Twin Earth

Chapter 31

Back in my room I lay on the bed and stared out at the jungle, grateful that the earthquake had passed and we had been allowed to leave the sterile basement room. We had been ordered to rest before we visited the creator's ellipse, but I wasn't sure how much resting I was going to be able to do. I was exhausted, but my mind was racing. Nothing felt normal. Everything simply confirmed why I never wanted to go into space, although even I hadn't been able to visualise this scenario.

The tropical storm still ravaged on outside, with leaves and various jungle debris flying around the endlessly tall trees, amongst the never-ending steaming mist. Suddenly, I became very aware of how much I missed my father and wondered how he and everyone else were coping back on Earth. The last message we had received hadn't sounded very positive and I couldn't ignore this wanting sense of urgency to get back home as quickly as possible. Whatever the decaying sphere or anomaly was, it had to be fixed before our two planets ripped each other apart, but how we were going to do that was just too overwhelming a thought.

Even though the lights and the window glass luminosity had been subdued to allow us to experience a form of night-time, I could still sense the almost blinding sunlight from outside and I wondered how these people had coped all these thousands of years living on such a hostile planet.

'More importantly, how did they develop such technology to get here in the first place with such limited resources?' I wondered. I knew a lot of history had been lost over the years, such as ancient languages and cultures from thousands of years past, 'but how did we lose such advanced technology?' It didn't seem possible. It also made me nervous to think what Trevor and the US military could potentially do with such technology once we were back home. 'So where does that leave Rachel and I?' I wondered, nervously.

My train of thought was annoyingly interrupted by the food dispenser screen bleeping again and Rachel's face unceremoniously displaying way too close to it from outside. Reluctantly getting up, I waved my hand over the panel to the side and waited as she delicately stepped inside.

"You awake?" she asked softly.

"On and off," I muttered. "Too much on my mind."

Nodding in agreement Rachel sat down on the end of the bed and waited as I slumped back down and stared out the window again, my arms folded behind my head.

"I'm sorry for giving you such a hard time earlier," Rachel muttered, perhaps a little reluctantly.

"Why do I feel like you want something?" I replied sarcastically, turning to look at her. "Ever since we've got here you've been way too... I don't even know how to describe it, just too calm with everything. Do you know how fucked up all this is?"

Bowing her head Rachel stared at her lap and twisted her hands uncomfortably.

"Even if we can fix this thing with the help of some superior race and save both our planets, how, on any level, do we explain all this when we get back home? How do we even decide who to tell?" I continued, sighing heavily. "Countries could go to war over this kind of technology. And what of the Mochuvians? Would they finally be invaded and lose everything they have worked so hard for?"

"No, that would never happen," Rachel replied. "No-one can get past the sphere if it's not splitting open. Light can't even escape from this pocket of space, so no-one would know they were here. Just like we never did."

"But we would know," I muttered.

"So, let's say nothing. I've been thinking about this for a while and..."

"And pretend like none of this happened?" I interrupted, getting up and walking over to the food dispensing screen that was thankfully no longer showing Rachel's face.

"We may have too," Rachel replied. "I agree, we can't trust anyone on Earth with this level of technology. Humans just aren't ready for any of this. Interstellar travel both physically and through our consciousness? God, even the disappearing doors would probably be adapted to create some kind of weapon."

"Even though humans owned this kind of technology once, why was it lost? Why were we never able to develop like the Mochuvians have done?" I pondered.

"I guess the Mayans hid it after the Spanish invaded. Maybe they knew what we would become. Maybe we are the underdeveloped," Rachel replied.

"Even if we could go to the South, if they destroyed the ellipse on Earth, we may never get home if there is no ellipse back on Earth to receive us."

With that thought we both remained silent, unsure of what else to say. I swiped at the panel and attempted to get a glass of water and failing, Rachel got up and did it for me.

"Why do these things never work for me?" I grunted, equally annoyed and in awe as a cup of water immediately materialised in the tray beneath the screen.

"You're just too stressed, that's all."

"Do you blame me? Why are you so calm? Did they do something to you?"

"No," Rachel exclaimed, upset at my suggestion.

"Then what is it? Why do they seem to worship you and ignore me?"

"Maybe it's because I listen to them."

"And I don't?" I snapped.

"In all honestly, no Tom, you don't. You've been nothing but hostile and rude since we got here. You probably remind them of everything they left back on Earth."

"Wow, don't hold back now Miss Jenkins will you. Tell me exactly what's on your mind," I replied sarcastically.

"See, it's comments like that that make you different from everyone else here. You look down on me. You don't think I'm capable of knowing anything scientific even though I have repeatedly proved you wrong. Why is that? Is it because I'm young, or maybe it's because I'm female? Would you treat James this way? These people are the first to take me seriously. They haven't once thought oh, she might be saying something clever, but she's probably wrong because she has a vagina. Admit it."

"That's complete rubbish."

"Is it?" Rachel snapped. "Look, I'm going back to my room. I came here to apologise to you, even though you should be the one apologising to me. I don't even know why I bothered."

"Rachel wait," I called after her, but it was too late. She had already swiped her way out of my room and marched back out into the hall. If it had been a normal wooden door, I half imagined she would have slammed it.

Growling out loud in frustration, I downed the cup of water and debated smashing the container across the room but thinking better of it I placed it back on the shelf underneath the food dispensing screen and watched as it dematerialised into nothing.

'Am I really a judgemental prick?' I asked myself whilst swiping my hand over the area the cup had just been to see if it was still there. I had never considered my actions before as sexist, but maybe Rachel was right. I had been taking a lot out on her, but not because I thought she wasn't qualified, in fact I was in awe of how much she knew, jealous even. It wasn't her age either, it was purely due to the fact I had an issue with being told what to do by a woman, all thanks to my ex-wife.

Lying back down on the bed and curling up into the foetal position, I held the soft cushions like a child and resisted the urge to go after her. 'I'll deal with it in the morning,' I thought. 'Whatever morning was.'