Parallel (Travelers Series Book 1)

Parallel (Chapter 17)

Chapter Seventeen
Travelers

The next morning I find myself being lulled back to sleep to the gentle sound of rain. The taps against the window form a random rhythmic pattern that doesn’t sound random at all. I’m still a bit groggy from the night before (Jaime and I got stuck helping Alex clean up the backyard after the pool party) and my body is totally regretting it.

For once, since having returned, I don’t have anything scheduled, so I go in search of Aunt Maggie. The first place I check is the kitchen and she’s not there—that’s a surprise. I head back upstairs and locate her in the converted bedroom I noticed on my first day here. This must be her office. I peek through the open doorway and observe my aunt hunched over the computer monitor working on some kind of computer program I don’t recognize.

Sensing my presence, she turns around in time to catch me studying her. I’m not spying, just keenly interested in what she’s doing. Who knew my aunt was up to date on all this computer stuff? Most adults I come in contact with are still trying to figure out PayPal and online banking. And here she is, effortlessly designing graphics, not to mention coordinating travel jumps in her spare time. I’m suddenly struck with a sense of pride towards my aunt.

“Etta.” She greets me and motions for me to join her at the desk. “Do you want to see something?”

“Sure.” I pull up one of the side chairs by the desk and sit next to her, getting a full view of the computer screen.

“Would you like to see how I arrange travels?”

“You can do that? Show me, I mean.” This goes way beyond cool. My aunt seems pretty open minded about sharing information about the whole traveling to other dimensions. Which is more than I can say for Cooper. He didn’t even text me back last night.

She exits out of her current program and quickly opens up another one. “Here, let me show you a hypothetical jump.” In a few short key strokes she’s constructed a chart. “Let’s pick a date in the future to plan our make-believe jump.”

“How about my birthday?”

“Perfect! May twenty-fifth.” Aunt Maggie doesn’t even bother to wait to see if she got the date right and begins to type in the date. Aside from my birth date, she also enters the following day, May twenty-sixth.

I can’t believe she’s really going to show me how all this works. My aunt just earned herself a month’s worth of slave labor from yours truly and I tell her as much.

“Nonsense. Your father introduced you to this world; you ought to at least know how it works.” Aunt Maggie shakes her head as she hacks away at the keyboard. “Sometimes I wonder about my brother.”

“That’s pretty cool.” I watch as a pentagram begins to take shape on the screen.

“Now, see the dates at the bottom of the pentagram?” She asks, making sure I’m paying attention. “Good. These are our going to be our travel dates. The subsequent dates on the other points of the pentagram are the returns, with the top point representing your constant, see?”

I nod my head again to show I understand.

“Okay, now take a look at the lines.” She makes a trail with her finger along the computer screen. “These represent our destination jumps. Each corresponds with arrival and departure jumps.”

I’m surprised to find it’s really rather simple once she explains it. I could probably come up with a similar chart using Word or something. “That’s it?”

Aunt Maggie shoots me a knowing smile. “Of course not. That’s the easy part.”

That figures. “If there are only two dates, why are there five points for each jump?” Each of the two lines had five separate points, with lines connecting them together, similar to the main pentagon frame.

“Those are the available open windows for each of those days,” she explains. “Travelers may end up at a different location from where they originally jumped and need another window to access the portal back. The points you see are the variable windows.”

“So what if they need to stay longer or something happens that prevents them from leaving on their designated day?”

“Each traveler is assigned their own device to make changes for departures and in some cases, arrivals.”

That’s why Cooper was so insistent on bringing me back that day. He already had a scheduled opening for us to jump to this reality. “Okay, so now that you have the dates and stuff, what’s left?”

“It’s all plugged into a system your father developed. Once everything is configured, it goes through a process of probabilities and sequences to determine optimum windows,” she goes on. “I’m afraid that part is a little more complicated, but I can show you if you’d like.”

“That’s okay, I get the picture. So who are these traveler people?”

Aunt Maggie studies me, debating on whether or not to continue. “Travelers are a very select group of individuals that were specifically trained to jump between realities. It’s not something you sign up for. You’re chosen.”

“And I bet it all leads back to my dad.”

She sighs. “Yes, I suppose it does, I’m afraid.”

“So why do you think I was brought back to this reality?”

Aunt Maggie looks thoughtful for a moment. “I wish I could answer that for you, but I don’t even know why your father sent you away in the first place. If he had bothered to confide in me, I’d be better equipped to help you figure things out.”

“I think my being here may have something to do with dad’s disappearance.”

“It’s quite possible, dear,” she says. “I just wish I knew more.”

“Do you think we’re doing the right thing? I mean, by not calling the cops?”

My aunt gives a frustrated sigh. “I’d like to think I know you father well and if he says not to contact them, then I guess we have to respect that. He has his reasons.”

I’m sure that’s why Cooper hasn’t had me call them by now. My dad must have some serious research he doesn’t want the cops asking too many questions about.

“Okay, we won’t call them.”

Knowing I’m not going to get any more answers on the subject, I steer the conversation back to a topic my aunt does know something about. “So can anyone go through these portals? I mean, what if someone is walking along, minding their own business, and happens to pass through one of those?”

“Highly unlikely. Do you know who Stephen Hawking is dear?”

I may stand a good chance of failing physics this year, but I know who the genius physicist is. “Yeah, the guy in the wheelchair.”

“Good. Well, he theorizes that billions of parallel universes are connected by wormholes—don’t worry, I’m not going to go into a lesson on wave functions,” she says noting my expression. “Basically, the premise is simple: of all the universes, ours is the most likely, but certainly not the only one.”

“How does that answer my question?”

“Well, if each parallel universe is connected by a wormhole, or portal if you will, the actual connection is extremely small. However, there are opportunities for larger windows to allow passage. That’s where your father’s program comes in. So while it is improbable for someone to find themselves at the other end of an alternate universe, travelers are able to pass through successfully.”

“Guess that’s why they’re a select group, huh,” I say.

“You catch on fast, dear.” She kisses the top of my head. “Now, how about some breakfast?”