Deception

“Hey Chris, are you going to the dance tonight?”

“Yeah, I can’t wait!” he answered while stuffing his textbooks in his locker. “Yeah, me neither. So who you goin’ with?” Mally asked. “Jessica. What about you?” Chris asked as he stuffed his last notebook into the locker. Before Mally could answer, Jason came rushing up the hall. He came to halt with a wide, beaming smile on his face. “You’ll never believe who I’m going with to the dance!” He leaned over, placing his hands on his knees trying to catch his breath. “What happened? Who are you going with?” Chris asked. “I’m going with Jo Anna Long.” Jason said as he stood up straight. Chris looked off in the distance. Ah, Jo Anna Madison Long, he thought. He had had a long time crush on Jo ever since he met her back in the eighth grade. Jo had long, blonde hair and gorgeous blue eyes. She was a perfect athlete, a perfect student, and had a perfect body. She was a masterpiece. “Hey, what’s wrong with you Chris?” Jason questioned as he lightly, pushed Chris. “Huh? Oh, nothing.” “Whatever, dude. Anyways, who are you going with, Mally?” “Well, I’m going with Matalie Johnson.” “Whoa!” everybody exclaimed. “How’d that happen?”

“Yeah, dude, tell all!” Chris said. “Well, I usually don’t kiss and tell.” Mally said as he allowed the group get aroused with the news. “You kissed her too?” Jason questioned. “Well, no.” Mally admitted. “Then tell!” “Okay, okay. I was on my way to the office when, out of nowhere, someone grabbed me by the arm and pulled me behind a corner. I was shocked, I have to admit because at first I thought it was one of the bullies from gym, but when I saw her it took all of that fear and shock out of me.” “Yeah, and then what?” Chris pushed. “She asked me to take her to the dance.” “Just like that? Why?” “Well hold on. She asked me because her jerk boyfriend, Mike, broke up with her and she wants to show him up and prove to him that she can do just fine without him. And to prove it, she needed to get a date before the dance. So I accepted the favor and now I’m going to the dance with one of the hottest chicks in the whole school!” Everybody stood silent. Jason was the first to speak, “Alrighty then!” “Well, I’ve gotta go, bell is about to ring anyway. Congrats, Mally.” “Yeah, same here. See ya at the dance, Chris.”

“See ya.”

In the boy’s bathroom, later that night, Mike, Matalie’s ex-boyfriend, and one of his friends met to deliberate their plan. “You have the balloons, right?” Mike asked. “Yep, and the pudding.” “Pudding?” “Yeah, pudding. Ya know, to put inside the balloons so when it smashes on her, the pudding will get all stuck in her hair and all over her dress.” “You’re a genius.” “Thank you.”

The first dance had already started and Mally and Matalie were the stars of the dance. The two of them moved as one, in rhythm of the music with a jive-style step. As the song came to the end, Mally lifted her into the air and spun in a circle. He put her down and the two of them rushed over to the punch table. “That was the most fun I’ve had in a long time.” Matalie exclaimed. “Yeah, me too.” The two of them looked into each other’s eyes. Matalie leaned in and kissed him. Mally’s cheeks blushed and his eyes got wide.

Over from the sidelines, Chris and Jason stood and cheered. “I knew he had it in him!” Chris said, elbowing Jason. Jo Anna came back from the bathroom with a concerned look on her face. “What’s wrong, Jo?” Jason asked placing his hand on her shoulder. “Well, why I was in the bathroom I heard voices coming from across the hall in the boy’s bathroom.” “Okay.” “So I thought, ‘well it’s just some kid in the bathroom.’ But as I was leaving, I saw Mike and some other kid carrying water balloons through the back door to the gym.” “Oh.” “Oh, what?” Jason asked confused of what was about to happen. “Mike is going to do the old water balloon prank on Mally.” Chris explained. “How do ya know it’s gonna be on Mally and not some other kid?” “Umm, hello! He’s with Mike’s girl.Ah, forget it! I have to do something.” Chris sat his drink down and took off in a fastpaced walk out of the gym. Outside of the gym, he looked around, but saw nothing. Another song began to play inside and Chris glanced in to see Mally and Matalie dancing once againonly this time, under one of

the over-beams. As the lights moved about the room, Chris caught a glance of something glinting in the light.

“This ought to teach that loser a lesson!” Mike said as he lifted the balloon off the floor. “Put the balloon down, Mike.” Chris demanded as he slowly worked his way across the small-bridged beam. “Oh, well since you say so,” Mike paused and lifted another balloon. “I mean it, Mike, don’t do it.” “Or what? Hmm? Gimme one good reason why I shouldn’t do it.” “Well, umm…” Chris said as he tried to find something good to say in Mally’s defense. “Too late!” Mike said as he released the two balloons and ran through the opposite door. Chris ran to the edge and tried to catch the balloons. When he saw that the two had descended upon Mally’s head, he stood up. Matalie let out a horrific scream as the pudding oozed its way down her nose and onto her chest. Mally looked up as Chris looked down, seeing his best friend covered in pudding and drenched with water. With a horrified look on his face Chris let out his only defense at the time, “It wasn’t me!”

“Lt. Mattheson, are you ready to launch?” “Lt. Mattheson to Mission control, we’re ready for the launch sequence of the INTEC.” “Mission Control to INTEC, launch in five…four…three… two…one…Lift off!” The rockets roared as the force of the blast pushed them off the ground and sent them soaring through the atmosphere. The crew pressed in their seats as the shuttle shook and pressed its way through the last few hundred yards of the ozone.

The shuttle relaxed and floated in the open space as it released the orange rockets. Chris unbuckled his belt and took off his head set. “INTEC to Mission Control, we have a perfect liftoff!” “Congratulations Lieutenant.” “Thank you, sir.” Chris turned his chair around facing his crew. “Are the coordinates set, Jo?” “Yes, sir. Coordinates are set at 75.23 degrees North and 127.95 degrees West.” “Good. How about you, Matthew?” “Weapons are in prime condition.” “Good. James, is everyone in still in good health?” “Yes they are.” “Excellent, now that systems are a go, what should we do know?” “Let's play cards.” Matthew suggested. “I say we sleep!’ shouted James. “Sleep?! Is that all you ever think about, James?” asked Chris. “No, I also like to eat, but seeing as our food is limited, I will sleep.” Chris shook his head as he set back and watched Jo fiddle with navigation panel in front of her. He looked over her beautiful figure; her blonde hair from eighth grade had turned to

a light brown with only a slight wave. Yet, over the years, her blue eyes had found a way to preserve their lustrous glow. She caught his stare and he quickly acted as if he was looking at something else. Jo smiled and went back to her work. Chris got up and walked back to the sleep barracks. “See I’m not the only one thinking of sleep!” called James. “Ah Hell, if you wouldn’t have put it in my mind, I wouldn’t be tired!” Chris called back. Jo looked around at the panel and then around the little room where the guys were. She stood up and shut the manual she held and tiptoed back to the sleep barracks. As she came to the door, she saw Chris unhooking the straps to the upright bed. She snuck in and walked up behind him. “You know, it doesn’t do any good to try and spook me like that, Jo.” “What makes you think I was trying to spook you?” “Well if that’s not what you were trying to do, then what were you doing?” “I just come to talk.” “Okay, about what?” he asked turning to face Jo. “You know what.” She said softly. Moving closer, she looked up at him, looking deep in his brown eyes. “I know you like me…a lot.” She smiled seeing him blush. “Is it that obvious?”

“Oh yeah.” She saw him look away embarrassed, “But it’s okay.” Chris looked back at her smiling face slightly confused. Jo got up on her tiptoes and kissed him. His dream was finally coming true. Chris went to return her kiss when Jay came running through the doorway. “Oh! Sorry, Lieutenant.” Chris sighed as he and Jo turned to face Jay. “What is it?” “There’s something on the radar

and it’s approaching

fast.” “Jo, go see if you can pull up a better picture of it.” “Yes, sir.” She said heading for the navigational panel. “Jay, go tell everybody to buckle up. I have to get Mission control online.” “Yes, sir.” Chris ran out of the room and up to the cockpit. “INTEC to Mission Control, come in. Have you found out what it is, Jo?” “Well, it’s not a meteorite.” “We don’t care what it isn’t, Jo!” “Listen, I don’t know what it is, but the computer says it’s some kind of portal.” “Mayday, mayday! INTEC to Mission Control, come in!” “Mission Control to INTEC, what’s the emergency?”

“We’re headed toward some kind of portal. We need immediate help NOW!” “Okay lieutenant, calm down. What are your coordinates?” “Coordinates are set at 75.23 degrees North and 127.95 degrees West.” Jo informed. “Try steering away.” “I can’t, we’re getting pulled in too quickly.” Chris said pulling as hard as he could on the controls. Major Windsor watched the technicians panic in the mission control room. He crossed his arms and chuckled. “It’s only a matter of time until Lieutenant Chris Mattheson will be forever out of my way.” Chris turned to face his horrified crew as everything went dark. He felt the shuttle twist and turn; he heard Jo scream and everyone else yelling. Then there was silence.

A glimmer of light shone through the pile of rubble that covered Chris. He pushed through the broken boxes and metal cases, sitting in an upright position. He looked around and saw nothing but rubble. Chris stood up, trying to get his land legs he held onto the wall. Chris bent over digging through the rubble on top of the control panel. Nothing. He turned in his seat to a bag strapped to the back, “please be in here, please.” He muttered to himself as he dug throughout the bag. His hand found a thick handle, “Eureka!” he said enthusiastically. He clicked the power button on the flashlight and shone the fading light around the fuselage. I have to find the others, he thought as he made his way back through the rubble, kicking and pushing the metal aside. “Ah.” groan from somewhere in the metal. “Who’s there?” Chris called shining the light around the room. “it’s me; Matt…I’m over here.” The voice called again, this time moving some of the rubble. “I’m coming, Matt, hold on.”

“I don’t think I’m going anywhere anytime soon.” Chris rushed through the rubble to where he heard the voice. Shoving several pieces away from the buried body; finally, he saw him. Chris pulled him to his feet. “You okay, Matt?” “Yeah, just a little banged up here and there. You?” “I’m fine. We got to find the others and figure where the hell we are.”

Jo opened her eyes to the sight of trees and bushes surrounding her. She sat up looking around. What the hell is going on? She thought to herself. She stood up and dusted herself off. Is something burning? She asked herself. Working her way through the brush, she finally came to some flat ground. Jo’s hands fell to her sides at the sight of the fiery pile of what used to be the shuttle. She sprinted to the scene. “Matt! James! Somebody.” Jo circled the area looking for someone to answer her cry. “Over here, Jo!” Jo followed the voice into the jungle. “Jay! I’m so happy to see you! Are you okay?” Jay was on the ground, sitting against the tree. Jo could see that he had obviously been roughed up. she looked up into the trees; the trees had missing branches and broken limbs. “No.” he said as he removed a branch from his leg. Jo gasped shocked at the sight. His leg had been ripped open from his knee down to his ankle.

“Oh my God. We need to find James and fast. It will be only a matter of time before an infection sets in.” she looked around for something or someone for help. “Do you have any idea where the others are?” “No. I was out until I heard you callin’ for someone. “ “Oh. Well, we have to figure out what we’re gonna do.” “Go look for the others.” “But what about you? I can’t just leave you here.” “I’ll be fine; don’t worry about me.” “But by the looks of the sun, it’s gonna be dark soon.” “I’ll be fine.” “What about heat? How are you gonna stay warm? Besides I don’t even know how long I’m going to be.” “I’ll be fine; don’t you worry. Just find some leaves or branches and I’ll use those to cover me. Don’t worry, Jo.” “But…” “Go. You’re losing daylight by the second. And for the last time, I’ll be fine.” “Fine, I’ll be back as soon as I can.” She leaned in and kissed him on his cheek. “Like I’ve been saying all along, you’ll be fine. Jay smiled as she disappeared into the woods. “Hey Chris, there’s something over here!’ “Where? Can you tell who it is?” Chris asked as he headed towards Matt.

“It looks like…James. It’s James!” “Is he okay?” “I don’t know; looks like he’s unconscious.” “Well, let’s get him out of there.” Chris said as he bent down to help Matt lift the last piece of metal off him. From a distance, Chris heard a high-pitched noise. “Hey, you hear that?” “Hear what?” “I don’t know, it sounds like someone yelling.” “You must be imagining things. Now help me with James, he's kind of heavy.” Chris listened again, but all was silent. He shook his head. “Whatever.” He bent down, grabbed James under his arms, and lifted him into the air. Together, they moved him into a clearing close to the cockpit. Chris stopped short. “There it is again!” “What?” “The noise except this time it’s closer. It’s got to be one of the crew!” Chris took off out of a hole in the fuselage. “Chris, wait…” he shook his head at Chris’s behavior. “Hello! Is anybody there?” Suddenly a person jumped from the jungle and stop at the sight of Chris and Jay. “Chris, is that you?” the figure ran closer to the two men.

“Jo?” Chris squinted his eyes for a better view.”Jo!” he took off in her direction. The two met in the middle as Jo jumped into Chris’s arms. “I’m so glad to see you alive and not hurt. You’re not hurt, are you?” Jo smiled, “No, I’m perfect now that I’m with you again.” She kissed him and they hugged. He put her down and looked around at the sky. “What’s wrong, Chris?” “It’s getting dark, and fast.” Jo gasped. “What’s wrong, Jo?” he asked seeing her shocked face. “Jay!” “You know where he is?” “Yes. He made me leave him in the jungle.” “Why?” “He’s hurt and he’s hurt bad.” “Do you remember where you left him?” “Yeah, exactly.” Chris turned to Matt,”Stay here and keep an eye on James. If you can, try to start a fire. It’ll be dark soon and the temperature is starting to drop. Me and Jo are going to find Jay.” “What about food?” “Try to find the food rations in the rubble. Hey Matt, toss me that flashlight.” Matt tossed the flashlight to Chris and they ran off to look for Jay.

“Mission control to INTEC, do you read me? INTEC, are you there. Can anybody hear me?” Lt. Windsor watched the panicked technicians below. He put on a concerned look and exited his office. “Can someone please tell me what the hell is going on down here?” “Sir, we lost contact with INTEC.” “What do you mean you lost contact with them?” “No one’s answering.” “Jesus. When was the last we heard of them?” “Just a few minutes ago. They called in a mayday, said they were being sucked into some kind of portal. Then there was static.” “And you didn’t feel the need to call for me?” Windsor shouted at the young technician. “Sorry, sir. What should we do now?” Windsor, looking at the screen, said with a genuine tone,” I don’t know. I really don’t know.” “Are you sure this is the way you came from?” “Yeah, but it shouldn’t be much further from here.” “Jay!” Chris yelled, hoping he would answer. “Over here!” Jay called. Chris and Jo jumped over a fallen tree and through the brush. There he was, covered in bushes and shivering.

“Oh, God, I’m glad to see you guys! I was starting to wonder if you got lost Jo.” “No, but sorry it took so long to get back. It’s a little harder to find you in the dark.” “Okay, Jay, where are you hurt?” Chris asked approaching him. Jay uncovered his leg. “Shit.” Chris muttered to himself. “We have to find something to carry him with. “There are some tree branches over there; we could use those to drag him along.” “Yeah that’ll have to do.” Jo took off into the woods once more. “Chris, you’re gonna have to bring him over this log, because if you don’t we won’t be able to get him across it.” “You heard the woman, Jay.” Jay nodded as Chris bent over, placing Jay’s arm over his shoulder. “On the count of three. One…Two…Three!” Chris called as he lifted Jay to his feet. Jay moaned as the pain coursed through his body. They made their way towards the log where Jo had been waiting. “Damn, I didn’t expect the log to be so damn big!” Jay exclaimed. “You’ll be fine. Okay, so how are we gonna get you across?” “Can you pick him up, Chris?” Jo asked. “I could try.” He looked at Jay, “This may hurt so bear with me.” Jay clenched his jaw as Chris lifted his legs into the air. ”Here he comes, be ready for him!”

“I’m ready for him.” Chris lifted Jay onto the log. “Now slide down to where Jo is.” Jay lifted his injured leg slightly so it wouldn’t catch on the wood and slid into Jo’s waiting arms. “Alright, I got him.” Chris hopped over the log and helped Jo lay him down on the large tree branch. They both grabbed a part of the limb and began pulling him through the jungle. Matt entered the fuselage and used a piece of sharp metal to cut into one of the seats, pulling out anything he could use to build a fire. Upon exiting the ship, he looked over at James. He was sitting up and looking around at the strange surroundings. “You okay?” Matt asked him. James glad to see him said, “I think so, but my head sure is hurting.” “So was mine, but it went away after a while.” He said as he went back to work. “Any idea where we are?” James asked as he slowly got to his feet. “Nope.” He answered as he circled the ship, searching for rocks. “Where are the others?” “Dead.” “What?! How could this happen?” Matt began to chuckle a little. “Why you lying son-of- a…”

“Whoa! Calm down, man. I was only kidding.” “That’s not something to joke about, Matt. Besides, I think I would have to shoot myself if I was left here with you.” “Hey now.” Matt said as they both began to laugh. “Hey, why don’t you come help me with this fire? Jo and Chris should be back sometime soon with Jay.” James looked at him puzzled. “Where’d they go?” “They went to go get Jay.” “Why, is he hurt?” “That’s what I heard.” “Badly?” “I’m not sure, I didn’t really catch that.” Matt placed the stones in a wide circle and placed the materials in the pit. Picking up two rocks, he struck them together trying to get them to spark. “Do you even know how to make a fire?” “Yeah, why?” “Because you’re angling the spark all wrong.” “Oh, really? Well then why don’t you get of your ass and show me how it’s done, Mr. Boy Scout?” “I don’t want to embarrass you, Matt.” “Are you a chicken, afraid of not being able to back up your statement?”

“Alright, fine.” James walked over to where Matt had knelt down by the pit. “Give me the stones and get ready to add some twigs to it.” “Whatever.” James struck the rocks together and the materials in the pit caught fire. Matt sat there shocked that he did it on the first try. “You gonna add the twigs?” “Shut up, James.” He said as he tossed the twigs in. There was a ruffling coming from the jungle. Matt turned to see Chris and Jo pulling Jay along on a giant tree branch. Matt ran up to them. “Want some help?” Jo handed Matt her piece of the limb as she walked by the two men. As they approached the ship, they slowed. Chris put down the limb, “This should be good here.” He said wiping the sweat off his face with his shirt. James came over to inspect Jay’s leg. “This does not look good, Jay.” “No, really?” Jay asked sarcastically. James ignored him. “We have to find the medical supplies before I do anything to you leg.” He said as he got to his feet and walked into the fuselage. “What are you looking for?” Chris called to James. “The medical kit. Do you know where it is?” Chris entered the fuselage and saw him digging through the rubble. “I don’t know where it is, but I’ll help you look for it. Here, take this,” Chris tossed the flashlight to James, “I’ll get the other one.”

James began searching through the rubble, separating it into piles. “Alright, found the other one. What are you doing?” he asked seeing the piles of stuff in the corner. “Separating the equipment that is still usable and the other piles are stuff that was destroyed in the crash but still can be used for fires or anything else. Besides, don’t we also need a place to stay the night too?” “Good thinking, doc.” Chris began to separate some of the rubble when he came across a metal case. “What’s this?” he asked holding it up. “That’s it! Good job, Chris.” James said as he ran over and took it from him. “Do you think you could finish this here while I go fix up Jay?” “Yeah, sure.” James ran out to Jay and opened the case. He pulled out a needle and a little jar with a clear liquid in it. Taking the small lid off it, he inserted the needle and sucked a small amount into the needle. Seeing Jay’s worried face he assured him, “Don’t worry, it’ll knock you out, so that when I start you won’t feel anything. I’ll give you morphine afterwards.” Jay nodded his head as James inserted the needle into his arm. Moments later, Jay fell asleep on the branch and James began his work. A few hours later, Jay awoke to see James inserting the morphine into his arm. “Just lay back and rest. You’ll feel a little groggy for a while. You’re leg should be fine after it heals, but that may take a while. Just sleep it off.” Jay laid his head back and James covered him with one of the blankets that Chris had found.

“Hey, if you want, we can go ahead and bring him inside. I have the beds set up for everybody.” “Yeah, let’s go ahead do that. Come and help me take him in.”

“Today became a tragic day for the Pacific Space Center when the INTEC shuttle lost contact with NASA, just twelve hours ago. We were able to get a piece of the last transmission sent by the INTEC: “Mayday, mayday! INTEC to Mission Control, come in!” “Mission Control to INTEC, what’s the emergency?” “We’re headed toward some kind of portal. We need immediate help NOW!” “Okay lieutenant, calm down. What are your coordinates?” “Coordinates are set at 75.23 degrees North and 127.95 degrees West.” “Try steering away.” “I can’t, we’re getting pulled in too quickly.” “The crew consisted of Lieutenant Chris Mattheson, Captain Jay Summers, Navigation expert Jo Anna Madison Long, Weapons manager Matthew Torrez, and Medical expert James Lenhart.” A clip of a press conference appeared on the screen. Lt. Windsor stood behind the podium answering the reporters’ questions. “What happened that caused you to just lost contact with the crew, Lieutenant?” One reporter asked. “At this time, we are not sure. All we’ve come up with is the possibility of them receiving the wrong coordinates.”

“But didn’t you send the coordinates?” another reporter asked. “Well, yes but…” “Wouldn’t that make you responsible for this horrible outcome of the crew?” “Like I was saying earlier, we are not sure what could have caused this. From the transmission, Lt. Mattheson said there was some kind of portal that pulled them in.” “Any idea on what kind of portal it was? Was it like a black hole?” “We’re not sure, at this very moment we have some of the best astrologist analyzing this so-called portal.” “Is there going to be a search party sent out?” “Yes, there will be a party sent out to try and find this portal to find the exact coordinates and we’ll take it step by step from there.” “Okay, but if you sent out a search party out there, wouldn’t they just get caught in the same situation?” “Well, we’re hoping that we can study it from a distance without causing any more problems.” As Windsor finished, his press agent cut in. “That will be all for tonight. Let’s leave the lieutenant so he can go back to his work.” The clip went off and the news anchor appeared again. “The scientists say that there is little possibility that the crew survived. However, the family members keep the crew in the prayers and ask us to do the same for the safe return of the crew. Thank you and have a good night. This is channel 14 news.”

“Yes! I’ve finally done it!” “Really? You’ve really did it this time?” “Yes! I’ve finally finished the time machine!” yelled the scientist. “Does it work?” “Well, I’m not exactly sure.” “What?” “Well, I have to do some test trials on it.” “Then what are we waiting for?” Asked Jason.” Try it on me?” “But I’m not sure if you’ll be able to come back. We should test it on something else.” Explained the scientist. “Listen, Gary, I don’t know if you’ve noticed but four years have passed since Chris and Jo disappeared into that portal. I know that if they survived the crash they’re still alive; but I don’t know how long they’ll stay that way. We don’t have much time for all of these tests that you want to run.” “I don’t know, Jason. It’s too risky.” “Look, in the news Naas has called for five volunteers to go into outer space to look for Chris’s crew. Even though nothing has been heard from them, NASA wants to continue the search for their best crew. Only problem is, the government is not willing to fund these search parties any longer; this is their last chance.” “So what are you saying, Jason?”

“I…signed us up for the training and we’ve been called in.” “You did what?!” “Training starts next week.” Training lasted for three weeks. “Congratulations, gentlemen. You’ve been chosen to lead the search and rescue team to hunt down the INTEC.” “So when do we begin working with the crew?” “Well, Captain, you have to meet them first.” “Right.” The Colonel led them down a hall to a room that held three men. They rose and saluted the colonel. “At ease, gentlemen. Men, I’d like you to meet your captain, Jason McDevitt and the scientist Gary Clarke. Captain, I would like you to meet your weapons specialist, Michael Wilson, your crew doctor, Andrew Marx, and your navigator, Mason MacGyver. “ “Nice to meet you gentlemen.” The team left for their final test run in the simulator before heading towards the shuttle. The men suited up in the locker room and headed out carrying their helmets. As they approached the shuttle’s elevator, Jason saw a group of men standing in a group, arguing about something. Jason nudged Gary, “Who’s that?” “That’s Lieutenant Windsor.” The man turned to face Jason and in a ditch effort, he smiled big and gave him thumbs up, as if to seem happy for the crew that was going out to find the lost crew. Jason frowned suspicious of his behavior. “Something’s not right about him.” “The people here say he’s changed ever since the accident.” “I don’t know.” “Just relax, man. We’re going into space!” Getting into the shuttle, the team buckled up and checked their systems. Jason turned around facing his team.

“Listen guys, our mission is to find the lost team. Only problem is that Windsor wants us to follow the path that the INTEC took, that means following it into this portal that we’re looking for. But what Windsor doesn’t know is that the colonel has asked me to debrief your current mission and brief you on the new one.” “Why are we not doing the original mission, exactly?” Michael asked. “Because the colonel and I as well, feel as if something is up.” “Something like what?” Andrew questioned. “Okay, when the INTEC was last heard of, Mission control had asked for their course coordinates. The ship had been set on the course of 75.23 degrees North and 127.95 degrees West.” “Okay and?” Mason pushed for some answers. “Well it turned out that someone had changed the course settings in the system.” “What? Why would someone do that?” “I don’t know, but the colonel had the coordinates that the crew had trained with and they were completely different. The original coordinates were supposed to be at 25.85 degrees south and 119.83 degrees west.” “Okay…so someone purposely sent the team into that portal.” “Yes, that’s what I’ve been saying.” “So what exactly is our mission?” “Well, my good friend Gary here has perfected his time machine that should get us all out of the portal after and if we find the crew.” “Wait, so we’re still going in that thing?” “Mission control to Rescue, initiating the launch sequence in ten seconds.” “Copy that, Mission Control.” Jason said as he turned his seat back around, facing the control panel. “In five…four…three…two…one…lift off!”

Lt. Windsor watched with apprehension, hoping that this shuttle would meet the same fate as the INTEC. No one could find out the secret he had been keeping for the past four years, no one.

The shuttle entered orbit and floated on its course towards the black hole. The crew set back enjoying their time watching earth disappear from sight. Gary got up from his seat and walked to the cargo hold. There it was the time machine. From a far distance, the machine looked like an escape pod; however, once he was within feet of it, he could visibly see the knobs and the seats from the nine by five inch window. “Gary, makes sure that machine is well bundled up and make your way to the front. We’ve got a visual on the portal.” Gary sat in his chair and swung it around facing the front. Jason looked around at his team. “You guys ready?” They nodded their heads. “Hold on then, it’s going to be a bumpy ride.” Jason took the controls and turned the ship into the portal. The lights went out on the dashboard. “Shit! The thrusters and steering are out!” “Navigation is too, sir!” “Damn it, we’re going in blind! Hold on!” The lights flickered on and off as the ship tossed and turned. After the crash, Chris’s team had set out by the ship with an S.O.S fire burning. However, after accepting the inevitable, the team, carrying anything that could be have use, set out in search of better shelter.

During the day, temperatures were unbearably scorching; during the night, they were deadly freezing. There were harsh winds and horrendous thunderstorms. However, within a week of their time there, they had finally come across an empty cave. There, the abandoned crew waited their fate and questioned the ability to survive; but that changed over the course of four years, they became hunters, they became trackers, they became one with the strange world. “You hunting this morning, Matt?” “Sure, why not. I’ve done it every other morning, one more shouldn’t hurt, right?” he asked sarcastically. “I don’t need any of your shit today, Matt. Besides, you know how the system works.” “Yeah! Well, the system sucks!” “Oh really. See, the thing is, back when we had no system, I asked if anyone had an idea on how we were to go about the situations. Only problem was, you didn’t open your fat trap to offer any kind of plan or idea. So being the leader of this team, I took the initiative in making the plan that we’ve followed for the past four freaking years! The same plan that got us all food and water when we needed it. And unless you have a plan to get us out of here, keep your God damned mouth shut.” “That’s enough, Chris.” Jo said placing the palm of her hand against his beating heart. “Go do what you need to do. Please, Matt?” “Whatever.” He growled to himself as he headed to makeshift closet that contained their hand-made hunting gear and walked out. “He’s really pissing me off with his childish attitude.” “I know.” “I mean what the in God’s name is wrong with him?” “I don’t know, but what I do know is that you need to calm down.” “Oh, shit!” Chris yelled, breaking from Jo’s embrace. “What?” she asked

“I forgot to send someone to go with him.” “He’ll be fine.” “No he won’t, not with him pumping with anger like that.” He looked around the cave, “Jay could you…” “Yeah, no worries I’ll go catch up with him.” Jay said as he walked over to the closet. “Thanks, Jay.”

“Everyone okay, call off” “Mason, here.” “Michael, here.” “Andrew, here.” “Gary, here.” “Anyone hurt?” Jason asked as he reached for a small flashlight out of his chest pouch on the front of his suit. Shining the beam among the wreckage, he could see his team getting to their feet and dusting themselves off. “No, sir, we’re good.” Michael answered. “Alright, let’s get the machine out of here and figure out where the hell we are.” “Aye, sir.” Answered Gary as he stepped over the rubble to the emergency escape door. “Mason and Michael, go assess the damage on the ship. Andrew, you can come with me to find the tracking devices.” “Yes, sir.” Andrew and James headed to the back of the ship and began digging through the luggage on the floor. “So, Andrew, you got family back on earth?” “Yeah, a beautiful wife and two gorgeous kids. What about you?” “All I have is Gary.”

“Gary, the scientist?” Andrew paused and watched Jason as he continued to work. “So he’s your life partner?” “What?” Jason said stunned by his question and looked up at Andrew. “Oh! You think I’m gay. No, what I meant is Gary has been one of my best friends since elementary school.” “Oh, sorry about that.” “No, it’s cool. It was my fault for wording it that way.” There was a short silence before either one of them spoke again. “So, why did you volunteer for this psychotic mission?” “Because…” before Jason could answer, Gary came back through the door. “I found the machine, Jason. It’s a little dinged up, but it should be fine.” “Yeah, okay.” Before Gary turned to exit the ship again, Jason called, “Make sure you do the preliminary system checks.” “No problem, sir.” He said as he left the ship. Andrew went back to work, as did Jason with a hint of hesitation in his movements. “You okay, Jason?” Andrew asked noticing his hesitation. Jason ignored him but began to pick up his pace. “Jason!” “He’s my brother!” he shouted as he threw something big across the fuselage. “What?” stopping everything he was doing. “He’s my brother. Chris Mattheson is my brother.” Jason lowered his head and tried to control his emotions. Jason walked over and stooped by Jason. “Well then, we’ll just work extra hard to find him won’t we?” Andrew said, patting Jason’s shoulder before leaving the ship. He sat there thinking a moment when he saw a silver briefcase. He grabbed the case, collected his thoughts and walked out to join the others. “So how does it look, Mason?” “Not bad really. The stern of the ship took a heavy beating but that’s about all.” Mason explained.

“No mean to pry, sir, but if we have this time machine thingy, then why does it matter if the ship is in good shape or not?” “Well, to be honest, it doesn’t matter.” Jason chuckled. “Just wanted to give you something to do.” The team chuckled. “It looks like it’s gonna be dark soon let’s get the equipment up and running. We’ll get up bright and early to search for the crew.” ---------------------------------------------Jay and Matt returned to the cave that night dragging a buffalo-looking animal. “I see we’re having Exameray again.” Jo said as she began to prepare the fire for the dinner. “I’ll go skin it for you.” Chris said pulling his knife from the closet and headed towards Matt and Jay to help pull the animal closer to the cave. “Looks like you fellas had a good hunt.” “Yeah, but we were jumped on our first catch. We had one of them big tasty rat looking things when of those creepy lizards came crawling out of the water.” “Sounds like you guys have had enough fun for one night; you can go clean up for dinner and I’ll finish up here.” Matt and Jay headed to the bath bucket and washed their hands and faces of the dirt and grime from the hunt. Moments later, Chris walked in carrying a slab of hide and placed it over to the fire. The five of them enjoyed their well-seasoned dinner with a clay cup full of fresh water before heading to bed. Chris tossed and turned in his sleep as visions of the crash blasted through his mind. His eyes ripped open and darted around the room. He sat up and removed the fur cover off him. Jo stirred next to him. “Another bad dream, Chris?” “Yeah.” He said standing up and stretching. “You gonna be okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.” He answered as he pulled on his jump suit and headed for the entrance to the cave. “Hey, where you going?” “It’ll be dawn soon; I’m going hunting. Anything in particular that you want?” “No.” she said rolling over and wrapping herself in the warm fur to protect her from the cold morning air. Chris smiled and turned for the horizon.

Jason was the first to wake up, due to the freezing breeze that brushed past him and his team. Being in his boxers, he quickly removed himself from under the space blanket and warmed himself in his jumpsuit. Still tired, he stretches and begins to look around for his knap-sack. Mason sat up in his sleeping bag and looked around. Seeing as the sun had risen, he decided it was time to get up anyway. Soon to follow him was Michael, then Gary, then, last but not least, Andrew. Over the next hour, the team had packed their knacksacks and bundled up for the frosted journey. “Mason, which way are we headed?” Jason asked. “North, through that forest.” “You sure?” “That’s where it’s pointin’, boss.” He answered checking the directional functions on the tracker. “Okay, fellas. You heard the man.” The group of men emerged in the forest, leaving behind the very diamond of their mission, the time machine. Hours past and the team hadn’t even made it out of the forest and had begun to get doubtful of their situation, the sun was high, the temperatures were unbearable, and there was still no sign of the INTEC. “When does this forest come to an end?” Michael cried tired of walking.

“Not for another 170 yards.” Mason called. “Well can we stop for some water or something? I’m out.” “Can we, Captain?” Andrew asked. “There’s a river up ahead.” “Yeah, let’s go ahead and stop there; I’m out of water as well.” The smell of river water flooded the air, along with the smell of vegetation and flies. The men set their sacks down and gathered their canteens for water. Andrew knelt by the edge, cupping water up to his lips. “God, it’s so good!” he cried as he ducked his head into the water for refreshing dip. He withdrew his head and dipped his canteen into the water. Suddenly, something flopped in the water in front of him. “Did you guys see that?” Andrew asked pointing to where the ripples were. “What?” “There was something there, I saw it.” “Where?” Michael asked him as he looked into the river. “I don’t see anything.” “But I saw something there.” Andrew insisted. “Looks like the heat is getting to the doc there, Jason.” Mason said. “No, I swear there was something there.” Andrew turned to join the group as a ten foot long, silver lizard snuck his way up behind him. “Maybe you should have another look or something.” Mason shook his head as he turned to see the giant creature creeping up on Andrew. “Holy shit!” Hearing Mason shout the rest of the guys turned, including Andrew. Michael pulled a small pistol from his bag. “Get down!” he shouted as he fired at the creature. Andrew dove for the crew and the creature let out a fierce roar as it began to charge. “Move!” Michael cried as they retreated to the trees.

Just then, a figure jumped down from a tree limb above the men. Michael raised the gun to the man as he turned to face the scared group. He removed a side bag from his shoulder and took off towards the creature stabbing his spear at the monster’s sides. The creature snapped and growled at the man as they circled each other. The creature lunged at him as he front-flipped over the animal, shoving his spear into his spinal cord causing it to collapse hard to the ground. The man walked over to his bag and pulled out a knife. Neglecting the amazed men, he walked over to the crying animal and stabbed it in the side, killing it for good. He walked over to the men and Michael raised his gun once more. The man looked at him with a confused yet humorous look. “You’re gonna shoot me even though I just saved your life?” he paused and looked at the men who were struck with disbelief that this Neanderthal could talk. “Stand down, soldier.” Michael lowered his gun and gawked at the man. “Jason, is that you brother?” “Chris?” Jason asked in total disbelief. “It is you! I was beginning to wonder if you forgot about me.” He said opening his arms for a hug as he approached Jason. “How could I?” he asked as he began to tear up. The two of them hugged as the rest of the group watched on, not sure what exactly was going on. Andrew cleared his throat to get their attention. They stopped hugging and cleared their throats. Jason’s team looked at him expecting his introductions. “Oh! Team this is Chris; he’s my brother.” He said as he pointed to his brother. The team repositioned themselves to salute Chris. “At ease. Chris, this is Michael.” “The man with the gun.” “Sorry about that, sir.” He apologized. “Anyway, moving on. This is my doctor, Andrew, and my navigator, Mason.” The men nodded their head after being acknowledged. “And last but not least, my old friend, Gary.”

“Well, it’s nice to meet you all. However, the sun is up and my crew is probably wandering where I’m at with breakfast.” “Breakfast?” Gary asked. “Yep, I left early this morning hoping to catch something tasty, and I did just that.” “That’s breakfast?” Gary asked referring to the dead creature. “Yep, it makes a killer morning steak.” “You’re gonna drag that thing to your camp?” Jason asked. “Well, why not? The camp isn’t far from here and even though the Nedmiko looks big and heavy, it really isn’t.” “The what?” “Nedmiko, it’s a name we gave this animal. It was totally random so don’t think we spent most of our time here naming these animals.” Chris explained. He left the group with a rope he had pulled from his bag and roped the creature’s legs. He took the loose end and pulled the creature to the group with little struggle. “See, it isn’t heavy.” “So where’s the rest of your crew?” Jason asked picking Chris’s bag up. “About 30 yards that way, after we clear the trees.” “Well lead the way.” Chris pulled the nedmiko through the trees and onto a dirt path as Jason and his crew followed. As the men cleared the trees, the cave came into view. Chris didn’t shout to Jo when he saw her outside washing up for breakfast. “Is that Jo?” Jason asked; Chris only nodded. Jo looked up from her washing and gasped at the sight of more than just one man returning from the hunt. Chris dropped the load and walked to her; seeing that she had a glazed look in her eye, he wrapped his arm around her waist and led her to the men. “Oh my God, it can’t be.” “Oh but it is, Jo.” Jason answered. “It’s me, Jo, Jason.”

“Jason?!” she embraced him tightly as she began to cry. “Hey what’s going on out here?” Jay questioned as he emerged from the cave. “What the...No way! James, Matt, come out here!” The two of them appeared in the opening of the cave and jogged to the group to be acquainted with the strangers. Moments passed as the crews were united and Jo and Chris began breakfast. “How did you guys survive out here for so long?” Michael asked. “I don’t know; I guess we just got fed up with waiting on a rescue.” Jo answered. “Besides, this whole experience has allowed us all to open up to the gifts of nature.” She paused looking at Jason’s questioning face. She smiled with sarcasm, “Just kidding!” “I was about to say! You loving nature’s gifts is like a Chinese man eating a panda, it’ll never happen!” the group of friends laughed as if it were the good old days. “So…um…how did you guys ever find us?” Matt asked Jason. “About four months ago, I was given the case on your lieutenant.” “Why the Lt.?” Jo asked. “Because he’s an imposter.” “What?! Since when?” “Since one of the foreign leaders of Space Exploration saw that he wasn’t who he said he was.” “Well who was it?” Jo asked. “I can’t say it’s classified.” “Who, Jason?” Chris demanded. “Mally.” Chris and Jo gasped. “How?” Jo asked as she walked over to embrace Chris. “We don’t know yet. But if we’re gonna catch him before he takes off somewhere where we’ll never see him again, we have to leave now.” “Hold on,” Matt said, “how did you find us again?”

“We followed your coordinates into this place.” “But if you guys followed us in, how are we all going to get back out?” Matt asked making a very valid point. “Well, my good friend Gary here has been working on this machine for quite some time and just a few weeks ago, he finished it.” “What kind of machine?” “A Time Machine.” Gary says stepping forward.

Later that night the group gathered their gear and headed into the heavily wooded forest filled with the mysterious unknown. Chris led the crew, sniffing the foul stench of the tree’s decay, slogging through the mud that had been washed out by a recent rain, and their chins drooping and eyes moping hopelessly. Three hours had passed before they finally reached Jason’s crash site. “So where’s this machine that is supposed to get us home?” Matt asked. “It’s inside the shuttle.” Gary replied with worry beginning to build in his voice. Sensing this, he asked, “What’s wrong?” “Well…” hesitating to answer his question. “Well what?” “Hey, what’s going on back there?” Chris asked. “Something is wrong with Gary, but he won’t say.” “What is it, Gary?” Chris asked as he walked back to see him himself. “It’s about the time machine.” After hearing this, Jason walked back to stand next to Gary as if to support him. “Okay, what about it?” Chris asked only this time with more assertion in his voice. “It wasn’t tested before we left!” Jason wailed. “What?” “We’re not sure if it works.” “So in other words, we could be stuck here for the rest of our lives?” Matt yelled in anger. “Shut up, Matt! God dammit, I can’t believe you were so careless, Jason! Coming all the way out here with a machine that has never been tested? What if you didn't land on a planet at all

or you could have left you on some other deserted place. You should consider yourself lucky that you even found us!” Chris stormed off mad into the shuttle and seated himself against the shuttle wall. After several minutes had passed, Jo entered the shuttle hoping she could convince him to give the machine a chance. “Chris,” she called. “I’m over here.” He replied. She looked harder into the darkness and saw him sitting in a corner. She approached him and cuddled next to him. “It’ll be okay.” “No it won’t.” “Just think, when we get back home we could get married, have a house,” she paused for a moment letting Chris take in his hopes and dreams, “we could have that dog that you’ve always wanted, and other little feet running across the floor.” “Other little feet?” he asked. “Well I was going to wait until we got home to tell you but, I’m pregnant.” She announced as Chris’s face lit up with joy. He kissed her with excitement in his heart. “I’m gonna be a dad!” he kissed her again and got his feet, then pulling Jo to her feet they left the shuttle to rejoin the group outside. He turns to Jo, “Can I tell them?” he asked her and she nodded a yes to him. “Tell us what?” Jason asked. “I’m gonna be a dad!” “Everyone looked at Chris like he was a mad man.” “Really?” Matt asked. “Yeah, and Jason I’m sorry for yelling at you earlier, it’s just, well, it’s been four freakin’ years, ya know?” “I know.” He replied as he hugged his brother. “And congrats, you’re gonna make a great dad.” Chris smiled. “So, we gonna get this thing up and running?” James asked.

“How long will it take you to get this thing started, Gary?” Chris questioned becoming serious again. “An hour or so.” “Then get started. “ “Yes, sir!” “The rest of us will gather anything useful just in case we don’t make it home.” “Yes, sir!” Moments later Gary announced that the machine was ready and everyone packed into the machine and buckled themselves securely into their seats. “Make sure your belts are nice and snug.” Everyone checked their belts and Gary turned to a computer and entered the date of Chris’s lift off. “Ready, guys?” He asked as he saw Chris grab a hold of Jo’s hand. Gary pushed the red button. The lights began to flash inside the machine. Chris looked out the window seeing the trees and sky swirling about until finally disappearing into a dark space. Suddenly, Matt wailed out and cringed in pain. “What’s wrong…Ahhhh!” Chris screamed out in pain, releasing Jo’s hand and grasping his abdomen. Everyone else followed suit when each of them busted with pain. A bright flare of light filled the machine as it came to an abrupt stop. Jason opened his eyes to see a white building, “I think it worked!” he exclaimed as he unbuckled the belts. Gary unbuckled and opened the door. “Oh my God!” “What is it?” Chris asked, running through the door, stopping when he saw that they were just outside the launch pad. “It worked. It worked!” Chris exclaimed as he hugged Gary. “Thank you so much, we are in y our debt.” Chris ran to Jo and lifted her into the air. “We’re home! God, I love you!” he sang as he put her down and kissed her. “The ship is about to lift off; so we’ve got to find Mally and fast!”

“Right, but where would he be?” “He was probably watching the lift off.” “Yeah, that’s right. Let’s go!” Chris took off into the building and took the stairs up to the control room. As he entered the room, the control personnel stood up. “What are you doing in here, Lt. Mattheson?” “Not now, Jim. Where’s Major Windsor?” “I’m not sure, check his office.” Chris looked up to see Mally in the window. Chris watched Mally waiting for him to make his next move. Mally turned and ran out the door sprinting down the stairs to the downstairs. Chris caught up with him and tackled him to the ground. “Get off me!” Mally shouted. “How could you, you son of a bitch!” “You know why!” Mally wailed as he hurled his elbow, striking Chris in the nose. He scampered to his feet and Mally runs out of the building and jumped into his space jet and took off. “God Damnit!” Chris shouted. He looked out in the parking lot and saw his old vehicle. He busted out the window leaving his elbow bleeding profusely; he got into the driver’s seat and bent down, pulling the wires down. He tapped the red and yellow wires together causing the engine to start. “Yes!” Sitting back in the seat, he put in drive and took off after Mally. Mally slowed down to the speed of traffic at about 210 miles per hour, seeing that Chris was left in the dust at the Space Center. However, looking in the mirror he saw a vehicle speeding after him. Mally increased his speed, weaving through traffic at a ridicules speed of 359 miles per hour, but it was too late, as Chris had built enough speed to be right at his side. Chris’s voice came over Mally’s headset. “Chris, back off!” “Why? Why did you send us into that portal?”

“Because you’re a two-timin’ son of a bitch!” “What?” “You know what I’m talking about!” “No I don’t.” “Think for once in your miserable life!” Chris thought hard as he shuffled through his past. “I don’t know what you’re talking about!” “The dance you stupid moron!” “What?! You tried to kill me, Jo, and the rest of my crew for something that happened thirteen years ago? You’re a fuckin’ psycho!” Mally’s face flushed with anger pulled a weapon from the dash and shot at Chris. Chris covered his head until Mally ran out of ammo. Chris looked in back at the expressway to see a monstrous worksite; Chris grabbed the wheel and turned sharply into the next air lane. Mally saw this and looked to street but it was too late, he spun the vehicle before hitting a cement wall. The vehicle, at such a high speed, went through the wall and crashed into the dirt pit behind it. The car was totaled; Chris pulled over and ran back to the crash. No regular person could have survived something that brutal, but Chris couldn’t let him cremate in the soon to burning car. He approached the vehicle and when he saw Mally’s hand moving from under the vehicle, he knew that he was still alive. At that moment, the police arrived, but Chris had no time to spare. “Freeze!” the police called to Chris, but he kept digging. “I said freeze!” he demanded again. “I can’t, there’s a man in here!” The main police officer pointed to another to go check the man. The officer approached cautiously. “Are you armed?” “No! Are you gonna help me or not?”

The officer looked down where Chris had been digging and saw Mally trying to pull himself out of the vehicle. He turned and faced the other cops. “He’s clean!” he announced as he put away his weapon. “What’s he doing?” “There’s a man trapped in the car!” At that moment, the officer stopped and smelt the air; the car had begun leaking hydrogen, which gave Chris exactly five minutes to get Mally out of the car. “The car is leaking hydrogen!” At that point, Chris turned to see the officers running to his aide. “I need something to pry the door up so I can get him out.” He said to the officer at his side. The officer ran down into the work site and looked around for anything that would do the job. At last, the officer grabbed a metal rod and a piece of cement to use as a pivot. “Here, this should do it.” Chris put the rod in place under the door and the block under the rod. “I’m going to need all of you to push to lift this. On three, ready? One… two…Three!” All together, they trust the pole down causing the door to spread wide enough to remove Mally from the vehicle. “Hurry, there’s not much time! The vehicle is about to blow!” the officer said. Chris and several others carried Mally to safety behind their police vehicles. The car exploded, and even though it had only a small cloud of fire, it left the nothing but ash. As the clean-up crew rushed to the scene, Mally was rushed to the hospital, and Chris was taken to the station where they took his fingerprints and plugged him into the system. “State your name, please.” The officer asked. “Chris Mattheson.” The officer looked up from placing the name on the mug shot tablet. “What’s your real name?” he asked more assertively, disbelieving it could be the same person that disappeared four years earlier. “Chris Mattheson.”

The officer shook his head and said, “come with me, sir.” He led Chris to an interrogation room, made him sit on one side of the table, and walked out to a detective sitting at his desk. “Detective, I need you to do me a favor.” “Well, it depends on what it is.” He said jokingly. “No I mean it.” “Well what is it?” “There’s a man in the interrogation room who claims to be Chris Mattheson.” “The man from the space mission that disappeared into, oh what was it?” “A portal.” “Oh yeah.” “Well I need for you to see if it is really him.” “Fine, fine.” He said as he got up from his chair sipping on a cup of hot coffee. Chris sat at the table with his head in his hands hoping they would believe him. Then the door opened and the detective walked in. “Who are you?” Chris asked the man. “I’m Detective Lenhart; who are you?” “Chris Mattheson.” “So you claim.” “It’s true!” “Sure it is. Well if you’re Chris Mattheson, tell me what happened the night that you and your crew went missing.” Chris sighed a frustrated sigh as he began to tell his story. “That night we received our coordinates; however when we started to get pulled into the portal we realized that we were given the wrong coordinates. Then we lost control. We were sucked into the portal and crashed on some land I don’t know where.” “Some planet?” “Yes!” “Then what happened?”

“All of my crew survived the crash and we’ve been pretty much living in a cave for the past four years and eating nedmikos and any other creature that was worth killing and eating.” The detective looked at Chris as if he almost believed the him, but kept asking questions just to prove him that he was not who he said he was. “And Major Windsor, what role does he play in all this madness?” “He was the one who gave us those faulty coordinates that sent us into the portal, on purpose!” “Now why would he personally send you into some dangerous portal?” “Because he has this stupid grudge against me.” “What grudge?” “A grudge he’s had against me since high school.” “Right.” He said sarcastically. “Oh my fuckin’ God! You don’t believe me, but I have proof.” “Oh yeah? What kind of proof?” “Let me have my phone call and I’ll have my evidence come to you.” The detective squinted at him trying to decide if he should believe him or not. “Fine. One phone call and if you’re wrong, you get to spend a few nights in a jail cell.” “Whatever just give me the phone.” The detective walked Chris out, after cuffing him, and showed him to the phone. “Make it fast.” Chris called Jo, who had stayed at the Space Center, and on the final ring, she picked up. “Hello?” “Jo, I need you to gather everyone and come down to the station.” “Why are you at the station?” “Because these idiot cops think I’m crazy, even after I saved Mally’s ass.” “You did what?”

“Well I couldn’t just let him die!” “I know, I know.” “Can you please get everyone down here?” “Yeah of course.” “Thanks, Jo.” “No prob, babe. We’ll be down in a flash.” “Love ya.” “Love ya too.” Chris hung up the phone and the detective led Chris to a holding cell. An hour passed and the detective entered the holding area, “Someone’s here to see you.” “I told you they would come.” “Keep quiet.” He demanded as they walked out. Jo saw Chris and ran to him. “Are you okay?” “Yeah, I’m fine.” “I’m going to need statements from all of you.” The detective announced. One by one he lead each member into the interrogation room and he heard the same exact stories. However, when the detective got to Jason, he told the story the same and gave the detective the final bit of evidence need to arrest Mally. The detective let Chris and the rest of them go as he gathered some officers together to arrest Mally in the hospital. The officers walked into his room. “Mally Windsor?” the detective asked. “Who’s askin’?” he asked with his back facing the officers. “Detective Lenhart of the JPD.” Mally rolled over to see the officer’s badge. “Did I do something wrong officer?” he inquired innocently. “As a matter of fact you did. Mally Windsor, you are under arrest for the attempted murder of five people.” The

detective cuffed Mally to the hospital bed and turned to an officer, “Read him his rights.” Weeks later, Major Mally Windsor was stripped of his command in the Space Center and sentenced to forty years in the high security prison, Canone Prison. Mally’s last words before being dragged out of the courtroom echoed through the halls of the entire building. “I’LL GET YOU CHRIS MATTHESON AND YOUR LITTLE GIRLFRIEND TOO. I SWEAR ON MY MOTHER’S LIFE, I WILL GET YOU! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Two days later, the groups reconnected with their families, and almost a month later, Chris and Jo married. The state had given them and the others a gift of 50,000 dollars as a welcome home gift. With that money, the two of them bought a house in Juno and nearly eight months later; Jo introduced a baby boy to his joyous father. “What are we going to name him?” “I don’t know, all I’ve been thinking about were girl names.” “I think we should name him after his father.” Chris smiled as he tried the name on for size. “Christopher Joseph Mattheson the second. I like it, but for now, let’s just call him Jr.” The two of them smiled onto little Jr. as he lay in her arms silently sleeping.