Ever-Life the Two Book Set: The C.P.T Incident and Time Trust

by Andrew Sarkady

  “Holy crap! Why tell me this, for God’s sake? Why not just take what you want, and be done? ”

  “Be well, Jake Burns.”

  The Carrier went silent and Jake sat confused; but, he realized his nausea had gone; and the video on the monitors reappeared.

  OK, what now? How could anyone have any kind of pleasurable interaction with a giant glow fish?

  He got up and made it into the lounge chair again. The Carrier accelerated; and Jake began to watch, trying not to think about the ride.

  Allenfar

  General Facts Regarding Carriers:

  1] Each time a Carrier travels, it burrows through rock, lava, or the liquid molten ocean of inner Earth. It can shroud itself within a bubble-like protective shell, and as it moves forward, the rock displaces itself, back behind the Carrier, leaving no evidence that it was there. Alternatively, without the bubble shroud, Carriers move through rock like fish swim, but spinning around, swirling, capable of reaching speeds close to that of a rocket in space. In that case, it may leave a tunnel and not displace the rock or lava.

  2] Carriers have been around for millions of years and those that have matured, have grown large enough to burrow tunnels that are a half mile in diameter, but there are no records indicating how big they can grow.

  3] Carriers and humans share a synergistic relationship. When a Carrier travels with a human passenger, it absorbs an indefinable sustenance, which humans alone contain. After an adult Carrier has accumulated enough human sustenance, it may be stimulated to secrete a thick, juicy gel-like goo, from its skin. In that case, they leave permanent tunnels, with their offspring glued to the tunnel’s walls. The gel sticks, indefinitely; except for those few that grow large. They find their way to Earth’s core, where they grow and prosper as adults, in a hive environment, by withdrawing magnetic power from the center of Earth. The greater the sustenance they derive from humans, the more gel they can secrete. It’s their way of reproducing. The goo contains trillions upon trillions of microscopic offspring; organisms that may or may not grow to become larger Carriers. Adults mature into many sizes. Rule of thumb is the older, the bigger.

  4] Very few tunnels exist without gel, but those that do, remain lifeless, and function as vents, allowing magma to reach the surface.

  5] Treaties are negotiated with Eve r-Life, by the Carrier hive hierarchy, which bind them all to the subterranean colonies. The treaties govern over all Carrier behavior. Basic governing agreements include: A] to communicate with the Ever-Life GGM, as is requested, via direct mind interface. B] to take passengers from any one point, in the colonies, to another, like public transportation on the surface. In return, each Carrier derives sustenance from each passenger and shares it with the hive mindset of their species.

  Based on Treaty 91776, called the Michael Plan, Carrier hierarchy agreed to provide ‘instant information’ to the standing GGM, regarding whereabouts, pertinent events and hive activity. But it is all done ‘in trust’, really. Certain questions have come up in treaty council meetings, which remain unanswered, including what the Earth’s core is really made of; why the great beasts don’t go into it; and why sunlight is supposed to kill Carriers? Fundamentally, it is an accepted fact, throughout Ever-Life, that the large Carriers are at the top of the food chain below Earth’s surface. New treaties/agreements are negotiated in an annual council meeting with a Carrier ambassador-a Tyree Master, in the deepest hottest known Carrier habitat, the Core Post.

  6] Smaller sized Carriers not only engineer and construct their own hive communities, but also they build all the new habitats of the Ever-Life colonies’. They are capable of completing tasks, which might take the surface years to construct, in only a few hours.

  7] Carrier offspring supply utility and insulate the colonies from the intense heat and magnetic radiation output of Earth’s center. The waste of the microscopic Carrier gel lights, sanitizes and supplies oxygen into the air, as byproducts of their metabolism. They maintain a mean temperature of sixty-five degrees, throughout the entire subterranean colonies. For well over 10,000 years, modern Ever-Life has endured, prevailed, prospered and grown, within the environment provided by Carrier species.

  8] There are very few special Carriers that are enablers of time travel.

  9] All Carriers have a hive mindset, and no one in the general public of the Colonies knows to what extent they understand humans.

  10] The biggest mystery regarding all Carriers is that colony anywhere has been able to study one. Even the Carrier that died during last year’s C.P.T. incident disintegrated completely before any doctor could examine it. There are no factual estimates of how many offspring exist, or why certain ones mature to function in one way while others grow to enormous sizes and function in other ways.

  11] The vast majority of Carriers live and reproduce at the microscopic level. The really big ones reside below one hundred miles within the bowels of Earth.

  13] It is an acceptable miracle, to all citizens of Ever-Life, that each Transport Carrier can provide anything that a human traveler requests, instantaneously.

  14] Ever-Life’s Post Staff Hierarchy are the only ones who have privy to updated maps of hive locations; and even those are constantly outdated.

  15] Except for scheduled transports, no one knows where or how often any Carrier moves within the planet.

  Chapter 7

  Back to Campus

  Jack and Rachel Sheldon arrived back at Andrews Hospital, anxious to resolve the mystery of what the stranger in the bubble told them. Rachel went straight home, to examine all records in their lab. Marietta, their housemaid of 2 years, was home to greet her.

  “Ah Senora, welcome home, all is good now.”

  “Yes, thank you, Marietta; is everything okay?”

  “Si, yes; all is fine. Amos is tending the horses, the feed is full, the mare, she gave a foal; a beautiful brown baby.”

  “Oh my, I have to see.”

  “They even came to fix the cable lines, for Senor Jack; you know; I did not know what to show them, but they said they found it.”

  Rachel did a double take.

  “Wait; hold on, what are you talking about?”

  “The cable lines; in the lab; downstairs; they came very late, but the Senor; he was so nice. It was the only time they could come; and they did not have to come inside. They just notify me about it. They left a note that said, all was done and okay. Why?”

  “Where is the note?”

  “It was just a little piece of paper; I threw it out. It was only this big.”

  Rachel got a blank stare on her face.

  The lab?

  “It’s okay, Marietta. It’s all right”

  She checked the messages on their comp-pad, nothing from any contractor about cables. Then, she went down stairs, to the lab. The door seemed fine; she unlocked it and went to the wall safe. Quickly, she pushed the sensor control pad, using the combination. She twisted the handle and opened the door. There inside was the treatise Jack wrote. She took it out and began thumbing through the pages. A few were wrinkled, disheveled, here and there; and there were some small notes in the margins, which she didn’t recognize; but, all in all, nothing obvious that bothered her. So, she took a deep breath of relief, and sat down in the easy chair, next to the desk, for a moment. As she was putting the manuscript back in the safe, a piece of the black knob fell off. She picked it up off and examined the remaining piece attached to the door. There was a hole through the center.

  That’s not right…Christ, it’s a drill mark, She thought…Jack??…

  Back at the Complex, as Chief of Research; Dr. Jack had become locked in meetings and debriefings for hours, regarding a wide variety of issues on the Campus. He was unsuccessful, in breaking away, to search any files, or contact any colleagues’ about the Sidron. After one meeting broke up, he took a moment to turn his computer phone on; and it rang immediately.

  “Honey, it’s me. Sorry to interrupt.”

  “No; i
t’s fine, Rach. I need a break. God knows I need sleep. How is it going there?”

  “I don’t feel my best, but it will pass, I’m sure. Listen Jack, I checked the safe in the lab. The knob fell off; and, there’s a hole in the center of the lock.”

  “You think it was a break in?”

  “Marietta said we had a cable guy come by, in the evening and do some work. I checked with them, and they confirmed. Should I call the police?”

  “Anything missing?’

  “Not that I can see…”

  “No, don’t call them. We have nothing, but a hole as evidence; and nothing is missing. I’ll let Matt know. We’ll get his people to check it out. Burns has contacts, anyway. We better keep it hush, hush, for now.”

  “I have the book and your notes, right here. There is something written here: it says, ‘send to Charlie Rosse’…What is that about?”

  “Christ! I forgot. I did send notes to Rosse, to justify funding. He is at the conference this week. I sent just enough to tweak his interest.

  “Ah, Babe, I notice here that some pages are out of sequence, only three; but I didn’t do this.”

  “Hmm, Rosse and I were supposed to meet and discuss everything-money, at the conference. I can’t go, Babe, with what’s piled up here.”

  “Speaking of forgetting things; Jack, have you heard from Brian. Wasn’t he going to call?”

  “No…Listen, Babe; I have to ask you; will you go? It’s in D.C.?”

  “What? You are kidding, right? We just got back. We were we supposed to meet Brian?”

  Jack hesitated. “It’s tomorrow? We were seeing him and Angie, after the Marshall thing?”

  “I thought it was today.”

  “He is calling us tomorrow. You know what that means. Remember, he was ‘thinking’ about seeing us. That doesn’t mean he will.”

  “Tomorrow? I’m so turned around. Jet lag from travelling inner Earth is worse than going to the far east.”

  “Honey, I am serious. I really need you to help me and go to the conference, in my stead. I haven’t gone through any files in building 26 yet; nothing but meetings. Now, more than ever, we need Rosse to commit to funding. He has major construction contracts worldwide, Babe.”

  “You don’t mean that boring ‘Research Finance Fundraiser’, do you? When?”

  “Ah, it started yesterday. I am trapped here; you know that.”

  “Christ, Jack!”

  “I know. But, if you hadn’t called, I probably would have forgotten completely. Charlie Rosse is a major player, there; and we need his backing for the new edition.”

  “You have been there a straight 16 hours, not including Matt’s ceremony. You are not thinking right; and you are going to get sick. You want me to fly to D.C. and wine and dine this Rosse. You are kidding?”

  “Babe, it’s important. We promised the ‘stranger’, whoever he was; and you did want to be involved.”

  “Thanks for throwing that in my face.”

  “Honey, I need you on this; not to mention, we need the money. Brock is gone. Funding is down. Please? I will meet you there, as soon as I can get out of here. Take one of the campus jets. I will make the arrangements. You don’t have to pack much. I am supposed to meet him at 7:00 p.m. tonight, in the lobby of the Hilton, in the city.”

  Jack felt a vibration and the phone quiver ever so slightly against his ear. What is that?

  “You owe me big time for this, Mister.”

  “I know. And, will you leave a message on Brian’s phone. I will call him, when I get out of here. Have to go Babe. Thank you so much. Call me when you get there; Love you, mmmwah!”

  “Yeah, Love you too.” She hung up. “Fine; shit!”

  In her bedroom at the Sheldon’s ranch, Rachel began loading her large purse with women’s paraphernalia, muttering to herself, “I called to make dinner arrangements; and I get this. Family; what happened to family? Charlie Rosse and the money; that’s what’s important! Go; go Rachel. Drop everything; right now! Pack up and fly, on some superficial, bullshit jaunt, to see another self centered, billionaire, piece of crap. Oh boy; do you owe me, my Darling.”

  Rachel picked up her phone, grabbed her purse and stomped out, down the stairs, to the front door and opened it. There, in front of her, stood a handsome limo driver, dressed in dark blue, tipping his hat.

  “Hello, Ma’am…Dr. Sheldon requested a car for you.”

  When he saw how upset she was, the driver thought better of saying anything else.

  “This does not make it right,” Rachel said in an angry tone.

  “Sorry, Ma’am?”

  “Well; let’s go; come on. What is your name?”

  He opened the back door and gestured her into the limo.

  “Mike, Ma’am; I am Mike Warren.”

  “Well Mike Warren; you have me at a disadvantage. I am angry; you see; the freak bitch from hell, right now.”

  “Oh, ah; well it’s all right, Ma’am. I have seen worse; believe me. You are catching the jet from the campus airport, right?”

  “No; I just got a text, directing me to go to the Fargo building airstrip.”

  “Yes Ma’am.”

  Within fifteen minutes, Rachel had boarded a single engine, Hush-jet aircraft, which took off from Fargo Field at 4:15 USAMT. She sat in the luxury cabin with four comfort chairs facing an oval coffee table. There were two great windows on each side of the plane, no portholes, as in the ancient jets of old. A male attendant approached her, from the cockpit area, smiling.

  “Mrs. Sheldon, perhaps you would enjoy a mimosa or chocolate martini?”

  She looked at him sarcastically.

  “Yes, both; I think I will, thanks.”

  “Also, here is an itinerary, for the conference, and some notes from Dr. Sheldon.

  “Ah yes, the conference; hmm, and notes; even better…I hate this, you know.”

  “Yes Ma’am; I am Gabriel, by the way. If you need anything else, just buzz.”

  He smiled and walked forward, back to the cockpit, just as a voice spoke over the loudspeaker, “Mrs. Sheldon, this is Captain Blake. We are scheduled to land at Dulles International, by 5:45p.m., East Coast Time. Make yourself comfortable; and, if you need anything, let me know.”

  Rachel rolled her eyes and pivoted the chair around so she could see out the window.

  “Thanks, anything I need, huh? I would like a quiet evening with my family.”

  She gulped the Mimosa and began to read Jack’s notes.

  From the cockpit door’s window, the steward, Gabriel, looked into the rear cabin.

  “Gabe, is she out yet?”

  “No, Captain; I don’t understand. I slipped her a double dose in each one.”

  Captain Blake pushed the frequency button to 715 and spoke to his ear set microphone, “Brazzie one; this is Hush-Jet 6… Brazzie, come in…Come in. Brazzie one; this is Hush-Jet-6…Do you copy?”

  He flicked at his ear piece twice, repeated the call codes; and then, he heard a reply.

  “InVoy here; InVoy here…Read you Brazzie.”

  “Yes Sir, this is Blake. We have the package, and await instructions.”

  “Switch to satellite reading 126…Follow input directives.”

  “Understood…On our way”

  The captain cut the call and turned the plane 30 degrees to the right, SSE, at an altitude below detection.

  “Gabe, make yourself comfortable; destination, Rio De Janeiro, Brazil.”

  “How long, Captain?”

  “This baby is faster than, anything, I have piloted. Watch how she handles this bank.”

  “Captain; she has passed out.”

  “Good… Here we go.”

  The plane turned south, southeast, while Gabe watched Rachel Sheldon as she flopped side to side, unconscious in the chair.

  Chapter 8

  Jake’s Briefing

  At 4:00 p.m. Egypt time, Allenfar docked at transport station 210, directly below the Great Giza Pyramid. Jake Burns walke
d out and onto a people-moving tram, which took him to Carrier-Unit elevators. As he rode down one, he pondered the whole concept of ‘compatibility’.

  Christ, it’s not enough that this bunch of bees run everything-they are construction engineers, utility and food providers, elevators and transportation. God knows what else. I don’t want a date…!

  When the elevator door opened, Burns stepped out to see the transport station’s grand arcade.

  “My God look at this. There is nothing to compare up there.”

  He gazed upon the lighted rock walls and splashing waterfalls, flowing down into a bottomless chasm. Tube-like crossways bridged the diameter of the vertical tunnel.

  “I still can’t believe the beasts made all of this.”

  Jake took one last look at the view; and then, he turned around and walked to Swanson’s office. He loved meandering and examining the priceless healthcare exhibits, paintings and sculptures that filled the foyer. At the other end of the room was a round door. There was nothing like it, anywhere else, in the colonies. It was built back in 4000 B.C. during one of the dynastic periods in ancient Egypt. No one knows how or why; but, it opened and closed like a human iris. Jake remembered his headset session about it. Originally, this ‘Post 2 station’ was one of the first medical research facilities in the region; and, the door was a security entrance. In those days, on the surface, medical chieftains or Shaman, diagnosed illnesses based on examining eyes. Ever-Life learned much from ancient ancients. Jake liked the fun of moving, repeatedly, halfway in, and then out, of the door; in, out; in, out; watching the center circle open and close. Through the door, Swanson’s assistant, Patty, watched; shaking her head and giggling at him.

  “Hello there, Mr. Burns. Are we still in kindergarten?”