Humans

Chapter Ten

There actually was a suitable ladder on Ponter’s side of the portal—but it would be very awkward to get it through the narrow confines of the computing center. So he waited while the Gliksins got one from the far side of the neutrino-detector chamber. It looked like the same ladder Ponter had climbed up when he’d come back home.

It took a few tries, but finally the ladder was propped up against the open end of the Derkers tube protruding out of what Ponter knew must look to the Gliksins like thin air.

Behind him, Ponter could see Dern and Adikor using power tools to affix their end of the Derkers tube to the granite floor of the quantum-computing chamber.

Once the ladder was in place, Ponter retreated down the tube and let Adikor and Dern come along to where Ponter had been. They took a moment to stare out at the fascinating spectacle of the neutrino-detector chamber and the alien beings below, then got to work, struggling with ropes, lashing the ladder’s top to the mouth of the Derkers tube. Ponter could hear Adikor muttering, “Incredible, incredible,” over and over again as he worked.

Adikor and Dern then returned to their side of the tube, and Ponter and Ambassador Prat walked its length. Ponter turned around and backed down the ladder, descending carefully to the neutrino-detector chamber’s floor. As he got close to the bottom, he felt Gliksin hands on his arms, helping him down. He got one foot then another onto the chamber’s floor, and turned around.

“Welcome back!” said one of the Gliksins, his words translated into Ponter’s cochlear implants by Hak.

“Thank you,” said Ponter. He looked at the faces surrounding him, but didn’t recognize anyone. That wasn’t surprising; even if they’d called someone he knew the moment they’d seen the probe, that person would still be in transit from the surface.

Ponter moved away from the ladder and tipped his head up to look at the mouth of the tube. He waved at Ambassador Prat and shouted out, “Come on down!”

The ambassador turned around and made her way down the ladder.

“Hey, look!” said one of the Gliksins. “It’s a lady Neanderthal!”

“She is Tukana Prat,” said Ponter. “Our ambassador to your world.”

Tukana reached the ground and turned around. She slapped her hands together, removing the dust that had transferred to her palms from the ladder. A Gliksin—one of the two dark-skinned men—stepped forward. He looked rather at a loss for what to do, then, after a moment, he bowed at Tukana and said, “Welcome to Canada, ma’am.”

The problem with relying on Hak for translations was that everything had to be filtered through its sense of humor. “We had planned to ask you to take us to your ladder,” said Hak, through his external speaker, “but I see you have already done that.”

Ponter could follow enough of the Gliksin language to realize what was going on. He slapped his left forearm. “Ouch!” said Hak into Ponter’s cochlear implants. Then, through his speaker, he said, “Sorry. I mean, ‘Take us to your leader.’”

The dark-skinned man who had stepped forward said, “Well, I’m Gus Hornby; I’m the head engineer here. And we’ve already called Doctor Mah in Ottawa—she’s SNO’s director. She could be here later today, if need be.”

“Is Mare Vaughan around?” asked Ponter.

“Mare? Oh—Mary. Professor Vaughan. No, she’s gone.”

“Lou Benoît?”

“You mean Louise? She’s gone, too.”

“Reuben Montego, then.”

“The doctor? Sure, we can get him down here.”

“Actually,” said Ponter, with Hak translating, “we would prefer to go up to see him.”

“Um, sure,” said Hornby. He looked up at the tunnel protruding from midair. “You’re assuming that will stay open?”

Ponter nodded. “It is our hope.”

“So you can just walk through to—to, um, to your side?” said one of the other Gliksins.

“Yes.”

“Can I go have a look?” asked the same Gliksin, who had light skin, orange hair, and sky-colored eyes.

Ponter looked at Tukana, who looked back at him. Finally, Tukana said, “My government wishes to meet someone who can speak on behalf of your people.”

“Oh,” said the orange-haired one. “Well, I can’t, really…”

Ponter and Tukana walked across the bottom of the vast chamber, accompanied by the crowd of Gliksins. Pieces of the acrylic sphere that had once been in the center of this space were stacked against its circular walls, and countless sunflower-like photo multiplier assemblies were likewise gathered up.

When they came to the far side of the chamber, there was another ladder, even taller than the one now reaching up to the Derkers tube. This ladder was used to access the entrance hatch for the neutrino-detector chamber, the same square hatch that had blown open when Ponter and all the air from the quantum-computing chamber had last transferred over. Hornby headed up the ladder first, then passed through the hatch. Tukana began her ascent.

Ponter looked back at the tunnel that led to his world, and his heart jumped when he saw Adikor standing just inside its mouth looking down at him. Ponter thought about waving at him, but to do so would be too much like saying goodbye, and so he just smiled, although there was no way Adikor could see his expression over such a distance. That was probably all to the good, since the smile, Ponter knew, was forced. He took hold of the ladder’s sides and began climbing up, hoping that this would not be the last time he’d ever see his beloved man-mate.

Ponter shouldered his way through the opening, hauling himself to his feet. Suddenly, five Gliksins wearing identical green clothes moved toward him, each one carrying a large projectile-firing weapon.

Ponter had read his share of speculative literature; he knew stories about parallel worlds, in which evil versions of people from the familiar universe existed. His first thought was that, somehow, he’d transferred to a different universe.

“Mr. Boddit,” said one of the—soldiers, that was the word, wasn’t it? “My name is Lieutenant Donaldson, of the Canadian Forces. Please step away from the hatch.”

Ponter did so, and Ambassador Prat emerged through the hatch, hoisting herself up onto the metal deck. The walls surrounding the deck were covered with dark green plastic sheeting, and conduits and plastic pipes hung from the ceiling. What looked like some form of computing equipment lined some of the walls.

“Ma’am?” said Donaldson, looking at Tukana.

Ponter spoke, and Hak translated. “This is Tukana Prat, our ambassador to your world.”

“Ambassador, Mr. Boddit, I’ll have to ask both of you to come with me.”

Ponter didn’t move. “Are we unwelcome here?”

“Not at all,” said Donaldson. “Indeed, I’m sure our government will be happy to recognize the Ambassador, and grant you both full diplomatic courtesy. But for now, you must come with me.”

Ponter frowned. “Where are you taking us?”

Donaldson gestured toward the door leading out from the deck. It was currently closed. Ponter shrugged, and he and Tukana walked toward it. One of the other soldiers moved ahead and opened the door. They entered a cramped, narrow control room. “Keep moving ahead quickly, please,” said Donaldson.

Ponter and Tukana did so. “As you may remember, Mr. Boddit,” said Donaldson, walking behind them, “the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory is located sixty-eight hundred feet below the ground, and is maintained in clean-room conditions, to prevent the introduction of any dust or other contaminants that might affect the detector equipment.”

Ponter looked back briefly at Donaldson but continued to walk.

“Well,” continued Donaldson, “we have beefed up the facilities even more, on the chance that you or others of your kind might return. I’m afraid you’re going to have to be quarantined here until we’re sure it’s safe to let you up to the surface.”

“Not again!” said Ponter. “We can prove that we are free of contamination.”

“That’s not my judgment call to make, sir,” said Donaldson. “But the people who can make it are on their way here even as we speak.”