The walls had been painted to look like precisely fitted stonework. The furniture was graceful, carved wood, of a style Harrison had never seen before.
"Cozy place."
"Yeah. Painting the walls was Simone's idea. The furniture is cheap crap."
It looked nice enough to Harrison. "Only the one entrance?"
"Yes. If you wouldn't mind standing guard, I'll go and change. I'll only be a few minutes."
"No problem."
Raven passed through a curtained doorway into a back room, presumably a bedroom.
Harrison pulled a chair over to sit by the door. He could tell what Raven meant about cheap crap then; the chair looked like heavy wood, but it was light, like plastic. Felt like plastic, too. The room had an oddly archaic appearance, at odds with Raven's dress and speech, although he did have a few odd turns of phrase – a way of saying things – that struck Harrison as strange. Looking around that room, Harrison knew without a doubt that Raven wasn't from his Earth, even without that allergy to iron.
He checked the display on his device, but all it said was no signal, which was very odd, Harrison thought. What signal? From where?
About ten minutes passed before Raven came back into the room. He'd taken the time for a quick wash and had changed his clothes. He was wearing the same boots, plus new jeans and a black tee-shirt under a black leather bomber jacket. He had his own gloves on and was carrying the strangest rifle Harrison had ever seen. He handed back the gloves he'd borrowed.
"What is that?"
"Slicer rifle. Picked it in a place called Atlonglast a few years ago. Never found anything better."
"Looks mean as hell. What does it fire?"
"Hypervelocity metal disks. A lot of them, very fast."
"Got extra ammo?"
Raven nodded. "Ten thousand rounds. Also extra power packs."
"Is it heavy? Looks heavy."
"Not as bad as you might think, but yeah, it's heavy."
"So where to now?"
"I want to see if anyone from my old team is here. They'll know where Simone is."
"You don't think she'll be with them?"
"No." Raven couldn't keep the pain from his voice. "They'd have wanted her out of the way when they sent Kendall after me. She would have stopped him."
Chapter Thirty-Five
The corridor outside Raven's quarters appeared deserted, which didn't fill Harrison with confidence. There had been people around before they went in. Everyone had either found urgent business elsewhere, or the corridor had been cleared for a reason. He suspected he knew the answer.
"Okay, so where now?" Harrison asked.
"Down the corridor," Raven replied. "That way."
It seemed obvious to Harrison that Raven was worried, too. He was much more vigilant and kept his rifle ready.
"So how did you get involved in all this, again?"
Raven laughed bitterly. "I didn't have much choice. A team snatched me up and told me they were saving me from certain doom. They said my world was about to be destroyed."
"You don't believe it?"
"No. I think they believed it when they said it, but I think it was a ploy by the power of this place to get me to work for them. Everyone I've talked to here has a similar story about how they were recruited. How many worlds can be on the edge of destruction?"
"Mine always seems to be, but–" he held up his hand to forestall Raven's comment "– I think you have a good point. It does seem like something you'd tell a person you want to manipulate. Can you tell me any more about this power you keep talking about?"
"Not much. I have a few suspicions, but nothing concrete. I don't think it would make much sense, anyway."
"To tell you the truth, nothing has made much sense to me for a long while now."
"Through here." Raven indicated an alcove like the others, except it didn't have a door in it, just an open archway. The room beyond looked like a comfortable break room from some office building. Several other doorways led off deeper into the complex. A large man sat in an easy chair, reading a magazine.
"Anton?"
The man looked up, and a huge grin split his face. "Raven, my old friend. It is good to see you!" He had a thick Russian accent. "Who is your friend?"
"First things first, Anton. We may not have much time. Where is Simone?"
Anton stood up. He was huge, well over two meters – almost a head taller than Harrison, who wasn't short. "She is gone. When she heard that you had been exiled, she went looking for you."
"Heard? She was there."
"I think you must be mistaken," Anton replied. "She and I had been on a mission when you were taken. We didn't hear about it until we returned. That corporal was fairly gloating about how you'd been tricked. He's a dirty one."
"Damnit, it must have been that shapeshifter. Do you know where she went?"
"She said something about trying to find Deegan."
"Nothing else? Deegan could be anywhere."
"Hmm. She said something about the Plaza of Worlds. She didn't trust anyone, or I would have gone with her."
"The Plaza doesn't exist, Anton." Raven walked away. Harrison could tell that he was upset and not wanting to show it.
He held out his hand to Anton. "Major John Michael Harrison, USSOCOM."
"Anton Petrovitch." The man had a gentle handshake for such a giant.
"What's the Plaza of Worlds?" asked Harrison.
"You know how you can hear rumors of a thing?" Anton replied. "You hear enough, and it seems like maybe there just might be truth there. You know what I mean?"
"I do, but that doesn't tell me much."
"It is supposed to be a place like this one, but even more ancient, as old as the universes themselves, built by those who came first. I have heard rumor that it is not just a myth. I don't know anyone who has ever claimed to have seen it, or to know anyone who has. I suppose maybe Deegan would. If anyone did, it would be one such as him. But we only met him once, and that world was in flames when we left. I worry for Raven."
"Simone is pretty important to him?"
Anton sighed. "They made a cute couple. I think they were – what is the word? Soul mates, yes?"
Harrison nodded.
"You are not part of all this, are you?" Anton asked.
"No. I stumbled onto Raven's island and just got caught up in the situation there. I'm trying to find my way home, but every time I try, I just get further away."
"That is what we are all trying to find: a way home."
"Yeah? So you believe what Raven says about being lied to?"
"I do. It makes too much sense to not be true. There are untruths here. Many questions are not to be asked. It is like a return to the time of Stalin."
"Stalin, huh? Sounds like your world isn't so different from mine."
"It may be that this is also true."
"You could come with us," said Harrison. "We could use another man on a gun."
"I don't touch the things."
"Don't tell me you're a pacifist."
Anton laughed. "No, I am doctor. I am sworn to heal, not harm."
"Well, a doctor would be handy, too."
"I thank you, but maybe we see what Raven has to say."
Harrison shrugged. "Other than looking for his woman, I don't think he's planned very far in advance," he replied. "If I were you, I'd want to get the hell out of this place."
"Believe me when I say that I do."
"Raven!" Harrison called out. "I think we should get moving!"
There was no reply.
Harrison moved out of line of the archway, just in case. He felt like a spotlighted deer, just standing there. He wanted to get moving. It made his skin crawl, not to know if he was going to be attacked at any moment. He loaded another buckshot grenade.
"I'm fine," Raven said as he came back through a door. He was carrying a full pack. "It occurred to me that we might want food."
"Good man," Harrison replied. "What do you think of Anton
coming with us? I don't like the idea of leaving anyone here."
"I packed for three."
Anton grinned. "I'll be back in a moment. Just let me get my medical kit." He left through one of the other doors.
Chapter Thirty-Six
The magazines on the tables were a mix of familiar and unfamiliar. A few of them were downright bizarre, like the gold-bordered copy of Imperial Geographic, or the copy of Time with a photo of a velociraptor and the caption, America's Next President? Harrison wondered what Earth that had come from.
"This is a very strange place," he said.
"You get used to it," Raven replied. "It's not home, but I have some good memories, nonetheless. We tried to help people, no matter why we'd been sent to those places. I think I may actually miss it."
"Funny, right now I just miss showers and fried foods."
Raven laughed. "I used to live above a bakery. I miss the smell of that place in the morning. I'd wake up with my mouth watering, craving a pastry."
"Damn, that does sound good right now. Closest I've had recently is a cold Pop-Tart."
"Harrison." Raven's voice turned serious. "Why are you helping us?"
"A small group has a better chance of survival than one man on his own. My world was being invaded by a neighbor from another universe. My mission was to put a stop to that. I went through and left them a nuke on the way out. Unfortunately, the machine didn't send me home. I picked up this gizmo along the way." Harrison grinned and held up the portal device. "Besides, I like you. You've been honest and straight-up about what's going on. You also know more about this whole multi-universe thing than I do, and maybe, just maybe, you'll be able to help me get home."
"I've almost given up on the idea of ever getting back home."
"Don't."
"Right," Raven replied, looking away. "Do you have any idea where you'd like to –" He was interrupted by a shout in the corridor.
"Uh-oh," Harrison muttered. He readied the SCAR. "Any idea what we're going to be facing?"
"I imagine more of the security forces like before, but I don't know. Could be anything. They have a lot of people to throw at us, if they want to."
"Where the hell is Anton?"
"He should be back anytime."
"Do we have an exit?"
"Ah..."
"Right. Find Anton. Think about how we're getting out of here. I'll see about the security forces. Is this the only entrance to this room?"
"For now."
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
"The Doors, Harrison. They could re-tune a Door to open to one of these doors, but it takes time."
"Find Anton."
Harrison lowered his rifle and approached the archway, slow and cautious. He could hear hurried commands but couldn't understand what was being said.
He glanced into the corridor.
A team of about ten soldiers was gathered in the right-hand corridor. They gave a shout when they saw him and opened fire. Harrison flinched back as explosive bullets slammed into the wall, showering him with chips of concrete.
So much for negotiating, he thought.
One of the soldiers came running around the corner, realizing only too late that Harrison hadn't fled back into the room. Harrison slammed the butt of the SCAR up under his jaw, and the soldier stumbled back, dazed.. Harrison shot him in the chest, a three-round burst. The soldier dropped, rapidly bleeding out.
More debris showered him as the soldiers opened fire again. Harrison darted to the other side of the alcove and crept as close to the edge as he dared. He tossed a grenade around the corner, but judging by the lack of screams, it didn't go off. He didn't know why. He'd never had one fail to detonate. Maybe something about this place...
"Damn it!"
"What's wrong?"
Harrison started. He hadn't realized Raven had come back. "We seem to be at an impasse. Whoever steps out first dies, and my grenade didn't detonate."
Raven thought about it for a moment. "You got any high explosives?"
"I've got C-4. What the hell good is that?"
"I'll be back in a moment."
Harrison started to protest and then gave up. He flipped the fire-selector switch over to full automatic. He only had seventeen shots left in the magazine, but at close range he could do some real damage.
"Harrison!"
He turned to look over his shoulder. Raven was wheeling an office chair up to him. Harrison started laughing.
"What? You don't think it will work?" Raven sounded mildly offended.
"Actually, I think it will. It's just kind of funny. Stand guard, and I'll take care of it."
He used demo tape to secure half a block of C-4 and his last two canister grenades from his launcher. That should give them something to think about. He stuck a timer into the charge and set it for three seconds.
He pushed it up to Raven.
"I'm ready. Get behind cover. Left wall."
"Got it." Raven ran back into the room, calling to Anton.
You can do this, he thought. One... two... three! He spun the chair into the hallway so that it bounced off the other wall and rolled down the right-hand corridor.
He was diving for cover when it detonated.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
"Try the next one!" Raven shouted.
All hell had broken loose after the improvised bomb took out the corridor. Took out was something of an understatement. The C-4 collapsed a three-meter section of hallway and the walls along with it. There was no sign of the security forces. They had either died in the explosion or were buried under the rubble.
A stunningly loud klaxon began sounding.
Harrison wasted little time worrying about it. He'd tried his portal device, but it still wouldn't lock on a set of coordinates. Raven suggested that the installation probably had some kind of shielding on it to prevent intruders from popping in.
That hadn't been particularly helpful.
"An access door!" shouted Raven.
The residential section was far from the area where the world Doors were. They needed to get back to that section, but the access doors kept leading them to the wrong areas. Twice, they encountered additional security forces. Harrison and his makeshift team were running from a large group of them and trying to lose them in the mazes of corridors and stairs.
"This the right section!"
"How do you activate the Door?" Harrison replied.
"I don't know. Give me a minute."
"We don't have a minute!"
He tossed a grenade back through the access door, almost into the arms of the lead security trooper, and slammed the door .
"Down this way." Raven ran off down the corridor.
"Raven! Wait!" Harrison and Anton hurried to keep up.
Six security troopers stepped out of a door behind Raven and raised their rifles. They didn't see Harrison and Anton.
"Raven!"
They opened fire.
Harrison was afraid to shoot back; he didn't want to hit Raven. He charged forward, yelling. Two of the guards turned just as he slammed into them. Harrison didn't have time to check on Raven. He was just trying to stay alive. A rifle butt struck him in the ribs, but he drew his knife and slit the man's throat. After that, everything was a blur of flailing limbs and clubbed rifles. Some idiot opened fire, and two of the security men went down in gory sprays. Harrison threw his knife, and the point sank hilt deep into a man's eye-socket.
Suddenly, no one was trying to kill him. He was tired, and he hurt. The wounded were moaning, but he didn't have the will to end them. He retrieved his knife and limped over to where Anton was wrapping Raven's leg in thick bandages, but Harrison could see the blood seeping through them already.
"We need to keep moving," said Harrison.
"He cannot go on," Anton replied. "We need to get him to the infirmary."
"Not here, we don't. We aren't backtracking. Raven?"
"He's right," Raven gasped. "I can't be caught. I won'
t go back into exile again, or suffer the punished that It would devise!"
Anton sighed gustily. "You could die of shock."
"He's going to die of acute lead poisoning if we don't get moving," Harrison said. "I don't think exile is an option. They really want to kill you, Raven, and us for helping you. You must know more about this boss of theirs than you realize. Now get to your feet, and let's move!"
Anton supported most of Raven's weight, but they were still moving too slowly.
"We need an exit," Harrison told Raven. "It doesn't matter where."
"Take the next door on the right," Raven said, his voice thin from the pain. "It an embarkation room. I activated the device."
"Do you know where the Door goes?"
"Does it matter?"
Harrison heard a shout as he was opening the door. The security forces had found them again.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Lightning blinded them as they ran through the Door. Swirling, howling surges of wind pelted them with rain and hail. The violent sheets of rain allowed only brief glimpses of what lay ahead, but they had no choice. They knew what was coming behind them.
"Get to cover!" Harrison shouted. What the hell is it about universe travel and storms?
"What?" The howling wind nearly drowned out Anton's voice.
"Cover!" He pointed to the stone ruins in the distance, barely glimpsed through the rain.
An explosion rocked them and showered them with debris.
"What the hell was that?" shouted Anton. He was still half-carrying Raven, but it didn't seem to slow the big man down.
Harrison just pointed at the ruins again. It didn't matter what the explosion had been; if they didn't get into cover soon, the security forces from the JRC would come through the Door and kill them. He'd glimpsed a large group of them entering the embarkation room as he'd gone through the Door. Besides, if someone was shelling the area around the Door, so much the better. Harrison needed a good defensive position so he could see if his device would work in this place. Then he could jump them all out of here to the calm meadow – assuming the device would work with more than just one person, although he didn't want to think about the possibility that it wouldn't. He leave them if he had to, but he'd rather not do so. He liked Raven and Anton, even if he'd only just met them.
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