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    A Twist in the Rift: Rift Runners, #1
    A Twist in the Rift: Rift Runners, #1
    A Twist in the Rift: Rift Runners, #1
    Ebook109 pages1 hour

    A Twist in the Rift: Rift Runners, #1

    By Meg Radiant

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    About this ebook

    If you could travel to different worlds, would you ever come back to this one?

     

    Lyrica is the usual final year university student, except that she has the ability to see Rifts – portals to other worlds in this Universe.  When her acquaintance Basil, a time-travelling archaeologist from the future shows up and needs her help, well, why would she resist the call of adventure?    But what of these new aliens that have joined their group – will they draw Lyrica out of her self-justified, self-imposed loneliness?  What will happen when the adventure turns more dangerous than anticipated?

     

    In this first story of the Rift Runners Saga, find out what life is like when you can travel almost anywhere, and almost anything can happen!

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherConfused Duck Press
    Release dateJun 22, 2021
    ISBN9781777586508
    A Twist in the Rift: Rift Runners, #1

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      Book preview

      A Twist in the Rift - Meg Radiant

      Text Description automatically generated with low confidence

      This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

      Copyright © 2021 by Meg Radiant

      All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any manner without written permission of the copyright owner except for the use of quotations in a book review.

      First paperback edition April 2021

      Book design: Enchanted Ink Publishing

      Copy Edit: Enchanted Ink Publishing

      Cover design: Moorbooksdesign

      ISBN 978-1-7775865-1-5 (paperback)

      ISBN 978-1-7775865-0-8 (ebook)

      For Mom,

      I wish you were here to see this.

      Graphical user interface Description automatically generated with low confidence

      CHAPTER ONE

      CHAPTER TWO

      CHAPTER THREE

      CHAPTER FOUR

      CHAPTER FIVE

      CHAPTER SIX

      CHAPTER SEVEN

      CHAPTER EIGHT

      CHAPTER NINE

      CHAPTER TEN

      CHAPTER ELEVEN

      CHAPTER TWELVE

      CHAPTER THIRTEEN

      CHAPTER FOURTEEN

      CHAPTER FIFTEEN

      CHAPTER SIXTEEN

      CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

      CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

      CHAPTER NINETEEN

      ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

      ABOUT THE AUTHOR

      CHAPTER ONE

      Shape Description automatically generated with low confidence

      The First Rift

      THERE ARE PLACES where reality is thin. Areas where, if you just tilt your head right and don’t look head-on, you can see Rifts from this world to others. These are the places the locals avoid. The sites that have rumours. Few people know of these passages, and even fewer know how to use them.

      I first saw one when I was a young girl. I stared at the ruined, abandoned video rental store as I walked by it with my mother, curious about the old place. As my eyes roamed over the burnt-out sign and broken windows, I glanced to the side of the building and saw a glimpse of a fantastical racetrack, with the track hanging in the air with seemingly no supports, and hovering neon-lit vehicles with no wheels. There were glittering signs and thousands of creatures I did not recognize. Some had many arms; some had trunks for noses; all had strange skin colours. There were creatures without eyes! I wondered how they could see the race. There was no sound coming from the scene, but I could almost hear the booms of the engines, the roar of the crowd. I tried to get my mother’s attention, but when I looked at it again, it was gone. My mother insisted that I was making up stories, but when I told my grandma about it, she smiled and her eyes sparkled. She told me I had a gift—that I could see things as they really were, and that I had seen a portal to a new world.

      Well, at least you both have good imaginations, my mother sighed.

      Now years later, I see these Rifts all the time. Around empty buildings on the university campus, near truck stops on the highway, in a quiet patch of trees.

      The first world I entered, I did accidentally, simply falling in. I was playing hide-and-seek in the local park, and when I went to hide in the bushes, I saw plants that I did not know existed out of the corner of my eye. I saw blue stems, green petals, and blooms as large as pumpkins interspersed with purple, leafy-looking things. I was so surprised that I fell sideways—and into my first mini-adventure. This place was almost straight out of a fantasy novel, all green trees and beautiful flowers. I looked around, enthralled. I saw two suns in the sky, a lovely light shade of yellow, illuminating the green and blue and purple plants that surrounded me. There was music in the air; from animals or from someone else, I could not tell. Some of the plants moved on their own. They used their vines and leaves to pull themselves along the floor. Could they really be called plants? A few that were orange with many petals resembling a lion’s mane advanced on me. I stood, transfixed, when all of a sudden, arrows shot through the air into the heads of the flowers. I screamed, not knowing what was happening, when suddenly, five humanoid creatures emerged from the woods.

      Xprth Klm, said one.

      Dgiln Pah! exclaimed another.

      I don’t understand you! I cried in shock.

      The creatures murmured between themselves. I took the opportunity to examine them. I would have called them elves. Tall, taller than most humans, with bronze skin and pointed ears. Their hair was shades of browns and black. Their eyes were large and kind. One of them gestured for me to come toward them. I slowly got to my feet and haltingly advanced toward the creature. The elf brought out a small, computer-like device from his bag and moved his hand toward my ear. It was quite small and looked like it had a circuit board in it. It fit like an earplug. Suddenly they started to talk again, but this time, I could understand them.

      Are you quite all right? the elf asked, bringing his hand back from my ear.

      I have never seen an Earther so small—it must be a child, whispered another.

      I’m okay, I said. I’m Lyrica. I’m eleven years old. What were you saying before? I had no idea what you were saying.

      Eleven? In Earth years, that is quite young. Is your name Lyrica? You can call me Athlond. And I put a Parlefacilitator in your ear.

      A Parlefacilitator?

      A useful invention. It allows creatures from all worlds to understand one another. Quite handy these days.

      Neat. Where am I? I asked.

      You are on the home world of Cath’thalinops. We are called Thalin, but most people from your world call us ‘elves,’ replied Athlond with a wry grin.

      Huh. I thought you looked like elves.

      We get that a lot. But importantly, you must be in shock after your travel. Come, we will look after you.

      Athlond and the other Thalin led me down a path to a city in the trees. There were tents and stalls on the ground, with Thalin meeting and talking, but all the buildings were beautiful wooden structures integrated into the tall trees, with large stairways leading to the entrances. Hanging bridges hung between the buildings as well, with Thalin walking across to get to their destinations. The building walls were made of interwoven branches, giving the city an open, airy feel.

      I followed them up to a large building, with many windows built into the woven branch walls. This structure was built close to the ground. Inside was a comfortably appointed room, cozy-looking despite its large size. A couple of paper-strewn desks lined one wall, with couches and cushions forming a seating area on the opposite wall. There was what I thought was a fireplace, but the flame was green—I assumed it was magical. Real flames would not be a good idea in a wooden city! There were a couple of Thalin in the room. They turned as we entered. They were slightly taller than the Thalin I was with, but their figures were curvier, what I would expect from a female human. They walked over to the entrance where we stood.

      Goodness, and who is this small thing? queried the elder-looking one.

      This one is an Earther called Lyrica. She appears to have fallen into a Rift, replied Athlond.

      A Rift? While so young? the other Thalin exclaimed. The poor dear.

      I yawned. I suddenly

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