Catalyst

by Christina Phillips

  How ironic he only faced the truth when his friend tried to persuade him otherwise. He walked to the front door and opened it.

  “It’s over.” A fatalistic shudder washed through him as finally he accepted his fate.

  There’s always a way.

  Zad’s voice filled his mind and Tom froze. He’d imagined it. No way was he going to question it and witness the confusion—or worse—in the other guy’s face. The only person he had a telepathic link to was Aria.

  Fuck, he was seriously losing it.

  He needed to get outside and clear his brain.

  Chapter 5

  Aria

  The dreamworld was a desolate wasteland without Tom. Aria woke in her bed, throat tight with unshed tears, as dawn splashed golden tendrils across the floor.

  It was the first day of the rest of her life without him.

  She’d done the right thing. For them both. Why, then, did it feel so wrong?

  There was a throbbing ache in her head, and it took everything she had not to instinctively link to Tom in her mind. Seeking comfort, reassurance, and the inevitable sizzle of awareness his presence always sent through her.

  Never again.

  She threw back the bedcovers and went to the window. Although she and Tom had figured out long ago they lived in the same village, things weren’t identical in their worlds. And she wasn’t just thinking of the strange evolutionary twist that, until meeting her, had deprived him of the telepathic ability she’d always taken for granted.

  Here, each house had its own sprawling plot of land, and most people were at least partially self-sufficient. They’d never gone the route of extracting fossil fuels from the planet, and using the natural resources of sun, wind, and rain for energy had been refined centuries ago.

  It was hard to imagine a world that relied on polluting its own ecosystem in an effort to survive.

  She pressed her forehead against the glass and closed her eyes. The gaping hole she’d ripped in her heart when she had said her last goodbye threatened to consume her. She exhaled a long breath and turned her back to the window, raking her gaze around her room. Restless energy clawed through her blood, and the walls of her bedroom seemed too close, too confining.

  She had to get out of here.

  Within minutes, she left the house and made her way through the still slumbering village. The sound of early morning songbirds filled the air, and as she approached the meadow that rolled out toward the woods, the familiar fragrance of thousands of wildflowers drifted on the breeze.

  She stood in the middle of the meadow and plucked one delicate bloom. Years ago, when she’d shown the flowers to Tom, they’d discovered yet another difference between their worlds. He’d never seen anything like them before, and after he had done some research, told her those flowers simply didn’t exist on his Earth.

  During the last few months, the flower had become a symbol of their love. Of how, no matter how beautiful something was, sometimes it just wasn’t meant to be in another dimension.

  With a shaky sigh, she slid the flower into her hair. Why was she torturing herself? After today, she’d never come to this meadow again. But she’d keep this last flower forever.

  An ethereal breath dusted her cheek, the gentle warmth a tangible thing that sank into her soul. Sometimes, when they were both standing in the exact same spot in their own dimensions, it seemed possible to transcend the impossible barriers that divided them. Tom was here, in his world, and if she closed her eyes, she would see him, the way she had so many times before.

  She wouldn’t do it. Her eyes prickled with the effort of keeping them open. But she couldn’t stop herself from raising her hand, palm facing outwards, and imagined his fingers brushing hers.

  A trans-dimensional caress.

  Waves of fierce, untrammeled love enveloped her. For a few fleeting seconds she basked in the blaze of heat. A final, long goodbye, and although a tiny sliver of logic warned her to pull back, she ignored it. And returned Tom’s love a thousand-fold.

  Electromagnetic thunder echoed through her mind and she stumbled back, her hair levitating with the supercharged static that crackled in the air. Shock reverberated along her skin and deep in her bones, and a frantic refrain tumbled around her mind.

  What’s happening?

  Luminous ribbons of pink, green, yellow, blue, and violet rippled across the sky, a breath-stealing display of solar power. It reminded her of the amazing aurora borealis she’d once seen when visiting her cousins in Scotland. But it had been at night, and in any case, how could such a phenomenon appear so far south, in Cornwall?

  Before she could even hope to wrap her mind around that, glittering raindrops materialized before her, a magical spiderweb that pulsed with every beat of her heart. The meadow and sky shimmered, as though there was a great curtain woven through the suspended raindrops, and through the haze she saw Tom.

  Her heart slammed against her chest, and instinctively she took a step toward him. He appeared equally stunned, as, like a mirror image, he moved closer to her.

  Above him, muted colors undulated across the sky. But it wasn’t the same sky she saw every day. And he wasn’t standing in her meadow of flowers.

  “Aria?” His voice was hushed. “Is this the dreamworld?”

  She didn’t know what this was, but of one thing she was certain. In the dreamworld, they met in either his world, or hers. Not a strange fusion of both. “No. This is…it’s real.”

  He plunged his arm into the shimmering space that divided them. Instead of his hand appearing on her side, it remained out of reach, distorted as though she was seeing him through a glass of water.

  “Tom?” Panic filled her voice. “Are you all right?”

  “Yes.” He didn’t sound sure, though. “It’s weird. Why can’t I touch you?”

  “I don’t know.” Barely a hairsbreadth separated them, but the glimmering phenomenon between them concealed an inexplicable gulf. “Do you think…” Her voice trailed off as hope flared, and she caught Tom’s gaze.

  “That this could be the gateway between our worlds?” Awe vibrated through his words as he voiced her thought.

  Could it be true? She’d wished for this for so long, but a part of her had never really believed it could happen. Tentatively, she pushed her fingers into the glimmering tear that had somehow opened between their realities.

  Her flesh didn’t burn with ice or acid or a thousand other unimaginable repercussions from bending the laws of all known physics. She caught Tom’s gaze, and excitement blazed in his eyes, banishing the threads of trepidation in her heart.

  This was her chance—maybe her only chance—of holding Tom in her arms for real.

  She held her breath and stepped out of her world.

  Chapter 6

  Aria

  The infinity between dimensions swirled around her, like an iridescent bubble. Silence echoed, and yet deep inside the core of her being, she had the feeling this place pulsed with fantastical sound in frequencies beyond her hearing ability.

  Tom was standing in his world, but despite how he was clearly shouting at her, she couldn’t hear anything he was saying. She frowned and walked a few paces toward him. Why was he so far away? She glanced over her shoulder, and shock punched through her chest.

  The boundary she had breached only seconds ago was now a hundred feet or more away.

  “Aria!” Tom’s voice hit her, and she turned back. He had entered the rift and was running toward her. “Stay where you are. Don’t move.”

  There was such urgency in his demand that it squashed her instinctive need to meet him halfway. Instead she remained rooted to the spot, her gaze fixed on him.

  Her stomach churned with nerves. Finally, they would be together.

  But why is it taking him so long to reach me?

  And then he was there, panting before her, his gaze roving over her face as though committing each feature to memory. She gave a breathless laugh and cradled his jaw.

 
; He was real.

  “Christ, Aria. I thought I was going to lose you.”

  She stroked her fingers over his stubble. Although she had done this a thousand times in the dreamworld, it was like the first time.

  Because it was the first time in every way that counted. And every sensation was magnified a millionfold.

  “What do you mean?” she whispered. “I was right here.”

  He hitched in a jagged breath and wrapped his arms around her. “As soon as you entered this…whatever it is, you were sucked further away from me. Every step you took toward me, the distance between us increased. I didn’t think I’d be able to find you.”

  Before she could reply, his mouth found hers, and their kiss was wild, desperate, and so full of life as to make every kiss they’d shared in the dreamworld crumble into dust. When he finally pulled back, their breath mingled, and his gorgeous blue eyes captivated her.

  She laughed. This was crazy. It was perfect. I’m with Tom.

  “We can’t stay here, Aria.”

  All their years of hopes and plans came down to this moment. She had never given it serious, long term consideration before. Surely, if ever an elusive gate opened between their dimensions, there would be a way to link their lives together without making a sacrifice to the universe.

  But nothing came without sacrifice. And it was time to choose.

  My world, or yours?

  His answer was instant, filling her mind with love. I’d never ask you to leave your world.

  Selfish relief rushed through her. She would leave everyone she loved to be with Tom, but the thought of never seeing her parents or beloved sister again tore through her heart.

  He hadn’t asked her to choose, but she couldn’t let him make the decision for them both without a discussion. Not when the outcome would affect the rest of their lives.

  His life.

  “I know you wouldn’t. But this isn’t a hypothetical anymore. It’s real. It’s forever.”

  “You’re my forever.” His smile melted her heart. “If this is a rip in the space/time continuum, I made my decision a long time ago.”

  She took his hand. “I’ll do everything I can to make sure you never regret this.”

  “I’ll never regret being with you.” His smile faded as his gaze slid from her and became transfixed on something behind her. She swung around as he pulled her forward. On the far horizon—where only moments ago she had stepped into this strange in-between realm—pearlescent, rainbow-bright clouds obscured the flower-filled meadow.

  “Aria. Run.”

  Terror propelled her forward. Wispy tendrils of red mist curled around her legs, and the only sound that filled her ears was the erratic thunder of her heart.

  They reached the phenomenon and pushed their free hands into the gleaming mass at the same time. But although it gave slightly under their combined pressure, the resistance was absolute.

  And was solidifying around her fingers.

  She gasped and pulled her hand free, flexing her numb fingers. Tom turned to her, a wild gleam in his eyes. “We can’t get through.”

  “There must be a way.” She punched the swirling wall, and this time it was like hitting a block of marble.

  And the mist grew thicker.

  “Shit.” Tom looked back, and she followed his gaze. So far in the distance that she could barely make it out, was his world, still visible. But wraith-like smoke edged ever closer to that horizon, and soon it too would vanish. “This place is collapsing.” He looked at her, and he didn’t have to say anything else because she knew.

  The doorway to her world had closed. Ice spiked through her heart. I’ll never see my family again. She loved them so much, especially her sister, but this was her time to be with Tom. And they had only one chance to escape. She couldn’t waste precious seconds mourning for the life she was leaving behind.

  “Let’s go.” She gripped his hand and they ran. Sorrow twisted through her, but the fierce need to survive blazed through her blood, spurring her on.

  His world receded, and then suddenly disappeared. She pulled up short, panting. This realm didn’t obey the physics of her own world, or Tom’s.

  Think…

  “Run backwards,” she told him, and he didn’t argue. It was crazy, and it wouldn’t work, but they were out of options.

  Facing Tom’s world, they ran backwards. And against all the laws of science, the shimmering barrier reappeared, racing toward them at breathtaking speed.

  But already the deceptively bewitching clouds had gathered, fusing together and eclipsing their escape.

  “No.” Tom tore his hand free from her and clawed at the clouds. Ribbons of diaphanous matter floated on a nonexistent breeze. He was breaking through.

  Feverishly she joined him, ripping handfuls from the wall and flinging it behind her. Tantalizing glimpses of his world glowed through the rips they’d made. So close.

  She chanced glancing over her shoulder, and terror clawed through her. The expanse had narrowed, and if she reached out, she’d be able to touch the impenetrable wall behind her.

  “Don’t look back,” Tom ground between his teeth. “We’re going to make it. I won’t let us die in here.”

  “I know,” she said, but deep inside hope unraveled. Why would the universes collide for one eternal moment, allow her and Tom to meet, only to destroy them both? Was this the price for wishing for the impossible?

  Grief washed through her. She had no idea if she could even reach her sister from this realm, but she had to try.

  She couldn’t let her family forever wonder what had happened to her. And she couldn’t tell them the truth. She closed her eyes and battened down the fear. Her sister couldn’t guess how close Aria might be to death.

  I love you. Don’t worry about me. I found a way to be with Tom.

  Desperately she waited for a reply, but there was nothing. Had Aurora even received her message?

  She’d never know.

  “Aria.” Tom’s voice was urgent. He was using his entire body to hold open a hole in the swirling mass of rainbow. “Go through. I’ll meet you on the other side.”

  “We go through together.”

  “I don’t know what this stuff is. But it’s getting heavier. I don’t know how long I can keep it open. You have to go now.”

  Was he insane? Sweat dripped down his face under the strain of holding open the rip into his dimension. There was no guarantee he’d have time to follow her, if she even made it herself.

  She hadn’t come this far to potentially abandon him now. “Not without you.”

  “Find Zad,” he said, as if he hadn’t heard her. “He’ll make sure you’re okay.”

  She wrapped her arms around him, molding her body to his. “We’ll roll through the rift together.”

  Chapter 7

  Zad

  After Tom left the cottage, Zad almost teleported to one of his favorite retreats, hidden deep in the sacred mountains of China. But he couldn’t dismiss the insidious conviction that whatever was going on between Tom and Aria involved him.

  He’d never tried communicating telepathically with Tom before, but even though the man hadn’t responded, Zad knew he’d received the message.

  Problem was, he didn’t know what that meant.

  Was Aria really from another world? It explained why Tom was so adamant they could never have a future together, despite the all-consuming love he’d felt glowing between them during Aria’s brief telepathic connection.

  Once, long ago, he’d fallen for a human woman. A powerful priestess whose culture was so ancient it had vanished in the mists of time millennia ago. They’d lived in the same city, but the opposition to their love had been fierce and deadly. At the time, the obstacles were as insurmountable as Tom’s belief he and Aria couldn’t be together because she wasn’t of this world.

  But Zad and his beloved hadn’t given up. They’d fought. And eventually, they had won.

  Love had to survive. Some days, the
memory of that love was the only thing that kept him going. He wouldn’t stand by and let the devotion between Tom and Aria wither and die, simply because they didn’t possess the means of interstellar travel.

  It was an easy fix to bring them together. So long as Tom didn’t freak out when he discovered Zad possessed the power to take him to a distant planet.

  He went outside and made his way along the lane toward the center of the village. It was still early, and no one was about, but there was an unnatural stillness in the air that ruffled his feathers. Ancient warnings that he didn’t fully understand shivered through his psyche.

  Get out of here.

  Not until he’d found Tom.

  Thunder rolled through his mind, reinforcing the intangible sense of danger, and he froze as vivid cosmic streamers lit up the sky.

  Aurora borealis? This far south? It wasn’t unheard of, but it was rare. He increased his pace and within a few minutes reached the fields that surrounded the village.

  In the distance, just before the woods, a shimmering anomaly hovered above the ground. He’d seen a million anomalies in his long life, but nothing like this. He broke into a run, adrenaline pounding through his blood, as above him the sky flared with solar magnificence.

  Electricity crackled in the air, and as he got closer to the anomaly, foreboding prickled over his skin. Wedged within a distorted rip in reality that bled gossamer rainbow rivulets from around its perimeter, Tom and a young woman were entwined.

  “Zad.” Tom’s voice was hoarse. “Get Aria out of here.”

  Save Tom.

  Aria’s plea reverberated through his mind, but this time it was no accidental telepathic eavesdrop. She knew he could understand. But more than that, without knowing who he was, she believed he was the only one who could help them. Her brown gaze caught his, and a crystal-clear revelation unfolded in his mind.

  It wasn’t Tom he was here to help. It was Aria.

  It had always been Aria.