Chapter 22
At first, Petra wasn't sure what was going on. She was awake, but still in darkness. She wasn't breathing again, but she was aware. Was she dead?
She sat up in the darkness and looked around. There. Morty's collection was behind her, and Elle's ancient dress suspended next to it. She was still in Morty's realm, but his cabin had vanished completely. There was no sign of him or Despair, or those creepy cages, but Darius' body was still lying on the 'ground' nearby.
Nick was there too, sitting cross-legged a few meters away. As she stood up he followed suit, but didn't speak. His face and hair were burned with horizontal and vertical stripes, but he didn't seem to be seriously injured.
"What happened?" Petra thought about it for a moment, and felt for her own pulse. Still no life signs. "Why am I even alive?"
"Long story short, you got through to Morty." Nick shook his head. "You saved my life, and Despair's life, and probably every other fade on earth. You're a hero."
Funny. Being a hero still felt like being normal. "Where did he go? Where's Despair?"
"She went back to earth after Morty let us go. He told me that you were right. She was just afraid. They all were. There was no reason to punish them, even after they approved the plan to kill him. He just needed time to realize that."
Petra felt very strange. Not at all like the last time she'd been altered. She was used to no life signs, but now it felt like her whole body was tingling. No, more like thrumming. "What did he do to me?"
Nick hesitated. "He realized the fades would never stop hounding him, so he took the deal. He transferred his energy- all of his energy- into you, and then ended up in this thing," he lifted the ruby circlet.
Petra closed her eyes and tried to remember. Behind her eyelids, flashes of light repeated. Then they exploded outwards, brighter even than the electric flashes she'd endured in Vancouver and the island! Songs flew past her, their tones shifting as they sped up. Then books, pages shifting in her mind. Then datastreams, millions and billions and trillions of symbols all intermixed and intermingling. It was an explosion not of light, but of information.
Petra staggered backwards, opening her eyes again. Only they weren't really eyes anymore, were they?
"Petra?" Nick stepped forward, concern etched on his face.
"I'm all right," She assured him quickly. "It's just all the information hit me at once. It takes some getting used to, that's all." Being told what Morty had done, must have unlocked it somehow.
She smiled at his confused look. "Now I understand why Morty refused to give up his power! It wasn't greed, or imperiousness, or stubbornness. He was doing his job. Our dimension-" she cut off briefly, realizing the implications. "Your dimension, is just one of many realms that Morty was keeping track of. Chuck was right: Morty was kind of like an air traffic controller. He monitored fades and other creatures over multiple dimensions. I guess that's my job now."
"You're the new Morty," Nick whispered, but it was as loud as a shout to her. Petra could hear his breathing, his heartbeat, his digestion. She could hear the ant moving around in his jacket pocket!
Petra thought about it for a moment, and then changed her form. Her eyes changed into pinpoints of light, and her body became amorphous and tinged with many colors.
"Whoa," Nick said, his eyebrows shooting up behind the sunglasses. "Petra the fade."
Satisfied with her little test, Petra retook her old form. All of that information, including instruction manuals apparently written by Morty in the seconds before giving up his power, was hers to access. It was all in her head. She knew how to make that stone slab out there now. She knew exactly what fades were made of, and how they had come to be.
"I'm sorry," Nick said, cutting into her thoughts.
"For what?"
"It's a pretty long list, actually," he admitted. "For doubting you: you really were worthy, just of a different job than the one I thought. For letting my pride and disappointment in Darius blind me to what you could do. For lying to you about my motives. Most of all, I'm sorry that you can never leave this dimension. You're stuck here now, partly because of me."
Petra nodded. "It's not so bad, really. I have the knowledge of dozens of dimensions in my head now, so I doubt I'll get bored. And when you think about it, my time on earth wasn't all that rosy. I had a job, but it kept me at a distance from people: always looking at them through a lens instead of connecting with them. I had a friend, but it turned out she was just using me to get to Morty. I never knew the real Didi- I can see it now. Despair possessed her just to use me. Didi won't even remember me when she wakes up. The last two months will be a big empty space to her. I had a boyfriend too, but he was just evaluating me for a job that he wanted, and that I never asked for. I'm breaking up with you, by the way."
Nick chuckled. "That's fair."
Petra gestured at the Ruby Torc in his hands. "Can that thing really turn Morty into a human being? None of the information up here is about earth, so I can't be sure."
"Well, yes and no. When I take it back to earth and shatter it, Morty will be released. Then he'll be born, grow, live and die. Reincarnation-style. He'll get what we offered: a human life on earth."
Petra frowned. "How is Elle supposed to know which kid is him?"
Nick lifted the Torc. "I'll give the pieces to her. According to legend, they should lead her to him." He looked around. "Morty's collection should go to her too. When Morty's old enough, she can give them to him and explain what they are."
"Sounds like a good idea." Petra wasn't sure which of them she felt more pity for. Elle would have to wait a few decades before she could tell him everything, but Morty would have to deal with all the baggage from a previous life he knew nothing about. At least if what she'd heard about reincarnation was accurate. Petra shook her head. "I take it you'll be running the Veil, like you wanted?"
He hesitated. "At least until I can set up some elections. We've never had a change in leadership before, and there are hundreds of Veil agents, support staff and analysts. I owe them a chance to choose who's in charge. I think even Darius would agree to that." Nick looked sadly over at Darius' body.
Petra wasn't sure that was the best idea. "Elections? Really? Modern democracy is starting to get a bad reputation, you know."
Nick nodded. "Agreed, but I think we can handle it. Having a college degree is a requirement for Veil membership, so at least they have a chance to make an informed decision."
"Now for the big question: What about the fades? Their big problem was that all this power was in the hands of one person. Morty is gone, but I have all of his power. Will they accept that?"
"Well, you've never committed genocide, so there's that. Also, you risked your life to save a fade- arguably the worst fade ever. That'll probably win you a few points." As usual, Nick had a gift for seeing the details Petra often missed.
She smiled. "Just the same, I'm going to do something for the fades. It's been bugging me ever since I first started learning about them." Petra closed her eyes, partitioning off the energy that Morty had taken from the Despair faction, and then released it. "There. I've sent the Despair faction's energy back to earth. They all have access to it now."
Nick looked confused. "So.. every fade on earth just got a little bit stronger?"
"No, but they can use that energy to create new fades. Before, only Morty could do that." She shook her head. "It always bothered me that fades could die, but they couldn't be born. There's only so much energy to go around, so they can never go above a certain number, but at least they can feel what it's like to procreate now. Maybe that will make it easier for them to relate to humans."
Nick crossed his fingers. It seemed like they'd done most of the housekeeping conversations, and now were down to the goodbyes. "Will you bring people in weekly, like Morty did? Just to keep in touch I mean."
Petra thought about it, and a timer appeared in her mind, counting down from seven days. "Done. I.. wish I could be there for the funeral. Could you say hi to Chuck and Colin for me? Tell them they're free to visit any week."
"Will do." Nick went over to pick up Darius' body.
Petra felt a pang of sympathy. "Allow me," she said abruptly, and gave it another thought. In an instant Nick, Darius, and almost all of the earth objects in here were gone, sent back to their home planet. Petra sighed, having willed herself into having life signs again.
