Chelsea Dawn

Juan couldn't help but cross himself when he saw the baronial red-brick manor in front of them, wondering what sort of business they had. "Let's see what these people want", said Fernando.

The trio were greeted by a dignified middle-aged man in full Scottish regalia. "Aye, welcome to Castle Sutherland. I am Tavis Sutherland, Earl of Caithness", he said in clipped, Oxford-accented English.

"Hola, Don Sutherland", said Juan.

"Hola, senor Mata, senor Torres y senorita Letang. Vamanos con migo", he said in flawless Spanish.

The trio followed him inside the castle as their footsteps echoed in the hall. They were led to a massive hallway that had woven tapestries and banners on the walls and wooden tables with benches, like a scene from Game of Thrones. Hugo, Magnus and Helgi waited for them as the older trio got up from their seats. Juan had an eerie feeling when he saw the older people, feeling as though he was someplace normal people weren't supposed to be. "Juan Mata, welcome. I suppose your parents never told you the truth", said Magnus.

"Quién eres tú, viejo?", he asked with a quiver in his voice.

"Juan, your parents never told you, but your family are members of Sol Duga, along with the Torres and Letang familis. I am Magnus and this is my wife Helgi, Hugo is Violette's father. We will explain everything", said Magnus.

A servant came by and poured everyone a generous amount of whisky in a tumbler. "We are the Soul Helpers, we help those who would have accomplished great things, time travelers. Your family is descended from one of the original families, the Thorssons, along with Fernando", said Magnus.

Juan swallowed the whisky in two big gulps to steady his nerves. "Esta diciendo mierda, viejo. Gente no puede hacer eso", he retorted.

"Si se puede, Juan. I told Fernando and he had the same reaction, your parents should have told you. Violette has always knonwn but my son Kris and his wife only found out a few years ago. Let me show you something", said Hugo.

Juan watched in disbelief as the middle-aged man suddenly turned into an exact replica of himself, the glass falling to he floro and shattering into tiny pieces. "Ah, ah, I, qué jodas!?", he exclaimed.

Hugo returned back to his normal form. "I am telling the truth, Juan", he said.

"And what about the Earl", he asked, at a loss for anything to say.

"I am also a member of Sol Duga, Juan. My cousin Alisdair had fled 17th century Scotland with his daughter after the child's mother was killed for being a witch, they live in Pittsburgh now", said Tavis.

"I need to time for this to sink in", he muttered.

"I understand, Juan. I will head you to your rooms, we will talk more later", said Magnus.

Juan was still in a state of shock as he was led to his room, his mind reeling from this information. This is the craziest shit I've ever heard, but that Hugo guy transformed into me, I saw it with my own eyes. Maybe I can get more answers later, no wonder my family never told me, he thought.

Juan took a deep breath and looked around the room. It was furnished with a four-poster bed with a dark green quilt and matching oak furniture, the small balcony looking out onto a manicured rose garden. This is really nice, he mused.

There was a knock on the door. "Hola, que quiere?", he asked.

"I'm sorry to bother you, Mr. Mata, but Father wanted to know if you needed anything", said a female voice with a polished Scottish accent.

Juan got up and opened the door and came face to face with a young woman as a slow smile formed on his face. She was quite petite and pretty with curly dark blond hair the color of clover honey and large green eyes, wearing a denim knee-length skirt and a plain green t-shirt. "Hello, Mr. Mata. Father wanted to know if you needed anything", she said.

"No, senorita. And please call me Juan, I'mnot that old", he chuckled.

"All right, Juan. I am Christina Sutherland, Earl Caithness' daughter", she replied.

Juan smiled and took her hand, placing it to his lips and lightly kissing the knuckles. "Hola, senorita Christina", he said.

"Let me show you around", she said.

Juan smiled as she led him down the hall. "Sutherland Castle is the seat of Clan Sutherland, the title was given to us by the Bishop of Caithness. We were able to keep the title because the Earl was able to prove he wasn't a Jacobite, that's when the Crown was going after Jacobites. Not the best time in Scottish history", said Christina dryly.

Juan nodded in agreement as she led him around the upper floor, most of the rooms being bedrooms that were the size of most people's flats. Downstairs was the massive parlor, an equally massive dining room that looked like something out of Medieval Times, the kitchens and finally the gardens. Juan smiled in approval as she pointed the different herbs and flowers, the sun overhead and the sky a clear pale blue with a few clouds. "My great-grandmother Margaret was English, she had a passion for roses and we have all different kinds, none of them are hybrids so they smell and have thorns", she said. The rose gardens were splended an dcame in all sizes and colors with their scent wafting in the breeze: red roses ranging from burgundy to crimson; huge shaggy pink roses and smaller damask roses; ivory and cream white roses; the less common yellow and orange varieties that were in full bloom.

"I live in England and I've never seen so many anywhere, us Spaniards don't grow roses", he said.

"You don't have an accent, Juan. And why?", she asked.

Juan just laughed, his blue eyes merry. "I play for Chelsea FC and I live in London, I learned English in school. My parents spoke English good and I wanted to improve mine so I could read Tolkien and Kipling in the original. Believe me, you aren't the first person to ask", he chuckled.

Christina blushed, thinking Juan was quite handsome when he smiled. He was a bit on the short side but muscular with curly light brown hair and a matching beard in an elfin face, his blue eyes merry and his lips turned up in a smile. His muscular arms were revealecd by his blue t-shirt and shorts, the tattoos on his arms standing out.

"What are those?", she asked.

"That's the coat of arms of Asturias, my region of Spain. And this is the coat of arms of Gondor, since if I lived in Middle Earth I would be a Gondorian. i want to get my name done in Tengwar like Fernando but it wouldn't be as impressive", he said with a laugh.

"I swear you are like a British person, Juan Mata", she teased.

"I'm an Anglophile, Christina. If I could I would move to England permanently, but my parents wouldn't like that", he joked.

"Are you Sol Duga as well?", she asked.

"Si, I just found out. It does make sense, though, but I can see why my parents never told me. I do wonder if your dad has something he wants us to do, it would make for an interesting holiday", he mused aloud.

"But you can't tell anyone, imagine if the government found out", she exclaimed.

"Yo saber, senorita Christina. I've always wanted to do something different, and it looks like I got my chance", he said dryly.

"We have to stop this guy from getting himself killed?", asked Fernando dubiously.

"Si, Fernando. Trust me, there were people worse than that in the London underworld back in the 30's", said Hugo.

"Wasn't that the gangster that owned the team back in the day?", asked Juan.

"Si, he owned Chelsea until he got gunned down by rival gangsters in 1935. He made his money in gambling and running brothels, he bought the team for a pittance and wanted to go legit but his own guys didn't want that so they collaborated with his rivals to have him killed. Watson was a good owner, he spent money on the team and the players loved him. Without him, Chelsea became the laughingstock of the London football teams", said Magnus.

"If you succeed, Chelsea would have a proud history spanning from the 30's to today. And Johnny Watson would have been known as the owner who founded the Chelsea dynasty, plus he would have amassed a fortune and been knighted by the queen", said Hugo.

"Madre Dios, so we have to stop this guy from getting killed? Are we going to play for Chelsea?", asked Fernando.

"Si, you and Juan are playing for Chelsea and if you complete your mission, no record of you playing for the team will exist, but you will be known under different names", said Helgi.

"What do we do?", demanded Violette.

"You are going with them as their wives, you will gather informathion about the gang and report back to Juan and Fernando", said Helgi.

"But first, put on your new clothes and I will have to remove your tattoos", said Hugo. The two Spaniards looked dubiously at each other as the wizard touched their arms and their tattoos disappeared, their skin back to its original condition. "Lo siento, but few people had tattoos back then", said Hugo.

"They will come back, verdad?", asked Fernando, looking at his bare arm.

"Yes, when you get back", said Magnus as Tavis brought them their new clothes.

"Si, bueno. I look like something from Boardwalk Empire", said Juan, looking at himself in the mirror. Him and Fernando wore similar charcoal gray suits with white pinstripes and fedoras, both men looking sharp.

"Oui, I have always liked a man in a suit", said Violette with a laugh. She and Christina wore similar dresses, hers in lavender and the Scottish girl in a sea-green one with white silk stockings and heels, hair pulled back and little velvet hats on their heads.

Magnus took out a blue-green round stone the shape and size of a bowling ball along with four tiny stones suspended from silver necklaces, handing one to each. "This is a Tunguska stone, it helps you go back in time. These necklaces are smaller Tunguska stones, don't lose them or else you can't go back", said Hugo.

The four of them got in a circle and held hands, Magnus touching the big stone as it glowed with an eerie blue light. The stone grew brighter until the whole room glowed and the light enveloped them, then everything fading to black....