by Angela Timms
Kyla felt the rush of energy and the stone giving way under her hand. It looked the same but in consistency instead of stone it was like rubber. She could push into it. Then it began to become transparent and gradually she could see a corridor beyond it. The corridor was cut into the stone and looked very like an extension of the cave.
On the floor and ceiling there were matching metal plates which were kept apart by metal pillars. The rest of the corridor appeared empty.
Kyla pushed forwards and moved through the wall. Kel was right behind her, his hand gripping her shoulder so that if she was sucked through, he would be as well.
Rennon made a grab for them but his hand closed around empty air.
As the resistance lessened unexpectedly Kyla fell forwards and stepped onto the metal plate in the corridor, Kel fell into the back of her but they kept their footing. Kyla turned around immediately and put her hand on the wall, grabbing hold of Kel’s arm as she did it. They were pulled through the wall and ended up back where they started although Rennon had moved in to check out the wall and they bowled him over.
Rennon picked himself up and dusted his clothes off. “Boy am I glad to see you.”
Kyla smiled, her face beaming. “I’m glad to be seen. Boy was that a worrying one. When we fell into that corridor I thought that was it. But it seems that it’s a two way doorway, we can step backwards and forwards. It is funny what you think about just after you have made a potential mistake.” Rennon looked at Kel who was standing on the spot, his hand on Kyla’s shoulder, looking stunned. “Well, what did you think of that?”
Kel smiled a little nervously. “Can’t say I’d rate it as fun but she certainly reacts fast.”
Rennon looked a little surprised. “What do you mean fast? You were gone nearly an hour.”
Kyla looked at the readings. “No, I turned and came straight back out. There seems to be some sort of time dilation or manipulation”
Rennon ran the scanner over Kyla. “You are learning the right words fast lady and also you are coated with Eion Particles. I would assume that was when you moved through IDS, the device is using the same technology as we use in our Star Drives. Any sign of Damien?”
Kyla’s smile faded. “In truth I was so shocked at what had happened I could only think about trying to get back. We’d better try again and see where that corridor leads.” She turned and faced the wall. “We’d better not all go, but best not to leave just one person behind. So, who is coming with me?”
Kel and Rennon stood behind Kyla, Connor behind them. She put her hands on the wall and pushed forwards. They moved through the wall and appeared in the corridor which was lit by burning torches now that burnt with a purple flame.
Rennon stepped off of the metal plate and began scanning it, the walls and just about everything. “The place is loaded with particles. They become less and less as you move away from that wall so I would assume that this is some sort of transportation area.”
A voice came from the wall. “And it is guarded.”
Kel whipped around and pointed his pistol at the wall. There was apparently nobody there but as they watched someone appeared. He was a man, about six feet tall, thin and with pale lilac hair. Kyla was forced to take a sharp intake of breath on seeing him and Kel growled when she did. He was truly handsome. He seemed shadowy, although very definitely there standing in front of them. He was visible when he moved but his camouflaged clothing allowed him to disappear when near the wall. “I wouldn’t shoot at me unless you want to bring down the wrath of my people. You are visitors here; you can be guests or prisoners. That is your choice. You are in our land now and our ways are not your ways.”
Kyla tried to smile but she could feel her lips trembling. “I’m Kyla; we would rather come as guests.”
The local man smiled. “I’m glad to hear it. Now if you will follow me I had better tell you a few things about this land. We don’t get visitors often and that closed portal should have stayed closed. That is nothing to do with you by the way. Perhaps it is time it was open again. Who knows? You may have heard some tales of our people and others like them. Do you know the story of King Herla?” They looked confused. “Oh dear, we had hoped that during your research you had looked into such things. Had you no idea who lived beyond the gateways?”
Kyla shook her head. “We had only just worked out that they were gateways.”
The tall stranger shrugged his shoulders. “Oh dear, I would have thought our friend Widget would have been a clue but I guess she kept that one to herself. Well I’ll tell you the story of King Herla as we walk as the corridor will suffice in distance for all that I need to say. Herla met a short man riding a goat one day; the man had the hooves of a goat and a big head. He was courteous and he said that in one year the king would marry and they would attend the wedding feast. It happened as they said and when they did they brought gifts, food and musicians and served the king and his guests well with marvelous things not found in your dimension. They asked nothing in return other than that the King and his men did a similar service when he married a year later. They did and the King was given a hound to help him get back to your world as the process was a little tricky. The hound was trained to jump from the saddle when it was safe to dismount. When Herla got back many hundreds of years had passed. Some of his knights tried to dismount without waiting. They died of old age as soon as they hit the ground as it wasn’t the right time to get off the horses. In those days we were having some problems with the devices. It was unfortunate and these stories have become some of the most well known in your folklore. I would assure you that our technology is far more advanced now but if you are asked to do something, do it as there is always a reason. There are countless stories about our people coming through the gateways and of your people returning here or to other lands within our realm. Don’t worry, we have no intention of returning you as withered old men and sorry my lady, I would not see your youth stolen away either. You will be safe with us. It seems we have a common enemy and the enemy of my enemy is my friend I think your people have said.” He took a breath. “There, you see, I did fit it all in.”
Kyla looked thoughtful. “Who are you?”
The local smiled. “You know your people very rarely ask that, most are only interested in gold and treasures. I am Naiarlindris, King of the West Realm, forgive me for not introducing myself, we have very little contact with your realm since Christianity gained a foothold. Please, accept my hospitality and know that you are within my protection within the realm. You can call me Nai.”
Kyla choked.
Nai laughed. “Yes I’m a faerie, one of the Fey Realm. You call my sort Sidhe and various other names.” They came to a turn in the corridor and a door was immediately in front of them. It was huge, about twenty feet tall, solid oak and carved with leaves and vines. It stood within an ornate stone arch. Nai reached forwards, flipped one of the leaves open to reveal a keypad. He tapped in a sequence of numbers and the doors swung open. “Welcome.” He stepped into the room.
The room was ornately painted with vines that ascended into the vaulted roof. There were tables set out in lines; each held computers and sitting working away there were lines of tall thin individuals with green, purple or blue hair. There was a huge white write on board full of mathematical symbols and a metal device was set on a table and other scientists were wandering around it, their pale green coats stuffed with pens in pockets, notebooks and pieces of wire.
Nai let them take the room in. “This is our working room at the moment. I’m sorry we can’t offer you our usual banquet but these are troubled times. We’re working on similar problems to you I am led to believe. That there is a device we can’t seem to get working.
Rennon coughed to get Nai’s attention. Nai turned to him. “Young Kyla here seems to be able to activate certain artefacts, perhaps she can help.” Nai smiled politely. “I thank you and I do appreciate your offer but I doubt there is anyone in this room that wouldn’t be able to activate
it if it was the usual artefacts that you have been coming into contact with. The bloodline that gives you your gift is also ours. We have mixed and been a part of your realm for far longer than you would admit and we have a far greater part in it than you would expect. You are going to like this though, that is a Follower artefact.”
Rennon looked stunned. “Their artefacts are different?”
Nai took a clipboard from a green haired scientist who had just stridden over. “Very good, I’d try Lexiathiam, 30ml. Then scan it and if you don’t get a reaction try Hexasilicate and if that has no effect, try heating it.” The scientist looked down shyly and smiled at Kyla, blushed a darker shade of green and turned and strode off.
Nai smiled. “Please forgive my people, they rarely come into contact with travelers and they are shy. Yes, that is something you may not have discovered, we have a more secluded way of living and that can be very beneficial sometimes. We’ve been taking a good look at the Followers. I don’t know how much you know but we found out that their conversion of your races is moving ahead at a frantic rate. They converted verbally to start with but they have a sacrament which is very like your Christian one but the liquid that is used will actually alter the DNA of the person taking it.
We were working on the theory that they are a created race, an experiment that went wrong I suppose you could say something happened as there is a real change in who they were and what they believed. It could go back to Earth history when various new races were being created. In the Fertile Crescent there was the Adama race, not far from there another race was being tried out. When this other race proved unsatisfactory they were wiped out but not completely. The survivors could be the ones behind the Followers as the text they live by seems to be a corruption of the one followed by many humans. Whether it is true or not it seems that the Followers may believe it. The Followers are becoming like this old race by some drug that seems to have appeared from nowhere. I have no idea what they are called in your tongue and I have found nothing in your texts and writings about them so it could be that the race only existed in one dimension and maybe not yours until now. It is the drug that is causing the problem and finding out where it came from could alter everything. For now we have had to focus on what they are doing and to try to find a way to combat them.
They have stolen a belief and made it a religion. That doesn’t seem documented anywhere. I have found the original texts and the directives to protect the world. The original organization was Fallow Earth and it started in Mid USA in the 1960s. I liked the 60s, the colours were so vibrant. Anyway, then there is a jump in belief to this Fallow Earth Cult. This is where I believe these creatures infiltrated and started altering people. That’s a hard one to fight. The DNA has been altered to actually be them. That’s a mortal thing; I can’t comprehend it so that’s one for you to deal with. It does mean that you Kyla and anyone else with the blood cannot be converted. That is why your bloodline is so important. But it would put you all at the top of their most wanted list if they knew that truth. This information could be flawed, we can’t seem to verify it but we have memories of some of it but as I said there are many dimensions and this could be a cross over.”
He walked to a table set aside by the wall. On it were various metal items and boxes. “You may find this interesting.” He picked up a bullet like object. “I’m assuming that you are thinking that it’s a bullet, well it is in a way and it’s the most terrifying innovation in their arsenal. They haven’t started using them yet as its still in the experimental phase. I lost four good men trying to get this one. By what we have managed to find out is that it carries the DNA so when it hits the victim they are converted. What we have to remember is that they are experimenting as well so things change. This could be a prototype, it could be a failed experiment, and we have no way of knowing.”
Rennon looked horrified. “My god! That is just outrageous.”
Nai smiled and put the bullet down. “We’re working on something to reverse the DNA conversion. By the way the DNA spiral works it is two lines of information twisted as you probably know. We’re working on something that will reverse engineer the DNA back to its original pattern. That is proving difficult but I have my best people on it. As I said that is more something for you to understand as it’s a mortal thing. Our way of thinking is too different. What I would suggest is that there could be something synthesized from blood. Probably not a cure but certainly a temporary vaccination and I believe you mortals are very keen on their vaccinations.”
Kel was studying the bullet. “Where is Damien?”
Nai turned swiftly. “Ah, I was wondering when you were going to remember him. He will be fine but I’m afraid he got in the way when the Hound got out. Mainanna, my daughter, was supposed to be watching him but she fell asleep. He found his way to the gate and your friend got in the way of his little scamper. The gate has been playing up since you arrived on the island my dear lady and it keeps opening. We’ve managed to keep most of our more unpleasant inhabitants away from the gate but we’ve had a couple of slip ups. What he met was a Cu Sith, pronounced “cooshee”; he’s the size of a small cow and very playful. Your friend will be fine but he’s in our Infirmary at the moment in the capable hands of Miraim, our Medic.” Kel’s look was like thunder. “He was attacked by a dog? Was that the creature I met last night?”
Nai looked down at his feet. “Ah, I was wondering when you were going to ask. I have to apologize for that. Narketra is a bit excitable and he didn’t mean to claw you. Don’t worry, there’s no infection that will pass on to you and he does keep his claws very clean. He was very curious and I wanted to find out who you were so he thought he’d help out. He was taking a look around and you surprised him. Well done by the way, he’s very good usually and only managed to cloak himself when he got to the courtyard. I did manage to call him back soon after that. He is very good at hanging around in bedrooms and I doubt you wanted him as a guest even though you wouldn’t have known he was there.”
A female scientist with rainbow coloured hair wandered past carrying a tray with metal tools on it. She smiled at Nai. “These have been repaired; Keslios did a very good job as always.”
Nai smiled at her. “Thank you Trantalia, very good. I like the hair, which suits you.”
The woman blushed and smiled. “Thank you my Lord.” She then strode off, very pleased with herself.
Nai smiled at Kyla who was looking curious. “The fashion for coloured hair has been popular for a number of years. Naturally our hair is white so it takes dye well. It is one of our frivolous vanities I have to confess. Now we must attend to more serious matters. You now know that we exist and we would appreciate it if you didn’t try to remove our device from the cave. Our exit on Lundy has proven to be one of our most effective for our water folk and we would like to keep it that way. We would also ask that you leave other devices around the world alone. We thought that directly telling you about the situation would be preferable to you wasting time and resources when you have such a dangerous enemy on your doorstep, and ours. We would of course like to open diplomatic channels though I know it is going to bog me down in incessant meetings and discussions for days. It has to happen as I am sure that you have protocols for this sort of thing.” He looked towards Kel. “Don’t worry; I’m not going to expect anything like that now. I’ll talk to your appropriately trained personnel when the time is right.”
Rennon was looking around like a hungry beast placed in front of the best steak. “The equipment you have here is truly magnificent.”
Nai beamed a smile at him. “I know and you are going to want to trade for some of it. So I am sure that you will also wish to maintain our secrecy and if we can negotiate it I am sure you would like to use our transport system. All this may well be possible. For now I would like you to go back and report to your Mission Command and for you who came from Earth to report to your people.”
Kyla was looking around. “Are you from Earth?”
Nai’s smile fell from his face. “You know that is a very good question. We are not exactly from Earth, we came to Earth and many of our people in the past have created the myths and legends that used to keep people entertained on dark nights. We arrived on a ship many years ago when it ran out of power and was forced to land. We made Earth our home and its problems are now our problems. We used our advanced technology to connect with the one that humans inhabit but we have all the dimensions, not just your one. I am sure that you have worked it out by now by what you call Eion Particles around the gate that you are in another dimension, ours.”
Kyla was still looking around. “Surely you could shut off the dimensional travel and be safe from the Followers?”
Nai smiled again. “We could if we wanted to but our existence has become interlinked, we would not yet abandon those who have lived alongside us, albeit unknowingly for so long. Your problems are our problems for the present. We will see what the future holds.”
Kyla looked around the room. “What was the image I saw when I first came to the cave?”
Nai smiled enigmatically. “Ah, the lost one. She came to the cave many years ago looking for her lost lover. He would not return to your world, he abandoned you all to your fate many years ago. She should have returned with him but she refused to. Over the millennia she has been reborn again and again. She lives her life and every time she carries on with what she believes is her mission. But over the years she has forgotten and re-learnt what that mission is so often that the memory is breaking down. When the veils are thin he sometimes visits her. Then she remembers for a while. He will not join her and be mortal again; she will not give up you mortals and return to him. But, while she is in your world he will protect it from the final vengeance. His ships are powerless as if he destroyed the Earth he would finally destroy her if she did not slip into spirit to join him first. What you saw was Desrinus, my son trying to lead her into setting him free when he had been trapped by my wife for actions against our people. She used the end of the tunnel for a while and he spent many years convincing the lost one that he was her lover.”
