Out of the Woods (The Coalescence Book 1) Page 9

  Dumas and Clemance were directly behind them.

  That got the Count to make a face.

  “Boys, I don’t know if this is the place for…”

  Interestingly, Tor moved back his shoulders which were well above the ground, going up.

  “Why not? Both of them got in touch to scold me already. They weren’t alone either. The only person here that didn’t today is Willum. I suppose they’ve earned the right to see me lay on the floor, crying for forgiveness.”

  Once they were all inside, the man actually did it, with Dareg going down next to him, his hands out in front of him. Interestingly, the busty lady from earlier, Alyssa, started down as well, next to her husband.

  Willum shook his head.

  “I don’t recall you coming at me as part of a wall of armored death. Get up anyway, Uncle. Cousin. I was told something of what happened and why. It seems that I was lucky to not just die there. That… It’s hard to believe, that there have been copies of me like that. Especially evil ones. I’m very nice, most of the time.”

  Then he bowed, but only to the waist. It probably wasn’t enough, but doing more might be rubbing in that he was better than they were.

  “Sorry about trying to punch you, after that. It was… Shameful to lose control of myself like that.”

  A tear tried to come into his eye then, but Dare shook his head.

  “Combat rage. Used at about the right time even. You felt attacked, having been under real threat of it. Then moved to protect your sister. Then both of you held it in check, even given that. No one could ask for better. Not even if you’d been practicing to control it. Really, I’ve never seen it used that well.” He didn’t sound baffled by that however.

  Taman tilted her very attractive head then. Unlike Tiera, she had magic on her face. She grinned at him when his minded touched it to check that part of things, clearly picking up that it had happened.

  “That actually sounds like it was rather finer work than most of what we’ve seen that way before. Doris?”

  Clemance looked at her then, nodding.

  “I went to visit her earlier, to check that very thing. Also to set up English lessons for Willum and Diana. You’ll be in with Dumas and I. Anyway, she admitted it. Carlisle as well. From the sound of it, they should all be about equal, mentally and physically.” He didn’t add anything more.

  Interestingly, Carl, who’d moved silently behind Tiera, didn’t say anything either. It was different, since Will would have sworn that he was more intelligent than his brother by a good bit. After a moment he decided not to be that stuck up any longer. Clearly, things were a lot different than he would have imagined them to be.

  The small wizard, Taman, looked at the younger boy seriously.

  “Good work. Too much of the time people around here try to go for grand machinations, instead of just asking. If they’re similar, we should test the others as well. Carl, you don’t mind taking some magic lessons in your off hours at the bakery, do you? It’s a good skill to have, even if you have a profession already. Tor does both.”

  That was an interesting bit of information. The man owned a bakery however, so that was sensible enough. People needed to eat, after all. Carlisle, for the first time that Willum could remember, spoke in nearly perfect Standard.

  “Well. I can try it? I… Tend to be a bit shy, so…”

  He looked down, even if his words hadn’t been mumbled at all.

  Tor seemed pleased with the idea.

  “That’s not a bad plan. The world needs more bakers, not fewer. Magic isn’t horrible either. Oh, Tam? Tiera volunteered Will to remake the wall river here. I checked and it’s going to last about another four months, then have to be turned off or it will get everything all wet. You said you’re teaching him? So, that, wood working, English lessons, which means you’re a designated guide for the wedding in two months… Anything else for him to do?”

  People seemed to get it, laughing a bit, except for Neesa. She just nodded.

  “I too, need to learn English. Also, I was requested to ask after more transportation nodes by Erath. Would that be a thing that Willum Baker could be expected to produce in the next weeks?”

  Dareg snorted, but when he spoke his words were gentler than expected.

  “Not as he is. Tim, you should make it so he doesn’t have to sleep. Maybe not the time distortion I have? I’ve learned to get around that, but it took a few thousand years to get right. Do up Diana and Clemance that way as well?”

  Clem smiled then.

  “Oh? If we’re doing that, I could use more intelligence at the same time? I’m getting sick of everyone running circles around me, then patting me on the head for doing the obvious.” There was a sly look at Taman then, who actually just wrinkled her nose cutely.

  Timon glanced at them all, then nodded.

  “We can do a bit more than that. Let me… Yeah. Okay. Let’s do up you three first. Dumas…” The glance there was for Count Thomson, who was the kid’s father, after all. “There are a few things that might help keep him a bit safer, that I picked up in a different world. I’ll show you on Willum first?”

  They apparently weren’t playing on that score, since everyone else was pulled from the space, as he was pushed into a chair. His giant Uncle behind him.

  “I was thinking that we’d make you look a bit different? Otherwise someone will probably kill you one of these days, or at least give it a good try again. Faster, stronger, harder to hurt. The no sleep thing is an interesting one as well. Larger manhood, if Doris didn’t cover that part for you.” He smiled happily, as if anything he was saying made sense at all.

  “Not to be the country cousin here, but what?”

  That got a nod at least and a real explanation.

  “Right. That isn’t common knowledge, here. We can make changes to people. Like how I became taller than I would have been otherwise? Tor and Tiera did the same thing. Only I’ve learned some tricks, so can do a bit more now. Really, you can be nearly anything you want. So I was listing off some ideas for you. I know, how about… You don’t mind looking a bit funny, do you? We can change it if you hate it too much.”

  The words weren’t reassuring, but he nodded anyway.

  “I guess? If there are other people around killing in my name, wearing my face, then I should change that, if nothing else.”

  “See? Exactly what I would be doing. You’d be shocked at how many people aren’t willing to even attempt it. Eight out of ten won’t even go for being a bit taller or more muscular. Now, this will take about five or six hours. You can’t really move during that time. It will probably feel sort of funny to you. Ready?”

  “Um, sure?”

  That got two large hands placed on his shoulders from behind the chair.

  Something really did start to happen, though. Will could feel it tickle along his spine first, then soaking outward, through the rest of his body. It didn’t surge, but the moving field carried information.

  After a moment, that stopped.

  “You might not want to do that yet? You’re subtly changing the field I’m producing, watching it like that. Just remember this, so you can do it later. Taman will cover it with you. Now… Again.”

  This time he just sat, feeling things, but not trying to follow them too closely. It took about half of forever, at least according to his seat weary behind, but when Timon stood back, he was allowed to stand. Then Timon waved at him.

  “Use your healing amulet? That will take a while. We need to assure everyone else that what we did to you isn’t that strange. It is, of course, so pretend that you feel fine with it all?”

  “So far I feel all right?”

  That was going to change. Timon didn't even have to say that for him to pick up the basic idea. It wasn’t wrong either, since his entire body started to itch, inside, as the healing amulet worked. It didn’t stop after a few moments either. The feeling just grew over time, until he was nearly desperate to slap the amulet around his neck
off.

  Willum hung on, not doing that, as Timon nodded at him.

  “This is all coming along nicely at least. You won’t grow over night, but it will be quick for you. On the good side, you won’t feel the pain of it. Call it six weeks to reach six feet? I stopped it there, since the people from other realities don’t tend to be all that tall. You’ll want to be able to visit them without standing out too much. A lot of them have light complexions. Not that the purple eyes won’t do that a bit. Striking though.”

  “Purple?”

  “Yep. Don’t worry, that’s just the starting point. You can change the color with a bit of practice. I didn’t do the skin that way, though we should work that out later if we can. Anyway, let me get you a mirror…” He didn’t have to run and borrow one of those, having a magical amulet that had one as part of it. The thing hovered in the air, right in front of where Willum sat. Reflected back at him was someone he’d never seen before at all.

  His skin was lighter for one thing. Nearly as pale as Tor himself. The eyes really were purple, and his facial shape was different. Incredible looking, but not him. His beard was gone as well. Looking down he realized that it had all fallen off. Touching his face showed that it was completely smooth. That was a bit annoying, since it had taken him months to grow that in.

  Timon, without warning, punched him in the jaw.

  Hard, it seemed. He tipped up, out of the chair, his body going stiff and unmoving. Then he fell back into place, unharmed. It hadn’t even felt like a tap, to be honest. Then his Uncle did it again, several times.

  “You pretty much can’t be hurt now. If you are, your body will heal so fast that you may not even realize it happened. You’re stronger and faster as well. Enough that you’ll need to be careful around other people for a while. Also, you won’t need sleep. That will help as everyone loads hundreds of tasks on you. Can you get your hair to change color yet?”

  That it turned out, he could. The eyes as well. He matched them after a bit at a nice brown. It might be boring, but a new face was going to be hard enough to sell to his mother. Purple hair and eyes wouldn’t work at all.

  Timon smiled when he mentioned that, muttering it under his breath.

  “Not here. There are a half dozen worlds for you to visit. Once you learn English. We need someone to actually go and look at them, without being watched all the time. More than that, if you can get the tricks needed down. We have enemies, but haven’t been able to collect much information on them at all. You might be able to do that. Eventually. Not today though.”

  Then the man walked from the room, waving to him.

  “You’ll need food. Come on.”

  That was a wonderful idea. A moment before, Will hadn’t noticed anything, except for itching inside his bones. Now he had that, along with a healthy sense that his stomach had gone mad, broken free of its mooring and was attempting to eat all the organs it could easily reach.

  “I’m still doing something here. Um…”

  That got a nod, as his tummy grumbled loudly. Then Timon wisely ran away, before he could be eaten. When he came back, still at a run, he had a platter filled with food. Most of it was meat, in tender strips. Different kinds as well. There was a thin gravy all over it and no cutlery. That was because, clearly, he was expected not to be able to manage that much decorum.

  Which was close to being right. He did eat quickly, not speaking while he kept changing.

  Just as he finished the large tray of food, and it had been heaped up not seven minutes before, he started to feel far more normal. Full as well. Stuffed actually, since it had been a lot to eat. Tim started to go and get more, only to have him wave the man to a halt.

  “No, thank you. I’m not in pain, but I’m done for now. It’s a bit strange feeling. Certainly not hungry.”

  “Good. I need to know that kind of thing. I’d wondered before this if feeding people protein would help. That seems to be what they need, first thing. Now, you feel all right? Can you stand?”

  He hadn’t yet, and when he did, he flew several feet up into the air. Will had only been trying to stand, but that had worked pretty well. After that he was a bit more careful. It was done a bit better, once he had feedback. Timon moved to the door, waving.

  “Almost everyone has left, since we’re incredibly boring. I told your sister that I’d come and get her in the morning, if you lived. Your parents didn’t seem to think that was funny. Carl, now he got it.”

  That part earned a solid nod.

  “Well, you know how brothers can be. Eh. I sound different. Not bad, just…” His voice was deeper by about an octave. It resonated more as well, somehow.

  “I tried for a few extra things while I worked. Now, you need to get off to Soam. Taman has to sleep, but her pod is near the transport network there. They have a space port, though it isn’t used a lot yet. You’re first task is to go there, find Taman and then do what she tells you to. As of now you’re officially conscripted into the war, by the way. By all the Ancients. Unanimously. As the first of our off world spies. I hope that sounds fun? It’s needed, but you kind of seem to be a natural at it.”

  Willum didn't think it really sounded that great. After all, he was a decent wood worker, and a credible baker. Not much else really. How he was supposed to do anything like spying Will couldn’t figure out at all. Plus, he really wasn’t certain that there were other worlds. Yes, off in space, like where Neesa came from, but other earths were harder to imagine.

  Still, one of them was the Ancient of an entire land and the other one an apprentice wood worker. Even if Will wanted to be a bit closer to home with his assessment, one of them was the Uncle and the other the nephew. There was almost no way for him to win that debate. So he just didn't allow it to happen.

  “I can try? I don’t know if I’ll be any good at it.”

  Timon walked out of the room, clearly expecting him to follow along with him. There was speaking anyway, as they invaded Thomson Residence. Coming from Tim.

  “I don’t know if you can either. Maybe no one could do it. What I do know is that the enemy thought highly enough of you from other realities to send you at us alone. Twice. If they can do it, well, then you can. From all indications you’re more intelligent than either of them. Not that we got to give them tests or anything. So, I’m taking a chance with you.”

  He stopped, started to say something, then didn’t.

  Thinking back on things, it was clear that Timon wasn’t the one sending him to Taman for training. No, it was Aunt Patricia that had mentioned it. Why she’d decided on that, instead of her husband, he didn't know. Except that, from what he’d heard, people respected Taman. As a builder. Timon too, however.

  He shook his head a few times. It didn't really make sense.

  “Aunt Trice set this up. So, she… Does the spies? For you Ancients? The immortals, I mean.”

  There was a nod then, and a glance.

  “Us immortals. You’re in the club now on that part. That’s right. Okay, I’m not telling you more than that. If you want to know, figure it out. The idea is that you’re going to get special instruction from my sister. Your Aunt. I… Don’t know what she has in mind. Try to survive it? We really can use the help.”

  Willum understood that he was supposed to be intimidated by the idea. Interestingly enough, he didn’t actually feel that way at all. He just felt kind of normal. Like it was just another day, in Pine Creek. Even as he was supposed to leave the house there, go to another land and then alter his entire life. It didn’t really impact him at all.

  Tim slapped him on the back at the door, then called out to him.

  “Good luck. I’m pulling for you!” His voice had false cheer in it. The kind of thing that was evident to all, but wasn’t that familiar to a boy from Pine Creek. There, people weren’t always happy with everything, but when they tried to be, it was more or less real.

  For some reason that got him to smile in response. Will liked to think that he at least managed
to be a bit more genuine in what he was doing. Then he walked out the gate, moving to the left. Where the transport system hut was. After that, well, then he’d need to be a lot more clever than he ever had been before.

  Chapter four

  Standing outside of the black and white pod, which had moving stripes on the sides, resting on a giant, very open, focus stone circle, Willum shook his head. There was a real enough problem with coming to find Aunt Taman in the dark like he was doing. Being able to see wasn’t the issue, even. The whole thing was ringed in lines of brilliantly shining light, making the world more than bright enough to navigate. The little structure was made of magic even, making it simple to locate. He could feel it calling to him, even from a thousand feet away.

  That wasn’t the issue he was having at the moment.

  No, it was that the whole world was still dark around him and would be, for hours. Even if he woke the girl looking lady up at first light, which no one sane would do, he had hours to wait. He also had orders. Which, now that he was in the warm, muggy world of Soam, so far away from the forest of his home, Will had to question. Timon Baker kind of had a right to order him around, but considering it in the first place was kind of odd.

  After all, the idea that he, some boy from the deep woods even made sense to alter at all was kind of strange. It had taken hours of work to change him, after all. Tim Baker, one of the most powerful and important wizards had done that, seemingly for little to no reason. It kind of made sense, of course. Making his face look different was useful, since apparently his own family members were willing to kill him based on how he’d appeared seven hours before. There could well be others that might do the same, he knew. So, it was helpful.

  Plus, even if he didn’t look at all like himself now, it didn’t take a genius to understand that he was much better looking. Exotic, with his pale skin color. Everything was in balance as well. That was before he did anything with his magical hair or eyes. So that part, while it would make it harder for him to live at home in Pine Creek, because no one would understand that he was himself, would also make parts of his life easier. People preferred good looking individuals, after all.