The Time Stone

by Jeffrey Estrella

  “Madam Princess. We will take the loud one to the dungeon where he will be dealt with most harshly.” Said the large shaped man.

  “I don’t think so” he broke free but was quickly grabbed again by the guards tight iron clad grip.

  “Wait” said Princess Celia looking at James and seeing something in him, something she felt that she was missing in herself, something in his eye glistened inside of her and made her realize they shared a common destiny, even if now just strangers. “Bring him to my chambers.”

  “Madam princess” said her handmaiden shocked. “It is said” said the princess.

  “And the other, your highness?” Asked the large shaped man.

  “The dungeon for now.”

  “Wait a minute. James?” Screamed Mercedes as she was hauled away.

  “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of everything” he dismissed her as he gazed into the eyes of Princess Celia and felt a strong vibrant connection he lacked and yearned for. He felt what he had always been searching for was right there now before him and she felt the same, an instant sense of gratification beyond universal perfection and harmony borne by the instant attraction of togetherness and love. For James, he recognized her image and knew she sent the message of love he observed in the future. He walked towards her escorted by the large shaped man and taken by him to the princess’ chambers. She shortly followed with a curious glare.

  “Unbind him Cornelius and leave us be.” She said and Cornelius complied leaving them alone face to face in her chambers. The décor over a mantel were of silver, candelabra, candlesticks, statues, as paintings, portraits, and tapestries hung from the walls. There was a rug of multiple colors under their feet. “You have a crimson smile” she said.

  “You have the most beautiful eyes I have ever seen” he replied. She smiled. They were mesmerized by each other.

  “Where did you come from? Really?” She asked.

  “The future” he replied. The year 2012 A.D. We found a device called the time stone that can take us anywhere. We visited a whole bunch of places already.”

  “Uncanny. Is this really true? Where is this time stone?” Princess Celia said.

  “Your guards took it. I need it back to get home. It is very true. You’re the first person I told this to. I feel I can trust you. I don’t understand why.” He spoke as if in a trance.

  “Hmm… I feel I can trust you too. It is peculiar as we hardly know one another.” Princess Celia said.

  “I know you” James said.

  “You say you recognized me from the future?” Princess Celia questioned.

  “Yes… you were a hologram… sort of a machine that helped us at one point.” James said.

  “It is funny you mention this. I was born and raised in the future too, in the year 2012 as well. I was ten years old when something happened. I don’t remember much. There was a fight, a large bird lady creature; it’s all a blur….” Princess Celia confided in him.

  “Oh my God, you were that little girl” James looked at her wide-eyed thinking back to the first battle with the guardians in Chronix Bay in 2012 and a little girl got too close to the open vortex and fell in before it closed. “That was you.”

  “And now you are here with me?” She replied questioning.

  “It’s like some type of cosmic resonance or vibrations coming full circle. Maybe, destiny, fate, dimensions as one.”

  “Yes but why here and now. I was raised here as Princess Celia. I have no real memory of my life in 2012.”

  “You could come back with us.” James pleaded.

  “This is the only life I have ever known.” Princess Celia said.

  “It is weird. Something’s are strange. Einstein himself said the greatest things we can observe in life are the mysterious.”

  “I really don’t understand.”

  “That’s alright. I am not sure I completely understand” he laughed and she laughed with him slightly.

  “You enjoy humor” Princess Celia said.

  “Well I grew up on the three stooges” James said.

  “Who are these stooges?”

  “Well, their funnymen. You would like them.”

  “I do like you…tell me, what else have you seen in your travels?” She asked.

  “A lot, beasts from other dimensions, powers and technological stuff…weapons beyond imagination right now, let me tell you,” James bragged.

  “Really? My kingdom could use some of that weaponry. We are facing a terrible crisis.” Princess Celia frowned.

  “What’s that?” He asked.

  “There have been threats and attacks against my people, my armies by a rival kingdom to the north, the Nefarious King Rogan. They strike without mercy and are relentless.”

  “I can help you. I am… the holder of stones” he said proudly with his hands on his hips.

  “The what?”

  “Let me show you” he said as he waved his right hand and a silver candlestick hovered towards him and he caught it.

  “You are a warlock” she screamed nearly running to the door but stopping.

  “No, just a power I picked up. I can use it on affecting anything but living things.”

  “How can it be used to help against those attacking my kingdom?”

  “Many ways” he looked out a window and saw several knights approaching stamping on the ground with great noise and ho-hum chatter, their uniformed armor slightly different from those of Celia’s court, as these were more dark red stained like blood with black etching. “Are those the rivals who are causing the ruckus?” He asked.

  “Yes, that is them… I will summon Cornelius to get the royal guard.” She yelled.

  “No, wait” He beckoned.

  “But …” she started but he held his right hand to her shoulder to calm her and with his remaining hand he swung and waved it out towards the window. The armor of each of the knights flung back with them in one fell swoop sending them far back for miles beyond sight. “That takes care of them” said James clasping his hands and wiping them.

  “I thought it didn’t work on living things.”

  “It worked on the armor or clothing they wore.”

  “Ah” she embraced him and planted a kiss on his check.

  “Well, you’re welcome little lady” he smirked with his John Wayne impression. “I don’t think they will be bothering you anymore.”

  Miles away in the kingdom of King Rogan, an old man with a heavy gold crown adorned in jewels sat in his throne room surrounded by advisors equally aged in a dark dreary castle covered with vines as fourteen red and black etched knights enter limping with several chinks in their armor and visible signs of injury.

  “What happened?” Said one advisor.

  “We tried to attack the Roy Tan again. They are protected by a warlock or witch now, Sire. We cannot return.”

  “It is best left for another time.” The old king said.

  “I want to thank you for all you have done” said Celia. She let her hair down; her fiery golden locks curled and wiggling down her back.

  “It was nothing” said James sitting on her bed.

  “I am in your debt.” They looked into one another’s eyes and smiled. “Will you join me and my family for dinner?” She asked. James nodded.

  The dinner table in the banquet hall was dressed well and elegant, chimes of gold and drapes of red velvet and orange decorated the hall, as candelabra served each corner. The long table was covered with purple linen and topped with trays of various dishes, meats, cheeses, wines, fruits, and bread. James walked in thinking he had died and gone to heaven. He sat next to Celia and was casually introduced to the dinner party as they entered. Her uncle Arch Duke Drolag Kinlyn, her younger twin siblings, and her various aunts, nieces, nephews, uncles, nobles, and duchesses from the nearby neighboring provinces. They were revered by the mysterious stranger whom Celia spoke very highly of in his efforts to help them. He tried to keep talk of his origins to a minimum but spoke of his vision and his ideal
s but also of the hardships surrounding his life.

  James spoke: “I always wanted to help people but never really had the chance.”

  “Helping those in need helps us become more in tuned with ourselves and see the light for what it really is… God’s peace.” Archduke Kinlyn spoke philosophically and advised on principles of deontology and destiny. James did not understand much but he noticed one phrase seemed to ring in his head: “The light never dies; only our perception of it does. When we lose sight of that one simple truth in our lives we lose sight of who we are meant to be.” The dinner ended well and everyone parted to their quarters. Celia escorted James back to her room and closed the door. They sat on the bed in her room together and they looked into one another’s eyes as if impatiently awaiting a climatic defining moment in their short but sudden relationship, remaining fixated on one another as they both recognized that they were fated to come across one another like ripples across the grand chasm of space and time. Without another delay, James took Celia in his arms and embracing her, kissed her on the lips and focused himself onto her. She pulled away and unhooked her garter and dress and dropped them to the floor revealing her full body. James’s jaw dropped as she approached him and crawled beside him.

  “Princess… I think I love you!” They embraced.

  Time Period; 2042 A.D., Chronix Bay

  “Who are you people? Where are you taking me?” Said Reman.

  “I’m surprised you don’t recognize me” said Tina, “after all we’ve been through.”

  “Uh, I think not” said Drax “to him twenty-eight years have passed.”

  “What in the devil are you talking about?” Said Reman as he crossed his arms.

  “I’m Tina… Tina Prescott. This is my sidekick, Milton.”

  “Huh?” Humored Drax.

  “Tina Prescott? But that can’t be.”

  “But it is.” She added.

  “This is some kind of trick.”

  “No trick, I know you cheated on me with Bella Randolph. You were a bad egg then but I saw hope in you. We got busted sneaking into old man Harding’s house on Eldon’s Street. What else? Oh, you got a big mole on your left butt cheek, you’re middle name is Edenton, and you got a tattoo of the Olympic torch near your … you know.”

  “OK, it’s you …but how?”

  “How do I look so young? Cause we’re from the past.” She looked down at him with her arms crossed.

  “Tina?!” Scolded Drax.

  “He has a right to know. We travel through time … that’s our new shtick. Now you tell us how come we’re on the run from the cops here too. Seems like after twenty eight years you haven’t changed.”

  “You got it wrong.” He said.

  “Oh then maybe we should just go back” she uttered vindictively. “You know, turn ourselves in and all.”

  “No, please. We must not. I will explain everything but first take me to the old warehouse on Elm and Forest. It’s a secret but once there, I promise I will explain everything.”

  “OK” said Drax beckoning to Tina to sit and she did with a grunt and grim look on her face. They rode for blocks before arriving at what Reman pointed out to be the apparent destination.

  “Right there.” He said as he then got out of the car. Sirens wailed in the background.

  “We have to hurry” said Reman. Drax and Tina followed him into an old warehouse that looked like it had been thoroughly vacant for ages. The cobwebs on the interior were well kept and fresh while some were aged and dust mold was growing on top of dust mold. “Be quiet” he whispered to them as they passed through the large door that he slowly closed behind them. “It is very important that they, meaning the police, do not find us here.” He led them across the room and to a set of old machinery. Tina felt she was in a horror movie as the darkness and damp and dust of the room was enough to send shivers down her spine. She yawns. “Quiet” said Reman as he walked over to an old mantle and pressed a hidden lever and button in one of the bricks on the wall with his finger above it causing the entire mantle to turn with the trio on it until they were facing a passageway on the other side.

  “A secret door” said Drax.

  “Yes, we had come across this place ages ago as the perfect hiding spot for our operation.”

  “What operation is that?” Asked Tina.

  “You will see.” He replied. They made their way down the narrow shaft for half a yard before approaching an opening several feet down with well-lit lamps and furnaces, machines running, and people walking around looking up in shock at the new comers. “This is home for me now… much better than anything on the surface but occasionally I have to venture up for supplies and risk not being caught.”

  “You’re wanted… for what exactly?” Asked Drax.

  “Everything. It seems just being human is illegal these days.” They climbed down a ladder led by Reman and saw lab equipment set up with workers all around, scientists, farmers, artisans, pirates, and engineers all working on various projects. “So Tina did you ever marry?” Asked Reman randomly and casually with grace and sincerity.

  “No, you know the whole wife routine is not for me. What about you?”

  “I was but she was lost during the great conflict.”

  “Oh, sorry”

  “Well it was some time ago, not for you being from the past and all, I think.” He walked ahead.

  “Dear God, Tina” said Drax pointing to a symbol they recognized from the past and future, the swirling orbs that signified the Culto de Piedra Tiempo.

  “Oh boy” she said as they saw the symbol on everything from uniforms, lab coats, and books to equipment and weaponry in the form of laser rifles on the walls. “Do you think this could be the beginning of the rebellion we helped in the future?” Asked Tina.

  “It is a good shot and the extension of the warriors we battled in the past times” they whispered to one another “but I don’t think we should tell them too much about our travels or we risk altering things beyond measure from now.”

  “Right” she replied. “Reman, are there any other symbols like this? It could be important.”

  “All over the place. It’s the norm in this place.” Reman shrugged with a curious grin. “Uh, let me introduce you to our lead geneticist, physicist, chemist, and research experimentalist Howard Kowolski.” Said Reman leading them to a small corner of the lab where a slightly plump young man in his earlier thirties sits reading a book while simultaneously examining a series of test tubes and lab tubes. “Hello Dr. Kowalski” said Reman.

  “Oh hello yourself and these fine strangers are here too” he nodded.

  “Unbelievable” said Tina. “We met before.”

  “We did?” Said Kowolski. I don’t remember.”

  “Yeah, last time we met I was saying the same thing… long story.”

  “They’re from the past” whispered Reman.

  “Ah” gestured Kowolski grimacing.

  “Try not to broadcast it too much huh?” Asked Drax.

  “OK…I’ll be back then you can join us for a meal.” Reman walks away.

  “We were separated from our friends during the last ‘jump’ and we don’t know where they are” said Tina shyly.

  “The time stone you speak of can in theory create an artificial hyperactive reticulum in our own space-time grid axis” said Kowolski, “but the separation from your friends might be something called a contemplating duplication wave. The device emits a discharge of proto acid that is energy based and vaporizes after each time jump but some residue remains. Too much can be toxic but not enough to kill. I came up with the principle but it was actually a colleague of mine who developed it, Hans Merryweather. The wave would cause a duality in the grid axis and split you from the others. It is a part of a fundamental precept of time dynamics. But the theory itself is only a rumor. I wish I knew where to begin to find an answer. But they could be lost anywhere. The wave could theoretically span decades or even centuries.”

  “Do you know
where this Merryweather is now, Doctor?” Asked Drax.

  “No, he went off years ago for better ventures. In this day and age, I don’t know if he is still alive.”

  “Oh” Said Tina.

  “Don’t worry. There are worse things in life. You need some cheering up. Let me show you my experiments. There are ways to feed the people of the world, end hunger and poverty, end disease, and end war using Mother Nature as our guide.” He unveils a set of electronic components and metallic orbs near a series of plants in a glass casing.

  “Wow” said Tina.

  “Basically, my dear, these miniature probes will produce the needed nutrients from the organic material of any living fruit, vegetable, mineral, or animal and replicate it over and over as many times a needed. It’s like the old bible story of Jesus Christ and the basket of fish and loaves. Using advanced cloning procedures and particle manipulation we can save our planet and race from extinction but there are those above who make such procedures wrong and punish those who pursue this line of research quite harshly.”

  “So you do it in secret?” Asked Drax.

  “We have to for now but not for always.”

  “You punk Kowolski, you are a failure at life. You’re experiments aren’t fit to hold a bag of worms” said a muscular man in a lab coat walking by cursing at them.

  “Ah Dr. Know-it-all Julius Tybrether, he is just jealous because he didn’t come up with it first.” He yelled back.

  “You shouldn’t let him get to you” said Tina. “You’re better than he is.”

  “Hmm maybe so… I like you.” He reached out and touched her nose.

  “Thanks. I think you got potential for greatness. Don’t give up on your dreams cause others try to put you down.” Said Tina. Dr., do you remember what caused the great conflict?”

  “No, why would I, I was only a child when it happened.” He frowned.

  “I understand.”

  “You are curious indeed.”

  “Yes. Thanks.” “Do you guys ever have any encounters with ‘beasts’? Big scary man and beast looking creatures.” Tina asked.

  “You know we learned a lot about the beasts out there.” Kowolski said.

  “We faced so many beasts both good and bad right Drax?” Tina said.