Twin Earth
Chapter 44

It felt like years had passed, even though I knew it had been just seconds since we had been engulfed into yet another black void. Appearing where we were now felt like waking from a long sleep. Even my head felt fuzzy and confused and for a moment I actually wondered if this whole adventure had just been a bad nightmare and that when I finally opened my eyes I would be back in my dreary bedsit waiting for that asteroid to pass by, but sadly I was wrenched back to reality with Rachel slapping me hard against my already battered cheek.

“Wake up!” Rachel shouted in my ear, causing me to immediately cover my head and groan.

“Where are we?” I coughed.

“Not in a gloopy cell that’s for sure,” Rachel replied, pulling me to my feet.

“How long were we travelling for? I feel like I’ve aged decades.”

“These stars Tom, I don’t recognise them at all,” Rachel replied, ignoring me.

I brushed my hair from my face and stared around at our new surroundings. A vast rocky landscape greeted us, with steep mountains covered in snow and ice, but the breeze around us felt warm. There was even sand beneath our feet as we stood confused on the edge of an immense beach that stretched for miles into the distance.

“Wow,” I whispered.

“I know, isn’t it stunning. Where do you think we are?”

“We can breathe at least,” I mumbled, realising how refreshed my lungs felt from finally leaving the confines of wherever we were before. “And it’s warm? But how is that possible with... snow?”

Shaking her head in similar confusion, Rachel bent down and played with the damp sand that was gently being soaked by the lapping of the ocean behind us and I was intrigued to see her whole body glow as she moved.

“Do that again,” I remarked suddenly.

“Do what again?”

“I don’t know, just move about. No wait, it’s on me too,” I replied in astonishment.

“What is?” Rachel asked confused, brushing her hands and standing up again. “Hey, you’re glowing!”

“So were you, just now. Why is that?”

“Do you think it has anything to do with not feeling the cold?” Rachel replied intrigued.

“Maybe. Do you really have no idea where we are?”

“None at all. I don’t recognise the star systems even in this low light and look, there’s a distant ringed planet by that set of stars, and another over there. I have never seen that before.”

“Do you think we’re still in the Andromeda galaxy?” I exclaimed, also realising I didn’t recognise any of the star systems either.

“I have no idea. It is absolutely breath-taking though. A perfect, Earth-like planet, billions of miles, if not galaxies away from our own.”

“Well, I wouldn’t say it’s perfect just yet. Who knows what’s lurking behind those mountains, and where is everybody? Where’s these bloody creators?” I retorted, looking around. “I also see the black void we got sucked into has disappeared, leaving us stranded here now.”

“It’s better than a gluey cage,” Rachel replied sarcastically, walking off.

“Where are you going?” I asked, running to catch up.

“If you weren’t so busy moaning...”

“I am not moaning, Jesus Rachel,” I interrupted.

“If you weren’t so busy moaning Tom, you would have noticed that over there.”

“What the hell,” I replied, looking over to where Rachel was now pointing. “What is it?”

“How the hell should I know, but it’s the only thing around here that isn’t sand, sea or mountain so I thought I would go and find out. Do you have any better ideas?”

Raising my eyebrows in a mix of annoyance and excitement, I followed Rachel as she squelched along the quick-sand like beach and towards the silhouette of what could only be described as a man squatting on top of a pile of logs. I was hoping it was a weird rock formation, but a part of me knew it would never be that simple.

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