This is an awesome update Cheezey! I like your explanation for the wastelands and that you made it sound so plausible. It made me recall one of my favourite episodes of Stargate SG1.
I also totally agree that intellectual property laws fail to adequately remunerate the inventors when they work in a lab. Once again, I am in awe of your imagination.
Thank you! I will probably lose some geek credibility here, but Stargate is one of those series I never watched, so I'm not familiar with the episode you're talking about. But thank you for the compliment!
Awesome updates. I like your concept on Oasis landing's wasteland and the tattoo bug. Waiting to see the couple's adventure in the future.
Thanks! They're there now.
Amazing double-update! I appreciate how you made us feel that we too were there with Boyd, experiencing it all for the first time!
Thank you! That was the feel I was going for, so I'm glad I was successful!
I laughed so much at this: "long miserable future history lesson"... And if I'm think of the same SG1 episode Magz is thinking of then, yeah, this really did remind me a bit of it.
Geeks unite! That should be our new rallying call for this story! I love all the science and Trekkie and techie references. I also like Cycl0n3's "this is where horror movie teenagers go to die" crack lol you're just filling this with so many pop culture references and interesting Sim concepts, that I can't wait to see where the rest of this story takes us! I don't think it could ever get dull... Well, unless you purposely TRIED to make it so lol but, I think you're inner geek just wouldn't let you do that ;-D
Thanks for all of your kind compliments! I'm glad you're enjoying the story. I have fun with all the references and it makes me happy that readers are getting a kick out of them.
Chapter 29
Boyd came through the portal first, and he reached for Susan’s hand to keep her from stumbling on entry like he had. “Got to watch that first step.”
“I see what you mean.” Susan blinked to recover from the bright light inside the portal. She took a step forward and looked around, taking in the sight of Oasis Landing for the first time. “So this is the future…”
“354 years from now,” Boyd said. “Pretty amazing, huh?”
“It’s not how I would’ve imagined it. I see what you mean about the landscape. It doesn’t look like Sunset Valley.”
“According to Emit, where we are used to be the park.”
Susan scanned the skyline from the high vantage point. She saw the futuristic buildings, the trees, the mountains, and the wasteland in the distance. “So that’s where the alien ship crashed. The wasteland.”
“Yup. And soon, we’re going to go see it, and be the first of anyone, even here, to look inside that ship.”
“Incredible!” She was brimming with excitement. “Let’s go find Emit.”
A few minutes later, they found him in the community center. “Well, look who made it!”
“I’m here!” Susan couldn’t keep the enthusiasm out of her voice. “I just want to say again what an honor it is to be here. This is such an amazing opportunity. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. It’s an honor having you two help me! I assume Boyd told you about the ship, and the wasteland?”
Susan nodded. “He told me everything. Including the part about the anti-radiation tattoo.”
“An anti-radiation tattoo that has your life-sustaining compound in it, that’ll add years to your life as a bonus.” Emit grinned. “Don’t forget that part.”
She chuckled. “No. Definitely not.”
“Well, since you’re here, I’ll contact the medical spa and let them know you’re coming. Boyd, go ahead and give her the tour and take her there. Help yourself to another jet pack and windcarver for Susan. I can have them replaced. Oh, and I took the liberty of having a fashion plumbot send some clothes to your room here.” He turned to Susan. “There should be plenty to pick from, if you want to try a new Oasis Landing look before you head out.”
Susan looked through what was available and found some things in colors she liked and that fit. In a way, it was not that different from what she normally wore, aside from the different type of fabric and the cuts of it. The shoes were a little odd, but more comfortable than they looked. “I don’t know.” She looked over her new attire. “I like it, but…”
“I think you look sexy,” Boyd said flirtatiously.
She giggled. “Flatterer. Tell me more.”
They found Susan a jet pack, and Boyd took her to the rooftop to show her how to use it. She was a little more cautious than he had been, but she figured it out quickly enough. Soon they were laughing and zipping around together in the sky above the community center. “This is ridiculously fun!” She and Boyd grabbed each other’s hand in mid-air, and spun around.
Her first landing wasn’t quite as rough as his had been, but it wasn’t smooth, either. She landed on her rump hard, and brushed herself off, wincing. “You weren’t kidding about the sensitive deceleration.”
“The windcarver’s a little more forgiving. Come on, I’ll show you how to use it.”
“I still can’t believe I rode a jet pack, and now I’m going to ride a hover board.” She stepped on it and got her balance. “Oh, wow. So cool!” Susan tested the movements, learning back and forth, and how to turn. Once she got more confident, she picked up speed. “Whoo! Why didn’t they invent this in our lifetimes? If we had these at home, I might occasionally do some outdoor activity other than weeding the garden.”
Boyd laughed. “Then Blair could stop nagging us about our sedentary lifestyles. ‘Dad, you know you’d feel better if you got some exercise once in a while.’ Heh. Matter of opinion.”
“I know. ‘Mom, a little cardio would be good for you! Want to come work out with me?’ Ugh, all that gym time for the SVPD has gone to her head. She means well, though.” Susan disembarked from the windcarver.
“Yeah. I guess it’s payback for all the lectures we gave her growing up.”
“We didn’t lecture. We shared valuable wisdom,” Susan said with a wry smile.
Once Susan learned how to use the new transportation methods, she and Boyd headed to the medical spa so she could get her treatment. She gave it some thought, and decided to get the same design Boyd did, in the same spot. Not just because they were a couple that tended to do things together, but also because the LI-WX923 was their joint project, and it felt appropriate.
Boyd admired the newly inked design on Susan’s arm when she came out. “Looking good!”
“Thanks. I’m still not sure what I think about it. I never thought I’d get a tattoo. It’s not my thing. I guess I’ll get used to it. It’s a neat design, at least.”
“And we match. That’s kind of cool.”
“Tell me if you still agree when our friends back home mock us mercilessly for it.”
“Who? Jack? He’s got no room to talk. Remember his story about the time he was partying with army buddies and came home with a freezer bunny tattoo he didn’t remember getting?”
Susan nodded. “True. He never did show us that tattoo. Did he say where he got it?”
“No, come to think of it.” Boyd smirked. “Wonder where it is?”
She snickered. “We probably don’t want to know.”
When her treatment was done, Susan was hungry, just like Boyd had been. The body’s metabolic processes temporarily kicked into high gear while adjusting to the infusion of LI-WX923. Boyd showed her to Sam’s Synth’d Staples to grab a bite to eat. That time, they sat at the self-serve area, so they could watch the food synthesizing process. Susan was amazed. “I spent all this time learning to cook, and then they invent this.” She took a bite. “It’s good, too.”
“I’m sure there are still those who do it the old-fashioned way. This is probably just the equivalent of future fast food. Sure, it’s good, but nobody goes to McSims if they want gourmet.”
“This is
much better than McSims.” Susan tasted the sauce. “Although if you want to vary your spices outside of simple option swaps, you probably have to do some programming in the settings. Adding new recipes would mean someone has to come up with them to begin with. I’m not sure how you’d try an experiment on it without using pre-existing recipes.” She relaxed. “You’re right. The Emmas of the world would never be satisfied with something like this. They might use it for some things, but nothing will completely replace the art.” She sipped her synthesized drink. “That said, I’d still love to have one.”
“We’ll have to ask Emit if we can sneak one through the portal,” Boyd replied, only half joking.
After they ate, the Wainwrights decided to check out the crash site. It was already evening by the time they got out to the wasteland, but they were too excited to wait until the next day. At the very least, they wanted to see if Emit’s contraption unlocked the sealed door.
“It’s hard to believe we’re going to be the first to step inside this thing,” Susan mused. “Not just the first from our time, but this one, too.”
“I know. It’s humbling, and cool. I can only imagine what might be in there.”
“Probably nothing living, at least not after a hundred years crashed out here after an explosion.”
“Not unless they have really good stasis pods, and a century’s worth of life support in there,” Boyd agreed.
“Only one way to find out. Let’s try that key.”
Taking a deep breath, Boyd took out Emit’s assembled fragments, and inserted them into the door. It clicked into place, and he gave it a twist. There was a spark, and then a metallic creak as the door began to move on its own.
“It’s working!” They exchanged enthusiastic looks before returning their attention to the alien door, which whirred and hummed as an old mechanism inside of it came to life. The previously sealed panels retracted, revealing an open doorway for them to pass through.
“Oh, my Watcher.” Boyd gasped while Susan took his hand, just as transfixed on the sight. Beyond the door was a shiny metal floor and metal walls. It dim and hard to make out, but strangely, there was a little bit of light inside to see more than the ambient light should have allowed. “You want to go in? Let’s go in.”
“At least a few steps,” Susan agreed. “Then we have to tell Emit.”
When they stepped inside, a light came on above them. “Motion sensor?” Susan wondered aloud.
Both of them went still, listening for any sign of life in the derelict craft. All they could hear was the dead breeze of the wasteland outside, and an ever so slight hum from whatever machinery was still working. “Must be.” Boyd contacted Emit. “It worked! It opened the doors. We’re standing inside now.”
“Excellent!” Emit was as enthusiastic as they were. “I take it there’s nothing still alive?”
“No. I don’t think so. For that matter, we don’t even see anything dead here. Maybe this was just a storage compartment, or the crew was in a part of the ship that blew up.”
“Well, if you think you can do it safely, go on and explore. Take pictures and bring back anything interesting that you find. Just be careful.”
“We will. Thanks.” Boyd ended the call and grinned at Susan. “You heard him. Let’s explore an alien ship!”
The chamber they entered was small, and there little of interest other than a stairwell inside it. “I wonder if this was some kind of escape hatch?” guessed Susan. “Maybe whoever was in this part when it went down got out.”
“Only to die out there?” Boyd mused. “Not sure which would be worse.”
Another internal light came on as they descended the stairs and entered that chamber. It was larger, and had doors leading down other halls. Some of the alien equipment remained, although little of it seemed functional. It was impossible to tell what any of it did, but it fascinated the Wainwrights nonetheless. They tried the occasional switch or lever, but nothing other than the lights seemed to do anything. The air inside was stale, although it was breathable enough to get around in.
Down the first hall, they found another chamber that ended in a room with a pedestal. Upon it was a strange glowing pyramid. “Whoa! This is really making me wonder about all those Illsiminati stories…” Boyd picked it up.
“What do you think it does?” Susan examined it with him.
“I have no idea. It’s not attached to anything, but it looks like it interfaces with something. Maybe Emit’s seen something like it before.” They looked around the rest of the room. Aside from a few panels that were non-functional, there was nothing else they could identify or take with them, so they moved on.
The opposite hall was laid out the same, with defunct consoles, panels, and other machines, as well as some pedestals with items on them. Some appeared to be junk, or were broken. “I think we were right that this part of the ship was storage, or at least not anything terribly important,” said Susan. “I don’t see anything that looks like a bridge or navigational equipment, or science or research station.”
“Nothing that looks like an engineering bay, either, although that probably blew up with the power source. Too bad. Imagine what we could learn from something like that…”
“Hey, what’s this?” Susan went to one of the pedestals, which had something like a tablet or reader on it. When she picked it up, it lit up to look like a book. “Is this alien reading material?”
“Wait, is that in our language?”
Susan nodded, equally puzzled. “Yes.”
Boyd looked more closely. “I saw other books like this when I first came to Oasis Landing. It’s a way they make books here, a weird mix of an e-reader and a traditional book. Emit said there was a big nostalgia trend for old-style books like 150 years back, people reminiscing about the good old days of holding a book and reading in a study or library with bookshelves. Almost like how it used to be a status symbol centuries before our time, when books were a luxury for the educated and wealthy. People wanted to build and show off libraries again, but without the paper media. That doesn’t explain why it’s on an alien ship, though.” He shuddered. “Unless it was a trophy taken from some poor sap they abducted.”
“The title is
Hard Copy of the Internet, Volume 882.” Susan smirked. “I wonder how many cat pictures it has.”
They picked up the book, and looked around some more before moving on. The final room was different from the others. It was large, much more open, and had a dark reddish glow to it from the wall panel that blazed to life with a holographic image when they entered. It depicted an erupting volcano in a barren mountainous landscape. Streams of lava ran over the rocky terrain while a night sky filled the background.
“Wow. Where was that taken? Do you think it could be Sixam?”
“I don’t know.” Susan was as transfixed on the image as Boyd. “It’s beautiful, in an unsettling way.”
They checked out the rest of the room, but there was not much else in there, other than a chair facing the screen. “What do you think this is?” Boyd asked as he sat in it to test it out. “It’s not the bridge, but it makes me think it’s got some kind of status or significance.”
“Maybe personal quarters for someone?” Susan looked around. “Though there’s not much else in here that makes me think ‘bedroom.’ No furniture or anything resembling personal items, if the aliens are like us. There doesn’t even seem to be much equipment. No extra consoles or panels or anything.”
“That wouldn’t make a bad movie screen. Maybe it was like a theater, or they took communications or calls on screen in here?”
“And that’s their screen saver or something?”
“Maybe.” Boyd shrugged. “Whatever it is, it’s fascinating.”
“Yes.” Susan took some pictures. “I wonder what Emit will think.”
“I’m looking forward to hearing that, too.”
Unfortunately, there was nothing more in the ship to explore. They had to assume that the rest of the ship had been destroyed, and the part they were in only survived because it had been blown away from the rest of it. The way it was sealed off made them wonder if it had been jettisoned prior to the crash, and that was why it was partially buried underground before the explosion. It fit in with their theory that it was used primarily as storage, perhaps expendable storage that could be removed in a crisis.
It had gotten late, and since there was nothing else to see, Boyd and Susan returned to the community center. Emit was already asleep by the time they returned, so filling him in would have to wait until morning. They went to their room.
“Too bad we missed Emit, but I’m a little sleepy anyway. It was night when you came back for me, and I didn’t get to sleep through another whole day here. I should be dead on my feet. That treatment must’ve given me an energy boost.” Susan looked at the dream pod. “I’m looking forward to trying that, though.”
“It’s an experience. It has a dual setting on it. We can either program separate dreams, or try dreaming together, if you want.”
“We can dream together? That sounds intriguing.” She leaned toward him flirtatiously. “What kind of dream did you have in mind?”
“Anything that looks fun.” Boyd put his arms around Susan and caressed her back. “Maybe we should lie down and come up with a little inspiration together. You and me, here alone in a fantastic future full of new things to try out…”
She nuzzled against him and whispered in his ear. “Like other things on that pod, perhaps?”
“Absolutely.” They kissed, got into the pod together, and closed the cover. They did not come out until morning.
First thing the next day, Susan and Boyd caught up with Emit and told him about their exploration of the ship. He was excited, and studied their pictures and listened to their accounts with great interest. He agreed that the room with the screen was likely used for communication, but said not enough was known about Sixam technology to say for certain whether or not what they were in was a detachable pod. He did not recognize the odd pyramid device they brought back, but it reminded him of dream pod technology. The book, he agreed, was definitely taken from Earth at some point.
“Thank you both for going out there and doing this. I’m going to pass all of your findings to Mercury Stellar Observatory. Now they might even assemble a team to go out there and do more in-depth study now that someone else took on the risk of opening it.”
“Was that the timeline help you needed from us here?” asked Boyd.
“We were wondering how us exploring that ship for you figures into the timeline,” Susan added. “Is it because there was something we needed to see or do that’ll affect what we do when we go back?”
Emit nodded. “More or less. Obviously, the crash and subsequent explosion of that ship was a major event that shaped the timeline. Sadly, it’s not one that can be changed. One of the first projects I took on was seeing if I could create a future where that didn’t happen. Unfortunately, it’s such a major event with so much else tied to it, that it can’t be reversed, or at the very least, it shouldn’t. Every option where it doesn’t happen is worse, believe it or not.”
“Worse than that? Wow.” Boyd could only imagine what that entailed.
“Think interplanetary war. All of us nearly extinct, all over the world, after massive alien strikes on population centers. Letting this happen was the least terrible outcome. The devastation of the explosion woke us up to what could happen if we antagonized Sixam. If they had technology capable of doing that, what would their actual weapons do to us if they chose to use them?” Emit explained. “It made everyone understand that we had to at least try and get along with Sixam. And the truth is, they’re as diverse a people as we are. There are good ones, and bad ones. Our people were just as angry at the ones responsible for shooting that ship as they were at the aliens. It sparked a crisis, and the governments of our world appealed to Sixam’s representatives, envoys here who genuinely cared for the people of Earth. Those alien diplomats are the ones who convinced the rulers of Sixam not to retaliate.”
“Good won out over evil? That’s a little uplifting, actually,” said Susan.
“It’s a delicate peace, and it’s uneasy. All it’ll take is another loose cannon to lash out and ruin it.” A dark look crossed Emit’s features. “The more time that passes, the more people forget. And it’s hard to get past centuries of ingrained anger and fear, especially when there are still reports of secret abductions and experiments that Sixam disavows.”
Boyd nodded. “Especially if there’s any truth to the rumors.”
“So, what are my options, then, if I can’t change that point in time? Change perspective of Sixam and its people. Starting back in the early days when we first learned about them, before their existence was even known by everyone.”
Boyd and Susan exchanged looks. “You mean through us.”
“Yes. I think if there were early accounts of good relations with the people of Sixam, something that’d let historians see that they’re not so different from us, we might reach a point where fewer of us hate them enough to just as soon see them all dead.” Emit eyed them each in turn. “The two of you could do that. Landgraab Industries, in your time, at the higher levels, has scientists who’ve analyzed and studied alien phenomena. It’s all top secret, of course. There’s cooperation with the military, and all of that’s strictly classified. But you two will rise through the ranks. You did. And I have no doubt that the future versions of you saw some of it. There’s no direct record, but then, remember who helped build the weapon that shot that ship down.”
“But if we don’t control Landgraab Industries, I’m not sure how we could stop them from hiding or covering up anything we say or do there. Even if we quit our jobs and went public, we’d either be ignored, written off as crackpots, or maybe even have an untimely ‘accident’ to shut us up,” Boyd pointed out.
“What if we could control Landgraab Industries, though?” asked Susan. “If we were the ones in charge…”
“We’d have to buy them out and clean house. Which a part of me would love to do.” Boyd thought about past boneheaded decisions the higher-ups at their workplace had made. “But the amount of money we’d need for that? We’d have to win the lottery or something.”
Emit smirked. “It just so happens that we have lottery records for hundreds of years on file in city hall. Did you know that?”
They stared at him in shock. “Wait, are you telling us to check lottery records so we can go back and win it ourselves?” Susan gave him an incredulous look. “How is
that not breaking the timeline?”
Emit raised an eyebrow. “I’m not telling you to do anything. Just sharing a bit of trivia. How do you know you never won the lottery?”
“Are you saying if we check the records, it’ll show us as winners?”
“I’m simply saying that if you were to come into a large sum of money, it won’t change the overall timeline in a way that I’d be concerned about.”
Boyd gave Emit a curious look. “Is this what you meant when you told me you were going to fix some things for the two of us as thanks for helping you?”
Emit put a hand on each of their shoulders. “You’re welcome. Now, go on out and have some fun while you’re still here in Oasis Landing. Catch a bot competition or a planetarium show. Go visit your descendants. You must be looking forward to that, right, Susan?”
“Oh, yes! Definitely. But I have a question. If Donovan and Benjamin are from Patrick’s line, what about Blair? She has a son. Don’t they have descendants?”
“Yes. Her line continued.”
Susan and Boyd exchanged hopeful looks. “Where are they?” she asked. “Can we meet them, too?”
“That would be complicated,” Emit replied.
“Why?” asked Boyd. “Are they still alive? Or did they die in the wasteland explosion?”
Emit’s brow furrowed as he considered his answer. “No. Not all of them. But I can’t go into it with you right now. Just trust me when I say your daughter left a legacy to be proud of. She was well-remembered by her future generations.” He checked the time and changed the subject. “On that note, I have a call to make to the Mercury Stellar Observatory. You two go out and enjoy yourselves today, and tonight we’ll send you back home. Thanks again for all your help, and I’ll see you tonight.”
Although his answer about Blair’s descendants left Boyd and Susan with more questions than answers, they supposed that Emit had his reasons for not telling them. “Maybe it’s something that if we knew, it’d make us react in some way that would harm the timeline,” Susan theorized as they strolled through Legacy Park on their way to city hall. The plaza had several statues in it that honored important figures in Oasis Landing’s history.
“Imagine being important enough to have one of these.” Susan admired the one in front of them. “‘The Renowned Philanthropist. His generosity was the key to building a better future.’”
“Theoretically, that could be one of us. If we won enough in that lottery, we’d have money to donate to building a better future.”
Susan studied the statue’s face. “Think I’d look good immortalized in a statue?”
“I know you would. Being remembered as a generous genius visionary that was ahead of her time? Suits you perfectly.”
“What about you?”
“Oh, I’d love to be remembered that way, too. But it’d also be cool to be known for something like this.” They stopped in front of another statue. ‘The Pioneer of Plumbotics,’ who created the first sentient plumbot.”
“You, who said that one day he’d see cybernetics become a reality if he had anything to say about it? Shocking,” Susan teased. “It would be something if one day we both had statues here.”
“Emit never said we couldn’t.” Another statue caught Boyd’s eye. “And we’d be in good company. Look at this one.”
It was a proud likeness of Emit Relevart himself, with a placard that honored him as “The Time Keeper.”
After they finished admiring the statues, they went to city hall. “I feel like I’m exploiting a game mechanic to get rich,” Boyd said with a mischievous gleam in his eyes.
“Luckily for us, you’ve always said that kind of thing isn’t technically cheating.”
The lottery records were easy to find, but it took some time to go back as far as they had to. Eventually, Susan found a multi-million simoleon jackpot drawing held just a day later than they left for Oasis Landing. “Wow. Look at this!”
“Someone’s going to win that much?” Boyd looked at Susan. “That could be us.”
Susan was already copying the numbers. “It’s going to be.”
Gleeful from their trip to city hall, the Wainwrights rode out to the remote part of Oasis Landing where their descendants lived. Susan was excited to finally meet Donovan, Benjamin, and Leilani, and both of them were curious about how they lived. It turned out that their home was older, with mostly antiquated appliances in it. It was a little run down, but it was comfortable, and their descendants seemed happy there. Still, it depressed them, especially Susan, to see their descendants living so humbly. She later whispered to Boyd that she hoped their good fortune when they returned home would mean a better life for their descendants down the line.
Leilani was a musician, and entertained them by playing a futuristic musical instrument called a Laser Rhythm-a-con. It was a mix of a synthesizer and a stringed instrument where the strings were striking beams of laser light. She played it well, and they enjoyed her performance. Susan and Boyd visited with them for the rest of the afternoon while getting to know them better. Before they left, they took pictures to remember them by in their time. “We’re glad we got to meet you,” said Susan.
“It’s been great,” Boyd added.
“I hope you’re proud of us,” Benjamin said, while Donovan gave them each a hug.
“It was such an honor having time travelers from our family’s past come here. We’ll never forget you, and please, thank Emit Relevart for us.”
“We will,” Susan promised.
“Good luck to you,” said Boyd.
“You, too!” Leilani waved to them along with Donovan and Benjamin. Boyd and Susan waved back, and went to the nearest ZEPHYR stop.
The Wainwrights enjoyed dinner out, and then a planetarium show. Not only was it spectacular, but it was educational as well. Afterward, they rode their windcarvers back to the community center to say goodbye to Emit, and Oasis Landing.
“You two have been more help than you can imagine. Thank you for that, and all that you’re going to do,” Emit told them sincerely. “I know it’s been a lot to take in, but I hope it’s been worth it.”
“It’s been amazing,” Susan replied.
“Life changing,” added Boyd.
Susan nodded with him. “Thank you for everything. We won’t waste the opportunities you’ve given us.”
“Neither of us will ever forget what we’ve seen and learned here.”
Emit smiled. “I have no doubt of that. I’ll be in touch either through the almanac or another visit, though I can’t say just when yet. But we’ll see each other again, I’m sure. Good luck to you both.”
“You, too,” said Boyd.
“Take care.”
Emit activated the portal. “The portal’s ready.”
The Wainwrights stepped onto the platform and bid Emit goodbye. They took one final look at the skyline of Oasis Landing, and walked into the light that would take them home.
