Young Writers Society

"Боже мой," Nikolai muttered, then repeated himself in English because he remembered she wouldn't know what that meant. "My goodness, Mel, let's take things slower."

I love her energy, but for heaven's sake, she might be the death of me.

"Okay, so first things first," he said, taking a sip from the mug in his right hand— the one that contained tea. Kolya's only a double-handed drinker when it comes to tea, his mother might have joked if she was here right now. "My family has abilities related to art. They can vary a little from person to person, but mine are just a little different from the standard. First, I've got the ability to transfer color for one thing to another." He raised both mugs a little as he spoke. "From a scientific point of view, I have no clue how that works, but then science doesn't explain a lot of the things we do."

Setting the mug with tea down on the table again, Nikolai turned the one he'd created around in his hands, studying it.

"As for the other part... bringing the drawing to life is a separate ability from transferring color. I know people who have one or the other, but I've never heard of anyone else having both. What I do is just make the drawing more real. I add depth, form, shape, whatever you call it— oh, and if I have a certain material in mind, I can also make it out of that. It's worth pointing out that the object will come out the same size I draw it as, so if I want to get something large, I'm going to need an equally large piece of paper." He laughed suddenly. "Which is why we have a storage room that has super big paper sheets in it. But it works on other surfaces too, like walls and floors, as long as it's something possible to draw on."

He tapped the drawn mug and set it on the table in front of Mel, in case she wanted to take a look.

"Right now, it looks just like a normal mug. However, it's not going to last forever. Maybe just a few hours. Not entirely sure how long." Nikolai shrugged. "By morning, it'll reverse the process you just saw. It'll become a drawing on whatever I drew it on, back the way it was before. I'll also pass the color back to the first mug then."

He'd hadn't needed to explain it to anyone in such a long time. Trying to remember what words he used to answer the variants of the next question before, he took another sip of the tea.

"I do have limits to things I can draw," Nikolai admitted. "For example, I can't draw a fire. Well, I can, but it wouldn't have any light or heat— I can't create those. As for food and drink... I suppose I've never tried to draw a meal and then eat it, so maybe it'd be edible, but I have no idea about taste. Also, it'd just become a sketch soon afterwards. You wouldn't actually gain anything from snacking on my of my drawings." He laughed. "Oh, and living things..."

There was a word he was looking for that he could remember in Russian, just not English. He rubbed his eyes, trying to think. What was it already... Oh, that's it.

"I heard of something new called a wind-up toy," he said thoughtfully. "They've started making this thing in Europe, and you've got to... well, wind it up to make it move. Honestly, that's a lot what it's like to draw and create something that's alive. If I drew... I don't know, a robin right now, it would act like a robin in some ways. The bird would move around, flapping and hopping all over this room. It'd also be really cute, if I did a good enough job. But it wouldn't be a living creature, really. It wouldn't have thoughts, or have any instincts, like fear or hunger. And it'd go back to normal like any other drawing. So, yes, I can do those to some extent." His face fell a bit when he remembered that she'd asked about people too. "But no, I don't draw people," he added. "I can, but I don't." He added no explanation for it.

Mel listened patiently, although it was very hard since she wanted to interrupt Nikolai and ask even more questions. Something told her that he wouldn't appreciate it, though, so she slowly sipped on the tea to keep herself from saying anything impulsive. It burned her tongue at first, but then she got used to the temperature and started to slowly gulp.

She had never heard of a power like his before. Drawings, coming to life. Taking color. Only being temporary. It also had caveats: not being able to dispel light or energy, questionable food, thoughtless living things, not drawing people. She noticed that he had given her an explanation for everything except the people part, but she didn't linger on that thought too long.

Mel had no idea how any of this was possible, but with different timelines and worlds existing, that was the least of her concerns. It was confusing to be on Earth that was... what, a different reality? That was possible? She didn't know. It was easier to think that she was an alien, or that he was an alien.

"That's really interesting," she said when he finished, setting the finished cup on her lap. She wasn't cold now, but her clothes and hair were still a bit damp. "I've never heard of a power relating to drawing. That's really neat. Not sure how it's possible, but... still unique."

At least, in her version of Earth. No idea what it was like here.

"So, um... this League. And you living out here. Are you in hiding? Or something?"

Or was he just an anxious person?

Nikolai shrugged with one shoulder, reaching for the original mug and gripping it tightly, as if trying to find some comfort in its warmth. “Well... sorta. I haven’t lived here all my life.”

He paused, hoping Mel would follow up with another question. But he knew she’d want a story. Fine. He could afford to give her the basics.

“So, I grew up in St. Petersburg,” he said quietly, wondering what exactly she wanted to hear. Adventure? Drama? There was plenty of that, but he wasn’t going to spill it all out now, here, to a near-stranger. “I lived there until I was... twelve. Because of reasons, ” he added rapidly, before she asked him why. His voice was gentle, but it was clear he didn’t want to talk about that.

Nikolai took a moment to take another sip, thinking silently. He didn’t mind the burn in his throat now. It gave him something to focus on.

“We lived in Europe for a bit after that. First London for a bit, then I stayed in France to attend a fine arts boarding school for four years. Lots of close calls along the way. We eventually decided it’d be best to stay here, off the radar... So, we’re not exactly in hiding. This cabin isn’t a perfect secret. However, it’s away from everything and everyone, and that’s what makes it safer. There isn’t anyone to accidentally stumble across a secret. No one goes into these woods.”

Except you, I guess.

“Anyway,” Nikolai said. He was surprised at how calm he’d sounded during most of this. Maybe making things seem more boring than they really were helped him stay that way. “Been living here since I was about seventeen.” He yawned, feeling sleepy again. “Well, what’s your story?”

St. Petersburg, Europe, London, France...

These were all places that Mel didn't recognize, but it didn't take away the context to Nikolai's backstory. It seemed that he was always on the run, bouncing from one place to another. She wanted to know what these 'close calls' were exactly, but it seemed like it could be traumatic.

And much more exciting than her life.

Her story? She was only seventeen. She only lived in one place her entire life and never got to see anything or go anywhere. It was almost embarrassing how much her life was different compared to Nikolai's... and how much she wished she had his life.

It had always felt like she was missing something important—something that was supposed to be full of adventure and different. But the only thing that came to mind was that her biological parents dumped her in the ungoverned lands, and she was found before she could fully grow up. That wasn't exactly anything to brag about, though.

"So, what?" she said, ignoring his question. "You plan on living here forever then? Stay hidden? Forever, I mean?"

So, Mel hadn’t answered, and she’d given him a question of her own instead. Well, she didn’t want to talk about it right now. Maybe it could wait. Nikolai was busy thinking anyway.

“It’s... complicated,” he said after a few moments of hesitation. “I mean— nowhere’s completely safe. You could live in the middle of nowhere, and there’s still plenty of risks. And I’d say Central Siberia, where we are right now, is pretty much deserted. There aren’t anything more than dirt roads anywhere near us. Even so, threats can still reach us here. However, it’s comparatively safer to have a quiet life if you’re gifted.”

Nikolai felt like if he stopped talking for long, his eyes would close and he’d fall asleep in seconds. Pushing back the exhaustion, he yawned and continued what he was saying.

“But sooner or later, we’ll have to leave, yes,” he acknowledged. “If I’ve learned anything from all my previous travels, it’s that a stable life isn’t for us. It doesn’t matter how cautious you are, what measures you take. Someone always finds out, or gets suspicious of you. And then you don’t have any choice but to leave it all behind, start over, and just hope no one’s followed you.” He sighed. “So we’ll just find somewhere else when that happens.”

He wasn’t sure if that was really what Mel had been asking, though. Was she wondering why he didn’t want any adventure? How he could live in a secluded cabin in the woods for so long?

“It’s not all that bad here, though,” Nikolai admitted. “Yes, it’s chilly at least eight months a year, but the scenery is pretty, the house is nice, and we have what we need. My father and stepmother aren’t here right now, but they’re nice to be around. It can be a little boring— maybe more so right now since I’ve been alone for a couple weeks— but I’ll take boring over danger and living on the edge any day.”

For a guy who seemed anxious and shy, Nikolai sure liked to drone on about explaining things. Mel was getting a bit impatient and wanting to interrupt, but she swallowed that down and chose to wait until he was done before she spoke up.

His life sounded a little sad. He just kept moving on from one place to another, over and over. It sounded dull and boring, especially if there was a whole League he could be a part of.

Mel still didn't fully understand this League or what his situation was about, but she couldn't help but feel envious of him. She enjoyed the peace in the sectors, but she had always had an unexplainable yearning to have a life in the ungoverned lands, even if it was anarchy and violent out there.

"So, you're on the run forever, then?" she asked, almost sounding baffled. "But... run from what? What happens if you get caught?"

He was being cryptic and vague. What was he running from, exactly? Death? Something else?

Nikolai shrugged helplessly.

"I mean... that depends who finds you, right? You could be arrested and put on trial for 'witchcraft'. Or you could be killed for the same reason, but with no trial, and your murder's probably going to go unpunished. Maybe someone will threaten to blackmail you and then you'll have to serve them for the rest of your life if you don't want your secret to be revealed to anyone else. Pretty much all of us have lost someone to the hunts, one way or another. There are a lot of stories out there about that."

He sighed. That was sounding pretty negative.

"Or you could be lucky enough to have it be someone who's accepting. Not everyone's strongly anti-magic, and many don't even believe we exist or care if we do. Still, there's no way to be sure if the people around you are vigilante fanatics bent on getting rid of you— or someone tolerant who might even keep you protected. It's best to play it safe."

Nikolai still didn't understand why Mel wouldn't have learned any of this firsthand. It could be possible that she hadn't discovered her powers until quite recently, but he didn't find that likely at all. She was well above the age that most gifted people learned about their powers— and when they learned about their powers, they also learned why they needed to hide them.

He was hit with a blurry memory of small hands reaching for a pencil, tiny fingers curling around it like they didn't want to let go. Scribbles on paper, childish drawings of the sun— just a circle with lines extending from it— and messy trees, coming to life by a young boy's hand. Then a soft voice whispering to him, holding his hand and hiding the drawing away so those around them wouldn't see it. Не здесь, дорогая. Not here, darling.

Blinking, Nikolai shook his head. He hadn't meant to think of that.

"How did you manage to avoid persecution to the point where you didn't even know there was any?" he asked. There was a hint of longing in his voice, as if that was all he'd ever wanted.

Mel wished she could remember more of history. She only remembered the Modern Age leading up to how powers were developed, and before that, she only remembered learning about archaic civilizations that figured out how wheels and farms worked. And before that, it was cavemen who only lived to hunt for food. The years in the middle were fuzzy, and she didn't know if Nikolai's world—the one she was in right now—was a part of that timeline.

But powers—magic—existed here. And that was way too far in the past to exist. So, another world? It had to be.

Still, his story sounded a little familiar to her. It was how the Modern Ages collapsed, because people were against those who had powers. But obviously, powered people won... and that was, like, a thousand years from now.

"Hmmm," Mel hummed in thought, pursing her lips. Her mind then drifted to answer his question. How did she manage to avoid persecution?

Well, that was easy.

"Can't get persecuted if there isn't any," she said with a sly smile, but then realized he probably didn't find this funny. She shrugged. "I dunno. Where I'm from, things are peaceful. We all live together in towns without a problem. I never had to run away like you."

She thought about telling him that she didn't have to run away from people without powers who were jealous of hers, but then decided against it, because she didn't want to explain what happened to those who didn't have powers, or magic, whatever they wanted to call it. She was sure Nikolai would freak out, especially if he couldn't understand the whole 'other world' concept.

"Like I said, I'm not from your world," she said nonchalantly. "So we have different histories and all. Some of it is kind of similar though, which is weird. But still different."

"Oh. I see."

Nikolai tried to squash down a wave of envy. Where I'm from, things are peaceful... I never had to run away like you. He couldn't help but think that Mel was so lucky in that aspect. Never having to worry about your safety was a luxury, a privilege, and only for those who didn't have magic. And yet, somehow...

Heavens, he wanted that. He wanted a time and a world where he didn't have to fear strangers, to have danger constantly on his mind, to wonder how much longer he'd be fine— or if his father and stepmother would even make it back from their trip. He sighed.

"Well, history here has actually been heavily influenced by us," Nikolai said. There was no actual jealousy in his voice, though the same longing tone lingered. "We might be in hiding, but we still do a lot of work behind the scenes. And a lot of important people, both past and present, are secretly gifted. I won't bore you with specific names, though. In fact, it's better for them if you don't know."

What else could he tell her? He thought for a moment.

"It helps that we've been around for so long, though," he said, flipping over the sheet of paper he'd used for the mug a few minutes ago. "Long before writing was invented. In fact, one of the things that's helped us realize just how old gifted people are comes from my part of the league. Some really ancient cave paintings. I'll see if I can replicate them."

Nikolai started drawing again. This time, he was doing it from memory. He filled the paper with simple but easily recognizable animal sketches. Then he added some people. The humans were clearly hunters, chasing after their game with spears. Fortunately for Mel, no animals were dying in the real-life painting, and so he didn't have to draw that here.

"It looks a bit like this," he said, pushing it towards her. "Sorry for the lack of color— I don't have anywhere to get it from."

And a lot of important people, both past and present, are secretly gifted.

Those words resonated in Mel's head as Nikolai went on about his history and then started to draw. Her interest was piqued and she found herself craning her neck to see what he was drawing. Ancient cave paintings, he said... Interestingly enough, that also existed in her world.

"Caveman paintings, huh?" she mused out loud as he drew. "We had some of those too."

In fact, she thought it was a fascinating chapter and remembered flipping through page after page of these drawings. It was a simple time, back then. Tribalism and the like. Savage, yes, but it was the history of humanity. It felt familiar.

So when Nikolai finished drawing and pushed it across the table, she couldn't help but let the shock paint her face when she saw that he had drawn an exact replica of a drawing she remembered seeing in a book.

Mel snatched the paper off the table and took a moment to stare at it with wide eyes and an open mouth. Her mind raced with a million thoughts per minute, namely: how was this possible? Was Nikolai reading her mind? No, that was dumb, even for magic.

... Were they in the same timeline after all?

Suddenly serious, she slowly set her hands holding the paper on to her lap and turned her head to meet his eyes.

"Niko," she said cooly, deciding on a whim to call him by the shortened version of his name instead. "I, um... I think I'm from your future."

It still made no sense to her. How did powers exist hundreds of years before it should have existed? Although... she did get zipped to another world. There was a lot she didn't know.

The nickname surprised Nikolai quite a bit. He didn't know many people who were close enough to him to bother calling him that, and even then, it was only used by his family on his father's side. They were from England, and they said 'Niko' was easier for them to say than 'Kolya', which his Russian relatives on his mother's side would use. And his stepmother didn't use nicknames much. Having someone he'd just met call him by 'Niko' was new, but he didn't mind.

Mel's theory she'd just stated surprised him more, so he didn't give it much thought beyond that.

"Oh," Nikolai said slowly, glancing down at the drawing. "Well, did you... Did you recognize this?" He'd seen the shock spread across her face when she'd seen it, and since this drawing wasn't really impressive by his standards, he assumed it meant something to her.

Mel could've heard of them. Even for those who hadn't learned much history, the existence of cave paintings was fairly common knowledge. If she wasn't from this world like she claimed, though... that would mean she wouldn't know about them.

So if she did know...

"Wait," he said, trying to put things together, speaking again before she'd be able to answer his first question. He never talked this fast normally, but this felt more important than anything that had happened to him in years. "Okay, so... You mean you actually are from here, then? As in, this world? My world?" Nikolai was pointing down towards the ground, the tip of his finger just barely brushing the coffee table. "It seems like you thought you're from another, at a later date. But now you think this is your world, just... many centuries before your time?"

He kept hearing conflicting things, and little of it made sense to him. All he could be sure of at this point was that he probably wasn't getting much rest tonight.

Mel stared at the picture again, looking down at it to make sure it was the one. And it was. She was sure of it. She knew she had seen this before. The brush strokes, the way the people were depicted, the clothing, the weapons, the animals, the prints... For certain, she had seen this. And Nikolai obviously had, too.

"I've seen this exact same drawing before," she said slowly, then put the paper back down to meet his eyes. "That's why I think, maybe... we are from the same world. Maybe. I'm just from the future. Like, waaay in the future."

She sighed, closing her eyes tightly for a moment in hopes that it would help her think.

"It just doesn't make sense," she murmured. "Powers didn't exist back then..."

Nikolai pursed his lips, deep in thought. “Well, maybe we did manage to stay hidden and so you’d never heard of us, meaning no one in your time has heard of powers existing right now. Which is probably for the best. We’ve changed history even when we’re undercover. If we were revealed... well, the world would plunge into chaos and change forever.”

He was talking like he believed her— and he was starting to think this might actually all be true. But if Mel had powers and wasn’t part of the league, where did they come from?

“Your power isn’t like ours,” he said slowly. “For us, our abilities are linked to some skill, and the only way to master that ability is to get better at that skill. Mine would be art, specifically drawing and color. There are many others, though; we use the term ‘guilds’ to refer to those categories of skills a person’s abilities have to do with. Even within guilds, powers can vary a lot, but they all fit in with the skill. I mentioned that my father does some hunting, right? He’s part of the hunters’ guild, so he’s got heightened senses and excellent tracking skills. I just happened to inherit from my mother instead of him. And there are a lot of other guild examples I could provide, too.”

This was where it got confusing for him.

“But what you can do doesn’t align with any of the other guilds,” Nikolai continued. “There’s nothing where we can manipulate light. So if it’s different... I don’t know. Maybe our magic faded eventually and powers came back in another form in the future.” He shrugged. “What can I say? You know more about what happens later than I do.”

Mel tried to wrap her mind with all this. Nikolai was info-dumping her information that related to his magic, but she was still trying to think about how it'd be possible for her to be in the same world and timeline, and somehow be talking about magic right now. He didn't seem to understand her confusion.

Oh god, and the future... Should she even tell him? Everything that will happen? It wasn't like it was in his lifetime, but still.

"So, what are you saying, then?" she said slowly, trying to catch up to his train of thought. "That magic existed in my world? Or, um, our world?"

She sighed.

"Honestly, you'd think I'd know more about what happens since I'm from the future and all, but this past makes no sense to me. Powers—or magic, whatever the heck you want to call it—didn't exist until the year, uh... 2100? Maybe 2200? Something like that. Starts with a two, not an eighteen. So I have no idea how it can exist now."

Mel scrunched her face and scratched her cheek in thought. It was nice somewhat being on the same page now and feeling warmed up and dry.

"I mean, maybe this existed way back in the day. But I don't know why it'd be such a big secret since, ya know, everyone in my time has powers."

Wait, did she mention that part? She couldn't remember.

Confusion flickered across Nikolai’s face, but he waited until Mel was done speaking.

“Okay,” he said slowly. “Well... No, you didn’t mention that everyone has powers in your time and place.” It made sense that no one would be persecuted for it, then. “But I wonder how could that happen. Gifts flow through bloodlines, but there’s no way we’d ever outnumber non-gifted people, let alone have everyone become...” He trailed off before continuing. “Actually, our numbers are declining, not increasing. That likely won’t change.”

Maybe his thoughts would be clearer in the morning, but this couldn’t wait. Mel didn’t really seem tired at all. In fact, he believed that she could probably keep going for hours. Meanwhile, he could count on one hand the hours of sleep he’d gotten tonight and he knew that wasn’t enough. Where did she get all that bubbly energy from?

Nikolai took another sip of tea. Thank goodness it was caffeinated.

“There could be some censorship of history involved,” he said thoughtfully. “Because— well, you saw what I just did. And if we were at the guild meeting that’s happening in a few days, you’d see so much more. Magic’s definitely real in this time and place.” He shrugged. “So yeah, I guess the future isn’t really aware of that then.”