“How do you know?” Belle asked, clearly stunned.
“Time travel,” Zane said, gesturing to the remains of the old wooden table near one wall. They had been all the way to 2320, remember. They knew the future. They knew we were not a part of it, that we never returned.”
“How do you know this?” Belle asked, a frown on her beautiful face.
“In my time, there were only 14 founders, not sixteen,” Zane said. “And the genetics library was in your name, as if it was honoring you.”
“Oh,” Belle said. “So we were duped into sacrificing our lives for an experiment?”
Zane could hear the mounting anger in her voice, and he didn’t blame her in the slightest. He wasn’t happy in the slightest either. But anger wasn’t going to help them now.
Clear heads when underground was the only thing that saved people, and right now they both needed to be thinking clearly.
“I don’t think so,” Zane said. “Remember, the point of all this was to find and stop a dictator who is using time travel to control the world in his time, and into his future.”
“So,” Belle said. “We discovered that no entrance could be found from the inside, and yet we can’t relay that information back in time to help anyone. So they sacrificed us for no reason at all if they knew we were never coming back, except to learn that going into the distant caverns was a suicide mission.”
Zane just could not believe that Bonnie and Duster would do that. It made no sense. He shook his head slowly, trying to make sense of what she had said.
“They wouldn’t do that. And yet if they knew we would never return, they would have no reason to let us do this. Something is not making sense here.”
“Yeah, like why did they want us out of the way?” Belle asked, her voice angry and biting.
“But they didn’t,” Zane said. “In fact, not once were we not treated as critical parts of the entire puzzle to save the mistakes they had started with time travel.”
“Con artists are good at that,” she said.
“But they gained nothing from conning us and sending us here,” Zane said. “We’re missing something. Something major.”
“I sure hope you are right,” Belle said.
But her voice did not sound like the anger was clearing in the slightest.
Then part of the answer dawned on him. “Remember, we took you forward and set your life with mine in 2120. Only two minutes and fifteen seconds are passing in 2120 for anything we do here.”
She looked at him puzzled, slowly nodding. “So in essence, we can die and just end up fine and do this again.”
Zane nodded. “And we can relay the information then.”
She seemed to calm some with that. “Aren’t we also anchored in 1900 and in 2020?”
“We are,” he said. “So dying is not the end of the line. At some point we will just end up back in one of those places, unless leaving all time by going into that big cavern complex sort of messed us up.”
“We won’t know that for sure will we?” she asked.
“We could test it by dying,” he said, looking in her dark eyes.
“I would rather not if we can help it,” she said, smiling at him.
He agreed as well. The idea that there was a chance they might be anchored helped him some. Not a lot, but some. He just had a hard time believing that if they died here, they would end up gone only two minutes and fifteen seconds at some point along their last path.
So the plan was to not die.
He stood and offered her his hand, helping her to her feet.
“Do we put our packs inside or leave them here?” Belle asked.
“Just inside the door of the supply cavern,” Zane said, picking his up. “Let’s not take any chances with what little supplies we have being in some sort of accelerated time field.”
She nodded and they moved their packs into the cavern, then turning on only their headlamps, they looked around the huge space of rotted wood and supplies.
Zane wanted to cover his nose from the intense smell of rot. He couldn’t see anything of value.
Nothing.
Just too many years had passed.
“Didn’t Duster have some other hidden rooms?” Belle asked. “He showed us one where he kept the money and gold. Maybe some supplies lasted better in those rooms.”
“I doubt we’ll be able to get into the money room, but worth a try,” Zane said, and headed that way across the supply cavern, picking his way carefully through the rubble. No point in stepping on something rusty now and making his death even quicker.
The old money vault door was between the kitchen area and the entrance to the cavern, so they didn’t have to go very far through the rubble.
At the cavern wall, where Duster had shown them where he stored money for trips into the past, Zane touched the two places that would unlock the large door and slide it aside.
He was expecting nothing to happen, but the rock slid aside without a sound.
Fresh-smelling and slightly cool air expelled from the vault room as the door opened. And a light came up, bright against the darkness.
“Wow, the room has been under pressure of some sort,” Zane said.
Air continued to blow from the room outward so somewhere in here power was still working.
“Welcome back Dr. Russell and Dr. Logan,” a voice said.
Zane knew that voice. It was Goldie’s voice from their apartments in Boise.
“What the hell?” Belle asked. They both eased forward into the vault room.
The room was about the size of a decent bedroom, carved out of the rock, and lined on three sides with metal shelves that seemed to be in as good of shape as they had been on the day they were put in.
There was a lot of old bills stacked around the room on the shelves, and piles of gold in different forms. All the bills looked completely usable to Zane.
And there was no smell of rot in here at all.
How in the world was that even possible?
“Some of this money is from the last few hundred years,” Belle said, picking up a strange-looking crisp bill and holding it in her hand. “Look at the date. And it’s not rotted in any fashion.”
Belle handed the bill to Zane. He just stared at it, not believing what he was holding.
Another light came on overhead and Goldie’s voice said simply, “Please do not worry. I need to close the vault door and clean the air of the smell of rot and other contaminates before I can open the inner door. You can return to the cavern at any time.”
Zane glanced back as the vault door slid shut behind them and sealed. He then could feel the air around them cycle quickly and even his clothes no longer smelled of the rot from that big cavern.
“Dry cleaning of the future,” Belle said.
Then a slight feeling of movement happened and the entire room dropped deeper into the ground. After a moment, it stopped and the shelf directly in front of them slid aside and a large door opened into another hidden supply cavern beyond.
“How far did we drop, Goldie?” Zane asked.
“Five hundred and ten feet exactly,” Goldie said.
“Oh, even in more trouble now,” Belle said.
“You can return to the upper cavern any time you would like, Dr. Russell,” Goldie said.
“Thank you, Goldie,” Belle said, smiling at Zane.
Zane and Belle eased forward into the new cavern. It had lights hanging at regular intervals from the ceiling and tables with clothes on them. Zane could see a kitchen tucked off to one side. The entire cavern was even bigger than the rotted supply cavern they had just left.
It looked as if Bonnie and Duster hadn’t forgotten them after all.
“Oh, thank heavens,” Belle said, stepping forward into the large supply cavern. “Maybe we’re not screwed just yet.”
“We’re in the year 3166,” Zane said. “Remember?”
“And I don’t feel a day over a thousand,” Belle said.
Zane laughed
. “I would say you don’t look it either, but it’s been a hard day.”
“You are so going to pay for that,” Belle said, laughing along with him.
And to Zane, after facing almost certain death trapped underground a few minutes before, laughing felt perfect.
PART FIVE
The Continuing Mission
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
May 1st, 3166
Inside the Crystal Caverns
BELLE COULDN’T BELIEVE the massive supply cavern that stretched out in front of them. Everything looked fresh and new and the air smelled wonderful and clean.
She and Zane stepped into the big room and the door to the vault and elevator behind them stayed open.
“There are bathrooms and showers in the back behind the kitchen,” Goldie said, “and fresh clothes in the area with your names over them in the main supply area.”
Belle walked with Zane into the supply area, their shoes making no sounds at all on the smooth stone floor. The cavern ceiling and walls were also stone and the ceiling was a good fifty feet over their heads. The overhead lights gave the place a warm feeling of very clear light, but nothing too bright.
One area of tables was marked Bonnie and Duster, another Dawn and Madison, and so on.
“That means they are coming here at times,” Zane said, staring at the signs.
All Belle could do was nod at that.
There were eight different areas for all the founding couples, if she and Zane were included as founders, which they clearly seemed to be in this cavern.
There were tables and tables and racks of hanging clothes for them. From what Belle could tell, the clothes ranged from 1900 fashions to fashions and fabrics she had never seen before, and wondered if she could even wear.
Belle turned to Zane and smiled. “I have never been so happy to be wrong in my entire life.”
“I’m just glad we don’t have to dig that shaft out of here,” Zane said.
Belle laughed, then said into the air, “Goldie, can you tell us where the rest of the founders are and when they will return.”
“I am not aware of that information,” Goldie said.
“Can you tell us what we are to do next?” Zane asked.
“I cannot, Dr. Logan,” Goldie said. “My task is to see to your needs while you are in this location and maintain all the supplies in a fresh state. Nothing more.”
“Thank you, Goldie,” Belle said.
“You are more than welcome, Dr. Russell.”
Belle stayed beside Zane as they walked around the cavern for a few more minutes, saying nothing, just trying to take in all the different areas. One entire area was filled with different devices, all clearly labeled for their time periods.
The table was like walking down a display of history, a large part of it they were not familiar with in any fashion.
Belle had no idea what some of the devices even pretended to be. And at one point around 2400, the technology seemed to regress a large amount before starting forward again.
“We have a lot to learn about our own history,” Belle said.
“A vast amount,” Zane said, staring at some of the devices from the 24th century.
“Goldie,” Belle said into the air, “is there a form of library or learning area in this cavern?”
“There is, Dr. Russell. The door to that area is to the left of the kitchen as you face the bathrooms.”
“Thank you, Goldie,” Belle said.
“Well,” Zane said, “it seems we have the ability to learn and we sure have the time.”
Belle could only agree with that. But first she and Zane had to take care of themselves. She was feeling in shock from all of what happened today so far, and Zane had to be in the same shape.
“I’m going to take a shower,” Belle said. “After that hike back here and the smell in that outer cavern, I really need to clear my head.”
“While you do that,” Zane said, “I’ll look around a little. Then you can do the same while I shower.”
She kissed him and then said, “A perfect plan.”
She went over to their area and picked out a comfortable-looking pair of sweat pants and a soft sweatshirt from the 20th century and some slippers and then headed toward the bathrooms.
She normally would have offered to have Zane join her, but at the moment, she had a hunch they both needed some time.
She knew she did.
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
May 1st, 3166
Inside the Crystal Caverns
ZANE LET HIMSELF move slowly around the cavern, making note of the varied areas of supplies, just trying to grasp what he was seeing. Somehow, this cavern was being maintained in the year 3166 and he wasn’t sure how or why, but he was glad it was.
There were even packaged supplies in the cabinets of the kitchen and Goldie said they were safe to eat.
He was about to head into the library area when he noticed something along one cavern wall near the library door.
There was an alcove there that had he and Belle’s name over it on a silver plaque attached to the rock. In the carved alcove was a shelf with a box on it and blinking light near a white button.
There were seven other identical alcoves for the other founding couples along the wall, all identical except the blinking light and button.
At that moment Belle came out of the bathroom.
“Over here,” he said.
She came over, looking refreshed and wonderful in the sweat pants and sweatshirt. She was using a dark towel to dry her hair and her skin looked slightly red as if she had scrubbed it harder than normal.
“Showers are wonderful,” she said. “Once you figure out how to turn them on.”
Then she saw what he was standing in front of. And the names over the other alcoves. “Any idea what this is all about?”
“Not a clue,” Zane said. “I figured I would press that button when we were both here.” He pointed at the green blinking light near a white button on a counter top fitted into the alcove.
“Go for it,” Belle said.
Zane pushed it and then they both stepped back a half step as holographic images of Bonnie and Duster appeared. The images were about a foot tall and it looked like the two of them were standing on the counter beside the wooden box.
“Welcome back,” Duster said.
“Yes, welcome,” Bonnie said.
Zane was stunned. He didn’t know what to do or say, so he simply took Belle’s hand and they stood there, listening.
“Much has happened since you left,” Duster said, “but now in the fight against the dictator who has terrorized the entire 23rd century using time travel, we need your help even more than before.”
Bonnie nodded and Duster continued.
“We built this new hidden cavern eighty years after you vanished,” Duster said, “In the year twenty-one hundred.”
“It took us that long to finally figure out the math and what exactly happened to you,” Bonnie said. “A full explanation of all that and what has happened, the entire lines of history since you vanished, is in the library area. Goldie can direct you to the right place.”
“Of course, since we had traveled to the Step Three and Step Four at 2320,” Duster said, “we knew you never returned, at least in the way we hoped you would return on the day you left. But we knew you would return here at some point in time first. We didn’t know when, but this is why we built this cavern and have maintained it. And now we all continue to use it at times.”
“So have we continued the fight,” Bonnie said, “stopping the dictator in many millions of timelines, but he still exists in millions and millions more as we record this in 2364. We have been unable to find his original source of the crystals and close it. And we have been unable to find or stop the mathematicians that used our published work to help the dictator develop time travel with the crystals.”
“We are continuing to look,” Duster said, the small holographic image almost as intense as Duster in real
life. “As we find more data, we update what we call our war room, which is through the library and behind a shelf of books there on mathematics. Pull the third book on the second shelf from the floor on the left to open it.”
“So when you return,” Duster said, “we need you to continue the fight to stop the dictator from whatever time you return in. Update the war room as you can in the last part of the 22nd century, at any point. All of us are doing that, pooling information as we find it.”
“You will be a secret weapon,” Bonnie said. “You will be attacking the sources of the dictator’s power from the future.”
Belle squeezed his hand at that and Zane nodded.
“We were forced to destroy the mine tunnel in 2364,” Duster said. “The crystal in this box, this time you find yourself, is now your base time from the future. Once you have done what you can in the timeline in this crystal, return it to the main cavern outside the mine tunnel and remove another crystal from the wall from another area of the large cavern there and go back in that timeline.”
“Do not contact us or return to the Warm Springs institute at any point in history,” Bonnie said. “Live and exist under assumed names, different from timeline to timeline. Be cautious. Remember, our enemy, the enemy of all mankind, has time travel as well.”
“Our goal is simple,” Duster said. “Somehow get to the dictator’s entrance into the crystal cavern before he is able to get to it and shut it off, so in that timeline and millions of others, he never finds the entrance.”
“Your knowledge of the caverns should help with that now,” Bonnie said.
“We hope it will,” Duster said.
Zane wasn’t so sure, but given enough time, he might be able to track the massive main caverns.
“In over three hundred timelines, we have killed the dictator when he was young in various accidents as he grew up,” Bonnie said. “That saved billions of timelines from his reign as well.”
Belle gasped at that, but Zane understood completely.
“And we are quickly working to scrub all our articles on time travel and the nexus of time and matter,” Duster said. “Zane, since you are the only founder born after Bonnie and my first lifetimes, you should be able to stop numbers of articles as we publish them. Do what you can in any way you can to keep those articles from being printed without revealing yourself to us. We have left an entire list of the articles and their publication location and dates. We do not know which of our articles triggered the research by the dictator’s people.”
Smith's Monthly #17 Page 19