We all laughed and joked while wading through the waist deep snow walking back to the tavern. Tesla bounded joyfully behind us sometimes disappearing completely in a soft snowdrift to only come up a second later with a white face and beard barking happily.
Upon reaching the Blue Swan we found my father, Angela, her two children, the Commander and Captain Pturin at a table talking. We brushed ourselves off and joined them.
"Is everything ok?" Angela asked us all but I could tell the question was directed at Katrina.
"Yes thank you" Angela said smiling,
"That is good because we need to discuss how we are getting home." My Dad said.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"Well son" he said and looked at me in a way I've never seen before. He seemed to hesitate before finally asking me, "Angela, Lucas and Lucy would like to come with us when we return home and I wanted to ask you what you thought about that idea?"
I was so stunned that I couldn't think of anything to say. My dad has been so single mindedly focused on his work for so long that the thought of him interested in anything or anyone else was so foreign to me I didn't know how to answer.
I was overjoyed that he had met someone that makes him happy the way my Mom used to. I think he got the wrong idea as I just stood there staring stupidly at him.
"Look" he said, "I'm sorry son I know this is a lot to ask of you and believe me I have no intention of trying to replace your mother but I think our world has so much more to offer Angela and her children that I couldn't help but to ask them to come with us." He said in a nervous rush.
"Dad" I said smiling, "I love you and yeah, before all this happened I probably would have been upset at the very idea. But back then I was so wrapped up in my own problems that I failed to see the world around me."
"I know I lost my mother but I realize now that you lost much more than I did. I am sorry I never thought about what you must have been going through all this time but I really just want you to be happy and for you to be proud of me."
"I can see that Angela makes you happy and that is good enough for me dad. I miss seeing you smile and be happy about things other than in the lab. So to answer your question I would say that I absolutely one hundred percent agree that it is a good idea and I would like to add also that it's really good to have my dad back."
"My word" he said with a sad smile, "I think I must have been in the lab so long I missed my little boy who could never tie his shoe laces grow up and become a man."
"Very funny dad" I said smiling at him.
"Son I have always been proud of everything you have done and accomplished." He said and gave me a big hug. "And you made me happy every day of my life, no father could have asked for a better son than I have. I mean look at you, how many dads can say they're son saved an entire world from an insane evil vampire lord and freed its entire population from slavery or worse."
"Dad?" I asked, "How are we going to get home? I mean we don't have bracelets for Angela or her kids and what about Katrina and Alexei? They said they want to come with us too."
"Yes I was contemplating that very problem when you were outside." He said and rubbed his chin in thought like he always did when he was trying to figure something difficult out.
"We don't have any spare bracelets at the lab I only had time to make yours and Tesla's in time for your birthday." He said,
"I was going to make a few spares when I got back from this trip which was only supposed to be a quick sensor swap but that did not exactly work out like I planned it. I am sorry to have put you in danger son but I wouldn't have wanted anyone else fighting by my side. Don't get me wrong Leo is a fantastic martial artist but someone had to stay behind and keep an eye on Q so he didn't take over the world."
That actually wasn't a joke. When Q was still in the beta stages of testing he kind of got out, so to say. He was able to transfer a portion of his self awareness into some kid's cell phone and before my dad was able to disable him the mini Q had shut down the entire power grid of Russia for twenty minutes, redirected every one of United States' nuclear missiles to aim at the Soviet Union and begin their launch sequences."
"He also drained the government bank accounts for China, United States, Europe and every Middle-eastern country. Then he divided the money and transferred an equal amount to everyone's bank accounts that wasn't a lawyer, politician or banker across the globe and actually arranged for checks to be delivered to the people without bank accounts.
That was a pretty bad day for Uncle Leo and my dad. The media luckily blamed it on an unknown new group of hackers since no one could trace back who had done it. There was a lot of happy people though let me tell you.
Fortunately because people now had money to burn the economy had a boom and quickly recovered and most the governments were able to either write off the losses or just borrow more. My dad had to actually teach Q why that was a bad idea, they couldn't just program it into him since that might damage his self awareness and Q could just reprogram himself if he wanted to.
"But even if we had additional bracelets" my dad continued talking as he thought, "we would need Q here to program them and code them to the genetic makeup of each person and synchronize himself with each device. Plus we've never run into the type of situation we are in now."
"Momma?" Lucas said to his mother.
"Just a minute sweetie" she said to her son, "I'm sorry William ,what do you mean" Angela asked.
"Well" he said to her, "we were originally supposed to teleport to a world that I had already visited on more than one occasion to replace a faulty monitoring station. But if I understand what has happened I believe my son here" he said patting my on the shoulder smiling proudly, "accidentally or perhaps not so accidental as I first thought considering everything that has occurred."
He said rubbing his chin again, "Either way, he managed to bring us to your world with his newfound abilities. Admittedly he didn't know what he was doing or even that he could do such a thing and had I known I surely would never have taken him with. But all that is neither here nor there as we need to solve the problem of how to bring you with us."
"I must apologize as I should have resolved this problem a long time ago. We did discuss the issue a few years ago but it was put on the backburner as we were concentrating on trying to map out new worlds and fully test the system."
"Well how could you have known?" Angela said.
"Actually" he said, "Leo and I both understood that it was inevitable that this situation would arise sooner or later. We knew there was at least a thirty seven percent chance that we would discover a world that a rescue operation was necessary but we thought we had more time to come up with a solution. It appears though that fate had other ideas." He said smiling at Angela who blushed slightly as she returned his smile.
"Did you have any ideas on how to do it?" I asked him.
"The only viable option we could think of" he said to me "was some kind of container that had a sequence scanner built into it that would be transported to the needed world and then Q would be able to scan the person in it allowing Q to bring the person and container back. But that would require a larger teleportation pad and a specifically designed scanning device. I had planned on tackling this problem next year, I just wish I had done so before now." He said sadly.
"Momma?" Lucas said pulling on his mother's sleeve.
"Not now honey" she said smoothing his hair down. "How long do you think it would take to build something like that?" she asked my dad.
"Hmm, well we would have to build an additional pad, design the programming for it, upgrade the power grid for the lab and invent a remote genetic sequencer that would be able to communicate with Q in real time. So maybe ten to eighteen months give or take." He said thinking hard about it.
"Oh" she said laughing at him.
"What?" he said confused at her reaction.
"Eighteen months, is that all? I thought from the sounds of all you had to do you would have said ten years or more." she replied still laughing.
"Momma!" Lucas said bouncing up and down.
"Just a minute Lucas" she said kindly but sternly to him.
"Oh no" I said to her, "Once my dad sets his mind on something he moves mountains to get it done quickly and safely."
"I can see that" she said giving my dad an admiring look.
"Momma I have an idea" Lucas said finally not able to stand being ignored any longer.
"You do?" my dad said to him, "well what is it? I would certainly be interested to hear your idea. Everyone is welcome to contribute their thoughts. There is no such a thing as a bad idea because sometimes they lead to even better discoveries." He said to the boy that was surprised that an adult was talking to him like one of the grown-ups.
"Umm" he said shyly then when his mother nodded for him to go ahead he straightened his shoulders and asked, "Why can't Mister Zach take us to his house like how he brought my Momma back to us? You said he bringded you guys here so why don't he take you and me and um, my sister and my momma with him?"
"Oh and the pretty girl with the wings and her brother too!" he quickly added looking over at Katrina with a shy smile, and then he whispered to my dad, "She saveded me and my sister so we want them both to come with us ok?" then he added, quoting proudly, "Cause my momma always says, family has to stay together no matter what!"
We were all so stunned that nobody said anything for some time we just stared at him in amazement.
"Sweetie?" Angela said bending down next to her son and my dad, "did you think of that all by yourself?"
"Uh huh" Lucas said proudly.
"Why that is the very best idea I have ever heard!" my dad said, "you are one smart young man Lucas."
Lucas beamed and hugged his mother as my dad looked up to me.
"Well what do you think son? Do you think you can do it?" he asked.
"I don't know" I said honestly, "travelling back in time was really, really hard and when we came here I only shifted a few numbers around, I didn't even know I did anything much less what it was that I did." I shrugged my shoulders "I can try but what happens if I bring us back a hundred feet in the air or something? Or over a volcano, or in the middle of the ocean, or"
"It's ok son" my dad said coming over and putting his arm around me, "I have faith in you and I know you can do this. You just need faith in yourself."
"And probably a couple years of practice" Alexei said grinning teasingly.
Katrina elbowed him and they all looked at me hopefully.
"Well, should I try it now or do you want to wait until later?" I asked them.
"Give us a few minutes to say goodbye and get a few supplies just in case." My dad said to me.
Going home, that sounds so good and sad at the same time. As dangerous as this adventure has been it was also exciting and interesting.
I would love to explore this world and learn more about where Katrina and Alexei grew up and came from but I am sure Uncle Leo and Aunt Eve will be missing us at home and we need to get back there to see what went on at the lab. As much as I'd love to stay and get to know these people, getting back and finding out what happened I think is far more important.
We say our goodbyes to everyone and I clasp hands with the Commander.
"We are in your debt" the big man says to me as he towers above me, "if ever you need me you just say the word and we will be there for you."
"Thank you sir" I said awed and embarrassed, "umm, sir?" I ask hesitantly, "I've been wondering."
"Yes?" he says to me.
"Um, that thing you did to Tesla?" I ask, "well, um, he's not going to become a werewolf or make someone else a werewolf if he bites or scratches them is he?"
"Haha" he laughs and claps me on the shoulder nearly sending me to my knees, "No, no. Have no fear young master TimeLord. Our soldiers have all been genetically altered to remove that trait. It wouldn't be very wise if we were to make more werewolves every time we went into combat now would it? No but we can transfer a portion of our strength and abilities by sharing our blood with a worthy ally."
"Oh" I said breathing a sigh of relief, "have you done that very often?"
He gave me a smile that sent shivers down my spine.
"It has never been done before now." He said, "There has never been anyone worthy of the gift in our entire clan history, until now."
"Oh" I said a little sad and hurt that he hadn't offered me the same gift and yet at the same time, proud that my best friend had earned such an honor.
He smiled kindly at me and rested a big hand gently on my shoulder.
"The only reason I hadn't offered you the mark of the Shadow Claw is we were waiting for a better opportunity to present it to you but it appears we will not get that now. Oh well, a field promotion it is then." He stepped back and came to attention, "Shadow Claws, attention!" he bellowed.
"Ahroo!" they remaining soldiers quickly stood up and saluted.
"On behalf of the Shadow Claws I would like to bestow the mark of our clan onto one Master Zachery McKnight." He said for all to hear, "Zachery McKnight, do you accept this gift so offered?"
"Um" I said stunned looking around, "I do" I said slowly and hesitantly.
"Then as my rank and office allows I welcome you, Zachery McKnight as an honorary Shadow Claw!"
The rest of his men ooh-rahhrrr'd three times very loudly and everybody cheered.
"Now son, I would hold very still if I were you." The Commander said stepping up to me.
"Ah, ok" I said trying my best to freeze my scared to death shaking bones.
The Commander's hand barely moved before I felt a slight burn above my eye and then he was sliding a long sharp claw on his palm drawing blood and pressing his hand to my forehead.
"Now" he said drawing his hand back after a few seconds, "You are one of us, in blood and honor."
All the soldiers oh-rahr'd again three times and once again the entire town clapped and cheered.
"Ah, am I supposed to feel any different?" I whispered to him.
"Oh yes" he chuckled, "by tomorrow you will be a new man. Just be careful as you will need to relearn how to use your new body. You will be better, stronger and faster than before so just be wary you don't hurt anyone."
Then he did the entire procedure to my father who accepted graciously and he too earned a mark above his eye just like the rest of the Shadow Claw warriors, of which I guess we were too now. Angela, Lucas, Lucy and Katrina and Alexei all clapped and congratulated us on such an incredibly rare honor.
Then we shook hands and said our goodbyes to the entire town and with many a teary farewell and thank you, we gathered together. I told everyone else to stand back as I wasn't too sure about how this would work and just to be on the safe side.
"Ah" the Commander said suddenly and stepped up to my father, "I almost forgot" he said and removed a long sheathed knife from under his vest and handed it o my dad, "this is for you. Just in case you run into any of our kind that isn't as friendly as me or any of those vampire bastards you might meet along the way."
My dad slowly slid the blade from its sheath and we saw it was a very fancy etched knife made from that odd white and red metal I had seen on the cage bars that we had freed the twins from.
"It is a formal gift for one of our clan upon finishing his or her training. It is made of our star metal. But since these others," he said indicating myself, Katrina, and Alexei,
"Have their own specially designed weapons I thought you might need one too. It is one of the few ways to surely and quickly kill or at the very least drastically injure a vampire or rouge werewolf as they cannot easily heal a wound from one of these blades. A thrust to the heart will destroy any vampire and most times just the smell of the metal will repel a werewolf."
"Thank you" my dad said, "I am honored but you have already given us far too much."
"Please" the Commander said, "you have freed my brothers and for that we would give our lives. This is just a small token of our appreciation. It is the least I can do under the circumstances."
"Well thank you all the same" my dad said. "I hope we will be able to meet again in the future."
"As do I" the big man said and stepped back again.
"I can see now that what we need is a way to communicate between realities." My dad said, "Until I can build teleportation pads on the worlds like this and establish trade partnerships and assistance as needed. We will need to come back and work with you on this, is that acceptable with you?" my dad asked the Commander.
"I look forward to your return." He answered smiling broadly.
"You take care of yourself Angela." Captain Pturin said as we stood back once again.
"I will" she said trying hard to hold back her tears, "don't worry I will see you soon." She said looking questioningly at my father who nodded reassuringly at her.
"Watch after her William!" he warned my dad.
"You have my word" my dad said back and I could see he meant it with all his heart and so could the captain.
"You wouldn't happen to have any more of those bottomless ammo crates would you?" my dad asked the Commander as I tried to calm my mind.
"No" he said shaking his head, "I am sorry ours were destroyed in the fight and the only others are about a two week travel distance away. If you'd care to wait I could try and get one here for you."
"Oh well" my father said shrugging his shoulders, "I was just thinking those would be perfect for transporting equipment to your world to setup a teleportation pad. I could even possibly reverse engineer one to transport people if I had one to disassemble."
"I will be sure to have a few ready for your return" the Commander said, "now that we only have mop up duties to attend to our engineers should be able to assist you with whatever you might have in mind."
"Excellent" my father said happily, "I will return as soon as I can to begin planning a permanent link between our worlds."
"I will inform our Elders of your intentions and let them decide how to handle the negotiations." The hulking soldier said and saluted us one final time.
I called the spinning numbers vortex into being and started studying the different glowing numbers and equations trying to figure out how to do this. Something my dad said was niggling the back of my mind as I searched the vast galaxy of floating numerals but I couldn't put a finger on it.
I thought about going home and I saw the equations form in front of me and knew if I used them I would be instantly transported to the lab in my house but what about everyone else.
There had to be a way since I brought my dad here in the first place and his teleportation device is able to do it too. I know Q scans each person and digitizes his or her genetic makeup thereby allowing him to kind of send a digital copy of that person through the vortex.
I didn't understand how the whole process works it just does and maybe that's why I can't seem to do this without Q opening the vortex first. I wish the future me was here to ask him but he wasn't so I had to do this on my own.
I kept searching and thinking about how to send each person but there didn't seem a way to do it. I was thinking it had to have been the equipment back home and the open vortex when what my dad said hits me and I almost accidentally activate the equation to bring myself home. That would have been bad.
Transporting people, he had said something about transporting people and something about a box. Just as that thought spins through my head a new group of numbers form in front of me and it takes a while for me to realize what it means.
I have been thinking about this all wrong. I can't make an equation or formula or whatever it is for each person because I don't need to encode each one like Q does I just need to bring them with me somehow and since I don't have a literal box I can create one or at least a virtual one.
That's what these numbers represent, they are a kind of box that I can put around something or someone and take whatever is inside with me. I form the box around my new friends and as it takes shape in my mind it starts to shimmer in the real world too with a golden ghostly light.
The whole thing kind of starts to take a life of its own and the numbers spin around it forming of their own accord. That was also when a few other things clicked into place in my mind and too late I realize that those boxes were larger on the inside than the outside which is a form of a Tesseract and that is what my new strange watch was called before it was grafted to my arm.
I also remember that the Commander is part of the Lunar Tribe and he was talking to my dad about the engineers who built the boxes and they are the ones who probably built the watch thing too.
Looking down at my wrist I bring it up to my face and then show it to the Commander whose eyes go wide with shock. The shimmering vortex cage is nearly complete and the gigantic spinning whirlpool above me is almost roaring in my ears with the sound of the music of the universe. Thankfully it is not out of harmony but instead sounds beautiful and perfect.
"Where? How did you?" the Commander began saying to me but I could barely hear what he said next as the golden cage solidified and the equation to take us home took their final shape.
"Whatever you do" he began shouting to us as a wind sprang out of nowhere swirling around us and blowing the tables and chairs nearest us backwards, "don't press the"
Flash! A golden light engulfed us, the world around me vanished and everything went black.