by P. G. Thomas
Without turning, Logan advised, “If you wave your hand at it again, it’ll turn back into an amulet.”
Quickly waving both hands at the beast, when he opened his eyes, a small silver replica of a winged horse sat at his feet. “KID, WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING?”
Logan took a long drink, walked over, picked up the magic amulet, and headed inside, “You’re the detective so figure it out.”
The meal that night was quiet, being like the first time they arrived: so many questions, so few answers. It is one thing to be stranded at an airport or to be lost in a different city back home. You could find a phone, or find somebody to help. However, nobody had ever published a book on what to do when lost in a strange world. Eric had actually felt foolish when he asked the librarian at the university, who just shook her head with a confused look. Like the rest, he had always worried that one day they might find themselves back in Calicon, and he was still unsure of what they should do next.
Chapter 5
Waking the next morning to the smell of the hot bean juice, Steve pushed himself up, feeling better to his surprise. Raising himself further, he sat down on the cushioned bench and once comfortable, removed the garment from the school. Reaching down to his right ankle, unbuckling the holster, he quickly tucked the snub nose revolver into his coat pocket. With the assistance of a chair, he jerked himself upright, and after catching his breath, shuffled towards the kitchen, continuing to use the chair for support.
When John arrived downstairs, he was surprised to see Steve sitting at the table, “You look like you’re doing better.”
“There’s only one thing that’ll make me feel better.”
“Then you’re going to be miserable for a while, so you had better get used to it.”
Eric and Logan were the next down, followed by Gayne, and then Lauren and Ryan. Just before the meal was about to be served, Mirtza let himself in the front door.
After the last servant had left the dining room, Lauren looked at John, “You’re sure you didn’t miss something yesterday? Some clue as to what happened?”
He sighed, setting down his mug, “I—right now, not all of the facts are known. Therefore, more time is required to formulate a solution to determine the correct course of action.”
“Logan, what did he just say?” asked Lauren.
“I don’t know.”
Her stare was cold. “That’s what it sounded like to me as well.”
“Didn’t you talk to the thief guild yesterday?” asked John.
Nodding, Gayne avoided the staring eyes of Lauren. “We gave them the list of the six students that knew of the machine, whose whereabouts are unknown. They will look for them, and see if they can shed any light on what has happened.”
John set down his utensil, “Somebody used the machine before the lightning hit it, but I—How it found the triplets or us, I’m unable to conjecture a conclusive argument.”
Lauren glanced to Logan, who shook his head, “Why do you keep looking at me. I don’t know what he said.”
“That’s what I thought he said.”
“Lauren, I need time.”
“Four years ago, when you needed the same, you used magic to find it. Might I suggest you find both and soon.”
“Four years ago?” asked Gayne. “It has been eight since we said goodbye.”
Eric, Logan, Ryan, and Lauren all set down their utensils and stared at John.
Crap, the time offset, I forgot about it. “The machine was calibrated to go back in time when we last activated it, so when it energized, it found us four years in our past.”
Logan raised his hands, “Eight? Four? What do you mean past? Now I really don’t know what he’s talking about.”
“Our daughters are almost five years old?” It was Ryan, who pushed his plate away, then marched over to the patio doors, walking out into the raging storm to cool down.
“Explain this better to me!” demanded Lauren.
“We had spent four years here the last time, so when I built the machine, I had to make it subtract those years on our journey home. If the time offset had been set to neutral, then I guess it would’ve found us eight years after we left—or four years from now. Because of it, it found us in our past, so when I fix it, we’ll just go back to the same date, and everything will continue like it should.”
“I might be the—hell, I never know what’s going on,” began Logan, “John, why didn’t you tell Mirtza to destroy the machine like Ryan asked?”
“I don’t know.”
“Sons of a bitch,” Lauren stood, headed out to the patio.
“Lauren,” and then his voice went soft, “I’m sorry.”
Eric rubbed his temples, “If he thought that this could—Why didn’t you?”
“We talked about this last night. I built a machine that bent every natural law in every universe. Hell, I didn’t even know if it would get us all home. Why do you think I went first? There would be hundreds of variables that would have to be correct so it could find us again. I built something that was great, which nobody else would know about, so maybe it was hubris.”
“Who bris who?” asked Logan.
“Extreme pride or self-confidence. I built something magnificent and could never think of destroying it, but I never, ever thought it would work again. I never thought there would be a reason for Mirtza to use it.”
Logan shook his head, “You left him your cell phone. You even said that if he ever needed you, to find you. You knew, didn’t you? I think you always wanted to come back here.”
John shook his head, “Even if I did, I wouldn’t want to be here under these circumstances. Mirtza was a friend, and I didn’t know, but it felt like the right thing to do, to say. Crap, we were still kids, and there was no way to predict this.”
Mirtza was angry, “Enough!” He stood and went over to the patio. “You two, inside now!” When Ryan and Lauren were sitting, dripping wet on the table, he returned to his chair but remained standing. “We will figure this out together, as fighting and bickering will not accomplish anything. When I found you six in the Newlands, we were unable to solve all of the problems in Calicon by the time we arrived at that covered forest. You may have forgotten that which happened to us, but I have not. I will tell you right now, if you had been fighting like this, I would have left you there. You are friends, family, and have been through too much to now turn on each other. Even if I thought John could have helped us here, I would never have activated the machine since you all did enough the last time. Besides, on our journey across the Newlands from Alron, I threw away one of the major parts, so even if I wanted to bring him back, it would be unable to tempt me. I told John what happens here is our concern, not his, to go home to his family. If we are going to solve this, it will be by working together.” Mirtza sat down, “Now, I am tired of hearing this bickering, and if it does not stop, I will—I will—”
Gayne spoke up, “Lock the wine cellar!”
Then Mirtza added, “Now, tell us a pleasant story about your reception home.”
Staring at the floor, Lauren and Ryan mumbled their apology, “Sorry.”
“I didn’t mean to jump on the wagon, brother,” replied Eric. Then he began the story about their trip to the diner. The phone calls, seeing their parents arrive, the hugs, the crying, and the laughter. Explaining about the reporters, when Mirtza and Gayne displayed a confused look, John offered to simplify. He shook his head, smiled, “It’s okay, Harry, I’ll get it.” When he explained about the government officials interrogating them, Gayne asked how they had managed to endure the long hours. “The interrogations by the black-clad soldiers prepared us for that. We just kept repeating that we didn’t remember anything, and John’s dad also assisted us with a lawyer, which helped us get through it all.”
Each, in turn, told stories about returning to their regular life.
As they talked, the investigator in Steve turned on. He listened carefully to their stories, watched their eyes and expr
essions. The anger displayed earlier seemed real, their stories seemed cohesive, and their reactions genuine. His only conclusion, they were really good actors, but the events from the patio the other day prevented his mental jury from returning a united vote.
“You’re a mother? Three daughters, how did that happen?” asked Mirtza.
Lauren smiled, “Once everything settled down, Ryan had to continue with his rehabilitation, and I went with him even though he didn’t want me there. I saw how hard he struggled, which made me love him even more. He asked me to the prom, a formal dance, and at the end of the night, during the last song, he knelt down on one knee and proposed, slipping his Ironhouse ring on my finger. It was magical. Our parents weren’t thrilled, but they supported us. We were married a year later in the summer, honeymooned in my parent’s basement. I didn’t care since I woke up every morning and saw the one I loved. Two years later, I had finished school, and while I was pregnant, Ryan was in his second last year. Nine months later, I was cradling our three daughters: Samantha, Hope, and Brooke. Everything was beautiful like it should’ve been.” Tears began to well up in her eyes, “Then, a few days ago, a portal opened, the stroller with my three innocent, beautiful daughters rolled into it, shattering my world.” Standing, Lauren ran up the stairs, followed by Ryan.
Mirtza lowered his head, “I am sorry. I never meant for this to end like that.”
“John, what did you want to do this day?” asked Gayne.
He rubbed his eyes, “I don’t think there’s anything else we can learn from the school or the machine. Even if I wanted to restart it, I can’t. I know we need to find the triplets first, but I need to get my head screwed on straight.”
Gayne and Mirtza both tilted their heads, being unable to comprehend the reference.
“Lauren and Ryan might not like it, but I would just like to spend the day thinking in my room. There’s too much information to process, and I just need some time to slow it down.” Then John headed to the stairs.
*******
Around noon, the storm outside had lost most of its energy, and even though the sky was overcast, the rain was lacking. Steve, hearing somebody in the dining room, saw Eric with a small keg, and Logan with several mugs, heading out to the patio. Pulling the chair over, he raised himself up, but instead of having to shuffle his feet, his stride was almost normal. Not needing the chair, he slowly headed out, “Closed party, or can I join you?”
Eric looked over his shoulder, “Only if you can pull a rabbit out of your ass.”
“What? Why?”
“That’s what we’re going to need to get out of this mess.”
Steve sat down, “As a general rule, I’ve never used my lower intestines to raise livestock.” To their surprise, he added, “This is all real, isn’t it?”
Eric set down his mug, “Ever had a dream where you dreamt you were sleeping, and in that sleep, you have another dream? Then the second dream scares you so bad, you wake up, but you don’t, only dream that you did? Then something happens, and you wake up again, but you don’t know if you’re actually awake, or if you are dreaming it?”
“No, I can’t say I have.”
“That’s what this world is like,” replied Eric. “Logan could control water and fire. Zack, damned misfit, could change into different animals, freakiest thing I’ve ever seen. Lauren, she did the most incredible things, and I don’t even know where to begin with her. Ryan, he redefined what it meant to be a rock star.”
“What about you and John?” asked Steve.
“Me, they rented my body out to a, I don’t know, a demigod, I guess. Do you’ve any idea what it feels like to have lightning burn the tartar build-up off of your teeth?” Eric smirked, “Leaves you with a sparkling smile. Then to feel it surge through your body, having it answer your call? John, the Unchosen, that’s what the elves called him before proclaiming him an Earth Mother.”
“Earth Mother?” asked Steve.
“It’s a long story, and I don’t think there are any short ones here, especially from my sister,” added Logan.
Eric set down his mug, “John, he reached out and pulled magic from the skies. When we thought all was lost, that little bastard, well, he saved the day. He didn’t need somebody to gift him a talent or to teach him because he saw everything. In the end, he solved the riddle that no one else understood. Is this real? I don’t know, but I still remember things from four years ago, or eight, and real doesn’t even begin to describe those memories. I championed a sword that—I don’t want to talk about it.” Then he filled his mug, taking a long drink.
“You said, ‘this was real.’ What did you mean?” asked Logan.
Reaching over, Steve filled his mug, “It’s like when I get together with my war buddies. We relive the old stories, but the emotions, you can’t fake them, especially the anger. When we talk, it isn’t scripted. What we say, it comes from the heart, the gut. The expressions on our faces, reliving those memories ringing in our ears, they’re not faked. Old wounds long forgotten begin to ache. I once saw a buddy who lost an arm reach out for a beer. All of that—plus the freaking winged horse, and that damned magic chest you put in front of me. This is real, we aren’t on Earth, and this isn’t some sort of special effects studio or a bad trip. Lauren actually had her daughters kidnaped by somebody from here?”
Nodding in agreement, Logan lowered his head.
“Dwarves have a tradition of new guests telling their story,” began Eric. “I’m dwarf, so tell me yours.”
Steve and Eric both paused for a second, looking at each other, and then Steve asked, “How much of this have you had to drink?”
“It’s a tradition, and here, that means something. Tell us your story.”
“There’s not much to say,” began Steve. “Grew up in a large city, my mother was an alcoholic and drug addict, and I was one of three children from three different fathers. You could say I grew up on the wrong side of both sets of tracks. In my neighborhood, there was a saying: you don’t bring guns to a knife fight. We were poor, and I couldn’t afford guns, so I always brought the biggest knives. One year, my older brother died in a drive-by shooting, and my younger brother overdosed. It made me shift my focus, so I concentrated on school. Won a scholarship to a local college, graduated, and joined the Navy. They found a talent, promoted it, and trained me. Spent some time overseas, visited foreign lands, killed nasty people. Became tired of the travel, among other things, returned, and joined the police force.”
Logan took a long drink, “You need to hang around my sister because that would have taken her…”
Eric held up four fingers.
Then he finished his sentence, “Like three hours to tell.”
Eric shook his head, “There has to be more?”
“Met a girl the second year on the force,” began Steve. “We married and had a son. As my priorities were screwed up, I spent more time with the blue, than with my wife and kid. Divorcing me, she took half of everything and moved to the other side of the country.”
“Don’t you ever see him?” asked Logan.
“Some people break up and remain friends. Some burn the bridges behind them. Me, I blew up the bridge and the surrounding countryside even before I stepped off it. There would be too much to apologize for, so it’s easier to let him believe whatever lies my ex told him about me. A few years later, met somebody else, married her, had a daughter. Then wrapped my cruiser around a telephone pole in a high-speed chase. Hooked on painkillers, depression, then I became an asshole. Repeat the last three parts of the previous story; divorce, lose half, and the ex moves. Now I just concentrate on the job. Thinking I stumbled on a big case, I followed John and Lauren. Arrested my suspect, lightning strike, blackout, and I wake up in Cali Gone,—or whatever this place is called. So now I’m in this Wonderland looking for the Cheshire cat, hoping I don’t bump into the Queen of Hearts.”
Logan shook his head, “Zack 2.0. Maybe this place will work out for you. Before we left, Zac
k met the love of his life and raised a family.”
“I’m not interested in that anymore. For me, it is good versus bad. If I put enough bad guys away, I just hope that when they punch my ticket, they tell me to get on the uptown train, not the one going downtown. However, I still have a lot of bad guys to put away.”
Logan nodded, “Yeah, karma’s a bitch.” Have I heard this before?
Many were absent from dinner that night. Lauren and Ryan had stayed in their room. John, consumed in thought, never heard the knock on his door, and Mirtza had left earlier in the day.
*******
Nightmares plagued John’s sleep, and once again, in a world absent of large red numbers illuminating the dark, he was unsure of when he actually fell asleep. Wandering down the stairs the next morning, he greeted the house staff, requested a fried meat sandwich, and then went into the front room.
“Gayne took everybody into town to pick up some grub and restock the cellar,” advised Steve. “It’s just you and me, Kid.”
“Oh, joy.” John sat down, taking a sip of his hot bean juice.
“I had a talk with our friends yesterday, and you’re starting to make a believer of me.”
“Good, sell it to Lauren and Ryan, telling them how it’s going to help find their daughters faster.”
“Dammit, Kid, I’m on your side.”
He set down his mug, “You and me against the world, great.”
“You little snot-nosed prick. What the hell’s your problem?”
“What isn’t? I built a machine that took us home and saved the day. Then it brought the triplets and us back. I looked at Lauren and Ryan, seeing hope for my future, but now that I’m in my past, dammit, I just don’t know.”
“Eric spoke pretty highly of you yesterday.”
“Yeah, he always does. It’s what big brothers do.”