“Sergeant Tull is the leader of the Storm Havens Defense Force and he will train you firstly so you will be able to defend not only yourself, but in an emergency help defend the academy from attackers. Unfortunately by the sounds of things a not unlikely event. He''ll get you to your cabin and the rest of your gear, after that you can spend the rest of the day acclimatising to your new environment, just remember to do as sergeant Tull says and you can''t go too far wrong. Hmm.. yes indeed, very wise.”


    Porter briskly strolled over to the group of soldiers Sam had seen the moment before and Sergeant Tull stepped away from the sparing group and greeted them.


    “Ah sergeant! Hmm.. yes just the man! It appears I have found some erm.. ah yes, Fresh meat. For you.” porter grinned with a satisfied look on his face as he gestured to the 4 new recruits.


    Sergeant Tull eyed Rae who looked up at him with a pale face, the guy was huge! 6ft4 minimum and built like a brick shed. He had a dark brown buzz cut and looked like he had muscles growing out of his muscles. all confidence drained from her instantly. Tull raised his right index finger and pushed Rae in the middle of her chest, as she fell back a foot she looked up in horror and winced, rubbing the impact point. Tull looked at Porter with a grimace as Sam put herself in front of sergeant Tull, she eyed him and grinned.


    “She''s with me, you want her? You gotta go through me first.”


    He snorted and looked at the two boys derisively, Paul moved to Sam''s side and smiled at him.


    “What she said big guy.”


    Edward grimaced.


    “Hang on a sec guys, sergeant Tull here is our superior, lets just cool it down a bit.” He looked up at the sergeant and smiled, then saluted as best he could.


    “Edward Fielders reporting for duty Sergeant Tull!”


    The sergeant looked at him as if he was something he had scrapped off his shoe and walked off, not saying a word, Edward looked at Porter quizzically.


    Porter shooed them away in the direction of Sergeant Tull. “Go on then! Our sergeant is a man of few words, best you don''t annoy him.” Then he gave them another shooing motion and Edward started to trot after the sergeant, Paul seeing this trotted after Edward. Sam smiled and grabbed a still shaken Rae and tugged her arm, “C''mon before sergeant troll gets hungry!” she heard Porter snort in amusement and Rae blinked and with that she was running along side Sam.


    “I''m not sure I''m cut out to join the army.” Rae panted. “I thought it was going to be all potions and wands. You know, Harry potter and all that.” Sam grunted. “Well what ever it''s like don''t worry, I''ve got your back, OK?” Sam replied, trying to reassure her new friend. Rae nodded.”Thanks Sam, and thanks for stepping in for me against that hulking monster.”


    “Who sergeant troll? He was just picking on the smallest of us to see if we would come to your defence, no worries”


    Sam and Rae eventually caught up with Edward and Paul just as sergeant Tull lead the group into a spacious cabin built for four, with two generously wide bunk beds either side of the main living area and a large 5 drawer chest at the end of each bunk and in between a wall to wall built in wardrobe.


    Tull looked at the two boys and two girls and growled. “You sleep here.” He pointed to a small desk/coffee table that sat in the middle of the room that had maps and passes on it. “Everything you need to know for today is in that pile, don''t go into restricted zones, I can''t be held responsible for your health and well being if you do.” He looked around briefly and then turned to leave.


    Ah..erm.. Sergeant Tr—mmmpphhh!”


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    Sam dove forward and slapped her hand around Rae mouth as she realised where she was in the timeline, she smiled at their Sergeant and put her spare hand up as she pulled Rae to her chest, a look of utter shock and panic in her eyes as she fought off Sam to no effect.


    “Sorry Sergeant TULL we''re all good thanks!”


    He grimaced first at Sam, then at Rae, who had by then stopped struggling. It seemed she had got the message, then turned around and walked out.


    “Phew, that was a close one!” exclaimed Sam, she looked at Rae.


    “Tull, not Troll! At least and most definitely not to his face.”


    Paul snickered as Rae blushed furiously.


    <u>Epilogue</u>


    Edward glanced at Sam.


    “How did you know?”


    Sam grimaced. Oh well best rip the plaster off she thought and took a deep breath and started to explain.


    “This is my second time round, by that I mean either I have traveled back in time or this is an alternative timeline.”


    “A multiverse?”


    Exclaimed Rae in shock, her eyes wide and mouth agape.


    Sam nodded as Paul laughed derisively.


    “You seriously expect us to believe that hogwash?”


    Edward nodded at him.


    “She knew who you were at the terminal, hell she knew me!”


    He smiled at the remembered embraced and looked at her quizzically.


    “Are we...were we a thing?”


    Sam blushed as Rae looked at the two.


    “Oh. My. God! You two totally are...or were! Wow that is such a mind fuck.”


    Edward smiled.


    “I don''t know I''m certainly not adverse to giving it another go!”


    He looked at Paul and grinned.


    “You never got the warm greeting I got, believe me it''s worth a revisit.”


    Sam''s blush deepened.


    “Oh my word I can''t believe I did that. In my defence, you had just come back from the grave and I was just so happy to see you!”


    She looked around at Edward''s pale face and the look of shock on the other two''s faces. Sam smacked her head with the palm of her hand.


    “OK maybe I could have worded that better, can we start from the top?”


    The three nodded silently, nobody was mocking her or laughing now, they were dead serious and desperately in need of answers.


    She recounted as best she could of her alternate timeline, of her meltdown and siphoning of the engines, then the defence force. Her fight to bring them back to full health and of her time in the hospital, she recounted their lesson in which she taught Rae how to find her inner essence and how she had given the professor of elementary magic her youth back and then of the destruction of the Storm Haven and the demise of her friends and finally the utter destruction of Valencia. A million people dead....she felt Rae''s arms embrace her as she sobbed. She looked up at the pale faces of her friends and swore never to let history repeat itself, from here on in this time they would be ready.


    Edward blew exhaled shakily.


    “So how is it you are back with us Sam?”


    Sam looked at Edward and grimaced.


    “Well I awoke in a hospital, Caero had shown me what had happened as I had blanked out the day in Valencia completely, when I realised that everyone I held dear other than my parents were dead and that I had personally killed a million people? I kinda lost it, the next thing I knew I was waking up this morning like nothing had happened.”


    she brandished her left wrist.


    “That is until I saw this, it must have come back with me, but it was the only thing. I''m not absolutely sure how, but I think it''s because it''s fused to my lower forearm, it''s actually embedded into one of the bones.”


    Rae blew out a breath as Paul shook his head.


    “So you just wanted to rewrite history so badly your magical essence just sucked in enough juice to make it happen?”


    He asked incredulous.


    Sam nodded.


    “That''s as good as an explanation as I''ve got, so yeah”


    Edward glanced at her and grimaced, Sam''s heart sank at the look, but when he did speak it wasn''t of anger or distaste.


    “So we have what? three weeks tops to save the ship and save Valencia whilst trying to save ourselves in the bargain?”


    Sam shook her head.


    “No Mick Stevens and Bill Anderson were, as far as I can tell the links that made the attacks possible, with them not even making it aboard...well fingers crossed from here on in the timeline diverges.”


    Paul blew out a deep sigh of relief and grinned at Sam,


    “So that''s what Porter meant by. ''Miss Holden has already taken mighty steps to thwart our foe''


    Sam nodded and Edward got up and embraced her. She felt herself melt into his arms as he spoke.


    “I think I speak for all three of us when I say thank you Sam, you not only saved us, but the ship and a thousand people who live and work here.”


    Sam accepted the hug with relish but crossed her fingers hoping he was right, she knew deep down that this wasn''t the last they had heard of the swords of light, but what she did know for sure was that she wasn''t just going to sit around and wait for all hell to break loose, she was going to do everything in her power to stop them, whatever it took. But this time she wasn''t alone, this time, in what seemed like forever Sam had friends.


    THE END.