Welcome to Blackcastle
For a split moment, all Judal could do was stare at Bellatrix. What she had said…made sense, at the same time as making none at all. A different dimension? That couldn't be. Even back in the history of Alma Torran, no magi or magician had ever been able to cross dimensions. Then again, all the effects of the spell pointed towards transport, and the layer of Rukh here was so thin that it was almost nonexistent. It almost felt like they were under an isolation barrier, yet Hakuryuu could still move his arm, and Judal could still feel his magoi recovering, even if he couldn't use it. It was frustrating to admit at first, then slowly the feeling grew until the magi turned away from Bellatrix and howled in rage.
"Are you fucking kidding me?!"
"Okay, I will admit it, that was not on my list of expected reactions," Bellatrix stated nonchalantly behind him.
"It was on mine," Neela noted with a giggle.
"What do you mean by a different dimension?" Hakuryuu asked in a soft, threatening tone.
"Uhm…is there any other way to describe it…parallel universe…alternate world…? Neela, Max, help…? You both know that I barely understand it myself…"
"Alright, alternate dimensions for dummies…" Max spoke up, and Judal relaxed slightly as he turned back to see the man leaning on the table. "Let's say that you're walking down a street, wandering for no rime or reason, when you suddenly come to a fork in the road. You can go left or right, and you don't really care which so you choose a direction at random. As soon as you choose one direction your world splits into two and creates a separate parallel universe where you went the other way."
"I'm not quite sure I understand…" Hakuryuu murmured.
"What Max is failing to explain is that this world and your world are two places that usually exist on completely different planes of time and space," Neela clarified.
"Huh. So how'd you three even figure out that we aren't from this world?" Judal asked as he folded his arms over his chest and walked towards the table. "Every other person thought that we were either crazy or in costumes."
"When someone passes through the fabric of time and space, the jump leaves a sort of residue behind, sort of like a mini dust cloud or something. It's normally invisible to the human eye…" Neela paused to push up her glasses before continuing, "But if you can see it, it's visible on every plane and it's a tell-tale sign that the person surrounded by it has crossed dimensions."
"So you can see it then, I'm guessing?" Judal took a seat next to Neela, and her ice blue eyes followed him all the way to his chair.
"Yup."
"You two are lucky that she can," Bellatrix added, "if she hadn't seen it on you then you would probably be in jail right now. And awaiting transport to Blackcastle's most prestigious and high security research lab, most likely."
"Research lab?" Hakuryuu repeated quizzically. "Why—"
"You two don't have any equipment on you and yet the dimensional residue on you is fresh," Neela explained, "your fashion choices differ greatly from the norm here and after we saw you on the news I did take the liberty of breaking into Blackcastle's online archive to check the most recent phase 4 and phase 5 expeditions. There were no reports of recently escaped subjects and you weren't listed as detainees."
"Two dimension hoppers with no present equipment or an anchored entry point," Max mused, "makes for a pretty fascinating lab rat, don't you think?"
"Wait a second," Judal spoke up, "Equipment? Expeditions? Detainees? What the fuck are you guys talking about?"
"Aaaahh, ya see, the thing is…Blackcastle's kinda the cornerstone city on dimensional research in this universe," Bellatrix replied.
"To an average citizen here, all that research is simply based in theory," Neela continued, "but…"
"But you three aren't your average citizens," Hakuryuu finished, "So who are you then?"
"It seems some formal introductions are in order…" Max murmured before clearing his throat, "The name is Maxwell Drummond, Max for short. I used to work as a special ops mechanic in Blackcastle's dimensional research facilities, did things like equipment and weapon maintenance. The midget across from me is Neela Bakshi, former mission operator in the same research facilities."
"I kept open the communication lines with our expedition teams," Neela clarified. "And on occasion I was ordered to hop dimensions and collect data on a world's energy readings."
"And as you already know, my name is Bellatrix, Bellatrix Garcia for long, Bell for short. On paper I'm listed as a former special operative in the military, but to be honest that's just a euphemism for bona fide dimension hopper. This city recruits a few dozen select citizens each year that the council deems as competent in one of our three fields and trains them to go on expeditions through an anchored portal creator. Puts them in teams and sends them off to unknown dimensions for the sake of discovery."
"So this city…uses its magic to cross dimensions?" Hakuryuu clarified.
Bellatrix let out a laugh at that. "Nah son, nothing magic about it. It's based entirely in science, though I suppose that you're about as likely to understand the formulas behind it as I am to win a million dollars in the lottery tomorrow."
"And how likely is that, if you don't mind my asking?" Neela asked.
"Completely impossible," Bellatrix replied, "I didn't by a ticket."
"Hm. Wait, so, um…" Neela stared at Hakuryuu a moment before letting out a short huff, "Sorry, what were your names again?"
"Judal and Hakuryuu," Judal answered shortly while he gestured between them.
"Right. So you've both mentioned magic several times now…is that what brought you here?"
"What about it?"
"Huh. Well that could be a problem…" Neela murmured.
"What? What about that is a fucking problem?"
"Well, magic doesn't really work in Blackcastle. We've visited worlds that had magic in abundance, yet anything we brought back that relied on magic either didn't work or functioned at a fraction of the normal power level. Apparently the atmosphere in our dimension naturally suppresses that type of energy."
Judal was silent for a second as he stared at Neela's impassive expression. No magic. He'd had his suspicions before, but now that they were confirmed, he could feel his anger broiling up until he was seething in rage. The magi's face twisted into a murderous scowl, yet the girl he was glaring at merely tilted her head.
"Will you calm down if I give you dessert? You're liable to pop a blood vessel if you don't cool your britches."
"Listen you little twerp, who said you could talk to me like that?" Judal hissed.
Neela stared at him a few seconds more before looking over at Hakuryuu. "What's this guy's favorite food?"
"Hey! I'm talking to you!"
"Uh…I think it's peaches…?"
"Don't answer her!"
"Hm," Neela gave a short nod before standing from her seat, moving towards the kitchen, and turning towards a bowl on the counter that appeared to be filled with fruit. She rummaged through it for a brief moment before returning to her seat and holding out a peach to Judal. "Looks like we have enough. You can have it if you take a chill pill."
Judal's eyes narrowed on Neela before he snatched the peach out of her hands and bit into the fruit. After a moment he beamed—this was a good peach, so he could afford to calm down for a bit.
"Max, what are you doing?"
"Hn? Oh. I'm recording this moment for posterity."
Judal looked up at the blonde man, his eyes wandered his scrawny frame briefly before focusing on the strange black rectangle in his hand. Recording…?
"Just because I don't let you and Bell eat my peaches does not mean that I'm opposed to sharing them with someone who actually likes them. Besides, I only gave him one because there were three left."
"Whatever," Max sighed and tapped the black rectangle with his thumb a few times before shoving it into his pant pocket and rising from his seat. "Well, I'm gonna retreat to my room for the rest of the night. We can finish the rest of the conversation tomorrow morning."
"You sure that's the best course of action?" Bellatrix spoke up.
"Doesn't really matter to me," Max replied as he knelt down and lifted a section of connected floorboards to reveal a staircase, "I've simply reached my limit on social interaction for the day. If I spend any more time above ground I'll wind up hating you two more than I already do."
"Fine," Bellatrix sighed, "See ya tomorrow."
"Nighty night, cave troll," Neela said mockingly.
"Drop dead, short stack." Max mumbled as he closed the trapdoor behind him, and Bell giggled slightly before hopping down from the counter.
"Well, it appears we'll have to explain the rest tomorrow."
"But you haven't explained a way for us to get back," Hakuryuu noted as Bell shuffled towards him.
"Tomorrow, toots," Bellatrix repeated, "All I can tell you right now is that we're looking into it. And by 'we' I mean Neela."
"Gee, thanks," Neela spoke up dryly as she rose to her feet. "Not like I wanted to sleep tonight."
"Sorry, did you stop being nocturnal since yesterday?"
"I'm not 'nocturnal', I take naps. There's a difference."
"Well, look into what we discussed and then take a nap," Bellatrix offered, "I'm gonna get our extra blankets, so you should get the sofa set up."
"Oh yes, leave the physical labor to the one with noodle arms," Neela muttered as Bell disappeared up the stairs. The girl sighed and glanced between Judal and Hakuryuu before spinning on her heels and walking towards the door on the opposite her side of the table. "Come on. We have temporary living arrangements to set you up in."
Judal bit into his peach again as he stood and followed her after Hakuryuu into the next room, which looked vaguely like one of the living areas in the Kou Palace, only smaller with less ornate designs and a total of one sofa. On the opposite wall, shelves of books flanked each window, and sitting before the sofa was a curiously large black panel and several black and silver boxes connected to it with thin black cords. Judal frowned at the strange objects before looking to his left and seeing something only mildly stranger—several panels and cords connected to taller black boxes flanking either side of a sleek corner table. Each panel was lit from the inside, some revealed strange moving pictures and others seemed to be covered in a sort of writing.
"What are those?" Judal asked absently, earning a glance from Neela in the process.
"Should've guessed that you'd be unfamiliar with technology…the big black thing in front of the couch is called a television, and the stuff in the corner is my desk and my computers. Touch anything in that corner and I'll use our bread knife to chop off your fingers."
Judal's eyes narrowed briefly at the last comment, but after a moment he simple scoffed and sauntered over to get a closer look at the television. It was a weird rectangle, with a smooth black screen and a shiny black frame made of some weird, unidentifiable material. What did they even use this for? Judal finished off his peach and discarded the pit while he leaned closer to the strange panel; a short moment later he felt a tap on his shoulder and he glanced over to find Neela glaring at him, the peach pit he'd recently discarded between two tiny fingers.
"And," she continued calmly, "if I ever catch you littering in my domain again, I'll use this pretty braid of yours as bonfire fuel. Are we clear?"
"You've got a lotta nerve for a pipsqueak," Judal noted irritably.
"Nerve or not, the living room is my temple. Desecrate it and I'll make you suffer."
"Whatever," he mumbled as he turned back to the thing she'd called a television and continued studying it while she walked away.
"Will we be staying in that room back there?" Hakuryuu inquired from the doorway.
"Depends." the sound of Neela's footsteps travelled to the far corner of the room, after which the creak of an opening door was heard. "How good are you at passing through cardboard boxes? Oh, crap, that one's about to fall…" Judal glanced behind him in time to see Neela close the door and shuffle back towards the couch, her eyes focused all the while on Hakuryuu. "We usually set up guests in this room, since the only guest we usually have is Mrs. Drummond, twice a year. Thus the 'guest bedroom' doesn't even have a bed…now…yeah, this just isn't going to work."
Neela shook her head as she stared at the couch thoughtfully. After a few moments of silence, Bellatrix burst through the doorway with a pile of blankets, which she promptly dropped when she saw Neela. "Why isn't the bed set up yet?"
"You know, sometimes I get the feeling that you forget that I'm a sedentary short person who barely weighs more than one hundred pounds and has the muscle mass of your average two year old."
"Couldn't even be bothered to try, could you?"
"Do I look interested in being crushed by a bed frame?"
"God…move over, both of you," Bell sighed as she shooed Neela and Judal out of the way of the sofa before taking a moment to push the piece back a bit. She then took the cushions and threw them at Neela, who stumbled a bit in the process of catching them while Judal squinted to get a look at what had been beneath them. Bellatrix grasped a black handle in the couch and gave it a mildly forceful tug, causing the sound of creaking metal as the frame lifted out of the sofa. Bell took a few steps back, and after a moment the sofa had transformed into a somewhat large sized mattress. Judal blinked at the spectacle while Bell clapped her hands together and collected the blankets.
"That's kinda cool…" he murmured, and Neela let out a soft snort before bursting into a fit of giggles. Judal scowled as he shot an angry glare down at the girl. "What?"
"Nothing…just…" Neela paused and let out another soft giggle, "I've never seen someone so fascinated by a sleeper sofa before."
"I've never seen one before, you damn pipsqueak!"
"Well how was I supposed to know that?" Neela's laughter died down and she looked up at Judal seriously. "And, for the record, it would be in your best interest to stop calling me pipsqueak."
"Oh? What are you gonna do about it, you little twerp?"
"Can't say," she replied nonchalantly, "That would ruin the surprise."
"Neela, can you at least make yourself useful and help me make the bed?" Bell spoke up in exasperation.
"Sure, Bell." Neela graced Judal with one last smirk before walking over to help her roommate with the sheets. Judal glared daggers into her back while she departed, until her presence beside him was replaced by Hakuryuu.
"Can we really trust these assholes?" he asked his king vaguely, earning a brief sigh in response.
"From the looks of it, we don't have much of a choice. They do seem to be honorable people, at the least."
"I don't like them."
"You'll have to learn to," Hakuryuu spoke sternly, "If you can't use your magic then our only hope in returning home lies with them."
"We can find a way to make it wor—"
"Judal. I have decided to trust them. Do you intend to go against me?"
The magi's scowl deepened before he let out a short huff. "Fine. But I still don't like them."
"You'll have to learn to coexist. I don't want to sabotage our only shot of getting out of this place."
"Our only hope of getting home is to rely on these freaks…" Judal mused, "If you ask me, we're completely fucked."
oooOOOooo
Ayyy. So I'm back with even more trash than last time…so. I started up a roleplay blog for the OCs in this story while I was away…you can find that at misfits-of-blackcastle dot tumblr dot com. Special thanks to the tumblr Judal rpers fallenxmagi and despxcio for helping me get Judal decently correct in these past few chapters. I've been having a touch of difficulty with him to be honest. I'll be back with another update soon.