Young Writers Society

"I... don't know," Aerik admitted. "I just use the R'hyk, and it can't do that. We'll have to get a sorcerer from the--" Guild. He couldn't tell Elias that. "A trusted source. And get you back to... wherever it is you were? Are you all together with Jayk's men, then?"

Jerica looked like she was on the verge of melting off the chair and into the floor. And Jayk was studiously reading the letter. So Aerik looked at Elias.

Elias looked back between Jayk and Jerica to answer, but it seemed they were not paying attention to the conversation. For once.

"Oh, uh," Elias said instead in place of them. "No." He offered a strained smile. "We kind of just ran into them. We're still on the way to Crevon, though. Also to see... you know. A sorcerer. Maybe it can be the same sorcerer to do both things?"

"Mmm... we'll need to silence Femola before you get there," Aerik answered thoughtfully, then cast Jerica a sideward glance. "Hope the rum was worth it."

"Mmmmmm," Jerica groaned, too hurt and exhausted to think of a clever comeback. "Can't the two of you just go bother each other?"

Aerik rolled his eyes but looked back at Elias. "Do you have any questions about... well, any of this? I'm sure it must be a bit overwhelming."

Elias nodded slowly. It was nice to talk to Aerik who would give him straight answers, unlike Jerica and Jayk.

"Yeah, I'm really confused about this whole R'hyk thing. So, does everyone have it? Can I learn it? What can you do with it, really? Anything?" He sighed. "I dunno, it's just weird, because everyone on Earth has a power, but we all do something different. So I guess I'm just trying to understand if it's any similar."

Aerik looked at him for a moment. That was more questions all at once than he'd expected. "Not everyone can use it -- very few people know how, actually -- but anyone can learn it, so you could, yes. It's not really a 'power' like what you have on Earth. More of a... learned skill?"

"Oh. Hmm." Elias hummed in thought. "So, it's possible that everyone in his world could learn it if they knew the right teachers? Sounds wild."

"I suppose..." Aerik answered thoughtfully. "At least, in theory. Most people don't even know it exists."

Elias really was getting a distorted view on what normal life in Beirania was really like. He rubbed his head on the side, thinking.

"Okay then... and then... here. What, did we teleport here? Just like how you teleport those letters? I guess that's possible here?"

Aerik thought about it for a moment. He was pretty sure he'd heard the word teleport on Earth before. "I think so, yeah. We call it a Transport. You basically just..." Aerik didn't really know the science behind what happened. "Send yourself to where you want to be. And then your body throws itself back together. And then Jerica pukes."

"Fuck you," she murmured.

He smirked, keeping his eyes on Elias. He'd been hoping she was listening enough to hear the dig. "Most people--"

"Fuck. You." Jerica cut in again.

Aerik laughed. "Well, some people get accustomed to the feeling and it just shakes them up a bit after they do it a few times. Some people just remain unlucky every single time."

"Hrrm. Okay," Elias said slowly, letting his words sink in while Aerik and Jerica bickered. He was pretty sure teleportation was impossible on Earth, but what did he know? Clearly nothing.

"So, uh... Jayk. And all the people with him." He tried not to make eye contact with Jayk. "Who are they? Random civilians or something?"

"Civilians," Jayk snorted, laughing at him, but keeping his eyes on the paper. He had no interest in playing twenty questions with the boy.

Aerik cast an annoyed glance at him, but looked back at Elias. Jayk was too snarky for his own good sometimes. "Swaltou is inhabited entirely by criminals. Thieves, murderers, servants on the run, what have you. It's the one place in this realm where people who aren't criminals are afraid to go unless they have a full army with them."

"Because the bastards act like the ones..." Jerica trailed off without finishing her thought, eyes fluttering shut even as she tried to keep them open.

Aerik looked back at Elias. "I take it you had some run-ins before the scelinon?"

Again, Elias was glad Aerik was here. He wouldn't even have bothered to get Jayk to answer his questions since that worked out oh-so-well last time.

Except, it didn't seem like Aerik fully answered the question. Who were Jayk's people? Just criminals? It seemed to be deeper than that, especially given the first interaction Jerica had with him when they met them.

"Yeah," Elias said to Aerik. "A couple. So, Jayk's army of people are just criminals, then? And Jerica only trusted him because you both are brothers?"

That made Jayk look up to exchange a glance with Aerik. Even Jerica opened her eyes, taking part in the silent exchange. Aerik wasn't sure what to do with that question. Jayk wasn't, either. The silence stretched a bit longer than was comfortable.

Elias narrowed his eyes between the three of them, waiting for one of them to break this awkward silence and say something. Clearly, he asked something they didn't want to answer.

"What aren't you all telling me?" he said suspiciously.

"Just tell him," Jerica murmured, voice more of a groan than anything. She closed her eyes again.

Jayk locked eyes with Aerik again. Then shrugged.

Aerik sighed. "Oh, fine then. There's an organization that... exists... that is..." How could one even explain it without giving away too much? "It's a hub of people who are in charge of the realm, basically. Well, all of the realms, really. We work in the background. I'm the one who keeps an eye on Earth, which is why we don't want people to know I exist, because we don't want anyone to know that Earth exists. And..."

He sighed, rubbing his face.

"People in the..." Jayk cut himself off before he said Guild. Elias seemed to run his mouth too much to be trusted with the name. "...organization are all very carefully screened. Because of that, you instantly know that anyone else you meet who is in it is someone you can trust with your life. I just showed Jerica that I'm in it."

Jayk pulled up his sleeve and angled it towards Elias so he could see. It glowed blue in the outline of an intricate crest. Aerik also pulled his sleeve up a bit to show Elias the same outline. Jerica flopped her arm over the chair, too lazy to sit up, but the glowing crest was still partially visible under the edge of her sleeve.