Insequor (25 page)

“What?” said Daniel.

“But it could be an hour away; the nearest airbase is in Turkey.” Toby had his phone out immediately. “Go!”

Daniel looked at Jones and the forgiving brown eyes looked back and he nodded. “I’ll come with you,” he said, pre-empting the question.

Professor Grey flipped the final switch on the power unit before taking a step back and surveying his work. A quick check of his watch assured him everything was on schedule. He looked back at the complex, the empty buildings devoid of life. Somewhere back there Daniel was getting ready to sit behind ten inches of lead to await his destiny.

Daniel had been so frantic for a way out it had been relatively easy to sell him ideas. Everyone in the organisation had fallen into line; eager to please and less eager to question. All except Jones; but he had been gone a long time now. Probably sitting back with the rest of the world watching the news channels speculate on Daniel’s secret project.

It had incensed Grey how the media always focused on
Daniel.
To him, he was just the source of funds; a project manager at best. It was Grey who had been the creator, who had patiently researched and then waited for the right opportunity. His whole life was in this project and, if successful, he would live on forever. The first person to cross through to another universe and the chance to be a different type of human being. Because the end game wasn’t the journey, or indeed the destination, it was the return trip.

He flipped back to his tablet and checked the final stored procedure. Suddenly, he noticed something else. A set of lights had gone red. Looking up at the skyline he blinked, then stared back at the tablet in confusion.

“It’s over, Professor,” said a voice, behind him. Spinning around he saw Toby stood at the edge of the platform.

“You? Why are you here?”

“I’ve been here for some time. I was with Daniel.”

“Was?”

“Yes,” said Toby, turning to look across the valley. “He’s over there somewhere now. I’m afraid we got wind of your little experiment and he decided to flee. A sound decision in my opinion as I think you were about to put us all in very grave danger. That’s an Alcubierre drive if I’m not mistaken?”

The Professor pulled the tablet close to his chest and nodded.

“Went missing from Sarajevo back in 1983? That wasn’t anything to do with you, was it?”

Grey pulled his jaw back, a frown crossing his face.

“Of course not,” said Toby, “that’s not really your trade. But I bet you were working with the people who did take it? Who was it? The Russians?”

Grey blinked awkwardly; his face almost, but not quite, ticking.

“Well, whoever it was I bet you they promised you all kinds of research if you could get it working. I mean, why not? The ability to bend space and time. You could put ten thousand troops in DC within a microsecond.

“But you knew otherwise, didn’t you? You theorized about the multiverse. I’ve read your paper. Fascinating, but the quandary is how do you know where you’re going until you get there? There’s no card index of universes, no yellow pages. But you were willing to take the risk. Just so you could be the first. And who knows, if you came back as Superman that would be a bonus, right?”

The Professor looked long and hard at Toby. The casual clothes and laid back posture were everything he hated about the academics of today. Why did nobody wear suits anymore? Or have pens in their shirt pocket?

“Right,” said Grey. “And do you know why? Because we’ve stopped exploring. We’ve stopped trying. We send a probe to look at some moon or comet every now and then but man does not search anymore. It’s over fifty years since we went to the moon. Then what? Nothing. I am a pioneer, Mr Lynch.”

Now it was Toby who looked shocked.

“Oh yes, I know your name,” said Grey. “I know all about you.”

Toby scratched his chin and walked around the drive. Its soft pulses made the dirt on top dance.

“I could have told him, you know,” said Grey. “That was my original intention. Show Daniel who you really were, get you out of the way. But you did that all by yourself didn’t you?”

“That wasn’t my fault. It was the military; who, incidentally, are just about to blow up your generator house.”

Grey chuckled. “Ah, the American military; off target again. You and I both know that will make no difference.”

Toby shook his head. “No, it won’t. But that doesn’t change the fact that Daniel has ran. The robot isn’t heading toward this platform anymore. I failed him.”

“I beg your pardon?” said Grey.

“I let it get to this. I tried to help him, but I couldn't. This was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to crack and now it's going to catch him.”

Grey smiled, the tablet now being turned from his chest. “Au contraire, Mr Lynch. He’s here now.”

Toby’s bottom lip dropped and he wheeled around just in time to see the robot step onto the synchrotron platform, its footsteps creating a metallic echo like a sledgehammer on a bell.

“Impossible,” said Toby, “Daniel’s the other side of the valley.”

Grey was already booting up the drive and it was now making an intense buzzing noise and glowing from several areas. The robot walked directly across the platform as planned; straight toward Grey and the device.

“I’d advise you to stand back,” said Grey, flicking a few buttons on the tablet. The drive glowed now and wobbled slightly.

Toby walked backwards, toward the edge of the platform, his hands feeling for something to steady himself on as it vibrated through both the robots steps and the Alcubierre drive. Grey stood close to the device and calmly placed the tablet in his pocket. It would be any moment now.

And then something strange happened. The robot broke into a run. As fast as a sprinter it ran straight into the drive by the professor and destroyed it. The shower of sparks and metal sent Grey diving to the floor and Toby stumbling back.

Then the robot just stood there, waiting. Thinking? Before finally, it turned on its feet and started to walk back out toward the valley were Daniel had fled.

Toby stepped forward and helped Grey to his feet. “Are you okay?”

“What happened?”

“It destroyed the drive.” Toby was following the creature with his eyes at it walked through the generator house just as Stagg’s charges went off.

The explosion knocked Grey and Toby to the ground again. When they managed to get up they quickly made their way to a nearby store to shelter from the raining detritus.

“Good Lord,” said Toby, “It actually made a conscious decision to destroy the drive. But why now?”

Grey coughed and crouched, resting his hands on his knees. “It’s alive,” he said, “it destroyed my work.”

“I have to get to Daniel.”

“Stagg’s men?”

“They’re probably leaving, thinking they’ve done their job.”

Toby left Grey standing in the doorway; surveying the destroyed apparatus and fire from the generator house. Flames licked the walls and the structure groaned as it collapsed in upon itself.

The thing that had given him the chance of completing his life’s work had destroyed it and was now walking away in the opposite direction.

Daniel and Jones sped away from the generator house, being careful to avoid Stagg’s men who were around the front setting up the charges. From the security cameras it had been easy to see which path they needed to take. Stagg’s men were all inside with one soldier on the main gate. Presumably they thought they could blow the power units and stop the whole thing. They couldn’t.

As they headed further away, Daniel thought about Professor Grey, his equipment all primed and ready to go, only to watch the robot disappear over the horizon in the wrong direction. It wouldn’t be long before Grey realised something was amiss. But what would he do? What could he do? The antimatter stored was based on the robot’s molecular structure. Without the robot he wouldn’t have the relevant material to create the reaction; which would mean he couldn’t open a door to another universe.

As they scaled a perimeter fence and shimmied down a tree he inwardly smiled. He had saved the day. He had done it. Of course, now the only problem was that he was without assistance, in the middle of an empty valley and with the robot following him. He was on foot, had no food or water and the terrain was harsh. Outcrops of rock loomed ahead and he found himself once again wishing he hadn’t sent his security detail away. Within ten minutes his cell phone was no longer in the vicinity of the small mast they had setup at the complex. It was just him, Jones and the robot.

“What’s the plan?” he said, looking at Jones.

“I was going to ask you.”

He stopped and stared ahead, “I say we head up to the top of that ridge and then make our way to the airport from there. If we can keep going for an hour Toby should be able to rustle up that airplane.”

“And if he can’t?”

“Well, we’re on foot with no supplies and no means of communication. We’re trying to cross unforgiving terrain and we don’t have any suitable walking gear. I’ve been through all these scenarios. We’ve probably got about two hours and twenty minutes before the robot catches us.”

Jones raised an eyebrow, “That’s very precise.”

“I had to learn all this, remember? We both did. Christ, how long has it been?”

“A long time.”

Daniel trudged through some knee high grass, his legs sticking with every step. “It feels like a lifetime. It doesn’t seem that long since we were living in each other’s pockets. By the way, with this terrain I think we’ve only got one hour; I didn’t account for last week’s heavy rain.”

“Too bad,” said Jones, stepping onto a rock and desperately trying to avoid the muddy bogs. “Couldn’t we have taken the road?”

“Not direct enough. It winds up and out the valley, remember? The robot walks in a straight line.”

He stretched his legs to get onto a fallen tree trunk. As he stood up on the fallen bough he gazed back across at the complex. “He’ll be here soon.”

“You seem remarkably calm,” said Jones, reaching into his jacket and pulling out a gun. Daniel stared at the weapon and smiled.

“Really?”

“You’re right,” said Jones, “Old habit I guess. Seriously, what’s the plan?”

“I haven’t got one.”

“What? Don’t you have a chopper?”

“Nope.”

“I thought you were bluffing Toby, so you could escape. It’s almost here!”

He sat down and sighed. “Yes.”

“You’re going to face it,” said Jones, with a slight nod. The old detective made his way across some mud and plonked himself next to him. There, poking above the shrubs, the pair could make out the tops of the buildings that had been erected at all that cost to create the ultimate science experiment. An experiment that would now never happen.

Daniel looked to the sky though; his eyes were wide and the pupils small. His gaze was staring at another place, another time maybe. His hair fell around his face before the wind picked it up again; exposing the thin grey ones poking from underneath.

“I’m not running away this time, Jones. Not anymore. I’m too damn tired.”

Jones placed a hand on his lap. “I always knew there’d be a time when you had to stop running.”

“What do you think he’ll do?”

“What?” said Jones.

“All these years. You were a detective; you must have come up with a motive. When he gets me? Do you think he’s going to kill me?”

“Maybe. Maybe he just wants to give you a hug.”

He smirked. “Thank you, Detective Jones. For saving my life.”

“I always hated it when you called me that. And as for saving your life? I think that’s a little premature and, frankly, optimistic.”

“You saved it a long time ago. But let’s see.” He stood up, fastened his jacket and held his hands over his eyes, scanning across the small grass hillocks and muddy ditches. “Where is he?”

Then, there was an explosion. Jones shot up, his hand again, automatically feeling for his gun.

It was the synchrotron platform. Professor Grey and his equipment were gone; all that remained was smoke and dust. Stagg? No, wait; there was another explosion by the generators. He saw the general and his soldiers scurrying away like crabs toward the main entrance. Presumably, believing their mission was done. The generators blew again; most likely the reserve diesel tanks.

As they watched, smaller fires broke out and the dust cloud started to settle. Eventually, through the haze they saw a figure coming towards them. A human; running, struggling in the mud, tripping over branches and leaning against the very infrequent trees when they could to catch their breath. Behind this figure, was the robot. Following.

Daniel realised it was Toby and they made their way to meet him. They found him leaning against a sapling, spitting out dust and coughing.

“He went for Grey!” said Toby.

“What?” Daniel put his arm around him and brought their faces to each other.

“The robot! He didn’t follow you. He walked into Grey’s portal and destroyed it!” Toby’s face erupted in a manic glee. Daniel felt his eyes starting to water and a swelling in his throat.

Jones grabbed them both. “Here it comes!”

Toby turned back to the devastation. “What?”

The thud of its feet hitting the ground was getting louder. Each rhythmic beat shook the trees and the grass around them, sending mini-ripples across the ground. The robot was now only a hundred metres away and closing.

“It followed me?” said Toby

“No,” said Daniel, “It didn’t.” He turned to Jones, gave a weak smile, and then walked off toward the robot.

“Welcome,” said Daniel, his arms in the air.

It didn’t stop. It never stopped.

“My name is Daniel,” he said, through tears now dripping from his cheeks. Jones, holding Toby looked on.

It kept on moving. It never stopped.

He held out his arms, as if to embrace, closed his eyes. He stood still. He could hear it now; for the first time in a long time he could feel the footsteps on the earth. The sound grew louder and louder; the vibrations juddering his knees. Behind him, he could hear Jones urging him to run.

And then silence. No explosion. No more thudding. Just silence. He opened his eyes.

The robot was inches from him. Its arms by its side. The glowing eyes slightly throbbing with a passive energy. And then it leaned its head in toward him; as if to confide.

And when it spoke, the voice reminded him of rusty iron nails sliding around an old tin in his dad’s garage.

He stepped back, his eyes wide. For a second, he thought he would fall over but instead something strange happened. He laughed. And as he laughed and laughed, all the bad things he remembered got smaller and smaller. Until they just faded away.

Then the robot’s head fell, the eyes went dark and slowly it crumpled to its knees and froze.

He wasn’t sure how long he stood there, tears rolling down his cheeks, his stomach hurting from the glee before Toby was at his side. “Daniel! What happened?”

He really couldn’t stop laughing. It was all so silly now.

“Did it speak to you?”

Jones was there, pulling Toby back gently. But the once calm government agent was possessed. His eyes were wired and he was trying to escape Jones’s grasp.

“It did, didn’t it? It spoke to you? What did it say?”

He fell to his knees, took big breaths, a whooping noise winding down through his lips. But then came the laughter again; the tears now dripping to the floor.

“Daniel?” said Jones.

He held up his hand for assistance, the laughter finally fading. He felt Jones’s strong grip pull him up. Finally, he wiped his eyes, sniffed his nose and then walked away. He was going to go home.

“Wait!” Toby said, “Why did it come here? It had to have a reason? You can’t just leave!”