The Queen of the Underverse - Chapter 8

Notes From Foto Dono: So here we are again—another Tuesday, another chapter, another chance for Rebecca to question her life choices (and mine). If she ever finds out I’m the one behind all this, I fully expect a flaming side-eye and maybe a punch to the narrative.

This chapter was a strange one to write. I had a plan—an outline, even! Then the characters read it, laughed, and did whatever they wanted. Honestly, I just try to keep up and type fast enough so no one falls off the plot.

You’ll also find that reality gets a bit wobbly in this part of the Underverse. Not that it was all that stable before. But now things really start remembering themselves differently—a sure sign that the Memory Market is near, or that I’ve rewritten this scene three times and forgotten what draft I’m on.

And yes, I’ve been told again by my digital editors that I use too many em dashes—whatever. If they can’t handle a little dramatic pause—that’s their problem. 😌

Anyway, off we go. Rebecca’s still trying to find her way home. And I’m still hoping she forgives me.

Eventually.

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Previously on The Queen of the Underverse…

Commander Rebecca Lopez had one job: fix the space station and get home in time for her son’s birthday. Instead, she rescued her best friend mid-meteor storm, got flung into space, and crash-landed through a magical door floating in orbit. Now stranded in a reality with talking houses, dying queens, snarky marble sidekicks, and memory-eating nightmares, Rebecca is discovering that space wasn’t the final frontier—it was just the foyer.

Now, Rebecca and Chalky travel the surreal roads of the Underverse on a magical aethercycle. But Rebecca isn’t sightseeing. She’s following whispers—her skin literally glowing with emotion and guidance from her sentient firecloak. It leads her to another Doorwhere, possibly, there is a way home. She turns the key. The door opens. Far away, Kai smiles. “She’s still here.”

Ye saga continues...

Chapter 8 - Backdoor of Memory

The Backdoor Of Memory

The view before Rebecca was a familiar sight: the backyard of her home in Florida. The moon hung in the sky, just as it always did. This was her home, complete with the caged-in pool and the broken screen door that Mark still hadn’t fixed. A warm, bright red glow radiated from her, illuminating the backyard. Her eyes caught the wind chime she had bought last year; the kids had thought it was silly, but she loved it. She had made it. She was home.

Stepping through the door, she took the key from the lock. Chalky was saying something, but she didn’t care.

As soon as she entered, she knelt and felt the grass beneath her. Tears began to form in her eyes. Looking at the house, she shouted, "I'm home! Everyone, I'm home!" A light in the bedroom turned on. She moved further away from the Doorwhere. The Doorwhere to Everywhere began to close quietly, but Rebecca didn’t notice.

Thoughts began racing through her head. "How long have I been gone? This isn't some stupid time dilation, and kids are grown, and my grandkids are coming out! Fuck! I'm so nervous I can't move. Please let it be Mark and the kids. Oh my god, I'm still glowing. Please stop glowing, firecloak, not right now. Later. No purring either, please. Jesus, I'm fucking home."

Firecloak dimmed its glow, curling slightly tighter around Rebecca’s arms. It gave a gentle, vibrating hum—barely audible, but oddly comforting.

The lights in the house began to turn on until the backyard light turned on, and the door opened. Firecloak had turned off the glow for Rebecca. The words "Friend Happy" danced across her hands.

She couldn't make out the shadow when she heard a voice say, "Rebecca?" It wasn’t Mark, the kids, or even one of his parents. It was Sarah Mitchel.

"If this is some sick joke, I swear to fucking god I'm going to take this goddamn bat and beat the living shit out of you. Then I'm going to raise you from fucking dead and do it again."

"It's me, Sarah! It's me, Rebecca! I'm back! I came back!"

I'm home! Everyone, I'm home!

"Back? I'm going to fucking call the cops, and you better be fucking gone! Otherwise, I am going to kill you."

"Sarah, I swear, it's me! Rebecca! Becks! Please, I.. I.. ask me anything. I know you know." Rebecca held her hands up to her friend. She was getting desperate.

"Listen, you godamn bigots! Just because an astronaut dies in space doesn't mean you get to harass their..."

"Please, Sarah, ask me something only I would know… It's really me." Rebecca cried again.

She could see Sarah's shadow shift and hear the bat swing in her hand. "You get this wrong, I get a free hit."

"Fine," Rebecca laughed. Even with the enhanced vision, she couldn't see her friend's face because she was backlit. I guess the improved vision only works in daylight.

"Uh…" She heard her stutter briefly, but she quickly said, "After basic, we went down to San Francisco. We went to this dive bar, O'Malley or something, and then what happened."

"Oh my god." Rebecca laughed again.

"It was an Applebee’s, and we got tossed out because you got hammered. You’re such a fucking lightweight."

"Rebecca?" Sarah Mitchel asked. "Becks, is that you?" Her friend moved out of the light, and she finally got a good look at her. 

"Same old Sarah with her pale blonde hair and green eyes. She had probably been staying here, helping Mark with the kids." Rebecca smiled, relieved to see her friend's face. "Yes, it's me."

"But you died, Becks. I was there when we left… we couldn't…" Sarah was having trouble breathing. "We couldn't go…go... back..."She stared at Rebecca as the words died on her lips. 

Becks, is that you?

For the first time, Sarah Mitchel was at a loss for words.

"Well, what the character you like in the comic book says, 'I got better,'" Rebecca said with a tearful smile. 

She heard the bat drop.

A heartbeat of silence.

Then Sarah exploded forward, tearing the screen door clean off its hinges.

She didn’t stop until she crashed into Rebecca, arms tight, as if she could fuse them together again by sheer force. Firecloak glowed softly.

Sarah was crying, saying, "You glowing? You are an angel now?" She held Rebecca's head and stared into her eyes.

"Nope, I still curse and fart, apparently. I was trapped in another Universe until I found my way home. The glowing is a side effect, " she said, still crying.

Still hugging her friend, Rebecca looked back at the house, seeing if Mark or the kids were coming out.

Sarah said, "You could be plaid for all I care." She kissed Rebecca.

The kiss was deep and passionate and took her completely by surprise. It was as if they had kissed before, but Rebecca knew they hadn't. Their relationship had its ups and downs, with tangled emotions, but it never developed into this. Sarah had feelings for Rebecca once, but Rebecca wasn't attracted to her like that. Sarah was her best friend, but she wasn't the one she was in love with.

Sarah broke the kiss and looked at her. "What's wrong?" 

"We've never kissed before,” Rebecca said shyly.

"We're married. We've done more than kiss, babe." 

Rebecca was getting a horrible feeling. "Oh no. Mark and the kids."

"Who's Mark?" Sarah asked.

"Mark Lopez!"

"The skinny pasty guy from my D&D group. What about him and his family?"

Rebecca stepped back away from Sarah. “Does he have a family? What are their names?"

"Rebecca, you know their names.” Sarah's voice was concerned. "They named their daughter after you. Their son is named after Mark's father, Paul. You're their godmother." 

"Oh my fucking god." She felt the weight of Chalky's words, "almost anywhere, anytime, anywhen outside the Underverse." Rebecca nearly collapsed, and Sarah caught her.

"I'm in the wrong fucking goddamn world!" Rebecca whipped around, looking for Doorwhere to Everywhere.

She couldn't see it.

"What the fuck do you mean?" Sarah said, panicking, holding tightly to Rebecca.

"I'm so sorry. I'm not your Rebecca." She tore herself loose and began searching

"What the fuck!" Sarah was left standing there holding empty air.

Rebecca was frantically looking for the Doorwhere to Everywhere. I know I didn't close it. Did it close behind me? 

Sarah reached for her again and whipped Rebecca around violently. There was a desperation in her friend's face that Rebecca had never seen before. It stopped her heart. The pain she saw was so profound a loss.

Rebecca realized she had done this to Sarah. No, not her, the other Rebecca. This Sarah wasn't her usual Sarah, but it was still Sarah.

Rebecca was desperate to find the door and leave; this was still Sarah. I made a promise, she heard herself say. She took a breath and touched her friend's face, and she could feel the wetness on Sarah's face. She pulled Sarah closer to her.

"Sarah, when I was up in the ISS with you and the accident happened, all I could think about was that you were in danger. I decided to save you, but I was left behind. That's what happened, right?" She stared into her friend's amazing, sad green eyes.

"Yeah. It tore me apart. Becks," Sarah cried, and she couldn't look at her. She could see Sarah reliving that moment again.

"Shhh… It wasn't your fault." This time, she held Sarah's face gently with her hands and made Sarah look at her. "I made that decision.”

“Apparently, I'll always make that decision. You are my best friend in every world. I'm so sorry I hurt you so badly with my decision. I just wanted you to live. I know you are going to do so much more than me.” She wiped the tears from Sarah’s face. “And besides, you'd have done the same for me. I know it."

Sarah held onto Rebecca in a way she had never felt, even at the worst of their relationship; she had never seen Sarah like this, vulnerable. "Please, Sarah, live for me." And she hugged her friend, and firecloak expanded itself, warmly covering them, and seemed to have a calming effect.

Please, Sarah, live for me.

They were like that for a few moments when Sarah sniffled and said, "So, you're not my Becks." 

"Sorry, no." She shook her head and wiped some tears. "But I still need to find my way home. I came through a door, and it's somewhere around here." She broke the embrace, and firecloak shrank back to her.

Sarah could still feel the lingering warmth from their embrace and grabbed Rebecca's hand. "If this has been a dream tonight, " she said, looking into Rebecca's eyes. "Thank you, and I love you."

Rebecca's mouth had somehow forgotten how to close. 

"A door?" She looked around the backyard. Sarah thought. She may not be my Becks, but she’s still cute when she is caught off guard.

"Some stupid space-time sci-fi door thing," she laughed, "Something you and Mark probably know more about than me. I can't see it right now." She looked around the backyard. It looked so much like home. "I left it open but walked away when I saw the house."

"Ah, you may not be my Becks, but you're my Becks." Sarah looked around, and her eyes narrowed. "Do you see the shadow over there? It's long and narrow. What's casting it?"

Rebecca saw the shadow, ran over, and saw the door. You couldn't see it from the side; you had to look straight. "For the luv of…" she said. It was almost closed, except it was held open by a white hand missing a finger, and a foot jammed in the way. A voice came out from behind it. "If you're done playing over there, I'm literally about to fall apart here."

Rebecca began to pull on the door. It wasn't budging. She turned to Sarah, "Move your ass, cadet, and shift."

Sarah ran over and added support, pulling on the door without thinking. Sarah heard the voice on the other side say, "Use the key, idiot!"

"Oh, right, the key." Rebecca fumbled in her pocket, took out the key, and put it in the keyhole. The door flew open, and Sarah lost her grip and flew back. Rebecca grabbed the key and dashed through the door.

Sarah looked up and saw a glowing red Rebecca standing under a blue moon in a field of red flowers with a talking statue, which seemed to chastise her with, 'I told you so.'

The door began to close again, and Rebecca said, "Sarah, Mark has a friend named Jenn Haas. I don't know what she's up to over there, but when you're ready, she might be someone you can talk to." With that, the door closed and disappeared.

Sarah stood in the backyard in her nightclothes, covered in grass stains and dirt. She just had an emotional rollercoaster of a night, and her dead ex-wife just tried to set her up with a blind date.

"Mark is never going to believe this one. Hell, I don't believe this one. I'm going to pour myself a stiff whiskey. Hope when I wake up, it's all a dream."  She turned and felt her bare feet crunch something on the ground. She bent down and picked it up. It was a red flower with a blue crescent moon.

"Alright, the whole bottle then." Sarah smiled and went back into the house.

"Wait, Rebecca, just don't go walking in there! For Lyra's Sake," Chalky said. But it was too late. Rebecca had crossed the threshold and even took the key. Chalky sighed, It's going to be one of those nights. Count to ten, cue the door, and jam some toes and fingers in it.

Chalky, being living marble, had some unusual qualities. One of those is that she wasn't as fragile as some might think; however, it didn't mean she wasn't unbreakable. 

She was the Queen's Attendant #12, and there had been 25 Attendants at one point. All, of course, had fallen to the inevitable; nothing lasts forever. Chalky, however, had been trying to prove them wrong. 

She ensured the use of the best polishes, sealers, and epoxies. She even got some highly unusual ones from the Amberford Memory Market. Every bit helped keep her in tip-top shape. 

Queen Lyra's little Bond with the Ring may be her end, though. She thought as the Doorwhere to Everywhere tried to seal the threshold. She felt small cracks in her hand and foot as the door continued to exert pressure.

She sure is taking her time. Chalky was thinking

"Hello, Rebecca, can you hear me? I hope you haven't wandered too far from the Doorwhere. Hello?" Chalky said. She could hear muffled voices on the other side. "Rebecca. Anyone over there see Rebecca? She glows red and snarls a lot."

One of Chalky's fingers snapped off, "REBECCA!" she shouted. A viscous, glowing fluid that looked like molten stone mixed with silver began to jet out from her finger.

She closed her eyes, and the liquid hardened on the wound. She opened her eyes again. The rest of the had hardened on contact with air, and she could reabsorb it later.

She heard Rebecca's voice, "For the luv of…" and saw Rebecca's face through the crack of the door.

Chalky glared at her, "If you're done playing over there, I'm literally about to fall apart here."

Rebecca began to pull on the door. It wasn't budging. Rebecca shouted to someone behind her, "Move your ass cadet and shift."

Chalky muttered, "Oh, Lyra," and shouted, "Use the key, idiot!"

"Oh, right, the key." She heard Rebecca put the key in the door, and the door flew open. Chalky reached down and picked up her finger and her blood. She watched Rebecca grab the key and dash through the door. Another woman was lying on the ground on her backside, looking back at them.

She rounded on Rebecca, "Doorwhere to Everywhere is not to be played with. I told you so. You almost got locked on that side, and you've been stuck there with no way back." She shook her broken finger at Rebecca. Chalky’s hand was trembling. A fine crack webbed across her forearm. “It tried to lock me out,” she said. “And I think it knew I was helping you.”

However, the door began to close again. Rebecca looked at the woman standing on the other side. She told the woman, "Sarah, Mark has a friend named Jenn Haas. I don't know what she's up to over there, but when you're ready, she might be someone you can talk to." With that, the door closed. You could hear Something like tumblers in the door spinning, and there was a loud click. The door sat there waiting.

"What was that about?" Chalky rounded on Rebecca.  

Rebecca closed her eyes and smiled. She looked at Chalky. "We should camp here for the evening." That was all she said, and still glowing, she began to walk back to the aethercycle. Chalky stood there flabbergasted.

She then brushed herself off and looked around. She looked up and screamed long and loud. She took a deep breath and said quietly, "Fine, we're camping." She went to follow Rebecca and, with a heavy sigh, thought, At least I can heal my finger tonight. It won't be the last time on this trip. I'm going to have to stock up in Amberford.

The flowers chimed quietly in the field.

They pulled the camping gear from the sidecar and quickly set up the tent, which would barely fit them. Rebecca suggested they take turns with watches, and Chalky gave her a baleful eye roll. However, she produced two more sandwiches and handed them to Rebecca.

“Here, these are the last two. We should be in Amberford tomorrow. So enjoy them. We can restock on foodstuffs there.” She grabbed the bottle of wine and her suitcase and climbed into the tent. She mumbled, “My poor body, look what the red glowy lady did to you.” She could hear Chalky shifting in the tent.

Rebecca looked at herself. She was still glowing, not as brightly as before, more like a faint red. She closed her eyes and thought about not glowing; when she opened them, she wasn't. However, firecloak was purring softly. Rebecca sighed, sat on the sidecar, unwrapped a sandwich, and took a bite.

She pulled the photo from her breast pocket and set it beside her. How many days has she been here? Two? Three? It’s been night at least once since I got here, so this is the second night? She realized she had been up for at least 36 hours. At least whatever passes for hours around here. Christ, no wonder I’m punchy. Feels like I’ve been on adrenaline since I got here.

She looked at the smiling faces of Mark and the kids, Sarah’s toothless grin, and Paul’s shy smile. Mark had that lopsided grin with his right eyebrow raised. He said it was his, “Hey Babe, How are you doin’?” look. She thought if time had transpired her the same on Earth, they would assume she was dead. “God, they must be mad at me right about now,” she said to the night.

However, Sarah Mitchel, whom she had just met, looked like she had been on Earth for a while after the accident—the pain of her loss because of her decisions. Rebecca had caused that. Like she was causing pain back on her family now, she knew the risks; she and Mark discussed them. Everyone knew the risks; well, the kids had an idea. Still being hit with it so raw, like it had been with Mitchel. It wasn’t her, Sarah Mitchel, not exactly. But she had still loved her—at the end, that’s all that mattered.

Rebecca hadn’t realized she’d finished both sandwiches. She drank some water from the canteen to wash them down. She looked back and forth between the farmhouse and the tent and decided to try her luck in the farmhouse tonight.

She picked up the photo and said to it. “I’m doing my best, Mark, Sarah, and Paul. I will come back to you.” She went into the farmhouse and wondered if a mattress was left behind.

Chalky woke up in the tent alone in the morning. Did that woman even sleep last night? She had spent an hour before bed reattaching her finger, applying the resin and epoxy, and polishing the needed areas. She appreciated Rebecca's privacy.

Afterward, she was so exhausted from the day she had collapsed nearly naked on one side of the tent. "I mean, she could have checked in on me at least and covered me up." She sighed, looking at the mess she had made inside the tent, thinking she’d clean it up later.

Too edgy? Nah, just well-chiseled.

She pulled herself together, found a pair of suitable pants and a shirt that read ‘Too edgy? Nah, just well-chiseled’, and crawled out to greet the morning. The enormous pink sun had just climbed over the horizon, and the sky was clear and a deep blue. A bit chilly, she thought as she rubbed her shoulders and looked for Rebecca. Rebecca was nowhere to be seen. 

"Ah, maybe she had to visit the little girl's tree." She hummed a bit, waiting to see if Rebecca would pop out any second. "Nope, no tree time for Rebecca then." She looked around the area and thought she might have returned to the Doorwhere to Everywhere when she spotted the sandwich wrappers. They were outside the farmhouse door. 

"Oh, she didn't go in that deathtrap, did she?" She muttered aloud. "Of course she did." 

She went to the farmhouse and peered through the windows. She stood on a rock and looked into the third window, where Rebecca was asleep on an old bed. What was even weirder was a foxkin curled up beside her: cute long ears, long bodies, cute fluffy tails. You want to cuddle up with them until you get to the teeth, which are as sharp as razors. They could rip the skin off the bone in minutes. Right now, it looked like some pet was curled beside its master.

A foxkin curled up beside her.

She sat back on the rock and didn’t know what to do. Shout! No, that'll startle everyone! Oh, for Lyra’s Sake! Where did she find a foxkin!? I should get on the bike and leave. Yep, just go. She didn’t move. You know, Queen Lyra, it was pretty underhanded about the whole bound ring thing. She sighed. You’re lucky I still love you.” She could hear Queen Lyra in her head saying she loved her, too.

She stood back up and looked again into the room. The room was old, there were holes in the ceiling, and light was falling on spots on the floor. One beam of light was falling onto a first aid kit Chalky had packed. It was open, and some of the bandages were lying about. She thought maybe Rebecca was injured, but she didn't see any. The foxkin stirred. The bandages were on it. “She had helped an injured foxkin. It had let her. Dip me in vinegar.”

The foxkin whined, and Rebecca murmured, "You cold?" Rebecca began to glow, and foxkin snuggled closer to her. Chalky could hear Rebecca's firecloak purring in response.

What is happening here? Chalky was unsure what to do. The bandages began to glow brighter, but the foxkin still wasn't moving, except that it licked Rebecca's face affectionately like a pet.

“Just a little longer, okay?” said Rebecca. The glow intensified and then slowly began to fade. That’s when Chalky slipped and fell off the stone.

“Alright.” She heard Rebecca's voice. “I’m up. You are excitable, whatever you are. You poor, cute thing. Let’s check those bandages and see if they need changing.”

Chalky didn't want to attract the foxkin's attention, so she remained still.

"Wow! They're completely healed!" Rebecca said. "Not sure if it's the bandages, you, or both. But you're fine now." Rebecca laughed. "Okay, okay, stop licking my face, you cutie pie. I'm glad I came in here last night and found you here—you poor thing. You were so scared and injured. I'm glad I could help. It's the first thing I think I did right around here."

Oh, seriously not, thought Chalky. “Come on, let's go find Chalky. She's probably still grumpy after yesterday.” She heard Rebecca say as she got off the bed.

Oh, I've gone from grumpy to scared out of my wits right now. Thank you very much. She could hear them walk through the house and go to the front door. Chalky stood up, padded towards the front, and peeked around the corner. She heard a foxkin howl off in the distance.

"Oh, is that someone you know?" Chalky saw Rebecca laughing and talking to the foxkin. She was kneeling as the foxkin jumped up and licked her face. "Well, thank you for the kisses, sweetie. You should go and be with your family. I have to go find mine, too."

Oh, we are not getting off this easy, are we? Chalky, thought half-hopefully.

The foxkin zipped around Rebecca, making little yipping noises, its long tail swishing back and forth. Its enormous ears flew past its eyes as it moved. Rebecca laughed and clapped her hands. The foxkin stopped at the edge of the woods. A howl sounded from far away. The foxkin opened its mouth wide, then wider, then wider still. There were a lot of teeth. The teeth were very sharp. It let out a loud, almost blood-curdling howl.

Rebecca froze, just for a breath, unsure if she was about to be devoured.

Then it howled, slammed its jaw shut with a thunderclap, and gave her a final playful yip before vanishing into the trees.

Rebecca was still staring at where the foxkin disappeared when Chalky walked up behind her and said brightly, "Good Morning." 

Rebecca jumped at least three feet in the air.

––To be continued

You want to cuddle up with them until you get to the teeth.

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Next Time on The Queen of the Underverse…

The road to Amberford takes a steamy detour as Rebecca and Chalky pull into the quirkiest bathhouse this side of the surreal. Glowing signs, sentient architecture, and a pair of quantum hosts who shimmer when they flirt—welcome to +Suds -Suds.

But cleansing the body is easy. Letting go of what haunts you? That’s harder.

Old aches resurface. New questions bubble up. And somewhere between towel service and metaphysical puns, Rebecca starts to wonder if she's still heading home—or spinning further from it. Soak up the weird. Scrub down the doubts. The Underverse is watching.

Don’t miss Chapter 9 – There is Something Quarky Here.

© 2025 Donnavon Evans

July 29, 2025