Continuum

Mike believed. Stevo and Mike were close. Mike looked like his mother, which made him more endearing to his father. But their thoughts were alike. Mike liked the idea of a living Continuum. He even dreamed of meeting Mary some day. His ideas about her were much more romantic than Stevo's. Stevo knew first hand about her Otherness, and there was nothing romantic about that.

They reached the building with all the closet doors once more, which they could see well lit next to the open space. The light was very much like sunlight, but they could not tell where it was from except it was overhead.

Stevo felt strange. It was as if he was feeling some strength returning to his worn out body. Perhaps it was the excitement of finally being here once again.

Mike opened the first closet-like cubby. There was still dust piled in a heap at the bottom. One by one he opened the long line of twenty doors. If this was where Mary R147 went, she was no more.

Frustrated with the situation, and with the wait, Stevo sat up on his pallet. It was wobbly on its rickety wheeled struts. He thought he could put his legs down and stand up. Stevo quiety, slowly, walked over to his son, who was looking in the last closet.

"Mike." 

Mike jumped! He had not expected anyone to be behind him, much less his father. "Golls Pops!  Whatter you doin up? You like to have got me to wet myself!"

Stevo grinned. "I have an idea, Mike. Lets try something." Mike watched his father go into the first cubby and sit down in the dust, bringing hands full of it over himself.  "You do the same, son. Go to the next one and do what I am doing."

Mike complied, wondering what had gotten into his Pop. He thought Stevo's color was improving, or perhaps it was just the bright light of the cavern. "Why are we doing this?" They moved again to the next two closets, trailing nano dust as they went.

Stevo stopped what he was doing and suddenly lay down on the metal floor of the cavern. Mike rushed over to him, fretting that he had allowed his father to be so active.

Stevo was quiet, but his vitals were steady. He spoke in hushed tones to his son. "Mike. I am feeling better because some of these nanocites have gotten into me. I suspect they are policing my body and helping remove some of the damage that old age has caused me."

Mike was wide eyed at this revelation. "Pops, will this happen to me?"

"Yes, Mike. The first sign will be that your hair will all grow out again."

Starring even more, Mike took a step back. Seeing his face, Stevo broke into a wide grin, giving away the joke.

"Oh no! Pops, you got your humor back! There will be no living with you now!" Mike grinned sheepishly at his father's little joke.

"Seriously, Pops. Will the same thing happen to me?"

"I do not know, son. These things were attuned to my body once, but I do not know how they will react to someone else. They might, you know. The way we can tell is that you and I will be able to communicate without speaking. We will have to see. But I have another idea."