Young Writers Society

I looked the boy up and down. He was dressed in a shabby uniform, probably from a school. He had brown hair and hazel eyes, he was about thirteen, and short for his age. He didn’t look like much, but the Academy had recruited him, so he had to have some hidden gift. He must be a mage, maybe even a Flicker.

When he set eyes on me, he blanched, but tried to cover his shock. I narrowed my eyes. Something about me had scared him. He probably hadn’t seen someone my age with white hair, or someone with silver eyes, but that wasn’t enough to make him this nervous.

“Thørn Feltrix, this is Alsari the Stoneshaper,” a man introduced us. “And I’m Quint.” Quint offered a handshake, which I ignored.

“What are these two here for, Solar?” I asked the illusion.

“Mr. Feltrix is here for the same reason you are. To learn the purpose of the Eternian Academy,” Solar said. “And Quint is here to make sure you don’t kill someone.” Kyra dissipated into thin air, and the guard left the room.

I thought Feltrix was going to faint. “Relax,” I said, shooting a look at Thørn. “I’m not going to kill anyone.” For some reason, the boy didn’t look comforted.

“Thørn is a telepath,” Quint explained. “He knows about your, er, conflict with the soldiers.”

“Ah.” Well, that explained things. “A telepath.” Mind control was a very hard and frustrating ability to fight. If Kyra thought Quint could stop both a telepath and me, then Thørn either had little to no knowledge of his magic, or Quint was someone I wouldn't want to fight. Or both.

“So…” Quint said. “Shall we begin?”

“With what?” I asked.

“You still don’t know the real purpose of the Academy,” Quint explained. “I’m here to change that.”

“I’d assume that the purpose of any academy would be to teach,” Thørn said. “But that’s not the case, is it?”

“Well, yes and no,” Quint said, failing to explain anything. “One of the primary purposes of the Eternian Academy is to train mages. But that’s not it’s only purpose. The Eternian Academy was formed to protect the Myriad.”

I groaned. I’d met many such self-righteous groups seeking to protect the multiverse. On the other hand, this casual mention of the Myriad meant that either Thørn or Quint, even both, were Flickers.

Quint continued. “We-”

“I’m going to stop you there,” I said, cutting him off. “On every world, someone thinks that the Myriad needs saving, and that they can help. I’ve heard this speech before, I’m sure I’ll hear it again, but I don’t need to hear it now. There are countless organizations who try to accomplish the same thing you are, and none of them are going to succeed. I’m not saying it’s not a good goal, it’s just not achievable. The Myriad is filled with violence and death. No one’s going to change that.”

“You’re wrong,” Quint said.

“Are you telling me you think an operation on one world is enough to help an entire multiverse?”

“No. That’s impossible, but it’s not what you’re wrong about,” Quint said. “There aren’t countless organizations trying to protect the Myriad. In fact, I can tell you the exact number: one. The Eternian Academy. We aren’t just on Archora, we stretch across the Myriad; every group dedicated to protecting the Myriad is one section of the Eternian Academy. We’re everywhere, Alsari. You’ve seen us many times without even knowing we were there. Now we’re revealing ourselves to you, and we need your help.”

That was interesting. If what Quint said was true, and I had no reason to believe it was, then the Eternian Academy was much more formidable than I had considered them before.

“Revealing is a delicate way of putting it,” I growled.

Quint grimaced. “I know Regent Kyra’s methods can be….questionable-”

“Questionable?” Thørn interrupted. “I was kidnapped!”

“-But there is no doubt in my mind that she has noble intent.”

“What good does intent do if she’s kidnapping people off the streets?” I asked.

“You were a special case, almost unique,” Quint murmured. He seemed to feel honest sadness about Solar’s methods. “You’re a Flicker, and a very dangerous one. We couldn’t take any chances.”

“What about me?” Thørn drawled from the corner. “I don’t seem to remember a lot of negotiation during my capture.”

“You’re recruitment-” Thørn raised an eyebrow. “Required a significant amount of negotiation. Just not with you. We discussed it in great detail with your parents, who decided that this was what’s best for you.”

“I have a hard time believing that.”

“They wanted you to have something they couldn’t,” Quint said. “If you had remained with them, you would have made a mistake, revealed your powers, and been snatched by the Royal Guard. You never would have learned you were a Flicker. Even if you had managed to keep them hidden, your life would have been an unremarkable one. You would have remained working class, fighting to stay out of poverty, and remain uneducated to your potential.”

“So, let me get this straight,” he said. “You think that it’s a great idea to uproot children from everything they’ve ever known without him having any knowledge of what’s happening?”

“I know that many of the Regent’s are wrong,” Quint repeated. “But the Myriad is a better place for the Eternian Academy being there.” Quint sighed. “We need people like you. People who can make actual changes in the Myriad, and will continue to do so for a long time to come. I know nothing I say will convince you that joining the Academy is the right choice, all I ask is that you think it over.”