Harbinger (The Bleeding Worlds) (21 page)

“Adrastia.” Pridament called. She turned back to him and smiled. “Who are you?” He asked. She responded with a smile and shook her head ‘No.’

She knelt in front of Gwynn and wrapped her arms around his neck. One hand crept up and caressed the top of his head.

“You’ll be okay Gwynn.” Pridament had the impression she whispered, yet he still heard her. “Someone’s here to help. Someone you’ve been longing for. You need to look now Gwynn. You need to see who has come.”

Over her shoulder, she said to Pridament, “Now.”

For the second time in as many days, Pridament willed himself to return to his true form. Years ago, he had adopted this face and become Pridament. Living became easier as someone else—a better way to run from his old life. Now, he hoped his shame might serve some good.

His cheekbones rose and his chin narrowed. The world shifted in appearance as his eyes slid into a new position. Even his scalp tingled as the color of his hair changed. The first time had been painful and frightening. But that day lay numerous lifetimes ago. Now it was nothing—just another thing his body could do like breathing or clenching his fist.

The transformation complete, he looked to Gwynn and tried to hold the boy’s eyes. It took a moment. Adrastia held Gwynn, keeping him from looking anywhere else. The world stopped. Had Pridament been right in trusting her? When Gwynn realized who stood in front of him, would it heighten his desire to destroy?

Gwynn’s eyes widened. The moment where memory and reality collided evident in his face.

“It’s all right Gwynn.” Pridament said in a different voice. His true voice. “You can relax now son, just let it go.”

Tears started to stream down Gwynn’s face. “Dad?”

The boy collapsed.

A
veil of haze obscured the world. Pain, stabbing pain, crashed through Gwynn’s head.
Am I dying?

Somewhere in the distance, a voice called him.

The blurs of color began to coalesce into shapes. The sounds were less distant.

“Gwynn, wake up.”

Pridament’s face came into focus.
His
face, the one Gwynn recognized as Pridament. But another existed. A face that had Gwynn both frightened and warmed.

“Have I been dreaming?” Gwynn asked.

“What part?” Pridament kept his tone soft, as if he feared pushing Gwynn’s boundaries.

“We were in the hospital. I… I saw my dad and…”

The memory of Sophia hit his gut like a fist. He fell over the edge of the bed he lay in and wretched. Convulsions wracked his body. He emptied himself until nothing further would come. Even then, he still spasmed for some time.

“God, that’s nasty.” Another voice. Female. For a moment, he dared to believe the impossible.

No. Dreams weren’t coming true. He hoped his disappointment wouldn’t hurt Fuyuko’s feelings.

“I thought you abandoned us?”

She wouldn’t meet his eyes—out of shame or revulsion?

“She heard about the commotion at the hospital,” Pridament said, “and decided to check it out. Good thing for us too. I didn’t have the strength to fold us out. She had to do it.”

Gwynn mumbled his thanks. He rolled onto his back and recognized the ceiling. “Are we in my bedroom?”

“Yes.” Pridament said. “Fuyuko folded us to the backyard.”

“So it all happened.” He turned on his side and his knees folded up under his chin. “Sophia is really…”

Neither of them answered, but the truth of it lay in their expressions.

“And you?” He asked Pridament. “Did I imagine you as well?”

Pridament turned to Fuyuko. “Do you think you could give us a few minutes?”

She hesitated. Gwynn had no idea what might be going through her mind. But whatever she saw in Pridament’s eyes convinced her.

“I’ll be out in the hall if
either
of you need me.” Her eyes made it clear she meant it mostly for Gwynn. “If he’s able, we should do something about those tears. And soon.”

When she left the room, Pridament turned to Gwynn. “Tell me what you remember about the day your parents died.”

Gwynn tried to read Pridament’s face. His eyes burned with the intensity of knowing some earth–altering secret. But like all those types of secrets, it weighed on him.

“We were moving. My mom and dad had finished packing the car. The movers had already left. I said I wanted to take one last look at my bedroom.”

“What did you do once you were in your room?”

“I locked my door. I tried hard to come up with a plan how I could stop them. I didn’t want to leave. I had friends, a school I liked and felt I fit into. That house was my whole life.”

“So what did you decide?” Pridament’s anticipation appeared to grow.

“I went to my bedroom window. I opened it. I thought about running away. There was an old forest behind our house. I figured if I ran fast enough, I’d make it to the trees before my dad got into my room.”

“But you didn’t run away, did you?”

“No.” Gwynn felt miserable. “When my dad came to the door, I hesitated. I mean, I really just sat there, torn what to do. But, I was afraid. I’d never been in the woods alone. I knew how angry my dad would be. I opened the door and I went with them.” Gwynn drew a long, ragged breath, “They died. I lived. But that’s not what happened, is it? I mean, I saw it, didn’t I? You… You’re somehow my dad, right? Or was that a trick?”

Pridament sat back, his gaze falling to some distant point on the wall. “Let me tell you how I remember that day. Gwynn said he wanted to go see his room one last time. I knew how upset the move made him, so I said it was fine. I waited a while, as it turns out, longer than I should have. I went to his room and knocked on the door. He didn’t answer. I knocked again, called out to him to open the door. But there was nothing. I kicked the door open. He wasn’t in the room. Instead, his window was open. I figured he’d run to the forest. It was the only place he could’ve gone without someone seeing him. I ran out, calling his name. His mom came with me. We searched for a while, and then called for help.” A sob caught in Pridament’s throat. “We never did find him.”

“So what are you saying? That you’re not my dad?”

“Remember what I said about the world splitting? For whatever reason, the world split in that moment you sat in your room. In one world, you went with your parents and their car crashed. In the other, you ran away and disappeared. I guess what I’m saying is,” his shoulders sank, “I believe that up to the point you were eight, I
was
your father. But for me, my son disappeared. I’ve been searching for him ever since.”

“My parents died.” Gwynn sat up straight, his fists gripping the sheets. “I’ve blamed myself. From what you’re saying, it was my fault. If I’d run away, you both would’ve survived.”

Pridament grabbed Gwynn by the shoulders. “Don’t you dare say that. You don’t think I would gladly trade my life to know my son was safe and growing into a fine man? Yeah, your mom and I survived, our marriage didn’t. On the second day, I found the tear in the Veil. I couldn’t see it, but I felt it. It was huge, stronger than any I’d ever encountered. I begged Suture for help. They sent a Script who confirmed that there was a tear, and from what they determined, Gwynn had fallen through it. My son was lost out there in some other world. I pleaded with them to help me search, but they didn’t care. Their mission, as they told me, was to protect their world and only their world. When they refused to help, I turned to an organization called Ark. They were a group of Anunnakis who were crossing the Veil into other worlds. They had been contracted by some wealthy men and women to search for a world that they could escape to, should their current world become endangered.”

“Ark? Let me guess, they became the Fallen.”

“Yes. I had no idea. I helped them survey other worlds. I was ideal for the task because I could change my appearance. It meant I never had to worry about meeting myself or someone recognizing me in another world. All the time they led me to believe that they were searching for my son while they carried out their mission. Soon though, it went bad. I found out what they were doing. I fled through the Veil and I’ve been running ever since.”

“Until you found me.”

“At first, I thought maybe you were my son. Then I found out about your past, saw you were living with Jaimie. I knew then what had happened. I mean, you have the same scar on your abdomen—”

“From when I got caught on the barbed wire at the Wilson’s farm. Johnny just had to see the abandoned house in the middle of the field.”

“Right. And you wear this.” Pridament pulled a chain from out of his shirt. On the end hung the same St. Christopher’s medal that had belonged to Gwynn’s father.

“I don’t know what to do now.” Gwynn said. “I mean, you’re my dad, but you’re not. Where do we go from here?”

“I never meant to confuse things. I didn’t know what else to do. You had lost all control. You were…changing. I had to shock you out of it. For now, I think I’ll stay Pridament, your friend. Is that all right?”

Gwynn didn’t know. How could he just forget this? Still, he had mourned his father for almost ten years. What type of son would he be if he substituted this other man? What Pridament said made sense. Gwynn had lost his father, just like Pridament had lost his son. And if they delayed any longer, this whole world would be lost. He quelled the churning in his stomach and steadied his voice.

“Yes. Stick with what we know. For now at least.” Gwynn said.

Pridament nodded. He turned his head toward the door. “You can come in now Fuyuko.” He called.

A moment passed and then the girl returned to the room. “Are you finished?”

Had she been listening? Suspicion was evident in Pridament’s expression. Would he press her on it? Pridament said nothing. Even if she had listened, would it matter?

“Can you stand up?” Fuyuko asked Gwynn.

Gwynn swung his feet over the side of his bed. He still wore the clothes that had been beaten and dirtied in the fight at the hospital. He took care to avoid the puddle of sick he had left on the floor. He needed to clean that, or Jaimie would kick his ass. He put some hesitant weight down, then a bit more, and then went for broke and stood erect. It never ceased to amaze him the damage he could sustain and yet some energy from the Veil repaired it all. Still, his back itched and burned for some reason.

“Sure,” Gwynn said. “I can stand. Though walking might still be a problem.”

“I’m going to get something to clean that floor. Jaimie’ll kick your ass if she sees that.” Pridament said. “You might want to change those clothes of yours too.”

“I’ll be downstairs.” Fuyuko said. They both left Gwynn alone in his room. He looked at the bare walls. Why had he never seen the coldness of it? And Sophia… Just when it seemed things were going to happen between them. Did he still want to save this world when it felt as cold and barren as his room?

But Sophia had known. When she kissed him. When she stood up, she knew she would die. She had orchestrated things for him to arrive at this moment. She hadn’t sacrificed that much just so he could give up.

He squared his shoulders, took a deep breath, and searched his closet for clothes suitable to save the world in.

§

Fuyuko waited for
them in the kitchen. The gloom outside the window seemed too bright to be nighttime.

“Exactly how long was I out?” Gwynn asked.

“About thirteen hours or so.” Pridament replied. “Fuyuko and I took shifts. She stayed with you for a few hours while I slept, then I finished out the night.”

“So what’s our next move?” She asked.

Pridament pulled out a chair and sat. “We resume the original plan. Find the last two tears that are feeding the vortex and shut them down.” He turned his eyes on Gwynn. “Are you up for that?”

Gwynn pushed hard past the lump in his throat. “Because of them, Sophia’s dead. Damn right I’m up for it.”

“Then we’re going to need some transportation. My car’s still at the hospital, and I don’t think we should be anywhere near there right now.”

“I’ve got a car.” Fuyuko said.

“You do? I always see you walking.”

She blushed. “They insisted I take it. But, um, I’m not a very good driver.”

“No worries.” Pridament rose from the chair. “I’ll take the wheel. Gwynn, you’re the navigator. Is the car at your place?”

Fuyuko nodded.

Gwynn turned from one to the other. “You two are suddenly getting along?”

“Don’t worry about it. Let’s just say we learned we could work together.” Pridament said.

“C’mon,” Fuyuko seemed almost excited. “I can fold us right into my living room.”

Gwynn held up his hands pleadingly. “Can’t we just walk? I mean, please?”

Fuyuko and Pridament were not pleased with walking, but they didn’t press Gwynn too hard.

Fuyuko sighed, “At least it’s not that far a walk.”

Fifteen minutes late, the three arrived at Fuyuko’s house, loaded into the car, and took to the road.

Gwynn leaned forward so he could see the vortex out the front window.

“Head south on Dixie. When we get closer I’ll let you know.”

“Will he really be able to guide us there?” Fuyuko asked Pridament.

“Ever chase spotlights? Same thing.”

It was more difficult than Pridament had made it out. First off, they were all exhausted. It took a few drives through the industrial complex to find the right building.

“This the one?” Pridament asked.

“Uh huh.”

“Well then, I guess it’s the three of us to save the world.”

“Wait.” Gwynn said. He turned to face Fuyuko in the back seat. “What about Mr. Baker? Were you ever able to get a hold of him?”

Pridament and Fuyuko exchanged a look.

“What is it?”

Pridament rested his hand on Gwynn’s shoulder. “The man you saw at the hospital, Sophia’s father? His name was Justinian. He was an Anunnaki with a unique ability. He could mimic any Anunnaki’s power. The face changing bit he stole from me.”

“Is that why he called you cousin? You’re related?”

“No, not by blood. In any case, Fuyuko and I’ve talked. It turns out Justinian was also your teacher, Mr. Baker.”