See what happens on plane 187 in the next Divinity Healers series installment
A first look at Chapter One!
City of Asclepius, Country of Chiron, Dimensional Plane 187
Dr. Gerard Fauchet tried to hide the spark of jealousy he felt when he looked at his childhood friend, Dr. Sebastjan Walter. Sebastjan nodded politely as his father’s guests moved through the receiving line to congratulate him on his new marriage. The son of the Medical Supreme, Sebastjan had lived an easy life. His family had money, position and political power. Medical Supreme Walter was easily the highest ranking official on the planet and he was in charge of allotting all of the planet’s medical research funding. To a world obsessed with medical advancements, research funding was like air and bodily sustenance.
Gerard focused his attention on his friend. It wasn’t Sebastjan’s birthright or money or power or position that made the pang of jealous filter over Gerard. It was Sebastjan’s new wife—Ariella. A true, exotic beauty, Ariella came from an alternate dimension of reality. Ever since Gerard heard about inter-dimensional plane travel, he’d become obsessed thinking about it. He never really wanted to be a doctor. It was just what everyone on his plane had to become. He much rather spend his days reading and learning about culture and history than studying one of the over abundantly available medical books that filled every home and office.
Like most nice homes in Asclepius, the front room of Supreme Walter’s mansion was overly sterile, each surface hard and unwelcoming but for a few engraved curls and wisps decorating the borders. Marble and metal blended together with great square columns to form self-sterilizing walls. However, the Medical Supreme did have a vast array of items collected from other parallel universes. Gerard found himself staring at them, wondering about those other worlds. What kinds of places were they to dedicate so much time to books that told unreal stories and to creating things of elegance and beauty for the mere sake of elegance and beauty?
When he looked at Ariella, he thought of all the things she knew—non-medical things, small facts that would mean nothing to her but would provide endless fascination for him. The women on his plane talked like doctors, thought like doctors, were mostly doctors. Not Ariella. She was a Sans, a non-doctor. Sans Ariella. And the very idea of her captivated him.
“Dr. Fauchet, how good of you to come,” Sebastjan said.
“How could I not?” Gerard answered his friend. The loneliness that welled within him as he looked at Ariella became almost unbearable, so he hid it behind a playful smile and flirtatious wink.
“Couldn’t miss my reception?” Sebastjan asked, skeptical.
“I couldn’t miss the Medical Supreme’s summons,” Gerard corrected. “You didn’t think everyone was here to see you, did you?”
Ariella gave a short burst of laughter at the insolent joke.
Gerard winked at her but continued talking to Sebastjan. “Apparently, I am to host two off-plane dignitaries coming here to learn our secrets. However,” he turned his full attention to Ariella, “while I am here…”
He wasn’t a fool. All the thoughts running through his head would never come to fruition. Though he found her very pretty, he didn’t know her, not really. He would leave the mansion and perhaps only cross path with her a handful more times in his life. Her tiny secrets would remain hers as she lived out her days as a doctor’s wife.
“Sans Ariella,” Sebastjan introduced, “my childhood playmate and local lawbreaker—”
“That is distinguished gentleman and dignitary host,” Gerard corrected.
“Dr. Gerard Fauchet,” Sebastjan finished.
“A great pleasure,” Gerard said, his playful eyes studying Ariella’s face. “And it was only one tiny law fourteen years ago. There was a medication mishap, it was hot and it was only the male chairmen who complained about my nakedness. I swear I am a reformed man.” Sebastjan cleared his throat. Gerard laughed, not showing a single second of remorse at having been caught flirting with the new bride. Leaning into Ariella, he whispered, “An even greater pleasure to see you’ve managed to make Sebastjan jealous over you.”
Ariella blushed. Sebastjan frowned at them. Gerard bowed his head and moved on.
“What? No present?” Sebastjan mumbled after him. Gerard laughed, but didn’t turn back around.
* * *
New Order Society, Dimensional Plane 303
Dr. Cecilia Markos stared at her foot, absently following the lines of her citizen number with her eyes. “One. Zero. Eight. Seven. Five.” She didn’t need to read it to know it. The tight, neat script had been inked into her flesh the day she was born. It concealed the new implants the government instated as an enhancement to the anti-chaos movement.
One. Zero. Eight. Seven. Five.
Those numbers were everything—her money access, her doctor credentials, her purchasing rations, her identification. Everyone living in the New Order Society had a designation. It was the only way a society could thrive. There had to be order to chaos.
It seemed strange then, that she would be going to a place where those numbers meant nothing. A tiny shiver of fear washed over her. A few months ago, she’d never dreamt that visiting an alternate universe was possible. Now, she was to be one of two women going to a new world—another plane of existence, another reality, their world but not their world.
An entity called Divinity Corporation had mastered the science of inter-dimensional travel and, two years ago, they had made contact with Cecelia’s plane. Already a few of her people had gone through the portal gates to new dimensions. When Politician Shinclus first approached her, she’d thought he’d needed medical attention. The existence of the portals weren’t common knowledge amongst her people. But, she’d since seen it for herself. She watched as people appeared out of nothing, carrying strange objects traded from other realms.
A few short months and so much had changed. All the waiting and planning, reading and studying, worrying and pretending not to worry had all led to this day. Today, she would be traveling to an alternate reality.
The New Order Society plane was only one of four-hundred-thirty-six mapped dimensions used by Divinity—each as different as the last. Some had vampires and werewolves, some had faeries and gnomes, and some had humanoids so alien her dimension’s species were hardly compatible. Many of them, like hers, had never even heard of dimensional travel or portals. Some societies were obsessed to the point of compulsion and some so brutal they enjoyed watching gladiators fight to the death. One thing many of them seemed to have in common was chaos. Utter, uncontrolled chaos. New Order Society thrived on anti-chaos—no unconformity, no inappropriate behaviors, and absolutely no crime.
Looking at an alternate reality was supposed to be like seeing your world had history changed. There were many similarities. Languages were relatively similar. Some people had the same appearance, but were not the same people. Certain events like natural disasters could be shared. People were human-like in appearance and functions, though she had been told of a race of people that didn’t have toenails.
Cecilia wiggled her toes, wondering what they’d look like without nails. Then, sighing, she stood and reached for her best one piece suit. Red material belled around the legs and led up to tightly-fitted hips and a looser bodice. The sleeves were long, falling past her hands. She brushed her hair back from her face, trying not to think about the fashionable crimson red streak she’d been forced to get rid of. Apparently, this medical plane she was going to didn’t have the same fashions. In New Order Society everyone sported a bright streak of color in their hair. Just because they were orderly didn’t mean they couldn’t be fun, too. Well, that and the streak proved the wearer had been to their mandatory grooming appointment by the lack of a line of demarcation where the new growth came in.
Taking a deep breath, Cecilia pulled on her boots, whispering, “It’s only for a couple of months. It will be fine. It’s only a couple of months. I’ll be able to make it back. Everyone else has made it back home.”
Despite her words, she wasn’t so sure.
Coming 2013