Random book chapter : Chapter 23 - The Circle is Complete

from book "Future Imperfect"

by Adrian Tanase

Alan waked up in the morning. He turned to look at the clock on the wall. It read 8:26. It was way too early for him but he felt he had so much energy he couldn't stay in bed. He got up, arranged his sheet, and put the covers over it. The morning ritual awaited him as always. Still asleep, he went into the kitchen and began to prepare his coffee. He put the water for the strong coffee in the pot and left it on the stove. Since last night when he had stayed in the alternate to walk the streets of Alandra, the strange and a bit bohemian atmosphere he had encountered in the relatively few alternates he had been in had calmed him down. He had been in an almost technologically backward world that had kept elements of perhaps hundreds of years unchanged, and that made him a little nostalgic.

He sat down at the terminal and began to read the news of the day with interest. He flipped through the usual news and at one point he saw it written in large letters.

"Minor fire in an old building in Alandra". That's all the headline said. He skipped over it and looked for something else. Otherwise, the news seemed to be the usual things that caught his attention every day, which he had grown accustomed to. He came back to the news of the fire incident.

"Minor fire in an old building in Alandra in the Twenty District. The apartment was occupied by two Sirrillians, who had come to Kalara a month ago and settled in Alandra. The two were renowned scientists who had been studying for 10 years how to produce a new type of energy. Apparently the two were not in the building when the accident occurred, resulting in the destruction of furniture in the main room of the apartment. The strength of the building was not affected and the fire did not spread to the other apartments. Residents reported a minor explosion at 14:22 but no one was injured. The authorities suspected that the fire was caused by their unattended lab’s appliances. It appears that equipment was destroyed in the fire, with firefighters arriving too late to salvage any of it. The two are being sought by law enforcement to make sure they are alive." That's it.

Alan stood for a few seconds in thought. They disappeared without a trace. Into the fire. He still didn't know who had done this. It was clear the situation was very complicated. Maybe there had been a fight. He had no idea.

He knew, or rather he hoped with all his heart that his search had not been in vain. Surely what he had written on the piece of paper he had given Mr. K. had at least been helpful. They knew for sure what to do, they were from the future after all, and the likely thousands of years between Kalara's civilization and Mr. K.'s would make a difference. He felt a sense of anticipation as well as relaxation, as if he had completed an important part of a book or had almost completed a painting. He heard the coffee water boiling and went into the kitchen.

"Make me one too, Alan," he suddenly heard a voice behind him. He flinched suddenly, as he knew he was alone in the apartment.

"Alan, did I scare you, my friend? I don't think so. Is this normal coffee or is it some compatible variation on Kalara, something local?" K. tried to make conversation, with a relaxed, smiling face.

"It is … it's coffee, yes. Grown here, but it's coffee. That's what I drank on Earth and I can't replace it with something local," Alan said, looking still frightened at K.

"I just came to congratulate you Alan," K. said calmly as he sat down on the couch.

Alan could have expected anything. He could have been congratulated for making the worst mistake of his life, or he could have been congratulated for helping them.

"Y … yeah?" Alan asked.

"Well, didn't you expect that?" K. asked, seemingly scolding. "Alan, I thought you had more confidence in yourself, boy," he told him and smiled.

"Well … actually … I wasn't expecting anyone to come here right now. But I've learned that expectations can disappoint and that's why you'd like to say that … the plan … succeeded?"

K. looked at Alan for a few seconds, studying him.

"Yes, Alan. Our plan succeeded. The timeline is 98.95% rebuilt. And that's all thanks to you."

Alan stood in the kitchen with his coffee pot in his hand, full of boiled water, and didn't know what else to say.

"Mr. K. I'm glad … I'm very glad. If I was of any help, that was already my duty. The time block … and my illegal incursion … "

"Let bygones be bygones, Alan. Now it's just the present. And it's a good present, as it always has been," adds K. "Here's something for you. The Planetary Government from where I live suggested that I choose, because I've been in direct contact with you, and I know you best. You should know that you're already famous on the planet where I come from. Everyone in high places knows your name," smiled K.

"S … sir but I didn't have to … know that it is enough for me to know that I was able to help you. You have no idea how much that means to me," Alan said, trying to relax a little, to adjust himself to the good news he just got.

Mr. K. reached into his coat pocket and pulled out what looked like a small device.

"This is for you, Alan." And then he reached into the large breast pocket of his overalls and pulled out a light pad. "And this." He put it on the table in front of the couch. "And this too," he added, putting in a small clear bag of buds. "This is from me. They're freshly picked, you need to let them dry a bit. They're my favorite. I know you can get herbs for cigarettes, but I wanted to bring you some, too. And if you do, as a friendly tip, quit tobacco. It's very addictive and doesn't help you as much as you think," he told him and smiled. "And as for your timeline mistake? I couldn't tell you, and it's a good thing I did, because it creates two paradoxes: you're letting go of your 'mission' to help us, and you're influencing the present tense worse. Actually, it wasn't a mistake. That's the way it was meant to happen, even though you knew you weren't allowed to make it to that year."

Alan remembered that K. wanted a coffee, too.

"I'll make two coffees. Will you stay? Or do you have an important assignment you have to go on?" asked Alan with politeness in his voice.

"I'll stay for the coffee, Alan," K. said relaxedly. "But aren't you going to ask me what I brought you?"

Alan felt euphoric and it all stemmed from the fact that K. had told him the mission had succeeded for them. He didn't need anything else. The fact that he was famous on his planet, the fact that Mr. K. had brought him stuff, that was already too much for him.

"Well … I know you're not allowed to say much, that's why ..."

"This time, Alan, we're making an exception. I've cleaned up the alternates and the main timeline too well, and anyway, I'll see to it that what I tell you doesn't count for much in the timeline."

Alan pulled out two mugs, the best he had, that weren't chipped. He didn't have much in the kitchen because he was usually alone. Remi was delighted by the visitor's appearance and tried to attract his attention with his trills and the funny moves he made in the cage. It was indeed a lovely day, and Alan thanked from the bottom of his heart whoever was up there who had looked after him.

"All done, Mr. K. Coffee's ready. If you wanted, I could go downstairs and get … "

"That's a good one you've got, Alan."

Alan pulled his terminal chair up next to the small table where Mr. K was sitting.

"This is a device I'm giving you from the Agency. I know you're using the Substance with something empirical, a classic, ancient Kappa wave generator to help you with this. What I'm giving you here is something much more advanced. You can go to any alternate with it, save a lot of data in it, and for that you can go back to any alternate you've already been to. Basically you select the alternate from the device. It also works with the Substance, if you really want to be Alan from that alternate. And you can go backwards and forwards in time and on the main timeline that we are in now. That's why I brought you a pad with the necessary documentation. "Temporal Dynamics and Mechanics". You need to read this really good, because the timeline is a very fine thing, and any extra gesture can sometimes change a lot of things, so for your safety and the safety of others, before you jump back and forth in time, you will definitely need to read the book. Ah, and also, you will be Alan every time you use it, not your alternate counterpart, except if you still want to use the Substance," said K. and smiled.

Alan looked at K. like he couldn't believe it.

"But sir … "

"That, or I take you with me to my planet. I'll have to hire you in the Agency ..."

"But I … "

K. laughed out loud.

"Just kidding, Alan. The fact that I brought you this device is no accident. Just like I realized it's not accidental that you're here, and that you helped me. It all makes sense. That's why things have to be left as they are. I cannot tell you more. I know you use the Substance and maybe you'll use it again, and that's why I brought you this device. I can also contact you on it anytime I need, me or any of my people I can assign from time to time to check if you are ok, so there is no problem. You're already in this big plan and I can't ignore that. And not to introduce too many variables into the game, I've decided this device is necessary for you. But ... you also have the option of never using it. That will be your choice. I've only done my duty," K. said, sipping slowly on his hot coffee.

"Thank you very much." Alan didn't know what else to say. His normal life was enough for him, and using the Substance from time to time was again something temporary, something he was experiencing. But now he also had a time travel device and he could return Nemi’s device at any time. That made him feel really special, even though he knew it was all as it should be, no more and no less.

"Alan, just so you know, I've entered all the alternate accesses you've had that we detected into the device list. I scanned the timeline you accessed with the Substance from the Agency, and put all your incursions there. I don't think there have been more than eight so far, right?"

Alan immediately remembered Alyssa. And the alternate where the Enlightened One and Peace existed. This was the greatest gift anyone could give him. His heart suddenly filled with joy. He was going to see Alyssa again. And soon.

"Let me show you how the device works."

K. sat down on the couch next to Alan and began to explain. Alan watched avidly, absorbing everything K told him like a sponge. His mind was focused and his heart rejoiced at the thought that now his life could branch out into thousands and thousands of timelines where he could experience tens of thousands of worlds, all different, all in their own way. He realised that divinity had rewarded him for simply living as an outcast, on the edge of a city, in a deportee Colony, somewhere on a planet at the edge of the sector.

His mind seemed to fly as he listened to K. explain. He understood everything and at the same time felt his freedom and his perspective on the world grow as he climbed higher and higher, above the clouds of Alandra, from where he could already feel the blossoming capital, shining under an early summer sun.