Chapter 6
Experience is not what happens to a man;
it is what a man does with what happens to him. -Aldous Huxley
December 23, 2022 05:00 hours
I looked at David’s sleeping form and placed the folded farewell note next to Kojak. Then I crept outside and wiped away the tears that were trickling down my cheeks.
“I’m gonna miss him Kojak,” I whispered.
“David’s still alive Andy. It’s true his body is thirty-five years older. But he’s still the same larrikin inside. Take my word for it.”
“Do you think David will still want to be my mate in the future? In my time? Or will he just think I’m a kid like everyone else does?”
“I’m positive he’ll want to be your mate,” replied Kojak. “Come on now. You need to get in position behind the crate in the transporter module. I’m afraid you’re going to have to sit quiet for almost four hours however. And according to David, some of the things that are about to happen are pretty frightening.”
“David coped with them. I will too,” I replied, moistening my lips.
Ω
December 23, 2022 05:10 hours.
The sound of a rooster crowing woke David up. He groaned and buried his head deeper into the pillow.
“Come on. Rise and shine... We’re country bumpkins today mate!” said Kojak cheerily.
“Sshhh... You’ll wake Andy.”
“Andy’s already awake,” replied Kojak softly.
David sat up abruptly and looked around. His eyes fell on the neatly made bed. He drew a deep breath and redirected his attention to Kojak.
“He left a note. It’s near my keyboard...”
Ω
Hi David,
Grandpa contacted Kojak Jr and me... We have to be on our way now. Don’t be afraid of anything that happens today. I know you’ll make it through unscathed. Catch ya in the future.
Love Andy.
Ω
December 23, 2022 05:30 hours.
I looked at Kojak with solemn eyes as I squatted between the crate and the transporter module display.
“Well this is it, Kojak...Get a keepsake photo of us both, eh?”
“Say Cheese!”
Kojak framed my portrait with an image of himself.
“Done.”
I pressed him close to my heart.
“Is David absolutely sure you’ll survive the Event?” I whispered. “If he’s not sure, I can put you in the lead box with Grandpa Kojak.”
“He’s positive Andy. He’s controlling everything remotely from his end. And Jonas and your father have double checked his calculations.”
“I trust them... But I might put you under my radiation suit as well. Just in case...”
“Thankyou.”
“Hey Kojak... If one of us don’t pull through this, I’ve enjoyed all our explorative playtimes together.”
“I’m confident we’ll both pull through this, Andy. See ya back in 2057.”
I drew a deep breath.
“I’m looking forward to that big brother. Shut down now...”
I held Kojak in my palm tenderly and wistfully watched his capacitor discharge. I carefully placed him in the interior pocket of my radiation suit and zipped it up.
The instant loneliness was almost crushing.
A moment later David walked in... farewelled Kojak and then shut him down as well.
I was overwhelmed by a pang of guilt. I knew David was here, so I knew I wasn’t really alone. But David was going through the next three hours... alone.
Crazy fools. How dare they call themselves scientists! Why couldn’t they realize what they were going to do was going to almost annihilate the human race?
Time passed.
The earth grumbled her protest... Something pelted on the roof of the sea container. I pushed away my fear as smoke permeated the container... I watched David push wet rags into the gaps under the door...The heat was stifling. David guzzled a litre of water. I wished I’d planned better myself...
Time passed.
The earth violently heaved and buckled beneath us... David was ashen-faced. I so badly wanted to comfort him, but Kojak had told me to stay hidden. History was coming alive in front of my eyes... The difference was, I knew the ending and knew we would make it... Whereas David was probably fighting off a million negative thoughts and fears.
It had been two agonizing hours since I’d last spoken with Kojak. The noise on the roof of the container was deafening. Right now in populated areas around the world, I knew BE houses, schools and shops were catching alight as meteorites struck flammable material. People were terrified. People were dying. And yet history recorded that Rick Dawk and his team hadn’t stopped their experiment. In spite of the frantic news reports of the mass destruction around them...
The sea container began jolting violently from side to side now... I licked my lips nervously as I clung onto the side of the crate. I was starting to feel really bruised. To my immense relief a bottle of water rolled towards me. I grabbed it and guzzled it with relish.
Time passed.
Everything was weirdly still. Like the calm before the storm... David munched on an apple. I wet my tongue with the remaining drips of water from the empty bottle.
45 degrees of north... The container flipped over. BE north became AE south. Everything that wasn’t bolted or braced down hung momentarily in the air - floating without gravity, then violently dead-dropped down again. I let out an involuntarily scream of terror as I lost my grip on the crate. I watched David turn around... his eyes wide with fear as he looked around for the source of the scream... There was a deafening explosion. I buried my face in my lap as David’s monitoring instruments exploded around us. I raised my head again and looked around. The sound of electricity crackled and arced around me ... my skin and hair tingled... A plasma ball danced lazily toward me... My eyes followed it. Captivated by the unexpected... It grew larger and a bubble inexplicably started forming around me...
I became aware of an intense rippling around me as the plasma ball engulfed me. David and the contents of the sea container seemed to be shimmering... Like they were a mirage...
David was peering directly at me now... his fascination gave way to terror as the plasma ball energized his unfinished transporter module... I squinted as a brilliant bioluminescent violet light filled the module... the purple light rippled and became blue... then shimmering aquamarine flowed out... followed by a rippling yellow, which gave way to orange... then red... I finally remembered the penguin eye glasses in my pocket and quickly positioned them over my eyes.
The expression on David’s face was unforgettable as I looked in his direction. Apprehension... bewilderment... seasoned with a hint of awe. He tried to say something to me but gave up. I grinned my farewell as a beam of light enveloped me and separated my place on the time continuum from his...
Life on planet Earth would never be the same again. In his time or in mine...
Ω
December 23, 2057 09:02 hours.
A sea of faces rippled around me. Dad’s and Mum’s expressionless faces... Gem’s curious face... David and Serene’s tense expressions... And two other older people I’d never met - they peered in my direction - expectant and trusting. I clung to the crate like it was a life preserver as the rippling gradually settled down.
“You pulled it off, you son of a gun!” yelled the unknown dark-skinned man, exuberantly congratulating David. “Our grandson’s back safe. And the press is too!”
Our grandson?
“Let’s be sure first,” replied David solemnly. “Andy... Do you recognize me?”
“Course I do. It’s just I don’t know whether to call you David or Grandpa.”
David broke into a huge grin and bear-hugged me. Undisguised relief dancing in his eyes.
“I answer to David mate!” he replied.
“Andy?! Are you sure you’re alright?” burst out Mum, draping her arms around me and sq
ueezing me tightly.
Andy? Huh? What happened to Nando?
Oh well... she wasn’t screaming Ferdinand so at least I wasn’t in too much trouble.
“’Course I’m alright Mum. There’s nothing to hurt me around here!” I replied with a grin.
“Well this takes me back thirty-five years!” said another woman’s voice.
Her lilt was just as I remembered it.
“Serene!” I laughed, hugging her warmly. “Or should I call you Grandma?”
“I am definitely not answering to Grandma!” retorted Serene.
All round laughter.
The dark-skinned man unexpectedly scooped me up and swung me around above his head.
“What are you doing Jonas Magellan?” I laughed.
“Just making sure you’re real, Andy Magellan!” replied Jonas.
He pressed me tightly into his chest. Heart to heart. There were tears forming in the corner of his eyes.
“Why?” I smiled.
“Well... Thirty five years ago David told me about this thin refugee in silver clothes that had somehow disappeared from his locked sea container with my rescued Christmas present during the Event... He was convinced it had something to do with his unfinished research project. I didn’t believe him when he told me all about it. I thought it was just some type of traumatic response to the Event.”
“Nah... I’m real. So is your Christmas present from Nadia. Sorry it’s thirty-five years late Jonas.”
“It doesn’t matter. It’ll last thirty-five years longer won’t it?” retorted Jonas.
“And our first acre of canola will be ready to harvest after Christmas!” added Nadia. “It’s perfect timing. Extracting it was going to be such a time consuming job... But with the press on hand - we’ll be able to extract thousands of acres and supply it to Zone 1 residents to trial.”
“It’s what we’ve always dreamed of doing, but we shouldn’t make any plans until we’re sure the press is functional. It may have been damaged in transit,” cautioned David.
“You just want to open my present early!” joked Jonas.
“I think Andy should open it!” smiled Nadia. “He brought it back.”
“I think Gem should open it,” I countered. “She’s the youngest.”
Gem eyed me and shook her head.
“Nah... It looks too hard to unwrap. Let’s let the adults open it. I’ve got to show you what I found in the garden.”
“What did ya find?” I asked with shining eyes.
“I found the shower you were having fun in with Grandpa last night. Wanna have a water-fight with me too?”
“I sure do!” I laughed.
“This is the best family holiday ever!” exclaimed Gem, as we ran off together.
I like the dreams of the future better than the history of the past.
-Thomas Jefferson
December 23, 2057 18:00 hours.
Frogs croaked... Unfamiliar smells wafted around inside the sea-container homestead. The original single room container-home I had slept in back in 2022 was still part of the sprawling twelve-container homestead in present day 2057.
I crept down the garden path and stood near the oversized hammock David was lying in.
Silence.
“Am I bothering you?” I asked cautiously.
“Of course not,” he smiled. “Why don’t you join me?”
I hopped into the hammock next to him. We both lay back looking up at the stars.
“I wanted to say sorry,” I began nervously.
“Whatever for Andy?”
“I’m sorry I left you without saying goodbye,” I whispered. “And you would have been less afraid if we’d gone through the Event together... And Kojak said I frightened you when I disappeared in the transporter module too... Everything considered, I don’t think I’ve been a very good mate.”
David laughed and pulled me onto his chest and hugged me tightly. It felt good. Someone else plonked themselves down in the hammock next to us.
Jonas.
It felt doubly good, albeit strange. All my life I had wanted a Grandpa, and now I had two!
“How’s our new little mate fairing?” asked Jonas.
“He’s in a better state than I was twelve hours after the Event.”
Jonas looked reflective.
“It’s almost unfathomable... To Andy the Event happened this morning. To us it was thirty-five years ago... And time has healed the memories...”
“Well I’ve been waiting for this day for thirty-five years,” replied David emotionally. “Finding out that the first test pilot to use my transporter module survived after disappearing in front of my eyes is the best Christmas present I could ever ask for. It’s like a huge weight has lifted off my shoulders.”
Jonas started grinning.
“Something’s happening to you David... Serene and Nadia have noticed it too... It’s like the David we all knew before the Event is back.”
“Well you’re gonna have to help me keep the overgrown teenager in line if he is,” joked Kojak from my pendant.
David and Jonas laughed heartily.
“Talking of Christmas presents and huge weights, is the oil press okay?” I asked.
“Yes. We tried it... It’s in perfect working order,” replied Jonas.
“Hmmm... Not a bad first trip... I left hoping to come back with a book about fuel oil production and came back with a press for producing fuel oil.”
Jonas smiled broadly.
“Not a bad first test flight of the transporter either... I set out to see if it could handle a lightweight payload and it handled a 1000kg press. Just imagine how many BE books and heirloom seeds I can bring back next trip!”
“What next trip?!” growled a voice out of the darkness.
“Um... Hi dad,” I said self consciously.
“Please tell me you’re not planning on making that next trip in the near future, Andy.”
“Well... not in the near future... Serene and Nadia are teaching mum and Gem how to make blueberry pie and mulberry cordial and lemon butter for Christmas. So I’m definitely not going anywhere until after Christmas!”
Dad chuckled warmly. Something had changed between us. He was treating me differently. Perhaps because something had changed inside him. I had a hunch the change inside him had to do with finding Jonas and Nadia... Somehow finding his missing unit had liberated him...
“Care to join us son?” invited Jonas.
“Can that hammock hold four fellas?”
“Yep. It’s made of Kevlar. So it’s robust. Like our young explorer’s footwear.”
Dad laughed and sank into the hammock next to his father. Jonas grinned at him and draped his arms around us both.
“You’ll have to take more of David’s gadgets with you next trip,” he said, eyeing me.
“What gadgets?” I asked.
“David’s always inventing gadgets. Personally I like his cats-eyes sunnies.”
“Don’t you mean penguin eyes sunnies?” I smiled.
“Nah. He means cats-eyes sunnies,” replied David. “They’re an improvement on that early penguin eye version of mine which you took with you. They still work as penguin eye sunnies by day. But they dramatically improve the wearer’s night vision when the sun sets. I was thinking of test driving them in the New South Pole actually, now my transporter module’s working.”
“Why at the New South Pole?” asked Leo.
“Well, before the Event there was a bank - with a storage vault built into a mountain on a group of islands called Svalbard.”
“You’re thinking of going on a treasure hunt?” laughed Dad.
“Yes. Although actually the vault contained something more precious than regular treasure like gold and jewels... it contained heirloom seeds - like wheat which had been grown in the Tajikistan region for 2000 years. And an heirloom variety of barley from Poland. And amaranth from Ecuador. Along with 750,000 samples of other seeds from the BE world.”
“You mean it contained seeds from countries that were wiped out by the Event?” I asked with excitement.
“Yes. Although no one knows if the seed bank’s survived.”
“Was it the same seed bank where your parents were going to take the seeds from Arnhem Land to?”
“Ah ha.”
“Maybe they found the seed bank after the Event,” I ventured. “Just imagine... My great grandparents might be still alive and living in the New South Pole region preserving the former Svalbard seed bank.”
David smiled wistfully.
“I think that might be wishful thinking Andy. I never heard from my parents again after the Event.”
“Have you ever asked Kojak if they were alive?” I asked.
“Er, well... No, I don’t think I have!” chuckled David. “But Kojak has no way of knowing anyway. The world wide web has never been restored, so there is no contact between the northern and southern hemispheres.”
“What about the HF?” I persisted.
“Well I admit I’ve tried unsuccessfully to raise them a number of times over the years, when HF pole to pole communication was possible. Generally after I’d had a squabble with Jonas’s sister.”
“You’ve got another sister?” I asked, looking at Jonas.
“Nah. Serene is my sister when David’s in her bad books!” quipped Jonas.
“And Jonas is my friend when he’s in Nadia’s bad books!” added David. “It’s the way we keep things peaceful in our unit.”
“So next time Mum’s in my bad books she’s your daughter, right?” I asked hopefully.
David and Jonas roared with laughter. Dad went to growl at me but ended up laughing along with them.
“But Great Grandpa might be alive still,” I ventured, when they had stopped laughing. “Dad and I had never heard from any of you when Zone 1 to Zone 5 communications were possible, but you were all alive and well. And Bear Grylls, Les Higgins and Indiana Jones wouldn’t let something like the Event stop them, so I don’t reckon Great Grandpa would either.”
David chuckled heartily.
“You could be right mate. But old age stops everyone eventually. And even if my parents had somehow survived the Event they’d be close to 80 by now.”
“Then it’s about time we dropped in and said hi to them! Let’s go find out if your parents survived and the seed bank survived. And Nadia’s brother survived! Together...”
Ω
Ferdinand Magellan made history when he explored the seas. And Ferdinand Magellan II and his big brother Kojak changed history when they explored the time continuum.
Their adventures continue in History Changers: Expedition 2032