Eli Arnold and the Keys to Forever Book One: It's About Time Read online

CHAPTER TWO

  Day 27, Eighth Lunar Cycle, 25,000 B.C.

  Jensen attached the main power cable to the junction box. A bright blue arc of electricity signaled that the circuit was complete. The overhead lights in the lab dimmed briefly then returned to full strength. Jensen removed his protective glasses and checked the connection. The shield around the laboratory was now fully functional. He could complete his work. I have to, he thought.

  Three days had passed since the council had ordered all time travel to stop and the technology allowing it to be dismantled. Jensen had been working around the clock since that time. His eyes burned from lack of sleep.

  “The council can’t be serious,” Tevlok complained. “Are we really shutting down the Window, Dr. Jensen? What good will that do?”

  “Difficult times call for difficult decisions,” Jensen replied. “Always remember that, old friend.”

  Jensen knew difficult times did, in fact, loom on the horizon. The council’s decision had not been a popular one. Already, rumors of plots to overthrow the ruling body were being whispered about on the streets. Some said the council had already been infiltrated by members of a dark group bent on world domination. Jensen had some hard choices to make. His assistant was right. Simply shutting down the Window would not be enough to end the potential threats the project presented.

  Destruction of the machine was also not a viable option. Jensen had run the numbers. The resulting release of energy would be devastating. He needed a better plan. After days of performing calculations and reviewing simulations, he had one. But he needed Tevlok’s help if he hoped to succeed.

  A final inspection of the junction box revealed no problems. Jensen replaced the panel and rose to his feet. With the shield now in place, he approached his assistant and explained his theory, hoping to enlist his aide. Tevlok listened intently. When Jensen finished, the lab became ghostly silent. Tevlok sat motionlessly for several long minutes. His brow furrowed in concentration as he considered his mentor’s proposal.

  “Your plan leaves much to chance, doctor,” he finally said. “How can you be sure this boy is the answer?”

  “Even with a time machine, we cannot accurately predict the future,” Jensen replied. “So many things act to influence what may happen. The variables are too numerous to count.” He paused, considering his words. “I cannot be absolutely sure this boy is the answer, Tevlok, but I honestly believe that he is the best chance we have.”

  Tevlok again quietly considered the doctor’s theory. “Why?” he asked, looking Jensen directly in the eye.

  “Such a simple question, but a scientist’s favorite,” Jensen replied. “Why?” He smiled. He knew Tevlok well enough to know that his answer would determine his assistant’s decision.

  “I have run thousands of simulations based on the data we have received from the probes we sent throughout time.”

  Tevlok nodded affirmatively. Jensen could tell he was already on board.

  “This boy is special,” the doctor continued.

  “How so?”

  “First, he is a direct descendant of our people. The odds of finding a pure blood line that far into the future are staggeringly low. In fact, it is almost impossible. Along with being extremely susceptible to alien abductions, the boy will also have the ability to activate the stones.”

  Jensen grabbed a computation tablet from his workbench and punched in his passcode. “Look at these figures,” he said, showing the tablet to Tevlok. “This boy has the greatest chance, by far, of reuniting the stones and ensuring that they don’t fall into the wrong hands.”

  Tevlok scanned the data quickly. “Thirty percent!” he exclaimed. “The probability of success is only thirty percent?” Doubt and dismay spread across the assistant’s face. Jensen could tell he was losing his friend’s confidence.

  “Thirty percent if we leave everything to chance,” Jensen explained. “However, I believe I have pinpointed several key events that we can use to better our probability of success. If we can start the boy on the path, I know he’ll make it to the end.”

  Jensen went on to explain his proposal. He answered Tevlok’s questions referring often to the massive amounts of data he had collected.

  “I have two concerns,” Tevlok finally announced. “First, if the council discovers what we are doing, by law, we would have to be banished to the mainland.”

  Jensen had considered that risk. The situation, however, warranted this course of action. He remained convinced that this was their only realistic option.

  “One of the reasons I erected the shield around the lab,” he explained. “Even if our activities were discovered, no one would be able to stop us.”

  Tevlok looked unconvinced.

  “We have to do this, Tevlok. Hard times are coming, old friend. The council’s support grows weaker and weaker every day. The people no longer have any confidence in the ruling body. I suspect that the mainland might not be such a bad place to be in the near future.”

  Tevlok nodded in understanding. “You have never led me wrong, Dr. Jensen. I trust you and, of course, will help you.” He stood and offered his hand. “For our people,” he said. The two men shook.

  “For our people,” Jensen replied. He forced a smile.

  “When do we start?” Tevlok asked.

  “No time like the present,” Jensen joked. “Let me input the spatial coordinates on the Window and we’ll begin.”

  “Of course, doctor,” Tevlok replied.

  Jensen began keying the data into the machine. He stopped and turned to his assistant. “Tevlok, you said you had two concerns. What was the second one?”

  Tevlok picked up the computation tablet and pointed to a block of information on the screen. Jensen looked at the computer and felt a familiar knot form in his stomach.

  “That variable gives me great cause for concern,” Jensen said. He had already considered its ramifications. “The boy will certainly be tested on his journey.”

  “Difficult times call for difficult decisions,” Tevlok said.

  Indeed they do, Jensen thought.

  The scientists returned to their tasks. A few hours later the Window activated and Jensen stepped through the portal. Tevlok nervously paced the lab waiting for his mentor to return. “I hope you know what you’re doing, doctor,” he commented to the empty room.