A Hole in Time

The Hole - Chapter 17 - Twin power

Liam suggests that I go down and ask John and Scarlett for assistance so that we can get them upstairs to my room. I walk down the stairs normally and walk into the dining room. The cameras can see me, so I bow respectfully to my brother. I speak to my brother and Scarlett, trying to keep my face calm and not smile. "John and Scarlett, I require assistance. Would you be able to assist me please?" They both nod and follow me up the stairs. We walk into my room, John and Scarlett following me. They are no sooner into the room when Liam shuts the door. He was hiding behind the door to keep away from the cameras. This startles John and Scarlett and they jump, with Scarlett letting out a small yelp.

I turn to them and speak. "John, Scarlett, we have a few things to tell you. To start with, we are not like everyone else and neither are you." Liam steps over and continues. He will be able to explain things better than I will, so I am more than happy to stand by. I smile up at Liam, and I marvel that he seems to be getting taller every day. I have finished growing, but Liam still keeps going. Yesterday, the top of my head was equal with his chin, but today, the top of my head only comes up to his shoulder. I am marvelling over how handsome Liam looks when he is speaking about something he likes and I forget to actually listen. I shake my head and listen to what Liam is telling John and Scarlett.

"Okay, first off, like Gracie said, we are different. Every person here in the Dome has a microchip implanted into their left temple. Gracie and I do not have microchips. You two do have microchips, but you have an advantage. Because you are our twins and we have a genetic bond, you are able to decide whether or not to obey the instructions you receive. Everyone else has no choice and they MUST do whatever they are instructed to do. Do you understand this?" Liam pauses to make sure that John and Scarlett are following all this information. When they nod, he continues.

"Secondly, there are mechanical components to the beds. It is hidden in the bed-head and it comes out in the night, after we are in bed and asleep. It forms a link to a computer, hidden somewhere in the Dome, and it accesses all your thoughts from that day. They are all downloaded into the computer. Apparently, everyone else still thinks, but their thoughts have been silenced somehow. The computer analyses all their thoughts. If someone is thinking something it decides to be treacherous, that person and their entire family are sent Outside. The microchips have taken complete control, so that rarely happens anymore. Also, everything that anyone sees or hears in also downloaded into the computer." 

John sticks his hand up and Liam stops. "Will not this entire conversation get downloaded into the computer? Is it safe for you to be telling us this?" Liam shakes his head. "Excellent point, John. This conversation would have been downloaded, if Gracie and I had not already disconnected the downloads on both of your bed-heads. You will still sleep normally and the mechanical attachment will still appear each night, but it will not be able to download. We could not stop it all together because it is what charges your microchips. Without the microchip being charged, the computer will not be able to track you. Since it has a track on everyone, you two would be missing and that could lead to problems."

Scarlett is the next one to speak. "So, our parents do not know that we are different from everyone else? Did we just slip through a c***k or something?" Liam chuckles at the mental image and looks at the c***k in my ceiling. "No, Scarlett, we did not slip through a c***k. The microchips are implanted with the embryo at the Healers centre, so we are microchipped from conception.  If the Healers were told to check each baby born for a microchip, then the secret would be out and more people would think treacherous thoughts. We know from a reliable source that the computer is building an army. So, it does not want too many to be thrown Outside."

John and Scarlett look at each other, clearly trying to decide if we are telling the truth. John looks at me and asks what this source is. I need to look at Liam to confirm that he thinks we should tell them. His nod is my answer, so I explain to John and Scarlett. "In the field that Liam and I go to everyday, there is a hole. This is not a normal hole and it has only been there for a few days. It is a hole in time and it leads to the future. I have stepped through three times, the first by accident, the second while holding Liam's hand for security and the third was today. I walked through the hole into the future and spoke to a man named Mikey. He is Liam's and my future son and he brought us a message from his parents. Yes, I know it sounds confusing, but Liam and I sent ourselves a message from the future. This is the source of our information. It has proved to be true. Michael gave us two books, one a schematic that is for a machine and the other one is all the information that we were able to gather the first time we tried to do this. It includes the positions of every camera and microphone in the Dome."

John and Scarlett lean closer together and whisper to each other. I step closer to Liam and feel his arm around my shoulders. John and Scarlett appear to be discussing what we have told them, so we wait patiently. I can feel the tension slip off my shoulders when they turn back to us and ask, "So, what can we do to help?"