Welcome Home (Alternate Worlds Book 3)

by Leigh, Taylor

  Tollin’s gaze flicked over the characters and his frown deepened. He swallowed and jerked his eyes away, making a face like he’d eaten something foul. ‘No.’ His voice was flat.

  ‘Bit odd, just putting this here. It’s like some sort of fun fair mirror. Oh, do I look a mess!’ Sam fluffed her hair, wanting to lighten things. Realm Jumping wasn’t the best for the appearance. She stopped when she saw her friend was still upset.

  ‘Hey, you all right?’ She reached out, fingers to his palm.

  Tollin swallowed, still staring, hand limp in hers. After a long moment, lost in his own thoughts, he slowly shook his head. ‘Nothing. Let’s just move on.’

  Spinning sharply on his heel he marched away from the looking glass without another glance back. Sam cast one more look at her reflection, trying to see what Tollin had, but there was nothing but her own face staring back.

  Once away from the mirror, Tollin brightened considerably, and as they climbed the steps of the marble building with the backwards moving clock, he was excitedly recalling his favourite moments in history—those he’d been involved in and those he wished he’d been.

  ‘Oh,’ he went on, ‘and then, there was the creation of the autotrons, what a brilliant group of people they were! Well, I say people, I suppose they weren’t really. But still, wonderful—’

  He stopped short and stared.

  Sam’s jaw dropped.

  The interior was all of glistening, polished stone. Off to the left was a long panel, crowded with knobs and buttons, all looking as if they were carved from the rock itself. On the right were several arched alcoves, ornately decorated, yet not very comfortable looking. Her eyes at last fell to the far end, which was the most interesting: a great diagram, moving with the fluidity of molten metal; constantly shifting shape, growing stars, shrinking planets, budding new moons.

  Sam was dumbfounded as she watched it shift into something she recognised—Scottorr and Scrabia, the Realm she was from. It changed again almost immediately, bubbling into something unrecognizable.

  At the foot of this great display was a pedestal, which changed with each shift the model made. Sam could just make out a colourful flash, morphing shape with the machine above.

  ‘Wha—’ Sam couldn’t find the words.

  Tollin’s eyes were shining and wide, like an owl’s. ‘Oh,’ he breathed. ‘I should have come here years ago!’ He turned to her, flashing a huge grin. ‘It’s brilliant!’ His voice bounced round the room.

  He was already bounding down the hall, slipping on the polished floor. Sam followed him hesitantly, unsure of where to look first. Tollin had no such reservations; chattering excitedly, too rapidly for Sam to focus on. It was the changing metal that drew her in; it was certainly the most engaging feature of the chamber.

  The machine shifted again, bubbling into three large orbs and hundreds of bronze stars. With it, the pedestal before her changed as well; stabbing a crystal up like a piece of toast. Sam frowned. Again, the machine and crystal changed.

  Each crystal, Sam supposed, must correspond, for some reason or another, with a different world. She glanced over her shoulder to see Tollin leaning against the control panel, muttering to himself rapidly.

  ‘Tollin?’

  ‘Hmm?’ He was distracted.

  ‘How come we can’t see any Realms? I thought it would be like a big telly or somethin’.’

  ‘Well,’ Tollin drawled, ‘from what I can gather, I’d say you have to select a key from what world you want, and then, I suppose, once you’ve done that, you just dial what time you want and Bob’s your uncle, you’ve got yourself a shiny view to a new Realm!’

  Sam ran her tongue over her teeth. ‘So, a key. Could that be a crystal, perhaps?’

  ‘Yeah,’ Tollin said slowly. ‘Don’t see why not.’

  He darted into one of the alcoves for a look.

  ‘I think these rooms can be linked to that machine. If I just…’ A mechanical hum from Tollin’s alcove echoed throughout the chamber. ‘Well, that did something. I’m seeing a preview of a crystal now. And a Realm.’

  ‘What’s that one look like?’

  ‘Eh,’ Tollin was quiet for a moment. ‘Bright green, spikey.’

  There was a droning noise and then a grinding from the machine above her. The device shifted to a flat, jagged plate, unlike most of the maps Sam had seen so far. Below her there was a slight click! and a blue crystal, appeared.

  Sam glanced over her shoulder again. Tollin was still out of sight. ‘Bright blue with about six spikes coming off of it?’

  ‘That’s the chap!’

  ‘Got it, then. What should I do?’

  ‘Can you remove it? If we insert it in the panel behind me we might be able to activate a way to see the Realm. I’ll meet you over—’

  As Tollin spoke, Sam gingerly lifted it free. There came a wobbling noise from behind her, like a giant sheet of metal being shaken out, and then nothing. There was something. Like a blip in her mind. And with it she knew she’d lost something. Something vital.

  Sam froze. The machine above her no longer changed; moving very slowly now as the bronze stars ticked by.

  The silence was deafening.

  ‘Tollin?’

  No answer.

  Hesitantly, she started down the long hall, her trainers squeaking loud in the stillness. Unease began to twitch in her stomach.

  Sam could not hear Tollin from the nook he’d ducked into; nothing but a quiet sound permeating the otherwise heavy silence: A steady humming.

  She peeked into the alcove, bracing for him to jump out at her, but froze dead at what she saw.

  The recess had sealed. What had been open now was a bubble of glass, barring her entry. And on the other side, where there had once been nothing but blank wall, was another world. A world of dead grey; broken stone; glowing faint with blue. Darkness shadowed the corners of her limited view, deep and impenetrable. It was nothing but stones and blackness. An island floating in space.

  Oh my god, I’ve killed him!

  ‘TOLLIN?’

  Horrified, Sam hammered against the glass, but it did not give. Her cry of rage was cut short at what she spotted in the reflection behind her. She whirled round and raced to the control panel, clutching the crystal till it bit into her palm. To her dismay, the controls were written in the same strange, looping language she couldn’t decipher. Tears of despair welled.

  Through her blurry eyes she stopped herself. Crying wasn’t helping. She couldn’t save Tollin if she broke down like an idiot. She needed a plan! He wasn’t dead. He couldn’t be. So, what did she have before her? Brushing aside hot tears, Sam struggled to concentrate.

  The panel had dozens of different sized levers, slots and knobs of stone. Hovering in a three dimensional image above the panel was the crystal Sam held in her hand. Below it, a dial, which she couldn’t read, was twisted to the right. Sam didn’t dare touch it.

  She glanced at the crystal in her hand, then to one of the slots. What would happen if she plugged it in? Would she lose the connection? Make it worse? Could she get through to him?

  Sam let out a frustrated groan.

  Behind there came a tink tink tink! and she whirled round in tightening apprehension; unexpectedly faced with someone on the other side of the bubble. Not just anyone— but Tollin—tapping on the glass!

  Heart leaping in her chest she nearly tripped over her feet as she dashed to him. With tears clouding her vision she pressed her hands to the glass, desperately trying to somehow push through to him.

  It was then it hit. She nearly didn’t recognise him.

  It was impossible to explain, but he’d changed dramatically from just a few moments ago.

  Though he was grinning happily, Tollin was thinner—she could have sworn—and dirty. His clothing had gone to faded tatters and his hair now was long and tangled. For a moment, Sam didn’t want to believe she was looking at Tollin at all, but some wild, alternate version of him.

  ‘To
llin?’ she shouted at the glass, unsure if he could hear her or not.

  He paused, looking stunned before excitedly pointing to the control panel. Sam scampered back to it, refusing to tear her eyes from him. He went on gesturing madly. Reluctantly Sam turned to stare down at the controls, bewildered. What did he want? His mind moved too fast to her when she could hear him explaining things. Now? Impossible. She glanced back to him and shook her head, shrugging her shoulders dramatically. This was going to take some time.

  Tollin rested his forehead against the barrier and huffed his breath. It fogged the glass, obscuring his face. He suddenly jumped back with what Sam supposed was a triumphant cry before leaning forward and breathing across the glass. He began writing on it, the words backwards for her.

  .LATSYRC EHT NI GULP

  Sam struggled to read and obeyed, fitting the green rock into the slot below the hologram with little difficulty.

  Tollin nodded and fogged the glass again.

  .LAID TSELLAMS EHT TSUJDA

  It took Sam a moment, but she finally spotted it and did as he requested. Almost immediately, noise began to fill the dead silence of the room. A low howling of wind, the humming of electricity, and most wonderful of all, Tollin proclaiming, ‘There’s a clever girl!’

  ‘Tollin!’ Sam cried again, rushing back over to him. ‘What’s happened?’

  The world inside the glass flickered like a bad signal, his voice going in and out sporadically. ‘Afraid I’ve been thrown to a different Realm! Not sure where I’m at. I don’t think it’s a documented one. I must be the first of my kind to come here, imagine that!’

  Sam shook her head wildly. ‘But what’s happened to you? You look bloody awful!’

  Tollin pulled a playfully hurt face. ‘Well! And after all I’ve done to clean up to look smart for you!’

  ‘Tollin!’

  His image flashed again as static raced across the glass. ‘Look, I don’t know how long I’ve got. You must listen closely, Samantha: I need you to do something for me. You need to find the crystal for Scrabia; it shouldn’t be too hard; you know what the Realm looks like.’ More static blocked out his words, making the sentence almost indecipherable. ‘Now, once you’ve done that, you need to dial it back to the year four-hundred eighty-five exactly. The date should be somewhere around—’ Loud static cut him off. ‘Just around the time of the first Myrmidon War. I hope you’ve done your homework. Use the stars.’

  ‘Yeah but—’

  ‘No time, Sam, listen! Now, once you’ve done that, you need to ask for Andrew O’Neill. Don’t worry, you’ll find him. You will need him to help you calculate the way to get me home. The control panel here is broken. I’m afraid the only way I can get back is from your end. From what I saw of the panel it’s fairly complicated and I’m afraid I can’t work it from this end. I’ve been trying to send a signal but…but I’m afraid that may be impossible now…You’ll need to open up a time portal to the correct Realm, lock on to me—or maybe my signal—to pull me through—and as soon as possible, please! Andrew can help you calculate that. D’you think you can manage?’

  Sam felt new tears welling. No, the truth was, she did not think she could manage. Sam knew next to nothing about what he’d just rattled off. How could she open up a portal to another Realm and find that wild card Andrew in the past to save Tollin who was trapped in another Realm by translating a language she didn’t know?

  ‘It’s been near impossible to mark time here, I can try and help you get it right but I don’t know how much—’

  The image of Tollin went to nothing but static. She froze, absolutely petrified by the snowy glass. He was gone.

  Numbly, Sam shuffled back to the control panel and turned down the volume, unable to bear the white noise. In misery her eyes shifted to the great star machine; she went on repeating the information Tollin had told her aloud. Inside, her heart twisted, sick with nerves.

  She was Tollin’s only chance. If she didn’t help him, no-one would.

  Sam took a deep breath, squared her shoulders and marched to the machine, determination struggling to fill her with each step.

  Chapter Three

  The palace, like the rest of the city, was much the same, yet somewhat off. The stone steps leading to the gates were cracked and everything held an exhausted, slanted look.

  Andrew’s head was tilted at an almost ninety-degree angle to take in the towering spires.

  ‘How—’ The question was lost to him as they passed through the great iron doors and into the gloom beyond.

  Assad went bounding ahead, full of excited energy. ‘Someone tell His Royal Highness that High Lady Victoria and an ambassador are here! And be quick about it!’

  A figure in the shadows dashed off, boots echoing down a hall.

  Victoria couldn’t keep from grinning. ‘This is so odd. I feel a stranger in my own city. I’m so nervous and I don’t know why! I can’t wait for you to meet everyone…What am I going to tell people? Ah!’ She spun round in a small circle. ‘I’ve got butterflies in my stomach.’

  Andrew wasn’t listening. ‘How was this structure built? It’s too…organic.’

  Victoria supposed they both had their ways dealing with unsettled nerves. Andrew was simply ignoring the fact that he was on an alien world; instead keeping himself distracted with the architecture. He was lost in his head and seemed rather content to stay there. Victoria decided not to bother him. If obsessing over the design of the palace kept him from breaking down into a panic attack, then she was willing to leave him be.

  Marus leant casually against the wall, watching them with shadowy eyes.

  She cleared her throat and faced the gladiator. ‘What’s happened here? Where is my mother?’

  Marus didn’t say anything for a long moment. His eyes flickered over to Andrew. ‘He’s not quite right, is he?’

  Victoria stiffened. ‘He’s far smarter than you could ever hope to be. He’s just not used to change.’

  Marus smirked.

  Victoria crossed her arms. ‘So, you going to tell me what’s going on?’ Something about the laze of his stance told her it wouldn’t end well if she made an order of it.

  Assad spoke up from her left. ‘Since you disappeared, the whole city went mental—not a result of that, I don’t think. Denizens drugged the queen and took over almost immediately. But then your cousin came in like some kind of hero! He managed to join with the Red Scorpion and took back the city—with the help of us gladiators. I’m afraid the queen never mentally recovered so long story short: All hail the King.’

  Victoria pressed her lips together with a sinking feeling. Her mother had lost her mind. They’d never been on the best of terms, she’d be the first to admit, but she’d never wish such a fate on anyone.

  The sound of clattering sandals echoed down the corridor and she and Andrew turned in time to see a man in thick, billowing robes awkwardly hurrying into the room.

  He sported a closely shaved head and a new goatee, but Victoria would have recognised him anywhere.

  ‘Reginald!’ She hurried forward, overtaken by a flood of warm emotions towards the cousin she had never used to like. She threw her arms around him, not caring if it was dignified or not.

  ‘I couldn’t believe it was really you when they told me!’ he said, pulling back to look at her. ‘I didn’t think I’d ever see you again. You look fantastic.’ He cleared his throat, expression suddenly growing shy.

  Victoria grinned. ‘And you, you’re the king now!’ She smirked. ‘I’m surprised the city isn’t burning down.’

  Reginald rubbed the back of his head, a small smile pulling at his lips. ‘Yeah, still working on that one.’ He brightened. ‘You missed all the fun here! Just wait till I tell you about it; you won’t believe it. The things I’ve seen…’

  Victoria didn’t think she had ever seen him so animated, so happy. ‘Oh, believe me, I’ve had my own share of excitement. I’ve seen enough this past year to believe just about anything.’ She
turned round and gave Andrew an encouraging wave. ‘Which reminds me…’

  Reginald released her and beamed. ‘Oh, yes, of course! I was told you brought a guest.’

  Andrew shook himself from his private thoughts and stepped forward, sweeping into a perfect Scrabian bow. ‘Andrew O’Neill, Your Majesty. I am here on behalf of my planet, Scottorr, as Ambassador.’

  ‘Welcome, Ambassador!’ Reginald reached forward and grasped both of Andrew’s pale, long hands in his own. To Victoria’s relief, Andrew didn’t pull away. ‘The Traveller, I’ve heard so much about you. This is truly an honour!’

  ‘Ah,’ Andrew blinked. ‘I believe there’s been some mistake. I’m not the Traveller.’

  Reginald’s brow went down. ‘Are you not the one Victoria met on the Other World?’

  Andrew nodded. ‘Yes, but—’

  Reginald flashed a smile. ‘Then to us, you’re known as the Traveller! Arkron, told me about you, but of course you know her.’

  Victoria was about to tell Reginald he’d gotten the wrong end of the stick but Reginald was already off again.

  ‘Well, I’m sure you’re both exhausted.’ He motioned for a woman to come forward. ‘Please, show the Princess and Ambassador to their rooms.’ He paused and winced. ‘Or is it room? I’m sorry, I didn’t even think of asking.’

  Victoria blushed. Due to Andrew’s illness, it had become somewhat custom for her to sleep with him, in case something happened. Andrew, so detached and disinterested in anything remotely romantic, was a relatively boring bed mate. However, explaining that long, complicated reason wasn’t something Victoria was too keen on at the moment, and though it was ridiculous, the thought of Reginald thinking she and Andrew were sleeping together made her flush uncomfortably.

  ‘I’ll be happy with my old room, if it’s still available,’ she said quickly. ‘And, is it possible for Andrew to have the one right across from mine?’

  Reginald nodded hurriedly. ‘Oh, fine, fine! Things might seem a bit mad round here. Sorry about that, still trying to get everything sorted. It’s all in shambles since the fight.’ He stepped in closer. ‘Look, Victoria, I know you hate all of the pomp and drama of court, believe me, I do as well, but would you mind too much if you and the Traveller were presented tonight? It’s quite a historic occasion to have an ambassador from the Other World join us.’