She clutched her hands on her lap, cast her eyes down, and solemnly said, "He sounds very much like the Trevor of our world."
"He is my friend. I would do anything for him," Johnny tilted his head in introspection and added, "Which is why, I suppose, I ended up here, too."
"You followed him, no matter where it would lead? Not surprising. Trevor always had a great deal of control."
"Control? My dear, you misunderstand. I volunteered to be by his side even in the face of danger. He is my friend, and he has earned my loyalty, and I have been inspired by his courage and even-on occasion-his compassion. While he does his best to display a suit of emotional armor, I know he is a man who feels things deeply."
She brought her eyes up quick and widened in what had to be surprise, or perhaps shock.
"The only things the Trevor I knew ever felt deeply were anger and cruelty."
Ashley clamped her lips down abruptly as if trying to stop the words.
"What do you mean, my dear?"
"Nothing. Never mind. I talk too much. Trevor always told me I talked too much."
She stood to leave. He touched her arm. "You have nothing to fear."
She reconsidered. The trees rocked from the gentle persuasion of another cool breeze.
"Nothing…nothing to fear…" she sat again and rolled the words on her tongue.
"I understand how foolish that may sound. After all, your city is under siege. I know that you have plenty to fear, and you have my sympathy."
A short, sardonic chuckle escaped her lips. "Fear? Oh yes, we have much to fear. But for me-for many of us-we had more to fear before, when Trevor was still alive."
"I do not understand."
"Trevor and I were together before…before-"
Johnny used the phrase that was common on his world to finish her sentence: "All this?"
Ashley nodded. "I suppose so, yeah. Then the war came. He grew into the great leader. He inspired those around him and they followed him to victory after victory."
"I see our Trevors are indeed similar."
"Please don’t say that. Please. I had hoped… I have hope… that is not true. That maybe on your Earth, that your Trevor…that he…"
"What? What happened here to Mr. Stone? I know he was killed on the battlefield."
"Yes. And many of us cheered that day."
"Cheered?"
She absently touched the scar on her cheek. "I read, in the reports, that your Trevor Stone has a son. Is that true?"
Johnny nodded. She went on, "Our Trevor may have had children. Probably does, from his mistresses. But he never wanted a family. One of the few things he didn’t want."
"It sounds to me," the Reverend contemplated, "that your Trevor indulged himself. A man, perhaps, of passion?"
"A horrible, terrible, frightening man. Is that the Trevor Stone you know?"
He answered, "Not at all. He has done some horrible things and made decisions that haunt him to this day, but I know his heart is in the right place."
"Haunt? Could it be that your Trevor has a conscience? That is something my Trevor Stone discarded as he grew into the great leader. The great warrior. The killer."
"Wait one moment. What is it you’re trying to tell me?"
"I am telling you that the Trevor Stone here, on my world, became a brutal man. He killed all of our enemies and did it with delight."
"Ms. Trump, on our world, we, too, have killed our enemies without mercy. Even I have sometimes been infected with a righteous vengeance. I have dispatched an untold number of our foes, and will gladly do so again in the name of survival."
"The name of survival?" She echoed. "How many of your enemies did you torture for pleasure? How many of your foes did you enslave for fun? How many of his own people did your Trevor execute because they questioned an order or spoke ill of their Emperor?"
"Um, well, I don’t think he ever would-"
"I loved Trevor Stone; until he became a killer. Before he had unquestioned authority. Before he became…" Again, she stroked the scar on her face.
"He did that to you?"
"When I left him. When I could take no more of his abuse. He visited pain unto his enemies…and to those who loved him. Used them. He…he…explored all…everything…he indulged. Whatever he wanted. Whatever desire, whatever whim. On the battlefield or…or…"
"…or in the home?" Johnny spared her from rougher words.
"When he died, we cheered and then fought ensure there would be no second Emperor."
"You had a civil war. I have heard. The result was The Committee and led to reversals in the war, did it not?"
She agreed. "We were weakened by the infighting. First our enemies overran outlying outposts and re-supply centers. We didn’t realize how weak we were until it was too late."
"Please forgive me, Miss Ashley, but your Committee appears certain to be the end of humanity on this planet. I fear for your future if new leadership is not found."
"I know. We all know."
A vehicle-a kind of elongated station wagon-rumbled along the road. Ashley waited until the sound faded then spoke again, "I read the reports from the expedition to your world. It sounded as if your Trevor was still with…still with…"
"Yes," Johnny saw no reason to hide the truth. "On my world Trevor Stone is with Ashley. Together they have a son. A very special young boy."
A smile tugged at the edges of her lips.
He asked, "And here, did Major Forest help turn him into a monster?"
She shook her head and answered, "I wish I could blame it on her. I wish I could say that she stole him away. I knew Nina from military training school. Her, I, and Jolene Crawford."
"I see there is much that is different here."
Ashley barely heard him. She strolled about in memories. "Nina was a shy girl. Quiet. Not liked at all; an outcast. Except in a fight. That was the one thing she was good at. That changed after Trevor took an interest in her. Anything-any body-he took an interest in was changed. Usually for the worse."
Johnny put a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Tell me, what is it you seek from all this? What do you want me to do?"
Ashley pondered that question for several long seconds before finding a way to word her answer. Those words came but laced with nerves, as if she spoke a state secret.
"I’m not supposed to be talking to you, none of us are. We've been told to stay away from you. Someone may be listening. I have to watch my words."
"Why on Earth would you be told that?"
"Keep Trevor safe. Get him away from here, back to your world as fast as you can. If you can’t get him home right away, then keep him safe."
"Safe? Your city is weakening and the foul beasts are reaching for humanity’s collective throat. I’m not sure I can keep him safe from that."
"That’s not what I mean."
"Then what?" He asked. "What is it I must save him from?"
"Reverend Johnny, you must save him from himself."
– "They’re idiots!" Trevor ranted to Major Forest in the back seat of the car.
"Yes, yes I know," she said. "But I had to get you out of there."
"Or what? Or I’d rip their throats out? Maybe that’s what should have happened. Maybe you should let me toss them out. They’re a disgrace."
Trevor spotted the unnamed driver’s eyes glance at him in the rear view mirror.
"What? You got a problem?"
"Easy," Nina soothed. "He’s okay. He’s a friend."
"A friend? Ain’t that just great. Yippee and all that-" He stopped and considered her words. The inflexion. The suggestion. "A…friend?" He repeated, softer.
"Yep. I mean, me and Snowe, we’ve got lots of friends. You know?"