by Jaxon Reed
Slowly the black streak shrank in size as the medicine Cait had applied worked its way through the damage. If someone watched long enough, they could actually see the wound shrinking. In a few hours Booker would be back to normal.
Had he been awake, he might have asked her what she was thinking as she sighed again. Perhaps she would have told him she was thinking back to the few men she had allowed herself to have a relationship with over the many years she had walked among the alternates. Nothing had ever worked out for very long, and they continued in their mortal existence while she returned to Headquarters. Here, she could have more compatible relationships. Like with Martin.
But still, Martin was only a representation of a man. And while Martin would no doubt take fae fire for her, it would be because he had been programmed that way, not out of true love. True, human love.
It would have been a very deep and long conversation with Ms. Tiffany Valor, if Darius were awake and able to convince her to open up about herself.
Instead, she made a motion and a lounge chair appeared beside the operating table. She waved her hand from her face to her stomach and her clothes changed into cut-off shorts and a t-shirt again. She climbed into the lounger and stretched, then dropped off to sleep.
4
In her dream, Tiff felt she must be twelve years old. The Walker decided she was of age, and had started teaching her deeper truths. Today he would impart another lesson. They walked down a path in the Mountain Room, her favorite.
The air felt crisp and cool and much lighter at this altitude. They made their way up a goat path, about 6,000 feet above sea level. She loved the mountains, and walked faster than normal, leading the way to an outcropping of rock she knew offered an extraordinary view.
The Walker kept up with her easily, his long legs covering more ground in fewer steps. She turned to look back at him from time to time, always finding him smiling as if her enthusiasm amused him.
Finally they reached the rocky point, and she sat down to look at the ever-changing clouds drifting by and the green valley far below.
The Walker sat down beside her, pulling knees to his chest and locking his arms around them.
After several moments, she broke the silence.
“I always wondered, where is this place?”
“It’s part of the Alps, in southern Bavaria. It’s beautiful.”
She nodded, trying to fit what he said into her understanding of European geography. Bavaria had been part of the Holy Roman Empire, until becoming its own kingdom. Later it became part of Germany, serving as a southern state through several governments.
Eb’s history lessons were very thorough. Most of the alternates she would be working on, Eb told her, generally followed O-Earth’s history, at least in a broad sense. It would help if she understood the original record, he said, so that she could have a fundamental understanding of what was going on in the alternates she visited.
They relaxed a while, drinking in the sights. Finally the Walker took a deep breath and began his lesson.
“‘In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth.’ That’s how the Bible starts in practically every alternate.
“And it’s true. God made everything. And God created many universes, with many earths.
“In the beginning, he created the first universe, and the first earth. And he created the alternates, a seemingly infinite number of parallel worlds.
“So, let’s look at Creation. What was God doing? ‘The heaven’ can be interpreted two ways. One, of course, involves the stars and the cosmos. The other, though, is the spiritual realm.
“God is spirit. And he resides in a spiritual realm commonly called ‘Heaven.’
“God also created a physical realm, a planet called ‘Earth.’ There he created physical beings to honor and serve him, just as he created spiritual beings to honor and serve him in Heaven.
“In the original universe, some of the spiritual beings in Heaven rebelled against him. The angel Lucifer convinced a third of the others to help try and unseat God from his throne. Michael and God’s loyal angels won the ensuing war. Lucifer and his followers were kicked out of Heaven and banished to Earth.
“Then came the fall of humans. Lucifer tempted Eve, the first woman, to eat fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, the one tree in the Garden of Eden God warned humans not to partake. When she and Adam ate the fruit, mankind fell from grace and came under the curse of death.
“And so people lived, and so they died. And there grew a separation between humans and God. He sought to bridge the gap. So he created a holy people who would serve him and no other god, and he established their lands at the crossroads of three continents. He set up a system of rules and sacrificial worship for his people to follow, so their sins could be forgiven. Holy scripture detailed his law so they could know him and his will. Later, he scattered them among the civilizations and ensured their scriptures were translated into the common tongues.
“Finally he became a human himself, born among his chosen people. He let himself be sacrificed as the ultimate blood offering for the sins of all people, for all time. From that day forward, those who accepted his sacrifice while they lived were given a free pass on Judgment Day. Through the blood he shed as a man, they made themselves right with God by entering into a special covenant with him. In accepting the gift of his sacrifice, they turned their lives over to him.
“After Judgment Day, God destroyed the old world and created a new one. He established Heaven on Earth, and gave all those who had accepted his covenant while in the old world eternal life in the new one. Those who did not were judged accordingly and faced oblivion, or the ‘second death.’ Now God lives among his people, and the physical world is fully united with the spiritual one.
“But there are many, many other universes he created beyond the first. They seem to be practically infinite, though they are not. I’ve walked among thousands of them, and Cait has numbered tens of thousands, but there are still many more we haven’t even begun to explore.
“Lucifer and his minions were defeated on the first Earth. But there are other beings who continued to fight. Many of them escaped to these other universes.”
He paused for a moment and smiled at Tiff.
“Is everything making sense so far?”
She nodded, her blonde locks bouncing up and down, her sparkling blue eyes wide in wonder.
“Good. Continuing then, there are three types of sentient beings. Humans exist for the physical realm. Angels exist for the spiritual realm. Fae exist somewhere between the two realms. The angels who rebelled so long ago are no longer in existence. They faced Judgment and the second death. Many of the fae, however, still exist. They are spread far and wide among the alternates.
“So, who are these creatures between the spirit world and the physical? Let’s compare them to the other two so we can understand them better.
“Angels manipulate things by spirit. One of the ways humans on my world could fool other people involved enlisting fallen angels for deceptive purposes. For instance, a magician would announce he could lift an object off a table without using his hands. Everyone watching would be amazed as the object floated up and followed his directions from a distance. They called it ‘telekinesis.’ In reality, a fallen angel would be lifting the object for him, moving it around while in the spiritual realm.
“Usually humans manipulate things by technology, with other things they created themselves. So another magician might hide an invisible wire connected to the object on the table. He could fool those watching when lifting his hand to make the object float in the air using the hidden wire.
“But fae manipulate things by magic. A fae might pose as a human, and raise his hand toward an object on a table and levitate it with the power of his mind, using neither spirit nor technology. He would use magic. True magic, not technological or spiritual manipulation.”
He paused again, and waited to see her reaction. She smiled at him, drinking
it all in. He couldn’t help but chuckle, knowing she was bursting with questions but dutifully holding her silence until he finished.
“In the beginning, on Original Earth, the fae realized very early that fallen angels were doomed. God expressly laid out their fate in the Bible, and no one of sound mind doubted they would lose the final battle. They were destined to fail and suffer spiritual death on Judgment Day, which was coming sooner than anyone fully realized.
“So the fae decided to try and escape a similar fate. Most had chosen evil, just as the fallen angels. But rather than battle the forces of good on O-Earth, they left it and scattered among the many alternate universes God created.
“They ensured the fall of mankind everywhere they went. In the beginning they were at the height of their power, and they posed as deceivers in the early days of practically every alternate. Over time they were fought, often successfully, by both humans and angels.
“As for myself, I was saved by the grace of God through his Son’s blood sacrifice on O-Earth. I lived and died. After Judgment Day, I found myself resurrected to an eternal afterlife. But I also found myself without purpose.
“One day the archangel Michael visited me and explained how the fae were disrupting order throughout the multiverse, much as I’ve been explaining it to you. He gave me a newfound purpose: battling evil among all the realms in Creation.
“I was given certain powers, the ability to manipulate reality, the ability to modify the very structure of existence. I was granted these abilities so I could alter the fabric of reality to help bring the fae to justice. Michael gave me the technology to use in fulfilling my quest. He showed me how to open doorways into other universes so I could walk among them.
“Remember that angels control things through spirit and fae use magic, but we humans manipulate Creation through technology. And I have access to the height of technology in order to combat the fae.”
He sighed, and stretched out his long legs. Then he held out his hand, and a steaming mug of tea appeared. He blew on it and took a sip.
“It’s an awesome thing, technology. Consider the world into which you were born, in the Middle Ages. Animals pulled wagons. Ships sailed by wind or were paddled by men. But in due course, steam, internal combustion engines and electricity replaced those natural means of propulsion.
“This didn’t stop in the new world after Judgment Day. Technology continued to progress, and still does. Inventors and engineers refine and adapt and develop things in the afterlife. We are now at the point where we can manipulate our own bodies via technology. I can change my clothes in an instant. I can grow taller or shorter, make my hair longer or go completely bald, gain or lose weight, all with a single thought.
“I can also hold out my hand and will a cup of tea to appear. And this is not through spiritual means or magic, but through technology.”
“It looks like magic.”
He nodded, taking another sip of tea.
“An author on O-Earth once said that any sufficiently advanced technology would seem magical to those unaccustomed to it. Imagine how your people from the Middle Ages would view cars and airplanes. They would not begin to understand everything behind an internal combustion engine or avionics. To them, it would all be magic. But it’s really just advanced technology.”
He stood and tossed the mug away. It disappeared before it hit the ground.
“Now, let’s start practicing with some of the tools we have for fighting the fae, shall we Tiff?”
-+-
“Tiff?”
She woke up with a start. The Walker bent down over her, a gentle smile on his face.
“Oh, hi Jason. I’m just catching some shuteye.”
He glanced over at Booker.
“You brought home a stray, I see.”
She blushed and nodded.
“He took some fae fire for me. The alternate is in the early twentieth century. No way they could treat it there, successfully.”
The Walker flashed an even bigger smile at her, an adorable toothy grin.
“Don’t bring him inside.”
He turned away and strolled down the path toward the door to Headquarters, the portal to another alternate winking out behind him.
She settled back down in her chair, and debated calling up a book to read. Then she wondered if she should even stay. Cait could keep an eye on Darius, and she could come back when he woke up.
She dismissed the thought. Darius Booker was her responsibility. She would remain by his side and escort him back to his home alternate as soon as he regained consciousness.
Mentally, she asked Eb for a good book. She favored romance novels, and was determined to read every one ever written on her Earth. So far, Eb informed her, she had read 1,267 books. He offered to let her know the remaining number including those released by publishers, those self-published, and those that were written but never published. He could categorize them all by sub-genre, too.
She waved aside the offer.
“Just let me know when I get close to the end of all published romance books from my alternate.”
“I’m afraid at this rate, that will take several more centuries.”
“Whatever.”
-+-
Booker’s eyes fluttered open. He slowly took stock of his surroundings. He remained outside somewhere, lying on his back on a padded table in a field of wildflowers. Bluebonnets, mostly.
The memories of recent events flooded back to him. He sat up, looked down and to the side of the table. The attractive blonde, Tiffany Valor, sat in a lounge chair, a sheet of paper floating in the air before her. Suddenly it disappeared, only to be replaced by another.
He furrowed his brows in confusion.
“What is that?”
The page disappeared again, and Tiffany looked up at him, startled.
“You’re awake! How is the wound?”
He reached down and gently touched his stomach and side where that . . . thing . . . had shot him. His eyebrows shot up in amazement.
“Gone. Like it was never there.”
“Good! Then it’s time to take you home.”
She stood up and grabbed his hand, practically pulling him off the table.
“Wait, were you reading just now? Where did the page go? It was floating in the air near your face. And what are you wearing?”
She smiled at him, her bright blue eyes twinkling.
“Darius, there’s a lot of things you’re just going to have to accept for the moment. Things like fae, and magical fire, and fields of bluebonnets that exist outside of time and space.
“Now come on, let’s get you home. Cait, open a door to his place.”
Instantly, a thin vertical blue and green line appeared in the air, shimmering. It quickly grew wider and she pulled him through.
They stepped out into his apartment. Tiffany’s clothes were instantly replaced with a stylish dress. Her hair seemed to adjust itself, too, returning to the short bob currently in fashion.
Booker gaped in astonishment as her clothes changed before his eyes. Tiff ignored him, and glanced around the small, simple apartment. A kitchenette occupied one wall. A single brass bed, neatly made up with a homemade quilt, filled another. A window facing the brick wall of an alley perhaps a dozen feet away occupied the third, while a door with five locks stood guard on the fourth wall. A small table and wooden chair sat ready to serve double duty for food and writing. One narrow wardrobe and a nightstand completed the apartment’s furniture.
A grand total of 600 square feet or so. Everything looked spotless and neat, just the way he had left it.
“Nice bachelor pad,” Tiffany said. She flopped down on the bed and turned on a wooden cathedral radio on the nightstand. Light jazz music filled the room.
Booker said, “Um . . . thank you? Now maybe you can tell me what’s happening, and how I ended up in a field of flowers with a wound that disappeared. And what time is it? How long have I been gone?”
“Cait has
taken us back to about 30 minutes or so after we left. We don’t want to return to the party, I think. Eliot Ness and the other agents will be busy questioning everybody. You can just tell anyone who asks you ran away in the dark during all the commotion. I imagine several people did just that, so there shouldn’t be any suspicion about your absence.”
They were interrupted by a loud knock on the door.
“Mr. Booker? Are you in there?”
Booker’s face paled.
“Yes, Ms. Brisbane.”
“I heard voices. Do you have a woman in there? And how did you get back in without me seeing you?”
Darius turned to look back at Tiffany.
She was gone! He jumped in surprise.
The loud knocking continued.
“I demand you let me in, Mr. Booker! You know the rules! Have you sneaked a girl into your apartment?”
Booker walked to the door in a daze, and slid back the bolts and locks. He opened it wide. A short, plump, and rather unattractive lady in her late 60s looked up at him with a scowl on her face.
“I heard voices! Who do you have in there?”
“Nobody, Ms. Brisbane. It must have been the radio.”
Bertha Brisbane poked her head through the doorway, scanning the small apartment. Her eyes stopped when they came to the wardrobe.
Bustling into the room, she elbowed Booker aside, and pulled the wardrobe door wide open. Several old suit coats, along with Oxford shirts and dark slacks greeted her mutely.
She frowned.
“Ms. Brisbane, really I . . .”
She ignored Booker, and focused on his bed.
“Somebody’s been sitting here.”
“Yes, Ms. Brisbane. I have been sitting on my bed.”
She frowned again, and knelt down to peer under the bed frame, only to find nothing there.
She stood up and walked to the window. Opening it, she stuck her head out and looked up, down, right and left.
“Really, Ms. Brisbane, this is quite unseemly.”
Booker put just the right amount of indignation mixed with hurt feelings into his voice. At the same time, he wondered how Ms. Valor had managed to disappear so quickly. The shimmering doorway would do the trick, but he didn’t think there was time for that while his back was turned.