I hesitated, glancing back at the pair of glasses on the bed stand. “How do I know you’ll return them to me?”
“I didn’t think you’d mind.” He sniffed. “You were ready to give them back to me at the White Tower…”
I frowned, remembering how I’d wanted to get rid of the travel glasses after Valcas had seen how they’d affected my eyes.
“Okay, fine,” he said, removing the glasses he wore and handing them to me. “I just need to borrow them for a couple of searches that I need to run before we leave tomorrow morning. You can hold on to these in the meantime.”
In the brief moment during which we stared at each other, I tried to see past his eerie orbs and focus on his other facial features. Then, frowning, I took the glasses from his hand and turned to retrieve the other pair.
I stifled a yawn as I handed him the glasses. “Here you go.”
“Thank you,” Valcas said, rubbing his eyes.
I sighed. He almost looked normal that way—with his eyelids closed, the way he’d looked before the travel glasses distorted his appearance.
Valcas opened his eyes again, shattering those memories. “If you need anything, my room is two doors down. Goodnight, Calla.”
THE NEXT morning was bright and sunny, a perfect day for travel by land, sea or sky. I soon learned that my teammates and I would be traveling that day by sky, on a light jet, certified by the TSTA and piloted by Ivory.
Mom hugged me tightly before we set off. Tears threatened to spill from the corners of her eyes.
“Don’t forget to check in from time to time,” she said. “I’ll monitor your movements as much as I can.”
I smiled and nodded, but I wasn’t sure how I’d be able to keep such a promise. Even the amazing TSTA, despite being an Inter-world organization, couldn’t seem to keep track of everything. Mom had told me that much already, back when I found out she worked for the TSTA as a Communications Facilitator.
Mom waved as Ivory entered the jet, followed by Valcas. Ray stayed behind to lend his hand to help me mount the stairs onto the aircraft. He held the back of my arm, just above my elbow, not letting go until we reached the top of the stairs. His touch sent shivers up my arm and down my spine.
Stunned, I looked back at Ray, wondering what that was all about. First, why would he think I needed help going up stairs? And, second, what was with the shivers? Ray was busy scanning the ground below us, so he didn’t notice my questioning eyes or arched brows.
I peeked inside the plane. There were four passenger seats behind Ivory’s pilot chair. I took a deep breath and sat down across the aisle from Valcas. After a moment, Ray followed and sat down in front of me. He pulled a lever on the side of his seat. It swiveled ninety degrees to the right, until he faced the side of the plane.
“Oh,” I said as I realized that I was now looking right at the side of his head.
I reached down alongside my seat and pulled at my lever. My chair swiveled and then locked into place. I cringed. Now I was sitting with Ray at my left, with both of us having a marvelous view of Valcas’ left side.
“Buckle up back there,” Ivory called out from the front of the jet.
Valcas kept his seat right where it was. He turned his head toward us as we buckled our seat belts.
I rolled my eyes at him. “If you’re glaring at us, I can’t really tell, you know.”
In response, Valcas took off his glasses—the pair he’d borrowed from the night before—and handed them to me. Yep, I was right. He was glaring.
“Thanks,” I said, shrugging it off. I handed him back his pair.
He put them on immediately, settled in his seat and looked straight in front of him.
I stretched my neck to the left and watched as Ivory put on a helmet with a dark visor and tested out the controls. As I did this I glanced at Ray to see how he was recovering from Valcas’ stink eye. I blushed. Ray seemed just fine. He was watching me. Again.
I pressed back into my seat and smiled. I could get used to attention from someone like Ray, even if my mind was still swarming with memories of a green-eyed past version of Valcas.
The crackle of a speaker made me jump.
“Test. Test.”
“We can hear you just fine, Ivory,” Valcas said.
Even though she was just a couple of seats away from us, she chose to speak to us over the loudspeaker. “This is your captain speaking, Valcas.”
Valcas sniffed.
“Humor me,” Ivory shot back. “And prepare for takeoff.”
“I’ve never traveled this way before,” I said. “What do I need to do?”
“Shield your eyes,” replied Valcas. “But wait until I tell you when. You’re still learning the differences between searching, traveling, communicating and recording with the travel glasses. I don’t want to lose you should you accidentally travel somewhere else once we’re in motion.”
He had a point. I had no idea where we were going, and so I wouldn’t be searching for our destination or attempting to transport us there. I knew the glasses could be used to communicate with others like a telephone as long as both communicants were wearing compatible glasses at the same time—that, I’d learned from Edgar. I also knew how to record and play back scenes and memories, but I had no idea why Valcas would be concerned about that. More than anything, I was happy to have the travel glasses to shield my eyes from the Blanching Effect. Every one of us had some form of dark glasses or visor with us to protect our eyes—everyone except for Ray.
“But Ray’s not wearing any,” I said.
Ray looked over to me and smiled. “I don’t need them.” He shrugged. “I’ll be keeping watch during transport.”
I thought about that for a moment. “Why would any of us need to be wearing travel glasses if we’re already in a licensed TSTA vehicle?” I asked.
Valcas rubbed his eyes underneath his glasses. “It’s just a precaution—in case something goes wrong.”
“Oh, right.” In case we needed to escape.
THE AIR in the cabin felt thick as the jet sped along the runway. Just as the jet began to ascend into the air, Ivory announced: “First stop—Aboreal!”
“Now, Calla,” Valcas said. “Shield your eyes.”
I immediately slipped the travel glasses on my face.
Through them, the windows to the jet glowed brightly. I waited expectantly for a landing, for the jet’s wheels to make contact with the ground. Nothing like that happened. Instead, the white glow from the windows faded and then darkened into a violet-blue haze.
“Home sweet home,” muttered Ivory as she removed her helmet and opened the door to the aircraft. “Okay, crew, welcome to where we will briefly train. Valcas, I expect that you’ve visited here before. Ray and Calla, this world is where I grew up. The Uproar is powerful, but slow, so if it is still following Calla, this place will buy us some time.” She grinned. “I hope you enjoy your stay.”
I removed my glasses and stuffed them in my backpack. Once out of the jet, I opened my eyes to Aboreal, the world where Valcas’ mother Sable was also born.
Ivory had landed the jet in an open field, presumably controlled by the TSTA. I looked up at the violet-blue sky. It was moonless, starless and sunless. I couldn’t tell whether it was night or day. The similarities between this world and the White Tower ended there. Like Earth, Aboreal had green trees, green grasses and brown soil.
Ivory led us to a nearby village, the buildings of which were made of materials that I recognized as timber, brick and stone.
“Aboreal does not orbit a sun,” Ivory explained. “Here, there is no such thing as day or night. If you need a nap, you take a nap. If you need to eat or drink, then you do that. We don’t schedule or plan what Earthlings would consider normal day-to-day activities here, but somehow everything seems to get done.”
While walking, I noticed that the village was well populated. I quickly learned that it wasn’t the environment that made Aboreal so strange, as much as its people. Aborea
lians of various ages and flesh tones, both male and female, sauntered lazily along the streets. I watched as a small girl, approximately six years old, plucked a white dandelion. Long, straight, white hair blew in the breeze along with a stream of white dandelion puffs. A small black puppy followed, timidly staying near the girl. I smiled as large silver eyes looked up at me through frosty white lashes. Just as Ivory had said earlier, everyone had either white or black hair, nothing in between.
Ray pointed out additional animals that meandered along paths of green grasses and polished stone. There were rabbits, squirrels, and an assortment of feline creatures, all one of two solid colors—the darkest of night or the brightest of snow.
“So if this is where we’ll be training,” I said, “am I going to be learning how to fight?”
“Over my dead body,” replied Valcas. He’d somehow managed to match my stride and was walking uncomfortably close to me.
“Settle down there, Papa Bear,” taunted Ivory. “So business minded, both of you. What ever happened to just taking in the scenery?
“To answer your question, Calla, you will undergo mental preparation rather than physical training. You already know how to run away. It’s not like an Uproar can be shot, pummeled or slain.”
Valcas stopped walking and gestured to Ivory, some kind of open-handed signal that I didn’t understand.
Ivory responded in a similar fashion.
“Of course,” Valcas said. “I have something that I need to attend to while I’m here. Please continue, Ivory. I’ll meet up with all of you later.”
I raised an eyebrow at him, wondering what was happening. He walked away without meeting my eyes.
Ray and I exchanged a glance and then looked expectantly at Ivory.
“Sorry, you two,” she said. “As much as I’m sure we’re all going to miss Mr. Grumpy Pants, we’re just going to have to do without him for a short time.”
I snickered as we continued walking. “If this is your home, then where did you get all of the Earth sayings?” I asked. “Home sweet home, Papa Bear, Mr. Grumpy Pants? Do they talk like that here?”
Ivory pinched her shoulders into a shrug. “English is a common language as well as the official language of the TSTA. I learned many languages while in the Aborealian forces, and I studied the TSTA-Vision back at TSTA Headquarters. I wanted to be able to chat with the American Earth-borns on the mission. And from what I can tell, you two could use a refresher on the more humorous sayings.”
“You mean the television in the guest room? I couldn’t find a show in a language I could understand. It was just channel after channel of children in black and gold robes singing in a strange language.”
“Same here,” said Ray. “Could those have been Aborealian stations, Ivory? Was the TSTA trying to prepare us too?”
“Yeah, probably,” she said, her eyes darkening. “Let’s hope you don’t see that concert while you’re here, though.” She frowned. “The black and gold robes are reserved for funeral choirs.”
I opened my mouth to say something and then shut it again. A brief shudder passed along the back of my neck as I tried to remember what the children in the robes looked like, specifically whether or not they had either snow-white or jet-black hair. I couldn’t remember. A funeral choir? Suddenly I wished Valcas hadn’t left.
“So, what did Valcas need to do?” I asked, looking back even though I had no expectation of seeing him anywhere behind us.
“Nothing you need to worry about,” Ivory said, smiling. The smile looked forced. “Explaining all of the local customs would take too long, especially given how quickly we’ll be leaving again.”
Great, I thought. More secrets. Suddenly uncomfortable, I considered taking Ray’s hand. I pushed back that idea. Given how attentive he’d been, I figured he probably wouldn’t mind, but why would I even think of doing that? I hesitated, letting the moment pass.
Several more minutes into our journey, Ivory stopped at a fruit stand attended by a vendor with slick black hair and eyes of orange-gold tourmaline.
“Picnic peaches,” Ivory whispered.
The vendor’s eyebrows lifted, but he didn’t offer any fruit.
“Please follow me,” replied Orange-Eyes.
The vendor gestured to a nearby woman with hair and eyes that matched his. He motioned for us to follow him.
As we walked, I noticed that Ivory and Ray had positioned themselves close by, one on either side of me.
The vendor led us to a brassy building fronted by a fountained pond. The water sparkled clean and clear, much like the waters of Earth. We stood silently as our Aborealian guide rang a doorbell. He hadn’t spoken the entire way. I fidgeted, wondering where we were going and why everyone was so quiet all of a sudden.
When the door opened, I gasped.
Valcas’ mother, Sable, stood in the doorway. Her olive skin and shining black hair radiated beauty no less vivid than what I’d seen in Shirlyn’s photo album at the Halls’ Estate. Tall, regal and handsome, Sable glanced at each of us with emerald green eyes—first at Ray, then Ivory. Lastly, her penetrating gaze settled on me.
“You must be Calla,” she said. She grabbed a long piece of scarlet fabric that had fallen over her shoulder and threw it behind her back. “Please come in, all of you. We have much to discuss.”
WHEN WE were comfortably seated, servers came by with an assortment of ices, yogurts, gelatos and tall glasses of water. I selected a tart key-lime frozen yogurt while Ray and Ivory opted for a rich-looking chocolate hazelnut gelato. Had Valcas been there with us, I was certain that he would go for the deep raspberry-colored ice labeled “Laramile berry sorbetto.”
Sable sat by observing, eating nothing as we enjoyed our treats. I sat there wondering where Valcas had gone and whether he knew that the first stop on our agenda would involve a visit with his mother. Not that I necessarily felt like he needed to be there right next to me during every moment of our mission. But who goes off on a random side errand when they’re supposed to be protecting someone they’d dragged into a strange new world?
I shook my head and looked up to find Sable, with pursed lips and shining eyes, watching me. She was the picture of expectation and bemusement, except that she was also glaring at me as if I’d offended her.
“I’m sorry, did you say something?” I winced, embarrassed.
“You seemed to be deep in thought, even in the midst of company, and so naturally I was wondering what you were thinking about.” She clasped her hands together and grinned. It wasn’t a pleasant grin. Was she messing with me?
I stared at her, unsure how to respond.
“There was something in particular that interested me about the expression you were making just now,” she mused. “Your eyes glowed as if you were considering something or someone dear, but the rest of your features frowned in distress. Tell me, Calla, are you going to be able to endure this journey? Do you worry about those whom you love as much as you worry about yourself?”
I crumbled under Sable’s question. My throat felt dry. She’d spoken to me as if she’d known me forever. But I didn’t have any reason to trust her. Her questions were too personal, even though I also had no reason to mistrust her.
I looked over at Ivory, hoping she’d jump in and talk about something else to break the ice. She sat there shoveling in more chocolate gelato. Her furrowed brow and narrowed eyes signaled to me that she was listening intently, but the gelato effectively muted our human television.
My cheeks burned as I mulled over my situation. I didn’t want to answer Sable, and why should I? I’d just met her—in a world called Aboreal—after being sent on a penance mission to find my father, who was likely dead.
My lips puckered as I stared levelly at Sable. The embarrassment had worn off; I was outraged. Perhaps I should tell her exactly what I thought of her darling son. Just as I was about to open my mouth to speak, Valcas walked into the room carrying a small bowl of Laramile berry sorbetto.
“Seriously,
Mother,” he said as he planted himself in a chair next to mine. “Can’t you begin our visit with normal, polite conversation? Why not start by asking Calla whether her mother is in good health?”
Ivory chuckled and stuffed her mouth with another spoonful of gelato.
Sable smiled, resigned and stoic, but she didn’t answer Valcas’ questions or pose those he’d suggested.
“How long have you been here listening to all this?” I asked under my breath as he sampled a spoonful of the burgundy ice.
“Long enough to realize that you would need to be protected from more than the Uproar,” he whispered, grinning.
After a second bite, Valcas turned his attention back to Sable. “This is very good, Mother, but we need to start training right away. I’ll escort our group to the training grounds. We leave here tonight.”
Valcas looked to Ivory for confirmation.
“Yes, thank you, Mrs. Hall. We should go.”
Sable rose from her seat.
“Perhaps we’ll meet again, Calla. In the meantime, consider the questions that I have asked you. Your situation has also placed one of my loved ones in grave danger.”
Without waiting for an answer, she turned from us and walked away. With a flick and a swish, she gathered her trailing robes and pulled them with her through the door.
Ray and I sat there, wide-eyed. It was no secret that Valcas had already risked his life for me. She can resent me all she wants, I thought, but I never asked for this.
I glanced at Valcas. His jaw was set tight as he stared at the door where his mother had left the room.
Ivory stood up and smacked her lips. “Well, that was refreshing. Come on, Momma’s Boy. Let’s get out of here.”
I rolled my eyes. It was about time she tried to lighten the mood. Another look at Valcas told me that she hadn’t succeeded.
TRAINING WAS unlike anything I’d expected. There were no flashy mind games, reflex tests, battle simulations or lessons in survival or self-defense. Instead, Ivory showed Ray and me slide after slide of bullet points, charts and graphs about studies concerning Uproars—historical documentation of their existence, famous travelers who encountered them, and geographical maps recording Uproar “sightings.” That last bit made no sense to me because, as far as I could tell, the Uproar didn’t look like anything. It was just a flash of bright white light. Outside of that, I had no clue what an Uproar would look like if I saw one or what I’d even do about it other than run for my life.
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