Page 36 of Awakening Storm

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Anxiety gnawed at Aidanas he took flight. He needed to find a way out, yet he hated leaving Rhianna behind. The skies were the same as when he’d arrived—gray and overcast. He began at his entrance point and glided around the perimeter. The universe seemed to have definite boundaries but no fixed compass. It was comprised of the city, a valley, and a mountain range where there was a partially hidden fortress. Where Theodora lived, he figured.

He landed near a tree and shifted to his human form. Hoping to discover some clue about the structure of this universe and its boundaries, he examined the area near where he’d entered. Unlike on his side, there was a distinct line where he couldn’t progress farther. At that point, his hand disappeared into a fog and he felt resistance. It was not like a solid wall; it was similar to the elasticity of a balloon. He wondered if it could be penetrated.

He transformed into his tiger, unfurled his sharp claws and thrust his weight onto the boundary. As he forcefully dug in, the boundary shot him backwards. Still, he didn’t give up. He charged forward time and again, hoping to create a weak area that he could pierce.

The boundary remained.

Frustrated and disheartened, after he’d checked everything he could think of, he tore across the gray ground expelling some of his anger, in his effort to return to Rhianna.

* * *

The men had all left, and Rhianna pushed herself away from the wall. While she should probably stay here so Aidan could find her, she had to find out if her great-grandfather was here.

Aidan would no doubt be awhile. She would just hurry.

Even though the people had said the wars were weekly, Rhianna had to forcefully tamp down her fear that another war session would start unexpectedly. It had been too traumatic, and she didn’t trust Theodora. What if the sorceress changed the rules?

Rhianna hustled through the streets, asking all the passersby if they knew Katsu Mori. Never in her wildest dreams would she have imagined this could be where her great-grandfather had gone, that he could be alive. Yes, he would be elderly, but who was to say Theodora didn’t bring back those who died of old age or natural causes back to life? She did it with all those killed in battle, after all.

Rhianna thought of her grandfather at home. He might be going through his Tai Chi exercises right now. She recalled her last visit, when she’d promised him she’d do her best to discover what happened to his father.

With a sigh, she set her jaw resolutely. She could fulfill one dream, even if it was her last one. She could try to find her great-grandfather. If he was taken to this alternate world all that time ago, she felt certain he would be here now.

She snagged the wrist of the next person she passed. “Sir, do you know someone named Katsu Mori?” she asked.

The man eyed her warily. “Yes, I have heard of him. But I’m not sure where he lives.”

Her eyes widened, and her heart began to race. He might really be there!

“You may want to try the library,” he added. “Some people hang out there. Someone there might know something.”

She looked to where he was pointing. “Thank you!” she called as she ran toward the library building. She shoved the door open and rushed inside. The shelves around her were less than half full, but she was pleased to find that the stranger had been right: there were more than twenty people sitting in a huddle of sorts.

Rhianna knelt down to join the group and noticed the marks on their necks. She swallowed. “How long have you been here?” she asked the blond man nearest her.

“Since 1952,” he replied.

A woman with red hair leaned forward. “1820. I was sailing from Alaska, traveling to Russia to see my mother,” she explained, her voice bitter. “I never made it. This is where I ended up.

“I’ve been here since 2002,” a twentysomething man chimed in.

Rhianna’s brow furrowed. She couldn’t help but notice that they had not only come to this place at different times but they were all different ages; however, none of them were really looked veryold. It was as if they had not aged. And if that one woman had been here since the nineteen hundreds . . . Rhianna shook her head. It wasn’t possible. But then a lot of things she’d thought were impossible were apparently real.

“What is happening in the world now?” the young man asked.

Rhianna licked her lips. She didn’t have much time, but she offered the guy two quick pieces of information he might relate to. “Donald Trump is president of the United States, and the Mars One is planning to establish a settlement on Mars in 2024.”

The young man smiled and nodded, his eyes looking glassy and sad.

“Have you heard of someone by the name of Katsu Mori?” she inquired then, taking a few steps away, preparing to move on if no one knew.

Several people nodded, but it was the young man who replied. “When you live in a community of around four hundred people, you know almost everyone. That’s what makes fighting so hard.”

“And Katsu?” She paused, tilting her head and smiling. “What of him?”

“He is one of the leaders. I will take you to him,” an older man said as he stood up.