Two Worlds of Oblivion

by Angelina J. Steffort

  “You really think the world is black and white, boy,” he said to Wil over Maray’s shoulder. “Langley is not as in charge as he may give the impression…”

  Maray tried to read his mildly lined face. He had to be almost fifty, older than her father but much younger than Langley. His black hair was cropped at chin length and pushed behind his ears, leaving a view on a set of slitted eyes which were now indicating he was intrigued by her close study.

  “You are patching it all together in your young brain, Princess,” he said and took a step back, releasing Maray and the rest of the room from the nerve wracking tensions. “You have no idea how lucky you are that you grew up in this world rather than the other.”

  Maray didn’t know what he meant, but Heck seemed to. He darted forward and grabbed LeBronn’s wrist with his olive fingers, holding it up and pushing back the slate-grey Thaotine sleeve with his index finger.

  “No bracelet,” he shared his findings.

  Maray still didn’t understand, and Heck, reading it from her questioning face, ripped Jemin’s bracelet from LeBronn’s hand before he dropped it.

  “Well, no bracelet except for this one.” Everyone stared at him, waiting for an explanation, except for LeBronn, who seemed rather amused. “He can’t travel with someone else’s key. And he has no key of his own. So there is only one reasonable explanation.”

  “It can’t be.” Corey seemed to grasp what Heck was saying first, shaking her head at the suggestion he was making—a suggestion that Maray was still trying to understand. “Langley said he was the only one.”

  “Langley has lied before.” LeBronn gave them something to consider, and finally the pieces fell into place.

  “You are a shifter.” Now it was Maray who stepped close enough to LeBronn to figure out if it could be. Not that she knew what she was looking for.

  “Guilty as charged.” He shrugged, making Heck and Wil both draw their weapons in response. “Hey, but not dangerous—at least not to you.”

  “To who are you dangerous, LeBronn?” Maray asked, not letting him intimidate her. If he was what he claimed to be, he’d had plenty of chances to kill her. Neither Heck nor Wil could have stopped him. She had seen Yutu-Langley and what he’d done to Heck and Jemin when he’d attacked them. The shifter species appeared to be even stronger than a common Yutu.

  LeBronn held her gaze. “To the Queen of Allinan and her self-righteous path of destruction.” He dropped to one knee and bowed his head. “My loyalty is with you, Princess Maray, as it was with Jemin’s father. Sander would never have allowed this splinter group of rogues. He would have put a stop to it long ago.” LeBronn spoke as if he was making a confession. “Jemin’s father was poisoned by the Queen to silence him. He knew who was truly behind the breach of dimensions, and he was planning to assassinate Rhia. I know because Sander warned me. I got away with my life while he—”

  Maray let herself drop to her knees, too, so she was level with the man. “I am sorry my grandmother killed your friend.” She laid one hand on his shoulder, and he lifted his head, eyes full of surprise.

  “Your Royal Highness, I don’t deserve your compassion.” He shook his head.

  “He is right,” Wil commented. “He doesn’t.”

  All heads turned to him.

  “He got away while Sander had to pay with his life,” Wil explained.

  “I didn’t get away,” LeBronn corrected, a dark shadow crossing his face. “I wish I had died with Sander. It would have been the easier way.”

  Maray had heard similar words before from Langley.

  “They experimented on you?” she guessed, and LeBronn’s expression confirmed she was right.

  “I was the first experiment. It took them years to find a way to turn me. Years of pain.”

  Jemin

  The first difference he noticed was the temperature. Then, when he peeked through half-open eyes, he noticed that the orange tint had disappeared. The burning wood that had been about to crush him wasn’t there, as weren’t the three men and Langley.

  “Welcome to the other world,” Seri commented from behind him, making him stumble forward. His chained hands didn’t catch him steadily as he fell face forward to the ground. “Let’s get those off before you hurt yourself.”

  Seri grabbed his shoulder and turned him over with surprising strength before she took the chains between Jemin’s shackles into both hands and ripped them apart. Jemin’s eyes popped.

  “Thanks. How—?” He didn’t need to finish his question. Seri sat down on the ground beside him and laid down her dagger.

  “You will never believe what has happened to me since my supposed death.” She rolled her eyes as if she was about to repeat something no one ever believed and didn’t think it half-worth the time and effort trying to convince anyone.

  “Trust me,” Jemin responded with eagerness. “I have heard more impossible things than anyone.” He was referring to his childhood as his father’s spy as well as to hiding Maray from the world—his world, Allinan. He propped himself up on his elbows and added, “Aren’t we supposed to be running? What if Langley and the others cross the border, too?”

  “Not going to happen,” Seri declared convincingly. “The men don’t have keys, and I saw Langley catch fire before I got us out.”

  Jemin shuddered and sat up beside Seri, rubbing his wrists where the shackles were still on. He noticed his own bracelet was gone.

  “I took it when they brought you in,” she informed him, her eyes on his hands.

  “Because…?”

  “Because they asked me to so you wouldn’t heal.”

  “Can I have it back?”

  Seri shrugged. “Not from me.”

  “You lost it?” Jemin felt the annoyance he used to feel when Seri outsmarted him in training.

  “I gave it away.”

  “Why?”

  “To save you.”

  They stared at each other for a moment, and he saw the fierceness in her dark eyes that had always been there.

  “What made you change your mind?” He rested his forearms on his knees.

  “It’s been a while now that Neelis and I have been disagreeing with Langley’s methods—”

  “My father’s friend, Neelis?” Jemin interrupted. “Your father?” Seri had always called her father by his first name for some reason. Neelis had spent many days with the Boyds when Jemin had been a kid—until his father’s death. Neelis hadn’t remained at court but moved to somewhere in the countryside.

  “My father,” Seri confirmed. “Neelis LeBronn.” She gave him a warning look, and he bit his tongue, saving any questions for later. “Long before Langley was turned into a Yutu, Feris made another experiment.”

  Jemin remembered Langley’s story, how Feris had infused him with Yutu blood and some spell. And when he’d turned, Feris had left him to die in the dungeons.

  “Neelis was that first experiment. He is a shifter just like Langley. But unlike Langley, he is much stronger. And unlike Langley, his bite and scratch are venomous.

  “He kills people?” Jemin couldn’t bite back the question.

  “Neelis would never kill for fun,” Seri objected, but he knew that the same probably applied for Neelis as did for Seri, or Heck, and Jemin himself: they had to be ready to kill in their jobs as guards. Whether it was palace guards or guards of dimensions didn’t matter. “Feris dumped him in a river after the experiment was done, thinking he was dead, but he turned and roamed the woods for weeks before he figured out a way to return to his human shape. He kept to himself for years until he learned about Maray from Langley. He’s always been part of the revolutionaries, but with this new information and the prospect of a new Princess of Allinan—Laura couldn’t be counted on since she has run away too many times—he thought it was time to bring me over to his side.” Seri looked into the past with dark eyes, her shoulders hunching as she spoke. “And I didn’t believe him. We had a fight, and he couldn’t control himself…”

&nbs
p; She eyed Jemin, waiting for him to fill in the blanks.

  “He turned you?” He comprehended, and Seri nodded.

  “And not just me.” She got to her feet and stuffed her dagger back into her weapons belt, balancing her petite frame a couple of steps away. “He already had a small pack of Yutu before that. Some of them accidents like me, others deliberately turned to build an army against the Queen.”

  Jemin took a moment to process. He knew he shouldn’t be surprised by anything. After Maray, Langley, and the revelation about Rhia…

  “Please, don’t think badly of Neelis,” Seri asked as she turned around, face less troubled. “He is a good man. He would do anything to protect his pack and his family—and as Sander’s son, you are as precious to him as either of them.”

  Jemin couldn’t tell if he was grateful or appalled—a little bit of both.

  “I gave your bracelet to him. When he learned you’d been brought in, he sent out his pack—members of Langley’s rogue revolutionaries—to report any rescue teams to him first. He told me to wait for a good moment to get you to this world and free you—”

  “Thank you, Seri.” They looked at each other for a moment. “I would never have made it out without your help.” But did it really matter that he had made it out alive if Maray hadn’t? He was glad he was still sitting; he couldn’t trust his legs and his still mildly throbbing head to keep him upright, especially not at the thought of losing Maray. He was glad he had seen Heck there with her. If he could rely on anyone to get Maray to safety, it was Heck. If there was any way, even the most difficult, he could trust Heck to go it; if there was any chance, even the slightest, he knew Heck would fight for it.

  “It’s nice to see an old friend again,” Seri answered and laid both her delicate arms around him. “I know I should have let you know I was alive. It would have made things easier for me, too.”

  Jemin reached up with one arm and held her to his chest. She fit there like a child, like a little sister who looked like a tiny doll but had the force of five men. He smiled to himself.

  “We’ve got no time to lose.” Seri crawled out of his arms and pulled out her dagger again, grabbing one of Jemin’s hands and bringing it toward her.

  He pondered objecting, but as she pushed the tip of her blade into the lock of his shackle to pry it open, he held still so she could do her work.

  “Thank you,” he repeated once both his hands were free of metal and she pulled him to his feet.

  “Let’s get going.” She led the way back out of the corridors, in a different direction from where they had entered last time, leading past the spare rooms and through a secret door beside the bathroom where he had stood guard for Maray. He bit back a surge of panic. “If she survived the fire, she should be at Neelis’ safe house.”

  Seri led him through a short passageway and up a flight of stairs until he could hear the noise of Viennese traffic.

  “Behave normal,” Seri requested over her shoulder and pushed open a small door that led into an old, darkish basement.

  “Where are we?” Jemin asked, hand automatically grabbing for his sword but finding thin air where the hilt should be. One thing he wouldn’t need to hide.

  “Outside the palace walls. We’ll have to walk all the way around to sector 13.”

  Jemin didn’t mind distances. It was the timespan until he’d find out whether or not Maray was alive that he feared.

  Seri cursed as she hit her foot on a box and switched on a light with one of those fascinating switches that closed an electric circuit somewhere in the walls.

  “Open the window, would you?” Seri pointed at a rectangle with little, round holes that was screwed across an opening on the other end of the room.

  He made his way past empty stalls and compartments and pulled himself up to the height of the board on a narrow windowsill. Through the holes, he could see that the window was level with the sidewalk. Stinking cars were passing at frequent intervals, and every now and then, a pair of feet would rush by.

  There were no tools within reach, so he unbuckled his weapons belt and used the prong to loosen the screws holding the board in place. Then, he carefully pulled the board inward and dropped it to the floor under the window. “Done.”

  His head felt much better the second the frosty air blew in his face. It occurred to him how lucky he had been. With Langley’s apparent madness, it was a miracle the former ambassador hadn’t killed him on an impulse. His mind flipped back to the second Maray had noticed he was looking at her through the flames. Something had been wrong—besides the obvious.

  He pulled his belt back around his hips and peered out of the window. The flow of cars never ceased, but there were no pedestrians within sight for the moment.

  “Now would be a good time,” he let Seri know and held out his hand to help her up. But the tiny girl pulled herself up to the windowsill with a leap from standing position, joining him far above the ground.

  “Yutu-strength becomes you,” he commented as he followed her through the open gap.

  She straightened and grinned at his compliment, blushing the tiniest bit, as Jemin emerged from the opening. “It makes things easier,” she replied, playing down his statement.

  Jemin had never thought Seri defenseless. Despite her petite frame, she’d always been exceptionally agile and dexterous and able to use her opponent’s body-weight to her advantage. He himself had lost countless times to her in training.

  The cars rushing past them were a constant reminder that he wasn’t in his world, but in the other one. The smell alone was enough; he didn’t need to see them. He followed behind Seri as she navigated the narrow sidewalk that led along the outer garden walls. The other end of the park would take them at least fifteen minutes if they continued at this pace, and he could already feel his feet itching to speed up.

  “No,” Seri blocked his path with her arm, making it look from the outside as if she was playfully embracing him. “We cannot stand out more than we already do.” She was referring to their lack of winter-clothing and Jemin’s armor-shirt. She herself was wearing tight Thaotine pants and boots similar to what Maray had been wearing when they’d set out to save Laura. It seemed like an eternity now. Like a different life where they entertained hope, and Rhia was the only remaining threat. Now he knew better.

  Seri led at a steady pace, fitting in with the slouching of Vienna’s winter-pedestrians who were hiding in their scarves and collars, defying the icy afternoon wind which swept pieces of paper and some left over leaves down the east-west facing street. It was only when they made it to the opposite end of the wall that she sped up a bit.

  “Over there.” She pointed at a church tower and pulled Jemin around the corner by the shirt, disappearing into a narrow side-street that led them a bit away from the wall, toward a noble stone parking area at the foot of the church tower. She ducked behind the cars, making him crouch for his head to be level with hers.

  They were facing an inconspicuous, pale-salmon colored building which appeared to be some public area. A tourist office or a museum. As she snuck closer, Jemin noticed that there were no people entering or exiting.

  “Is this it?” he wanted to know and nodded at the wide entrance door.

  Seri nodded. “Someone is in there.” She pointed at a window, making Jemin’s stomach drop to his knees. He peered over her shoulder and past the blue car that was their cover.

  Was it her? Maray? Had she made it to the safe house? His impulse was to run the door and let himself in, but his experience knew better. He knew what gathering intelligence meant, and he intended to make sure he wasn’t about to step into the next trap before he’d burst inside and retrieve Maray—given that she was in there.

  Beside him, Seri frowned. “Neelis collected more than intended,” she said to herself.

  “What does that mean?”

  “He wanted to save her, but I see more people in there…”

  Jemin moved past her to get a better view of the windo
w. She was right, there were more heads moving in the room behind the glass. Was that Heck? And Corey’s untamable hair? Something rejoiced inside of him. He hadn’t noticed Corey earlier, but now that he saw her, incredible gratitude for her safety spread in his chest.

  “If I leave you here for a minute, can I trust you to still be here when I return?” Seri asked into his thoughts.

  “What other options do I have?” He glanced at sector 13 behind them and the nearby gate to the palace grounds. In this world, behind the gate was the entrance to a zoo; an area which was mostly forest in the other world. On the other side of the small parking lot was a cluster of pavilions, each of them filled with a different little store.

  “Very well, then,” Seri said and darted further along the row of cars before she moved to the salmon-colored building at a place where she could cross the smallest amount of open space to get to it.

  Jemin watched her disappear behind the corner and crouched back down next to the car, peering through the vehicle’s windows at the street behind it. The traffic was lighter there, cars mixing with small trains that ran on rails inlayed into the asphalt. They had similar vehicles in Allinan. Except there, everything looked more like carriages and less like—well, what was running on these rails. Allinan mobility—if not horse-carriages the way they had at court—were fueled by Krai salt. Corey had once explained to him how Krai salt worked—magic and something. He hadn’t listened properly back then, trusting that his ability to fight with a sword and run up walls would be enough to remain at court as a soldier. Never in his wildest dreams had he believed that there would come a time when he’d be directly involved with the royal family.

  A screech caught his attention. Between the parking lot and the church behind him was a park with frozen flowers and a statue of some Austrian monarch who had died long ago. Two ravens were fighting over something at the feet of the greenish guy.

  Jemin watched them for a minute or less, tension increasing in his stomach as the bells of the church tower announced that the hour was full. Where was Seri?