Chapter 2

They had driven all night and the sun was just beginning its cascade across the landscape.

Farah could hear Dirk snoring as he slept on the cot. Todd was sitting in the passenger seat rummaging through a grocery bag full of food. She had been surprised he had stayed awake, but as he put it, he felt like all he had done these last few days was sleep.

"Protein bar or cereal bar?" he asked.

"Protein. Peanut butter, if we have any."

"You are in luck." He said. "One left." He opened the wrapper and passed it over.

She took the bar from him. "Thanks." Then, with a slight smile, she added "Is this where I proclaim my love for you and your food provision?"

Todd's cheeks flushed, but he chuckled. "Can we blame the drugs on that particular foot in mouth incident?"

"Oh, I don't know." She said. "You seemed to have a lot of strong feelings over that hamburger."

"Um, it was a bacon cheeseburger. Totally different."

Farah laughed and took a bite of the bar.

They heard Dirk roll over and mutter something about a magic bathtub before he started snoring again.

"Thanks." Todd said.

"For what?" asked Farah.

"For everything. For keeping us alive and humoring crazy theories and laughing when life hasn't been very funny."

"Are we blaming the drugs for this touching moment too?" she asked.

"No. This one is all me."

Farah kept her eyes on the road, but she could feel Todd looking at her.

"Listen," She said. "I know…"

"STOP!"

Farah slammed on the breaks as Dirk's voice blasted through the van. Her trained eyes darted around to find what was the cause of his cry.

Dirk was standing next to her seat, eyes wide with wonder.

"What is it?" she demanded as she held her gun at the ready.

"We're here." He said, and he raced to the back of the van.

Farah looked at Todd. "Are you ok?"

His face was a bit pained. "Brakes, seatbelts, and recent surgery are not a great combo. But I'm alright."

Dirk jumped out of the van and began powerwalking through the woods.

"Dirk!" Farah called "Come back!" She jumped out of the van and started to jog after him when she heard the other van door open.

"Get back in the van!" she called out to Todd.

"No way!" he exclaimed "I've seen this movie. I refuse to die as Idiot Friend Waiting In The Car."

"Did you see how fast he was moving?" Farah said. "You will slow me down!"

"I'll catch up. I can't just sit any longer."

Farah gritted her teeth and wished for the billionth time that she could get the two of them to understand basic principles of executing a safe mission. She waited until Todd had hobbled close to her and then the two of them began following Dirk's path. There was a light dusting of snow on the ground, so they were able to see which way he went. It turned out he hadn't gone far, which was good because she could tell from Todd's breathing just how difficult the trek was for him.

Dirk was standing perfectly still with his back to them.

"What are you doing?" Farah demanded. "Do you have any idea…"

"Look!" Dirk exclaimed.

Farah looked at the ground in front of Dirk and saw a bright yellow bucket full of water.

"You were right, Todd!" Dirk said.

"I was joking." Todd replied as he stared at the bucket. "What does this mean?"

"It means," said Farah "that you put us all in danger by running after some random bucket of water in the woods."

"How did you see it?" Todd asked.

"I didn't." said Dirk "I felt it."

Farah stared at them. "This is… an insane and dangerous detour. What if someone spots our van just sitting there abandoned and calls it in? What if there were agents? What if…"

"No," said Dirk "this is destiny! Can't you feel it? I told you that you wouldn't regret this! Didn't I say…"

Before he could finish, there was a knife up against his throat.

Farah pointed her gun at the large man that was covered in blue and white tattoos that seemed to have materialized out of nowhere.

"Let him go, or I shoot." Said Farah as she calculated the likelihood of a successful headshot.

"You could." Said the man's booming voice, "But then who would stop him from killing your other friend?"

Farah turned and saw Todd standing perfectly still with a knife pressed against his throat by the mountain of a man that was standing behind him. She couldn't save them both.

"Drop your weapon." Said the first man.

Farah said a silent curse as she lowered her gun. A third man appeared and tied her hands behind her. Dirk and Todd were tied too, and the three of them were lead through the woods. The hike was short by Farah's standards, but Todd was breathless and stumbling.

They were taken into some sort of cave. There was a cage that almost seemed to grow out of the wall. There were no regular lights or torches or windows to illuminate the cave. Instead, they could see by the pulsing, blue light of the crystals that were embedded into the walls. The three of them were unceremoniously tossed into the cage with their hands still tied. Todd groaned.

As soon as their captors left, Farah turned to Todd. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. I just feel like a guy whose pain meds wore off mid hike. Dirk was right, I was on the good drugs."

"Dirk," said Farah "Who are these people?"

"I have no idea." Said Dirk. "Some sort of aquatic cave dwellers?"

"Aquatic… Dirk, you're not making any sense!"

"Did you see those tattoos?" said Dirk "They were wavy, like water. And many of them were blue."

"The crystals here are blue too." Said Farah. "Though I suppose they didn't have crystal shaped tattoos." She shook her head. There was no time for crazy hypothesizing. They needed to get out before things got worse. She began working on the ropes that were holding her wrists. As she did that, she looked around the room. They were far enough in from the mouth of the cave that no natural light came in. There were three visible openings that led to other parts of the cave.

"How big is this place?" Dirk wondered aloud. "For all we know, they have an entire civilization here."

"I think I'm close to understanding how this is tied." Said Farah. "Todd, let me see your hands." She looked over and saw just how heavily he was leaning against the wall. It was hard to judge from the light, but Todd's face looked pale. She then saw that the front of his shirt had blood on it.

"Oh Todd..." Dirk breathed.

Todd looked up weakly. "I'm sorry."

"Just conserve your strength." Farah said as she tried to deduce their best chances of escape.

Two of the large men returned. They were accompanied by a thin man who was about Dirk's height. He looked to be in his mid 40s, with a long beard that he had clearly been growing out for many years. His robes were grey and expensive looking.

"Normally invaders do not live this long." Said the bearded man. "But we were given instructions regarding the one with the connection to the Universe."

The larger of the guards opened the door to their cage.

"We're not invaders." Said Farah "We were taking a walk and you kidnapped us."

Dirk awkwardly stood up. "It's alright Farah. I will get to the bottom of this. Take me to your leader, or whatever trite phrase will get me where I need to go. Though of course I will need your word that you will not harm my friends."

The bearded man held up his hand. "Not you." He said as his eyes lowered to Todd.

Dirk stared dumbfounded as he was pushed aside, and the large man grabbed hold of Todd and forced him to stand.

"He's injured." Said Farah. "He needs medical attention, or he'll die!" She was trying desperately to buy time to work her hands free.

She wasn't fast enough. They pulled Todd out of the cage and locked the door behind them.

The two large men were practically carrying Todd. Technically, his feet were touching the ground, but his legs weren't carrying any of his weight.

They took him into a domed room. In the middle of the room, there was a large, circular pool of water. There was a stone slab in the middle of the pool. The men took Todd to the edge of the water and then waited. Out of the opening on the furthest end of the room came a woman. Her hair was long and intricately braided and the most brilliant shade of white that Todd had ever seen. Her robes were somehow both silver and blue and almost seemed to shimmer in the light. It was hard to determine her age. She seemed both young and old. The more he tried to focus on her age, the less clear it appeared. She was standing at the other end of the pool across from him. She was close enough that he could see that her eyes were as white as her hair. Despite the fact that she appeared blind, Todd had no doubt she could see things he could not.

She stepped into the water and her robes sank around her. Flowing almost as if she was on land instead of waist deep in water.

"Bring him." Said her alto voice.

They walked Todd into the pool and to the slab in the middle. They lifted him up and laid him down on the slab. It was at an angle. Not enough for Todd to slide down, but enough that his head was higher than his feet. The men stood one on either side of him. Each had a hand on his shoulder and another on his forearm, pinning his upper body down.

Todd had very little time to wonder what was about to happen when the slab began to sink. Todd gasped and began to pull against the men holding him. They might as well have been stone statues for all Todd could move them. The water covered his sneakers, and still he sank.

"Wait!" he cried "Don't do this!"

The water rose over his legs and waist and chest. It was just about to touch his chin when he stopped sinking. The white haired woman walked to Todd's left side.

"He's fine." She said. Then she turned her white eyes to Todd and said "You promise to lay still, don't you? Then we would have no need for our friends here. I promise not to hurt you."

Todd swallowed. He didn't want to promise to lay there, but there wasn't exactly much he could do about it. And it would be nice to not be held against his will.

"Al… alright." He said.

She nodded, and the men released him. He fully expected to float, but he didn't. It felt like regular gravity, only wet. And, despite the fact that he knew he was bleeding, he didn't see any blood swirling in the water.

The woman placed her right hand on his forehead.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Shhh…" she said quietly "Breathe deeply."

Todd suddenly felt very relaxed. His vision blurred a bit, but it didn't concern him for some reason. His mind drifted to the day Amanda was born. Of holding his tiny, newborn sister in his arms. His thoughts swam over the many years with her. Good times and bad. Playing. Partying. Arguing. Holding her in the safety of his big brother arms when she was afraid of a creature living in her closet. He wished he could protect her from everything. He wanted so badly to find her and make it right.

The woman's hand slid down Todd's face, down his neck, until it reached just above his collarbone. Todd found himself thinking about Dirk. Of hating him and being annoyed by him. Of the danger Dirk put him in. Of being angry and calling Dirk a monster and telling him he deserved to be alone. But mostly, he remembered their friendship. Of them saving each other's lives. Of saving Lydia Spring. Rescuing Dirk from Blackwing. Of all the weirdness and adventures they had experienced together. The bond of trust that had grown. How had Dirk become so important to him?

Todd's thinking was still cloudy, but he was starting to grasp a connection that her hands were causing these memories to surface. Could she see them too?

"What are you doing to me?" he asked in a hushed voice.

"Just lay still. Let your mind go free." Her hand moved to his chest.

Farah. The first time he saw her, he was afraid. She was holding a gun and demanding he open his apartment door. He wished he had. How much pain could he have spared her? He thought about rescuing her on the bridge. Her rescuing him countless times after. Her strength and skill and ability to forgive him for all his many faults. That unexpected moment when she kissed him.

"Stop." Said Todd. This was too personal. He wanted this strange woman out of his head.

"You have spirit." She said approvingly. "I'm almost done." She placed one hand on each side of his ribcage.

Todd went rigid as the memories of his pararibulitis attacks swept through his mind in rapid succession.

She sucked in her breath. "Poor thing."

"Why are you doing this?" Todd asked.

"I can help you." She said as her hands moved down to Todd's stab wound.

He expected it to hurt, but it didn't. Then a strange, blue glow came from her hands.

"What… what are you do…" he didn't get to finish before he felt the energy pulsing through his body. It was a bit like being electrocuted, except without the pain. He was also aware of each cell in his body. He could literally feel every building block that made his physical form with such intensity and clarity that he couldn't completely comprehend what he was experiencing. Just when he was sure he couldn't take any more, it began to fade. When the sensation was gone, Todd stared at the strange woman before him.

"Who are you?"

She smiled. "How about we have a chat with your friends."

Farah had worked her hands free and had nearly released Dirk when the bearded man returned and opened the cage.

"Your friend is waiting for you." He said.

They were led to another chamber and Dirk practically sprinted when he saw Todd.

Todd was sitting on a chair shaped rock that looked as if it were somehow part of the floor. His clothes were soaking wet.

"Are you alright?" Dirk asked as he visibly fought the urge to crush his friend in a hug.

"I'm fine. Better than fine, actually."

Farah could see that was true. The color was back in his face and he was sitting straighter than she had seen him sit in months.

"What happened?" Farah asked.

Todd lifted his shirt. The area that had been covered in red and angry stitches was barely more than a pink line. It looked like a scar from something that happened long ago. Farah was in awe. She ran her fingers across it and felt it was only slightly raised.

"And it doesn't hurt?"

"No." said Todd "I can't feel it at all. It's almost like it never happened."

"The Healing Pool is rather remarkable." Said a woman's voice.

Farah turned and saw a women with bright white hair and eyes.

Dirk stared at her. "You did this. Didn't you?"

She nodded.

"Why?" asked Farah. "Not that we aren't grateful. But we don't know you. Why would you capture us and then heal him?"

"Everything is connected." She said. Then she looked at Dirk. "What do you see?"

"I'm… not sure." He said.

"But you see it, don't you? Even if you can't understand it completely."

Dirk nodded.

"We are a people who prefer to remain… living quietly. In secret from your realm. Those that arrive in our world are either those that mean to strip us of our resources for their own gain, or those that we are meant to encounter for some mutually beneficial purpose. It has been a long time since we encountered the latter. Please excuse us if our hospitality is unpracticed."

"How did you know which we were?" asked Dirk.

"This one." She said, gesturing to Todd. "He is one of the Connected."

"What does that mean?" Todd asked.

"I am afraid you will have to discover that on your own." She replied.

"If you could cure his wound," said Farah "you could cure his disease."

"I already asked." Said Todd. "She says that's different."

"Why?" Farah asked.

"I can only heal the body." The woman explained.

"But it's a nerve disease." Said Todd "Why can't you heal my nerves?"

"It doesn't work like that." She said.

"Please, can you try? You can experiment on me. Help yourself understand it. Then, when I find my sister, you will know how to cure her." Todd had that desperate look in his eyes that he always had when he talked about his missing sister.

"It is not an issue of not understanding it." Said the White Haired Woman. "The issue is that your disease is not physical in nature."

"But it is! It runs in my family and…"

"No Todd. She's right." Said Dirk. He had that odd look on his face that he got when something was starting to click for him. He looked at the woman. "What is it? What am I not seeing?"

"You will know soon." She said.

"This is… insane." Said Farah. "Who are you people? What is this place?"

The woman smiled. "That is far too complex to explain with the short time you have left with us. But we, like your friend Dirk, are part of a world that you did not realize could exist alongside yours. But we do. Countless strange and different worlds and people are everywhere beyond the ones you currently know. You are just beginning your journey. And now, it is time to go."

"You're kicking us out?" said Dirk. "We were just starting to get along."

"We have served our purpose for today." She said "I'm sorry to say that it is unlikely you will find us again. Even if you return to where you encountered us. Our world is far more difficult to enter than most. Clearly, you were meant to come here." She gestured to the tunnel at her left. "Follow it to the outside. Your vehicle is not far. You should have no trouble finding it."

Todd stood and turned to say something to her, but suddenly the light changed, and she was gone. It was just a normal, dark cave. The only light was a dull glow coming from the passage she had instructed them to use. They followed that light to the outside world and blinked at the daylight. Sure enough, they could see their van parked where they had left it on the road. On the ground near the mouth of the cave was Farah's gun. They walked to the van in stunned silence.

They all climbed in and Farah turned the key. The familiar rumble of the engine seemed to bring them all back to reality.

"That was weird." Said Farah. "And that is coming from the standard of people who watched a girl swap souls with a dog."

"Now what?" Todd asked.

"How about you change before you freeze." Said Farah. "You didn't get miraculously healed from a stab wound just to die of hypothermia."

Todd nodded. "That would be anticlimactic."

He went to the back of the van as Dirk buckled himself up front. Farah prayed she wasn't about to regret what she was about to say.

"Where to next, Dirk?"

The delight on his face was overwhelming. "North!" He announced happily. "We need to go North!"

"Alright." Said Farah. "North it is."