“I agree that we have many problems, indeed,” Master George concluded. “Jane, I won’t stand here another minute and debate morals with you. The Realitants have a job to do, and you can either work with us or against us. Make your choice.”
Jane shook her head. “I most definitely do not have a choice, and you know it. It’s my world where this entity has begun its massacre, and it’ll be my world that gets consumed first. I’ll work with whomever I need to in order to stop it. Not to mention the fact that you need me and my knowledge. You could have asked a little more humbly, but yes, I will help you.”
“More humbly?” George repeated. “Your world? The very fact that you . . . oh, goodness gracious me. Never mind. We are all in agreement then?” He looked around the room, gathering nods from his Realitants. Tick gave his when the glance came his way.
Their leader nodded. “Good. Each one of us will put our animosities aside, our grievances, our petty wishes for revenge, and work together. Though none of us truly understand what this new threat is”—he held up a hand when Jane began to protest—“some know more about it than others. And we all know it’s very, very grave. We’ll begin work immediately. No rest, I’m afraid. No vacation, no relaxation. The world leaders will have to deal with the aftershocks from our . . . most recent troubles on their own.” His eyes darted to Jane for the briefest of moments.
Tick could think only of his family. “Okay, then. I’ll take my mom and sister back home, and then I’ll meet you at the headquarters. The Grand Canyon one, I guess?”
Master George looked hesitant for some reason, fumbling with his words a bit before simply giving a quick nod of his head.
“Sounds good,” Tick replied, wondering what that had been all about. “We better leave before that tornado starts making creatures again.”
“First smart thing I’ve heard yet,” Paul agreed. “Let’s get out of this stink hole.”
Tick turned to face his mom and sister, sweating from the thought of winking them all back home. He was pretty sure he could do it, but there was always a risk. He thought about asking Master George, but the man only had Tick’s nanolocator reading, so they’d have to take the actual Wand with them when they winked. That wasn’t going to work.
“Alright,” he said, pushing everyone else and their problems out of his mind. “Let’s hold hands while we do this.”
His mom didn’t budge. “Atticus, we’re not going back home.”
“What do you mean?”
She looked annoyed, like the answer should have been obvious. “We played a big part in bringing you back from the Nonex. Am I right or wrong on that?”
Tick knew where she was going and hated it. “Definitely right.”
“I was a Realitant once. I built my own Barrier Wand. I just risked my life—and the life of my daughter—to bring you home safely. And if you think I’m going to let you out of my sight again, you’re sadly mistaken. Not to mention the fact that Lisa and I are both capable of helping out. You’re going to need every single body working on this that you can get.”
Tick looked at her for a long time. He knew he couldn’t let this happen. He couldn’t. He’d never be able to focus on what needed to be done—and not focus on how dangerous it might be—if he had his family around. He’d be able to think only of them, saving them, protecting them. He could not let them stay.
“But what about Kayla? She’s what matters most right now. I—we—need you to go back and make sure she and Dad are okay.”
His mom folded her arms together in a defiant gesture. “Your father is perfectly capable of taking care of our sweet little princess. Don’t insult him like that. Lisa and I are staying, and that’s that.”
“Mom, you—” He stopped. There was no arguing with that look in her eyes. But he also knew what needed to be done. He was racking his brain for the words to say when someone tapped him on the shoulder. He looked to see the weathered, reddened face of Master George.
“Yeah?” Tick asked.
“I, er, wondered if I might have a moment with you.”
Tick wanted to leave so badly. “Can I figure this out first?”
“Only a moment,” the old man interrupted. “I need just a few seconds of your time. Please.” He held out a hand and raised his eyebrows. “Please.” The windy, rushing sound of the Fourth Dimension cyclone was like the pulse of a rising tide on the beach.
“Okay.” He gave a look to his mom and then joined Master George over by the wall farthest from the entrance to the Great Hall.
“What’s going on?” Tick asked him. “I need to get them back safely before I can do anything else.”
The Realitant leader’s voice dropped to a whisper. “There are urgent matters at stake here, Master Atticus. Quite honestly, we don’t have the time for you to go home right now. I need you, and I need you immediately.”
“Just let me get them—”