Chapter 4

"First, let me introduce myself," he went on, looking at me. "My name is Hypatius. And I must apologize for my English. It is nowhere as good as that of Affron or Valleia. They are un—er, incomparable at learning languages. Also, I am quite out of practice. There is a time for traveling among worlds, and then comes a time when one moves on to other things. I am only here because I do have some small competence in your language."

His accent was strange—the "V" in Valleia sounded more like a "W", for example. There was so much I didn't know, but I decided to start with Carmody. "Why are you here?" I asked him. "What's going on?"

"Because Valleia asked me to come," Carmody replied. "She is a very persuasive woman. I wasn't much use at the trial, though. As for what's going on now... I think we need to find that out from Hypatius. But obviously this trial didn't turn out for Valleia—or Affron." He didn't seem happy about that.

"Well, is the trial over?" I asked Hypatius. "Can I go home?"

He sighed and scratched his head. "You see, things have taken an unexpected turn, I'm afraid. It seems, er, that neither of you will be going home."

He spoke that last sentence a bit like it was a question, which was very confusing. "What do you mean?" I demanded. "Valleia said I could go home after Affron's trial."

"Yes, and it was going quite well," Hypatius said. "But then some things were said that concerned Tirelius and the others. So I'm very sorry to say that you will have to stay here on Terra—with me, actually."

"Stay here? For how long?"

"Ah, well, that was not decided."

"I have to go home!"

Then Carmody said something to Hypatius—in Latin, it appeared. Hypatius responded quickly. They went back and forth for a minute, and then Carmody spoke to me. "It appears that your testimony suggested that Affron was some kind of danger to Terra," he explained. "And those judges seem to think we have been contaminated by him somehow. Although how this applies to me is certainly unclear. I never even met the man."

"I'm sure you will be able to appeal," Hypatius said. "If there has been an un—injustice, the pontifex will address it."

"You need to address it now!" I demanded. "Valleia said I could go home right after the trial!"

"I fear that promises made by Valleia are of no interest to the pontifex," Hypatius replied.

"Before they carried her off she said that she was going to destroy the pontifex and everything he stands for," Carmody added. "It was really a very powerful speech."

Hypatius rubbed his cheek. "It is a speech for which she'll pay dearly, I fear. But come—I offer both of you my hospitality. I live simply but comfortably, not far from here. It is an inconvenience for you to be here on Terra, I know, but we shall have to see what the future brings."

See what the future brings? How had I let this happen to me again? "It's not just an inconvenience—my family is going to be looking for me," I pointed out. "The police... everyone. You could go to the portal—to Via—right now and take me home, couldn't you? What's stopping you?"

"I'm afraid you understand nothing of using Via," he replied. "Or of what happens if one disobeys Tirelius. There is, of course, much that you don't know. I can perhaps explain some things to you, if you are interested. But again, let us go to my home. You must be hungry. I offer you a fine meal and excellent wine. You will be well treated while you are here, and perhaps soon this will all be resolved."

Hypatius pushed himself up with difficulty from his chair. I looked pleadingly at Carmody. But what could he do? He simply shrugged. "I believe we have to accept his invitation, Larry."

So we followed Hypatius out of the room. The outer room was almost empty now. Those who were left bowed to Hypatius as he passed and gave Carmody and me the usual puzzled looks. Hypatius moved faster than I'd expected for someone so overweight. We went down another staircase, and then out another door. It was twilight now; Mom would already be getting worried.

We were on the other side of the palatium. We walked along a small path to a large circular drive where open horse-drawn carriages were lined up. Hypatius motioned to the driver of the first one. It pulled up, and the driver got down to assist us. He was a short, stocky man wearing a yellow robe and a straw hat. He bowed separately to each of us.

"It is a fine evening for walking," Hypatius said, "but I think perhaps a ride will be pleasant. I haven't the energy I used to possess."

Hypatius struggled a bit getting up into the carriage, but with the driver's helped he settled himself in the back seat, and Carmody and I sat facing him. The driver got up and started off. We went along a wide, straight road lined with trees. A few people were walking on a path by the side of the road. Beyond the road on both sides were more buildings.

Hypatius waved a hand. "This is the City," he said. "Urbis, in Latin. The home of Via. The beating heart of Terra. The center of our lives. You were here last night, William—may I call you William?"

Carmody nodded. "I stayed with Valleia."

"Excellent. A wonderful woman. Devoted to Affron. As you saw, perhaps too much so. Did she tell you about Urbis?"

"A little."

"Well, perhaps I should repeat a bit of its history, for Larry's benefit."

Carmody shrugged. "As you wish."

So Hypatius told us the story of the beginnings of Urbis.

It began centuries ago. A simple peasant named Hieron was climbing a hill when he came upon Via. A magical, invisible portal that led him to other worlds, many filled with wonders beyond his imagining. Hieron could, of course, have brought back some of those wonders—an invention, perhaps, or the cure for a disease—and used them to obtain wealth and power on Terra. Or, he could have stayed in one of those worlds and left his hard peasant life behind.

But Hieron was not such a person. He believed that the portal had been left there by the gods—not for his benefit, but for the good of everyone on Terra.

Terra in those days was filled with warring nations. Roma, where Hieron lived, had been powerful for a long time, but it was in danger of being overrun by nomadic tribes from the north and powerful empires to the east and south.

"There was a Roman empire in my world," Carmody pointed out. "And in Larry's, too, I imagine."

I nodded. "But I thought it went away a long time ago."

"Yes," Hypatius replied. "That was the case in many worlds we have visited. But hardly in all. In some, the Roman empire did not collapse, but stayed strong and vibrant for many centuries, as it did here. But always there was war here, generation after generation. Everyone was tired of war and worried about the future. Everyone was looking for an answer.

"In our world, Via was the answer."

Hieron slowly brought others into the secret, Hypatius explained. Like Hieron, these men and women were wise and interested in the good of others. They decided they would learn what they could from the other worlds they visited, and try to apply that knowledge to making Terra a better place. This was a project they knew would last much longer than their own lives, but they dedicated themselves to it.

And gradually Hieron's vision transformed his world. The priests of Via gained ultimate power in the Roman empire, and they built Urbis as the center of their power. The empire was peaceful and happy, thanks to Hieron and the gift the gods had given him.

"The statue in front of the temple of Via," I said. "That's Hieron?"

"It is indeed," Hypatius replied.

"And they took power without using weapons from the worlds they visited."

This had been Carmody's idea in coming to my world. His world had primitive muskets, which would have been no match for the guns you could buy all over the place in America. Bring some of those guns back, and the United States of New England would have had no trouble defeating its enemies.

The comment seemed to make Hypatius uncomfortable. "Yes, Hieron and his followers did not use such weapons," he replied. "That was not their way. They relied on persuasion, on making life better for people. They did not want to rule by force, but by virtue."

"That's not an easy thing to do," Carmody noted.

"Yes, of course," Hypatius agreed. "But they were remarkable men and women. They were not without their flaws, of course, and neither are we, who have followed in their footsteps. But I have traveled to many other worlds, and none are as successful as ours."

"Valleia seems to think that your current leaders are destroying Terra."

Hypatius scratched his head. "Well, of course we can't pretend that there are no disagreements here, no controversy. We have learned much since Hieron, and we face far different problems. The solutions are not always obvious. But we do our best."

"Where does Affron come in?" I asked. "Why are they so upset with him?"

"Yes, Affron," Hypatius replied. "There is a certain... magic associated with Affron."

"Magic? Tirelius asked me about magic."

"Hmm, yes. Some say he has been touched by the gods. Some say he has been to the world of the gods—the gods who gave us Via."

"Do you believe that?"

"Ah, such things are unposs—impossible to know. He is certainly an interesting and powerful person. Many expected him to be the next pontifex, even though he is quite young for such an honor."

"What will happen to Affron and Valleia?" I asked.

"I cannot say. They are in trouble, of course. But as for punishment... I don't know. They have many supporters here in Urbis. It might be prudent to be merciful, to work out our differences."

"Valleia said that the future of Terra was at stake. Is that true?"

Again Hypatius scratched his head. "Some say so. Tirelius wants to take the empire in a different direction. Others disagree with his plan. Who is right and who is wrong—that is not for me to say."

We turned onto a side road. Soon we were in what looked like a town center with a small park in the middle, and a plaza surrounded by small shops. In the park someone was playing strange-sounding music on a flute-like instrument. Beyond the park were narrow streets lined with single-story houses. The carriage pulled up in front of one of them.

"Here we are," Hypatius said. The driver helped him down, and Carmody and I followed him. Hypatius produced a couple of coins from his pocket and handed them to the driver. "Let us enter my home and leave our cares behind," he said, gesturing at the house.

Fat chance I was going to leave my cares behind. My mother would be totally freaking out by now. She'd have called Kevin and Vinny and all my friends. She'd have called Dad, and probably the police. And I was supposed to relax.

We went inside the house. We walked through a small entrance way, filled with frescoes and little statues in niches in the wall, and into an interior courtyard filled with plants and flowers, with an opening in the roof and a fountain below it in the center of a pool. The other rooms were off this courtyard, which Hypatius called an atrium. He led us to seats in the atrium, next to the fountain. The place would have been pleasant enough, if I'd been in the mood.

"Now wine!" Hypatius exclaimed. He called out something in Latin. In a few moments a girl about my age appeared with a tray on which were a couple of jugs and three cups. She set the tray down on a table and poured red wine from one of the jugs into the cups, followed by water from the other jug. Then she bowed to each of us as she handed us a cup.

The girl was thin, with short blonde hair and gray eyes. She was wearing a simple dark green robe. She stared openly at Carmody and me—taking in our faces and our odd clothes—until Hypatius spoke sharply to her. She bowed to him again and went back inside.

"Palta will have dinner for us shortly," he said. He raised his cup. "Meanwhile—to Via!" And he took a long gulp of the wine.

I took a sip from my cup. I had never drunk wine before. It tasted a little sour, but it seemed to warm my blood, and maybe calm me down a bit. I decided I better not drink very much of it.

"What do we do while we're here?" Carmody asked Hypatius.

"Ah, first we will find you more suitable clothing—you can't go around looking like that. People will find it confusing, perhaps even distressing. Then..." Hypatius shrugged. "You will be guests of Urbis. We will want you to stay in the city of course, but really, there is no reason to leave. Everything you could want is right here."

"How large is Urbis?" I asked.

"Ah, large enough. It has grown over the centuries, and we have had to move the city walls more than once. We are in inner Urbis—the temple of Via is at the center, of course. It is surrounded by official buildings and residences—the palatium where the trial was held, of course, and the pontifex's residence, and the schola, where the best students in the empire prepare for their roles in our priesthood. The military barracks are nearby, and other such buildings. Beyond this area are little castella—villages, neighborhoods—like this one, where we officials reside. And then there is outer Urbis—the castella where the rest of our residents live: the carpenters and masons and wheelwrights and seamstresses, and so on. Wonderful people, so devoted. This is a lovely city."

Hypatius nodded and poured himself more wine. This time he put only a little water into it.

"I can see why you might not want weapons," I said. "But why don't you have electricity and automobiles and stuff like that?"

He nodded knowingly. "Yes, you come from a world filled with such things. So many wonderful inventions—marvels of human ingenuity! Is ingenuity the word I want? When Hieron visited such worlds, at first he thought the people who lived in them must be gods. But you know better, don't you, Larry? And eventually Hieron did, as well. Ingenuity is not wisdom. Inventions do not necessarily increase happiness. There is much to be learned from other worlds, but that was perhaps Hieron's most important lesson. He took what mattered, and left all the rest behind. And that included electricity and automobiles. And even medicines—ah, that was a hard choice, and one we still debate. But come, dinner must be ready. Palta!"

Hypatius heaved himself up out of his chair, took the wine jug, and led us into what was apparently the dining room. Torches were lit on the walls, and in the center was a low, three-sided table surrounded by couches. Apparently you reclined while you ate, because Hypatius got carefully down onto a couch, lay on his side, with pillows propping up the top of his body, and gestured to us to do the same. I did it, but I felt stupid and uncomfortable. Palta brought in a plate of fruit, and we ate some grapes and figs. This was followed by slices of roasted pork and fresh bread, which we were supposed to dip into a dish of olive oil, followed by a dessert of roasted almonds. There wasn't any silverware; there weren't any napkins. You took what you wanted from the plates, and you wiped your mouth with your hand, or your sleeve.

Palta served us in silence. She didn't make eye contact; she didn't stare at our clothes. Her expression never changed. Meanwhile Hypatius kept drinking wine and praising Terra, and Via, and Hieron—and himself. He was a viator, like Affron and Valleia. A viator was a traveler, someone who used Via to go to other worlds; only viators wore those purple robes. It was the most prestigious role in the entire priesthood of Terra; only the most talented, most dedicated people became viators. They were the ones who brought back wisdom from other worlds, and tried to provide wisdom to those worlds in turn, like Affron with his sermons. But Hypatius thought the role had outlived its usefulness. "We have the wisdom we need," he said. "Better to stay here on Terra and implement that wisdom. That is what I have chosen to do. And, of course, traveling to other worlds is not without its risks. Some viators never return from their journeys, alas. And that is such a waste of talented people."

He then started talking about his important role in overseeing trade regulations or something. I couldn't follow any of it. Maybe it was me, or maybe it was him—after a while he sounded pretty drunk. When Palta came to take away the nuts he pulled her down onto the couch next to him and patted her thigh. "Palta is a good girl," he said to us. "But quiet." He turned to her. "You should make some noise once in a while, my little sparrow."

Palta removed his hand from her thigh, stood up, and left the room without saying a word. Hypatius sighed. "So young," he murmured. "So..." he didn't finish the sentence. He got to his feet and stood unsteadily by the couch. "Nothing to be done," he muttered. "But I must show you your cubiculum. Bedroom, as you say in English. It has only one bed, but I hope it will suffice." He bellowed something to Palta, and she returned with a lamp. He led us back out into the atrium, then into a small, plain room with nothing in it but a bed and a low table. "Very nice," he murmured, "very nice. Toilet across the atrium over there," he said, waving his hand vaguely.

He left the lamp on the table, then staggered out of the cubiculum and into another room towards the front of the house. We could hear him muttering to himself as he went.

Carmody and I stood there, listening to him.

"Well," Carmody said finally. "We meet again, Larry."

"Why did Valleia want you here?" I asked.

He shrugged. "She found me while looking for you—I'm not sure how. At first she thought I could help persuade you to come here to Terra—you're the person Affron wanted. That wasn't likely, I explained to her. But I also explained to her about my other problem."

"You were stuck in my world, once the portal disappeared."

"Indeed. I was living in a cheap motel in the next town over from Glanbury, working as a laborer and cursing my decision to use the portal."

"Did she offer to take you back to your world?"

"She suggested that it might be possible. What did I have to lose? But you, Larry—you had a lot to lose. You were home with your family, weren't you? Safe and sound, at last. Why are you here?"

Why? I couldn't begin to explain it. "I guess I wanted to help Affron," I said.

Carmody shook his head. "That can't be all, can it? I expect you were bored, after all your adventures in my world. You wanted something more than your ordinary life, something different."

"I suppose it's something like that."

"I fear you've gotten more than you bargained for."

"You, too."

"Yes, perhaps."

Carmody went off to use the toilet, and I thought about what he had said. Had I been bored? Maybe, just a little. But that wasn't it; that wasn't why I had stepped back into the portal. Was it?

Carmody came back a few minutes later. "Indoor plumbing was certainly one advantage of your world compared to mine, Larry," he said. "I'm pleased to see Terra has it as well."

"I kind of got used to chamber pots and outhouses."

"Well, in your world I got used to flushing toilets and hot showers."

I went to the bathroom myself, and it made me homesick. No light switch; no shower stall; no toothbrushes. Instead I saw a couple of gross little statues of a naked man and woman. As I crossed the atrium I heard activity from a room at the back of the house; it was Palta cleaning up, I supposed. Back in our cubiculum, Carmody had found a thin blanket that he he'd placed over the bed. He was sitting on the edge of the bed and taking off his running shoes.

"What do you think will happen to us?" I asked.

"I haven't the slightest idea. I'm very worried about Valleia—and Affron, I suppose. She explained a bit about the turmoil here. This man Hypatius seems eager to minimize it, but it is serious. It turns out there are weapons here—very powerful weapons—and Tirelius and his followers want to use them to expand the priests' empire to cover all of Terra. Valleia, Affron, and others are opposed to this. And that seems to be the reason Affron was put on trial."

"That doesn't sound like what Hieron wanted."

"No, it doesn't. But we seem to be on the losing side at the moment. Which may make it difficult for us to get back home."

Carmody got into bed. I took my shoes and pants off. I felt my cell phone in my pants and took it out. I tried calling home—and how stupid was that? Nothing happened. Here my phone was just a hunk of metal and plastic.

I got into bed next to him. The mattress and pillow were thin. But I was used to that sort of thing from Carmody's world. I was used to sharing a bed with someone. I was used to a lot of things that a kid from Glanbury shouldn't have been used to.

We talked a while longer, and then I turned off the lamp. After a while I heard Carmody starting to snore, but I couldn't get to sleep. The noise from the kitchen had stopped. Back home, was Matthew asleep? How had Cassie's rehearsal gone? What was Kevin doing? And Vinnie Polkinghorne, and Nora Lally, and Stinky Glover, and all the other people I knew in Glanbury?

Were they worried about me? Did they miss me?

Somehow I didn't feel the same sense of... desolation that I had felt that first night with Kevin when we were in Carmody's world, stuck in a refugee camp in Boston and then later in a jail. You wanted something more than your ordinary life, something different. I thought about that dizziness I had felt sitting on the ground with Valleia as I tried to make up my mind whether to leave with her. It was as if my mind had actually gone away someplace on its own—somewhere out into the multiverse—and found it hard to come back.

I loved my family.

But here I was.

I must have fallen asleep eventually, because I had the sense of waking up and wondering where I was, what was going on.

Then I remembered about Terra, and Valleia, and Carmody lying on the other side of the bed, and my heart sank.

Something else was different, I realized. And then I understood what it was.

A figure was standing silently in the doorway to our room, staring in at us.

It was Palta.

I sat up in bed, my heart pounding, and stared back at her.

"Whatever you do," she whispered in English, "do not trust Hypatius."

And then she disappeared.