Leona received Ramses’ message. She understands the low chances of finding
her husband, dead or alive, but she will hold onto hope. She’ll never let go
of it. She’s never done it before, and she’s always ended up right. Mateo
has died so many times, it’s not even funny. He was once completely removed
from existence by an asshole god creature, and not even that lasted. She’ll
get him back, even if she has to break Danica’s rule, and travel through
time for a rescue mission. She does need more information, though, which is
why she has asked Aldona for a favor.
“Well, which volcano was this?”
“Ramses didn’t say,” Leona replies.
“Did you try calling him back?”
“The line is dead. He’s cut all ties.”
“Makes sense. I’m sorry”
“So, is there nothing we can do? Is there no chance?”
“I’m an expert in antimatter rocket engines. I’ve never operated a
teleportation machine. Is there some way to...I dunno, trace it? Seems as
though it would make a pretty big mark on the world, an explosion like that.
And since there isn’t much teleportation going on in this reality, it should
be unique, or at least rare.”
“I don’t know enough about it either,” Leona admits. “That particular
machine is more his area. But yes, there is a way to trace teleportation.
Unfortunately, the, umm...”
“Oh, shit, you didn’t get your satellite in orbit.”
“No.”
“Because I didn’t let you.”
Leona waits to respond. “Right.”
Aldona sighs. “I don’t suppose getting up there now would do you any good.”
“Not for this issue, no.”
“I’m worried something like this will happen again, though. If you need to
be able to trace temporal powers, then I’ll make sure that you have what you
need. I’ll fast-track authorization. As far as Mateo goes, there may be other
ways. Like I said, it was a big explosion. Sure, a volcano is already pretty
violent, but maybe one of them exhibited some unusual behavior recently.
That sort of thing would be recorded by other research instruments that have
nothing to do with any of this. Let me make a few calls.”
“I would appreciate that.”
Aldona nods, and leaves Leona’s office. A few seconds later, she reopens the
door. “You’re off today. Just relax.”
“Okay,” Leona says, but she’s not going to do that. It’s not what Mateo
would want, and it’s not practical. She doesn’t have the resources or
connections to locate the volcano where her husband supposedly died, so
taking any time off is a waste of the stuff. As a traveler, she understands
the value of a day, and what it will cost them if they lose one. When they
figure out which volcano to even search in the first place, maybe she’ll
stop what she’s doing to investigate. Until then, she’s going to focus on
her work. This does not change her responsibilities or obligations. In fact,
things are even more dire. They can’t prove that Constance!Five was
destroyed any more than they can prove it for Mateo. The danger remains.
Having that satellite up there sooner rather than later would sure help,
though. So why wait?
They talk of it being placed in orbit, but it already is in orbit. It just
needs to be deployed from Mangrove Zero, and become independent. That can be
done remotely by piloting the onboard robotics. All right, so she’s not
going to work exactly, but Aldona gave her permission to do whatever she
wanted, so she’s going to consider this a gray area. She logs herself into
the system, and gets to work. It only takes about thirty minutes before it’s
where it needs to be, free from the confines of the rocket, and able to
operate on its own. Now it’s only a matter of time before it makes a
complete pass around the planet, and scans every brain in the world for
neurotemporal irregularities. She leans back to wait for it, but gets a hit
right away.
“What the hell is that?” she asks herself out loud. Antarctica is positively
brimming with temporal errors. Coronel Zacarias must have figured out how to
activate the Nexus, and has invited visitors to this world, perhaps from
other universes. There’s actually no way to know if they are visitors. Maybe
they invited themselves, and are starting an invasion. The Mozambican Navy
may require assistance, or not. She does not have a way to contact them, and
she has no idea whether Mozambique is even involved in the Mangrove Program,
so it’s best not to cross those streams. And anyway, there were only eleven
pings during the first scan, so these people don’t count. So she does lean
back, and wait for the full scan.
An hour and a half later, another hit comes up on the screen. No, it’s two
hits in the same place. We got ourselves a pair, and they’re close. They’re
on Vulcan Point. What a coincidence, that’s one of the places she’s supposed
to go. Now is as good a time as any. She’s on vacation, and she’s all alone
here. She’s experiencing a healthy professional relationship with Aldona,
but they are not friends. They’re certainly not vacation buddies. Yeah, it’s
not really a vacation, but that’s exactly what she’s going to call it when
she requisitions the jet. She finishes a few outstanding items on her to-do
list, then heads up to the transportation office. Apparently everyone at
this facility has heard what happened, so the administrators are happy to
give her access to a jet. She’s not a pilot, though, so she can’t go alone.
“Captain Tarboda Hobson,” Leona remarks as she’s walking towards the steps.
“You’re involved in everything, aren’t ya?”
“I’m always here for you, Mrs. Matic.”
“I thank you for that. Have you finished your preflight checklist?”
“I have. I’m ready to go if you are. Allow me.” He holds out a hand, and
escorts her up to the jet. In the main sequence, the U.S.A. makes the best
aircraft, but here, it’s Russia without a doubt. This bird is one of theirs,
and while Russia proper is not part of the alliance, there is a faction
working at Mangrove in secret. They’ve not fully defected.
An hour later, they land in an airfield that’s about thirty minutes from
Taal Lake. It is here that they are asked to wait in a 24-hour quarantine.
They’re getting ready for bed when they hear a knock at the door. Leona
opens it to find an old man on the other side. “Can I help you?” she asks.
“My name is Roeland Harlow.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Roeland Harlow.” Who is this guy?
“I believe you’re here for me.” He pulls his shirt away to reveal the
timonite stain on his shoulder that got on all of the travelers that Ramses’
original satellite scanned.
“I was actually looking for two of you.”
He scowls and points aggressively. “No. There is only me. You’ll talk to
me!”
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