Paradox (10 page)

“That’s still not the same,” Zac said,
reaching over and grabbing some popcorn.

“True,” he acknowledged. “But Einstein
talked about time being relative, and I think this is what he meant. I can
remember a specific moment with your mom, and it can stay with me all day if I
want it to, even if the actual event only took a few minutes. And of course,
there are other times that last a bit
too
long in my memory.”

Zac knew what he was referring to, and he
didn’t want to think about it. “So is that why you don’t have the date of her
death on the grave marker?” he asked. “Because you think you’d be too tempted
to try and go back and stop her killer?” He’d never considered that maybe his
dad faced the same temptation he did.

“No, Son. I can never forget that day, the
way she was shot in front of all those people. All I remember was a man coming
at
you
, trying to get you to come with him. I tried to stop him, and
there was a struggle. Someone else tried to help us, trying to wrestle the gun
away, and then your mother was shot. It was all such a blur. I just remember
being so full of rage that I attacked the person who shot her, though I have no
clue
what he looked like or how he got away.”

“Then why isn’t the day she died on the
grave marker?” Zac asked.

“It was,” his dad said. “But once I built
the machine, I realized I’d have to get rid of the date.”

“That doesn’t make sense.”

“Zac, I didn’t have it removed so that I
couldn’t change things. I had it removed in case
you
ever found out
about what I did, and so
you’d
never be able to go back and try to save
her.”

Zac didn’t sleep much that night. He had
homework to catch up on, and he realized just how hard it was going to be
trying to lead a double life. He felt like Spider-Man, attending class during
the day but having his “other” life constantly hanging over his head.

He almost fell asleep in class a few
times, dozing with his head falling forward, propped up by his hand. In one
class, he was slipping into a dream when he heard, “Wake up! Someone wake him
up!” His economics teacher berated him in front of the class, but he didn’t
care. Tomorrow was Saturday, and he could sleep in.

Arriving at the TEMPUS headquarters that
evening,
he found that there was nothing new for him to do.
On the one hand, he was glad to have nothing new, because that meant there was
no crime, but deep down, he craved the adventure. If he couldn’t prevent a
crime, maybe he could go on an observation mission, one in which he used the
machine to learn about things that had already happened.

Zac approached his dad with the idea while
he was sitting in his office. “Isn’t that the reason you built TEMPUS?
To observe without interfering?
The machine can be used so
that we know what
really
happened in the past, not just what textbooks
say.
So how about it?
Can you send me?”

At first hesitant, his dad mulled the
suggestion over. “Maybe,” he said. “What did you have in mind?”

Zac smiled. “Roswell.”

Dr. Ryger raised his eyebrows. “New
Mexico?
The rumored spaceship crash?”
He stood up and
walked over to his file cabinet, putting some documents in manila folders. “I
don’t think so. That’s not like going back to just a day or two ago. It’s a
whole different time period. You’re talking 1947; you haven’t been on enough
missions to go on an observation like that.” He shook his head. “Sorry. It was
hard enough for me to let you assist Emilee on the last one, to even let you be
involved with TEMPUS. I’m not ready to let you go on something like that.”

“Oh, come on,” Zac pleaded. “I read up on
it. It happened during a lightning storm in the middle of a ranch,
miles
away from where people lived. All we would have to do is get there, observe the
crash, and get back before anyone would see us. It’s the perfect observation
mission. No one would see us arrive, and no one would see us leave.”

His dad looked out the window into the
distance. “I don’t know,” he said. “I still think it’s too risky.”

“I won’t be alone,” Zac said. “We can take
more than two people, right? So let the others come with me.” He walked over to
the window, grabbing his dad by the forearm and making him turn to look him in
the eye. “I know you’re worried about me wanting to change the past with Mom,
but I need you to trust me. I’ll be careful. What better use for this machine
than to put to rest some conspiracy theories? If it’s a weather balloon, like
some people say, we’ll know. And if it’s not, we can finally know that we’re
not alone in the universe.”

His dad sighed.
“Maybe.
Let me consult with the rest of the team. If enough of them want to go, then it
might be an okay idea. I’ve
been wanting
to use the
technology to get a more accurate picture of historical events; maybe this
is
the perfect first step. A barren field, no one around… let me think about it.”

“Awesome,” Zac said, and left. As he got
into his car, he thought about how remarkable it would be to witness the most
famous “flying saucer” event in United States history. Of course, it could
always just be a weather balloon.

But what if it wasn’t? What if
he
was the first person to welcome these extraterrestrials to Earth?

“Wake up.”

A voice broke into Zac’s sleep, mixing
with his dream until he realized it was coming from someone in his room. He sat
up and turned to see his dad standing in the doorway.

“What time is it?”

“It’s time to go,” his dad said. “I’m
going to let you do the leap to Roswell. But Bryce and Emilee are going with
you; I’ve already spoken to them.”

Zac bolted up.
“Seriously?
We can do it?”

“Yeah.
I figure
with three people,
it’s
safe enough to go. I’m still a
little uneasy about it, but Bryce is the best there is at this. He’s been on
more time leaps than any one of us. I figure if any problems come up, he’ll be
able to handle them.” He started down the hallway. “Get ready. We’ll head over
together.”

Zac got dressed in a hurry, throwing on
some blue jeans and a black long-sleeve shirt. The leap would take him to the
middle of a ranch, but if it was in the middle of the night, it could be cold.
Black would be best so that he would be even less noticeable. He didn’t think
anyone would see him, but it couldn’t hurt to be extra careful.

He grabbed a bagel and shoved it into his
mouth, barely taking the time to chew before he swallowed. He almost choked and
washed it down with some soda. He knew he’d need the caffeine although he slept
pretty well last night.

He couldn’t believe his dad was going to
let him do this. But then again, his dad was always devoted to his work; even
before Zac knew about the TEMPUS project and what his dad was really doing, he
watched as his dad worked night and day on it. Zac sometimes felt like he
didn’t exist, and resentment set in.

Now that he knew it was because his dad
was working with
time travel
, it was a little easier for him to
understand. But how could his dad spend so much time working on the machine
without trying to find a way to save his mom? He was starting to accept that
his dad couldn’t alter history. But what if the changes that bled down were
actually for the better? Of course, there was no real way to know the effects,
but deep down, Zac thought that there had to be a way to both save his mom and
still be careful enough that it wouldn’t have a huge effect on altering time.

Then again, maybe his dad
had
tried
to figure it all out already. Maybe that was why he was always working, devoted
to finding a way to make it happen. Maybe Zac would see something his dad had
missed. He could look at it from a different perspective. Even though everyone
said it was impossible, he still had hope.

Zac brimmed with excitement and
anticipation as he sat in the passenger seat of the car. His dad was talking
about all of the different events he wanted to have the team go back and
witness someday if this leap was a success. Maybe once the world was ready, it
would be possible to rewrite the history books, this time with complete
confidence that what was written was based on eyewitnesses and was the complete
truth.

They drove past the school, about half a
mile away from TEMPUS. Zac looked at the marker that was placed next to where
the time capsule was buried. He could see that the dirt was still freshly
disturbed from where they had filled in the hole.

“So Dad,” he said, looking at the marker,
“what did you have me put in the time capsule? What was in the envelope?”

His dad didn’t answer, but shifted in his
seat uncomfortably.

“Was it about time travel?
About the machine?”
Zac asked.

“Not exactly.
It’s hard to explain. It’s just something I wrote for the people who open it
two hundred years from now. They won’t need the plans for TEMPUS; their
technology will be so much more advanced than our own by then. Think about how
far we’ve come in the past two centuries.”

“Then what could possibly be so important
that you had me put in the time capsule?”

The car turned into the parking lot of the
office building where the TEMPUS headquarters were housed. “I just wrote about
the most important discovery I’ve made through my work. Something I want to be
remembered for.”

The pentagon was
glowing
a vibrant blue when Zac descended the hallway with his dad. Emilee and Bryce
were standing next to it, waiting. In their hands they each held a Wand.

“You ready for this?” Bryce asked, handing
Zac his Wand.

“Yeah, I think so,” Zac answered.
“You?”

Bryce waved it off.
“Piece
of cake.
It’s just an in and out time leap. Chen is going to get us as
close to the estimated time of the crash as possible.” He began walking down
the hallway to the control area where Chen stood, typing furiously at the
computer.
“Everything going okay?”

“Yep,” Chen said, eyes fixed on the
screen. “I’ve tried to calculate the best time to have the wormhole open up for
you, but of course, it could be a bit off.”

Emilee came around the corner and walked
over to the computer. “Let me check it for a second.” She scanned the screen
full of parameters, letters and numbers that Zac couldn’t make sense of.

“How do you understand all of that?” Zac
asked. “It looks like nonsense to me.”

“It’s easy for me,” Emilee said, “because
I helped design the program.” She finished entering some data into the computer
and stepped back, giving the screen one last look. “Your dad took care of the
scientific stuff and I wrote the program that operates it.”

“Uh, hello?”
Bryce said, pointing to himself.

“Okay,” Emilee said, smiling slightly,
“Bryce helped a little. So we pretty much know how it all works.” She pointed
to the screen. “I just made sure that the program would be able to direct the
wormhole to open up in an area of calm weather if the lightning storm was
happening. It might deposit us a bit farther away, but hopefully not too much.
It’s just a safety precaution.” She walked back toward the platform.

Bryce and Zac followed. “Wait—what happens
if lightning hits the wormhole?” Zac asked.

“Shouldn’t be an issue,” Bryce told him.
“It should work just like normal. In theory, lightning would just discharge
energy into the wormhole, which requires a lot of energy anyway.”

“So it’s ready?” Zac asked.

“You’re good to go,” Chen said. “The Wands
are powered up and ready. I’ll be here to monitor the machine. Just keep an eye
on the Wands’ indicator lights. I don’t know how close to the time of the crash
it will place you, so if you’re waiting a while, it might be better to come
back so your Wands don’t run out of power.”

“Thanks,” Bryce said. They approached the
platform and the glass doors opened. Emilee stepped into the chamber first,
followed by Bryce and Zac.

Zac’s dad stood watching, his arms
crossed. He rose up and down on the balls of his feet in nervousness. Zac could
see the concern in his eyes, but it was mixed with excitement and anticipation.
Zac nodded to him, an understanding that things would be fine.

The sound of hurried footsteps echoed from
the hallway. Before the door was able to close, Rock came bounding into the
room.

“Whoa, whoa!
I’m
not going to let you guys do this without me!” He reached over for his Wand in
the case on the wall, pushing past Zac’s dad.
“Sorry, Doc.
I didn’t get your message until just a few minutes ago.” He yelled around the
corner.
“Hey, Chen!
Hold up a second!” He stepped into
the chamber between Emilee and Zac. “Okay, ready!”

The door closed, and a loud humming began
to vibrate through the concrete room. Zac had gotten used to it, but the
reverberations still sounded like a jackhammer in his ears. The blue light
beneath his feet grew brighter, and he could almost feel the shaking sensation
beginning.

“On three,” Bryce said, raising the Wand.
The others followed suit.

Zac gripped his tightly.

“One… two… thr—,”

Zac pressed hard, and he felt like his
body was being tossed around. It was almost like being in a roller coaster ride
full of twists and turns, thrashing his body back and forth. His head felt like
it was being slammed against the headrest, and it felt like his breath was
being sucked from his lungs. His chest felt a crushing weight on it, and then
he felt a sharp pain in his back.

The movement stopped, and he opened his
eyes. An eerie silence engulfed him as he gazed at the night sky. It looked as
if the stars above him were rotating, and he sat up, still dizzy. He closed his
eyes and steadied himself.

Zac stood up. “Hello?” he said out loud.
“Bryce?” He turned around, looking for the rest of the team. It was so dark out
that he could barely see a thing. The only light came from the moon and
whatever reflected its light. His eyes adjusted to the dim light, and he could
slowly make out the shape of the land, flat in the distance as far as he could
see. To one side, it looked like a forest, the trees reaching up toward the sky.

“Zac?”
It was
Emilee. “Where are you?” He could hear her footsteps coming closer.

“Over here.” Zac moved toward her voice,
and they met. “Where are Bryce and Rock?”

“I don’t know. Usually when we leap
together, we all land in the same spot. For some reason, we’re farther away
than usual.”

Zac scanned the horizon. Now he was
starting to see more, the moon’s light bathing everything in a wash of whites
and grays. It almost looked like the wormhole had dumped them off into an old
black and white movie.

“There!” she said, pointing. In the
distance, Zac could make out two dark silhouettes coming toward them. “Good,
they made it.” She started walking toward the shapes, and Zac followed.

“That was wild,” Rock said as they got
closer. “You guys okay?”

“Yeah,” Zac said. “My back hurts. I think
I landed on a rock or something.”

“At least we avoided the lightning storm,”
Bryce said.
“Any idea where we are?”

The team looked around, unfamiliar with
their surroundings.

“Maybe landing in the middle of nowhere
wasn’t such a great idea after all,” Zac said.

“It’ll be fine,” Bryce said. “We just need
to watch the skies for the lightning storm. If we see something strange, we
might be able to determine if it’s the crash or not.”

“So what do you want to do, Bryce? You’re
the unofficial leader,” Rock said.

Bryce surveyed the area. “I think we
should try to find a high point that we can watch from and use as shelter
during the storm.”

“Sounds good to me,” Rock said. “See
anything?”

Bryce shook his head. “No. Looks like a
forest or something that way,” he said, pointing at the growth of trees. “I say
we head in the other direction a bit. It looks like the land rises up into a
rocky outcropping that way. Maybe there’s something over there.”

They agreed and started walking. The night
was quiet except for the noise of the insects and a few other animals calling
to each other. Even though Zac was familiar with the sounds, something seemed
different. He couldn’t quite place his finger on it. Nervously, he looked
around.

He glanced up to see the moon. The sky was
so much clearer out here, and even with the cloud cover, the moon and the stars
were so much more vibrant. In the city, it was easy to forget that so many
celestial bodies filled the night sky.

As he looked, a dark shape like a massive
shadow flew past the moon, temporarily blocking its light.

“What was that?” Emilee asked.

“I don’t know,” Bryce said.
“Probably some kind of bird.
A hawk or
something.”

“That didn’t look like any hawk I’ve ever
seen,” Rock said. “It was big.”

They could see the rocks about five
hundred feet ahead of them. The top surface looked flat enough that they could
rest on it and watch, and there seemed to be another thin rock jutting out at
an angle just to the right of it.
Perfect to use as shelter
if they needed it.

Zac looked back toward the tree line in
the distance. He could see tiny glowing spots, yellow and reflective. Some kind
of animal was watching them. And it looked like there was more than one.

“You guys see that back there?” Zac asked.
Everyone stopped and turned. “What do you think that is?”

Bryce took a step closer.
“Some animals, probably.
It’s hard to tell from this far
away.
Just a group of them.”

“Yeah, I guess,” Zac said. “It’s just
creepy. It’s like they’re watching us.”

“I wouldn’t worry about it,” Bryce said.
“There are lots of animals on a huge ranch like this one.”

"As long as they’re not wolves,” Rock
said. “Aren’t they on ranches, too?”

“Those look too big to be wolves,” Zac
said. “Look.” The shapes were stirring as if they were moving, the eyes looking
back and forth among themselves. Zac stared, trying to get a better look at the
shapes. “It looks like they’re on two legs. Look how they’re moving.”