Day 489 of 246,786
15:00 DT
Doxopolis
"Whoa!" gasped Mallory. "What is happening here? I just saw this weird, uh, ripple. It looks a little like how a lake would ripple after you throw a stone into it."
Marty was feeling worried, as he was more than a little familiar with what it meant to see a ripple. From his past experiences, he knew it meant that they were officially in a different dimension. The four of them were no longer in the Land of Colour.
"It appears we're now in another dimension," Alex said, stunned. "I would guess, in some way or another, we somehow entered a different world. This is amazing!"
"Just so you know," Linda said, as she looked around, "paradoxology is a real word. It is the study of paradoxes, you know. It's a fascinating branch of science."
"Yeah, I knew what paradoxology meant," insisted Alex. 'It's a branch of science that I would be very interested in. I mean, it's so interesting to study about paradoxes."
"Haha! Yeah, right, Alex!" scoffed Mallory. "You didn't really know what paradoxology meant! Why don't you just admit it, Alex? You don't know everything! Nobody does!"
"But I was being honest!" protested Alex. "I was just quite surprised that Marty would confuse that word with doxology. I mean, they don't quite mean the same thing! How could Marty believe that you were talking about a study of paradoxes, when it has no relation to music? That's why I thought it was funny that he said paradoxology."
"Hey, I just happen to be more familiar with the word paradox, okay?' said Marty, in a rather defensive tone. "It's a word I hear all the time from Doc! Sheesh!"
"Don't worry, Marty," Mallory said, gently. "Alex just didn't want to admit that he was not familiar with the word. He acts like he has to know everything. He's like that!"
"You didn't need to get so defensive with me, Marty," Alex insisted, softly. "I was just ribbing you a little bit. You shouldn't be so tough on yourself. I just found it funny!"
"How about you take your own advice, Alex?" countered Mallory. "You should admit you don't know everything. You tell Marty that he should not be tough on himself - yet, you know, you defended yourself at his expense. Do you think that was fair?"
"Look, let's not fight, okay?" protested Alex, quietly. "Why don't we just take a look around here? See all these pretty flowers? I must say, I really haven't seen so many flowers before in my life. How many species would you say there are? I gather there must be thousands of them. Let's look at all the pretty butterflies around here!"
"Yeah, it's almost like we have entered paradise!" gushed Linda. "Maybe we really are inside of paradise! Hey, I can see about every species of bird around here. Take a look at how green the grass is here. I must say, I really wouldn't mind living here!"
"Well, I'm sure we would miss our family and friends," Mallory said, softly. "Perhaps, if we could have them here with us, it would be awesome. This is so gorgeous!"
"I wonder if heaven is anything like this," suggested Marty. "Do you think it may be possible that we've all died and went to heaven? It certainly does seem that way."
"The sunlight is so gorgeous," Mallory gushed. "I must've seen just about every bird that's in existence - well, of the colourful variety, anyway. I don't believe we've seen any crows around here. No ducks or chickens, either. I can see a parakeet, though. Hey, and I see some canaries, as well. I also see some bluebirds and some bluejays. I can see robins and sparrows as well. I would really have to check the bird book, as soon as we get back home. Yeah, all the butterflies and moths are so beautiful, too!"
"I can recognize a few hundred different species of birds," exclaimed Linda. "I admit that I love to go bird watching, but none of my friends know about this. I mean, they would think I'm a bit of a geek or something. I do have a reputation to uphold."
"Hey, how do you folks do?" asked a bipedal humanoid green being. He also had two antennae sticking out from the top of his head. He looked like the way Martians were often portrayed. "Welcome to Doxopolis! I should introduce myself. My name's Fred."
"So this is Doxopolis, eh?" asked Alex. "Can you tell us a little about this place? I'm not even sure how we came here, even though this is definitely a lovely place."
"This is a gateway in the middle of the space-time continuum," explained Fred. "This is a place that links between various dimensions and time periods. Anyone who's a time traveller or an inter-dimensional traveller can access this location. All you have to do is see to it that you're in an open countryside, and utter the word paradoxology three times. That's the magic word that you utter to open up the portal to Doxopolis."
The four visitors all gasped, as they were stunned and speechless. Whoever could've guess that Marty's little mistake could be responsible for landing them into this world?
"Great Scott!" gasped Marty, as he subconsciously used Doc's habitual expression. "I mean, this is heavy! What you're saying, Fred, is that all we need to do is walk into a countryside and say the word paradoxology three times? This is heavy duty, Fred!"
"Well, it only works when you are outside of your time or dimension," explained Fred. "So why don't you folks come join us for a picnic lunch. This is a popular spot where time travellers and inter-dimensional travellers like to meet. I work there during the night shift. So is there anything you folks would like to learn about this dimension?"
"What time is it right now?" asked Alex. "What's the overall climate like? How big is the dimension? Do a lot of people live here? Can we access other dimensions from here? Gee, I guess I'm asking lots of questions! We've never been here before."
"It is currently 15:25 on Day 489 of the year 246,786," explained Fred. As the four visitors all stared at him, puzzled, he continued, "Our days have thirty hours in it. We think 24-hour days are too short. Sunrise is always at 7:50, while sunset is always at 22:50. Furthermore, our hours have 100 minutes in it - and our years have 500 days in it. This is currently year 246,786 of the existence of Doxopolis. With regard to the climate, the temperature is always 75 degrees Fahrenheit with a mild wind. We don't have rain here, as the precipitation comes up from the ground. So the plants always have enough water to thrive on. Does this answer two of your questions well?"
"Whoa, this is heavy!" breathed Marty. "Well, I guess the having no rain is great. It's certainly a lot more convenient. I wouldn't mind staying here."
"While people can access Doxopolis from various different times and dimensions, you can only go back to the dimension you came here from," Fred explained. "If you stay here longer than ten days, then going back would be a more intricate process. Some visitors end up staying here, because they enjoy this place so much. The people you see who look like me are native to this dimension, however. Doxopolis is 888 square miles big. By stepping outside the walls, you step back into the dimension you came here from, at the exact moment you left - providing that you do so within ten days."
"So what happens after ten days has passed?" asked Alex. "Do we end up stepping in limbo or something? That would be a scary idea. Sorry about all the questions."
"No, that's all right!" Fred said, smiling. "You would just step right back into Doxopolis from the other end. If you stay here for 100 days, then you become a citizen here - and then you have your choice of dimensions that you would like to enter. This would continue to remain your home, though. Well, here we are now. Just follow the trail."
Marty smiled, as he and the other visitors stepped into trail to walk over to Stephen's Lodge. There it looked like a typical house in a countryside with lots of picnic tables - and there was a huge lake nearby, too, with some people swimming in it.