by P. S. Power
Merri seemed pleased to hear that part of things for some reason.
“Oh! A trip to another land? That’s a good sign. Still, a duty comes first. Always. Now, you two go and rest, while I ready the feast. I…” She glanced at the food she’d been working on, then smiled. “We’ll have something better than this. I didn't know we’d be meeting a new line walker. Things have slowed that way. Did Troy teach him?”
Zack shook his head then.
“I did it. This is particularly important. Besides, we had to stay in the lines a bit longer than most do, because Will needs to be able to track things better than anyone else can. Better than I can, in fact. So that his packages will reach the correct place each time?” The man looked at him then, and started out of the room, since he’d been told to leave once already. “Troy is another line walker. My best friend. You’ll like him. I don’t know if he’ll be in tonight or not.”
They walked for a good way, since it was a palace. Finding an odd sitting room to the side. There was an attractive noble woman with blonde hair, dressed in clothing that was similar to what many at the mall had been wearing. She was about six-six, but her face was delicate for a lady of that size. Her eyes were blue, and she sat focused on a window in front of her. That was a magical seeming thing. There had been some at the mall like it, so he knew it didn’t show reality on the other side like simple glass would. Instead it showed a realm that looked a bit like places in Noram, if they’d been distorted and made more brilliantly colored. At least there was a stone keep in the background, as a winged beast flew toward a figure that held a sword.
There was grunting from the long, soft looking bench, as the powerfully built woman battled the dragon. When he connected to that, concentrating, it was clear that it was a story, more than anything else. She was fighting it, but there was no more to it than imagination. Which was good, since the thing seemed very large, if it were coming at them for real.
After a well and hard fought battle, the thing died, which got her to push a sigil on the control device she wielded. Then she stood up, hugged Zack, picking the man up, then thumped Will on the arm.
“You’re Kyle from another world? You smell like him. Kaitlyn as well. The other one, not ours.”
“Willum Baker. Will.”
The giantess nodded then, her face calm.
“Hilda.” A palm slapped at her own chest, so he’d understand who she meant. “Trollienkeine.”
Then she spoke in a language that was very nearly Standard. It wasn’t perfectly formed, being more guttural and thicker in places, but he could work it out without needing lessons for once.
“I find it troubling that you look like Kyle the Alede, but smell of Kaitlyn and him. You’ve had sex with them?”
He nodded, then tried to speak the same tongue. It was off in a few places, but she seemed to understand him.
“I did. In a different world, not this place. I can see that being troubling. It was for me as well, but felt needed at the time. I need to shower, which is part of why Zack brought me here.”
She stood then, stretching up toward the high ceiling above. Then, she stood, and smiled at him. That part was interesting, since she was familiar to him. Not as a giant either.
He laughed a bit, then shook his head. Speaking in English.
“I just realized that I know you, from my own world. You look very different there. Ambassador Neesa, of the Ysidril. She’s an alien, from outer space?”
The large, robust, woman pulled him along, as she left the room, not explaining to Zack what was going on. The man didn’t follow either, just staying in the room they’d been going to. After walking up several flights of stairs, the woman pointed to a door.
She spoke in her own version of Standard.
“Is she nice, this other me?”
Willum nodded, instantly.
“She really is. Very hard working, self-sacrificing and kind. She also has four eyes, many sharp teeth, four arms and short legs. She’s purple, green and white. At least her clothing is. I’ve never seen her without that on. We only met a few days ago, at least to my experience.”
She pushed at him, opening the door as she leaned past.
“That is good to hear. Not that you have not seen her without clothing, I don’t care about that. Just that she is good. I fear sometimes that I could easily turn toward being evil, if I did not care about my friends so much.”
“That’s a constant threat for most people. Anyway, I should… Probably get you to come with me.”
She made a face then, her shoulders pushing out a bit.
“I… You smell like sex. So, I can’t really have sex with you now.” She seemed upset about that.
Willum could see that part, but didn’t think it was about him being a horrible person suggesting that. For one thing he wasn’t. The other part was that she felt bad, for having a restriction on that kind of thing she figured that he, and her other human friends, wouldn’t.
He just waved at her then, and smiled.
“Oh, no worry about that. We can do that later, if you wish? I just don’t know how to make anything work here. Or at least I don’t know if I do know how. If I let you leave first, and don’t, then I could be stuck.”
She clapped him on the back then, hard enough for his field to kick in. That got her hand to move back, but she grinned at it, instead of being scared. The powerful lady didn’t even yelp in pain.
“That’s better. You are, I think, very good looking, for a human being? You look like Kyle, only better than him. That means you are a rare beauty. You might feel uncomfortable if I turn you down, though I only seek to say later, as you mentioned. Many here have felt poorly when I have done that.” It was different, but she walked into the giant bathing room, and pointed at things.
There was a tub, which was larger than anything like it he’d ever seen. To the side was a very grand shower, behind a distorted glass wall. Inside that, there were two knobs. Not just one like he was used to. The tall lady reached in and turned them both on, then felt the water.
“Here, then, if we’re not going to have sex, I can do this with you. That’s friendly, correct?”
It was, if a bit strange. Then, nobles apparently bathed together, even as families, in Noram. So it wasn’t that weird. Interestingly, all they did was wash. She did get his back for him and the other way around, but they were out about ten minutes later, clean, but that was all.
Hilda didn’t get back into her clothing, after drying, just picking them up, and walking out. He dressed first, in the stylized blue trousers that many wore in the world he was in and a deep green shirt, that had long sleeves on it. A man at the other mall had been dressed that way, earlier. It seemed to fit well enough that when he went down the stairs, to the room where Zack had been left, he seemed to be accepted by the new people there.
That was a brown haired man, who looked young. About fourteen or fifteen, as well as a slightly older looking, but similar person.
Before anyone else could speak, Zack waved at him.
“Will Baker. Line walker. Specializing in passing messages. His point to point travel is almost flawless. These are Chris and Don. Cousins of mine. Also line walkers. I was just telling them about the thing with Eve and Avery in their world. We’re debating going against what Ridley said to do and rushing to their aid anyway. I can see that, but… Really, claiming either of them needs our help in particular is a bit rich. Do you honestly think that we could handle anything that they can’t?”
Chris made a face. It wasn’t pleasant, but he turned to Will and stuck out a hand to shake. It was taken instantly.
“Sorry about this. They’re our friends. Not that Zack isn’t right, but part of me wants to rush to their sides anyway. Then I can… You know, get in the way, make things worse and prove that I need more lessons in fighting before doing things like that. How about you? Are you any good at that kind of thing?”
Don seemed a bit upset by the question, but the honest answe
r was a good enough reason for him not to rush to their sides either.
“Not really. I’m supposed to go off soon to learn how to do that. My Aunt Taman has something in mind. Right now… Well, Riley and Ridley the Tricksters have me stuck here, instead of doing my own work back home, so I sort of understand some of your feelings there. I met Eve earlier, she seems really nice.” Avery was an unknown to him, but you couldn’t know everyone. Not all the time.
That was what he was thinking about as they were served dinner. The book on manners told him what he was supposed to do, at least for that other world. It wasn’t that different than at home, thankfully. You were given a napkin, complimented the chef even if you had to lie, and used whatever utensils they did. You told the host they had a lovely home, unless it was a box left out in the rain, in which case you took them in and made sure they had better than that.
The book hadn’t mentioned that last part, but it had just said to say nothing. If someone bothered to share food with you, to care about you like that, then leaving them in a desperate situation was wrong. At least to his mind. Which, he realized, wasn’t what he needed to be considering. His focus should have been on the world around him at the moment.
The people were fascinating, though shortly after they ate, Zack got him back to work. That was harder than before, with him getting less of a clue where to go each time. Finally, after two days of that, his mentor just gave him an idea. Of a thing that Hartley didn’t know of at all. A piece of stone in the shape of a bird, with a crystal for a heart.
That took him a very long time to find. Since he wasn’t looking for a thing made by hands, but a natural formation that looked like a perfect carving. When he found it, the world he ended up in had rather hostile seeming rope beings that slithered on the beach. Moving toward him slowly, as he got to the black stone, then picked it up. It was large, probably weighing several thousand pounds.
That part was kind of fun. He’d been told he was stronger, but this was the first time he’d gotten to try that out. When he got to Mr. Hartley, in the back of the candle store, it took effort to set the thing down very gently. It wasn’t that heavy feeling, but it had real weight to it. The kind that might damage the floor if he wasn’t careful.
Looking at the thing, he sighed. Zack just slapped him on the back.
“And you’re done with your training. I got with May, she’s going to come by in a few hours to have me take her to where you are. In your world? You should take that to your Aunt Taman, as a bribe. We kind of stole you from her perspective, I bet. It’s probably worth more than anyone could afford to pay for it. Can you believe that natural forces carved that? It’s perfect. I can even make out the feathers.”
“Meaning you don’t want to carry it around? I understand. I’ll come back in a few days? Just to pass any messages along.” There had been some already. Most of them, interestingly, coming through Judith in Australia. That was probably a combination of the cost and the fact that some of the people using his service were sort of shifty. For some reason they had the idea that he was kind of the same way. Still, that had meant that the ten trips he’d made for that kind of thing had been to more interesting places than the first one. Meeting kings and that sort was fine.
Meeting criminals was actually instructive.
Picking up his large black bird, with its decorative crystal heart, he realized it wasn’t fitting in the transport hut at all. So instead of even trying he moved directly to the void, to right in front of Aunt Tam’s little pod house. Which, naturally, wasn’t there at all. It was a large palace. One that had a decently large new statue now. He placed it in front, then went toward where his aunt was. It wasn’t that hard to find her, but he didn't go in, in case he was in trouble. Instead he used the door knocker, which had the thing being opened shortly thereafter. By Coatl. His boyfriend. Even if that felt awkward to him still.
“Will! You never came back, so I figured you weren’t interested in me. Eventually I asked the great one if you’d mentioned me, which she said you had. Even that you’d told her we were close friends? So she asked me to help serve those that have come. They are very kind. Have you come back now?”
It was all in Soamish, but he translated it in his head almost instantly, shifting to a place where he could speak.
“Hello! Kind of. I have a friend coming here to visit. Possibly my future wife? May. She’s from a different world. That… I need to find my aunt. She might just kick me out. I can’t blame her if that happens. It probably seems like I’d run away.”
As it was, he had to take a few moments to work out what the last thing they’d been talking about was at all. Coatl waved for him to follow, taking him back through a house that was several times larger than Zack’s palace. When they got there he found people. It was a small, cozy room, which held several soft sitting places, done in a light brown, Taman and a different woman, who he didn’t recognize at all. She was older, but looked good. That was in part, due to her wearing a makeup amulet. Something about her was familiar though. He bowed at the door, since she was in a nice gown. The woman, who had brown hair with red in it, nodded back. Taman jumped up, but instead of beating him, as he probably deserved, held him for a bit.
“There you are! Everyone had thought that, well, after what I made you do, that we might never see you again.” She seemed ashamed of herself, which only made sense when he recalled that the last project she’d really given him had been killing a man.
“Nothing like that at all. I just ended up in a different world, learning things. Dareg took me.” He didn’t know what he could say at all, since there was a stranger in the room. Taman got that at least, and bowed to the woman.
“Queen Constance Cordes of Noram, this is my nephew, Willum Baker. Countier Fourth, Lairdgren.”
The woman beamed at him.
“So nice to meet you! My husband, Richard, was just speaking of you, not a week ago. He mentioned that you’re attempting to put together a message service that will go to other worlds and realities? That’s fascinating. I almost wish that I knew someone in such a place to send things to!” She chuckled at her own joke then, her hand covering her mouth, which was a thing that older ladies did.
The disguise amulet being used to make her look so much younger caught his attention as well. Patricia had mentioned something to him when they’d last met, about that. How it was clear the Queen was angling to get an appointment with Timon for some free work, but hadn’t worked up the courage to accost him yet. Even better, it was fairly plain that her reason for being there wasn’t about bothering him to send letters for anyone.
No, she was trying to get Taman to speak with her brother, to see if he might have forgiven her enough to be worth asking. Everyone had been a bit cagey with her on the topic for some reason. Taman was hiding the fact that she could have done it herself, right then, for instance. The concepts poured off of them both, nearly constantly.
He reached into his bag, for his handheld. It looked different now, being like the kind of back pack that some men his age had brought to the mall at times. That had taken some effort and in the end, he’d actually remade the thing, so that it would look correct for the world that he’d been in. No one had mentioned it to him, but it was clear that having two velvet sacks on his belt got some attention. A school book bag didn’t. Not there. Now both ladies looked at him carefully. Glancing down he realized that he was still in funny clothing from a different reality. He’d been distracted by the bird.
“Oh, right. I got you a present, Aunt Taman. It’s out front.”
He moved in that direction, to get everyone else to follow him, while he picked the correct name out. That had Timon on the device just about the same time that they got to the bird out front. Constance clapped on seeing it.
“This is exquisite! You must give me the name of the maker. Do you think they’d be willing to commission a piece for Richard and I?”
Taman touched it, her mind blank. After a moment she gasped. It
was a rewarding sound.
“This isn’t a statue, Queen Constance. It’s a natural formation. One that just happens to look like this amazing… Its… How did you find it?”
Will shook his head, then slowly turned so that Tim, who was watching closely, could see what they were going on about. His eyes went wide, as a reward. Will explained loud enough for them all to hear.
“It was my last test. I had to find something that Master Hartley had never seen before, from a picture he imagined. It was very far away. Anyway, Uncle Timon, can I get your help with a project in the next few days? I want to make the king and queen of Noram immortal. Some shape shifting abilities as well, some other things possibly? Is that doable? We have Queen Constance here, so that’s convenient right now. You’ll probably have to go to the king though.”
He just nodded then, as if it were only sensible.
“I’ve actually been meaning to get to that soon. Before King Richard steps down in a few years. Eight now? Then we can stick poor Alphonse with the job and let Richard actually try out having a real life. I can… actually get away in a few hours, if that works for you all? I want to see that bird of yours in person. It’s really just a natural stone? It looks nearly alive.”
That got set up, with the Queen of Noram looking at him like he was about to be given a knighthood for some reason. As if asking, or more accurately, suggesting had been a hard thing to do. Tim hadn’t actually fought him on the idea.
As soon as he got off the device he was being hugged. Tightly. Breasts were being pushed into his face on purpose which was funny. Cute even. Finally, the older lady let go.
“I was so terrified that I’d ask and he’d simply remind me of how horrible I was to him when he was a boy. It would serve me right, for him to come and instead of doing anything to help me just pointing a finger at me and screaming die you old witch, die!”
Except that, she didn’t seem that mean at all. When Timon got there, they were going to have a meal first, which, interestingly, meant that they got to do that with May, since she and Zack showed up a few minutes after Timon did. The meal itself was different, since they had to explain everything to May, but everyone there spoke at least some English, so they had a common language.