Klaus descended a path down to the Huron river. The trees were thick here on the hillside where the land was too steep and too rocky to farm. Checking the traps the Adler family had along the banks of the river had become one of Klaus’ favorite chores, especially when the weather was as nice as today. It gave him some time to think.
The man waiting for him on the path looked familiar. It took Klaus a few moments to remember the episode thirteen years earlier, the man who had asked about his brother, and was run out of town by Kevin Hutchinson.
“So we meet again,” he stated when he reached the older man. “This time, I think you owe me some answers. For starters, who are you and how do you know me?”
“I am the Doctor, and I am here because something happened to you. I don’t know what that is yet, but I intend to find out. Because whatever happened to you is probably dangerous, not just to you, but to all of Earth.”
Klaus stared at him with wide open eyes.
“You didn’t bring me here? So what did? Magic?”
“Not magic, although you might as well call it that. No, what brought you here was a defense shield from a race called the Altons. It seems that you and your brother came too close to one of their installations, and it pushed you away, in time as well as in space. That much is clear.
“The big question is, why you ended up here and now, and why your brother ended up where he did. There has to be a reason, some connection. And with the energy of the defense field still lingering around you, you are the key to finding that out.”
Klaus wasn’t sure if that “explanation” explained anything at all. The fact that he had traveled through both space and time was no surprise, he had realized that long ago. But it was disconcerting that this man, this doctor, thought that to be something normal.
He shook himself, realizing that he probably wouldn’t understand the explanation anyway. He turned to more practical questions.
“So, what are we going to do?”
“There has to be something here. There is a resonance, but there is no indication of actual Alton technology. Yet there has to be for it creating the resonance. It must be using some kind of stealth technology. Are there any caves around here, anything that can hide the entrance to a large installation?”
“I don’t know if it is a proper cave,” Klaus replied after thinking about it for a few moments, “but there is this hole further down the path. As a kid I used to think about exploring it, but I never got around to doing that.”
The Doctor continued to wave his strange device in front of him as they got closer to the hole in the hillside, then waved it around inside the hole.
“Oh yes, very good. There is a SEP field here.”
“SEP field?”
“Somebody Else’s Problem field. It is quite nifty. Anybody, or any animal, coming close to this hole takes one look at it and is subtly influenced to decide it is somebody else’s problem. A perfect way to keep your entrance hidden in plain view.”
“Is that why I never went in there as a kid?”
“It is, but at least you still remember it’s there, which is more than you should have done. It must be that residual Alton energy around you. The SEP field uses Alton technology as well, of course, so the energy around you must have neutralized some of it.”
Klaus shook his head and decided to think about all the strange words later. Part of him wondered what the point was of crawling into a dark hole, but that didn’t stop him from following the Doctor.
It was indeed a cave of sorts. The Doctor’s device produced some light so they could see the cave was entirely empty, just a sandy floor with no debris of any kind, no animal remains or anything. It looked like a waste of time to come in here.
Far from being disappointed, however, the Doctor aimed his device at the rear wall, and he nodded enthusiastically. “Just what I thought. That wall is just an illusion.” He stepped up to the wall and moved right through it.
With only a brief hesitation Klaus followed the Doctor. There was a sharp moment of resistance, then he was through the fake wall and in a well-lit corridor.
“Halt!”
The voice seemed to come from everywhere.
“You are trespassing here,” the Doctor spoke out. “Altons are not welcome. You must leave.”
“Who are you to tell us to leave?” the voice boomed.
“I am the Doctor, and this planet is under my protection. It is not open for conquest.”
A ray of light came down from the ceiling and engulfed both of them. Klaus felt himself lifted into the air and a tugging sensation started in the back of his brain.
The feeling grew stronger and Klaus realized the Doctor was pointing his strange device at him.
“It is your brother,” the Doctor called out to him. “You have a connection with him. Focus on that, make it stronger!”
There was something familiar about the pressure in his brain, like a taste or smell from long ago. The light engulfing him became brighter and brighter until he had to close his eyes. He ignored the negotiations the Doctor was having with the Altons, and focused on the memory of his older brother instead.
He felt the connection, deep in his mind. He could hear Nicholas laugh, see him win the race to the woods. He could feel his brother’s hand in his, feel it slipping.
Abruptly, the connection broke off. He felt himself fall and when he opened his eyes he was lying on the floor. As his eyes adapted, he realized there was a dim light that didn’t seem to come from anywhere in particular. It was completely quiet for a moment.
“Well, that was it,” the Doctor said next to him. “They gave up, went to find another planet to invade. It was the connection between you and your brother, it caused a short-circuit in their temporal fields. They fled before it would totally collapse.”
Klaus just shook his head. He heard the words but didn’t understand them. All he understood was that somewhere, somehow, his brother was still alive.
“And Nicholas?”
“Your brother is safe, but I’m afraid you won’t ever be able to get together with him again. You are not only separated in space, but also in time.”
Nick thought about that for a moment. He had felt his brother, and at least he had the knowledge that he was still alive and safe.
“So what happens next?”
“I guess you will be going home, and will forget this ever happened. Nobody will believe you if you try to tell them. But you can know for yourself that you and your brother saved the Earth.”