Categories > Original > Sci-Fi
Unraveling (Meet the Robinsons)
0 reviewsA little AU short story about the MTR universe. A weird, dark idea I had.
0Unrated
Lewis barely felt the rain soaking into his hair. It was cooling off his back and arms, running down his face, and dotting his glasses. He didn't notice it as he slowly crept up step after step, staring longingly at the woman who had brought him into life. Her long raincoat and hood obscured most of her form, even though Lewis' imagination was spinning furiously, wondering what she looked like. She held the bundle closely, hugging it as though she never wanted to put it down. He already knew that bundle was himself as a baby.
As this was running through his head, he also remembered flashes of another family he had met recently. Uncle Joe's kind smile. Aunt Billie's unique accent. Uncle Art's spaceship and cool uniform. Uncle Gaston's cannon. And of course, Grandpa. Father. His Dad that he hadn't met yet, would meet, and yet did meet in the future anyway.
Central to all the thoughts running through his head was Wilbur Robinson. His son. His best friend. Wild and crazy, the perfect friend if only he could have been born at the right time, and not be related. His lies, antics, explanations, and totally unique way of trying to handle things just added to his character. Lewis knew he was watching carefully from the invisible time machine, giving his own father the chance to possibly choose to wipe him from existence. Again.
He reached his hand out towards his mother's back. It looked so small for some reason. His mind whirled, wondering if he would lose the family that he just gained if he did this. He loved them already, in his own special way, as quirky as they are (would be). Part of his mind argued that she was here right now, in front of him. He would never know why, and just asking a few questions didn't guarantee the chance he would lose anything, and maybe he would gain so much more.
He touched his hand to her back, on the right hand side, about halfway up, as far as he could reach. Her raincoat felt slick and cold, but she was real. He felt her stiffen up, and watched her head raise up from his baby self to apparently look straight ahead. Her shoulders sagged some, as though she were disappointed. He pulled his hand back hesitantly, a confused look on his face. She slowly turned around to face him, one arm holding himself, the other raising up to her hood to draw it back as she faced him fully in the light.
Her face was very familiar. But she had red hair.
“Mrs. Robiuh... Franny...? Um... Mom...?”, Lewis started to babble, almost to himself. He was completely shocked and didn't know what to say.
She was very pretty, but her eyes were sad, and seemed to be filling with a few tears as she looked down at him. She shook her head slightly and sniffed a bit. “I'm so sorry Cornelius. We don't have much time left, so explaining this may be useless. But I can try, if you're willing to listen.”
Lewis nodded, his eyes still wide. She turned and leaned down to put the baby back in the box. She then took a step back and turned around to sit down on the steps. As Lewis hadn't moved yet, she patted the wet step next to him. “Let me see if I can try to explain. It won't matter in the long run, but I can try before we... go away.”
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Wilbur saw Lewis touch the woman, and she turned around. “Oh no. No!” He hit the switch to open the time machine, to see if he could salvage any of this, but it didn't work. All the lights in the time machine flickered out. Wilbur felt the world start to go hazy around him.
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“You see, you live and grow up here. But you aren't born here, in this time. You were born in the year 2074. I am your mother from that time.”
“But...”
“Please don't interrupt. We don't have enough time as it is.”
Several more cracks of thunder sounded, even though the rain appeared to be dying down. Neither of them noticed the swirling lights, dulled by the invisibility shield that itself was fading, as the time machine disappeared. At the furthest part of the streets, almost out of sight, street lamps were going out one by one.
“In the original future, mankind made many mistakes. Similar to your Doris, but different as well. Most of the world was destroyed by the machines. We had the technology to view streams of time, to try and change things. The machines do too. Our solution was you. But it wasn't until after we put you here the first time that we came to understand that in order for you to truly exist, you must come from yourself too.”
Lewis' eyes scrunched together to show he was really confused, but he stayed quiet, listening to her over the thunder. The city lights were blackening out now from far away. Building after building darkened.
“My name is Chelsea Robinson. My father is Wilbur Robinson. You are my grandfather, and at the same time, I am your mother. Your time technology advances to the same point that it did in our old alternate timeline, so we can see what started, and why. And that technology always shows this point here as one of the critical junctions. You have to make a choice, but in this one loop, you made the wrong one.”
Several tears streamed down her face, and both of them looked up to notice the encroaching darkness.
“The machines still exist too. They are why Doris became so advanced, even though you can defeat her, part of your reality must encounter her, even though she is supposed to be erased. Our technology shows countless alternate realities, and the timestreams become very confusing because of the changes we are trying to make right here and now.”
Lewis nodded slowly, his eyes still wide. He was understanding, but had nothing yet to say.
“This time loop is closing. Other realities will survive. Since knowing of the multiple realities, we understood this might happen. I'm so sorry Cornelius. Lewis. I wish it could have been different.”
She reached down and enveloped him in a hug. The rest of the lights around them went out, to reveal a cloudless sky full of stars. Both of them looked up, still hugging. They noticed the buildings around them fading away like smoke, and started to shiver as the temperature dropped dramatically. Baby Lewis started crying even louder.
They watched the stars winking out one by one until the end.
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In another universe, one that didn't feel the shuddering destruction of a closed timeline, a knocking was heard on a door. The knocking was repeated as a light turned on.
As this was running through his head, he also remembered flashes of another family he had met recently. Uncle Joe's kind smile. Aunt Billie's unique accent. Uncle Art's spaceship and cool uniform. Uncle Gaston's cannon. And of course, Grandpa. Father. His Dad that he hadn't met yet, would meet, and yet did meet in the future anyway.
Central to all the thoughts running through his head was Wilbur Robinson. His son. His best friend. Wild and crazy, the perfect friend if only he could have been born at the right time, and not be related. His lies, antics, explanations, and totally unique way of trying to handle things just added to his character. Lewis knew he was watching carefully from the invisible time machine, giving his own father the chance to possibly choose to wipe him from existence. Again.
He reached his hand out towards his mother's back. It looked so small for some reason. His mind whirled, wondering if he would lose the family that he just gained if he did this. He loved them already, in his own special way, as quirky as they are (would be). Part of his mind argued that she was here right now, in front of him. He would never know why, and just asking a few questions didn't guarantee the chance he would lose anything, and maybe he would gain so much more.
He touched his hand to her back, on the right hand side, about halfway up, as far as he could reach. Her raincoat felt slick and cold, but she was real. He felt her stiffen up, and watched her head raise up from his baby self to apparently look straight ahead. Her shoulders sagged some, as though she were disappointed. He pulled his hand back hesitantly, a confused look on his face. She slowly turned around to face him, one arm holding himself, the other raising up to her hood to draw it back as she faced him fully in the light.
Her face was very familiar. But she had red hair.
“Mrs. Robiuh... Franny...? Um... Mom...?”, Lewis started to babble, almost to himself. He was completely shocked and didn't know what to say.
She was very pretty, but her eyes were sad, and seemed to be filling with a few tears as she looked down at him. She shook her head slightly and sniffed a bit. “I'm so sorry Cornelius. We don't have much time left, so explaining this may be useless. But I can try, if you're willing to listen.”
Lewis nodded, his eyes still wide. She turned and leaned down to put the baby back in the box. She then took a step back and turned around to sit down on the steps. As Lewis hadn't moved yet, she patted the wet step next to him. “Let me see if I can try to explain. It won't matter in the long run, but I can try before we... go away.”
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wilbur saw Lewis touch the woman, and she turned around. “Oh no. No!” He hit the switch to open the time machine, to see if he could salvage any of this, but it didn't work. All the lights in the time machine flickered out. Wilbur felt the world start to go hazy around him.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“You see, you live and grow up here. But you aren't born here, in this time. You were born in the year 2074. I am your mother from that time.”
“But...”
“Please don't interrupt. We don't have enough time as it is.”
Several more cracks of thunder sounded, even though the rain appeared to be dying down. Neither of them noticed the swirling lights, dulled by the invisibility shield that itself was fading, as the time machine disappeared. At the furthest part of the streets, almost out of sight, street lamps were going out one by one.
“In the original future, mankind made many mistakes. Similar to your Doris, but different as well. Most of the world was destroyed by the machines. We had the technology to view streams of time, to try and change things. The machines do too. Our solution was you. But it wasn't until after we put you here the first time that we came to understand that in order for you to truly exist, you must come from yourself too.”
Lewis' eyes scrunched together to show he was really confused, but he stayed quiet, listening to her over the thunder. The city lights were blackening out now from far away. Building after building darkened.
“My name is Chelsea Robinson. My father is Wilbur Robinson. You are my grandfather, and at the same time, I am your mother. Your time technology advances to the same point that it did in our old alternate timeline, so we can see what started, and why. And that technology always shows this point here as one of the critical junctions. You have to make a choice, but in this one loop, you made the wrong one.”
Several tears streamed down her face, and both of them looked up to notice the encroaching darkness.
“The machines still exist too. They are why Doris became so advanced, even though you can defeat her, part of your reality must encounter her, even though she is supposed to be erased. Our technology shows countless alternate realities, and the timestreams become very confusing because of the changes we are trying to make right here and now.”
Lewis nodded slowly, his eyes still wide. He was understanding, but had nothing yet to say.
“This time loop is closing. Other realities will survive. Since knowing of the multiple realities, we understood this might happen. I'm so sorry Cornelius. Lewis. I wish it could have been different.”
She reached down and enveloped him in a hug. The rest of the lights around them went out, to reveal a cloudless sky full of stars. Both of them looked up, still hugging. They noticed the buildings around them fading away like smoke, and started to shiver as the temperature dropped dramatically. Baby Lewis started crying even louder.
They watched the stars winking out one by one until the end.
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In another universe, one that didn't feel the shuddering destruction of a closed timeline, a knocking was heard on a door. The knocking was repeated as a light turned on.
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