A Key to Worlds: A Parallel Worlds Novel

by Mara Amberly

  Pandora’s thoughts turned to her grandmother and the mystery box, which the key she held might open. She had no idea how finding it might coincide with their scientific expedition, if it did at all. She recognised the fact that she was probably searching for a meaning that wasn’t there. She would have to wait for now. She knew how insistent her grandmother had been in the dream about keeping the box closed, except in a situation of dire need. The dream had been right about one thing so far – her grandmother wasn’t a blood relation. It was hard to reconcile the dreams with her viewpoint as a scientist, so she didn’t try that hard. Mainly, Pandora kept her eyes open and tried to do the same with her mind.

  “I think they’re almost ready to go now,” Kailen said, gesturing with his chin toward the rover.

  It was a large land vehicle built to handle the rough terrain, and it comfortably held five people, as well as equipment. Pandora, Kailen and the three Scientists – Olsen, Anders and Karen, made five in total. There were no security personnel, but it was known that Anders was armed. Bastian told them that in all likelihood, they would see no one out there at all. Pandora hoped he was wrong, because she wanted to meet the outsiders and find out if her mother might still be among them.

  When everyone got in, the vehicle seemed confining but not uncomfortable. It was strange, being so close to these people she didn’t know well.

  “The first mile or so is terraformed. After that we’ll be entering the moderate zone,” Olsen said in a lecturing tone.

  “That’s land that’s on its way to being fully-terraformed,” Pandora explained for Kailen’s benefit. “The atmosphere’s likely safe to breathe for a period of time, but you wouldn’t want to live there. That’s unless we – I do.”

  Kailen smiled over at Pandora. “Would you say ‘I do’ for me?”

  She gave him a playful smile. “Wouldn’t you like to know? Hmmm, are you actually proposing to me, Kailen?”

  He looked surprised, but still entertained. “I... no. I wasn’t proposing, but I might consider it. I’d have made it a bit more special than that, Pandora.”

  Karen leaned over between the seats – she was in the passenger seat at the front. “I don’t mean to break this up but they’re opening the airlock doors.”

  Pandora quietened down and sat back as Olsen drove the rover into the airlock chamber. She exchanged an amused smile with Kailen who sat beside her. Anders was on the other side of him. The doors closed behind the rover, and they waited. It was exciting, sitting on the threshold of what felt like a whole new world. In a way it was.

  The clear doors in front of the rover slid back, near silent but for the sound of escaping air. Olsen drove the rover forward and they were out on the planet – just like that. They weren’t wearing their suits or masks because for the time being, they didn’t need them. What had been a slow and complicated process for the Scientists felt fast to Pandora, because she’d been waiting so long for this. There were no roads, but there was a clear trail that cut through the terraformed land. Around them, the terraformed zone was as green as the settlement’s park. Plants bloomed, including small trees that until recent years had only grown inside the settlement’s dome. The trail was a dusty red-brown, but grasses and small plants pushed up through the soil of their own accord. Their seeds had either spread from the other plants or waited millennia for their chance to grow again.

  Olsen chuckled at the way Pandora looked out the window; as if she was soaking up every detail.

  “Why don’t we pull over for a minute?” Karen suggested.

  Olsen didn’t ask anyone’s approval. He slowed the vehicle to a stop and leaned back over his seat. “You can get out here if you want to. It’s one of the safest places outside on the whole damn planet.”

  Pandora didn’t need to be told twice. She opened the door and climbed out into the open. For the first time, she felt a true breeze blow over her skin. Her long hair trailed back from her face and she breathed in the air. She detected the lightest scent, but she couldn’t place what it was. It might have been a product of the terraforming or the fragrance of the plants mingling with the air currents. Whatever it was, she liked it. She gazed up at the sky and saw how perfect it seemed: blue with a scattering of white clouds and only the merest hint of grey. This all felt familiar and right, but she knew she wouldn’t be remembering her time outside as a baby, and the environment in this area had supposedly been more hostile back then.

  “This is the world we’re meant for,” she said to Kailen and the Scientists still in the rover.

  Kailen climbed out and walked over to her, taking her hand as soon as he was near enough. She wore his ring, just as she wore the locket that may once have been Emily’s. Pandora and Kailen embraced under the sky and kissed, and she loved the glint of wonder in his eyes, certain that he too saw it in her own.

  “This is wonderful,” he said, smiling down at her. “Our people should all be given a chance to walk out here and see it for themselves.” He knelt to pick up a rock off the ground then put it in his pocket. Pandora showed Kailen the one she’d found, then she did the same.

  They only lingered a minute more before climbing back into the rover.

  “What are those for?” Karen asked.

  Pandora wondered why the Scientists hadn’t gotten out of the rover, but then perhaps none of this was new to them.

  “Souvenirs,” Kailen said with a grin. “Our rocks match too, Dora.”

  She leaned over to kiss him on the cheek. “Like us.”

  Anders grimaced. It was obviously too much romance for him.

  Olsen drove them for several miles toward the foothills. Out here the terraforming was incomplete, so they all donned their masks, but not their protective suits yet. Their uniforms all offered some minimal protection already, as did the rover. They soon reached an intersection of trails. One led north and another continued on in the direction they’d been heading, which was roughly east. A third went southward and if it continued on its course, it should eventually lead to the Xindarhi Sea. It had once been a great sea but now it was said there was desert in its place. The area was regarded as dangerous, and the fragile ground had caved in during a scientific expedition to the area. A rover was lost but the Scientists had escaped harm.

  “Our expedition was going to head through the foothills and south toward the re-fuelling station, then onward from there, but it was decided to approach Mount Demesne from the trail,” Olsen explained. “For now we follow the trail eastward.”

  “Why the change?” Kailen asked with some confusion. “Is it somehow riskier?”

  “We believe there could be habitation in the hills,” Karen answered. The silence in the rover was only broken by Kailen’s gasp of “What?”

  Anders snuffled. “Oh, don’t be so surprised. They found a few campsites up there, nothing more. It’s possible that an outsider band survived somehow.”

  If that was so, then they obviously didn’t need to seal themselves in underground anymore.

  “But that area isn’t terraformed, is it?” Pandora asked with curiousity.

  The rover was silent until Olsen confirmed what Pandora and Kailen had suspected. “No, it isn’t.”

  Anders spoke up. “Now that we’re out here and away from Bastian and his ‘rules’, there’s something I want you to see.”

  Pandora wasn’t sure if he was addressing her or all of the people in the rover.

  Karen was the one to ask. “What’s that?” She leaned over the side of her seat, she was so curious to hear his answer.

  Anders knew he had their undivided attention. “A remnant of the past. One that not nearly enough people know about.”

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  Nessa's Home Dimension;

  Georgia, United States – 10:16 p.m.

  Nessa tried to avoid explaining to Katy about what happened when she and James returned to the house. The interior of Katy’s home was exactly as they’d left it – even Spotness was there – and while it wasn�
��t possible to tell for sure if they’d returned to the same world, it was more likely because the portal had remained open. Nessa told Katy they’d been injured in the city and left it at that, but Katy hadn’t made it easy for her or James.

  A doctor came out to the house and treated them both. James’s bruising was so severe that the doctor wanted to hospitalise him. James was reluctant to leave, but Nessa convinced him it was a good idea. She jotted down her contact details so he had them just in case he needed them.

  “Give me a call on that number tomorrow or I’ll call you and find out what I can. Wait – what’s your last name? They’ll need that for me to reach you.”

  James was thankful for her details, but not quite sure what he needed to do with them. “Um, okay. My last name’s Lowry. You’re sure this is a good idea?”

  Nessa nodded. “It’s likely just a precaution but it’s better to know you’re alright. I’ll see you again soon, James Lowry.” She smiled as she said it, and her tone was formal but warm with friendship.

  The doctor had offered to take him to the hospital and Nessa watched them go. With a sigh, she walked back in from the driveway, closing the front door behind her.

  She couldn’t get the feeling out of her mind that it was her fault. So much was, and all because she’d chosen to use her power instead of trying to ignore it. Yet, she knew that it was hard to ignore over the long-term, and she was given this power for a reason.

  “How is he?” Katy asked with concern. She was pouring herself a cup of coffee. “Would you like one, Nessa?”

  She smiled tiredly, worried too. “That would be great. He’s alright, I think. Someone tried to hurt us, Katy. We were lucky to get away.” She waited by the bench until Katy poured her coffee and added in some milk from the carton.

  There was a notable clunk as Katy set down her coffee cup. “Are you alright? What do you mean ‘hurt you’? Should we be getting the police involved?”

  Nessa sighed, her expression almost haunted for a moment. “I am alright, and no, it wouldn’t help to get the police involved.”

  Katy frowned, because it wasn’t a proper answer. “You’ve been keeping secrets from me, and we both know it. I need to know what’s going on.”

  With a cough, Nessa almost choked on her coffee. It didn’t help that it was hot. “It’s alright, really. Sort of, but mostly alright, I guess. The truth is there’s something you don’t know about me but it isn’t bad. It’s just... different and it can lead to troublesome situations.”

  Katy considered her for a long moment over her warm coffee cup.

  “What can you do?” she asked. It was a question that clearly surprised Nessa.

  “Do?” She didn’t remember mentioning ‘doing’ anything.

  “You don’t think it’s just you, do you? Your mother had a talent for creating troublesome situations as well. It runs in the family.”

  Is Katy actually referring to something like my magic or is that an insult? Is it wrong that I find it funny that I’m not sure?

  “Maybe you should spell it out for me,” Nessa asked, placing added emphasis on the ‘spell’. It wasn’t that she actually used spells or had ever even experimented with them. It was just a play on words because what could her ability with portals be if it wasn’t magic?

  “Your mother had some abilities with time that aren’t entirely normal and I presume it’s something of that sort?” Katy asked.

  “Portals actually, between parallel worlds I think. Are you serious about my mother?” Nessa asked, not entirely convinced that Katy wasn’t having her on. She knew her ability was real but she hadn’t known about her mother’s ability.

  “How interesting. You’re the third one in the family. Your grandmother had a similar ability, which was triggered by her emotions, as I remember it. She ended up with three husbands across different worlds and she never got caught by them.”

  Nessa didn’t know what to say to that. It was confusing, so she just drank her coffee. “That’s insane,” she said, starting to laugh.

  “So what about your friend?” Katy asked, speaking of James.

  “He walked into one of my portals and I had the choice of pulling him through or leaving him to die as it closed. I chose to save him but he’s stuck here now. He was one of the city guards.”

  Katy grimaced. “That explains a lot. In that case I hope you’re able to get him back to his home. If you’re not, then as long as he doesn’t cause any trouble, we could put him up for a while. I don’t mean permanently but we’ll figure something out.”

  Nessa was grateful beyond words. “He wants to stay close to me because I’m the only person he knows well here and I promised I’d keep trying to get him home. If my grandmother could repeatedly visit the same world – I assume she did if she had multiple husbands –then maybe I can too. My ability is based on scents. It seems like I can’t replicate the item, but perhaps it’s more about replicating the scent. I do what I can but every time I try, there are dangers.”

  Katy nodded understandingly. “That’s why he’s bruised then.”

  Nessa looked upset as she nodded. “Yeah. He got shot with a pulse gun.”

  A long silence passed between Nessa and Katy, and then the tears began to flow. Nessa wiped them from her eyes but they were quickly replaced with more.

  “We can figure this out. One step at a time, Nessa,” Katy said in a reassuring tone. She got up from the table and hugged her niece.

  “It will be alright. If there’s one thing I know, sometimes random shifts can have unexpected good effects. Sometimes they happen for a reason. I don’t know if that’s the case here but you can’t give up now and for all you know, this might’ve been meant to happen. Even if it wasn’t, maybe it’s possible to give it meaning for yourself or James,” Katy added.

  She wasn’t sure what to make of Katy’s reassurance, but Katy seemed to know things that she didn’t. “You really think so?” Nessa asked. Her voice had taken on a hopeful tone as she truly didn’t want all of this to be for nothing. The cost seemed so high.

  “Yes I do. Look at the odds. There could be billions of people on millions of possible worlds, or even more than that. There are billions on this one. You travelled to that world, in that place at just the right time for what happened to happen. How many people in the history of the universe – as we know it – have been pulled through to another world or dimension? That can’t be a high number, Nessa. If something like that was to happen, would you really expect randomness? If there’s one thing I know about life, it’s that serendipity and synchronicity have their place. For all you know, he could be your soul mate–”

  Nessa laughed. “Don’t push it, Katy. You had me up until ‘synchronicity’, but I think if James was ‘the one’ for me I’d know about it. Besides he has a child and a wife – or an ex-wife. Either way, he wants to leave here, so it stands to reason not to get too involved, you know?”

  Katy smiled and it was clear from it that she understood completely. “Yes I do. I would have to agree with you as well, given the circumstances, unless you’re able to find a way to return to a place.”

  Nessa merely nodded. “I’m working on it. Do you know how I can go about finding out more about my grandmother’s power and how she managed to control it?” She was also amused that her grandmother had managed to maintain three marriages at once. She was either crazy or ambitious; probably both.

  “It would be helpful if she left some kind of diary, but your grandmother didn’t like them. I distinctly remember her telling your mother that they were terrible things and an obvious place to put your secrets. That in itself suggests she might’ve written one but I haven’t seen it. I think you may be out of luck, Nessa. It may take more travelling to gain better control of your gift.”

  Nessa looked disappointed but accepting of the fact. “I guess so. I’ll have a think about it and see what else we can do.”

  Katy gathered up the cups off the table. “That’s the spirit. Try and try a
gain.”

  Yeah and hope I don’t lead us astray again.

  Emotions could be replicated with discipline but smells couldn’t be, could they?

  Maybe I smell the wrong things, she thought with a grin. It was a simple thought – a silly one, but it made perfect sense. What if there was great big tub of – oh I don’t know – curry powder. I take some of the curry powder and put it in a bag, and use the smell from that bag of curry powder to open a portal using its scent. If I want to open a portal to the same world again, I could take more curry powder from the same container and use it the same way. When it’s destroyed – curry powder might be hard to destroy – the portal is broken. That’s crazy but it just might work. Of course, I can’t see it helping return James to his world because I used a flower to get us there but that doesn’t mean it can’t be applied to other situations.

  Nessa wondered why she’d never thought of this before and she could only reach one conclusion.

  It was because I didn’t believe I could.

  It didn’t feel like doubt exactly but perhaps her own lack of faith was holding her back from finding a solution. I’m not entirely sure I want James to leave either. It’s selfish but I like him here. I need to see this the right way and approach it carefully.

  That was when she thought of him alone at the hospital. Not just alone there, but alone on this foreign world where he didn’t know how anything worked. Her emotions stirred and her compassion, but also guilt. What was I thinking, leaving him there by himself? I need to go see him.

  Nessa walked out of the room, looking for Katy, but there was no sign of her.

  “Katy?” Feelings of concern rose as she was met with silence, but that suddenly changed.