Gardens of Time

Chapter 5

        I woke with a start, sweat dripped down my forehead in gulps, almost like someone had dumped water in my hair and it was slowly dripping. My heart had an irregular beat that I could almost hear now, like an extra thump was thrown in to make me think there were two hearts inside, thumping.

          I was startled by my alarm going off, unaware that I had already awoken on my own. "It is now 6:45 in Waterdeep, it is fifty-five degrees out, and is about to rain," it said, causing me to glance out of my window.

          "Right," I sighed, wiping the sweat from my forehead with the back of my hand. It might be freezing out there but it feels like Satan's humble abode in here.

          I pulled on some jeans, making my way into the kitchen. As soon as I walked in, the refrigerator TV came on, showing today's news.

          I pulled out a water bottle, but my eyes lingered on the TV. The search for a seventeen-year-old runaway continues. Her name was Raelyn. Raelyn Evans. She'd ran away two months ago, but no ones reported her missing until recently. I idly wondered how that could be, closing the fridge.

          As soon as I did a woman stood there, forcing me to jump back out of shock. "Jesus Christ!" I yelled, my water spilt as it fell.

          She didn't go away, like I imagined she would, she just stood there, staring at me. I blinked twice, backing as far as I could before a wall stopped me. I tried to put as much space between us as I possibly could, not knowing who she was or what she wanted.

          There was sweat on her warm brown skin, much like mine was when I first woke up. She stared at me with her deep brown eyes, eyes that looked like they had seen it all. Like they knew something that I didn't. I had never seen her before, but for some unexplained reason I felt drawn to her.

          I didn't move again, I guess it was to make sure I didn't frighten her away, or rather, make her attack me or something. "Who are you?" I asked softly, like I was talking to a wounded animal.

          She didn't even move her mouth to speak, her expression impassive. I didn't ask her anything else, it deemed itself pointless. She didn't even seem like she was a person. You know how, when you're with someone, you can just tell they're there? Not because you can see them or hear them, but you can feel them. You can feel their weight, you can feel them breathe, you can feel their life almost. But with her, this girl, there was nothing. She seemed like nothing more than a plant in the corner. Other than what I was seeing, there was no proof she was even there.

          What does that mean?

          Suddenly, the doorbell rang, frightening me once again. "s**t," I sighed when I accidentally knocked an empty beer bottle to the floor. It shattered everywhere and I didn't know whether to get it or the door.

          When I looked back to the corner, she was gone, like I knew she would be. More urgent knocks on the door. I stepped around the blue glass, getting the door. "Hey," Lexine smiles.

          "Come in," I say, stepping to the side. "Where's Jeremi?" I asked, shutting the door back.

          "His world does not revolve around you, Erik," she retorted going straight for the kitchen. "Only mine does." She mumbled, forcing me to smile.

          "Careful, there's glass." I warn her, but she just smirks at me.

          She extends her hand towards it, the glass rising and putting itself back together piece by piece, in the order it dropped in. Almost like someone had pressed rewind. Ended up back on the counter top like nothing had ever happened. "Aren't you just clumsy?" She laughed, her pure white curls shaking. "You ready to go?"

          "Yeah."

          I was assigned to the Seventh dimension, which I'm guessing was do to the fact that I was banned from the Eighth. The Seventh dimension was much more decent than the Eighth. If I had to explain it to a normal person, I'd say Eighth had an 80's mentality; rebelling against everything righteous, all Rock & Roll all the time. Whilst the Seventh was more like being in heaven. With angels. With God.

          I never come here. I only ever came here once. Lexi made me. She said that being here would teach me some morals. Whatever. I just need her to lift that ban from Eighth so I can get my s**t out of that apartment I bought.

          "We have to meet the Monarch first. Let him know we're here. Please don't embarrass me, Erik." Lexine starts, sounding like a true parent.

          "I can be presentable when I want to be," I smirked, pinching her ivory cheek. "You just better hope I like the guy." She tried to glare at me, but couldn't from smiling too big. "Hey, Lexi?" I started, right before we reached the Palace. "What do you think the odds of me bumping into myself here are?" She just laughed.

          "None."

          "Why not?"

          "Because it's highly unlikely," she says vaguely.

          "What do you think I do?" I asked in all seriousness. She let out an exasperated sigh.

          "Honestly?" She asked, her eyes a deep, most expressive blue. I nod. "I don't know, Erik. Your name might not even be the same as far as this world is concerned." I was some what disappointed to figure that out. But I guess it would be hella awkward to run into myself and I'm a circus boy named Tom. "Besides," she continues. "You're probably just a janitor. Or better, in jail somewhere." I gave her a sarcastic laugh, then walked ahead of her.

          To say their Palace was huge would be an understatement. Picture the White House, but three times that size, circular rooftops, and gold trimming where the gold trimming was needed. I guess this makes sense. We have the White House and they have the White Palace. The Eighth dimension doesn't have s**t. It's like Doomsday in that place. No structure!

          Lexine and I ascended the pure gold stairs that led to the ten feet double doors, and I was prepared to be greeted by men with guns, or swords or something but nope. A tiny elderly woman opened the door, then motioned for the two of us to come inside.

          The Palace was light and open in the inside, which was due to the fact that there were windows everywhere. The floor was white marble, polished and shining. There was a huge gold Y in the middle, surrounded by swirls and two golden doves.

          Doves - Eagles. Okay. I'm getting this.

          I listened to Lexine's high heel click and echo on the floor, while I compared this place to pretty much every other place.

          "Eli will see you now," a young maid came up and said with a polite smile.

          "Thank you," Lexine smiled. I just raised a brow. She was oddly attractive, and her light brown skin seemed so soft. Her hazel eyes sparkled as she grinned at me. I wiggled my eyebrows at her flirtatiously, causing her to laugh.

          Lexine rolled her eyes in annoyance, storming after the old lady. Only I stayed so I can talk to this girl. "What's your name?" I asked quietly, and she smiled coyly.

          "Queen." Her voice came out soft and sweet, and I pulled a piece of paper from my leather jacket. The paper was the assigned room I was to stay in.

          "You should come up to my room when you get off, okay?" She took the paper from me slowly, but nodded without a hesitation.

          "Okay," she smiled.

          "Alright, I'm Erik by the way, but I gotta go. Duty calls." And with that, I was gone.

          "You," Eli says, his voice sounding deep and threatening. "I've heard a lot of things about... you."

          I squint my eyes at him, placing my hands behind my back. "Good things I hope," I say jokingly, then laugh but soon stop when no one else does.

          "I hope you know that we do not tolerate immoral behavior, and I can't have a hoodlum living under my roof with my daughter's if only for a night," he states sternly, and I stop smiling, all joking aside.

          "Your honor, sir, I am not a hoodlum. Okay? And I'm almost certain that your daughter's and I will not cross paths as I will be working very hard on trying to keep you in control of this world." He eyes me shrewdly, then let out a small sigh.

          "Okay, Gordon," he says, walking back over to his throne. "But I'm warning you, you step out of line and you will deeply regret it." His brown eyes pierced into me like a knife, and I couldn't help the chill that went down my spine. Why was he so scary? "I guess you should meet my daughter's as they will be living under this roof, and should you see either of them coming you better look the other way."

          "Eli-" Lexine starts, but is cut off by the entrance of three young girls.

          "These are my daughters Aseneth, Eden, and Hulda." They all bowed politely, in the order that they were introduced. Hulda being the youngest, she seemed about ten or eleven, I thought she was cute.

          I waved at the three of them, but couldn't help but stop on the middle child; Eden. She stared at me with familiar brown eyes. Familiar everything, but I guess it would be familiar because I was looking at her just this morning. In my kitchen!

"You," I whispered.