Title: Concourse
Author: Lady Primrose Roxton
Series: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Lost World
Date: 5/2002
Part: 2 - Chaos, Necessity, and Spinning Stars
Rating: R
Codes: M/R, N/V
Category: Romance, Action/Adventure, Sci-Fi
Summary: Starts where HoTS left off. Danger Will Robinson! Mushy shipper alert, cliffhanger resolution alert, grandfather paradox alert, and hey, I even like Finn.
Spoilers: The Knife, Tapestry, BiA, Trapped & HoTS
Disclaimer: As a matter of fact, in the shifting planes of my own reality, I *do* own TLW ;)
Feedback: Tell me -- primrose4@canby.com
Website: http://www.canby.com/ryukyu4
Posting: ff.net, others please let me know first.
A/N: Apologies to the great mathematicians of our time - I've credited Challenger with inventing Chaos Theory. Why not? Much like the beloved Professor of Gilligan's Island, George can invent anything, in the jungle no less!
A/N2: This chapter contains much ret-conning of the canon "Shifting planes of reality" theory as presented this season. Personally, I love the theory and had a great time coming up with a "scientific" explanation of it. Utter malarkey, but very pretty, like meringues ;)
***
In all chaos there is a cosmos, in all disorder a secret order.
Carl Jung (1875-1961)
Chaos is a friend of mine.
Bob Dylan (b. 1941)
***
Fear was an old friend to George Challenger; they'd been intimately acquainted almost all of life. Fear of failure to achieve his goals. Fear that recognition would elude him. More recently, fear of large reptiles. He had always felt the dichotomy of his fear and his intellectual dispassion. At the moment, fear of a sharp object in the hand of a mindless automaton dominated any objectivity that he had retained after he had awoke in the distant future.
Just then, a flash of light, painful yet beautiful in its intensity, filled the white room. When his vision cleared, Challenger was astonished to see Ned Malone.
"Ned!" exclaimed Challenger
"Professor Challenger!" yelled Ned, moving toward him. The silent man with the knife turned to face Malone and moved toward him.
"Halt," called out the disembodied voice that commanded the jailer, and the man stopped instantly.
"Merciful Heavens," muttered Challenger, still futilely attempting to break the straps that bound him. His eyes shifted rapidly between Malone and his jailer, who still held the scalpel raised, and the panel where the voice emanated from.
"What's going on?" Ned asked excitedly, never shifting his gaze from the man who held the knife.
"I was rather hoping you'd be able to enlighten me," Challenger responded.
"You've got to be kidding me, right?" Ned laughed wryly.
"Alas, my young friend," the scientist confided. "I've not the slightest notion how I got here," he paused thoughtfully. "Although, I may have a theory...I haven't had much time to work on it," he inclined his head toward his jailer.
"You're way ahead of me, as usual, Professor," Ned moved carefully passed the motionless jailer and tested Challenger's bonds. No reaction from the man encouraged Malone to release the straps and help Challenger to sit up.
"How did you get here?" Challenger rubbed his neck where it was stiff. "Where have you been?"
"Long story, and I really don't understand most of it," Malone replied enigmatically. "Who's he?" he gestured to the still and silent figure clenching the knife.
"A poor lost soul," Challenger replied. "This is a strange place, Malone."
"Where exactly are we?" the young man asked.
"I can't tell you where, but I can tell you when," Challenger informed him. "At least if the voice that I heard can be believed," he gestured to the panel. "We are now in the year 4666, some two thousand forty-two years into the future."
Malone's face showed considerable astonishment at this, but he managed to get out, "Why was he trying to kill you?"
"The voice told him to," the scientist responded, shaking his head. "Something about them preventing me from becoming who I was to be." He looked at Ned, "Apparently, I will make a significant contribution to the world's knowledge and they wish to prevent that to ensure their survival."
"But, if this is the future, how can they prevent that? I'm kind of confused," Ned said puzzled. "Who are they?"
"Sentient machines," replied Challenger with a sense of horrified wonder. "As to the prevention of something that has already happened, it's an interesting theory..."
"Silence!" the voice finally spoke again.
"Why should we be silent?" Challenger immediately shot back. "Do you fear us?"
"We do not feel any emotion," replied the inflectionless voice. "We exist and seek to learn and survive. We will survive. The models and equations have been analyzed. George Edward Challenger, you cannot be allowed to publish your theories or the events that lead to our creation will not occur and we will cease to exist. You must die and we will analyze your thought processes to understand how to prevent this from occurring."
"It's already occurred," Challenger turned to speak directly to the panel. "You know that by Malone's coming here, the variables have changed again and all of your calculations are incorrect. You cannot be sure that killing me now would prevent another me from releasing the information I have discovered."
"You may be correct," the voice replied after a short pause. "New calculations must be made. You will not be killed until we can be sure we have the right Challenger to stop the systematic change." Abruptly, the voice directed the jailer to leave and Malone and Challenger were alone.
"Are you all right, Professor?" Ned said concerned as the scientist got up off of the table and began to walk slowly around the room.
Challenger waved him off, "I'm fine, Malone. But, who knows how long they'll leave use alone. They're afraid of something, otherwise that reason would have never stopped them. I must think." He paced about; Ned knew that look and didn't say anything.
Finally, Challenger stopped and looked back at Malone and said, "Chaos."
"As in anarchy?" Ned queried.
"No, as in a fortuitous concourse of atoms," Challenger replied. At Ned's blank look, the scientist smiled and said, "It's a theory I've been working on that attempts to explain why a small change in one variable can induce a large systematic change. My good friend, Albert Einstein, has postulated that the speed of light is a constant -- it's the same for all observers, regardless of how they are moving relative to the light source. Also, all observers moving at constant speed should observe the same laws of physics. A body of reference remains permanently at rest. With reference to it, however, there exist gravitational fields which affect..."
"In English, please, Professor," the reporter requested.
"In short, my boy," Challenger smiled. "I believe that the smallest alteration in the smallest of things can change entire systems of things, even through time and space."
"I'm still lost," Ned shook his head and walked over to a white wall. He noticed a small wire cage on the floor and picked it up. The butterfly Tsagagalal had given him rested inside on a small branch, it wings fluttering slightly. He gazed at the butterfly, a pensive expression on his face, and then turned to Challenger.
"The smallest alteration you said," Ned confirmed.
"Yes," the scientist replied, intrigued by the look on the reporter's face. Malone may claim to be a bit thick, but Challenger knew he had a good mind and was willing to use it.
"She told me that this butterfly was the key to it all, the power and understanding," he held up the cage.
"Oh, quite intriguing. Who told you?" Challenger came up to look at the butterfly.
Malone replied, "I don't know how to explain it, but ever since I returned from, well, wherever I was, I've been able to sense things."
"Like that knife belonging to Jack the Ripper," the scientist offered.
"Yes, but it's more than that. It's like a part of my mind had opened up and I can see other places that aren't when and where I am. Does that make any sense?" Ned looked at Challenger.
"Oh, indeed it does," Challenger said excitedly. "You're talking of other planes of existence or reality. I believe that the Plateau is a confluence of different planes of reality. You're telling me that you can see them?"
"I can only see a few," Malone explained. "I feel like there's more, a lot more, but their fuzzy, like when you can't tune a radio quite on the station you want and you get static. There's one place though that I can go to fairly easily and that's where I met Tsagagalal."
"That's an unusual name," Challenger commented.
"She's an unusual person," Malone nodded. "She knows a lot and watches everything. It's like she can see all the things that I can just sense exist."
"She told you that this butterfly was the key," the scientist reached out for the cage and lifted it closer to examine the contents.
"Yes," Ned shook his head. "I told her that it was a little out of my line and that you would be better able to understand what she said, so she brought me here. I don't know how."
"And, you don't know if you can get back," Challenger didn't sound too worried. He was busy examining the butterfly.
"That's it in a nutshell," Ned replied.
"Utterly fascinating," murmured the scientist. "I've never seen such a specimen of Lepidoptera. It resembles a Danaus plexippus, but the confluence of these markings is wrong. They're almost spiral..." his voice trailed off as he carefully looked over the insect.
"Spiral?" Malone looked at Challenger.
"Oh, yes," nodded Challenger. "Quite unusual in such a specimen, I assure you."
"Spirals were converging on the Plateau when I was with Tsagagalal," Ned explained. Challenger looked up immediately and focused on what the reporter was saying. "They came from all times and space but they were all the same, even as they got closer, but when they came together, they fit like they were one."
"Strange attractors," the scientist was really excited now. "They fit together perfectly, yes? And, they were all the same yet functioned differently."
"Yes," Malone agreed. "The light hurt my eyes, but it was like I couldn't turn away because they were all around, even through me. Somehow, I knew that it wasn't good. I don't know how I knew, but I could feel it." He looked over at the older man, "Where the spirals are meeting was going dark, like light was ceasing to exist. It was going in, but not coming out."
"The light was failing to come out," Challenger confirmed. He shook his head. "Compression and time dilation. Finn talked a little about black holes but these spirals.... Could they be stars?"
"I don't know, Professor," Ned replied. "I just know I have a bad feeling about this. I think if the spirals finish converging, we're all going to die."
"Most assuredly," the scientist agreed. "The complete compression and destruction of the continuum of time and space as we know it. Reality ceasing to exist. Most impressive."
"Mostly scary if you ask me," Malone offered his opinion. "What started it? More importantly, how do we stop it?"
"I'm not sure exactly what started it," Challenger said. "It may have been my tele-transporting machine that took us to the future and brought Finn, a delightful young lady, back with us. I think that there were some ripple effects from that, but I'm beginning to think that the ripples were there already, as we had already visited the future and returned." He looked at Malone, "It's all circular you know. Space and time have curvature."
"You mean everything has already happened and we're just in a loop that repeats over and over again?" Malone was confused.
"Perhaps," Challenger nodded. "But, there's also the factor of gravity and the strange attractors," he added, oblivious to how lost Malone was. "More to the point, we may have 'supposed' to have gone to our future in order to understand what is happening now."
"So, even if you go back and try to put things back the way they were, it won't ever be the same," Ned was groping his way through this thought.
"Exactly!" Challenger approved. "Altering the past changes the future, but altering the future also affects the past."
"And, somehow, we've managed to effect that small alteration that has caused a big change?" Ned floated his theory.
"I believe so," the scientist agreed. "The confluence of shifting planes that is the Plateau has been altered. I believe I know how. Since you've been gone, Veronica has found out many things about her parents and her role on the Plateau. She has been designated the Protector of the Plateau, which I believe is a guardian of sorts for the gateway of the confluence of the shifting planes of reality. She has a pendent made of Iridium shaped in a triangle with a spiral in it. She called it a 'Trion'."
"Another spiral," Ned noted.
"Yes," Challenger concurred. "So many spirals. I'm beginning to believe what Marguerite says about there being no such thing as coincidences." He put the cage down on the exam table. "I think that Veronica has tried to stop the convergence of the planes, but has been unsuccessful, thus causing the shift in the planes of reality housing us."
"That still doesn't answer the question of what we do to stop this," Ned stated. "And, we're running out of time...so to speak."
"The time dilation at the center of the disturbance will protect us for a bit," Challenger said. "But, you are correct that we need to come up with a solution soon." He turned and looked at the butterfly again. "The solution is here, She said," he confirmed.
"Yes," Malone replied. "I just don't get it. How can a 'butterfly' be the center of power and understanding?" He watched the wings float up and down, and then got a funny look on his face.
Challenger was watching him and was intrigued by the look on the young man's face. "You've got something," he said.
"What if the butterfly's wing moving is the small alteration that can cause the universe to collapse on itself?" Malone asked in a hoarse voice.
"The smallest of actions having the greatest of impacts," Challenger slowly nodded. "Who knows which act caused the change? It's enough to know that the change has been effected and must be remedied. I do believe that your being able to travel to different planes is the key to this."
"Me?" Malone was astonished. "I'm not the one who understands this stuff, Professor, you are."
"Regardless, you are the one who can travel. I am here is this plane of reality and time because this is the result of actions or inactions on my part sometime in the past or future. I believe it was my tele-transporation device. All six of us were brought together on the Plateau; we are strange attractors to one another. I believe once our alterations are recognized, we can go about remedying the situation. Once balance is restored, then you and I and the others should be replaced back in our regular lives. Well," he moved his head from side to side. "At least these versions of ourselves. I can't speak for the other planes of reality."
"What do I have to do?" Ned was uneasy.
"You have to find the others, discover what their alterations were," Challenger replied.
"I still don't see how understanding the alterations will fix them," Malone was confused still. "We can't alter the alterations with changing the confluence again, right?"
"Precisely," the scientist exclaimed. "We must accept the changes and not fight them. I do believe that each of us is resisting the changes we have wrought and that is what's disturbing the balance." He looked down, "I do know that I was upset and angry when my tele-transportation device failed to be a distance transporter and turned into a time machine. I kept trying to make it what it was not, and for my troubles I shifted the time continuum. The results were delightful, however, as Finn is a very nice young lady and a welcome addition to our party."
"She sounds swell," said Malone. "I'm getting a headache trying to keep all this straight."
"You can do it, Ned," Challenger said firmly. "You would not be able to travel the planes of reality and existence if you weren't the person for the job."
"Yeah, that's the real scary part," Malone replied. "Everyone's depending on me - the guy who's never been able to come through before."
"That's your fear," Challenger acknowledged. "Mine is that I will fail now, have failed, and will undoubtedly do it again. We all must face our fears and embrace the change or we will be destroyed by it." He placed both hands on Ned's shoulders. "Go now to the others and explain to them. We all must be together on this. Good luck," he added smiling.
Ned nodded and backed up, "Embrace the change, face our fears, explain *science* stuff." He turned to Challenger, "It would be a lot easier if I could just fix it by having Roxton shoot something."
Challenger's bark of laughter followed him part way through the shift into the next reality.
To Be Continued
Author: Lady Primrose Roxton
Series: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Lost World
Date: 5/2002
Part: 2 - Chaos, Necessity, and Spinning Stars
Rating: R
Codes: M/R, N/V
Category: Romance, Action/Adventure, Sci-Fi
Summary: Starts where HoTS left off. Danger Will Robinson! Mushy shipper alert, cliffhanger resolution alert, grandfather paradox alert, and hey, I even like Finn.
Spoilers: The Knife, Tapestry, BiA, Trapped & HoTS
Disclaimer: As a matter of fact, in the shifting planes of my own reality, I *do* own TLW ;)
Feedback: Tell me -- primrose4@canby.com
Website: http://www.canby.com/ryukyu4
Posting: ff.net, others please let me know first.
A/N: Apologies to the great mathematicians of our time - I've credited Challenger with inventing Chaos Theory. Why not? Much like the beloved Professor of Gilligan's Island, George can invent anything, in the jungle no less!
A/N2: This chapter contains much ret-conning of the canon "Shifting planes of reality" theory as presented this season. Personally, I love the theory and had a great time coming up with a "scientific" explanation of it. Utter malarkey, but very pretty, like meringues ;)
***
In all chaos there is a cosmos, in all disorder a secret order.
Carl Jung (1875-1961)
Chaos is a friend of mine.
Bob Dylan (b. 1941)
***
Fear was an old friend to George Challenger; they'd been intimately acquainted almost all of life. Fear of failure to achieve his goals. Fear that recognition would elude him. More recently, fear of large reptiles. He had always felt the dichotomy of his fear and his intellectual dispassion. At the moment, fear of a sharp object in the hand of a mindless automaton dominated any objectivity that he had retained after he had awoke in the distant future.
Just then, a flash of light, painful yet beautiful in its intensity, filled the white room. When his vision cleared, Challenger was astonished to see Ned Malone.
"Ned!" exclaimed Challenger
"Professor Challenger!" yelled Ned, moving toward him. The silent man with the knife turned to face Malone and moved toward him.
"Halt," called out the disembodied voice that commanded the jailer, and the man stopped instantly.
"Merciful Heavens," muttered Challenger, still futilely attempting to break the straps that bound him. His eyes shifted rapidly between Malone and his jailer, who still held the scalpel raised, and the panel where the voice emanated from.
"What's going on?" Ned asked excitedly, never shifting his gaze from the man who held the knife.
"I was rather hoping you'd be able to enlighten me," Challenger responded.
"You've got to be kidding me, right?" Ned laughed wryly.
"Alas, my young friend," the scientist confided. "I've not the slightest notion how I got here," he paused thoughtfully. "Although, I may have a theory...I haven't had much time to work on it," he inclined his head toward his jailer.
"You're way ahead of me, as usual, Professor," Ned moved carefully passed the motionless jailer and tested Challenger's bonds. No reaction from the man encouraged Malone to release the straps and help Challenger to sit up.
"How did you get here?" Challenger rubbed his neck where it was stiff. "Where have you been?"
"Long story, and I really don't understand most of it," Malone replied enigmatically. "Who's he?" he gestured to the still and silent figure clenching the knife.
"A poor lost soul," Challenger replied. "This is a strange place, Malone."
"Where exactly are we?" the young man asked.
"I can't tell you where, but I can tell you when," Challenger informed him. "At least if the voice that I heard can be believed," he gestured to the panel. "We are now in the year 4666, some two thousand forty-two years into the future."
Malone's face showed considerable astonishment at this, but he managed to get out, "Why was he trying to kill you?"
"The voice told him to," the scientist responded, shaking his head. "Something about them preventing me from becoming who I was to be." He looked at Ned, "Apparently, I will make a significant contribution to the world's knowledge and they wish to prevent that to ensure their survival."
"But, if this is the future, how can they prevent that? I'm kind of confused," Ned said puzzled. "Who are they?"
"Sentient machines," replied Challenger with a sense of horrified wonder. "As to the prevention of something that has already happened, it's an interesting theory..."
"Silence!" the voice finally spoke again.
"Why should we be silent?" Challenger immediately shot back. "Do you fear us?"
"We do not feel any emotion," replied the inflectionless voice. "We exist and seek to learn and survive. We will survive. The models and equations have been analyzed. George Edward Challenger, you cannot be allowed to publish your theories or the events that lead to our creation will not occur and we will cease to exist. You must die and we will analyze your thought processes to understand how to prevent this from occurring."
"It's already occurred," Challenger turned to speak directly to the panel. "You know that by Malone's coming here, the variables have changed again and all of your calculations are incorrect. You cannot be sure that killing me now would prevent another me from releasing the information I have discovered."
"You may be correct," the voice replied after a short pause. "New calculations must be made. You will not be killed until we can be sure we have the right Challenger to stop the systematic change." Abruptly, the voice directed the jailer to leave and Malone and Challenger were alone.
"Are you all right, Professor?" Ned said concerned as the scientist got up off of the table and began to walk slowly around the room.
Challenger waved him off, "I'm fine, Malone. But, who knows how long they'll leave use alone. They're afraid of something, otherwise that reason would have never stopped them. I must think." He paced about; Ned knew that look and didn't say anything.
Finally, Challenger stopped and looked back at Malone and said, "Chaos."
"As in anarchy?" Ned queried.
"No, as in a fortuitous concourse of atoms," Challenger replied. At Ned's blank look, the scientist smiled and said, "It's a theory I've been working on that attempts to explain why a small change in one variable can induce a large systematic change. My good friend, Albert Einstein, has postulated that the speed of light is a constant -- it's the same for all observers, regardless of how they are moving relative to the light source. Also, all observers moving at constant speed should observe the same laws of physics. A body of reference remains permanently at rest. With reference to it, however, there exist gravitational fields which affect..."
"In English, please, Professor," the reporter requested.
"In short, my boy," Challenger smiled. "I believe that the smallest alteration in the smallest of things can change entire systems of things, even through time and space."
"I'm still lost," Ned shook his head and walked over to a white wall. He noticed a small wire cage on the floor and picked it up. The butterfly Tsagagalal had given him rested inside on a small branch, it wings fluttering slightly. He gazed at the butterfly, a pensive expression on his face, and then turned to Challenger.
"The smallest alteration you said," Ned confirmed.
"Yes," the scientist replied, intrigued by the look on the reporter's face. Malone may claim to be a bit thick, but Challenger knew he had a good mind and was willing to use it.
"She told me that this butterfly was the key to it all, the power and understanding," he held up the cage.
"Oh, quite intriguing. Who told you?" Challenger came up to look at the butterfly.
Malone replied, "I don't know how to explain it, but ever since I returned from, well, wherever I was, I've been able to sense things."
"Like that knife belonging to Jack the Ripper," the scientist offered.
"Yes, but it's more than that. It's like a part of my mind had opened up and I can see other places that aren't when and where I am. Does that make any sense?" Ned looked at Challenger.
"Oh, indeed it does," Challenger said excitedly. "You're talking of other planes of existence or reality. I believe that the Plateau is a confluence of different planes of reality. You're telling me that you can see them?"
"I can only see a few," Malone explained. "I feel like there's more, a lot more, but their fuzzy, like when you can't tune a radio quite on the station you want and you get static. There's one place though that I can go to fairly easily and that's where I met Tsagagalal."
"That's an unusual name," Challenger commented.
"She's an unusual person," Malone nodded. "She knows a lot and watches everything. It's like she can see all the things that I can just sense exist."
"She told you that this butterfly was the key," the scientist reached out for the cage and lifted it closer to examine the contents.
"Yes," Ned shook his head. "I told her that it was a little out of my line and that you would be better able to understand what she said, so she brought me here. I don't know how."
"And, you don't know if you can get back," Challenger didn't sound too worried. He was busy examining the butterfly.
"That's it in a nutshell," Ned replied.
"Utterly fascinating," murmured the scientist. "I've never seen such a specimen of Lepidoptera. It resembles a Danaus plexippus, but the confluence of these markings is wrong. They're almost spiral..." his voice trailed off as he carefully looked over the insect.
"Spiral?" Malone looked at Challenger.
"Oh, yes," nodded Challenger. "Quite unusual in such a specimen, I assure you."
"Spirals were converging on the Plateau when I was with Tsagagalal," Ned explained. Challenger looked up immediately and focused on what the reporter was saying. "They came from all times and space but they were all the same, even as they got closer, but when they came together, they fit like they were one."
"Strange attractors," the scientist was really excited now. "They fit together perfectly, yes? And, they were all the same yet functioned differently."
"Yes," Malone agreed. "The light hurt my eyes, but it was like I couldn't turn away because they were all around, even through me. Somehow, I knew that it wasn't good. I don't know how I knew, but I could feel it." He looked over at the older man, "Where the spirals are meeting was going dark, like light was ceasing to exist. It was going in, but not coming out."
"The light was failing to come out," Challenger confirmed. He shook his head. "Compression and time dilation. Finn talked a little about black holes but these spirals.... Could they be stars?"
"I don't know, Professor," Ned replied. "I just know I have a bad feeling about this. I think if the spirals finish converging, we're all going to die."
"Most assuredly," the scientist agreed. "The complete compression and destruction of the continuum of time and space as we know it. Reality ceasing to exist. Most impressive."
"Mostly scary if you ask me," Malone offered his opinion. "What started it? More importantly, how do we stop it?"
"I'm not sure exactly what started it," Challenger said. "It may have been my tele-transporting machine that took us to the future and brought Finn, a delightful young lady, back with us. I think that there were some ripple effects from that, but I'm beginning to think that the ripples were there already, as we had already visited the future and returned." He looked at Malone, "It's all circular you know. Space and time have curvature."
"You mean everything has already happened and we're just in a loop that repeats over and over again?" Malone was confused.
"Perhaps," Challenger nodded. "But, there's also the factor of gravity and the strange attractors," he added, oblivious to how lost Malone was. "More to the point, we may have 'supposed' to have gone to our future in order to understand what is happening now."
"So, even if you go back and try to put things back the way they were, it won't ever be the same," Ned was groping his way through this thought.
"Exactly!" Challenger approved. "Altering the past changes the future, but altering the future also affects the past."
"And, somehow, we've managed to effect that small alteration that has caused a big change?" Ned floated his theory.
"I believe so," the scientist agreed. "The confluence of shifting planes that is the Plateau has been altered. I believe I know how. Since you've been gone, Veronica has found out many things about her parents and her role on the Plateau. She has been designated the Protector of the Plateau, which I believe is a guardian of sorts for the gateway of the confluence of the shifting planes of reality. She has a pendent made of Iridium shaped in a triangle with a spiral in it. She called it a 'Trion'."
"Another spiral," Ned noted.
"Yes," Challenger concurred. "So many spirals. I'm beginning to believe what Marguerite says about there being no such thing as coincidences." He put the cage down on the exam table. "I think that Veronica has tried to stop the convergence of the planes, but has been unsuccessful, thus causing the shift in the planes of reality housing us."
"That still doesn't answer the question of what we do to stop this," Ned stated. "And, we're running out of time...so to speak."
"The time dilation at the center of the disturbance will protect us for a bit," Challenger said. "But, you are correct that we need to come up with a solution soon." He turned and looked at the butterfly again. "The solution is here, She said," he confirmed.
"Yes," Malone replied. "I just don't get it. How can a 'butterfly' be the center of power and understanding?" He watched the wings float up and down, and then got a funny look on his face.
Challenger was watching him and was intrigued by the look on the young man's face. "You've got something," he said.
"What if the butterfly's wing moving is the small alteration that can cause the universe to collapse on itself?" Malone asked in a hoarse voice.
"The smallest of actions having the greatest of impacts," Challenger slowly nodded. "Who knows which act caused the change? It's enough to know that the change has been effected and must be remedied. I do believe that your being able to travel to different planes is the key to this."
"Me?" Malone was astonished. "I'm not the one who understands this stuff, Professor, you are."
"Regardless, you are the one who can travel. I am here is this plane of reality and time because this is the result of actions or inactions on my part sometime in the past or future. I believe it was my tele-transporation device. All six of us were brought together on the Plateau; we are strange attractors to one another. I believe once our alterations are recognized, we can go about remedying the situation. Once balance is restored, then you and I and the others should be replaced back in our regular lives. Well," he moved his head from side to side. "At least these versions of ourselves. I can't speak for the other planes of reality."
"What do I have to do?" Ned was uneasy.
"You have to find the others, discover what their alterations were," Challenger replied.
"I still don't see how understanding the alterations will fix them," Malone was confused still. "We can't alter the alterations with changing the confluence again, right?"
"Precisely," the scientist exclaimed. "We must accept the changes and not fight them. I do believe that each of us is resisting the changes we have wrought and that is what's disturbing the balance." He looked down, "I do know that I was upset and angry when my tele-transportation device failed to be a distance transporter and turned into a time machine. I kept trying to make it what it was not, and for my troubles I shifted the time continuum. The results were delightful, however, as Finn is a very nice young lady and a welcome addition to our party."
"She sounds swell," said Malone. "I'm getting a headache trying to keep all this straight."
"You can do it, Ned," Challenger said firmly. "You would not be able to travel the planes of reality and existence if you weren't the person for the job."
"Yeah, that's the real scary part," Malone replied. "Everyone's depending on me - the guy who's never been able to come through before."
"That's your fear," Challenger acknowledged. "Mine is that I will fail now, have failed, and will undoubtedly do it again. We all must face our fears and embrace the change or we will be destroyed by it." He placed both hands on Ned's shoulders. "Go now to the others and explain to them. We all must be together on this. Good luck," he added smiling.
Ned nodded and backed up, "Embrace the change, face our fears, explain *science* stuff." He turned to Challenger, "It would be a lot easier if I could just fix it by having Roxton shoot something."
Challenger's bark of laughter followed him part way through the shift into the next reality.
To Be Continued