“So, what’s up?” Ryan asked, stepping out of the travellator.
“We think we figured out why the paradox alarm went off,” Liam
began.
“It has to do with either Ethan or his brother or both. It’s
highly likely that either or both of them weren’t supposed to come here, at
least at this point in time.”
“But they did. I had to explain everything to them to convince
them that they’re not going crazy. The problem is now that they’ve been here,
there’s no way I can think of to undo it. Since they’ve been here and know
about the travellators, what do we do?”
“There’s only one thing we can do,” Duncan replied in a strange
tone of voice; his face wearing an unreadable expression. “You have to go back
again and erase all memory of us. How and when I’m not exactly sure yet.”
“What’s the timeline status?” I
don’t want Ethan to be made to forget me any more than I’ll be able to forget
him. Ryan’s thoughts were all over the place as he tried to figure out a
solution to their current situation. I
knew I’d end up in this kind of situation eventually.
“Well,” Liam began, not sure exactly where to start. “We’re a
little better off than we were just before the alarm, but not much.”
Duncan got out his comp-com and hit a couple of buttons. “Anne,
have you found out anything about the Evans’ yet?”
“Nothing conclusive from that time period yet, boss, but I’m still
digging,” Anne reassured him.
“Good. Keep on digging and let me know as soon as you have
anything,” he told her.
“Will do.”
Disconnecting the call, he turned his attention back to Liam
and Ryan. “Well, we did resolve the causality loop. Those can be a real bitch.”
“Tell me about it,” Ryan agreed. “I would have no problem
with never having to deal with those again.”
“Amen to that!” Liam exclaimed. When it came to dealing with
temporal causality loops, he had the hardest job of anyone.
“So, what are we going to do?” Ryan asked, pretty sure he
already knew the answer.
“Like I said, we have to erase their memories of us.”
“No,” Ryan replied quietly.
“Did you just say no to me?” Duncan challenged.
“Yes, I did. I can’t just callously go back and erase their
memories, especially Ethan’s. We love each other. I’d rather go back to his
time permanently.”
“You know you can’t do that, and they can’t come here
without causing a paradox. Been there, done that, don’t want to do it again.”
“Then we find a way to bring him into this time without
causing a paradox.”
“If you and Liam can find a way, Ryan, without causing
timeline problems, I’ll consider it.”
₪₪₪₪₪
“Okay, that’s it!” Chris exclaimed, setting his fork down
and shooting Ethan a concerned glance. “You haven’t said two words since we sat
down and all you’ve done is pick at your food. What’s going on? Wait a
minute. Don’t tell me, let me guess. It has to do with what’s-his-name,” he
paused for a moment. “Ryan; doesn’t it?”
“What do you want me to say? I’m in love with him; more in
love with him than anyone else ever. I want a life with him.”
“Ethan, he’s from the future. Is that even possible?”
I don’t know. Is it? “In
the present or in the future I don’t care. I just want to be with him.”
“I know. I can tell you have it bad but think about this. If
he came back here, there’s too great a risk of him messing things up in the
future. His people wouldn’t allow that to happen. If you went into the future,
what would you do? You wouldn’t know about anything that happens between now
and then; nor would you know anybody.” I
feel like the ultimate bastard saying that, but it had to be said.
Ethan stared at his brother for a moment. I know he’s right, but what do I do about
it? I don’t want to lose him, but I don’t see any way for us to be together. I
wonder what he’s thinking right now. He hung his head. “I know. I just don’t
know what to do about it. I know its cliché, but I love him so much it hurts.”
Chris got up, walked around the table and pulled Ethan up
and into a gentle embrace. “I know little brother, I know. You’ll figure it
out.” Chris held him tighter as he broke down and cried tears of anguish.
₪₪₪₪₪
Dammit! What the hell
am I going to do? There’s no way in hell Duncan would allow me to go back and
stay in his time. There’s too great a risk of altering the timeline, no matter
how careful I am. Can’t bring him into my time. He would be at a severe
disadvantage. Ryan took in a deep breath and let it out slowly.
Quietly he whispered, “It’s a six of one, half dozen of the
other situation; I guess.” He turned to Liam. “I don’t know what to do. I can’t
lose him. I love him too much, but there doesn’t seem to be any way out of
this. If I go back to his time, there’s too much risk of timeline alteration.
“If I brought him forward, what would he do? What about his
family, his friends, his workshop? That plus there’s too much history he wouldn’t
know.” He sat and put his head in his hands, tears starting to flow.
“Speaking of history, he’d make a great historian;
first-hand eye witness to the events of the past. As far as the other concerns,
I have no answers. I really wish I did,” Liam said softly, putting his hand on
Ryan’s shoulder. It hurt him to see his friend in so much pain.
“I think I may have found something,” Anne said.
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