The Time Machine

"How could I be so stupid?" the professor said, as Piper caught up to him. "I can't believe I didn't hide the time machine!"

He quickly pulled the false floor in place and had her help him pull the cart toward the trees. They had nearly reached them when they saw a man come stumbling out of the woods.

A Roman centurion staggered toward them. As he neared, they could see he was bleeding from multiple wounds. Piper rushed to help him.

"Let him be!" the professor said. "We have to get out of here!"

"We can't leave him, he needs help!"

The professor reluctantly helped her lift him on the cart and they covered him with a blanket. Piper wiped his head with the wet rag from the river and he half opened his eyes as he spoke.

The professor, who could barely understand the soldier's Vulgar Latin, translated: "He's telling us to flee -- Boudicca is coming!"

As they pulled the burdened cart, the professor hurriedly told Piper about Boudicca, the ancient Briton warrior queen who had led her people, the Iceni, to a series of victories over the Romans before finally being defeated.

"At one point she even burned ancient London to the ground, and killed over 50,000 people," he said. "Whichever direction she's heading, we want to make sure we're going the opposite way."

But when they reached the edge of the woods he could see they'd already gone the wrong way. A chaotic mass of Britons armed with crude weapons swept across the plain in front of them to the south. The Roman soldier had passed out from the pain, and the professor pulled a blanket over him to hide him while the procession passed.

A roar rose in the distance and rippled through the rebel force. Piper and the professor watched as three wicker chariots pulled by ponies rode alongside the horde of Britons, who chanted Boudicca's name.

The professor climbed on top of the cart to get a better view. As he watched the chariots ride past, he was stunned when he spotted the lead rider; she was nearly ten years older and her hair was much longer than when he'd last seen her, but there was no mistaking her face.

"Oh my god," he shouted to Piper. "Boudicca is Betty Carr!"

The professor helped her up on the cart as the chariots thundered past so she could get a better view, and Piper said, "I thought you said she needed to be rescued? She looks like she's doing pretty good to me!"

The professor shouted, so that Piper could hear him over the roar of the mob. "I'm not sure what's happened, but these people seem to think she's the real Boudicca! We need to find a way to get near her, so I can talk to her!"

The professor watched the surging human mass between them and Professor Carr, trying to spot a safe path through. On the far plain, a woman in a gray dress ran out in front of the chariots and waved them down. As the chariots reined to a halt, the woman said a few words and then pointed right at Piper and the professor.

They watched as the chariots wheeled around and led a group of spear-wielding warriors in their direction.

"Umm...they don't look too friendly," Piper said. "You sure we shouldn't start heading in the other direction, like you said earlier?"

The professor glanced nervously at the mob, which had now taken notice of them, and knew they couldn't escape if they tried. Not wanting to alarm Piper, he said, "If Professor Carr, as Boudicca, is truly in charge, there shouldn't be any danger for us."

As her procession reached the far edge of the mob, Professor Carr reined her chariot to a halt while her warriors cleared a path through the crowd. Her eyes met the professor's, and as they narrowed he knew she'd recognized him.

The first of the warriors broke through the crowd and rushed toward them, and the professor moved in front of Piper to protect her. When the warriors were all through, they surrounded the cart with their weapons raised menacingly, and the woman who had pointed them out walked up to the professor and yelled at him in an unknown language.

Before he could say anything, she reached into the cart and tore the blanket away. The crowd roared and went into a frenzy when they spotted the Roman centurion lying unconscious in the back.

The professor tried to protest, but he and Piper were quickly seized and bound with ropes at their wrists. The woman in the gray dress tied them to the back of the cart, and ordered the warriors to pull it to an encampment on the far side of the plain.

Piper was terrified as the cart lurched away, nearly pulling her off her feet. The professor was trying to talk to her but she couldn't hear him over the screams of the crowd as they tried to get at her, trying to fight past the wall of warriors to tear at her hair. She barely ducked a stone thrown at her head, and as they led the cart past the woman she recognized as Professor Carr, she tried to call to her, hoping she'd remember her from when she'd cleaned her office at the university. But if she knew her she didn't show it, and her eyes burned with contempt as she watched her pass.

When they finally reached the camp, their arms felt as if they were about to be pulled from their sockets and their throats were choked with dust. Thousands of Briton warriors and their families filled the camp, and Piper and the professor were taken to a high-walled tent.

They were thrown down on the dirt floor in the otherwise unoccupied tent. Both of them were bound and four warriors were left to guard them. The smell of roasting meat drifted through the tent from outside, but when the professor asked for food and water the guards ignored him. And when he tried to whisper to Piper he got a hard kick in the ribs, letting him know to keep silent. She turned to look at him and he could see the fear in her eyes, but he tried to reassure her by mouthing, "It's going to be okay." She smiled weakly and nodded, and he knew she was putting her trust in him. Finally, after what seemed like hours, another warrior came and led them all across the encampment to a huge tent at the center.

As they were shoved inside, they looked around and saw it was much larger than the one they'd been held captive in. There was a large carpet in the center of the room and a couch covered in animal skins and pillows. Resting on the couch was Professor Carr, who was being waited on by servants while four guards flanked her.

"Elizabeth...Betty. It's me, Carl!" said the professor.

"You will address me as Boudicca," she said in perfect English. "Why have you come back, Carl?"

"Why? We're here to rescue you! To take you back to our time, Betty!"

She scoffed at him. "Do I look like I need to be rescued? My place is here. In our time, I was just a professor of history. Here I'm a goddess of victory!"

The professor shook his head. "You're not -- the real Boudicca is."

"I am the real Boudicca. Don't you understand? I'm not changing history -- I'm fulfilling it. Can't you see how similar the names sound -- Boudicca...Betty Carr? Isn't it obvious? There was no Boudicca, until I traveled through time and created her!"

The professor blinked, wondering if she could possibly be right. "But, even if that's true, if you stay...you'll just get killed by the Romans, like she did!"

Professor Carr sat up straight and her eyes gleamed with a wild fanaticism. "No. The Roman General Suetonius defeated the historical Boudicca in the Midlands; I intend to lead my armies away from there and to lead the Romans on a march of attrition across Britain. Nero will soon grow weary of our rebellion and will withdraw his troops from my lands, and I will begin my rule as Queen Boudicca!"

"You can't change history!" the professor argued. "Rome controlled Britain for nearly four more centuries. If you change that -- if you change the future -- you could jeopardize your very existence!"

Professor Carr laughed. "That's your future, not mine. I will stay here and create a new tomorrow!"

He tried to step toward her and the warriors stopped him. "But when the three of us first went back in the time machine, we agreed that none of us would interfere with the past. If I'd known that you'd do something like this, I would have never brought you!"

"You? Brought me? I'm the one who did all the work so we could travel through time. Look what happened the one time you decided to help."

She looked at Piper. "Did he tell you what happened to Deidre?"

Piper nodded. "Yes, she died."

"And did he tell you that he is the one who killed her?"

Piper glanced over at the professor, and as he met her eyes he quickly shook his head to let her know it wasn't true.

"I didn't kill Deidre," he said, "you know her death was an accident!"

Before Professor Carr could continue, he said, "Let us return then. Let Piper and I go back with the time machine, and you can stay here."

Professor Carr sneered at him. "And have you stalking me through time? Have you going back even farther to try to ruin my plans? You know I can't do that, Carl. I'm sorry to have to inform you that you're both scheduled to be executed when the sun rises."

As Piper gasped, the professor cried, "You can't kill us! You're not a murderer, Betty!"

She suddenly stood up, glaring at him. "Betty Carr is no more; I am Boudicca!" She stabbed her finger accusingly at him, and said, "You have been sentenced to death for aiding the enemy. Bring in the prisoner, Vendicina."

The woman in the gray dress, the one who'd first pointed them out on the cart, stepped forward and walked to the entrance of the tent. At her signal, two warriors brought in the captured Roman soldier and threw him down on the floor. It was obvious that he'd been badly beaten.

"He will die alongside you tomorrow, and your corpses shall be left as a warning to others who try to aid the Romans," said Professor Carr.

"Please, Betty," he begged. "You know you can't stay here...come with us. If you don't want to go back to our time, we can keep traveling together even farther into the past."

She sat back down on her intricately carved, tortoise-shell inlaid, Roman sofa. "Why? Why would I leave when I have everything I could ever desire here?"

Professor Carr merely glanced at a slave girl and she immediately rushed to pour her wine.

"These slaves," she said, as she slowly ran her fingers down a slave's muscled torso until they brushed against the outline of his cock, "fulfill my every need.

"I never had this power at the university. No student ever offered to fuck me for a better grade. Not like all those young girls who happily spread their legs to pass your class."

"That never happened!" he said angrily. "Those were...terrible rumors."

"So that wasn't Deidre -- your student -- who was jerking you off in the lab when you first got cum all over the time machine?"

"It wasn't like that," he said, with a nervous glance at Piper. "Deidre and I were in love."

"Well then you should be very happy, as you'll soon be reunited with her."

A messenger appeared at the entrance and the servant, Vendicina, relayed the message to Professor Carr.

She listened and then smiled at the professor. "The Roman general is making his move. I'm sure he wonders how I know what he's going to do before he does."

At her signal, the warriors grabbed Piper and the professor and led them back to the tent they'd come from. Night had fallen, and the glow of fires lit the encampment. And as the professor passed them, he saw the Britons surrounding the fires had painted their faces with blue woad, preparing for battle. When they finally reached the tent, they were shoved inside and the unconscious Roman soldier was tossed down on the hard dirt floor to join them. Two warriors stood inside the entrance of the tent guarding them, spears at the ready.

They hadn't been in the tent long, when the servant, Vendicina, appeared and signaled for the two guards to step outside to talk.

Knowing it might be their only opportunity to escape, Piper and the professor both fought to free themselves. She clenched her teeth as she twisted and pulled her arms and legs, struggling to get loose.

"It's no use," the professor whispered, "We're tied too tightly!"

"I can get free," she grunted. "I saw how they do this in the movies."

Before the professor could argue, he looked over and saw the Roman soldier, who had been feigning unconsciousness, had managed to free himself from his own bonds.

He was sneaking over to untie them when they heard voices approaching from outside. He quickly stepped over them, crawled under the far side of the tent, and fled.

"Motherfucker!" Piper whispered, renewing her own attempts to free herself. She struggled and struggled and had just pulled one hand free when Vendicina ducked back inside.

Piper tried to hide her free hand but it was too late, Professor Carr's servant had spotted it. She scowled at her and drew an iron dagger.

"No!" the professor cried, as he fought to free himself.

Vendicina put her knee against Piper, growled something in Celtic, and then slashed the knife down.

Piper gasped as the dagger cut through her ropes, freeing her.

Vendicina was speaking rapidly as she moved to cut the professor loose.

"I do not understand you," the professor said in Latin. "Do you speak Roman?"

"Yes," she answered, in the Vulgar Latin commonly used by the Romans.

"Thank you! But why are you freeing us?"

The woman tugged the neck of her robe down to reveal a golden torc hidden underneath. "Andrasta, goddess of victory, has sent me to overthrow the one who has usurped my name."

"Usurped your...you're the real Boudicca?!" said the professor.

"Yes," Boudicca answered. "I was with the Druids at Mona when the trees told me she was using my name to lead a revolt. I came to her as Vendicina, and have hate in my heart for her after I have seen how she treats my people -- she is worse than the Romans. She says she will free my people, but I know she will enslave them. She would have us flee, but we shall fight. I will lead my people, and drive the legions from Britain!"

"So, you're going to kill her?" the professor asked.

"I planned to, until I prayed to Andrasta for guidance and her hare led me to you."

The professor blinked in surprise. "That was you we saw by the river, climbing on our cart?"

"Yes, when I saw the golden chariot of the war goddess, I knew that you had been sent to take the usurper away!"

"We can't do that," the professor whispered, "unless we have our...golden chariot."

"It is right outside," Boudicca said. "I knew you would need it, so I had warriors loyal to me bring it here. Many in this camp are secretly sworn to me, including the guards outside this tent."

The professor grabbed Piper's hand. "The time machine is right outside!"

"Good! Let's get out of here!" she said.

"We can't, unless we take Betty with us."

Piper threw her hands up in frustration. "Are you kidding me? You heard her -- she's crazy! She'll never agree to come with us!"

"She doesn't have to agree. If we can just get her in the proximity of the time machine when we push the button, she'll automatically be pulled back through time with us."

Piper shook her head. "I don't want to travel through time with her, can't we just send her back to 2014?"

"No, the only way to do that would be to jump the time machine forward in time, but we don't have reactor fuel powerful enough for that."

"I thought you said it can't go forward in time?"

"It can't travel to the future, but it can jump ahead in time to where it first entered the time stream. That's essentially what happens if it doesn't jump in twenty-four hours; that's how I returned the last time. But we can't wait that long, we need to jump now.

"We should be able to power the reactor to jump back to the year 315 BC. Maybe once she's away from here I can talk some sense into her."

"Maybe? She wants to kill us!" Piper cried. "If we take her back at all, we have to take her back to our own time! She's too dangerous to leave anywhere else!"

"We can't! There's no material powerful enough to allow the reactor to do a reverse jump all the way back to our time."

Piper nervously chewed on her lower lip, and said, "What if you fuck me? Could that cum be powerful enough?"

The professor squeezed her shoulders and sighed. "Piper, I told you to never ask me to do that. When Betty said I killed Deidre? She was telling the truth.

"Deidre was my student, but we were in love. That's why I asked her to come back with me through time. But as we traveled Betty was the one collecting all the fuel for the time machine, and Deidre felt guilty and thought we should help. I knew time was directly linked to the point of conception, but had no way of knowing what would happen. She asked me to make love to her, with the intent of fueling the time reactor, but I went past the point of conception. I accidentally came in her...there was a look of terror on her face...and then she was gone."

"Gone?" Piper whispered.

"Vanished, as if she'd never existed. That's why we can't do it -- I won't risk losing you too, Piper. I promise you, the first thing I'm going to do when we get back to our own time is make love to you. But don't ask me to do it now."

"But we have to!" Piper said. "It's our only hope. And if she changes the future...we may never have the chance to be together."

He pulled her close, searching her eyes, and whispered, "Piper, I can't lose you too."

"You won't lose me. I know you'll be careful. But we have to power the time reactor and take her back! It's the only way to save our future...maybe everyone's future."

The professor squeezed Piper's hand as he turned to Boudicca.

"We have to perform a...fertility ritual to give the chariot power. Can you make sure no one interrupts us?"

She nodded and whispered commands to the guards outside while Piper and the professor undressed.

Piper lay on her back and the professor could sense her nervousness as he kneeled between her legs.

He leaned down and kissed her, and her lips trembled. "Don't be afraid, I promise I won't let anything happen to you."

"I know," she whispered. "I trust you."

Piper reached between his legs, while still staring into his eyes, and stroked his cock hard.

Meanwhile, Boudicca untied her russet hair and let it tumble to her waist as she began a Celtic incantation.

"She's praying for our success," the professor said, as Piper rubbed the head of his cock between her soft pussy lips.

She was tight, but wet enough that he slid easily into her, and Piper bit her lip to stifle a moan as he completely filled her. As he pulled out, she grabbed his hips and pulled him back, helping him pump in and out of her.

"Oh, fuck...that feels so good," she whispered.

"Uh huh," he said, fucking her with a steady rhythm while Boudicca swayed and chanted around them. And as the chanting increased in pace so did he, his hips slapping against Piper's thighs as she moaned loudly and begged him to fuck her faster.

Boudicca reached in a pouch and ritualistically tossed seeds around them, chanting even faster, while the professor increased the speed of his thrusts to match the tempo of her incantation.

He fucked Piper as fast and hard as he could, desperately wanting to come. And she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck to hang on as he pistoned his cock in and out of her, and cried out as an orgasm rolled through her body.

The professor could feel his balls tightening as he fucked her. He was just about to warn her that he had to pull out so he could come, when she locked her legs tightly around him and kissed him hard on the mouth.

He frantically tried to push Piper away but it was too late, and his body tensed as he filled her with cum. He saw a look of terror in her eyes as she felt his warmth flooding her, and instantly -- just like Deidre -- she vanished into nothingness. Her existence erased.