Chapter 29
Chuck looks at the sight. It is a view that most people could only dream about. This view is the view that could change everyone's life. He could not believe what he is looking at. It is something that will probably not be seen by anyone on Earth. Still, he could not help but smile at the sight. In Chuck's mind, he is thanking the universe for allowing him to see this.
Jenny and Chuck are on an asteroid, sitting on a blanket watching the sight that has grabbed Chuck's attention. Both individuals are wearing orange space suits with helmets providing them oxygen to breathe in outer space.
Jenny smiles at Chuck. His attention is to the sight in front of him and not to her. She cannot blame the guy. It is a very beautiful sight that he is watching. She would have been worried about him if he had his attention on her. Jenny turns and places her sights on the scene playing out in front of them. It did take her breath away.
From a distance, there are two comets that are crisscrossing each other. It is a phenomenal that is impossible, yet it is happening before their eyes. To the untrained eye, the two comets look like they are playing with each other.
The couple watches as the comets pass them by in silence.
"Wow!" said Chuck.
"Pretty?" ask Jenny to her companion.
"It's so beautiful. I thought the black hole was fantastic, but this takes the cake." said Chuck as he gets up from the blanket and walk toward the comets in order to get a better look at them. Jenny gets up from the blanket and gently grabs Chuck's arm. She did not want the man to walk off the edge of the asteroid.
"Well, there is this civilization in the Northern Galaxy. They get to see this phenomenon every decade. They hold a festival every time it comes by. They have rides, a grand banquet, and balloons. They have a lot of balloons." said Jenny.
"Balloons?" asks Chuck.
"Oh, Chuck. It is wonderful. They are not ordinary balloon. These balloons are mimicking the comets. They crisscross each other as they go up in the air. When you release these balloons, they fly in the air like the comets. The colors on these balloons cover the whole spectrum. When the sun goes down and when everyone can see the stars in the sky, everyone lets go of their balloons. The whole sky just fills up with these balloons. It is a splendid sight.
"No way." Chuck look at Jenny and wonder what other spectacular things that she has seen.
"Trust me. It is a sight to behold."
"I could imagine." reply Chuck as he look back at the comets.
"During the festival, they even conduct weddings. They wait until the comets pass by before anyone says their vows. Legend has it that if you get married when the comets pass by, your marriage will be a joyful one." explains Jenny.
"Really?"
"Yeah."
"When will these comets pass by Earth?" said Chuck as a thought enter into his mind.
"Sadly enough, they never will." said Jenny.
"Oh." said a disappointed Chuck. He looks at the comets. "They are beautiful."
"Legends also said that if two people catch the first glimpse of the two comets at the same time that they are destined to marry within ten years." said Jenny.
"What?" said a shocked Chuck. He looks at Jenny. She looks at him with a serious face.
Jenny smile at him and then start to laugh.
"You were making that up." realizes Chuck as she collapses on the asteroid in laughter.
"Just the last part." said Jenny as she stops laughing. She slowly sits up from the ground. "The rest was true. Oh, Chuck. I could not help myself."
"Thanks." said Chuck. He did not bother hiding his frustration at falling for an obvious trick.
"Do not be angry." said Jenny as she flashes a small smile at him. She slowly gets up from the ground.
"If it was not for this…" Chuck points at the comets. "I probably would have been."
Both individuals catch the final glimpse of the two comets. Once they could not see the comets any longer, Jenny and Chuck start walking back to the ship which is flying just at the edge of the asteroid.
"We are ready." said Jenny. Within seconds, Jenny and Chuck disappear from the asteroid and reappear inside Jenny's ship.
After taking off the suits, both individuals sits on their respective seats, Jenny in her pilot chair and Chuck beside her.
"Well. I figure that you should see this before I take you home." said Jenny as she start pushing some buttons on her console.
"About that." said Chuck. He already knows what Jenny is going to do and he did not want her to do it alone.
"Do not argue with me." said Jenny.
"Jenny."
"Don't." Jenny stops pushing the button. "This is not an argument. I am taking you home to your sister, to Sarah, to your life. This is not your fight."
"You can't do this alone." Counter Chuck to the female Time Lord.
"Chuck. I made myself very clear. This is not your fight." Jenny looks at Chuck. Chuck gulp silently. There is a cold hard resolute in her stare. It sends a chill up his spine that he never got from the Time Lord. This is a fight that he is not going to win. "I have lost too many people because of this man. I cannot afford to lose another one."
"OK." said Chuck.
"Good." Jenny gives a small smile to Chuck. She could tell that she may have hurt his feelings. "Thank you."
"For what?" ask Chuck.
"For helping. For being brave. For being stupid. For wanting to help. For being kind. For just living." Jenny places her focus back on the console and start pushing buttons. "Now then, let's get you home."
The ship starts coming to life. The ship give a little shake as it prepares to take off. Chuck grabs the arms of the seat. Then engines start to blare up with life. The ship moves away from the asteroid.
"Everything is clear." said Jenny to herself. "Ship, activate the time converter."
"Activating the time converter." reply the ship's computer.
Chuck could hear the time converter come alive. He looks at the time converter that is behind him. The sound reminded him of an old radiator found in old school buildings.
"Gulp." said Chuck.
"Are you ready, Chuck?" ask Jenny.
"Ready for what?"
"Traveling though time, of course." replies Jenny with a big smile.
"Yeah."
"Let's go." Jenny slams her hand on a big red button that is on the ship console. The shields lower on the windscreen of the ship.
"Why is that going down?" ask Chuck as he point at the shields.
"Oh, that is to protect your eyes from the time vortex." answers Jenny.
"Why?"
"Oh, people have a habit of going nuts if they stare at the time vortex for too long." answer Jenny in way that makes it seems that it happens all the time.
"Oh. That would be problem." said Chuck with an image of him wearing a Napoleon hat in his mind.
"It could be." said Jenny.
Once the shield is down, Chuck could feel the ship start to shake.
"Is it supposed to do that?" ask Chuck as he realize that his grip on the arms of his seat tighten.
"You may want to put on your seat belt." said Jenny. Without any hesitation, Chuck put the seat belt on.
The ship started to shake violently.
"OH, BOY!" said Chuck.
"Hang on." said Jenny as she starts pushing on buttons and moving levers that are on the console. She looks at a video screen that had some sort of images.
Jenny knew that Chuck would not know what is happening. The violent shakes are Jenny's indicator that the ship has slipped into the time vortex. She knows that the ship is violently flying in the time vortex.
Once the ship flip upside, Chuck reinforces his death grip on the chair.
"Can I scream?" ask Chuck.
"If you want." said Jenny without looking away from the video screen. "It is pretty normal for first timers."
"Good." With that Chuck screams.
Jenny smiles. She looks at the consoles. Without warning, the ship starts to spin around.
"IS THAT NORMAL!" yells out Chuck.
Jenny did not respond. Chuck did not wait for an answer to resume his screaming. Jenny pulls down a level by her left hand. The ship stops spinning. Chuck opens his eyes. He looks to his right and saw a brown bag. He grabs it and vomit into it.
Jenny starts to auto correct her ship, trying to keep the ship from moving more violently.
Jenny did not pay attention to Chuck, who closes the bag up. As quick as it started, the violent shake, rattle and roll simply stop. Jenny waits for a minute. After the minute, she hits the button and the shield goes up.
Jenny looks at the windshield and saw a blue planet.
"Wow! It looks so blue." said Chuck as he observes the new sight before him.
"Yeah." said Jenny as she looks at the planet. Her smile disappears. "There is problem."
"What?"
"I don't know but something is very wrong." said Jenny as she looks at the blue marble in space.
Jenny looks at the console and presses some buttons. She then looks at a screen which Chuck could not see. He dare not stand up or move for fearing that he may vomit again.
"No." said Jenny.
"What's wrong?" ask Chuck as he could see the concern on Jenny's face.
Jenny press some buttons and an enlarged image appear on the windshield. Chuck look at it and fright nearly engulf him. He did not know why.
"What's that?" ask Chuck, hoping that she would explain it to him.
"Something that should not be there." answers Jenny. "Computer enlarges the image ten times."
Both look at the image as it enlarges itself. It is a fleet of ships that has surrounds the planet that looks like Earth.
"Who are they?" ask Chuck.
"Chuck, that fleet of ships is the Dalek fleet." answers Jenny.
"Oh. We are talking about the mini tank bent on the destruction of all life?" asks Chuck.
"Yes, how do you know?"
"Major Tom left a present on the roof of the Buy More. It was a Dalek converted into a bomb. Martha filled me in on what it was." Said Chuck, whose own concern is increasing.
"Well, it is a fleet of them. They are very much alive and there is more then one." said Jenny. Jenny move the enlarge image around to look at the surrounding area.
"What are you doing?" ask Chuck.
"Looking at the stars."
"And?"
"They are all wrong." said Jenny with a frown.
"What?"
"The stars. The alignment is all wrong. There are stars that should not be there and there are some stars that are not there. Chuck, something is wrong and I do not know what it is."
"Oh." Chuck look at the screen. "Are we safe out here?"
"Excuse me?"
"There is a fleet of killer mini tanks out there and we are over here. Think they notice us yet?"
"Ship is equipped with the latest stealth technology. When I mean latest, I mean so far in the future that it is practically invisible." answers Jenny hoping that it reassures her companion.
"OK, I can breath easier."
"Chuck."
"Yeah."
"I cannot figure out what is going on."
Chuck looks at Jenny. She looks like that she is on the verge of simply freaking out. He had seen it before. Mostly he has seen himself to that too many times.
"OK. This is not a bad thing yet. We are alive and the killer mini tanks have not seen us." said Chuck, hoping that looking at the bright side of the situation would keep Jenny from freaking out.
"Daleks."
"OK. Daleks. This is a good thing. The question is what is the question?"
"Excuse me?"
"What is the question?" ask Chuck.
"The question." Jenny looks at him with curiosity. "We know what is wrong. No wait. That is not correct. We do not know what is wrong. The only thing that we know is that the stars are wrong and that a fleet of Daleks has surrounded Earth. That is all we know. The star and the fleet is not what is wrong but are only the symptoms which can only tell us that something had to happen that is the questionwhathappentocauseall ?
"What?" ask Chuck as he did not get the last part of that statement.
"Sorry, I forget to breath."
"OK.
"What I am trying to say is that what else is wrong and what cause for all of this to happen?" Jenny looks at the screen. "Wait a minute. Something did happen."
"What?"
"That spin that we took while we were in the time vortex. That has never happen to me." remembers Jenny.
"So that was unusual."
"Yes, it was. Chuck, I am a brilliant pilot. I always walk away from a landing. I tell you all of this for one reason; that spin does not happen in the time vortex unless you are a really bad pilot."
"OK."
Jenny places her focus back on the console.
"What I need to do is simply pull up the information from our time travel and analyze the data. I do need you to do something for me."
"Sure."
"At the back of the ship, there is a pile of souvenirs. I need you to go through that pile and find me a black book." commands Jenny.
"Black book?"
"Yeah. It would look old and dusty."
"Ok." Chuck stands up and walks to the back of the ship to find the little black book. When he saw the big pile of stuff, Chuck could not help but think of Morgan's room. Chuck roll up his sleeve and pile through the items.
Jenny is focus on compiling the data. She starts pushing buttons and looking at the computer screen that is located on her ship console. Her smile is gone. Her focus is strictly the unknown problem. She looks at the data that pull up.
"Found it." yell out Chuck. Jenny turns to see Chuck walking back to her holding the book.
Chuck hands the book to Jenny, who takes it from his hand. She starts looking through the pages. Chuck notices the cover of the book. While he is expecting to see something in a language that he is not familiar, he still found it odd. There is intersecting circle on the cover of the book. He looks over Jenny's shoulder to take a peek of the content of the books. What he saw is symbols that he is not familiar. Too many symbols that he could not understand.
When he felt it, Chuck took a step away from Jenny. This is something he did not expects.
He closes his eyes and let the flash happen.
The flash shows the symbols of the black book. What happen next, Chuck did not expect to happen, the flash turns black. Chuck open his confused eyes up. That was something new to Chuck. It felt like the Intersect crash on him.
Chuck takes a deep breath and closes his eyes. He let a flash happen. He picks a hand to hand combat maneuver. After doing some moves, Chuck takes a deep sigh of relief. Whatever happened, Chuck never experience before. If he did not know any better, Chuck could have sworn that the Intersect purposely black out the flash.
He looks at Jenny. She did not notice Chuck as she is engross in the book. Chuck let out a sigh of relief as he purposely averts his eyes from the book.
"So, what is that?" ask Chuck.
"You mean the book?"
"Yeah."
"It was given to me by an old shaman on the planet called Iseuys'sedbeckiszae." answers Jenny as she turns a page of the black book
"That's a mouth full."
"Try speaking it. It felt like I had marbles in my mouth while I was there." said Jenny
"So, a shaman gave that to you." Said Chuck as he help Jenny try to continue her story.
"He said that it fell from the sky. It was like someone had dropped it. They only kept it because of the condition of the book."
"Collectors?"
"No. When I mean by the condition of the book, I meant the energy that seems to come off of it. According to the shaman, they felt a great power coming from the book. According to their legends, many of their kings rose up to power after touching the book. The bad part is the fact that they had both type of kings, good and bad. So the shamans kept the book secure." explains Jenny.
"Why do you have it?" ask Chuck.
"I can read it." said Jenny.
"Oh.
"Did I not mention that they held onto this book for a couple of millenniums?" ask Jenny as she turn a page.
"Nope."
"During that whole time that they had it, they were not able to translate the words in this book. Imagine everyone's surprise when I arrived and was able to read it. I ended up using the book to save the whole planet."
"That's good. What is it?" ask Chuck.
"Short version: Dummy version of Time travel." said Jenny with a small smile. Chuck took a quick glance at the book cover.
"Is that how you mastered time travel?"
"Yes, it is, Chuck." said Jenny as she continues to read the book. "Oh no."
"What?"
"According to the data and the book, we got it hit by a temporal wave."
"That sounds very bad."
"You have no idea." said Jenny as she stands up from the console. She places the book on the console, making sure that the book is close.
"Talk to me, Jenny. What happened?"
"I do not know. All I can tell you that if we were not in the time vortex when this wave hit, we would not have known the difference."
"Difference about what?"
"History changing. Time lines being rewritten."
"That's bad." said Chuck.
"Chuck. Something changed the whole time stream. Everything has changed. Something that should have happened never happened and it changed what we know." explains Jenny as she looks at the stars outside her ship.
"That is an alternate universe out there, isn't it." Chuck look at the stars.
"Yes, it is. But there is a problem."
"Of course, there is."
"Everything is wrong and the universe knows it. The universe will try to correct the mistake. There is a very strong possibility that the universe could reignite the big bang in order to correct itself." explains Jenny.
"That's good, right?"
"Not for us. We aren't supposed to be here. We are an…..anomaly." Chuck notices Jenny's hesitation over using the word. "There is a very good chance that we cease to exist if the bang does happened."
"Oh, that's bad." Chuck places his focus back onto Jenny, who sit down. The stars can wait. The explanation cannot.
"For us, it is. Not to mention, there is a strong possibility that everything that we know could change. Your parents may never exist. My father could be my mother. The world could be purple. Everything would change except one thing: We will never have existed." explains Jenny
"What happens if the bang does not happened?" ask Chuck, knowing full well that he will not like the answer.
"One of two things. We figure out what has happened and correct it. Time and the universe will be the same again."
"Good."
"Or the universe will die."
"Bad." points out Chuck.
"Yes, Chuck. Very bad. When that happens, a lot of other universe will die with it."
"You mean parallel universes."
"Exactly."
"OK, I am confused. What is the difference between this one and parallel universe?" asks Chuck.
"Key events will always be the same in the other universes. Pompli will still be destroyed by a volcano. The moon landing will still occur. World War II will still happened. When the car is invented can change. How the car looks can be different. Do you still get the Intersect is a question that can be answer in different ways. Who walks on the moon can change. Do you understand?" ask Jenny as she places her focus back at the black book. She picks it up and opens up the book.
"I always thought that anything can change." said Chuck.
"They can, but bad things happened if they do. At least that is what the book says." reply Jenny.
"How long do we have before something has to happen?" ask Chuck.
"We have forty-eight hours." answers Jenny
"Great, now we have to figure out what has happened to change a whole universe and time or we cease to exist."
"You forgot about the Dalek fleet that is out there. We do have to avoid them while we are doing all of this." adds Jenny.
Chuck turn to look at the screen.
"Jenny."
"Yes, Chuck."
"I think that we have that problem now."
Jenny takes her eyes off of the book and look at the screen. She put the book down on the console.
"Well, that could be a problem." said Jenny.
The screen shows the fleet in front of them.
"How did they find us?" ask Chuck.
"We are stealth to their radars. I must have forgotten to put up the cloaking device."
"Isn't that an automatic thing?"
"No. My ship does not generate enough energy to do both." said Jenny.
"So they can see us."
"Yes."
"Oh."
"Chuck."
"Yeah."
"Put on the seat belt?" commands Jenny.
Chuck put his seat belt on.
"Ship. Display a 360 degree view of our surroundings." A 3-d hologram display in front of Jenny. Chuck look to see that the fleet has surrounded them.
"Oh boy." said Chuck when a beep goes off.
"It looks like the Daleks wants to establish contact with us." Comment Jenny.
"You are awful calm about this."
"Now is not the time to panic, Chuck." said Jenny. Chuck could see a small smile is slowly forming on her face. "Let us see what they want to say."
Jenny pushes a button to the Intercom.
"Hello." said Jenny.
"EXTERMINATE!"
"No, thanks." reply Jenny as she turns off the intercom. She presses another button. "Silly Daleks. Surround us for all sides but one."
Chuck look at the 360 degree view when he realizes what Jenny meant. The fleet did not cover their bottom half. Chuck grabs the arm rest of his chair.
The smile on Jenny grows on her face.
"It looks like that we are running, Chuck." said Jenny as she presses the last button.
This ship drops like a brick through the opening that the Daleks left Jenny. The fleet starts to follow Jenny. With a head start, Jenny's ship proves to be faster than the fleet.
"SHIP! PREPARE PROBES!" yells out Jenny as she looks at her radar. The fleet was maintaining its speed.
"Probe prepared to launch." answer the ship's computer.
"Set coordinates to Earth." command Jenny.
"Disparate formation?" asks the computer.
"Yes."
"Probes ready." reply the computer.
"FIRE!" commanded Jenny.
The ship fires several spheres to the blue planet.
"OK, I'll bite. Why are you firing the probe to earth?" ask Chuck.
"Because I am firing into an unknown planet, Chuck. Because I have no idea what is going on in that planet. Because everything has changed and I do not know anything at this moment. I would like to know what is going on the planet at this moment when I am being followed…" said Jenny.
Without warning, a streak of light passes by the ship.
"Correction. Being fired upon by the Dalek fleet." corrects Jenny.
"Don't you have any weapons on the ship?" ask Chuck.
"No. Why would I?"
"Seriously."
"Chuck. I have a sonic device that I have not had the chance to repair still on my ship. I have force field that can withstand the collapse of a dying sun and a black hole combined. I can travel through time in my ship. I ask you, why would I want to have weapons on this ship?" ask Jenny.
"Because we are being fired at….Wait. Did you say a force field?"
"Yes, I did."
As to answer Chuck's question, they fled a shove to the ship.
"Shields holding." said the ship's computer. Jenny turns to her companion and flashes a smile.
As if to prove a point, several blasts could be heard from behind the ship.
"Do you hear what I hear, Chuck?"
"A lot of people trying to kill us?"
"Yeah. Isn't exciting?" said Jenny with a smile. He places his focus back on the screening, wondering if he is with someone who has gone mad or not. "Plot course to Earth."
"I have not received information from the probe." Reply the ship's computer.
"We have a fleet of angry little tank robots surrounding the planet. They are not famous for looking after a planet of very little importance. Plot the course, now!" explain Jenny.
"Wait a minute. Are you saying that the Dalek are actually protecting something?" ask Chuck.
"Remember what I told you about the Daleks."
"Killer tanks bent on the destruction of the universe. I vaguely remember that." answers Chuck.
"So, why is Earth still around?" ask Jenny.
"Crap. They should have destroyed it by now, shouldn't they?"
"Exactly. My only encounter with a Dalek, that thing had only one purpose in mind. It was not about conquering. If I had to guess, we may find most of our answers back on Earth." said Jenny. "SHIP, PLOT THE COURSE NOW!"
"Plotting as we speak." Answer the computer.
"So, why don't we jump back to the time vortex?" ask Chuck as he notice that the ship is going faster.
"Time converter is out of energy. It wouldn't recharge for another seventy two hours."
"There goes that idea." said Chuck.
"If you are talking about going back into time before the universe changed into this new reality, yes, that plan is no longer feasible. We need to focus on the here and now, Chuck."
"OK."
Both pilot and passenger look at the screen. The blue planet just got bigger.
"That is a beautiful view. Jenny."
"Yes, Chuck."
"I hate to say this but…"
"But what?" ask Jenny.
The silence is Jenny's only response. She turns to see Chuck has fainted. She could not help but smile.
"Silly Chuck."
