He stretched and looked down. The spot where he’d been shot was a startling pink circle of new flesh. He was healed. He felt better than he had on Goldman’s side of the portal, that was certain. His powers were still able to rejuvenate him. He wondered how long that would remain true.
He stood up and crossed the room to the door. Opening it, he saw two of the hive mind chattering around Gustavus.
“Nathaniel,” Gustavus said. “I see your plan went well.”
“I’m not in the mood for your mockery,” Nathaniel said. He continued toward the front door.
“I don’t know how you did what you did…falling into that ‘book’ and out again. But here’s what I do know— you are clearly using an object that has been touched by the power of the Prophet. And that will lead to nothing but doom for you. He is beyond time and space, and when he finds you, he will destroy you.”
Nathaniel didn’t respond. He walked outside. The night air brushed his face. He needed to shave, and bathe, and all the other things that had been part of his life for so long. Somehow, his existence had become one of constant injuries and recuperations, a series of adventures and failures and setbacks. He saw figures in the distance and walked toward them.
One of the two turned and waved. It was Goldman. His non-waving arm was heavily wrapped. Opellius followed Goldman’s gaze and he waved as well.
“You were injured,” Nathaniel said to Goldman.
“Yeah, well, so were you. I guess this is what we do.”
“How bad is it?”
“Bullet grazed my arm. The hive mind took care of it. I’ll live. And you’re back to your usual lively self.”
“Aye.” Nathaniel bowed his head. “I was wrong, Goldman. I can’t function on the other side of the portal. Not anymore.”
“Man, do you know how bad I wish I could say ‘I told you so’ and throw it in your face?” Goldman pouted. “But somehow I’ve grown quite fond of you, Nate. And I don’t like seeing you like you were over there. It was bad. It was fucking dangerous.”
“Aye. Where is Lilli?”
“She did not react well to arriving here,” Opellius said. “She has been sitting down at my thinking spot all day.”
“Did you try talking to her?”
“I think it will make things worse,” Goldman said. “She’s scared, Nate. Can you blame her?”
“I cannot. But she has to accept this world. None of us can go back through that portal with the Loyalty Guard around.”
“You can’t just force people to accept this crazy shit, Nate. I was thinking at first you could go talk to her since you know her more than the rest of us, but you don’t have a calming effect on her. And you sure as fuck shouldn’t go in talking about how she has to accept that she’s stuck in a foreign world.”
“Then you go,” Nathaniel said. “You and she are of the same world. You can reason with her.”
Goldman looked up at the sky. “How the hell did I become the reasonable one?”
“I agree with Nathaniel,” Opellius said.
“Great. The superhumans are ganging up on me. Thanks.”
Ben Goldman walked around the strange cabin that served as Opellius’s house. As disturbing as it was to admit, that little structure was his home too, at least for the time being. So much had changed since he’d written the journal. He still thought it possible he’d gone crazy. Hard to argue that considering everything that had happened. Maybe somewhere between the start of the second Civil War and the zombies he’d snapped. Or maybe it was seeing the Loyalty Guard murder the poor bastard in the bar in Ethos.
Assuming he hadn’t actually lost his mind, his present reality was a troubling one. He had only escaped the Guard with his life because of Nathaniel, and they’d barely escaped from the Authority after that. They were wanted men in both his world and the walled-in cluster of enclaves that had represented Nathaniel’s world. In Opellius’s wilderness, they were free.
He made his way down the path to Opellius’s thinking spot. He spotted Lilli while he was still a good distance away. She sat in the thick grass, rather than on the bench. Her knees were drawn to her chest. He thought she might be crying, but as he came closer he saw that she was stone-faced and almost completely still.
“Hey,” he said.
She jolted a little. “I told you I wanted to be left alone.”
He took a few steps closer. “You did. And yet the committee of superhumans asked me to try to bring you some comfort.”
Silence.
“Nate’s alive,” he said. “He healed up just fine from getting shot in the guts. If you were concerned.”
Another moment of silence. Then, “Why did they send you?”
“I’ve actually had to ask myself that question a lot lately. But we’re the only two humans here, Lilli. I’m from where you’re from and I’m seeing this insane shit the same as you.”
“I’m not the same as you,” Lilli said.
He sat down next to her. “Look, what I mean is I know what it’s like to be hunted by the Guard and dragged into Nate’s world. I’ve been through it.”
“I didn’t ask for this!” she moaned. “I told him to leave me alone.”
“Yeah. Nathaniel’s not so great at listening to reason. He’s stubborn…the kind of stubborn that comes from being a celebrity for a few thousand years.”
“Do you really buy all of that shit?” she asked.
“Which shit in particular?”
“I don’t know. I guess the part about him being this ancient comic book character or whatever.”
“You don’t? You’ve seen what he can do. He just got shot saving our asses and he’s fine.”
“You got shot too,” she said.
“Yeah.” He rubbed his arm, then winced. “Ow. Fuck. That really hurts. Which proves my point.”
“Which is?”
“That Nate isn’t like us. He’s superhuman. My brain doesn’t want to accept that either, but look at this world. Look at all of it. The proof is right in front of us.”
“I just want to go home. I…appreciate that you’ve been nice to me, Mr. Sullivan—”
“Goldman. You know, the gold man and all that.”
“Right. Mr. Goldman, then. What I’m saying is you’re caught up with the rest of these men and I’m not. We aren’t the same. I’m not working for a shadow government. I’m not in trouble with Weber’s forces…well, I wasn’t in trouble. I can go home and set this all right.”
“Do you really think that?”
“Which part?”
“That you can go home and make everything better. The Guards that we fought saw us go through the portal. Think how that looks. Let’s say they would even consider letting you off the hook every other way. You think Weber will pass up a chance to analyze you? Figure out what the hell made it possible for you to come and go from nowhere like that?”
She frowned. “Thanks for making it sound hopeless.”
“It’s what I do.” Goldman stood up and reached out a hand to her. “Can you consider coming back and talking with us? We will let you in on everything we know.”
She thought it over. Goldman studied her features as her face went through a range of expressions. She was beautiful, and also the only woman he’d had a real chance to interact with in quite some time. He thought those factors explained at least some of why he cared about what decision she made. At the same time, he just didn’t want to be even inadvertently responsible for anything happening to anyone, and yet he was responsible for Lilli’s predicament. It was his journal that had summoned Nathaniel to his time, and that was the reason Lilli had wound up stuck in this strange land.
“Okay,” she said at last. She took his hand, and he helped her to her feet. He smiled at her, hoping she would counter with a smile of her own, but she only turned and started walking back toward the house.
4
Nathaniel watched Goldman leave to speak with Lilli. Opellius put a hand on his shoulder.
“
You worry about them,” he said.
“Aye. They are my responsibility.”
“In what way?”
“I brought them into this world,” Nathaniel said. “Or this time. The distinction seems not to matter much. This is a foreign world to them even if it is technically their own. Goldman could have died in my territory.”
“The young man could have died in his own territory,” Opellius said. “He was a victim of circumstance there and was lucky to escape with you.” He smiled. “And I do seem to recall he was instrumental in your survival when you were at Gustavus’s mercy.”
“I take your point. But Lilli…”
“Will be fine,” Opellius said. “This land is peaceful, Nathaniel. I have lived here for eternity and can count on one hand the number of threats that have drawn anywhere close to here. Lilli can remain safe here. Much safer for certain than she would be right now in her own world, but I would imagine also safer than she was in general. That world they come from was overwhelmed by a force of pure evil. Those so-called ‘loyalty’ screenings could happen at any time. None of that will happen here.”
Nathaniel bent and picked up a small stone. He studied it quietly, then hurled it far into the distance. “For an old man who has very little hands-on experience with anything at all, you speak with a fair amount of wisdom.”
Opellius smiled. “I’ll choose to focus on the compliment in that statement.”
“I meant it as such. I just want to make things right, and it seems the further I go down that path, the more I reveal that things are far more wrong than I had been aware.”
“That is the nature of it,” Opellius said. “You and I are not all that different. I simply knew that I did not understand the world around me. You were led to believe that you not only understood it but existed at the center of it. So I can accept these revelations with a bit more ease than you. Off-putting as it may be to learn that some elements of your life were lies, I believe you are closer than ever to setting the world on the right path.”
“I hope you are correct.”
“How do you feel?” Opellius asked.
“What? You know this. I am healing well.”
“I’m not referring to your wounds.”
“The unraveling of my body continues,” Nathaniel said. “I can feel it aging…weakening…dying. Little by little. Do you not feel the same?”
“I do. Despite the magic vision that the book gave me, I’m still working my way to the end of my days. I should have been there before you, Nathaniel, but your journey has been fraught with violence and injury. That has taxed your body and perhaps matched us on the path toward the end.”
“It seems a poor race if the winner is to die.”
“Indeed.”
At that, Opellius looked off in the distance, where Goldman was returning with Lilli.
“He was successful,” Nathaniel said.
“You sound surprised,” Opellius replied.
“Not really. There is something unusual about him. I’m learning to not be surprised by anything Goldman does.”
“Howdy, old timers,” Goldman called with a cheerful wave.
“For one thing, I am learning not to be surprised by his terrible wit,” Nathaniel said.
“You’ve decided to rejoin us,” Opellius said to Lilli.
“I’ve decided not to sit down there anymore,” she said. “For now.”
“That is good,” Opellius said. “We have a great deal to discuss.”
They walked back in the house. Gustavus stared at them with his usual sly smile.
“The gang of misfits has returned,” he said.
“Who is this asshole?” Lilli asked. “And why’s he bound to a chair?”
“This is Gustavus,” Nathaniel said. “The very head of the Authority in my land.”
“He’s like your president?” Lilli asked. “And you…kidnapped him?”
“I am the one who keeps the world as the Prophet wants it,” Gustavus said. “And the Great One and his lackey saw fit to remove me from the world. Follow this path, young lady, and it will lead to nothing but chaos and ruin.”
“Right. Thanks.”
“Can we muzzle him?” Goldman asked.
“You don’t look well at all,” Gustavus said. “I think you dabbled with magic that nobody but the Prophet should touch, and it’s not working for you.”
“Remind me why I should care about your opinion,” Goldman said.
“I’m the only one who can connect you with the answers you seek,” Gustavus said.
“So you’ve decided to talk to us?” Nathaniel asked.
Gustavus laughed. “When you decide to return me to my land, we’ll see what we can trade.” He turned to Opellius. “I want to take a nap. Have your workers bind me back to the bed, if you’d be so kind.”
Opellius spoke to the hive mind. Two of them picked up Gustavus’s chair and brought it into a different room.
“That was weird,” Lilli said.
“He is untrustworthy,” Nathaniel said. “He doesn’t know nearly as much as he wishes, and all he wants is a chance to escape and exact revenge on us.”
“Revenge for what?”
“He tried to kill us and didn’t succeed,” Goldman said.
“How long have you been here?” Lilli asked him.
“You mean since I first came back with Nate? I don’t know. A few days.”
“How’s that possible?”
“Sorry, kiddo,” he said, “nobody in this room has that answer. These guys didn’t know this whole magic portal deal was a thing until recently.”
“So when you said you all would tell me everything you know…”
Goldman blushed. “I may have over-emphasized the point and implied that we had some answers.”
“Great,” Lilli said.
“What now?” Goldman asked Nathaniel.
“A good question. There are obvious problems with using the portal again, and with everything on the far side of it in general.”
“Right,” Goldman said. “Like how you become an invalid when we cross over and how there are people waiting to kill us.”
“You think they’re waiting?” Lilli asked.
“It would seem likely,” Nathaniel said. “We escaped through the portal. There will be constant surveillance, and if we emerge we will likely be set upon.”
“Agreed,” Goldman said. “And I’m just not feeling up to being set upon. So back to my question. What now?”
“If there is no way to seek answers in the world through the portal,” Opellius said, “then it stands to reason you need to carry on exploring in this world.”
“Aye,” Nathaniel said. “But to what end? We know not the whereabouts of the Prophet. Not even Gustavus knows that. My territory will be in disarray, and I can’t imagine the territory that contained the book has anything more to offer us. It likely has its own Authority, carrying out the same orders as Gustavus.”
“More Great Ones maybe?” Goldman suggested. “You didn’t know Opellius existed when you were trapped in your own territory. So there may be more like you out there.”
“Possible,” Nathaniel said. “But the affliction found Opellius out here.”
“So you think whatever people there are like you are mostly dead or dying,” Lilli said.
They all turned to look at her.
“Sorry,” she said. “That sounded harsher than I intended. Just trying to help with the brainstorming since I’m stranded here for now.”
“It’s fine,” Nathaniel said. “And you are likely correct. Whatever Great Ones we’d encounter would also be slaves to their version of the Authority. We’d have to rally them, and while that might not be impossible, it is not a path I want to take right now when our goals are still so unclear.”
“I don’t think our goals are unclear,” Goldman said. “We want to kill the Prophet. Right?”
“But what does that mean, exactly?” Opellius asked. “And when in his existence do we kill
him? Assuming we can?”
“That sentence just gave me a pounding headache,” Goldman said.
“How do you think I feel?” Lilli asked.
“Regardless of all of it,” Nathaniel said, “there remains only one thing that has any value.” He pointed at the magic book.
“Jesus, Nate,” Goldman said. “We’re going in fucking circles here. The portal is no good, remember?”
“But there was another book in my territory. And there could be more out there. Those are what we need.”
“Perhaps,” Opellius said. He clapped his hands, and one of the hive mind emerged from the back room.
“Gulvas?” the hive mind inquired.
Opellius spoke to the creature in a series of clicks and strange words. He gestured wildly, illustrating his point with his hands. The hive mind stared, tilting its head as it listened.
“Dendatta,” the hive mind said. “Coontassa dootatti. Nee nee. Nee nee.”
“What did it say?” Lilli asked. Nathaniel saw she was not afraid of the hive mind. In that way, she was similar to Goldman, who had found interacting with the creatures an enjoyable pursuit.
“The hive mind is aware of another possible territory. It is realistic to believe there are many more across the endless expanses, and perhaps others of their kind have encountered them, but their communication is limited by distance.”
“Short-range telepathy,” Goldman said. “Pretty cool. So how far is the territory?”
“They do not know for sure if it is a territory,” Opellius said. “They have never seen the inside of one. They saw a massive wall. It is very far.”
“There is nothing we can do to enable your car to travel?” Nathaniel asked Goldman.
“You brought a car here?” Lilli asked.
“Yeah. It worked great but the suspension’s fucked and I think two of the tires are leaking. Oh, and its battery’s pretty much dead. Guess I should have led with that.”
“How far do you think?” Nathaniel asked.
“The hive mind described it as very far. That is all I know.”
“Wait,” Lilli said. “So ‘nee nee’ means far?”
“The language of the hive mind is not structured like our own,” Opellius said. “They have very few words but can expand on them based on emphasis.”
The Lost Enclave Page 3
