The Portal

The blast wasn’t as big as the people who dropped the bomb had hoped for, but the devastation it left behind was as significant as it was inhumane. Since they were both so close to ground zero, death for both David and Ferguson was instantaneous as the blast obliterated everything within four square miles. The last thing David remember hearing before the blast took them both was Ferguson screaming as he was also being vaporized. David didn’t make a sound as he braced himself for the pain that was to come. Yet the death was so instant, that the Portal pulled him out almost immediately, and he barely felt a thing as he opened his eyes and gasped for air as if he were waking up from a very bad dream. David’s legs were a bit stiff at first, but as he slowly began to walk he began to notice that his skin was a little sensitive underneath his clothing, but as he started to walk out into the light, he also started to notice that the skin on his arms were as red as lobster claws. His skin was burned, as David looked as if he had spent way too much time out in the sun. There was also no sign of Ferguson, as it turned out what Ricky had told him was true. Unless the old man was holding or touching David when the blast occurred, the Portal wouldn’t bring him back which meant the old man didn’t make it out of Hiroshima alive. David didn’t seem to care how much his skin hurt as he slowly exited the cave with a smile on his face to see that the plan he and Ricky had devised has worked perfectly. The sight that stood before him was magnificent as all the men that Ferguson had brought with him were all in cuffs and being taken away by state troopers and Marshals. Jerry and Lindsay where there as well and they both looked at David with surprised faces as they walked up to the face of the cave to greet him. Lindsay tried to grab his arm but recoiled back once she felt it his skin.

“Your skin feels like it’s on fire!” she told him. “Are you alright?”

“I’ll be alright,” David replied, “Nothing a good ice bath can’t help.”

“Holy crap, David,” Jerry said as he looked him, “Did you take Ferguson to Cuba and get left out in the sun?”

“Not exactly,” David said, smiling back at his boss. “I took the old man out for morning stroll, in Hiroshima.”

“Oh boy, that would do it,” Jerry said, as he pointed to one of the state troopers. “Trooper; where’s the nearest drug store?”

“About five to ten miles that way,” The man said, pointing.

Jerry walked up to him and handed him a few bills out of his wallet, “Get your ass down there and grab me as many bottles of solarcaine as you can, and then double back here. I’m not kidding, haul ass kid.”

“Yes Sir!” the Trooper said as he took the money and ran for his car.

“Trust me, David.” Jerry said, smiling back at David. “You’re going to want that stuff for at least the next few days.”

“Thanks boss,” David said, “Where’s my brother?”

“He’s alright,” Lindsay said, “He’s back in the house.”

Lindsay carefully walked David back to the house, and helped him enter through the door leading into the kitchen. Once they were in the Kitchen, Ricky was exiting the elevator and walked over to grab his brother.

“I got him from here, thank you.” Ricky told her as he took David’s hand.

“Are you sure?” Lindsay asked.

“I’ll be alright Lindsay,” David told her as he knew exactly where his brother was going to take him.

Ricky took David to the elevator and then went back down to the medical bay and when the doors opened, Gail and the kids were already down there waiting. David looked over at Ousla with a stern look on his face.

“You are supposed to be far away from here,” he told her.

“We stayed in the turbo lift bay,” Ousla informed him, “With all the cars and people around, it was by far the safest place for us.”

“Alright,” David said, not in the mood to argue.

“He’s got second, possibly third degree burns all over his body!” Ricky told Ousla, “Get the pod ready!”

Ousla got the pod ready, while Ricky stripped his brother down to his boxers, and then slipped those off before lying him down on the gurney and then closing the door. David was wincing in pain as his back and legs were hurting as the pod moved him into that high tech thing that looked like a large MRI machine.

“You’ll be alright,” Ousla told him, “I’m going to give you a sedative so you’ll sleep through the entire treatment.”

“I could use a good nap,” David concurred, “I prefer not to be awake while my skin is feeling like this anyway.”

“What happened to him?” Gail asked, looking at how red his skin was.

“He was at ground zero in Hiroshima when the bomb was dropped.” Ricky replied, “His projection was vaporized in less than a second.”

“It actually didn’t hurt as much as I thought it would,” David confessed, “This burn is hurting a lot more than the actual blast did.”

“I should treat him for extreme radiation poisoning as well,” Ousla told Ricky, “Just as a precaution.”

“Do it,” Ricky agreed, “Give him anything he needs.”

“It’s a good thing he gave you the shield,” Ousla said, looking back at Ricky, “If he was wearing that during the blast, the shield would have stalled his death only by a few seconds but that would have caused it to be horrifically worse than it was at the beginning. He could have suffered a lot more and maybe even died of shock before the Portal brought him back.”

“In other words,” Ricky replied, “Don’t ever do that again.”

“No Ricky,” Gail disagreed, slapping his husband’s arm. “Those are the exact fucking words!”

“Yes dear,” Ricky said, as he could sense her hostility.

That was the last thing David remembered hearing and he couldn’t help but smile as he could feel the pod getting cooler as a light gas started to seep into the pod. David trusted Ousla completely so he took a few deep breaths and just relaxed as the sedative did its thing and knocked him out. David was still asleep several hours later when Ousla took him out of the pod, and dressed him in a gown before taking him back to the old house. They considered letting him sleep in the guest room but Ricky insisted on using the couch in the old living room since David seemed to prefer lying there. Ousla was unaware how much longer David would be out, so she hooked up some IVs to keep him hydrated as he rested. It wasn’t until a few hours later that David opened his eyes, and was once again looking back at the steely gaze that visited him earlier.

“Harv,” David whispered, “Keep visiting like this and Gail is going to make up a bed for you in the guest room.”

“No worries,” The old man replied, “I’ve been crashing at your place. Gail didn’t think you’d mind letting me have the keys. Very nice condo you have there, Marshal.”

“Thanks, and I don’t mind.” David said, taking a deep breath, and he realized the old man was staring at him. “What is it?”

“You are definitely my grandkid,” Harv said, beaming with pride. “Ground zero of an atomic blast... that is some set of balls you got there, kid.”

“The blast itself didn’t hurt,” David confessed, “I was beamed out almost immediately, as if the blast was the flash.”

“That’s because your projection was instantly vaporized.” Harv replied, “Ground zero went up to four thousand degrees in less than a second. Both you and that Ferguson fellow were ashes like that.” The old man snapped his fingers to give him an idea of how fast his death was.

“What happened to Ferguson?” David asked.

“There was no sign of Ferguson in the cave,” Harv answered. “When he lost contact with you, he never returned to the portal. It leads me to believe that when someone outside our family travels, they’re not projections... they’re actually going for the ride. That portal is rather unpredictable but you two took care of things rather well out there.”

“This sunburn hurt more than the blast.” David confessed.

“Those are second degree burns,” Harv corrected him, “Or should I say they were second degree burns. It would have taken you several months of painful recovery to get over that if you didn’t have access to that futuristic hospital downstairs.”

“I was mad when I first heard about it too,” David informed him, “But right now I’m finding it hard to gripe about it.”

“I feel the same way too,” Harv said, smiling. “I’ve been using the machine myself. It’s taking care of an issue that was supposed to kill me in a few years.”

“So that’s why you’re here!” David said as he sat up. “Is that why I also have new memories of you?”

“I was supposed to die of lung cancer years before you were born,” Harv admitted, “But now I’m cancer free and I haven’t had a smoke in three weeks.”

“That’s great,” David said, smiling back at the old man. “What made you want to do it?”

“That would be you, kid.” Harv said, smiling back at him. “The thought of a tough kid like you having to fight your mom and dad on your own was enough for me to want to hang around a bit more. I’m hoping to take you duck hunting when you turn twelve if I can make it that far.”

“Sounds good to me,” David said, as he could already recall the new memory. “I think we’ll have a lot of fun. I can already see the look on mom’s face when we ask her to cook our catch.”

“Ha!” Harv said as he never thought of it, “That alone will make the whole ordeal well worth it. If I didn’t have a good reason to keep up what I was doing before, I got some more now.”

“It’s good to see you again, Harv.” David said, “I still feel like I fell asleep at the beach and ended up getting a terrible sunburn.”

“That will eventually pass,” Harv told him, “If that’s the worst you have to put up with, I think you’re coming out of this smelling like roses.”

“Quite true,” David said, looking back at his grandfather. “But I can’t help but feel sad from what happened.”

“Explain,” Harv requested.

“I was in Hiroshima for about twenty minutes before all hell broke loose,” David explained, “I saw so many people, women, and children. They were all going about their business, doing their normal day to day stuff. They had no idea what was coming. That they were all about to die.”

“I can see how that would pull the heartstrings.” Harv said, “I had similar feelings after my few visits to Germany, and so did your brother during his brief time in one of the death camps. That war was hell on Earth, and the only thing we can hope and pray for is that something that terrible never happens to this planet ever again.”

“I suppose,” David said, sighing. “Do you think this world will ever experience another world war?”

“Not on my watch,” Harv answered, “You and I will use that portal to make sure that never happens. Deal?”

“Deal,” David said, laying back down.

“You rest up,” Harv said as he got up out of his chair, “Ricky and I have a bit of cleaning up to do around here. I’ll see you sooner than later. You sure you don’t mind if I crash at your place?”

“I don’t,” David said, “You’re always welcome at my place. Your car is still in the garage too, looking as pretty as ever.”

“That a boy!” Harv said, smiling. “Just rest up and I’ll be back.”

Harv was tempted to pat his grandson on the shoulder, but resisted the urge as he remembered that David was still sore and just walked out of the room. David rested his head back down on the pillows and went back to sleep while thinking about where he was going to go next when he recovered.