The Light lifted her head.
Part of the ceiling fell in. She stepped round it. The dragon snarled. She could see him now, teeth bared, like some monstrous cat after a mouse. Without another glance at him she went striding down the long hall, towards the device.
Noel roared and there was a terrible crash and behind her she knew his great, ugly, hulking body was dropping to the floor.
When she’d reached the end of the hall Sam finally stopped and turned.
Noel could barely fit in the space he’d forced himself in to. Around him, sticking to him, dripping off of him, wrapping round him, was the Darkness. Yet the beast hung back as he faced her now.
‘I knew it,’ he growled, taking a hesitant step forwards. ‘I knew you were a stinking product of Light. I’ll tear you limb from limb and leave that cursed substance to die!’
Sam raised her chin. ‘Come and get me, then!’
His eyes blazed. His nostrils flared. If he blasted her now with fire it would all be over. But he wouldn’t. Sam knew it. He was afraid. Even now. The only thing pushing him onward was the Dark. And each step was a forced one.
‘You…you Guardian!’ He clenched his teeth. ‘You’ll open the door and you’ll let the Father through! You will free him from his prison! And then you will beg him for mercy!’
Sam’s head was aching, whirling. Noel could not stay here. Not with her. He had to leave. He had to go far, far away. Times and dates and places went spinning through her memory and she couldn’t focus. He’d be on her in seconds now.
The machines around her began to whine. She could not bear to tear her eyes from the beast to look at them but she somehow felt in her mind that she was responsible. This place was responding to her, at long last. It had been waiting for a cue—her cue—to activate it. This technology understood the Light and it was preparing for something big.
Noel’s jaws swung wide.
With a cry, Sam threw her hands forward just as the jaws came down.
There was a terribly bright flash of gold and a hot furnace of stench rippling all about her and then—nothing.
Sam fell backwards to the hard ground, Light roaring through her head in a fire. She let out a broken gasp, watching the black sky above her burn away like ash. Her head felt as if it were splitting. Around her, all of the machinery whined on.
The dragon was gone, so was the Dark. She was alone.
Pushing herself up shakily, arms wobbling, Sam groaned, body completely drained.
‘I don’t…’ Sam turned round, panting and squinted at the machines. She brushed her hair back. A set of numbers was glowing across the panels that her mind had put there.
It was the date she’d first entered.
Andrew’s time.
Sam swallowed.
She’d just sent Noel back to the time of Andrew O’Neill.
Panicky, she fiddled with the dials. She needed to warn him before it was too late…
Stars help him.
* * * * *
‘H—hullo? Anyone there?’
Tollin lifted his head. A smile pulled at his lips. Well, this was a surprise. Company here of all places. He pushed himself up, interested, and swaggered towards the cracked screen.
‘Yes, I would say so…’
The girl’s voice immediately brightened. ‘Tollin? Oh my stars! What are you doing there?’
Tollin grinned. Ah! Was this the mystery woman Noel had referred to? He felt an excited flutter in his stomach at the idea. ‘I’ve always been here,’ he said, delighted.
The girl paused for a moment, as if in thought. ‘Oh! Whoa…you’re…you’re in the past, aren’t you?’
Tollin traced his fingers over the cracked screen of the viewer. ‘From where I’m standing I’m in the present.’
She huffed. ‘You’ve got to get with the times, mate. You’re living in the past!’ She paused. ‘Look, there may not be much time for you. I’m afraid I may have accidently sent a rather alarming dragon your way. His name is Noel and he’s—’
Tollin waved a hand. ‘Oh, you don’t have to worry about that! Already taken care of!’ He cast a glance over to Noel’s still body and swallowed uneasily.
‘Oh! Have you really? Well, that is a relief!’ Her voice wobbled unsteadily.
‘Yes. You don’t need to fret about that. Though you are off with your warning, I’m afraid.’
‘I am really sorry about that. Really.’
‘Bah! Not to worry. All is well.’ He sat down, feeling they both needed a moment to catch their breaths. ‘Now, you seem to know me, my mysterious friend, but I’m afraid I don’t have the pleasure.’
She let out a broken laugh. ‘Wow, this is so weird...you actually know me before we meet…I don’t…wait. I can’t tell you, can I?’ she laughed again. ‘Good try, mister, but I’m not about to ruin anything for you! If you don’t meet me till the future then I’m not going to spoil it.’
Tollin’s lips quirked in amusement. ‘But…perhaps the reason I met you is because I got a little help in the past?’
That gave her pause. ‘N—no…No, I don’t think so. No.’ She sounded a bit unsure and Tollin had a weird moment wondering if he’d messed up his entire future by posing a simple question. It made him feel uncomfortable.
Oh, what the hell. ‘Well, if you’re not going to tell me, I can still guess, can’t I? There’s no harm in that.’ He crossed his arms.
He could nearly picture her. Nearly. She was debating. He gave thought to the way she sounded. She was young. Early twenties at the most…but she was mature, he could tell that as well. And rather confident. Experienced with life. Well, of course she’d be if she were his friend!
But…what else was there? What other clues did that voice of hers hold? He settled back, getting comfortable. No reason to rush.
‘You’re a blonde, aren’t you?’ he said at last.
She did a good job, but Tollin could hear the surprise in her voice. ‘What makes you think that?’
Tollin grinned, happy with his guess. ‘You sound like a blonde.’
She was clearly trying to keep a smile from her words. ‘Oh? You’re so sure of that, are you?’
Tollin didn’t debate it long. ‘Yeah, you’re not a redhead, I can tell you that. I know redheads.’
Her voice became crafty. ‘I see. And how do you know if I’m even human? I could have blue hair for all you know! Or none at all!’
That was a puzzler. He paused for a long breath. ‘Nah, you’re human. Can hear it in your voice!’
She sounded amused. ‘You seem to be able to tell a lot from a voice.’
Tollin beamed up at the orb. ‘Well, I’m very shrewd. You should know that.’
‘Should I, now?’
‘Yes!’ Tollin grinned. ‘In fact, I was just talking with that friend of yours, Noel. Why, he said you had nothing short of a worshipful attitude when it came to me!’
‘Worshipful attitude?’ she asked, her voice carrying an incredulous laugh.
Tollin felt his lips twitch. ‘So, I suppose that you don’t think of me that way?’
She let out a thoughtful ‘Hmmm,’ and then laughed again. ‘No, sorry mate. Afraid not.’
He grinned, admittedly delighted with this conversation.
‘So, my Mysterious Friend, do you have a name?’
She chuckled again. ‘Of course! But not one I can tell you!’
Tollin crossed his arms under his chin. ‘Wouldn’t dream of it! That would take all the fun out of it! I bet I can guess.’
Her voice grew disbelieving, ‘Oh, can you now?’
‘Yup! Let’s see…your name starts with a….’ He mouthed through the alphabet. ‘T.’
She laughed; my, he couldn’t help but think her voice sounded a little bit sexy. ‘A “T”, aye? So what’s my name?’
‘Hmm, Tiana!’
She snorted. ‘Nope.’
He grinned. ‘Talexia? Tillie? Sarah? Rahalanaraha?’
‘Nope, no, uh-uh, sorr
y! And those don’t start with T, mate.’
Well, the likelihood of him ever stumbling across the right name was just about impossible. There were too many names, too many Realms, too many possibilities. ‘Ah, it was worth a shot.’
It was silent for a moment before she stirred again. She was clearly content to talk. ‘So, since you’re in the past, then it doesn’t matter if I know what’s going on or not. Tell me what you’ve been up to.’
Tollin grinned. Bah, he had nothing else to do. And so he launched into a tale—delighted to tell someone about his brilliant exploits. She listened, she asked clever questions; she seemed to know exactly what he would do. He was, admittedly, becoming fond of this interesting woman.
‘It’s so strange, talking to you,’ she said thoughtfully after a moment of silence.
Tollin was intrigued. ‘Really? Why?’ He stirred.
She breathed in deeply. ‘I dunno, you’re just…more open. Not as bottled up, careful.’
He frowned. Was he really that carefree now? How much more reserved could he get in the future?
‘Talking to you…I mean, you’re not you. My Tollin is so…I dunno; you are very much the same, I feel like I’m talking to you, but, I just don’t feel like I know you. Do you get what I’m saying?’
‘Oh, yes,’ Tollin muttered. ‘You obviously know me, but I know nothing about you. I don’t even know your name! Or your age, or your hair colour, for that matter—though I do suspect you’re a blonde. And you’re clearly younger than twenty-five.’
She laughed uncomfortably. ‘Interesting deductions…’
In other words, somewhat accurate deductions.
They fell into comfortable conversation. Tollin did most of the talking. His female friend asked plenty of questions, seeming hungry for any answers he was willing to part with: what he was doing, even what he was dressed like. Tollin’s guard was crumbling. He wanted her to know.
Tollin wasn’t sure how late their words ran. It was an easy, sleepy talk of two intimate friends who were distant from each other. She was flirtatious, smart and understood him better than he could have imagined. Perhaps she knew him better than he knew himself. After all, she knew his future.
‘So, friend,’ Tollin said after a moment. ‘What am I like in the future?’ The thought terrified him.
She let out a deep breath. ‘Mmm, I’m afraid I can’t say.’
Tollin made a face. ‘Am I…good?’
He could almost hear her frown. ‘How do you mean?’
‘Am I…a good person?’
She was quiet. ‘You know I can’t say.’
‘Are you a good person?’
She laughed lightly. ‘What do you think? You’re quite astute.’
Tollin grinned. ‘I think you are.’
The woman’s gentle smile was evident. ‘You don’t have to worry, Tollin. Trust me.’
He rested he head against the wall, a strange contentedness filling him. ‘I think I do.’
‘So,’ she said after yet another long pause. ‘Why are you here, just talking to me? Why aren’t you off running about, saving the world?’
‘Oh,’ Tollin drawled. He scratched the back of his head and stared at the collapsed doorway. ‘Well, I’m a bit…immobile at the moment.’
‘You’re trapped, aren’t you?’
‘Yeah,’ he grinned.
She sighed. ‘Well, you’ll figure something out. You always do.’
‘Nice you have such faith in me.’
His eyes roved over the blocked entryway. How was he ever going to dig his way out of that mess? His friend seemed to believe in him, but Tollin didn’t know what he’d done to convince her of that—it was in his future. Yes, he had managed to wiggle out of quite a few tough situations, but a few tonnes of rock were just about enough to dampen his spirits.
‘You all right?’ she asked.
Tollin chuckled, forgetting himself. ‘I’m fine. I’m just trying to figure out how to get out of this.’
‘Wish I was there,’ she grumbled.
His eyebrows arched. ‘Do you?’
She had a smile in her voice. ‘Yeah! I’m always there to help you out of scrapes. Right now I’m just sitting here all alone…’
Tollin frowned. ‘Why aren’t you…with me?’
She sighed. ‘Because…I might have gotten you into one of those scrapes.’
‘Ah.’
‘Sorry!’
Tollin grinned. ‘No, no…I’m sure it was an honest mistake.’
‘I’m going to get you out, though. I’m not going to leave you. Not ever.’
He smiled, ‘I’m glad to hear that. I—’
Suddenly he heard her let out a gasp.
‘Oh, I’ve got to go!’ she stammered. ‘I think you’re calling, I mean, my You!’
Tollin frowned, feeling a bit disappointed. ‘Oh, oh, right. Well. Nice talking.’
She was hurried. ‘Right. I’ll…see you!’
‘Wait, when?’ Tollin lurched towards the orb, but it had already faded to black. With a heavy sigh he sat back, moping. An odd sense of jealously filtered through him. Jealousy towards himself! She—his mystery woman—had left him for, well, himself! An older, different version of himself. Her Tollin, she had said.
An ache, almost physical, clenched inside of him and he rested against the wall, letting out an unhappy breath. A disbelieving laugh crossed his lips. ‘By George, I think I’ve fallen in love with a woman I’ve never met!’
Perhaps he wasn’t meant to be alone, after all.
Staring ahead at the dull orb, Tollin felt mystified.
And as much as he knew it wouldn’t happen, he wanted to orb to glow to life again, to see the woman’s face. She had claimed to be his friend, his companion…whatever that meant. He thought of Molly with a slight pang.
Reaching out he touched the glass and focused on his reflection, face blank emotion and determination, as usual. The time would come. And he was looking forward to it.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
If there was a path of destruction behind him Andrew wasn’t aware of it. He was not aware of much besides the Power which was rushing through him in an unending current. The thing had mocked him, been disgusted with him when first they’d spoken. But now…now…well, great minds could think alike, couldn’t they? Two so arrogant had to see eye-to-eye eventually.
He was feeling better than ever. His body was healthier than it had been in ages. He couldn’t remember a time when his muscles moved without pain. And everything was so open to him…he could sense it, just beyond: a door to knowledge and enlightenment he hadn’t imagined possible. There was a sort of growing panic in him at the prospect of it perhaps leaving him.
He couldn’t let that happen.
The stuff pulled him down through the dark corridors of the mountain. A maze. A maze beneath the city, a maze beneath the desert. And this entity knew every turn. Around him, the walls were vibrating, shuddering with the alien power coursing through them to feed the stone. He feared it would bring the mountain down on him.
Though buried beneath the earth, he was distracted by all of this life around him. There was too much. He could sense the very spirits of those around him. The living and dead; rippling down from the desert above and fleeing through the dark, all of them food. And somewhere…somewhere running from him was Ramses. The coward.
Andrew struggled to pull his dark cloak tighter about him, making it less visible. He wasn’t sure if others could see it or not, perhaps it was just him, but something about him must have screamed wrong. He rather liked that.
Around him the world spun. He swallowed and did his best to stretch out his already strained senses. He was close, very close. The sense of Ramses’s spirit drifted back like some tantalising scent. Andrew couldn’t quite name what scent; it was neither pleasant nor unpleasant, but in the bombardment of his other senses, it was all he had.
Ahead of him, a small band of Myrmidons were dashing towards him, no doubt escap
ing from Reginald’s men. It was almost amusing; they didn’t even know he was there, cloaked in the shadows.
Stepping forward, he met the first of them and let the Darkness loose once again, ignoring the cries of surprise and terror. With one hand he pulled a man to him and plunged his knife down before letting him go, dispassionate. With the fellow’s last breath, Andrew watched as his translucent ghost drifted away, fearful even in death.
Andrew offered the spirit a wry smile. ‘Sorry, mate,’ he growled, ‘that’s just the way it works.’
The spirit did not have a chance to reply before the Darkness snapped forward, pulling it in.
Ignoring the others, he once again broke into a run down the passage, towards his prey. For once he felt the prime predator. Ramses was frantic. The Darkness was, too. It didn’t care about finding Ramses, however. It just wanted Andrew to pull it through. For now, he was happy to oblige.
‘Ramses…’ he purred, stepping deeper into the shadows. The crumbling ruins still managed to make him curious. This must have been where it all started for their little group. A pathetically small room full of abandoned instruments, yet dogs always returned to their vomit. No doubt the discoveries in this antechamber had been the start to the man’s obsessions.
His eyes swept the sand as he sent little tendrils of dark off in a wide, arching net. It went unwillingly. It didn’t much like being told what to do. But Andrew was realising his will was stronger.
Something was out there. Slinking. He smiled.
When he did at last find the man, he had to scoff. It was almost pathetic.
Ramses was on his hands and knees. And he was twitching, shivering, stuffing parchments into a satchel. Archaic objects rolled from his shaking hands across his floor. Andrew thought it seemed a bit late for that, but it was amusing to watch, nonetheless.
He smirked. ‘Hello, Ramses.’
Welcome Home (Alternate Worlds Book 3) Page 36