Continuum

Mary was silent for a time, standing there over his son. She took Stevo's arm in her own once more. She looked up at him. "Really, Stevo, this is your decision to make. I will abide by whatever you decide to do here."

"Even if it means placing all of you in jeopardy? How could I be so selfish, Mary?"

Stevo looked again at his oldest son for a long time. "What will they think now, Mary, once they awake and cannot find me?"

"Stevo," Mary said, "First you must answer a question for me.  What am I to you?"

He grinned, and thought a bit about how to answer her. "I have never thought of you as my daughter, nor as a mate, Mary. Quite honestly, you are my friend in the best sense of the word. You are a companion to me both in thinking and in beliefs. I see us as kindred spirits, in spite of our 'differences'. You and I went through so much together during those years we were fighting Mr. Lerno. In some respects I have never been closer to anyone than I have been with you. Even Beth, my wife whom I still love and cherish never had the same kind of thoughts about things as you and I have shared. - This is how I view the bond between us, Mary."

"Mary looked directly at him, catching his eye. "You could come with us, Stevo."

Barely daring to breathe, Stevo asked quietly, "How?"

"I once told you once a very long time ago, that if there were a way to bring you into our Continuum I would do so. At that time I did not think it wise to disclose our abilities to you so fully. But I can bring you with me into my Continuum, if you want to go."

Stevo looked at Mike again. How could he leave his sons? His world? - How could he stay any longer, now that he had become evidence of the existence of the very alien Mary, his friend?

"I will miss them, Mary!  And they will miss me!  They already have lost their mother. How will they survive?"

"Stevo, they will do very well!  You taught them well, and they will very likely live on and prosper. There is also no reason you could not watch over them from time to time."

Stevo stood up and squared his shoulders. "What is to be done, Mary?"

"I will have the city make a duplicate of your body, of silicon, and leave it here in the park. Then I must command that part of the city to self-destruct, to turn itself into sand. The City must be then shut down as before. I am very confident that no one will distinguish the differences in your body when it is found. It will appear that you just died of old age. That is what your sons will expect. Before you came down, they were not sure you would even survive the journey here. You know they are prepared for this, don't you, Stevo?"

Mary continued, "They will find a small recording device on your 'body.' It will explain in your own voice how you got these old buildings turned on and used them to destroy the human Continuum. You will also carefully explain why you did it, and that your sons did not have any knowledge of what you were going to do. There will be no mention of me or of the Unity, since we all 'died' decades ago. I think we can make this sufficient to do the job of faking your death, if you are willing, Stevo. Chances are even pretty good you will be seen as a hero and a savior of the world someday."