“I’m aware of what happened to the man and woman who raised you, but I am your mother.” She waited for further objection before continuing. “When you were just a baby—well actually, before, you were a baby—before you were born, I had you stored as an embryo. Do you know what that is?”
Kid nodded. In truth, he wasn’t entirely sure what it was, but he guessed that it was whatever babies were before they were babies.
“I did this to protect you—”
“Protect me from what?”
“From whom actually… Our relationship with our allies in the Sixth Verse was quickly unraveling as distrust grew on both sides. I thought it best not to bring a baby into the world at such a time of dangerous conflict. Unbeknownst to me, the conflict would drag on for years. It’s worse now than it ever was.
“Somehow, an agent of the Sixth learned of your existence and stole you away, no doubt hoping to use you in a plot against me and our world. I have searched for you for years, and only just now found you. As soon as I learned where you were, I sent my own agents to retrieve you and bring you here to safety.”
Kid was waiting for his bullshit alarm to start blaring, but something about the woman’s story wasn’t tripping his internal lie detector.
“Let’s say I believe you—” Kid was not absolutely sure that he did, but until more information came to light, what choice did he have? He could only be wary and proceed with caution. “Why did you kidnap me?”
The woman claiming to be his mother cocked her head to the side. “Come now, if they would have asked you to go with them to another universe, would you have followed them willingly?”
Kid had to admit, she had a point there.
“We simply didn’t have the time necessary to explain ourselves, but we do have that time now.”
“What happened to Jack? The man who saved me from the riot… Where is he?”
Lady White frowned, “I’m afraid he’s been taken by our enemies. Last we heard he’d been arrested in the Fifth but now he’s vanished from the holding cell. No one can find a trace of him anywhere on world, which probably means that he isn’t. Our best guess is that he was captured by the same people who were after you.
“We only had a slight window of opportunity to get you out of there. If we would have had more time… We tried to rescue your friend too, but… I’m sorry.”
“You’re going to get him back though, right?” Kid said, agitated and on the verge of tears. He could feel them welling up. Why was all this happening to him? And why did the people around him keep getting hurt?
Lady White stood and came around the desk, opening her arms wide. “I can see how upset you are. Come here.” She walked to the side of his bed and wrapped her arms around him.
Despite his anger and lingering doubts, Kid let himself be comforted. It felt good there in her motherly embrace, soothing.
“There, there… Of course we’re going to get your friend back. We are not the sort of people who would let something like this go without a response.” She broke the hug and knelt down face to face with her son. “There is something you can do for us that will help us rescue your friend. In fact, it could be vital, if we are to succeed.”
“What is it?” Kid asked, already knowing he would do whatever he could to help get Jack back. Jack was more family to him than anyone.
“We have a plan to end the threat from the Sixth forever, but in order to implement it, we need someone from the Sixth to help.”
“What’s so special about someone from the Sixth? Why do you need one of them?”
“That’s a good question, Kid. You’re such a smart boy… The inhabitants of the Sixth have evolved into what you may know as telepaths. They are able to interact with each other and in some cases, the physical world, using only their minds.”
“Do you have someone from the Sixth?”
“Well, see… that’s where you would come in.” She paused for a moment, her voice trembling slightly as her eyes grew watery. “Your father was from the Sixth… He was one of the first casualties of the conflict… We loved each other so much…” She blinked and single tears streaked down her face. “Anyway, you see, that makes you from the Sixth. Do you understand?”
Kid nodded, but he didn’t really get it. All he could think about was getting Jack back. Once he did that, he could get to the bottom of all this other bullshit that had been piled on him today. “What do I have to do?”
A smile came to Lady White’s face as she explained.
Start At Once
There was a knock at the door.
“Come in,” Lady White said.
Asher entered the room, closing the door behind him, his long hair slightly disheveled, but otherwise appearing well kept. Ever since they had returned with the Prime Minister’s son, Asher had seen less and less of Ava, and try as he might, he couldn’t seem to get ahold of her.
“Forgive me for intruding,” Asher said, “but I was wondering if you had heard about our home yet. Is there any news? Can we go back soon?” He was growing more bored by the hour in the Seventh. Even with the band and the endless hours of entertainment that were available on every vid network, Asher found himself merely wanting to go home. Back to his world of lamps and horses—back to simplicity.
White’s face showed concern. “Why, I told Ava earlier today that we had heard from the Fourth. Everything is fine now. Ava’s mother returned, and the darkness, whatever it was, is now gone without a trace. You two are free to go home anytime you like. Didn’t Ava relay of any of this to you?”
“No, she didn’t.” Asher was dumbfounded. Why wouldn’t she tell me about this? We can go home now. “Forgive me once more, but you wouldn’t happen to know where I could find her, would you?”
“Of course, dear, just one moment.” She stared off into nowhere, accessing the information. “She appears to have gone into the city. If you want, I can have someone take you to her, or I can send the coordinates to your band.”
“Thank you, but that’s alright. I think I’ll just wait for her to return,” Asher said. The city was so large and even with an escort he felt alone and swallowed up by it. The fear was irrational, to be sure, but he felt like if he wandered too far out there, he would be lost forever. “If she contacts you, will you tell her that I’m looking for her?”
“Certainly, Asher,” Lady White said, like a gentle mother.
Asher left the room, quietly closing the door behind him.
“Poor fool.”
Asher went back to Ava’s apartment in the embassy building and waited. And waited. Hours later, Ava still hadn’t returned.
Finally, overcoming his fear, and tired of pacing around the room and thinking of every bad thing that might be happening, Asher decided to go for a walk.
It was night, but you could hardly tell from the illumination of the city. It was almost as bright as the day had been. Floating lights lined the streets and sidewalks, flowers in some kind of shiny pots hung from the lights.
He wasn’t sure where he was going, and it didn’t really matter to him at the moment. The only thing Asher knew for sure was the ache in his heart and the feeling of—well, he wasn’t sure. Betrayal, perhaps. Why wouldn’t she tell him about being able to go home? And why was she off touring the city when their people needed her back home—when he needed her?
After an hour, or maybe it was two, Asher couldn’t be sure, there was probably some easy new way for him to tell the time in this fancy new world, but fuck this world—Asher headed back to her room, feeling little better than when he had left.
When he arrived, he found that Ava had returned in his absence. She was just coming out of the bathroom in a bathrobe and her hair up in a towel. She looked every bit the woman that Asher had fallen in love with, and, yet, he couldn’t help but feel that something was off about her.
“There you are,” Asher said. “Where have you been?” Then, realizing he was making demands of the queen-to-be, added, “I was worried about yo
u.”
“I was out seeing the city with one of Lady White’s aides.” She went on as though everything was fine and glorious in the world. “Oh, Asher you should have seen some of the things…” She was staring off in the distance, reliving the memories of the day and the sites seen.
“Ava… There’s something I want to talk to you about.” For all the time Asher had spent thinking about it, he still hadn’t figured out how to say what he was about to.
“Can it wait? I’m exhausted and I want nothing more than a hot meal and a long sleep.”
“I’m afraid it can’t.” Asher could see this was not going to be easy. “I spoke with Miss White earl—”
“That’s Lady White, Asher. You’ll do well to show proper respect.”
“Of course, my apologies, I was unaware that was part of her title.”
“She is to be considered Queen here, for as long as we are in this Verse, is that understood?”
“That’s kind of what I wanted to talk about… I was speaking with Lady White earlier today, and she informed me that the darkness was lifted and your mother had returned and we could go home now—”
“What is your point, Asher?”
“My point is, why aren’t we home yet? I thought we had come to find a way to lift the darkness from our world and then return.” He couldn’t understand how she was being so casual about the matter.
“I’ve spoken with my mother. We aren’t leaving.”
Asher’s jaw dropped. He was absolutely shocked. “What? How… why?”
“I convinced her that there is much that we can learn from our new allies, and truth be told, I wouldn’t be upset if I never set foot on that back water world ever again.”
“Is that really how you feel about our home? What about the people? And the palace?
“What can I say, Asher? I’ve seen the light. The light of a real civilization. This world is centuries ahead of us, and they’ve learned to use thinking machines without destroying themselves as we did. There’s so much we can learn. Emery, one of Lady White’s agents, was telling me about their nano-tech, and he thinks I could be a suitable candidate for it.”
“Ava, what are you talking about? Do you realize how you sound?” Asher couldn’t believe what he was hearing. This was absolutely absurd. These people—this civilization—was built on everything that Asher’s world was not. There was a reason why his people had forsworn the thinking machines. He found it hard to believe that the Queen would change her mind on one of the founding principles of their society so quickly. Especially without seeing this world for herself.
“After we’ve learned their ways, we will be able to bring peace and civilization to our world, Asher. Don’t you see?” Ava asked. “We can bring our people from darkness into the light. We can advance them hundreds, if not thousands of years, in just a matter of days.”
“What is so wrong with our people that we need to be saved, Ava? What sickness plagues us so? Is it that our streets don’t shine? Or that we move about on horses, instead of machines with wings?” What was wrong with her? Asher couldn’t begin to fathom who this person was in front of him. This person who was his lover, his princess, and his best friend.
“You don’t understand, Asher. But in time, you will.”
“What are you talking about? I am going home, and I will take this up with the Queen. I can’t believe that she would allow this for one moment.”
“Perhaps, you are right, Asher. She probably wouldn’t.”
“So you haven’t spoken with her…”
“What need would I have for that?” Ava spat. “I will be Queen soon, and as such I have the right to do whatever I like for the good of our people. And, as it stands, I have made an alliance with Lady White and the Seventh. In return, she has pledged her help in transforming our world into a more modern one. She has made us a member of the Council of Verses, with rights as citizens, and she has offered to train me as a Stranger.”
“You’re absolutely mad! I don’t know you at all, do I?” Asher felt a sharp sting as Ava slapped him in the face.
“I am your Princess, and you will do as I say! Is that clear?” Ava yelled.
Asher rubbed his cheek as a tear began to form, not from the pain of the slap, but from a much deeper pain. He couldn’t stay here any longer, Asher had to get out of the room. Everything seemed to be spinning as he made his way for the door.
“Where are you going? Did you hear what I said, Asher?”
He was barely aware of her voice as he opened the door and made his way out into the night. He began walking down the street, the beginnings of a plan were forming, and then he saw the uniforms on the corner. They began to head toward him, and Asher did what anyone might do in such a situation. He ran.
He wasn’t sure where he was going, or even what direction he was headed in. All Asher knew was that he couldn’t be caught. Panic had set in and a feeling of dread began to take hold. Why were there officers waiting outside the room? What had Ava told them? Did she know I wouldn’t go along with her? She must have had some idea.
It was becoming clear that whatever had just occurred had been set in motion well before today.
As Asher ran, his mind began to clear a little. He could still hear the footsteps behind him, but he was too scared to turn and look. Before him, the entire city was lit up like an enormous version of the Festival of Lights back home.
Asher felt a hand grab his shoulder. He turned and pushed the hand off, the man faltered, tripping up the other officer and buying Asher some precious time. He couldn’t keep this up. The agents were far too quick, no doubt aided by some kind of machinery, the likes of which were quite fantastical. Then again, what did he know about technology. To him, even a simple comm unit was like magic, some fairy tale he’d only read about in a book.
Asher saw an alley on his right and decided to turn down it. Maybe he could lose them in it or find some way to slow them down. He turned and took no more then four steps when he realized it was a dead end.
The wall at the end of the alley was twelve feet high and appeared to be smooth. Asher kept running full speed ahead at it, and when he reached it jumped up, placing one foot on the wall and leaping higher still. For a moment the top of the wall was within grasp. Asher reached out for it, but as he reached, his momentum took him away from the wall and he fell back down to the pavement, landing hard with a thud.
Behind him, Asher heard the following agents slow, coming to a stop. He turned to face his chasers, one of them already speaking into his comm.
“Yes, ma’am, we have him. He put up a good chase, but we finally cornered him.” There was a pause as the man listened to instructions from whoever was on the other end of the call.
Between his own gasps for air, Asher noticed that the two agents weren’t breathing hard at all. What are they? Asher wondered. His eyes were still darting around, looking for a way to escape. To his right he saw a door that must be the back entrance to whatever place of business the door belonged to. It was a little less than halfway between him and the agents. It’s probably locked, Asher thought. And then he remembered the key. The one that had started this whole nightmare to begin with. It was in his pocket.
“Yes, ma’am, I understand,” the agent said, drawing his weapon as he finished speaking. “Sir, I need you to come with us. You won’t be harm—”
But Asher was already moving for the door. The key now in his left hand, round, heavy, and smooth. It was oddly comforting, seeing as how much grief it had caused Asher so far. He had no idea where this door would take him. He had no idea if this would even work or not. He was half expecting nothing to happen when he reached out and grabbed the door handle with his right hand. He twisted, and it caught for a moment before spinning free. Asher yanked back and the door flew open. Instead of a darkly lit back room in some building, a bright, white light was shining all around the doorway. Not waiting for his eyes to adjust, Asher leapt through, and the light faded immediately after him, brie
fly revealing a darkly lit back room in its place. The door shut of its own accord.
“He opened a doorway,” an officer spoke into his comm. “Do you want us to follow?”
“Copy that.”
The two agents turned and walked out of the alley, returning to their posts.
Back in her apartment, Ava listened to the news before replying, “He did? So, everything has happened, just like you said it would.”
“I really am sorry, dear. I wish things could have turned out differently, but I’m afraid your friend just wasn’t ready for the truth.”
“Oh, rest assured, Lady White, if Asher was a true friend, he never would have disobeyed me. His betrayal is unforgivable.”
“I see... So, shall I send Emery for you tomorrow morning then? Are you sure you wish to begin your training so soon? Wouldn’t you like a day or two to adjust to everything that’s happened?”
“No, there’s no need. I’d like to start as soon as possible.”
“Very well, darling.”
The conversation ended and Ava walked over to the bed, crawled under the covers and was asleep in seconds. She didn’t shed a single tear.
Bar Fight
Jack’s first two shots missed, but not because his aim was off. These Strangers were fast. He didn’t know what they were made of, but whatever it was, it gave them lightning quick reflexes.
There were two Strangers that Jack could see, both men, just inside of the back door, one covering the other as they scanned the chaos that they had created, looking for their targets. Unfortunately, Jack’s gunfire had helped them narrow down the search area and now Jack’s party was pinned down behind the overturned table.
“Any ideas?” Jack yelled, checking his clip to see how many shots left he had. He popped back up over the table and fired off two more rounds. These bullets found their target, the torso of the agent closest to them.
The Stranger grunted as the two rounds hit him, but kept on moving towards them, firing as he came.
Strangers and Shadows Page 13
