Cogs in Time Volume Three (The Steamworks Series Book 3) Page 5

  The girl smiled and her tiny fingers, wrapped around Dani’s in a gentle grip. Their eyes held in a deep gaze, and finally, Danni understood.

  “You. . .” she whispered as the tears started anew, “. . . You’re me.”

  The jarring of the carriage awakened her, and Danni opened her eyes. At first, confusion muddled her thoughts, and it took her a moment to realize that she’d fallen asleep in a rig. Parting the curtain, she looked out the window and realized that the sunset had begun. She’d been riding around the park for hours and the twilight glow of the evening now streaked the sky.

  A small child played beneath the old oak where Danni had once played as a child under the watchful eye of her father. The girl’s golden hair danced in the light breeze, and her blue dress belled as she turned to smile in the direction of the carriage—a small music box in her hand.

  With a smile, Danni gave a silent wave, and the little girl turned away, skipping off out of sight.

  “Ma’am,” the driver’s voice erupted through the carriage.

  With a scream, Danni started, jerking around to face the opposite side.

  “My deepest apologies, Widow Goodfellow. I only wanted to let you know that a woman stopped the carriage and asked that I give you this.”

  He held out an envelope, the purple wax seal clearly stamped with Madame Odessa Simmonds’s mark. Danni took it, and smiled, knowing she’d completed what she had been meant to do. “Thank you, kind sir. I do beg your forgiveness for having to troll the park for so very long. If you could return me to my shop, Beloved Again, I will see to it that you are handsomely rewarded for your service.”

  The driver grinned a toothy smile and tipped his hat. “No matter, ma’am. Your fee has been cared for by the lady who wished to deliver the missive. If I may be so bold, ‘tis an honor to have met the great Madame O.”

  Danni laughed, her heart suddenly light as it finally slowed from the fright he’d given it. “I feel much the same, my dear sir.”

  As the driver returned to his seat, Danni carefully broke the wax seal and read the letter inside.

  My Dearest Mrs. Goodfellow,

  As all things do, you have found what you have lost. Treasure that which has been returned. It has come not from me, but from the dear husband who only wishes for you to smile. The music box may be returned or kept, for I feel it belongs to you now, to signify your freedom from living as if your own gears were unable to turn.

  Madame Odessa Simmonds

  The airship Independence drifted over the ancient city, whose smooth buildings, domes, and towers lay silent and lifeless. Harrison Pierce stood on the deck of the control room in the gondola beneath the ship, looking through a pair of binoculars at the expanse of the city.

  Independence had traveled to this planet through a spatial portal, using a frequency they had discovered on a previous expedition. Their mission had been to search for the builders of the portals similar to those humans had developed near the end of the nineteenth century, which allowed instantaneous travel between the planets.

  So far, the planets had been empty of intelligent life. The city was a magnificent testimony of the beings that had lived here, but on the entire planet, it was the only sign of civilization. Nor had they found any clue as to who had lived here and why they had left. The scientists who would follow the Independence would scour the place for artifacts and written matter, but for the moment, they had to be content with facing the mystery.

  “Perhaps they all died of a plague,” Murunga said.

  Pierce lowered his binoculars and looked up at the big Maasai prince beside him. As usual, the stoic Murunga was immaculately dressed in the finest suit from the best tailors in London’s Savile Row.

  “That's not a very comforting idea,” he said, especially since Liz Fletcher, the airship's owner and his very close friend, was on the surface, exploring the city with an eminent scientist in search of advanced technology.

  Murunga raised his eyebrows. “I am not suggesting that the disease is still active. The people may have died off centuries ago. Each of us has been on the surface, yet none of us has shown signs of illness. Miss Fletcher is in no more danger than any of us.”

  “Still . . .” Pierce stepped over to the console beside the pilot. He stared at the brass knobs and switches for the wireless, not certain which did what. “Mr. Gridley,” he said to the pilot, “can we contact Miss Fletcher on the wireless?”

  “Yessir, Cap'n Pierce. She’s carrying one of the new mobiles. I'll just bring us about, so we can get a better signal.”

  With one hand, Gridley spun the wheel, turning the great airship, and reached over to the wireless with the other, throwing a number of switches.

  The long flat building near the edge of the city came into view. It had been the first object of exploration since the field next to it provided a landing place for the ship.

  Gridley pulled the microphone from its hook, pressed the button on its handle, and said, “Independence to landing party. Do you read?”

  Static filled the speakers and stung their ears.

  “Yes,” Liz Fletcher's exasperated voice came through. “Now what?”

  Pierce took the microphone from Gridley. He could at least handle a single button. “Just checking in with you. Any problems?”

  “No . . . and I'm a big girl. I can take care of myself. I don't need the British Army hanging over my shoulder ever second.”

  Pierce felt his face heat up and was glad that Gridley and Murunga were looking out the windows encircling the gondola and not at him. “That's not what I meant. I was just . . . concerned.”

  “Well, I appreciate the sentiment, but I'm from New York, remember? There isn't much I can't—”

  The sharp sound of high-pitched static exploded from the speakers.

  Below them, blue fire enveloped the building, flashed over its surface, and blew outward like an expanding ring before vaporizing. The airship shook as though hit by a hurricane, and a wave of nausea struck the crew.

  “Oh damn,” Liz cursed. “Harrison, you'd better get down here. Nikola has done it again.”

  “On our way,” he said, squeezing his eyes shut against the dizziness, and replaced the microphone on its hook after two attempts. “Take us down, Mr. Gridley.”

  Leave it to Nikola Tesla to bring the ancient technology to life and potentially destroy the planet. Not that he could complain since, on their first excursion to an alien world, Pierce had activated a self-destruction mechanism that had melted an entire outpost into a puddle.

  The crew secured the Independence to stakes pounded into the field outside the building and stayed ready for a quick release in case they needed to make a hasty departure. Pierce and Murunga entered the building and began their search for Liz and Tesla, who were accompanied by Billings, one of their complement of Her Majesty's soldiers. Billings found them first and led them to a cavernous room. In the center, a sphere seemed to be spinning, until he looked directly at it, at which time it appeared stationary and glowing with a blue aura. The dizziness returned and took a moment to contend with.

  Standing at a control panel in front of the sphere was the tall, thin form of Nikola Tesla.

  When Pierce looked for Liz out of the corner of his eyes, the sphere went spinning, and Tesla blurred and stretched to either side, appearing to circle the sphere with duplicates of himself. Pierce looked back quickly, and there was but a single man.

  “This is most unsettling,” Murunga said.

  Billings led them to an observation room with a long glass window that looked into the larger room. Liz Fletcher was franticly throwing switches on consoles, moving from one control to another.

  “I can't shut it off!” she said as they entered.

  The nausea lessened, and Pierce was able to think more clearly.

  “What happened?” he asked. None of the consoles seemed to be lit with power, unlike the one Tesla was at.

  “Nikola turned something on. The sphere started glowin
g. He activated something and can't hear me. It's like he's become part of that sphere.”

  “What is it?” Pierce asked.

  Liz's worried look narrowed on him. “I don't know. That's the problem. Nikola thought it was some sort of power source, but I don't know. Now I can't shut it off. None of these controls do anything.”

  Pierce pointed to the other room. “Those obviously do.”

  “Yes, but the closer I get to the sphere, the harder it is to see straight. It causes some sort of distortion.”

  “Okay, then.” Pierce straightened his khaki jacket and stepped out into the larger room.

  He had faced a variety of foe while in the service of the British government and had been an explorer over many wild parts of the Earth and to other worlds thanks to the innovations of the teleportation portals. He had climbed mountains, crossed rivers and cut his way through jungles. Now, he plowed his way through the thick air of an alien world fighting dizziness so heavy, it seemed he was swimming through it. He had no idea how long it took him to reach the Serb. He concentrated on his goal and marched on, as he had when lost in the African desert years before and had made his way across it, half-dead from exhaustion and dehydration.

  When he grabbed Tesla's shoulder, a surge of electricity sparking through his fingers, but he held on, more to keep himself steady than to get the Serb's attention.

  “Nikola!”

  Through the blue haze around him, the sphere spun and hummed, floating inches off the polished floor. Dozens of Teslas circled the thing, each turning to look in his direction. Except the one beside him, who gazed with fascination into the blue haze.

  The small console had flashing lights and buttons, with readouts that scrolled incomprehensible script. There was no off button. At least not one that was labeled in a language Pierce could read. There was, however, a big red button, larger than the rest and set in the center of the console along the top. He did not have a good experience with red buttons, but the situation seemed different.

  He slammed his palm onto it.

  The humming droned down, and the blue fire evaporated.

  The cold bronze ball, twenty feet thick, floated above the floor, silent and still. The Tesla duplicates folded into the one, whose face slowly took on a puzzled expression.

  “Ah, Captain Pierce, how good of you to join us.”

  “Are you all right, Nikola?” Pierced asked.

  Tesla's gaze became distant, which was normal for the scientist. “Fascinating. I can see so many things. I understand so much now, but there is so much more I do not yet understand. It is as though I have seen every life of every person who has lived on this planet, experienced their lives in a single instant.”

  “What is this machine?”

  “I had suspected it was a source of unlimited power, taking energy from the very air we breathe, but it is so much more than that.”

  Tesla's hand stretched over the console, but Pierce grabbed his wrist.

  “I don't think that's a good idea,” Pierce said.

  Tesla pulled away from his touch, giving him a disapproving look.

  “Until we know more about what it does,” Pierce said.

  The Serb nodded. “Perhaps you are correct. I must learn more.”

  Pierce bent down and looked under the sphere. It still hovered above the floor.

  “How can it do that? Even turned off.”

  Tesla wagged his finger, his eyes flashing. “You see! It still functions, even turned off. It absorbs energy. But how? It is not connected to anything. There is no source of power. Yet it absorbs power. It takes it from the air. This is what I have searched for my entire life, and here it is. It transcends our dimension.”

  “Yeah, and it could blow us up.”

  “Nonsense. It is not a weapon.”

  “Then what is it?”

  “It is a window into the heart of the universe. I saw so much. I can still see it. Visions from my entire life, from the lives of those who lived here. I see all the advancements we will create, the wonders of our future. It all makes sense, now. It is all very clear. All my life, since I was a little boy, I have seen visions. This is the cause of the visions, but now I can see with clarity.”

  “How could this machine cause visions when you were a child?” Pierce asked.

  “As I said, it transcends dimensions. It transcends time. I stand here now, within the throes of this device, as I always have, and always will. I am my future and my past. I see many worlds at once, many lives, and all are my own.”

  Pierce rubbed his face. The dizziness had passed, but now he had a headache. Whether it was the results of the machine or talking with Tesla, he wasn't certain. The Serb had always been difficult to carry on a conversation with, but it was worse now. They needed to return to London to have Tesla examined for any ill effects from the sphere before they investigated any further. Also, if he had some insight into the people who had built the facility, as well as the city, they needed to reveal that information to the ministry and to the coalition of other countries who were also exploring the new worlds.

  Unless, of course, the already unstable genius had tipped over the edge of insanity by staring into the abyss created by the enigmatic sphere. Pierce wondered about his own sanity. Strange images flashed through his mind, but he convinced himself it was just the temporary effects from the nausea. Like fragmented bits of a fading dream. A landscape devastated by war. The city, alive and filled with people like himself. Humans, not alien monsters. But, like visions from a dream, they evaporated.

  Tesla objected to leaving so soon after his discovery. He made a mad dash about the place, filling sacks with artifacts and devices that seemed obscure, but he insisted that he needed them.

  Even Liz had no idea what the objects the Serb collected were. She merely went along with him throughout the facility and helped pack things, convincing him of the wisdom of returning to London and coming back better prepared to explore the city and its wonders.

  With mysterious parts littering the deck of the control room, and Tesla, immaculate in his dark suit, squatting on the deck planks with his tools, the Independence readied to return to Earth. The airship produced its own portal that carried them through the void of space instantaneously. A creation of Tesla and Liz Fletcher's father, the Tesla Portals covered the Earth and made travel across the globe as simple as walking through one portal and out another, hundreds or thousands of miles away. Dial a frequency and pick the destination. The discovery of extraterrestrial frequencies made travel to the other worlds in other solar systems possible, the frequencies emanating from antennae. Who had established these antennae? Nikola Tesla might have that answer.

  In an instant, the Independence left the alien world and floated over the lights of London.

  But something was not right.

  Pierce looked at the city of his birth, from which he had escaped in his youth by joining Her Majesty's army and had eventually set about exploring uncharted corners of the world, until the Tesla Portals had made explorers obsolete. His life and career had been revived by the discovery of other worlds. He had not seen much of London over the past decades and knew very little of the transformation electricity had so recently made in the city. But he had seen it from the vantage point just below the clouds more than once over the past year, and something was wrong.

  “Shouldn't there be more lights?” he said. “And they're usually brighter.”

  “You're right,” Liz said, leaning over the pilot's station.

  “Where are the mooring towers?” Gridley said.

  Liz fumbled with the wireless, calling out to the ministry that they had arrived, and requested instructions.

  Only static replied.

  She threw switches and tried again.

  Gridley brought them lower, and they drifted over Trafalgar Square. Despite the evening hour, dozens of people still walked the streets and carriages rolled along. As the airship drifted just above Nelson's Column, everyone stopped. Some
pointed upward. Others ran. Horses panicked.

  “It's like they have never seen an airship before,” Liz said.

  “That's because they haven't,” Pierce said.

  “What? You think we actually traveled back in time? That was just a joke you pulled on your friend at the ministry last year. A trick you played on them.”

  Pierce shook his head. “This is no trick.”

  “If we have gone back in time,” Murunga said, “it could not have been far. There are some crude automobiles, and there are electric lights.”

  “We have not gone back in time,” Tesla said. “Not yet, at least.” He stood behind them, his work abandoned on the deck.

  “Then I'll try to raise someone on the radio,” Liz said.

  Tesla shook his head. “It will not work. There is no one to receive your message. Here, anyway. We must go to New York. Shoreham, New York.”

  “Where?” Liz said. “Isn't that Long Island.”

  “Yes. We must go there immediately.” Tesla went to the controls for the portal device and began dialing in a frequency.

  “Wait a second,” Pierce said. “We aren't going anywhere. And certainly not to some destination you're dialing. Let Liz take care of that.”

  Tesla turned and stared him down with steady blue eyes. “You must trust me, Captain. We are all in danger. The world as we knew it no longer exists and we must get it back. To do that, we must move quickly.”

  “I really think we should get you to hospital and check you for injuries from that machine,” Pierce said.

  “Help from where?” Tesla demanded.

  “This is not our London,” Murunga said.

  Liz shrugged. “Will New York be any different?”

  Tesla shook his head. “No, but we need to be there as soon as possible. I cannot explain it, my dear, but it is a matter of life and death. It is like the visions I have had since I was a child, but more vivid, pulling at me.”

  “Can we trust your visions?” Liz asked.

  A small smile curled the Serb's mustache. “When I was six, I envisioned a machine that would capture the power of your Niagara Falls. Decades later, that became reality. Now, may I proceed? When we reach New York, I must make adjustments to the portal system. I have been working on refinements that will assist us in the future.” He paused as though to consider his words, and then gave an uncharacteristic chuckle.