He pulled off still his blinking coat and held it up as if he were holding a piece of carrion. His face contorted with revulsion. "Is importing this worth the risk?" He threw the coat onto the stage and ground it with his heel. "I think not."
The audience immediately began yelling.
"We must protect our children!"
"Shut down the tunnels!"
"Save the Hub!"
"Leaping must end!"
Arguments flared throughout the hall. Someone screamed. A scuffle began in the center aisle. Others followed throughout the hall.
Professor Seafeather called for order and restraint, but it was too late. No one could hear him. The meeting collapsed into pandemonium.
Carole grabbed Lilly's wrist, "We'd better go." They climbed onto the stage and, with Zack, ran for the back exit. Outside people were spilling from the building, but most were rushing off. No one took notice of Carole and the twins.
"What now?" Zack said.
"Nothing for it but to go home and see what tomorrow brings." Carole started walking in the direction of the Devilles' cottage.
"You think it's going to get worse?" Lilly said, after they'd walked a block.
Zack snorted.
"Faster!" Carole kicked into a Soft-Walk.
Zack gave her a funny look, but he and Lilly started jogging to keep up.
"Turn here." She grabbed Zack's arm and pulled him around the corner of a building.
Lilly followed. "But we live that--"
Carole put a finger to her lips. "Into the shadows."
They pressed themselves against the wall. Carole slipped her hood over her head and stepped between them and the street. Moments later a group of people rushed past. She waited for the group to round the next corner. "Okay, let's go. Quick!"
"What was that all about?" Lilly said, once they'd slowed back down to a fast walk.
"They've been following us since we left the center."
"Who?"
"I'm guessing, them," Zack pointed to where half a dozen people were milling around the light-filled intersection ahead.
"Should we go back?"
Carole squinted into the dark. "There's more behind us."
"Cut us off at the pass," Zack said. "We fell for the oldest trick in the book."
"Crouch down for a second," Carole said. She dropped into a squat. When the twins moved close, she vanished, only to reappear a moment later. "Did anyone see?"
"Doubt it. It's too dark and you were too fast."
"What now?" Lilly whispered.
"We need to buy us some time."
"Then let's go say hello," Zack said. "If there's going to be trouble, I'd rather it started before that group behind us catches up."
"Don't be too hasty," Carole said quietly. "Stall." She and Lilly followed Zack toward where the crowd was still milling about.
"Going somewhere, Deville?" A familiar voice sounded as they neared the intersection.
Zack sighed. "Dalimar. Why am I not surprised? Well it is a nice night for a walk."
"Not for you."
"You mean we're not buddy-buddy, anymore? And here I thought we were getting along swimmingly."
"Don't push it," Lilly said under her breath.
"In case you missed it, Deville, things have changed around here. Your kind isn't welcome." Dalimar sneered at Carole. "Neither is a monobrain-loving swirl. And I don't expect anyone will care if something were to happen to you tonight."
"But will they care if something happens to you?" Zack smiled, and casually dropped into a boxer's stance.
Dalimar snarled. "Get him."
Nobody moved.
"What are you waiting for? Like we planned."
Squim shuffled behind one of the other boys.
"You bunch of swirling cowards." Dalimar elongated his body until he towered over Zack. "Come on monobrainer, give it all you got."
"Think I'll pass. Fighting's such an unevolved thing to do."
"Why you..." Dalimar swung wildly, and Zack easily ducked the punch. Dalimar lashed out again.
Zack deftly caught the rubbery fist and shoved back. "That's all you've got?"
Dalimar looked around at his friends, snapped back to his regular shape and with a roar, rushed at Zack.
Zack dodged to one side, pivoted and fired off two solid jabs. Dalimar's nose exploded with a spray of blood, and he crumpled to his knees with a groan. As he did so, the sound of footfalls heralded the arrival of the second group.
Zack dropped back into his ready stance, fists raised. "Next?"
A loud squeal sounded in the dark.
"Here!" Carole called out.
Runt and six burly boars charged into the intersection, scattering the teens in all directions. Squim grabbed hold of Dalimar in the confusion, and dragged him off into the dark.
"Great timing, Runt," Zack said with obvious relief. "I thought I was going down for sure."
"Reet!"
"So that's where you went," Lilly said.
"Thought we could do with an escort." Carole scratched one of the boars behind its ears. "Let's go."
They rounded the corner of Hub Central and saw a flickering orange light coming from the windows of the cottage.
"Did you leave the lights on, Carole?" Lilly said.
Instead of answering, Carole flew across the grass and flung open the front door. One of the living room chairs was on fire. She raced inside, grabbed the legs of the chair and dragged it towards the door.
Zack dashed in seconds later and began stomping out the sparks on the rug. Lilly, on his heels, ran around opening windows and fanning at the smoke. Minutes later all three were safely outside with the hogs, watching the chair burn fiercely.
"Got any marshmallows?" Zack said.
Lilly frowned. "It's not funny, Zack."
"Can't do much else 'til the smoke clears."
"Yes we can." Carole suddenly felt anxious. "This didn't happen because of any town meeting. Runt, take three of the boars and get over to the Monobrain connector, fast." She turned to the twins. "Keep an eye out. I'll be back in a few minutes."
She vanished just as the three remaining boars sounded a challenge. Zack looked towards the school. "Someone's coming."
"How many?" Lilly said.
"Just one. Oh, it's Professor Philamount. It's okay, guys. He's on our side."
The boars moved aside but kept their eyes on the approaching man.
"Sorry for the security, Professor, but as you can see, we've had more than our share of trouble, tonight."
Professor Philamount eyed the burning chair. "Understandable. Did you see the perpetrator?"
"No."
"And Miss Sylphwood?"
"She'll be back soon."
"What's happening at the center?" Lilly said.
"Madness, Miss. Deville." Professor Philamount ran his hands through his bushy mop of hair. "I've never seen anything like it: Fisticuffs, histrionics, vandalism. This is indeed a sad, sad day for the Hub."
Carole appeared next to the Devilles. She gave a start when she saw that professor Philamount was with them. "No one saw me. It was totally dark and I had to get the herd moving--"
Professor Philamount held up a hand. "You deployed the familiars?"
"To guard the connector field." Carole indicated the chair. "I thought whoever did this might try to damage the tunnels."
"And?"
"Runt saw two people near the Monobrain connector, but they ran off before he could get close."
Professor Philamount drummed his fingers against his chin.
"Why would anyone want to destroy the connectors?" Lilly said.
"You were present at the meeting, Miss Deville."
"They talked about shutting down the tunnels, not destroying them. Do they want to trigger another Conundrum?"
"Many believe it was a monobrain who triggered the Conundrum."
"I thought us being here pretty much trashed that theory," Zack said.
"Obviously n
ot. Hopefully the porcine patrol will keep the field safe until reason returns. Miss Sylphwood, would you accompany me for a time? I wish to know if anything else has gone amiss, tonight." He turned to the twins. "Do you two feel safe enough to be left on your own?"
Lilly eyed the boars sitting nearby. "Perfectly."
--32--
Carole and the professor Soft-Walked along the Rim and down the Southway to the Middleroad, where they saw knots of people still hurrying away from the Center for Transdimensional Studies. As they neared the center, Carole saw a bright light flare in the distance.
"That looks like another fire over in the southwest quad," she said. "I didn't think there was anything but crop fields out there."
"Quickly!" Professor Philamount sprinted towards the light.
She followed, Soft-Walking at her best speed. Soon they reached the smoldering remains of a small building. A lone figure in a silken gown, and appearing to have stepped straight out of a medieval tapestry, was silhouetted by the dying firelight.
"What happened, Jularian?"
The woman spoke without turning from the flames. "I just arrived myself, Melodious."
"The fire contingent?"
"Strangely absent." Her voice was constricted.
Carole saw her hands ball into fists.
"Were you able to salvage anything?"
The woman shook her head. "A lifetime of work reduced to fire and ash."
"Then perhaps this time I could persuade you--"
She snorted. "Again with that old argument?"
"At least until you rebuild. Think how the students would benefit from your experience."
She watched a burst of sparks fly skywards. "As I recall, that wasn't exactly the council's feeling on the matter."
"You should've kept a firmer control on your temper."
She stamped her foot. "My temper had nothing to do with their decision."
Now it was Professor Philamount's turn to snort.
She continued, "They'd have found some other convenient excuse, Melodious. Sooner or later you too will be forced out and the school will be totally theirs."
Carole wished they'd be less obscure. "The school will be whose?"
The woman turned to stare owlishly at Carole.
"Ah, Carole Sylphwood, may I introduce you to Jularian Talarit, a former instructor at Hub Central. One of the best."
The woman sniffed. "Keeping your young charge ignorant of current trends, Melodious? For shame. Perhaps I am needed at the school, if only to bring certain facts to light. There are two reasons for the decline in transdimensional leapers, my dear. Substandard teaching and--"
"You are speculating, Jularian."
The woman swept her arm out towards the fire. "You call that speculation? For the love of leaping, Melodious, at the very least the council members are close-minded dullards, and they are the reason leapers are leaving."
"Leapers are leaving the Hub? Where are they going?" Carole said.
"Where indeed? The few that we know about have quit the place for more accepting realms. The others..." She shrugged her shoulders. "...have simply vanished."
Carole was incredulous. "Multitaskers are vanishing?"
"Leapers are vanishing. Something our council members seem most reluctant to even acknowledge."
"And you're trying to sell clothing and artifacts that haven't been in style since the Golden Age is causing the council to take notice?"
"True style never goes out of fashion, Melodious. And I am much happier scratching out my meager existence than forever having to point out the obvious."
"I didn't know they wore medieval clothing during the golden age," Carole said.
Jularian gestured at her elaborate gown. "This is an authentic tri, my dear. A Golden Age classic."
Again Professor Philamount snorted. "Enough about clothing. Please consider returning to the school, Jularian, at least on a temporary basis."
Jularian sighed, "I suppose I must do something in the interim." She took a final look at the heap of coals that was all that remained. "I'd best see to my home. Hopefully it too, hasn't been deemed out of fashion." With a swish of silken tapestry, she strode into the dark.
"Why didn't you tell me about the leapers leaving?" Carole said.
"Jularian has always been one to speak her mind without first validating the facts. As you've experienced for yourself, Miss Sylphwood, leaping is not without risk. There are myriad reasons why people go missing, not all of them as sinister as Jularian would have you believe."
* * * *
Back at The Center for Transdimensional Studies, Carole and Professor Philamount found Meron Seafeather alone in the hall, sweeping up the mess.
"How could I have misread our community's pulse so badly?" he said as they approached. "Such animosity towards the Devilles." His gaze flicked between Carole and Professor Philamount. "Towards leapers. I knew Snively would attempt to turn Zack's skirmish to his own advantage, but this level of..." His voice trembled as it trailed into silence.
Professor Philamount righted a chair. "Tonight's actions go deeper than a simple schoolyard tussle, Meron. There was a co-ordination and timing involved that extends well beyond one inflammatory speech. The Devilles were attacked on their way home, and their cottage, as well as Jularian Talarit's shop were set aflame, before the crowds spilled into the streets."
Professor Seafeather's eyes expanded to saucer size. "They are all right?"
"Perfectly."
"And the rest of the Hub?"
"We are currently surveying for further damage. Otherwise we would stay to assist your clean up."
"No, no, I'm fine." He waved them off. "See to the community."
Continuing on their way, Carole and the professor backtracked along the Middleroad towards the now deserted commercial district. Three buildings, Realm Favorites Restaurant, Realm Fabrics and The Exotic Realm Bakery, had their windows smashed out. No other structures appeared to have been damaged, though some statues had been toppled over.
"I would have expected more," Carole said.
"Excuse me?"
"A lot more damage and fires. When people riot, they usually go crazy."
"The damage has indeed been most selective. I have seen enough."
He escorted Carole as far as the school before bidding her good night. He turned towards the building.
"You're going inside?" she said.
"If the pattern of tonight's activities are not immediately revealed, the perpetrators will be emboldened to further action under the guise of random violence. There will be an emergency council session tomorrow, and I must be prepared to give a formal report on the matter."
"What's to prepare? It's obvious Hotspot planned the whole thing."
"Any number of people could have learned the gist of Professor Hotspot's speech and manipulated his rhetoric to suit their own needs. The situation is anything but straightforward."
Instead of returning to the Devilles' cottage, Carole Fast-Walked her way to where Runt was still guarding the Monobrain connector. She sat on the grass next to him. "I don't suppose you've any idea who those two guys were that you saw earlier?"
"Ret." Runt shook his head.
"It's all so confusing. I wish I could talk to Hal."
"Rit, reet."
"Now? I suppose I could... Yeah, why not."
Carole made the leap with ease, but instead of standing inside Hal's cottage, she found herself in a tiny, walled garden. Confused, she looked around and caught her breath. Towards the back of the garden were half-a-dozen gravestones. The ground in front of the nearest stone was fresh, the earth thick with newly planted flowers.
She stepped forward to read the stone. A terrible chill, stabbed her heart.
Hal Wood (Roberts)
The warmth of your smile, the comfort of your hug.
A friendship treasured, a friend sorely missed.
Rest in peace dear soul.
"No!" Carole fell to her knees. "No, no, no.
.."
She didn't know how long she stared sightlessly at the stone, but eventually a painful cramping in her calves forced her back to the present. She rose stiffly. Maybe it was a different Hal. Maybe she'd landed somewhere else by mistake.
She left the cemetery through a wrought iron gate. Hal's cottage was on the far side of a knoll, only a few hundred yards away. She moved reluctantly towards it. A dog barked in the distance.
The cottage was locked. Carole peered through a window. It looked empty, lifeless. She knocked quietly. "Hal?" There was no sound from within.
She knocked louder. "Hal?"
Silence.
She pounded on the door and screamed his name over and over and over, until her fists ached and her voice cracked. Finally, exhausted, she sank to the step and buried her face in her knees. Sobs shook her frame.
Eventually, when she had no tears left to cry, she looked up to see an elderly woman standing a short distance away, watching discreetly.
Carole wiped her hands against her face. "I didn't know you were there. I--"
"You're Carole," she said, matter-of-factly, and held out a handkerchief. "Here. This will do a better job than your sleeve. I'm Margaret Wilson."
"Hal's friend?" Carole stood shakily and accepted the cloth. "Is he? Is Hal really--"
The woman wiped a tear from her own eye. "Yes. You were at his grave."
"When did..."
"Shortly after the storm. After your visit. I think he was hanging on just for you, Carole. He was late for our morning garden tour and I found him still in bed, looking very peaceful. Like he hadn't a care in the world." She sighed deeply.
"Do you think... Would it be all right to..."
"Of course, dear." Margaret Wilson produced a key. "Everything is as it was. I've been waiting for your return." She stepped inside and Carole followed. "Of course there's not much. You know Hal. Things didn't matter to him."
Carole smiled. "Only people and hot chocolate." She walked around the tiny place. Despite the morning sun shining through the windows, it felt cold and damp, like a tomb. There was nothing here for her.
"Will you come and visit? I've so wanted to meet you."
Carole followed Mrs. Wilson to the manor house. At another time she would have been thoroughly impressed by the size of the place, but today she barely noticed anything, except for a gangly black puppy that nearly bowled her over, as soon as Mrs. Wilson opened the front door.
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