through the opening, pulling my whole body after me, scrambling into a few centimeters of water. It was dark. Dark and scary. But the chickula offspring seemed to be biting me less and less—perhaps they were in retreat mode—and I did a double-time low-crawl toward where I guessed the pump to be. I found it by banging into it with my forehead, a metal wire grating covering the hatch. I used my spork to pry off a hinge, pushed the grate back, and then slid under the drainage pump and to a plastic panel. It opened with a palm strike, giving me access to the dry—and chickula free—crawlspace.
I climbed through, shutting the panel behind me, sweating and heaving and swallowing the tasty remains of the babies still in my mouth. A sliver of light winked at me a few meters to my left, and I pulled myself across the aluminum ceiling and found a duct for the air conditioner. Two kicks and it was detached, allowing me to drop down onto a sofa in Sata’s living room.
I brushed the remaining chickulas out of my hair, wiped the dead ones from my clothing, and then took in my surroundings.ed tachyon emission visualizered to THE RIGHT TO REMAIN…G
I’d recently been in Sata’s home on my earth, and it looked a lot like this home, save for one huge difference: this house was a pigsty. The furniture was ripped up, dirty, ruined. There was garbage and filth covering everything. All the foliage had died, or was in the brown near-death stage.
“Your hands aren’t bleeding.”
I spun, noticing Sata had snuck up behind me. But rather than the formidable bodybuilder I had expected, this Sata looked like a shell of his former self. He was still short, and Asian, but the Japanese kimono he wore was stained and torn, and it hung on a bony, pale body. His hair, like his features, was limp. The Sata I knew would never let himself go like this. It was as if he’d become a dissy.
He took a step toward me and stumbled, falling to one knee.
“Are you the Talon-kun I knew from the parallel earth?” he croaked. “The one I trained?”
“I don’t know. But I’m not from here.”
“Neither am I. I was taken here, locked away, while my doppelgänger committed crimes against humanity in another dimension. He worked with an alternate version of Talon to send Boise, Idaho to a dinosaur planet.”
“That sounds a lot like what I’ve been dealing with.”
“If you are he, maybe there is hope.”
He began to cough, and I heard the rattle in his lungs.
“Sata-san, you… I mean that alternate version of you… gave me a nanopoison.”
He nodded, slowly. “I know the poison you speak of. I was threatened with it. There is an antidote in my doppelgänger’s laboratory.”
I remembered where the lab was, and headed for it.
“Wait!” Sata commanded.
I halted.
“That’s where its lair is,” he said.
“Whose lair?”
I didn’t think it possible, but Sata’s face got even paler. “The byter.”
Chapter 5
Alter-Sata (who thought of himself as the original Sata because on his earth he
was
the original Sata, even though this wasn’t his earth) lead Talon’s ex-partner Teague through the streets to his rental apartment, where earlier that day he had sent a dissy to the dinosaur planet. Half an hour ago they’d gone to Alter-Sata’s favorite tea stand for two cups of oolong. The tea had been excellent. The conversation, not so much. Like the Teague Alter-Sata had known, this Teague was also one of the dullest knives in the drawer. Repeating the same points, over and over, was giving Alter-Sata a headache. surrounding sci?” I asked“Yes.”
“So you aren’t the Sata who trained me?” Teague asked, for the fifth time.
“No.”
“But you trained an alternate version of me?”
Alter-Sata rubbed his temples. “Yes.”
“Does this alternate version have both of his hands?” Teague raised his stump.
“I believe he does.”
“So I could find the other me, and take his hand.”
“What if he doesn’t want to
I climbed through, shutting the panel behind me, sweating and heaving and swallowing the tasty remains of the babies still in my mouth. A sliver of light winked at me a few meters to my left, and I pulled myself across the aluminum ceiling and found a duct for the air conditioner. Two kicks and it was detached, allowing me to drop down onto a sofa in Sata’s living room.
I brushed the remaining chickulas out of my hair, wiped the dead ones from my clothing, and then took in my surroundings.ed tachyon emission visualizered to THE RIGHT TO REMAIN…G
I’d recently been in Sata’s home on my earth, and it looked a lot like this home, save for one huge difference: this house was a pigsty. The furniture was ripped up, dirty, ruined. There was garbage and filth covering everything. All the foliage had died, or was in the brown near-death stage.
“Your hands aren’t bleeding.”
I spun, noticing Sata had snuck up behind me. But rather than the formidable bodybuilder I had expected, this Sata looked like a shell of his former self. He was still short, and Asian, but the Japanese kimono he wore was stained and torn, and it hung on a bony, pale body. His hair, like his features, was limp. The Sata I knew would never let himself go like this. It was as if he’d become a dissy.
He took a step toward me and stumbled, falling to one knee.
“Are you the Talon-kun I knew from the parallel earth?” he croaked. “The one I trained?”
“I don’t know. But I’m not from here.”
“Neither am I. I was taken here, locked away, while my doppelgänger committed crimes against humanity in another dimension. He worked with an alternate version of Talon to send Boise, Idaho to a dinosaur planet.”
“That sounds a lot like what I’ve been dealing with.”
“If you are he, maybe there is hope.”
He began to cough, and I heard the rattle in his lungs.
“Sata-san, you… I mean that alternate version of you… gave me a nanopoison.”
He nodded, slowly. “I know the poison you speak of. I was threatened with it. There is an antidote in my doppelgänger’s laboratory.”
I remembered where the lab was, and headed for it.
“Wait!” Sata commanded.
I halted.
“That’s where its lair is,” he said.
“Whose lair?”
I didn’t think it possible, but Sata’s face got even paler. “The byter.”
Chapter 5
Alter-Sata (who thought of himself as the original Sata because on his earth he
was
the original Sata, even though this wasn’t his earth) lead Talon’s ex-partner Teague through the streets to his rental apartment, where earlier that day he had sent a dissy to the dinosaur planet. Half an hour ago they’d gone to Alter-Sata’s favorite tea stand for two cups of oolong. The tea had been excellent. The conversation, not so much. Like the Teague Alter-Sata had known, this Teague was also one of the dullest knives in the drawer. Repeating the same points, over and over, was giving Alter-Sata a headache. surrounding sci?” I asked“Yes.”
“So you aren’t the Sata who trained me?” Teague asked, for the fifth time.
“No.”
“But you trained an alternate version of me?”
Alter-Sata rubbed his temples. “Yes.”
“Does this alternate version have both of his hands?” Teague raised his stump.
“I believe he does.”
“So I could find the other me, and take his hand.”
“What if he doesn’t want to
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