Thirteen Forgotten Worlds (Seam Wardens Book 1)

by Brant Williams

  “As much truth to that as there is, it isn’t the main reason all Seam Wardens run. The main reason is that the more endurance you have, the longer you can run at the enhanced speed. The enhancers allow you to run at a greatly increased speed, but that doesn’t change your intrinsic cardiovascular endurance.”

  Abby stopped for a moment and seeing our bewildered faces, decided to change up her tactics. “Let’s see if this helps. Suppose you have the endurance to run at say fifty percent of your top speed for an hour without stopping. Once you have the enhancer, that doesn’t change. You can still only run at fifty percent of your top speed for an hour. But your top speed will be quadruple what it used to be. Does that make sense?”

  As someone who had spent most of the past eight years running every day, it made perfect sense to me. Super speed was great, but if you didn't have the endurance to support it, you could only super sprint for a short distance. That would be valuable, but not nearly as valuable as being able to run at those enhanced speeds for an hour or more.

  Mariah raised her hand. “These enhancers sound great. They could do a lot of good out in the world. How come the Seam Wardens don’t share them with the rest of the world?”

  Reid nodded slowly as he listened to Mariah's question. "An excellent question," he said. "You're right, if the entire world could have these, it would be a huge boon to humankind. We could run to where we need to go and use fewer cars and less fossil fuel. People who were sick or injured could recover and be healed. Why wouldn't we want that?

  “The only problem is that the enhancers will only work on Seam Wardens. Blan– I mean normals, can take on enhancers, but they don’t act the same as they do for Seam Wardens. In normals, it acts as a permanent stimulant. They don’t get the increased strength, speed, or healing. Instead, they become hyperactive and filled with boundless energy. Which is great for the first few months. They don't need to sleep or rest at all, and they have increased mental acuity – until the lack of sleep starts to catch up with them. They start hallucinating, become more and more aggressive, and lose their inhibitions. They typically start to self-medicate with drugs or alcohol to try and find some rest for their hyperactive mind. There have only been a few dozen cases of normals being exposed to enhancers, but in every case where the enhancer wasn’t removed, they killed themselves within a year.”

  Mariah looked horrified. That clearly wasn’t the answer she had been expecting. I wondered who she had been thinking of that could have benefited from the enhancers.

  “How do you remove them?” she asked.

  “That’s part of the problem,” Abby said. “It’s not easy. You have to find a Seam Warden who can still take on another enhancer and have them essentially suck it out of them through their mouth. Kind of like CPR but in reverse.”

  We all paused and thought through that visual image for a moment. I was starting to see why the First Warden and the Senior Wardens were so worried about stolen enhancers being given to normals.

  Reid turned out to be a wealth of knowledge on normals with enhancers. One of his first big assignments after graduating from Cadet training was to investigate and shut down an illegal operation that was supplying enhancers to drug dealers.

  He spent the next several minutes explaining to us the various symptoms and visual clues to identify when a normal may have taken an enhancer. Typically, you can tell when a normal has an enhancer by looking at their skin. The enhancer leaves a black pattern on their skin that is hard to distinguish from a tattoo, except for the fact that it periodically moves to different places on the body – usually on the arms or legs.

  “We don’t have all that much time left,” said Abby, “and we want to give Elias some time to talk with you about the origins of the enhancers, as well as give you a quick demonstration of what he can do with six enhancers.”

  Elias had stayed silent and in the background while Abby and Reid spoke. Now he took a step forward and seemed to loom over us.

  “They asked me to come in and talk with you because I know more about the enhancers than any other Seam Warden.” His voice was smooth and deep. It could have belonged to a radio announcer. “The enhancers come from Uchima, and are part of the Druid’s magic.”

  Magic? Was he seriously telling us that magic actually existed? I had a hard time believing that. Sure, there were some things I had seen that had the appearance of magic – portals, shape-shifting creatures, other worlds – but they all had scientific explanations.

  Science, not magic. There was no such thing as magic. If something looked like magic that was just a factor of us not understanding the scientific principles behind the phenomenon.

  “The Uchima Druids are secretive and private. We have known of them for a very long time, but we knew very little about them until around thirty years ago when, for reasons I am not permitted to explain, they accepted me as one of their own and taught me their ways.

  "We had seen their physical skills – speed, strength, and healing ability, but did not know the source. As I learned their ways and became one of them, I was given the opportunity to take on enhancers. Once I had become one of them, I was able to convince them to allow Seam Wardens to take on enhancers so we could better protect all the forgotten worlds. They saw the wisdom in my words, and we now allow all cadets to take on as many enhancers as their bodies and minds can process.

  "I have six enhancers, which gives me somewhat of an advantage over anyone or anything I might face." He pulled out a small knife from a pocket in his robe and sliced his hand like Reid had done. A large flap of skin flopped open, and I saw the bones in his hand for a split second.

  And in an instant, it was healed. Reid's smaller cut had taken almost a full minute to heal, but Elias had practically cut off half his hand, and it had healed in less than a second.

  Elias took off at a run and moved about the training room so quickly that it was impossible to keep track of him. He flew past us in a blur – so much faster than what was humanly possible. He zoomed in and out of the obstacles, his robe flapping behind him. With one hand he lifted the huge rock that Reid had picked up with difficulty and tossed it back and forth between his hands.

  It defied all expectations about strength and proportions. It somehow seemed… wrong to see someone lifting boulders that easily. I wanted to check and make sure that they were solid rock and not papier-mâché or something like that.

  He dropped the boulder, reached into his sleeve, and pulled out a massive sword at least five feet long and covered with odd writing. There had to be a transdimensional storage space in there for a blade that long to fit.

  With a flick of the wrist so quick my eyes couldn't track it, Elias sliced the boulder in half, and the two enormous pieces rolled apart and crashed to the floor hard enough that we all felt the floor shake.

  That certainly wasn’t papier-mâché.

  Elias bowed and then stuffed the ridiculously long sword back up his sleeve. With a swirl of his cloak, Elias ran around the room twice and then out the door, leaving us behind in stunned silence.

  Abby walked back in front of us. "And that, cadets, is what you can do with six enhancers. Although to be honest, I believe he was holding back somewhat." She paused a moment to let that sink in.

  “How do you feel about getting enhancers?”

  “Sign me up!” said Caleb. “I saw him in action against all those Edelgrim. If enhancers can help me do that, I’m ready to go now.”

  “I’m glad to hear that, Caleb,” Abby said. “Because tomorrow we are going to Uchima for each of you to take on enhancers.”

  Tomorrow.

  Uchima.

  We were actually going into to one of the forgotten worlds. Not only that, but in our other classes, I had learned that Uchima was the world where Sorliths came from. That was the name of the creature that had killed my family and almost killed me. They were actually quite rare, even on their home world, so the chances of running into one were practically zero, but it still sent a shiv
er of excitement mixed with fear through me.

  Alexa looked over at me and gave me a curious stare. She had made the connection as well and guessed what going to Uchima may mean to me.

  I smiled back and shrugged. What else was there to do but play it cool and not let it bother me? I certainly wasn’t going to start blubbering uncontrollably and let fear dictate my life.

  Fear was for chumps.

  I didn’t have time for fear.

  That evening while I was studying I had another flashback. I had been reading about the native species of Uchima when a sudden wave of déjà vu came over me. I felt the beginnings of a headache forming behind my eyes.

  The car is cramped with all five of us in it, especially since I always get stuck in the middle. My younger sister, Sophie, was still in a car seat and so she gets one side, and my older brother, Aidan is bigger than me, so he gets the other side. That leaves me stuck in the middle for every single ride.

  But at least today it is for something fun. We are going out to celebrate Sophie’s birthday. We are going to Pirate Pete’s Incredible Pizza where we can get all-you-can-eat ice cream and play video games. Not a bad combination.

  The only problem is that it takes forever to get there. It feels like we have been riding in the car for years.

  “How much longer?” I ask. I'm bored and uncomfortable.

  “Three of four more days,” Dad says.

  Dad never gives a real answer when we ask that question.

  Mom rolls her eyes. “Not long,” she says.

  And that is when everything goes wrong.

  The car in front of us skids to a halt with a horrible squealing of tires. Dad slams on the breaks and the car swerves back and forth but stops just a few feet shy of the car in front of us.

  I look out the window and see a large, glowing shape in the road ahead of us. It looks like a large puddle of water turned on its side. Blue and white ripples move through it in constant motion. The ripples part and an enormous creature begins to emerge.

  Then, something smashes into us from behind, and our entire car jerks forward, crashing into the car in front of us. My seatbelt locks up, and I feel a horrible pain in my chest. My baby sister starts to cry. She doesn't look like she has been injured. She is in a car seat with shoulder straps. I reach over and hold her hand, trying to comfort her.

  Dad and Mom turn around in their seats. They look stunned as if they can’t quite understand what has just happened. Dad has a cut on his forehead and is bleeding. Mom has tears running down her cheeks.

  “Is everyone alright?” Dad asks.

  I shake my head. “My chest hurts.”

  Mom nods. “Mine too. Let’s get out of the car.”

  Mom and Dad get out of the car, and so does Aiden. I unbuckle but have to wait for Aiden to move.

  A blood-curdling roar tears through the air. It makes me want to hide and cry. I look outside and see a monster running toward us. It looks like a giant cat, but bigger than a horse. Like those Sabertooth tigers I have seen in books. But its legs and back are scaly, and its feet are not like cat feet – even giant cat feet – but they have three toes each with long, sharp claws on the end.

  Mom sees the monster coming and screams. Hearing my mom’s scream of terror is even worse than hearing the monster roar.

  “Hide!” she yells and pulls the knob that opens the back of the seat and allows access to the trunk. I squirm out of the way and climb on top of my sister’s car seat while Mom folds the back of the seat down so I can climb in.

  I risk a quick glance back and see the monster coming closer. It is leaping over cars and heading straight at us.

  Dad runs around to the passenger side of the car and hands my sister to my mom and then fumbles with the glove compartment lock. He unlocks it, and the last thing I see him do is remove a pistol and pull back the slide.

  I scramble into the dark trunk and curl up into a ball to make room for my brother and sister. My sister is screaming with fear and pain. My brother tries to climb in, but there isn't enough space. My sister's stroller is inside and prevents me from moving far enough in to give him space to follow me. The only way to get us both in is for me to climb out, pull out the stroller, and then try to get in again.

  There wasn’t enough time.

  “Everyone in the car!” Dad yells. My brother moves over, and my mom hands him my sister. She then crawls into the back seat and slams the door shut behind her.

  I hear the gun go off. Once, twice, and then no more. My mom who could see out the window starts screaming uncontrollably.

  Then, the glass shatters.

  I twist as hard as I can to get past the stroller and farther into the trunk. I scrape my arms and legs horribly, but I finally shimmy my way around the stroller and farther back into the trunk. Now, the stroller is between me and the entrance.

  My family's screams mix with the monster's roar but are soon cut off. I curl up and cover my ears, not wanting to hear what is going on. Tears flow down my cheeks, and I try to keep quiet and not to make any noise. I don't want the monster to know I am here.

  But it is too late. The monster reaches in a huge paw and begins groping around, trying to slash at me. I whimper and move as far away as I can. The monster's claws rip the stroller to shreds.

  After a moment, the monster pulls out its arm and everything is silent. The only sound I hear is my own rapid breathing. Has the monster gone? Why can't I hear the rest of my family?

  Light bursts in as a giant, clawed arm smashes through the trunk and rips the trunk apart.

  I scream and try to move, but there is nowhere to go.

  The monster jams its head into the trunk, its bloody fangs bared, ready to chew me to bits. I twist and curl up in the farthest corner I can, desperate to avoid the knife-like teeth.

  A piercing pain shoots through my shoulder. The monster sinks its fangs into me. There is nothing left to do.

  I am going to die.

  A loud BOOM shakes the car, and the monster lets go of my shoulder and howls in pain. I close my eyes and curl up into a ball again as tight as I can. Maybe it will forget about me?

  Loud shouts pierce the air, punctuated with more booms and howling from the monster. I hear the noises but have no idea what is happening. I huddle in a ball and try to disappear.

  After a moment, I hear a man’s voice.

  “Tamara, we've got an injured boy in here!" it says. I hear movement, and then a click and the trunk opens, shining bright light onto me.

  “How is he still alive?” says another voice. This one was a woman.

  I feel arms reaching around me to lift me out of the trunk. I look up into the face of an angel. I wrap my arms around her neck, and despite the pain in my shoulder, I hold on as tightly as I can.

  I squeezed my eyes shut as hard as I could and pushed my palms against my eyes. The pain in my head had reached my breaking point. I collapsed to the floor and crawled over to the toilet where I proceeded to empty my stomach of its entire contents.

  When I had finished, I paused a moment to take in what I had just experienced. That had been the memory I had both been dreading, and wanting to get back. Now I knew what happened to my family. Now I knew the horror I had experienced as a child. Now I knew why I wanted to be a Seam Warden and not let any other kids go through what I had.

  More memories came. The floodgates had somehow opened, and all the rest of my memories returned. People. Experiences. Everything that I had gone through during the time I had lived here came flooding back to me. Some memories were restored with perfect clarity, while others were murky and felt far removed.

  When it was over, I lay on the floor, panting, trying to process all the input that had come back to me at once. My head felt too full. It was impossible to think properly.

  I somehow managed to crawl into bed and collapsed, unable to stay conscious any longer.

  10

  Into the Seams

  When I awoke the next morning, my head felt much b
etter. With a night of sleep for my subconscious to sort through the newly-recovered memories, everything felt much less overwhelming. My headache was gone, and I could actually think again.

  And grieve.

  I took a few minutes to let the tears fall as I considered the fate of my family. They hadn’t deserved what had happened to them. They hadn’t done anything wrong. They had just been in the wrong place at the wrong time.

  Now I understood why my 10-year-old self was so insistent that I become a Seam Warden. We were the good guys – the cavalry that came in and hopefully saved the day.

  Being a Seam Warden gave meaning to the pain I had gone through, and there was power in that. Power that I would use to help humanity.

  When Reid came in, he told us we were going to skip the morning run and to hit the showers.

  “Today is a big day. We want you in top form when we go into Uchima. That means you get a day off from running and are taking an early breakfast. Now, move it!”

  Much to my surprise, Alexa was sitting alone when I entered the cafeteria. She waved me over once I got my food, and I sat down beside her.

  “Shocking,” I said. “Where’s the entourage?”

  Alexa rolled her eyes. “Just because I sit with people does not make them my entourage. Besides, it's not like you’re constantly sitting by yourself to eat.”

  I shook my head, sadly. "My people? No. We're just the leftovers who weren't welcome at the cool kids' table at lunch. We cling together in a desperate attempt to stave off the loneliness of being outcasts." I gave a dramatic sigh.

  Alexa laughed and tossed a piece of cantaloupe at me. I didn’t flinch and let it hit my chest and then bounce onto the floor.

  It felt good to talk with her like this. Especially since I finally remembered most of what I had forgotten from my time away from the Seam Wardens, including just what my relationship had been with Alexa. We had always bantered back and forth trying to take the other off-guard and make them laugh.