A guide, Tiyrus explained, was someone that could travel through the world beside the world.  It was not a realm that could be understood by humans.  Their world dealt with concrete realities.  Even magic was governed by rules of logic and structure.  This world had none of that.  It was abstractions and impulse, made of thought and feeling.  Ordinary people that found themselves in that realm couldn’t deliberately affect it and would drift aimlessly, tossed about by whatever part of their mind the world around them latched onto.  Naturally, that drifted into nightmares very quickly, and from there it became a vicious cycle eventually resulting in the victim’s death, as the world fed off their ever-increasing fear.

Mages had a bit more control, as they were already used to projecting their will upon the world.  However, it still took an incredible amount of concentration and effort.  Magic couldn’t help them, either, as it simply didn’t exist in the other world.  It was simply a matter of mental fortitude.  Very few people could reliably accomplish it.

As a result, the other world was considered inaccessible for humanity.  It was used only in the most desperate of circumstances, when the only other alternative was certain death.

“You see,” Tiyrus said, “the void does not calculate distance as we do.  What does distance matter to a world that has no physical material?  If you believe that something is not that far at all, then it will not be that far away.”

“You can teleport,” Olive said.

“I think I am hearing that word as you intended it.  Yes.  You can teleport.”

This was how Olive got here.  Tiyrus gently inquired as to the events that led up to her appearance in this world.  Olive was surprised to find it was difficult to talk about without getting upset.  She faltered and Tiyrus told her that was enough, he could put together what had happened just from the handful of words she could say.  If she was in fear of dying, he said, she must have desperately wanted to be somewhere else.  Somewhere far away.  Somewhere safe.  

“Another world is safe?” she asked incredulously.

“It is far away,” he replied.  “I suspect that was the strongest emotion in your mind at that moment.  You wanted to be far far away from what was happening at that moment.”

And she wound up somewhere where she wouldn’t be harmed and there were people at hand that could protect her.  But most importantly, they knew what she was and what had happened to her.  It was hard to know what all went through Olive’s mind in the moment she was thrown through the void.  Trauma likely jumbled the memories, but the void could pluck them out of her mind and take action on them without her ever perceiving it.

Olive sat back and stared at her cooling tea.  Tiyrus called for his maid and she appeared again to produce a new teacup and fill it with steaming tea.

“But you said normal people couldn’t pass through the void safely,” she said, once the maid was gone.  “What makes me special?”

They weren’t entirely sure.  The popular theory was that some people were touched by the void while in the womb, giving them a special connection where the void could understand them, thereby disregarding thoughts they didn’t want to manifest and only acting on the ones they wanted to have happen.  Void-touched, as the commoners called them.  Children of the Void, according to the temple.  And among the mages - guides.

They were very rare, he said.  The last one died a few years before he was born.  Before that, there were a handful scattered through history, but eventually they vanished.  Exploring other worlds, he supposed, after they’d had their fill of this one.

“So I can just… ask the void to go home?” Olive asked eagerly.

“Sure - if you can get to it,” Tiyrus replied.  “Moving between realms takes a considerable amount of magic.  I can do it, with the support of other mages.  But you have no magic.”

All she had was the void.  Extreme desperation could call the void to her, but there would be consequences.  The two worlds weren’t meant to mix.  The place where they intersected would be damaged for a time.

“Is it… dangerous?”

“Yes.  Was the area you left densely populated?”

“It is.”

“That’s good.  The presence of human minds will help it to heal faster.”

She couldn’t help but feel guilty.  Tiyrus must have seen it on her face, for he hastily changed the subject.  He’d teach her, he said.  He’d make sure she could use her connection to the void without harming anyone.

“Who exactly are you, anyway?” she asked.  

It’d been bothering her.  He smiled faintly, his ice blue eyes sparkling.  Clearly he’d anticipated this question would come up at some point.

“I’m Captain of the Mage Guard,” he replied.  “I answer directly to the king.”

The mage guard was an elite group of mages under the command of the king.  They were drawn from across the world, as nationality didn’t matter.  Only talent.  And Tiyrus was the most talented of all of them.

“Then…” Olive said uncertainty, twisting at the ring on her thumb.  “Thank you for taking care of me.”

“Of course.”  He smiled gently.  “I feel I am responsible for you a bit, since I was there when you first woke up in this world.”

She was quiet for a moment.  Funny how such a slight thing connected them.  It made her feel safe, to know there was at least one person in this world concerned about her.  She didn’t want to leave this office, even with all the animal heads glaring down at her.

“I have work to do,” Tiyrus finally sighed.  “I’ll have my maid bring you a book on noble etiquette from the royal library.  It’ll be for children, but it’s a starting point.  You’ll be able to read it with that ring on.”

“That would be nice, thank you,” Olive said.  

She didn’t exactly feel grateful, but he was trying to help.  Learning this world’s etiquette didn’t sound particularly exciting, but it would be necessary.  She’d already angered the king just by wearing earrings, after all.

“But I do want to know one more thing,” she said, once he made the request of the maid.  “What is up with Prince Cariun?”

“There are lots of problems with the prince,” Tiyrus said dryly.  “It doesn’t help that he is his own worst enemy.  I’ll let you decide how you want to handle him, but I have only one piece of advice.”

Tiyrus stared her in the eyes, his expression grim.  The light caught his silver earrings like little stars.

“Don’t trust him,” he said evenly.  “He intends to use you to further his own goals and will do whatever it takes, no matter how much that might harm you.”

And this was the man who was supposed to be her guardian.