by Marc James
“But I need your help!” Faraday insisted.
“I cannot give it to you. I will help you save the others, but he is on his own.”
“We can figure Clint out later then. Who do we go for first then?”
“I would suggest that Chase would be the most sensible target.” Edward replied.
Faraday nodded his agreement. “This one should be fairly straightforward right?”
“What makes it difficult is that we don’t know exactly how much time we’ll have before the guards arrived.”
“Well, what time of day did Chase arrive?”
“It was 23:00. I would suggest that we go back at the same time.”
“Why not earlier? That would give us time to get the machine ready?”
Teller considered this for a moment. “What about Guy Fawkes?”
“What about him?” Faraday asked in confusion.
“Well, how is he going to react to us showing up?”
“I don’t know, I wouldn’t worry about it.”
“The man was about to blow up the Houses of Parliament. If I’m not mistaken, he was attempting to kill a Scottish King.”
“Well, he was the King of England as well.”
“No James, what I meant was, he probably won’t take too kindly to the appearance of a Scottish man as he is preparing to blow up parliament.”
“That’s true. Well, nothing we can do about that.”
“Are you not worried?”
“There will be three of us and I have a gun.” Faraday replied.
Chapter 7
After a night’s sleep at the hotel, Teller prepared the wormhole generator, whilst Faraday went to a shop to stock up on cigarettes. He was certainly not intending to spend too much time in the seventeenth century, but he didn’t know how readily available tobacco would be. He bought four packets and returned to the room.
He was still wearing the navy suit that he had been wearing when he had killed Will Carter, he knew that he smelt terrible, but he hadn’t had a chance to buy any other clothes. Teller was smartly dressed in a black suit and a white shirt with a navy tie.
“It is ready.” Teller announced. “We will arrive in the cellar below parliament at 22:45 on the night of 4th November 1605.”
“That gives us fifteen minutes before Chase will arrive. So when we get there will you just get the machine ready to bring us back?”
“I was a little curious about that. Where should we travel to next?”
Faraday thought for a moment. “I think we should go somewhere before we try to save Sarah, we will need to explain the situation to Chase.”
Teller nodded. “Yes I thought that would be the case, but where do we go and when?”
Faraday thought for a moment, he knew exactly where they should go. “We go to 12:30, on 22nd November 1963, we can use Bobby’s condo in Dallas. It will be empty, it’s 1505 Elm Street, Dallas. It’s on the twelfth floor.”
“Okay.” Teller nodded. “Are you ready?”
Faraday felt for his gun, it was in his holster. “I guess so.” Faraday walked over and stood beside Teller.
Teller activated the device and it made a strange humming noise, it was quiet at first but steadily grew louder. This carried on for around thirty seconds until the light appeared in front of them. It was about a metre wide.
“We just walk into the light.” Teller instructed.
“We did this yesterday.” Faraday replied sarcastically.
Both men stepped into the light in unison. Faraday again experienced the feeling of being sucked down a plughole, the hotel room disappeared and was replaced by a dark room, with stone walls. Teller had explained yesterday that due to the stability of the wormhole generator the sickness that he had experienced when he arrived in Dallas would not affect him this time.
The light disappeared and a man stood in front of them just staring. He had long brown hair and a pointed goatee beard, it was fuller than Faraday had expected. The man wore a black capotain hat, it was tall and shaped like a pilgrim's hat. He wore a tight fitting jacket that was also black, with a black cape and black breaches that were fuller around the thigh area and tighter at the knee. Below that was a pair of black tights and black boots. The only light in the room was emitted from a metal lantern that the man held in his hand.
“Are you here to arrest me?” He asked, there was no fear in his voice.
“No we..”
“You Scotch swine!”
“It’s Scottish. We don’t want any trouble.”
“Why are you here?” The man demanded.
“Are you Guy Fawkes?” Faraday asked.
“My name is John Johnson.”
Faraday looked nervously to Teller who was already fiddling with the machine.
“I’m James Faraday. We are not here to stop you, we are meeting someone.”
“What are you wearing?” The man asked, giving them odd looks.
“It’s traditional Scottish clothing.” Faraday lied, he received a strange look from Teller.
“Where are the tartan skirts and what is that contraption?” He said, pointing to the wormhole generator.
Faraday didn’t see the point in lying to the man. “We are from the future. One of our friends will appear in about ten minutes.”
The man just stared at Faraday.
“Someone sent him here to be killed.” Faraday continued.
“Why would I want to kill your friend?”
“Not you, the guards.” Faraday clarified.
The man was startled. “Are they coming?”
“They will be.” Faraday replied.
“How do you know this?”
“We are from the future.” Faraday repeated.
“Do I succeed?”
“No.”
“Who sent you? The King?”
“No, like I told you, we are from the future. We mean you no harm.”
“And you are sure that the guards are coming?”
“Yes they will be.”
They were interrupted as a bright light shone in the room and Chase tumbled from it. He looked terrible, he grasped his shoulder in pain. He was startled when he realised Faraday and Teller were in the room.
“Where the hell are we?” Chase asked, struggling up to his feet.
“London, the year 1605.” Faraday replied.
Chase looked stunned. “I travelled through time?”
“So you speak the truth?” John Johnson asked.
“Who is this?” Chase asked quickly.
“Guy Fawkes.” The man replied.
“The bonfire guy?”
“Yes.” Faraday confirmed.
“The bonfire guy?” Guy Fawkes asked.
“We need to leave.” Teller interrupted.
“I thought you were making the wormhole appear here?” Faraday asked.
“You can make us a wormhole?” Chase interrupted. “You just sent me here?”
“He is helping me save you all.”
Guy Fawkes looked utterly baffled, he withdrew a dagger. “Are the guards coming?”
“Yes.” Teller replied.
“I shall light the gunpowder!” He announced.
“No!” Teller yelled.
They were interrupted as the cellar door opened, three men ran into the room all dressed in red coats.
Guy Fawkes fumbled in his pocket looking for a match. Faraday withdrew his gun as the first man withdrew a sword.
“You are under arrest, for the crime of treason!” The man announced in a posh English accent.
Faraday fired the first shot, flooring the first man. The second man withdrew his sword and Guy Fawkes managed to intervene before Faraday could shoot. He was swiping at the man aggressively with his dagger.
Chase grabbed the lantern from Guy’s other hand and struck the third man, sending him falling to the ground.
“We must leave!” Teller yelled, the fear was evident in his voice.
Guy was still duelling with the guard, the guar
d managed to strike Guy’s hand forcing him to drop the dagger.
“What about him?” Faraday asked.
Chase did not reply, he simply launched the lantern across the room, hitting the guard in the head. As the guard fell to the ground, they watched the lantern bouncing towards the gun powder.
“Run!” Guy announced.
They hurriedly ran from the room and up a flight of stone steps.
“How much time do we have?” Faraday yelled.
“Not long!” Guy yelled back.
When they reached the top of the stairs, they exited into a courtyard, there were another group of guards waiting.
“Shit!” Chase announced.
“Almost there.” Teller shouted.
Faraday raised the gun and pointed it towards the group of guards at the other side of the courtyard, there were too many of them, he didn’t have enough bullets.
The guards began to run towards them as the wormhole appeared. Faraday pushed Chase through first, he instinctively pushed Guy through next before he jumped through himself.
He felt the familiar squeeze as he was sucked through the wormhole. When he opened his eyes, the four men were in the condo in Dallas.
Chapter 8
The only taste in Bobby’s mouth was vomit. The stench in the room was overpowering, but more than anything else the pain in his hip was excruciating. He had no idea how long he’d been in the room, it was certainly hours, but he knew not how many. The other man had not spoken since Bobby had vomited on him.
He could hear footsteps in the corridor, the door was opened and the light blinded Bobby, another man was pushed into the tiny room and the door barely closed behind him. Bobby was now pressed in between both men, he was back to back with the first man and the new man was facing him.
The new man spoke, but it was German.
“Do you speak English?” Bobby interrupted.
“Yes, I don’t know where they took my wife and child.” The man replied quickly.
“I’m sure they will be in another cell.” Bobby replied.
“Don’t you smell that?” The American man spoke.
“What?” The German asked.
“Outside, the smell in the air. They aren’t coming back.”
“My wife?” The man asked urgently.
“She’s dead.” The American replied.
“We don’t know that.” Bobby interrupted.
“The women with children are always the first to go.”
“Go where?” The German asked.
“The gas chamber and the furnace. That’s the smell in the air.”
“That can’t be true.” The German barked.
“It’s true alright.”
“Do you have to dash the man’s hopes?” Bobby replied angrily.
“There sure as hell isn’t any hope here.” The American man replied.
“They’re dead?” The German replied, it was clear he was crying.
“They are better off dead.” The American man replied.
“My wife!”
“She is better off.” The American man repeated.
Bobby felt like throwing up again, he had never been so scared in his entire life. He couldn’t believe he was in Auschwitz. Throughout his time at school he had been taught about the horrors of the place, he knew what lay ahead of him.
“How long have you been here?” Bobby asked.
“I just got here.” The German replied.
“I meant the American.”
“I don’t know anymore.” The man replied, the defeat came through in the way that he spoke.
“Is there any way out?” Bobby asked.
“The gas chamber or the firing squad.”
The German man was weeping uncontrollably now.
“Quiet down.” The American ordered.
“What are your names?” Bobby asked.
“Emmerich.” The German replied.
“What about you?”
“Will.”
“Carter?” Bobby asked.
“Do I know you?” Will asked.
“Not yet, I’m Bobby.”
Chapter 9
Guy Fawkes was looking around the room in amazement.
“And what is this?” He asked.
“It’s a television.” Chase replied. “Watch.”
Chase turned on the television and Guy leapt back in fright.
“How do they fit inside such a small device?”
Faraday watched as the news began to filter through about Jack Kennedy’s death, it was the strangest feeling of Déjà Vu. His view of the television was blocked as Guy tried peering around the back.
“I cannot fathom how they get in there.” Guy announced. “Who is this man?” He asked, pointing to the picture of JFK on the screen.
“The American President.” Chase replied.
“America has a President? What about the King?”
“America is independent now.” Teller replied.
Guy looked surprised. “And this man lives in the television?”
“No think of the television as a moving photograph.” Faraday replied.
Guy nodded. “What is a photograph?”
“Do you know what a camera is?” Faraday asked.
“No.” Guy replied blankly.
“A photograph is like a painting, but instead of using paint they use a camera. You point it at whatever you want a picture of and then press a button, then you will have a picture of whatever it was.” Faraday replied, beginning to feel confused.
“So who paints the picture?” Guy asked.
“The camera.”
Guy looked none the wiser. “What is that?” He asked pointing to the ceiling.
“It’s a light bulb.” Chase answered.
“So what does it do?”
Faraday walked over to the light switch and turned the light on. Guy’s face lit up as the light bulb illuminated the room.
“Incredible. So it is a candle.”
“Similar.” Chase replied.
“What year is this?”
“1963.” Teller replied.
“Incredible. So is this some sort of palace?”
“No, this is where I live.”
Guy looked stunned. “You are a lucky man. So what do we do now?”
“I was wondering that myself.” Chase stated.
Teller looked away a little awkwardly.
Faraday took a seat on the couch beside Chase. Guy and Edward took their seats on the other couch. “This is quite difficult to explain.” Faraday began.
“What is going on?” Chase asked.
“Abaddon staged a coup and took over as President of America.”
“So is that why I was sent through time, to keep me quiet?”
“Yes.”
“So where did they send you?”
Faraday blushed. “I helped him.”
Chase looked furious. “You did what?”
“He promised to send me back to my own time.”
“So you sold us out?”
“I made a mistake. When I found out what he had done to you, Bobby and Sarah, I chose to save you all.”
“Very noble.” Guy interrupted.
“What about David and Will?” Chase asked.
“David went back to his own time, he helped Abaddon too. I asked him to help me save you, but he refused, Will is dead.”
Chase didn’t seem to have a clue of what to say.
“I believe someone has shot the President.” Guy announced.
“So where are the others?” Chase asked aggressively.
“Bobby is in Auschwitz and Sarah Salmond is on the Titanic.” Faraday replied.
“You have to be joking?”
“I’m afraid not.” Teller interrupted.
“How the hell are we supposed to save them?”
“I don’t think it will be that difficult for Sarah, surely we can just appear on the ship and then create a new wormhole?” Faraday asked looking towards Teller.
&nbs
p; “I’m afraid it doesn’t work like that, we cannot create a wormhole on a moving vehicle, it is too unpredictable. We can appear on the ship by entering the coordinates, but in order to get back, we will need to get back on land before we can create another wormhole.”
“That’s suicide.” Chase interrupted.
“There’s no way of creating it on the ship?”
“It would be far too unstable, there is no way that it would work.” Teller replied.
“Have you tried it before?” Faraday asked.
“No, but it would not work.”
Faraday was silent for a moment, Guy was staring at the television in bewilderment.
“Strange that even three hundred years in the future, the leaders still do not represent the common people.” He surmised.
“In order to save Sarah Salmond, we will need to commandeer a lifeboat.” Teller continued. “She will appear on the ship after it has collided with the ice berg, which gives us very little time to find her, get a boat and get away.”
“It can’t be done.” Chase added. “What about Bobby, how are we supposed to get into Auschwitz?”
“I do not think it is possible.” Teller agreed.
“We can do it, we just need to think it through.” Faraday removed a cigarette from his packet and lit it.
“What is Auschwitz?” Guy asked.
“A death camp, Jews are sent there to be murdered.” Chase replied.
“Not just Jews.” Teller corrected.
“Incredible, people are still being persecuted for their religious beliefs.” Guy stated.
Faraday took a deep pull on his cigarette and rose from the couch. “I need a shower and a change of clothes.”
Faraday left the room.
“Why are you helping?” Chase asked Teller.
The man paused for a moment before answering. “I’m the only one who can. I didn’t really get much of a choice either.”
Chase shifted uncomfortably on the couch, he had been in hospital only yesterday.
“What are we going to do about Guy?”
“Why must you do anything about me?” Guy asked, almost offended.
“Well, you don’t belong here.” Chase replied.
“From what I can tell neither do any of you. I have no purpose to go back, you rescued me from the guards. I will help you save these friends of yours.”
Chase looked at Guy a little baffled. “You will need a change of clothes too.”