Chapter 6

Finn looked down the street without focusing on any single shop, building, or person. He felt the neighborhood as much as watched it. Despite the late hour, people were out and about living their lives without realizing they were watched, even in darkness. He knew. He had helped build the modern surveillance state.

Finn’s apartment building stood as an unassuming testament to everyday life. Its brick exterior was well-worn and faded, its once-vibrant colors now dulled by the passage of time and the relentless exposure to the elements. The building, a four-story structure with a pitched roof, blended seamlessly into the fabric of the community – an unremarkable presence amidst the myriad hues and architectural styles that defined the area.

It was safe in its anonymity. Nothing stood out on it to draw the eye. He glanced at his phone, checking his security systems and the spy-eyes he had scattered around the blocks near his home. The government would love to know how he managed to surveil the area without using local spectrum to transmit images. He smiled to himself. They would likely kill to keep others from being able to establish the quantum entangled communications he had perfected. It was just one of the secrets he needed to protect.

Elara stayed close to him, still disguised in his jacket. Something had troubled her in the subway. He had felt her stiffen and then drop her shoulders as if depressed by a sight, but nothing had stood out to him. His plan to spoof the video feeds in the station had gone off easily. They had boarded the third train into the station and then been whisked uptown to his neighborhood. He had stopped the interference with spy-eyes on a long section of tunnel around midtown.

Finn guided his newest problem through the entryway of his building and up the stairs to the third floor and the door of his apartment. There was nothing special to see on the door, but he knew it was far from typical. A glance at his phone confirmed it had not been touched or opened since he had departed. It unlocked with a tap of his thumb on his device, both the lock and doorknob untouched. His security was far better than simple mechanical locks.

The door opened to reveal a cozy living space filled with warm light. During the day, natural light from the north would stream in through large windows, bringing a hint of the outside in. Bookshelves lined the walls, filled with volumes on various scientific disciplines and technological innovations. The scent of cooking hung in the air brought from various vents in the building, mingling with the faint aroma of fresh paint and the distant echoes of laughter and conversation. It was a comforting clutter to Finn.

Elara followed him inside and watched as he closed the door and placed his hand against a small panel to the side. He held it there until it glowed red, then blue, and finally settled on a pale green hue. He dropped his hand and sighed.

“We’re as safe as I can make us,” he said with a smile.

Elara looked at him, clearly wondering what was next. She glanced around the room, looking at the books on shelves and spread about. Elara’s gaze lingered on the plush couch, invitingly soft and well-worn from years of use. The warmth radiating from its cushions seemed to beckon her in, offering comfort if she chose to sit and relax.

Elara nodded, then pushed back the hood and unzipped her jacket. “Where are we?” she asked in her soft tone.

“My home. It’s safe,” Finn replied.

“No,” she said, shaking her head with a hint of frustration. “What realm are we in? This place, these people, they are not from any realm I know. Where are we?”

Finn scratched the stubble of his scruffy beard. “We’re here. I don’t know of any other realm. Where are you from?”

He was ready for the crazy to come back out, but now did not feel the fear of pursuit. She did not act crazy, but scared. Maybe she was from someplace else. Finn was not going to assume she had broken with reality until she provided some more proof to his first thought of her. He was not quickly judgmental like that.

“Elysia,” she said softly. “I was born on the Ethereal Plains but raised in the Enchanted Forest. I was just starting my trials for the Moon Goddess when raiders attacked a village I was passing through. They took me and every woman younger than me. I think we went to the Realm of Shadows then.” A shudder passed through her, and her eyes took on a haunted look. She looked around fearfully for a moment, then looked back at Finn with a pleading expression. She looked down.

Finn followed her gaze, seeing her filthy feet. They were perfectly shaped and delicate, but dirty from walking barefoot through the city. He shook his head.

“You should clean up,” he said. “We can talk afterward. For now, let’s get you clean and settled a bit. The bathroom is down there,” he added with a wave of his hand to the short hallway leading to the bathroom and two bedrooms of the apartment.

Elara nodded, dropped his jacket on a chair, and walked away from him. His eyes followed her sinuous gait, admiring her beautiful figure. He shook his head again as she stepped through the doorway to the bathroom. He heard the water for the shower turn on.

Finn looked at the wallboard with the strings of connections he had tracked and verified. The proof from tonight made previously tenuous relationships more concrete. He had proof of the evil being done. Now he needed to expose the facts he had compiled. He turned on the stove and filled a kettle for tea. Who could he trust to bring this story to light?

Elara closed the door behind her and looked around the tiled bathing chamber. A mirror filled the wall behind the washing basins. She figured out the taps and spotted similar handles in a glass enclosed space to one side. She reached in and turned them. Water began to stream out of a nozzle set high on the wall. She nodded and concentrated for the briefest of moments to let the weave of moonbeams that had made her dress slip away. Naked once more, she stepped into the small room and let the tepid water cascade over her body. She closed her eyes as the water warmed, then hung her head and cried softly.

“Goddess, hear my prayer,” she pleaded.

There was no responding sense of comfort or attention. She was alone, she reminded herself.

Her lessons on pity washed over her mind once again. With limited determination, she grabbed a sponge and scrubbed at her body. She tried to blot out the memory of being soiled by the vile man who had stripped her connection to her goddess. She wanted to wash away the memory of what he had done to her.