“Zachary, a spiritual revolution is already upon us as the masses refuse to accept poverty, inequality, and endless war spawned by class warfare and greed. In order to control the populace, the elites have once again created the illusion of wolves stalking the flock, this time in the guise of aliens hell-bent on destruction. These contrived threats will lead to the forfeiture of even more personal freedoms, in this case the energy system you introduced to the public. It’s a page straight out of the 9/11 playbook, except on a global scale, spawned by a Faustian agreement entered into between the elites and their alien counterparts, placing all of humanity in grave jeopardy.”

“How is humanity in danger? And what does all this have to do with me?”

“It had nothing to do with you,” the Colonel said. “All we wanted you and your team to do was plant a few sensors around that damn ship and get out of Dodge. Instead, you triggered a portal that our alien visitors have been trying to access for years. If Susan and her fellow JASONS are right and some kind of cataclysm is going to hit—”

“Catacylsm? What kind of cataclysm?”

Susan held my hand. “Zach, honey, there was a reason you were contacted seven years ago in Lake Vostok. We believe an extinction event is going to happen in the near future. It could be natural or man-made, or induced by the E.T.s. To prevent it, we need to know what it will be and when it is supposed to happen.

“I’m sorry, baby, but we need to take you back.”

28

“You’re entirely bonkers. But I’ll tell you a secret. All the best people are.”

—Lewis Carroll

“Take me back where? To Lake Vostok? You’re nuts!”

“Zach, the space-time portal you accessed allows you to move within the multiverses of your soul’s existence. You can use the portal to access the future. Not only can you learn what disaster awaits us, you can determine the proper course of action that will save our species.”

“And how the hell am I supposed to get back down into that godforsaken lake?”

“The Colonel will explain everything. For now, let’s get you cleaned up and moving about.”

I let out a loud yelp as Susan removed my catheter. She pulled loose the Velcro straps from my ankles and wrists, then removed the EKG tabs from my chest.

“Ow.”

“Sorry. Try to stand.”

I attempted to climb out of the chair, but my legs lacked the strength.

The Colonel summoned his physician, who returned with a wheelchair. “Susan, take him to the dining hall and get him something to eat. The transport leaves tomorrow morning at 0800 hours. I need him fit enough to travel.”

“Twelve hours? I’ll do my best. Zach, let’s see if we can get some solid food into you.”