Chapter 5
There are only two ways to live your life.
One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as if everything is. -Albert Einstein
December 21, 2022 19:00 hours
I helped secure the tie down straps over the load.
“All done!” said David, wiping his brow. “Thanks for your help Andy.”
I looked up at the crimson tinged sky. My first day in the year 2022 was drawing to a close.
“The sun hasn’t set yet. Can we go visit somewhere?”
“Your seer said you’re too young to visit pubs,” teased David.
I laughed.
“I was more interested in exploring the university grounds. And seeing what plants grow there.”
“Fair enough. I was thinking of grabbing a photo of my parents from my desk in the computer building anyway. I’ll just nip up to my room and get the keys.”
“I’ll get Kojak while we’re at it,” I added.
Ω
“There you are!” greeted both Kojaks in unison as we walked in.
“This is really doing my head in...” murmured David.
“Why don’t you go for a stroll to clear your head?” suggested Grandpa Kojak.
“We’d already decided to,” I replied. “Come on Kojak. We’re going to see the computer building where David works.”
“Okay. But I want to see the building where Jonas works too.”
“Why?” asked David.
“Grandpa K says there’s a computer in there with a nice voiceprint...”
Kojak whistled like a lecherous teenager. David cracked up.
“Is he always like this around you?” he chortled.
“No. Kojak’s never done anything like that before. Ever. Something must have happened to him when you rebooted him.”
“Never fear, I’m in perfect working order Andy. Grandpa and I have been file-sharing, that’s all.”
“You mean Grandpa K’s like that?” I said, smiling coyly at David.
“Of course he’s not!”
“Oh yes I am!” replied Grandpa Kojak. “At least I am in my new chat mode... Listen to the new me... Gidday mate. What’s up your nose?”
“You sound like an overgrown teenager!” grinned David.
“I’ve taken Andy’s voiceprint and matured it about fifteen years. Now I’m your big brother!”
“Er... right... What’s this new chat mode you’ve copied over from Kojak Junior anyway?”
“It’s our new one-on-one mode. For sharing private thoughts and scary secrets... or when you need big brotherly advice about Serene...”
“Serene?” chuckled David. “But I hardly know Jonas’s sister.”
“That’s all about to change mate.”
“Huh?”
“My grandson happened to be monitoring your responses to the beautiful Miss Magellan this afternoon, even though he couldn’t communicate with either of you at the time... Apparently your heart rate and respiration rate doubled at the time and your testosterone levels spiked and have hovered above normal since... He also noted another interesting physiological response which I won’t elaborate on due to the presence of a minor...”
David shook his head in silent disbelief. He seemed rattled.
“What’s he mean David?” I frowned.
“Er... later. Let’s grab your pendant.”
“Over to you grandson!” chuckled Grandpa K, as David hurriedly ushered me out of the door.
“Wilco. Where were we? That’s right... discussing your emerging interest in women,” said Kojak, in an identical voice to Grandpa Kojak’s chat mode.
“I’m not discussing that topic with you! I don’t even know you!” bristled David.
“Ah... but I know you David. I know you’re respectfully intimate with your Creator. And you’ve made a private decision to abstain until you marry... And up until recently you’ve been more interested in geophysics and computer programming than in women... but yesterday when you were trying to convince Serene to go back with Jonas to their station, you noticed how curvy she was... and the way her hair fell around her beautiful shoulders... And last night when Grandpa Kojak was switched off, you dreamt about her... And those scrambled jumbled feelings all welled up again when you saw Serene in the library this arvo and you got that...”
“Enough. I’ll shut you down again if you keep this up!” threatened David.
Kojak laughed benevolently.
“Touchy! Touchy! Besides mate... Her heart rate was up too! And her pupils were dilated. Didn’t you notice?”
David hesitated.
“Maybe,” he replied with twinkling eyes.
Shared laughter.
I smiled along with them both. Kojak seemed to be enjoying himself, getting to know this BE David. I wondered if things would be different between them when we got back to 2057.
If we got back...
I decided to join the conversation before I was overwhelmed by homesickness.
“What’s so important about her pupils being dilated Kojak?” I asked.
“Love is like a cough Andy. You can’t hide it if you know what to look for.”
“That’s a terrible answer to his question!” retorted David.
“Well you explain growing up and falling in love to him then. I find this human experience unfathomable. And I have a hunch, he’s gonna ask me a thousand questions about it when we get back - as a result of hanging out with you!”
“How can you have a hunch?” laughed David. “A hunch is an unquantifiable... un-programmable... response...”
“My hunch is based on his quantifiable, physiological responses to you. And they indicate he thinks you’re rad!”
David laughed and grinned at me
“Well the feeling’s mutual!” he replied, hi-fiving me.
Kojak let out something which resembled a sigh.
“’Tis a conundrum...”
“What is?”
“I’m not sure if I should curtail your influence over him. His parents have strict kid-safe settings in place all around their home... And I can’t consult Grandpa K for advice. He wasn’t built when you were thirteen, so he knows even less about teenagers than I do.”
David eyed me with amusement.
“Hmmm... it sounds like your seer is asking me for some input about adolescence mate... Let’s see... When we’re young, we’re shaped and fashioned by the people we love... mostly our family... Growing up happens when other people and influences start shaping us... Although it’s smart to regularly ask ourselves... do we really want to be moulded and influenced by these other people, or would we rather not be like them? And the same goes for our special friendships...”
“With girls?”
“Girls are like stars. There are a million out there, but it’s worth waiting for the right one... And when your paths cross... you’ll know you’ve found the right one... You’ll have that inner witness from the Still Small Voice...”
“Serene’s the right one.”
David smiled contemplatively.
“I know mate...”
Pensive silence as we walked along.
“Hey David... Is it later yet?” I ventured.
“What do you mean?”
“You said you’d explain about the interesting physiological response to Serene that Kojak noticed later...”
“Er... I did, didn’t I?” replied David awkwardly... “Well... Let’s see... You know how at the moment you kinda think that girls are nuisances - you know - they scream at the pop test for hydrogen like you’ve let off an atomic bomb... and they yakity-yak-yak when you’re trying to work out important stuff...”
“You mean you think that about girls too?!” I laughed.
“’Course I do... At least part of me does... But there’s this other part that’s started feeling that only some girls are nuisances... something’s changing inside me recently... I s’pose it’s kicked in because I’m almost the right age to get married and have c
hildren myself...”
Ω
“What’s their status Kojak?” asked David looking up from his calculations.
“Well you and Andy are ambling in the right direction. The crate is actually visible from where you are. But neither of you have noticed it as yet.”
“Why not?”
“You’re both deep in conversation.”
“About what?”
“Do you recall the conversation you were having near the water feature outside the admin building?” prompted Kojak.
A rush of forgotten memories unravelled within David. He ran his fingertips across his lips reflectively.
“Hmmm. Perhaps you’d better drop a hint Kojak. Otherwise we both might walk past the crate without noticing it.”
“I’ll interrupt when there is a suitable pause in the conversation,” returned Kojak, trying to sound neutral.
A smile twitched at the corners of David’s mouth.
“Grandpa K missed some rather definitive moments in your life due to being desk-bound!” chortled Kojak.
David laughed deeply.
“Not a word Kojak... We might both get Andy in trouble.”
“My lips are sealed.”
“You’re not gonna let me forget this again are you?”
Kojak laughed like a wayward teenager.
“The conversation must have been about something amusing,” ventured Leo.
“You mean about something nice!” quipped Jonas. “I can read David like a book.”
David wriggled his eyebrows expressively in response. Jonas inched closer to him.
“That conversation must have really extended you mate!” he ragged. “Look at you! You’re still blushing about it after all these years!”
“You mean Nando embarrassed you?” asked Leo curiously.
David eyed Leo with dancing eyes.
“He had me ducking for cover!” grinned David. “He threw every question imaginable at me about procreation... male physiology... female physiology... my personal experiences...”
Jonas doubled over with laughter. Leo cleared his throat noisily.
“Nando asked you about that?” he confirmed.
“Ah ha!”
“That’s... unexpected,” Leo managed to say.
Jonas laughed roguishly and draped a friendly arm over Leo’s shoulder.
“Come now son. Two young men strolling alongside each other in the cool of the evening chatting about the future. It’s quite to be expected.”
Leo rubbed his forehead like he was developing a tension headache.
“David and I often bared our hearts on evening walks...” explained Jonas. “While we were solo... when we started courting... when we decided to marry... after we married... when we missed our wives...”
“...and when we needed to work out how to be better husbands!” finished David.
Both men exchanged grins.
“But Nando couldn’t be thinking along those lines already. He’s just a child...”
Leo’s voice trailed off. David and Jonas exchanged glances.
“Andy and I were both at different places in terms of our physical development when we first met,” replied David gently. “But having a man-to-man chat with him was a liberating experience...”
David eyed Leo.
“... for me!” he laughed. “I wriggled and squirmed for about ten minutes and then I suddenly realised, this pint-sized shrink is actually enjoying shrinking my fears down to their proper size like Jonas does! So I rebounded and served him back a challenge or two of my own in return!”
“Like you used to do to me!” finished Jonas.
Jonas and David laughed heartily. Leo looked reflective.
“Perhaps it’s time I started connecting with him differently. The way you’ve connected with him Pops. Man to man. Tell me how you did it...” said Leo cautiously.
It is the nature of man to rise to greatness, if greatness is expected of him.
-John Steinbeck
I stopped walking and made intentional eye contact with David.
“You’re really neat to hang out with David,” I blurted out. “I feel different around you... instead of just feeling like I’m a misfit of a teenager in the body of a kid.”
“Andy... you’re not a misfit teenager and you’re definitely not a kid,” replied David.
“What am I then?”
“A young adult like me of course!” he laughed. “Did you know that the word teenager only entered the English language after World War 2? Before that, children were considered young adults as soon as they started doing adult things. U.S Navy David Farragut was in command of his own ship at 12. Which is hardly something they’d let a kid do.”
“I’m gonna tell my parents that next time they say I’m just a kid.”
David laughed.
“These days Western society has low expectations of young people. If they drop out, deal drugs or drink drive, people dismiss it and say, that’s just being a teenager... The teenage years are seen as a vacation from responsibility. But it’s wrong to feel a misfit just because you don’t fit in with society’s low expectations... Two hundred years ago it was the norm for young adults of our age to be sea captains, lead armies into battle, run family businesses, run the family farm or be inventors.”
“There were inventors our age?” I said excitedly.
“Well... Off the top of my head... Thomas Edison was 13 when he invented his electrical cockroach control system... Philo Farnsworth was 14 when he developed the optical scanner which was the forerunner to the television set. Louis Braille was 15 when he developed his method of reading and writing for the blind... Cyrus McCormick was around 16 when he invented a lightweight cradle for carting harvested grain... At 17, Henry Bessemer invented embossed stamps for use on title deeds... At 18, Alexander Graham Bell was working on the idea of transmitting speech which was the forerunner of the telephone...Blaise Pascal was also18 when he was working on his mechanical adding machine which was the forerunner of the calculator... And George Westinghouse was 19 when he obtained his first patent for a rotary steam engine...”
A wave of sadness threatened to engulf me. There were so many gaps in AE history...So much inspiring information about young people had been lost...
“I never realized there were so many young adult history makers,” I managed to say.
“History wasn’t my strongest subject either,” replied David. “But a few years ago, my father challenged me to be a rebelutionary - to rebel against society’s low expectations and dare to be different from the typical teen...”
And now my grandfather was unwittingly passing on the challenge to me, I mused.
“He told me about other young people who altered their present to improve the future too because they extended themselves. For instance Anton van Leeuwenhoek improved the microscope as a 16 year old... And Blaise Pascal was 16 when he wrote a paper on conic sections, which was acclaimed by fellow mathematicians as the most powerful contribution to mathematical science since the days of Archimedes... And at 15 Benjamin Franklin delivered papers by day, but by night he wrote anonymous articles for the paper which influenced the direction of the nation... And Cleopatra was 17 when she became Queen of Egypt - she was a shrewd politician who spoke 9 languages...”
“... and Andy and David will be history changers too!” I finished.
“Don’t you mean history makers?” laughed David.
“No... You make history and that changes history... Something you do in the present impacts the future... and then that future generation look back and say you changed history. It depends on your place in the space-time continuum... Like something we do in the next five minutes might change the future without us knowing about it... which means how we use our time is important...”
“That’s an interesting concept Andy,” mused David. “I’ve been thinking along those lines myself.”
“Talking of interesting... there’s an interesting looking crate over there,” in
terposed Kojak.
“Scan it and see what’s in it, Kojak,” I suggested.
“Hey, this moment might be changing history!” joked David.
We both laughed.
“Ne’er a truer word spoken in jest,” murmured Kojak.
“What’s in it, Kojak?” I said eagerly.
“It’s some type of oil-pressing device,” replied Kojak. “Manufactured in the United States.”
“An oil press? That has to be the crate Nadia and Jonas were talking about! They’ve been waiting for this thing to arrive all day! I’ll just let them know that it’s outside the Engineering building.”
David dialled Jonas. He listened then frowned as the call went to message-bank.
“Hmmm... He’s not answering... We’d better not leave this here. Someone might flog it.”
“We could load it onto your truck and take it over to his place in the morning,” I suggested.
“Sounds as good a plan as any. Let’s go get my truck...”
Ω
December 22, 2022. 05:00 hours
Daybreak. A van and a trailer pulled out of Karratha and headed east-north-east along the Great Northern Highway towards Magellan Station.
“I still can’t believe it!” groused Nadia. “That press travelled 16,000 kilometres from the United States to Western Australia without any mishaps, then it got lost somewhere in the last 16 kilometres between the docks and your flat.”
“No point getting wound up about Nads,” shrugged Jonas. “North Coast Freight have always been reliable in their other deliveries to Engineering. It’s probably just because they’re so busy this close to Christmas. You’ve left your mobile number and I’ve left mine. I’m sure they’ll get back to us...”
“Changing topics - aren’t you gonna congratulate us both, big brother?” hinted Serene.
“Why?”
“You’re two hours ahead of schedule in spite of the fact that you have two women in tow to slow you down!”
Jonas grinned amicably.
“Yeah... Alright. I admit I expected to be two hours behind schedule with two women in tow!”
“Did I sense a hint of chauvinism in that statement?” asked Nadia, feigning indignation.
“I’d better say no, since David’s not here to stop you two bashing me up!”
“Talking of David, did he contact you?” asked Serene.
“No. I haven’t heard from him since yesterday arvo. Why?”
“Just a gut feeling,” replied Serene.
“You and your woman’s intuition!” retorted Jonas. “Check my phone if you want to, to see if I’ve missed a call from him. It’s in the green bag behind my seat...”
Serene went to reach over Nadia to get to the bag.
“Roo!” shrieked Nadia, peeking through the gate of her fingers.
Jonas and Serene laughed warmly.
“It’s five car lengths from us hon!” soothed Serene. “You really have never been bush before have you?”
“Norway is very different to this country. And I really do want to see the Australian outback. Except I’m not sure about all the wild animals... Like that huge vulture!” she said, pointing out the window with a trembling finger.
“It’s a wedge-tail eagle, hon!” laughed Serene. “Relax. We’re not camping out with the wildlife. We’re just driving past it.”
“Yeah... chill out girl. It’s gonna be a long trip full of wild animals to see and avoid...” added Jonas. “Here, let’s listen to some music!” he suggested, connecting his iPod and turning the speakers up full volume.
Ω
December 22, 2022 06:00 hours
“Good morning sleepyheads!” said both Kojaks in unison.
“Morning Kojak,” I said, bounding energetically to my feet.
David sat up startled then sagged back on the floor. He looked over towards his desk.
“Kojak. You let me oversleep!” he complained, stifling a yawn.
“On the contrary, I have been monitoring your REM patterns all night. They were disrupted and I wanted to minimize the chances of fatigue today. After all, you have a 10 hour road-trip ahead of you.”
David smoothed his tousled hair into place and pushed himself to his feet.
“Why were your REM patterns disrupted?” I asked.
“I kept having bad dreams about this crazy plan of theirs to let you accompany me to my research station. I could get done for kidnapping!”
“No you couldn’t. I’m not a kid. I’m a young adult, remember?”
“And he is accompanying you on his own free will,” added both Kojaks in unison.
David yawned noisily.
“Oh well... I guess all I’m doing is letting you hitch a ride with me... Come on - let’s get that crate over to Jonas’s place. He should be awake by now...”
Ω
“Jonas?” called out David.
I bent over and sniffed some flowers as David knocked on the door.
“What are these plants called?” I asked.
“They’re geraniums.”
David knocked louder.
“How are the propagated?”
“Er... cuttings or seeds,” replied David absently, as he tried the doorbell.
“Are geraniums edible?”
“The scented varieties are.”
I broke off several cuttings and pocketed them.
“Hmmm... They’re definitely not here,” muttered David, as he peered through the windows of the locked flat.
I stared at some orange flowers which seemed vaguely familiar.
“What are these plants called?”
“Nasturtiums.”
“Are they edible?”
“If you’re desperate. They taste peppery.”
“How are they propagated?”
“Seeds... Those are the dried seed pods...” pointed David.
I collected a handful of seedpods and put them into David’s jacket pocket.
“What are you doing?” he smiled.
“You and Jonas might be desperate in the days ahead.”
David looked momentarily taken aback, then he slowly started scooping up some additional seedpods.
“Is anything else edible in this garden?”
“Er... those tomatoes are.”
“Tomatoes? Mum says you eat the flesh and spit out the seeds...”
“...to grow more tomatoes,” finished David. “My mum used to tell me the same thing when I was younger. It must be a saying from their era or something.”
“We should pick some then,” I suggested. “So you have lots of seeds to spit out.”
David laughed.
“I think Jonas planned on taking that tomato bush anyway. It’s one of his potted heirlooms. He must have forgotten it in his hurry to get away... Here... Shove it in the back of my truck... I wonder if they’re somewhere around town or already on their way...”
David got out his phone and attempted to call Jonas.
“Hmmm... His mobile’s ringing but he’s not answering... Perhaps he can’t hear it above the road noise...”
“Do you know what road they’re likely to be driving on?” I asked.
“The Great Northern Highway for the first five hundred kilometres - then they take a dirt road through to the Mt Alexander region - which is part of Magellan Station... We take the same route but travel further northeast until we get to Outcamp Hill. It’s southwest of the Bungle Bungles.”
“Kojak might be able to bring up all the vans towing trailers on the great highway,” I suggested.
“Sorry Andy, but I don’t have any useful maps of this region in my database. And Grandpa K’s offline.”
“Oh well - I guess there’s a chance we’ll catch up with them if they stop to stretch their legs,” shrugged David. “Come on then... Let’s hit the road.”
“Okay,” I shrugged, bending down and hitting the bitumen with my palm.
David laughed heartily and hi-fived me.
“Well...One thing’s
for sure. I’m not gonna fall asleep on this trip with you two as company!”
“Let’s go explore the great highway!” I said with shining eyes.
Ω
For the first hour I was excited about my maiden voyage in a BE vehicle. By midday the excitement was wearing thin. By mid-afternoon it had definitely worn thin. David on the other hand became more relaxed the closer we got to our destination. Clearly he loved his bush retreat.
I was surprised when David finally announced we were there. A tyre nailed to a tree stump was the only indication that there was anything which resembled civilization in the area. We turned off the bitumen and travelled along a bone-shaking track which ran up a flat-topped hill.
David slowed and then stopped near a cluster of trees on top of the plateau. In front of me were four sea containers - arranged in a square configuration. I hadn’t seen them from the road, because they were painted camo colours and they blended in with the surrounding foliage remarkably well. I jumped out of the truck and looked at the containers closer... They were anchored into the rock face with steel pegs and secured as well with chains that ran across to makeshift footings - 44 gallon drums filled with concrete. I moistened my lips and looked around curiously. The landscape was elevated. Perhaps 500 ft higher than anywhere else in the immediate vicinity... Looking down I could make out a shallow river snaking its way through the lower lying ground beneath us. Something felt familiar about this wild landscape, but I couldn’t place it.
David triggered a winch. The side of the closest container slowly lowered to create a fully fly-screened living and sleeping area. We offloaded the boxes labelled Kitchen and Bedroom.
He swung open the front doors to a second container. It was crammed with boxes stacked to the roof - labelled with words like Rice, Flour, Toilet roll, Soap powder, Medicine. It looked like someone had packed up a deli and plonked it down in the desert. We offloaded more boxes of provisions. Mostly canned foods. Commodities that would be more precious than gold in the days ahead.
The third container was clearly the shed. Crammed with building materials, shadecloth, tools, hardware and engine parts. We loaded more items into the already chocker container... rope, wire, bird-netting and windmill parts.
David swung open the door to the final container. I peered inside it - it was set up as his research laboratory. Rows of lockers and cabinets were bolted to the walls of the container. Boxes labelled Books were stacked neatly and strapped into place in one corner. I caught my breath. In the closest corner of the container was a familiar metal structure - except the metal was shinier because it was newly constructed. I realized with awe that I was standing in not just any container - but possibly my ticket home to the future.
All I had to do was survive the present long enough to get back to the future.
The Event was a mere 15 hours away...
Ω
We worked quickly and unloaded the remaining boxes into David’s den. After giving it some thought, David offloaded the crate and positioned it in the closest available space. Right inside the transporter module!
“Shouldn’t you put it somewhere else?” I hinted.
“Nah. This is part of my research thesis. But it’s not due until next year, so Kojak and I won’t be needing to get to it in a hurry. Speaking of Kojak, I must fire him up.”
I ducked around the corner of the container as David disappeared.
“Kojak... That crate must weigh a tonne!” I hissed. “How am I going to get home in the transporter with that thing in the way?”
“We’re all working on the problem as you speak. It’s going to require considerable processing power however. And time...”
“I’ll put you into background monitoring mode then, to free up additional processing power.”
“Are you sure you won’t be frightened without me Andy?”
“I should be alright. I’m with Grandpa Kojak and David. And I can’t get into too much trouble around here. There are limited opportunities for explorative play and the transporter module doesn’t work yet!”
Kojak laughed softly.
“Very well. Changing to background monitor mode as requested. I’ll drop back in on you approximately every hour to make sure you don’t need anything...”
Ω
December 22, 2057 19:00 hours
“Kojak... Your processing speed just picked up,” murmured David.
Jonas looked up at David’s comment.
“Andy’s put me into background monitoring mode for the next hour. To free up additional processing power for our task at hand.”
“That’s gonna be a big help,” murmured Jonas.
“But that means he’s alone!” gasped Mani.
“He’s not alone honey,” corrected Leo. “He’s with your dad when he was twenty and an early version of Kojak.”
“What were you like when you were twenty anyway Dad?” asked Mani.
“You sound worried Amani!” teased David.
“Should I be?” retorted Mani.
David’s eyes danced.
“So what were you like really?”
David laughed.
“I was reserved... Jonas was always shoving me out of my comfort zone!” chuckled David.
“What were you like Dad?” asked Leo.
“I was unreserved... I recall having lots of fun shoving David out of his comfort zone!” grinned Jonas.
Everyone laughed heartily.
“So which Grandpa is my brother more like, I wonder?” piped up Gem.
We think about all of our tomorrows, but we don’t know how many they are,
so let’s start making the most of our todays! -Ivana Trump
December 22, 2022 19:55 hours
The sun was low. Close to setting. David offered me a pannikin of water and guzzled two himself.
“Phew - that was hot work!” he remarked, wiping the sweat off his brow. “Time to hit the shower eh?”
“Hit the shower?” I echoed uncomprehendingly.
“Yeah. I didn’t push the issue last night because you seemed overwhelmed, but you definitely need to wash tonight.”
“I need to wash the clothes I borrowed from the library,” I agreed. “But my smart clothes won’t need washing. The dirt falls off them and they don’t get smelly because I don’t sweat in them.”
“Smart clothes?”
“My clothes automatically adjust to changing weather conditions. If they sense my body temperature’s increasing, tiny openings appear in the fabric to increase air circulation. And if my clothes sense I’m getting cold, the openings reseal.”
David laughed.
“I remember coming up with some good excuses for not having to wash grub off me when I was a kid, but I never thought of that one! Don’t worry - you won’t have to stay in long. Water’s restricted anyway until we sink a bore and set up the windmill. At the moment, we’re pumping water up from the river using a solar pump.”
He tossed a towel in my direction. I grinned as I finally understood.
“Thanks. So where do I hit the shower?”
David ushered me towards the nearby tank-stand.
“Jonas set up temporary facilities last trip up here. The shower’s behind this piece of shadecloth - so it’s semi-private anyway.”
“I’ve never bathed outdoors at sunset before,” I said, looking up at the orange tinged sky.
“Sorry if you feel embarrassed. There’s no one around for miles to peek at you if that’s any consolation.”
“No. I don’t mind the shower being outside. I meant it’s something new that I’ve never done before... Something memorable...”
I stripped off the library clothes and looked up at the towering structure.
“I see how it works... The water heats inside the black poly-pipe on the roof of the sea containers and feeds a thermo-siphon rig...”
I stepped out of my radiation suit and left it in a heap on the ground. David picked it and examined it more closely.
&n
bsp; “Strange... The dirt’s just falling off it and there’s no sign of sweat... Like you said...”
“Smart clothes open up on the parts of the body where cooling is needed...You’ve heard of Julien Vincent haven’t you?”
“The biomimicry expert?”
“Ah ha. He developed smart clothes for the military. He based their design on pine cones. The outer scales of pine cones have two layers of stiff fibres running in different directions. As the cone dries out, the outer layer shrinks more than the inner layer. That causes the scales to bend outward and expose the inner seed.”
I stripped off my singlet.
“See. It’s smart material too,” I said, handing it to him. “The tiny flaps that cover smart clothes function like pine cone scales - each flap’s only the width of a human hair. The fabric making up the flaps expands and contracts with temperature, opening and closing as needed.”
“So you’re effectively wearing a host of micro thermostats?” remarked David curiously.
“Ah ha.”
“Wherever did you get clothing like this Andy?”
“My parents gave it to me of course. Didn’t your parents give you clothes when you were thirteen?”
“Er... yes,” he replied vaguely.
I removed my jocks. David startled and cleared his throat.
“Er... Sorry. I’m standing here examining your clothing when I should be giving you privacy.”
“I don’t mind you looking at my clothes,” I smiled.
I hit the water feedpipes with an outstretched palm. Nothing happened. I looked around for a timer. Nothing.
“Um. So which part of the shower do I hit to make it work? It hasn’t got a display like the nuke.”
He looked at me strangely.
“Er...You turn these taps anticlockwise... H is hot. C is cold...”
I could make out the artery throbbing in his neck.
“Your face has gone very red. Are you feeling okay?”
“Er... yes.”
I turned on the taps. Warm water jetted out and pounded my body.
“Wow! This is brilliant David!” I exclaimed, twirling around under the water in delight. “I’ve never felt anything like this! Ever!”
David risked glancing at me dancing around under the running water.
“I can’t wait to tell Dad that I had a real shower!” I laughed. “He’s only ever had a couple in his whole life and he’s older than you!”
I deliberately splashed water in David’s direction, laughing in delight. He ran his fingertips through his dripping hair and smiled at me.
“Why don’t you come in with me?” I grinned.
“No way!”
“Why not? You said there were water restrictions. So if we share the shower we can both stay in twice as long. And have a water-fight!”
“That’s the sort of thing Jonas would suggest!” chuckled David.
“But you wouldn’t?”
A vehement shake of the head.
“Why not?”
“Because I feel... awkward about showering when other people are around.”
“But there aren’t any other people around. You said so yourself.”
David laughed shyly.
“I meant I feel awkward about being seen starkers by anyone.”
“Even your unit?”
“My unit?”
“Yeah. Like on the A team. You know - the people you’d protect without hesitation. Family... Close mates... People that are important to you.”
“Er... well... I guess my parents are part of my unit. And Jonas is my best mate... And I guess I’d protect Serene and Nadia - because Jonas is deeply fond of them... But there’s no way I’d shower with any of them!”
“Then you’d definitely better practice showering with me.”
“What!?”
“So you won’t feel awkward when you marry Serene and she wants to have a water-fight in the shower with you.”
David cracked up.
“For real. That’s part of being married. Mum and Dad go in the mist room together all the time.”
“The mist room?”
“We have water restrictions too. Come on. Hop in with me! So I don’t have to get out yet. I could stay in here until the sun rises tomorrow. This is so much fun!”
David stripped off and looked around self consciously.
“Is Kojak Junior likely to check up on us?”
“Not tonight. He’s busy helping Grandpa with some calculations.”
David grinned coyly as he climbed into the shower with me.
“I can’t believe you’ve talked me into this Andy!” he laughed. “If Jonas ever finds out about this I’ll be ragged about it for years...”
Ω
December 22, 2057 20:00 hours
Amani walked in with a tray of coffees and set a mug down in front of her father.
“How are the calculations going? I was just wondering... it’s almost been an hour.”
David smiled warmly.
“Time to take a break everyone!” he announced, stretching noisily.
Serene and Gem appeared with freshly baked biscuits and blackberries drizzled in goat’s milk custard.
“Nana taught me to bake cookies!” said Gem proudly.
“Nana, eh?” ragged Jonas.
Serene cuffed Jonas in response. Jonas tickled her in return. Serene retaliated and they both rolled around on the floor together laughing and giggling. David grinned at their playful exchange. Having their immediate family around them had brought out their frivolous side... And they were both aching to meet Andy... David felt a pang of fear... He had to get Andy back in one piece...
David’s attention returned to his daughter. Mani was eyeing her mother in mild disbelief.
“Don’t mind their bear hugging!” laughed David. “It’s a brother-sister thing.”
“I’ve just never seen this side of Mum,” replied Mani softly.
“I wish my big brother was here too,” murmured Nadia. “I never saw him again after the Event.”
“Come here Nads,” whispered David.
He unreservedly embraced Nadia. Nadia drank in the comfort. Surprised by David’s out of character demonstrative behaviour towards her.
Mani eyed Leo helplessly. Leo laughed and draped his arm around her.
“Don’t mind that big brother hug your dad’s giving my mum,” he shrugged. “It’s a unit thing.”
“Do you think Nando needs a big brother hug, wherever he is Dad?” asked Gem.
“I’m sure David is doing a wonderful job of being Nando’s big brother,” replied Leo gently hugging her.
“Why don’t we see what your big brother’s up to?” added David, tousling Gem’s hair affectionately. “Kojak... Play back the last five minutes of background monitoring footage while we’re have desert,” he said. “We all want to check up on Andy.”
“Are you sure you want me to play the last five minutes David?” hinted Kojak.
“Yes, he’s sure Kojak!” smiled Jonas. “We all want to check up on David!”
All round laughter.
“Wouldn’t you rather preview the footage alone first David?” repeated Kojak.
“Your seer’s trying to hide something from us all!” ragged Jonas.
“You’re just jealous ‘coz I’ve worked out a way of remembering what I was doing thirty-five years ago,” replied David light-heartedly.
“Let’s see what you were doing thirty-five years ago!” retorted Jonas, tapping playback on the monitor, before Kojak had a chance to deactivate it.
Kojak made a groaning sound.
“You’ve been sprung mate,” he sighed.
Ω
Tears of laughter streamed down Jonas’s face as he watched Kojak’s footage. Serene and Nadia tried to restrain their amusement but gave up. David laughed along with them.
“You were right mate. Kojak was trying to hide something from you all. My bare derrière!”
“And you were rig
ht mate! I’m gonna rag you about this for years!” Jonas managed to say.
“Oh David, you look terrified!” chuckled Nadia.
“I think you look sexy!” giggled Serene.
“Showers look like fun!” piped up Gem.
“They are!” laughed Leo.
Mani cupped her hand over her lips and said nothing.
The footage ended.
“Thankyou for that update Kojak,” said David nonchalantly. “Let Andy know we’re making good progress on the calculations. Although perhaps you’d better let him know when you’re sure we’re both dressed... I might give you a mouthful otherwise.”
“I agree. Did you know your heart rate was 160 beats per minute when you stripped off?”
Jonas burst into a fresh fit of laughter at Kojak’s comment.
“My only regret is I didn’t find out about this thirty-five years ago!” he complained light-heartedly. “I could have had longer showers during our water shortages.”
“I might have a water-fight in the shower with you later honey!” giggled Serene mischievously.
David laughed and kissed her passionately.
He redirected his attention to Amani.
“Daughter... You’re rather quiet. Has this peek into the past created another knot in our family tapestry?”
Mani drew a deep breath.
“No Dad. It’s made me realize that you’re right. Andy’s no longer a child. He’s a young adult with a flair for bringing out the best in other young adults... And he desires to change history to make the future better for everyone...”
“Just like the rest of his new unit!” added Kojak astutely.