_____________________________ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Otherworld <> Chapter 1 Open With The Winds Copyright 1992 Bryce Koike _____________________________ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Any comments, criticisms, opinions, etc, are welcome. I can be reached on Internet as: bkoike@sdcc13.ucsd.edu or mage@netlink.cts.com -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Welcome To Otherworld This is not my first attempt at fiction, but it is my first attempt at some sort of serialized work that will exceed the accepted size for a short story (eventually!). The Otherworld is an RPG world in the making and is the influence for this series. Comments, suggestions, etc, are welcome. More information on Otherworld is really not available at this time. Most of Otherworld lies jumbled in my brain and is better told as a story than as a source manual of any sort. Read on and enjoy. -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- I sat at the greasy table, shake in hand. The others were, as usual, late. I shifted uncomfortably in the booth and watched the burgers getting slapped onto toasted buns before quickly making their way to hungry mouths. Checking my watch, I realized that I'd been waiting for half an hour. Served me right for attempting to be so damn prompt. The door burst open and they came tumbling in, laughing. A delicate feeling of loneliness washed over me. Left out of whatever it was again. Jan was hanging on Chris again like some sort of personal appliance. Great window dressing, Chris. "Hey, sorry to keep you waiting," said Vince. I nodded as they crowded into the booth, laughing and talking. They had broken the near-religious silence that hung in the Carl's Jr. and somehow I was beginning to miss it. "Matt, hey Matt, see what Chris can do!" Vince chuckled as he elbowed me painfully in the ribs. Chris proceeded to stick two straws up his nose, take a large mouthful of water, and expelled the liquid through his nostrils. I smiled. Looking down I noticed that Vince had been kind enough to finish my shake off for me. I punched him and he excused himself to throw away the empty cup, not ashamed for a moment. Somehow I really couldn't work myself up to hate him. It was personal prejudice, perhaps. Jan perked up for a moment, if that was possible. "Hey!" she cried. "I got a great idea!" "That's a first!" joked Chris and ducked a playful punch. "Jerk. Look, why don't we go down to the beach tonight, get a nice bonfire going, and screw off? Hell, it'll beat going to see a movie or something equally stupid." Tracy liked the idea. "Sure!" she said, "Let's go!" As usual, Vince decided to ride with me. Tracy came along simply because she was bored of Chris' stupid jokes. Sometimes I wondered if they only used me for my car. Sometimes I really didn't care. "You've been pretty quiet lately, Matt, something wrong?" asked Vince. For once a genuinely serious look was on his face. "Nah. Well, nothing I could put a finger on. Know what I mean?" Vince nodded. "Yeah," he said as he leaned the chair back. "We all get in those moods. Is it me or do you get especially cold when Jan's around?" "Oh, do tell!" cried Tracy. "Tell us about all your most private fantasies!" "Please," I begged, half-heartedly. "It's not like I hate her." "We ALL know you like her," Tracy crooned as she leaned up from the back seat to stroke my hair. "Why don't you tell Dear Tracy all your innermost secrets." "Bitch," I joked. "Nah, it's just that she grates on me sometimes. Not tonight, really, but once in a while." "And like I don't?" Vince coughed a moment. "Damn. Think I'm coming down with something. Anyone got some vitamins?" "Sure, you want reds or blues?" inquired Tracy. We laughed. Chris and Jan had been kind enough to raid the local supermarket for some nice pallets and Chris, showing off his wonderful manly strength, was breaking them apart into more usable pieces. Luckily, I had been smart enough to raid my car for the lighter that always lurked in the glove box. Don't ask why, I didn't even know. Vince poked at me. "C'mon, mister boy scout, show us peons how it's done." "Ah, shut up." The fire was slow to build, but at least I got it started. Definitely not in the mood for more of Chris' needling. Mercilessly no one had thought to bring blankets and so we had to sit in the cold on the damp sand. As if I should complain. I thanked my lucky stars that I was blessed with a good metabolism. If I was overweight I'd all-too-perfectly fit the image of the fat nerd with glasses. Everyone kept telling me that I didn't, but I'm not blind. I noticed the storm in the distance when the first streak of lightning broke over the ocean. We all turned to look at it and felt our hopes drop. Spending another evening at Chris' pounding cokes and root beers somehow wasn't my idea of fun and excitement. "Guess we better put out the fire," I said and started throwing sand into the firepit. Now I guess I regret doing so because I missed the fireworks overhead. Vince ran into me as he stepped back in shock. "What the hell was that?" he cried. By the time I'd looked up, all hints of whatever they had seen was gone. "What?" I asked. "What'd you see?" "I dunno, man. Weird lights up there." The wind started up then, but strangely, it wasn't the salty- damp kind of wind that blew in from the sea. It was crisp frigid wind straight from the ocean. Vince grabbed at his hat as it threatened to take off down the beach. I shivered. The lightning continued in the distance, one or two bolts every minute. This was definitely not the kind of sight you see every day down in Southern California. Torn between getting to shelter and watching the lightning, I suggested that we get into the cars. No one argued with me. "Vince," I said. He was still looking up at the sky, pressing his face up to the window and fogging it with his heavy breath. "Hey, Vince!" "What? Oh, hey. I was just looking up there. That was some really weird shit going on up there." "You could say that again," said Tracy from the back seat. "Hey, Matt, turn on the heater, huh? Feels like a goddamn coffin in here." "Sure." The initial blast was cold enough to put us in moaning agony. I rolled down my window to talk to Chris. "CHRIS!" I screamed out into the wind. He rolled down his window to answer. "What, Matt?" "What say you that we get the hell out of here? There's a storm coming in and there's no point in sticking around. We could go to your place or something." "Uh, right. Sure thing." With another glance up to the stormy heavens Chris rolled up his window and started his car. We hooked onto the freeway to make better time. The streets had been strangely quiet on our way back. Vince and Tracy traded worried glances while I drove, brooding. Maybe I just read too many damn books, but this was definitely becoming something straight out of the Twilight Zone. The freeway was desolate and it was only eight -- definitely not normal for the 405. Not at all. The lights went out. As if they had never been there. The lights faded and the darkness ate the city up in its wake. Never did the world look so forsaken, so alone. I slammed on my brakes and barely missed Chris' bumper as the brakes locked and my car began to swerve. Thankfully, it stopped in time. "What the hell is this?" wondered Vince. He opened the car door and got out. "Some kind of power failure?" The wind had slowed and now was a calm thing, but still biting compared to the warmth of my car. I stared out over what used to be the city, now cloaked in a permanent sort of darkness. Silently we waited and nothing happened. The lights did not turn back on. Fifteen minutes passed. Darkness everywhere. "I don't think this is a power failure," Tracy remarked. No one had the courage to say a thing. We just stood dumb and confused. No one on the streets. No one on the freeways. Now no power, no lights. We looked at each other and quietly got back into the cars. Yeah, yeah, I read far too many books . . . Chris' house was as dark as the others along the street. Even with highbeams the world looked far too dim to drive its streets safely. I kept thinking about Rose who'd forgotten to turn on his lights and while hotrodding through the residential area of my town he didn't notice that the street had turned and slammed headfirst into a tree. I don't think that I need to say what the result of that collision was. We knocked on the door and were shocked by silence. "My parents are home," muttered Chris. "They gotta be home." He tried the door and it opened freely. Chris had his flashlight in hand and shined it around the house. "Mom? Dad? Hey, anyone home? Hey. HEY!" Chris darted upstairs and I heard a door slam open. "WHERE THE FUCK IS EVERYONE?" he screamed from upstairs. Jan ran up the stairs after her boyfriend. The rest of us traded worried glances. I wandered through the house, through the kitchen, the living room. There was only moonlight to guide my way, but it felt like something I had to do. Chris walked down the stairs very slowly. "What the fuck is this?" he said. "Where is everyone?" The radio. "Hey, Matt, where're you going?" called Vince. I dashed down the driveway to my car and got the radio going. Static. "No," I whispered. I punched all eight of the pre-set stations. Static, all of them. "No." I slammed my hands against the dash and started manually dialing. Static, static, static. I slumped against the steering wheel, trying to get a hold on myself. "This isn't happening." A hand touched my shoulder. "You okay?" asked Jan. She squeezed. I shook my head. "No radio," I told her. "The electricity's out. Should there be any?" "That's true." I got out of the car. "Think we should check the other houses?" "I- I don't know. You think it's ok?" I smiled, which felt out of place for a moment. "I'm not going to rob them, Tracy. Just check to see if there's a living person on the street." "Matt, I'm kinda scared, I don't want to." "Hey. Don't worry. I can do it alone." "Matt, no!" I took her hands, quite out of character, and squeezed. "Don't worry about me," I reassured her and turned to approach the nearest house. No, no one ever worried about me. Were I to die, who would notice? Expendable . . . the Polish mine detector . . . I nearly tripped over a plant hidden in shadows before I reached the door and knocked. I knocked again. Nothing. The next house was the same. I pounded on the door. "HEY!" I shouted. "ANYONE HOME?" No answer. So the next one. I knocked tentatively, ready to give up. No one home. No one home anywhere in the whole world. Bizarre images flitted through my mind. World War III fought with weapons that disintegrate people, yah. "Hello?" came a ghostly voice from the other side. I was so astonished that I nearly bolted. Instead I said, "Anyone home? Look, are you okay? Hello?" Silence. "What the hell? Hey, buddy, open the door, please! Something weird's going on here. C'mon, open the door! HEY, OPEN THE DOOR!" I pounded harder on the door. "Matt, what's going on?" asked Chris. His face looked haunted. Buddy, you're not the only one who's missing their parents. "There's someone in there!" I shouted. I tried and door and it opened! Pushing my way in I started scampering about the house. "Where are you, goddamit!" No one. This was just one of the many hints that there was something going on. Not just to the world, but to me. I didn't welcome the changes. I didn't want them. "Guys," I said quietly as I slumped into a couch. I stared at their dark faces for a long time. "We're alone here. We're the only ones. We're alone." Silence. "And so far as I can tell, this isn't Earth." The shocked looks on their faces made me want to laugh and puke at the same time. Did I want to face this truth? No, this was a nightmare! Wake me up, mother, PLEASE! My foolish pleading resulting in nothing, though. The world silently revolved around its tilted axis and the darkness stifled me. "Wait, wait, wait!" cried Jan. "What do you mean we're not on Earth?" I squeezed the flesh between my eyes, feeling a strange weariness coming over me. "Look," I replied, "there's not a living soul around. There's no electricity. There was that weird storm earlier. Are you going to tell me that everyone just decided on a whim to go on vacation over the last couple of hours?" "But, how? Why?" Jan grabbed Chris' arm, clutching him tight. "What're we going to do?" The look of feeble helplessness on my face probably didn't do anything to increase our morale. "I don't know. I think that we should first check things out and really make sure that everyone's gone." Tracy stirred. "Then what?" "Then we get some equipment together and get the hell out of here." Laughing, Vince said, "And go where? What if the whole world is like this? What'll we do then?" "Vince, if you want to stay here and rot, that's perfectly alright by me. But for your information I want to get out of this city. And I want out real soon now." Whoever's house it was, I left it and stalked down the street to my car. I figure I'd check out Long Beach and maybe around by the school. If nothing there, then I figured to do some raiding. "Wait. Matt, wait up!" cried Tracy. In a few long strides she had caught up to me. "Matt. C'mon. It's just the shock, you know? This doesn't happen every day." "No, it sure doesn't. Who else is coming?" "Everyone. Mind if I take the front seat? Vince isn't looking very conversational right now." In fact, he was looking pretty sick. I was tempted to ask him if he was alright, but the look on his face suggested that I had better leave him alone. Some friend I was. I rolled down the window. "Chris, I'm going to head down to Katella and check out Long Beach, okay? You head down to Seal Beach. We'll meet in front of the high school in an hour and a half, got that?" "Sure, Matt. What if we find someone?" The stumper question. I shrugged and laughed. "Knock 'em out and stick 'em in the back of your car." Rolled the window up and gunned the engine. "Hope you're all strapped in folks, 'cuz we're going people hunting." Thankfully, my music still worked. I threw a handful of tapes in Tracy's lap and told her to take her pick. She stuck something in the player that I didn't remember owning. It was a mix and started with Rush's Distant Early Warning. It gave us a good reason not to talk to each other. Katella was as deathly silent as the rest of the streets. The high school was but a dark shadow along the street. I hung a right and drove past the park. Nothing. No lights. I headed toward a friend's house, wandering into the labyrinth of the residential area. I stopped the car. "Where are we?" asked Vince. "Friend's house. I just want to check to see if he's home." A car was parked on the overgrown lawn. I knocked on the door. And again. No one home. "I can't believe this," Vince said. "I mean, this just can't be real." "Better believe it." I started the car and got us back onto the main drag. Then I saw it. I would have missed it if Tracy's hadn't grabbed my arm then in a death-grip. "MATT!" she screamed, her other arm pointed out at a moving black shape crossing the intersection ahead of us. I punched it, feeling my car grudgingly accelerate. Honking the horn I rolled down the window. "Hey, come back!" I screamed into the wind. "Come back!" As quickly as it had come, though, the car was gone. I brought my vehicle to a stop, then turned off the radio. Turned off the ignition. Rested my head against the steering wheel as a headache hit me. "Matt, you alright?" called Vince from the back seat. Lord it hurt. "Matt?" A gentle hand on my shoulder. I didn't want this. I wanted to go back home. "What's wrong with him?" Back home to my stupid parents and their stupid plans for my future. Back home where I could close my door and make reality go away. Back home where things like this didn't happen. "Go away," I cried and buried my face in my hands. "Just go away." I squeezed my head between my hands to get rid of the pain, but it lurked. I couldn't think straight, just a mumble of pain and confusion. "Make it stop!" I screamed. Someone's hands pulled me to a mercifully soft chest and held me there until the pain finally went away. We were a bit late arriving at the high school, but Chris and Jan didn't seem to be bothered much. They jumped with a start when they saw our headlights. "You find anything?" Chris asked as he approached the car. "Not sure," was my only answer. He frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?" "We're sure we saw something," answered Vince, "but we're not sure what. Looked like a car, but when we turned the corner it was gone." "Just like that person you heard in that house?" "Yeah, Chris, just like that. Except this time I wasn't the only one who saw it. Tracy and Vince saw it too, right?" They both nodded. I sighed. "Okay, I don't know about any of you, but I want to get out of here. We're going to need food and other equipment. Our best bet would probably be to rest tonight and start shopping tomorrow." "Who named you God?" spurted Jan suddenly. "What?" "I said who named you God? You sit here so damn superior to the rest of us and telling us what to do. Who gave you the right?" Chris flashed a startled glance at Jan. "Nobody named me God, Jan. If you don't want to go along with me, that's perfectly alright. I don't really have any plan, but I don't think we'll get anything done here. I'm going to my house. Anyone who's with me is welcome to stay." "What's going on with you, Jan?" Chris asked. "What's got you so pissed off all of a sudden?" "It- it's just that things like this don't happen, Chris!" cried Jan. "People don't just disappear like that! Things like this just don't happen! I don't understand what's going on . . ." We all stood around uncomfortably watching Jan shed her tears into Chris' shoulder, as he awkwardly tried to comfort her, telling her that it was alright, that everything would work out. I found myself insulted by that. Jan was no more a child than any of us and deserved to know the truth. Nothing was alright anymore. We were stranded in some strange world other than our own and possibly doomed to never return.