“Looks like they left in a hurry,” I said. The bunks still had bedclothes on them, and most were unmade.
“Yeah, that is a little weird.”
We poked around the room for a while. It really appeared that the scientists who had lived there were planning to return soon. There were all kinds of personal effects, photos, books, journals, games, even six lockers full of clothes.
Kira found a box of leptics with a few left. “You want one?” she asked as she popped the end of a stick in her mouth.
“No thanks. You sure you want to do that now? You’re not going to be able to sleep.”
“It actually relaxes me,” she said. “And my mom won’t let me have them in camp.”
“Really? How old are you?”
“I know, right? Ugh.”
We looked through the room some more. This was really odd. “Are you sure that these researchers are really gone?” I asked.
“We saw the transport from our camp. It was a big Baleen class. Besides, my mom had been in touch with their team leader. That was seven days ago.”
“Maybe not all of them left,” I said.
Kira shook her head. “That doesn’t make sense either. And besides, no one would stay out after dark.”
“Wasn’t that our original plan? To camp out tonight?”
“Sure,” Kira said. “But that’s me. I’m a little crazy.”
I laughed.
“C’mon,” she said. “Let’s check out the rest of the camp.”
I found an extra hand lamp in the bunkhouse, so we had plenty of light as we explored the main boardwalk. We went from building to building, sticking our heads into various storage units, labs, bunkhouses, a mess hall and kitchen, an infirmary, a security station, a maintenance shed, and what looked to be a meeting house. There was no sign of anyone still on the premises, and most of the rooms had been cleaned out, but not completely.
“Do you think they left prematurely for some reason?” I asked.
“I don’t know what to think.”
“Let’s check out that security station again,” I said. “Maybe we can access the logs.”
But once we took a closer look at the console in the small, cramped building, I could tell that all the data collection units had been removed.
“This is just weird,” Kira said.
She examined the display on the console, flipping through the various screens. “System’s still operational, and I armed the peri. I guess there’s no reason we can’t stay here tonight. But I need to call my folks and let them know about this.”
“Good idea, but call from the mess hall. Maybe they left some food that we can help ourselves to.”
We returned to the mess hall, which was an octagonal room with a dozen big round dining tables and seating for fifty. This must have been a pretty large group of researchers.
“Make your call,” I told Kira. “I’ll investigate the kitchen.”
Towards the back of the dining room was a pair of double doors. I pushed through them and found myself in a big commercial kitchen with refrigerated food storage units, freezers, larders, and pantries. Most were full of food, which seemed to just add to the mystery. In a side room off the kitchen, I discovered a fully-stocked bar, which made me smile.
The liquor and wine was nothing special, but I managed to snag a few bottles of Lempert Hills Pinot Noir. But when I checked the vintage, my stomach fell. These were all from 2360—two years after the year I thought I was in. Any suspicion that the Larks were messing with me instantly evaporated. This was proof that I had experienced a time jump.
Just because I’m a little obsessive about these things, I checked the vintages of all the other wines I could find. They ranged from a 2357 Barbaresco to a 2364 Sauvignon Blanc. More confirmation that I had lost seven years of my life.
I took a deep breath. And then another.
There was nothing I could do about the time jump. And at least I was alive. Which might be more than I could say about Chiraine and Ana-Zhi and Narcissa. And the Sean bot, of course.
I had no idea what had happened to them. Did the Levirion send everyone on board the Vostok to a different world? Or maybe a different time?
If they were alive, I had to find out.
Kira appeared at the doorway. “There you are.”
“Look what I found.” I held up a bottle of the Lempert Hills.
She nodded. “What about food food?”
“As opposed to liquid food?”
“Yeah.”
“The kitchen’s fully stocked.”
“You know how to cook?”
I did know how to cook and made us a fairly passable Cyl Phin using wide pea noodles, frozen ginger, umé strips, basil, komba grass, and lime. It had a rich smoky flavor that went well with the wine.
While we ate, Kira told me that she was positive that the Marlington group had broken camp and left the Basin for good.
“What makes you so sure?”
“My mom confirmed she spoke to Augin Rho, the site administrator, the day before they left. And my dad said he was in the area four days ago and saw that the camp was empty.”
“Did he check out the buildings?”
“No, I don’t think so. He was on his way back from the Dimberel Marshes, so he didn’t have a lot of time.”
I refilled her wine. “Well, we’re not really any closer to figuring this out.”
“No, we’re not. And to be honest, I don’t think it matters. We’ve got food, we’ve got wine, we’ve got a protected place to sleep. Tomorrow morning we set off early and rack those last four sites. Then we pack up and make the slog to Ganga Kos. If all goes well, you’ll be on a ship to—where do you live again?”
“Anglad,” I said.
“Ooh, excuse me. Anglad. I should have known. Fancy!”
I laughed. Kira was definitely getting a little buzzed.
“Anyway, four days from now you’ll be heading home. So maybe don’t worry your pretty little head about abandoned camps or larchions or people like me.”
I looked her right in the eyes. “Is that what this is
