by Matthew Ward
“Oh yeah. That nonsense. None of that is going to save us.”
Drystn let out an exasperated gasp and asked, “Then why are you even here? Leave if you don’t think there’s any hope. Go live the rest of your short life in happiness and stop distracting the people who want to help.”
“Did you know we’re so obsessed with spior methods that no one has tried making some giant sharp object and just stabbing it to death?”
Drystn grunted. He wasn’t sure if it was shock or anger or suspicion. In any event, this conversation was over. He traveled outward to the fifth circular hallway and then arced around until he found the appropriate number. That idea haunted him. Were they really so steeped in their own preconceived notions of what would work that no one had tried the obvious?
Drystn found the room and felt like he was the last to everything. Loegr and Ninml were both already seated in the room. He didn’t know what to expect, and a chill of anxiety ran through him. The small room had four tables in it and a small darkstone board at the front. Three older researchers stood near it discussing something under their breath.
None were much older than them, and their robes indicated that each focal point was represented. After Drystn sat, the soilist took charge by flapping his robes to get their attention.
He said, “These lectures will take several days, so don’t be too excited to get out of here. We will present a comprehensive covering of everything that has been discovered. To be perfectly honest, it’s not much. In brief, basically everything obvious has been tried, and none of it worked. Let’s begin.”
Drystn had trouble paying attention after a point. The ideas were so similar and monotonous. It was impossible to remember any of it; this tea or that dirt was infused with various amounts of spior and dropped down the pit. They would then watch the bairsgn for any sort of reaction, and when nothing seemed to happen, they would move on to try something else.
Despite the pessimistic news, Drystn felt the drive of being an overachiever kick in. He tuned out the teachers to think on his own. There must be some totally different thing we’re missing. He had no doubt the silly ideas they had already tried wouldn’t lead anywhere.
For all they knew, this was the most powerful being in all of existence. Why would dumping a little tea on it do anything? Humans needed to ingest the tea to make it work. It was insane they even tried that and expected a different result. But this thought led Drystn to an interesting idea. Did the bairsgn eat? Could they find some hole in its body to get tea or poison inside of it?
Before long, the session wrapped up for the day, and Drystn looked over at his friends. They appeared to be as zonked out from the process as he was. The instructors explained they would reconvene the next day. They left, and Drystn laid his head on his arms and closed his eyes. He wanted to sleep for several days in a row. The thought of doing this again the next day pained him.
He sensed two towering figures over him, but he didn’t want to move.
Loegr said, “We have to get out of here.”
This perked up Drystn. He asked, “What? What do you mean?”
“I mean, we live in Talamir City now. Let’s go explore the town and get good food for once. When was the last time you ate at a restaurant?”
“I don’t know. Maybe never?”
Drystn gulped. He meant it as a joke, but he realized it might be true. The village of his childhood didn’t have any restaurants, and then the school in the Ninth Ring didn’t either. He couldn’t recall if his family had ever journeyed to Talamir City.
Loegr said, “That settles it. We’re going.”
“But aren’t you exhausted? Don’t you just want to curl up somewhere and hope this all goes away? It seems utterly hopeless to me. How are we going to come up with anything?”
Ninml tried to help. “You’re just hungry. Let’s go. Plus, we’re employees of the government now. We make real money for the first time in our lives!” She looked at Loegr. “No offense, but I’m tired of you paying for me all the time.”
The thought of eating in a real restaurant did sound exciting. The three moved through the mianl building, yet again, to get outside. The mianl structure intimated a less claustrophobic sensation this time. The transparency of the mianl created a sense of openness he hadn’t noticed before. Still, he tried not to think about it too much. Without actual windows, he always felt like they were deprived of air.
Awe struck him as he looked up. Drystn could see the stars through the roof. The vastness of the sky stretched forever without the cliffs nearby. He was already starting to feel a bit better.
Drystn said, “We probably shouldn’t explore too much. It’s already dark. We should do it in the day when we can see better.”
Ninml teased, “We’ll be fine. Why are you always so afraid of everything? I’m beginning to think you’re afraid of the dark.”
Drystn didn’t rise to the bait. Plus, he thought he’d give himself away if he tried to deny it. He was afraid of a lot of things no one else seemed to mind, darkness being one of them.
The city bustled as before, which surprised him; he thought it would settle down at night. Grass lamps hung everywhere, giving the impression of the night sky in the streets.
The more they walked, the more Drystn realized how conspicuous they were. Most people’s clothing consisted of drab, colorless tunics. Their robes still had a new, bright vibrancy to them. It also probably looked strange that a full trio of spiorists moved together. Spiorists tended to stay within their focal points when socializing.
They moved through the streets looking for a restaurant of some sort. Loegr led the way, even though Drystn doubted he had any idea where he was headed. The streets had the same circular grid pattern as inside Talamir Center. One set of roads made large circles all the way around the lake. The other set radiated directly outward. Sometimes buildings came together in awkward angles and created smaller, less regular alleyways.
Loegr paused at a particularly dark one and looked around with a confused look on his face. A beat of silence passed, then he headed into the alley. Drystn wished he would just admit he was lost. He had a bad feeling about this. He couldn’t even see the other side.
Unlike the previous main road, this was unlit and void of people. The creeping sense of being watched reemerged along Drystn’s back. Why would Loegr move off the main road when they had no idea where they were headed? They would never find a restaurant back here. Loegr stopped so abruptly, the trailing two almost slammed into Loegr’s raised warning arm.
He whispered, “Wait.”
They stood still, and in the new silence Drystn could barely hear some whispered voices.
A man’s quivering voice said, “Are you sure you can do it? This is a lot of money.”
Drystn’s eyes started to adjust, and he could now see two figures in the shadows. One wore the robes of a spiorist, and the other wore common clothes. But why would a spiorist engage in some shady transaction back here? Spiorists took vows not to do this sort of thing. They were public servants and forbidden to engage in private monetary transactions for their services.
The spiorist said, “Don’t worry. I’ve done this hundreds of times.”
The three stood, barely breathing, trying to figure out what they were seeing. Drystn realized they were locked in at this point. If they tried to go back now, they would probably make too much noise and get caught. They couldn’t even converse with each other.
The common man asked, “How many years do you think it will add to my life?”
“Many. At least five for what you paid. I’ve collected a lot of excess spior for this, and I’m going to give it all to you.”
Drystn wracked his brain to make sense of the conversation but couldn’t figure it out. Loegr moved toward the two men with rapid speed. Drystn tried to grab the hood of his robe to stop him. They could have knives or weapons of some kind. Loegr could be seriously injured. They had no idea what these shady people were capable of.
/> Loegr shouted, “Wait! Don’t do anything.”
The robed man looked over at the trio, and recognition flashed in his eyes. Real spiorists had shown up. The robed man ran out of the alley, and Loegr sprinted up to the common man who stood aloof and trembling. He certainly hadn’t expected three spiorists to show up in this dark alley.
Loegr’s voice turned calm, and Drystn felt his heart flutter. How could he be so brave and dominant yet calm and gentle?
Loegr asked, “Are you okay? Did you give him any money?”
The man barely choked out the words. “No, not yet.”
Loegr said, “Good. He was scamming you. That wasn’t a real spiorist.”
Ninml and Drystn edged closer to the scene now that it had settled. The man gave them a suspicious look.
The man asked, “What do you mean? How can you tell?”
Loegr let out a loud groan. “Do you go to a spiorist church?”
“Yes. Of course.”
“Don’t they teach you that spior can only be moved like with like through the three focal points? Humans are not a focal point. Spior cannot be moved to or from humans.” Loegr turned back to the other two. He spoke under his breath. “People will believe anything if they think it will make them live longer.” Drystn thought this rude, because the guy would be able to hear him.
The man said, “Thank you. How can I repay you? You just saved me a ton of money.”
Loegr turned back. “No need. It is our duty as spiorists to keep the public informed about this sort of thing. But please, if you know anyone else who is thinking about doing this, don’t let them go through with it.”
The guy muttered, “Yes. Of course.” He seemed to have had enough excitement for one night and scurried off. The three followed at a distance until they came to the end of the alley. They continued their quest for a restaurant.
Drystn asked, “How did you realize what was going on so quickly? When you rushed in to save that guy, I still had no idea what I was seeing.”
“Well, those types of scams were pretty common where I grew up, so I knew it was a possibility before I even heard them speak.”
Ninml couldn’t resist. “But why did you even go down that alley when we were looking for a restaurant. Didn’t you think it might be dangerous with no lighting?”
“Aw, come on. Did that seem dangerous to you?”
Ninml and Drystn looked at each other and then replied in unison. “Yes.”
“Oh. Well, maybe you couldn’t see from back there, but I saw the guy go in the alley, and what can I say, I was curious. Maybe a local knew of some hidden gem restaurant.”
Drystn didn’t buy it, but he didn’t say anything either. They rounded a corner, and a vast nighttime metropolis opened up in front of them. People of all sorts hung out on the streets and waited in lines to get into buildings. Signs advertised dancing, music, alcohol, and food.
For the first time in his life, Drystn understood the variety of the human experience. A man sat slumped over against a grimy wall, covered in dirt. He held out his hand in hope of some money. A woman in fine, elegant cloth walked right by without even noticing. She would probably spend enough money in the dance club to feed the man for a week. A dull ache formed in Drystn’s chest as he watched the scene play out.
He wasn’t sure he wanted to know about these hard truths. They suddenly seemed as painful and damaging as the bairsgn.
Drystn asked, “Did you know this was over here?”
Loegr said, “Lucky guess?”
Drystn knew Loegr came from different stock, but he was beginning to realize just how different their upbringing had been. They wandered down the street, glancing at a few potential restaurants. Loegr turned to them when they reached one.
“Does this one seem all right?”
Ninml said, “Sure.”
Drystn nodded. He wouldn’t be able to pick it out from the rest if he were to return. They all looked the same to him.
They entered a building well lit by fancy spior infused mianl chandeliers. A man at the front seated them in the busy restaurant. He handed them finely woven grass paper with a menu printed in decorative calligraphy. Drystn read through the choices and realized he didn’t know what most of the foods were.
He asked Loegr, “Do you understand this?”
“Sure. What one do you want to know about?”
“All of them?”
They laughed. The intense scene from a few moments ago had already faded, and they looked as relaxed as ever. Loegr walked them through the menu. There were many types of fish and mussels and vegetables Drystn hadn’t heard of. They even had fish mead, which he was excited to try as an alternative to the disgusting cheap grass wine he was used to.
The waiter returned just as Loegr finished explaining it all. Drystn picked at random. It would probably be amazing no matter what it turned out to be. He couldn’t wait to learn about all this stuff in the world he had been missing out on. Maybe living in Talamir Center wouldn’t be so bad.
Ninml turned serious after the waiter left. She seemed to have been holding something in the whole time.
With a stern look at Loegr, she said, “So I have to confront you about what you told that man in the alley. I agree that it was an obvious scam, but you also told him that spior has to be transferred like with like. How can you say that after what we saw today? There are clearly forces out there that can move spior around and even steal it from humans.”
Loegr replied, “You know. I’ve been thinking about that a lot since we saw it. I don’t think the bairsgn changes anything. The laws of spior still hold true. Well, for humans at the very least. For a human to move spior, it must be like with like, and through a focal point. That creature, if it’s even alive, isn’t like anything we’ve ever seen, so why should the same laws apply to it?”
Ninml said, “Because we’ve been told our whole lives that spior has these unbreakable laws associated with it. Now I’m just confused. Should we be questioning more?”
“No. Come on. This is obviously different.”
But Drystn wasn’t so sure, and something about the way Loegr defended the laws made Drystn think he only did it out of duty. Drystn kept changing his mind. Questioning everything seemed to be the best way to come up with something new to defeat the bairsgn; but he feared questioning too much would lead him too far toward his roommate’s aspiorist position.
A loud laugh came from across the room, breaking Drystn’s thoughts. All three heads snapped over in synchrony. Two soilists sat at the bar. They were drunk from the sounds of it. The more sober one noticed that several heads had turned toward them. He tapped the other on the shoulder and pointed to Drystn’s table. Drystn guessed it was rare to encounter other spiorists in these places. Talamir City was so large, and there were so few researchers.
The one said something to the other, and they both got up and walked with the jagged walk of a drunkard.
When they got to the table, disturbing many other diners in the process, one of them said, “Hey. Can we join you? You’re the new crew aren’t you?”
Loegr, ever loquacious, couldn’t resist. “Join us. We could use some experienced researcher friends.”
The two seemed friendly enough, but meeting someone for the first time drunk was not the best first impression. The drunk guy spoke a bit too loudly again.
“So did you see it today? The creeping death?”
Loegr whispered back, “Yeah.” He quickly glanced around the room to see if anyone else had heard. They couldn’t talk about this in public that loudly. It was supposed to remain a secret. But everyone appeared to be back to their own meals and conversations.
The drunk one said, “What do you think about it?”
The sober one gave him a weird look. “Don’t go putting your ideas into their heads.”
Ninml leaned forward, a curiosity flicking behind her eyes.
She asked, “What? Now you have to tell us. Do you know what it is?”
The drunk one jumped back in. “We have no idea, but we have the only theory that makes sense.”
She said, “Well, don’t waste all night. What’s the theory?” After a day of unsolved questions, Drystn couldn’t fault her for being ready for some answers.
The drunk guy replied, “I think the Ruler created the bairsgn to steal spior and transfer it to himself so that he can live forever.”
Drystn sat in silence. He was stunned that someone would say a blasphemous thing in a public space. They could get in big trouble, maybe even jailed, for such an accusation. Neither Loegr nor Ninml seemed to have a response to that either.
The sober one laughed and said, “They’re speechless.”
Ninml got her wits about her first. “Why would you say that? Do you have any evidence for it?”
“Not really, but we’ve both seen some highly suspicious behavior.”
Loegr said, “Wait a minute. Your theory makes no sense at all. Why would he hire the best minds to destroy it if he created it?”
He let out a loud, drunk laugh, causing heads to turn again. The man noticed and waited for privacy before speaking.
He said to his friend, “They’re smart.” He looked Loegr in the eye. “Maybe he knows it can’t be destroyed by humans, so he is doing this to make it seem like he wants it gone and no one will suspect the truth.”
Drystn’s head spun. He was still trying to figure this out. He thought Loegr’s objection made sense, so he tried to bolster it.
Drystn said, “No. I don’t buy it. If it can be created by a human, then it can be destroyed by a human. The best minds would have figured out a way to destroy it in that case. Plus, he can’t be doing this to throw people off, or he’s not doing a very good job, because you suspect him.”
The two older men laughed again. It grated on Drystn’s nerves that they would laugh at such serious and treasonous talk.
The sober one continued, “Unfortunately, you don’t know what I’ve seen. I can’t say I believe my own theory for certain, but what I saw was pretty damning. I’ll show you sometime.”