Button in the Fabric of Time (9 page)

“If we provided you with a suit for space
travel, would the button transport you and your equipment to the
moon?” Roc-2 asked.

“I don’t see why not. When I came here from
the twenty-first century, I brought everything I was carrying with
me.”

“Would you volunteer to do a trial run to the
moon and then return?” Roc-2 asked.

Jan-3 stepped forward with a worried look,
placed a restraining hand on my forearm and said to Roc-2, “Don’t
you think that’s asking too much?”

Before Roc-2 could answer, I replied, “It’s a
little scary, all right, but no scarier than transporting into the
future with no knowledge of what I might find at this end. As a
bold, or perhaps foolish, man might say, ‘I’ll give it a go.’” I
then squeezed Jan-3’s hand to reassure her. She nodded, but her
face showed concern.

Roc-2 said to Jan-3, “I wonder if by
acquiring knowledge, we have deprived ourselves of some of our
courage.” Turning to his men, he said, “Get the space suit. Gus is
the man we need for this experiment.”

In only minutes, they had me ready. “What
shall I bring back, to prove that I’ve been there?”

“We have communication with the moon,” Roc-2
answered, “so they’ll tell us when you arrive.”

“If the button works the same in space as it
has here on earth, I’ll be there at the same instant that I depart,
so you’d better let them know that I’m coming.”

I stood holding the button, and said, “Tell
me when you’re ready.”

“They’re expecting you, and they’ll let us
know when you get there,” Roc-2 answered.

I started to explain that I’d be back before
they got confirmation that I had arrived, but I decided it would be
better to simply demonstrate. I winked at Jan-3 and said, “I’ll be
right back,” and disappeared.

When I arrived on the moon, the people
cheered. One of them sent a message telling Roc-2 and his research
crew that I was with them on the moon. I received an overwhelming
welcome from the moon people, who were used to new and innovative
things, but it was clear that this event was exceptional. My guides
took me on a tour of their facility. I learned that all the
buildings were pressurized to simulate Earth conditions. I removed
my pressure suit and enjoyed the astonishingly beautiful view of
planet Earth. Two men took me in a solar-powered vehicle for a tour
of the moon surface and showed me how, by growing plants, the moon
people had created an atmosphere to generate oxygen. Small villages
had grown up to support experimental mining, and to provide living
quarters for the personnel that staffed the way station for
traveling among the planets. The tour guides explained that the
view
of the Earth was better
from
the moon, but it
was better to
live
on Mars, because Mars has natural gravity
and frozen water, making it easier to simulate Earth’s
conditions.

I explained why I had to get back to Earth
and asked for a moon rock to bring back with me. One of the men
handed me a unique moonstone. I bade them good-bye, rubbed the
button, and reappeared in the lab at the same instant I had
left.

Roc-2 looked puzzled and asked, “Why haven’t
you made the journey?”

I handed him the moon rock. At this same
instant, Jan-3 and the lab crew got the information from the moon
station that I had arrived. Everyone’s faces showed their
astonishment.

“This explains the presence of the space
aliens, but it doesn’t answer the question of how the button
works.” Turning to his assistants, Roc-2 said, “Men, open the
device, but do it with extreme care. It doesn’t belong to us—it
belongs to our honored guest and associate.”

“I, too, would like to see what’s inside that
thing. May I watch?” I asked.

“You are part of this research crew,” Roc-2
answered. “I knew you would be interested.”

The lab technicians placed the button in a
vacuum and heated it. They worked with arms extended into the
vacuum, and when the heat was sufficient, the button opened easily.
The joining of the seams was so perfect that they were invisible
even with great magnification. Inside the button were what appeared
to be Nano Technological Devices. As I watched them examine the
button’s interior with their astonishingly high-developed tools, I
realized that their methods were far beyond my ability to
understand. I decided to trust Roc-2’s crew with the
examination.

“I can add nothing more here, Jan-3. I can
learn more by exploring the technology of this time. Would you
continue showing me the city, and also the countryside?”

Jan-3 smiled and looked at Roc-2. He nodded,
and she affirmed, “It would be my pleasure. Where would you like to
start?”

Roc-2 grasped my right hand, placed his left
hand on my shoulder, and said, “Gus, you’ve demonstrated great
courage, and you’ve advanced our knowledge greatly. We’re in your
debt. If it’s possible, we’ll return the button to you undamaged.
You have paid your dues, and your account is full. I have the honor
of being one of the persons who sits on the Council of Twelve. We
may ask you to sit on the Council with us from time to time, but
nothing will be denied you.” He handed me a gold ring with an
emblem on it. “This ring guarantees you access to anything you want
to see. You can contact me at anytime, and from any location, by
pressing the ruby on the emblem on this ring. It’s a highly
developed version of your cell phones. Jan-3 is eager to be your
guide and your companion. She’ll answer any question you ask with
complete candor. You’re free to do whatever you wish and go
anywhere you want. We’ll call on you if we need you.”

Highly flattered, I replied, “If you make
contact with the blue presence, I’d like to know. I have a feeling
there’s something left unfinished between us. I’ll keep nothing
from you, and thank you for the honor you have bestowed upon me. I
hope I might be able to assist more in the future.” Then I turned
to Jan-3 and answered her question. “As an engineer, I’d like to
see how you built this city. And as a farm boy, I would like to see
your agricultural areas.”

* * * * *

Chapter 13

“We’ll start at the heart of the city,” Jan-3
said. “Follow me. I’ll dial for a keri.”

The keri appeared. After we got in, I asked,
“How do you know what number to dial?”

“It’s very complicated,” Jan-3 answered
mischievously. “For a one-passenger keri, you dial the number one.
For a two-passenger keri, you dial the number two, and so on.”

“Yeah! That’s complicated all right.”
Suppressing a laugh, I asked, “How does the keri know where to show
up?”

“That’s even more complicated,” Jan-3
replied. “It always shows up where the dialing is done.”

“Now, why didn’t I think of that?” I couldn’t
suppress my laugh this time. “Is the whole city that
complicated?”

“Nothing is difficult or complicated, if you
understand how it works.” This time, Jan-3 also laughed.

“I’ll keep that in mind while you’re showing
me how the city is built.”

“First, I’ll show you our engineering
department. They design the cities and determine the size and
thickness of the glass building blocks.”

“Wonderful! I know how to do that with steel,
masonry, and wood—I’m very interested in learning how to do it with
glass.”

The engineering department was nothing like I
had imagined. No one was working at drawing tables; everyone was
using electronic devices. Numbers and scales were all in
electronically stored files. Ideas were entered into the files, and
the computers did the work. The engineers gathered around, wanting
to know how we did it in the twenty-first century. They were
particularly interested in knowing how we figured what the
dry-rot-and-decay time would be when structures were made from
wood. Even though their work seemed structured and mechanical,
there were some first-class engineers among them.

I felt honored to share information, and I
was amazed at the many advantages of building with glass. Because
some of the glass blocks at the base of the city were several
meters thick, especially designed machines moved them into place.
The blocks and beams were made to precise shapes and sizes, and
interlocked with precision. Once joined, they formed a remarkably
strong structure. Assembling the blocks and beams reminded me of
the masonry done by the ancient Egyptians, whose structures lasted
for centuries. Glass blocks are far more durable than stone, so I
wondered how long these structures would last. I estimated they
would be around for thousands of years.

I asked one of the engineers if storms were
taken into consideration when building the cities. He said that
even the most severe storm ever recorded couldn’t move a city that
was ten kilometers square, more than a few centimeters. I could
have calculated the information to see if it were right, but in the
meantime, I’d take his word for it.

Jan-3 then took me to the underwater portion
of the city, where the machinery that distilled the water and
purified the air was located. We watched machines that, as Jan-3
explained, operated day and night. To me, it always appeared to be
daytime. I noticed that robots did most of the work, while humans
supervised.

Jan-3 showed me how the more common elements
were changed to the ones they needed. Their advances in chemistry
and physics were astonishing. I’m not a chemical engineer, but I
was particularly interested that elements were manufactured by
altering them atomically. For example, gold and other less
plentiful naturally occurring elements were produced by altering
their atomic structure.

Everywhere we went people wanted to talk.
News of my arrival had spread and I was a celebrity.

* * *

Hours passed; I
was so fascinated by the innovations that I forgot about the
time.

Jan-3’s voice brought me back to a sense of
the here and now, when she commented, “It’s time for our mid-day
meal.”

“Then let’s eat,” I said eagerly.

“We’re below the surface of the ocean, and if
you’d like, we’ll dine beneath the sea, and watch the things in the
ocean in their natural habitat.”

“That would be interesting,” I replied and
looked at her skeptically.

“The restaurant is about a kilometer from
here. I would enjoy the walk if you’re not too tired.”

“I’m not a bit tired,” I commented in all
honesty. I was surprised by my new stamina. While we walked, we
watched workers and robots purposefully moving through the
tree-lined passageways. “How, and why, do you grow trees so far
beneath the surface of the sea? It’s difficult to realize that
we’re not walking under the open sky.”

“It doesn’t matter where you are in the city
because the atmosphere is artificially maintained everywhere, and
it’s a known fact that people are happier when they have plants and
flowers around them. Have you noticed that music appropriate to the
activities is always playing and that the volume is kept low, so it
isn’t intrusive?” Jan-3 asked.

“I’ve noticed the music, but I can’t
recognize the instruments. The music
is
nice and it creates
a pleasant atmosphere.”

“All music is mathematical,” she explained,
“and this music is created mechanically. Musical notes are induced,
and then a beat appropriate to the situation is added. Computers
can duplicate the sound of every musical instrument ever played.”
Jan-3 pointed to a structure right in front of us and said, “Just
ahead, this passageway enters a glass tunnel that extends several
hundred meters out under the ocean. I hope you enjoy the view.”

The passageway seemed to be built for people
who liked to stroll. It was ten meters wide, five meters high, and
lighted from the ocean side of the glass. Fish swam in profusion
through the lighted water. Miniature submarines with external arms,
manned by workers, kept the water clean.

“During working hours, workers eat here, and
in the evening, this is a favorite dining place for lovers,” Jan-3
explained. “The glass dome gives the diners a panoramic view of an
under-water garden of Eden.”

We entered the dining area. I looked around
and commented, “I don’t see any servers.”

“There are no servers for the workers,” she
answered. “In the daytime, this restaurant operates on the
efficiency principle.”

“How do we get our food? I don’t see a buffet
line.”

“We order electronically. The food is
prepared in the kitchen, and then delivered mechanically.” Jan-3
pointed to a button on my right. “Push that button and a menu will
appear. Order by touching the listings of the foods you want. This
is not a specialty restaurant, however, so you can’t order steak
here,” she grinned.

I looked at the listings but didn’t recognize
the names of the dishes. Also, I couldn’t understand the
pricing.

“The menu is listed in food groupings,” Jan-3
explained. “There’s a symbol for each group. The symbol that looks
like a star represents protein; the triangle represents
carbohydrates. You’ll eventually learn how to order, but for now,
I’ll order for you. I know you like protein, so I’ll order a meal
high in protein. I know that you like fruit and vegetables, so I’ll
order some of each.”

“Thank you, but would you explain the
pricing?”

“The values of our money are in accordance
with the metric system. The prices are in
dolls,
and tenths
of
dolls
that we call
dots.
We have no taxes, so
everything is priced in solid numbers. Nobody carries
dolls.
Dolls are used only when people buy or exchange things that are not
part of the charge system.”

Pointing to the center of the table, Jan-3
said, “That little green light has already scanned your pupils, and
the operator of the restaurant will charge the food to your
account.”