Warning: Item Damage Detected

Warning: Insufficient Mana. Partial Functions Restored

Diagnostics in Progress

Carlile holds the base of my head and neck, a hard stare in his hazel eyes that focus when he recognizes me watching him. His eyes are red around the rims.

I’m back outside of the cave. I don’t have to look far to see why; it’s been flooded almost completely by the river. That’s going to take some work.

“She awake?” Ivans. He materializes next to the two of us, a pastry in one hand and an envelope in the other. He marks over me briefly.

“You’re speaking,” I say.

Ivans turns a genuine glare upon me. He ignores my remark, flicking his attention to Carlile. “How are you doing?”

“I’m fine.”

“Bullshit. Your face is pale.”

It is. A bead of sweat traces the side of it. “Are you… feeding me your magic?”

He ignores my question. “What did the king have to say about the cave?”

“He wasn’t very impressed.”

“I’m going to fix it.” I attempt to shrug away his arm. My own is sluggish. Weak. It is a strain just to reach him.

“Stay put.”

They both order me, half a beat apart. They care. A thin smirk twitches my lip, of which neither are impressed. I muster a bit more of my strength and sit up. Placing my hand on Carlile’s arm gently, I stare at him directly.

“There’s work to be done.”

“Sebastian. You almost died. Died.”

“You were scattered,” Ivans mutters, peeling flecks from the pastry. They crumble in his fingers, feeding the grass. “The river would have swept you away if not for the string.” His brown orbs are moist, but he hides it underneath his bangs.

The Rubik’s Cube in my head wobbles as it turns, catching on itself in places. I close my eyes and imagine extracting the cube. When I open them, a cube of five dimmed colours rests in my hand. With the connection lost, the ginger’s magic concentrates at his tips. Cool.

There are several nicks along the exterior of the Rubik’s Cube and a deep, crooked gash slashed across two of the sides. I deconstruct the block, remove a carving knife and sanding sheet from my pouch, and get to work.

Carlile wiggles his fingers. The coolness of them warms as the flow returns to its natural cycle. He stares at them, then me.

“Sebastian. Are you–?”

“Ryan.”

“What?”

“Ryan. You can call me Ryan.”

“Ryan.”

He phrases it carefully. Sounding it out like a foreign word. The smile on my lips brightens, then dims. Time for some honesty. It is difficult to force the words out, foreign in my ears, but the sanding helps to detract from it. “Promises mean a lot to me,” I say, slowly to start. “People count on me to hold my word. To be available. To be there. Someone asked me once to be at her side. Do you know what I told her?”

Ivans sits down next to Carlile, the letter set aside on the ground. They are both listening at full attention.

“I said no.”

Sarah’s contorted countenance fills my vision. Surprise, betrayal, pain. I blink it into focus.

“Have you ever tried to paint an apple? The more simple an object, the more nuance you will find. Gradience, reflections, shadows, they all weave together in a complex, deceptive shape. I cannot make a promise I will break.”

“Sebas–. Ryan. That nonsense about Summoned having a say…?”

I press my lips together. It could be a smile. It could be a grimace. He shuts up. I finish the last of the sanding and reassemble the blocks together into the Cube. A couple of test spins. Aside from the gash, the pieces behave and operate as normal. Returning the Rubik’s Cube to its place with a bit of concentration, I scatter the grains and hop onto my feet. A bit unsteady and off-balance, but I’ll get used to it.

“Ready for a walk?”

It was just past midday when I entered the cave, but the sun is now much lower in the sky. No choice on priority; finding the wand has to come first.

“Ryan.”

“Yes?”

Ivans sighs. Musses his hair. Clambering onto his feet, he produces a fresh pastry and passes it to me. “Just don’t stray too far.”

The ginger looks between the two of us. Gives up. “Fine.” He gets up and fixes his belt and sword. “Keep the spells to a minimum. You have the two of us; don’t strain yourself.”

“Three.”

At his confusion, the little fairy dips her head around his shoulder and reveals herself. Offering a little bow to the two, she places a hand on her chest.

“Muse, at your service.”

Carlile’s eyes widen, then narrow. He returns her bow with a dip of his head. Ivans noms on a pastry. She flitters over to me and sits on my shoulder, nuzzling into my neck like a cat. I pat her gently on the head.

“The grumpy one is Carlile. The crummy one is Ivans.” They catch the smirk twinkling in my eyes and drop their retorts. “Both are good friends, so please treat them well.”

She nods.

You have successfully befriended the person known as Carlile. Please set up communications.

“Muse helped me inside the cave. Her knowledge of the Jabberwock was a big help.”

“Don’t try to distract us, Seba– Ryan.”

It’s good that the name doesn’t come easily to him.

“Speaking of, how is Clarabelle? I had that letter delivered to you for your sister.”

“Clairie’s a big girl. She can take care of herself.”

“Corman’s with her?”

“Corman’s with her.”

I turn my attention back to muse. “You don’t happen to know what happened to my wand, do you?”

She hums a score from one of the films I helped produce around four years ago. The film nearly cost the company on release, but has since built up a following from the smaller theatre companies.

“In the cave, huh? Do either of you know how to breathe underwater?”

“Ryan. You’re not going in there.”

“Work to be done. Muse, can you stay up here and report the progress?”

She nods.

“Ivans, can you stay up here too? I’ll need some help moving the water; I will give you instructions once it’s ready.”

He sighs and chomps into an apple.

“Carlile, you need to slim down if you’re coming. Your armour will catch in the entranceway.”

“You don’t even know water breathing.”

I blink at him. Cock my head to the side.

“Ryan. How did you learn an advanced spell like water breathing? It’s a military secret.”

“I read a book.”

He unbuckles his shoulder plates and tosses them to the grass. “Figures.” Removing the excess armour and weaponry, he swaps his regular sword for a shorter blade and folds his arms.

I step up, have him bow his head, and brush my lips lightly over his forehead. He crinkles his brow, displeased, but doesn’t say another word.

“Ryan,” Ivans says as the two of us enter the cave. “Spells to a minimum, okay?”

A soft smile. Another promise I cannot keep.

I dive into the water, linger to the side for Carlile to orientate himself, and then swim through the tunnels, leading the ginger deeper into the cave.

Mindful of the ceiling, I warn Carlile through the Link spell as we enter into the main part of the cavern. There are two needles nestled up there.

Your doing, I assume? His tone is dry, but the voice itself communicated through a warble. Perhaps a distortion effect from using an air elemental spell underwater. Interesting.

The JubJubs were vulnerable to electricity. Using a conduit controlled the discharge.

Tell me honestly: Are you human?

I stop my searching and look up at him, treading the water.

He asked the question.

There is a heaviness in my chest that seems to sag my limbs. Some ask the question honestly. Some jokingly. No matter how asked and who said it, my answer remains the same: Does it matter?

There are a few stray thoughts that float through his head, but the water distorts my comprehension of them. I return to my searching.

No, he says, finally. You are you.

I take a deep breath. Close my eyes. That is right. I am me. And I will continue to be just that. Only one other person has said that.

Found anything?

I found the hole you made. It’s a bit bigger than you anticipated. Seems Ivans’ found it too.

I concentrate, extending the thread to include him. How does it look from your end?

A lot of work.

Think you can manage?

With help. Do you have enough on you?

I think I found it, Carlile interrupts. It seems to be damaged.

I swim up to him and take the wand. There are two slivers carved from the stick, one thin and the other one about half a centimeter width.

Connection Reestablished. Running Diagnostic Feedback.

This is it. Thank you.

Diagnostics Alert: Insufficient Mana Stores

Diagnostics Alert: Detected Unusual Status – Sleep

I check my own magic supply. The bar is separated by a line into two; neither side boasts a sizeable supply.

I will deal with that in a bit. Swimming over to the hole, I sketch the runes and focus on the incantation in my head. The hole glimmers faintly, now covered with a thin membrane.

The water will move in a moment. I need you to control the pace; make sure it doesn’t lash outside of the bed. When I give the signal, I need the both of you to patch the hole.

I free up a knife from my thigh and pass it to Carlile.

You can melt this down for materials. The needles too.

He holds the knife, then looks at me. That sounds quite intensive. Are you sure you have the magic?

I won’t be using my magic for this.

Removing my phone, I sort through the apps for the stopwatch. Tammy sends me a text summarizing instructions and expectations. She won’t be talking much for a while after this.

Closing my eyes, I listen for the energy in the phone and touch upon a thread. The fingers of my other hand pinch and extract it. When I open my eyes, a semi-transparent silver watch dangles from a chain between my fingers. Though the chain is solid, it holds that tickly sensation similar to a hologram. Maneuvering to clasp the circle, I pop the cover down to reveal the face.

I put away my phone and steady my wand. Depressing the top where the clasp and chain is held, the hands of the clock spin backwards.

The water in the cave begins to flow subtly backwards. I press the wand into face and speed up the flow, tracking the movements with my eyes.

I see Ivans and Carlile return me to the cave and lay me down. The pain and panic in their expressions regress to concern and unease, my body dissipate into the water before swirling from the water back into form.

I see myself return the microchip to the Jabberwock and slash its head onto its shoulders before carrying myself and the water up into the stalactites. Twisting the wand, I can feel the force of resistance quivering in my palm.

Carlile’s stare is on me. I can feel the pressure of the water around us. The essence of it is concentrated in my palm and the wand. Only a few seconds before it snaps.

The hole. Now!

All of my concentration is on the water. As the pressure on my body fades away, a loud crack resounds in my ears. I cripple to the ground but do not ease up on the wand until the very last drop of pressure has vanished. The hologram-like watch dissipates from my hand like water, leaving only a tingling sensation behind.

“Ryan!”

Carlile rushes over to me, checking my vitals first. I push him back, then maneuver onto my butt and touch the very sensitive, broken, bone. I feel exhausted, like I just ran a marathon.

“The water vanished and I fell and–”

Ivans. You alright?

He materializes from the broken boulder in the cave and rushes up to smack me over the head with his wand. The flinch sends a jolt of pain through my leg. I take a deep breath, focus, and turn my eyes on him.

“Are you insane? Time Magic? In your state? You have to be fucking kidding me.”

I have never seen him this angry. His neck is redder than even a half hour ago, cheeks flushed and pupils dilated.

“Her leg is broken,” Carlile says, interrupting. His voice is unusually calm.

Ivans stops and looks down. Bites his lips, turns, marches away. I cock my head at him.

“I didn’t cast the spell. I only took control of it. There’s an underground stream in this cave. We can’t just move some of the water back into the river and expect both ecosystems to be balanced.”

“Don’t talk to me right now. I just - I just can’t.”

He leaves the cavern completely. Carlile pulls a gauze from his pouch and a splint.

“I have medicine.”

He ignores me and starts wrapping the wound instead. It hurts, but this time I brace against the pain.

“You don’t talk, to anyone,” he mutters quietly, eyes locked onto his wrapping. “If you had just given him a warning, he wouldn’t be this upset.”

“He would have tried to stop me.”

“That’s good though, isn’t it? Friends are supposed to stop each other from doing stupid things. Ivans told me you asked him if he would enter the cave with you.”

“I did.”

“You didn’t tell him about the Jabberwock.”

That shuts me up. I didn’t think of it. I figured that such a small detail wouldn’t change his mind.

“You can’t keep giving us incomplete information and expecting us to know what to do with it. A team functions on trust. You asked me to reward you some. Ryan. It’s your turn.”

“I trust you. I trust you both.”

“Then prove it. This world can’t accept words alone. If you want anything to happen, you have to act first.”

I pull my potions from the pouch, select a bottle, and gulp it down. Returning my potions, and his splint, I hop up and balance on my feet.

“I’m going to talk to Ivans.”

“Don’t. Give him time.”

I look at him, then back to where Ivans was last. “Okay.”

“So, what’s you next step?”

I sheath my wand. “What else? Find the Tearrorbols, bring them home.”

“Do you know where to start?”

“Of course.”