It's a Dead Man's World Ch. 01

“Jesus, Mary and . . .” Dennis started. But he stopped. Eliza had gotten up and run headlong back into her bedroom. She went to the orb. Normally it was glowing, blue when being used and red when not. It had gone black. Eliza started to scream at it.

“Father! Father, answer me! Mother? Anyone? Is anyone there?” She felt a huge hand on her shoulder. It was Thug. She looked the huge troll in the face. “Thug . . . they’re gone. I can’t get a hold of anyone. We’re trapped here!” She collapsed onto the floor. The she felt herself being picked up by her powerful friend and placed on the bed. “I’m sorry Father,” she whispered. She wished she hadn’t been so harsh with him. She wished they had parted on better terms. “Parted,” she whispered. It was then that she realized that unless someone found a way of breaching the dimensions again, she would never see her father, her family or her homeland again. Eliza began to weep like she had never done before. She felt scared and alone. Thug picked her up as gently as a person might hold a young child and placed her on the bed, and he stayed with her until she cried herself to sleep.

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That evening . . .

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Eliza awoke again with a splitting headache. Her head and thoughts still felt as thick as proverbial pea soup. Dennis was sitting in the chair next to her bed, and noticed she was awake.

“Eliza, I’m sorry.”

“Has anyone had any luck . . . contacting Terra?” Eliza tried to compose herself.

“No, not yet. Patrols have been sent out with other vampires that are trapped on this side. They’re trying to maybe find some of the smaller cracks that people have slipped through in ages gone by.”

Eliza looked around. “Where’s Thug? How is he doing?” She felt more than a little selfish. Thug was trapped here, the same as her, but she had only been thinking of herself.

“He’s fine. He’s sleeping now. He watched over you for hours before we convinced him to go take a nap. My understanding of the troll language is a bit poor, but he seemed to be under the impression he was never leaving the plane of existence anyway. He assumed you wouldn’t want to leave, and he promised your parents he’d look after you.”

The mention of her parents almost started her crying again, but she walled up the tears.

Dennis tried to find something comforting to say. “Listen, if this ‘Purity’ was expected a public uprising in their favor, they failed. There are humans trapped on the other side as well, and the interaction between the two worlds had been really beneficial. So you don’t have to worry about an angry mob coming to the door with torches and pitchforks.” He had meant that as a joke, but Eliza wasn’t laughing. “Speaking of coming to the door, you’ve got a visitor in the living room. We would have turned her away, but she seems to know you.”

Eliza wandered out into the next room. Pamela Ryder was sitting there in her civilian clothes. The police officer jumped up and held Eliza tightly. The rest of the crew quickly found somewhere else to be.

“What are you doing here?” Eliza asked quietly. “I thought . . . you weren’t supposed to be seen here,” she added.

“To hell with appearances,” Pamela said vehemently. “I needed to see you. I needed to make sure you’re okay. I’m so sorry about this!”

“Why? It’s not your fault and it’s not your problem. I’ve got to find a way home. Those bastards in the Purity figured out how to close the dimensional crack, so they might know how to open it again. All I have to do is find them!”

“Don’t do that,” Pamela said with concern. “These people are religious nuts and well funded ones at that! All Terrans are being told to keep a low profile until the World Council figures out how to deal with these guys.”

“I can’t do that,” Eliza returned. “I can’t just wait.”

“You have to,” Pamela said, holding the sides of Eliza’s face and ‘forcing’ the vampire to look at her. “I know perfectly well you’ve got a guy spying on all the official channels, so you know that no one has any information about their whereabouts right now. So . . . please, just let the officials handle this for now. You guys do protection, not acquisition. Please? Promise me?” Pamela looked at Eliza’s face. In all the time their affair had been going on, she had learned to read the vampire’s eyes well. She knew that Eliza would never make that promise. Pamela gave up. “Do you . . . want me to stay tonight?”

Eliza stepped back and let Pamela’s hands fall from her face. Eliza turned away from her lover. “Go home,” she said hoarsely. “Go home to your husband and daughter.”

“But why . . .?”

“Because you still can,” Eliza finished. For a moment, there was no noise. She heard Pamela breathing heavily, and Eliza hoped the human woman would just leave. She didn’t know if she had the strength of will to say ‘no’ again. She heard footsteps moving toward the door and then the door opened.

“I’m not giving up on you,” Pamela said from the door before closing it behind her.

In a corner of the room, Eliza saw the air shimmer, and Thug was standing there. Apparently his camouflage still worked, probably because it was a natural ability rather than being magical.

|| I’M SORRY, || came that thick, guttural voice. She was glad that even though no one could speak the troll’s language that everyone in the crew understood it.

“I wish people would stop saying that. I feel like such a baby. I haven’t cried like that since . . .” Eliza couldn’t actually remember the last time she’d cried.

|| SINCE YOU WERE FORTY YEARS OLD. IT WAS YOUR FIRST YEAR AT THE ACADEMY, AND YOU WERE STRESSED ABOUT YOUR EXAMS. ||

Eliza looked Thug over. “You seem to be handling this better than I am.”

|| WE ARE BY NATURE A SOLITARY AND PATIENT RACE, || he said. || I’M WASN’T SAYING ‘I’M SORRY’ BECAUSE OF THE ACTIONS OF THE PURITY. I’M SORRY ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED WITH YOUR LADY FRIEND. I WISH YOU COULD FIND SOMEONE TO CALL YOUR OWN. ||

“I should have known better than to become involved with a married woman, however attracted I was to her. I don’t even WANT her to break things off with her husband, so why did . . . Never mind. I don’t have time for romance right now anyway.” Eliza was flustered.

|| FIND TIME. IF NOT WITH THIS POLICE OFFICER, THEN FIND IT WITH SOMEONE ELSE. YOU ARE A PASSIONATE YOUNG LADY, ELIZA. WITHOUT AN OUTLET FOR THAT PASSION, YOU WILL MOST ASSUREDLY GO MAD. ||

Eliza was mulling that over as she went looking for Wyrm. She wanted to know if the World Council or any local governments had found anything.

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Several weeks later . . .

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“How can there still be nothing?” Eliza shouted. Her entire security team was sitting in their conference room, and the news hadn’t been good. No one had been able to locate the Purity, which meant that they were hiding somewhere in unexplored jungles somewhere or that they had more resources than anyone had anticipated.

“I don’t . . .” Dennis was cut off by a really loud, annoying buzz. It was the ringer down at the front gate. “Who the hell is that?”

Wyrm flipped down his headset’s viewing screen and used his VR gloves to navigate his computer menu and access the compounds security camera footage. “It looks official,” he said. “U.S. flags on the transport and a full police escort.”

“If they’re that important, why didn’t they phone ahead?” Eliza asked. No one had an answer. “Okay, this seems fishy. Dennis, Allyson . . . get your night vision goggles and do a quick scout of the perimeter. We’ve got good security, but we all know that even the best security can be breached. Wyrm, give me two minutes and kill the lights and active the temperature dampers. If these people have infrared capability, I want to limit its effectiveness. Thug, back me up. I’m going down to the gate.”

“Isn’t this a bit overkill?” Wyrm asked. “It could be a legitimate U.S. envoy.”

“If it is, they won’t mind the precautions. If they DO mind the precautions, I don’t want to be caught with my pants down. Everybody, go!”

Eliza and Thug armed themselves with KFS’s (Kinetic Force Shields) and their weapons of choice, which for Eliza was a fully automatic shotgun and a diamond-edged broadsword, while Thug grabbed his six-foot scimitar and his “boom stick.” Thug had a single-shot rail-cannon that no human could even lift unaided, but the troll could wield it in one hand. As the two of them approached the gate, Eliza saw a familiar face looking between the bars. It was Pamela, but this was obviously not a social call.

“Officer Ryder. What can I do for you at this hour?”

“Official government business,” Pamela said shortly. “Might I ask the reason for the precautions?”

“Usually when we receive official visitors, we get some advanced notice.”

“There are reasons for the secrecy, I assure you,” the officer said.

Eliza listened as she got a report from Dennis through her headset. They weren’t seeing anyone else on the property. “Very well,” Eliza said. Pull your vehicles up to the main house. We’ll . . .”

“We will have to meet outside,” Pamela said. “We need to remain clear of any electronic listening devices, even yours. We will have to insist that this entire conversation not be recorded, so please try and reel in your hacker for the time being.”

“Very well,” Eliza said. This was becoming more intriguing by the minute. Then she noticed that Pamela’s face briefly shifted from its official sternness to one that displayed longing. Eliza almost gave in to that look, but she knew things had to end. And Pamela knew it too. She wanted Eliza, but knew she had to give her up. Eliza turned and walked up drive.

The envoy pulled into the drive, with Thug bringing up the rear. There was a small grove of trees and a man-made pond that Dennis personally stocked with fish. There weren’t even any power lines nearby. She told Wyrm to keeping monitoring the data streams and not to try and eavesdrop, but she wanted everyone else at the meetings. Wyrm seemed to realize that she was serious, and that he shouldn’t goof around.

The envoy consisted of a single woman, apparently in her early thirties. Eliza knew this had to be a crafty woman, as it was difficult for anyone this young to have as prestigious a position without being good at what she did. She was actually beautiful in a severe sort of way. She had blonde hair that was pulled back in a severe bun and deep blue eyes, and her well-pressed dress-suit did little do hide her hourglass figure. The only part of the woman’s body that Eliza could see were her calves, but those seemed strong and well toned. Eliza was willing to bet that the rest of the woman was in as good of shape. Everyone else in the convoy was either a police officer or a security person.

“Hello,” the woman said in a crisp, clear voice. “My name is Veronica Adams, and I am an official envoy for the president of the United States, here under the authority of the president of the of World Council. We have come to employ the services of your company, Miss . . .”

“Just call me Eliza. I don’t think you could pronounce my last name. And we’re a security group,” Eliza said. “What would the Council and the U.S. Government actually need help protecting?”

“I am only authorized to tell you that if you agree to work for us. You would be paid twenty million world dollars for your services, plus expenses, to assist us in this venture.”

Eliza maintained her cool, but Dennis and Allyson’s jaws dropped to their chest. They could buy their own island with that! It was more money than any of them had heard of anyone making in one job before. None of them would ever have to work again. But Veronica had one more selling point, and it was this last that would get Eliza’s attention.

“And for what it’s worth to you, what we are asking you to do might someday help us find a way back to your dimension.”

Eliza was almost caught flatfooted by that. If there was something like that floating around, why hadn’t she heard about it? “Why us?” she asked cautiously.

Veronica Adams looked her straight in the eye. “Because you are the best at what you do, and you’re the only company of your kind with both humans and Terrans, which might provide an advantage. And because I realized that the Purity didn’t truly make a play for the Heaven’s Eye until after it had left your care, indicating that the Purity would rather take on a large team of armed U.S. security than you.”

Eliza looked her over, then looked at Dennis. “Go get Wyrm, and tell him to leave all his gizmos at the house.” She looked back at Veronica. “I’ll have to discuss it with my entire team before saying anything.”

“I understand.”

“So why are we meeting out here anyway? Let me guess . . . you won’t tell me . . .”

“Unless you take the job,” the woman finished, almost cracking a smile. Eliza bet she would have a pretty smile.

Dennis and Wyrm returned, and the group huddled apart from the envoy.

“I want to do this,” Eliza said. “I don’t give a shit about the money, though that would be nice. I wanted to be a part of finding a way home, and this may be the only chance I get.”

“I’m for it,” said Dennis. “This is big news, and I’d rather be in the know than left on the sideline.”

“I’m a little confused why they only sent one person,” Allyson said.

Her husband responded, “The fewer people they send, then the fewer people that need to know. The fewer people that know . . .”

“The less chance of the secret getting out,” Allyson finished. “I’m in. I want to help you out,” she said to Eliza.

“Twenty million? Yes, I’m in!” was Wyrm’s contribution.

Thug just nodded his head.

Eliza turned to Veronica. “Fine. We’re in.”

“Excellent,” the woman said, almost breathing a sigh of relief. “First, you should know the reason why I insisted we me out here. It seems the members of the Purity have employed some of the best hackers and info-stream riders in the world, and they had been spying on every move that authorities made. They’ve cracked every system on Earth it seems, so catching them is going to be tricky. While catching them is our problem, this also affects your job. We didn’t want them knowing what we have or where it is, so everything is being done by word of mouth. There is no official record of this mission on any computer anywhere.”

“So, how do we know we’ll get paid?” Eliza asked.

“I’m afraid you will just have to trust us on this. Believe me, we have no reason to deceive you, but these precautions must be taken.”

“So what exactly will we be guarding?”

Veronica took a deep breath. “You’ll be guarding another jewel. It is an opal we have called the Dead Man’s World that is the exact size and shape as the Heaven’s Eye was. One dark as night, the other bright as the sun. We hardly think this to be a coincidence. We have people going through our hard copies of all the data in the Arcanum. It will take some time, but we can’t risk accessing the database directly.”

“But you’re assuming that since one was used to close the crack . . .” Eliza started.

“. . . that the other might be used to open it again. It is only a hypothesis based on the principles of symmetry and equal reaction, but we don’t feel it to be a frivolous guess.”

“Nor do I,” Eliza said.

“You will be taken to a secure location where the Dead Man’s World is being kept. It is a completely self-contained facility. It will have it’s own recycled water source, electricity, security and a food supply, including blood, that can last for years for you and a U.S. Military Special Operations Team that will be completely at your command. Each member of that team was screened and their backgrounds thoroughly checked. And yes, you have to allow the team to stay. The United State government insists on keeping their hand in this. I will also be accompanying you. And I’m afraid we must leave immediately. You may make arrangements if you wish to have your estate cared for and let people know you will be out of touch, but all calls will be monitored to make sure no sensitive information is passed along. You may take any equipment, barring computers, that you deem necessary. I suggest you get started.”

Eliza looked at her team. Wyrm was obviously ticked off that he wouldn’t be able to take some of his gadgets with him, but the price was still right. They gathered up weapons, clothes and other essentials. Luckily, the team was generally ready to go at a moment’s notice.

As Eliza was throwing her clothes into a bag, she heard footsteps behind her. She smelled a familiar perfume. “Hello Pamela.”

“Hello,” came the officer’s response as Eliza turned to face her. She still looked beautiful to Eliza. “I just wanted to say good luck. I refuse to say goodbye though. I may not be able to have your body anymore, but I can’t give you up completely.” She lowered her head. “I told my husband about us.”

“Why?” Eliza said, somewhat startled. “Why did . . .”

“Because he didn’t deserved to be lied to. I didn’t tell him your name or anything, only that I had been having an affair with a woman.” Pamela laughed. “He wasn’t even surprised. Apparently, I wasn’t alone in having an affair. It felt good to get it out in the open, for both of us. He’s going to try and find a job that doesn’t have to travel as much, and I’m going to try and get off the beat and find a desk job that lets me stay at home more. We’re even going to go to a marriage counselor.” Pamela grabbed Eliza and held her. “I love him, but I’ll always love you too. He’ll never be able to give me some of what you did, but I guess you don’t always get to have it all.”

Eliza held her friend and former lover. She felt Pamela’s heart beating beneath her chest, and heard the woman’s lungs drawing air. “I’ll always love you too. But you belong with him, and I can’t be ‘the other woman’ forever.”

“And you shouldn’t have to be,” Pamela whispered. “There’s too much passion in you for you to be kept hidden. But can I still see you sometimes? Even if we’re just friends?”

Eliza smiled and kissed Pamela on the cheek. “I think I’d like that,” she said. “We’ll talk about it when I get back, okay?”

“Okay,” the officer said. The two of them grabbed Eliza’s belongings and carried them out to the transport.

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Twelve hours later . . .

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Eliza, her crew and Ms. Veronica Adams took so many turns and switched vehicles so many times that they were completely disoriented by the time they got to the docks. They were then taken by boat to Last Mile Island. The island was the home of the Last Mile Prison. Much like Alcatraz, the prison had been designed to be a fortress that held the most dangerous criminals of the twenty-first century, until operations costs caused the facility to close down. It was miles from shore and, as Veronica had promised, was completely self-contained. Someone had tried to turn it into a tourist attraction, but it was too remote. On the voyage, Veronica explained that the government had acquired the Dead Man’s World from some smugglers that had originally intended to try and sell it themselves after bypassing customs. But when they learned about the Heaven’s Eye and how it had been used, they had grown afraid that the Purity would come looking for them, and exchanged the jewel for asylum. Ms. Adams’s superiors knew they had to keep the existence of the new jewel as secret as possible until they discovered its true purpose or discredited the idea that it was anything but a big rock.