by Lizzy Ford
“He traveled alone to my world to find me. We are not allies. I would say he is afflicted by something terrible to resort to such madness.”
Realizing her meaning, I flushed and looked away.
“I see more than physical pain. I am the best on my planet, known even to hard-headed Tili warriors,” the Woli said proudly. “Now, tell me why a Tili war leader risked his life to kidnap me from my planet.”
I almost smiled. It was probably wrong of me, but warmth unfurled inside me when I understood how far Teyan had gone to get me help. He went against his better judgment, and against the traditions of his people, twice now. He didn’t deserve my anger.
But neither did he deserve the heartache of being with me when we were doomed.
It was too complicated for me to figure out and difficult to concentrate when I was having trouble breathing normally.
“My ribs,” I answered her.
“Remove your shirt.”
I did so with a grimace. She had to help me pull the Tili tunic over my head. When she rested a hand on my ribs, I hissed, and tears of pain sprang into my eyes.
The Woli healer closed her eyes and tilted her head, as if listening. Her cool palm was light on my abdomen, but everything seemed to hurt.
“You have cracked four … five ribs,” she said, shifting her hand. “You are bleeding internally. It is mild, but can become worse, if you engage in any sort of exertion.”
Dismayed, I studied her. “How do you know?”
“It is what I do,” she said with a shrug of one shoulder. “Woli healers are the best.” Opening her eyes, she moved to a satchel resting on a bench under the window.
I looked down and gasped. My abdomen was black and blue. No wonder I was barely able to breathe.
“Can you fix me?” I asked anxiously.
“It will take two days for you to heal.”
“That long?”
“It would be many weeks without my help,” she said with a chuckle.
“Oh.”
I didn’t think we had two days to rescue my mom, not if Jiod was planning to reveal the locations of the portals to the monsters. I swallowed hard.
In the time I spent talking to Hiko and Carey, no one had come up with a halfway decent plan that didn’t seem suicidal. Carey’s suggestion had been for him to waltz into the central palace and try to warn his government or, failing to gain an audience with his leaders, to cause a distraction for the others to rescue a few dozen people held in the equivalent of a super-max dungeon.
Hiko had shot down every one of Carey’s ideas without supplying a reasonable one of his own, and I was completely useless to suggest anything to a bunch of aliens who knew this world better than I did my own.
“What is that?” I asked in alarm as the Woli healer dumped several tiny, octopus-like creatures into the palm of her hand from a wooden container kept in her satchel.
“Regenerative parasites available only on my planet. We are an ocean planet. Many organisms exist on my world that are not found anywhere else. The bile from this creature contains enzymes that can rebuild tissue a hundred times faster than our bodies can.” She observed the different sized critters before selecting one and sliding the rest back into the wooden container.
“Parasite,” I repeated. The one she selected from among them all was gray, the size of a large spider and slimy. “So … where does it go?”
“Inside.”
“Um, how?”
“You can swallow it as long as you don’t chew. Or through your ear canal,” she answered. “They slide right down your throat. It’s the easiest.”
I swallowed hard. “Then what? I’m stuck with a parasite? I have alien worms?”
“They feed off of what makes you ill. When the infection is gone, and the wounds healed, they die and are processed as food by your system.” The Woli was trying hard not to smile, as if she were explaining this to a child for the first time.
“Any alternative to this?” I asked.
“Not for internal damage.” She held it out to me along with a cup of white liquid. “Swallow it and drink this down. It’ll settle your stomach.”
After hearing her explanation about the parasite, I didn’t want to know what was in the cup. I’d pretend it was milk to get through this.
I took the parasite. It was a little gooey and twitched at my touch.
“Swallow,” she encouraged me.
With a long look at her, I glanced at Tomtom, who was watching with none of my concern.
I didn’t really have much of a choice. I couldn’t remain useless for two days, let alone the weeks it’d take to heal otherwise. This was the best shot at healing quickly. With some apprehension, I sucked in as deep a breath as I could to keep from crying, stared at the slimy creature pinched between two fingers, then tossed my head back and dropped it in my mouth.
Its flavor was mildly fishy but I forced it down. Not a second later, I was ready to vomit.
“Drink,” the Woli healer shoved the liquid at me.
I obeyed and choked it down. It tasted like whole milk and settled my gag reflex. When I was done, I wiped my eyes and handed it back.
“I never want to do that again,” I said with a scowl.
The Woli laughed. “You will feel the effects soon,” she promised. “Do not eat until morning.”
I wasn’t remotely hungry, though I should have been after a day without food.
“Now, your Tili has promised to return me to my world.” She pulled on her cloak.
She helped me replace my clothing. The brush of my shirt against my skin had been agony when I took it off. Already, the pain was subsiding quickly. The material didn’t hurt this time, and I could lift my arms higher than before.
“It’s working,” I said, surprised.
“Of course it is!” she retorted. “Do not push yourself. It numbs the pain first before it repairs the damage. You will remain in a delicate condition probably until morning, even if you cannot feel the pain.”
I nodded. I wasn’t planning on running or fighting tonight but I didn’t yet know what the master plan was either. With any luck, it’d wait until morning.
The Woli tugged on her hood then pushed the fabric door open. She left and went to the adjacent room.
I tested my ribs, amazed by how quickly the pain was vanishing. My chest remained tight when I tried to breathe deeply but didn’t hurt.
“Gianna.”
Every time Teyan said my name, I shivered.
I faced him.
“We have a plan,” he said slowly. “You must return to your world tonight.”
My heart dropped to my feet. “What? No. Not without my mom.” Not without you, I added silently.
“I will bring her,” he said with his usual self-assurance. “We will enter the central palace. Hiko and I are posing as envoys wishing to discuss peace alongside the Nidiani. There is a former ambassador to Tili in residence I can call upon. You must ensure nothing crosses to your world through the portal while we are searching for the Caretakers.”
“Teyan, no,” I said and shook my head. I approached him. “I won’t leave you. Mom. I mean, I won’t leave my mom.”
“We each have a role, Gianna,” he said and rested his hands on my arms. “You must go. If we have not returned by nightfall your time, you must lock the portal to protect your world.”
I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t speak. Teyan’s pale features blurred as tears filled my eyes. I understood what he was saying – but no part of me could accept the idea of losing him and my mom, even if I saved the world in the process.
“I can come with you,” I whispered.
“You’re hurt, and you’re a Caretaker. The Nidiani are hunting your kind. You are at twice as much risk as we are,” he countered with gentleness I didn’t deserve. “Tomtom will go with you. You must take care of him, if I am unable to return to you.”
My anger crumbled.
I closed the distance between us and flung my arms arou
nd his neck. He wrapped me in his strong embrace, and I breathed in his scent.
“Forgive me for lying to you. I always, and only, meant to protect you,” he whispered.
More tears spilled from my eyes. “I know,” I replied. My voice broke and I buried my face into his chest. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have been so angry.”
“I lied to you. It was your right.”
“I don’t want to lose you, and I don’t want anyone’s world to be destroyed!”
“You will never lose me, Gianna. Even if we are a million years apart, you will not lose me.”
I looked up at him, speechless from his conviction. He cupped one of my cheeks in his calloused palm. Heat bloomed inside me at his direct look, and his words echoed in my thoughts.
“I cannot bear for you to be angry with me,” he added.
Are we going to make it? I couldn’t bring myself to ask the question whose answer I was pretty certain I already knew. If he said it aloud, I’d slide into the worst anxiety attack of my life.
“You must go back to your world,” he said again, this time more firmly. “I will not risk your life.”
“But you’ll risk yours,” I murmured.
“I am very difficult to kill,” he said, a gleam of amusement in his gaze. “And I will see you soon.”
This was likely to be the last time we had together. I couldn’t look away from him, didn’t want to. His calm assurance steadied me. If there was anyone in the universe who could save my mom and defeat all the monsters in every world, it was Teyan.
“Okay,” I managed, though my insides were twisting. “I will go.”
“I will not fail you, Gianna.”
“I know.”
He kissed me lightly and folded me into his embrace once more. I released a sigh and rested against his muscular frame. The warmth of his skin pierced his tunic to reach my cheek, and I listened to his heartbeat beneath my ear.
“I am beyond grateful this lovers’ spat has ended,” Hiko said dryly from the doorway. “Woli, give us the room.”
The healer obeyed.
Hiko entered and drew close enough to Teyan and me that no one else could hear his words.
“I do not trust this Carey,” he said.
“Nor I,” Teyan replied. “He will lead us to his people and turn us over.”
“Perhaps. I believe he may actually mean well but his loyalties will interfere. He will choose them over us, if pressed.”
I listened, hating the idea no one was meant to make it out of this situation alive.
“Gianna, if we don’t make it by the time the portal opens again to Nidiani, you must lock it,” Hiko said quietly.
Panic slid through me. Teyan hugged me harder.
“For all we know, this is part of the time loop,” Teyan said to Hiko.
I could never lock out Teyan and my mom.
“It very well might be. But it’s also possible, if we stop the monsters from entering, we break the cycle.”
“But what happens to the Five Peoples?” I asked and lifted my face from Teyan’s chest. “You cease to exist?”
“No.” Carey’s hushed voice from the direction of the doorway drew the scowls of both men. “Anyone standing near the door when it’s locked is unaffected by the shift in space and time. This was theorized, but we know this is true from our experience, Gianna. If you lock the door, you will remember everything that’s happened. You can ensure the Caretakers know to send people through the portals to the distant past of the Five Peoples and populate the planets.”
“If I lock the door and break the loop that allowed the monsters to destroy my planet, what happens to us?” I gazed up at Teyan.
“The monsters entered our world forty winds ago. As long as our planets are populated, they will develop as they are now,” Hiko replied. “And the humans of your time have not yet developed this technology, so you will be as you are now, in theory. You can prevent the monsters from ever being created.”
Teyan’s jaw was ticking as he held my gaze. He alone seemed to understand which us I meant.
“Come, Caretaker,” the Woli healer called from the hallway. “I am late for my dinner.”
I gripped Teyan harder before realizing there really was no choice about returning to my time. He held me tightly.
“We will find a way, Gianna,” he whispered for my ears only.
Releasing him, I took his cheeks with my hands and pulled his head down for a short kiss.
Teyan and I released one another with some difficulty. He replaced my cloak around my shoulders and tugged the hood up before taking my hand and leading me out of the building.
“The Bikitomani will escort you both to the portal,” he said. “Once through, you will be able to find your way home.” This he addressed to the Woli healer.
She nodded.
Teyan’s gaze lingered on me. I was certain, in that moment, we both feared the same thing – that this was the last time we’d see one another.
“Gianna, I’m so sorry.” It was Carey who spoke.
I wasn’t able to acknowledge him. For the first time in my life, I wanted to hit someone and was scared I actually might.
“I know you probably hate me.” He drew near.
I balled up my fists and sought to stay calm.
“You and I were the only people in the universe who didn’t change when you locked the door,” he said quietly. “I think, if you lock it again, and we all die here, you alone will know what happened. You can warn your people about the monsters and document what we all did, so perhaps, if the time loop reoccurs, we will know for next time.”
Not expecting him to be helpful, I looked up at him. “Who would I tell, if everyone is dead?” I asked hoarsely.
“The survivors who make it to our worlds. A million years was not long enough for us to forget why our ancestors fled. Perhaps you can ensure they carry another message with them.”
I was on the verge of crying already and could only nod in response. No part of me believed I could ever lock the door if Teyan and my mom were on the other side. I would rather die with them than spend the rest of my life, alone, living with what happened.
“Caretaker,” the Woli said impatiently and began walking away. “The portals do not wait.”
Teyan offered a small smile that didn’t remove the sorrow in his gaze.
I waved. He waved back, and I turned away.
Everything I loved was behind me. I felt sick.
Tomtom nudged me into walking, and I went.
I trusted Teyan with my life, my mom’s life, with the life of everyone on my planet. How, then, had I been so afraid to trust him with my heart?
Walking away from him, all I could think about was how I should’ve taken a chance on him ten years ago instead of waiting until the last time we might ever meet.
Stuck in my thoughts, I gripped Tomtom’s fur to keep from wandering off course and let the massive cat guide me. We trailed the Woli and Bikitomani out of the city, up a steep sand dune, and down. Unable to identify portal from sand dune, I followed them as they walked up to a dune wall. Hiko’s soldier stepped aside at that point.
“Be safe,” he said to us. The Woli walked straight into the dune and disappeared.
“You, too,” I murmured. I braced myself for the change as Tomtom led us through the portal.
It was dark on Nidiani, but the sun was just coming up in Arizona.
I turned around to face the road and the invisible portal I’d just crossed through, itching to return to Nidiani.
Tomtom yowled and whacked me with his tail.
Blinking out of my stupor, I reluctantly turned my back on the portal. The Woli was halfway down the driveway, whistling, and Tomtom waiting for me. His ears flickered as his gaze took in the new world. Seeing him soothed me, reassured me I wouldn’t spend the longest day of my life alone.
“Come on, Tomtom,” I said and started forward. “We should have some meat for you in the freezer.”
He w
alked alongside me to the house and up the stairs of the front porch.
The Woli had stopped in the foyer.
“If you want to rest, the guest rooms are in the wing to your left,” I told her glumly. “There’s food in –”
“Hush, Caretaker.” She held up a hand and with the other, gripped the hilt of a weapon. “We aren’t alone.”
Tomtom growled and lowered his head, eyeing our surroundings.
“There might be other visitors,” I said. “Don’t go attacking anyone just because …” A flash of metal from the direction of the courtyard silenced me.
It couldn’t be … could it? Had a monster slipped through the portal? Were we too late?
Tomtom slinked forward into the dark hall leading towards the central courtyard, and I froze, listening.
The Woli warrior-healer stepped backwards until she reached me without taking her eyes off the way Tomtom had gone. She held out a knife to me.
Recalling my baton shield, I shook my head and reached down to my belt to pluck the defensive mechanism free.
“What does your beast say?” the Woli asked quietly.
“Tomtom?” I whispered.
Danger.
My breath caught. The Woli glanced at me. Her expression turned grim.
Seconds later, Tomtom’s roar rattled the windows. It wasn’t his battle cry, and the second I heard it, I felt something else through our telepathic link.
“He’s hurt!” I said and started forward. Tomtom’s pain was distant, like trying to recall what it felt like when my first tooth felt out, and accompanied by raw emotions too feral and intense for me to identify.
“Caretaker!” the Woli swiped at me.
Ignoring her, I barreled down the hallway, not about to let anything happen to my Tomtom. I clenched the baton in my hand, horrified by the ability to feel another being in pain this way.
Tomtom was fighting in the center of the courtyard, surrounded by four of the robot monsters. His shield had failed, resulting in a long, deep slash down his side and blood everywhere. They’d shredded the overgrown garden. At least one robot lay at his feet, and he was slowing, struggling.
Without hesitation, I bolted to the edge of the courtyard and dropped to my knees. Bracing myself, I slammed the baton into the ground.
The resulting shock wave made my teeth rattle, sent my hair straight up into the air, and shattered every window in the house, to include the skylights, in an explosion of glass.
