From Dawn to Dusk

      He had arrived at Y675; he had travelled almost seven hundred years from the rocky fields of Tyrannia. That was where he was now, of course, but there was no comparison to be made between the two separate terrains. It had been so long since Theodore had been here, but he still had a vivid image in his mind of the world he had once known - bustling, friendly, and innovative, yes, that was the society he had left behind. He himself had invented the time machine; before he told anyone, he decided to test it. He went back to the coronation ceremony of King Coltzan V, then to the fall of Dr. Sloth, and finally to the discovery of Tyrannia. However, he had made a grave error in not replenishing his fuel before his final journey - he became stranded in primitive Tyrannia.

      Luckily, the Neopians of that age were almost as friendly as those of his time; he was able to convince them to find parts that would work to fix his vessel. It was a difficult task, using berries and omelettes to fix a spaceship, but he eventually succeeded. He bid farewell to the kind people, set the destination year to Y675, and pulled the lever. The ship lifted off the ground and flew at the 3.57 times the speed of the Space Station, able to manipulate the temporal energy that was abundant in the atmosphere. Theodore watched in amazement as his pride and joy took him back home.

      Theodore opened the door. Through the thick air, he could not make out the shapes of the landmarks of the plateau; this was not common in Tyrannia, but he supposed everything happened occasionally. He jumped down to the ground, landing on his sandstone boots, looking around for anyone he recognized. He saw no one.

      Puzzled, Theodore began to walk in the direction of the village of Clureyt. There, he would surely find cheerful citizens enjoying their day, no matter what the weather.

      No such luck.

      The village was deserted, and it seemed to Theodore as though something was wrong. Their possessions were scattered among the huts, strewn about in no particular fashion. They looked as though they had been there for years, though Theodore knew this could not be the case.

      A sound appeared out of nowhere - crack! As though something were travelling almost at the same speed as Theodore's vessel. Simultaneously, Theodore could see in the sky a bright light, a moving light. Someone was coming.

      Theodore ran as quickly as he could to where the comet seemed to be heading - which also happened to be in the same direction as his ship, the Alambra XVI. The object landed on the ground, and within a few minutes Theodore had reached the same place. It was right next to the Alambra, but nearly three times the size and with a different paint scheme.

      As Theodore was examining the structure of the foreign ship, a door began to open. Theodore took three steps back as a figure appeared from behind the door - one that seemed very familiar, though he could not place it until the exhaust fumes died away and Theodore could see more clearly. It was an old friend.

      "Hello, my dear Theodore," a cool voice spoke out. It was that of a Lutari of a strange colour, almost as though he could not decide between to different paint brushes. He wore glasses and a lab coat, certainly looking the part of mad scientist. He was Doctor Landelbrot.

      "It has been too long," the doctor continued. "We must catch up... I see you, like me, were able to tame the temporal energy of Neopia. I have been waiting to meet you again... I always knew you would make something of yourself, you old Wocky."

      Theodore spoke. "It certainly has been a long time... Charles," he said, a scratch in his throat. He coughed. "I created the Alambra with my bare hands several years ago, in this year... I left this area when I made her, I left from this same year... I don't understand why the world is so barren this time."

      "You left from... this year?" Landelbrot asked quietly. "I do not think that is possible... You would have been long gone by the time this year came along. I believe you may have made a crucial mistake with your data entering... Come, let us look at your ship."

      The two scientists boarded the Alambra, and Theodore showed Charles to the control panel. "Here's the screen with all of the statistics of the area," Theodore told him. "The air temperature is nine degrees, the wind speed is 2.7 kilometers per hour, and... life signs are... nonexistent." Theodore entered a stunned silence. He had not seen anyone, no, but he had assumed that there must be people somewhere. This, however, was telling him that he and his old university friend were alone in this world.

      Charles nodded his head somberly. "Look at the year, Theo. I think you were trying to go to Y675? Well, you passed it in the fast lane a long time ago..."

      Theodore once again looked at the screen. There, in bold type, were the numbers 6, 7, 5, 0. He had made a mistake in setting the coordinates for his destination. He looked at Charles. "Well, I can just go back to Y675. There's nothing here, but I have my ship, and she can take me back."

      Landelbrot shook his head slowly. "Theo --"

      "Don't call me Theo, Charles. We're out of university, we have been for over six thousand years. I'm not calling you Charlie, am I? We're not children anymore."

      "Mister Winstrate," Charles said with contempt, accenting the first word, "I don't think you understand. This world doesn't have any resources, and that includes temporal energy. There's no way this ship can leave this place. Mine can, but the Alambra will have to stay here."

      Theodore glared at him. Memories of university times - the bad memories - began to pour through him. "I don't believe you. Now, please get off this ship. You're not welcome anymore."

      Landelbrot obliged, and soon the Wocky was alone in the bridge of his vessel. He punched in the numbers carefully this time: 6, 7, 5. He pulled the lever.

      And... nothing. The engine sputtered a bit, but there was no liftoff, no travel... Charles had been right, there was no energy. Through the glass, Theodore could see the smug look on his old friend's face. He opened the door angrily and jumped down to the ground.

      "I'll admit that you were right. Is that what you want? You were right. Now, start up your ship!"

      "I'll start it up," Charles told him, "but you won't be coming with me. I'm flying solo - always have, always will. This is no exception."

      Theodore could not believe the attitude of the Lutari. "You would leave me here," he said quietly, "with no resources, no companionship... Just leave me here forever?"

      Charles nodded. "It's not my problem. Besides, it's all your fault that the world is like this now - why should I let you come back?"

      Theodore looked at him sideways. "What do you mean, it's all my fault? What could I have done to make this happen?"

      "Neopia was struck down by a strain of Ugga-Ugga in Y1056. It was only curable by peanut and banana omelettes; however, those had all disappeared in Y2, because of you and your silly quests. You took all of those omelettes, leaving none for the rest of the world. Everyone is gone, because of you!" Charles yelled angrily. "You don't deserve to return. I'm playing as Judge Hog this time, and I'm ruling you guilty."

      Theodore couldn't find words, and Landelbrot stormed up the staircase into his ship. The ship's engines fired up, and using the temporal energy reserves that the doctor had designed long ago, it began to fly away into the past. Theodore was alone, and he was scared. He was cold, he was hungry, he was lonely; he was everything someone can be at one time. He could tell that the rest of his life would be a miserable walk down memory lane; nothing would ever be the same. It was then that he found his voice.

      "I'm sorry..."

The End