Chapter Four

Day Two, SF Just Doesn't Happen

Their first sensation after the flash, was of warmth, and then relief set in, as they realised they where back in the garden outside their apartment in France.

"WOW" exclaimed Ray, then "WOW" again.

"WOW and thank God for that" confirmed Dona.

They went inside put the atrifact in the middle of the coffee table and collapsed into the easy chairs (it was well furnished) exhausted. They had not eaten but neither of them were hungry, Ray got up and went to the kitchen anyway. He brought back, cheese, biscuits, crisps and some chilli chutney (known in the family as, a family supper), it's what they usually had when nobody was really hunger or no one could be bothered to cook. He also brought back two bottles of strong beer, 8.0% Abbaye de Vauclair Triple, he had bought earlier in Lidi, and of course, two classes.

Ray sat down again and said to Dona "did that really happen or are we going to wake up in the morning and find this was all a dream".

"well if it was a dream, it came with a receipt from the HSBC ATM on Pateley Bridge High Street, crisps and a carrier bag from SPAR" Dona pointed out, while at the same pointing at the bag on the table.

"The whole thing is impossible, I watch and read SF all the time but I don't believe any of it, I know none of it real, this sort of thing just doesn't happen, it just doesn't. Where did that drink go?"

"You drank it" said Dona.

Ray brought more drinks from the fridge, picked up a handful of crisps and started again "We know it's imposable but it did happen. We know it has to do with the artefact. We know it has to do with my phone. We know it has to do with the phone number. Anything else?"

"I think there has to be two people holding the artifact and not just holding but pulling on the legs" suggested Dona.

"Good" said Ray "anything else"

"Your knee isn't hurting" Dona reminded him.

"You're right, I forgot about that" he said feeling his knee and moving his leg up and down "the grating feeling has gone, I was only joking about it earlier in the bar but it feels great now and that wasn't a joke, or a pun. this is all too much to take in, I can not think properly, what are we going to do?"

Dona tried to reassure Ray but she was as worried and confused as much as he was.

"And" said Ray, "There are two more things that really need answers. Why didn't you scream when we were suddenly transported to Yorkshire and how on earth did you know the name of the campsite? I knew as soon as we appeared that it was the Pateley Bridge campsite but I didn't remember it was called the Riverside Caravan Park". Dona started to answer when Ray said, "No don't tell me, it doesn't matter, I have enough to think about as it is"

They then went on to discuses, what they should do with the artifact, should the tell anyone about it or keep it a secret? What could they use it for, could they make money with it? Was it dangerous, was it radioactive? Where did it come from, who did it belong to? Should they even keep it or throw it back into the sea? There were many question that needed answers too many questions.

The conversion went on and on, sometimes straying away from the problem, if it even was a problem.

Eventually Ray said "Do you know how much we have had to drink, we had three glasses of Kronenbourg earlier, two pints of Black Sheep in The Crown and at least two or three of these. We also had a very long day yesterday, I think maybe we should go to bed now and go over this again in the morning, when we are sober. Maybe tomorrow this will all make sense or even have been just a dream"