Chapter 60 – Caught Between

  Nona started to get the hang of things after the first hundred rounds or so, at which point Cole started her on a handgun, making more corrections to her grip and form, and had her loading her own magazines. As the sun started to drop in the sky, Besson showed up with burgers so Cole got the grill going. The retired general had left him with a kettle and a bag of charcoal, and the grill was nice and hot by the time the crickets woke up.

  Nona sat separate from everyone else, feet drawn up on her chair like a child, eyes following their interactions but not joining herself. Howie and Roxy were both leaned in, watching a dumb video on a cell phone and laughing their asses off. Cole leaned over to Nona.

  “How do you feel about your marksmanship?”

  Nona turned her nose up. “I’m not very good,” she said. She paused. “About as good with a gun as you are with a spear,” she added.

  Cole raised an eyebrow. “A spear isn’t exactly hard to use. You just stick someone with it.”

  “And a gun isn’t hard to use, you just point it at something and pull the trigger.”

  Cole shrugged, expecting Nona to back off the subject. But she persisted.

  “There’s nuance, there, even if not immediately obvious. There’s more to a spear than stabbing. More to an axe than swinging it. That’s why the knight at the mire fort got the better of you.”

  Cole looked between Nona and the others, who had realized the conversation was more interesting than their video. “He was probably higher level, too. But I suppose I’ll take your word for it. I’ve got an hour block with the weapons-master later this week so I’m sure he can show me a thing or two.”

  Nona pushed out of her seat and stalked off toward the front of the house. Besson watched her go. “What’d you say to her?” he asked.

  Cole shrugged.

  A few minutes later, she came back around with the duffel bag she’d carried in the truck and dropped it to the ground. Opening it, there was an array of what looked like practice weapons. Nona pulled out two small shafts and then threaded them together like a pool cue. She tossed it to Cole, who caught it. He looked at the end, which was wrapped in rags and tied off with twine. Nona pulled out a wooden sword and gave it a practice swing.

  “Oh, now this I gotta see,” said Roxy.

  Nona took a guard stance and looked at Cole. “Attack me.”

  Cole set his feet, holding the spear out ahead of him. Some people might pussy-foot around, but he darted in and drove the blunted tip of his spear right at the center of her midsection—only, she flicked her sword and the tip diverted around her. He tried to pull it back, but she’d already stepped inside his reach and he felt the tip of her practice sword press against the underside of his jaw.

  Howie whistled. “Nona got hands after all,” he said.

  Nona stepped back. This time, when Cole tried, he feinted low first, then drove straight for Nona’s face. At least, that was his plan. But as soon as he feinted, Nona stepped forward and the wooden sword drove the point of his spear into the ground, where she stomped on it while striking his wrist with the sword, yanking the back half out of his grip.

  Cole shook his fingers out.

  “DOR’s weapon master plays sword games in his club. Games with rules. Monsters don’t follow rules. If you’re going to train me to shoot… well, I don’t like owing anyone anything,” said Nona. She planted her sword and picked up the spear and put her hands wide apart on its haft. Rather than just drive straight forward, she moved up, slashing with the tip in a tight pattern of slashes. “It’s not just for stabbing. It’s for control, denial. It’s longer than a sword, it’s a lever, and whoever has more leverage has the initiative.”

  “Should I be taking notes?” asked Roxy.

  “I feel like I should,” said Cole.

  Nona handed the spear back and set his grip on it, then picked up her sword. “Thrust slowly.”

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  This time, she put the tip of her sword against it and pushed, much harder than before, but Cole was able to counter the force with his rear hand and use the strength to shove Nona off. She raised her hand as if to guard, and Cole stepped in and swiped the tip from side to side, forcing her sword out of position. She lowered her sword and came closer, adjusting the angle and spacing of his feet.

  “When you strike,” she said, tapping her sword gently on his knees and his hips, “The power comes from here and here, not here,” she said, tapping his shoulders.

  “Just like in boxing,” Cole said. Same principle, but an entirely different set of muscle memory that he lacked. He nodded. “Thanks, Nona.”

  Besson interrupted them. “Burgers are ready,” he said, tearing open a packet of buns. Nutmeg sat on the ground beside him, stub of her tail kicking up a small cloud of dirt as she looked up at the grill.

  Cole handed the stick back. “Guess you were right. Pick up more tomorrow?”

  She nodded, breaking down the spear and putting it back in her bag.

  After burgers and more beers, Besson headed out while Howie headed inside. “I’m going to see if your TV gets any of the MMA channels.”

  “I need a shower,” said Roxy, bringing her ponytail around. “My hair smells like gun smoke and burger grease.”

  “What does it usually smell like?” asked Cole. Roxy slugged him and threw a middle finger as she walked toward the house. Cole laughed and started picking up cans and plates to throw in the trash.

  Nona still sat, drink can held in both hands as she stared off into the distance.

  “Penny for your thoughts?” asked Cole.

  “Hmm?” She asked, looking over. “Was thinking of my mother.”

  “Where’s she at?” asked Cole.

  “She’s dead,” said Nona.

  “Oh,” said Cole, suddenly feeling awkward. “I’m sorry.”

  Nona shook her head. Then hesitated. “Director Bricker said full disclosure?”

  Cole nodded, stashing the trash bag in the bin beside the house.

  Nona took a deep breath and looked away, unable to maintain eye contact. “I wasn’t the rescue,” she said. “My mother was. She was taken when she was fifteen.”

  Cole tilted his head. “But you’re LF attuned, too? Bricker said it wasn’t hereditary.”

  “That doesn’t matter when you’re born in one,” she said.

  Cole stopped, mouth dropping open. “You were born off-world? Was she already pregnant when she was taken?”

  Nona shook her head.

  “Holy shit,” said Cole. “You’re half-otherworlder?” He dropped back into his chair and ran a hand through his hair. “I guess that explains the secrecy—and about a dozen other things, too. Jesus. Are there any other Kickers born off-world?”

  Nona shook her head. “I’m a… well, there are other LF-born who have wanted to join DOR. Mercenaries for money, to escape their worlds and live in luxury on Earth. But there’s pushback. I’m supposed to prove it’s possible to integrate.”

  Cole ran a hand through his hair. No wonder the secrecy. It was hard enough getting a security clearance as a foreign-born Earthling. How the hell were you supposed to fill out an SF-86 when your place of birth was another planet? How could you ever fully verify the loyalty of someone raised with the values of another dimension? How could you trust them with one of the biggest secrets in the history of the world?

  “So how did you get here?”

  Nona glanced toward the house.

  “Don’t worry, whatever you say stays between us,” said Cole. “Until you’re ready to tell the others.”

  His teammate nodded, swallowing. “My class and abilities aren’t combat oriented. I’ve got what’s called a Soul Schism. Only part of my soul is attached to my body. It makes me harder to notice. The other parts exist in different planes or even worlds. They move with me, and I can switch their positions. Distance is different across dimensions. That’s how I can move around so quickly. And how I can sometimes move between worlds without a portal.”

  “Holy shit,” said Cole. “And I thought your banish ability was crazy. So you’re not turning invisible, you’re literally walking through another dimension?”

  Nona nodded. “That’s why I have to be careful around deific classes and demons. Anyone with a soul-sight ability can detect me or even attack my soul directly. It’s unprotected. It’s like having part of your brain outside your skull. But I found this world and came here, looking for my mother. Only, when I got here, my mother had already taken her own life. She was a moon-shot. Saved her world, then got sent home. Without me. After all the horror she saw and faced, that’s what broke her. It happened before DOR existed.”

  “And once you got here, I’m guessing you got stuck, since there’s no Lewis Field for you to use your abilities.”

  Nona nodded. “That’s right. It was like a light had gone out in my brain. I came through in the middle of Phoenix, not able to speak the language or understand what I was seeing. I broke down, instant panic. I’m cut off from the abilities I’ve known all my life when I’m here. Parts of me just… aren’t. It’s hard. Makes me,” she waved her hand. “Like I am, here. I was in a psych ward until Bricker found me. But, Cole,” she shuddered. “You can’t imagine how this world looks to outsiders. The sheer scale of the things Earth humans build, the terrifying devices and weapons, aircraft carriers, highways, nuclear bombs, the internet. All without magic or abilities. Do you know how high-level something has to be to move as fast as you drive in a car without even thinking about it?”

  Cole considered. Otherworld magic and classes were amazing, but he hadn’t yet met an otherworlder that could fly a plane or launch a ballistic missile. The Vaelians had cannons and artillery, but it was primitive stuff and half of it worked on magic. Curahee had wheel-lock rifles and spore zombies.

  He looked at Nona, who had tensed up, as though waiting for rebuke. Or maybe judgment, rejection, a refusal to continue letting an otherworlder be a part of his team.

  “Bricker said you were all-in on DOR and its mission. That still true?”

  Nona nodded.

  Cole took a deep breath. “As far as I’m concerned, this changes nothing. Your abilities and your skills are valuable. If you say you’re committed, then I’ll believe it. Don’t give me a reason to change my mind.”

  The long road ahead now seemed longer than ever.