Fallout (Tales of the Other Universe Book 2) Read online

  “It does so very much, Iilil-ja,” said the Creator. “It bothers me a great deal. There is nothing that has happened in my universe that I should not be able to see.”

  “It makes me wonder what else might have been eluding you over the centuries,” said Adam.

  “Are you trying to get at something, Iilil-ja? You’re better off just being direct.”

  “I’m talking about the Oracle group.” Adam’s words were commanding and seemed to catch the Creator off guard. The Creator looked away for a moment before attempting an answer.

  “I’ll admit that I haven’t had as much luck in dealing with them as I would like,” he said. “Given the situation and their involvement not only here but on Earth as well, and my failure to read the full history of that swordsman, I can only assume that they are taking advantage of my inability to see in full the occurrences of that universe. Were that the case, it creates a new problem I’m sure you can fully appreciate the seriousness of.”

  Adam indeed did. “The swordsman who killed The Baggins was an agent of the Oracle group.”

  The Creator nodded. “What’s more, Souji Okita, the young man who you saved me from at the train station in Kyoto, was also present. It seems he’s turned his back on the group and was travelling with The Baggins. He fled after the incident, but I’m honestly not worried about him. Still, I realize that all of this is probably the last thing that you wanted to hear. You’ve got a lot on your plate with the political strife across Magid, among other domestic issues. I’m sure you know as well as I do that this won’t be the end of Oracle’s attacks.”

  “I figured as much,” Adam said with a heavy sigh.

  The Creator frowned. “You seem tired, Iilil-ja.”

  “I’m sure you can understand the stresses of trying to govern such a large population. Magid was once ruled by ten kings. Now it’s all on me. It can be a lot to deal with at times, and now I have Oracle to worry about. I can’t let the struggles of my private life get involved with my role as king.”

  “There isn’t much you can do about it, Iilil-ja. I won’t lie, things are only going to get more difficult. But I would never have asked you to take over the throne of Magid if I didn’t think you were capable of being a strong leader for the country.”

  “That was two years ago,” said Adam. “Things have changed. I’m not the same person that you appointed to the throne, remember?”

  “Are you saying you’re not better off for getting rid of the rage inside of you? Don’t be ridiculous, Iilil-ja. If you learned anything from the events of last winter, it should have been that you never needed that part of you to be a good leader.”

  “Sometimes I wonder,” Adam said. “Ever since December, Magid has been in decline. It seems like more and more problems keep coming up. There are days when it all seems too much to handle.”

  “I understand, Iilil-ja,” said the Creator. “But you need to stay positive. You may be the only King of Magid now, but you are far from alone.”

  Adam’s mind flashed back to the night before the climactic battle in Kyoto months earlier. Dee wrapped her arms around him as he knelt, reminding him just as the Creator had that he didn’t have to face his troubles alone. For a moment, Adam felt comforted and showed a rare smile. The Creator noticed and reciprocated.

  “You’re thinking of Ms. Gatti, aren’t you?”

  “What makes you say that?” Adam asked.

  “I know you better than you know yourself, Iilil-ja. It’s quite alright, I understand. You and Ms. Gatti have developed quite a connection since your first meeting, haven’t you? She’s a very sweet girl, so I knew even someone as gruff as you would get along with her given enough time. How has she been?”

  “You know her, always looking on the bright side and trying to bring out the best in everyone. She seems to be enjoying herself here.”

  The Creator smiled. “Well I’m glad to hear that. I was worried that she might have been affected by some of the things she saw in Kyoto and that they would have made her a bit more cynical.”

  “No, she seems just as happy as ever,” said Adam. “I’m sure that’s just what you intended, though, isn’t it?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean you left her here with me so that she couldn’t ask you to fulfill your end of the agreement you made with her.”

  “Oh now, don’t carry on about that again,” the Creator said, waving his hands. “You and I both know that it’s far better that Ms. Gatti not know the truth about her master’s death. If you disagreed with how I’ve been handling it, why not tell her yourself?”

  Adam had no answer. “Because it would break your heart to see how she would react,” the Creator went on. “Just as it would break mine. I could not bear to see Ms. Gatti so upset. She’s spent years of her life trying to find him so that they could be happy together again. But don’t you see, Iilil-ja? She’s happy now, here, without him. All she needed was a bit of distance and she realized there was more to life than trying to find that man.”

  “But that happiness is based on a lie,” said Adam. “Do you really think she’s forgotten about him? Dee may be happy here, but she’s making the best of her situation. Given the chance, she would keep trying to find him. That part of her life is just too important to her. You may be able to offer her a better life now, but you can’t change the past.”

  The Creator shot Adam an incredulous look. “Can’t change the past? Don’t be ridiculous, Iilil-ja. Of course I can! Besides, if Ms. Gatti is so fixated on him, then why has she stayed here now for nine months without even so much as asking about him? She’s moved on.”

  “No one can care about a person that much and just forget about them. Not after nine months, or four years for that matter. Dee may give off a positive attitude just about all the time, but I know she still thinks about him. She still misses him and wants him back.”

  “And she’s told you this?” asked the Creator.

  “In Kyoto,” Adam said. “She opened up to me and told me how important it was for her to find him. She hasn’t given up on him, and you’d better believe the next time she sees you she’s going to ask you where he is.”

  The Creator frowned and sank back into his chair. “I don’t doubt that myself. It’s something I’ve been thinking about, but I’ve realized it’s just an obstacle to get around, and I’m more than capable of finding a way to do so. I’ll need to if I intend to take her back with me.”

  Adam raised an eyebrow. “What are you talking about?”

  “Well I’m sure that you remember me saying I would need to leave Ms. Gatti in your care while I attended business in Aeris. Given that there is more work to be done in the mortal planes, I’ll need to be spending time here. That means I’ll be taking her back into my service, as she had agreed to do.”

  “If I recall, she agreed to give you a year’s service in exchange for the knowledge of her master’s whereabouts. It’s been two years since then.”

  “As I said, Iilil-ja, it’s just another obstacle I’ll need to get around. But I’m confident that Ms. Gatti will see that it’s in her best interests to return to my side.”

  Adam scowled and was silent, but the Creator picked up on his body language. “You don’t want her to go, Iilil-ja? I can understand that. What you need to realize is that Ms. Gatti works for me, not for you. Her duty is to serve me and your duty is to serve the people of Magid by making wise decisions. Now it seems to me you have a lot of decisions to make and problems to solve in order to get this country back on the path to prosperity. Do you really think you can do that with Ms. Gatti around to distract you?”

  “She’s not a distraction,” Adam said.

  “No? So then during the course of the summer months when the economy began to fail and the first signs of discord arose in the west, you weren’t distracted by her or her attempts to pull you out of the pleasant little rut you’ve gotten yourself into?”

  “I would hardly think that skipping a few moments o
f rest that she offered would have made things turn out any different than they are now,” said Adam. “There are just too many problems with the world, and it’s a lot for one person to deal with.”

  “You don’t have to tell me, Iilill-ja,” the Creator said. He stood up and the chair behind him vanished. “I’ll still be taking Ms. Gatti with me. I’m sorry if you don’t agree, but you should remember that there is an order to things that must be obeyed. She will continue to do her job, and so you must continue to do yours.”

  “And if she decides she doesn’t want to do her job? If she wants to go after her master again, or maybe even stay here? What will you do then?”

  “Then I’ll make her remember who she is speaking to,” the Creator said with a forced smile. “And I will make her understand her place in the universe is with me.”

  Adam stared at him with hidden anger. The Creator was aware but decided to say nothing, instead making his way to the door. “Oh, and don’t worry about the situation with The Baggins. I’ve already been to the location where they’re keeping the bodies and disposed of them.”

  “Hiding them isn’t going to solve the problem, or make people stop searching for the truth,” Adam said.

  “It’s my word against theirs, Iilil-ja. Who do you think the world will believe?”

  Without another word, the Creator slipped through the doors. Adam stared as they slid shut, trying to pull together everything that he had just heard. He had never expected that Dee would be staying forever, but he also didn’t expect that she would be gone so suddenly. He sat down at his desk and pulled his paperwork forward to continue working. He tried to read through the documents, but his mind was preoccupied by something more important to him.

  Outside of Adam’s office, the Creator was troubled. He knew the situation with his other half was not going well, but it was worse than he had first assumed. When Magid was freed from dictatorship three years prior, the Creator knew that things would not remain stable with the rebel government and that he would need to step in to find a suitable ruler. He didn’t have much time to find a replacement, but he believed he already knew a strong candidate in his “angry” side. Adam had been leading the Khazaki for almost forty years at that point, and even the Creator was surprised at how well respected their commander was. He seemed like the perfect choice to clean up the mess that was left in Magid. Now, it seemed, that choice was a poor one.

  After all, the Adam Evans who was King of Magid now was not the same Adam Evans who was king three years prior. In an effort to be a more caring and reasonable king, he had set forth with his plan, just as the Creator had, to remove the negative emotions that had once made up his entire being. Once he had done that, the king who remained was in fact kinder and more reasonable, but hardly the leader that he used to be. Although he had tried during their meeting to blame Dee indirectly for softening him, the Creator had noticed changes in Adam during the events of the previous winter. Adam was more defiant towards the Creator’s will and was turning further and further away from his guidance. They had been separate for millennia, but now the distinction was such that Adam’s defiance was causing a failure of leadership. As much as he tried to deny it, the Creator could see that he was losing control of Magid.

  That, the Creator decided, was unacceptable. After all, the Creator had handpicked Adam to take control. How would it look to the world if the government collapsed and Adam was proven to be a failure? Adam had already allowed for a blow to the Creator’s credibility by letting the incident surrounding the death of The Baggins to blow up as it did. The Western Liberty Movement was criticizing Adam for keeping The Baggins’ existence a secret, but in fact so had the Creator. It wouldn’t be long before some brave heretic spoke out against the Creator. That was a reality that the Creator could never allow to happen. He could no longer risk the chance that Adam would make another fatal mistake. He knew in his mind that Adam was no longer fit to rule Magid. Now the only question was how to remove his other half from power and fix his mess without becoming a target himself.

  “Sir?”

  The Creator heard the soft voice from down the hall. He turned and saw Dee staring in disbelief at the sight of him. Her look was that of shock, not happiness; the Creator was disappointed. Still he smiled and greeted her with his usual warmth.

  “Ms. Gatti, it’s so very good to see you again,” he said. He started walking towards her, but she was already almost at the door to Adam’s office. “You’re looking well.”

  “I am well,” Dee said. “It’s such a surprise to see you. I didn’t even know you were coming.”

  “I apologize for the short notice, but with the circumstances going on in the countryside I thought it would be best for me to make an appearance and let everyone know that things are alright.”

  “So there’s nothing to worry about?” asked Dee. “People are making a big deal out of this. Some are even saying that it was The Baggins who was killed. Is it true?”

  The Creator placed his hand on her shoulder. “Ms. Gatti, you are one of the few people in this world or any other that knows with certainty that The Baggins was not a myth. It would prove to be quite a problem for Iilil-ja if it were revealed otherwise. So please, should anyone ask, the rumors are false and there is nothing to worry about.”

  Dee’s face fell. “Then he was killed?”

  “Yes, he was,” the Creator confirmed. “But let’s keep that between us.”

  “What about New Baggins?”

  “Also dead, as they were two identities tied to a single body.”

  Dee sighed. “I can’t believe it. How could someone so powerful be murdered like that?”

  “I’m afraid there isn’t much to say about the details,” the Creator said, taking his hand away. “The killer died from his own injuries, so no motive may ever be understood. I assure you that the matter has been resolved, and that Iilil-ja will be able to take care of things on his own.”

  “I see,” Dee said. “Well I suppose that’s good then. Will you be staying long?”

  “No, I was really only here to deal with this incident. Now that things are on track to clear themselves up, we can be on our way.”

  Dee’s eyes widened. “What, now?”

  “Well not this very instant,” said the Creator. “I wanted to monitor things for a day just to make sure everything gets back on track, and you’ll need time to pack your things of course.”

  Dee’s look of shock returned, along with a general feeling of uneasiness that she didn’t bother to hide. “Oh,” she said, looking away.

  “Is there a problem, Ms. Gatti?”

  “Well, it’s just rather sudden,” she said.

  “You’ve been Iilil-ja’s guest here for nine months, so I would hardly say it’s sudden. Iilil-ja has had plenty of time to recover from the events of December and no longer needs someone to keep an eye on him and make sure he’s alright. The point remains that I need you back in my service and we have to let Iilil-ja get back to his duties of running the country.”

  “I understand all that, but still...” she started to say.

  “Still?”

  “Still, I wasn’t expecting to be going off with you again.” She had ended up blurting out the thought that had been running through her mind from the moment she spotted the Creator in the hall. As they spoke she had been very anxious about bringing up the subject, but now that the Creator was raising the point she needed to speak up. It was difficult, but Dee realized she couldn’t stay silent about it now that her chance had come at last. “I was expecting that you would tell me where my master is so that I could go and find him.”

  She immediately wanted to take the words back. Having heard them come out of her mouth, they sounded far too demanding. She knew she was making a demand, but it was a demand to the deity responsible for creating the Other Universe. From his perspective, any request might seem too demanding. She felt like shrinking back and running away, especially when the Creator gave her a puzzled look.
This soon changed into a smile.

  “Oh, Ms. Gatti, of course I haven’t forgotten about that,” he said. Her initial terror disappeared and was replaced with an abundance of hope. “It’s just that I’ve so enjoyed having you in my company, I didn’t think much about losing you. I’m sure Iilil-ja feels the same, since you’ll be leaving him here alone, too.”

  Dee’s happiness faded just as quickly as it had surged. The Creator never let his smile fade. “I mean, I know how important it is for you to find him. He means the world to you, much more than either Iilil-ja or I do.”

  “You shouldn’t put it like that,” Dee said, almost pleading. “You two are both very important to me. I wouldn’t even have the chance to find my master if not for you.”

  “A valid point. After all, without me you would still be wandering the wilderness of Carvon, retracing your steps over and over, wasting the best years of your life chasing after a man who has been one step ahead of you the whole time.”

  “What do you mean, one step ahead of me?”

  His eyes softened. “Ms. Gatti, I wouldn’t want to tell you anything that would upset you.”

  “Sir, what are you saying?” She leaned in, anxious for an answer.

  He sighed. “Ms. Gatti, your master left your village four years ago. Don’t you think that in all that time if he wanted to return he would have?”

  “My master wouldn’t just abandon the village,” Dee affirmed. “He was hunting a demon.”

  “I know that it’s not news you want to hear, but maybe the reason you haven’t been able to find him after all this time is because he doesn’t want to be found.”

  Dee looked as if she were on the verge of tears. The Creator frowned and looked away. “I’m sorry, Ms. Gatti. I shouldn’t have said anything. I’ll let you know where he is so you can bring him home. That’s what you want, isn’t it?”

  “Does he really not want to come back? Has he been avoiding me on purpose all this time?”

  The Creator exhaled. “I’m so sorry, Ms. Gatti.”