They stood before the portal, which had been erected in Inaya’s home by Akhina, now connected to Doodzout again. Liana é, it was good to get to know you.” Akhina said, curtsying lightly. “People of your world continue to be full of surprises, and you certainly are the greatest of them yet. I thought I knew your world and your kind by now, but Hmana-orr never ceased to amaze me.” Liana nodded. She stood there a little unsure, with the gem of the council on her chest with her name in weird Nummersil letters, waiting to see what was about to happen. She wasn't good at getting attention or saying goodbye. After Akhina, Lun came to her. She wasn’t really afraid of the impressive yam healer, but she still felt that he was actually a person to be revered by everyone, and she was very bad at that. But he didn't find that a problem at all with her it seems.
He bowed down to her. “Liana-dinn é of Nuanderra, it was an honour and a pleasure to meet you. Without your knowledge and skills, our mission in Kavanderra would have been a disaster that none of us would have survived. I and this world owe you forever!” He looked at the jewel on her chest, visually impressed by what it represented. “If you ever come to the country of Tilliande, you will probably be welcomed royally, but now I have not much to give you except my gratitude.” Liana felt even smaller than she already was. She really hated being the center of attention, whether in a positive or negative way. Next was Marah, who also bowed to her again, no matter how much Liana had told her not to. “Liana-dinn é, I'm not going to tell you how much I owe you. You saved not only my life, but also my soul, which was completely poisoned by the Onnobolda. Thanks to you I have returned to the forest, back to the Source, to live again as a Nummerfil should live. But if you're ever in trouble with the STC, let me know. I'll find a way to help you even through the worlds. Once a warrior, always a warrior!” She looked sideways at Inaya, apparently half expecting to be called back, but she didn't respond. She bowed again to Liana. “Goodbye, Liana-dinn é.”
Inaya hadn't said much yet, and didn't have much to say right now that could be said with words. She gave Liana another hug, and whispered in her ear "Friends forever, through the worlds". Then she let go of her and said. "Be safe in Oranderra, and I'm sure we'll see each other again soon." Liana nodded, and Inaya turned to Akhina. "Prepare the gate," she said, and Akhina magically brought out three thin stems wrapped with creepers, as she had seen in the in-between world, and erected the gate. Liana trusted that she should now be able to make the journey to her world herself, but with a gate it would cost much less of her own energy than if she were travelling through the dimensions on her own powers. The human body was clearly not made to do that sort of thing, as she'd noticed when she got back from Kavanderra. Recovering from the journey she'd taken with Lun and the others back just before the explosion on Kavanderra had been tough, and the journey had taken a lot out of her body.
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Without much ceremony, she grabbed her backpack, tucked her jewel under her sweater, and then stepped and disappeared into the gate.
*
Immediately the environment was gone and she felt her body tingle as the background changed. The journey between worlds was always a strange sensation, but eventually she very quickly found herself back in her own familiar environment. She looked around, and noticed she was back at the same abandoned industrial site where she had first encountered Inaya. It was late in the afternoon, around the time she would normally come home from school. She didn't know what time it really was, because her phone had completely stopped working days ago. She even wondered what weekday it was now.
A cloud of jackdaws flew through the air as if they were one bird, and a great green sable grasshopper squawked in a bush. Even the parakeet was there, somewhere, invisible but very audible in a broad-leafed willow tree. This was indeed her world! She looked around carefully and took a deep breath of air. She let in the sounds of traffic around her. Strange how she'd missed even that. It was as if she was experiencing the world for the first time. It seemed as if her world had changed, but in fact it was she herself who had changed with all her experiences in the other worlds. Now she noticed things she had never noticed before. She even felt the pollution in the air and noticed very lightly the electromagnetic smog around her. There was much more in the air here than that one unstable Wi-Fi network on Kavanderra…
She would have to get used to the fact that even at home she could never be quite the same again. She had brought something of the other worlds into herself! She walked home, faster than usual. With her backpack on her back, she looked like she just came from school, not from another world.
She entered the driveway, unlocked the door, and yelled. "I am home".
There was no one home.