Between Two Worlds

I open my eyes, yawn, and stretch. I must have fallen asleep. Do I just wait here for someone to come get me or what? I see an analog clock hanging on the wall indicating that it’s 9 o’clock. Whether that means morning or night, I don’t know. Somewhere around 10, I decide not to wait any longer. Hopefully, Altair doesn’t get mad at me. I twist the doorknob and open the door. I step out into a long grey hallway. Metal posts and wires are visible here and there, some dangle from the ceiling and some bulge from the walls.

What happened here? I swear this place didn’t look like this when I came through, earlier with Altair. The place is eerily quiet, not another soul in sight. I just keep following the hall, doing my best to remember where to turn. Finally, I am to the door that, to the best of my remembrance, leads out of here. I look around but don’t see any doorknobs. Great. Now what? I remember seeing keypads in the Genetix Lab and look for one of those. Nope. There isn’t one of those, either. I bang my fists on the door in frustration, hear a whooshing sound, and the door opens a crack. I stick my fingers in the crack and pull the door open. I blink my eyes a few times, trying to adjust to the brighter lighting.

For a moment, I stand there confused. I seem to be on a strange planet. It’s definitely not Earth; the sky is a beautiful shade of blue, the grass is a deep shade of green, and colorful flowers sprout everywhere. I start walking around, with no particular destination in mind, just trying to take everything in. I look behind me a moment and realize that I have left one of five buildings, surrounding those buildings and the nearby land is a rock wall that rises way above my head. With a wall like that, they are either trying to keep something in or they are trying to keep something out.

Everywhere I look, I see people. People entering and leaving buildings, people working the ground, people on top of the wall. Everywhere, people.

Huh. This must be the home of Altair. And then I see something that I never expected to see. “Wolfe?” No way. I have to imagining things. “Wolfe?!” I shout it a little louder this time. The man in question turns around.

“Rain! I have been looking everywhere for you! Where have you been? Have you been sleeping this entire time?” Wolfe asks walking up to me.

I wrap him up in a hug and can feel tears starting to form in my eyes. “I thought I would never see you, again. Are you okay? What did they do to you?”

Wolfe disengages himself from my embrace and backs up a few steps. “What are you talking about? What did who, do to me?” he asks, confused.

“The Ghemin! Last time I saw you, you were in one of their cells. I banged on the glass, but you acted like you didn’t hear me. And then they took me to some place where I met a guy named Altair and...”

“The who?” he interrupts. “Whose cells?”

“The Ghemin. The aliens that control this planet.”

“Are you okay, Rain? I’m worried about you. I know that was some fall you had, yesterday, but Gaman? What even is that? Maybe you need to go back and lie down. Maybe you have a concussion? Maybe you need to see the medic?”

I can see the concern in his face, so I know he isn’t faking it. He’s genuinely confused. He has no idea what I’m talking about. Did they mess with his head? Is that why he doesn’t remember anything? “What day is it?”

“Rain, do I need to...”

“Just humor me a moment, please.” I interrupt.

“Today is the fifteenth day of summer, your twenty-first birthday.”

“And what of the lotto?”

“The what?”

“The Genetix Lab?”

“Huh?”

I’m about to ask another question when, out of nowhere, a little girl flies up to me and wraps her arms around my legs. She doesn’t appear to be very old, maybe four at the most.

“Are ya still teaching me to swim, today?” she asks, looking up at me with round golden-brown eyes.

“Um. I don’t know.” I fumble. Obviously, this girl knows me, but try as I might, I can’t seem to recall her. Her face does look familiar, that messy tuft of brown hair. The look in her eyes. Who does she remind me of?

“Aunty Rain isn’t feeling well, today. Maybe, tomorrow.” Wolfe says, ruffling the little girl’s head.

“Please, Rain? Please?” Her eyes seem even larger as she pleas with me.

“Lou!” Wolfe says in a stern voice.

“Sorry daddy.” She says dropping her gaze.

Daddy? Wolfe has a child? A daughter? I study her face, that’s who I recognized, earlier. She looks just like Wolfe. Same round face, same eyes, same tuft of hair that sticks out and refuses to be tamed. Wait a minute, I’ve been presented with the perfect opportunity. I can question the little girl about what’s going on, and she won’t think I’m completely crazy. Especially if I turn it into some kind of game. “I’m feeling fine, I’ll take her.”

“Yay!” Lou says jumping up and down.

“Rain.” Wolf says. “I think you need some rest.”

“No, Wolfe, I’m fine. Honest. The fall yesterday confused me a bit, but I know the difference between dreams and reality. I won’t let anything happen to her; I promise.”

Wolfe is silent for a moment, his eyes searching mine, looking for any signs of weakness. After a while, he sighs, “Fine, but be careful. Stay close to town. And at the first sign of trouble, come straight back. Understood?”

“Yes, daddy.” Lou says, doing her best to contain her jumping but failing miserably.

“Rain?” Wolfe asks.

“Yes. Yes. I already told you she would be fine with me.” I say, trying not to roll my eyes. I take Lou by the hand and let her lead me to the water.

“I mean it! First sign of trouble!” Wolfe shouts to our backs.

With my back to him, I actually do roll my eyes this time. I love my brother, but even here, in this dream world, he is ridiculously overprotective.