Work Text:
Lately I’ve been finding it hard to tell whether I’m awake or asleep.
Back home…no, back on Earth Bet, it was a lot easier to tell the difference.
If I was quaking in fear, small and weak as the world crumbled around me and the sky bled, that meant I was having a nightmare.
If I was normal or some kind of hero, surrounded by friends and people who didn’t look at me and recoil in fear or disgust, that meant it was a dream.
The rest of the time, it was just normal everyday life. Waking up in a crushed bed, teaching kids to fight and defend others, stumbling my way through basic social interactions with adults who could barely stomach my presence, and all the other stuff that had become commonplace.
But lately, I’ve had to redefine “commonplace.”
As I opened my eyes and looked up into a green sky filled with dark purple clouds, a huge bird sitting on my chest and trying to eat me…well, it was tough to figure out if I was awake.
So I closed my eyes and tried to focus inwards, remembering what I’d been taught about lucid dreams. Taking control of the present by grasping the past in my mind, using it to inject some reality into my fantasy…
Although, the line between fantasy and reality tends to get pretty blurry when your boyfriend wears a huge suit of power armor, one of your best friends can manifest pocket dimensions whenever she wants, and the person in the mirror is a twisted mockery of the human form.
The PRT called us Case 53s, and for the longest time even the smartest heroes and villains thought we were just people with powers who got unlucky. That perhaps our powers overcame our bodies, with our amnesia being a natural defense mechanism.
That last part kind of helped, because I had nothing to compare my situation to, aside from envy when I looked at everyone else with powers and how they were perfectly normal.
And then one day, I met someone else like me, and things got a little better. Especially when I found out there were dozens of us. Not a lot…but enough that we swore to have each other’s backs, even as the world started falling apart around us.
That turned out to be mostly bullshit, but I can’t really blame Weld and the others for walking away to rebuild alongside the last remnants of humanity.
Nor did they try to stop us when we set out to find something different for ourselves…
A place we could call home.
So we went our own way, off to blaze our own trail. Stepping into the unknown as we tried to find a new path forward…to explore and discover uncharted horizons.
Ever since that moment, every day has been a truly unique experience, and time just flew by…
About a year later, I was on an alien world with a big alien bird trying (and failing) to eat me.
A big alien bird that seemed to have noticed I was awake, and cocked its head.
The noise it made was like a musical growl, and kind of cute.
The fact that it was the size of a pony…a minor detail.
After all, I was the size of a horse .
“Hey buddy.” My voice rumbled out of me, causing the sizable sitting songbird to flinch back, talons gripping my torso tighter as I shifted. Its feathers were a mix of brown and green, similar to the bark of the few cylindrical trees I’d seen on this world. “I’m not food. Cut it out.”
There was no reply other than a different melodious grumble, matched moments later by one from my stomach, and for a moment I wondered if I could share some of my food with the bird and make a new friend…
Then its beak was flashing towards my face, and I narrowly avoided the stab. There was a dull throb from my cheek, the beak’s edge not nearly strong enough to cut me, but sharp enough to stick in the dirt.
Undeterred, the bird stepped forward, talons trying to squeeze me and neck muscles rippling as it prepared to attack a second time.
But the reason I was able to feel said muscles and the reason its beak remained buried in dirt were one and the same.
A split second earlier, my hand had whipped up and grabbed the damn thing by the neck.
It may have been pretty damned fast, but I trained Jouster and that kid could teleport.
Compared to him, this featherbrain had been moving in slow motion.
Despite its struggles and the razor-sharp talons slashing uselessly at my flesh, I tried my best to avoid hurting it. With more care than it deserved, I used my other hand to rise and hop aside, powerful legs propelling me a dozen feet away moments after I released the bird.
It turned the moment its beak was free, eyes rising up, up, and up to behold the full size of its intended meal.
Five more eyes opened on its head, two on each side and a big one in the middle, staring at me.
Pretty sure it began to reconsider its life choices, swallowing nervously.
“Hi.” I rumbled, grinning at the stunned bird. “I’m Gully.”
Eight feet tall, covered in so much scarred, rippling muscle that I looked like a bodybuilder with a hunchback. A gentle breeze moved what little hair I had left after a training accident a few months ago, and its eyes flicked to the colors streaked through it courtesy of Newter.
I shifted slightly, oddly self-conscious as the bird seemed to notice similar colors on my clothing, the new threads courtesy of Gregor. He’d seen the damage from the accident, and put his tailoring skills to work creating something that I’d “more than earned,” whatever that meant.
The material had come from an abandoned military base, and was wildly different from the threadbare overalls I’d been wearing for…as long as I could remember, come to think of it.
Pants, boots, shirt, coat…all fitting perfectly and painted with a variety of designs and colors. It made me feel less like a monster and more like…a hero.
With that in mind, I decided to take one more shot at diplomacy, and dug some berries I’d found yesterday out of my pocket.
“Sorry, we got off on the wrong foot.” I tried to sound less growly than usual, and saw the bird’s eyes go to my hand. It made a little whistling noise, and seemed to shiver slightly as I continued. “I’m Gully, just visiting. Today’s my last day on your mountain, and then I’ll be leaving. Hungry?”
I gingerly held out the berries, and it approached cautiously, eyes flicking across my body.
It took a few of the berries, chewing and swallowing them quickly, and I smiled…
My smile vanished when the bird vomited the berries into my face.
By the time I wiped my eyes, it was long gone.
In moments, the only signs it had been here were a few scattered feathers and a smelly liquid. I dimly wondered if it had marked me somehow, and would come after me again later on.
Given that today was potentially my last day on this world, that shouldn’t have been a concern.
In moments, the same depression and worry that had enveloped me all week came back.
Because I had a big choice to make, and after a week I hadn’t made any progress.
Once again, rather than think of the future, I focused on the past.
I remembered how amazing it had all started out…
Thanks to a seemingly ordinary twenty-something blonde and her team, the mercenary crew now called Palanquin, we’d started traveling the multiverse about a year ago. Labyrinth, named for her odd dimensional ability that I barely understood, could combine her power with that of another teammate to create portals between worlds.
It was like something out of one of the sci-fi books my fellow book nerd Spire had always been recommending to me back in San Diego. We’d bonded over our love of literature back then, and that experience was serving him well as he took copious notes on each world we encountered. Everett also took notes, but on new ideas for technology as he tinkered with his Tecton armor.
Everyone had something to focus on, and with a new world every week or so there was plenty to see. Labyrinth worked on her art, drawing beautiful landscapes and strange animals, while Newter and Spitfire hunted the latter so others could cook fantastic new dishes for the camp.
Even Scrub had hobbies, using fitness and combat to overcome…bad old habits of his.
I’d known a few Wards with similar problems back in the day, so I’d offered to give him a few pointers. Suddenly, I was teaching classes on combat, tactics, and all kinds of stuff. At least I was good for something, although the other capes with us probably would have been better.
As for Faultline and Gregor, making a map of the multiverse that tracked more permanent portals, intending to eventually sell it to governments in need of particular supplies or resources.
Now and then we’d even come across other explorers or powered people, and having a band of mercenaries along helped with that. It led to all kinds of wild adventures, as expected.
For months, as nervous as it made me to constantly be stepping into the unknown, I was happy because I was surrounded by people I trusted with my life.
Until one day, Gentle Giant spoke, and everything changed.
“I know that monument.”
His voice, so soft despite his size, brought everyone to a halt. Loud conversations, complex tent setups, even Everett, starting up a chainsaw on his armor to cut some firewood…stopped.
We all gathered around the huge Case 53, looking up into his confused visage as he raised a hand, and pointed at a far-off stone object. Then he began to walk, ignoring our attempts to make him wait while we finished setting up camp, having only entered this world minutes ago.
Far stronger than any of us, he continued to talk, quietly speaking about the distant monument.
He’d seen it in dreams and nightmares for years, and now there it was…in reality.
Together we set out to explore, silent as Gentle spoke of his dreams along the way. We weren’t quiet because any of it was particularly poetic or beautiful, more a broken collection of shapes and details. No, what truly captured our attention was how much of his descriptions were later reflected in the world around us.
Given that his only powers were toughness, strength, and being really big…Everett and I wondered how he could possibly have known about the subterranean creatures we felt below the ground?
I overheard someone else muttering about the three moons in the sky, each a different color yet hidden by the clouds until an hour after Gentle had described them to us in detail.
Onwards we traveled, until we stood before what appeared to be a vast monument with millions of names carved into it, all with letters and numbers nobody recognized.
Except for one person, who gazed upon them like an old friend.
“This is it.” Gentle spoke, gently brushing dust from one of the names, a sad smile appearing as he sighed. “I carved this for myself. I don’t remember why…just that I knew nobody else was going to carve my name when I was gone. Then the flying lady came, and said something that made me happy. A door appeared, and the dream always ended there.”
In the distance, we could hear people approaching, and though we tried to make him hide…Gentle refused to move from that spot.
With the same quiet calm as ever, he spoke to the people who soon surrounded him, wearing animal skins and using a language nobody understood. Nobody except Gentle, who seemed to speak it fluently, eventually drawing laughter and cheers from the gathered people.
Soon they were throwing a great banquet for us, replenishing our supplies, partying all night…
…and when it was time to leave, Gentle stayed behind, telling us this was his home.
In the aftermath, most of the Case 53s started writing down their dreams and nightmares. We all knew from talking to Gregor and Faultline that most of us had come from alternate Earths. That our memories may have been wiped, but bits and pieces still remained…as dreams.
Every few weeks, another of our number would find their homeworld, a place that only existed in dreams and nightmares. Sometimes their people would accept them, and other times they’d find a barren world devoid of life and redouble their dedication to our group.
But as time passed, eventually everyone had found their former home and made that decision…except for one particular Case 53.
She refused to keep a dream journal, avoided talking about her nightmares, and changed the subject whenever either came up.
Everyone let her hide from the future, and she was deeply thankful to them for that…
Because I’d come to love this new life of mine, and the people I was with.
Until a week ago, when time finally ran out.
And we found my homeworld.
At first it was just another alternate Earth, everyone falling into their practiced roles thanks to months of working together. We’d learned each others’ strengths and weaknesses, amplifying the former and covering for the latter, and portaling into a forest like this was no big deal.
For instance, Spire used his power to rise far above everyone on a column of stone, looking around to search for civilizations and nearby water sources. Apparently we were in a riparian woodland, a huge forest full of countless streams, creeks, and small lakes, so water wasn’t a problem. As he landed, others were already testing the water and gathering firewood.
Meanwhile, Prefab manifested an armored shelter, ushering Labyrinth and Scrub into it to rest and recover after the last of our people exited their portal. The previous two worlds had been warzones, forcing the pair to make several portals in a row, and now they were so exhausted that Scrub practically had to carry his friend into the shelter.
He’d really come into his own recently, adding muscle to his frame, confidence to his voice, and even some control to his power thanks to a set of gauntlets Everett had made. Still refused to tell us his real name, or go by a different one despite having grown up a lot in the last year.
Even Faultline thought so, having joined our sparring sessions a few times the month before, after sharing that she’d be parting ways with us. Apparently Palanquin had been asked to help one of the Earths with a special project, so they were staying behind.
But rather than stay with her team on Gimel, Labyrinth and Scrub had lobbied to be allowed to keep going. Or rather, she’d told her leader they were going, then stepped on Scrub’s foot and he quickly agreed with her plan.
There had been some hiccups at first, especially since half a dozen Case 53s had stayed back with Palanquin, but soon enough we were humming along better than ever.
Which is why I wasn’t at all surprised to come through the portal mere moments after Prefab and the rest, smiling as I saw everyone admiring this new world. A few had seen me and frozen, but before I could apologize for what they probably saw as making a face at them, they rushed to work. Feeling bad about spooking them, I barely said a word and shuffled off into the forest.
Everett was right behind me, the two of us hopping across creeks and over pits, wordless as his armor’s sensors scanned the soil, radiation, flora, fauna, and other nerdy details. Wanting to make up for my faux pas earlier, I was using my power to create bridges across for him.
I tried to lose myself in his detailed information on the odd round holes littering the landscape, and the trees that seemed to lack branches and leaves. It was certainly odd, how the ground seemed so fertile and covered in bushes, but the trees appeared damaged and burnt.
And because the trees were so short, basically crusty cylinders, I had a perfect view of the horizon. Specifically, I could see a strange mountain in the distance.
One that I found myself staring at, wondering why it looked so familiar…
Suddenly, Everett was at my side, looking concerned and saying that he’d been calling my name for several minutes. I waved off his words, claiming I was just lost in thought, lying and trying to help him test a nearby fruit for edibility by just snatching it up and eating it.
Everett panicked, partially because he’d forgotten that I was just as tough on the inside as on the outside, but mostly because tears came to my eyes after a single bite.
I didn’t have the words to explain things to him, but after only a minute he seemed to realize that the problem wasn’t something that could be solved with an Epi-pen or anti-venom. The pain wasn’t coming from my stomach or throat, but from my heart…and not in a physical way.
Because I knew this fruit, the flavor being far too familiar to just be a coincidence.
Just like I’d recognized that particular mountain I had been staring at earlier.
I’d experienced both in my nightmares for years, and so much more.
Sometimes the nightmare started in a house, as I ate toast with jelly on it.
But eventually it all fell apart, and then we were running, escaping…
The world was crumbling around me, the sky dark, and people…
People dying and panicking, choking on smoke and ash.
A distant mountain, crumbling as it spewed death…
The ground opened up, my family and I fell in…
I barely held on, pulled myself up and saw…
A river of burning death approaching.
The docks swamped with people…
A glowing door, a figure…
Dragging me away…
Then I woke up.
Screaming.
But on the walk back to camp, Everett didn’t press me for any of those details. Nor did he tell the others, though a few of them seemed to sense that something was up with me. Most had left me alone, probably more scared of me than usual since I was glaring at that damn mountain.
I tried to keep myself busy, collecting firewood and turning the fruit into jelly to put in jars for later. But my hands were shaking so much that I just splattered it on everything, getting sticky goo on my clothes, the radio at my hip, and generally making a mess of things.
By the time I got back from rinsing my hands off in a nearby creek, everyone else was already tucking in for the night. But I knew I wouldn’t be able to sleep, and just paced aimlessly.
At some point, I actually fell asleep standing up, leaning against a tree…and then I was screaming as I snapped out of that same nightmare. I’d avoided it for so long, but now it had returned with a vengeance, and woken up the whole camp to boot.
That was the worst part of all…letting everyone see me for the weak coward I truly was.
So instead of going back to sleep or even trying to explain, I’d told them all I needed some time alone to work things out. Their reactions were…confusing, to say the least.
Everett gave me travel rations, his smile brittle and at a loss for words for the first time ever.
Labyrinth hugged me and Scrub punched my shoulder, wishing me luck in my journey.
Some of the others tried to come along, though I had no idea why they’d want to.
Although the strangest one of all (as usual), was Hunch.
“She needs to go alone, or she’ll never find her home. She needs to climb the mountain, and speak to someone who’s been waiting for her words for a long time.” Pointing at the mountain in the distance, the young Case 53 added his favorite line. “But of course, that’s just a hunch.”
I’d nodded, standing tall and pretending like I believed the boy’s precognitive vision. In reality, I just wanted to get away, have some time to figure out a plan, and was glad they all bought it.
Everyone traded a glance when I told them that if I wasn’t back in a week, they should leave without me. But nobody challenged me, and soon I was walking away.
Walking towards the mountain, and the mysterious person who was waiting for me.
Afraid of what I’d find, I had dragged my feet, going as slowly as possible.
That was almost a week ago, and my time is nearly up.
…I still have no idea what I’m going to do.
Not for the first time in the last week, I fiddled with my radio, trying to make it work.
The others would probably be leaving soon, and I wanted to say goodbye.
Or lie to them and say I hadn’t had any luck, and was coming back.
Or…goddamn it! A week! A week and I still couldn’t choose!
So I focused on the radio, instead of wallowing.
Everett had tinkered with it a dozen times over the last year, adding all kinds of functions and tricks, like letting it recharge from ambient heat. It was also tough enough to survive being in my pocket when training, or when the two of us did a different kind of wrestling, so…
I shrugged and whacked the radio a few times, then froze as I heard it pop slightly.
Gingerly opening my fist, I squinted at the radio, but it looked mostly fine.
“Huh, there’s only one light now instead of two. Did I break it?”
“No, but you did finally release the Send button.”
Everett’s voice startled me so much that I nearly threw the radio into a tree, only catching myself at the last second. As my heart hammered, I slumped to the ground and stared at the device, realizing that the little red light next to the button in question was no longer glowing red. I dimly recalled that when it was on the Open channel, the Send button prevented incoming messages.
“Good call.” I took a breath, wincing as my voice shook a little, and realized that the radio smelled a lot like that fruit from earlier. “Oh, I just figured out why the button was stuck. I got jelly on it last week, and it gummed up the buttons on the radio. Just my luck.”
“I was wondering why we couldn’t reach you. Guess our communications were…jammed?” He laughed, and I half-heartedly joined in. After a few moments, he asked, “So…how’s it going?”
“Not great. Nobody to talk to so far other than a hungry bird. So much for Hunch’s hunch.” A sigh, then something else occurred to me. “Hey, if you couldn’t reach me on the radio all this time, why didn’t anyone come after me? Please don’t tell me the search party got lost…”
“Nope, although a few people did offer to go after you.” He paused, and I heard him swallow before continuing with a slight quaver in his voice. “Plus, after the way you left…telling us to leave if you didn’t make it back in a week. It…scared me. I know it’s a big choice for you, and I’ll support you no matter what, but it still really scared me to think I might never see you again.”
Everett’s last few words hit me harder than I’d expected, largely because all week long I’d been wanting to say similar ones to him. But despite the fear in his voice and the distance between us, he’d still been brave enough to share them with me.
“I’m scared, too.” Some of the tightness in my chest loosened, words tumbling from my mouth before I could stop them. My voice was practically a whisper, and I almost whimpered, “God, I’m so stupid, Everett. I wish I’d asked you to come with me, because I’m really, really scared.”
“No way. You’re the bravest person I know. After Ray died, you held me up and stayed by my side no matter what. When Ta—Wea…when one of my teammates defected, you helped me work past it and focus on what really mattered. What could possibly scare you?” I blushed, getting ready to lie and apologize, but he groaned. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to invalidate your feelings. I don’t know why I said all that. Just…you can tell me why, if you want.”
I sighed, leaning back against a nearby rock, frustration welling up as I wished I could just hit it instead of having to talk about feelings. But that had been the PRT’s solution, giving me physical fitness exercises to work off my rage and never digging into why I was always so angry.
I was better than that…better than them, and so instead I let my inside voice outside for once.
“I’ve known for months that we’d eventually come across this world, a world I recognized, but kept hiding from it like it wouldn’t happen. And now that it has, I’m afraid that whether I stay or leave, it’s gonna be the wrong choice. So instead of making a choice, I ran away and hid.”
“But what about Hunch’s power? He said you’d find someone to talk to and—”
“Please, it’s Hunch.” I couldn’t help but smirk, a wet, sniffling laugh sneaking out. “His precog is vague at the best of times…hell, he loses every time we play cards. I used him as an excuse, and I’ve been avoiding my power all week because I was afraid that if I found someone and talked to them…they’d convince me to stay. And if I told you guys, you’d know I was a coward.”
“No, you’re not.” I could practically hear the frown in his voice, the same tone he took when people used to give me shit back on Earth Bet. “Sure, confronting your fears is a part of overcoming them, but avoiding them or asking for help with them doesn’t make you weak or a coward or anything like that. It makes you human. Hell, I get scared all the time, but it happens way less than it used to because I have my friends and my awesome girlfriend by my side.”
Even after all our time together, I found myself at a loss for words, realizing that this was why he’d been made the leader of the Chicago Wards. He kept going, building up a head of steam, and I was powerless to stop him.
But I also didn’t want to stop him, because he was also reminding me why I loved him.
And why it made me feel so good to be reminded that Everett loved me.
“I love you, Gully. You didn’t just inspire me to make my armor or teach me how to be a decent hero, you’ve been my foundation for how to be a good person. The reason I was a solid leader is because I learned from the best, and that’s why we made you our leader months ago!”
“I’m not the leader!” I tried to interrupt, but he was already listing a pile of evidence to prove me wrong. I felt my face growing hot, and wished that I still had enough hair to hide behind. Numbly, my fingers reached up for what little remained, and something else occurred to me.
As I gently touched the colorful strands that had replaced my knotted curtain, I found myself trying to hide in memories of the past again…
Except this time, the past was making Everett’s point for him, and I’d been too blind to see it!
Ever since we set out on this journey of ours, people had been looking to me for advice, training, and leadership. I was the biggest of the bunch, especially since Gentle Giant moved on, and half the time I’d point them at smarter, kinder folks. I was so certain that when they looked into my eyes, saw how hideous my face was, it was scaring them off.
But now that I really stopped and thought about it, Everett’s explanation mirroring my own impressions, they hadn’t been scared at all. Because regardless of what I thought, no matter how much I stumbled or misspoke, they kept coming back for more.
The capes among us, that made sense given my years of training with the Wards. But it wasn’t just battle tactics or training people wanted, and looking back I was seeing civilians far more than capes within a month of leaving.
And not just the ones who knew me from Earth Bet, either! Every step along our journey we’d picked up ordinary folk, outcasts, and exiles, people who wanted to find a better future or had nothing left to lose.
Sure, some still stared from time to time, but after weeks and months of traveling alongside us, they barely seemed to care about stuff like Sanguine’s red skin and Hunch’s hunchback.
Or me, with all my hideous misshapen qualities, scarred up skin, overbite, and…everything that Everett and my team had been ignoring for years.
To them, I was just another colorfully-dressed hero, regardless of how I looked.
To them, I was just Gully, their…leader.
Just as I was afraid that all the blood rushing to my face was going to make me pass out, Everett paused and I cut in before he could continue. “So, what if I decide to stay here? Won’t that be worse, me abandoning you all? If I’m supposed to be the leader, I can’t just—”
“Is she fucking kidding?” It wasn’t Everett’s voice this time, but rather Scrub, though I could hear my boyfriend growling in the background for the other cape to give the radio back. Instead, the former junkie snorted and kept talking, “Gully, if you stay here then I’m staying too. You promised to teach me more kung fu shit, so—hey! I wasn’t done!”
“I’ll stay by your side, as well.” Elle’s soft voice cut in, sounding far away as someone grunted, and I grinned as I realized that she was taking advantage of her height and holding the radio in the air while Scrub jumped for it. “You always seemed so driven, trying to find something that defied explanation. I know how it feels, to lack the words to express yourself…and so as long as you’ve been leading us, I never felt like I was alone. Several of us feel that way. Listen…”
One by one, they passed the radio between themselves, promising to stick around. One talked about the delicious fruits, another said that this was the first Earth that didn’t make his allergies act up, and a younger kid claimed that these trees were made for climbing.
More and more, people talked about feeling safe with me around, all clamoring for a chance to talk to me. Everett and others were in the background, but now the whole camp was getting into it, and I couldn’t just sit around and wait any longer!
I was running down the mountain by then, a powerful feeling sweeping through me that I rarely felt these days.
It was like when a Ward I’d trained caught their first villain and called to brag about it.
Or when my teammates used to thank me for book recommendations.
Or seeing Everett on TV, using gear inspired by my powers…
It was pride, the strongest I’d ever felt.
“Sounds like my prediction was dead on. Good thing I don’t use my power to play cards, or nobody would want to play with me. Anyway, I have a hunch—” Hunch gasped suddenly, cutting himself off as he cried out. “Shit! Gully, jump! Jump now!”
Then the radio moved on to another voice, one I barely heard as that huge bird from before came at me with a dozen more just like it, but I had already leapt with all my might.
I flew high and far, watching them all slam into trees and the ground under me, and by the time they recovered to try again I was already long gone.
I could hear them chasing me, but instead all my attention went to the radio, which finally made it back to Everett’s hands.
Not wanting to be interrupted, he took off running through the forest as well, from the sound of it.
I could hear metal footfalls and leaves being ripped aside in the background, voices receding as he attempted to get enough space for our private chat to continue. But it also exhausted him, his armor not exactly made for sprinting or fast movement, and I only caught snippets of his words.
I focused on my powers, letting them loose at last. With each step, more information on the world around me splashed into my brain. Stronger than before, whether due to emotions or because I’d held them back so long, I felt the history of the land.
Destruction and damage hidden under the soil, soil that was mixed with volcanic ash, thickest around the mountain I’d climbed earlier…which had actually been a volcano!
I nearly stumbled as I sensed the countless bodies below, and instead directed my power towards the coast, seeking the docks from my nightmare.
Though damaged and buried as well, there were far fewer corpses than I’d expected, filling me with a hint of relief that some had survived.
That thought and a thousand more fell aside as I felt a bright shining beacon of hope on the horizon, back towards our camp.
Tecton… Everett …gasping and babbling and running loudly towards me, so I corrected my course to meet him halfway.
With a mighty thunderclap we collided, neither of us hurt and I laughed as I found what I’d been looking for all this time.
When those dumb birds came and interrupted our reunion, we easily made mincemeat of the fatigued fowls.
That night, the camp enjoyed their meat, sat on pillows made of their feathers, and we made plans.
We decided to stay a bit longer, so that I could explore my old world and check on survivors.
For the first time in a very long while, I found that thought didn’t scare me in the slightest.
Hunch had been right. I’d just had to open up, and talk to Everett and the others.
Thanks to them, I’d finally realized that home didn’t have to be a place.
No matter what had happened to the people of this world.
No matter where our journeys took us in the future.
No matter who I’d been before I drank that vial.
All I cared about were my friends and family.
As long as I had them by my side…
I was home.