Mr. Hartley (Alternate Places Book 1)

by P. S. Power

  Zack must have blacked out, because Karl's Shadow crouched over him in the dark, probably close to where he stood physically, when Zack opened his eyes. He felt a warm finger poke at him. Hard.

  Karl said something he didn't understand, then the Shadow spoke.

  You smell of my sister. What have you done with her!

  Zack focused. With as much sincerity as he could muster, he said on both levels, “Hilda... Hildgeurde sent me.”

  His outer voice croaked a bit, but came out clearly enough, he hoped. He said it several times.

  “Hildgeurde zont vos?” Karl spoke aloud. His deeper self translated clearly.

  My sister Hildgeurde sent you?

  He said yes and projected that on as deep a level as he could. An alarm sounded outside about then. Apparently whoever was watching had noticed him. Heat sensors or night vision maybe? He made his way to his feet, shakily, barely able to stand yet and took a hold of Karl's arm trying to pull him toward the shortcut that sat flush with the far wall. The giant didn't budge. Zack didn't blame him, but tried to pull him by force, not wanting to take the time to communicate things to the giant while armed men were coming to get him. It didn't work, as hard as Zack tried.

  He explained what he needed on the Shadow level, but Karl didn't understand why he should run into a solid wall. Finally, seeing that talking would get him nowhere, at least not fast enough to get out before someone came in, he walked out of the cage and back in a moment later. Zack knew the other man couldn't see him in the dark or sense things the way he did even, but he hoped Karl could catch that his scent faded and came back or something. He did this twice more before Karl tried to step with him.

  Outside, Karl reeled for a moment, nearly pulling Zack to the ground while trying to maintain his balance. Zack, for his portion of things, gasped in pain, his lungs burning and head ringing. He let go of the big Trolleinkein, who stood over eight foot tall at least, and staggered away to vomit in some handy bushes. He could still hear the sirens from the base and helicopters taking off. At least one came their way it seemed. With an act of will, he forced himself up, took Karl by the arm and led him, slowly, to the next shortcut.

  Karl didn't know what had happened for certain, but this didn't stop him from following the tiny being that led him away from captivity. His Shadow relayed that he could always just kill the tiny thing if the strange creature took him somewhere he didn't want to go. Zack didn't care, as long as Karl kept following along. The burning inside his head that he felt and the brightness of the world distracted him too much to be concerned about someone merely killing him.

  They made slow progress. Zack needing to take a break every few minutes to catch his breath. He continued on doggedly, trying not to stop for long. This went on for hours before they found a Nexus, one just sitting in the middle of nowhere, unattended. From there, Zack got them back to the meadow pretty easily, even though he did fall to the ground gasping a little after taking Karl through. The trip to Hilda's mom's house only took three steps, faster than before by far, practice really paying off. He tried to vomit again, but being empty already, he just heaved occasionally as he walked.

  Karl recognized the place when he saw it, and shook off the little hand on his arm and ran toward it yelling. A huge noise erupted from within with even more people coming out. Karl had a half dozen large beings grab him almost immediately.

  Zack didn't get too close, letting them have their moment. Also, he realized, he didn't want them to accidentally crush him. The power that Karl had used against him left him wary and a little shaken now that he'd had time to think about it. If the giant hadn't been sitting when he struck out at Zack the blow would have probably taken his head off. He'd be dead at least, his skull crushed against that metal wall.

  After a minute, Karl said something loudly, causing Hilda to whip around, running to where Zack sat on the ground.

  “Zack! Are you all right? Karl said he thought you might be sick or hurt... you're covered in dirt...”

  He related the story to her, how he put the mud on to prevent pictures from being taken and accidentally got hit by Karl. “I may have a concussion, a bump on the head that could kill me if it's bad enough, so don't let me fall asleep... I don't know why but that's what they always say to do with concussions. I may have cracked or broken some ribs too. Lift up my shirt in back and describe what you see to me.” He leaned forward a little to encourage her.

  She hissed.

  “That isn't your normal color at all... It looks blue and purple with black spots over about half of your back. What do we do?” Concern colored her voice enough that several others came over to see as well.

  “Um. Well, I'm not doctor. Don't let me sleep, even if I want to... I can't think of anything for the bruises, but if you have pain killers that would be good. I should probably get up and get someplace out of the way, if that's all right? I really don't want to be stepped on here if I can help it.”

  Karl came over and asked Hilda if they should carry the little being in. Zack said no, a little panicked by the idea, because it would hurt worse to be carried than to walk. They led him inside and put him on a sturdy piece of furniture made of wood. It had been polished to a fine sheen with a vaguely lemon scented oil and had flowers carved into it in a symmetrical fashion. From his time at the furniture store he could tell it had the air of quality about it, for all that it looked over-sized and a bit strange to him. The seams were almost invisible and the direction of the wood grains all matched nearly perfectly.

  They used some soft cushions to prop him up, making a small cocoon of them for him, carefully keeping them away from the bruises where they could.

  The huge woman, Hilda's mother, came to stand in front of him. She motioned for Hilda to come to her. It was a firm thing, but didn't seem mean or anything. Hilda had explained that he could understand her, but he couldn't answer directly. Since that happened to be functionally true if not literally, he nodded and explained to the woman's deeper self what he needed for communication.

  You have brought my son back to me, from the lands of the lost and dead. What I have belongs to you. My life and work are yours to take. You'll want for nothing as long as I live.

  Hilda nodded and simply said, “Me too.”

  Zack didn't reply for a few moments. When he finally did speak he tried to make his voice as cheerful as possible, wondering if he was going to have this conversation every few days or something now.

  “Hilda's my friend. There can be no debt here...”

  He hoped that this didn't cross into some social taboo or insult them. He didn't want them to feel obligated either. Why couldn't people understand that they didn't owe him anything for things like this? The guy needed a hand, so Zack helped. Simple, and to him at least, straight forward. No big deal.

  Hilda translated this and her mother started crying. They hugged speaking rapidly. Their Shadows finally said something along the lines of, Are you sure? Is this real? Though it got muddled as others came in.

  They talked back and forth for several minutes. Hilda finally shouted them all down, but did it with good spirit in her voice. She talked at length then. He fought down a wave a nausea, not wanting to get sick in front of everyone in this very nicely decorated room. It wasn't just the people looking, but that didn't help. He couldn't really track it all at the moment, not even enough to hear what Hilda's Shadow said to the others.

  Finally she turned to him.

  “They couldn't believe that you would turn down what they offered. Oh, and others had offered half of all they owned each too, everyone in the village, so you know. I told them that your debt was being held only between you and I, is that right? Because I'm your friend? Then I told them about the little girl and how you went into your greatest fear to save her from death, seeking nothing in return and how later you helped save another girl taking only small payment, and then only when thrust upon you so that others could save their honor.” She took a breath. “Then they asked if
that was because they were Human or girls. I told them that you didn't seem to measure things that way...”

  He smiled at her and told her that it sounded much better when she said it than when it had happened. He shifted, carefully keeping himself from wincing.

  “I don't want to kill the party, Hilda, but I think I need to get to work soon. Do you know the time actually?” She held out her watch, it read seven thirty-two. “Okay, so I need to get to the store by nine. I think I can make it. Are you coming back with me or would you like to stay here for a few days. I can come back and get you if you would rather.”

  Hilda excitedly translated this to her mother, who hugged her and said something that her deeper self didn't bother to translate.

  “Mother says I should go for now, but that we should come back soon and visit, if that's possible?” She looked hopeful. “I don't want to stress our friendship, I owe you so much already...”

  Zack looked at her mother and focused on matching his words with his deeper impression.

  “I'll bring her back in...two weeks, all right with you, Hilda? Two weeks then.” Everyone in the room stood straighter and some took a step away from him. It seemed that he managed to make himself understood more clearly that time.

  Hilda beamed.

  On some level, he knew that he shouldn't try to walk back to the mall, interestingly, the announcement that he had to go to work, injured or not, didn't cause a stir among the Trolleinkein present. That seemed to be accepted as perfectly natural. Zack didn't know if that had to do with their incredible will or the fact that they didn't understand how badly he might be hurt.

  Karl didn't clap him on the back. He'd started to, but stopped when Hilda snatched his arm in mid-strike.

  I heard what you said and will honor your ways, friend. But if you need my help, or need anything I have to give, know that it is yours. Also, look out for my sister? The world is dangerous out there.

  They worked their way to the Nexus point in the meadow quickly enough. From there they reached the gym in about ten seconds. Zack asked if he could use their shower to get the dirt off. Hilda grabbed a fresh pair of sweats for him and helped him get undressed and into the shower. Realizing he could hardly lift his arms, she stripped down and joined him without blinking.

  This probably should have made him uneasy, but for some reason it didn't. Maybe Hilda's natural innocence made him feel at ease. More likely, the head wound just provided enough distraction to keep him focused on that instead of her. He soaked his head for a few minutes, with her washing his head and face over and over to get all the mud off. He noticed that the soap they used smelled vaguely of flowers. It seemed strange for a power lifting gym at first. Still, if a three hundred and fifty pound power lifter wanted to smell like flowers, who'd make fun of him for it? Not Zack.

  He also noticed that the skin on her stomach, while abs showed, also had enough flesh over them to not look...wrong. She just looked like she kept herself in really good shape. It reminded him of something, though he couldn't think of it at the moment. He figured that it would come to him eventually.

  She didn't even try to wash his back, though she washed his stomach, legs and then between his legs without blinking. She did smile as he began to respond physically, but didn't say anything, just helped him rinse off. Zack just kept his mind locked down and got through it as best he could.

  The gym had amazingly soft and fluffy towels, pure white and slightly fruit scented. Hilda patted him dry as gently as she could and helped him dress. He put on his old sneakers without socks, because the ones he had on before had dirt caked into them for some reason, though he didn't remember running through mud.

  She threw on some sweats herself, out of her locker. He tried not to watch, but did notice she didn't have any pubic hair, as Lars had mentioned and that she didn't bother with underwear. Which, when he stopped to think about it, made sense. Not one of the Trolleinkein had worn clothing or had need of it, what with all that hair, in their own lands. Clothes were an affectation for them, as much as Human mannerisms were for Claire and the Vampires or talking on the Shadow level was for him.

  “I'll walk you to work, if you don't mind?” She didn't try to take his arm, just moved beside him slowly, letting him set the pace, obviously ready to catch him if he fell or tripped.

  He wondered if she thought that helping him would shame him or something, or if she thought that he might think that way? He'd have to ask sometime. For now it worked well enough, so he went with it. He kept having to fight down the nausea, his stomach and head both burning a little as they went down the red tiled walkway.

  At the door he realized his key sat on top of the cardboard box he used as a bedside table. He grinned and told Hilda about this.

  “It's almost nine. How long will it take to get to your house?” asked Hilda.

  Zack started walking immediately, catching her hand on the way past, to bring her along. This time she didn't make him try ineffectively to drag her.

  “I think we can make it. I may need your help, so be ready to hold me up.”

  She expressed her concern as they walked across the parking lot, still holding his hand. She stopped when he stepped through the shortcut a little more than halfway across. He pointed out that his house stood right there in front of them, across the street. They had to wait for traffic, but not too long, a minute or so, because he had to walk across slowly, not dash like he normally would have.

  Once inside – luckily the door had been unlocked, since he didn't have a key – Zack grabbed his work things quickly. Hilda looked around appraisingly, but didn't comment on how the place looked. He realized that it probably seemed like a mud hut compared to her mother's, which while different than what an extremely wealthy Human would have here, had been furnished and decorated at a level that would be at least comparable. Hilda's mom definitely wasn't poor.

  The trip back seemed easier to him, probably because Hilda took his arm and carried about a quarter of his weight without even thinking about it.

  He gave a little cheer internally when he saw that he had the door open at nine exactly.

  Hilda didn't stay, but instead crossed the hall and talked to Claire for some minutes then headed down the mall. Claire kept looking at him as he sat gingerly on the stool behind the counter. After a few moments, she walked over and spoke to him.

  “The young lady says that you had quite a night. This time you saved her brother from an army, and took injury in the process?” She seemed both concerned and bit skeptical at the same time.

  “Well... yes. Though the way you said it makes it sound like I got injured fighting them, possibly with one hand tied behind my back? The reality's far more boring. Her brother accidentally knocked me into a steel wall. It lacks in good story telling, but still hurts. Her brother is huge. Literally over eight feet tall. I don't want to be the type to complain, but, you know, whaaa. I can assure you that physical strength is not lacking in her family. As you may have already guessed.” He smiled down at her from his perch.

  "I'd imagine not, all things considered. Well, it was a good thing to do, even if hard. A thing that few would have even thought about, truth be told. I mean I've never fought an army for a being that I didn't even know." Then she turned to look behind her and a few seconds later Master Wu-Li and Hilda walked into view. “Ah, good Hilda, I see you got one of the healers.” She didn't excuse herself, standing back only a little way to watch what happened with Hilda. Zack noticed that, for all the external praise, both of them seemed concerned.

  About him. It was different than what he was used to, but real enough. Shadows never lie.

  Wu-Li helped him lift his shirt, revealing what was apparently an impressive sight, since Claire's inner self remarked that it looked about bad as she'd seen on anyone before. Living people at least. The healer felt his head and looked into his eyes deeply. Then he stood back and passed his hands over Zack's body, held about five or six inches away. His Shadow self pushed along the s
urface of Zack's as he did it.

  “You have a concussion, a mild thing, thankfully. You also seem to have three cracked ribs on the left side, which will make sleeping hard for a few days. You're remarkably without chi blockage or sluggish flow however, so you should heal rapidly. I have some herbs for you to take. Boil them in one and a half cups of water for fifteen minutes and strain, then drink the liquid. Do this once every three hours for three days. I trust I can count on you ladies to make certain this happens? Drink the herbs even if you don't feel any pain at the moment. What I'll give you is strong, but doesn't affect the mind much, except to stop pain. You shouldn't sleep for a time, a day from the point of injury should be more than enough. If there's any other problems, please call me directly.” He addressed this last bit at Claire and Hilda in turn as if he expected them to be responsible for Zack. That wasn't the nature of their relationships however. A few meals or treats didn't mean they'd want to watch an invalid for days on end.

  He wasn't even sure that Hilda had that kind of concept. Her people were all so strong that they didn't seem to get hurt very often at all. Claire... Well, she was hundreds of years from having to deal with that kind of thing herself, right? Zack was pretty certain that he was going to be on his own that way. It was how things worked in real life.

  They both nodded, as if this would only be expected and natural. Maybe it was a cultural thing that Zack just didn't get?

  The first herb packet in the bunch was given over to Claire, who took it without comment and left, hurrying away. The Master said he'd have more packets made up shortly and that he'd put them in the front of his store for pick up in an hour and left as well, presumably to make those up. He didn't exactly scurry away, but his walk wasn't slow, either.

  That left him sitting there, with his head aching, and Hilda watching him closely the whole time. Like she thought he might just fall to sleep without warning. It was kind of tempting, but he knew better than to do that. Not that he had a clue, even now, of what might happen if he did. A bit of brain swelling wouldn't get worse if he did. Maybe it was lying down that he needed to avoid? So blood wouldn't rush to his head?