Stand in Time
Chapter 01

Copyright© 2008 to Ernest Bywater

Beginnings

While they drive I watch my surroundings with great care and I’m thankful they’ve made an error. The mistake was natural enough but a crucial one for them, whomever they are. What was it, you may ask? They kidnapped the wrong man! Maybe I should start a bit earlier, about a life-time earlier, or more.

Traditions and Education

I don’t know the exact reason why or how it came about, but for some hundreds of years it’s been a family tradition to use a particular set of names for most of the children and the first born male in each generation is named Ed. A few hundred years ago a second tradition started where parents tried to name as many males in each generation with names similar to Ed. It’s silly, I know; but don’t yell at me as I had to live with it for the first half of my life. Here’s how it works.

At heart our family is a large clan where each major branch has a clan matriarch who manages the minor things like naming children and disputes within the family. When a child is born the matriarch is told of the birth and a name is agreed on by the matriarch and the parents. You can use non-traditional names, but if she doesn’t approve of the name you can’t use it. There’s a small cash payment from an old family trust for the first born male in each generation and to get the payment they have to be called Ed. We don’t know if the naming or the money came first as the traditions are that old. The naming approval goes on the time when you contact the matriarch because she issues the name then and it’s silly to change a name after it’s issued due to a delay in telling her. So the tradition is the official first born is the first one the matriarch is told about, regardless of what the clocks or calendars say about the time of the child’s birth.

The day I was born two cousins were born as well. As near as we can tell from the hospital records we were all born in the same minute. I was born in Sydney while my cousins were born in Melbourne and Adelaide. At the time the matriarch was in Perth visiting other family members. My Dad was the first to make contact so I got the bonus: a whole twenty-five hundred dollars for my university fund. OK, it wasn’t much, but when you add it to what my parents put aside plus interest over almost twenty years of good investments it was enough to make me a full fee paying student when I went to university so I had no education loan debt called a HECS debt here in Australia. As a full fee paying student I also had more freedom about how I did my studies.

Dad and his two brothers were very much into puns and other word games so I was named Ed Ward Edwards; my cousin in Adelaide was second in and named Edward Edwards; while the one from Melbourne got lucky with Edmund Edwards. Yes, our families called us all Ed as a short name. At major gatherings for Christmas etc. I got called ‘EW’ or ‘Sheep’ while they got ‘Double E’ and ‘Double E Two’ or ‘Two.’ The matriarch wasn’t surprised when Edward and I had some strong words with our fathers when we got old enough to think it safe enough to do so. Just a few bruises worth all round, and they cut back on their puns.

At first the naming wasn’t a problem because we lived so far apart; it’s amazing how a few days travel time separation can make things easier to bear. When I was about nine my uncle in Adelaide got a promotion with a move to Sydney. He found a house in our street but on the other side of the road. Due to some quirk of the educational system the boundary between two schools ran down the middle of our street and we went to different schools; so this made things at school bearable. Without the possibility of school based troubles we got to liking each other and spent a lot of time together after school and on weekends. Although we never ended up at the same high schools or universities we did end up living together in a rented house we shared. That was until he got married and I moved from our shared house to the flat his new wife used to rent.

He studied sociology and politics to end up with three degrees and he became famous for his books on the political and social dynamics of the nineteenth century. He specialised in the mid to late nineteenth century with a focus on the USA. I mostly studied chemistry to become a research chemist with degrees in chemistry, biology, nursing, computer science as well as the training to be a paramedic working as a volunteer paramedic.

Going to America

In early 2005 my divorce is finalised in the Family Court of Australia. It’s a long and heated case because I don’t have as many investments or as much money my ex-wife thinks I do, and she fights hard to get them. She was badly misled by the funds I managed for other family members because I seem to have a knack for picking the good ones to invest in.

The marriage was OK for eight years then she finds the statements for the several hundred thousand dollars of investments and she was upset I’m not spending any of that money on her. Because I control it she can’t accept I can’t spend it. The divorce process takes nearly three years of bitter court battles; thank heavens we have no children. Early in the fight I hand all of the monies back to the owners and I help them to find new investment managers, thus I cease getting the income for that work.

During this I spend a lot of time with Edward, Margaret, and their three kids - the kids are real sanity savers. During the last few weeks of the case it also helps their sanity because I spend a lot of time looking after the kids while they get ready to move to Albuquerque to take up his new job as a professor at the University of New Mexico. They’d been impressed with his latest book on how the mineral finds in New Mexico affected the society and politics of New Mexico and surrounding states, except Texas, while also affecting the national politics and economy. He showed how a better management of the exploitation of the minerals or a difference in timing would’ve had a major impact on the national and local politics as well as their society’s development. It was controversial and it made for a lot of discussions in the relevant journals for a while.

Anyway, I’d given up my job last year due to the total stress of work and the court. However, with the court now finished I’m at a loose end while helping them get ready to move. Most of the cash I did have is spent on the court case so both my ex and I end up with next to nothing.

All of the furniture etc. is sold and they’re about ready to leave when Edward’s current employer’s senior staff gets around to responding to his written request to finish his contract early. He’d gone ahead with getting ready to go over early to do some sightseeing before the start of the new contract because his boss and his boss’ boss had both given him approval. The higher up denied his request for early termination about two weeks before they’re due to fly out. Man, is he angry about it.

After some long talks on how to manage around this I decide it’s time for me to help my cousin by being a stand in for him to help the family in transit and to settle in. I apply for a US visa and I’ll use Edward’s tickets to help Margaret with the kids. When I put in the application I don’t realise they’re the wrong papers when I use the e-forms Edward got for his application. I thought all the information wanted was a bit extensive for a six month holiday, but I fill it all in and send off the copies of papers they want with an apology for late lodgement plus a request for fast processing along with extra fees. Luckily for me an old friend is at the US Embassy so it goes through fast and is approved, thanks to their file on me from some previous work with the Australian and US governments.

With the rest of us going to the USA Edward will stay at my flat and close it up before joining us in nine weeks. I’ve nothing worth keeping left so I tell him to sell it all and hand the keys back because I don’t want to pay rent for four months of non-use. I’ll get something when I return from America, if I do. I’d noticed my visa allows me to work in my field so I’m giving staying there for a while some serious thought.

I arrive in Los Angeles looking like a harassed father when I manage the kids while Margaret manages the paperwork. We make the shift to the hotel in Disneyland in one piece, somehow, and we have a good week there before we move on with the rest of the planned sightseeing. In the suite we have I take over one of the bedrooms for the kids while the girls share the king sized bed with Margaret. We arrive in New Mexico six weeks after leaving Sydney. Once in Albuquerque we’re quick to set up home for the family in the house the university found. I must admit we do look and act a lot like a family group while out and about due to us all being very close as a family and I’m the kids’ favourite ‘uncle.’


Unexpected Trip

Margaret and the kids are off somewhere for the day shopping while I’m in the backyard tidying it up a little before I put up the children’s swings and things. Just after midday I take a break, a shower, and I get dressed to go to get something to eat at a nearby mall. When I exit the house a car pulls up and two men in dark suits get out of it. They look like your typical government bureaucrat types.

One looks down at a photo in his hand while saying, “Edward Edwards?”

I stop and reply, “Yes, I’m Ed Ward Edwards. What’s up?”

He responds, “Immigration, passport please?” Like a good little boy I reach into my pocket where I carry my passport because when we arrived I was told to make sure to keep it on me when out and about, and I hold it out to him. He opens it to examine the visa. He holds it out and I reach for it. When I do take hold of it his friend stabs me in the arm with a needle and he presses the plunger down on the syringe.

I’ve an extreme phobia about needles so the shock of a sudden stab with a needle triggers a mild physical shock. I start to collapse due to the shock. The first one catches me while the other puts his needle away then he tosses an envelope on the porch. They soon have me in the back seat of their car, belted into the seat, and we’re driving away.

While I sit there and start to recover from the shock I decide to play along with them to find out what the score is. I wonder what it is they injected me with because they seem to expect a quick action from it, but it’s doing next to nothing to me. I put that aside for now as I make a note of what they say and where we’re going. Sometime later, while I’m being thankful about their error, we enter a large estate with a name over the gates.


The House

About two that afternoon Margaret comes home to find an envelope on the porch. She picks it up while she shepherds the family into the house. Once inside she opens it and she goes white with shock.

The top sheet reads:

Mrs Edwards, we’ve kidnapped your husband. We wish to use his knowledge for a while. Do nothing and he won’t be harmed. Go to the police and we’ll know about it, then we’ll kill him when we’re finished with him.

She stands there staring at the note for a few minutes.

Gulping, she goes to the phone and rings her husband in Australia. He’s annoyed as he answers, due to having to jump out of the shower to answer the phone. The time difference makes it early morning for him and he’s getting ready to go to work. She says, “Cousin, I need advice. Ed’s been kidnapped, they say they’ve taken him for his knowledge and he’ll be released unharmed when they’re finished with him unless I go to the police. What should I do?”

At first he’s a bit surprised about things, but he’s quick to catch on and says, “For the moment the best thing is to just sit tight and see what happens. I’ll see what I can do about coming over to help out as soon as I can get away from here. In the meantime, don’t talk to the police or they may kill him. Put the note in a plastic bag in case it’s needed as evidence. I should be able to get to you in a week or so. Contact the university and tell them he’s unable to attend for a few weeks due to an accident, and hope they won’t insist on talking to him. That should buy you some time.” She agrees and hangs up now they’re both on the same page of how to play this situation.

Having warned her husband, Edward, Margaret says a silent prayer for her cousin in-law who she’s come to love like a big brother. Next is a call to the university. The fact they don’t ask for any details makes her very suspicious of the university staff she talks to.

Margaret figures these people probably do have a police contact and may even have a tap on her phone. She looks up a phone number and makes a phone call about getting a handgun and a carry license for her own protection.

This is followed by a trip to a gun store to select weapons and fill out forms. She’s surprised she can get one so fast, but the owner points out the checks for her visa would have done all that’s required for the local gun laws. So, if immigration and the police give approval she’ll be armed as soon as the papers come back in a few days and he’s allowed to let her have the gun then.

In the meantime she contacts an old friend of her father’s about hiring security for the children. The contact is a beached Marine who runs a security and bodyguard service. An hour later she has two armed security guards at the house while her father’s friend, Little Joe - all six foot four inches of him, is reading the note after she explains the situation to him.

Now all she can do is worry, and to trust it all works out OK.


The Academy

I look up at the name above the gate - ‘The Cause Academy of Social Research and Advancement.’ I sit there, keeping still, and wondering what this place really is. We pull up near a door at the back of one of the several buildings on the grounds, park, and they carry me inside. A few minutes later they have me in a room and they lay me on a table.

A man in a medical gown walks over while asking, “How long since you administered the barbiturates?” After he’s told the time he adds, “We’ll wait another fifteen minutes before we start the programming.” He proceeds to confirm my age and weight before checking some charts and getting out bottles of drugs to start drawing some into needles ready to use on me. I almost smile when I see the labels on the bottles through my squinted eyes, because it’s now clear they wish to brainwash me.

You may wonder why this makes me happy. I know the drugs well, and I know they’ll make a normal person unable to move or do anything while the recorded message burns into their brain to program them with instructions. But the tape has no effect unless the drugs have their full effect, and those drugs will have very little effect on me beyond making me a touch groggy and a bit slow.

When I was a child I got into my grandmother’s ‘lollies,’ and I finished off her new bottle of them. The doctors had a fun time dealing with a two and a half year-old boy who overdosed on a full bottle of the maximum dose of barbiturates. They pumped my stomach and poured many other drugs into me to counter the effects. Whatever they did worked because I lived, but it changed my biochemistry a bit. Barbiturates have absolutely no effect on me now, and when I had to go through a special course to make me resistant to truth drugs as part of one of the special government contracts I worked on some years back they found I had a much higher than natural resistance due to the earlier incident. The drugs they intend to use on me here won’t have any effect useful to them.

I lie there and ready myself to just accept the needles this bastard is about to stick me with. The time is almost up when another man walks in and says, “Are we sure we have the right person? I was told Edward Edwards and this man’s passport is Ed Ward Edwards.”

The first man from the car says, “He’s got the right date of birth. He matches the airport photo of the man who went through customs on the flight with the family. His passport has the next entry sequence to the wife, and he’s been with the family since they arrived. He looked after the kids while they went through Disneyland. If he isn’t the right one, what the hell is he doing making like he’s their father? We’ve been watching since they arrived, and this is the first time he’s been alone. The passport and photos match, the name matches, I think someone upstairs made a mistake when they said the name and just read it as one instead of two names.” The new man examines everything and nods approval. Seeing this the doctor injects me and places headphones over my ears.

Knowing I can’t handle the four of them I just lie there and I listen to the recording so I’ll know how I’m supposed to be programmed. I feel my muscles relax a bit while the drugs have the little effect they’ll have on me. At the same time I hope Margaret will see the need to act as if I am her husband, because I’m dead once they realise their mistake.

Afternoon

A few hours later the doctor and the other two men come back to remove the headphones. I memorised how I’m supposed to respond, so I reply as expected when tested on the programming. The men lead me off to put me into a minimal bedroom to lay down for a normal sleep.

About fifteen minutes later I hear a car leave, so I get up. I’m careful while I check the room for cameras etc., and I wonder how bright these people are because I can’t see any. None in the hall either, and none in the room I was in when I arrived. I go into the attached office to check out the desk. Not much in the way of papers, but I do find a note with a funny word on it. Smiling, I turn to the computer and I move the mouse.

The screen saver stops and I’m looking at a password request. I enter the funny word and hit the ‘Enter’ key. The computer opens up. Great, it’s in Administrator mode. I create a new account with administrator capability and a password. The computer reveals some very interesting information about the organisation plus what’s happening. Finding a bunch of spare thumb drives I copy a lot of files to two drives for later examination if I lose access to this computer. I get about an hour to use the system before I hear a car stop outside. I’m quick to log out and start the screen saver again before returning to my bed.

Knowing they don’t have tight physical security makes me wonder how good their other security is. I soon learn all of their security, physical and computer, is very poor. So I’ve a virtual run of the place as long as I don’t let them see me and I behave as expected when they’re around.

Computer Capers

I’ll diverge a bit to tell you what I find out from their computers and what I do. This is a short summary of the events from my activities accessing their systems over my time with them. The desktop computer I use is connected to the main campus network which links to their national network, so I’m able to have access to everything after I do a bit of useful hacking I learned to do as part of my computer science degree.


1. The campus is used as a college campus part of the time, so they can’t put cameras in the dorms like the one I’m in at the moment. But they know all of the people are well brainwashed and programmed so they’re secure - they think.

2. The organisation is the current version of a group called ‘The Lost Cause’ who think the South was betrayed during the US Civil War and they want to re-establish the South with full slavery etc., but even more so. They class Hispanics, Mexicans, Indians, and Jews as slaves; also anyone who doesn’t support their extreme views should be a slave as well.

3. They plan to change history by altering the outcome of the US Civil War. When I learn the details of the plan I understand why they want my cousin and his knowledge.

4. I re-program the computer to destroy the time machine and the records of it once the last shift of the expedition I’m part of is made, and it’ll start their self-destruct system as well.

5. I also set up a program to brainwash their people while they undergo sleep teaching.

6. I change the slave brainwashing to be less effective for them than intended while it puts me at the top of the command structure of anyone who receives any brainwashing from now on.

7. I memorise a list of all of the finished and intended actions to bring about the change in history, and also the names of all their operatives already sent to the target era.

8. Their banking program is set up to automatically send a lot of money, in small amounts of only a few thousand dollars each, to welfare programs they hate; like education and health for urban poor, most of whom are Blacks and Hispanics. This is part of my way of getting back at them for kidnapping me.

9. Their investment program is set to pick bad investments so it will lose a lot of money. Thus making it harder for them to fund their activities in this time.

10. Information about past criminal activities from their files is set to be emailed to law enforcement organisations.

11. I change some of the equipment requirements for the time travel expedition I’m scheduled to be on to be more suited to my needs for living in that time.


Preparations

Over the next several weeks I’m taught, along with five others, the many things they want me to do on the trip as well as a lot more of the brainwashing. I learn how to handle mules, horses, Great Danes, rifles, pistols, shotguns, an old style covered wagon, plus how to do campfire cooking, and tracking. I pay close attention to learn all this well, because I know my life will depend upon knowing it very soon. I wonder how my cousins are holding out, but I push that aside as I know these people will kill me the moment they know they grabbed the wrong person, so my life is on a very thin thread until we ship out.

By the time we’re ready to be shipped out all is ready for the time transfer. We’ve a range of weapons and things that look the same as those from the era but are much better due to being made from higher quality materials. All of the cooking items are a lighter weight and made of much more durable alloys, but look like the cast iron of the time. All of the guns are top quality steel and won’t rust or easily break down. We have two sets of guns due to being sent to an era where weapons improvement is rapid. The wagons are beauties: they look like normal wooden ones of the day but are a little bigger and lighter because they’re made of wood laminated to titanium alloys with lots of hidden places in them. The sides are higher than normal with a higher seat so it gives a better view and more protection. The canvas looks like the canvas of the day but it’s a special weave of Kevlar and it’s bullet proof against the normal guns of the era as well as being much more weather proof and longer lasting.

Unknown to the organisers the wagon loads change a lot! I double the number of era weapons, quadruple the balls and gunpowder order, quintuple the load of salt, triple the dog food and fodder, add thirty crossbows with nine hundred bolts and five thousands extra heads, and add a dozen swords that are a cross between the Army Foot Artillery sword of the day and a Roman Gladius, the handle and scabbard looks like the artillery sword that’s just coming out of use while the blade is like a Gladius so it’s wider and heavier with a double edge made of high quality steel. Round titanium strap-on arm shields eighteen inches in diameter with an up curved edge to catch spears and blades. The ten inch steel Bowie knife is changed to a twelve inch high quality steel one as four inches is taken up with the handle in both, and now two hundred of them instead of twenty. My masterpiece is to add titanium chain mail and helmets covered in a hard leather coating with chamois and linen backing. All of the other clothes are a quality mixed weave of denim and Kevlar for extra protection, the boots have titanium toe caps and plates in the soles with rubber soles like Army general purpose boots. I’m surprised they get it all done in time, but they do. I’d hate to be having to pay the bill for it all because my changes increased the cost tenfold. All of the bedding is a mix of Kevlar, space blanket, and wool instead of plain wool blankets; even the animal blankets are this blend. Plus some air-cell mattresses for us humans as we must get a good night’s rest!

Each expedition member was to get only one of each weapon but I’ve issued us two each: Bowie knife, .44 calibre 1855 Colt Repeating Carbine - not officially released until late 1856 but who’ll know about that where we’ll be, Colt Dragoon Model 3 revolver in .44 calibre, 12 gauge Colt Revolving Shotgun with a full choke in a twelve inch barrel and a pistol grip plus lead shot for them. The guns use percussion caps to fire but are modified with the Adams-Beaumont single / double action mechanism as an added bonus by me. Also, all of the grips are a special compound that looks like wood but is a form of plastic that grips the hand well so they won’t get too slippery. With my changes we get double the guns, a longer Bowie knife, a sword, a shield, and a crossbow. Some of the changes are a little bit ahead of their real time, but they won’t be noticed by the locals.

The time travel group consists of four leaders of The Cause, four early twenties women, another specialist who’s a geologist, and myself. The women are to look after the camp, food, and provide sexual services for the four leaders while Steve and I provide specialist services and act as general camp slaves to look after the animals etc.

The animal contingent is eighteen well-trained high-quality mules, three teams of six - one team for each wagon and a spare team; twelve well-trained Great Danes as war dogs who are all bonded to the four women, Steve, and me; twelve high quality and well-trained horses trained to ground hitch as well as a whole lot of other useful skills.

We spend many days practising with everything and proving we’re competent to use it all while the four ‘leaders’ stand around ordering the rest of us about. We don’t like it but we do as told and programmed to.

During this period I spend a lot of time at night sneaking around to move various munitions as well as hacking into their computers. I’ve now got the place set to self-destruct after we shift out. That should stop them from sending further expeditions after us. The equipment will blow up, claymore mines will kill the senior people here to see us off, and the base self-destruct system will activate. All at the press of a switch by one of their own people who I program at night too.

Time to Go

After being here ten weeks it’s time for us to be shipped out. In the last week I learn they’re on a much stricter timetable than I thought, if we don’t transfer on time it’ll delay them two years to recalculate the time shifts. I’m not so worried about being caught out now since I’m a critical part of the mission support team and I can’t be replaced as such.

On the set day we all move everything over to the transfer station. Steve, Mary, Sue, Alice, Donna, and I have spent the previous couple of days finishing the wagon packing to be evenly balanced and to match certain weights. The animals are all set and we’re ready to go in order.

There are three transfers to be made. The first is the four leaders, the horses, the spare set of mules, and the four women. The second shift is Steve with one set of mules, a wagon, and six dogs. While I go last with the second wagon, a set of mules, and the last six dogs. We’re all fully armed for the transfer in case of an unexpected problem at arrival. Because all of us slaves are programmed they expect no trouble from us.

The platform is almost a square shape and the length of the wagon is based on the platform size. The mules are harnessed to move the wagon over onto the transfer platform then the tongue is unpinned so the mules can stand beside the wagon as a group. Both Steve and I have to stand between the lead mules and hold them in place, since we’ve practised this it’s no problem. With the first shift one woman stands with the mules while the other three women and three leaders stand between two horses each. The fourth leader has his rifle in his hands in case there’s an unexpected problem at the arrival site. You never know who is where in those days and some Indians were causing trouble all through the target period.

We’re all dressed in very warm clothes because we expect it to be cold where we’re arriving. We’re being sent to arrive early in the year toward the end of winter and the start of spring. For some reason in the way the mathematics work they can’t pin it down with any more accuracy than a few weeks either side of the target date of the end of the first week of February, so we can be anywhere from early January to the start of March. Either way, it’s going to be a little cool to start. They can’t pin the exact arrival date down, but by having the shift loads of closely matching values they can ensure we all arrive at the same time. The shift load is calculated as an amount of the weight and the living biological material. There’s some aspect in the calculations I don’t understand where a living person or animal is of the same load value as a much higher weight of inanimate material, thus the great care with matching the wagon loads to equalise the shift loads for their final calculations. I’m also lucky in their system automatically recalculated the power needs for the shift to compensate for the heavier load of materials created by my changes to the list of things being taken. In an odd twist of fate the extra load of gear helps to balance out the large biological component of the first shift as the issue with the calculations relates to the dates and not the actual power levels.

There’s fifteen minutes between each transfer so we can get each group ready while the previous one can get out of the way at the arrival spot, thus the time between transfers is the same at both ends. I watch the first two go off without a hitch and I get ready. I stand there and watch the man throw the switch. The room goes all funny and it fills with rainbow colours. Then the room is gone and the colours are very bright. Then I’m standing in bright sunlight in an open field.


Aftershocks

Having sent the last transfer of the expedition Doctor Wilkins turns back to his control bench to start the procedure of powering down the equipment. Behind him the senior leaders of The Cause are breaking out the drinks while they wonder how long it will take for the Time Effect Shockwave of their changes to pass down the time-line to reach them now the main work group’s been sent back in time.

A smiling Doctor Wilkins activates the last switch, a new one that’s to be used only at this time. Unknown to him the switch activates a relay which sends a number of commands to computers and devices around the compound. He’s still smiling when the seven Claymore mines in this end of the room detonate and rip out his life, along with that of the other thirty-four people in the room. He’s almost dead when he starts to cry while he watches his life’s work, the Time Transference Machine, ripped apart by large explosions within it. He’s dead before the rest of the compound’s high security buildings start to explode when their self-destruct devices detonate as per the program activated by the last switch.

In the time between the switch activating and the detonations a number of computers send high-speed data downloads to several law enforcement agencies around the country. These files contain all of the information on The Cause, its members, and their criminal actions.

The sound of a dozen buildings blowing up and bursting into flame is very loud, so it’s no wonder when people in the surrounding area call in the sounds and smoke to the emergency services. The emergency people soon arrive, and they call in other agencies when they get the situation under control enough to find evidence of the violation of numerous federal laws on firearms and explosives.

In the following months the members of The Cause are arrested and dealt with for treason and other crimes. Thus ending The Cause as a viable organisation in 2005.

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