F
U T U R E B A R R I E R
( The
4th Novel )
Secret Technology,
Unrequited Love, Absolute Vengeance
© May
2020
- Written by David
Wicker
Please do
not reprint without permission
CHAPTER 48 -
"In Girl's Guise"
[
CHOOSE A
DIFFERENT
CHAPTER TO
READ ]
* * *
This chapter is
Rated: TEEN
The virus is finally starting to quell down. There are two theories as to what could have started it.
One of which is it is from a bat that bit a pig and infected it and perhaps the pig was ... dealt with romantically by a lonely farmer. Yeah that sort of thing does actually happen.
The other perhaps even more far-fetched is that the virus was stolen from a special chemical laboratory in China. Maybe he thought it was valuable ? In any case curiosity got the better of him, and well, you've seen the movie Heavy Metal have you not ?
However it began you can bet your dimes for dollars it had something to do with HUMAN interaction. Meaning I believe this virus wouldn't be here if humans weren't involved to mess things up. As Trelaine from Star Trek once said:
"Do you know that you're one of the few predator species that preys even on itself ?"
Truer words were not spoken. Hmm ... Okay but parks are re-opening now. I went to Old South Pancake House with my friend Chris last Sunday and they had seating available in the restaurant there, so things ARE starting to return to normal.
Still - keep the masks and gloves in case there is a resurgence. Hopefully there won't be.
And now back to our regularly scheduled chapter ...
Janet was in my room and looked around calculatingly.
Then she did something strange. She took the ribbons out of her hair and let it hang long. Then she removed her glasses which apparently were there only for decoration. Stood a little taller than she normally did. And the transformation was complete.
She now clearly no longer looked to be a teenager in my high school but a rapidly approaching adult, and although my folks were going to let her sleep in my room overnight that was clearly the last thing she had in mind.
Certain everyone was asleep she sat in my chair nearest the computer and pulling out her secret compact spoke into it.
"This is agent Honeydew reaching base, over ?"
Static. She tried again. Then a voice spoke, "What's the dope, cantaloupe ?"
She smiled, "Randy, is that you ?"
"Yeah, me, sweet cheeks. Running the board this night. You got something regarding that UFO we're investigating ?"
She leaned forward in the chair to speak clearer. "I don't think it's a UFO. From what I could tell of Dev talking in his sleep back at school it's a car. A car somehow from the future."
"Time travel ?" he laughed. Then took a serious tone and murmured, "Not like we haven't seen anything this far-fetched yet. Okay I'll note it down. What about the subject, Dev ? Is he human ?"
"Pretty sure he is. He's just a young boy - asleep in the other room." she spoke. "I'm in his room now and - I'm seeing something strange."
"Oh ? What is that ?"
She leaned a little closer to see a small pile of paperclips connected to each other.
"A chain of paperclips."
"How is that strange ?"
"They're - there's something about them. Hold a sec, Randy."
"Standing by ..."
There were 8 of them connected together. she lifted the chain to look at one clip more closely. Then another. Then another. No doubt about it, they all had the exact same scratches on them. Almost as if ...
"This is impossible." she stated.
Randy spoke now, "What's that ? Come again ?"
* * *
"They're the same." she explained to him.
"The same ? How are they the same ?"
"They each have the same number of scratches on them in the exact same position." She pulled out a magnifying glass from her skirt to look more closely. "They are exact copies of each other."
"Maybe they're from the same factory ?" Randy joked. "But I don't see - "
She interrupted him, "No, not to this level. Not to this level of repetition. Not to the high level of duplication. Something - something MADE these clips."
Randy sighed, "Now just listen to yourself, Honeydew, ahh, I mean, Janet. Do you really think it's that important ?"
"Vitally. I want these analyzed by molecule if necessary." she stated.
She heard him sigh over her compact again, "Fine. Then be sure to bring them with you when you come back. Is there anything else ?"
Just then she heard footsteps. Heavy, not from me but from Mom.
"I think so." she whispered lowering her voice. "I'll call later, out." and then quickly turned out the bedroom light.
Suddenly there was a gentle knock on the door. Mom asked, "Janet ? Are you okay ? I thought I saw a light on ?"
Janet screwed her face up into a grimace. Then spoke as young and pitfully as she could. "I was just having a bad dream, ma'am. I'm okay now."
Mom nodded, "Very well. Come and see us if you have a problem. I'm just getting some water. Did you want any ?"
"No ma'am."
"Fine, honey. See you in the morning."
And then the footsteps receded as she stepped away.
Janet decided against using her compact again and after pocketing the linked paperclips went to my closet to look. The first thing she saw was a steel box about the length of her hand and written on the top of it were the words, "Airmaker."
She carefully turned it around in her hands looking all around. There were no screws or any indication of anything outside the fact that maybe it had grown like from a carefully controlled experiment involving growth of metallic chemicals reacting against each other.
But she wasn't sure what she was handling, it was cold and cool like metal - but it clearly wasn't metal. It was smooth like glass and felt almost slick although there was no oil on it.
"I need this." she told herself. Then picking it up finding it only weighed one pound she went to my bedroom window to open it and look out. Below was a very thick bush. She carefully dropped it out the window where it lodged hidden in the bush outside.
She then closed the window. She looked around a bit more and found the loose brick I kept things hiding behind. Since the plugin was now a part of me there was nothing there. But she wasn't satisfied with this. She picked up her eyeglasses and added a pocket digital filter on top to see beyond the normal eye's spectrum.
Sure enough something purple glowed there with the added image the computer image displayed on her glasses lens. She pulled out a q-tip from her purse and swabbed the inside then placing the swab in a plastic bag and sealing it.
She heard more steps in the hallway now. This must've been my Dad as they sounded heavier. It wouldn't do for her to explore any more right now and besides she had what she wanted. My airmaker, clear evidence of alien technology.
While she was fairly certain I myself was not an alien from another galaxy or something - she hadn't ruled out the possibility that I had run into someone or something that was. And that could be a danger to the state and national security !
Not wanting to appear tired the next day as she still had to keep up her subterfuge of being an orphaned teenager, she did in fact get ready for bed and slept till morning.
END OF CHAPTER 48
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