Lizard People by Charlie Price Page A

turned around so the woman in yellow could inspect her. Yellow nodded and produced a two-inch capsule from her tunic’s chest pocket. She twisted it open and withdrew two copper BB things and an inch-long needle. Dr. Gila put one BB in her ear and one in Marco’s. It tickled for a second, and then he lost track of it.
    â€œTranslators,” she said. She lifted the earphone and wire mic from his head and pulled the two buttons from his cheek. She took the needle and pushed it into the soft flesh just below his shoulder. That stung, but when he reached for the wound with his other hand, he couldn’t find it.
    â€œStabilizer,” she said. Dr. Gila unfastened her smock and took it off. She stepped out of her skirt and stood under the tree in her pale blue swimsuit. “I’m ready,” she said.
    â€œReady?” Marco asked.
    â€œIf it is possible to time travel or shift dimensions, it is very dangerous,” Dr. Gila said. “Something from another time or place might seriously alter our future here in 4000. If a person could go back in the past, and somehow affected that world, a killing, or an invention, then the whole future would change from that point on. Novikov’s Paradox. Unless there are completely parallel universes. Our science is still some distance from resolving such questions. Right now, I’m guessing nothing bad has happened, because here we are, getting ready to do this. But you may need help with Monitor and I’m in charge of this sector, so I’m coming with you. It’s my responsibility.”
    Marco could sense it wouldn’t do any good to argue. Plus, if he decided to, once he got home, he could give her the slip. “Okay,” Marco said, “but I wouldn’t wear that.”
    Dr. Gila gave Marco a once-over. “I see what you mean,” she said. “I thought your garb was another manifestation of your illness, but if this is a portal, then your outfit is indicative of the primitives.”
    â€œI guess you could say that,” Marco said, feeling slightly offended.
    Dr. Gila put her top and skirt back on. “Does this mark me as a medical in your time?” she asked.
    No, Marco thought, it marks you as frumpy, but he didn’t say anything. He heard the constable ask the doctor how they would communicate with each other.
    â€œI don’t think we’ll be able to,” Gila replied. “I don’t want to take any more of our equipment back into their time, and, besides, I don’t think we have anything that would transmit through a wormhole. Please cordon off the park and post a watch, and I’ll be back as soon as I can.” She touched the middle two fingers of her left hand to the middle of her forehead in what looked like a salute to Yellow and gave Marco a nod, signaling she was ready.
    â€œUh, my jacket?” Marco felt embarrassed about asking, especially since he had used it to evade the disk, but heck, it was his best jacket, leather and everything.
    Gila said something to Yellow that Marco didn’t catch. Yellow pulled a cord and whistled into some kind of retractor pin on her lapel. Within a minute, a pale blue tube appeared, escorted by a silver tube. The blue had Marco’s coat attached to its flexible arm. Yellow snatched it and handed it to him. When Yellow turned to further instruct the tubes, Dr. Gila turned to Marco.
    â€œReady now?” she asked.
    Marco guessed that he was. They walked into the wavy stuff.
    This time when Marco stopped, I opened my eyes right away. I had my questions. But he was just sitting there. Like the Buddha.
    â€œMarco.”
    He didn’t move.
    â€œMarco?”
    Nothing.
    â€œMarco, dammit!”
    Nothing. His eyes were closed but his posture was straight, chin up, so he wasn’t conked out. I reached out to shake him but stopped. What did they say about disturbing a sleepwalker? What if I touched him and he went ballistic? This was all