Disclaimer: See Chapter 2

Carrie: Later that day I got to thinking about relationships.

There are those that open you up to something new and exotic,

those that are old and familiar, those that bring up lots of questions,

those that bring you somewhere unexpected, those that

bring you far from where you started, and those that bring you back.

But the most exciting, challenging and significant relationship

of all is the one you have with yourself. And if you can find

someone to love the you that you love, well, that's just fabulous.

- Sex and the City

Chapter 57 – It ain't over 'till it's over

The Forest of Dean, present day

The small gathering of scientists and soldiers around the portal through to another dimension was steadily growing. An anxious Chief Constable under pressure to explain to worried and angry families why their husbands and fathers were missing stood beside a high ranking military General who was also under pressure from families of missing personnel. The only difference between the two being that he was also under pressure from the highest point of government in the land to explain how this breach between two time-lines had occurred and what the security ramifications might be.

Despite much valuable work done by the scientists on site and the sending through of yet more personnel including Dr Rob Norman the chief scientist, the actual reason for the breach was still not really known. The only good thing was that communication of a sort had been established between those lost back in time and those in the here and now. Hence the arrival of extra people on the ground.

The General's much harassed Aide de Camp glanced around as an ambulance pulled off the now well used track and parked up. Two paramedics and a doctor also dressed in the typical green 'Peapod' coveralls jumped out and started to check through equipment.

The General raised both bushy grey eyebrows at his flustered junior officer.

"Just in case sir." The Aide replied to the unspoken question. "We don't really know for sure what kind of shape they might be in."

"Humph." The General grunted non-committally. "I'm surprised we haven't had the Sneaky Beakies sniffing around demanding that they all be put into quarantine the moment they step through!"

The Aide de Camp's blush grew deeper and he pointed silently at three grim-faced people, two men and a woman and dressed in plain clothes who were standing and staring fixedly into the portal as though they could will it to spit out the human beings it had taken in the first place. The General followed his Aide's pointing finger and sighed. "They just can't leave well alone can they." He turned to the Aide. "Get me the Minister for Defence on the blower would you? There's a good chap."

The Aide immediately produced a mobile phone and speed dialed London. A few minutes later the General was connected directly to the office of the Minister in charge of Defence. "Hello? Is that Julie? Hello my dear, yes it is, I thought you recognized my voice. Let me speak to the minister would you. Can he be interrupted? It's with regard to this Forest of Dean situation. Many thanks."

A scant twenty minutes later, the three Military Special Branch operatives simply got into their black car and left the area. The Chief Constable who had bemusedly listened while the General spoke to the Minister for Defence in buddy terms, came to the conclusion that the two were obviously golfing partners and that some arrangement had reached a decision satisfactory to both parties.

He himself had been watching the Military Special Branch operatives with some misgivings. He truly didn't believe that any of the personnel who had been thrust through into a time that was not their own would be a security danger or breach. He strongly felt that they would be more likely to be confused and perhaps injured or traumatised in some way. The idea that the two of his personnel who were on their way back could be thrust into some military quarantine situation until the authorities decided they were no danger to an overly security conscious world absolutely horrified him. He could just imagine the battering he would get from families and god forbid if the ever-hungry for news, rabid media got wind of it. They would have a field day.

Therefore it was with a distinct sense of relief that he saw the operatives get into their car and drive off. Of course that didn't mean the returnees wouldn't have to have some sort of debriefing, because they would, but at least they wouldn't be made to feel immediately as though they had committed some awful crime just by being alive or in one piece.

The ambulance, medical authorities, military and police weren't the only ones beginning to gather. The Chief Constable also noticed two very out of place looking people standing talking to one of the scientists who was obviously in full flow, waving his hands at the portal and talking animatedly with them.

The General noticed him watching them and jerked a thumb in their direction. "Hostage Recovery folk." He said briefly. "They are here to assess the mental well-being of our people once they come through."

The Chief Constable frowned. "Surely they don't believe that our people have been hurt in any way? I mean…I understand that they have not exactly been hostages."

"No, as far as we know they haven't, but they will have gone through some rather traumatic experiences if what we believe about that earlier time is true. Especially young Sergeant Freeman. She had a traumatic experience which she was recovering from before they were all pulled through the portal. It's anybody's guess as to how she has been coping. We're simply taking no chances." The General said quietly. "At any rate, being specially trained Trauma Counselors, the Hostage Recovery debriefing team will be by far the better people to deal with them initially than Military Special Branch folk. That lot can't help interrogating, even when it's a social occasion." He gave the policeman a sardonic smile and received a chuckle in return for his pains.

The Chief Constable nodded. "I know what you mean. The trouble is that there's a fine line between being an officer of the law and someone who actually breaks the law. You tend to get a bit hyper-vigilant. If you see enough of the bad side and that's usually all that policemen see, you start to see criminals and danger everywhere. It's an occupational hazard I'm afraid."

"Well soldiers aren't all that different, although we don't usually deal with the criminal element as such. We do get hyper-vigilant though, it comes with the territory I'm afraid." The General agreed. "People in defense of the realm in whatever capacity never seem to be off-duty."

The Chief Constable smiled. "No indeed, although I'm more of a pen-pusher these days. Sometimes I do miss being part of a busy investigation team though."

"I hear you. I'm nothing but a shiny-bum now as well." The General's tone sounded rather wistful. "They only trot us out when there's a major military action going on and they need a high ranker to field the blame on broad shoulders these days. Nowadays the moment you get to Lieutenant General you just know they are starting to look for the pasture they're going to tether you in."

This time the Chief Constable laughed out loud. He glanced slyly at the General. "I find it hard to believe you would just take that sort of thing lying down."

"Oh I don't." The General replied glibly. "I make it known that I don't want to be put out to pasture, I huff, I puff and I blow the damn house down, then I just listen to my wife when she wisely tells me to stop making a fuss, lie down and go quietly when my time comes!" He sighed. "The truth is I will miss the army when I retire, but I don't want to be one of these sad old military chaps whose lives revolve around the military long after they've ceased to be of any real use. You know the sort; chaps who still call themselves by their rank and make sure everyone else knows it. I just can't see myself living for regimental reunions and opening fetes. I can't see myself going into corporate big business either, although I've been offered a few Directorships, some quite lucrative. Corporate people are such a conniving, underhanded bunch of little toss-pots. The first signs of anything not quite right and I'd be wanting to lock 'em up in jail."

The Chief Constable laughed even harder at that. "I know what you mean. Well if you ever need a jail for the toss-pots, let me know. I'm sure we could oblige!"

The General chuckled. "I might just hold you to that." He turned to the Aide de Camp who was hovering. "What is it man? If you have something to say, then spit it out."

The Aide de Camp flushed bright red. "S..sir, sorry to interrupt you sir, but we have had a message from Sergeant van Breda. They are about to head back towards the rift entrance on their side, but…there is one problem."

"I thought there might be." The General sighed. "Nothing ever goes smoothly. What's the problem? Something we can do to help from this side?"

"No sir. At least I don't think so. It's about Major Matthews sir."

"Well, what about him?"

"He won't be with them when they come through sir." The Aide watched in trepidation as the General's face begin to turn a light shade of lavender and quailed a little. However the Chief Constable smiled encouragingly at him. "I think you ought to talk to the Sergeant sir. Major Matthews is there with him."

The Genera beetled his eyebrows in suspicion at his Aide. "Very well." He turned to the Chief Constable. "If you'll excuse me, I have some business to attend to."

The Chief Constable smiled. "Of course, I hope everything is okay."

"So do I my dear chap, so do I."

ooOoo

Camp of the Host of the Valar, Beleriand

"Are you sure you don't want me to stay sir?" Dutch van Breda looked a little doubtfully as the Herald, resplendent in his full shining armour, sat down behind the modern comms equipment.

Eonwe smiled at him. "I am familiar with the equipment Sergeant. I've used it many times in the past…er…future."

The Sergeant's expression looked even more doubtful. "Yes sir, as you say sir." He was finding it hard to reconcile the glowing, almost other-wordly being with a Major in Her Majesty's Armed Forces. The two just didn't fit somehow.

Eonwe laughed softly. "Perhaps if you let my wife. Sergeant Matthews, know, I think it better that we both speak to the General."

The Sergeant came to attention, saluted and left the tent with alacrity in search of Kim, who was now of course Sergeant Matthews, not Freeman.

The Herald stared thoughtfully at the computer screen as Tulkas materialized by his side.

"Should it be empty like that?" The Vala enquired.

Eonwe replied to the question by moving the built-in mouse ball on the laptop console. Tulkas blinked as the screen leaped into life and showed a dialogue box awaiting an 'OK' command from the user. "Oh, I see." He squinted at the screen and could see the movements of the scientists and various other people in the background. "Fascinating! There are people inside it! And such a small thing too. How do they make them fit?"

Eonwe forced back the gurgle of laughter which surged up inside him. "They're not inside it Tulkas. It's a bit difficult to explain. The picture is coming from the future. They are using the Rift and the remote link established by the unmanned aerial device between Sergeant van Breda and the primary operating point. The laptop is just a means to an end."

"Quite so." Tulkas gave him a quizzical look. "I keep forgetting that you have all of the knowledge from those future times as well as your own."

"The knowledge ismy own." Eonwe replied quietly. "Given that it was the future me who learned about these things. I know it's hard to reconcile me and that future me called Gary Matthews, there are still things that I understand and yet I have no idea how I understand them. Like this." He gestured to the Vala. "I know what this is, I know how it works and I know what it's used for, but it is not knowledge I have sought out. It is knowledge that my future self grew up with and learned as he went about our life in that time, but I cannot for the life of me tell you the minutiae of that life. I can tell you specific events which have impacted and shaped feelings or decisions, I can even tell you what kind of car I have in that future time and even the address of the place where I live, but I could not tell you anything else in detail."

Tulkas sat down on the other chair and gazed intently at the Herald as he tried to filter through thoughts that were still mixed up with his own. "You are still having to sort his thoughts and experiences from yours." He stated quietly.

Eonwe nodded. "Yes. Sometimes they run into each other. As my aide helped me with the armour this morning after Kim had gone to collect her things together and I was suddenly assailed by a memory of sitting on a low camp bed in a green tent pulling on a pair of combat boots. I remember the fine dust and even the smell of the diesel and canvas. I even remember that breakfast was also in a tent and we had bacon and eggs. We constantly had to pick small flies out of the food and everyone joked that it was extra meat ration; I even know that the country was called Iraq, but I could not tell you where in Middle Earth it was or even my purpose in being there other than as a soldier of course. But yet the memory came as I prepared myself for the day ahead here in Arda Marred, as though it was part of it and yet I know full well that those experiences have many lifetimes and millennia between them."

"Diesel and canvas?"

Eonwe gave a brief sigh and nodded. "You see? Those terms pop out of my mouth and initially they have little meaning until I am called to question on them. Diesel is a fuel which makes the military vehicles run and canvas is a strong material suitable for tents." He flapped a hand at the Vala who had opened his mouth to say something. "Yes, yes, and now you will ask me what I mean by vehicle and why they need such fuel. I can only tell you that they are not pulled by horses or oxen. They move by means of electrical impulses and mechanical devices which need a combustible fuel to work. I can tell you the principle, but at the moment they are just facts to me, without substance or reality. I seem to pluck them out of the air at random, as though they exist in a separate section of reality altogether."

"It occurs to me that we had better not let you fall into the hands of the Enemy." Tulkas said shrewdly. "There is a lot of knowledge inside that head of yours that could be very valuable to him."

The Herald chuckled. "In truth I believe he probably wants to completely remove my head, not search inside it for knowledge!"

"That's as maybe, but I do think we need to exercise caution. It may be better if you did not speak of your experiences from that future time unless it is to me or the rest of the Vala."

Eonwe nodded. "Yes, I think so too." They were interrupted by the tent flat being pushed to one side and the Herald's personal duty guard ushering Kim into their presence. Eonwe's face lit up with an almost incandescent joy and he held out a hand to his wife. "Beloved, it is time to make our explanations to the General."

Kim sat down heavily on the chair beside him, her face a picture of dismay. "Oh god, do we have to? He scares the living daylights out of me."

Eonwe raised her hand to his lips and tenderly kissed the palm. "Yes we do have to. If he ratifies the situation and the marriage it will make it easier for you and our daughter if we have him on our side."

"If you say so." Kim said gloomily.

Tulkas chuckled. "Would you want me to wait outside while you do this?" He made as if to stand up and leave but both Kim and Eonwe gestured to him to sit back down, so he laughed harder and remained seated.

Eonwe hit the OK on the dialogue box and another dialogue box sprang up in its place. Tulkas leaned forward with interest. The box showed a green dashed line progressing along inside the box and underneath it said 'Connecting'. When the green line reached the end the box blinked and said 'Connected' then it disappeared entirely to show the same background with the people milling around.

"What does connected mean?" The Vala asked, but at the same time he did a formidable craggy face with beetling grey eyebrows suddenly filled the screen. Tulkas jumped in his chair as a strident voice assailed them at the same time.

"Major Matthews? My Aide de Camp tells me you will not be coming back through. Why not? What the devil is going on over there and what, in the name of all that is holy, are you wearing?"

ooOoo