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Jenny had almost expected everything to look different when she got home. It was all still there, all her things, the boxes on the dining room table. It was dusk when they returned, Tarafau was now Tidbit again, but Jenny saw him with new eyes.
Jenny found she could still mindspeak with Tidbit, even in his cat form. Here on Earth (Jenny found it odd to think of her home that way), she could still communicate clearly with him.
"You will be able to speak with any of the other Guardians who have been given the gift." Tidbit said, his ears perked forward and his amber eyes nearly glowing in the half light. "Your key and your passport have been activated now. You will be able to sense portals by the warming of your key against your skin. And the portals will be able to sense you and will show themselves to you. The key can also serve as a warning device under certain circumstances. It rarely happens, but you should be aware."
The boxes still sat on the dining room table and although they held a new fascination for her, Jenny knew the boxes would have to wait until tomorrow. It had been a long day and she needed to check her email for the missive from Lizzie with her instructions. She knew she was going to have to make arrangements for someone to take over her workload at the freelancer's agency and many similar things. She also realized she hadn't had a single thing to eat since about 4:30 am.
And then it occurred to her. What will I tell my friends? I'll need to get my cover story straight, if I'm going to pull this off. Her heart tugged a bit at the idea of deceiving her friends, especially Sam. "It's like I'm some kind of super-hero, secret identity and all, only without the spandex," she thought towards Tidbit.
"Your mythological super-heroes may have their 'secret identities'" Tidbit replied, a sardonic tone to his thought, "but you were always who you are. You just have an added dimension that your friends are not ready for. Lizzie actually enjoyed it."
Lizzie. How she now wished she had known her better. So far, everyone she had met who knew her seemed to really like her. Jenny had a suspicion that she would have felt the same, if they had had any opportunity to spend any time together. Which reminded her that she still wanted to find out how Lizzie had kept such strong tabs on her. She was beginning to feel like it was some kind of dimensional tech she had yet to be exposed to.
Jenny filled up her water bottle and Tidbit's food and water bowl, made herself a sandwich and a small salad and headed for her office. Her mind was still spinning, and she wasn't sure if she would even taste the meal she had made for herself.
Sure enough, she ate mechanically as she sorted through the day's email. Along with a few spam messages, some communications with clients and an email from the freelancer's co-op, was an email from Lizzie, subject line: "Arrangements".
She was surprised the list of action items was so short:
She closed the email: "Love, Lizzie"
Jenny chewed thoughtfully on the big bite of salad she had unconsciously put into her mouth. For a professional writer, she sure was having trouble finding words big enough to describe the churning of her mind right now. Amazing? Overused. "Awesome?" Too trite. "Enormous?" Too general. "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious?" Closer, but, no. No prizes here.
She mechanically deleted the spam messages and replied to the client's emails. Tomorrow she would begin to tidy up all of her projects and talk to the writing co-op manager to inform her of her "new job". In the meantime...
...But what would happen in the meantime would have to wait for later, as the doorbell broke her reverie.
Sam stood on the porch, in her hiking clothes, one hand on her hip.
"We missed you on the hike today. Were you sick?"
Now it began...
"Actually, I've been really busy. I have a new job and I had to do orientation and get all the paperwork done."
"A new job? I didn't know you'd even applied for something new. I thought you liked free-lancing."
"I was contacted by a head-hunter, privately. They made me an offer I couldn't afford to refuse."
"Wow. That's my Jenny. I knew you'd be famous someday."
"Well not today," Jenny replied, sagging a little with relief that Sam didn't appear to be suspicious at the sudden turn of events. "It's a private gig. Very hush-hush. My name probably won't be made public, as usual, but it pays well, and the bennies are pretty good. Plus, I'll be travelling a lot."
Sam reached out with a ready hug. "Sounds like a blast. Maybe some time you can take me along. Every super-hero needs a side-kick, don'tcha know."
Jenny was startled. Her friend's use of the word "super-hero" was way too close to the mark.
"Well, all the more reason to throw a house-warming party. Now you have two things to celebrate." Sam's eyes twinkled. "And as your bestie, I get to make all the arrangements."
Jenny opened her mouth to speak, but Sam waved her away. "No arguments. I promise to keep it small. Maybe just the hiking club? We can barbeque, and the guys can bring their guitars. Whaddya think?"
Jenny sighed, "All right, but it'll have to be soon. As soon as my passport is processed, I'll be leaving for training."
"So what you're saying is that we finally have time to hang out in your new pad and you'll be gallivanting off into the blue yonder someplace. Well, if that's how it is, I'll have to get as much friend time in as I can."
So, they sat in her living room and chatted and laughed and Sam told her about the hike and showed off her photos of the group against the beautiful canyon scenery. By the time they had wound down, it was late and after hugs and another chuckle about Jenny's new status, Sam left. She put Tidbit out with an admonition to be safe, at which Tidbit sent her a mental "evil laugh" and left, his tail waving like a banner behind him.
She didn't remember dreaming, but when she awoke, she could tell by the tumble of blankets that her sleep had been pretty restless. The sun spilled like handfuls of gold into her room. A new day and so much to do. It was a Sunday, a day she reserved for quiet restful activities. She dressed and went to church, as she had every Sunday since she was very young. She tried to focus on the service, but her mind kept wandering to the boxes on the dining room table. What would she find in boxes 2 and 3?
She pulled up to her house on Infinity Loop and noticed Bob out mowing his lawn. She parked in the driveway. He waved back at her as she grinned and waved. She wondered how much he actually knew about her aunt and her adventures and how she could find out without tipping him to the fact that she was now in what could be considered "the family business".
Tidbit was curled up in the shade of the bougainvillea that climbed over the archway over the wrought iron gate. When he saw her, he stretched as only cats can do from his front paws to his tail, then sauntered over and stropped her ankles.
It seemed only yesterday she had met Tidbit, but in the short week and a half since she first stepped in the door of her house so much had happened that it was beginning to feel like she had always lived here and Tidbit had always been her companion. And yet, what did she really know about him?
"Have a good night?" she thought to him, considering how convenient it was to be able to communicate directly.
"Passing fair. The neighborhood is quiet, and Cinder has been cowering in his backyard unless he's on a leash, so I am content."
Jenny chuckled. It appeared this conflict between the big dog and Tidbit was a thing, and she wasn't going to get in the middle of it, figuratively or literally.
In her kitchen, as she prepared her breakfast, her mind went to the boxes. "This is as good a time as any to see what's in there. Can't do any of the business tasks until tomorrow," she thought.
Tidbit had curled up in his usual sunny spot on the window seat and she sat her sandwich and salad on the table next to the 2nd box. She opened the lid and found what appeared to be a stack of journals. On the top of the stack was a lavender envelope.
She grinned. She wondered if her aunt had really liked lavender or if this stationary set had simply been on sale somewhere.
"Dear Jenny:" it read.
"By now you have met The Gatekeeper. Miriha is a great mentor and resource. She will see you get where you need to be. I expect the fact that you are reading this now means you have accepted the charge to become a Guardian.
I want you to know that despite the fact there have been times I wished for easier solutions to some of the challenges involved, I have never regretted making the decision to do this. What we do makes a difference, as you will begin to see as you progress through your training.
I hope you and Tidbit are getting along. Be sure to always address him, even in your mind, as Tidbit when you are on Earth. The name Tarafau has some significance in a dimensional sense and there are those who would like to find him in his Earth form. That being said, there is more to him than appears, as you will discover.
These journals are a resource for you. They are numbered to make them easy to reference and I have tried to make them clear. You will notice the last one is not up to date. The reason for this is that the journals continue in electronic format on the tablet included in the 3rd box. This tablet may be a bit different than those you are used to, but you will get the hang of it quickly enough. Keep it in your MDP for ease of access.
And that's all for now. The 3rd box contains some equipment that I have found useful. Put the entire box into your MDP. You will want it during your training.
Love, Lizzie"
Jenny decided to skip reading the journals for now. She sealed the 2nd box, tapped it and the 1st box with her wristband and the box shriveled and passed into the wristband. It was odd, she felt like her arm should weigh many pounds by now, but it still felt like a light plastic wristband. Shaking her head, she opened the 3rd box.
There was no note on top of this box, but it contained a number of things, some of which did not seem out of the ordinary and some of which she could not identify. She recognized the tablet at once, however and removed it.
It resembled any one of a number of generic tablets. The screen appeared to be about 8 inches tall and it was black. But try as she might, she could see no buttons along it's edges, nor were there any ports for attaching earphones a usb or a charging device. She felt along the edges, not trusting her sight, and there was nothing. "OK, Tidbit," she thought to the cat with a frown, "how do we open up this cute little piece of tech?"
"Touch your key," Tidbit replied, opening one amber eye lazily.
Jenny reached up to her throat and touched the tiny key. The screen on the tablet flickered to life. The icons on the screen seemed clear enough and she touched the one that looked like a small book.
Aunt Lizzie's smiling face looked up at her. She appeared much older than Jenny had ever seen her and her face was pale, not tanned as in the photo of her and Tarafau. "Oh, there you are!" Lizzie looked straight into her eyes. It didn't seem to be normal video, feeling almost three dimensional. The screen was indeed flat, but it looked as if she could reach in and touch the little key around Lizzie's neck.
"It's great to be able to reach out to you this way. In this journal you will find many helpful resources, as well as an abridged version of my story and how I got started in all of this. Reading this between now and when you start your training may help you get through it easier than I did. However, I don't intend to tell you all of the specifics. Some things must be experienced to be understood.
In this box I have included some of my favorite tools and tech. You needn't sort through all of them at this time but be sure and store them in the MDP. You'll want all of it at one time or another as you go along.
Any questions?"
Jenny shook her head at this. What? Questions? Lizzie had paused, her head cocked slightly as if waiting for a reply.
"What are you?" was the first thing that came to Jenny's lips.
LizzyAI laughed a warm chuckle deep in her chest. "No, I'm not back from the dead. This is me, but not me. I created an AI assistant for you and figured it would be more fun this way. I may not always have the answers you seek, but I know a lot. Most of what I know is referenced in the journals. Just invoke me by saying my name and I will answer."
"Cool..." was all that Jenny could think to say. "What else is on this tablet?"
"You'll find a number of apps that are very helpful, weather, time schemes for different worlds, historical information as you go on new assignments, political briefings and so forth. Oh yes, and Candy Crush," she added mischievously. "You may find yourself doing more waiting than you'd like, sometimes."
Jenny shook her head. This was all too much. But her aunt's warm and humorous nature had a soothing effect. Between Tidbit and LizzieAI, she wouldn't really be alone in this. She began to feel like this was going to be doable after all.
"What kind of assignments?" was the next logical question.
"In the beginning, it will mostly be meet and greet. You'll need to get to know the other Guardians, otherwise known as 'agents'. You'll be introduced to the first several 'friendly' dimensions and, at some point, you may end up doing some undercover work. You aren't exactly a spy, but there are some of the cultures we don't know nearly enough about and not all are members of the Alliance. The rest they'll tell you at your mission briefings, since things tend to change quickly in the Dimensional Alliance."
"Is there anything you left off of my to-do list?"
"I don't think so. Just get it all done as quickly as you can and get in touch with Miriha. That and don't forget to feed the cat." The corners of her eyes crinkled with silent laughter. "He gets grumpy when he's hungry. Not that he needs the cat food, really. Tidbit is a mighty hunter."
Tidbit opened his eyes to slits. "A cat can eat just so many pigeons," was all he said, but the tone was sardonic.
Jenny laughed.
LizzieAI then spoke up. "I'm supposed to tell you that from now on, you just need to say, 'Lizzie', to initialize the tablet. The connection from the key to the tablet has already been made."
"How do I charge it? There are no access ports."
"The tablet is self-charging. It's Dimensional Alliance technology. It actually uses the electrical charge in your body to charge. And not to worry, it won't drain your body's battery," she added with a grin. "This tech is not as bulky as ours is. This tablet, with all its applications takes a fraction of the system resources of Earth tech with many multiples of capability and storage."
"Awesome," Jenny breathed.
"And I am also to caution you that this tech must not fall into the hands of anyone on your Earth not authorized by the Dimensional Council. It contains applications that your planet and dimensional culture are not ready for, at this time. It will come, but like the MDP, there are too many ways it could affect your culture in a way that will be detrimental. Experience has shown us that each culture must progress at their own pace. When new tech is introduced out of sequence, even the simplest things can wreak unexpected consequences.
Speaking of which, you need time to assimilate all of this. I suggest enjoying the rest of your day. You have a lot to do tomorrow."
The tablet went black and Jenny didn't attempt to turn it back on. Assimilate? She felt like a grain of sand in a centrifuge. Her mind was spinning so fast that she wasn't even entirely sure what she was thinking.
She realized she had finished her meal and had not tasted a single bit of it. She decided she would take Lizzie's advice. "Good plan," injected Tidbit. "You should take a nap." And, taking his own advice, he curled up in a big fuzzy ball with his tail curled over his eyes and went to sleep.
