Migration: Beginnings (Migration Series Book 1)

by Walter Hopgood

  It takes a few minutes, but Rhys finally finds it—right above the largest star in the Canis Major constellation. It’s hard to see due to the darkness, so he calls back for a flashlight. Within seconds, someone thrusts one into his hand. He turns to thank them, finding Jason smiling at him.

  “I think so, too,” Jason says without Rhys even prompting him with a question, his voice conspiratorially quiet and an understanding, calm look plastered across his face. “I don’t know how I know what you’re thinking, but somehow, I know.”

  It’s quite obvious that while Rhys and Jason are on the exact same page, General Landingham is lost. Franks watches quietly from a corner, seated in a chair, elbows on her knees and her head in her hands. Her expression is so nonchalant that she could be mistaken for someone gazing out over a park, instead of at one of the biggest scientific discoveries of all time.

  “General Landingham,” Rhys says, first giving Jason a glancing smile, then turning to the officer. “Would it be possible to get Jason’s pendant back?”

  Landingham turns from Rhys to Franks, and gives her a quick nod. Captain Franks crosses the room and opens a secure door to reveal a wall safe. The sound of a few buttons being pressed, then electronic gears grinding are all that sound throughout the warehouse for a few seconds. After a brisk walk back, holding the pendant away from her body, she hands it to Jason.

  Rhys turns back, smiling at his husband. “May I, sweetheart?” he asks.

  Nodding his approval, Jason hands the pendant over to Rhys’ waiting hand. Rhys squeezes the pendant in his hand and is almost overcome by the sensations he experiences just by grasping it.

  “A kiss for luck?” he asks, and Jason grins. He leans forward, stealing a quick, chaste kiss, and then turns back to the device.

  “Here goes nothin’,” Rhys says. His nimble fingers tumble the triangular charm in his fingers as he leans in, and slowly lowers it into place. He pushes it gently, and it comes to rest with a click.

  Rhys steps back, reaching out his arm for Jason to do the same, and all the room’s attention is suddenly on the massive device. There is a flicker, accompanied a second later by a magnetic charge that flits through the air.

  And then everything changes.

  The space inside the triangle flickers again, and there’s an almost metallic sound that fills the warehouse. As quick as a blink, the wall that the triangle is leaning against disappears and is replaced with a view of a vast plain, with dual suns rising far on the horizon.

  Chapter 33

  The warehouse remains silent for a few seconds as the scene unfolds before the four in attendance, each one nearly overflowing with awe. Rhys’ mind is suddenly filled with questions, but they leave his mind as quickly as they came when he watches Jason step forward with his hand outreached.

  “Jason, no,” Rhys says, halting his husband’s progress, more out of fear than anything else. “Wait a second.”

  “Well, I’ll be a son-of-a-bitch,” comes from the back of the room. Rhys turns to find Landingham grinning like a loon, shaking his head as Franks rises to her feet with eyes big and focused on the scene in front of them.

  “Is that…” Franks exasperatedly begins, then stutters to a stop. After another second, she adds, “So it’s like a portal?”

  “Officially, no,” Landingham says with a grinning nod. “Everyone,” he says, waiting until he has the room’s attention, “we are keeping this hush-hush for the time being. No sense in letting this get out until we have a chance to study it a bit and figure out just what exactly this is.”

  When all eyes go back to being focused on the sweeping landscape coming through, Rhys steps forward and leans down. He puts a finger into the slot, fitting it behind the pendant. He pulls up, retrieving the pendant and steps back, and watches as the beams themselves glowingly pulse for a slow count of eight, then the image flickers out of existence. The rising-suns scene is quickly replaced with the solid back wall of the warehouse once again.

  “Rhys, no,” Jason says, reaching for the pendant. Rhys turns to him, finding a pleading look on his face, a matching tone in his voice when he asks, “Put it back. Please?”

  Instead of reinserting it into the device, Rhys reaches out and puts it in Jason’s waiting hand.

  “Doctor Tambor is correct,” General Landingham says as Jason acquiesces, then crosses his arms, holding the pendant close to his heart. “That was our proof of concept; we know that the device works, and more importantly, how it works.” He walks forward, coming to a stop next to Rhys and Jason. “I think that we can say that’s enough for right now, especially after what you two boys have been through tonight.”

  Suddenly, all thoughts of other worlds and explorations escape Rhys’ mind and are replaced with the dark, tortured thoughts of what they had barely escaped from just hours earlier. He gives an involuntary shudder, comforted by Jason’s hand that comes to rest on his lower back.

  Jason must have the same thoughts, based on the look he gives Rhys, and then slowly nods. “So what are the next steps, then?”

  Landingham leans back, studying Rhys. “What do you think, Doctor Tambor?” he asks, and then turns to Jason. “And you, too, Jason. What do you think our next steps should be?”

  Rhys adjusts his glasses, pondering all the different scenarios he can think about; each thought competing with the next, even as thoughts of the prior betrayal fight for his attention. What the military had done to them still hurt, though he tries to push the errant thoughts away. “Well, I’m sure your scientists…” he begins.

  Landingham holds out a hand to interrupt Rhys. “That would be your team,” Landingham says. “And they will be at your disposal, but as of right now, you two are the head of this team. Doctor Tambor, you will lead it with Jason serving as your second in command—to use a military phrase. You two will decide exactly how we will move forward.”

  “So does this mean everything’s been taken care of?” Rhys counters. Not that he doesn’t want to be the head of the scientific exploration of a lifetime. Instead, he’s worried about getting his hopes up and having it all come crashing down.

  “All loose ends tied up nicely,” Landingham counters with an all-knowing smirk as he rocks back and forth on his heels. Rhys understands exactly what the general is saying. He wouldn’t put it past the man to have gone over other’s heads to make sure that Rhys and Jason don’t get shut out again—especially since they can now provide the means of getting the device to work. “In the meantime, I’d like to invite you to take a couple days off. Return to Portland; take care of yourselves. Then in a few days, you’ll be back down here, where you can give me your project plan and have the team at your disposal.”

  “That sounds…excellent,” Jason says. He raises a hand to his neck, reaching for the pendant. “But what about this?” he asks, again showing the pendant. “I don’t want to give it up again, but is it really safe?”

  “As of right now, the only people who know about that necklace’s importance are the four of us…”

  “And the maniac who kidnaped and tried to kill us,” Rhys adds. “Who the hell was that, anyway? Any clues yet?”

  Franks speaks up for the first time since the device had gone dark. “There’s a team trying to determine that right now. Once I have you two secured for the night, I’ll contact the team leader to see if they found anything out.”

  “Good,” Landingham says. “And I hope you two gentlemen don’t mind, but Franks?”

  “Yes, sir?” the captain responds.

  “You are with these two twenty-four seven. Got it?” What Landingham says sounds like a request, but Rhys understands that it’s an order; an important one.

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Good,” Landingham says as he nods. “I hate to cramp your style, boys—or whatever the kids today are saying—but you two are our top priority right now. Understand?”

  Rhys turns to Jason, who gives him a wink. “Yes, sir—I think we do.”

  “Good,”
Landingham echoes again. “But if you wouldn’t mind, Jason,” he adds, “I think that it would be better if we kept the pendant here—on site.”

  Jason glances at Rhys, who nods, then hands over the pendant, which Landingham takes and goes to the safe where Franks had retrieved it. Once it’s safely tucked away, Landingham gives the remaining trio a nod, bids them goodnight, and walks to another part of the building.

  Franks escorts Jason and Rhys back to the Jeep, Jason leading Rhys with a touch here, a touch there, to keep him from running into walls; Rhys’ head is so full of thoughts that he’s barely able to walk a straight line. The couple is silent as Franks starts to drive away, but instead of heading to the guarded gate of the base, they turn down a road, coming to park in front of a nondescript building Rhys recognizes (from all his years of being a military brat) as military housing.

  “Sorry for the accommodations, gentlemen,” Franks says as she gets out, “but I don’t have time to secure a hotel. So, tonight you’re slumming it here with me in base housing.”

  “But there are hotels all up and down the highway,” Jason retorts.

  Slowly shaking her head, Franks says, “By secure, I don’t mean book a reservation, Jason,” and then, as if to make her point further, reaches out and taps the gun that is strapped to her side.

  Jason’s eyes get big as he suddenly ‘gets it.’ “Ooh,” he says, almost over-exaggerating.

  They make their way into the south side of what appears to be a duplex, Franks leading the way, turning on lights and checking things out, as she shows Rhys and Jason around. It’s pretty obvious to Rhys that either Franks has been here before or the layout is so similar in these cookie-cutter houses that once you’ve been in one, you’ve been in them all.

  After a brief tour, checking to make sure the refrigerator and pantry are stocked with whatever they could want, Franks takes the couple to the upstairs. She opens one door, showing them the bathroom, and then a door on the far wall. “And this is where you two will be staying tonight.”

  “Where’re you at?” Jason asks.

  Turning slightly, Franks points to another room at the other end of the hallway. “I’m down there,” she says.

  “Oh, good,” Jason says, a smug look on his face. “Far enough away that you probably can’t hear us going at it.”

  “Jason!” Rhys chuckles, a deep blush suffusing across his face in an instant.

  “Oh, no, I’ll hear you. Because I’ll be listening for it,” Franks says with a mischievous wink.

  And then it’s Jason’s turn to blush.

  Chapter 34

  By the time Rhys and Jason get oriented to the room and ready for bed, a sudden exhaustion has overtaken them both. Rhys can barely keep his eyes open, and Jason looks like he’s fighting to stay awake from the effort he had to put forth to find and unwrap new toothbrushes. They climb into bed, Jason wrapping himself around Rhys, giving each man the security they both desperately need after the events they’ve been through. Jason is out in an instant, and his breath is tickling Rhys’ neck, who quickly follows him into a deep, dreamless sleep.

  The next time Rhys opens his eyes, there are scant blades of light streaming in from the window, and he hears a creaking of the stairs. Instantly, his hackles go up as dark thoughts invade his barely woken mind. He reaches back for Jason, who is warm against his back. The sound of the steps fades away, and Rhys figures it’s just Franks heading downstairs. As his heart rate returns to normal, he closes his eyes for just a minute and enjoys the moment, slowly fading back into slumber.

  A clicking sound awakens Rhys again sometime later. It’s the sound of the door shutting as Jason slips out of the room. He hears Jason on the stairs and glances at the clock. Even though it’s earlier than he normally gets out of bed, he decides to do so anyway. After all, today they head home and start planning on how they are going to deal with the device, an unmapped future laid out in front of them.

  After stretching and putting his ripped jeans back on, Rhys pads down the stairs, where he hears Jason and Franks quietly discussing something. “Morning, Jase,” he says, and leans over and grabs a kiss. “Morning, Captain Franks,” he adds, giving her a nod. “Is there coffee?”

  Franks just points to the kitchen and then picks up her own mug, the steam of the dark brew coming off of it.

  “Oh, bless you,” Rhys says, and wanders into the small efficient kitchen and pours himself a cup, hearing Jason and Franks discuss something behind him. He takes a sip, and returns to where the others are congregated.

  “Hey, boo? What did that crazy man call the machine?” Jason asks as Rhys takes a seat. “We were just wondering what we should be calling it—besides ‘the machine.’”

  It takes a second for Rhys to pull the conversation up from his memory while ignoring the dark thoughts of their assailant. He’s got pretty good retention and lets his mind wander back to that moment so he can replay it.

  “Umm…the clawed claudian or something like that?” He raises his cup, taking a sip of his coffee. “It sounded Welsh to me,” he adds, thoughts of a childhood trip back to Wales with his family and Welsh language lessons tumbling through his memory.

  “Well, that would make sense,” Jason says as Franks nods. “I mean, my family history is all from Wales, and that jerk said that my family stole whatever it was called from his family…”

  Franks retrieves a laptop from where it sits abandoned on the coffee table. She’s tapping on the keys and making the only sound in the room; her eyes focused on the screen until Jason finally asks, “What are you looking up?”

  “Cnawd cludiant,” Franks says though her Welsh accent definitely needs some work. “Quite literally, ‘flesh transport.’” she adds, making a face.

  Rhys and Jason share the sentiment, as they make practically the same face Franks is sporting. “Eww,” Jason manages. “That sounds like something that sends people to a transdimensional slaughterhouse or something.”

  Rhys has to agree with the odd translation. “Which one of those means ‘transport?’” he asks.

  Typing some more, Franks responds, “Cludiant.”

  “Cludiant,” Rhys repeats. “At least that word’s more pronounceable than the first. How about we just call it cludiant for short, then?” which Franks and Jason happily agree to.

  After a quick breakfast, Franks gets a phone call, telling her that their transportation back up to Portland is ready. She tells Rhys and Jason to get ready, so they all get cleaned up and head out to the airstrip.

  “She’s a beauty,” Jason says as he looks up at the plane they’re about to board. Rhys gives it a look over, and while it’s not as big as the C5-M Galaxy, it’s just as impressive. “C-40B?” Jason asks, Rhys not understanding the question, while Franks gives him a smile and a nod.

  “Yep,” Franks replies. “C-40B; the military version of the Boeing 737.” She gestures for the air stairs and Rhys and Jason start walking toward them. “You seem to know your aircraft, Jason. I’m impressed.”

  Jason beams at the compliment, stumbling a bit as he almost misses the first stair. “Hey—my brainiac husband can’t hold the complete title of supreme geek in our household, now can he?”

  “I wouldn’t dream of it,” Rhys says, stepping inside the airliner.

  The flight back to Portland only takes about ninety minutes, with Franks leading the trio on a quick meeting about how they’d like to go about getting the project started. She takes notes on a laptop as Jason and Rhys throw out ideas, and before they know it, the airplane is descending into Portland International Airport.

  There’s a military officer waiting for them with a car, which Franks dismisses. She takes the keys from the officer and says they don’t all need a driver; she’ll suffice. The trip down I-205 doesn’t take long, with Rhys and Jason still throwing out ideas about the project, Rhys taking over Franks’ laptop and making free-flowing notes as they drive. He’s glad to see Jason so animated, even with his own dark thoughts of the pr
evious day’s events. As if Jason can read his mind, he reaches out and glides his fingers gently down Rhys’ arm, grounding him.

  After Jason and Rhys settle into the house, Captain Franks makes herself scarce in the guest bedroom. There’s personal email, bills, and other things—plus, of course, the neighborhood antics to catch up on, which keeps everyone busy.

  About 4:00 p.m. the doorbell rings. Franks heads for the door first, with Jason and Rhys hot on her heels.

  “I got this,” she says, opening the door.

  Rhys expects there to be someone in uniform when he opens it, and there is. Just that it’s a delivery uniform from a local grocery store, not a military uniform.

  “Thanks,” Franks says, taking the bags from the deliverywoman, then putting them down so she can tip her. After the door is closed, she picks the bags back up and heads for the kitchen.

  “I spotted your grill from the guest bedroom,” she says by way of explanation. “Figured, since I’m here, I might as well pull my weight. Grilled burgers and dogs okay?”

  “Absolutely,” Rhys says.

  “You know, you could just do some laundry. Cut the grass, maybe?” Jason jokingly offers, but Franks shoots both ideas down with a look.

  They all head to the backyard, where Jason tries to help out, but Franks refuses, saying she’s spent plenty of time with a grill. Seeing as how the situation is under control, Rhys decides to go catch up on work email, as Jason is busy with a few of the neighborhood kids who show up to play in the backyard and Franks gets the grill started.

  Just as they are sitting down to dinner, with Leslie, Scott, and a few other neighbors thrown into the mix, there’s another knock on the door. Franks, again, decides to answer first, and this time it is a military courier on the other side of the door, holding a large manila envelope. She signs for it, walking it back to the table and reading the label. “Doctor Rhys Tambor and Mister Jason Frost-Tambor,” she says, holding it out for one of them to take. Jason nods, so Rhys accepts the envelope, tearing it open and scanning the cover letter.