None of his applications could tell for certain if some life-form had come close to the Window, but his body was shouting to him that that was exactly what had happened. Maybe I can get a look. Gil grabbed the Junction Locater, rushed into the corridor, and began tweaking the controls. With the correct settings, he would be able to see into the third site. The settings he had used during his previous observations were not working. The interference hampered his ability to peer through the Window. A solid sheet of misty haze blocked his view. All right, I know it’s there. It’s just a matter dialing it in.
Chapter Four
Alesia awoke lying on the stone floor, chilled to the bone. The lamp had died while she slept. Sunlight streamed in through the entranceway at a low angle. The day was almost done. Soon she’d make the long climb back to the top of the guard tower, take her destiny firmly into her own hands, and embrace her fate. She should have listened to Bonnie long ago. Happily ever after was too much to hope for. The kind touch of a man who cared about her as a person was something she’d never know. Holding out and believing for so long made the truth of reality impossible to live with. She put her head on her knees and wept uncontrollably.
When her tears had run dry, she raised her head to the fading light of early dusk. I had better go before it’s too dark to climb the steps in the tower.
“Castle spirits, where are you? I’ve come for you to take me away!” she shouted.
“What?” A man’s voice came from somewhere.
She leaped to her feet as shivers shot up her spine, spun in place, but saw nothing. She backed into the wall, holding the broken shovel handle in front of her. “Who is there?”
“Miss, where are you? There’s never been anyone there before. I thought that Reality to be uninhabited.”
Alesia gripped the shovel handle tightly. “Come out where I can see you, but stay back, I have a stick, and I’m not afraid to use it on you.”
“You can’t see me because I’m not actually there. Hold on, let me adjust this a little more and maybe...”
The image of a tall, handsome man with shoulder-length dark hair shimmered into existence.
Alesia stared at him, utterly confused. “Are you a ghost? You don’t appear quite solid, more like fog or smoke.”
“You appear the same to me. Strangely familiar, actually.” He glanced down at a black and silver box in his hand and tapped a finger on it. “Humm, I can’t clear this up any better.”
As she gazed at the man shrouded behind the curtain of fog, images from her dreams flashed into her mind. “What do you mean, familiar?”
“Nothing, I was thinking out—never mind.”
Alesia glared at him even as she realized that he could no more see her expression than she could see his. She wanted an answer. There was an explanation for why he found her familiar, but she dared not let herself think it, for fear of fostering additional false hope. There was another, more likely, explanation. She was dreaming.
“Are you a castle spirit, come for me? If you are, take me now. If that’s not why you’re here, I don’t think I could bear to delay my fate any longer.”
For an instant his deep brown eyes became crystal clear, but before she could get a satisfying look, the foggy mist spread back across them.
He raised his gaze to hers, tilting his head slightly to one side. “Why do you think I’m here?”
She lowered her weapon. “I believe that you’re here to whisk me away to the netherworld, because if you’re not, I must die.”
He shook his head and fiddled with his box. “I apologize, miss, but I’m not a castle spirit. I am merely a man, and I know not this netherworld of which you speak.”
Alesia sighed deeply. “Please, sir, tell me that is not true or my heart will surely break.”
“Come closer where I can get a better look at you. You have no reason to fear me. I cannot touch you from my present location.”
Alesia looked him up and down. He could have been in the same room with her or somewhere far away in another realm of existence. The way he wavered behind the fog was completely unnatural. “You’re standing right in front of me.”
He chuckled slightly. “So it would appear, but that’s not the case.”
She dropped the shovel handle and approached the shimmering aberration. “You are not easier to see up close.”
He tapped his fingers on his device again and huffed loudly. “This doesn’t have the processing power required to clear up our connection. I had hoped moving closer would help. We’ll have to live with this level of interference, I’m afraid. Now, what is this nonsense about dying? I can see you well enough to tell that you’re far too young and beautiful to die for no good reason.”
Alesia could feel the blush forming in her cheeks from the strange, ghostly man’s compliment. “If I were old and ugly, would it be acceptable for me to die for no reason?”
“That’s not what—well, no, you’ve misunderstood. I only meant that you...” He puffed out a heavy sigh.
Alesia giggled at his inability to formulate an answer. “There is a man in my village that I must wed, should I ever return. Given the choice, I’d rather die. I came to the castle hoping the legends of my village were true, that the spirits that live here take away those who enter. But you are the first spirit I’ve seen.”
“I assure you I am not a spirit. I am very much alive.”
“Is it light where you are? My oil lamp has burned out, but the corridor is no longer dark.”
“Yes, my interior lighting is translating through the Window. I don’t believe it is actually passing, but instead causing the Window on your side to produce a duplicate of the photons that strike it on this side. Just to be clear, you’re in a castle as well? An ancient stone structure?”
“Yes, can you not see it for yourself?” Alesia motioned to her surroundings.
“Curious. Of all the Realities that intersect here, there are three which lie inside a castle. Yours, mine, and one other, which I have been unable to locate since this morning.”
His unusual language made little sense to her. “What ever are you speaking of?”
“This fortress houses a junction point between universes or times or dimensions, perhaps all three. My colleagues and I were never able to determine with certainty all the different things that merge in this location. I call them realities simply for convenience. The place where you exist and the place where I exist are inaccessible to each other in the whole of space-time, but for some reason no one has been able to determine, they come together here. The fabric of my Reality is very near to the fabric of yours. Almost touching, but not quite.”
Alesia moved her face closer to the mist, trying to see him clearly. “So, are you saying that if I reach out I cannot touch you?”
“Unfortunately not, but give it a try if you like so you’ll know that I truly cannot harm you.” He raised his hand and extended his palm toward her.
She brought her hand to his, and they came together with a clap. A ripple like someone had dropped a pebble into a pond spread out vertically through the air. “I don’t know, you feel awfully solid to me. Far more solid than you look.”
He raised his gaze to their hands and stared wide-eyed as if totally bewildered. “No, this is not possible. There’s no Doorway here, there never has been, only a Window, and two Realities cannot touch through a Window. It’s impossible.” He interlaced his fingers with hers.
Alesia sighed and gripped his hand tightly. “You said fabric separates our Realities. Perhaps we pushed the fabric together, like two people on opposite sides of linens hanging on the line to dry. That’s sort of what it feels like is between us, a blanket.”
He shook his head. “It’s not that simple. The fabric of Reality cannot be manipulated in such a way. It is not something we can physically touch. It exists outside our respective universes in a place we cannot reach.”
Alesia shrugged. “If you say so, but I know what I feel. You sound as if you are trying t
o convince yourself that what you feel with your own hand is not real.”
He nodded and grinned at her, his face fading in and out behind the ever-changing fog. “Yes, I suppose I am, but there’s no denying it, is there?”
“So, if you’re not a spirit, what are you?”
“Given your belief in spirits and the fact that you were using an oil lamp for light, what I am probably won’t make any sense to you. I’m a scientist.”
Alesia laughed. “Do you believe that because I am a woman, I am not intelligent?”
“No, that’s not what I meant.”
“In my Reality study of the sciences is a pursuit only for men. They say women are not logical enough for such things. For instance, there has been a long-running debate about building a hydroelectric power plant to make life a little more bearable. Women will be expected to do a significant portion of the construction, but the village elders, all men, refuse to explain the concepts to us. I suppose it’s that way in your Reality as well?”
He shook his head. “No, on the contrary, some of my most brilliant scientist colleagues are women.”
She clenched his hand tightly. “Oh, that’s a wonderful thing to know. I slip into the library when no one is looking and read all the technical manuals I can find. If you ask me, the men of my village are afraid the women will take over if they allow us to get too smart. That, of course, is utter nonsense. I would like to meet these women scientists.”
He sighed heavily, letting his shoulders sag. “Unfortunately, they’re all gone now.”
Alesia’s heart sank. She had read books from her distant past containing accounts of women employed in all sorts of intellectual occupations. At one time, females had been valued as much more than breeding animals and laborers. To hear someone say it was still so, had momentarily filled her with joy. “Gone where?”
He shook his head and gazed past her as if trying to see her surroundings. “If you are aware of electricity, you may not be as primitive as my initial assumption.”
“The use of all but the most basic technology was forbidden after the Great War. Our village elders have always maintained that unchecked technological advancements were the cause of the unprecedented destruction. Where did your women scientists go?”
“They escaped to another Reality, but I have been unable to contact them since. My equipment is severely limited. I can’t even tell for certain if they made it through alive. I had intended to join them but got detained, and the Doorway closed before I could enter.”
His somber mood hinted at the answer to her question, but she had to ask it to be certain. “Can I come through to your Reality?”
“Unfortunately, this Window will not allow passage. If I had all the right equipment and some help from my friends, we might devise a way, but...” He let his words trail off.
Alesia staggered a little but quickly steadied herself by gripping his hand, determined not to outwardly show the devastation crushing her heart. “Well, this is all very fascinating, but if you’re not here to save me from my fate, I must meet it. I refuse to spend my life married to a man I’ll never love, who does not love me. My only option is to take my own life. If you will kindly give me back my hand, I’ll ascend the guard tower and jump. I couldn’t bear to do it earlier because the day was so beautiful, but the day is over now, and my death will not interrupt the night.”
He held tightly to her hand.
“Sir, I need to go, before I lose my courage.”
“Wait, please. It’s what I was trying to tell you before. I shouldn’t be able to hold your hand. Something is different here. Of all the Windows into other Realities I’ve gazed through, this is the only one that allowed me to physically interact with someone on the other side. Perhaps there is something special about you that lets us touch this way.”
Alesia turned her gaze away, even though she could barely see him. The very idea that this strange man could think she was special nearly made her break down. “I’m nothing special, just an ordinary woman, like many in my village.”
“Something is causing massive interference in this Window. It dramatically increased a short while ago. I am willing to bet that the timing coincides with the moment you entered the castle.”
“Again, this is fascinating, but I have a very unpleasant task to complete. The longer I delay, the more difficult it will be.”
“I may not have long to live myself. Can you not spend the remainder of this day with me?” He stepped closer and pulled her into his arms.
Alesia stiffened instinctively but after an instant allowed herself to relax into his embrace. “This is awfully forward for a man I just met.”
He held her tighter. “Do you wish for me to release you?”
She slipped her arms around his waist and sank deeper into him. “No, I can’t say that I do. Why would you not have long to live?”
“This fortress is under attack even as we speak. My colleagues and I built a protective Barrier, which, if constantly maintained, could remain impenetrable indefinitely, but with no one left to help me maintain it, my enemies will break through in a matter of days.”
Alesia raised her hand to his cheek. “I wish I could see you properly. You are quite handsome from what I can tell. You feel wonderful in my arms. I suppose I can delay my suicide until you find a way to escape your enemy.”
“Unfortunately, I have no escape from my enemy. The Doorways between Realities have all closed. I can only speculate that my colleagues passing through the junction somehow blocked my access. That’s probably why I cannot communicate with them.”
“If they’re doorways, is there no way to reopen them?”
“My colleagues took the technology with them, the machine that manipulates the fabric of reality, and all the schematics. We didn’t want our enemy to follow us through. My ability to manipulate junction points with this Locater is limited. I don’t think they could be reopened anyway. They barely register any longer, so I’m trapped.”
“Place your hand between my shoulder blades and hold it there for a moment.”
He pressed his palm flat to her spine. “Like this?”
Alesia closed her eyes and placed her head on his chest. The soothing effect of his touch radiated throughout her body. The complete unfairness of finding him only to discover an impenetrable barrier separating them dealt her a devastating blow. Having no hope at all would have been much better than having her hope crushed once again. She clearly understood Bonnie’s anger toward her. She should have never given her friends false hope by sharing her belief about heroes existing for all of them. “Yes, that’s the exact spot. My soul feels as if it wants to escape into the emptiness of this place, and that’s the spot where it will exit if I let it. Your hand does nicely to hold it in.”
He kissed the top of her head. “I’m sorry that you’re lonely. I’ve had the same feeling since my colleagues left. It’s been more than a year since I’ve spoken to anyone other than myself.”
“A year?” She slipped her hand to the same spot on his back. “Has your soul escaped?”
He chuckled. “No, I think you caught it just in time.”
“You patronize me. It’s merely a legend that’s repeated in my village. Have you ever had a feeling when walking alone in the dark that something was approaching from behind? The feeling may spread up the back of the neck or cause tingling all over, but it always originates between the shoulder blades. My people say one’s soul is trying to escape when that happens. Backing against a wall can help, but nothing calms the feeling like the hand of another person. Perhaps it’s merely an excuse to feel the touch of another.”
“I wasn’t patronizing you, I was only saying thanks. I’m not sure I believe one’s soul can escape, but the nerves in that spot on my back are particularly sensitive, and when I get a fright, that’s where I feel it first.”
Alesia stepped back. “I never got your name.”
“I apologize. After spend so much time alone, it seems I’ve for
gotten my manners. I’m Gil.”
“Alesia. It’s nice to meet you, Gil—from another Reality. Is it possible that I’m still asleep and dreaming? I was quite tired after ascending the guard tower steps earlier. When I came back down, I sat in this corridor and fell asleep. Or I could have dozed off and fallen from the steps. I could be plummeting to my death even as we speak. Perhaps I have already hit bottom and I’m having this delusion while I die. A parting gift from my mind.”
Gil laughed out loud and drew her hand to his chest. “While all of that is plausible, none of it is true.”
Alesia cocked her head to one side and grinned. She let her gaze slide down his body and back up. Breaks in fog gave her tiny glances at his true form, but only enough to be maddening. “You look like a dream. Perhaps that’s why you’re all foggy and difficult to see. No matter. You’re quite nice as dreams go.”
Gil nodded. “Yes, you look like a dream as well.” He paused for a moment, just gazing at her. “I know technology wasn’t allowed in your village, but is it possible that someone there is using some form of electronic communications?”
She shrugged. “Not as far as I am aware. Why do you ask?”
Gil scratched his chin and stared thoughtfully off into thin air for a moment. “Well, I’ve been having these strange—strange signals from some sort of Locater Beacon in your Reality. I’m unable to identify the source.”
Alesia stared at his face, hoping for a break in the fog so she could see his expression clearly. “Strange, strange signals, not just plain, strange signals? You were going to say something else, weren’t you?”
Gil shrugged, obviously uncomfortable with her question. “I suppose I didn’t think my sentence through before I began to speak.”
Alesia nodded, wondering what was really on Gil’s mind. “I think you have something to tell me, but you’re hesitant for some reason.”
He shook his head, casting his gaze toward the floor. “It’s nothing really. Not the kind of thing one tells a complete stranger.”
Alesia hooked a finger under his chin and tipped it up. “Well, Gil from another Reality, we’ll just have make a concerted effort to become more thoroughly acquainted so you’ll feel comfortable sharing your secret with me. I actually have a secret of my own that I might divulge, if we were—close.”
The Fabric Of Reality Page 4
