Chapter 29

Earth time: 4:44:10 PM Saturday, April 9, 2019 (EST)

Aina time: 3:34:58 AM day 254 of 1418

"Time mark!" called Ura to the first contact team. "Five minutes to go!"

The team consisted of the two other members of her marriage, Leon and Nalani. All three were standing on the top of Blue Spirit. Sunrise was in thirty-three minutes, and the first promise of the dawn was visible on the eastern horizon. The air was cool and sweet, about 45F and filled with the fragrances of the spring blossoms. Their area was lit by a lantern, the stars, and their sister planet which was three days past a growing half- Mahina.

Leon walked a few steps to Ura and kissed her, his hand coming up to caress her swollen belly. For the tenth time he asked, "Are you sure you should be doing this?"

Ura laughed. "Ah, my sweet and protective husband! Of course! Our child isn't due for another month. It hasn't even dropped yet. Relax Leon. Relax!" Ura chuckled. "Actually, I'm more worried about you. It's been five years since the tunnel opened last, almost four Earth years. Be cautious Leon. You too Nalani. Who knows what condition Earth will be in?"

"You really think the tunnel will open now?" asked Nalani.

"I have no idea. But I asked Mayoni for her opinion a few days ago. The tunnel has now opened at 1, 2, and 3-year intervals. Mayoni guessed that either a 4 or 5-year interval would be the most likely next jump, and it didn't open last year. Mayoni said if she had to bet, she would put the odds for opening now about 80%... Both of you, be careful! I'm serious. Five years is a long time to go with no feedback. Be careful."

Leon kissed his pregnant wife. "Well, the plan from five years ago was to wait for Kahoku and Kiana to come up first. We'll only go down blind if they don't show up in a half hour. And yeah, if we go down without them up here, we're going to play it very, very cautiously. You'll hear us on the comm link the whole time..."

Ura nodded and waited a few moments, staring at her watch. Then she flipped on the telecomm relay to the transfer station below. "Time mark! One minute to go!"

"Acknowledged," said Kikapua simply on the link. The remaining moments passed in silence.

Finally the moment arrived. "Councilors," Ura shouted, "the path has opened!"

There was a roar of cheers on the comm link. Twenty minutes later there was another cheer of relief as Ura reported that Kiana and Kahoku had called out to them from the spiral tunnel. A few minutes later they finished paddling up the spiral on their skateboards. Both were trailing large backpacks. Kiana also had three watches in her hand which she packed away. The two groups at the top of Blue Spirit spent a few minutes hugging each other.

"Welcome home Kiana!" said Leon at last, as he finished giving her an affectionate hug. "You too Kahoku! Is everything okay?"

Kahoku smiled warmly. "For us, yes! Hiapo and his three wives are also well. They are all in the well by the blue ring. Lois and Tal said to tell you how much they are looking forward to hugging you again Leon, and your wives. Kalea said to tell you they've made a lot pf progress on the Blue Ring. They are all doing an experiment now, probing a difference in the internal ring shadows now that the path is open. The tunnel must have at least twelve different kinds of lasers in it right now!"

Kiana breathed in deeply and smiled at the scenery. "It's so nice to be home again! Look! Dawn is just a moment away! Earth was really getting to be a crazy place to live. We have so much to report!"

Leon nodded. "I bet. Why don't you head down to the council meeting? Nalani and I will check on the group below." Leon and Nalani took the skateboards Kahoku and Kiana had brought, and prepared to roll down the spiral. Leon went first, with Nalani ready to follow right behind him. Leon began to slide head-first down the spiral, and just as his feet cleared the entrance, the first rays of the sunrise touched the mountain, and the path winked out of existence.

Nalani stood for a second in stunned silence, shocked that the opening she was seconds from entering was totally gone and replaced with packed gravel. Her heart seemed to skip a beat, and then she heard her wife Ura screaming...

Two hours later...

Kikapua looked around at his council as he finally called the meeting to order. Mayoni was not a council member, but she was there as an invited guest and was sitting next to Kiana and Kahoku. On Mayoni's other side sat Ura, and both Mayoni and Nalani kept their arms around her as the meeting started.

Kikapua tested the comm link. "Well, at least this is working. The new team will report if the path reopens. I'm sure we will all find our private times to grieve for Leon in the days ahead, but for now... We need to deal with the matters at hand. Kiana and Kahoku, can you begin your report?"

Kiana looked up startled from a small set of watches she had just been staring at. She glanced at Kahoku, and he nodded for her to take the lead. "Well," she said, "Let me first offer some hope for Leon. When the path last opened five years ago, Kalea placed three watches in the spiral tunnel, in the part that closes. I have the three watches here. When the tunnel closed five years ago, the time on Earth was 4:27 PM May 16, 2015. All three watches right now are reading 6:57 PM May 16, 2015. Don't you see? The tunnel opened two and half hours ago..."

"Huh?" said Ura, as the implications of what Kiana had said began to sink in. "Time did not... I don't know the word to use. Move? Kiana, time did not move in the tunnel?"

"I don't think so, not when it was closed. I hope the tunnel will open again in... Mayoni, want to guess?"

"If it's a Fibonacci progression, take the sum of the last two intervals. The next opening would be in eight years."

"Okay," said Kiana. "Eight years. If what happened to these watches happens to Leon, Leon will be in the year 1426 in the blink of his eye." Kiana pulled a small calculator from her backpack and punched a few buttons. "The Earth date would be July 6, 2025, a little more than six Earth years from now."