DISCLAIMER:
This story, part of the new series TP, is a prequel of "The Origin Story."
The characters of Adam, Professor Galt, and the shark (I think) are property
of Roger Price, Nickelodeon, and/or Thames Television. The other characters
are mine and mine alone. I wrote this story for nonprofit reasons. With this
story I hope to clear up all the mysteries that the series did not explain.
Please write to me and tell me what you thought of this.
For your information as a reader, I used asterisks *like this* to indicate an italicized portion of text.
The following dialogue from Episode 2 of "The Origin Story" is important in order to understand my story:
Masters: "You caught one?" (Meaning a teleporter.) Galt: "Yes, we used a touch too much power. There wasn't very much left of him, poor chap."
No animals were harmed in the writing of this story. None of the scenes were actually supervised by the Animal Humane Society, though, so you'll just have to take my word for it.
Happy reading!
Adam Neumann rolled over on his beach towel and flicked a small shell playfully at his brother Paul. Paul jumped at the light touch and squinted in the bright sunlight. "Adam," he whined. "You woke me up!"
"Sorry," Adam said. "Did you have another nightmare last night?"
Paul nodded. "I was afraid to go back to sleep."
"What did you dream about?"
"A shark attack."
"Again? That's the third dream of a shark attack you've had this week!"
"I know, I know," Paul said irritably. "I don't want to talk about. I don't even want to think about it!"
"Why don't we go for a swim," Adam suggested.
Paul shook his head. "I really don't want to."
Adam leaned close to whisper to him. "For once in her life Mrs. O'Leary has spent money on something not completely necessary for us." Mrs. O'Leary was the woman who had taken Adam and Paul into her home after their parents' deaths. Adam had been seven years old at that time; Paul had been only four. "She took us on this really nice vacation to the Great Barrier Reef, and I don't want to offend her. Please just come swimming because of that. Try to look like you're having a good time."
Paul glared at Adam, but got to his feet and walked resolutely toward the water. Adam ran to catch up to him. "Why don't we dive for coral," he suggested, adjusting his snorkling mask over his face.
Paul shrugged, which Adam took for compliance.
Once in the water, Adam dove deep and slipped his knife from its sheath he had attached to an old belt. He found a nice piece of coral and hacked at the base of it with the knife. The coral fell away into his hand, and Adam kicked his way to the surface.
Once there Adam breathed deeply and sheathed his knife, his eyes scanning the water for Paul. He saw him treading water a few meters away. "Hey, Paul!" Adam held up the piece of coral. "Isn't it a beauty?"
Paul grinned. "It'll look great on your shelf at home!" he called. A movement just past him caught Adam's attention. Looking closer, Adam thought he saw a large gray shape gliding through the water toward his brother.
"Paul, what's that behind you?" he asked.
Paul turned and screamed, "Shark! Shark!"
In a flash Adam dropped the coral and tried to swim to his brother, but was so panicked that his movements were awkward and futile. "Hang on, Paul! I'm coming!" He heard a noise, and saw that one of the pleasure-boats out for a cruise was coming their way, the people on board shouting and waving. Glad as he was for their help, Adam saw that they wouldn't get there in time. He had to get there first.
Willing himself to be calm, Adam swam with stronger strokes, keeping his eyes on his brother, who was dangerously close to the shark. Suddenly Paul cried, "Adam, it's right there!" He screamed and then there was a blinding flash of light. Blinking, Adam saw no trace of Paul on the surface of the water. Paul must have gone under, Adam thought. He jackknifed and swam to the bottom, searching desperately for his brother. He couldn't see anything and was coming back to the surface to relieve his burning lungs when he saw a shape. Paul, Adam thought. But it wasn't. The shark came at him with open jaws. Adam twisted out of the way, trying to free his knife from its sheath. The shark locked its jaws painfully on his side as Adam wrenched the knife free. He lifted his arm, but before he could stab, the knife seemed to grow very hot and heavy in his hand. Somehow he couldn't kill the shark. His last thought was of Paul as he released his grip on the knife and gave in to the darkness.
***
He woke up in his bed in Mrs. O'Leary's cabin. His side throbbed with a dull, heavy ache. For a moment he stared around the room in confusion, then jerked up with sudden memory, ignoring the searing pain that shot through his body at the abrupt movement. "Paul!" he cried. "Where's Paul? I've got to find him!"
Mrs. O'Leary none-too-gently pushed him back down. "He's fine. He's just in the other room," she said in her no-nonsense voice.
Adam struggled, trying to climb out of bed. "The shark!"
"It's dead. Some fishermen shot the shark and rescued you. Everything's all right. Except for you, that is. Fifty-two stitches, and the doctor made a house-call. I wonder how much *that's* going to cost me. Still, it's less than if I'd have taken you to the hospital, like he wanted me to. You've been unconscious for hours. The doctor says you can't move around violently for a few days, at least. And as soon as you're out of pain we're going home."
Adam fell back against the bed, wincing. "You say Paul's here?"
"Yes, I'll go get him." She left the room. A minute later Paul appeared in the doorway.
"I'm glad you're okay," was all he said. There was a short, uncomfortable pause unlike any Adam had ever experienced in his brother's company. Something was wrong. Adam thought he knew what it was.
"I'm sorry I made you come swimming today when you didn't want to," Adam said apologetically. "If I hadn't done that this wouldn't have happened."
"This would have happened sooner or later," Paul said cryptically. "It was only a matter of time."
Adam got an uncanny feeling that they weren't talking about the same thing. He decided to ignore it. "Yeah, well, you must be psychic or something."
Paul barked a laugh that sounded half-hearted, as if he were merely responding politely to Adam's well-meaning joke. Suddenly he bent down and hugged Adam fiercely. Adam gritted his teeth against the pain and refused to cry out, but through his momentary agony he could see something was bothering his brother, and it was not the shark experience. "Paul, what's wrong?"
Paul sank down on the edge of the bed, not looking at Adam. "I shouldn't tell anyone," he muttered, and Adam got the feeling he wasn't talking to him. "But I have to tell *you*."
"Tell me what?"
Paul turned to face his brother. "You have to promise not to tell anybody."
"Not even Mrs. O'Leary?"
"*Especially* not Mrs. O'Leary."
Adam was beginning to feel uncomfortably suspicious. "All right. I promise."
"It started when the shark attacked. The only thing I could think about was getting out of there, being anywhere but there. I wished so hard that I did."
"Did what?"
"I teleported. I disappeared and was somewhere else."
Adam rubbed his temples with his fingers. "I don't understand. How did you do that? And where did you go? I looked for you, but you weren't there!"
"I was on a different island. I told you, I teleported there. I found out all about it."
"About what? What are you talking about, Paul?" Adam couldn't understand his brother's story.
"It's a gift. The next stage in human evolution. And there's something there that proves it."
"And what is that?"
"Just something," he said vaguely, looking away. "You don't believe me, do you?"
"It sounds like something on 'Star Trek,' " Adam said bluntly.
Paul stood up. "The doctor says you need lots of rest. I guess I'll go for a walk or something." Without saying anything else, he left the room.
Adam tried to puzzle over what Paul had told him, but his eyelids became heavier and heavier, and soon he was asleep.
****
Adam swung his suitcase into the trunk of Mrs. O'Leary's car. "Paul! Are you ready?" he called impatiently back toward the house. "We're going to miss our train!" Mrs. O'Leary and Paul bustled out of the house.
"What's the rush?" Paul asked. "America will still be there in a few minutes."
"America will," Adam agreed, "but the train to the airport won't be. We need to watch the time."
"I do wish you weren't doing this," Mrs. O'Leary sighed, her words slightly slurred. "You're both so young." Adam could see she had been drinking again. It wasn't anything out of the ordinary.
"I'm eighteen years old," Adam reminded her for what seemed to be the hundredth time. "And it's just a vacation. It's not like we're moving out or anything."
"And going to Seattle, of all places," Mrs. O'Leary continued. "I'd go to Hawaii, myself."
"You know our parents met in Seattle," Adam said quietly. "Mum used to talk about it all the time." He bent to lift Paul's suitcase into the trunk.
Mrs. O'Leary snatched it out of his hand. "Let me do that," she said quickly. "You shouldn't be bending or stretching your side."
Adam laughed. She *had* been drinking a lot. "This old thing?" he asked, lifting his shirt so she could see the scar. "That shark attack happened over a year ago, Mrs. O'Leary. It's all healed up."
She squinted at the scar and then up into his face. "Still, I wish you boys would hurry home."
"Sure we will." Adam slammed the trunk lid down. He looked carefully at Mrs. O'Leary. "Are you sure you aren't too drunk to drive us to the train station?"
Mrs. O'Leary waved her hand in a dismissive gesture. "Me?" she scoffed. "Why, I haven't had a thing to drink in weeks!" Not wishing to spark an argument, Adam merely herded Paul into the car.
"Try to seem a little more excited," Adam whispered to his brother as they weaved their way to the train station. He knew that Paul had teleported more than once--he had even teleported Adam places before. And that was the problem. Mrs. O'Leary thought that this was Paul's first time out of Australia, so she should see him properly excited. Adam knew that it was nothing special, since Paul teleported to anyplace in the world he wanted to go.
When they were about to get on the train, Mrs. O'Leary turned to the boys with tears in her eyes. "Now--now you'll hurry home to the poor old woman who takes care of you, won't you, boys?"
Adam was shocked at her sudden display of affection. Then he realized the reason for it. "Don't worry, Mrs. O'Leary," he said, taking up his suitcase. "We'll be home before you know it. Come on, Paul." They left her standing on the platform whimpering into her handkerchief.
"I am so glad to be rid of her!" Paul said emphatically once they were seated. He and Adam shared a sentiment of suppressed dislike for Mrs. O'Leary. Adam had no doubt that her hospitality toward the boys stemmed from the hefty sum of money the government paid her to keep them in her house. That explained her tearful farewell today. For the three weeks they were gone, she would receive no money.
The first thing Adam did once the train was zooming down the track was take off his shirt. "What are you doing?" Paul asked, not believing what he was seeing.
Adam opened his carry-on bag and fished out his old green shirt. "Now that we're not in her house, I'm going to wear this." He and Mrs. O'Leary had a standing argument about that shirt. She maintained that it was practically threadbare--which was only a slight exaggeration--and that he should throw it away. Adam told her that he had, but had actually hidden it deep inside his closet. Paul rolled his eyes, but Adam put the shirt on anyway.
"I wonder why she was so sad to see us go," Paul wondered. "I didn't think she was that attached to us. She never acted like it before. Except when the shark attacked you."
Adam shook his head sharply, silently willing Paul to shut up. When the shark had almost killed him, Adam guessed--correctly--that she had been afraid of a possible lawsuit for allowing the boys to be in such a dangerous situation.
But all that was behind them. All that mattered to them now was three beautiful weeks in America!
***
Adam enjoyed himself in Seattle. Since he had been seven years old when his parents died, he could remember how his mother spoke of the city. She had woven her words delicately, as if she was urgent to capture every detail. Just the idea of her happy memories made the city seem extra-special to Adam. Paul couldn't remember his mother and felt a little left out, although he knew he had a bigger reminder of his mother than Adam did: his name. His mother had named him Paul after her favorite actor, Paul Newman, so every day Paul had a reminder of her in his life.
Paul, who was more of a woodsman than Adam, hankered to go hiking, but to the boys' dismay, they discovered that the nearest wilderness was too far to go by bus.
"How can the Americans stand it?" Paul groused loudly one evening. "No buses to Mount Rainier? Not even a train? You know, Adam, I asked a person where the train station was, and she just looked at me like I was from another planet!"
Adam rolled his eyes, wishing Paul would be quieter. People in the restaurant were starting to stare at them. "Look," he said in a hushed voice. "I'm sorry about that. If you want, we can move to a cheaper hotel. Then we might be able to afford a rental car."
Paul grinned mischievously. "I have a better idea. Why don't I teleport us?"
At least he said it quietly, Adam thought. In spite of himself, he hesitated. He knew that teleporting was safe. In fact, Paul had described everything about teleporting in the fullest detail, in the hopes that Adam would turn out to be a teleporter as well. So far he wasn't. Adam had to chuckle: even if he didn't have the inborn ability to teleport, he certainly knew how to do it.
"Well?" Paul's insistent voice brought Adam back to reality. He had probably seen Adam's hesitation written on his face. "We're not cheating anyone out of money, Adam. If the Americans had built better public transportation, we could take a bus or a train. But we can't, so this is the only way. Come on, Adam." His voice was getting dangerously close to whining.
"All right," Adam agreed reluctantly. "You want to go tomorrow?"
"Yes!" Paul said, elated. "I know the perfect place for us to go. I found a brochure about it at the hotel. It's on Mount Rainier . . . some place called 'Paradise'. . . ." He handed the brochure to Adam and glanced at his watch. "Uh, is it okay if I meet you back at the hotel later?"
Adam groaned; he knew what this meant. "You're not teleporting away again, are you?"
"I have to," Paul said. "I promised Brianne I'd meet with her at Kew Gardens. Please, Adam." Brianne was a friend Paul had made on one of his trips to London. Adam suspected she was a little more than a friend, but Paul had always evaded his questions and Adam had respected his privacy.
"Just make it quick," Adam said. Paul nodded and left the table. Adam knew he was heading for the restrooms, where he could teleport unseen from inside a stall. Adam finished the rest of his meal slowly. He hoped Paul wasn't gone too long; the city was lonely when he was on his own.
***
Paul teleported to a part of the gardens that was almost always deserted. He walked a little way along the path to the meeting spot he and Brianne had decided on. Brianne was there, waiting for him. Paul felt a little guilty about their friendship. As far as Brianne knew, Paul lived in a small apartment on the south side of London; Paul just couldn't risk telling anyone but Adam about his teleporting abilities.
The two spent a considerable amount of time together. Paul really liked Brianne, and he was somewhat disappointed that they lived on two continents that were so far apart. After a while, Brianne announced that she had to go to a piano lesson and promised to meet him in the same spot at 9:00 the next morning. But just before she left, she leaned forward and planted a kiss directly on Paul's mouth. He was so stunned he could only stare dumbly after her as she walked away self-consciously. Then, grinning to himself, he made off for the secluded teleporting-spot. In another moment, he was back with Adam at the hotel.
***
Larry couldn't believe his eyes. He had come to Kew Gardens for a relaxing stroll, but had actually witnessed something so fantastic he wondered if he was cracking up. He had found a cute little spot that was quite out-of-the-way. There, he had seen a boy suddenly materialize, as if from nowhere. Following the strange boy, he had seen him meet a girl and receive a kiss. It must have been his first, Larry thought, because the boy wandered in a daze back to the spot he had appeared in. Then Larry had seen him vanish into thin air, the exact opposite of how he had arrived.
Larry knew he might be crazy. But he had a friend who believed in and hunted for crazy things like that. Picking up his cellular phone, Larry dialed the number. "I need to speak to Professor John Galt, please," he said when the secretary answered. He was sure that DSI would be very interested in what he had just seen.
***
'Paradise' was an appropriate name for this place, Adam decided. It *was* paradise. Paul had teleported them to a secluded spot in back of the small museum. They both gasped in awe as they took in the rugged beauty of the imposing Mount Rainier. Places like this didn't exist in Australia.
Paul pointed to a trail winding up a slope and disappearing into the trees. "Let's go on that one," he suggested. Adam agreed readily.
They hiked along the path. It was quite deserted; the tourism hadn't started yet, Adam thought. He wondered if he should get something from the gift-shop for Mrs. O'Leary. He went over in his mind what he thought she'd like when Paul stopped suddenly.
Adam turned to look at his brother and let out a heavy sigh. "No, Paul!" he protested. "You can't teleport now! This is *our* vacation!"
Paul eyed Adam curiously. "You're getting very good at that," he remarked. "I wonder. . . ."
"No," Adam said, shaking his head ruefully. Paul was always imagining Adam was about to 'break out.' "It's just a look you get on your face."
"I promised Brianne I'd meet her at 9:00 this morning," Paul explained.
"Adam, please, I really like her."
"But this is supposed to be a vacation for just the two of us!"
Paul thought for a moment. "Okay, I'll go tell her I have to meet someone else. But is it okay if I see her later this afternoon?"
"Yeah, I guess so," Adam consented, and with a grin, Paul teleported.
***
Professor John Galt was excited. This was his chance to catch a real teleporter, perhaps unlock its secret--who knew where this could lead! He looked over his equipment carefully. Nothing could go wrong.
He was grateful that government agents were present to keep the spectators away. So far they hadn't had any problems. The girl that Larry had seen talking to the boy was in custody and was currently being questioned as to her relationship with the boy.
Suddenly one of his computers beeped. Galt jumped and fixed his eyes on the trap. Yes! A figure appeared--a teenage boy. The bolts of electricity ran along his body as he threw his head back and screamed in agony.
***
Adam's legs refused to hold him up any longer, and he crashed to his knees. The pain in his head felt like a giant's fist pounding in his brain. But the most painful part was the sound of someone screaming--someone he knew in trouble--needing his help. . . .
***
"That's him! That's the boy!" Larry shouted, and then turned to Galt. "What are you doing to him? Poor kid. . . ."
"It stops him from teleporting," Galt reassured his friend. "It merely confuses the mind's senses--it doesn't do any actual harm."
"But you can't just--"
"I have no more use for you now," Professor Galt said importantly. He turned to an agent. "Please escort this man from the grounds."
Galt's attention was taken from the boy when his computer began beeping.
Examining the screen, Galt decided the frequencies were overheating, which might be dangerous. He adjusted the power supply the tiniest bit to see if that made any difference. Evidently it did; the beeping stopped and the boy seemed stabilized. He had only a few seconds' warning.
With an ear-drum-shattering noise, the machines around the boy exploded. Galt dove behind one of the storage boxes. After a few seconds, the smoke thinned somewhat, and Galt peered around the box to see what had happened. Had the boy teleported away?
No, he hadn't, but. . . .
"Damn," Galt swore.
***
Adam opened his eyes to see the sun filtering through the evergreen trees. As he regained consciousness slowly, he realized he was lying in a fetal position on the path he and Paul had been hiking on. Tentatively he touched his finger to his forehead, expecting to see blood. He had never felt such pain--not even when the shark had attacked him. It had been Paul's voice screaming and begging him for help, but he couldn't . . . couldn't. . . .
But now the pain was gone. And something else was gone, too--a presence. As if Paul didn't exist anymore. Adam shot upright in sudden fear. "Paul!" he yelled desperately. "Paul! Paul!" Somehow he knew that Paul was dead, could never hear him again, but he had to try. "Paul!"
Disoriented, he began to run. He didn't even think about staying on the trail--he was among the trees before he could think clearly. In his blind haste he tripped over a tree root and staggered to the ground. He felt something wet on his hands and thought he was bleeding. Looking at his hands, though, he could see they were tears. His body was wracked by his despairing sobs.
***
It must have been the next morning when Adam woke up. For a while he lay by the tree that had stopped his mad flight, and he wished for death. He was certain it would come, whether he wished it or not, because he was very thoroughly lost. Paul had teleported him to the middle of nowhere and left. Now there was no one to teleport Adam back home, and no one even knew that he might be out here. He didn't even have a map! No, Adam thought grimly to himself, I don't stand a chance.
There was no use wondering if Paul were still alive. Adam didn't know exactly what had happened, but he knew that Paul was dead as surely as if he had seen it happen. Maybe it was because Paul was a teleporter, or maybe because they were brothers.
Adam suddenly wasn't content to lie around. Getting stiffly to his feet, he wandered aimlessly through the trees, not noticing really where he was going. He came into a small clearing when he heard a quiet snuffle coming from under a bush. Bending down, he saw two small bear cubs rolling against each other playfully. Adam smiled in spite of his depressed mood. Those things were kind of cute.
A vicious roar wiped the smile from his face. In fact, one look at the enraged mother bear rising menacingly on her hind legs drained the blood from Adam's face. Even though he knew it was futile, he turned and ran as fast as he could.
He could hear the bear behind him, crashing through the underbrush and occasionally snorting a growl. The small part of his brain not wild with panic told him that the bear was gaining on him. There was nowhere to go.
Suddenly there *literally* wasn't anywhere to go. Adam found himself precariously balanced on the edge of a small cliff. Directly underneath him was a torrential river, fast and furious from a recent thaw. He looked behind him--the bear showed no signs of stopping--it had almost reached him! He looked down at the river, trying to decide between the two evils.
The bear made the decision for him. Just as Adam saw it lunge for him, he launched himself off the cliff. Just in time: a clawed paw raked through the air where Adam's head had been just seconds before.
Adam felt like he fell forever. He hit the icy water in a breathless moment, hauled under almost immediately by the deceptively strong current. Fighting to keep his head above the rushing water, Adam truly felt that this was the end. His last bit of strength was gone; he sank underneath the water as helpless as a kitten. Just before he blacked out, though, he felt a strange, tingling sensation all over his body. Then the darkness swallowed him.
***
Adam woke to feel waves lapping gently against his body, the gritty feel of sand underneath his hand, the warmth of the sun on the back of his neck.
Raising his head, he squinted his eyes and looked around. He was definitely not in Seattle. From what he could see, he seemed to be on a tropical island covered in low, scrubby bushes. Adam stood up unsteadily and coughed; he must have swallowed a lot of water when he--
Then Adam saw it. Something sticking up out of the sand. Something huge and definitely not human. And he seemed to be drawn to it, as if it was the reason he was there on the island in the first place.
Adam staggered up the beach and fell to his knees in front of the monstrous structure. There was a circular piece of metal that lay uncovered by sand. It appeared to be some kind of a door. Adam tried knocking on it, but nothing happened. Almost as if moving on its own, his hand traced the outline of the circle. Suddenly the metal evaporated into a black hole. The blackness pulled Adam--he tried to stop, but it was too strong.
He screamed as he fell, but it wasn't a long descent. He grunted with pain when he landed hard on his shoulder. But as he looked around, fear and pain gave way to awe and a strange sense he had never felt before. Belonging.
He made his way through a short tubular hallway and into what seemed to be the main room. A large, decorated column stretched from the floor to the ceiling. Adam approached it and circled it slowly, trying to puzzle out its purpose.
He noticed some strange symbols chiseled out of the metal-like substance. Tentatively, he touched one. The column glowed and hummed. Adam thought he could sense some sort of meaning from the alien, wordless sounds. . . .
***
Somehow, the ship had explained it all to him. About Paul's death and Adam's teleporting. Yes, he decided, that was what had happened. Just what Paul had always hoped for.
But Adam didn't feel as devastated about Paul as he had initially felt.
Naturally, he missed him acutely, but the message of peace and hope that the ship had conveyed to Adam let him realize that in his death Paul had won a small battle for mankind.
Adam lay on the beach and contemplated his life. He had always wanted to take Paul and move someplace far away from Mrs. O'Leary and her penny-pinching ways. Although he was eighteen and legally an adult, he had planned to wait until he could start a career and provide for Paul properly. Now there wasn't anything to stop him from moving out.
Behind him on the beach lay Paul's suitcase full of his things: his clothes and other belongings Adam had taken from their Seattle hotel room when he had teleported there to cancel their room. He had been surprised at how easy it was to teleport, thanks to Paul--he had lectured to him so much about teleporting that it was like a second nature to Adam now. But what was he going to do with Paul's things? He had no desire to keep them; they were only hollow symbols that paled in comparison to Adam's richly-colored memories.
Perhaps Mrs. O'Leary would like them. She always did like Paul better than me, Adam reflected. And he had to go back to her house to get *his* things, anyway. Standing, he gathered Paul's things into his arms, closed his eyes, and visualized himself in his tiny, box-like bedroom at Mrs. O'Leary's house.
He opened his eyes and saw that it had worked. Grabbing his schoolbag, Adam stuffed it full of *his* things--not items bought with Mrs. O'Leary's money. Photographs of his parents, photographs of Paul, things that he hadn't taken to Seattle. He swept the room in one final glance and decided he was done. Now he had to get his tent.
It was in the garage, which was on the other side of the house. Adam opened the his door and walked quickly down the hall. Mrs. O'Leary was in the kitchen. When she saw Adam she gasped, and the wine glass she was holding shattered on the linoleum floor.
"What--what are you doing here?" she sputtered, her low voice cracking.
Good, thought Adam grimly. She's good and drunk. "I just came here to get my tent," he said as if nothing out of the ordinary was going on. "Oh, and by the way, I'm leaving. I'm not coming back here." He threw Paul's bag onto the floor. "I thought you might want to keep Paul's things."
Mrs. O'Leary followed him out to the garage. "What do you mean, leaving? You can't leave! And where's Paul? You're supposed to be in America!"
Adam opened the storage closet and dug around inside, searching for his tent. He spoke without looking at her. "Paul's dead," he said emotionlessly. "He died in England."
"England! How in heaven's name did he get to England?"
"It's a long story, Mrs. O'Leary."
"But how did he die?"
Adam tried to stifle his sudden anger and turned to face her. "Part of him was blown up and the rest of him was charred beyond recognition," he told her bluntly. They were empty words, holding no feeling for him anymore. He only cared about getting away from this woman and the life she represented. Finally, he felt his tent bag underneath his searching hand. Now he could go.
"Look, Mrs. O'Leary," he said gently, knowing this was good bye forever. "I'm sorry for being so abrupt, but I have to do this. You've always complained about how expensive it was to care for the two of us." Not that she'd spared any expenses. They had practically lived like beggars. "I wish you lots of luck. Bye." He swung the tent bag and schoolbag onto his shoulders and walked purposefully into the bathroom. Mrs. O'Leary followed him, but when she opened the door, the room was empty. She touched a finger to her forehead. Hallucinations already? It was only her third drink. This was going to be some hangover.
***
Within seconds Adam was back on the island. He dumped out the tent equipment and began to assemble it. He knew it would be lonely on the island, but he also knew--as sure as when he knew that Paul had died--that other teleporters would break out soon. Then he would have others to nurture and teach. He couldn't tell them about Paul, but he would teach them what Paul had taught him. They would be like a family. A new race . . . the next stage in human evolution. . . .
The end
*** Afterward: A Note on Paul's Sacrifice ***
Paul's sacrifice--his death--has a profound significance on the development of the Tomorrow People series. Consider the implications. If Paul had not died, Adam would have broken out eventually, but Galt would have no tangible knowledge of the existence of teleporters. Colonel Masters would have made his appearance, but Megabyte's kidnaping wouldn't have happened. Consequently, General Damon wouldn't have found out at that opportune time of his son's involvement. Lisa's mom wouldn't have been saved, and Lady Mulvaney would have won.
By dying, Paul set a chain of events in motion that would allow the Tomorrow People to reach their full potential and save the world from its own destruction.
Vanessa Krenz hjkrenz@msn.com