The sound of a pan flute disrupted my recovery and my eyes resettled on my cephaloped guardian. The creature was exhaling forcibly through its breathing organ, attempting no doubt, to communicate with his own kind.

If they were out there, none would emerge from hiding.

It was me they feared, or my species … or my girlfriend, or whatever ghoulish being she was made out to be. Why had she been thawed and not me? Were the rest of the Oceanus’s crew with her? Who had supplied her with the antigravity wings and the hovercraft?

And why the hell was she hunting cephalopeds?

It dawned on me then, and I smiled at my stupidity. Asshole! It’s all part of the dream. Andria … her hair long and wild—just like the day we met in that Virginia forest. Back then she was wearing a camouflage suit; this time around my mind has her decked out in full warrior gear to match the setting. But why were she and her mates hunting poor Oscar?

The answer came to me quickly, my outburst of laughter startling my eight-legged companion. “The squid hunt aboard Oceanus. Andria loves her calamari … no offense.” I pulled myself up with the assistance of a vine, shaking my head in amazement. “Kyle Graulus was right. These Omega dreams are pretty wild.”

Oscar looked at me with what I interpreted to be a quizzical expression.

“Sorry, pal. None of this is real. I’m Dorothy, you’re the Scarecrow, and my fiancée appears to be up for the role of a very sexy Wicked Witch. It’s all part of a seriously fucked-up cryogenic dream … and why am I explaining this to you?”

INCORRECT.

The voice in my head startled me. ABE, is that you, or are you interpreting for Oscar?

ABE RESPONSE IS IN REFERENCE TO OMEGA-WAVE DREAM THEORY VERSUS EISENBRAUN HYPOTHESIS REGARDING ASTEROID 1997 XF11 IMPACT WITH THE MOON ON OCTOBER 26, 2028.

Your reference is moot. The dream overrides the impact hypothesis.

INCORRECT. BASED ON STAR CARTOGRAPHY AND SOIL ANALYSIS, EISENBRAUN HYPOTHESIS WAS CORRECT.

A chill ran down my spine. Explain.

SOIL ANALYSIS FROM THE CAVE WALLS REVEALS A THIN LAYER OF HELIUM-3 OCCURRING AT A GEOLOGICAL TIME PERIOD EQUATING TO A 2028 FALLOUT. TRACES OF HELIUM-3 AND MOON ROCK ARE ALSO PRESENT ALONG THE SURFACE AND REDWOOD CROTCHES—EVIDENCE OF CONTINUED PLANETARY BOMBARDMENT FROM ORBITING SPACE DEBRIS. STAR CARTOGRAPHY CORRESPONDS WITH A DATE THAT YIELDS A 93.7 PERCENT CORRELATION TO THE HELIUM-3 FALLOUT LAYER. AS A RESULT, ABE CHRONOMETER HAS BEEN RESET TO THE POST COLLISION YEAR OF 12,233,776 P.C.… POST-CATACLYSM.

“Twelve million years?” I smiled nervously. “You said the evidence only yields a ninety-three-point-seven percent probability of being correct. What about the other six-point-three percent?”

THERE IS A SECONDARY CORRELATION MATCHING THE STAR CARTOGRAPHY.

“Thank God. And how many post-collision years does that amount to? And please, feel free to round it off, I won’t worry about a few extra years here or there.”