Young Writers Society

"I don't think it can say anything else," Kyle softly said.

As if proving his point, the apparition once again replied with, "What are you doing here?"

Kyle wondered, for a moment, what it would be like to become like that, forever caught in the moment of his death. He wondered if he'd ever had the chance to. The thought was the briefest of thoughts and vanished almost as soon as it had appeared, but it still had existed for a notable period of time.

"So do we go Ghostbusters on it?" Jo whispered. She mulled her own question. "How would we go Ghostbusters on it?"

“I don’t know what that means.” Estella Fay blocked Heliodor Everett from the apparition. “But I hope that it allows us to keep walking.”

Heliodor Everett peered around Estella Fay’s shoulder. “It doesn’t look solid. I doubt it’s capable of harm.”

Estella Fay shrugged. “Do you really want to take that chance?”

Heliodor Everett sidestepped Estella Fay. “I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

Jo stared at the ghost.

"Ghosts are definitely able to harm people," she said, shivering. "That's what makes them so scary!"

Kyle glanced over at them. For the briefest of moments, their eyes met. Jo couldn't help but remember the last time the two of them had been in a truly dangerous situation, and how Kyle had given her the same exact look to calm her down. It had been different, then. There was a danger, but only to Kyle. The constructs didn't know they were a mutant because their power let them hide that, and Kyle was all too used to the pain at that point.

If there was a danger here, Kyle's look said now, he'd take the brunt of it.

"I'll go first," he offered.

Before anyone could argue, Kyle stepped forward and walked towards the ghost. Jo held her breath as he got closer and closer. The ghost watched his every move, repeating just once the question it had already asked.

And then Kyle safely got by, and Jo realized that there really was no danger at all.

They took a deep breath and rushed after Kyle.

Estella Fay sighed in relief. “Thank the heavens.” She crossed herself. “I’ve never been the fighter.”

Heliodor Everett shrugged. “Just because something appears frightening doesn’t mean it is threatening.”

Estella Fay scoffed. “I’m glad you recognize that! Why don’t you pass that message along to your dear Prime Minister before he plans another genocide over a spot of tea.”

Heliodor Everett blinked, his posture slouching inwards ever so slightly. He averted his gaze. “Let’s keep going. There has to be a town somewhere.”

Estella Fay nodded. “I sure hope so, because the idea of being stuck in an endless spirit-riddled forest isn’t exactly pleasant.”

Jo skid to a halt.

"Another genocide?" they repeated, a sick feeling forming in their stomach. They had gotten the idea that Heliodor and Estella were on two opposing sides. She was also more willing to trust Estella, just based on her apparently knowing more about alis than Heliodor did.

But they hadn't realized how bad things were back in that alternate Earth.

"Jo," Kyle said, softly, with an unusual kindness that only sounded unusual if you didn't know what the two of them had been through together.

Jo ignored him.

"You've been through a genocide," Jo said. The question was more for Heliodor, but she left it vague enough that Estella could answer, too. "Against who? And why?"

Estella Fay shook her head. “You want to tell them what happened with the igni or should I?”

Heliodor Everett opened his mouth to respond.

“Or the Ukayans. Or what’s happening with the subterras right now. Or, you know, the alis!”

Heliodor Everett’s ears turned bright red. “Yes! I know! The Prime Minister is awful and all of those that came before him were too. But I don’t exactly have a choice here, Estella Fay! Not if-“ He paused, the color draining from his face just as quickly as it appeared. “I apologize. That was inappropriate.”

His face went back to its usual neutrality as he shaved his hands into his pockets.

"Not for what?" Jo said, a dangerous tone lacing their voice. Kyle had no problems with letting them continue with this after hearing how many different genocides had apparently occurred.

Mutopia had a policy after the Dark Year. Its leaders got that people were forced to do bad things during such dangerous times if it meant surviving, and didn't care as long as they worked to become better people and help instead of hurt. But to hear that there were so many genocides, and to hear that Heliodor was complicit...

It angered Kyle.

Estella Fay crossed her arms. “Finish your sentence, Heliodor Everett. Share with the group.”

Heliodor Everett eyes darted from Estella Fay to Kyle to Jo. He was used to anger, but anger like this meant getting hurt. He took a deep breath in a vain attempt to calm himself down, but his hands were trembling now.

Estella Fay gestured for him to speak. “Well?”

“Because I’ll die, Estella Fay!” Heliodor Everett laughed bitterly. “Because Alis Lords are bred to do exactly one thing. They get elected to the House of Lords and they sit next to the Prime Minister and smile and agree with everything he says or he will make you regret being born.”

He couldn’t catch his breath. Why couldn’t he catch his breath? “He’ll- he’ll-“ He was gasping for air now, his own chest crushing his lungs.

Jo refused to feel bad for Heliodor Everett, right up until the moment he looked like he was having a panic attack. She glanced at Kyle, who seemed to be having the same conflicted feelings. It seemed like Heliodor Everett was in a position of power, but one where he couldn't do a whole lot. Jo didn't know enough about their alternate world to guess if that was really true, but still. Jo didn't want to be the kind of person who would just watch someone have a panic attack.

"It's okay," Jo said, all of the anger gone from their voice. After a pause, she reached a hand out and put it on his shoulder. She wasn't sure if the touch would help or not, but she hoped it would ground him. "Your PM's not here right now."

"He can't hurt you here," Kyle added, voice ever so slightly quieter than Jo's.

Estella Fay sighed, her face twitching. “I’m sorry. Malvis told me that none of you had any say. I shouldn’t have placed the blame on you.”

Heliodor Everett shook his head. He was fighting to erase the fear from his face, but it kept coming back stronger. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what’s happening.” He dug his nails into his wrist. “I don’t want to do this. I never wanted to work for him. But I tried. I tried and it keeps going wrong.”

Estella Fay put a hand on his other shoulder. “Hey, you’re not there right now. You’re here, where you do have a choice.”

He shook his head.

"You're safe here," Kyle insisted.

"I agree," Jo said. She gave his shoulder a comforting squeeze. "None of us are going to go back to your world and report you to him. As far as he knows, this whole adventure we're currently in never happened. You get to be you right now."

Heliodor Everett hesitated. This was who he was. He grew up knowing nothing else. His father was a Lord who worshiped the ground the previous Prime Minister had walked on, and everyone expected he do the same.

But did that have to be who he was?

Maybe today he’d pretend to be anything else. He could pretend to be brave, wanted, good. One moment of not being someone’s pet until it all came crashing down when he left. But he was used to finding solace in small moments.

He nodded. “Alright.”

Jo smiled and removed their hand.

"Good," she said. They clapped their hands together. "Now, let's get back to exploring this spooky, creepy forest!"

"That's repetitive," Kyle noted. It took Jo a moment to realize Kyle was teasing her, and another moment for her to give him an offended look.

"I'm not trying to write a song right now," Jo said. "I can be as repetitive as I want!"

"I thought the whole point of a song was to be repetitive. Have you ever heard a sea shanty?" Estella Fay ducked under a branch. "Those are very repetitive. Are songs written differently in your world?"

"I don't think she was being serious." Heliodor Everett wiped his face. "Though, I suppose I could be wrong."

"Oh, no," Jo clarified. "They're repetitive in our world sometimes, too. I just like challenging myself by making them not as repetitive. Or using more creative descriptions, at least."

Kyle knew that well enough. She had forced him to listen to her song drafts all throughout their time together in the Dark Year. He probably knew their songwriting methods better than most people did at this point.