Chapter Two: Herald from the Other Side

Skott’s job proved enough to afford a fair-sized house with a modest backyard. A typical suburban setup.

“Hey, Skott,” Nessa said from the other side of a faux-granite kitchen counter.

“Yes, Nessa?”

A woman two years younger than Skott with a cute button nose, curly hair, and high cheekbones grinned at him.

“Well,” Nessa began. “I was going to go take a shower before heading out.”

“Sure thing.” Skott nodded. “Mi casa, su casa. And all that.”

Skott stayed behind to sip on a glass of fresh water. Naturally curly locks bounced about as Nessa hopped merrily up a flight of stairs and out of sight.

They’d met at the office Christmas party last year. Nessa was Coopcorp’s dashing front desk secretary. All winter and through spring they’d sort of just bounced around each other’s homes depending on which one was most convenient. Today, of course, they were at Skott’s house. Dating, in the ‘we’ve never officially declared so we just kind of live together now’ sense.

Skott sighed, and the melancholy feeling from earlier in the day took time to abate. Usually, he had to sleep on it. Dreams of his time in Aeirun, as vivid as if he’d never left, kept the nostalgia at bay.

There was a rumbling as the shower turned on. Nessa, his de facto belle, had moved dozens of hair and body wash products into his home’s primary bath. Had a fancy loofah and a bonnet to keep her hair dry until it was good and ready to be washed. Whole nine yards. She’d be up there for at least an hour, maybe two. This left Skott with not but that empty feeling.

Stories never went into what happened after a happily ever after. As Skott of Omaha, he’d slain a long line of elvan kings. Crowds hailed him as the ‘great liberator.’ He’d established a provisional government with a triumvirate alliance of orcs, goblins, and humans. He‘d spent his last month on Aeirun getting to know his very best friend and ally in the other world. Everyone knew his name, and he’d departed that world as a hero. Back on Earth, he was just… Skott.

Oh, the lessons he’d learned in his ‘coming of age’ gap year were invaluable! He entered college as one of the most functional freshmen of all time. Juggling classes was nothing compared to balancing the logistics of an armed rebellion. His physical fitness had been top-notch—and remained so, thanks to the good habits of steady training and exercise he’d developed in Aeirun. Skott of Omaha had traveled to the other world, saved the day, and returned with a bevy of life lessons that aided him in his ordinary life to this day.

Why, then, did he still feel so unfulfilled?

--

It was on this day, less than ten minutes into Nessa’s shower, that a strange noise sounded from Skott’s backyard. A cracking noise, like glacier ice splitting apart or a tree splintering as it crashed to the ground, came from right outside Skott’s window.

He recognized the sound implicitly, instinctively. It was the sound of a portal between worlds cracking open. An oval-shaped passageway just wide enough for an average-sized human to jump through. Just like Skott had happened upon in a field on his graduation day from high school.

Skott ran to the back door and threw it open. He arrived just in time to see the tear in reality close over near his fence. His heart dropped for just a moment; he’d missed his big chance to go back! But there, standing in his yard…

“So, this is the fabled Omaha from which the great hero hailed?”

… stood a green-hued young lady in adventurer’s gear and holding a standard iron sword.

--

“It’s Boston, actually,” Skott said. He pointed at the young woman. “You’re from Aeirun, right?”

It was important to ensure this surprise guest wasn’t from some other, other world.

“Indeed. So, this is not the fabled Omaha?” the woman held her thumb at her chin. “I sense this is a far distance from Omaha. How will I find the great hero?”

“I… I moved, kid,” Skott said. “Your portal’s gone, are you stuck here?”

“Not at all!” she said cheerily. “Greetings, Earther. I am Lucy-Kignora, sigil bearer of the orc-clans and seeker of the great hero of the liberation wars.”

Lucy, huh? Skott eyed the young woman curiously. My grandmother was named Lucy. I think the only person in Aeirun I told about my family was…

“Name’s Skott,” he said. “Before you say anything else… want to come inside?”

It wouldn’t do to have a neighbor spy a member of a fantasy species walking about in his yard!

His new guest, Lucy-Kignora, had a somewhat goblin-esque countenance about her. On closer inspection she seemed to be half-orc. Kignora, he’d known a few orcs with similar clan names in his time. Lucy here was young; Skott couldn’t help but muse that she probably wasn’t even alive while he and his party were on their adventure.

“Hello, Skott of Boston,” Lucy-Kignora said as she stepped into his home.

“I’m… from Omaha. I just live in Boston.” Skott opened his refrigerator. “I’ll get some water for your journey. Huh. Guess you’ve never tried a soda before.”

“So… da?” asked the young orcess.

She was definitely a half-orc, Skott determined. The body had a stocky build that was more human. Goblins were far shorter than Lucy here. She had an orc's mighty incisors, but lacked the taller, stockier build. Indeed, if he had to guess, he’d say she was half-human as well.

“Here, try this.” Skott opened a fizzy cola and handed it to the half-orc.

“Such an interesting container to hold a pint!” Lucy-Kignora held the can at an odd angle. With some prompting from Skott, she downed the drink.

“Ah!” Lucy declared. “Like the sweat-mead that the clan won’t let me drink until I’m of age! I simply must bring more Sow Dah back to my world!”

“About that…” Scott began, then poured himself some water. “You’ve got a way back? I mean, I could offer my place as an inn for stranded transdimensional travelers, but…”

That would be a tough one to sneak past Nessa, went unsaid.

Lucy-Kignora nodded. “Yep. Portal magic has been perfected in the last decade. Why, it allowed me to input precise coordinates in my search for Skott of Omaha. You appear to be of Clan Skott as well. Do you know where I can find Omaha-Skott?”

“It’s…” Skott barely stifled a chuckle. “I am—was— the hero you seek. Skott of Omaha.”

Silence reigned. The half-orc looked Skott up and down. All the while, the shower continued apace, water audible through pipes in the walls.

“Pfft.” Lucy snorted. “You’re far different than how my mother describes you. You’ve grown fat.”

Skott rolled his eyes at this uncouth guest. He couldn’t help but notice a specific shade of brunette in her hair. And a relatively cute button nose for an orc. Both were familiar features, traits relatively uncommon on Aeirun.

“Say, kid. Your mother. Who is she?” he asked.

“Why, none other than Lamora, high priestess of Clan Kignora!”

The world froze for just an instant. Skott felt his heart flutter, then everything began again. The shower door opened.

“Hehe, forgot a towel,” Nessa yelled into the hall, oblivious to the meeting below. “Not even halfway done. Back at it!”

The shower door closed once more.

“Who is she?” Lucy-Kignora wore a slight pout on her face.

In his stupor, Skott ignored the question.

“Lamora still talks about me?” Skott said, eyebrow raised.

“Every day.” Lucy wriggled her eyebrows slyly in response.

His heart rate picked up slightly. “Well… is she here?”

“No, I’ve taken his quest of my own volition! To retrieve the great hero of the liberation wars and return him to Aeirun!”

Skott looked up at the ceiling. He had maybe an hour of free time left, max.

“I… can stop by for a bit. But if you want a more formal visit, I’ll have to work things out. With my job, and with, well.”

Lucy nodded. “Your cohabitation partner. I completely understand. Some ruse will be required. But as proof of concept, you simply must follow me back to Aeirun, if only for a minute. To see how the land has changed in your absence.”

“These portals… they’re consistent?” Skott asked.

“They can now be opened at will!” Lucy beamed. “Why, there’s even advanced blood magic rituals for tracking. Sounds ominous, sure, but we were able to track you down even so far from Omaha!”

Skott pulled a napkin off the kitchen counter and a pen from out of a drawer. He hastily scribbled out a simple excuse—he ran to the nearest convenience store to get some milk real quick. If Nessa was gone by the time he returned, this ought to allay her suspicions.

“Okay, good to go,” Scott declared.

--

The pair reconvened in the backyard. Lucy-Kignora had a ring on her left hand’s pointer finger. An engraving on this ring was shaped suspiciously like a portal.

“So, your mother. Uh, did she ever remarry?”

Lucy looked up at Skott of Omaha. Her eyes were a deep blue – another feature not of Aeirun.

“Never wed. Well, mated clearly. Hence why I’m here.”

Skott let out a rough exhale through gritted teeth. “Yeah. Clearly.”

Nothing’s certain, the man thought. Not until I hear from Lamora. There’s all sorts of reasons why a half-orc adventurer could summon a portal to my suburban home and invite me back.

With a swishing motion, Lucy summoned forth a portal. Reality seemed to fold, then warp as the back yard fence was obstructed by an ovular doorway to another realm. A familiar, human breeze wafted out of the Aeirun jungles, now readily visible on the far side of a simple wormhole. With a single step, Skott would have one foot in Aeirun and another on Earth.

“Just a quick jaunt, fifteen minutes, then I’m back,” Skott said under his breath.

“This way, brave hero! Come see the world you have left for me!” Lucy-Kignora said, rather cheerily.

“Hey, Miss Lucy,” Skott said before she could dive through the portal.

“Yes, Skott of Omaha or Boston?” Lucy tilted her head.

“How old were you again?”

A smile revealed the two full fangs that made up an orc’s mighty incisors.

“Why, I turn sixteen next moon!”

Skott ground his teeth. He was not a stupid man. He’d done the math in his head already. In fact, he’d kind of assumed she’d say that. The timing… neither of us would have known by the time I had to return to Earth…

“I… do really wish to see Lamora,” he managed. “I suspect we have a lot to talk about.”

I’ve wished it every day for over a decade.

“Then off we go, brave hero!” Lucy grabbed Skott’s hand and urged him towards the portal.

Back in the saddle again, Skott thought, putting his trepidations aside.

With a shallow breath to better acclimatize to the alien air, Skott stepped through a portal to Aeirun for the second time in his life.