091717

I'll Return It

Dr. Steve Robertson hunted around in the litter on the lab bench. "It has to be here somewhere," he muttered. The Transworld Express lacked only one thing, and he had just had it in his hand. The BD junction was off-the-shelf technology, but the stores were closed. He would have to wait until Monday morning unless -- there it was. No. Yes! He screwed it in, tossed the sonic screwdriver (left by a rather peculiar visitor) on the bench, and punched the *start* button (scavenged antique labtech).

The laboratory hummed and an eerie blue glow emanated from the tubing that circumscribed the TWE chamber. Inside the chamber the black plastic floor had been replaced by industrial tiles. Steve tossed a drafting weight into the chamber and it landed on the tile. A camera mounted on top of the weight sent video imagery to his laptop as it panned 360°. When it faced the door it showed his lab. The rest of the time... it showed his lab. Damn! When he saw the tile he was sure... wait a minute. That's my lab, but where is the gravity neutralizer? And what is that gray thing in the corner? Oh my God. There's the x-ray mapper I lost last month, lying on the counter. He dashed into the chamber and into the other lab, grabbed the mapper and stuffed it into his pocket, then dashed back into his own lab, snatching up the weight and camera on the way. He slammed the stop button and the field died. Plastic flooring reappeared inside the TWE chamber.

Success! The thing actually worked. They'd have to respect him now at the Academy. It was perfect , , . although it seemed a little rough on the transition, and the frequency matching circuits might need adjustment. Now where was that sonic screwdriver? He had just had it a minute ago. But these things seemed to have a habit of disappearing. In fact, stuff sometimes seemed to walk off as soon as his back was turned. And it was getting worse.

Publ. Drowning Atlantis, 2007