Here he was again. Face to face with Erebus, the liar.
“You didn’t think of me much last night, I'm hurt,” Erebus said, feigning melancholy.
Arden rolled his eyes as he replaced the ruined torch with a fresh one. Finally, he was able to properly light the room. Maybe he could see what he was dealing with in the cell behind him. Slowly, he turned to face the prisoner, his pulse racing, but his face showing no evidence of it. He pulled out the stool from the corner and pulled it into the middle of the room, far enough from the bars that he could not be reached, but close enough that he could see everything inside clearly.
“Oh, this is much better, thank you,” Erebus said, surveying the room. “The grime looks much worse in the light, I feel like I’m home.” There was a mocking tone to his statement but Arden refused to rise to the bait. Instead he sat on the stool and stared at Erebus through the bars.
“I have a question.” Arden did his best to mask the fear in his voice. This got Erebus’ attention. He crossed the small space within his cell to stand directly in front of Arden, his right forearm coming to rest above his head as he leaned.
“Ask away.” His eyebrows were raised, he appeared quite friendly.
“I read in a book-”
“A book written by humans about demons I assume.” Erebus interrupted.
Arden huffed and continued, “about magic” Erebus chuckled and waved for him to continue. “I read that humans cannot perform illusion magic.”
Erebus made another expression that Arden could not read. A mix between fascinated and ravenous. It was extremely unsettling. “And what led you to read about illusion magic specifically?”
“I-I’m not sure. It caught my eye I guess.” He was mad that he allowed himself to be taken aback so easily. “Everything else seemed obvious, like elemental and physical, but illusion seemed so abstract.”
Erebus seemed to be sizing him up, his calculating stare boring into his skin. Arden squirmed under his gaze. After what seemed like a long while, he spoke. “Humans can perform illusion magic, but it is rare. One must learn it from a demon, therefore most shy away from it.”
“Can any human learn it?” He was genuinely curious, but also cautious.
“No.”
Arden was taken aback by the brevity of Erebus’ reply; Usually he is so expressive and articulate. Cautiously, Arden continued, “ are there any magics that demons have to learn from humans?”
Erebus’ light hearted nature seemed to return with that question. “Fair question, but no. Demons can possess and harness all magics but often have a proclivity for one.”
“What’s yours?” Arden asked hesitantly.
Erebus regarded Arden curiously. “You do not have to be coy, you can ask me what type of magic we share.”
Arden shifted uncomfortably for being found out so effortlessly. But he sat up straight, and did his best to seem unintimidated by Erebus’ cocky nature. “What type of magic do we possess?”
Erebus smiled at the use of “we”. It was not often that a human would allow himself to be so easily compared to a demon. Arden could see the uncertainty behind the demon’s eyes, but he seemed responsive to his boldness.
“Illusion.” The grin he now wore was not the happy-go-lucky one from moments ago, now it is a cheshire grin full of mischief.
Arden paused for a moment, debating his next questions carefully. Slowly he decided on a somewhat safe question: “why do humans need demons to learn illusion magic?”
Erebus leaned forward once more, “because in order to understand illusion magic, you must think the unthinkable, and unlearn what humans deem ‘impossible’.” He stared straight faced as if what he just said made perfect sense.
“Think the unthinkable?” He said to the room as he raised his fist to his chin, pondering. It sounded like a riddle, but perhaps it was meant to be taken literally. “could you give me an example?”
Erebus seemed pleasantly surprised by this reaction. “Humans see their reflection as nothing but a copy of the visual field around them, but it is deeper than that.”
“How so?” He said eagerly.
Erebus chuckled warmly and continued, “you must view your reflection as a copy of yourself, one that you can swap places with. The world of the reflection and the world of the reflected.”
Arden struggled to understand the concept Erebus was trying to describe. A world within his own reflection seemed impossible. But then again Erebus said to think the unthinkable, and unlearn what seemed impossible. “If you transfer your consciousness into the reflection, what do you see? Is it identical to the world we know, or is it unique?” Arden wondered if you could forget which world was real if you swapped them enough times.
“The reflection world only exists within the fields of the reflected.” Erebus saw Arden’s disgruntled expression and elaborated further, “a cave with no light cannot produce a reflection therefore it does not exist within that world, and once you enter the reflection world, your body does not exist in the reflected.” He stared back expectantly.
Arden slowly nodded his head, absorbing this information trying to visualize what a world like that would look like.
“What exists in the space between reflections?” Arden asked, imagining a world of islands composed of small reflections with gaps of darkness between.
“You are a clever one aren’t you?” Arden’s face warmed with the compliment, and he shifted under his gaze. “There is no space between them. The world is pieced together seamlessly, omitting the spots lacking reflection.”
“Huh.”
Erebus’ eyebrow raised quizzically.
“So, hypothetically, if one were to enter the reflection world on one side of a cave, they could cross the cave instantly, and re-emerge from a reflection on the other side?”
“Correct.” Erebus seemed genuinely impressed.
“Seems like a useful skill, how long does it take to cross to the other side? You said there were no gaps, yet if you walk at a wall, or a thick, solid object, what happens?”
“You are a curious human.” He said amusedly.
“Meaning I’m inquisitive? Or I’m strange?”
Erebus laughed and regarded him warmly. “Both.”
“Thank you?” Arden waited for Erebus to answer his question, his mind racing with this new information.
Luckily he didn’t have to wait long before Erebus complied, “ You do not walk the thickness of the object, you simply phase to the other side.” He saw Arden’s confusion grow so he continued, “Meaning that if you walk around the object it takes time, but if you phase through it you can jump to the other side instantly.”
While confused, Arden started to understand the concepts being placed before him. Or so he thought. The more he tried to imagine this world, the more questions he had. He decided that he would relent for now, but compile a list of questions for tomorrow so that he could stay organized with his thoughts, and not ask anything out of impulse. He wanted to ask how Erebus was able to enter reflections, when all reflections near him seemed to absorb light, but he decided to wait. While he wanted to know more about Erebus, he did not want to get on the demon’s bad side, or ask anything intrusive unintentionally.
Lost in thought, Arden did not hear Erebus trying to get his attention right away. “Hey kid. Kid… Arden.” It was not until he fully extended his arm from the cell and waved directly in Arden's face, did he manage to get his attention.
Arden stepped back with alarm, not knowing why the demon’s hand was reaching towards him. A loose stone in the floor caught his heel and he tumbled backwards landing firmly on the cold ground. Stunned by the fall, it took him a moment to regain his composure. He looked back towards Erebus with embarrassment and poorly concealed fear.
Erebus’ arms raised in defense. “You really get stuck in your own head huh. You have been here quite some time, your friends might suspect the worst.”
Arden’s eyes widened and he scrambled to his feet, not bothering to dust off the back of his trousers. He gathered himself as best as he could in his frazzled state and began to leave the cell with a brisk pace. He hesitated briefly to thank Erebus and bid him farewell. He was repaid with a warm smile and nod. He felt his cheeks bloom again as he resumed his pace to meet up with the rest of the crew, praying that they would not comment on his prolonged absence.
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