Excerpt from the   Notes Of The Time Traveler Alyx V

Abundance, but also scarcity, characterize the adventures of some time-traveling descendants of the Alyx, a character from the novels of U.S. writer Joanna Russ, discovered in the transtemporal stream. An excerpt from the complete records.

Notes Of The Time Traveler Alyx V, Descendant Of Alyx (of Joanna) or A history of ideas

10 418 years ago 
A giantess in a chiton appears in a branch of the Euphrates. The giantess is called Alyx IV.  

10 417 years ago 
Alyx IV gives birth to Alyx V.  

10 402 years ago 
First big quarrel between Alyx IV and Alyx V 
Alyx V leaves the community, armed only with her flint knife. She spends three weeks alone in the forest, living on Almost Nothing.  

10 400 years ago 
Collection of Alyx V by the Transtemporal Authority  

About 500 years ago 
Beginning of anthropogenic climate change  

450 years ago - 447 years ago 
The US-American author Joanna Russ writes Alyx V’s ancestors Alyx I to III. 

About 300 years ago 
Melting of the Arctic ice sheet, sea level rises by 70cm, Miami, New York, Venice, London, Honk Kong, Mumbai under water 

42 years ago 
Birth Alyx IV, profession: time traveler for TransTemp 

19 years ago  
Alyx IV has “had it,” journey to the Mesolithic era  

3 years ago 
TransTemp develops the idea of transtemporal school exchanges as a remedy for futurelessness. They have tried “all sorts of things” before against futurelessness. For example, they tried to use other words. Instead of talking about “renunciation,” or “less is more” they talked about “other consumption patterns,” for example. None of this has helped.
  
Now they want to approach the matter differently: We don’t lack knowledge, says TransTemp. We lack a shared utopia, the impossible. Less has to become cool. And is it possible to think of a better utopia than the transfigured idea of the original human coexistence in egalitarian communities of prehistoric times? No.  

And who could convey utopia better than those who remember it as a home to which they do not want to return? (Nostalgia) 

And who is cooler than rebellious teenagers? 

2 years ago 
Launch of the pilot project TransTemp for Utopia 

1 year ago 
Alyx IV (from now on just Alyx) joins a family of three adults and two children. At their first dinner together, Mom explains to the kids: Alyx is going to live with us for a year now. Have a little patience with her, we have discussed this, she will not understand a lot of things in the beginning because she comes from a different time. She is perfectly adapted to an honest and simple life. She can handle everything, even Almost Nothing. She has “unique and strange abilities,” one of which is: hope. Let her teach us what she can do and knows and hopes, ok? So we can save our world. The children CD and Rom look at Alyx. Alyx takes a bite of her third chicken leg. Chicken is my favorite food, she says with her mouth full. 
 
About 5.5 months ago 
Alyx is eating refined sugar for the first time. Her host parents have advised her not to eat refined sugar, but Alyx is curious and rebellious. Refined sugar really hits the spot. She thinks, Sugar is the best thing in the world. Sugar is my favorite food.  

5.4 months ago 
CD plays with an electric cat. I once stabbed a dangerous tiger in the jump with a sharpened branch, Alyx says. CD is only eleven years old and impressed. Rom is combing her meter-long hair with her friends Veron and Laika Laika, in which small, shiny, fish-like creatures swim. I don’t believe it, she says. I’m a good judge of character, I’ve known that since I was five, that’s why I can tell you’re lying.  

5.3 months ago 
Alyx buys three kilos of marshmallows of the brand Mäusespeck (mouse speck) with her host parents’ money.  

5.2 months ago 
Alyx discovers the zero gravity function in the bathroom. The zero gravity function uses a lot of energy, she knows this from school. She takes a bath in a water bubble for the first time.  

5.1 months ago 
Alyx goes to a party with Rom.  

At the party, Vine is offered. Vine is a buttery yellow alcoholic swill laced with an alkaloid of baller leaves from the baller bush of the planet Baller. This stuff really pops.  

Alyx meets Hund (dog). Hund is a youth who calls himself Hund. Hund tells Alyx that he used to be a communist. Now he’s disillusioned. His name is Hund, he says, because he always takes the whole hand when someone gives him the little finger. He wears patches of fur all over his body and always has a wet Hund nose. Hund has a melancholy look on him, like someone who knows everything and doesn’t want to know anything. Alyx likes that.  

Hund runs after her and does everything Alyx tells him to do. When she orders him to pour her a glass of Vine, he pours her a glass of Vine. When she orders him to massage her neck, he massages her neck, and when she orders him to kiss her, he kisses her. She has kissed someone before, 10,400 years ago.  

Later, she wakes up in her bed. In front of her bed is Hund. What’s wrong, she asks, giggling. You were drunk. I gave you Suffweg, says Hund and licks her hand hanging off the bed.  

4.8 months ago 
Alyx discovers the orange pills.   

4 months ago 
Alyx has to go to the doctor. The doctor pulls out all her teeth because they are broken or would break soon. She gets to choose new ones and takes some that are bluish transparent.  

3.6 months ago 
Alyx meets Hanky through her dealer. Hanky is sixty and homeless. He lives in a two-by-three-foot cardboard box behind a surface paint factory. 
 
2,5 months ago 
Alyx goes on a field trip with her host family.  

You know, we’ve all “never been without doctors and guards and helpers and vehicles and cameras,” Pops says, looking around and giggling. Hanky giggles, too. Alyx asked if he could come along. The others weren’t thrilled, but Alyx didn’t care. Just walking down a dirt road is an adventure for us, which I imagine, because I am, I’m told, an empathetic person, can at most make you smile wearily, can’t it?  
There are no fields with us, ergo no dirt roads, Alyx says wearily. When she sees Pops’ face, she says: Why, yes. You’re right.  

It’s Pops’ Me-holiday. And he’s been wanting an outing, a little hike to have a picnic in a meadow and then sleep by a lake. All outdoors. Alyx is supposed to teach them their survival skills, but so far no skills at all have been needed, except putting one foot in front of the other and carrying a few pounds in their backpacks, though that already seems to be causing problems for the others except Hanky. They sweat and stumble, Rom grumbles, and Mom would like to grumble too. Rom wears her hair wrapped around her neck. She’s sweating underneath it. CD, do you feel like wearing my hair, she asks sweetly. CD shakes her head. Hanky? Hanky, do you feel like wearing my hair, she asks Hanky. Hanky looks at her hair with the fishies in it. So beautiful, he says, reaching out a hand for it. Alyx turns and waves at him. Hanky? Hanky come over here, I want to tell you something. Rom gives Alyx a dirty look. And we need to get all this back too, she says to CD. 

Oopsi, says Pops. He has a branch flicked in his face. Upsi says Hanky and grins. He has no teeth - real or fake. The sun is blazing, it’s hot as hell. Pops, who is unusually white for the future, already has a slight sunburn on his nose, despite sunscreen.  

Suddenly Rom howls, she has tripped over her hair and hit her knee. She screams. 

Mom and Mam and Pops run to her, wringing their hands helplessly. Pops is crying. They look at Alyx. Alyx looks at the wound, and says, Don’t worry about it. Spit on it.  

What?  

Spit on it! Go ahead. It’s good for the healing and for the pain.  

Hanky spits on her finger and wants to touch Rom’s wound with it. Rome pushes his hand away and spits on her wound herself.  

And finally cut your hair, Alyx says and continues walking.

Alyx takes the box of orange pills out of her pocket and opens it. Pops says, Mmm Alyx, maybe... I was thinking... maybe it would be better if you stopped doing that, for you, I mean. For your own good. Just a thought. He has tears in his eyes.  

Why, Alyx asks. 

It hurts you in the long run, it... hurts... it changes the psyche, it makes you addicted, and the stomach, the whole metabolism... I could explain it better to you if I had access, but... out here...  

You’re going gaga, says Hanky. Pops doesn’t react. Alyx closes the box again and puts it away. You can fix everything anyway, the stomach, the head, the teeth.  

Not everything, says Pops. And we can’t cure addictions.  

Alyx eases back a little until she’s walking next to CD. Alyx smiles at CD, smiling as she pulls the box out of her pocket and smiles as she drops the entire contents onto her tongue.  

Hmmm, she says. CD looks at her in irritation. He opens his mouth, she puts a finger on his lips.  

Alyx? Alyx, asks Pops. Alyx is standing in front of a tree and can’t get anywhere. The tree is in the way. Alyx? What’s wrong with her?  

She’s taken them all, whispers CD. Alyx tries to push the tree out of the way in a friendly way. Do you mind if I... My family wants to go this way, she says. CD laughs, then starts to cry. Mom takes him in her arms. We’ll be right there, Pops says in an uncertain voice. What should we do now, asks CD. Pops and Mam stand next to Alyx and talk at her. Wait a minute, Hanky says. He puts a hand on the back of Alyx’s neck and pulls her back a bit, Alyx takes a few steps backward, then Hanky leads her by the neck past the tree and forward. Alyx walks, the sky bleeding above her, and the sun screaming, screaming, as if relieved to finally be allowed to scream. As she touches the horizon, she sighs. 

Suddenly she is sitting on a tree stump, Pops is kneeling in front of her. Alyx, you have to show us how to make fire, out of wood and use this knife. Alyx, please. We have no idea, we’re screwed out here without you. Alyx says: Beautiful. So beautiful. She strokes his face. So soft, she says. Fire. Pops starts crying again. Oh no, Alyx says, raising her arms. No, oh no.  

It’s okay, Hanky says to her, or to Pops. He gathers up some trash lying around, some flammable stuff, piles it on top of each other and builds a fire. Pops, Mam, Mom, Rom and CD sit down by the fire and look into the flames. Hanky helps them prepare their supper over the fire. They are silent. Alyx thinks of Alyx I. They move on the earth like Tourys. They are so soft, Alyx thinks. Strange, actually, that they don’t bruise when spoken to roughly. 

Hanky stays awake most of the night while the others sleep in their protective sacks. Only once does he doze off, for a few minutes. Every now and then he checks on Alyx to see if she is still okay, gives her some water and a few crumbs from his granola bar.  

Hanky and Alyx prepare breakfast. One by one, everyone wakes up, they are silent. Rome disappears somewhere in the field. After breakfast, they pack everything up and are about to head back. Rome, calls Pops. Rom, we want to go.  

Rom comes out of the bushes, teeth clenched. Her braid hangs out of her backpack. Her short hair is blowing lightly around her ears, the fishies have gathered on the top of her head. Alyx feels like she has to swallow something big and dry. 
 

09/2023