The Fenimeldiyaan: Displaced Time - Chapter 8

Andreas broke from his trance and got to his feet in a single smooth movement.  “Let’s go.  I’ve picked up an area where all three time-streams meet”.

“Where are we going?” Ewan demanded.

“Nowhere, me friend”.  Andreas chuckled and patted him on the arm.  “But we be going back around sixty standard years in time.  The equations didn’t settle on an exact time-index so I might have to make adjustments when we get there”.

Ewan sighed.  “I really don’t care about the mechanics of it.  Whatever it takes to get my sister back.  Let’s do this!”

Morgan, Daren and Ewan watched Andreas drawing another temporal interface in the air in front of them.  He pulled out three ribbons from the swirling mass inside the window and held them up to show the others.  “White and gold one belongs to Apollo, blue one to River and the grey one to Rachel.  Keep a tight hold on me so we don’t get separated”.

Andreas leaped through the window, dragging the other three behind him.

They landed awkwardly, sprawling on the dirty stone floor of the warehouse.  It looked more or less the same as they remembered, making them wonder if they had arrived back at the same time-index.

When they opened the trapdoor and descended to the basement laboratory, they noticed that the equipment had less dust on it and there were even some traces of chemicals in the Petri dishes and test-tubes.

“This looks more promising” Daren stated, indicating the remains of a fire in a corner of the laboratory.  “Someone has been here very recently”.

“In fact they still be here”.  Andreas gestured to a lumpy heap of blankets huddled against the wall, not far from the fire.

He went over and shook the sleeping figure, who awoke with a start and let out several loud curses.

“Virian” Andreas stated for the benefit of the others.  “I’ll give him a few minutes to wake up properly, then I’ll have a word with him”.

He took a bottle of renjan from his rucksack and offered it to the man, addressing him in Virian.  “Here ye go, pilgrim.  Twill help to keep the cold out and give ye sweet dreams”.

“And what’ll ye be wanting in return?” the man growled, grabbing the bottle and swigging from it.

Andreas grinned.  “A little information, tis all.  D’ye happen to know who owns this warehouse and the laboratory?”

“No-one does” the man replied.  “Least not anymore.  Used to belong to Doctor Dread.  He used this place for his evil experiments, til the brave Citizen Batalan exposed him and the State Police arrested him”.

“Citizen Batalan, eh?”  The name seemed to mean something to Andreas.  “This Doctor Dread, presumably that ain’t his real name.  D’ye have another name for him?”

The man took another swallow of renjan, savouring the spicy warmth of the potent liquor as it made its way down his throat.  “He went by many names — Kandlin, Kurak, Battleship Butcher, Skarada Slayer.  We always called him Doctor Dread.  We of the Virian Fellowship, that be”.

“Thank ye, pilgrim”.  Andreas patted the man on the arm.  “Ye’ve been most helpful.  I’ll leave ye in peace now”.

“What was all that about?” Ewan enquired.  “Does he know where Rachel is?”

“Not exactly” Andreas answered.  “But we be on the right path.  He mentioned several names which I recognise.  Citizen Batalan, or Lady Darien Shanahan-Menehari as I knew her, were very distantly related to me by marriage. Yozev Kurak, or Doctor Kandlin as he preferred to be known, were a relative of Judaas Fendor.  Kurak broke away from the Vyrdigaan Order and set himself up as a fake medical practitioner, deliberately infecting innocent people in order to peddle his supposed cures and gain fame for himself.  Despicable man”.

Morgan let out a gasp of horror.  “So you think that this Doctor has … I mean had … Apollo, River and Rachel?”

Andreas nodded.  “Aye, I believe so.  We arrived a little too late, so I’ll have to adjust the equations and try again.  We need to go back to when Doctor Kandlin still practised here”.

“More delays and more fiddling around with equations” Ewan grumbled.  “I hope you know what you’re doing.  If anything happens to my sister, you’ll pay for it”.

Andreas touched Ewan on the arm, despite the risk of being put to sleep.  “I already be paying for it, me friend.  I weren’t able to save Gremeldah Dowd and all those poor people back in Vordelle, but I refuse to add any further deaths to me total.  Me conscience already be punishing me far worse than any nightmares ye could visit upon me.  The Goddess alone will judge me”.

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Rachel leaned against the wall, trying to catch her breath. Black spots danced in her eyes, but she struggled to blink them back. “Styx,” she mumbled. Everything ached. Her head throbbed worse than ever, both from overusing her magic and Yozev’s sedative. Ewan wouldn’t have had any problem with escaping, not like she was having.

However, just before she dared to go outside, she froze, remembering Apollo’s concern over that little girl — River. “Styx,” she muttered again, turning from the doors. She’d have to go back, and desperately hope that her sleeping spell was still over Yozev.

She could no longer run through the building. Her feet felt like dead-weights and her legs like jelly. Rachel hadn’t felt this bad since the first time Will had restarted The Story — and she’d been impaled. Why had she gone back? Now she’d have to find somewhere to hide … if she could even find River before Yozev woke up.

With some effort, she made it down most of the stairs and tripped over the last few, landing hard. It would have been so easy to simply close her eyes and drift away there, but she didn’t. She had to keep going. Hauling herself to her feet was one of the hardest things she’d ever done.

She found the strength to carry on, and tugged on the first door she found. It swung open and she stumbled inside, nearly falling. Someone grabbed her arm and she gasped. Big brown eyes stared back at her. “R-River?” Rachel said, struggling to get her breath back.

The little girl nodded, stepping back. She scrabbled for her book and wrote in it before turning it to Rachel. “How did you get here?”

“Long story,” Rachel said, getting her breath back. “Yozev Kandlin abducted me and brought me here. Listen to me. He doesn’t want to help you, he just wants you to kill his enemy. He’s lying to you.”

River looked uncertain, and worse, suspicious. She held her pen over the paper but didn’t write anything.

“Please, listen to me,” Rachel insisted. “We don’t have much time, but we need to get out of here. I don’t care if you believe me or not, but that guy’s got all sorts of creepy tools in his lab that I’m not keen on meeting. Please, come with me!”

The little girl nodded, tucking her book under her arm and the pen behind her ear. Apparently, that meant that she was ready. Rachel smiled at her and turned to leave …

River gasped when Yozev appeared in the doorway. “Styx,” Rachel said. Her sleeping spell hadn’t lasted long enough. She backed away, grabbing River’s arm. The little girl stared at Yozev.

He didn’t say anything. Moving with surprising speed — or maybe Rachel’s reflexes were just slow — he jabbed a needle into her arm. She froze, the sedative entering her bloodstream, before toppling to the ground, unconscious.

River stared at Yozev before leaning over Rachel, trying to rip the collar off her own neck. She shook her head at Yozev, trying to get him to back off.

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Ewan pulled away from Andreas, glaring at him. “Don’t try and win any sympathy votes with me,” he snapped. “My sister has been sent to the past and apparently is in the hands of a doctor who likes to infect people with deadly diseases for the fun of it! Do you know what she means to me?! If she dies, then … then …”

Daren put up his hands to halt Ewan’s tirade, as well as anything Morgan could add. The mage’s face was turning a bright red, whether because of worry or just plain fury, he wasn’t sure. “We all just need to calm down,” he said. “There’s nothing to be gained from randomly blaming poor Andreas. None of this is his fault. He didn’t bring any of them here. Jezebel sent Apollo and River here, and Set meddled with time, which brought Rachel here. I don’t see how Andreas factors into any of that. And Andreas … you can’t blame yourself for Gremeldah’s death. She came to Vordelle, she knew what she was getting into. She chose to sacrifice her own life to save us. It wasn’t any of our faults that she chose it.” Daren’s own face was flushed.

Morgan reached out and touched his friend’s shoulder. “You’re right,” he said. He knew why Daren felt so strongly about it. The situation resembled how Cora had died almost exactly. When the fault had lain with the women for the impending doom, they had made their choice to sacrifice their own lives to make things right. “Alright, Andreas. What’s the plan now? Do you know what year to take us to now?”

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Gerald rolled onto his back, staring up at the top of the tent. The last time he’d been in the desert, Elsa had told him she was with child … right before she disappeared. The sand curled beneath him, as if to comfort him, but he was beyond comfort.

He just wanted his wife. Was it so much to ask, that they be together? Everything that had happened, every time he believed them to be safe, another disaster occurred. A kidnapping, an invasion … just when he thought they were safe, it turned out that they weren’t.

As he laid there, his mind thinking about the last time he’d been with Elsa on Sartoria, something strange happened. He felt … something. He reached out to it. “Els?” he dared to whisper. The sand picked up around him.

And he heard it. “Gerald?”

“Elsa!” He sat bolt upright. “Where be ye? Be ye alright? Ye can hear me?”

“Gerald!” Her voice faded, leaving Gerald feeling emptier than before. The sand returned to its normal speed, and Gerald felt something moist on his cheek. He reached up, his fingers touching the tear there.

Yet, alone once more, Gerald felt hope kindle inside him. Set hadn’t gotten to Elsa. She was alive, she was looking for him. “I will find ye,” he whispered to the air. “I will get back to ye, Elsa. I promise.”

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“Gerald!” Elsa sat bolt upright, gasping for breath. Elaine jumped back, having been dozing in the chair beside her.

“E-Elsa?” Elaine stammered.

Elsa breathed slowly, trying to calm her racing heart. “Elaine,” she said. “Elaine, please get Anwyn for me. Please.”

“Anwyn? Why?”

“Because I sensed him,” Elsa said. “I heard him.” She fixed Elaine with a steely look. “And we’re going to find him.”

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“Lord Degurmin, I wasn’t expecting to see you again so soon”.  Gyul bowed to the Varagan.  “Have you come to view some more of my merchandise?”

Vedat shook his head.  “Not today.  I seek information about the man who wanted to use Apollo Lightbringer and Rachel Andric to kill someone.  Twould seem that he ain’t given up on getting hold of them.  In fact, he may already have Rachel”.

“Tis hardly my fault if you fail to keep track of your slaves” Gyul asserted.  “Once you’ve paid me and taken delivery of them, they no longer be my concern”.

Vedat grabbed the Malvanian by the shoulders and slammed him against the wall.  “Ye’ll tell me everything, or I’ll see to it that ye never sell another slave again.  Understand?”

Gyul gave a weak nod.  “Aye of course, Lord Degurmin.  I had no idea that he would cause so much trouble for both of us.  He uses the name Doctor Yozev Kandlin, among others, and he usually buys the slaves who no-one else wants — the older ones or those in poor health.  He uses them in some kind of clinical drug trials, so he tells me.  He deliberately infects the slaves with incurable illnesses so that he can test his supposed cures out on them.  Tis all I know”.

Vedat squeezed his large hands around Gyul’s throat, restricting his breathing.  “Ye will do no more business with this man.  In future I will buy the slaves that ye can’t sell.  If I find out that ye still be selling them to him, yer life will be forfeit”.

Gyul nodded again and Vedat let go of him.

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River continued tugging at her collar while trying to engage her powers.  Her hands shook and her aching fingers slipped on the metal.  The more she pulled at it, the more it bit into the soft flesh of her neck, causing her to wince.

Yozev snapped out of his trance and plunged another syringe into River’s neck, sending her to sleep along with Rachel.

He then exited the room, locking the door behind him.

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Yozev gave a triumphant smile.  As he had suspected, the tracking device implanted in Apollo had not been removed.  He followed the trace on his computer, grinning to himself.  Soon he would have all three of the off-world sorcerers under his control.

“Gurhaan!” he called.  “Have the truck ready and bring three of your best men.  We’ll be going hunting”.

The burly man known as Gurhaan drove the truck slowly through the city streets as directed by Yozev.  “Where we be going, boss?”

“You’ll find out soon enough” Yozev replied.  “How many cylinders of Lethe-mist did you pack?”

“I brought a whole crate of twenty” Gurhaan confirmed.

Yozev gave an irritated sigh.  “Twill have to suffice.  I’ve no idea how resistant these Varagans will be.  If this goes wrong, twill be your fault, Gurhaan”.

They arrived at their destination.  Gurhaan parked the truck a safe distance away from the Degurmin residence and hauled the crate along.

“Knock the guards out first” Yozev ordered, pointing to the four muscular Varagans who patrolled the perimeter of the house.

Gurhaan and his colleagues donned their gas masks and began spraying the Lethe-mist around.  It did not take long for the guards to succumb to the potent soporific.  They collapsed in mid-stride and would remain unconscious for several hours.

Yozev took a bunch of keys from one of the guards and unlocked the main front door.  He directed the men to various parts of the house, instructing them to spray every occupied room thoroughly and make sure that all the household members breathed in the gas.

Half an hour later, only Yozev and his four employees remained conscious.  He sent them outside to keep watch while he searched for Apollo, starting in the servants’ quarters. 

He moved on to the main part of the house and eventually found Apollo lying on a low divan in a sitting room.  The man who had been watching over him lay on the floor nearby, snoring loudly.

Yozev called for Gurhaan.  Without a word the big man picked up Apollo and slung him over his shoulder.

Once the precious cargo had been loaded into the truck, Gurhaan started the engine and drove away, again using a convoluted route as specified by Yozev.

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“Are you sure this invisibility spell of yours is going to work?” Ewan asked, staring around at the dingy interior of the warehouse yet again.

“Aye, tis working perfectly” Andreas projected.  “But if ye continue speaking aloud, ye’ll give us away.  Use telepathy”.

“This is the third attempt and it looks as though you’ve got it wrong again”.  Ewan sent the telepathic equivalent of a sneer along with his words.  “No-one’s here.  The place looks abandoned”.

“Not so, me friend”.  Andreas pointed to the two men who stood guard by the entrance.

“River’s emanations are very faint and I can’t sense Apollo at all” Morgan remarked.

“What about Rachel?” Ewan demanded.

“Hers be faint too” Andreas informed him.  “That could either mean that they ain’t here anymore or that they be asleep.  As for Apollo, it don’t seem as though he’s ever been here”.

“I hope he hasn’t been infected”.  Morgan’s projection carried a worried tone.  “He might not be able to cure a disease that the Doctor made in his lab.  Being unable to heal himself would be unbearable for him”.

“I’ll try to pick up Apollo’s time-line, while ye three search the place” Andreas suggested.  “Let me know if ye find anything”.

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Elaine found Remyn doing his rounds and checking up on the other patients in the main part of the infirmary.  “Please help.  I think my sister is hallucinating again”.

He frowned.  “She shouldn’t be.  I suppressed all the traumatic memories.  Or at least I thought I did.  Tis best to check”.

He hurried along with Elaine to Elsa’s bed.

“I told you to get Anwyn, not the healer” Elsa remonstrated.  “There’s nothing wrong with me.  I don’t need any more treatment.  I need to find Gerald”.

Remyn conducted a brief mind merge while Elaine paced up and down, hoping that her sister had not had a relapse.

“Tis exactly as she says” Remyn reported.  “The psychic link between her and Gerald has been re-established.  I think we should do as she asks.  I will summon Anwyn”.

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Anwyn sighed and rubbed her eyes.  For the past two days she had attended meetings with Ambrogino Auguiste’s business contacts and probed their minds whilst pretending to be interested in buying goods and slaves from them.  So far none of them had revealed anything of interest.

“We’ve seen all the Carpathians” Ambrogino mentioned.  “We can start on the Yttrians and Malvanians next if ye wish”.

“Twill have to wait” Anwyn replied.  “I’ve had an urgent summons which I can’t ignore.  I be needed back home.  But don’t think ye’ve gotten out of yer agreement to help me.  I will return soon and we’ll pick things up again”.

Before Ambrogino could say a word, she had gone.

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Anwyn arrived in the Donovan Institute infirmary, still dressed in her business suit.  She listened to Remyn’s assessment of the situation, punctuated by a few additional details from Elaine and more frenzied pleas from Elsa, begging for help in finding Gerald.

“Ye must be sick of mind merges by now but I’ll have to do another one if ye want me to trace Gerald for ye” Anwyn stated.

“Go on” Elsa urged.  “Whatever you need to do.  Get it over with”.

Anwyn initiated the mind merge and sought out Gerald’s mind signature.  It did not take long for her to trace it.  The welcoming heat of the desert and the emanations of love from the sand blasted back at her.  Home, her beloved birthplace, where she had spent some of the best years of her life.  Gerald lay in a small unadorned tent, staring up at the canvas, a single tear making its way down his cheek and into his stubble.

“Did you find him?” Elsa demanded, already knowing the answer.

“Aye, indeed” Anwyn affirmed.  “Tis strange to fathom.  He be at our encampment in the desert, but Ma and Pa ain’t seen him, nor have any of the others.  Tis like he be invisible to them, or mayhap being held in a different dimension”.

“Or in the past” Elsa suggested.  “Apollo got sent to the past so why not Gerald too?”

“Aye, good point”.  Anwyn nodded.  “Jezebel’s meddling could have affected the trajectory of the slow-time envelope and caused it to dump Gerald out in the past.  The desert’s soul and consciousness don’t register differences in time, so the sand would’ve recognised Gerald as a friend, no matter when he arrived there”.

“Let’s go then!”  Elsa threw back the blankets and leaped off the bed, her previous injuries forgotten.

“Wait!”  Anwyn held up her hand, stalling the enthusiastic Elsa.  “I’d rather try making contact first, afore we go rushing off there.  If we don’t know what time-period he arrived in, we won’t be able to find him.  I never learned to manipulate the equations like Andreas, so tis best to ask Gerald.  If he don’t know, then we’ll have to wait for Andreas to come back from Yttria or for Mazia to finish her mission on Losintho”.

Elsa grimaced.  “I hope that won’t mean another mind merge”.

“Not this time” Anwyn confirmed.  “The sand will help strengthen the connection betwixt Gerald and meself”.

She then sat cross-legged on the floor and went into a trance-state, calling out telepathically to Gerald in the desert.  “Gerald!  Tis Anwyn.  I be with Elsa and Elaine.  Tis likely that ye’ve been sent to the past instead of the present.  Afore we can come and get ye, I need to know how far into the past ye be.  Anything ye can tell me about the encampment and the people ye’ve met should help me to fix yer time-index.  Gerald?”

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As Andreas settled down to search for Apollo, Morgan led the way into the factory. Daren followed along, feeling peculiar being invisible, and unable to communicate with the others, since he couldn’t mentally transmit. Ewan walked along in a huff, obviously perturbed at following the much-shorter mage. However, for the moment, he didn’t complain.

The three young men made their way through the warehouse, uncovering a set of stairs. Morgan glanced back at the others. “Let’s see what’s down here,” he projected to them.

When they got further down, Morgan put up a hand at the bottom of the stairs. “Guards,” he told them. “Several.”

“Armed with what?” Ewan asked.

“I don’t know. I can just sense the guards, not their weapons,” Morgan answered waspishly. Ewan made no response to that as the three continued through the place. Morgan followed the trail that seemed to be getting more pronounced — River was nearby, somewhere.

“There.” Ewan’s voice projected in his mind startled the mage. He turned and saw a door, nodding. River was behind it with someone else — likely Ewan’s sister. Maybe he would be more pleasant when they saved the girl.

Morgan rested his hand on the knob and immediately clamped a hand to his forehead. There were two things assailing him — River’s last thoughts before apparently falling asleep, and Apollo. He was there — close, not in the warehouse, but close. Searing pain shot through his head. Apollo had been ill. He was better now, but he’d been ill, and now he was unconscious. Memories flew through Morgan’s mind as he struggled to determine whose was which. He saw River’s, he saw Apollo’s, he even picked up a few of Rachel’s. His mind felt oddly exposed, and he wasn’t sure why.

“What are you doing?” Ewan projected.

Morgan instinctively lashed out at him, sending the young man flying backwards. Daren backed up hastily as Morgan tried to curb the unusually strong emotions flooding through him. The odd connection between him and Apollo and him and River was clashing, fighting with each other.

“Morgan, stop it!” Daren hissed, glancing back.

It was too late to stop him now. Guards had heard the ruckus and were coming down the corridor. Acting purely on instinct, like an animal, Morgan ran into the room and closed the door, giving no thought to the other two. He just knew that he had to get to River.

The little girl was sprawled out on the floor, her brown curls splayed out around her. Morgan knelt down beside her, touching her forehead. She was cold, but still alive. Now that he was beside her, common sense reasserted itself. What was he doing? Apparently, being away from the two he had a strong connection with wasn’t a good mix with his dark side.

The door opened and he stood, turning, ready to apologise to Ewan and Daren. However, he didn’t realise his outburst had disrupted Andreas’s invisibility spell, and he just stared at the guard as some peculiar-smelling gas was sprayed in his face. It took only seconds for him to fall unconscious.