[Chronicles of Time 01.0] Chronicles of Time

by J. C. Allen

  Eventually, Abby remembered Rick’s leg and returned to treat his wound. While she was working on him, the girls explained the farm, streets, markets and many foods and wares for sale. They described how the people looked, how they acted, what they wore. Christy talked about Octavian and his guards for ten minutes, offering minute details. Alex told of the homeless children she tried to help, and Kaylie elaborated on their new friend, and how she recovered the crystal for them.

  Despite his injuries, Rick was delighted the girls had absorbed so many amazing lessons from their trip.

  “And we got one of the four crystals,” he reasoned to Abby, “It was well worth it. We just need three more—”

  “While a maniac tries to kill you!”

  “We didn’t expect him to be there.”

  “But he was, and you know he could be setting a trap for you three more times. I can’t worry like that!”

  “You only have to worry for one minute,” he teased.

  “That minute can be an eternity though! Girls! Please talk some sense into your father!”

  The girls all remained steadfastly silent in support.

  “You’re all mad! There’s no way I will let you go back!” she vowed. “You can’t walk now, and your arm won’t be healed for weeks, and you don’t even know where the other three are!”

  “I’ll be good to go in—”

  “Rick?” T’s voice interrupted.

  “Yes, T?” he rotated gingerly to face the time machine, as if it mattered.

  “I have another message now,” she informed him.

  All eyes turned to Rick as he tried to hide his dread, “Let’s have it…”

  An image of Bergamiser showed. “Oh, great,” Alex sighed.

  “Well, you’ve found one crystal, bet you think you’re smart. But there’s still three more, so that’s only a start. I’ll always be there, for the three you seek. And to make things worse, you have just one week!” Bergamiser’s eyes twisted with insanity as his evil laugh reverberated from the screen.

  Kaylie gasped, “No!” She was terrified, pointing at the machine and shaking her head in disbelief.

  Rick wanted to comfort her, but couldn’t manage to get up.

  “Come here, Kaylie, what is it?” he asked, but she remained in place, eyes transfixed on the screen.

  “T, play the last ten seconds of that again,” Kaylie instructed. Bignose appeared again. “Pause!” she yelled. Using her hand, she quickly zoomed out, moved the view around and zoomed back in. There, in mid-air, was an object he was tossing up and down in his right hand. She zoomed in further and told T to rotate the image.

  As realization dawned, Alex put her hand over her mouth to cover a scream, Christy actually howled, Rick simply lowered his head into his hands. Kaylie turned, looking at them all, eyes wide with fear.

  “What’s the deal?” Jessica asked, confused.

  “That’s the jewel we gave to Vespasia,” Kaylie cried.

  “We have to go back and help her!” Alex demanded.

  “No!” Rick said firmly. He was immediately assaulted with accusing eyes.

  “Well, I’m going to see what happened—” Abby started.

  “NO!” he yelled louder this time. “We can’t go back. Bignose is trying to bait us into another trip to waste our time. We only have a week, remember?” he explained very coolly, calmly, betraying his own fears only by the way his hand clutched his wounded leg.

  “But can’t we just see if she’s OK?” Kaylie pleaded.

  Rick held up a hand to stop her. She became enraged, crying, “You don’t even care about her! You’re as mean as Bignose! How could you? What if she’s dying? Or dead? You don’t even care!” She threw the tunic in his face and stomped off to the bathroom.

  “Nice going, Dad.” Alex’s words cut through him. Kaylie’s tirade had already sliced him to pieces. He held the tunic to his face for a moment, pressing it against his eyes to keep the tears from leaking out. He could smell the girl’s own tears on it; he could smell her on it. He could see her smiling face; saw her bouncing off down the street. It took all his strength to get to his feet and walk to the bathroom door and knock at the partially open door.

  “I’m using the bathroom!” Kaylie shot at him angrily.

  “No you’re not,” he said as he pushed the door open further. She whirled and slammed the door, catching him off balance and knocking him back a few steps.

  Rick winced in pain, but fought back to swing the door open again. Kaylie slumped down on the toilet seat, sniffling, crossing her arms over her chest.

  With anguish on his face, Rick knelt down in front of her. “Kay?”

  “Go away!”

  “Kay, we will go back for her. I swear on my aching leg…” that I shouldn’t be putting weight on right now…

  She looked up at him with wet, red eyes and restrained a slight giggle, “You should be sitting, or lying down.”

  “So you’re not mad at me?” he asked hopefully.

  “No, I’m just mad. I’m sorry. I’m not mad at you. I know you care — it’s just not fair. Not fair at all!”

  “No, no it’s not. But we will make it fair. Right now, we have billions of cute little girls to save, don’t we?”

  She shook her head yes.

  Rick worked his way to his feet, grinding the hurt away with his teeth, and held out his arms to pick her up.

  “No, I’ll help you,” she said. “You can’t carry me with that hurt leg, Rick.” She stood and took as much of his weight as she could, helping him back to the table.

  “OK. Let’s figure out what to do next now. All of us.”

  All sitting around the table, Rick asked, “OK, let’s make a plan, what do you all think? I’m fairly sure where the second crystal is, and we—”

  “No, you’re nuts! We are doing nothing tonight but go home. These girls have been up for over 24 hours and you’re in no condition to do anything!” Abby commanded, standing over him like an old-fashioned schoolteacher, ready to whack his knuckles if he didn’t obey.

  “Well,” he answered evenly, “that’s what we’re doing next, but we have to be thinking of what to do after bed. I’m not moving from here until I eat and rest a bit, so… I’m thinking steak, fries and a salad please, T. Then we’re discussing Salem, Massachusetts.”

  Anna picked up his meal for him.

  “Thanks, hon,” he smiled at her as he began awkwardly trying to cut his steak with one hand.

  Anna smiled and ordered her own meal and the others did the same.

  “So, what’s in Massachusetts?” Abby asked after the long silence.

  “Well, it certainly sounds like a reference to the Salem witch trials... but I don’t remember a whole lot about it, can’t even remember exactly when it happened.”

  “Late seventeenth century, like 1692, but that’s all I know.” Kaylie offered.

  “Yeah, that sounds about right. We’ll have to do some research. You got any books of that time?” Abby asked Rick.

  “Only a couple that mention it... how the colonies and government were formed and became the United States.”

  “OK, I’ll snoop through those while you search online, OK?”

  “Sounds good to me.”

  “What about us?” Alex asked, interrupting their exchange.

  “Yeah, don’t you remember how valuable we are?” Christy fluttered her eyelashes.

  “I think we’ve proven this is a bit too dangerous—” Rick tried.

  Jessica rolled her eyes, “Oh, please, didn’t you just get done telling us a fourteen-year-old girl recovered the first one?”

  “And you are certainly not in any condition to do anything but go to bed tonight,” Kaylie challenged.

  “OK, we’re going to have to discuss this tomorrow. I know four of you are going to bed as soon as we get home,” Abby determined.

  Alex leaned on her sleepily, “I like it when you call our house ‘home’. It sounds good, doesn’t it?”

&nbs
p; Abby looked at Rick.

  “I think you should tell them,” Rick said with a smile.

  “Tell them what?” Alex asked expectantly.

  “Well,” Abby gulped, “we — your father and I — decided—”

  “You’re finally moving in? You’re finally moving in!” Jessica leapt out of her seat and bounced around her, finally stopping long enough grab Abby in a huge hug.

  “Is it true?” Anna asked, holding onto her excitement until she was sure.

  “Yes! Yes!” Abby screamed and all the girls attacked her at once, nearly knocking her out of her seat, all bouncing and yelling.

  Rick just stabbed another piece of steak, dunked it in steak sauce and smiled at them as he stuck it in his mouth. He chewed it a while as they continued to celebrate. “You girls aren’t happy about this, are you?” he asked sarcastically.

  “Dad!” was the only reply, from Alex. He knew what it meant. They all finished eating.

  “How are we going to get out of here?” Abby asked Rick as they watched the girls’ fascination with the ‘bottomless pit’ — a round, foot-wide trash receptacle T provided for them. It was clear and extended a couple feet from the floor. The kids would put trash, dishes, food or anything else in it and watch it gradually disappear.

  Rick asked T how the device worked. She replied, “Just like the food replicator, Rick.”

  Rick asked, “You mean the opposite?”

  “No, Rick, it simply changes the molecular state of the objects you place into it to air. The replicator changes the molecular state of air to objects. Same process.”

  “Wow, OK. That makes sense.”

  That launched a barrage of questions that made Rick forget Abby’s original inquiry.

  “Where do you get your power, T?” Alex asked.

  “I get power from a thermal transducer tube implanted deep into the ground, Alex.”

  Christy, the little scientist, perked up, “How does that work?”

  “It takes heat from a warmer layer of Earth and transforms it into energy as it rises through the tube, then is replaced by cooler air which falls through the tube to the bottom and is heated again, Christy.”

  “Wow, how much power does that produce?”

  “This particular unit is capable of producing 125 megawatts per hour, Christy.”

  “How were the tunnels dug, T?” Abby asked curiously.

  “They were not dug, Abby, they were created using a tool from the 2lst millennium called a force repulsor,” T explained.

  “How does that work?” little Einstein questioned.

  “It uses a force field to repel the earth in whatever direction desired, Christy, compressing the stone and dirt into a composite stronger than steel, and which never corrodes.”

  “Whoa!” Rick commented.

  “That’s neat!” Alex added.

  “What about the natural cave? I have a hard time believing it formed in a spiral without some help,” Abby asked further.

  “A well-founded suspicion, Abby; that cave was also created with a repulsor. They can be programmed to create any shape.”

  “Why would they make it look natural, and put supports in it?”

  “You’d have to ask them that, Abby, I can only speculate.”

  “T,” a serious Kaylie started, “is Vespasia still alive?”

  Before Rick could stop her, T answered, “That is a relative question, Kaylie. She certainly isn’t alive this day, but I need a specific date to answer that to your satisfaction.”

  “No! Do not even try to ask again, Kaylie; we are better off assuming she’s OK,” Rick instructed.

  “Can’t we just—”

  “No!”

  “Kaylie, let’s get back to the most important problems now — like how are we getting out of here?” Abby intruded.

  “The same way we originally planned. I’ll swim out first and pull anyone out who can’t make it on their own. I think everyone should easily be able use the rope to get back, as long as they don’t panic,” Rick said as he stared pointedly at Anna.

  “I can do it! No problem at all. I just got scared coming down because I didn’t know the way. Really!” she defended herself.

  “Will you be able to make it, Daddy?” A concerned Jessica asked.

  “Of course, honey, swimming will be much easier than walking, I’m sure. The rope will make it simple too. You girls go get ready so you can take the clothes—”

  “Why don’t I take them, Dad? You know I’m almost as strong a swimmer as you,” Alex offered helpfully.

  Rick nodded his approval.

  “I’ll go change while you seal up all the stuff,” he said as he realized he was still wearing a leather tunic and was rather uncomfortable in it.

  Rick limped out of the bathroom and saw all six pairs of eyes impatiently waiting for him. “Sorry, it wasn’t easy getting that thing off inside that small box with one arm,” he said, slightly embarrassed. “Here, Alex, can you hang this in a locker for me?”

  Anna was closer and grabbed it. “I will,” she said.

  “Thanks.”

  Christy and Jessica were already playing in the water, running down the ramp as fast as they could until the weight of the water tripped them, and then they ran back out and repeated. “Daddy, when are you gonna get that other hide-a-bed for my room so Christy can sleep in there with me?” Jessica asked.

  “I have one, Jess. When I move my stuff down here, it’s yours,” Abby told her.

  “Why don’t you just take all the clothes off of your bed so she can sleep there, Pigpen? Then you’d have room for three more people!” Anna teased.

  Rick agreed. “That sounds like a good thing for you to do when we get home,” he told Jessica.

  She splashed him, “I thought we had more important things to do right now?” she whined.

  “You’re lucky I’m injured or I’d dunk you mercilessly, brat,” he warned as he waded into the water.

  Christy got above him on the ramp and jumped onto his back. “How are you going to pull us out if your arm hurts, Rick?”

  Rick calmly lowered himself into the water until he submerged them both. He patiently sat on the bottom until she was forced to come up for air. He then surfaced, “I’m fine. I’d break both my arms to save one of you, don’t you worry a bit about that. But, let’s see who can make it back out with no help at all, OK?”

  “Ooh! I can make it!”

  “I can!”

  “Me too!”

  They all volunteered to go first.

  “Right. We’ll see. Just remember I’ll be able see you once you turn the corner, and Abby can see you until then. If you can’t make it, just signal one of us and hold onto the rope and I’ll pull you out or Abby will pull you back.”

  Alex interrupted, “You should leave me back here instead, Dad. I’m the best swimmer and I’m trained in lifesaving.”

  “I was thinking of Abby since she’s an adult, but I think you’re right — you’d be a better choice. Thanks for the suggestion.”

  Abby seemed relieved, feeling clueless about how to save someone in water.

  “OK, if that’s all…”

  Everyone gave a thumbs up.

  He took a deep breath and submerged, pulling the rope until he was on the other side, anchored at the opening.

  One by one, they all popped to the surface, with Alex bringing up the rear, pulling the bag behind her. Rick was relieved they all made it under their own power and didn’t require any assistance. His energy was fading quickly and he wasn’t sure how much longer he would last.

  They quickly dried off and dressed. It was definitely cooler in the grotto and Rick was starting to shiver uncontrollably.

  The trip back to the van took four times as long, nearly ninety minutes, because they had to stop several times for Rick to rest. The girls and Abby took turns supporting him. When they finally arrived at the van, Rick sprawled across the back seat while the girls loaded everything. Abby drove them home.


  “Help me downstairs,” Rick ordered when they arrived. “Move the coffee table and unfold the hide-a-bed. Bring down some sheets, pillows, and blankets—“

  “We’ll take care of it all,” Anna said, volunteering her cousin, Jessica. “The rest of you are probably tired…”

  “That’s sweet of you’ Abby praised.

  “Speak for yourself!” Jessica complained.

  Anna grabbed her by the arm and dragged her into the house as Abby and Alex aided Rick.

  “Just take me to the computer, please.”

  “You really need to go to bed, Rick, you’re exhausted—”

  “Please,” he pleaded.

  She thought a moment, but ultimately gave in and helped him to his chair.

  “You know you can do this tomorrow,” she still insisted.

  “I won’t be able to sleep right now, Abby. Really, I’m OK. The ride home gave me a chance to rest and recover some strength.”

  Anna and Jessica were beginning to prepare the bed; each had an armload of linens. Kaylie, Christy and Alex came down, like zombies, to say goodnight.

  “Night, Dad,” Alex said sleepily, as she gave a hug and a quick kiss.

  Christy and Kaylie did the same.

  “Good night? It’s only 8:30!” he teased. They each looked at him as if he were growing bunny rabbit ears.

  “Seriously though, girls, you all smell like sweaty street bums, you need to take a shower—”

  They groaned in unison.

  “Sorry girls, you still have school tomorrow…”

  The trio trudged upstairs to the showers.

  “Oh, and girls?”

  Alex turned as the other two staggered on.

  He smiled, “Sorry. You have to get Jess and Anna up tomorrow, too. I won’t be able to.”

  Alex nodded assent, too tired to speak.

  “Thank you, Alex. Don’t fall asleep in the shower, OK?”

  Anna and Jessica were laying on the pull-out bed twenty minutes later, watching a movie, when Abby came down the stairs. “I put everything away, where are the other girls?”

  “Thanks so much. I sent them to the showers.”

  She wandered back over to Rick’s bookshelves and studied them a moment, Rick pointed out the two books he believed she wanted and she plucked them from the shelf and strolled back over.