Short, Light, Free

Chapter 112: Wormhole Time Machine II

They escorted me out of the door and a lady assistant appeared to hand me a set of clothes.

I have seen these clothes in movies before. It was a kind of straitjacket that mentally ill patients wear.

The sleeves were tied together while the pants were filled with fasteners.

The soldiers dressed me forcefully.

“Wait, what are you doing? What’s this for? Why must I wear this?” I cried out.

“It’s a set of restrictive clothing. Because your soul will be away for three days and your body will be falling into a hibernating state, this is to prevent you from harming yourself if you sleepwalk. It’s a lesson that we had to learn the hard way so just please cooperate,” Professor Douglas said from behind.

Overpowered, I could only let the soldiers fasten the locks on my clothes.

They took me to the end of the corridor and opened the big door.

It looked nothing like a laboratory inside and more like an operating table in a hospital.

They lifted me up and secured me to a bed.

I couldn’t move. I could only shout out helplessly.

I have no idea what I was saying between my cries.

Professor Douglas walked over with a headgear in his hands. “I’ll tell you why it’s 99% and not 100%.”

“What? What...” I mumbled.

“We previously had an orangutan as a test subject. Her name was Bade and she was very tame. Same conditions, three days. On the first day, she started sleepwalking. The next day, we fastened her to the bed but we forgot the headgear and she bit off her tongue on the third day. By the time we realized what happened, it was too late. So this is just to prevent another accident. I hope you don’t mind,” he explained before he covered my mouth with one hand as he prepared the gear with another.

“I object, I do mind... I want to end this experiment. I want to leave this...” The profanities that I wanted to hurl at him was cut off because the gear was already covering my face. The mouthpiece was pressing against my mouth and I could only groan.

“Start the experiment,” Professor Douglas ordered.

Ropes started tightening around my body.

The bed inclined outward by more than 90 degrees and I experienced tinnitus.

One minute, two minutes...

The sound continued and my head felt like it was going to explode.

I felt needles entering my skin and I started to feel drowsy.

I felt something within my head drawing away and I was suddenly unsure where my body was.

...

As I opened my eyes, I found myself lying on yellow earth.

I got up with much effort and I could not feel my limbs.

It was difficult to focus and it felt as though I have downed a whole bottle of white wine.

I thought about what has happened and sure enough, memories started to come back.

Have I traveled across time? Could I really go back after three days?

I could not die and I must report everything I see.

I looked around. It was a vast, barren land.

There was a mountain not far away and there seemed to be a jungle at the bottom.

I was still a bit dizzy but I started walking in that direction as fast as I could.

I looked down at my body and saw only a few pieces of cloth.

Very primitive.

I touched my face but I was unable to describe my appearance.

My skin was dark. Am I a black person? I tried to speak. “I... have I traveled across time?”

I am aware of my situation but I found it difficult to control my limbs.

As if intoxicated, I swayed toward the jungle.

I wanted to run but I do not have the energy.

It was understandably difficult to control an unfamiliar body so being able to move was good enough for now.

I should at least figure out which year and region I am in.

I looked around and a few possibilities popped up in my head.

Prehistory civilization, perhaps, or post science and technology maybe?

Right, I might not even be on Earth.

This body felt strained and my breaths were becoming more urgent.

Am I tired or was my host tired?

I collapsed to the ground and gradually lost consciousness.

...

I woke up in a stone bed this time.

A hazy figure supported me up. “You’re awake. You were severely dehydrated but luckily, you’re fine now. Do you know who you are?”

I shook my head. “You don’t know me?”

I might not be from here if he doesn’t know me. Why was my host here then?

“I don’t think I know you. I’ll bring you to our queen later,” he told me.

I could not see his face clearly because I still felt drunk.

I thought it might be a side effect of time travel. After all, my soul was now integrated with my host’s.

I observed my surroundings. It looked like I am in a cave.

It was very dark and there was practically no light.

I pondered about this matriarchal society and concluded that the culture here might be rather backward.

“Why don’t you turn on the lights?” I asked.

“What are those?” he asked back.

I gave him a bitter smile. Of course, they might not understand some terms. It was just fortunate that there was no language barrier between us.

“Something that glows? Or fire?” I tried to describe.

“Yes, but only the queen gets to use it. I’ll take you to meet her. She is very friendly.”

I nodded. So this place was not just a matriarchal society but also under an oligarchical regime.

He took my hand and led me inward.

We passed through many corridors. It looked like we were in an underground palace.

The people around were busy with their own things and the main hall was very spacious.

On the throne sat a woman, and I did not know why, but she appeared extremely imposing.

I lowered my head involuntarily. My host must be frightened by all these people.

“Where are you from?” the queen started.

“I don’t know either, Queen. Perhaps my brain is damaged. How long can I stay here for?” I asked politely.

She replied faintly, “Judging from your clothes, you must be from Poorful.”

“Poorful?” I repeated.

“Forget it, it’s nothing. I can let you stay here as long as you’re willing to work,” she informed me.

She waved her hand and an older looking man entered.

“He’s our worshipper and he will tour you around this place so get yourself familiar. I’ll give you a few days to do that before you start working for me. How does that sound?” she proposed.

I needed three days. With a smile, I answered, “I might need three days to rest.”

“I was right. You’re a lazy person from Poorful Country but you seem hardworking somehow. Alright, you may leave now. I hope you can contribute something three days later.”

She waved her hand again and the worshipper led me out of the palace.

I turned around and half of the blurry palace seemed to be on the mountain while the other half was an underground construction.

“What nation is this?” I asked the worshipper.

“Poorless Nation.”

“Poorful? Poorless?” I echoed.

“Yes, because where you come from, the people are lazy, all take and no give, hence poorful. People here are diligent so we are poorless.”

“So just one poorful and one poorless?”

“This place has been built by successive queens, one after another, over a few centuries.”

“Right, what are we?” I asked.

“What do you mean?” He looked confused.

“There’s land under our feet and the ground is actually round so we’re on earth and we’re earthlings,” I explained. When what I’ve done registered with my head, I immediately clamped my mouth shut. I said something I shouldn’t have.

“Earth? Isn’t it flat?”

I nodded eagerly. “Yes, yes, I made a mistake. It’s flat.”

“What did you say we are? The Gods call us Ma... Ma something, right? Oh, Maya?”

“Ma? Ya? Maya? This is Maya? BCE?” I cried out before covering my mouth again.

“Maya? Sounds like a good name. I’ll bring that up to the queen tomorrow. We will be Mayans,” he said with a pleased smile.

I froze. Have I just influenced history?

“So that was what the Gods meant. Thank you, Gods,” the worshipper shouted.

“Wait, Gods? There are Gods here?” I asked, baffled.

“Yes. You’ll see in the future.”

“Wait? See what?” I asked, shuddering. Legend has it that ancient people had gotten help from the aliens.

Could there really be aliens?

“Of course, you can see Gods. They appear overhead and bring us harvest or disaster.”

“Harvest or disaster?” I repeated, still unable to comprehend this concept.

“There are good Gods and bad Gods,” he explained patiently.

It was all too much for me to take in. I asked anxiously, “Can you take me to the Gods?”

“They will appear as they please, and we don’t know if they will be bringing us a disaster or a reward.”

I nodded. It seemed at this point that the aliens were really the cause of mankind’s progress. How else could there be airships and the like?

“What do they look like?” I questioned.

“No particular look. Very tall and big. I can’t describe it. You’ll know when you see them. They just look like... Gods.”

Again, I nodded perfunctorily as I pondered over this. I’ll share this information when I get back to the present. It will shock the world and also prove the existence of aliens. Of course, I’ve yet to see the ‘Gods’ so...

Would I get the chance to see them before my three days were up?

I felt rather vexed right now. My knowledge of history was too limited.

I knew next to nothing about the Maya civilization, except that they were smart and even predicted the end of the world. Did the ‘Gods’ tell them that?

And were they smart because they received information from the ‘Gods’? I did not dare to delve into this just yet.

The worshipper smiled and said, “Let’s go back to rest. You’ll sleep in my room tonight.”

I was looking forward to meeting the Gods.

The night deepened and I drifted to sleep, only to be woken up by a slap in the face. Someone was holding and shaking my head vigorously.

I jolted up to see a furious worshipper shouting in my face. “What did you say in your dreams? What do you mean by ‘The God of Destruction is coming’?”

I stared at him, eyes wide in shock. I was speechless.

Did my host speak when I was asleep?

Or did my host travel over here from Poorful Nation to convey the message? God of Destruction? Wait, how did the Maya civilization die out? I was really regretting all the times that I did not pay attention in class.

The worshipper grabbed my hand angrily. “Let’s go meet the queen and you must explain yourself.”