“That’s correct,” Lynne says. “Once there, we want you to take notes on the technology you find and bring back whatever you can. We also want your general impressions of the future, including news about the world, in particular related to—”
“Hold up,” Chris says. “Can we go back to the part where we’re going into the future? Is this shit for real?”
“Yeah, this must be some kind of joke, right?” Trent asks.
“I promise you, this is very real,” Lynne says. “In a few hours you will be in the future. Amazing, isn’t it?”
Lynne and the scientists smile like they expect applause. Instead, the five of us sit in stunned silence. I feel like someone hit me with a truck and left me lying in the road, bleeding all over the asphalt.
“What about the grandfather paradox?” Adam asks.
The what? I want to know if the accelerator is safe and what kind of risks we’ll face in the future and what exactly they want us to do there—and he’s asking questions about grandfathers?
“Ah yes.” Dr. Walters nods at the question. “For those of you who don’t know, the grandfather paradox states that traveling to the past is impossible because any changes made would change the future. The famous example is that if you visited the past and killed your grandfather as a child, you would no longer exist, thus causing a paradox. But you won’t need to worry about any of that. Since we will be opening the temporal aperture on our end in the present, the grandfather paradox does not apply. You simply have to make sure you return to the location of the aperture at the correct time to go through it.”
“But how do you know we won’t appear in the future in the middle of the ocean or stuck inside a wall?” Adam asks. A much better question, I think.
“Aether Corporation owns this building,” Lynne says. “We’ve already made arrangements so it remains in our possession over the next ten years. When you get to the future you’ll likely be greeted by Aether employees who will be happy to assist you.” She gives a tiny laugh. “You might even see a future version of me.”
This is all happening so fast and it sounds way too easy. There has to be something they aren’t telling us. Am I the only one who sees the warning signs?
I don’t bother to raise my hand like Adam did. “What kind of risks can we expect in the future?”
Dr. Kapur speaks for the first time since we got here. “There should be very few risks. We’ve already performed trial runs with the aperture, such as sending inanimate objects and small animals to the future. They all returned unharmed.”
“Yes, it’s perfectly safe,” Lynne says. “You’re the first people to visit the future, so we’re not entirely sure what the future will be like, but if you compare the world now to the world of ten years ago, not as much has changed as you might think. Technology and pharmaceuticals have made great advances, but most aspects of our culture remain the same. We still use the same money, speak the same language, and use the same roads. The risks should be no greater than walking outside your own house today. We’ll also be providing you with supplies and money in the unlikely event that someone from Aether Corporation is not there to greet you.”
Dr. Walters looks like he wants to say something, but Lynne continues. “If there are no further questions at this time, we’ll break for lunch. After that, you’ll be heading to the accelerator and we’ll go over a few more details there.”
“I got a question,” Chris says, crossing his arms. “When do we get paid?”
“As soon as you return from the future and finish your debriefing.” She smiles and heads toward the door. “Now if you’ll all follow me…”
As we stand, I overhear Trent ask Chris, “Dude, do you really thinking we’re going to the future?”
Chris snorts. “No way in hell.”
I hate to admit it, but I agree with them. What Lynne and the scientists are proposing, this “temporal aperture,” it’s impossible. It has to be. And if it is possible, there’s no way they’d choose us for it. They’d use scientists or people in the military. Not foster kids.