Mortal Glare

The tapping of a foot against his boot woke Arlo with a start. His radio headset had slipped down around his neck and looking up he saw the PSYCHE agent smiling at him and tapping his own. Smiling back at the man Arlo sat up in the chair and pulled his headset up over his ears again.
“Sorry Simon, I didn’t mean to drift off on you there. I guess my brain needed to take as much rest as it could, given the past few days.” Arlo had to raise his voice to make sure he was heard over the chopping rotors.
“Don’t worry about it son, everyone goes through this in their first couple of weeks. Besides, I can’t exactly tell you off just because I woke up first.” Laughing gruffly, Simon turned and looked out of the window. Arlo followed his gaze and looked down as they began to come in over the island. The couple of small villages and farms looked very quaint from up above. A picturesque view of English village life, people going about their daily lives, like they didn’t have a care in the world. A part of him wished that he was one of the dots moving around down there, unaware of the true strangeness of the world. Though delighted by the opportunity that had recently been presented to him, there was a strong sense of trepidation for what was to come and a worry about how he could ground himself in the coming weeks.

“We are passing over village of Easton now; we’ll be coming down by the lighthouse in the next couple of minutes.” The crackling voice of the pilot came in over the radio and the two men began gathering their things. Most of Arlo’s belonging had come in a few days before and had been moved into the apartment that would become his new home for the foreseeable future.
“Just so you know lad, you have come rather over dressed, if I were you Id ditch the jacket and tie. It’s a nice warm day and we’ll be going for a little walk.” Simon grinned and shook his head, this kid had a lot of potential but even by the GOC’s standards he was taking things a little too formally. Already feeling out of his depth, Arlo was ready to accept any and all advice he could get. Slipping off his jacket and undoing his tie, he put the tie into the briefcase he had brought with him and laid the jacket over his shoulder. The helicopter landed and the two men made their way across the open field towards the lighthouse.
Both refrained from talking until the helicopter was well on its way, neither particularly wanted to shout. Arlo, rolling up the sleeves on his shirt, was pleasantly surprised by the warm weather and the cool ocean breeze as they walked along the cliffs.
“I always enjoyed this walk to work. Sure I could drive in from the village but when you have days like this, why you would want to ruin it by sitting in a car, I do not know.” Simon stretched his arms out wide and took in a long, deep breath. The pair exchanged a little small talk and lulled into a comfortable silence, listening to the sound of gulls and the waves crashing against the rocks below.

As Arlo walked he let his thoughts drift back a couple of weeks to when this whole process had begun and his world had been tossed upside down in a way he never imagined.
He had been a couple of months away from the end of his PhD thesis at Oxford and was very happy with his progress. One Tuesday morning he had received an email from the university and had learned that some representatives from the United Nations had asked for an opportunity to meet with him in the next couple of days. Incredibly hesitant at first, he agreed to meet with them on campus. He had no idea what people from the U.N could want with him, sure he hoped to work with them in some capacity one day but not right now, assuming this was something to do with his work at all. Arlo met with the two of them the following afternoon in a study room, private enough for conversation but close enough to people that his anxiety was lessened ever so slightly.

When he arrived they were already waiting for him. A man and a woman both wearing suits, the man introduced himself as Simon French. The older of the two with short hair that was now more grey than black. It was clear he had once been very well built but age had softened him a little, from Arlo’s first impression he saw that Simon was a man who would struggle to keep the smile from his face. His partner introduced herself as Erica Banks, a tall woman, younger than Simon and a little more formal than her partner.
“Come on in son, we’re not here to arrest you or anything. Take a seat” Simon laughed and clapped Arlo on the shoulder and invited him into the meeting room where the pair had already laid out some folders and sheets of paper.
“Why don’t you take a seat Mr Miller and we can begin.” Erica and Simon shared a look and he smiled wider, shrugging slightly and seeming to give in. There was certainly someone in charge here.
Arlo sat down across from the pair as they took their respective seats, Simon winked at him and Arlo really wasn’t sure what to make of the pair.

“As I’m sure you’ve already been informed Mr Miller, we are representatives from a branch of the United Nations. Before we go any further I’m going to need you to sign this for me. It’s nothing overly dramatic I assure you. This is a simple non-disclosure agreement that the information we share with you today, no matter the outcome won’t go beyond this room.” Erica slid a sheaf of papers across the desk to him along with a pen and waited expectantly. Looking down at the papers and then back up at the pair and realised Simon was giving him a sympathetic smile at his obvious hesitancy.
“We know this must be pretty intimidating son, so take your time. Read through the whole thing if you need to. We’re doing this purely for the formalities. Your work caught the eye of the people we work for and we think you’d be a wonderful asset to our department, but we operate on a certain level of secrecy. We don’t know each other so this may not count for anything but even if you end up deciding not to consider this offer; you’ll always regret not taking the chance.” Perhaps it was the fact that Simon reminded him a little of his own father, or maybe it was just the unexpected warmth that left him feeling unguarded. Whatever it was, Arlo trusted Simon to his word and after taking a few minutes to skim through the document, and he signed and slid it back across the table.

“Very good, then we can begin…”
“Erica, why don’t you let me take this one. I know how you enjoy this part but I think Mr Miller would perhaps appreciate a bit of a lighter approach? You do tend to be a little more intense and this is all brand new.” Simon slowly reached for the folder in his partners hands as though he was worried she might snap at him.
“Very well, if you insist. He certainly seems the nervous type.” Erica sighed and handed over the papers and Simon offered another apologetic smile at her pointedness.
“Alright then, I’m about to tell you some information that at first will seem next to unbelievable but the more I explain, hopefully, it will begin to make some sense. My partner and I have come to speak to you because our organisation likes to keep an eye on all the major colleges for potential stand outs that we thing might have a place within our operation. We’ve had an eye on your file for a while now as a possibility and with the work you’ve been doing with your Thesis…” Simon paused to look down and flick through the binder in his hands, as he turned the pages Arlo caught a glimpse of a picture of himself. He recognised it as the picture he had used when campaigning for the board of the Tea Appreciation Society and smiled, seeing something so ordinary in such a weird situation was at once comforting but just made the strangeness of this morning even more evident.
“…on ‘The Effects and Consequences of First World Countries Interacting with Smaller Nations and City States and the Long Term Effects on Their Independence.’ (Title wip), we really think you’d fit right in with what we want to do. The official title for our organisation is the Global Occult Coalition, but we like to keep things simple and just call ourselves the GOC.

“Arlo, Arlo!” Drawn out from his daydreaming by the sound of Simon’s voice, he looked around and realised he’d wandered off the path and Simon was now a little ways ahead of him and looking back at him with smile.
“Come on Mr Miller, you’ll have a couple of days to daydream and meander about once we get you settled in but you’re not the only case I have to deal with today.” Chuckling softly he waited for the newbie to catch up and then they pushed on to the Lighthouse. During his initial briefing on the project Arlo had been told that the Lighthouse had been bought by the GOC in the eighties through a benefactor of the coalition so that they could have an easy base of operations to support the city as their methods of long range communication to the rest of the world are still quite limited. Since then it had become grown to encompass a small marine anomaly research centre due to its position by the coast and its isolated nature. So when the men arrived they were greeted by several people bustling about from building to building, a few nodded their hellos to Simon or stopped to talk to him before quickly getting back to work.
“Everyone’s busy this afternoon, we’ve had some reports come in from a couple of fishing boats so they’re getting ready to send out a Strike team to investigate. It will probably amount to very little but I always like a bit of excitement.”

Once they reached the base of the small lighthouse Simon fished around in his pockets and pulled out a small container. Offering the box to Arlo, he held out his hand and Simon tipped a small pill out onto his palm.
“Nothing too exciting, don’t worry. Just a seasickness tablet. If you’re new to using the Ways, or just have a bit of a sensitive stomach like myself it’s usually best to take one just to be safe. I don’t want your first impression of the city to be the tarmac as you throw up onto it.” Seemingly always prepared, Simon pulled out a bottle of water from his sling bag and downed his tablet and then passed the bottle to Arlo.
“We give that about five minutes, I can run you through the procedure one more time and show you where everything is and then we’ll be good to cross over. You should have received most of this info at your primary briefing back at HQ but I still remember what it was like when I first started. I wouldn’t blame you for not retaining a lot of the stuff they told you, the GOC is a group who like their info dumps.” Simon looked around the small courtyard of cottages and seeing a small garden table with a couple of chairs, led Arlo over to them and sat down.
“I didn’t want to mention it but thanks for saying it for me. The last few months have been pretty hectic, I certainly wouldn’t mind a little, uh, refresher.” Arlo smiled and rubbed the back of his neck, a little embarrassed to be admitting to this but grateful to Simon for being such an understanding mentor.

“Don’t worry about it kid, it might have been almost thirty years ago but I remember when I first started. I think I was around your age too so I very much understand. This whole thing can be a bit much for anyone, even if our briefing program is good, it’s also very intensive.” Stretching out with a groan of effort, Simon crossed one leg over the other and folded his arms. Tilting his face up, he closed his eyes for a little while and enjoyed the warm afternoon sunlight.
“I’ve been working for, in and with the city for close to fifteen years now. So I think I can offer that more personal touch that perhaps a dossier can’t. So, the main stuff. We are currently sitting right beside one of the three main ‘Ways’ or portals I suppose could describe them into the city. The other two are in the USA, there are quite a few others scattered around the globe but none of them are as safe or as stable as these three. As far as we know these Ways have been here as long as the city itself has been. The method for crossing over changes depending on the Way that you’re using but we’ll get to that shortly of course.” Taking in a deep breath, Simon crossed his arms over his stomach and looked up towards the top of the lighthouse.
“You know I could probably go on all day if you let me. People can tell you about this stuff all day but of course the only way to really process this weird world we live in is of course to experience it. It doesn’t matter how prepared you think you are, there ain’t nothing that’ll make you completely ready for this.” Simon turned back to look at him offering a reassuring smile. “Awfully quiet over there son, you sure you’re alright? It feels like I’ve just been talking your ear off.

“I’m alright; I just tend to get quiet when I’m anxious that’s all. I really appreciate all your help but even now with all I’ve learned, it still doesn’t feel quite real, like this still might be some sort of elaborate joke and you’ve been messing with me this whole time. I guess until I actually see the place with my own eyes it won’t properly sink in that this is all real.” Arlo looked over at Simon, worried that his concerns might make him appear somewhat immature or ill prepared for what was to come. Thankfully Simon smiled and shook his head.
“Try not to worry so much Arlo; you’re a smart kid, a very smart kid. And this panic doesn’t look good on you. We all had our first experiences and we all had those jitters you have nothing to be concerned about.” Smiling, Simon stood up and moved to put a hand on Arlo’s shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze.

“Come on kid. Let’s get moving the best way to deal with those jitters is to jump right in with both feet and just get to work. It’s time for us to cross over anyway. Don’t want to get in trouble if people thought we were just milling about and having a good time when there’s work to be done.” He smiled broadly again, that reassuringly parental smile that helped ground Arlo in the now. They walked back over to the old, flaking wooden door at the base of the Lighthouse.
“You remember what the code is?”
“Of course, it may have all been a lot to take in but I memorised that part, it felt like it might be slightly important. In order to traverse the way situated on the Isle of Portland, an agent must approach the door and insert one of the 13 on site keys that the GOC produced for the door and insert the key, making two full rotations to the right, knock sharply three times and then knock heavily five times. Then finally make seven full circles around the perimeter of the lighthouse and enter. Got that all right? I really don’t know why it has to be so complicated.” Simon couldn’t help but smile at the kid’s look of self-satisfaction and gently shrugged.
“Look, this place doesn’t follow the same rules that the rest of us have to follow. They do their own thing and make up their own rules and this is one of them. It was this way before we ever discovered the place and we are on rocky ground enough as it is. They put up with us because of the college and the grants we pump into it, don’t forget to a lot of these folks we might as well be the enemy. So we just accept their rules and don’t stir the water. There is a good reason why this is one of the quieter pathways. We have a couple of commuters from the Island and the facility staff; it’s hard to keep secrets in a place this small. Now then, let’s head on through. Why don’t you do the honours?”

Taking a step back, Simon enacted a slight dramatic bow. Arlo smiled and shook his head, and lifted one of the keys off the key rack attached to the wall beside the door, seeing that three of them were already missing. Repeating the steps to himself one by one in this head, Arlo did his very best to be as precise as was possible. Finally completing his last walk around the lighthouse, he came to a stop in front of the old weathered door and reached out to grab the rusted handle and opened the door that would change his life forever.
“Uh…Simon, did I do it right? It just looks like the inside of an old lighthouse.” Walking up behind him, Simon put his hand on Arlo’s shoulder and peered in. The inside of the lighthouse appeared to be exactly that, a circular room with bare stone walls with a newer spiral staircase in the centre.
“Well, I suppose there’s only one way to find out.” Simon smiled and gave Arlo a quick shove, causing him to stumble forward through the doorway and disappear from sight.
“Knew you could do it kid.”

Quickly turning around to give out to Simon, Arlo froze in astonishment. Rather than looking back out through the door of the lighthouse he was looking down the wide cobbled street of a modern town. He couldn’t immediately put a place to the style of city he was seeing, the mixture of English, American and local cultures really had a strong effect on making it unique.
“Huh…I was almost hoping it would be stranger.”
“Watch out pal, don’t just stand in the middle of the road! Damn tourists.” Turning to locate the source of the voice, Arlo’s eyes widened in delighted surprise, a hand reached out and yanked him over to the side of the road as a column of massive stone and clay, humanoid constructs rumbled past on all fours appearing quite like roughly sculpted gorillas. Two abreast and five deep these creatures must have been at least six and a half foot tall in their hunched, marching postures and around them moved to men covered in dirt and dust, one of which had been the one to warn Arlo of his immanent crushing.

“You were saying kid?” Simon laughed and put a firm hand on Arlo’s shoulder as he took a moment to ground himself.
“Sorry about that, we were meant to come out on the other side of these buildings in a nice little park but I guess it was feeling a little temperamental today. You alright?” Arlo felt his cheeks warming and cleared his throat, adjusting his shirt back into place.
“Yes, yea I’m okay. Thank you. I just wasn’t expecting to stubble right into… that. They must be workers from the Golem union right?” Arlo watched in slight awe as the massive creatures marched past. In perfect synchronicity, each fist and foot fall caused the ground to rumble.
“That is correct, you really have been studying up I see. Their official name is Golemancy United, probably off to see to one of the construction projects in the city centre. They are a blessing and a curse on this town.” Arlo nodded and shivered at the cooler air here, quickly rolling down his sleeves and putting his jacket back on he looked up and down the street and then finally back at Simon.
“Can I help you gentlemen? An excited looking young woman with a lanyard around her neck began walking over to them from across the street once the golems had passed and she smiled. Now that she was closer Arlo could see that the lanyard had a picture of the cities flag on it, along with a string of numbers and what looked like a name tag.
“Oh, hi Simon! Is this the new guy you were talking about?” She turned to Arlo and gave him a clumsy salute and a grin. “Lucy Monroe. Three Portlands volunteer police reserves at your service. It’s nice to meet you; Simon’s told me all about you.”

Arlo raised an eyebrow and glanced at Simon. Holding out a hand, Lucy did the same and the shook. “It’s nice to meet you too Lucy, exactly how much has he told you about me.” Simon chuckled and patted Arlo on the back.
“Stop worrying so much kid, Three Portlands is a different world. Quite literally but also metaphorically. We’re much more open here. They know that the GOC is here to help them, or to help the college at least and they like to know when new faces show up in town.