The Fabric Of Reality (8 page)

Gil slogged to the Barrier control station and took a seat. He opened the application to power down the system and sat with his finger hovering over the button to shut it off.
Might as well get it over with.

The dot on the display across the room indicating the Transuniversal Locater Beacon pulsed brilliant red. Gil strolled over and took a closer look. The graph on the screen charting the level of energy translating through the Window had peaked at four times the previous average and was holding steady.
You’re still not sending any sort of message, so why have you ramped up your power level so high? Unless—your output hasn’t changed, but I’m receiving all of it. God, we’ve ruptured the Window. If energy can flow through unimpeded, matter can pass as well. I’m getting out of here after all! Oh, Alesia, please be there waiting for me.

Finding the exact spot without a Junction Locater would be nearly impossible. Theoretically, the rupture could be located virtually anywhere, but he had a suspicion that the corridor outside the dorms where the junction points had always been centered was where it would be. If Alesia was still on the other side, she could help him pinpoint the spot. Slipping through would require precise orientation. The rupture, like a Doorway to another Reality, would have no physical dimension. If she could find it from her side, she could show him the way. Both of them searching would increase the odds of finding it.

The most logical thing for her to do after their connection had been severed would be return to the corridor where they had first met. That’s where he would have gone if he hadn’t known what happened. The chances of her still being there were almost nonexistent, but if he had any hope of escaping death and seeing her again, he had to search.

Gil rushed down the corridor to the spot where their Realities had been closest and called her name, but got no answer. He wandered back and forth for a while, calling and contemplating his next move. The heavy bombardment continued to overwhelm the noise-canceling system. Given the battered state of the defenses, any shot could be the one to destroy the Barrier. Something brushed his shoulder, and he spun to see, but nothing was there.

“Alesia?”

It happened again but felt more solid the second time. He stepped slightly toward the place the contact felt the strongest, and Alesia’s face appeared as if looking through a porthole. He extended his hand to touch her, but she was no more solid than vapor.

“Alesia!”

Her lips moved, but no sound reached him from her Reality. He raised his palm and waited. She brought hers to the same spot, but rather than touch their hands merged together occupying the same space at the same time in two different universes. She withdrew her hand, but he shook his head and motioned for her to raise it again. He stepped a little more toward her, trying to find the exact spot of the rupture. They maneuvered slightly around for a moment. Suddenly Alesia intertwined her fingers with his.

“Gil! That’s it. I feel you. Oh, I see your face clearly. You’re not shimmering, and your hand feels real. Is this a Doorway between our Realities?”

“No, it’s—” Gil laughed bitterly. “It’s a slight tear. I thought—oh, God.” He sighed heavily. “I thought we had caused a large rupture. One of my systems gave me reason to believe that’s what had happened. I thought I could come through.”

She gazed curiously at him. “How did we cause this?”

“It happened when you let go of my hand.”

Alesia clasped his hand tightly. “Then I’ll never let go of your hand again.”

“This tear will repair itself soon, but it’s wonderful to be able to touch you for real. I can hear your voice much more clearly as well.”

Alesia stroked his fingers with hers. “Do you mean there is no fabric between us?”

“There is nothing separating us, Alesia.”

“Well, I’ll come through. I’m much smaller than you. I’m sure I can fit, but you’ll have to help me. It’s up too high.”

“It’s too small, Alesia. This tiny hole we’re gazing through is all there is.”

“Will anything bad happen if I let go of your hand?”

“No.”

“Okay. You wait right here, and I’ll run into the forest and find something to stand on. I’m quite limber. I’m sure I can climb through if I can reach it.”

“No, you couldn’t. It’s much too...” Gil let his last word drop. “Is there nothing in the castle for you to stand on?”

“No, the castle is completely empty. It always has been.”

“Ours was initially empty as well. When we installed the black box, all the furnishings and equipment showed up.”

Alesia shook her head, looking totally bewildered. “What black box?”

“It was the only thing left in the castle that wasn’t stone. When it’s disengaged, the inner workings of the castle are hidden in the space between Realities. We thought of it as sort of an antitheft device, but I’m reconsidering that idea.”

“I know of no black box, but surely I can find something to stand on.”

“This tear is closing rapidly. You don’t have time to search for a step stool, and I wouldn’t let you come through if you could. It’s imperative that you install the black box at once. Ours was hidden quite well. I may be the same case with yours. There is a barely noticeable slot inside the control room.”

She glanced down the hall toward the dorms. “Which room is that?”

“Go to the end of this corridor, then up two flights of stairs. It’s the first room on the left. When you enter the door, turn right and go all the way to the corner. It’s the third row of stones from the floor. Look at the first joint from the corner. You should see a slight vertical split. The slot is only the width of your thumb. Depress it at the top and bottom simultaneously, then release it. It should open on its own. Give the black box a push into its slot until it seats firmly. You’ll know when you have it because all sorts of things will appear.”

“Okay, got it. Don’t go anywhere. Oh, wait. Come closer to the tear.”

Gil leaned down slightly, put his face directly beside their clasped hands, and Alesia kissed his lips.

“For good luck,” she said, then disappeared.

Gil stayed as still as possible to make it easier for her to find him when she returned.

A few moments later, her face appeared in front of him. “Oh, there you are. I’ve been looking for a while. It’s difficult to find the exact spot.”

“Yes, the tear is growing smaller.”

“I should have kissed you longer. Perhaps I would have had better luck. I found the slot, but it’s empty. There’s no black box.”

He let his shoulders slump and nodded, unable to keep his disappointment from showing. “Well, I guess all that we can do is wait until the tear closes. And say good-bye.”

Alesia gazed at him with determination in her eyes. “Come on, Gil, there has to be something we can do to make this tear larger. If we do, you could come through to my Reality and live in my village. The elders would gladly welcome a new man.” She grasped at the edges of the tear, but there was nothing to grab hold of.

“If I came to your village with you, would you still have to marry the baron?”

All the joy drained from her face. “I am legally bound to marry him, but there are so many single women, you could easily find one who would happily be your wife.”

“I could never accept that.”

She raised an eyebrow as a devious grin spread across her lips. “We could run away and make a home in the forest, just the two of us. It would be a difficult life. We would have to hunt wild game to survive, like my ancestors who first established our village, but we could do it together.”

“That, I would accept.”

Her face lit up with delight. “You would spend your life in the wilderness with only me?”

“Yes, Alesia, if it were possible, I would.”

She raised her hand and offered it to him. “Hold on tightly, and we’ll walk farther away. Maybe if we let go that will make a larger tear.”

“My device is destroyed. We can’t manipulate this tear without it. If I had the time I could build another one, but the Barrier is failing. I estimate it will last a few more hours at most. Alesia, I want to tell you while I still have time, I wish with all my heart this was only our beginning, not our end. You’re an exceptionally beautiful woman and a wonderful person. I’m sorry we didn’t meet under better circumstances, but I’m glad we met. I wouldn’t trade these few hours we’ve spent together for an entire lifetime where I never met you.”

“So that’s it, you’re giving up?”

“When this tear closes, I want you to run away. Find another village and a good man who will love you. You deserve that, Alesia.”

She shook her head, frowning at him. “There
are
no other villages. The war destroyed everything. Only a handful of humans survived. All that remains of humanity is here. Our ancestors traveled to this location after the war, from all over the world. For hundreds of years this was the only place on Earth capable of sustaining life. There are only thirty thousand of us now. Some biological agent left over from the war caused a Great Epidemic. We lost so many that our numbers have never recovered. Every year fewer and fewer male babies are born. The village elders say that if the trend continues, we’ll reach a point where everyone will be too closely related to sustain a viable population. That’s why the rich old men cast aside their wives who have only given them daughters and purchase the debts of orphan girls. They’re hoping to find one who will produce sons.”

“Alesia, the male determines the gender of his offspring, not the female. If the women of your village are not having sons, it’s most likely because the men have some problem related to producing the Y chromosome. This epidemic you spoke of could have played a role.”

“Vast sums of ancient knowledge have been lost. There may have been a way to treat this condition at one time, but not anymore. The general consensus in my village is, a war that ended nine centuries ago destroyed the human race. It’s just taking a while for us all to die out.”

“Humanity is brilliant at destroying things. The government of my Earth wanted to destroy this junction point because of its technological nature. They feared it was created to facilitate an invasion by some highly advanced group. When the intellectual community protested, the government used it as an excuse to begin systematically exterminating scientists, engineers, and academics. All of us who were able retreated here and erected the protective Barrier Sphere in hopes of surviving long enough to find a way to escape. The human race has no need to fear enemies from outside. The ones we should fear are already here: ourselves.”

Alesia stared off into space for a moment, then returned her gaze to his. “Gil, what exactly does this black box look like?”

“It fits snugly in the slot, so it’s roughly the size of your flattened hand, rectangular, smooth, and perfectly black.”

Her eyes widened, suddenly alive with excitement. “I’ve seen something like that. It sits in a display on top of a high shelf in the Council of Elders meeting hall. No one knows what it is. The village elders knew centuries ago, but the information was lost during the epidemic. Some believe it’s technology left over from the war, so no one bothers it. They’re afraid of it.”

“If you can get it quickly and insert it into the slot, we may be able to leave our worlds and meet somewhere together. You say your people are dying out. This may be their salvation as well. I’ve been considering that the three castles work together to form this junction for the purpose of traveling between worlds. Something caused the black boxes in mine and yours to become dislodged, preventing the whole system from working properly. If we get all three of them operating again, everyone may be able to walk through to somewhere better. It all makes sense.”

“Will your Barrier survive long enough to let everyone pass through?”

“This castle has been here unchanged since the beginning of recorded history. I can only assume is has some built in defense mechanism that stopped functioning. Perhaps when your black box is installed, the system will be reinitialized. It an extremely long shot, but it’s the only one we have.”

“What about the other castle?”

“I have reason to believe it’s still operational and may be occupied. We had a brief period during initial equipment tests that suggested someone lived at the second site, but we were never able to make contact with them. Some of my colleagues speculated that we were somehow blocked from contacting the inhabitants of that Reality. If we are going to try this, we must hurry.”

“Gil, my village is a full day’s walk from here, one way. It has a perimeter wall all the way around to keep forest predators out. I have no way to get back inside. Even if I could, the baron would have me arrested.”

“It’s not likely that the Barrier Sphere will last for two more days. I suppose we should enjoy what time we have left together and accept our fate.”

Alesia hardened her gaze. “No. I’ll make my own fate. I won’t accept that all this has been for nothing. I was drawn here for a reason. I believed that I would find my salvation here, but maybe I’m here to save you, Gil. Can a woman be a hero?”

“You’ve already saved me, Alesia. You saved me from spending the end of my life alone. That means more to me than I can express. Stay here with me as long as this tear remains. You can’t refuse a man his dying request.”

“You’re not dying. I won’t allow it, do you understand?”

“I don’t want you to put yourself at further risk attempting an impossible task.”

“I never said it was impossible, just—okay, maybe it’s impossible, but I can’t let that keep me from trying.”

Gil opened his mouth to speak, but she held up her hand for him to stop.

“Shut up. Just shut up and do as I say. First, you’re not allowed to give up. Second, I need something I can leave in place of the black box so no one will realize I have taken it and come searching for me.”

Gil gathered his hair into a ponytail for a moment, while racking his brain. With all the leftover bits of electronic systems lying around, there had to be something that resembled the black box. He let his hair fall free and snapped his fingers. “I have an empty instrument case that’s very similar. If no one examines too closely, it should pass for the black box. Wait here. I’ll be back in a moment.”