TimeLabs Inc (Romantic Sci-fi - LGBTQ)

Climax - Part 3 (RSD 3.6)

Will blinked as he saw four strangers enter the large ballroom. It took him a while to work out that only one was female because they all had hair long enough to reach their shoulders and two of the men looked for all the world as if they were wearing dresses. He tried hard not to judge - perhaps they were foreigners. The sole woman, dressed in a rather odd outfit like a boiler suit, was tottering on the highest heels Will had ever seen. Two identical male faces were reflected in the crystal chandeliers - twins perhaps?

Automatically, he looked across at Ken to share the moment, but, as usual these days, Ken refused to meet his gaze. Ken hadn't wanted to come on this trip, had refused point blank in fact, until somehow he had got the idea into his head that maybe he'd get his leg back. He was insistent that would be a happy enough ending for him. As far as he was concerned, he said, Will's letter had killed their relationship stone dead. He would be perfectly happy if he never saw Will again.

Will, on the other hand, was hoping desperately that they would win and the miracle ending would be that Ken had never opened that damned letter, or that he (Will) had never written it in the first place.

He thought back to the telegram they had received only this morning. "WILL AND KEN STOP INVITATION STOP DESTINATION HAMPSHIRE TONIGHT 20:00 HOURS STOP YOU HAVE BEEN NOMINATED TO COMPETE IN THIS YEAR'S CUPID AWARDS FOR THE BEST WAR ROMANCE STORY STOP WINNER WILL RECEIVE PRIZE OF A HAPPY ENDING STOP TAXI WILL BE WAITING 18:00 TO TRANSPORT STOP OORAH!"

So extravagant! All those unnecessary words for a telegram, the writer would have been better advised to send a letter express post. What on earth was an Awards ceremony anyway? Award for what? Had Ken won a medal of some sort? He read the telegram for the third time but it didn't make much more sense than the first. He handed it to Ken, who had been hunched over the daily paper, studiously ignoring him.

"Here, this is addressed to you, too."

Ken took it, his lip curling as he read the telegram. "What rubbish is this? Who sent it?" he asked, turning over to check the back.

"I've no idea. It must be some sort of joke. I don't suppose we'll go," Will added.

Contrarily, Ken changed his mind. "You do what you want, but I'm going. At least I'll get out of the house for the night."

To Will's surprise, the taxi arrived promptly that evening as promised. He was disconcerted to find it being driven by a young woman with a shaved head, but he supposed he should be used to it by now. The war meant women had to take over a lot of the jobs previously reserved for men.

He sat in one corner of the back seat, and Ken in the other - as far away as he could get. The taxi was warm inside and Will drifted off despite himself. When he awoke, they were pulling up outside a manor house which appeared to have been converted to a very fancy hotel. He couldn't help wondering how they had got the materials with the rationing still in force.

An old-fashioned butler wearing black livery came out of the house to escort them inside. "Welcome to Lime Wood, Captain. Sir. Your host, Mr Ecrivain, will be down in a moment. In the meantime, please come in and make yourselves comfortable. Can I offer you a drink while we wait for the other nominees to arrive?"

Will saw Ken struggling with his crutches and the steps, but knew better than to offer help. He followed the butler into the luxurious hallway and from there to the ballroom, filled with glittering light from the chandeliers, and lined with tables, heavy with more food and drink than he had seen for years. He accepted a glass of genuine Scotch whisky from the butler and sat down on the nearest chair to wait for what would happen next. Ken sat down about five seats away from him.

~~~

The four strangers accepted virulent blue drinks from the butler and then seated themselves at opposite ends of the room. The three men nodded briefly in the direction of Will and Ken but no-one said anything. Will thought everyone looked wary, as if they weren't sure what was going to happen next. He could certainly identify with that.

Part of Will wanted to believe all this was real but mostly he was expecting to wake up at any moment.

This was certainly one of the weirdest dreams he had ever had - perhaps he had accidently taken some of Ken's pain medication.

~~~

Evan and Joey were the next to arrive.

It had taken all Evan's persuasive powers to get Joey to accompany him to the Awards ceremony, because as soon as they had stepped back through the black curtain at Myths and Legends, both men realised they were back in the normal world, where Jorogumo was only to be found between the covers of a book.

"I'm cured! I'm normal again!" enthused Joey. "We don't need to go to that stupid ceremony, now. Let's just go home." He looked up at Evan through long lashes, and murmured, "We have a lot of catching up to do."

Evan was torn. He really wanted to go home with Joey but he was worried that if they didn't comply with the invitation , something might go wrong.

As if their host had known they would be ambivalent, a blue police box appeared in front of the shop, right on the footpath.

A young woman with a shaved head, opened the door. "Evan and Joey?" she asked in brisk tones. "I don't want to rush you, but we need to get a move on. I've got another trip to do after this one." She suppressed an impatient frown as they hesitated. "Come on, then."

Obediently, Evan stepped inside, pulling a reluctant Joey behind him.

After a grinding noise and what seemed only a few minutes later, the young woman opened the door again. "Here we are," she announced. "Merry England, land of hope and glory, not to mention warm beer." She grinned. "Just follow that path through the trees until you reach the hotel. And good luck in the competition!" The door slammed and the police box disappeared.

"Are you sure we're in the real world?" asked Evan dubiously, staring at the empty space. "I don't remember anything like that actually existing, except on television."

When Evan had been transported to the alternate reality version of Earth, where mythological creatures were as large as life, it had taken him some months to remember that the world had ever been any different. And then, when he had stepped through the curtain again, the fantasy world had instantly faded, replaced by mundane reality.

Now, however, he was feeling very confused, as if everything he had ever known might suddenly be altered, the next time he turned around.

"Well come on then," grumbled Joey, leading the way toward the brightly lit building between the trees. "Now we're here we might as well go in. At least it looks like a classy place," he added, cheering up, as he caught his first proper look at the stately home. "Maybe they'll have some decent drinks. I haven't had a mango daiquiri for ages!"

(to be continued...)