It was just the opening Fehin needed. “I overheard you talking about my future, Gunnar. I’d like you to tell me what’s really going on.”
Gunnar turned. “If you overheard then you know as much as I do. All I can tell you is that the message came through loud and clear. You are to be in Milltown, Massachusetts on September sixteenth, 2021. And that’s where I plan to take you.”
“What was all that about pre-ordained and my destiny then?”
A rare smile came across the druid’s face. “How else could I describe it? I’m not privy to where these messages come from or even what they mean. I do my part to fulfill them and I don’t question the gods.”
“The gods? What gods?”
“Shall I call it a higher power, Fehin? I don’t know what gods sent this particular message.”
“Loki?”
Gunnar shook his head. “This did not come from Loki.”
Loki and Odin were the only gods Fehin had come into contact with other than Freyja and her handmaidens. He knew the pantheon of Norse gods and a few Celtic gods and goddesses from what his mother had taught him, but other than that he was at a loss. “Are there gods where we’re going?”
“The gods aren’t recognized as such. There’s only one god the people worship.”
“Which one is it?”
Gunnar shook his head. “You wouldn’t know him.”
Fehin stared at the druid willing him to go on, but Gunnar had nothing more to say on the subject. “Maybe once we get there you can stick around for a while,” Fehin muttered. “I’m sure I’ll need you.”
Gunnar stared into the dense fog that indicated the beginning of the timeline distortions. “That won’t be possible. I’ll try to fill you in on what you need to know while we travel but after I see you settled I must leave.”
When the first time shift hit, Fehin lost his footing and fell heavily to the deck, bruising his knees. He’d been so caught up with his inner thoughts that he hadn’t prepared. He hung on and stayed where he was as the boat twisted and turned. By the time the boat settled again he was too enervated to even think. And so when Gunnar began to talk he heard the words as if from a distance.
This world you are about to enter is filled with stimulation. There are lights and noise and people everywhere. I’ve already explained the various vehicles that rumble up and down the streets. You’ve seen them before but you may not remember. All of this will make it hard for you to concentrate. But concentrate you must for the classes you will be attending will be especially difficult since you have no knowledge to fall back on. You must rely on your intuition. If you take in what I have to offer, you’ll be better prepared. After a few weeks you’ll become accustomed to it all. But under no circumstances are you to reveal who you are and where you come from.
Fehin listened to the druid’s droning voice as though hypnotized. He could feel the information pouring from the druid’s mind into his own, making him dizzy. He fell asleep to the sounds and didn’t wake up again until the boat had come to a stop. “Where are we?” he asked, sitting up and rubbing his eyes.
“We’re in Boston Harbor.”
“Did you talk all night?”
The druid nodded and then moved toward the companionway.
Fehin shook his head, trying to remember anything the druid had placed in his mind. He hoped he’d taken it in because when he looked outside, the sight of the busy chaotic harbor, the noise level and the disturbed thoughts he was picking up telepathically made him want to cover his ears and hide.
6
The Otherworld, 2021
“Wake up, sweet one.”
Airy opened her eyes to see her father’s smiling clean-shaven face bending over her.
“Today’s the day.”
Airy groaned and rolled over, pulling the covers over her head. It was barely light out. But a moment later she heard her mother’s impatient voice calling up the stairs. “Harold, is she up? We need to be out of here in less than an hour to make the plane!”
“Come on, Airy. This will be great. And you haven’t seen your grandparents for a couple of years now. Just think what fun you’ll have with all your cousins. We’ll stay until you’re settled.”
Airy sat up and looked at her father. Despite his positive speech he didn’t look very happy. “At least I know you’ll miss me.” When her father’s arms came around her she leaned into him, trying hard to stop the tears that threatened to spill over.
He let her go too soon and stood up. “I hope you packed last night.”
“I did.” Airy climbed out of bed and headed for the bathroom to wash her face. Despite her feelings yesterday about this being a good thing she felt heavy and uncertain. When she looked in the mirror there were dark smudges under her eyes and she didn’t recognize the combined expression of terror and sadness in them.
MacCuill was in the lower hall when Airy dragged her bag behind her down the stairs.
“The boatman is waiting,” he said, grabbing her bag.
“But I haven’t had breakfast!” Airy felt whiney and small but she couldn’t stop herself.
“That’s your own fault, Airy. We woke you in plenty of time. Honestly, what have you been doing up there?”
Her mother was annoyed with her, and Airy’s eyes filled with tears. She was about to leave for who knew how long—the least Maeve could do was be nice to her on her last day. “Where’s Kenneth?”
“Your brother is staying with his friend Aidan until we get home. I told you to say goodbye last night. Did you?”
“No. I forgot all about it.”
“Well, it’s too late now.”
Maeve’s impatience was getting on Airy’s nerves. She wished her mother would stay home and let her go with her father and MacCuill. Anger rose up and before she could stop herself she was screaming at the top of her lungs. “Why are you treating me like this? I hate you!”
“Don’t talk to your mother that way!” her father yelled as she streaked through the door. She ran toward the horse pen and when Facet came to the fence she buried her face in his mane letting her tears fall onto his fur.
A hand came onto her shoulder and she looked up to see MacCuill’s deep blue eyes gazing into her own. “It’s time to go,” he said, taking her hand and leading the way down the hill. Her mother and father waited ahead of them, their faces turned her way.
“Why is Mama being so mean?”
“Maeve loves you, Airy. I don’t think she’s excited about having you so far away.”
“But this entire thing was her idea.”
MacCuill shook his head. “This isn’t her idea. It came from the goddess of prophecy.”
“What? But my parents…”
“They’ve been making the best of things. It’s been very hard on both of them.”
“I don’t understand.”
“No one does, Airy. That’s how destiny’s work.”
At the bottom of the hill the river came into view, tendrils of pale mist obscuring the water. The boatman waited, his oar in his hand. He’d been here longer than anyone, even the druids, his boat moving up and down this river for as long as time itself. He was blind and Airy had never grown used to his milky eyes and right now he seemed to be staring directly at her. She always had the impression that the boatman could see in another way, maybe from a sense that only he had. She smiled in the hopes that she was right.
“Come along, Airy,” her mother coaxed, holding out her hand. Airy took hold of her fingers and stepped into the coracle and settled next to her mother on the narrow wooden seat. MacCuill and her father sat in the other end and without a word the boatman put his oar into the water and they moved swiftly forward into the swirling fog.
***
They ended up in Bailemuir where her maternal grandparents lived. After a very short visit with them, her father borrowed one of the cars and headed toward the Edinburgh airport. Airy was in front next to her father, her mother and MacCuill in the back, and when she stole a look at him his expression was resigned. He didn’t like this any more than she did.
Once they parked the car in the long-term lot Airy felt something stir inside her belly like air bubbles floating around. She was scared out of her wits at what the future might hold. Now that it was upon her, the talk of destiny didn’t sound nearly as glamorous.
At the counter MacCuill produced her passport and handed it to the uniformed woman. When the four of them went through security the stern-looking guard looked her over carefully, checking the picture in the little book to make sure they matched. Airy had done this before but it had a different feeling this time.
Airy spent the entire trip in a state of panic. This was the beginning of something she had no control over and hadn’t wanted to do in the first place. And underlying all that was the idea of an unknown destiny that was already laid out for her. How in the world could she navigate something she couldn’t see? The strange feeling in her solar plexus was back, the pulling sensation growing stronger as they flew across the Atlantic Ocean.
She finally fell asleep, her dreams taking her to a light-filled land with gods and goddesses, dragons and other strange creatures. There was someone there with her but she could never catch a glimpse of who it was. She knew this couldn’t be the United States and it certainly wasn’t the Otherworld. When she woke the images scattered like snowflakes in wind and she was back on the plane. Her hand went to the middle of her stomach. She felt heat under her fingers as though it had something to tell her. But when she asked she got no response.
7
Boston Harbor, 2021
“Get your things together, Fehin. Time to head to Milltown.”
Fehin looked out the porthole at the massive array of enormous ships, registering the heavy sounds that beat like drums in his ears--banging, crashing, people yelling, the drone of something in the air he couldn’t see. “I don’t like it here,” he muttered, turning to pack up his clothes.
“You don’t have to like it,” Gunnar said. “Milltown will be better.”
“I was there. I remember it. But I was little then and thought it was exciting to be in another place. I don’t feel that way now.”
“I’m not going to apologize for this, Fehin. Nor am I going to sugar coat what your life will be like. Things have changed since the last time you visited and not for the better. But this is what is required and this is what you will do.”
Fehin stared hard at the druid who had always been kind to him. This was not a kind speech and the tone was less than soothing. “I don’t know what I’m supposed to do.”
“First thing is to get you enrolled and settled. After that you’ll have a crash course in anything you can’t remember.”
“Remember?”
Gunnar’s gray eyes narrowed. “Yes. Everything I told you on the way.”
Fehin tried to remember details but the lump in his throat kept him from accessing anything. He couldn’t understand why Gunnar was treating him like this. And when he tried to probe the druid’s mind he came up against something solid. He grabbed his bag and followed Gunnar off the boat and into the chaos of the modern world. He wanted to plug his ears and shut his eyes but instead he gritted his teeth and climbed into the waiting taxi Gunnar flagged down.
Fehin felt as though his head was about to explode. There was so much assaulting his senses, including the nauseating smells of diesel and gasoline. His eyes were drawn to billboards advertising everything from electronic devices, to insurance, whatever that was, to hospitals, to companies with names that meant nothing to him and luxurious places to stay with sumptuous rooms and huge pools to swim in. Ads were on every available surface, including cars. There were too many thought forms floating around in the atmosphere and mostly they were dark and negative. The place diminished his spirit.
Once they left the city limits he searched for trees, green grass, anything that resembled home, but instead muddy pens came into view crowded with cattle, the stench making him gag. “What’s going on there?” he asked.
Gunnar glanced over and then made a face. “Holding pens before they’re slaughtered.”
Fehin tried to stop the tears that sprang into his eyes. The animals on Thule were well cared for until the day they were killed and the way it was done prevented them from knowing what was coming. Fehin had handpicked the people for this job. Meat was not the mainstay of their diet, but they did eat a lot of eggs and cheese. Mostly they consumed the fruits and vegetables they grew, seasoning them with herbs.
He saw other similar pens as they moved down the highway, each one worse than the one before. Other than that he saw no other animals or birds as they drove along. “What types of wildlife live here?”
“Not much of anything anymore. Most of the animals and birds have died out from pesticides and over hunting. There are still some zoos around but I doubt you’d want to see them behind bars.”
“You’re right about that,” Fehin said, thinking about books he’d read. Thule was filled with Fehin’s creations—strange creatures that his seven-year-old mind had conjured. Since then others had arrived, birds that landed from far off places, animals that appeared on their own. Wild pigs roamed through the mountains as well as sheep and all sorts of ground squirrels and rabbits. The place was teeming with wildlife.
“Do you want to call on Carla or have me arrange for a dorm room?”
Fehin turned his attention back to the druid. “I don’t want to stay with Carla,” he replied. The idea of barging in on this friend of his mother’s without any warning set his teeth on edge.
“All right then—straight to University.”
***
Somehow Gunnar managed to enroll Fehin, even picking out several classes for him. These included history of the world, political science, ancient history, physics and a college math class for non-math majors. His major was history.
The dorm room proved to be more difficult since all of them had been spoken for, but with some magic Gunnar was able to free one up. Fehin didn’t question how he did it.
He shared a room with a boy around his own age who barely looked up from the device in his hand when Fehin arrived.
“We need to get you a phone,” Gunnar said, watching him.
“Is that what that is?”
Gunnar nodded. “Good thing I have a lot of the local tender on me,” he said.