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29.
As he emerged from the cave, the brilliant sunshine blinded him momentarily. Peter was sweating
profusely and gulped in the fresh air as Winkler helped him take off the protecting hood.
�There was a definite glow coming from the well,� Peter gasped pulling off his gloves and wiping his
forehead with the back of his hand �I need to analyse the footage� Max nodded, squeezing Peter�s
shoulder in acknowledgement as they headed back to the mobile lab. Peter spent the rest of the day
in the mobile lab working on his calculations and studying the footage shot in the cave. The device
reminded him for all the world of a motion sensor, the kind used as a security device where any break
in a beam of infra red light would cause an alarm to go off. If his calculations were right he�d be able
to pinpoint Sally with the device he�d been working on. If she�d been thrown back in time she would
be �out of sync� with the background readings and show up like blip on a radar screen. Peter rubbed his
forehead, sometimes he felt so close to understanding everything about the nature of time, it was like
having something on the tip of his tongue but couldn�t quite recall it. For the briefest of moments, a
connection would be made in the deepest recesses of his mind and everything made sense. It was like
trying to hold onto a moonbeam, the thought was lost as quickly as it came. �I know you�re alive, Sally�
he spoke the words out loud then returned to work on the electronic circuitry on the bench in front
of him Max looked on from the doorway. He wondered if his top physicist losing his mind, talking to
himself, refusing to eat or sleep, and if his plan didn�t work, would one of the finest scientific minds be
lost forever? �Peter - everything okay?�
Peter sat back in his chair and smiled �I�ve done it Max, I�ve finished the calculations and this little
gadget�� he held up the circuit board �� will bring Sally back� His face was radiant and Max saw
that Peter really believed he was going to save his wife.
30.
The consciousness that was Sally Axon floated in a black void. There was no sense of feeling and she
had no corporeal form though she was aware of a filmy blackness all around. She thought she detected
flecks of light occasionally but perhaps it was only the electrical energy that formed her thoughts.
There was no up or down, there was no depth perception, the blackness was all consuming. She tried
to rationalise the situation. She was Sally Axon, married to Peter, physicist and statistician with the
Office of Scientific Investigation and Research. She tried to call his name to scream, but she had no
way to do so. She screamed inside her own mind instead.
31.
The sun had gone down and the temperatures hovered close to freezing. Diana was standing outside
the mobile lab looking towards the cave entrance, which was now obscured by the blanket of night.
She shivered. �Are you okay?� the voice was right behind her. The English accent was unmistakably
David Doyle but when she turned round she could barely make out his features.
�I was just thinking about Sally. Could she still be alive?�
�Peter believes she is� David didn�t know what to think but Peter�s belief and enthusiasm was
contagious �At first light, he�s going to try and �detect� her with this gadget he�s built. He�s confident
it�ll work. Come on inside, it�s freezing out here� David put his arm around Diana to direct her back
towards the steps of the mobile lab, she felt comfortable with the Englishman.
Inside the mobile lab the lights had been dimmed. Peter was lying asleep on the couch on his side
with a blanket draped across him. Diana and David moved quietly past him towards the coffee machine.
Peter was dreaming, his eyes twitched and moved in REM sleep. He could hear Sally calling him, her
voice was urgent, afraid, but he couldn�t see her, he couldn�t even work out which direction her voice
was coming from, nor how far away she was. �Peter, help me, I�m lost. Peter�� her voice faded.
�Sally� he called to her �Sally, keep shouting I�m trying to find you, Sally�. SALLY�
David and Diana came running as Peter sat up, disoriented, the last time he�d called Sally�s name it
had been out loud. He focused on the two figures looking at him. �Er�it�s okay, I was just dreaming�
They turned and left Peter to his thoughts. He just knew that Sally was alive, he could feel it, the same
way he knew they were right for each other the moment they�d met.
32.
The Team were back at the mobile lab by 08.00 am.
�Are we just humouring a delusional widower, Max?� Oscar looked towards the physicist who was
busy rechecking his calculations and preparing the equipment, which would return his wife to him.
�That remains to be seen but he deserves a chance to test his theory� Max sincerely hoped Peter was
right about all this. �Everything�s ready� Peter announced. He felt a sense of urgency now; he wanted
to get on with it, no more delays, no more doubts. The principle was simple - once he�d detected Sally,
he�d emit a short tachyon burst that would �dislodge� her from whenever and bring her back to him.
The trick would be to seal the portal the moment she was back with an overload to the gadget embedded
in the rock. That would effectively cause a meltdown and an implosion that would seal the portal forever.
33.
Sally�s consciousness hung on to one thought - Peter. Peter, her physicist husband, the man who had
come closer to understanding the very nature of Time and Chaos than any one and who had been the
target of some evil entity trapped in a time of chaos. She felt it�s evilness, it was the blackness that she
floated in, it had wanted Peter but she�d thwarted its plans and it was angry. Suddenly there was blast
of light and sound so powerful - an eruption of rage and hatred that was now directional. Sally now
realised she had form, she had sight, hearing, feeling in her body and she felt even more vulnerable
than ever. Kingu was there somewhere but the brilliance of the light prevented her from opening her
eyes to look. She pushed all thoughts from her mind except those of Peter. She tried to visualise his
face, his smile, tried to recall his voice and his touch. Something was happening, she had a sense of
being pulled. It was like the centrifugal pull of a carousel swing in a fairground ride, she couldn�t fight
it, she let it take her.
34.
�What�s happening Peter?� Max once again found himself shouting above the roaring sound, which
had taken Sally.
�Get everybody back, I don�t know what�s going to happen once the device implodes� Peter was focused
on the instruments before him and didn�t even look up. Max motioned to everyone to move back. They
were all wearing earplugs but they didn�t dull the sound by much.
Peter was engrossed in what he was doing. The reading showed that something was coming towards
them, from the darkest recesses of time, it was hurtling forward in time and he hoped it was Sally. The
digital readout was showing 10 seconds until the object, which should be Sally, was through the portal.
Once he destroyed the device, Peter knew he would never be able to attempt another rescue�. 3-2..1..
the counter read zero and there was now an eerie silence. Peter looked towards the cave entrance. Had
it worked? His heart was pounding; he felt his whole body break out in a cold sweat. He looked down
at his hands, he was shaking uncontrollably. Max was beside him now �Peter? Are you okay?�
�Let�s check out the cave and I�ll let you know�
Max turned round and gestured for Dr Henderson, Tim Winkler and Tom Drew to follow them.
At the cave entrance Peter stopped, took a deep breath. �All readings normal� Winkler called, Peter
moved inside the cave, switching on the powerful torch and scanning the immediate surroundings.
Nothing. He edged forward to the �well� and peered in. The light from the torch fell on solid rock, the
portal was gone and so, it seemed, was the device. His heart sank, he�d sealed the portal but the price
he�d paid was the loss of his wife. He felt numb.
�Peter�.Peter�� he swung round towards the sound, and focused the light in that direction. There
was a crumpled figure lying on the ground. Sally was curled into the foetal position weakly calling his
name.
35.
Everything seemed to happen in a blur. Henderson called for Carrie and they joined Peter who�d
already taken Sally in his arms and was rocking her gently.
�Peter, we need to check Sally� Henderson knelt beside them.
�Not here� Peter scooped Sally up in his arms and moved passed the doctor. Everyone stood back as
Peter emerged from the cave and headed for the mobile lab.
�You were lucky�.this time� Oscar spoke to Max but his eyes followed Peter as he walked away from
them �I want a full report, Max, and I�ll be reviewing OSIR operational policies as soon as I�m back in
Toronto. I don�t want anything like this happening again�
Max nodded and followed Peter to the mobile lab.
36.
Sally was slightly dehydrated, but otherwise in good health �Don�t fuss, I�ll be fine after a hot bath�
Peter smiled; Sally was the world�s worst patient.
Oscar was standing next to him �So Peter, are you going to write a paper on this one?� He wondered
about the mental state of his Senior Physicist.
Peter frowned �No, actually Oscar, I�ve been thinking it�s time to move on. I�ve enjoyed my work at
the OSIR but there are other avenues I want to pursue now� Oscar raised his eyebrows �Really? Does
Max know about this?�
�No, but even before all of this happened, I was thinking of a career move�
�What do you have in mind, Peter?� Oscar realised Peter was serious about leaving the OSIR
�Heading south, Texas actually. The US Government are looking for someone to head up their
Unified Field Theory team and I guess I fit the bill. I�ve spent years working on the theory on my own,
who knows maybe the added resources will be just what I need to complete the work that eluded
Einstein for so long?� Oscar held out his hand �Good luck, Peter��and if ever you want to return
to the fold��..�
The two men shook hands as Sally emerged from the partitioned room in the mobile lab �Gotto go
Oscar. I�ll call in at OSIR Central Lab when we�re back, sort out a few things and bring you my formal
resignation.�
37.
Peter slipped his arm around Sally �Sure you�re okay�
�Don�t fuss� she smiled up at him as they emerged into the brilliant sunshine once more �Let�s just
get away from here, I don�t even want to think about what happened�not yet anyway�. They set off for
Beer Sheba ahead of the others. The rest of the team apart from Tom Drew and Tim Winkler would be
following a few hours later.
Two figures watched the Axons leave. �Have you decided yet?� David turned to Diana
�I guess a stopover in London could be arranged, I�m due for some R & R after all this� David leaned
forward and kissed Diana, this had certainly been an eventful journey.
38.
Back at the hotel in Beer Sheba, Peter collected his clothes and papers and stuffed them into the
holdall he always used when travelling. Sally was in the bathroom and he could hear water running.
�Sally�..??� he moved to the bathroom door, concerned, but Sally appeared at the door and held out
her hand �Want to join me?�
Peter looked past Sally at the bathtub brimming with bubbles; he dropped the holdall and smiling,
let Sally lead him into the bathroom.
39.
Max and Lucia boarded the bus behind the rest of the OSIR team as they prepared leave the
archaeological site for the last time. �Who�d have thought�?� Max mumbled
�What?� Lucia turned back towards her husband
�Who�d have thought that the belief of one man could be so powerful?�
Lucia took Max�s hand, and led him aboard. Everyone sat in silence contemplating their experiences
of the last few days.
40.
It was already dark when Winkler and Drew finally drove away from the site of so much activity over
the last few days. Max had mentioned something about heading for China, Tom was deep in thought as
he drove along the track towards the blacktop road. Winkler looked back towards the cave entrance��
he blinked, he could�ve sworn he saw a green glow, he rubbed his eyes, oh boy he was tired. He looked
back towards the cave again, now there was only blackness� he�d probably imagined the glow�.
THE END
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