Chapter 113

Leaving to Not Much Fanfare

  Apparently, security is a big deal. Especially for a fledgling military force that is just coming into its own and has only one real claim to power. Of course, the situation only escalates when that one claim to power is an ancient alien structure that puts your newest recruits on par with some of the best space faring races right off from the start.

  So, it shouldn’t have come as a surprise when armed security guards descended upon Alternate Jess and me, with their weapons drawn. Particularly when we exited the temple well after the allotted time limit, or normal maximum time limit. This was, Saturday? It felt like a Saturday. The B-team security guards on staff seemed to add to the fact that it was either a Saturday, or worse, a Saturday night.

  “On the ground, now.” Beer Gut, the security guard, screamed, flashing his rifle at me. The tactic might have been scary to someone who wasn’t familiar with weapons. Alternate Jess for example was already on her knees dropping, I could say something here, but I won’t, I am a gentleman.

  Instead, I look at the security guard like he is a moron. Which he is, as he clearly either has a weapon that has never seen a cleaning rag, nor does it have a magazine fed into it. In fact, he doesn’t even have the lights on showing that it could be activated. Still, he brandishes it like it is a major weapon, at me.

  “Look, can you stop this and get your manager?” I ask.

  “I am the manager.” Beer Gut said.

  “Am I to assume that this is in fact a Saturday?” I ask, trying to confirm my earlier hunch about the date and time.

  “It is.” Beer Gut said.

  “Do you happen to have the time?” I ask.

  “9:58.” A second guard says. This one at least has a clean rifle, but still no magazine to charge any rounds with.

  Given the lack of specificity, I must ask. “PM?”

  He nods.

  “Okay, that makes sense.” I mutter to myself.

  “What makes sense?” Beer Gut says. “No, wait, how did you two get in here?”

  I leave off the comment of only the best and brightest guards being chosen to work nights over a weekend. “This here is Jessica Childers; she should have gone missing four days ago in the Temple never to return. Well, we, rather she just completed the Temple run on Nightmare mode. So, once we finished, we were placed here.”

  “James.” Beer Gut said.

  With that, the time keeping assistant guard, James, went to a terminal.

  The guard Beer gut just stood there waving his rifle around the whole time. “Are you done waving that relic around?” I ask, pointing to the dirty rifle.

  At that, the guard seemed to get really angry, as he pointed it more threateningly at me. Again, the entire thing was lost as there was no danger that could have come from such a relic.

  “He is correct. There was a Jessica Childers who went missing four days ago. She was pronounced dead two days ago. Facial scan confirms it is her.” James states.

  “Oh, congratulations. You have the blessing of being awoken and not having to serve in the military.” I state to Jess who is still on her knees but staring at all of us like we are crazy. Well like I’m crazy, and these two guards are having to deal with a lot.

  “We now know who she is, but we have no clue who you are.” Beer Gut says, directing his gaze at me.

  “Me? I’m her fairy godfather.”

  “Fairy?” Beer Gut clarified.

  “I lost my wings; it was a whole big thing. Anyways, once you promise not to harm Jess here, I will be on my way.”

  “You aren’t going anywhere.”

  I laugh.

  It is about this time that I realize just how much of a problem I have with authority figures. But take things into account from my perspective. Here we are, in an alternate universe, one that means relatively little to me. I have a lot of things to fix in my own universe.

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  I go through my mental checklist of things to do, and realize I still have one last task to do here, before I can go on.

  “You remember what I said about my brother?” I asked Jess.

  “The scum sucking toolbag?” Jess questioned.

  “Good, you listened. Anyways, I am going to go take care of him. But still be weary of him.”

  “Get down on your knees now!” Beer Gut demanded.

  Pop.

  Oh wow, it was a kinetic relic weapon that had one in the chamber. I haven’t even seen one of these.

  Pain.

  Blood is pouring down my right shoulder.

  “You shot me.” I say, almost too stunned for words.

  Healing-X.

  Fortunately, actions are louder than words. The wound heals almost instantly, pushing the bullet out while my skin regenerates.

  “Take care Jess. I’ll be back.” I say to Jess. As for the guard who apparently wasted their one round on me, he looks completely crushed.

  “You know, this could have gone so much better. I blame myself too.” I say to Beer Gut. Then I turn to his subordinate, “James, you are all right.”

  Total Recall.

  Poof.

  With that I appear next to my brother. Well, my brother from this universe. The last time I saw this person, they were being puppeted by a Celestial. But the resonance I left with the body remained even after the restart, which is why I am here.

  I seem to have caught Chet in the act, literally. He is with a smoking hot woman. He has her pressed against the bed and was just staring into her eyes.

  I’ve mentioned it before, but my teleporting doesn’t actually make a sound, I just really wish it did. That was why, even after I appeared in the dark room no one noticed.

  Well, no one noticed at first.

  Then the fact that a new silver light source appeared out of nowhere seemed to first break the date’s attention, along with my mind-raping brother from another universe’s version of mother.

  “What the hell are you doing here…” Chet began, but I stopped him right there.

  He had his pants down and was clearly about to start something. Again, I call this divine timing or what, but this is probably the perfect time to catch this version of my brother in the act.

  Mind Rend-X.

  In a second I find his four power clusters of mind raping powers and obliterate them. Then I heal the broken parts.

  Healing-X.

  Then I go about healing the still pinned victim.

  Mind Heal.

  That was it, my work here was done. Though I did kind of want to see how this played out.

  “You bastard.” The blond woman screamed.

  Whoosh!

  My brother was thrown across the room with clear Telekinetic force.

  Slam.

  My brother falls limply to the ground. He is clearly still conscious, but barely.

  “Oh, shit bro, you tried to mind rape a psychic?” I say to my brother.

  “And you, who the fuck are you!” The woman says, turning on me in an instant and generating a ball of Pyrokinetic flames. I could have fallen in love with her right there.

  I could see why my brother was attracted to her, though she was clearly out of his league. Which is likely why he went the mind raping route.

  “Look, I’ve got no skin in this game whatsoever.” I say, waving a finger to dismiss her fireball. I didn’t need the gesture, but I wanted it to be known why the flames went out. This was the equivalent of don’t point a loaded weapon at me. I already went through that once tonight, so I did not wish to try that again.

  “Well, I do. But my skin in this went so far as to make sure he could never mind rape anyone again.” I tell the blond while pointing to my brother on the floor. Only now was he getting to his knees. That blast must have done a number on him.

  The blond looks at me, then back at my brother. Then back at me. Finally, at this she pauses.

  “Your brother?”

  I nod, “very good. Was it the hair?” I ask.

  She gives me a raised eyebrow and I knew I would be in trouble if this went on for too long.

  Then her face drops as, she notices something on me.

  “You’re bleeding.” She says, panic in her eyes.

  I follow her eyes down to my shoulder, and realize she is looking at my gunshot wound from moments ago. Stupid blood, being all wet and sticky.

  “Twas just a minor thing. I am fine now.” I said.

  At that she paused, then she looked at me. “You’re a healer?”

  “Among other things. Minds, bodies…” I trailed off before I could say souls. I can’t heal souls. I wish I could, then this entire mess would be gone.

  Something in my face must have given away my sudden change in demeanor.

  “Is everything okay?” She asks me, never taking her eyes from me.

  This is the moment my brother who spent the entire time crawling on the floor trying not to be noticed got right next to the door, when the blond turned with a fit of rage. “WE ARE NOT DONE HERE!”

  She screamed, then whoom. My brother was hurled across the room, slamming into the nightstand.

  Silence.

  Everyone stared at the angry blond woman, a woman that caused my heart to flutter. She was everything I wanted to be when I grew up.

  “Would you mind staying around? I have a feeling that someone might be in need of prolonged medical attention for quite a while.” The blond woman said, in such a way that sent shivers down my spine.

  “Wow, bro. You really fucked up with this one. She is a keeper.” I say to my brother who is nearly unconscious on the ground.

  “Sto…” Was all he managed to get out before he tried to let his mind go into unconsciousness.

  Healing-X.

  “Look, I tell you what. Five minutes. You do as much as you can to him during that time, and I will heal it all.” I say, trying to be placating. While I did like the idea of giving my brother his comeuppance, I didn’t want to go down the path of sadistic torturer.

  “Five minutes?” She mused, her sparkling blue eyes locking onto my own. There was a fire and intensity there that was undeniably appealing.

  “Five minutes.” I agreed.

  “You sure you can keep up?” She asked.

  I just chuckled at the challenge.

  “Try and find out.” I answered.

  With that began the five longest minutes of Chet, the former mind rapist, Goldman’s life.

  He was burnt, thrown, impaled, lacerated, sodomized, you name it, it happened. Then it was healed.

  This woman clearly had issues, but gods was she sexy doing it.

  After about minute three, I realized she and I weren’t right for each other. She was light that ultra-bright bonfire, really pretty to look at. Amazing to see once in a while, but not something you want to keep in your living room, or bedroom for that matter. Then by minute four, I almost felt sorry for Chet.

  Ding.

  As soon as the timer we set went off, after exactly five minutes. The woman stopped.

  Panting.

  She was panting from the effort, and I don’t blame her. She had been going all out for over five minutes trying her best to cripple and maim Chet. Once she realized I was a far better healer, she went wild.

  She had exerted herself that she began sweating, causing her silk night gown to cling to her in ways that made me rethink my thoughts on bonfires in the bedroom.

  But I squashed that notion. She had been through a lot. I hoped this help her get a lot off her chest.

  “Thank you, I um, I needed that.” The crazy sexy blond woman said.

  “No, I could tell.” I replied.

  “Just who are you?” The blond asked.

  “I am Kyle Goldman, his brother.” I say, while pointing to my brother. “Well not his exact brother. See I’m from a different universe. He does this in every universe, mind raping women. And in every universe, he invariably steals my dream woman. That is why, when I am in alternate universes, I try to fix him while I can.”

  “Alternate universes?” She asks with a raised eyebrow.

  “Yeah, it’s a whole big thing.” I say.

  “Well, I wish to thank you properly.” She says, holding out her hand.

  “Shake?” I ask.

  “Well fine then.” She says, dropping her hand and going in for a full body hug.

  At first, I am just standing there, but then my body reacts naturally to the embrace and hugs her back. My fingers feel silk that is clinging tightly to muscular skin. Wow, this is bad. I think to myself, as I push myself away.

  “There are likely others. Can you get them say this time next week?” I ask.

  “Get them where?”

  “Wherever you are.” I answer.

  “How will you get there?”

  “I have my ways.” I answered, trying to be charming and evasive at the same time. This woman was seriously giving me the creeps.

  “Total Recall?” She asked.

  With that, I paused. Then so eloquently spoke, “what?”