Time Dome

But we finally came up with the perfect person to send back in time: a paleontologist, like yourself. But, we had a strict requirement for whoever it was going to be: they needed to be young. Reason for this, is… well you may already know, but… back then, the amount or layering of oxygen was probably lower than it is today. This means, if we sent someone older back in time, a person with weaker, and older lungs, they’ll have more trouble breathing than a younger person would. Unfortunately, there aren’t that many young, and at least, mildly experienced paleontologists out there. We couldn’t find the right person to choose. But, then I thought of… you."

"Me!" Steven exclaimed.

"Yes. You seem like the perfect person to send back in time. Your young, mildly experienced and i’ve read your letters, and god, you know everything about the prehistoric past! You would be familiar with the animals and the environment, so you would be practically prepared for the trip! I know this is very sudden, but I must know, Steven, I must know right now. Would you like to be sent back in time for our experiment?" Rob said.

There was a pause for about 1 minute.

"Hello?" Rob said.

"I’m here. I just had to think. And my answer is… yes. Yes I would not just like… but would love to be sent back in time! I mean, this is something that I may never have the chance to do again! I wouldn’t back down to something like this!" Steven exclaimed.

"Great! Now, I must ask you some other questions, concerning the condition of your lungs: Is there anything wrong with your lungs right now? Has there ever been anything wrong with them in the past? Do you smoke?" Rob asked.

"My answer is ‘no’ to all of those questions."

"Good, very good. Now you really are the perfect time-traveler."

"So… when does the experiment begin?" Steven asked. He was excited to go now… he just hoped that Rob really was telling the truth.

"9:00 AM. Yeah, that’s right, only in a few hours. That’s why I called you at this time. There’s still a lot we have to do before we get to our research station, which is located at the top of a mountain just about an hour away. We’ll have to take a private helicopter to get to it. So I’ll pick you up at your place at about 6:00, all right? And bring a suitcase filled with about 5 days worth of clothes. All right? You got all of that? I have to be sure, you know."

"Yeah, I do. I’ll see you at 6:00. I’ll be ready. I can’t wait too see you again."

"Me too. By buddy." Rob said, and hung up. He hadn’t called Steven ‘buddy’ in ages.

"Well, I must say, I sure have never had a phone call like that before. I guess I better start packing then… but oh, there are soo many questions I want to ask them about their time-machine. And there are soo many questions I want answered when I go back in time. ‘When I go back in time’… never thought I’d say that in my entire life!" Steven said to himself. But as tired as he was still, he began packing for his journey… a journey no one had ever taken before…

The doorbell rang. Steven then gathered up his luggage (which was only 2 suitcases), and ran up to the door of his home. He opened it, and right before him stood his old friend: Rob Jones.

He looked different than how Steven remembered him. The last time he did see him was years ago, right before Rob went to college. Rob was 14 then, so of course he did change.