a serious face.
They both inhaled in alarm. “That can’t be…” the other Gem said.
“Time travel,” the future Gem explained briefly. “I came back for good reason. There’s a special person in my life, in your life… that we need to save. Please I need your help.”
The announcer had come on stage. They could hear him talking.
The other Gem looked back to the dome. “I-I have to go back in first… Let’s talk later…” she started to say.
The future Gem clutched her hand. “Please, I’m begging you… Don’t…”
Her other self hesitated and looked truly sorry. They seemed to feel some sort of connection in between them.
“Can Gemini please come up on stage now?” the announcer was saying. His voice boomed over the loud speakers which could be heard even outside the large dome.
“Please…” Gem pleaded, holding on to her other self tightly. “I promise you, you’re going to be much happier in the future if you listen to me. You will find love and it will make all the difference in your life. Believe me, I’ve been there.”
Suddenly, her other self broke free and ran back toward the entrance. Her mom, looking anxious, ran after her.
Gem’s heart constricted as an image of Cliff entered her mind. She sprinted after them.
A final announcement was being made by then, but she didn’t catch the words anymore as a strong gust of wind made her close her eyes and drop to the ground. The wind seemed to grow stronger, climbing higher and higher, enveloping her in a misty cloud.
Gem felt her limbs being stretched far and wide, her head seemingly growing bigger. She could not see anything. She could only feel the pain. She could only hear the screaming gale.
In a few seconds, everything went dark.
*****
The sound of the waves crashing onto the shore made Gem open her eyes. Where am I? she thought. She sat up on the fine cream-colored sand and looked at the vast sea in front of her.
Somehow she knew in her heart that she was on planet Earth. A strange feeling of comfort and relief came over her, though she could not yet comprehend it.
“There you are!” a male voice cried.
Gem looked up and saw a well-built young man with dark hair and brown eyes coming toward her. On his trail was a familiar dog who was barking happily and wagging its tail.
Her heart began to pound wildly, for reasons she did not understand. She stood up quickly, a questioning look on her face.
“I thought you’d left,” the man said with a worried expression on his face. He immediately embraced her, his muscular arms circling her shoulders.
The sudden closeness made her heart jump. Cliff. The name came to her out of nowhere.
“Cliff…” she whispered into his chest as he stroked her back and kissed her on the forehead.
She closed her eyes, savoring his warm, loving touch. And when she did, a startling myriad of memories engulfed her. She could remember--- the sculpture of herself that he had given her, the Moonrock Beach Festival, their lovemaking on the sand dunes, the way he smiled and made her feel special, her return to her past and…
Her eyes flew open then. She stepped back from him and glanced at her wrist. She was still wearing the time travel watch, which was dated 1131 in Martian year.
“Uh, Cliff? How long has it been since I got here?” she asked.
Cliff gave her a weird look. “About a month. Why?”
Gem was very much relieved to see him alive again. It was around this time that the Warrior King had come back to get her. Maybe, just maybe, I was successful in changing the past. Perhaps Mom was able to stop the old me, or a new bride had been picked before she got back to there. There won’t be any Warrior King coming after me because I was never the next bride.
“You know, Gem, you always talk about the planet Mars in your dreams,” Cliff said with concern. “Sometimes you talk about your mom too. I have this feeling you need to settle something somewhere. Every time you go missing, I’m gripped with fear that I’ll never see you again.”
Gem gave him a reassuring smile, taking both of his hands and squeezing them. “I think we’ve just been granted a new future,” she said with a huge smile on her beautiful face. “I will never, ever leave you, Cliff. We have a whole lot of years ahead to make new memories together.”
He smiled. “I’d like that.”
Then he leaned over and gave her a soft, sweet kiss on the lips. “I love you, Gem.”
“I love you too, Cliff,” Gem whispered. Then grabbing his hand and pulling him down, they sat on the sand side by side. She tilted her head to rest it on his shoulder, while his canine friend joyfully bounced around them.
“Now I’m ready to tell you everything,” she said. “Are you ready to listen?”
“Of course,” was Cliff’s immediate reply. He placed his hand around her waist and pulled her even closer to him.
“Once upon a time, in outer space, I lived in planet Mars…”
THE END
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