Chapter 30 (1/2)

Dan was concerned.

Marcus was not himself. There was no energy there, in that old frame. None of the spirited intensity that Dan had come to associate with the man. Just what had he done to himself while Dan was away?

The pair were still inside the lab, lingering just outside the sealed off area containing the mad scientist's latest work. With a literal hole in reality floating at the center of the room, Dan had every reason to leave that enclosed space. He had dragged the wiry old man out by the ankle, fully expecting to get Judo tossed for his efforts as soon as Marcus woke up.

Much to his surprise, Marcus had stayed asleep right up until they exited the area, when the edge of the door bonked the sleeping scientist on his forehead. Even then, no karate shenanigans were forthcoming. Marcus came to life slowly and with great effort, pulling himself out of his slumber as though it was clinging quicksand. Eyes, fogged with confusion, cracked open and stared at Dan's face. A long moment passed, and Dan's concern only grew. Marcus was just shy of ancient and had been completely isolated; he could've had a stroke and Dan would be none the wiser.

A voice, dry and cracked from disuse, rasped out, ”Did you bring the cookies?”

Dan was no longer concerned.

Gnarled hands flailed weakly at Dan's chest, grasping for the small Ziploc bag poking out of his front pocket. With a frustrated sigh, Dan stood up. His hand dipped into his pocket and tossed the bag of cookies just out of reach.

”You can have them if you manage to sit up,” Dan stated dryly.

Marcus's groan was caught somewhere between outrage and misery. His voice dissolved into hacking coughs seconds later.

Dan spread his arms wide, helplessly. ”I'd like to help, but I can't seem to understand you.”

”Unghhh,” Marcus replied eloquently. Bony hands fell to the floor and braced. With agonizing slowness, his upper body crept vertical.

Dan watched the show, arms crossed and unamused. Either Marcus was playing up his infirmity solely to mess with Dan, or the old man was truly discombobulated. Neither option was all that appealing.

Marcus finally made it upright, though his ass was still firmly planted on the floor. He peered at his surroundings with bleary confusion. Almost absently, his hand snaked out and retrieved Miss Margaret's bag of cookies. The doctor nibbled at his prize as he visibly struggled to center himself.

Finally, he spoke. ”How long was I out?”

Dan shrugged. ”How should I know?”

Marcus rocked back slightly at the response. His brow crinkled. ”Right. Of course. You... couldn't know.”

He glanced around once more. His voice was shaky. ”What day is it?”

”Monday,” Dan replied, eyeing the doctor curiously. The mad scientist seemed coherent now, and Dan's fears regarding various old-person afflictions were rapidly fading.

Good. Yelling at the old fool would be easier if Dan wasn't worried about him.

Marcus's free hand rubbed at his brow. He groaned softly as he devoured the last of his snack.

”Two days,” he muttered to himself. ”I slept for two days. Only two days.”

”Marcus,” Dan interrupted.

The old man showed no signs of hearing him, continuing to mutter, ”Only two days,” to himself.

”Marcus!” Dan said again, roughly poking his companion's shoulder. There was a time to be delicate, and a time for answers. Now was the latter.

Marcus jerked away, looking up with wild eyes. ”Daniel? What is it?”

Dan's face twitched. He took a deep breath, forcing himself to speak evenly. ”Are. You. Okay?”

”I—” Marcus paused, then shook his head like a wet dog. ”I think so. I um, I'm having trouble focusing at the moment.”

”Anything I can help with?” Dan asked, taking a knee beside him.

”No, I... No. I was dreaming is all. Just a sweet dream,” his voice trailed off, but this eyes remained in the present.

An odd melancholy surrounded the doctor, but Dan had more pressing matters to consider.

”Marcus, do you remember what you did last week?” Dan asked, allowing some urgency into his tone. ”Do you remember what you built?”

”What I built?”

The mad scientist closed his eyes, scrunching up his face in thought. Seconds ticked by, as the old man's eyes roamed vacantly behind shut lids. Suddenly, they shot open. His body followed, surging to its feet. Two bony arms shot into the air in celebration. His voice, triumphant and filled with glee, shouted, ”I built it!”

Dan, taking full advantage of the doctor's lingering disorientation, walloped the old man in the back of the head.

”What did you build Marcus?!” he asked, now thoroughly irritated. There was a large and, frankly, terrifying rip in space-time just sitting there not thirty feet away. They were separated from it by nothing more than a few pounds of steel and glass. This was not the time for celebration.

That fact was not reaching Marcus. The older man turned to Dan, excitement evident in his voice. ”A window, Daniel! A spyglass into nonexistence!”

”That's not helpfu— Shit!” Dan cursed as Marcus spun in place, found the entrance leading to his invention, and went through the door. Dan's shoes slipped on the tile floor as he fought for traction. His legs pinwheeled wildly but he managed to follow the crazy fool into the room.

Marcus stood in front of the giant lens, arms spread wide. ”My greatest creation! A work yet unequaled by mankind!”

Dan came to a stop just inside the isolated area, well within lunging distance of the door. Marcus was acting crazy, and Dan wasn't willing to teleport so close to that crackling gateway to the Other Place. That couldn't possibly end well for him.

The mad scientist turned to Dan, eyes wild and face flushed. ”This lens is an anchor! It stabilizes the unreality of the Gap Between Worlds, and renders it visible to the naked eye! With this device, I can study the space between dimensions! I can pierce the veil to other worlds! In time, I might even find a way to visit them!”

Dan took a sharp breath. The implications were not lost on him, despite the science babble. A way to travel dimensions. A way home. It was an incredibly alluring idea.

But not quite enough to distract Daniel from the soft whispers echoing out from Marcus's little anchor.

”Can you turn it off?” he asked, carefully avoiding looking directly at the thing.

”Why would I want to turn it off?” Marcus asked with bewilderment. ”It's beautiful!”