Living in the Loop: Life #102 – bits and ends and a Triceratops
Disclaimer: see previous chapters.
9-1
The skaters were hanging-out at their usual place, cheerfully doing what they were always doing – skating stunts. Nothing was foreshadowing any trouble, when-
"Dude, what you look at this?" one of them exclaimed to his friend. The latter turned just in time to see a pack of dingoes came running from beyond the trees, pursued by a Megalania...
9-2
"So, this is where Howard lives," Evan was explaining to Dylan, "and I must warn you – he is a not a very welcoming character..."
"Halt! Who goes there?" Dylan and Evan whirled, only to be confronted...by a security guard. A rather average-looking security guard as well.
"We're just passing by," Evan tried to diffuse the situation. "We're bird-watching. And who are you? I once knew the man who lived here, Mr. Howard Kanan – did he hire you or something?"
"Sort of," the guard admitted, as apparently Evan's diplomacy was successful. "He won a trip to Harrison Hot Springs in a lottery – one of those one-in-a-million chances and he hired our company to watch over his house while he's gone." He paused and asked, now sounding friendlier than before. "So, uh, have you seen any interesting birds lately?"
"Yes, and we should be going now," Evan said firmly.
"Aw, come on, man!" the other man complained. "Sorry for coming so strong on you, it's just my partner and I, and I confess that we're somewhat bored..." As he continued to drone, Dylan and Evan just exchanged looks: apparently leaving the man behind would be harder than it looked...
9-3
"And so this is how it goes," Mac finished explaining the situation to Ange and Samantha. "The time loops are continuing to change more and more. Last time, Dylan and Evan didn't have to deal with a Triceratops at all; instead, it was a giant lizard of some sort."
"Was Dylan aware that that wasn't supposed to be?" Sam asked thoughtfully.
"I'm not sure. Ange, I tend to doubt you as it is, but are you sure that Evan was aware of his surroundings that time?"
"When he was a dinosaur? I have no idea. I myself was an alligator last time, and so I was slow to catch up. When Moiraine drops in next time, I'll ask her in a greater detail," Ange mused. "So how are you going to deal with the horned dinosaur or whatever will come forth this time?"
"Meh, if it is Triceratops, I already know where to get the replica, and if it is anything else, we can still get a replica of it," Mac confessed. "This is where the military is beginning to take charge of the time anomalies and its resources, correct?"
The other two just nodded. "Yes, that sounds about right," Ange nodded as Sam huddled closer to Mac. "And you don't want to have him involved?"
"I just don't see why," Mac confessed. "Yes, his men ran interference at the end, but it was Evan and Dylan's call – not ours. I don't see why we shouldn't let them make the call this time as well."
"Toby agrees? And Natalie?" Samantha asked curiously.
"They're busy," Mac winced. "Still, Toby implied that I could make the call if it was necessary-"
"Aha," the other two exchanged thoughtful looks. "Right."
There was a pause as all three realized that it was the first really civil conversation Mac and Ange ever had with each other and that was strange.
"You want to play cards?" Samantha asked brightly.
The other two exchanged looks.
9-4
"Ms. Ambroise?"
Helen raised an eyebrow: according to the information she was able to discreetly acquire and observe, Claudia Brown was SAS in this loop, and Tom Ryan was not. Frankly, she did not see what the big deal was with this change: 3+2 worked equally well as 2+3 in her opinion.
"Yes?"she asked carefully, as she put down her brush and took a look. "Do you want to buy a painting?"
"No, not exactly...tell me, do you remember a Nick Cutter from your university days?"
"Nick Cutter?" Helen smiled involuntarily despite her intentions. "Yes...I remember him. A charming young man...pity that we drifted apart...I even tried taking paleontology to impress him, but it didn't work..."
"Um, about that," Claudia carefully asked, and Helen turned to face her:
"Yes?"
"You have had some interesting theories, Nick said, about fossils and time travel and-"
"Have you ever been in love?" Helen asked tartly. "Have you ever tried to impress a man who was interesting in you and science? And suppose that you have a good imagination? You will be amazed what you can come up with!" She paused and added, more bitterly: "Maybe it's for the best that the two of us had fallen apart – I doubt that I would've made a very good paleontologist, you know?"
"I see," Claudia said, looking around – clearly, Helen's story was not what she had expected.
"Is there anything else?" Helen not so subtly suggested that it was time for Ms. Brown to leave.
"No," Claudia shook her head, clearly realizing that it was useless to linger at this time. "Have a nice day."
She left.
9-5
"So, let me get this straight," Lt. Leeds thoughtfully asked Natalie and Toby. "Due to some sadistic gods, or the time anomalies themselves, or something else, we're forced to re-live our lives time after time after time, sometimes aware of it, sometimes not?"
"Yes," the pair exchanged thoughtful glances between each other.
"And Ange did it before?"
"Yes."
"And did she seek me out?"
"The two of you would end up together some of the times," Natalie admitted. "Don't take it the wrong way, but neither of you were ever sure that you wanted to be a couple, you know? Neither hot nor cold, neither fully committed nor totally disinterested, and you know what the universe does to that sort of a relationship? If you won't stick together, you'll drift apart, as the two of you tend to do."
"I see," Leeds did not appear to be too happy about that. "Anything else?"
"We believe that about this time the military is bringing you under its control – well, back under its control, you probably know better this than us," Toby spoke up. "Beyond that...thanks for helping us get into the shower – guess the syrup was slightly just too sticky for us."
"Don't mention it," Leeds turned red.
9-6
The skaters were hanging-out at their usual place, cheerfully doing what they were always doing – skating stunts. Nothing was foreshadowing any trouble, when-
"Dude, what you look at this?" one of them exclaimed to his friend. The latter turned just in time to see a pack of raptors came running from beyond the trees, pursued by a Spinosaurus...
9-7
"Toby, please call us!" Dylan hissed into her cell. "So far there is no dinosaur, no nothing, just a couple of really bored security guys that are currently drinking beer with Evan. Get us out of here or all this testosterone shall drive me mad?"
The recorded message on Toby's cell did not make Dylan feel better at all...
9-8
The time anomaly alarm (still partially dismembered – Toby had not recovered from the giant scorpion's stinger to fully rig it back on) continued to sound as the EC team and the military looked around the new time anomaly.
"So what do you think?" Dylan asked the paleontology expert as the pair looked at the other side. "Is it like your Jurassic time anomaly?"
"No. Judging by the horned dinosaurs, and the duckbills, and the much-bigger pterosaurs in the sky – much bigger than the ones from the Jurassic, with shorter tails – we're in the Cretaceous instead."
"Ah yes, the Cretaceous," Dylan nodded sagely. "Guess we should watch-out for the comet or whatever that has killed the dinosaurs."
There was a pause as the two of them exchanged looks and quickly got back into the modern world.
9-9
"You cannot stop me!" Howard yelled, as he fell backwards into the time anomaly. "This is-"
Something snapped – something with too many teeth and a head of a different shape than a Triceratops's and Howard vanished for good with just some blood splattering the grass.
Dylan and Evan exchanged looks. "Oops?" was all that Dylan could say.
9-10
"...Leeds has begun to loop?" Ange repeated Toby's last statement as a question.
"Yes."
"And he helped the two of you to a shower."
"Yes."
"And there was no Triceratops."
"No."
"And you're speaking in single-word sentences because-"
"Because she had to console Dylan, since without the dinosaur what she and Evan had was practically a date where the man spends his time with other men and beer," Natalie joined in. "You look sort of like her – rather unhappy and all. Is that about Leeds?"
"I don't know," Angelika shook her head. "Between him and everything else – my life has just become more complicated."
End Life #102